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“F” is for Fasting (Feb. 20, 2013)

Published on February 20, 2013February 11, 2013 by Adam Thomas1 Comment

…Opening To…

We come this morning –
Like empty pitchers to a full fountain,
With no merits of our own.
O Lord – open up a window of heaven,
And lean out far over the battlements of glory,
And listen this morning. (James Weldon Johnson)

…Listening In…

And when you fast, don’t put on a sad face like the hypocrites. They distort their faces so people will know they are fasting. I assure you that they have their reward. When you fast, brush your hair and wash your face. Then you won’t look like you are fasting to people, but only to your Father who is present in that secret place. Your Father who sees in secret will reward you. (Matthew 6:16-18; context)

…Filling Up…

This Lent, we are exploring our faith by running through the alphabet. Today, “F” is for Fasting. A fast is a way to make a space, to open up a hole within ourselves. A fast is an active and difficult denial of something that has influence over us (traditionally food, though fasts certainly are not limited to that area). When we fast, we forgo the things that we usually use to fill us up. And when we cease to fill ourselves up with all the junk of the world, we make room within ourselves for God.

Fasting intentionally opens up a hole for God to fill. When you move, you always have boxes piled up for a while. But then you unpack a little bit at a time and then sooner or later you can walk around the house unhindered by all our stuff. This is what fasting does for us. When we clear away the rubbish that has piled up in our interior selves, we make a space for God to come in and dwell. And the more interior square footage we devote to God, the better we will be able to listen and respond to God’s movement in our lives.

If you tend to fill yourself up with stuff you don’t really need, then don’t buy anything beyond basic necessity. If you tend to fill yourself up with worry about the security of your livelihood, then stop and pray when you find anxiety setting in. If you tend to fill yourself up with desire to live as the rich and famous do, then skip the grocery aisle magazine racks and E! Entertainment for a while.

As you deny yourself the things that normally fill you up, actively invite God to enter the newly cleared space. Choose to fast. Clear away the rubbish, hollow out your insides, and give God a place to fill.

…Praying For…

Dear God, you are present both within me and around me. Help me to make more room for you to fill within so that I can listen more closely to your voice. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, taking hope in the overarching reality that you are the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.

“E” is for Enthusiasm (Feb. 19, 2013)

Published on February 19, 2013February 11, 2013 by Adam Thomas1 Comment

…Opening To…

…Listening In…

“…Whoever does the truth comes to the light so that it can be seen that their actions were done in God.” (John 3:21; context)

…Filling Up…

This Lent, we are exploring our faith by running through the alphabet. Today, “E” is for Enthusiasm. You might be wondering why I chose this word since, at first glance, it doesn’t seem all that religion-y. You’re right – we don’t use this word too often in church. But we should. Do you see the “T-H-U-S” in the middle of the word? Good. If you follow these letters all the way back in time to ancient Greece, they would have looked like this “θεος” or in our alphabet, “theos.” Look familiar? I’ll give you a clue: we get the words “theology” and “atheism” from this same word.

Right! It means “God.” (Theology is the “study of God,” and atheism is “disbelief in God,” (the “a-” making the word negative).) So, let’s go back to our original word: enthusiasm. When we say we are enthusiastic about something, we usually mean that we are excited or passionate about that something. I am enthusiastic about playing guitar and watching Doctor Who, for example.

But if you look at that little Greek root and add the little Greek prefix (“-en” meaning “in”), you get a bit different definition. Etymologically, “enthusiasm” means “in God.” Therefore, when we talk about our passions and excitements, what we are really saying is “these are the ways that I most clearly notice that I am in God.” Pretty cool, huh?

So, what are your passions? What are you enthusiastic about? How do you meet your Creator when you get involved with them?

…Praying For…

Dear God, you are within me even as I exist always in you. Help me to find those things that bring me closer to you, and help me recognize your presence in my life. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, taking hope in the overarching reality that you are the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.

“D” is for Destiny (Feb. 18, 2013)

Published on February 18, 2013February 11, 2013 by Adam ThomasLeave a comment

…Opening To…

…Listening In…

The human mind plans the way, but the LORD directs the steps. (Proverbs 16:9; context)

…Filling Up…

This Lent, we are exploring our faith by running through the alphabet. Today, “D” is for Destiny. Destiny is an oft-misunderstood concept. Many would say that “destiny” is the final and ultimate way that your life will transpire no matter what you do to it: you can’t escape destiny, they say. This is the “Darth Vader” understanding of the concept. He tells Luke Skywalker several times that it is Luke’s destiny to switch over to the Dark Side of the Force; seemingly, there’s nothing Luke can do about it.

The other side of the coin says that there’s no such thing as destiny. Instead, we all make our own way; we all have self-determination, which trumps destiny every time. This is the “Han Solo” understanding of the concept. He tells Luke that hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at Luke’s side. His intent is clear: I make my own rules, and I’m not beholden to any particular path.

A proper understanding of destiny falls somewhere between these two extremes. It is true that we cannot escape our destinies. However, this inescapable nature does not mean that we haven’t a chance of influencing that destiny. God’s directing creativity stands as the framework in which all our destinies exist. And this directing creativity includes our self-determination. Therefore, we cannot escape destiny because we are always choosing it. So ask God in your prayers to help you make your choices, for each one will impact the person you are becoming.

…Praying For…

Dear God, you are foundation for all life and your boundless creativity has given me this unique life. Help me to use this life in the ways in which you would desire for me to live. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, taking hope in the overarching reality that you are the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.

“C” is for Confession (Feb. 15, 2013)

Published on February 15, 2013February 11, 2013 by Adam ThomasLeave a comment

…Opening To…

…Listening In…

You prompt us yourself to find satisfaction in appraising you, since you made us tilted toward you, and our heart is unstable until stabilized in you. (St. Augustine, trans. Gary Willis)

…Filling Up…

This Lent, we are exploring our faith by running through the alphabet. Today, “C” is for Confession. Now, when you think of confession, I’d be willing to bet that the first thing that springs to mind is that wooden phone booth looking thing that you find in Roman Catholic churches. True, those are called “confessionals.” And one of the definitions of “confession” has to do with making known one’s sins to a member of the clergy and seeking absolution. But I want to take a bit more of an expansive stab at “confession.”

One of the books on the Church’s all-time bestseller list is St. Augustine’s Confessions. Now, if this book were a couple hundred pages of Augustine spilling his sins on the page, it would never have sold so well. Rather, Augustine uses a larger understanding of the concept of “confession.” The book is not strictly an autobiography, and it’s not a list of sins. The Confessions is Augustine’s prayerful reflection on God’s movement in his life. It is his witness to the overwhelming manner in which God changed that life. This is what confession is – the externalizing of an internal relationship, the proclamation of things hidden within.

In Augustine’s case, he uses his Confessions as a witness to other Christians. For modern followers of Jesus, our confessions happen when we make our faith in God known through our words and deeds. In a court setting, one confesses one’s guilt and awaits punishment. In a church setting, one confesses one’s life – the sin, the guilt, the success, the failure, the joy, the hardship, the love, the service – and awaits not punishment, but further instruction.

…Praying For…

Dear God, your movement in my life gives me something to confess. Help me to be unafraid to confess my faith in you and to let that faith transform me. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, taking hope in the overarching reality that you are the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.

“B” is for Brokenness (Feb. 14, 2013)

Published on February 14, 2013February 11, 2013 by Adam ThomasLeave a comment

…Opening To…

…Listening In…

The sacrifice of God is a troubled spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. (Psalm 51:18; context)

…Filling Up…

This Lent, we are exploring our faith by running through the alphabet. Today, “B” is for brokenness. When I was a kid, I used to play this game that made the other three members of my family groan. I would take a cookie and break it in half. Then, I would stick the two halves together, hold them up, and ask, “Is it together or apart?” After a few years of this, my sister, mom, and dad made a pact with each other that they wouldn’t answer when I asked the question. Eventually I stopped. Then I became a priest, and now I spend my Sunday mornings tearing loaves of bread in half. And these loaves are most definitely “apart.” (Oh, God’s cosmic humor.)

When we break the bread during Holy Communion, we do so because there is no other way to share it. We break the bread in order that, over the course of a lifetime (and an afterlifetime), we may find wholeness in the God who dwells in that very bread. Church is for broken people. It would be for whole people, too, but there aren’t any of those. You see, every one of us is broken, and you might think this is bad news. But it’s not.

Broken things – like vases or radiators – have cracks in them. Broken people do, too. And it is through these cracks that God shines into and out from us. God is with us in our brokenness, repairing us so that we might one day participate with God in our rebuilding. As God remodels the cracks out us of, God leaves windows behind, through which to shine.

Know that God is with you in your brokenness. God loves you no matter how broken you may be. And like a bone that heals back stronger after a break, our brokenness gives God the opportunity to come in and make us better.

…Praying For…

Dear God, you are whole and you are holy. Help me to allow you to continue to create me into a less broken person, who always chooses the paths that lead to wholeness. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, taking hope in the overarching reality that you are the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.

“A” is for Ashes (February 13, 2013)

Published on February 13, 2013February 11, 2013 by Adam Thomas1 Comment

…Opening To…

…Listening In…

Listen, I’m telling you a secret: all of us won’t die, but we will all be changed— in an instant, in the blink of an eye, at the final trumpet. (1 Corinthians 15:51-52; context)

…Filling Up…

This Lent, we are exploring our faith by running through the alphabet. Today, “A” is for ashes.

“Ashes to ashes, dust to dust,” the priest says as he or she scrapes two lines of grit on the forehead. Two lines of soot, of the debris that’s left after the fire is gone. Now, the fire consumes, but it does not annihilate. The fire converts the material fuel into energy and burns with heat and light. When it dies out, the ash remains. The ash is the remnant of the material, the leftover stuff that did not change from matter into energy.

This is the symbol of the beginning of Lent, the season in which we recall all the ways we have fallen short of our callings as human beings, in which we recall why we need Christ in the first place. The two lines of ash make a cross, a device of torture and death that Christ changed into a symbol of hope and life. The keyword here is change.

The fire changes the fuel into energy and leaves the ashes. We take those ashes and make the sign of the cross on our foreheads. In the same way, walking with Christ changes us. We burn with the light of Christ. We burn with the energy that Jesus infuses into our lives. This burning separates all the pieces of us that God can use from the ash of selfishness, pride, and domination. Through the mercy and grace of God, as we burn, we leave behind this ash and we are changed.

…Praying For…

Dear God, you provide the spark that gets our fires going. Help me to burn brightly for you and to participate with you in the removing of the ash from my life. In the name of Jesus Christ I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, taking hope in the overarching reality that you are the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.

Voiding Fear (Feb. 12, 2013)

Published on February 12, 2013February 11, 2013 by Adam ThomasLeave a comment

…Opening To…

Anger…fear…aggression. The dark side of the Force are they. Easily they flow, quick to join you in a fight. If once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny, consume you it will… (Yoda, The Empire Strikes Back)

…Listening In…

When the wind had driven them out for about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the water. He was approaching the boat and they were afraid. He said to them, “I Am. Don’t be afraid.” (John 6:19-20; context)

…Filling Up…

The opposite of trust is not distrust. It is fear. Fear is the mind-killer, says the book Dune. Fear leads to the dark side, says Yoda. And in the Gospel according to John, there’s a wonderful little story about fear.

After the feeding of the 5000, the disciples leave Jesus on the mountain, apparently expecting him to catch a cab to Capernaum, for they take the boat and begin rowing across the sea. A storm blows up and the waves rise. Then the disciples see Jesus walking towards them on the water, and they are terrified. (This is the Greek word from which we get the word “phobia”). The story is unclear whether they are afraid of the storm or afraid of seeing Jesus unsupported by any sort of watercraft. Either way, they are afraid.

And Jesus says to them: “I am” and then “do not be afraid.”

Remember, this “I am” is the most fundamental affirmation of being. (We’ve talked about this before.) It is a complete thought in itself, though we usually expect a word to fill in the blank space after “am.” More often than not, Jesus’ “I am” statements are followed by such a word, but some are not. The ones that are not, such as this, do not leave room for me to fill in the blank. Indeed, they remove my need to fill in blanks.

Here’s how I see it: I can say I am…afraid. But as Jesus walks on the water toward his disciples he says, “I am.” That’s it. His “I am” leaves no room for an extraneous word at the end of the phrase, no room for afraid. Simply because Jesus is, my fear finds no purchase, no handhold. He takes my afraid and expunges it. I am free of fear because Jesus has taken my fear into his identity and voided it.

When inevitably I am afraid (of _____________ ) I can close my eyes, bow my head, breathe deeply, and know that Jesus is.

…Praying For…

Dear God, you provide meaning to the concept of trust. Help me put my trust in you so that fear cannot make me crumble. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, thankful that you have faith in me, because your faith in me enables me to have faith in you.

Belief is a Relationship (Feb. 11, 2013)

Published on February 11, 2013February 10, 2013 by Adam ThomasLeave a comment

…Opening To…

Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe. (St. Augustine)

…Listening In…

In Capernaum there was a certain royal official whose son was sick… The royal official said to him, “Lord, come before my son dies.” Jesus replied, “Go home. Your son lives.” The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and set out for his home. (John 4:46, 49-50; context)

…Filling Up…

With Lent starting in two days, today and tomorrow’s devotions will be “one-offs” rather than part of a weekly grouping. Today, we are going to look at a certain way that belief works. We’ve talked about “belief” in these devotions before, but what follows is a quick, new take on it. Belief is not something that we “have.” It is not a possession. Nor is belief a static thing. When you get right down to it, belief is a relationship.

Belief is a relationship between God and believer; trust, faith, hope, and love all play parts in this relationship. In moments when my belief is haggard, hope may take center stage, sustaining me through a time when God seems far away. Note that in the book of Psalms, the poems often have verses expressing the desire to praise God in the future but acknowledging that the praise isn’t possible quite yet.

On the contrary, in moments when my belief is strong, trust may come to the fore, assuring me that God is true and constant. The same psalms often have verses recognizing the steadfastness of God. This steadfastness is God’s faithfulness to me, which provides a foundation for my own faith. And the bond God creates between God and me is love, from which I can never be separated. This bond enables the relationship of belief, which grows and changes and transforms upon the foundation of God’s faith. As I grow, my belief grows with me. Some seasons see little rain, so my belief stagnates. In others, my belief takes root in the fertile ground and flourishes. Through all the changes and chances of life, however, the relationship with God continues, for God never breaks a bond of love.

…Praying For…

Dear God, you are the foundation of all belief; help me to sustain my part of the relationship and help me to except your love in my life. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, thankful that you have faith in me, because your faith in me enables me to have faith in you.

Pass it Along (February 8, 2013)

Published on February 8, 2013February 4, 2013 by Adam ThomasLeave a comment

…Opening To…

If you look at a window, you see flyspecks, dust, the crack where junior’s Frisbee hit it. If you look through a window, you see the world beyond. Something like this is the difference between those who see the Bible as a Holy Bore and those who see it as the Word of God, which speaks out of the depths of an almost unimaginable past into the depths of ourselves. (Frederick Buechner)

…Listening In…

Listen, my people, to my teaching; tilt your ears toward the words of my mouth. I will open my mouth with a proverb. I’ll declare riddles from days long gone—ones that we’ve heard and learned about, ones that our ancestors told us. We won’t hide them from their descendants; we’ll tell the next generation all about the praise due the Lord and his strength—the wondrous works God has done. (Psalm 78:1-4; context)

…Filling Up…

The fifth word that we say quite often when we talk about the Bible is “Scripture.” We call it Holy Scripture or Holy Writ. Each of these words carries the connotation of “something written down.” And, of course, the Bible is written down. There’s very little chance it would have survived as long as it has if it weren’t written down somewhere.

That being said, large chunks of what became the written Bible did exist for quite a long time without being written down. People passed the oral tradition from parent to child. The dinner table, the campfire, the farmer’s field – these were the places the story of God and God’s people was told. Because of this type of transmission, the story went through a kind of survival of the fittest type of evolution: the most important parts remained, while the less important parts faded away.

Writing the Bible down on paper (well, the ancient equivalents of paper, at least) followed a common pattern: things aren’t written down until people start realizing that the folks who know the story best are dying off. In the years following Jesus’ death and resurrection, his story followed the same pattern as those older parts of the Bible, except in a much shorter span. The Gospel was not written down until a few decades after the events because the people who lived through the events began dying off. There was a scramble to preserve the story from the perspectives of eyewitnesses.

So, just because we think of “Script-ure” as something written down, know that the Bible didn’t always exist in that way. It was passed through word of mouth. And you know what: that’s still the best way to pass it along.

…Praying For…

Dear God, you are the presence standing behind the words of your people found in the Bible. Help me to be a part of the great story of your movement in the lives of the people of this world. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.

…Sending Out…

I leave this moment with you, God, endeavoring to learn more about you, learn more from you, and learn the best ways to be your child in this world.

One Hundred and Fifty (February 7, 2013)

Published on February 7, 2013February 4, 2013 by Adam ThomasLeave a comment

…Opening To…

…Listening In…

Save me, God, because the waters have reached my neck! I have sunk into deep mud. My feet can’t touch the bottom! I have entered deep water; the flood has swept me up. I am tired of crying. My throat is hoarse. My eyes are done with waiting for my God. (Psalm 69:1-3; context)

…Filling Up…

The fourth word that we say quite often when we talk about the Bible is “Psalm.” The 150 psalms in the Hebrew Scriptures account for some truly exquisite, gritty, jubilant, despairing, and whimsical poetry. The whole gamut of human emotion runs throughout the psalms. The “psalter” (book of psalms) is one of the greatest human achievements of all times, not to mention being the most complete compendium of human encounter with God in one compiled source.

All that being said, you can’t really take the book of Psalms all at once. It’s too big. (Unless you’re a medieval monk who recited the whole thing everyday. The whole thing. Every day. Wow.) Whoever compiled the Psalms must have known this because the book breaks down into five large sections, each ending with special verses praising God.

You can further break the psalms into two main categories: praise and lament. Just by the numbers, there are more verses of lament than praise in the book of Psalms, but in church we read more of the verses of praise. You can explain this with the simple assertion that we’d rather be happy than sad. The problem here is this: when we censor a book like the Psalms, we remove from it the example it gives us of how to grieve or to be angry in the midst of prayer to God. We sweep under the rug the scriptural instances in which people made themselves vulnerable to God, accused God of negligence, wept in God’s presence, and disclosed their inability to praise God in the current moment. I’d be willing to bet each of us has felt this way at some point. Reading the lament psalms can help us cope in these times.

So the next time you are so joyful you can’t contain it, go read the psalms and find a reflection of your joy. And the next time you are so sad that you don’t think you’ll ever recover, go read the psalms and find a reflection of your grief. Lift up both your joy and sadness to God, who encompasses all in all.

…Praying For…

Dear God, you are with me even when I’m not with you. Help me to remain in relationship with you even when things aren’t going so well. Help me stick with you when I want to run away. Be my constant in a changing world. In Jesus Christ’s name I pray. Amen.