Wednesday, January 29, 2025

“He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.” (Ephesians 4:16, New Living Translation)

                Holy Lego set, Batman!

                Yes, it is that time of year, in the middle of January’s winter doldrums, that I am, once again, tackling an adult Lego set. It says right in the box – 18 years plus; I am very much in the “plus” category. This year, it is a cityscape of Gotham City from the Batman sagas. There are 43 bags of Lego pieces which add up to thousands of pieces, many of which are quite tiny. There are two thick instruction manuals with meticulous details for step-by-step construction. I am currently on bag 17.

                It gives a whole new meaning to the words “I am falling to pieces” or “Get it together.”

                It makes me think of the man who was possessed by an evil spirit and was out of control. He cried out “My name is Legion, because there are many of us inside this man.” (Mark 5:9) He was torn apart in many directions. There was no consistency, no inner harmony, no lasting internal structure or any sense of peace and steadiness. He was a broken man. Jesus took compassion on him and cured him. Later on, in the story, we find the man “perfectly sane” (v.15) In fact, he becomes an evangelist, of sorts, visiting towns in the region “to proclaim the great things Jesus had done for him…” (v.20)

                The love of Jesus is a wonderful stabilizer for us. His Spirit helps us to make sense of life’s instabilities and brokenness. His words lead us through times of confusion and fragmentation. His Voice mends the broken-hearted and heals the disintegration of our spirits and souls. Jesus is at the core of our psychic unity, our inner harmony, our sense of having it together. “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me.” (John 14:1) Jesus knows the Way and he gives us his direction. “Since I live, you also will live.” (John 14:19)

                This gift of peace and harmony extends into our relationships. “He makes the whole body fit together perfectly…” Paul often mentions the need for unity and harmony in his letters to the churches. But I am taking the liberty to suggest that we can apply his remarks to any of our close relationships like families, neighbourhoods, or anywhere people are trying to get along to make a difference for good. It is hard to get a group pf people to come together for a common purpose and mutual benefit. It always seems that arguments, different agendas and disagreements arise.  But the sign of a mature, healthy church or family or group is that even in difficult situations our faith supports conflict resolutions: “So you should surely be able to resolve ordinary disputes in this life.” (1 Corinthians 6:3)

                Jesus is the glue that binds us personally and in fellowship with others in love. If and when we feel that life is falling apart, that our relationship are in tatters, that nothing makes much sense, that we are going “insane” in some measure, then we need to be open to the loving Voice of Jesus which can bring clarity, coherency, and restore us to our senses. “He made peace between Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one new people from the two groups. Together as one body, Christ reconciled both groups to God by means of his death on the cross, and our hostility toward each other was put to death.” (Ephesians 2: 15 -16) In the same spirit, he tears down the barriers between families, church folk, races and religions. Christ is the author of a world-wide effort to bring Love, Peace, Justice and Hope to people. It’s called the Kingdom of God. It begins with each of us personally and then spreads from brother and sister to others.

                I don’t build a 43-bag set of Lego in a day or even a week. It takes time to put all those pieces in the right place. Likewise, it takes work and effort for each of us to “get it together” and build a life of goodness and holiness. The same is true of our relationships.

Hear this bold statement: “He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together.” (Colossians 1: 17) Trust that “he holds the whole body together with its joints and ligaments, and it grows as God nourishes it.” (Colossians 2:19)

Bag #17, here I come!

 Dale

 Wednesday, January 22, 2025

“He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.” This includes you who were once far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions. Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault.” (Colossian 1: 20 -22, New Living Translation)

               “This includes you who once were so far away…”

                Our minister, the Rev. Dr. Peter Holmes, preached a great sermon, this past Sunday, as he related his experience in a hospital waiting room to the idea of the church as sort of hospital in its own right. The church welcomes the vulnerable, the hurting, the broken and offers healing, restoration and curative blessing. Amen to all that! Well said!

                But it also reminded me of a recent experience which Susan and I had in our hospital’s waiting room as we waited for her regular bi-monthly appointment with her oncologist. These waits tend to be long at the best of times. It’s just part of the process. You learn to live with it. Just don’t plan anything else for the morning. When we finally were escorted into the examination room, we waited for Dr. Shandoake to arrive. We really like Dr. Shandoake, a lot. He’s friendly, thorough and relational.  But after an hour in the examining room, it seemed an exorbitant amount of time to wait. I finally went out into the hall and spoke to a nurse. Within a minute or two, Dr. Shandoake rushed into the room,  full of apologies.  We had been forgotten. His notes got buried under a pile of other notes and he didn’t know we were waiting until he accidently came upon our appointment.

                We had been forgotten. It was nothing personal, of course, just a snafu in the system. Probably won’t happen again.  But nobody likes to be forgotten – or ignored or snubbed or neglected or disregarded.

                Yes, the church can be like a hospital, full of compassion, hope, care, TLC, prayers and love.  I am convinced that the regular, weekly, pastoral prayers of Yorkminster Park Baptist Church have played a crucial element of Susan’s recovery from her cancer. We are so very grateful.

                But I also know that church can sometimes be negligent in assuring that everyone gets that same level of concern. Not everyone gets included. Some get overlooked.  I recall a few times when someone would criticize me that I hadn’t visited them in the hospital. It was usually because no one had told me that they had been the hospital or their stay was just a day or two before I heard about it. But apologies and reasons don’t cut it if a person is feeling unimportant. Nothing makes a minister cringe than when a visitor says that the church wasn’t very friendly. Nothing stains a church more than gaining a reputation for snobbery. Nothing undermines a church’s status more than cliques, power factions, or those who act like the church belongs to them and to them only. Nothing pollutes a church more than judging others, excluding others, shutting out others, losing others. Anything that distances any person from the Love of Christ is a blemish on the church’s record.

Our text reminds us that Christ’s sacrificial Love was all-inclusive. Even those who feel far away from the Love of God are included, Consider Jesus’ own personal ministry – touching lepers, eating with tax-collectors, rubbing elbows with the Romans and other Gentiles, including women. What did the “church” carp about? “He’s a glutton and a drunkard, and a friend of tax collectors and other sinners!” (Luke 7:34) Or Mark puts more starkly: “Why does he eat with such scum?” (Mark 2: 16)

But the Love of God in Jesus Christ includes all who were once far away.  No one is forgotten, neglected, missed by mistake, or overlooked. Even enemies are loved by this Christ and offered new life. We are, of course, different from one another and may see things from different points of view, even disagreeing once in a while. Yet the Love of God in Jesus Christ is more than enough to smooth out the rough edges and sweeten our dispositions. “Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!” (Romans 12:16)

Hey, this includes you!

 Dale

Wednesday, January 15, 2025

“Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love.” (Ephesians 4:2, The Living Bible)

               “Unique means one of a kind. My grandmother is a unique, one-of-a-kind person.”

                Way back, in grade seven or eight, our oldest son, Nick, was required to write a speech and give it in class.  He chose his grandmother, Barbara Neal, Susan’s mother, as his subject. They had a very close relationship and Nick adored her (as have all our grandchildren). In his speech, he explained why she was so special and unique. He actually made it to the city’s finals because of it.

                Those words take on a special poignancy this week as we remember Grandma Barb who passed away on Sunday night.  She was 93 years old. These words sum her up beautifully yet don’t begin to describe the full,  exceptional character of my mother-in-law. But I can say, with much love and appreciation, that Barb Neal was something else!

                I am sure that much will be remembered and said about her gracious and welcoming hospitality, bringing people from all sorts of backgrounds and nationalities into her home, invited to share a meal or a cup of coffee. University students were a favourite of hers. That’s how I got to know her, as a student in McMaster University, long before Susan Neal became the centre of my love. I was a frequent visitor in their home. Mum Neal always made time for me as she had for many throughout her life.

                Dad, Bruce Neal, was the centre of her world. Together, they made an incredible ministry team.  Mum used the telephone like an extension of her arm. She checked in on seniors, the lonely, the bereaved, church members and on and on it goes. She was the epitome of compassion and kindness.

                But, of course, we saw a side of her, not in the public eye. She was exactly the same. We, her family, were treated with the same love, compassion and concern. Our children loved to visit Grandma Barb and Grandpa Bruce which was shortened to G & G over time.  Their Grandma wouldn’t spoil them with gifts and candy and the like. But she gave them a far more valuable gift – her time and focus. There would be frequent trips to a local park along Lake Ontario, sometimes packing a picnic even though it was icy and cold. It was always followed up by a trip to Dairy Queen. She was always planning some experience for them. Once, they took young Nate to a wolf reserve because he was interested in wolves at the time. At Christmas, she would treat us all to go see the Nutcracker Suite or the like. Our kids never came home saying they were bored, but rather they couldn’t wait to go back.

                One time when Nick was about 5 or 6 years old, I was reprimanding him for something he shouldn’t have been doing. He had the sass to say to me that since we were at Grandma’s house, he didn’t have to listen to me. I can never remember a time when Grandma scolded, disciplined or chastised a grandchild. She used words to persuade, or she distracted them or got their minds on better things. It always seemed to work. Besides, it would be devastating to hurt Grandma’s feelings in any way, shape or form.

                A delightful side of her was her mischievous and sometimes, slightly risqué sense of humour. In the middle of some conversation, she would drop one of these bon mots to see what reactions she would get from the kids. They would hoot and laugh and tease. She knew exactly what she was doing but could look so innocent. Dinner tables at the Neal's was a cornucopia of joy, laughter, stories and now for-ever memories. They will always be holy and sacred memories.

                This just scratches the surface. Remember those old Reader’s Digest articles, “The Most Interesting Person I ever Met.”  Barbara Neal would be near the top of my list. It was hard to choose an appropriate scripture text that would speak to the life she lived. She embodied texts like Romans 15:7: “Therefore, accept each other just as Christ has accepted you so that God will be given glory.” Or she lived out the parable of the sheep and the goats from Matthew 25, doing good for the  least of her brothers and sisters, never looking for praise or recognition.

But I will close, in tribute to Mum Barb, with these words from Romans 12: “Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality. Bless those who persecute you. Don’t curse them; pray that God will bless them.  Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all! Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.”

Uniquely, one of a kind!

Dale