Wednesday, March 20, 2019

“Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly.” (2 Timothy 2:16, New International Version)

                My favourite button on my TV remote control is the mute button.

                With it I can shut out all the chatter and noise which comes from my TV set. I can mute out the commercials, especially the ones which I have seen umpteen times in the same hour or two. (Please, Dr. Ho, I really don’t want your gizmos and gadgets.) I can silence the fundraisers who interrupt and spoil my PBS shows with their silly conversations and pleas for my money. I can mute blowhard politicians and their babble-speak. I can shut out all the chatter, the over-analysis, the pointless, the repetitive, the monotonous, the irrelevant, the babble, the worthless words that pour out like a never-ending waterfall of verbiage and redundancy (sort of like this sentence!) I’ll even watch live sports on mute because I get tired of the announcers’ repetitive chatter or stating the obvious or having a lack of any real insight to the game I am watching. Alas, poor Susan when I am in charge of the remote…

                Right now, I am listening to and somewhat watching a waterfall falling over a cliff. All I can hear is the rushing water. Sometimes the station offers bird songs or babbling brooks or winds through the pines, or waves washing up on shores.  I find the sounds very soothing and relaxing. Sometimes I do my devotional readings while this is on. It helps me focus on the words I am reading. But no disturbing words!

                Don’t get me wrong, I love words. They are my bread and butter in many ways.  Words are important and essential for good communication skills. When I write I am always searching for just the right, precise words.

The right sorts of words help build healthy relationships. Words are indispensable for expressing ideas, needs, expectations, for saying that one is sorry, for voicing joy, praise, love, and pride in another. Words can be imaginative, creative, expressive, mysterious, sacred, intense, passionate, moving and powerful.

                But our current culture is far too full of far too many of the wrong and useless types of words, especially under the influence of social media. Everybody gets to have their say - the good, the bad and the ugly. Hate speech. Cyber bullying. Unfriending people on Facebook. Election interference and collusion.  Ranting, insulting tweets on Twitter.  Sexist, racist, harassing, uncensored, crude, rude, unfiltered words.

                There needs to be some sort of a universal or cosmic mute button.

                People need to think before they speak. We need to revive the old saying that if you haven’t got something good to say about someone, don’t say anything at all. “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer,” (Psalm 19:14. NLT).  

Write down your words but if they are not constructive words then throw the paper away. It has become so hard to take back our words; for once they are out there, they are out there for ever, “but no one can tame the tongue. It is restless and evil, full of deadly poison,” (James 3:8, NLT). James may be overstating his case here, but I suspect the little congregation to which he is writing had been giving him good cause to be so vehement.

Paul makes a cogent point when he wrote, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen,” (Ephesians 4:29, New International Version). He is pretty clear about what he thinks about gossip, wrangling, slander, lies, malice, virile and toxic disagreements in the church and all “abusive language that comes from your mouth,” (Colossians 2:3:9, NIV).

“Whoever would love life and see good days must keep their tongue from evil and their lips from deceitful speech,” (1 Peter 3:10).

Words to live by!

Dale

Wednesday, March 13, 2019

“On the other hand, if we admit our sins - make a clean breast of them - he won't let us down; he'll be true to himself. He'll forgive our sins and purge us of all wrongdoing.” (1John 1:9, The Message Bible) 

                Someone once said or wrote that confession is good for the soul.

                It seems that every time we turn on the TV, someone is admitting to some crime, felony, lie or misdemeanor or dirty trick or bad judgment or sexual misconduct or inappropriate tweets on Twitter or committing some indiscretion or doing something which he or she has tried to hide and cover-up. Only when faced with the evidence and scrutiny that now comes with social media, do some of these culprits come clean and confess their sins of commission. Usually reluctantly. Often after denying it for some time. A lot of them are men, sad to say.

                They may be priests, pastors, actors, celebrities, politicians, teachers, sport athletes, team owners – well, the list of offenders seems never-ending.  Institutions can also be included from banks to churches to governments to armies to police forces to hospitals to just bout any organization which rationalizes and defends its policies, procedures and practices in the name of profit, benefit and power.

                But let’s be honest here, nobody of us really likes to confess our mistakes, our poor decisions, our self-serving lies and exaggerations, our weaknesses, our bad habits, our character flaws and sins of commission or omission. It seems easier to deflect the ugly little truths about ourselves, to sweep under the rug our indiscretions and pretend that we have never done a wrong thing ever in our lives. But we are reminded that this act of denial is in itself a sin, “If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.” (1 John 1:9, New Living Translation)

                Speaking about truth, we hear echoes of Jesus’ words in our text as he talked about the grace and liberation of discipleship and of accepting Jesus’ leadership of our lives: “And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:32, NLT)

                Yes, truth can be painful and costly, especially at first. But it can also be even more painful to hold on to a lie, to nurture falsehood, or to deny the real truth as these sorry endeavours will eat away at our souls and dry up our spirits.  We will live in fear and regret. We will harbor resentment and hide under a false sense of security.

                Truth-telling, i.e. confession, may be difficult but it is also liberating and offers a new lease on life and grants us shalom, a peace which surpasses all understanding, a peace which calms the conscience and restores a fresh balance in our lives.

                It is in truth-telling where we find grace, forgiveness, mercy, closure, peace, rightness – from others and from God.

                Please note that I am referring to the act of  admitting our own faults and  not pointing out the faults of others in a harsh spirit of so-called truth-telling, I have seen far too much damage done by people who think they are practicing the scripture verse that says we should “speak the truth” to one another and forget the speaking the truth “in love”  part of the verse. (Ephesians 4:15) Jesus has it right, of course, “It's easy to see a smudge on your neighbor's face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own.” (Matthew 7: 3, The Message Bible)

                Confession is personal (although there are occasions in which it should also be communal, a cooperate admission of collaborative error and bad choices). Confession is about our personal relationships, our lack of honest encounter with others and with God, our personal need for self-awareness, correction, discipline, and therefore reconciliation and restoration, the hopeful purging of the past and a fresh lean-into of the future, experiencing that which we call redemption.

                I have always found the season of Lent to be a time for such personal self-reflection and candid self- discovery.  May the Lord have mercy on my soul! 

Dale

Wednesday, March 6, 2019 - Ash Wednesday

“I take back everything I said, and I sit in dust and ashes to show my repentance.” (Job 42:6, New Living Translation) 

[Before I begin, everything which I said last week about anticipating a new grandchild in September now goes double.  Our daughter Katie and her husband Gary are also expecting in September. The more, the merrier!]

                Smudges!

                I don’t know about your childhood but I can remember my mother taking out a Kleenex from her purse, wetting it in her mouth with spit and giving me a spit-wash because there was a smudge on my face. It was yucky then and seems as much so today as I recall it.  But heaven forbid if I were to go into church with a smudge on my face – what would people think?

                Yet today, with it being Ash Wednesday and the beginning of Lent, many a person will be leaving their churches with smudges on their foreheads. It is a symbolic action indicating one’s repentance and the beginning of spiritual preparation for Good Friday and then Easter or Resurrection Sunday. It may be accompanied by a day of fasting and prayer.  Some people will give something up for Lent – another symbolic gesture of self-sacrifice as one walks with Christ towards his Cross and the ensuing and unique gift of New Life and New Hope for all of us.

                What will people think if they see a person with a smudge on their foreheads today? I doubt that many will connect a little dirty smudge with faith or spirituality. This isn’t a part of my Baptist tradition but I have used ashes in many an Ash Wednesday service. For example, I have had people write down on slips of paper some hurt, grudge, personal problem, habit or sin which they would like to put away from themselves. Then we have burned those slips of paper with prayers of confession, along with prayers asking for forgiveness, and asking for God’s assistance for the future.  These actions can be very cathartic and liberating. They represent the “taking back” the things that smudge up our lives.

                Ashes are treated very carefully and respectfully in the Jewish rituals and ceremonies of sacrifice in the Old Testament. They are not just tossed to the side of the road and trampled upon and soon forgotten. The refuse of burnt offerings, the unseemly left-overs so to speak, need to be handled with utmost care and deposited in a special spot reserved just for this use, often near the altar. There were special ash buckets or pots used for the ashes’ removal. The priests had to change garments both before and after handling the ashes. In one instance a special purple cloth must cover those ashes. (Interestingly, purple is the liturgical colour of Lent.)

                At the beginning of the book of Job, our tragic hero sits on an ash-heap, ticked off at God and the world, facing his misery and torment with nothing like the patience of Job. From the ashes of his life he demands a trial or fair hearing in which God must state his case against Job and justify the reasons for Job’s pain and suffering. Job is a proud man and believes that he has done nothing to deserve such treatment. But out of his ashes Job never denies God nor abandon his faith. In the midst of his ashen protests he defiantly and faithfully speaks some of the most beautiful words in scripture, “For I know that my redeemer lives and that at the last he will stand upon the earth and after my skin has been thus destroyed then in my flesh I shall see God.” (Job 19:25, New Revised Standard Version)

                In the end he is still sitting on his ash heap but he recognizes that the ashes represent his repentance and he discovers a new-found reverence and need for this great big God in his life. He doesn’t get an easy, simple or perfect answer to all his questions but he gets all the answer he really ever needs.  Job gets a new beginning and a fresh start.  This is what repentance is all about.

God is not giving away spit-washes. We need to take our ashes seriously and bring them back to the altar of God’s Love, Grace and Mercy.  His loving action as in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, is a fully deep and thorough cleansing of our hearts, souls and spirits, as in the words of the Psalm, “Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.” (Psalm 51:7, NLT) 

Dale

Wednesday, February 27, 2019

“Everyone who heard about it reflected on these events and asked, ‘What will this child turn out to be?’ For the hand of the Lord was surely upon him in a special way.” (Luke 1:66, New Living Translation)

                If you can’t trust your own children, whom can you trust?

                A little while back, Nick and Erin invited us to come for this past week-end, part of which was to look after the our two grandsons while they went to a “bank appointment” on Saturday.  We didn’t need to be asked twice. A weekend with William and Henry is a real joy!

                On Saturday morning Nick and Erin headed out to their appointment. We played a lot of video games. The boys helped Grandma bake a chocolate cake. More video games. We all were having a great time.

                When Nick and Erin returned, they confessed to us that they had told us a little fib about the reason for their alleged “bank appointment”. They then produced an ultra sound photo of our new-to-be grandchild. They were announcing their pregnancy to us. The baby is due in September.  But we are already very excited about our ever-growing family and couldn’t be happier for them and us.

                As for the fib, well, I am pretty sure that this is not the first time that Nick has misled me…  But under the circumstances who’s to complain?

                What will this child turn out to be? This question which was asked about the child whom we know became John the Baptist is an intriguing question for any parent or even grandparent. The world is bursting both with opportunities as well as challenges for today’s children. Therefore, it is so important to ensure that each and every child is loved, nurtured, encouraged, be well-taught with good values, affirmed, and be given every chance to grow and develop in healthy ways in mind, body and spirit.

                What will this child turn out to be? Certainly, we pray for a healthy child - ten fingers and ten toes and two ears all right where they are supposed to be. But beyond the physical characteristics we  begin to imagine a world in which this about-to-be little one finds his or her place, makes his or her mark,  expresses his or her personality, and becomes the whole person he or she will become.

                Parenting is hard these days. Sometimes we wish we could wrap our children in bubble warp and keep them safe and well. Good parenting takes a lot of patience, constancy, determination, perseverance, good humour, courage, fortitude and a great deal of love and perhaps a dash of good luck every now and then.  To give one’s child a firm foundation in core values and character-building ideals is the onus on every parent, grandparent, or even, as it is on our own family, aunts and uncles. “My child, listen and be wise: Keep your heart on the right course.” (Proverbs 23:19, New Living Translation)

                In some ways, a new-born is a blank slate. How we surround that child with a positive, healthy environment goes a long way as to defining what this child will become.

                Then perhaps, when all is said and done, someone will recognize the sacred heart and soul of the child and discover how the hand of the Lord is upon them in a very special and unique way.

                Without the honey and locusts, I hope!

Dale

Wednesday, February 20, 2019

““Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn others, or it will all come back against you. Forgive others, and you will be forgiven.” (Luke 6:37, The New Living Translation)

                For the first time ever, I have been summoned for jury duty toward the end of March.  I am curious although I am told by others who have done it that it can be a long, tedious process and one might not even get to be chosen in the end. Nevertheless, I am keenly interested in what goes on.

                The accompanying letter to my summons argues that this is my civic responsibility. It also warns me what might happen if I try to shirk it off.  So, I will toddle off and go from there. Maybe I will get to sit on a real juicy case of some kind.

                It is a serious onus to be on a panel of people whose task it is to judge another human being, regardless of what the charge or accusation may be against them. The decision which a jury makes has major and often long-term consequences upon the individual who is under such severe scrutiny.  It is not to be taken lightly.

                 As a Christian I am also beholden to core values such as the forgiveness of others, the avoidance of passing quick and narrow-minded judgment, treating others as I would be treated, turning my other cheek even in the face of violence against me.

                But I would argue that we have become a very judgmental culture and in so doing we have become a very unforgiving and hard-hearted society. We have become skeptical or dubious of apologies and admissions of guilt. We hold on to grudges, mistakes, sins, and embrace these accusations, allegations and even true facts as permanent, life-time charges against those who have committed the deeds. There are few second chances today. And I understand that mere simplistic apologies can’t and won’t fix the terrible atrocities that some have experienced in their past but that doesn’t mean we should never try.

                But it is hard, isn’t it, to determine that fine line between choosing forgiveness and tolerance and choosing not to accept bad behaviour, sinful actions, immoral conduct and serous crime.

To be honest, there have been times when I would just as soon let God or Jesus do the judging. They are far very better equipped to do it than I ever could or would. But neither does that or Jesus’ guidelines take me off the hook as to what it means to face wrongness, sinfulness, atrocities, the mistreatment of others, social ills and those who violate cultural taboos. I can’t bury my head in the sand and hope I never get some sort of existential “jury duty” in the world in which I live. Don’t treat evil with more evil but don’t let it get hold or win the day either. These are not facile choices. They really matter to me and to others whom I face. It makes a difference how I apply judgment in people’s lives.

At best, when faced with these real-life dilemmas, I simply need to take Jesus’ words to heart: “Look beneath the surface so you can judge correctly.” (John 7:24, NLT) Or from the Gospels, I need to pay better attention to these words: “It's easy to see a smudge on your neighbor's face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own.” (Matthew 7: 3, The Message Bible)

On a much more mundane or ordinary level, in the corners and edges  of the world in which we regularly live, in our homes, neighbourhoods, churches and communities, trying to create a decent community, fostering relationships,  building harmony and togetherness, Jesus’ words make a lot of practical, everyday sort of sense: "Don't pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults - unless, of course, you want the same treatment. Don't condemn those who are down; that hardness can boomerang. Be easy on people; you'll find life a lot easier.” (Luke 6:37, The Message Bible)  

Dale

Wednesday, February 13, 2019

“Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, he kept giving the bread and fish to the disciples so they could distribute it to the people.” (Luke 9:16, New Living Translation)

                Recently, I finished an “adult” version of a Lego set which I had received for Christmas. Well, the box claimed it was for ages 12 and up, so I certainly qualify. It was 2049 pieces altogether, some pieces so small that they were about a quarter of the size of the nail of my pinky finger. The instruction booklet alone was 278 pages, painstakingly taking me through each bit of construction, piece by piece, step by step. There were seven stages, each stage coming in 2 or 3 plastic bags, each bag clearly marked as for what stage it was for. I did a stage a day, taking about 2 to 3 hours per each.

                The end result was an old fishing store named Anton’s Bait Shop. There was some amazing detail to the store, both inside and out. There were four Lego characters.  Working from the base up  I had to put together every inch of the shop. There were little tiny lobsters for the crates and sitting on little plastic pieces for ice. There were crabs and seagulls, a cat, fishing poles, life preservers, tools, money even, and on and on.  A whole wall comes open or the roof comes off to reveal the insides of the store. The design is quite ingenious. It was sometimes challenging for my arthritic hands to handle some of the smaller pieces or manage to fit them in to some very tight places. I used tweezers when I could.

                When I first looked at all the pieces, the size of the instruction manual or the smallness of what I was dealing with, it felt a little overwhelming and daunting. But I got it done. There were no missing pieces. In fact, the kit gave me extras of many of the smallest pierces (at least, I hope they were extra!)

                I am never, ever taking it apart! It will be passed on to my children and my grandchildren to fight over!

                I can hardly blame the disciples’ skepticism and reluctance when Jesus challenged them to feed the crowd of over 5000 people to whom Jesus had just finished speaking and healing. That is a lot of pieces of humanity who were tired and hungry.  The disciples had urged Jesus to send them all away to fend for themselves, “for we are in a deserted place.” Right away, our ears should perk up - a wilderness is almost always a sign that God is going to do something special.

                We always seem to make excuses when faced with a daunting and challenging project. “Let the pastor do it.” “Let the government do it.” “Find someone else to take care of it.” “It’s not my job.” “I don’t know how.” “It’s too hard.” “I’m busy!” “We don’t have the resources or the money to do it.” The disciples were no different when Jesus told them to feed everybody: “But we have only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered. “Or are you expecting us to go and buy enough food for this whole crowd?” (Luke 9:13, NLT)

                Their cold calculations didn’t add up to the challenge they faced.  But Jesus did not give up and abandon the project of providing a meal. He poured himself into the venture. Were 5000 people a number too big? He couldn’t and wouldn’t ignore them. “He took the five loaves and two fish, lifted his face to heaven in prayer, blessed, broke, and gave the bread and fish to the disciples to hand out to the crowd.” (Luke 9:16, The Message Bible)

                The pieces of bread and fish came together to make a full meal, , enough to feed every single person on that hill, a foreshadowing of the abundant life that will be part of the New Reality (i.e. the Kingdom) that is yet to come. “Give us our daily bread.” Feed me ‘til I want no more. And make sure my neighbour gets fed too, as much or more than I am fed.  There are enough pieces for everyone.

                In fact, there is more, extra, left-overs, additional bits and pieces that will feed us not only today but tomorrow as well.

                Imagine that!

Dale

Wednesday, February 6, 2019

“But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it.” (Matthew 7:14, New Living Translation)

                My GPS failed me! Just when I needed it, it let me down.

                There we were on a Saturday night, headed to the Keg restaurant in Oakville to take Susan’s Mom and Dad out for dinner to celebrate my father-in-law’s birthday. I had studied my Google maps before we left and I thought I knew how to find the restaurant. But I obviously hadn’t remembered what I thought I had seen – some road just south, off of Dundas St.  I was in the area but I had not yet found the right road, even after a couple of pass-bys where I was almost sure it was supposed to be.

                So I stopped on a side street to consult with my trusty Google maps on my cell phone and discovered, to my dismay, that it wouldn’t download properly. I still couldn’t find my way. It gave me a blank screen and then told me that it couldn’t connect me to the app. How frustrating.

                We ended up eating at another restaurant and had a great time just the same. All’s well that ends well.

                My kids laugh at my poor tech know-how. So, I took the phone in to my provider. It turns out that the location finder was not activated. Who knew I had a location finder button? She did this and then that and in less than 30 seconds I was connected.

                There is a parable in this experience I suspect. Or at least a metaphor or two.

                In our text Jesus has reminded us that it is not as easy as we may think to achieve that level of life which is full of love, grace, harmony and shalom as we think. Some people make very poor choices and may end up lost and confused and wondering why their moral compass has mislead them.

Some chase down dead-ends and take detours. Some start out on the best road  but are easily distracted and head off in other directions.

Some think that they have the right direction all figured out and then hit a bump in the road, have an accident or find themselves at the side of the road and wonder when and why it all went wrong.

Some keep trying to find their way but stubbornly never stop to ask for the proper directions and waste their time and end up elsewhere than what they had intended.

                It is a little disappointing or discouraging to hear Jesus say that few of us ever actually find the real, deep, meaningful, purposeful, joyful source of Life, both now and everlasting.  But I don’t think he means for us to give up either. Afterall he also said, “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.” (Matthew 7:7)  

The Good Life that we seek may take some careful navigation in order to make the right and best choices to get ourselves on the right road and then stay the course.  We will have to trust the coordinates that Jesus has set out for us with his directions for love, forgiveness, mercy, compassion, truth, justice and all forms of righteousness.

“Let me hear of your unfailing love each morning, for I am trusting you. Show me where to walk, for I give myself to you.” (Psalm 143:8, NLT)

Dale