These are the introspective reflections of a Christian libertarian, (the philosophy not necessarily the political party) Afro-American male. As we use this space to share our observations it is my hope that we can, one precious moment at a time, become the fulfillment of our Divine DNA. The blog title comes from the fact that I discovered a passion for writing after being invited to fill the "back page" of a newsletter some years ago. The title celebrates that discovery.
Prayers for political people present some interesting challenges at times. After thinking about this for a time, the following prayer is what I was guided to pray as the invocation where Congresswoman Maxine Waters spoke.
Wednesday, Aug 19, 2009
Speaker: Congresswoman Maxine Waters
Let’s take a moment to recognize the Spirit that unites all of us.
To You who are called by many names -- we take a moment to recognize your presence in our midst. We thank you for this time and this place. In the sacred writings you invite us to “Give to Caesar that which is Caesars’ and give to God that which is God’s.
In that spirit we thank you for the men and women who give of themselves in public service as elected officials. On this day, in the presence of Congresswoman Maxine Waters, we recognize that there are many smart and brilliant people on both sides of the aisle in Washington, in Sacramento and in Los Angeles. In these days of increasingly complex issues, we ask that you would bless them with the wisdom to know what needs to be done and the insight, compassion and reason to know how to do it. As we pray for them we also pray this same prayer for ourselves
Finally as we face the challenges of each day we ask you to help us all to remember the wisdom we first learned in kindergarten. Help us remember to “Stop, to Look, and to Listen.” This we pray. Amen.
It is interesting to see where my mind goes when I step outside of my comfort zone,
and discover what Spirit, through scripture, has to say about the spaces I have chosen to live in.
One of my favorite passages in scripture encourages us to take time out and get away from whatever “normal” is a nd “Be still and know that I am God.” The more I live in that passage the more I come to comprehend the depth of that “I am.” I can measure the quality of my relationships with a person by how comfortable I am in silence with them. In this moment it seems that these are two sides of the same coin.
As we rebuild the physical as well as the spiritual parts of the church I find myself, in response to questions about what we are going to do about (fill in the blank) it was not uncommon to respond by saying some version of “Let’s sit here and let the room/issue/ministry tell us what it is called to be.” It has been interesting to discover the power of the “be still” moment. The more I allow myself to “be still” the more it becomes possible to “know” my surroundings, environment, people, and myself. Being still is my opportunity to become more aware.
This morning I am in something of a “retreat” setting far away from my normal setting. There are many things going on in my mind and spirit just now. The memorial service for Rev. Dr. David Stewart, one of my mentors is today but I am far way and not able to be present for the celebration of his life. It was he who alerted me to what has become an important area of service, that of serving the men and women in uniform. One of David’s areas of service was with the Civil Air Patrol. Today I am in an old building with lots of history in it. I have been told that there is a safe here. Over the years many people have looked for it. So far no one has found it.
Earlier today I was led to sit in front of one of the fireplaces and let the site and my thoughts talk to me. As I did that I became aware that there were several mysteries here. The safe is only one of them. There is, for instance, a door on the outside that leads nowhere. Inside the house that area has been closed off. It is a solid wall. In the fireplace room the entry way leading to the dining room is duplicated on the other side of the fireplace. Instead of leading into another room the area has been created to hold shelves that display artwork, books and other “homey” kinds of things. The more I looked at this particular room the more it offered clues about why no one has found the safe. Not everything was what it appeared to be. I was, in essence, being told to look beyond the obvious if I wanted to discover the safe and perhaps other mysteries. I wandered around the house for a while and saw many evidences of what Paul Harvey would call “The rest of the story.” Walls that appeared to be solid were not. Floors that appeared to be a solid surface were not.
When I think of myself and people I know we are similar to this building. A person who appears to be arch conservative or liberal for instance, often displays a side which reflects the exact opposite of that higher profile persona. A child can sometimes be described as “7 going on 35.” To a person who did not know him, in his uniform as a Civil Air Patrol officer David Stewart could appear formal and distant. Spend only a few moments with him, wearing the uniform or in civilian clothing, and you know him to be a wise and generous man. He shared the experiences of his life with me in ways that I shall be forever grateful. I am sometimes stunned when I discover that my strong “live and let live” spirit is occasionally put aside for a “this is the way it is” spirit. It takes “being still” with ourselves and each other to know the complexities that are within each of us.
As I reflect on this experience I am invited to become gentler with myself and others. Until I have been still with someone there is much I do not know about them. This gives “walking in the shoes of someone else” greater meaning. Given that we are so oriented to sound, talking and activity it may require me to be still with that person without them with me physically. It will be interesting to see how my relationships develop as I become a more dedicated practitioner in the art of being still.
It is interesting to see where my mind goes when I step outside of my comfort zone,
and discover what Spirit, through scripture, has to say about the spaces I have chosen to live in.
Unless otherwise noted, all scripture passages are from The Message Translation.2
In the past few weeks, I have been having new experiences with old friends. Passages of scripture that I have known and studied have come to life in unexpected ways. It started with looking at the 23rd Psalm. At the time I was studying that familiar passage I was going through a large measure of stress and depression.
One morning I work up and asked myself “For what am I thankful today?” Instantly, I heard myself repeating the Psalm as a declaration of thankfulness.
üI am thankful that, because I choose to be a believer in Jesus the Lord IS my shepherd.”
üI am thankful that BECAUSE the Lord IS my shepherd I shall NOT be in Want.
üI am thankful that BECAUSE the Lord is MY shepherd, I am lead into still waters (where I can be still and know that God IS God).
üI can be thankful that BECAUSE the Lord is MY shepherd, in the face of physical, emotional, or psychological death I need not be in fear because HIS rod and HIS staff will protect and provide comfort as I go through the experience.
As I spoke that Psalm with that thankful spirit my stress level diminished and the depression faded. The challenges that brought that spirit into being were still there, but my attitude about them changed. Whew!
This past week I took a look at the third chapter of the book of Ephesians verses 14-21. Having studied what is usually called “The Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13)”1 It is interesting to note that this chapter lifts up the prayer of the writer for the church at Ephesus and, by extension, Westchester and beyond.
It is also interesting to see how making the mission and vision statement of my church a more conscious part of everything I do is bringing Spirit directed ideas and plans into the church and also into my personal life. I am increasingly aware that better decisions are made by the people in that organization for an organization when there is a strong awareness of the purpose of that organization as expressed in the mission and vision statement.
The writer is concerned about the church at Ephesus but rather than give them a list of “do’s and don’ts, we read that he is praying for them -- praying for them in a very wonderful and special way. The Message translation speaks of it this way: “14-19My response is to get down on my knees before the Father, this magnificent Father who parcels out all heaven and earth. I ask him to strengthen you by his Spirit—not a brute strength but a glorious inner strength—that Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite him in.2
What does he pray for? That the people will be strengthened from the inside to the outside, and do it only as we invite Christ to become an integral part of our being. I loved the fact that this was all about action -- OUR action and God’s response to that action. When we do our part, invite Christ into ourselves, God is ready to do the transforming work within us that leads to a transformation in how we see and experience the world around us. Wow!
He goes on to tell us: And I ask him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you'll be able to take in with all followers of Jesus the extravagant dimensions of Christ's love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives, full in the fullness of God. 2
The result of this prayer is that I will, via my choices, be solidly grounded in the essence of all that God is – LOVE. The invitation then is to DO something. I can’t “reach out” with my arms folded. I can’t be the “living laboratory” of our mission statement if I don’t experiment by testing Spirit led ideas and theories. I can’t live a full life without engaging in an understanding of what it is that I was designed by my creator, to be. I am called to be action oriented. A wise Rabbi said, after marching with Martin Luther King, that he felt like he had, by his actions, put “legs” on his prayers.
The challenge at this point was to rate my life “satisfaction index.” After coming up with that rating and determining my happiness with that rating I had a decision to make. If I was OK with that rating it was “business as usual.” If I was not happy with the “satisfaction index” the question becomes, “What am I willing to do to improve that rating?” The answer to that question will impact every aspect of my life.
The Bible tells me the sixth chapter of Matthews Gospel that if I get my priorities straight and put first things first I can expect a wonderful result. There is no exception clause in that phrase. A companion scripture tells me that if I “Ask” in the manner prescribed in scripture, it will be given to me. I also read that if I am willing to “Seek,” again in the manner prescribed in scripture, I will also “find.” In short, if I am willing to step into a spiritual laboratory of life, I will go though the life experiences that are necessary for my prayers/seeking/asking to come to life. If I am willing to work through each one of those experiences “Yea though I walk THROUGH the valley of (emotional, psychological, spiritual, and yes, physical) death,” I need fear no evil because with a heart of thanksgiving (In every thing give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. 1 Thessalonians 5:18) the ALL that was spoken of earlier WILL come to pass.
Imagine that. The Bible, read as a commentary on itself, is a guide for practical, relevant life as we experience it today. Not bad for stuff that was written thousands of years ago, eh?
The passage concludes with a powerful assurance: 20-21God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us2. Wow. When John-David chooses, (another action step) to align himself with the purposes of the Divine Designer (that would be God) the plan is already in place to give more than can be imagined. Talk about AWESOME? Oh yes.
It fits that the passage reminds me, as I think about what will be left behind when I am no longer on this earth, what the results of taking all of this in and doing the appropriate work that goes with it, will mean.“Glory to God in the church! Glory to God in the Messiah, in Jesus! Glory down all the generations! Glory through all millennia! Oh, yes!2
Thanks God. You have given me the plan.
I choose to get busy and work YOUR plan.
1)Note: This it really is our prayer. It was the model for prayer that Jesus gave for us to use. The prayer of Jesus for US can be found in the 17th chapter of the Gospel of John.
It is interesting to see where my mind goes when I step outside of my comfort zone,
and discover what Spirit, through scripture, has to say about the spaces I have chosen to live in.
In recent days I have been reflecting on a “teaching moment” based on 2 Corinthians chapter 5, and verse 11 of 1 Corinthians 13. These passages invite an exploration of the difference in our spiritual and our chronological ages.
In the first passage Nicodemus is told he must be “born again.” Nicodemus, at that moment, did not understand that Jesus was taking about a spiritual not a physical birthing process. In the second passage after a discourse on examples of what true love means, the writer tells us that when he was a child he spoke and acted like a child. As he became older, he put away childish things and acted maturely.
No one would be happy if a baby remained a baby mentally, emotionally, or physically while it grew older. Couldn’t the same be true of us spiritually?
If we put the majority of our emphasis on our “salvation experience” (a spiritual birth) and very little by comparison, to growing and maturing in our faith, haven’t we in essence, remained spiritual infants?
One indicator of where we are spiritually might include asking ourselves if our life emphasis is inward (self oriented) or external (others oriented).
One hallmark of maturity (physical, emotional, psychological, spiritual) is an increasing awareness of the world around us and our involvement in it. When something happens is our first response, “How does this affect me” or is it “How can I help someone else deal with this in a positive manner?
In the context of these thoughts it helps to look at the difference in “childish” and “childlike” behaviors. Psychologists tell us that maintaining a childlike involvement with life is an important ingredient in maturing. Childlike behavior involves a curiosity about the world around us. New things fascinate a growing, maturing child. Everywhere they go they are looking at and exploring what they see.
How long has it been since there was something new in our lives? Have we tasted a new food, flavor of ice cream, or watched a new TV program lately?
It is my observation that if there is nothing new in our lives over a significant period of time, we may be in danger of ending our growth cycle.
Let’s take a moment and think about the joy we experienced when a child experienced something new and could not wait to tell us about it. Recall the look on their face as they told us, with great excitement, everything they knew about this new thing. Didn’t we enjoy the time and the moment? Weren’t we glad they shared their joy with us? Wasn’t life a little brighter as a result of that precious time?
I think we could have that moment again -- simply by sharing a fresh experience with someone near us.
When Jesus invited Nicodemus to be “born again” I believe he was speaking about new life in ALL of its’ many dimensions. Allowing ourselves to experience a spiritual rebirth takes us from a routine “looking for something to do – one day is the same” existence into a life with a reason to get up on the morning. It can take us from “getting by” to “I can’t wait for the next day to come.”
The same can be true of a physical, emotional and/or psychological rebirth experience.
I don’t observe Jesus being in the world to maintain the status quo. He said he came that we might have life and have it ABUNDANTLY. I'm more than ready to experience a bit more life. Might that be true for you as well?
I am, TODAY committing to experiencing a childlike joy, starting today, by including some new things in my life. In no priority order this is my "Thought Starter" list. I'd love to know what you put on your list.
1.Try a different brand of cereal.
2.Learn a new word or phrase in Spanish.
3.Read a new newspaper/Internet columnist.
4.Read a Bible passage that is unfamiliar to me and do it using a translation other than the four that are my favorites.
5.Look through my closet and find something that I have not worn in a long time and put it on.
6.Call someone with whom I have not spoken in a while.
7.Go for a walk around my block and say “hello” to at least two people that I see.
8.Look closely at something in my surroundings and challenge myself to find something new or long forgotten about, relating to that item.
I noticed that only one of these required an expenditure of money. Everything else required only that I hear and choose to accept the invitation of Jesus to experience a new birth.
I am reminded about the American passion and search for the “Fountain of Youth.” Millions of dollars are spent trying to find that magic potion.
Guess what? That “potion” has been available for thousands of years and we don’t have to spend a penny for it.
The “Fountain of Youth” is available to us if we are willing to accept the invitation given to us. If we are committed to the “tried and true, trying this should be a no brainer.
These blogs are the reflections of a Christian libertarian (the philosophy not necessarily the political party) Afro-American male. Each word identifies, in priority order, an important segment of my life. It is my hope that the segments are well integrated because they invite me to bring a balance of body, mind and spirit to everything I do.
Appreciating and valuing cultural, spiritual, political, and creative diversity are driving forces in my life. Sharing life with and learning from individuals who do not share my perspective has greatly enhanced my life.
As I share my reflections and observations you are invited to share your thoughts on life as you experience it. It is my hope that through our life presentations, we can, one precious moment at a time, become the fulfillment of our Divine DNA. Does that lead me to significant questions? Absolutely!
The blog title comes from the fact that I discovered a passion for writing after being invited to fill the back page of a newsletter some years ago. The “Back Page” title celebrates that discovery.
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