NO: Lenten Devotion Day 23

Lenten Devotion Day 23

NO

He called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, 

and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. 

He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff;

 no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; 

Mark 6:7-8

It would appear that "NO" has become one of the most dreaded words in the church today. In these economic times we are cautious and fearful of dwindling bank accounts and half empty offering plates therefore "NO" has become our answer to most questions. Can we start a new ministry? NO, it will cost too much. Can we give our staff a much need raise? NO, we can't afford it. Can we go into the poorest sections of town and invite them to come to church? NO, we need people who can give to the church. It is sad but I've heard each of these excuses over the past 20 years of being involved in churches. I believe our Bishop said it best last year when he said our churches are operating in a spirit of scarcity - always afraid they will run out or not have enough and therefore they are doing nothing, or a least the bare minimum they can get by with.

I wonder then, as a church, what we are to make of Mark 6:7-8. Jesus is sending his Disciples out into the world for ministry. Did he worry that there weren't enough of them? NO, he send them out only two in a group. Why then do we say we can't do ministry with only 25? Did Jesus worry that they didn't have enough resources? NO, he send them with no food, no facility to store their "stuff" because they had no stuff to store. Did he worry about lack of funds and decreased giving? NO, he sent them with not a dime in their pockets. There they went, two by two, with nothing but a staff and the clothes on their body. Did they go with a spirit of scarcity?

NO

They went with the Spirit of God. They went with the faith to believe Jesus when he said, "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?" (Matthew 6:25) They went forth with nothing and yet expecting everything....expecting God's blessing, expecting God's provision, expecting God's Spirit to take them where the needed to go and do with them what needed to be done.

NO is a powerful word and like all things powerful it can be used for good or for evil. Take some time to examine how your church has used that word lately. It is a word employed by fear of not having enough? Or is it a word embracing the power of God to provide all you need? 

Jesus said NO when sent his Disciples out to fulfill the mission of seeking the lost and healing the sick - NO - to worry about what they had, NO - to trying to protect themselves, NO - to doing it their way....and in return they said NO thing and NO one will stop us from doing as you say Jesus.

NO

How does your church use that powerful word?

PROPHET: Lenten Devotion Day 17

PROPHET

And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; 

for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, 

to give knowledge of salvation to his people by the forgiveness of their sins.

Luke 1:76-77

I vividly remember standing in the back of the room trembling in nervous expectation. My friends and seminary professors had walked by, patted me on the arm and said, "Don't worry, you will do great." I was about to preach in Chapel for the first time. I was about to stand up in front of professors, mentors, friends, and scholars and lead them in worship. It felt the silliest thing in the world for ME to be doing such a thing. I wondered if any of those who had urged me to calm down really believed it would be ok or if they were just hoping for the best. Then came one more professor who did the same pat on the arm, it will be ok, yada yada. However, he walked about three more steps and stopped. He turned to me and pointed a finger at me and I will never forget his words, "On second thought," he said, "be very afraid. Be very nervous. You are about to have the audacity to stand in that pulpit and declare you have a word from the Lord. You had BETTER take that seriously - it should always make you nervous.

Oddly enough, I never liked this professor and he never liked me but many years after seminary is over  his words are among the few lessons I can still quote. They are in my head every Sunday morning as well as during the week when I do my visitations and my sermon preparation. Every time I open my mouth to speak I hear his reminder that I am a prophet by the nature of my calling. A prophet, at least in the simplest sense of the world, is one that speaks for God. It is not about seeing visions of the future but rather it is about being so attuned to the voice of God that you hear God's message and pass it along to others in need of hearing. 

Do you think you are a prophet? Is there someone who would say that you have spoken God's word to them and helped them understand or cope with a difficult situation? Yes, God calls some folks to specialized roles  but I happen to think that all Christians have the chance to be a prophet. It is audacious to do so and should be done with fear and trembling but with prayer, discernment, wisdom and dedication to stay close to God and hear God's voice I believe we all have a word from the Lord to share.

What is God's word you are called to proclaim

Prophet?

Prison Break

"Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wonderful works to humankind. For he shatters the doors of bronze, and cuts in two the bars of iron."  (Psalm 107:15-16)

Several years ago the band Creed released a song which impacted my life in a great way. The song was "My Own Prison" and it speaks of the ways that we convict and lock ourself away in prisons of our own creation...."I cry out to God, seeking only his decision, Gabriel stands and confirms, I've created my own prison."  That song awakened something in me...the realization that my fears, insecurities, and feelings of unworthiness were the walls of a prison I had created.  I had tried to live up to the expectations I thought others had for me. I had the idea that I had to be in control or else I would be unhappy and dissatisfied with life. Yet, I also felt that I wasn't able to do any of those things well. So, I tried to hang back in the shadows. I didn't want to be noticed, I withdrew in many ways...and I was unhappy.

Surely Creed was correct. I had created these feelings that now trapped me. My insecurity had built the prison walls, seeking a secure place to be.  My fears had placed each bar in the window, seeking to keep danger at bay. My feelings of unworthiness had latched a heavy door to the cell, seeking to lock me away so others wouldn't notice how inadequate I was.  It was a great revelation that Creed allowed me and once I had identified the bricks and bars that were between me and freedom - I set out to dismantle each one. I was determined to make a great prison break!

Years when by and while I enjoyed some new freedom and greater confidence - I never seemed to stray far from my prison.  The walls, the bars, the doors were still there - I simply opened the door occasionally and stepped out...after all, I had designed and created this prison so escape was not that difficult. But eventually, I would find myself retreating back to the security of my cell...my own prison.

This week I headed back to prison. I was full of self-doubt, struggling with my worth and afraid of what others would think of me. Thank God, my husband and a few friends blocked the cell door and refused to let me enter. They encouraged me, pushed me, pulled me, and stood by me...especially God.  On the day of my great challenge I grabbed my bible and prayed - God, give me a word for this moment. And I opened my bible and it fell to Psalm 107..."for he shatters the doors of bronze, and cuts in two the bars of iron."

In that moment I realize where I have made my error all these years of trying to break out of my prison! I was trying to break out of my prison...I...I had been trying to do it on my own. The Psalm reminds me that it is God who liberates me, who makes me free, who gives me my sense of worth, my courage, and my security.  I don't have to claw and dig my own way out - God is there to break me out, if I will just give everything over to him and let him take charge.

Whatever prison you have built - a prison of grief, suffering, hurt, insecurity - God is ready to break you free.  Psalm 107 says to those who are wandering in the desert, lost and lonely, hungry and thirsty - God will free you and fill you with all goodness. For those in the darkness and misery of chains - God will free you. For those who are sick and need healing - God will deliver you. For those who have fear and distress - God has a calming and safe refuge for you.  "He turns a desert into pools of water, a parched land into springs of water...he raises up the needy out of distress...let those who are wise give heed to these things, and consider the steadfast love of the Lord."

Consider the steadfast love of the Lord. In His love we find our worth, our security, our purpose. And it is in His love that we will draw our first real breaths of the fresh air of freedom.

Consider the steadfast love of the Lord for yourself.

The Most Terrifying Prayer

It is a simple, two-word prayer. It should be easy enough to utter. It should roll off the tongue willingly. It should be the first thing we say each morning. It should bring us peace.

Instead, it sticks in my throat. It hesitates on my tongue. It comes to me each morning but I want to put a condition with it - follow it with a "But..."  It does not bring me peace, rather, it inflicts terror in the very heart of me.  A simple, two-word prayer...

"Use me."

It is a prayer I desperately want to say and mean it with all my heart and soul (I think). I want to be a servant of God, a worker in God's vineyard, a gatekeeper in God's temple...and every other metaphor and analogy the bible offers me...but...

"Use me" hitches in my throat. I can almost say it convincingly and with power...almost. Yet each time I manage to get them out of my mouth I dread what God will say next.  I fear what God will ask me to do. I worry what God will ask of me that might bring suffering, horror, heartbreak, pain, controversy...

But then I feel the fear and terror melting away in the embrace of the Holy Spirit, my great comforter and promise of God.  "Those are things of this world...I am here to lift you above that."  This world will inflict those things upon us but when we pray for God to "use us," that is when those worldly hurts and sufferings are overcome.

We tend to fear what God will ask us to do but does the real fear not lie in trying to do this life without God? Yes, when I pray "use me," I am inviting God to place someone unlovable in my life to love...to move me out of my comfort zone and into a combat zone...to risk my own life in a fight for justice for someone else...to damage my popularity for the sake of Christ's.  When I pray "use me," I am giving up control and letting God take over.  Yes, that terrifies me...and yet...

I cling to Acts 1:4, "wait there for the promise of the father."  What is that promise? The Holy Spirit. God's Spirit which dwells within those who believe.  I cling to those stories which remind us of the power available to us when the Holy Spirit is given control of our lives.

Yes, "use me" can be terrifying words to utter...and yet how can we not say them? The world needs God, not me...the world needs a Messiah, not a follower who won't give up control.  The promise of God is that the Holy Spirit will come upon us and give us all we need in answer to that "use me" prayer. All the boldness we need for conflict and controversy, all the strength we need for pain and suffering, all the wisdom we need for justice and forgiveness.  It is all ours, if we pray one simple, two-word prayer...

"Use me."