Viral Faith

"Awake my soul!" Psalm 57:8 Sleep is a natural, needed activity.  In fact, it is also quite pleasureable.  When we sleep, we are fully relaxed.  Physiologically, balance is restored.  Mentally, we dream and rest from the stress of reality.  Studies have shown that the human mind needs a significant amount of "dream sleep" in order to have normal functioning while awake.  Its as if sleep is God's way of preparing for the day or repairing us from the previous day.  Yet, as pleasant as sleep is, it is a tool to equip us to experience the reality of life.  It is a means towards living fully and expectantly in the moment.  When we are fully rested, we are able to be fully present to the people and the tasks that are ahead of us.  Interestingly, we need times of being completely oblivious to those around us, so that we have enough energy to be fully present to them.  Warren Wiersbe states "If you do not come apart for yourself, you...

There shall be one law for the native and for the stranger who sojourns among you." Exodus 12:49 (ESV) An overlooked component of the Exodus narrative (God personally delivering Israel from slavery in Egypt) is the fact that God did not deliver only ethnic Hebrews.  " A mixed multitude also went up with them ," is how the crowd is described (Exodus 12:38).  It is interesting because as God was developing a community of people who would represent His ways, he purposely chose a multi-cultural expression.  Fast forward to 30 AD, and God does a new work where he creates a new people for himself who are defined by the presence of His spirit.  Interestingly, the book of Acts tells us that this is also a multicultural event (Acts 2).  Looking into the future, we see that eternity is also marked by a people in the presence of God from every nation and ethnicity (Revelation 7:9).  It is clear in Scripture that God's work through Jesus was to first ...

"And ain't I a woman?" Sojouner Truth, in 1851 March 25th is Anunciation Day in the Catholic Church calendar.  This day celebrates the revelation of God, through the angel Gabriel that Mary was to carry the baby Jesus (Luke 1:26-38).  While this day is not celebrated in my own protestant tradition (mostly in reaction to the Roman Catholic doctrine nearly deifying Mary), the calling of Mary has profound implications for woman today. I am always careful when writing about what it means to be a woman or the self-identity of women.  I know, that no matter how sensitive I am, that as a male I have certain cultural predispositions that may make it difficult to adequately describe the essence of womanhood.  I humbly accept my limitations and submit this as a perspective based upon my understanding of Scripture, amplified and illuminated by God's spirit. Mary is poor, adolescent, ethnic minority in an occupied nation, where she had no rights, privileges, or voice....

Above all, remember that your struggles are for the sake of our Lord Jesus John Chrysostom, Fourth Century Pastor President John F. Kennedy is famous for his challenge of the American people: "Ask not what your country can do for you, but consider what you can do for the country."  The young president perceived that as America was comining into its own, that its citizenry began to develop a sense of entitlement, over a sense of community.  Americans were more likely to inquire about what they could get, than what could be shared or how to help one another. Consumerism is the hallmark of the American psyche.  Our overall health, is measured by our government in regards to how much we spend and how much we are able to consume.  The more we consume, the more profit is made, which in turn leads to more jobs which allows more spending.  You see the pattern.  It is so normative that we as Americans, assume it not only to be the best economic model, but in...

Pharaoh said, "Who is the Lord, that I should obey him and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord and I will not let Israel go." Exodus 5:2   Forty-one years ago today, a group of African men decided to protest the obsurdity of having to carry ID cards under the Apartheid system in the country of South Africa.  Their protest was simply to refuse to carry the cards, report to the local police station, and have themselves imprisoned.  The act of civil disobedience was leaked to the police and sixty-nine men died while countless others were injured or maimed in what is now called the Sharpesville Massacre.   On May 4th, 1963, thousands of children marched in the streets of Birmingham Alabama to protest unequal educational opportunities and were met with water cannons, police dogs, and policemen wielding billy clubs.  Hundreds were injured in what was termed the Children's crusade.   I share these stories with you to remind you that evil is real and will f...

"I've been in church a long time.  I guess I just want to know, is this it?  Is this all there is?" Member of the New Hope Ministry Team earlier this week Once a month, New Hope, where I have the privilege of serving as pastor, has a meeting of all of the heads of ministry.  During that meeting, there is a time of sharing, where those involved "on the frontlines" of ministry can candidly and openly share their joys and their concerns. During our last meeting, one of our ministry leaders expressed a wonderfully subversive question that she has been wrestling with.  As we discussed things regarding hospitality, worship, building and grounds, children's and young adult ministries, and missions, all bustling with activity, she halted the conversation to ask "Is this it?  Is this all there is?". Now, one could have responded by expounding on all the wonderful activities, the initiation of new ministries, and the inviting of new members, but that wou...

"The human cry evokes divine resolve" Walter Brueggeman In the Bible, God seeks to reveal his will to humanity, and humanity seeks to respond to God's revelation.  That's a line from the United Holy Church of America's affirmation of faith.  It is the best description of the purpose of scripture that I have seen.  Scripture is a picture of God revealing himself and His will and narratives of how humanity has chosen to respond to that revelation.  In his revelation, we often see patterns.  Those patterns often give us a consistent description of the character of God and nature of His desires for us.  Sometimes that patterns are bold, like God's consistent desire to have people, his own creation, to reflect him. Sometimes they are subtle, such as His response to pain. Nearly two millenia before Jesus, God himself spoke to Moses.  The Lord said, "I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their sl...

"Lord, in our efforts to serve, help us be true to who we are in you" Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals There is tremendous freedom and simplicity in being yourself.  One of the least studied characteristics of Jesus, was His ability to simply be himself, when a multitude of factors, forces, and people, desired him to be something that he was not.  In fact, no other person in the history of humanity had more pressure to be something other than who he was and to do something other than his mission.  When you read the gospel stories, his identity was challenged by his own community, his family, his disciples, his religious leaders, and his government.  Despite all of that, he never allowed others to frame in as something other than what God sent him to be. In our own lives, we face innumerable forces that seek to form us into an alternative identity.  To make matters worse, our natural desires (that which we were born with and our experiences enhan...

" Lord, before the heat of the noonday comes, we are already feeling as though our lives are not full enough.  Instill in us this morning, the assurance that you are enough for us, God.  Your love, your call, your work, is enough.  Amen ."        -Morning Prayer from "Common Prayer for Ordinary Radicals" by Shane         Claiborne. But godliness with contentment is great gain . (I Timothy 6:6) There is something basic in the human DNA that desires to have significance, security, and acceptance.  No matter what culture we live in, or the era in which we have our existence, we are created to desire these three essential elements of life.  Interestingly, each of those elements are relational concepts.  We have significance when our lives have purpose and impact, in relation to the world and the people around us.  We are secure in that we have the provisions we need and are safe...