The Jeweler

I'm not even sure how things like this happen... I looked at my watch band the other day and realized that one of the links was unlinked (not sure if that is even a word).  I had this band replaced by a local jeweler several years ago.  It's a Speidel watch band, if that means anything.  I am not certain that this jewelry store is even open because of the order barring non-essential places from being open.  I was resigned to the idea that I would have to repair it myself.  I have no idea how the link broke (I'm not in a high energy, physically stressed filled job, after all).  So, I set about repairing the broken link.

I had all the tools I felt necessary: a large pair of pliers, a very small pair of tweezers, an equally small flat screwdriver, and my newest toy, a lighted magnifying glass with holder.  That last tool allows you to work hands free on something that is smaller than the naked eye can see.  Repairs on broken watch band links qualifies as smaller than the naked eye.  I did my best to remove one link from the watch band.  It wasn't the easiest thing I've ever done - I readily admit, I'm not a jeweler nor should I ever be a candidate to be one.  Usually, in matters like this, I can sometimes hold my own.  And sometimes, a broken link can get the best of me.

I think that's what this past month symbolizes for me - it's like a broken link in our lives.  The Stay at Home order, the face masks, social distancing, not to mention the disruption of our entire schedules can make us feel as though a link in our normal lives has been unlinked.  We are in a very different place than we have ever been before.

I wish I had an easy answer to how we can link back to the normality of life.  Many have suggested that we will never be able to go back - that our lives will be forever in a new normal.  I can see that.  Will our gatherings ever be the same as we wonder if this virus has lost its grip on our world?  I cannot envision that.  The authorities are talking about a three-phase process of restarting the economy and a return to some semblance of normal life.  We will need to exercise caution because this could backfire upon us and we'll have gained nothing.  What I really want to know is how can I - how can we - keep our lives linked to the important things we have always held dear?

The solution can never come from our own efforts or striving, but comes only from Him.  In other words, we need a jeweler who has the ability to put our broken links back together, make them stronger than they ever have been before and ensure that the connecting links have been repaired with expert ability.  For me, our Lord is that heavenly jeweler.  Personally, I've discovered that I cannot sustain the effort to try and do it myself.  I must submit or turn it over to God and allow God to put things back together.  I trust His ability to cement his promises with my life.  If I ever desire to experience a sense of wholeness, normality, or even unbrokenness again (whatever you'd like to call it), I have to put my time on this earth in the heavenly jeweler's hands.

Only then will life make sense and order will be restored at long last.

Discover the Resurrection - Believe the Resurrection!

There are things that you can accept as being true and then there are things that are just ridiculously false.  For instance, I was watching a television program the other night when a commercial for Skittles came on.  There's a guy who is shown milking a giraffe, who has taken a lick out of a rainbow.  But what comes out of the giraffe is Skittles.  The guy takes a handful of the Skittles and laughs while the voice over says "Discover the Rainbow - Taste the Rainbow".  Obviously this commercial is suggesting that a) giraffes can actually lick rainbows, and 2) a person can actually milk a giraffe, and d) a milked giraffe who licks a rainbow will produce a handful of Skittles that you can eat and laugh while doing so.  If that were true, I'd be the first one to laugh.  But it isn't true.  It's ridiculously false!

Okay, before you think that I'm off a bit and been sequestered apart from being around normal people, I know it's only a commercial.  I get it that it's not supposed to be true.  It's just supposed to help you remember that Skittles are fun.  I guess it worked because I remember that much.

I share this as an example because I wonder if the resurrection of Jesus didn't take a while for people to really come to believe.  We've been exposed to this amazing story and we believe it - hands down.  But to those first persons who heard it, it could have sounded like an amazing story, but how to believe it?  Were it not for the firsthand eyewitness testimony of the disciples, I can only imagine it might have sounded dubious to some (see Thomas' story).  They believed because Jesus has appeared to them - more than once or twice.  They knew it to be true.  They believed in His resurrection because they had seen him.

So, my friends, how do we believe in something we cannot see?  If that is ever our question, let's stop for a moment and pay attention to this lesson: we cannot see (for example) a coronavirus without the help of some microscope of some sort.  For argument's sake, let's agree that we cannot see it.  But we cannot deny it is there because of the effect it has had upon our world.  It's presence has changed people's lives, altered our current norms, and given us a surreal sense of life right now.  Further, we are not even certain when we will get back to the new normal.  All because of something many of us cannot see, but we know it is there.

When it comes to faith and believing, we choose to believe for many personal reasons.  They are all valid.  They are all important to each person.  There is one undeniable fact that has always been the constant since Jesus appeared before the disciples one last time and ascended into heaven: the impact Jesus' resurrection has made on the world since it happened is unparalleled.  His victory over death has made all the difference in the lives of millions of people over the past nearly two thousand years.

We grow to trust in the stories that have been handed down from the generations of believers from years and years past.  We grow to trust in the promises of God because we've seen the evidence of them in our lives.  Our belief in God, in Jesus, in His resurrection, the presence of His Spirit and countless other things that have impacted our lives continues to be strengthened all along our journey.

I'm telling you, if there was ever a story where Jesus made giraffes milk Skittles, I'd believe it!

Discover the resurrection!  Believe the resurrection!

It's a New Day!

I have a few moments before I need to get things moving for Easter Sunday.  I am so grateful to our volunteer staff for their assistance.  We are blessed to be able to share our live streaming worship in real time, but it is only possible through the help of our media and sound tech volunteers, our organists and accompanists, our instrumentalists, our choir directors and our vocalists - from all three church congregations.  We are one of the few churches in our area who were prepared to live stream, only because the leadership at First Church made a decision last fall to begin live stream during normal times.  That choice has made our transition from no in-person worship to live stream almost seamless.  In other words, in this new day of worship (temporarily) we were ready for it.

So here we are on Resurrection Sunday!  It's finally here!  The Lenten season has lasted what has seemed to be a lifetime and there's no need for me to rehash why.  Everyone knows why.  Today is a new day!  Quite frankly, when Jesus was raised from the dead and appeared to Mary and then the disciples, we've all been given the gift of every day being a new day.  

It's a new day to move beyond the failures of yesterday.  It's a new day to live in the precious moments we've been blessed with right now.  It's a new day because we have always a new opportunity, another chance to get it right, and another day to walk with the Lord while we have breath.

So, my dear friends, as we move from the angst and uncertainty that life sometimes presents to us, we can do so with a calm, resolute spirit.  God has everything under control.  We can concentrate on growing in God's Word and living after the example that Jesus gave to us.  

I'm purposely making this short, but am looking forward to what each new day brings.  I do plan to select a theme for the next short term series and to continue to blog thoughts and reflections based on God's Word.  I invite your ideas and always, your comments.  

Remember, it's a new day!  

Christ is risen!  He is risen indeed!   

40 Days of Embracing Uncertainty - Day 40 (for Holy Saturday, April 11)

So, pause and reflect on the entire Lenten journey that has brought us to this moment.  That's the "Embrace the Uncertain" devotional book's author says that is all we can do.  The body of Jesus has been buried.  Resurrection celebration is tomorrow.  So, yeah, I guess that makes sense.  Pause and reflect on the entire Lenten journey.

I cannot even think about doing that without first expressing a measure of gratitude for the devotional book and the study guide (which we actually suspended reading due to the disruption of the pandemic COVID 19). I've included a thank you to the author Rev. Magrey deVega for providing such a timely resource to help us walk through this epic Lenten journey of faith.  Both his study guide and the devotional were exceptional resources for all of us during this Lenten season.

So what's my reflection on this journey?  That might be a challenge to distill it down to one primary sentence.  But I'll give it a whirl.  All of life will always present uncertainties that will challenge us to discover God's calming and guiding touch.  There isn't any secret message to that truth.  And hopefully, we are seeking to give God our undivided attention in all things, good or bad.  That's my reflection.  Short and sweet.  It is good for us to rest and take a pause.  We need it.

As I close this session of blogging, I reprint this short descriptive phrase which talks about the rests we experience in music.  Thanks to my brother, Rev. Dr. Cary Flinck of Berean Baptist Church, for this submission:

There is no music during a musical rest,

but the rest is part of the making of the music!

In the melody of life, the music is separated here and there by rests.

God sends us times of forced leisure

by allowing sickness, disappointed plans, and frustrated efforts.   

He brings a sudden pause in the hymn of our lives,

and we grieve that our part is missing in the music and must be silent.

Yet how does a musician read the rest? 

  

[Counting] the break with unwavering precision

and [playing the] next note with confidence, as if no pause were ever there.

God does not write the music of our lives without a plan.

Our part is to learn the tune and not be discouraged during the rests.

They are not to be slurred over or omitted,

nor used to destroy the melody or to change the key.

If we will only look up, God Himself will count the time for us.

With our eyes on Him, our next note will be full and clear.

Let’s not forget that the rest is part of the making of the music.

The process is often slow and painful in this life,

yet how patiently God works to teach us!  

And how long He waits for us to learn the lesson!

Blessings to all of you this Resurrection Day!

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Postscript: it occurred to me that I had not really ever given the proper credit to The Rev. Magrey deVega who is the Senior Pastor at Hyde Park United Methodist Church in Tampa, Florida and the author of our books we used during Lent.  I am eternally grateful to Rev. deVega for his insights and his unwavering commitment to God's Word.

40 Days of Embracing Uncertainty - Day 39 (for Good Friday, April 10)

Oh my goodness!  I was sitting in my chair at the office and suddenly realized I had two more devotional blogs to enter before the night ends!  I did sit down yesterday (Good Friday) to enter my Day 39 blog, but I really didn't feel like talking about the primary focus of "Embracing the Uncertain" devotional book: Pontius Pilate.  It's not that I really disagreed with anything the author of the devotional was suggesting.  I was just having a moment, not wanting to write something against the Roman Governor of Jerusalem.  So I cast it aside, thinking I would come up with something sooner or later.  

Well, it's later than sooner.

I'm telling you it was a busy day today.  The office staff (okay, Susan and I) decided to purchase ten Easter Lilies for the sanctuary.  The paraments had to be changed to white, so I did that.  Jolene Kuhl was in practicing the organ for Easter Sunday and helped arrange the lilies in the sanctuary (keeping proper social distancing restrictions in effect).  I was working on tonight's Saturday Reflections (which starts in 30 minutes - just enough time to finish this blog).  And I have tomorrow's Zoom for Kids at 9:00 a.m. and of course, the Sunday message.  Easter Sunday - most important message of the year.

So all of these things going on and I was supposed to stop and write about Pilate.  I really don't have any time for him.  He could have gone a different route than he did - he was the Governor after all.  But his pride for keeping his politics in place really got in the way of making a different judgment against Jesus.  

So, no, I don't have any time for this guy... wait.  Wait a minute.

I sitting here thinking that I am acting very similarly to Pilate as he responded to Jesus.  He didn't have time to spend on this rebellion.  He cared little for the religious elite - it was his job to keep the order and not let things get out of hand.  More than likely, the request that came from the scribes and Pharisees was one that made him think "I don''t have time for this!  I've got other things more pressing going on.  Handle it yourself.  I can't be bothered with this Jesus of Nazareth who says he is a king."

Okay, I get it.  There are times when I can act similarly to Pilate.  I may not want to nor try to, but my stubborn humanness gets in the way.  My own agenda always seems to muddy up the waters.  So, okay, I ended up writing about Pilate after all.

Funny how that worked out. 

40 Days of Embracing Uncertainty - Day 38 (for Holy Thursday, April 9)

We are nearing the completion of this 40 days of embracing uncertainty... these 40 days of Lent.  Hasn't it seemed like forever?  I know, right?  Here we are for one of the most important moments of Lent - Holy Thursday (or some like to call it Maundy Thursday - Maundy means a ceremony of washing the feet of the poor, especially commemorating Jesus' washing of His disciples' feet on Maundy Thursday).  It's an interesting term that isn't used all that often - I actually prefer Holy Thursday because the actions and words of what Jesus did and said speak to His holiness.  Our attempts to model them are also attempts to be holy.

I am a bit apprehensive about this day because we are live streaming the Holy Thursday service from the sanctuary at First UMC in Worthington.  The live stream isn't the part that I am a bit anxious about. I'm concerned about the Lord's Supper part, because even though we've tried to prepare people to be ready for it in their own homes, Holy Communion has always been done in community with certain persons presiding over the sacrament.  Those certain persons are usually ordained or specially trained persons who have been made aware of the meaning of Holy Communion.  They have been granted the authority to lead and serve Holy Communion in the church setting.  

The question is: does the same authority work as it's conveyed over the internet?  What actually happens to the bread and wine in each person's home or office as they gather for this special service tonight?

Let's talk about that - our United Methodist Bishop Bruce Ough has given each church permission to perform Communion online.  Here is his response to the questions I posed above:

Online Communion
Question: Can communion be consecrated online?
Answer: Yes. Bishop Ough grants permission for pastors to do online communion, which typically consists of clergy offering the words of consecration remotely, and people using elements in their homes to take communion (here is a sample liturgy for online communion).  That said, he strongly encourages clergy to be intentional about how they do this and to do it well by explaining or using scripture to interpret the meaning of communion and using the words of institution. 

in some ways, it actually seems natural that persons, families and friends would gather in their homes to celebrate Holy Communion.  It does seem like a natural extension of what Jesus and His disciples did on that night so long ago.  They gathered in a room with a table.  Jesus washed the feet of each person there, performing the actions of a servant.  Then He took the staples of bread and wine and connected them forever to his saving actions on Good Friday.  The body was broken, much like Jesus' body would be broken.  The blood was poured out, much like Jesus' blood was poured out as He was crucified.  So to remember this sacrament in our homes makes sense because of the relational nature of it.  

It reminds us of what Jesus did for us.

So as we gather, the words might be a little different, but the intention will be the same... to remember Jesus and what He has done for us.  May this time be a blessing to us and to our families as we remember our Lord and Savior.

40 Days of Embracing Uncertainty - Day 37 (for Wednesday, April 8)

I was doing the dishes the other night.  Nancy will usually make supper and I will usually clean up after we've eaten.  It's taken a number of years for me to be trained to help out like that.  Actually, I have helped out a lot, but secretly never really enjoyed it (don't tell!).  Now, I take a bit of pride in making sure I leave it nice and clean for the next day.  How's that for vanity?

Anyway, one of the things I've discovered in washing dishes is that a person needs to be careful about putting their hands into the water without knowing what is in there.  I usually take particular note of the things that are sharp - things that can do harm to my delicate fingers.  It has happened - on occasion - when I've cut a finger with a knife, or a sharp edge on a utensil or on the edge of an opened tin can (the worst).  I try to pay attention because there is nothing more annoying than slicing a cut into your finger and trying to stop the bleeding.  

That happened the other night.  I'm not even certain I know what I cut my finger on, but there is the paper cut as proof (and here's a hint that doesn't cost you anything - if you are trying to keep your hands clean by using hand sanitizer, stay away from the area where you have a paper cut - man, does that sting!).

Today's devotion talks about a dynamic in the passion narrative that cuts like a knife: the betrayal of Judas.  Judas' actions against Jesus slices though the community that Jesus had invited to walk together.  He gave Jesus up.  Rather than try and speculate on his rationale (ultimately, who can really know?), I'd rather focus on the interesting piece of the story that we sometimes miss: Did someone have to give up Jesus and betray Him in order for Jesus to go to the cross for the sins of humankind?  Could there have been another way?  The short answer to that is perhaps there might have been another way, but ultimately, someone needed to do it.  Judas fulfilled that role by selling the knowledge of Jesus' whereabouts for thirty pieces of silver.  

John's report of this interchange that Jesus had with Judas is more interesting than Matthew and Mark.  Read all three of them here to see the difference.  All three name Judas as the one who makes plans to betray Jesus, but only John's Gospel tells us that it was Judas who made a big deal over the use of oil to anoint Jesus.  Here is what was reported:

4 But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, 5 “Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor?  It was worth a year’s wages.”  6 He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.

John's Gospel alone gives us Judas' motive: he was greedy.  He was the keeper of the money bag and used to skim off the fund for himself.  It does seem obvious that he was concerned for spending money on wasting oil when it could have been used for food for the poor.  yet, there is no indication that Judas was all that concerned for the poor.  Had he been, why not turn the thirty pieces of silver over to the poor people?  No doubt they could have used it.  Instead he threw it away.  Greed turned to betrayal turned to remorse turned to despair. 

I don't believe Judas had a choice.  He was doomed.  He betrayed Jesus - yes, it needed to be done bu someone and that someone was Judas.   It really doesn't matter that much because Jesus glorified God and gave us the best gift ever - eternal life.  

That is the gift that cuts through death like a knife!