Daily Lesson for September 29, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from Mark chapter 13 verses 24 through 26 and is in recognition of the St. Michael & All Angels feast day:

24 ‘But in those days, after that suffering,

the sun will be darkened,

   and the moon will not give its light, 

25 and the stars will be falling from heaven,

   and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. 

26Then they will see “the Son of Man coming in clouds” with great power and glory. 27Then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.

Many years ago when Irie and I were living in Vermont I made a trip to Manhattan for the Fosdick Convocation in New York's Riverside Baptist Church. The historic Riverside Church does not actually have Baptist in its name. But I guess because Baptist Harry Emerson Fosdick was its first pastor and it was shaped early on by Baptist principles and governance, I first thought it was called Riverside Baptist Church. I always try to catch myself because I know it's wrong, but the name is stuck and I seem to not be able to help myself. 

Irie was planning to meet me in New York. But she was very unsettled about traveling to the City for the first time. It was the days not too far from 9-11 and the anthrax scare, and she was pregnant for the first time. For the first time, she felt a great responsibility for the life of another. Not helping things was the fact that it was before Uber and she would have to take public transportation -- a bus from La Guardian actually called the M-16!

Irie touched down in New York, found ground transportation, and the M-16 stop. She stood at the stop without talking to any of the other waiting passengers and when the bus pulled up she allowed the driver to load her luggage. Irie got on the bus, sat down in the seat, looked forward and planned not to talk to any other passengers. But she worried how she would know which stop to get off on. 

That's when a man climbed aboard, walked down the aisle, and sat next to her. He was an older, black gentleman. He turned, looked at her clutching her purse and small carry on, and asked in a big city accent, "Where you headed?"

Irie was a bit taken aback. It was a very forward question -- too forward for a man to ask a young pregnant woman. Yet, Irie said, he seemed very kind and peaceful. "My husband is a pastor," she said. "And I am meeting him at a church conference."

"Oh, wonderful," the man said.  "I'm going to a church right now too.  I'm going to Riverside Baptist Church."

"You mean Riverside Church in Manhattan?" Irie asked. "That's where I am going."

"Well, then I'll help you get there," the man said. 

They sat and talked for the 30 minutes to Riverside and when the bus made its way through Harlem and then down Broadway Ave.  When they neared 122nd Street, he told Irie to clang the bell. "This is our stop," he said. He helped Irie with her bags, and the two stepped off the bus, at peace with this man but still a little anxious that it be the right stop. 

When Irie stepped down from the bus she looked up at the street sign. "Seminary Row," it said. She knew it was the right stop. She looked up and could then see the church's iconic tower a block away. 

The man helped Irie with her bags the block over and when they arrived at the door he said, "Welcome to Riverside Baptist Church."  She shook his hand and then turned and went inside.

Today is St. Michael & the Angels feast day. Ask me if I believe in angels, I will tell you absolutely. I absolutely believe they help us get where we need to go -- to church, and to heaven, and one day even to whatever comes after heaven. 

Daily Lesson for September 28, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from Matthew chapter 6 verses 1 through 6, 16-18:

‘Beware of practising your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.

2 ‘So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward.3But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

5 ‘And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. 6But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

16 ‘And whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. 17But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, 18so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

Now here's a hard one. Secret giving, secret prayers, and secret devotions. 

I hate keeping a secret -- especially if it's a really good, and doubly especially if it's a really good secret about me. 

Can't I tell somebody?  My best friend, in order to just encourage them to follow in my way. My children, because they should know how much we've had to sacrifice as a family, my spouse because he should know that I'm taking my lunch break at the park to read my Bible. 

Sure we can. And we do. I do.  And that's usually when I receive my reward. 

But it always makes me feel kind of cheap, like maybe my motives weren't all pure, like maybe I was doing it for man and not for God.

That's when I think of Niebuhr, who said the "final enigma of history" will not be the justification of the righteous over the unrighteousness but rather the redemption of the unrighteous within the righteous.

I tell you, it's one thing to do right; it's another thing to do right for all the right reasons. 

Daily Lesson for September 27, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from Matthew chapter 5 verses 43 through 48:

43 ‘You have heard that it was said, “You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.” 44But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous. 46For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax-collectors do the same? 47And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? 48Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

If you live in the same town long enough you're bound to make a few enemies along the way. They could be on the school board, or at your former place of employment, or on the other kid's soccer sideline, or even at church. That's just a part of life. 

But what do you do when you seem them in the grocery store or at somebody's funeral?  Do you pretend you don't see them?  Do you glance the other way?  Do you pretend like you just received a call on your cell phone?

It may be the toughest thing we do week in and week out, but Jesus says we're supposed to greet them. Now that doesn't mean reach out and shake their hand or ask how they are doing. Those may be too much for them. But we are supposed to say, "Hello," and "Good morning."  It may be small; but it's tough to do. And it's how Christians are supposed to act, because the world is already full of enough people who won't even speak to one another. 

G.K. Chesterton said, "The Bible tells us to love our neighbors, and also to love our enemies; probably because generally they are the same person."

And we can't love our enemies without at least being willing to say hello to them. 

Daily Lesson for September 26, 20017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from Psalm 78 verses 9 though 11:

9 The Ephraimites, armed with[b] the bow,

    turned back on the day of battle.

10 They did not keep God's covenant,

    but refused to walk according to his law.

11 They forgot his works

    and the wonders that he had shown them.

And Matthew chapter 5 verses 33 through 37:

33 ‘Again, you have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, “You shall not swear falsely, but carry out the vows you have made to the Lord.” 34But I say to you, Do not swear at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, 35or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. 37Let your word be “Yes, Yes” or “No, No”; anything more than this comes from the evil one.

Fall is upon us and we are coming into the season when many churches and many non-profits ask for commitments to their organizations for the coming year. This is the time when we are asked to make our pledges.

We ought not to make them lightly. 

Learning to let our "yes" be yes and "no" be no is a part of becoming faithful disciples. Pledge season helps us to think on how much we want to give, how much we should be willing to give, how much we say we're willing to give, and how much we are actually going to give. When all those things are equal then our giving truly has integrity.

God is not impressed with unfulfilled pledges. Neither is the head of the food bank, nor the administrator at the homeless shelter, nor the executive at the local Boy's Club. 

And neither is the pastor. 

Daily Lesson for September 25, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from 2 Kings chapter 5 verses 9 through 14:

 9So Naaman came with his horses and chariots, and halted at the entrance of Elisha’s house.10Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, ‘Go, wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored and you shall be clean.’11But Naaman became angry and went away, saying, ‘I thought that for me he would surely come out, and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, and would wave his hand over the spot, and cure the leprosy! 12Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them, and be clean?’ He turned and went away in a rage. 13But his servants approached and said to him, ‘Father, if the prophet had commanded you to do something difficult, would you not have done it? How much more, when all he said to you was, “Wash, and be clean”?’ 14So he went down and immersed himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God; his flesh was restored like the flesh of a young boy, and he was clean.

There is Naaman, the Syrian general, all arrayed with his horses and chariots and military regalia.  Looking upon him from a distance he is the model of strength. But beneath the armament Naaman is falling apart -- literally. Naaman, the great General, is a leper.

The prophet says the disease may not be unto death. The prophet says there is cure -- an easy cure. All Naaman has to do is strip down, take off the armor, and go down and dip in the little, piddlin' Jordan River. 

Well, easy for some.

Humility is hard. We'd prefer to have God make a big deal of us. A thunderbolt, or a vision, or some Damascus Road experience. But most of the time it's just needing to strip down and go get bathed in the little creek.

I have a friend who has a lot going for himself except that he's killing himself with alcohol. He says he wants God to help him leave the bottle. He says he wants supernatural power. He says he's desperate. He says he's willing to do something hard to get free. I keep telling him what he needs to do is not hard; it's easy. All he has to do is to start going to an AA meeting every single day until he gets it. But that sounds too easy; besides the storefront is all run down looking. He's holding out for the rivers of Damascus. 

I tell you, humility is hard. 

Daily Lesson for September 22, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from Matthew chapter 5 verses 14 through 16:

14 ‘You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hidden.15No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.

Let me ask you a few things. 

What if Michelangelo decided he would just do murals in the homes of closest friends and family?

What if out of humility Billy Graham thought preaching was too presumptuous?

What if Bach decided not to share his compositions?

What if Fanny Crosby did the same?

The world would be so much poorer and so much less beautiful. 

It would also be so much darker. 

"Let your light shine," Jesus said. 

We've each been given a light. It's ours to use. It's ours to shine. It's ours to share. 

How dare we keep it to ourselves?

Daily Lesson for September 21, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from Matthew chapter 5 verse 8:

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God."

In the book of Titus it is said, "To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure."

The pure of heart see God everywhere and at all times. They see God's hand of provision and mercy and faithfulness. They see God's light in dark times and even in dark people. They have the light of God in their eyes and they see all things through and in light. 

I know people like this. These are the people who hold out hope. They believe for us when our own belief fails. They love and embrace and are for all people. They radiate joy and compassion and they trust that God is at work even in darkness. They are children of light. 

I want to be a person pure in heart. I want to believe all things. I want to hope all things. I want to walk as child of the light. I want to see God. 

Daily Lesson for September 20, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from 1 Corinthians chapter 2 verses 1 through 13:

When I came to you, brothers and sisters, I did not come proclaiming the mystery of God to you in lofty words or wisdom. 2For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified. 3And I came to you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling. 4My speech and my proclamation were not with plausible words of wisdom, but with a demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5so that your faith might rest not on human wisdom but on the power of God. 6 Yet among the mature we do speak wisdom, though it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to perish.7But we speak God’s wisdom, secret and hidden, which God decreed before the ages for our glory. 8None of the rulers of this age understood this; for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.9But, as it is written,

‘What no eye has seen, nor ear heard,

   nor the human heart conceived,

what God has prepared for those who love him’— 

10these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God. 11For what human being knows what is truly human except the human spirit that is within? So also no one comprehends what is truly God’s except the Spirit of God. 12Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit that is from God, so that we may understand the gifts bestowed on us by God. 13And we speak of these things in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual things to those who are spiritual.

What we as Christians have to give to the world is not a philosophy and our sharing of it is not for the sake of entertainment.  What we have been given to share is not a human wisdom.  And our words are not the tickling of the ear with a well-delivered 20 minute monologue.

What we have to share is God's wisdom, secret and hidden, and available only by the power of God. Those gifted for its sharing are not necessarily naturally gifted speakers.  In fact, natural gifts can mislead and delude. Natural giftedness may very well be a curse and not a blessing. 

The blessing of Christian proclamation is a mystery. It is a gift hidden in and revealed only by God.

Pray for your pastor. Pray for me. Pray that we find our gifts. Pray especially that we find our gift in the Gift Giver. 

Daily Lesson for September 19, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from Psalm 62 verses 10 through 13:

10 Those of high degree are but a fleeting breath, *

even those of low estate cannot be trusted.

11 On the scales they are lighter than a breath, *

all of them together.

12 Put no trust in extortion;

in robbery take no empty pride; *

though wealth increase, set not your heart upon it.

13 God has spoken once, twice have I heard it, *

that power belongs to God.

And 1 Kings chapter 21 verses 20 through 22:

20 Ahab said to Elijah, ‘Have you found me, O my enemy?’ He answered, ‘I have found you. Because you have sold yourself to do what is evil in the sight of the Lord,21I will bring disaster on you; I will consume you, and will cut off from Ahab every male, bond or free, in Israel; 22and I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha son of Ahijah, because you have provoked me to anger and have caused Israel to sin.

Here is a little poem I sometimes think of when might sets itself up as right and the strong overpower the weak:

"The little front wave ran onto the shore

And frothed there wildly elated

'I am the tide,' the little front wave said,

'And the waves before me are dated.'"

The counsel of Scripture reminds us again and again that though the wicked and unjust may have their day in the sun, their time too will run out. The little front wave may think he is king of the world, but the tide ebbs and flows and will one day turn.  We are all dust and to dust we shall return. 

I keep coming back to the funeral of King Louis XIV, who called himself "the Great" and once declared, "I am the State."  Yet at his funeral, Bishop Massilon snuffed out the candle above his coffin and said, "In the end, only God is great."

That's something for kings and princes and paupers alike to bear in mind -- always. 

Daily Lesson for September 18, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from Matthew chapter 4 verses 1 through 4:

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2He fasted for forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. 3The tempter came and said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.’ 4But he answered, ‘It is written,

“One does not live by bread alone,

   but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” ’

At Jesus' baptism the word was promised, "You are my beloved son."  Turn the page and the very next thing that happens is Jesus in the wilderness with the devil before planting the seed of doubt, "IF you are the son of God turn these stones to bread."

If you are the son of God . . . 

If you are the son of God then provide it. 

If you are favored by God then bring it.

If you are important at all in this world then drive it.

If you are worthy at all then win it -- win it at whatever cost.

If you are any good at all then prove it. 

Prove it. Prove it. Prove it. 

If, if, if . . .

If you believe me about anything, believe me when I tell you stones can never be turned into bread. 

Daily Lesson for September 15, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from Philippians chapter 3 verses 1 through 7:

If anyone else has reason to be confident in the flesh, I have more:5circumcised on the eighth day, a member of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; 6as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless. 7 Yet whatever gains I had, these I have come to regard as loss because of Christ.

And Matthew 3 verses 7 through 9:

7 But when he saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8Bear fruit worthy of repentance. 9Do not presume to say to yourselves, “We have Abraham as our ancestor”; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham.

Aside from the loss of an innocent life, the most depressing thing we saw in Charlottesville earlier this summer was the large number of white Millennial men who constituted the bulk of the white nationalists marching by torch-light on the campus of the University of Virginia.

Seeing the young faces in the photographs and videos, a friend commented on it being a reflection of the church's inability to connect with this younger generation.

I don't know whether or not those who were marching for a white culture were ever exposed to church, and if so what kind of things they heard preached there. They may have simply not connected with the church, or they may have had all their prejudices confirmed by the churches, or they may have rejected the church.  I don't know. 

What I do know is this: the church I believe in, the true church of Jesus Christ, is just as against white supremacy today as it was against Pharisaic  supremacy in the first century or Aryan supremacy in the last. The true church of Jesus Christ has to be morally clear in its teachings on this and active in its practice.  In Christ, "there is neither Jew nor Gentile," (Galatians 3:28).  As Paul says, all our other identities we have come to regard as "loss", or another translation says "rubbish", because of Christ. Period. 

That's about as straightforward as it gets. And we need to be straightforward about it, lest sympathy for the devil seduce us into tolerating the intolerable. 

Daily Lesson for September 14, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from Psalm 84 verse 5:

"Those who go through the desolate valley will find it a place of springs, 

for the early rains have covered it with pools of water."

From a distance the way of the wilderness appears lifeless and barren. Looking out we see nothing but desert and thistle and the thorn's way. It is the valley of desolation and we are justified if we think no one could ever make it through. 

But the one walks the path discovers water along the way, pools enough to go on day by day. The wadis are not much, and would be passed by in other circumstances. But the dry know the value of a single still puddle, just a drop of hope, one little word of encouragement and affirmation -- waters created in the beginning and sent to meet for just such a time and at just such a place as this. 

Those who walk the desolate path discover there is life in the valley after all -- just enough life to make it through.

Keep walking, friend.  Stick to the path and keep walking . . .

Daily Lesson for September 13, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from 1 Kings chapter 17 verses 8 through 16:

8 Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, 9‘Go now to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and live there; for I have commanded a widow there to feed you.’ 10So he set out and went to Zarephath. When he came to the gate of the town, a widow was there gathering sticks; he called to her and said, ‘Bring me a little water in a vessel, so that I may drink.’ 11As she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, ‘Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.’ 12But she said, ‘As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in a jar, and a little oil in a jug; I am now gathering a couple of sticks, so that I may go home and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die.’ 13Elijah said to her, ‘Do not be afraid; go and do as you have said; but first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterwards make something for yourself and your son. 14For thus says the Lord the God of Israel: The jar of meal will not be emptied and the jug of oil will not fail until the day that the Lord sends rain on the earth.’ 15She went and did as Elijah said, so that she as well as he and her household ate for many days.16The jar of meal was not emptied, neither did the jug of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah.

There are always stories of deeply inspiring people, who despite having very little themselves, choose nevertheless to share. We can think of this widow at Zarephath, or the widow with the one coin she gave to the Temple, or the little boy who shared his lunch at the feeding of the 5,000. 

I think of my friend Ray Fargason, who was undergoing blood marrow/stem cell treatment  for cancer and whose critically low white blood count was being supplanted by donations from friends. But another patient in a room down the hall had a white blood count even lower and more critical than Ray's. And, his white blood cells and Ray's were a match. The doctors came in, explained to Ray the desperate circumstance of the other patient, and asked if Ray would be willing to give his up for the sake of the other's sake. They also explained to him that it would be several hours before another match could be flown in from another city. In the meantime, he would be at grave risk should he need more. It was his choice. 

Ray said he just knew he could not say no. He had to say yes, which he did. 

Then he realized he had to call his wife Gayle and tell her what he had done . . .

It is one thing -- and a very necessary one -- to give out of our abundance. But to give out of poverty. That is beyond simply beyond words. 

The widow at Zarephath was beyond words. So was Ray. 

Daily Lesson for September 12, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from Mark chapter 16 verses 1 through 4:

When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. 2And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. 3They had been saying to one another, ‘Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?’ 4When they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled back.

St Paul said, God's grace is enough for us and God's power is made perfect in our weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9).

It is only at the moment of our greatest weakness that we learn to depend upon the sufficiency of God. This is why the admission of powerlessness over alcohol and the belief in a power greater than self makeup the first two steps of the 12 Steps of AA. The Gospel of God's grace comes to us when we realize we cannot do it alone -- whatever "it" is.

"It" is symbolized by the stone in today's Lesson. The stone is what separates us from sanity, from peace, from joy, from true life. It is what separates us from Resurrection. 

These things we cannot attain on our own. They can only come to the humble, to the powerless, to those desperate enough to ask "Who will roll away the stone for us" because they know they can't roll it away themselves. 

Daily Lesson for September 11, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from Philippians chapter 1 verse 9:

"And this is my prayer, that your love may overflow more and more with knowledge and depth of insight . . ."

What a great prayer here still at the beginning of school. 

I used to have a parishioner in church who would come out on Sunday mornings after the service and say, "You know, I appreciate an educated minister."

I think probably everybody does. Nobody wants a minister who doesn't know anything. When you see letters like MDiv. or D.D. or PhD you know they at least know something. You know they've read a book or two. That's important. Study is important. 

But education isn't everything. Knowledge for its own sake can lead astray. "Knowledge puffs up", Paul says. It can also destroy. Knowledge unbridled can now literally be our death and the death of civilization. As Dr. King put it, "Our scientific power has outrun our spiritual power. We have guided missiles and misguided men."

Right now we need educated Christian leaders. But that's not enough. We need educated Christian leaders who love. To know all the new theories about who wrote the Bible, how it came together, and what politics drove its writers is one thing. But to know and love God and God's people is quite another. I prefer both. I appreciate an educated with a heart for the things of God. 

When I was considering seminaries, I read the letter written by the Dean of Duke Divinity School Greg Jones. He quoted the French monastic Jean Leclercq's phrase, saying Duke was trying to cultivate within its students "a love of learning and a desire for God". I read that, applied, and was accepted.

I try to stay enrolled. 

Daily Lesson for September 8, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from James chapter 4 verses 13 through 17:

13 Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a town and spend a year there, doing business and making money.’14Yet you do not even know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.15Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wishes, we will live and do this or that.’ 16As it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil.17Anyone, then, who knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, commits sin.

Eckhart Tolle says, a spiritual writer who teaches much on the importance of living in the present, says, "It is not uncommon for people to spend their whole life waiting to start living."

Life will never be found in the promises of tomorrow. Those promises are illusory and imaginary -- not promises at all. The only time we have promised is this moment inside this day. It is sad to think how much of this "eternal now" we miss by daydreaming about the tomorrow which never quite seems to arrive. 

James says, "Anyone who knows the right thing to do and fails to do it commits sin." That is the sin of omission and it may very well be the worst one of them all. 

We are to live in the present. We are to eat our daily bread, do our good deed for the day, and not miss all that we might receive and give in the here and now. If we always wait on tomorrow to start living -- to start being the persons we want to be -- then tomorrow will never come. Let's not miss life while waiting on or fretting over the life to come.

Today is the first day of the rest of our lives. And, really, it's the only day that matters. 

Daily Lesson for September 7, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from James chapter 3 verse 18:

And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace for those who make peace.

Gandhi said, "There is no way to peace. Peace is the way."

Peace is not only an end destination. Peace is also the road. It is a practice, a habit, a way of being. 

We will never be at peace within ourselves when so-and-so happens tomorrow.  We must  seek to be at peace within ourselves here and now, today. We must practice peace today. We must breathe a peaceful spirit today. We must breath spirit today. We must breath -- now. 

The same is true in our relationships with others. Peace with others is something which must be sought and practiced today. Peace is not an end result, something that can only ever happen after they do whatever we need them to do tomorrow. Again, peace with others is to be practiced as best we can here and now.  It's practices may very well be small. We may not end our nuclear standoff with North Korea or with our next door neighbor today, but we can do something. We can begin by praying for them. Prayer transforms our inner selves. This is part of why Jesus taught us to pray for our enemies. For it is exceedingly difficult to hate and wish ill will towards a person or people we are praying for daily.

In today's Lesson James says the harvest of peace is sown in peace. Peace is not only a crop harvested, it is also a crop planted. Imagine your seed of peace today. Where can you sow it?  Where can you practice it?  For the practicing and sowing of peace is the way to peace -- the only way to peace. 

Daily Lesson for September 6, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from James chapter 3 verses 1 through 5:

Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. 2For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle. 3If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we guide their whole bodies. 4Or look at ships: though they are so large that it takes strong winds to drive them, yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs.5So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits.

Last week before the move something incredible arrived: a letter from my fifth grade homeroom teacher and favorite teacher of all time, Marilyn Jamison or, as I knew her over a quarter of a century ago, "Mrs. J".  

I've written about Mrs. J before here, talking about how her favorite saying, "Count your blessings," has stuck with me all these years. What else stuck was her hugely life-affirming spirit. She was a wise and encouraging woman and at a very awkward age of 10 or 11, she helped us all see the best in ourselves. 

Apparently she's still doing it. 

Mrs. J has been keeping up with me in recent years and got wind that I was headed to Fort Worth. The letter was a congratulations and also a kind of blessing, naming the qualities she saw in me as a student and assuring me of God's call upon my life. 

Is it any wonder why she has always, always been my favorite?

I don't know how many teachers I had over the years. Some, like Mrs. J, were positive and affirming, others were belittling and even abusive. In any case, I think on it and see just what a difference a teacher can make -- for good or for ill.  They can keep a a smoldering wick alive or break a fragile and bruised reed. There is so much in their words. There is so much in one little word.  Like the rudder in today's Lesson, they are small but can determine the direction of the whole ship. 

A lot was on the line when I first walked into Mrs. J's fifth grade classroom at Whiteside Elementary School. I would soon get my first pimple, sit for my first (and last) ill-fated perm, and have my first (not last) kiss. Mrs. J guided me through it. Her words of love and encouragement and life-affirmation still guide me. 

So yes, Mrs. J, I do still count my blessings. And I want you to know that I count you double. 

Daily Lesson for September 5, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from 1 Kings chapter 9 verses 1 through 5:

When Solomon had finished building the house of the Lordand the king’s house and all that Solomon desired to build, 2the Lordappeared to Solomon a second time, as he had appeared to him at Gibeon. 3The Lord said to him, ‘I have heard your prayer and your plea, which you made before me; I have consecrated this house that you have built, and put my name there for ever; my eyes and my heart will be there for all time. 4As for you, if you will walk before me, as David your father walked, with integrity of heart and uprightness, doing according to all that I have commanded you, and keeping my statutes and my ordinances, 5then I will establish your royal throne over Israel for ever, as I promised your father David, saying, “There shall not fail you a successor on the throne of Israel.”

Psalm 26 verse 8:

Lord, I love the house in which you dwell 

and the place where your glory abides.

And James chapter 2 verses 14 through 17, and 26:

14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? 15If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, 16and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill’, and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? 17So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.

26For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead. 

Today's Scriptures tell of the dedication of Solomon's mighty Temple to the LORD and the Psalmist's encomium for the Temple's holy magnificence, "Lord, I love thy house in which you dwell and the place where your glory abides."  Here we see religion in all its beauty and its expression in full flower through architecture and artistry.

And then we have a word from James the brother of Jesus which serves not so much as a counter weight, but simply a reminder to keep things in perspective and proportion. Just as the body is not flesh alone but also spirit, James says, so also faith without works is dead. A house dedicated to God, he seems to be telling us, can be an architectural wonder and crafted with the utmost of gift and care, but if it is not also a place which meets human need then it is just a pretty body without spirit. A true House of God is to be dedicated not only to the glory of God, but also to the service of humankind. Faith without works is dead, James said. So, too, a church without service is just a building. 

I pastor now a church with a truly glorious and inspiring sanctuary. I love it. I love the place where the glory of God abides.  But I know that's not enough to be a true church. A true church must be dedicated not only to God but also neighbor. And I am reminded of this every time I drive up and see not only a great spire reaching up to the heavens, but also transepts reaching out to towards the city, and a Baptist Center putting clothes on the backs of those in need. And that is what makes it a true church -- the place where the glory abides not only in the building, but also in the bodies of the people who come to it. 

Daily Lesson for Labor Day, September 4, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from Exodus chapter 5 verses 3 through 9 and Exodus chapter 16 verses 4 and 5:

3 Then they said, “The God of the Hebrews has met with us. Now let us take a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the Lord our God, or he may strike us with plagues or with the sword.” 4 But the king of Egypt said, “Moses and Aaron, why are you taking the people away from their labor? Get back to your work!” 5 Then Pharaoh said, “Look, the people of the land are now numerous, and you are stopping them from working.” 6 That same day Pharaoh gave this order to the slave drivers and overseers in charge of the people: 7 “You are no longer to supply the people with straw for making bricks; let them go and gather their own straw. 8 But require them to make the same number of bricks as before; don’t reduce the quota. They are lazy; that is why they are crying out, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to our God.’ 9 Make the work harder for the people so that they keep working and pay no attention to lies.”

4 Then the Lord said to Moses, “I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions. 5 On the sixth day they are to prepare what they bring in, and that is to be twice as much as they gather on the other days.”

Labor Day is a good day to reflect on the theology of work. A good place to look for instruction on what work is to be like is the book of Exodus.

The Egyptian symbol of the pyramid was a perfect symbol of Egypt's economy. One all-powerful individual, Pharaoh, sat on top with masses of slave laborers sitting on bottom. Work in Pharaoh's Egypt was exploitative and abusive. The entire value of any person was solely related to his or her ability to work or to procreate. If one could not do one of these -- whether because of age or disability -- then that person was "worthless".  It is true that Pharaoh kept his workers well fed with his fleshpots of meat, but it was only in service to the greater cause of building.  Pharaoh fed the people like a farmer feeds a draft animal. For these workers were indeed like animals to Pharaoh. His demand on them was constant. "Build, build, build,"was the refrain seven days a week for 365 days a year.  It is easy to imagine the life-expectancy under such a grueling machine would have been somewhere in the middle thirties. The book of Exodus is a story about God's indignation at such an exploitative system and his passionate concern for and deliverance of its victims.

But the Exodus story is not only about escape. It is also a story which tells of an alternative economy the Israelites were to learn in the wilderness and was to serve as a foundation for their nation when they came into the promised land. It was an economy based on the inherent dignity of work and it was learned through the simple gathering of the manna which God sent to them day by day in the wilderness. The perhaps most interesting thing about this miracle of manna was that though it fell from the sky as a gift from God, it didn't fall directly into the Israelites' fleshpots.  They had to get out of their tents and work for it. This demonstrates the value God placed on work and echoes the work of tilling God gave Adam in the garden. It is not good for man or woman to remain idle, so God gives us work to do. This is a basic part of our being and any community which robbed of meaningful work loses not only a job but something also basic to their humanity. But workers is not all that we are, as the Israelites were under Pharaoh. We were made not only for work, but also for worship.  And it was the right to worship for which Moses and the Israelites first made their petition to Pharaoh. In the new economy the Israelites were to create work would be very necessary. They would have to make the desert bloom. And in doing so, the work would be meaningful and each would enjoy the fruits of their own labor. But work would not be everything. There would be six days upon which to work and then a seventh day upon which to worship and to find rest. This day the people called Sabbath -- or holy. 

The human person is a holy being, not to be exploited. And his or her work is meant to be holy also, something with dignity and meaning. And the Sabbath is a holy day, set as a reward at the end of six days of holy work. 

And Labor Day . . . Labor Day is a reminder to us all that such now basic ideas did not come without struggle, whether that was the workers' struggle here in America or the Israelites' way back in Egypt land. 

Daily Lesson for September 1, 2017

Today's Daily Lesson comes from Mark chapter 14 verses 27 through 31:

27And Jesus said to them, ‘You will all become deserters; for it is written,

“I will strike the shepherd,

   and the sheep will be scattered.” 

28But after I am raised up, I will go before you to Galilee.’ 29Peter said to him, ‘Even though all become deserters, I will not.’ 30Jesus said to him, ‘Truly I tell you, this day, this very night, before the cock crows twice, you will deny me three times.’31But he said vehemently, ‘Even though I must die with you, I will not deny you.’ And all of them said the same.

I know many faithful people, some of which are right now placing their own lives in jeopardy for the sake of the Gospel. They are courageous beyond words. Yet as faithful and inspiring as these friends are, in the end we each have our limit. We each have our point of selling out.  Put us into enough torture or fear of torture, destitution or fear of destitution and even the most faithful among us will break. We each have our limit. None has descended into hell save Jesus. 

We take up our own cross, and we seek to follow as far and as faithfully as we can. But in the end, it is Christ's cross alone which saves.

I keep thinking of my great friend and spiritual guide Ted. During a time of great anxiety in my ministry, I was asked by another friend if I was in jeopardy of selling out. I said no I wasn't going to do that. Ted, a former Methodist minister himself who knew something about congregations and pastors himself, looked at me with clear eyes and level gaze, and said, "Ryon, you'll fall short. You'll stop short of your convictions. You'll betray your what you want to say with what you think can be heard. You'll sell out. So what?"

That "So what?" changed my life. That "So what?" helped me realize that in the end even the most faithful among us will be saved, not by works, but by grace. With that "So What?" I fell into mercy.