Grand Teton reading #3

I won't be able to blog much about this one. The things it touches on are too much to share. But I cannot recommend it enough. It is a simple-looking book ~ big print, wide margins, short chapters. But it cuts to the heart in profoundly convicting ways.

Nouwen addresses our deep needs for solitude, silence, and prayer. Here are the reasons:

Our society is not a community radiant with the love of Christ, but a dangerous network of domination and manipulation in which we can easily get entangled and lose our soul. The basic question is whether we ministers of Jesus Christ have not already been so deeply molded by the seductive powers of our dark world that we have become blind to our own and other people's fatal state and have lost the power and motivation to swim for our lives.

He then calls out our great sin: our compulsive need to maintain a false self. In other words, "what matters in how I am perceived by my world." He then goes on to show how Jesus faced these things in his 40 days in the desert, where he was confronted with three sins of the false self:

1. To be relevant (turn stones into bread)
2. To be spectacular (throw yourself down from a great height)
3. To be powerful (I will give you all these kingdoms)

Obviously, the irony of writing about all of this on a blog, for the world to see, is not lost on me. Again, I won't be airing my laundry here. I am simply reminded that the goal of solitude is not privacy, but transformation. As Nouwen says, in solitude we struggle "to die to the false self" by having our scaffolding (friends, calls to make, meetings to attend, emails to answer, etc) removed. Rather, we bring ourselves (vulnerable, sinful, weak) to the feet of Christ.

The wisdom of the desert is that the confrontation with our own frightening nothingness forces us to surrender ourselves totally and unconditionally to the Lord Jesus Christ.

It is here then that Spirit-filled compassion takes hold, and from which ministry can then emerge (see Matthew 4 for how it unfolds in the life of Jesus.)

I'll end with Nouwen's words:

It is in this solitude that we become compassionate people, deeply aware of our solidarity in brokenness with all of humanity and ready to reach out to anyone in need.

Simple

(I was asked to testify in church today about my own experience with the spiritual discipline of simplicity. Here is what I said...)

When I was asked to share this morning on simplicity, I hesitated. If you know me at all, you know that I didn't hesitate because I am shy! I hesitated because I think of simplicity the same way I think of humility...

You know what I mean. In those rare times when God works in and through you to such a point where you actually do some kind and godly thing and it feels so great, you might say to yourself, WOW, I was just really humble right then! and the whole darn thing gets nullified right then and there... THAT is how I think it works with simplicity. It's something you live out, not point out, in yourself.

However, as Richard Foster says in his classic book The Celebration of Discipline, The majority of Christians have never seriously wrestled with the problem of simplicity, conveniently ignoring Jesus' many words on the subject. So I will run the risk of nullifying my pursuit of simplicity today for the sake of greater discussion.

What do I mean by "simplicity" as a spiritual discipline? Foster says it is an inward reality that results in an outward lifestyle. In other words, as we seek first His kingdom (Matthew 6:33) rather than seeking first after career or status or wealth or power, that singular focus on Christ should then flow out in and through our daily lives.

How did I come to practice this discipline? I backed into it. In February 2009 I resigned from a 15-year position as a youth pastor here in town, from a church in which I'd been a member for 23 years altogether. This decision was the right one, but it was so difficult, nonetheless. I needed time to wait on God for what was to be next, and to recover from the jarring transition that it was, so I had saved some money to do so.

However, in my immaculate timing I made this decision one month before the historic financial collapse hit bottom! Amidst daily news of gloom and doom I tried not to panic, but also decided I needed to dramatically pare down my budget, not sure when I would be employed full-time again. Thus I declared 2009 to be The Year of Living Simply. I decided to buy nothing new (other than food). I refrained from spending money on entertainment - movies, books, music, eating out and travel. I let magazine subscriptions expire. I stopped buying gifts and just sent cards (sorry friends). This took a third out of my budget!

As I stuck to this approach, I learned three things rather quickly:

1. It just wasn't that hard. That sounds crazy, but once I got over the hump of this seemingly hard decision, I discovered that I wasn't suffering. Richard Foster quotes the famous Arctic explorer Richard Byrd, who lived through months of deprivation in his travels to the North Pole: I am learning... that a man can live profoundly without masses of things. Indeed, I discovered the same. Once you wean yourself off the constant acquisition of stuff, you realize it's all rather fleeting in its satisfaction.
2. I was much more grateful for what I received. Once you orient yourself around God's provision rather than thinking of it all as the fruit of your own labors, you see everything as a generous gift! The novelty of something new regained its meaning. When someone had me over for a meal, or took me out for coffee, or gave me a gift, I delighted in every part of it, since these things came less often.
3. My default became "Why?" instead of "Why not?" When I faced the decision as to whether to buy something or not, now I operated from the assumption that I would not be getting it, and was forced (by my own decision) to think through what I "needed." Rather than get something just because I had the money or because everyone else already had one, I jumped off the treadmill and thought through my spending far more carefully.

Let's be clear -- I am not advocating some dreadful legalism that disdains enjoyment. God wants us to enjoy his provision and his creation. But I was now recognizing how much of my joy came from stuff rather than from God himself and from the people and things he provided already.

Needless to say, I had more free time since I wasn't busying myself as I had previously. I spent some of that new time reading up on monasticism and benedictine spirituality. Monks take vows of poverty and/or simplicity -- they hold belongings in common, because they believe that the more possessions you have, the more those things possess you! They meditate regularly on this passage from Matthew 6:

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

22 “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

24 “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.

25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

I am happy to say that after my Year of Living Simply that I am now quite gainfully employed. But that year instilled some good habits in me. So I am trying to pursue this spiritual discipline of simplicity in ongoing ways:

• When I buy something new, I give something away. For example, when I buy a new pair of shoes, I give away a pair.
• As I have mentioned here previously, I sold my car about a year ago. I now use my scooter, my bike, and public transportation (with occasional rides from friends). This slows me down and often forces me to think through how many things I try to do in a given day.
• I eat seasonally. I love, love, LOVE red bell peppers and could eat them every day. And in 2011, I can eat them every day, thanks to hot houses in South America and semi-truck trailers hauling food all over tarnation. But I choose to eat red bell peppers when they are in season where I live. By eating seasonally I am reminded to enjoy God's provision in God's timing. Sometimes he gives us things to enjoy, and sometimes he asks us to wait. And it is often in the waiting, and anticipation, that I learn how to deeply enjoy the things he gives me.

I shared this earlier this year, but here is the way that I remember this spiritual discipline of simplicity. It's an adaptation of the 3 R's of Reduce, Reuse, Recycle...

I say Repent (of my materialism), Reduce, Reuse, Refuse (to try to keep up with everyone else, and just buy the things I truly need), Recycle.

Tell me what you think... thanks for listening!

Mammoth Diaries, Day Three

* Sleep in -- check.

* Big latte to start the day -- check.

* Two hours of unhurried reading after a big hot breakfast -- check.

* 4.5 mile walk on trails around Lake Mary -- check.

Pretty darn glorious day up here. I am giving myself an A+ when it comes to vacationing...

An unexpected surprise on this trip has been a book I threw in my bag at the last minute. During a visit to a used bookstore in June I found a tattered orange copy of The Monastic Journey by Thomas Merton, written in 1978. I have read Merton occasionally in these last three years as I read books on Benedictine spirituality and authors like Nouwen, Palmer, Willard, Foster... Merton's writings would come up at times in my reading, and I got curious.

Thomas Merton was the son of artists, born in 1915, with a fascinating, curious past, who became a monk. I read his autobiography, The Seven Storey Mountain, during my trip to Italy this past spring because I had heard it told of his conversion experience. I was not disappointed. First of all, he is a very literary, imaginative writer, and tells a good story. I couldn't put it down, and was surprised to be intrigued as well by his calling to monasticism.

That isn't to say I agreed with everything he wrote... but that would be boring to only read people you agree with, right?

Currently I am only about sixty pages into this new (new to me, that is) book, because I find myself lingering over the things he writes. I do not feel called to live apart from the world, cloistered and comtemplative; I want to be out in the world, preaching and teaching, learning and struggling with what it means to be part of the church's mission. But the only way I know how to persevere in that often gritty job over time is to keep going deeper and deeper into intimacy with God. Merton describes that pilgrimage in compelling ways. For example:

The monastic life is a search for God and not a mission to accomplish this or that work for souls.

I find myself on that same search. Intimacy with the Lord is not a task to check off of a list. It is relationship and as Merton describes it, a life in the Spirit... in which we are moved not by our own desires, tastes, aptitudes, feelings and nature, but by the will and love of God.

There are many other sentences I could quote, but this one especially humbled me:

To have a truly spiritual life is then to think and love and act not just as Christ would act in a given situation, but as He precisely does act, by His grace, in us, at the moment.

After being immediately reminded of the "What Would Jesus Do?" bracelets and chuckling, I realized, wait a minute, he's right, I do not want to act like Jesus... I want to be Jesus wherever I go -- not in a self-aggrandizing way, naturally -- but be his hands, his feet, his words, his love, to others. With the grace of His Spirit in me, this should be possible. Merton underscores this point by quoting from 1 Corinthians 2:

We have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us. (verse 12)

Do I live in such confidence? Do I readily share such "wonderful things"?

Finally, this short paragraph hit me hardest -- I'm adding a little of my own running commentary in parentheses or emphasis in bolding:

The monk (and I would say, the follower of Christ) does not in fact, exist to preserve anything, be it even contemplation or religion itself. His (or her) function is not to keep alive in the world the memory of God. God depends on no one to live and act in the world, not even on His monks! On the contrary, the function of the monk in our time is to keep himself alive by contact with God.

It is never I who am helping out God when I serve; it is, and always will be, God's great mercy in allowing us to serve Him, because I know Him more intimately as a result.

I will keep reading and thinking and praying about such things up here, where it is quiet and still blanketed in a light layer of snow. I am grateful for such refreshing times.

(Today's featured photo was taken by my iPhone at Convict Lake. We stopped here to remember our sweet friend Claire, whose ashes were strewn here about a year ago. It was the perfect spot.)

Hands & Feet

I have had the unexpected pleasure of reconnecting lately in two different situations with some very old friends. It is surprising and wonderful to talk to someone from 25 years ago. Not only is it a delight to reconnect, but the entire encounter is a powerful reminder of how things were, how stunningly naive I was, and how much things have grown and changed since then. I feel older, but also a bit wiser.

When I talk to these folks though, inevitably one of the first questions is, So what are you up to these days? Given that vocationally I wear at least four hats at any given time, it feels like there is no short answer to that question. And inevitably, I end up tripping over my words as I try to explain the different stuff I am so excited about.

However, as I read last night before going to sleep, I received a subtle "THAT'S it" when I read these words:

Teresa of Avila, a sixteenth-century Spanish mystic, wrote, “Christ has no body now on earth but yours, no hands but yours, no feet but yours. Yours are the eyes through which Christ’s compassion is to look out to the world; yours are the feet with which he is to go about doing good; yours are the hands with which God is to bless people now.”

My weeks are occupied with teaching, consulting, writing and strategic planning, and each of those projects use a different email address. But what they really add up to is one thing; ultimately, I hope that I can equip others a little bit in being "Jesus with skin on" in the world today. As Teresa of Avila said so many centuries ago, we are the hands and feet of Jesus.

So when I am leading 70 high school students in a weekly dialogue about the Gospel of Mark, I pray they are motivated to carry on the ministry of Christ in the world, incarnating his love and mercy and selfless service.

When I write articles, mostly about youth ministry, I pray that my words can assist a few youthworkers in persevering past the statistical 2.5 years of the average lifespan of a youthworker, carrying on as a faithful mentor to their own group of disciples.

When I work with a pastors in recruiting more volunteers or shaping three-year goals, it is my hope that they will feel hopeful about how they can actually do ministry, and not just worry about it and feel buried in budgets, emails and the crisis of the week.

And finally, when I am recruiting at colleges and building networks of support for the future leaders in the kingdom, I want each person I talk to, whether they are seminary presidents or college freshmen or hard-working faculty, to know that Jesus was loving enough (and slightly crazy?) to entrust the work of His kingdom into our clumsy hands.

As I read recently, "Lord, we are forever grateful that you do not want to change the world without us. May we become the church you dream of."

I reveled in Teresa of Avila's simple words, and the encouragement only mounted as I read Isaiah 25 and 26:

In that day the people will proclaim,

“This is our God!

We trusted in him, and he saved us!

This is the Lord, in whom we trusted.

Let us rejoice in the salvation he brings!” (25:9)

7 But for those who are righteous,

the way is not steep and rough.

You are a God who does what is right,

and you smooth out the path ahead of them.

8 Lord, we show our trust in you by obeying your laws;

our heart’s desire is to glorify your name.

9 All night long I search for you;

in the morning I earnestly seek for God. (26:7-9)

As it says in 2 Corinthians 4:1, Therefore, since through God’s mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart. It is remarkable to me that God chooses to work through us, nincompoops that we are. But since he has entrusted such things to us, let us rise to the challenge, with His Spirit filling us. How good is our God.

Mercy

I am running across so many great quotes this summer... here's one I cannot help but share:

Solitude Devotional

My church, Free Methodist Church of Santa Barbara, asked me to write a study guide on the spiritual discipline of solitude for this month - July 2011.

I've mentioned this to a few friends I know and they have asked me for a copy, so I've decided to post it here. It will guide you through daily devotions for the entire month of July.

I'd be very curious to hear any feedback, should you choose to use it. The content came almost purely from my own pursuit of intimacy with God in these last 2 1/2 years or so. I've spent time studying Benedictine spirituality, reading authors like Henri Nouwen, Scot McKnight, Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove, Parker Palmer, Kathleen Norris and Thomas Merton.

In terms of my own time today, this psalm came into my reading. It was a profound blessing that spoke directly to where I am right now. May your times with God this coming month be rich and real in new ways. Amen.

Psalm 4

¹ Answer me when I call to you,
O God who declares me innocent.
Free me from my troubles.
Have mercy on me and hear my prayer.

² How long will you people ruin my reputation?
How long will you make groundless accusations?
How long will you continue your lies?
Interlude

³ You can be sure of this:
The Lord set apart the godly for himself.
The Lord will answer when I call to him.

⁴ Don’t sin by letting anger control you.
Think about it overnight and remain silent.
Interlude

⁵ Offer sacrifices in the right spirit,
and trust the Lord.

⁶ Many people say, “Who will show us better times?”
Let your face smile on us, Lord.
⁷ You have given me greater joy
than those who have abundant harvests of grain and new wine.
⁸ In peace I will lie down and sleep,
for you alone, O Lord, will keep me safe.

Focus

With a little breathing room in my life I am unpacking some of my stuff from my trip earlier this month to Italy. Here is a brief quote I read during my first full day there ~ we were in Naples:

I came to the monastery to learn to live in the presence of God, to taste him here and now, but there is so much "ego-climbing" going on within me. I have so many ideas I want to write about, so many books I want to read, so many skills I want to learn... that I do not SEE that God is all around me and that I am always trying to see what is ahead, overlooking him who is so close. (Genesee Diary, Henri Nouwen)

Then I saw this reference from the 6th century monastic Rule of St. Benedict, chapter 4:

Your hope of fulfillment should be centered in God alone. When you see any good in yourself, then, don't take it to be your very own, but acknowledge it as a gift from God.

Reading all of this today, the day before Easter, I am reminded...

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne. Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won’t become weary and give up. After all, you have not yet given your lives in your struggle against sin. (Hebrews 12:1-4, New Living Translation)

Indeed, those "cloud of witnesses" are the faithful believers who have gone before us. Help me run the race and live the daily life, Lord, knowing it is not about "success" and accomplishment in this life. It is simply about you.

I am so driven, and really, nothing in me will be able to stop that impulse. But certainly the Spirit can re-direct ~ re-focus ~ my intensity more appropriately on the eternal, and less on the temporary gains that could be made here. Come Lord Jesus.

February Favorites 2011

This holiday weekend has been wonderfully relaxing and full of favorite things... some of them won't surprise you... cooking, riding my bike (had an especially fun ride getting drenched to the bone on Saturday), reading on the couch with a latte close by, and watching NBA Basketball (the All-Star Game Dunk Contest was insane this year).

But to drill down a bit deeper, here are some of the specific things that I am enjoying these days...

• Abuelita Chocolate: I've picked up the new habit of dissolving 1/8 tablet of Abuelita Mexican chocolate in my milk before I steam it for a minute in the microwave... then I pour in my espresso that I brew on my stove, a habit I started after my first visit to Italy in 2006. This makes the BEST mocha I have ever had. Period.
• The Cloister Walk: I picked this up at the Borders closeout downtown before it closed. I'm fascinated by Benedictine spirituality, and this book profiles Kathleen Norris' 9-month experience worshiping with Benedictines. A good, creative read. Next book on the list to read is one I received for my birthday: The Blue Parakeet.
• The Prayer Circle: My friend Megan turned me on to this album. I don't know I missed it when it first came out in 1999, but this album is transcendent. It's called "A Choral Symphony in 9 Movements." I put this on when I'm writing a lesson for my Foundations class at Providence Hall or just writing a long letter to a friend. Put it on, sit on the couch and close your eyes. Absolutely lovely.
• Fleet Foxes ~ "Helplessness Blues": Go to this link and download the song. The harmonies, the lyrics, the production of it is beautiful. It sort of reminds me of old Simon & Garfunkel stuff, but it's also brand new.
• "Just the Way You Are" by Bruno Mars: No apologies here... occasionally a pop song gets in my head and goes on "repeat." I am addicted to this song.
  
• My Dansko clogs: Oh my heart. These things are a dream. I wear them EVERYWHERE. My poor housemate was so sick of seeing my one pair that she got me another pair for my birthday.
  
• Cottage Cheese Pancakes: I found this recipe in December, and I still am making them at least once a week. With raspberries, they are ridiculous.
• The Book of Hebrews in The Message: I am using the devotional Common Prayer, and am currently in the Book of Hebrews. There is such good news in this book. Read it and smile with joy, relief, and praise.
• My cat Oliver. Recently my friend Cameron mocked me for not blogging lately about my kitten. Have no fear, I'm not done talking about my fuzzy friend.

Memorize

As I mentioned right before Thanksgiving, I started a new devotional at the beginning of Advent. It has been a wonderful spiritual map for me. I cannot recommend it enough. Please check it out -- if you don't want to take the dive right away and buy the book, check out the accompanying website and take some nibbles. I'll warn you, the book itself is far more satisfying.

A lovely part of the book is a midday prayer that they suggest praying every day.

I have decided to slowly memorize this prayer, and then pray it periodically throughout my days. I have a long way to go in terms of getting it down, but already I sense a difference as these words rattle around inside my head and heart.

Try it yourself. Be patient -- I'm only taking on one more sentence each day. As I keep working my way through it, different words grab my soul each time. I can tell I am being changed.

Give it a test drive yourself... again, there is no need to hurry. Let the words and thoughts percolate on down.

Draw us into your love, Christ Jesus : and deliver us from fear.

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me so love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I may not
so much seek to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

** Silence for meditation **

Our Father…

Make us worthy, Lord, to serve our brothers and sisters throughout the world, who live and die in poverty and pain. Give them today, through our hands, their daily bread and through our understanding love, give peace and joy. Amen

Blessed are the poor.
For theirs is the Kingdom of God.
Blessed are the hungry.
For they shall be filled.
Blessed are the meek.
For they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are the pure in heart.
For they shall see God.
Blessed are those who mourn.
For they shall be comforted.
Blessed are the merciful.
For they shall be shown mercy.
Blessed are the peacemakers.
For they are the children of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness and justice.
For great is their reward.

** Song: optional **

Dear Jesus, help us to spread your fragrance everywhere we go.

Flood our souls with your spirit and life. Penetrate and possess our whole being so utterly that our lives may only be a radiance of yours. Shine through us, and be so in us, that every soul we come in contact with may feel your presence in our soul. Let them look up and see no longer us but only Jesus! Stay with us, and then we shall begin to shine as you shine; so to shine as to be a light to others; the light O Jesus, will be all from you, none of it will be ours; it will be you, shining on others through us. Let us thus praise you in the way you love best by shining on those around us. Let us preach you without preaching, not by words but by our example, by the catching force, the sympathetic influence of what we do. The evident fullness of the love our hearts bear to you. Amen

Soul of Christ, sanctify me
Body of Christ, save me
Blood of Christ, inebriate me
Water from the side of Christ, wash me
Passion of Christ, strengthen me
O good Jesus, hear me
Within Thy wounds hide me
Suffer me not to be separated from Thee
From the malicious enemy defend me
In the hour of my death call me
And bidst me come to Thee
That with Thy saints I may praise Thee
Forever and ever. Amen.

Let us go forth to be the Body of Christ. May we become the hands and feet of Jesus to everyone we meet.

In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

Appetite

Yesterday was a hearty day of learning for me. It started in my Foundations of the Faith class at Providence Hall. We finished up a month-long series on Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. (Note to self: a month is not nearly long enough! Especially when I only get to teach on it twice a week. But something is better than nothing, right?)

It's a mixed bag in terms of how much students got out of our discussions. Lewis uses language that is so intricate and thought-provoking. And sometimes, just plain hard. So it takes awhile for teenagers (anyone, really) to shift gears into his vocabulary and logic. But it is so worth the effort!

In yesterday's meeting we spent time looking at two letters from the end of the book [Spoiler alert: if you haven't read the book, I'm giving away the ending here...] Letter 28 is a review of how the demons Uncle Screwtape and his nephew Wormwood have worked at tempting and deceiving and "muddling" the "patient." This book was written in 1942, so the heavy presence of the war, compounded by the carpet bombing of London, is prevalent as a ready source of discouragement and temptation. As a class we then spent time together thinking about and comparing how we are tempted in sunny Santa Barbara in 2010.

One of the many wonders of this short novel is how Lewis gets us to see how even the stupefying horrors of war can be used to bring believers closer to God. More wondrous still is how Lewis resolves the book. The "patient," a new believer tormented in various ways by Screwtape and Wormwood, nonetheless thrives in his faith, despite various ups and downs -- or "undulations," as Lewis terms them. Then the book ends with a big surprise -- the patient is killed during the bombings. As one student told me, "this actually brought me to tears. It took my breath away to realize that this was a good thing."

Indeed, amazingly, this is a "happy" ending, because the demons' efforts at destruction and damnation are thwarted. The patient ends life in this world loving his Savior, safely in the arms of the "Enemy," as the demons refer to God Himself.

As a school, we reviewed what we'd learned from our time reading through Screwtape:

1. Beware of how subtly and persistently Satan wants to destroy you. He will never give up.
2. The greatest weapons you have against temptation are prayer and godly, unselfish love.
3. This life is not all there is. We are sustained as we realize that we are being shaped for eternity. Develop a hunger for heaven...

There are a world of things I could say about those 3 lessons learned. But one thing in particular really hit home. The daily Nouwen quote that arrived in my email inbox said this:

If we do not wait patiently in expectation for God's coming in glory, we start wandering around, going from one little sensation to another. Our lives get stuffed with newspaper items, television stories, and gossip. Then our minds lose the discipline of discerning between what leads us closer to God and what doesn't, and our hearts gradually lose their spiritual sensitivity.

Without waiting for the second coming of Christ, we will stagnate quickly and become tempted to indulge in whatever gives us a moment of pleasure.

By sending this quote yesterday, I believe that God was using a "holy highlighter" with me, reinforcing the very words in my own life that I was to be teaching to others. I was reminded to strengthen my heavenly appetites, not my worldly ones. God is most satisfying when I allow myself to be hungry for him, "waiting patiently in expectation for him." If I eat the "junk food" of this life instead, I gain a false sense of fullness that leaves me shallow and wanting.

Thus I enter Thanksgiving, the beginning of the new church year (starting with Advent on Sunday) wanting to feed myself with Jesus even more, stoking the fires of true spiritual hunger. But where do I start? Providentially, a great opportunity to do so arrived in my mailbox the very day!

I have included a photo of the book that arrived. It has just been released by Zondervan, and its title is simple: Common Prayer. The subtitle says a bit more: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals. One of its authors is a friend of mine, Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove. I can't even begin to describe all that it includes. But simply put, it's a unique sort of daily devotional, especially useful for groups to use too. I am so excited to get started on it. It provides a generous yet challenging structure for deepened prayer and devotion. I am going to get it for friends, and recommend it to everyone I talk to. I suggest you do the same... perhaps we can start a quiet little revolution!

I say all this not just because I want to support my friend's book (though I do!); but because I was reminded in multiple ways yesterday that, when it comes down to it, I have one fundamental prayer in my life:

He must become greater; I must become less. (John 3:30, NIV)

Restated in other versions:

He must increase, but I must decrease. (NASB)

That's why my cup is running over. This is the assigned moment for him to move into the center, while I slip off to the sidelines. (The Message)

One paraphrase I heard states it this way: "Less of me, and more of Thee."

Happy Thanksgiving, Happy Advent, Happy next year in Jesus Christ. Stuff yourself with more of Him!

Run For Your Life

I've been cruising through 1 Timothy this week. There have been so many stunning verses. But these two in chapter 6 press in on me:

Run for your life from all this. Pursue a righteous life—a life of wonder, faith, love, steadiness, courtesy. Run hard and fast in the faith. Seize the eternal life, the life you were called to, the life you so fervently embraced in the presence of so many witnesses. (verses 11-12)

I hold that passage in one hand, and this great reminder from Benedictine reading in the other:

Eventually we must all settle down and do something serious with our lives, and every day we must make a fresh beginning of it.

May you be able to see the daily opportunities in front of you to run, to seize, to pursue... they are always right there.

What I Want

I'm in a new Bible study with some great friends -- some old, some new. We are reading Benedict's Way (by Homan & Pratt) together. It contains 30 readings on various aspects of Benedictine spirituality. The goal is to talk and pray together about spiritual depth, devotional discipline and balance in life. Topics like prayer, work, silence, hospitality, service, learning, friendship... it will be a feast.

Last night's topic was prayer. Here is a quote from the reading. It speaks for itself:

“O God,” I said, and that was all.

But what are the prayers of the whole universe more than expansions of that one cry? It is not what God can give us, but God that we want. (George MacDonald)

We ended the time together by praying through Psalm 34. I am re-reading it this morning in the Message. What a banquet to draw from in this psalm. Here is guidance as to how to push aside the stresses of the "now" and live today in the "not yet." Enjoy.

Psalm 34

¹ I bless God every chance I get; my lungs expand with his praise.

² I live and breathe God;
if things aren't going well, hear this and be happy:

³ Join me in spreading the news;
together let's get the word out.

⁴ God met me more than halfway,
he freed me from my anxious fears.

⁵ Look at him; give him your warmest smile.
Never hide your feelings from him.

⁶ When I was desperate, I called out,
and God got me out of a tight spot.

⁷ God's angel sets up a circle
of protection around us while we pray.

⁸ Open your mouth and taste, open your eyes and see—
how good God is.
Blessed are you who run to him.

⁹ Worship God if you want the best;
worship opens doors to all his goodness.

¹⁰ Young lions on the prowl get hungry,
but God-seekers are full of God.

¹¹ Come, children, listen closely;
I'll give you a lesson in God worship.

¹² Who out there has a lust for life?
Can't wait each day to come upon beauty?

¹³ Guard your tongue from profanity,
and no more lying through your teeth.

¹⁴ Turn your back on sin; do something good.
Embrace peace—don't let it get away!

¹⁵ God keeps an eye on his friends,
his ears pick up every moan and groan.

¹⁶ God won't put up with rebels;
he'll cull them from the pack.

¹⁷ Is anyone crying for help? God is listening,
ready to rescue you.

¹⁸ If your heart is broken, you'll find God right there;
if you're kicked in the gut, he'll help you catch your breath.

¹⁹ Disciples so often get into trouble;
still, God is there every time.

²⁰ He's your bodyguard, shielding every bone;
not even a finger gets broken.

²¹ The wicked commit slow suicide;
they waste their lives hating the good.

²² God pays for each slave's freedom;
no one who runs to him loses out.

Focus

If you are feeling stressed, busy, overwhelmed, tense, this is a profound reminder:

The point is clear: there is to be no time, no thing, that absorbs us so much that we lose contact with the God of life; no stress so tension-producing, no burden so complex, no work so exhausting that God is not our greatest agenda, our constant companion, our rest and our refuge. More, whatever other people worship, we are to keep our minds and hearts on God. (Joan Chittister, The Rule of Benedict)

Psalm 118:4-8
Let those who fear the LORD say:
"His love endures forever."

⁵ In my anguish I cried to the LORD,
and he answered by setting me free.

⁶ The LORD is with me; I will not be afraid.
What can man do to me?

⁷ The LORD is with me; he is my helper.
I will look in triumph on my enemies.

⁸ It is better to take refuge in the LORD
than to trust in man.

Focus on the things that last. That truly matter.

Quiet

"Silence has two functions. The first effect of exterior silence is to develop a sense of interior peace. The second value of silence is that it provides a stillness that enables the ear of the heart to hear the God who is 'not in the whirlwind.'

The constantly blaring music, the slammed door, the ceaseless, empty chatter in the hall, the constantly harsh voice all break the peace of the heart and agitate the soul. Day after day, month after month of them thickens the walls of the mind until it becomes impossible to hear the talk within us that shows us our pain and opens our minds to the truths of life and the presence of God...

We say we do not have the time to think, but what we actually lack is the quiet to think. Yet, until we are able to have at least a little silence every day, both outside and in, both inside and out, we have no hope of coming to know either God or ourselves very well." Joan Chittister, The Rule of Benedict, pp. 124-125.

Into Great Silence

I had an article published online with YMToday this week. They contacted me, asking me to contribute an article related to keeping Sabbath as a pastor. I really enjoy writing for this site. It's produced by the Center for Youth Ministry Training (cymt.org), who in turn is affiliated with Memphis Seminary.

For this submission I ended up adapting an article I'd written for my former church's monthly newsletter a few years ago. It was really great for me to reflect on this older article, and be able to see some of the ways I had adopted some spiritual practices examined in the film Into Great Silence.

I cannot say enough about this film. As I say in my article, I watch this film at least once a year -- it's already in my pile of goodies that I am gathering together for my upcoming summer vacation trip to Alaska. In the case of this film, "less is more." In other words, I want to say very little, because it defies description. Just see it. (And feel free to read my article while you're at it :)

Stillness & Motion

I feel like I heard from God this morning in a couple of nice ways...

First from Henri Nouwen quote of the day:

A Still Place in the Market

"Be still and acknowledge that I am God" (Psalm 46:10). These are words to take with us in our busy lives. We may think about stillness in contrast to our noisy world. But perhaps we can go further and keep an inner stillness even while we carry on business, teach, work in construction, make music, or organise meetings.

It is important to keep a still place in the "marketplace." This still place is where God can dwell and speak to us. It also is the place from where we can speak in a healing way to all the people we meet in our busy days. Without that still space we start spinning. We become driven people, running all over the place without much direction. But with that stillness God can be our gentle guide in everything we think, say, or do.

Then I read this in a devotional:

Spirituality is clearly rooted in living ordinary life with extraordinary awareness and commitment... it is so easy to go through life looking feverishly for special ways to find God when God is most of all to be found in doing common things with uncommon conscientiousness.

Today is my weekly Sabbath day. I got in the habit of taking Saturdays for this (rather than Sundays) years ago when I started working for a church. Today I woke up slowly, read and prayed a bit, then went into the garden and picked some green onion and swiss chard. I sauteed them in some olive oil, fried up some eggs with them and had a very nice breakfast (with a requisite cup of coffee, of course). My day will be simple -- some exercise, a little reading, some doodling around the house that helps bring some order to my personal life. I will heed the words from Nouwen and from Benedict, to revel in the ordinary with acute awareness. I thought about dear old Jack the cat and got a little wistful -- I missed his tail talk in the morning as I made my breakfast. But I enjoyed the birds as I hung laundry and noticed a large black lizard in the woodpile next to the patio. The warmth of the sun felt good on my face.

As I gather myself this Sabbath day and get my wits about me after a full week, I then want to take that stillness that can only come from the Spirit of God into another week of motion. Let's help each other do this.