Life to the Lees

Long Story, Short - July 15, 2011

2011-07-15T15:00:00.000-05:00

this land is your land

Around the beginning of Genesis 12, Abram (as he was known at the time) was conducting a real estate search and his agent suggested he leave the family homestead and look for a place to settle down with a little more acreage - space to spread out.

While searching he came upon a place known as Canaan. You might say it was a rural area, not densley settled. There, God made the promises that became the foundational covenant of Judaism, and ultimately reside among the main tenets of Christianity.

That distinctive covenant that encourages Jews to claim a certain piece of land in the name of Israel is also the heart of the conflict in the Middle East. The ongoing struggle for peace between Palestinians and Jews has caused several thousand years of conflict replete with war, death, injury, famine, poverty, and homelessness.

this land is my land

Father Abraham had many sons, no doubt, raising some questions about just who the rightful owners are. Whose land is it really? Does Israel hold a sovereign claim to the land? And is there a special right that the Jews have because of a promise to Father Abraham? After all, Abraham had descendants other than the Jews.

the central question

This week's sermon topic is fueled by a question from one of our church members: Is it God's will for Israel to control the land it claims?

It's a difficult question:

First, because knowing God's will confidently on any topic calls for long and careful discernment.
Second, things are further complicated by the reality that those outside the Judaeo Christian faiths do not submit to the claims of our sacred text as a sort of "deed" to the land.
Third, the Biblical text is not particularly clear about the geographic boundaries of this land, and there is no survey of the property included in the Bible.

fine print on the deed: HOA fees in perpetuity

If we do choose to view the Biblical text as a reliable deed on the real estate, there is some fine print to read before we sign on the dotted line in front of the notary. This real estate comes with some "Homeowner's Association Fees": you'll find that the blessing is bestowed upon Abram and his descendants in order that they might be a blessing to the world (v2). And that, my friends, is some hefty ongoing maintenance. We Christians who view ourselves as part of that initial promise are going to be billed, too!

Come hang out with us this Sunday if you're in the Greater Washington, D.C. area. We'll sing, pray, and think hard about our ongoing responsibilities to be a blessing to the world. We gather for worship at 10:30a.m. on Sundays and you are invited. Heck, bring your realtor with you!

Scanning the MLS,
Pastor Gary

Attuned Relationships

2011-07-14T16:55:00.000-05:00

Reading David Brooks' The Social Animal, and I'm compelled by this quote:

"Children born into a web of attuned relationships know how to join in conversations with new people and read social signals. They see the world as a welcoming place. Children born in a web of threatening relationships can be fearful, withdrawn, or overaggressive. They often perceive threats, even when none exist. They may not be able to read signals or have a sense of themselves as someone worth listening to. This act of unconscious reality construction powerfully determines what we see and what we pay attention to. It powerfully shapes what we will end up doing."

It suggests what Ed Friedman and Murray Bowen have taught me by way of their thinking on Family Systems: That the quality of the network of family relationships has a direct bearing on the outcome of a child's ability to self-define and his or her own realization of happiness. It suggests that pastors who are interested in seeking the salvation of individual souls might rightly give fuller consideration to the strengthening of families they serve.

A Sermon on Judas and Providence

2011-07-12T16:56:00.002-05:00

I don't usually publish my sermons in manuscript form, but a few folk have asked for this one in writing. So, here it is, preached on July 10, 2011 at First Baptist Church Gaithersburg. John 17.12 is the main biblical text, alongside John 14.15-31.

A child arrived just the other day. He came into the world in the usual way. What was unusual is that his parents accepted $15,000.00 for the naming rights to their son.

The name? GoldenPalace.com. Yes, that’s the boy’s first name.

Even more stupefying is that he’s not the first child to be named thusly. The online casino has been buying up odd things like naming rights to babies, tattoos on people’s bodies, and even paid $40,000.00 for a box of Justin Beiber’s hair.

You might scoff, as I did, but one thing’s for sure. The child’s future will definitely be influenced by his name, and in many ways in his destiny will be co-opted by the naming rights. You might even say he is predestined. Who names their kid “GoldenPalace.com?”

Or Judas. Who would name their kid that?

It’s likely that Judas Iscariot’s parents hoped to script for their son a glorious life, but the name became synonymous with “traitor” when Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus to the Jewish officials in exchange for 30 pieces of silver. Formerly the name Judas was a valiant, heroic one among the Jewish people. Now the word Judas evokes strong and violent images of betrayal, suicide, even the phrase “son of perdition.”

Despite the noble heritage of his name Judas played against the script, choosing to exert his will over Jesus, attempting to usurp the power of God, and manipulating the Jesus movement for his own causes and reasons. We know things didn’t work out so well for Judas, but a question remains stuck in my craw: Did Judas really have a choice? After all, the Gospel of John records in Jesus’ prayer a reference to Judas as “one destined to be lost.” (17.12).

Did Judas betray Jesus of his own free will? Or did he do it because it was destined from the beginning of time? It’s a question you’ve asked and it’s a part of the sermon series “Go Ahead and Ask” for July at FBC Gaithersburg. I hope you’ll explore this tough question and ponder our own freedoms before God’s providences.

Today I aim to draw two Biblical texts into parallel with one another. The first passage is the frustratingly mystical words of Jesus’ prayer to the Father just before he is handed over for trial. The prayer spans all of chapter 17 in John’s Gospel, and perhaps you’ve noticed that there is a natural 3-part division to this prayer.

· 1-5 – Jesus prays for himself, asking for the Father’s glory as the “hour” has come.

· 6-19 – Jesus prays for his disciples who will be left in the world after his death, resurrection, and ascension. Jesus prays for them particularly because he knows that life is about to get very difficult for his followers, as it is for him, too.

· 20-26 – Jesus prays for the church universal so that love might indwell all of his followers. Looks like God are still working on that prayer.

It is in the middle, largest section that our first text is sequestered. It’s almost secretly placed and if you’re reading in a hurry you’ll miss it. “I guarded them, and not one of them was lost except the one destined to be lost, so that the scripture might be fulfilled.” (v. 12)

In exploring this passage, I’ve come to note that there are some competing manuscripts that are equally reliable or trustworthy and read instead of “the one destined to be lost” but “the son of destruction.” Some translations use the phrase, “the son of perdition” – perhaps your personal Bible reads with one of these variations.

Son of Perdition – a phrase that appears twice in the NT – once in our passage today, and once in the writing of Paul – 2 Thess 2.3. It is also thought by many Bible scholars that the apostle John was making a reference to this concept in Revelation 17.8 and 17.11 in his use of the phrase, “the beast that goes into perdition.” We can’t state this with 100% certainty, but it is a reasonable conclusion.

The word perdition has both a Greek and Aramaic root meaning that are similar in nature to one another. The bottom line is that the word means “utter loss, eternal destruction, and disassociation.” So, you see then, the variant translation “the one destined to be lost” is really quite the same concept.

In calling Judas a “Song of perdition,” Jesus leaves me in a quandary – an apparently it leaves you in one, too, prompting the question of whether or not Judas was truly free as a human to choose to betray Jesus, or if he was created from the beginning of time to do so.

Son of perdition – one who is doomed. Perhaps you’ve known someone who was fated? Bad luck, bad choices, bad karma, bad whatever…just over and over badness. Are they destined to be that way? Sometimes it seems so. But it doesn’t mean they aren’t free to change.

For me, that’s the tension in this story. Judas is free – he goes to make his deal. As it says in John 13.26, “Satan entered into Judas’ heart.” But I don’t believe it happened suddenly, over night, or in the dipping of his bread. Instead, the stage likely had been set for a very long time. We get glimpses of Judas throughout the Gospels. In one scene he is the treasurer, keeping the money of the disciples as the travelled about. In this context he is called a thief.

In another story he is critical of Mary for wanting to anoint Jesus’ feet with the expensive perfume, proposing that the money could have been used for the poor. If indeed Judas was a thief, then he’d have wanted that money in the treasury for his own gain – we don’t know that for sure and it’s certainly hard to measure the intentions of others. Many of us assume things about others, and many times our assumptions are correct…however, not all assumptions we make are right or true.

Judas will be forever remembered as the traitor of Jesus. At his hand, Jesus was led to a mock trial, torture, and execution in a brutal fashion. When we look for villains in the Gospels, Judas is the first one we think of. But there were others.

· Pontius Pilate was one, the Roman procurator, literally washed his hands of judging Jesus.
· The Jewish Sanhedrin that conducted the mock trial in the “name of justice” were another.
· The Pharisees who raised the bribe money for Judas should be counted as players in the betrayal.
· Even Judas’s fellow apostles also abandoned Jesus in his hour of need. Who among us does not know of Peter’s triple denial of Jesus? In my study is a beautiful little French painting of St. Pierre, and prominently placed in the landscape is a rooster, proud and tall on a fence, the sign and symbol of betrayal by way of denial. Odds are high there’s a rooster or two running around in your back yard.

It is fair to conclude that Judas’s betrayal was the darkest one, because he sealed it with a kiss and collected a substantial sum of money for his work. It was easy work but held some uneasy consequences.

At the Last Supper, “As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him” (John 13:26). But later that evening, when a mock trial condemned Jesus to death, Judas “was seized with remorse and returned the 30 silver coins to the chief priests and elders. ‘I have sinned,’ he pleaded, ‘for I have betrayed innocent blood.’ So Judas threw the money into the temple and left. Then he went away and hanged himself” (Matthew 27:3-5).

This suggests that Judas intended something else by his betrayal than a monetary reward, and that line of thinking has led other scholars to conclude that Judas betrayed Jesus so that he could force Jesus to react to the arrest and become the political liberator of Israel from the Roman oppressors.

There is much to know from Judas’ name. Judas’s name Iscariot implies that he belonged to Sicarii, the most radical Jewish group, some of whom were terrorists. The story of the Sicarii reads like a movie script. Their very name means “dagger men” before the time of Jesus and by the time of Jesus the name meant “contract killer.”

They used stealth tactics to murder their targets. They would hide their sicae (small daggers) underneath their cloaks and then at crowded events such as pilgrimages or high holy days they would sneak up on their target, assassinate them by stabbing them when no one was watching, and then blend immediately back into the crowd. Their targets were usually Romans, Herodians, or rich Jewish sympathizers who were comfortable with Roman rule because of the financial gain.

The Sicarii are cited in the work of historian Josephus as a group who banded with the Zealots in 70 AD in committing atrocities to provoke the country to war with Rome, and leading ultimately to the Roman destruction of the temple in retaliation.

I stress all this information because you need it to fully understand the nature of Judas. I am convinced by my research and study that Judas – the Son of Perdition – was really "lost" before Jesus got to him. He had given himself over to a way of thinking that you could properly equate with modern day terrorism, which at it’s roots is a way of thinking that puts the value of human life beneath the value of political principles and ideals.

I am equally convinced that Judas’ intentions were to force Jesus into battle with Rome, the notion of which was entirely antithetical to Jesus’ teaching about establishing the Kingdom of God – not as a political party or a geographic region, but in the hearts of all humans. So what we really see in Judas and Jesus is competing ideologies – one of political nationalism over against one of building up the Kingdom of God.

It leads me to wonder in what ways the church – and in particular our church – may have become somewhat like Judas Iscariot when we focus on building buildings and establishing legitimacy by the standards of the world rather than working to build the church in the pattern after the kingdom of God; that is to say, in the hearts and minds of followers of Jesus, not in the brick and mortar of our edifices.

Quote from Inception: What is the most resilient parasite? Bacteria? A virus? An intestinal worm?

An idea.

Resilient... highly contagious. Once an idea has taken hold of the brain it's almost impossible to eradicate. An idea that is fully formed - fully understood - that sticks; right in there somewhere. The smallest seed of an idea can grow. It can grow to define or destroy you.

As surely as the ideology of the Sicarii had gotten into the head of Judas, it destroyed him. But God used that for good, a part of the plan, as it were, to bring about the redemption of the world through the death of His son. But it’s also possible for the ideology of the Kingdom of God to seep into our brains and become an idea that grows and defines us as a church. As we push forward into our vision and our future, we have to be captivated by this idea of the kingdom of God and put down each and every notion that we have of church which is like Judas.

What would happen if we did that? Would our energies be consumed paying off mortgages and bonds and building bigger better church barns? Or would we be consumed with building better hearts and minds, making for better people, which would make for better families, which would produce children not consumed with consumerism, but people – real people – who would be taken, dare I say “raptured” by the concepts of the Sermon on the Mount, or praying truly “thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven?”

Scriptural commentators note that Jesus chose Judas, not the other way around. Jesus called him “friend,” suggesting that Jesus’ redemptive death somehow required their partnership. Jesus was convinced that he must suffer and die in order for humankind to live. I had a mentor who once said “God calls some of us so that He can keep us.” Maybe that’s true – I can certainly testify that my thinking and devotion and practice and belief of Christianity are much deeper because of my vocational life as, what Lonnie Brown calls a “Paid Christian.”

But it might be equally true that God calls some of us to be lost – to be those Sons of Perdition. I don’t like that notion, it doesn’t line up with the God I believe exists out there and all around us. But frankly, I don’t think it matters whether or not I like that notion of God, because God is going to be God in God’s own way – no matter what I try to do, say, or think.

We are not to first to ponder these things about Judas and Jesus. In WB Yeats’ short play called Calvary, there is a made up dialog between Judas and Jesus as Jesus is dying on the cross. Allow me to share a line or two from the play:

Christ: My Father put all men into my hands.

Judas: That was the very thought that drove me wild.

I could not bear to think you had to but to whistle

And I must do; but after that I thought,

‘Whatever man betrays Him will be free’;

And life grew bearable again. And now

Is there a secret left I do not know,

Knowing that if a man betrays a God

He is the stronger of the two?

…

Christ: but my betrayal was decreed that hour

When the foundations of the world were laid.

Judas: It was decreed that somebody betray you –

I’d thought of that – but not that I should do it,

I the man Judas, born on such a day,

In such a village, such and such his parents;

Nor that I’d go with my old coat upon me

To the High Priest, and chuckle to myself

As people chuckle when alone, and do it

For thirty pieces and no more, no less,

And neither with a nod nor a sent message,

But with a kiss upon your cheek. I did it,

I, Judas, and no other man, and now

You cannot even save me.

Christ: Begone from me.

For Yeats, Judas had freedom and his betrayal was an exertion of will, to betray a God must be a mighty heady feeling, as if you’ve outsmarted the smartest being in the cosmos.

It was not until Jesus rose from the dead that his disciples began to grasp that his kingdom was truly not of this world. And still, 2 millennia later, we struggle to grasp this truth. So the question we’ve asked: Did Judas have free will – is really not the essential question. It’s not the essential question because it is truly unanswerable…unanswerable because your choices in answering the question are either a) God predestined Judas to be lost and he had no free will…thus raising more questions about the deeper nature of God and whether we are simply pawns on a chess board; or b) Judas was freely given over to his own devices, and God foreknew the outcomes; or perhaps c) Judas had free will to not betray Jesus and God would have looked for and found Judas # 2, or #3, or #4 – counting on the fact that humans are ultimately gloriously vain creatures.

The answerable and important question lies within you and me about ourselves: Are we going to strive for our own kind of kingdom? Or are we going to strive for the Kingdom of God? It is the choice that confronted Judas, Peter, James, and John. It is the choice that has confronted every Christian in the line that is between you and Jesus, person to person, down the hallways of time.

What’s it all mean to you and me?

1. There’s no “devil made me do it.”

2. I believe Judas was forgiven – he confessed his wrong when he threw the money back into the temple. – He was truly one for whom Jesus had died. By that inference, we can conclude logically that no one is too far from the reaches of God.

3. All of us have the capacity for great good and great evil.

Long Story, Short - July 8, 2011

2011-07-08T13:27:00.002-05:00

you named your baby what?

A child arrived in the usual way the other day. What was unusual is that his parents accepted $15,000.00 for the naming rights to their son.

The name? GoldenPalace. com. Yes, that’s the boy’s first name.

Or Judas. Who would name their kid that?

Judas was a righteous name

the big question for this week

Did Judas betray Jesus of his own free will? Or did he do it because it was destined from the beginning of time? It’s a question you’ve asked and it’s a part of the sermon series for July based on questions you, the members of FBC Gaithersburg, have asked. I hope you’ll join us for worship this weekend to explore this tough question and ponder our own freedoms before God’s providences.

See you Sunday,
Pastor Gary

Liberia Updates - Sunday Summary

2011-06-20T07:03:00.005-05:00

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Today was a great Sunday. The weather gave us a break from the heat with showers throughout the day. There were nice breezes and less humid air in between the showers.

The day began with breakfast at Arnold’s house, as usual. It was a heavy meal and I don’t usually each much breakfast. However, I took the advice of Jim, my roomie and “tour guide.” Jim said, “Eat well, church lasts a long time here and you don’t know when you’ll be eating again.”

I just realized I’ve not introduced Jim to you yet, allow me to correct that post haste!

Jim Fasould is an American from Chicago who has been serving as a missionary in Barcelona, Spain for over 40 years. He will be 70 years old in December but can run circles around most folk. He is energetic and gregariously friendly. He is the founder of the Spanish Bible Institute & Theological Seminary in Barcelona, and he and his wife have served that community together for almost all of their married lives. In fact, Jim and Carolyn celebrated 46 years of marriage today via cell phone. He is here helping the seminary organize their operations. He has been working with them to write job descriptions, org charts, policies, and procedures. He has quite the mind for organizing things, and works on his computer tirelessly.

Jim and I are sharing a two bedroom duplex, and we’ve had great conversations during our down time. He is a good bit more conservative that I am theologically, which makes sense because he comes out of the independent Bible Church tradition in Illinois. But my core belief and practice is that I will partner with any Christian who is willing to work with me, and so our conversations and efforts here at the seminary seem to be mutually edifying. I brought the bug spray he forgot, and he’s got the ibuprofen stash that I forgot (and have desperately needed to break the headaches I’ve had from no caffeine). He's truly an enjoyable guy and we're making for pretty good roommates, at least from my perspective. My snoring doesn't bother me, but I dont' know if it bothers him.

So back to my notes on the day.

On the way out the door we met our neighbors in the duplex. They arrived on Friday night and they are from Western Canada. They are doing mission work in Ghana on behalf of the Church of the Nazarene, and their work is branching out into Liberia. The Dorothy Pryor Baptist Compound is used to host missionaries such as them, so they are staying here while they work in the Nazarene churches nearby. John, their group leader, was on the porch this morning and in a brief conversation I learned that they train pastors and lay leaders to be more effective in ministry.

The drive to Salem Baptist Church was through Monrovia, my first really good look at the city. I’ll be posting pictures as soon as I get back (the internet connection is too slow here to spend hours posting photos that will take just a few minutes from home. Again – infrastructure). The city is like any third world metropolitan area. It has a high density of population, and the accompanying trash and filth that goes with lots of people packed into one area.

Road conditions range from good to horrible. At one point on the road we slowed down to maneuver through some giant pot holes (mortar hit??) that stretched the width of the road. Each of the holes were 1-2 feet deep and filled with muddy rain water. In the middle of the street three men were shouting for drivers to give them money saying, “Give us the money, we will fix the road when we get enough money for materials.” Those same guys have been there for years, I’m told, and the wads of cash they collect don’t seem to be enough to fix the road!

Salem Baptist Church, where I preached this morning, is one of the historic congregations of Liberia. It is located in Brewerville and it’s the home church of Olivia Hill, wife of Arnold Hill, the LBTS president. Today was Women’s Day, and all the women wore yellow. It was quite a stunning sight from the pulpit, I must admit, to see all those dark skinned women dressed in delicate and vibrant yellows. I get the feeling God noticed them, too, not just because of their eye-catching yellow dresses and hats, but also because of the passionate worship they offered. Among the men and the women there was dancing, singing, clapping, shouts of joyous praise, and, I believe, the wails of release of pent up frustration and disappointment. I don’t think it was manufactured and I do think the Spirit of God was present.

I envy these folk in at least one regard: they are able to let it all out in worship. This reserved white guy hung in there clapping and singing the songs I knew. I even managed to pull off a reasonably impassioned sermon to match their expectations. But I suppose that, at the end of the day, I’m somewhat stoic in my worship. There is likely a subtler point here that I debate taking the risk to reflect on here fully.

I’ll say this much: I’m not sure my faith is deep enough to worship with their zeal and passion. Maybe it’s the years of intellectualization of my religion. Perhaps it’s part of the waning and waxing of my intimacy with God. We say that baptism is an outer expression of an inward grace, so maybe worship is an outer expression of the inner workings of belief. If that’s so, then the inner workings of my belief need some tinkering.

A holy nap followed worship today, then dinner as usual at Arnold and Olivia’s house. Monday holds a day of working with the writers, editing their stuff, and seeing where we stand for work on Tuesday.

Liberia Updates - Saturday summary

2011-06-20T06:53:00.003-05:00

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Today being Saturday meant that everything was very relaxed. Turns out that despite the relaxed pace, it was the better of the first three days for productivity. More rain and the Saturday ‘tude made for an 11:30 start, which allowed me some time to connect to the Internet and answer a few key emails.

It also offered a relaxing time of coffee and conversation with a few of the LBTS faculty members. I am coming to understand their way of decision-making and measuring progress through these conversations. Here in Liberia, the civil war may be over for 6 years, but it frames everything.

Why is that building falling down? Because of the war.
Why can’t you get electricity nationalized? The government has to be rebuilt.
Why can’t students get here on time? There are too few roads.
Why don’t you just partner with an American school for some online course work? Because the power isn’t on long enough for consistency and the internet connect is too slow.

The list goes on, and it all points to the infrastructure that was once solid and aiding the emergence of Liberia as a place of economic opportunity but is now laid waste by war. The government buildings have been burned. The airport is now run through the former cargo warehouse/terminal because the passenger terminal was destroyed in war. Land and real estate were seized by the government through imminent domain, leaving the formerly affluent in a state of poverty. It is impossible to estimate the loss of intellectual capital – how many brilliant minds with limitless potential were blown away at the end of a gun? How many wizened and experienced people are no more because they were macheted to pieces?

I’ve been in the third world many times and have stared straight into the face of systemic poverty. This, however, is a different kind of poverty. Nothing here is untouched by war, especially the people. I’m told here, “It takes hundreds of years to build a country, but only one year of war to destroy one. We had sixteen years of war.”

And yet:

There is a glimmer of hope and optimism. There is a sense of joy that abides, and some say that the lingering peace is re-creating the trust necessary for people to do the work of rebuilding and personal investment. In no way can I say whether that’s accurate in the short time I’ve been here, but I do see signs. For example, there is new construction underway. A lot of it is going on, though I’m pretty sure little of it would meet OSHA safety standards for workers. There are small storefronts with new signs and windows. There is an air of hope about the future among the students with whom I’ve talked. They see opportunity and want to bring change to their country. They don’t want more violence, and all the political rumors are that the current president, Ellen Sirleaf, will be reelected quite easily this coming Fall because she is trusted and seems to be working toward restoration and against corruption. There is much talk about modeling the country and its businesses on Western models, perhaps to a fault.

My basic conclusion is that these Liberian people have the talent, natural resources, and the hope to see their country rebuilt into something better than before the war. The question of their will and drive remains to be decided. A lack of unifying vision is present. The question of American aid also remains. Naturally, the complexity of the situation leaves me wondering just what America should be doing, if anything. We are invested here and owe at least consideration for the way in which this country served as our dumping ground for freed slaves of the 1800’s. The country is US friendly and follows US Foreign policy on most practices. They are our friends, they are, in fact, our kin.

Liberia Updates - Friday Pondering

2011-06-17T10:39:00.005-05:00

This time in Liberia has been a major lesson for me in infrastructure and governmental action in economic development. Americans should not discount the value of our basic infrastructure: highways, electricity, water, sewer, and education. As much as I complain about government, American government has done some really amazing things, and made good decisions based on foresight and vision. I see more clearly now than ever that without visionary leaders in government, we cannot move forward as individuals to realize our own part of the American dream.

We get some stuff wrong, no doubt. But by and large, the power of the people in a representative government is a pretty good operation. I'm further convinced that critics on both sides of the aisle should spend some time understanding the complexities of infrastructure and economic development.

Liberia update - Thursday June 16

2011-06-17T04:31:00.000-05:00

This posting is in rough draft form, my apologies but I don't have a lot of time for a polished post. I'm planning to make daily posts as internet access allows. I'll post them here for you to read and me to edit later.

Thursday, June 16, 2011 – 10:25pm

Wednesday provided a safe arrival at the airfield in Monrovia. I’d taken out of Dulles on Wednesday at 2:30, flown to Atlanta. The next leg of the journey was an overnight flight of eleven hours or so to Accra, the capital of Ghana. I had no visa for Ghana so I waited on the plane for almost two hours. In some way that was the worst part of the trip, stuck on the runway and unable to get out of the plane. Finally, we took off at 12:30pm local time and landed in Monrovia at 2:45pm local time. Total travel time was just over 20 hours.

Clearing customs was not difficult at all, I had already done the proper paperwork at the Liberian embassy in Washington the week prior. Toby Gbeh and “Brooks” the Dean of Academic Affairs were there to meet me. It was a 45 minute drive to the seminary, where we stopped briefly before heading on to the Dorothy Pryor Baptist Campground, closer in to Monrovia and about a 20 minute drive. Both the campground and the seminary were built by Southern Baptists over the years. The campground is also the residence of the seminary president, Arnold Hill. On the campus are numerous buildings. One is like a hotel, others are smaller, containing two to four apartments.

Both the seminary and the campground are compounds surrounded by tall fences and closed in with metal gates. The gates are tended by watchmen twenty four hours a day, one of the many tangible signals that the country of Liberia is not very far removed from its civil war. The tops of the walls have shards of glass on top for additional security, an additional reminder of the need to keep someone on the outside from getting on the inside.

Conversations with members of the seminary community and the staff at the campground have been enjoyable and informative. On Wednesday afternoon I explored the campground alone, catching beautiful views of the Atlantic Ocean down below me. On the walk I encountered several folk, and was engaged in conversations along the way. Some things I learned:

• There is little infrastructure in the country and electricity is only available for purchase near the downtown government district. Even then it is prohibitively expensive. I was told that electricity for one month for a family of four in a small home was about $700.00 and about double that if they chose to run air conditioners. That’s about three times the monthly salary of that same average family. The net result is that most people rely on generators or have no electricity at all.
• There has never been a hurricane, tornado, has a population of 3.5 MM people that speak 16 different dialects plus English.
• According to at least two staff members, Southern Baptists built the campground and the seminary on land that was donated to them for that purpose. When they decided to pull out, both properties were put up for sale and the local Baptists had to buy them to avoid it being sold to developers. I’m hopeful there’s another side to this story, and I’ll look into when I back in the states.
• Electricity on both the seminary campus and the campground is provided by generators. Due to high cost of fuel, the generators run only in the day time at the seminary and only in the evening hours on the campground.
• The rainy season is just beginning here, and based on the two storms I’ve experienced so far, I can’t imagine what the middle of the rainy season is like.

Thursday began with a huge and delicious breakfast at the home of President Hill. Pancakes, meat sandwiches, oatmeal, and coffee got me fueled well for the day. Preaching in the chapel service was my first task of the day. It was the last chapel session of the semester, so there were lots of recognitions for academic achievement. The students are in the middle of final exams, so there is all that end of a semester weariness married to the excitement over graduation for some, and a study break for others.

The writing workshop I’m teaching began today. We had nearly 50 participants and after a day on the basics of curriculum writing, we walked through how to format teaching plans for Sunday School teachers. We divided into four groups and each team assigned a set of Bible texts over which they’ll be writing lessons for the rest of the workshop.

The work day ended with serendipitous chance to talk to my family on the phone. We’d not planned on talking because calls on AT&T to my phone are about $3.50 per minute. We’ve limited ourselves to a few text messages a day, but even those are $.50 each. However, I learned today that the seminary has a cell phone that only costs about $.05 per minute, so I used some down time this afternoon to call home.

Late dinner and conversation at Arnold’s house, and then a return to my quarters. Time to hit the bed, long day tomorrow!

The African journey begins.

2011-06-14T17:00:00.006-05:00

As I write I'm in Atlanta's colossal airport awaiting the next leg of the journey to Liberia. I'm flying Delta, and they have not earned any goodwill with me today. First, I learned just today that my "direct" flight to Liberia involves a stop in Accra, Ghana. That includes a 2 hour layover, reboarding, and 703 more air miles back west to Monrovia. It really wasn't that I missed the fine print - there just was no fine print.

Then there's the baggage.

Delta allows you two free bags on international flights. So I get to the gate at check-in this morning with one bag that weighed 59 pounds - nine over the limit. The bag was filled mostly with books that I am taking for the workshop I'm conducting, not extra shoes, my darlings. I was told I would have to pay a $75 over-weight fee, even though I was only taking one bag. The logic of this eluded me as I stood their fuming. I argued my cause with a service manager but was met with a stern inflexibility and a disposition that I could've sworn was just a tad shy of "gleeful."

"It's a new fee, and I'm sorry but there's nothing I can do about it."

The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship is funding the trip, so it wouldn't really be money out of my pocket but I was thoroughly incensed. My money or no, it was just wrong.

So, I stepped away from the counter, looked down the terminal and there it was, a shimmering well-placed oasis of overpriced airport accoutrements that included: a luggage section. $24.99 later, I was the owner of one very over-priced duffle, into which I transferred all the heavy books. I then walked back up the counter and checked my two free bags to Monrovia - grinning like the cat that ate the canary. Watcha think about that, Delta?

If you're interested in the project in Africa, check back here often.

A Pretty Good Joke

2011-06-12T08:41:00.003-05:00

Came across this jewel on the website for A Prairie Home Companion:

My grandparents raised a big family. The reason they had so many kids was because my grandma was hard of hearing.

Pretty regularly when they went to bed and turned out the lights, my grandpa would say, "So, you goin' to go to sleep or what?"

And Grandma would say, "What?"

Africa Bound

2011-06-01T22:40:00.005-05:00

In just a few weeks I'll be heading to Liberia to work with a group of pastors to write Sunday School curriculum. The Cooperative Baptist Fellowship (CBF) is funding the travel expenses and I'm going as a representative of that organization. Some of you are probably asking a few basic questions:

What is CBF? [It's a Christian organization that is still trying to figure out who they are other than folk who used to be the sane ones among the Southern Baptists]
What's Sunday School curriculum? [It's a lesson plan to help ordinary people teach the Bible to other ordinary people]
Where is Liberia? [West Africa, on the coast]
Is that the place NATO is currently bombing? [no, that's Libya. Seriously? You just asked me that?]

I'm excited about the opportunity to help shape the spiritual formation of Christians throughout Liberia. I'm also a little anxious.

First, there's a whole boat load of meds I'm supposed to take and my doc's office is moving a little slowly in tracking them all down. Yellow fever, malaria, hepatitis, and typhoid top this list of illnesses the CDC tells me I should worry about.

Then, there's the training I'm going to lead. Exactly how did I became qualified to teach leaders from a totally different culture how to write Bible lessons for their people? Perhaps no one else was willing or able to go? I don't fully understand the culture or needs of the people I'll be serving, and even on a good day I'm not sure I understand enough Scripture to offer a helpful word.

But there's something else that's worrying me. It's a little hold-over from the first time I set foot on the continent in 1996. As a 25 year old seminarian I experienced African culture by way of a 22 day stint in Zimbabwe. It was a total immersion. If it had been water I would've drowned. Virtually alienated from everything I found familiar in my heretofore Southern rural upbringing, I heard a word from God as clearly as I've ever heard from the Mysterium Tremendum. Want to know what I heard?

"Get out."

Ok, I joke, it wasn't exactly those words. It was more like, "You're not supposed to be a missionary." It was there that I saw myself as the time oriented Westerner with a taste for comfort, cable, cell phones, and a day planner. Prior to that, our family had seriously contemplated serving God in some missionary capacity, but after that trip it was clear to me that the sacrifice I'd admired in countless other "sent ones" was too much for me. I was, frankly, ashamed. After all, shouldn't I be willing to go where ever God sent me? In theory, yes. But my well-fed flesh was weak.

Since that time I've matured at least a little bit and along the way became the pastor of an extremely diverse congregation. I'm still not sure how that happened, but it is so. Our congregation membership is about 35% of West African origin and I've learned a lot about their culture by being their pastor. Working with multiple cultures in one congregation is, in many ways, like being a missionary. But still, I worry that I'm not prepared to serve these folk, and deeper still, I'm worried about what I may hear from God on this go-round to Africa. Maybe God won't say anything more than "Go, teach, get home." There's a subtle stirring in me, however, that says I should be listening closely for something else.

Long Story Short, May 20, 2011

2011-05-20T10:52:00.001-05:00

inconceivable truth

Billy Graham has been on my mind lately. The world-famous evangelist has been a beacon of faithfulness for Christians for more than 50 years because his message of redemption is timeless.

He is getting on up in years and a recent hospitalization put him back in the news. Reading about him, I meandered through various quotes and stories from his life, and came across a story that I’d never heard before.

Graham meant to set the church back?

In the 1960’s he held a crusade in Montgomery, Alabama. He insisted that the choir be racially integrated, and a local newspaper editorial charged that his demand had “set the church back a hundred years.”

Graham responded out his compelling vision for the church, “If that’s the case, I failed in my mission. I intended to set it back 2,000 years.”

This Sunday I’ll bring a message about Stephen, the apostle who was stoned to death for preaching the heresy that Jesus was the Son of God. What inconceivable truth had Stephen encountered that made him willing to die for simply speaking it? And the question for us: do we have that kind of zeal and loyalty to Jesus? Do we need that kind of passion?

Billy, Stephen, Jesus, and you.

Like Stephen, Billy, and Jesus, I submit that we need a clear vision of the Kingdom of God, and of the church, that compels us to deeper faithfulness. Not just faithfulness in our hearts or words, but a faithfulness that causes us to live differently. I hope you’ll join us for worship this week as we celebrate our annual Multi-cultural Sunday.

See you Sunday,

Pastor Gary

The True Darkness of Distrust

2011-02-14T23:43:00.001-06:00

This piece was published in advance of a sermon about trust on 2/13/11

the true darkness of distrust

Trust is a slippery word. I trust my teenage son, but I'm not going to leave him unsupervised with matches and flammables. I trust in our political system but I surely don't believe every politician. I trust my business partner but we still maintain good accounting records. The phrase "trust, but verify" describes the kind of trust I'm talking about.

But what about when it comes to trusting God? We can't "supervise" God. We can't verify all things we supposedly entrust to God, but can only hope that one day we'll be able to verify that we were right to trust God. I suppose you'd also call this faith.

is that a "sunday school" answer?

When the Psalmist says, "when I am afraid, I put my trust in you" (56.3), I'm left wondering how do I do that? In the midst of real fear, real tragedy, or real suffering, how exactly do I trust in God? I get frustrated when I'm told, "Just trust God more, everything will be fine," even though I've used the line myself. Does that line mean I need to pray more? Read my Bible more? Do more good deeds to get God's attention? I have to be satisfied to "trust, but not verify" because it is only over time that we can look backward, see what God has done, and believe that God is a God of consistency and will see us through the next big thing.

finding solid ground

The best I can tell you is that trusting God is rather like standing at the water line on a beach as the tide sucks the sand from beneath your feet. You know there's terra firma somewhere down there, but you have to get buried to your calves to find it. You keep on sinking until you find a place to stand. So maybe trusting God is about standing still long enough to let your soul sink into the truth of God. And maybe trusting God is not about doing more, but simply being more present to the God in the moments of life. Maybe trusting God more is not about gathering doctrines or truths to be our firm place to stand, but about emptying ourselves of self through worship, even if that worship looks like wailing despair.

I hope you'll join us for worship on Sunday, where we'll think about this more in a sermon called The True Darkness of Distrust.

It'll be great.

Trust me,
Pastor Gary

Long Story, Short - February 4, 2011

2011-02-04T14:06:00.001-06:00

conflict - can't live with it, can't live without it

The forward progress of humankind is forged from conflict. Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen verify that. So did Steve Underwood, my high school US History teacher. His wonderful classroom antics imprinted history on my brain like few other teachers. He had "one-sided phone conversations" with dead presidents. He wore crazy costumes to teach about key battles. But the greatest thing he taught me is that without conflict there is no creativity. With conflict there is no forward motion. Without conflict, nothing happens.

Sometimes conflict is broad based, like the national conflict prevalent in this week's news from Cairo. Sometimes the conflict is isolated, internal to an individual. But whether you're in the classroom, the work place, or the church sanctuary, conflict is and eventuality in all relationships. Spouses will argue. Siblings will get angry. Workmates will offend you. Fellow Christians will anger you - and you them. The question for Christians is not if we'll have conflict, but what we'll do when it comes our way.

meek and mild?

Unfortunately, Christians tend to shirk from conflict, especially in church, and often to the detriment of all. Perhaps we've overemphasized the "meek" side of Jesus without understanding the way he brought conflict to bear meaning. Or maybe we back away because we don't want to be trouble makers, characterized like those other trouble makers we've known. Or maybe we avoid conflict because we just don't care enough. Sometimes caring necessitates confrontation.

conflict doesn't just go away

The Bible assumes conflict is a part of reality, and Jesus teaches directly about how Christians should deal with conflict in Matthew 18.15-20. It involves face to face honesty, genuine openness, and a willingness to stick with the persons involved in conflict until a resolution is reached. We'll discuss this in depth in this Sunday's sermon, and I hope you'll walk away with some Jesus-like strategies for dealing with the conflicts you've been avoiding

See you Sunday,
Pastor Gary

My Mother's Eyes

2011-01-20T23:05:00.004-06:00

That's my mother in the top third of the picture, I'd guess at about 15 years old. She was a natural beauty, and I think my older daughter looks a lot like her.

My mother would have turned 60 this past Monday. I say "would have" because she died at 50, back in 2001. While others were enjoying MLK Day in their own good ways, I was thinking a lot about "Mama."

Mid-afternoon I picked up the phone and called someone who knew her long before I did: her mother. Like others her age, Grandma rambles and her memories are sometimes disjointed. We talked for more than half an hour, and about half way through I asked, "Grandma, wouldn't today have been Mama's birthday?"

"Well, yes," she said like someone who'd been reminded they ought to turn the tea kettle off before the house burns down. She got silent for a moment and I fought the urge to fill the void. When she finally spoke it was like someone gathering items from around the house to be put away at the end of the day.

"It's the worst thing in the world to bury your child. God didn't intend it that way. God wants us to be buried by our children." The words were smooth, like some worry stone you've been carrying in your pocket for a very long time, the kind you rub on when you need to fret. Clearly, she'd been rubbing on this idea for a long time, turning it over and over and over in her mind.

She put them in the air with her Carolina drawl, but those worry stone words were heavy and they thudded right through the phone. They just sat out there between us, there on the ground like something simple and obvious. LIke "Look at that tire, it's flat." Or, "I think the chicken's done, let's eat." The words are true, but they didn't really reveal any great truth.

"Yeah," I said softly. I didn't want to stop her from talking because I wanted her to say more. I wanted her to tell me some wonderful memory about my Mama as a child. Like maybe how she was really good at her times tables when she was only 7, or that her hair was thick and dark the day she was born.

Nothing followed.

So I filled the silence with another "yeah," my voice trailing off.

Maybe it's senility, maybe it's her meds for depression, or maybe she just can't go there. Or doesn't want to. Either way, I figure she's had a pretty hard life and nobody should push her into remembering things she doesn't want to deal with.

Before too many more milliseconds, she moved on to talk about my sister. She has three stories about my sister. They're pretty funny stories, but I've heard them all before. Every time I call her, in fact. Along with the "have you heard from your sister?" questions. I artfully dodge them, in the same way she doesn't talk about my mom. I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

So I contemplated my mom on Monday with my own memories.

Don't feel sorry for me, though. I'm a realistic person with an honest memory about who she was. She had her fair share of problems, and they got carried into all her relationships in one twisted way or another. One of her problems was chronic pain. She took a lot of prescription meds for that. Some of them weren't hers.

Another problem was some form of mental illness that, to my knowledge, never got accurately diagnosed. If I was the speculating type, I'd tell you she could have been bipolar or maybe had borderline personality disorder. Who knows? It's been almost ten years after her death, why worry about it? Maybe I worry about because some days I wonder if I'm on a manic high or a depressive low. Perhaps you've been there, wondering if you're just a little "too creative" or your thinking has become too expansive. Such speculation about my own mental health doesn't seem to be very healthy, however, so I try not to linger there any longer than necessary. And remembering all her faults doesn't much help me these days.

Instead, I've tried to draw some good from her life. She did, after all, love my father, carry me in her womb, bear me into the world, and nurture me the best she could. It wasn't always great, but between my dad, God, and plenty of other good people, I've always had more than I needed of everything important. My mama gave me some great things and not all of them were what you'd call grace gifts.

I remember that she made sure I got piano lessons and a love for music. I hated it when she made me practice, but now I'm glad she did.
She took me to see Alabama, my first concert of any kind. And Charlie Daniels opened for them.
She took me to see all my grandparents and family, and to my knowledge never did anything to come between me and her in-laws.
She made me pick peas in the garden in the middle of the hot humid North Carolina summer.
I saw her start a fight with her brother and a sister by clocking them with rotten tomatoes when no one else was looking.
Her Sunday roast could have been a lethal weapon, but I'd pay a pretty penny for some of her country style steak.
Our home was always clean (maybe to a fault), the beds were always made, the laundry was always done, and there was dinner almost every night. Some of those dinners were edible.
She had a very green thumb, and I wish I'd have paid closer attention to how she did that.
It took her a while to love Traci, but from their first breath she loved my kids fiercely and tenderly, and she made sure there was always money there for dance lessons and t-ball uniforms during the lean years of our marriage.

There's more I could say, but I suppose this is enough for public consumption. Cecilia Gail Bass Long was a simple person who came of age in a complicated world. She loved well, but she was also "mean as a striped snake." She could rant and rave like a pro. Not every memory of her is good. In fact, it's taken ten years of her being dead to say that I remember more good things than bad things, so maybe my memory isn't as honest as I've led you to believe. But here's the take home message for me: I can live in the past and be forever and continuously bruised by the hurt she brought, or I can live with an eye toward the future and count all that's behind as water under the bridge. After all, how long does a person have to be dead before you stop blaming them for your problems? The best I can do is take responsibility for me.

Perhaps that's the best gift of all.

Miracles Amongst Us

2011-01-03T21:18:00.002-06:00

This short piece is inspired by Bruce Springsteen's eulogy of Danny Federici, piano player for the E Street Band who died back in 2008. I especially like Bruce's idea that people who are with us in the presence of miracles can never be separated from us.

...If we didn’t play together, the E Street Band at this point would probably not know one another. We wouldn’t be in this room together. But we do... We do play together. And every night at 8 p.m., we walk out on stage together and that, my friends, is a place where miracles occur...old and new miracles. And those you are with, in the presence of miracles, you never forget. Life does not separate you. Time does not separate you. Animosities do not separate you. Death does not separate you. Those you are with who create miracles for you, like Danny did for me every night, you are honored to be amongst...

In some ways this gathers to mind all of the colleagues with whom I've shared pastoral duties, especially worship leadership responsibilities. Not that leading worship is a "performance" like a Springsteen concert, but the fact is that miracles do occur in the every Sunday worship lives of local congregations, and many times it's due to and inspired by the deeply talented giftedness of those ministers with whom I've shared the platform, people who have chosen to offer their talents to God and God's people.

Those ministers are witnesses to the miracle of an awakened spirit, a softened heart, or a renewed sense of purpose. Not only are ministers "front row - center section" for the big stuff like baptisms, weddings, funerals, and moments of birth and death, but they are also witness to the miracles more common but no less phenomenal.

Those "common-er" miracles happen on bended knee in a quiet room, over a cup of coffee at the greasy spoon, or the quick phone call "just to see how you're doing." They are easier to miss. They are earthy. Sometimes they're funny and sometimes they're terrible. But all of them. All of them. Each and every single one of them are miracles of God. And my wise ministerial colleagues seldom miss seeing them as such.

So, to all my friends involved in ministry (and not all of you are employed by the church), thank you for helping us all to see the miracles of God in the ordinary of life. I am honored to be amongst you. I'd say your music is even better than Bruce's because you play for the rea "Boss."

The Bible on Immigration

2010-05-26T10:49:00.002-05:00

Christians often quote the Bible to take their moral or ethical stand. I've not heard much Bible in the immigration conversation. Here's one passage I found:

"When an alien resides with you in your land, you shall not oppress the alien. The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God." (Leviticus 19:33-34)

What other passages do you read in the Christian scripture that speak to immigration issues in our country?

BFAM

2010-05-21T15:10:00.000-05:00

BFAM

Romans 8.12-17

My brother-in-law taught me by example what it means to be a "Brother from another mother.” Our wives are sisters and they tell us that we act and think so much alike that clearly we were born in a pod together, separated at birth, and then reunited later in life by our splendid taste in women. Over the years we have truly become "brothers from another mother."

Pop culture may have offered up the nifty B.F.A.M. phrase, but the apostle Paul caught on to the notion 2 millennia ago. He wrote in Romans 8 "...that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ..." In other words, Christ is our brother, and we are brothers and sisters to one another.

This passage is up for consideration in this Sunday's sermon. It's a fitting passage because we also will celebrate Pentecost, the "birthday" of the church. Pentecost is documented in Acts 2 as the day when the Holy Spirit visited a gathering of worshipers and all those gathered (who spoke many different languages) began to understand in their own native tongue, and a great spiritual awakening resulted.

The Holy Spirit bound the early church together that day, despite the deep ethnic and religious differences. Romans 8 deserves our hearing so that we, "brothers from another mother" and "sisters from another mister," might learn to understand and appreciate the differences that exist within the church, claim our spot as heirs with Christ, and show the world what it means to live in harmony while honoring our diversity.

If you're in the DC metro area this weekend I hope you'll join us for Bible study at 9:15 and worship at 10:30 on Sunday. We'll be observing Pentecost and Multicultural Sunday, and we'll honor our diversity by hearing scripture, prayer, and song in the many different languages spoken in our church.

The sermon, My Brother from Another Mother, My Sister from Another Mister, will empower us to seek ways that the church can teach the world to work together despite and differences and because of our differences. After worship we'll share a potluck meal, so bring a dish to share that represents your own ethnic/cultural heritage and come hungry!

See you Sunday,
Pastor Gary

Losing Portfolios

2010-05-21T15:04:00.002-05:00

Philippians 3.7-14

Want to get your Friday off to a good start this morning?

Just get your Mother's Day prep done and don't check your stock portfolio.

Thursday was one of those record breaking, hand-wringing days on Wall Street as the Dow Jones Index plunged 997 points. It regained some ground later in the day, but for a while things looked pretty bad. And Friday isn't looking too promising, either. It's a story we're used to, one where the plot line is bleak financial news bombarding us for years in one of the worst periods in our modern economic history.

Markets fluctuate and wealth comes and goes. But even when the Dow is up and you're feeling financially secure, remember the words of the Apostle Paul. He would say, "So what? It's all worthless when counted against the gain of Jesus. In fact, your portfolio is a losing dog if you don't have Jesus." Read the third chapter of Philippians closely and you'll see that Paul considered everything outside of his relationship with Jesus as pure "rubbish." And that's translated for polite company. The Greek Paul uses actually contains an expletive no smart preacher would use in the pulpit.

Yeah, all else counts that little to him.

The sermon for this Sunday at First Baptist Church Gaithersburg is called Losing Portfolios and it's based on Philippians 3.7-14. It's an invitation to consider the real values of life where Christ is the gain and all else is a losing portfolio. If you're in the Metro Washington, DC area this weekend, you're invited! We'll warm up with Bible study at 9:30 and for opening bell for worship is 10:30.

Grace & Peace,
Pastor Gary

Afterlife on Facebook

2010-04-30T12:16:00.005-05:00

A dear friend of mine died suddenly in early January. Strangely - or perhaps not in this strange and modern world - his facebook friends continue to post things on his page. It has transformed from a recollection of his life through his own eyes into a recollection of his life through our eyes. Nobody sends him, "Join my fan page" messages now, or "help me win at Mafai Wars." That's all useless in memoriam.

They say stuff that matters.

"I miss you every day."

"You were my number one."

"Wishing you were here to talk to. You always listened to me."

"Thank you for loving me."

I could pontificate about the finality of death, quote John Mayer with "say what you need to say", and encourage you to tell everyone you love them. But that's not what his Facebook obituary is prompting in me. Rather, I'm seeing how much that we pursue is superfluous, how much of life is distraction from what matters most.

I'm at peace with my friend's death. I was a good friend and pastor to him, best I could be, in fact. I have zero regrets about our relationship. He and I were at peace with one another and our friendship was an exercise of mutual edification. When I was with him I liked me, and I think he liked himself when he was with me.

Oh, I miss him, don't get me wrong. But today I'm taking an inventory of my relationships and asking myself if I've pursued peace with all whom I should, and if I've built up others in every way I can. The list is long, the time is short, where am I to start? And how to proceed? I am, after all, subject to the ideas in Tenneyson's ode to his dead friend,

So runs my dream, but what am I?

An infant crying in the night

An infant crying for the light

And with no language but a cry.

Proper Pursuits

2010-04-30T12:08:00.002-05:00

In the pop country song I Run to You, the band Lady Antebellum asks, "I run my life, or is it running me?" The line underscores the reality of our lives: we chase the wrong things and end up sucked into a drowning current that dumps us into a cesspool of mediocrity, where we sit in the shallow water wondering, "Is this all there is to life?"

Caught up in the pursuit of happiness, we run amok lacking a full awareness of what "happiness" really means, how to attain it, or what we'd even do with it if we caught that elusive tiger by the tail. What are we to do?

The apostle Paul led a revolution from Judaism to Christianity, but with the transition came tremendous debate over things that distracted the early church from focusing on the freedom found in Jesus. Paul's answer? Pursue peace and mutual edification.

For Paul, the answer to the problematic pursuits of life was to define things, not in terms of self, but in terms of relatedness to God and to neighbor. Peace within oneself is forged by making peace with others and God. Personal growth is fueled by edifying others, not by self-help courses or get rich quick schemes. When our singular focus is making our own lives better & freer, the only tiger we catch is the one who growls, "not enough, let's get more."

If you're in the Metro DC area this weekend, I invite you to join us on Sunday as we consider chasing the right things. Proper Pursuits is the name of the sermon, and we'll talk about how to let go of the tiger's tail and not get eaten alive. Worship begins at 10:30 and Bible study is at 9:15.

See you Sunday,

Pastor Gary

What's Your Story Worth? Thoughts on Acts 5.27-42

2010-04-23T13:11:00.000-05:00

“Hey Dad, tell us about the time you got hit by a car and it knocked your shoes off. Or about the time you sucked the peanut down your windpipe and lived to tell about it. Or about the time grandpa tied two cats together by the tail and hung them over the clothesline.”

Yes, those are all true stories about various members of my family.

But more than being simple family lore, these tales shape identity. My children come to know others and themselves by hearing about the fits and foibles of their ancestors. Durable stories forge our perceptions, they hold our past, and they shape our future. Stories create realities.

Peter and the apostles of the early church surely learned this. They told the story of Jesus’ death and resurrection and it was creating such a buzz in the temple that they were summoned before the council. They got “shushed.”

“We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,” the high priest said.

“We must obey God rather than any human authority,” was the retort.

They were so compelled by the story that the apostles had to tell it, there was no containing it. Even after being flogged and told to stop, they kept on boldly telling the story of Jesus’ work on the cross and his victory over death. The story was worth telling no matter the consequences. What else but the power of Christ could compel them?

Church, we can reclaim the power of the story we carry within us, transform the story from latency to potency! Join us for worship this Sunday and be encouraged that we, too, must tell the story of Jesus no matter the consequences. We'll start worship at 10:30 a.m., and I hope you'll consider attending a Bible study this week at 9:15 a.m.

Tell me the old, old story,
Pastor Gary

Jesus Sightings

2010-04-23T13:10:00.000-05:00

Countless people claim to have seen an apparition of the face of Jesus. Sometimes the image of Jesus appears on a wall of the church. Or on a tortilla. Or in their grilled cheese sandwich. One family reports having a Jesus in the shape of a Cheetoh, another man saw the image of Jesus in his chest x-ray. Talk about having Jesus in your heart!

I'm not questioning the piety of these folk, but clearly, there is something wrong here. Most of the "Jesus sightings" we hear about are nothing more than attention seekers seizing their proverbial five minutes of fame. Or the money. Take Mario Rubio, who found the image of Jesus in her burrito in 1977 and immediately quit her job, choosing to work at the "Shrine of the Tortilla" that she constructed in her backyard for tourists.

Even the gullible raise a wary right eyebrow at these stories. But is it possible to see Jesus? And if so, how? Where do we start looking? Is the search more like searching for lost car keys or the needle in a haystack?

The Bible give us a hopeful answer with the story of two men along the road who experienced a "Jesus sighting" after the resurrection. Cleopas and his friend find Jesus revealed to them in some very ordinary ways, ways that offer hope for a "Jesus sighting" to those of us who never get to see Jesus in our soup bowl or grilled cheese sandwich.

We'll talk about seeing Jesus in the ordinary living of life during worship on Sunday. If you're in the Washington, DC metro area, join us at First Baptist Gaithersburg at 10:30, maybe you'll have a Jesus sighting of your own!

Keeping an open eye,
Pastor Gary

Quaker Gun Slinger

2010-04-12T16:38:00.000-05:00

In the old, old West, a devout Quaker cowboy had been needled and harassed until he could stand it no longer. Speaking up to his tormentors, he announced: "Sir, I do not believe in violence and I would not harm thee for anything in the world. But my compassion for all men compels me to warn thee that thee are standing in the place where I am about to shoot."

Is God a Lab Rat?

2010-04-10T17:24:00.005-05:00

This article is written by Larry Hudson, a member of my church and a physicist at the National Institute for Standards in Technology. If you've ever been interested in a rational explanation of the problems inherent in the Intelligent Design theory, this piece may be for you.

Jesus Sighed Deeply

2010-04-10T17:22:00.000-05:00

Every kid who made it through Sunday School knows John 11.35 , "Jesus wept." It's the shortest verse in the Bible, and a favorite for ease of memorization.

It's brief, but rife with emotion. Jesus is mourning the death of his friend Lazarus. The Bible points to a wide range of emotions in Jesus, including anger and rage, joy and sadness, hunger and loneliness. In Mark 8 we read this lengthier verse that describes a pain in Jesus equal to his grief over Lazarus:

He sighed deeply and said, "Why does this generation ask for a miraculous sign? I tell you the truth, no sign will be given to it."

Take another look. He "sighed deeply." His sigh teems with disappointment and frustration with the Pharisees. They'd asked for a sign of his power, but Jesus refused to reduced to a religious puppet or plaything. Mark makes it plain that Jesus is interested in healing people in dire straits. In miracle feedings that nourish his followers. In explaining the kingdom through parables. But he doesn't want his buttons pushed by some power hungry religious officials who only want to cage him, or worse yet, manipulate his power for their gain.

And so he warns his disciples to watch out for the "yeast of the Pharisees and the yeast of Herod." The statement confused the disciples, they thought he was still talking about bread, and not the destructive things that burrow in to inhibit true belief. Jesus refused to be a genie for the Pharisees, but we are equally dense and get "fleeced by the yeast" of life each time we try to force God's hand.

"Fleeced by the Yeast" is the title of the message this Sunday, and we'll discuss how Christians of good faith can avoid the plight of the Pharisees. If you're in the suburban DC area this weekend, join us at 10:30a.m. for worship at FBC Gaithersburg. We'll observe communion this week and all believers are welcome.

Grace & Peace,
Pastor Gary

Reclaiming Joy - Easter

2010-04-02T14:29:00.000-05:00

In W B Yeats' play Calvary, Jesus talks briefly as he is dying; once with Lazarus, once with Judas, and once with the Roman soldiers. All are intriguing conversations, but Lazarus holds in common with Jesus something few of us are yet to experience: the resurrection. Thus, the conversation is surprising for the reader. Jesus expects that Lazarus won't be among those mocking him on the cross, but Lazarus surprises him. "I had been dead and I was lying still in an old comfortable mountain cavern when you came climbing in there ... and dragged me to the light."

Yeats' fictional Lazarus is unhappy about his life. He wanted the solitude of death because being brought back to life was an unhappy experience for him. Yeats suggests that Lazarus had not enjoyed life enough for a repeat showing. It's hardly the good word we expect from a guy who got a second chance!

It begs a question for those willing to contemplate such Easter issues: would you, upon your death, want to be resurrected to your current life?

Live While You're Alive

You see, Easter is something powerful, way outstripping eggs and bunnies. It thins out the veil between life and death, inviting the faithfully curious to peer through to the other side. And, having peered through the veil, we must return to living our life, much like Lazarus who was called back to the living of life. As you ponder the resurrection this weekend, consider death. But also consider this life, for I am convinced that the resurrection gives you power for today, in addition to the sweet by and by.

We'll think more about this on Easter Sunday in a sermon from 1 Corinthians 15.12-26 called Live While You're Alive. If you're in the DC metro area this weekend, you're invited for the festivities of Easter beginning at 10:30 a.m. at First Baptist Church Gaithersburg.

I just wanna live while I'm alive,
Pastor Gary

Reclaiming the Joy of Faith through Sabbath Keeping

2010-03-11T16:56:00.003-06:00

My Sabbath Story

My grandfather wouldn't go fishing on Sundays. "You might pull up the devil," he'd say.

Sunday was for worship, rest, and visiting, but certainly not for work and even some kinds of recreation. And even though I've never pulled up the devil on a Sunday fishing trip, his old fashioned ways held a certain rhythm that I'd like to duplicate in the living of these days. What used to seem boring and antiquated has deep spiritual meaning for me as our family struggles against the culture of doing to take Sunday for being.

Exodus 20 teaches us that God labored and rested and that we should do the same. Sabbath is a gift and keeping Sabbath bears much fruit in our lives. What can Sabbath do for you? Find out this weekend by considering this challenge:

1. Have a Saturday night meal with your family. No TV, no cell phones, no iPods, and no video games.

2. Go to bed early and pray that your night of rest will be good. Commit your sleep and dreams over to God. Offer up the next day as one of rest while trusting God to watch over the things you won't be doing on your Sabbath. Set your clocks forward one hour on Saturday night at bedtime this week!

3. Rise early and share breakfast with your family or a good friend.

4. Attend worship in the morning.

5. Plan for a nap, games with your children or grandchildren, intimate time with your spouse, or a relaxing activity in the afternoon. Resist the urge to work, check email, or answer the phone.

6. End the 24 hour Sabbath as you began - with family.

I'd love to hear how you keep Sabbath. Share with me via email, or post here. And if you're in the Metro DC area this weekend, I invite you to include First Baptist Church Gaithersburg as your place of worship on Sunday morning. You'll find fellow pilgrims who are weary and wounded, ready to experience the life changing grace of Jesus. And if you fall asleep while I offer the sermon, that's ok, too. It just means you needed the rest and I'm glad to help you get it.

Shabbat Shalom,

Pastor Gary

Reclaiming the Joy of Faith through Celebration

2010-03-05T14:14:00.001-06:00

The Father of the Bride movies gave us George Banks, played by Steve Martin, someone with whom this dad can surely identify. He's this forlornly happy husband and father, who invites us to laugh at the pain and joy of family. His own foibles are funny as well as instructive.

In the second movie "Franck" and his decorating partner "Howard" tease George for being a kill joy with the utterly quotable line, "Every party has a pooper that's why we invited you...party pooper George BAAAANKS." It's a great line that also describes how much of the world views Christians.

Party poopers.

But where did this dullard reputation come from and why do we reinforce it? Granted, there is a time to be somber and sincere. Our reverence for God is necessary. But somewhere along the way we lost sight of the fact that Christianity really is Good News, in fact it's Great News! The love of God, the joy of freedom from sin, and the future party that's awaiting us in the Kingdom to come? All reasons to celebrate. Maybe we've lost our zeal.

Consider how King David danced wildly before the Ark. He got chastised by his wife because he danced "commando" (Read 2 Samuel 6). Or take a close read of Zephaniah 3 and discover how God will "rejoice" over us as His children. Or see that Jesus' first miracle was turning water into wine at a wedding feast so that the celebration could continue. Or try to count all the stories Jesus told about feasts in the kingdom of heaven. Or listen to the words of Jesus' critics who thought it slander to accuse him of being a drunkard and a glutton - they knew he liked to celebrate. I like to imagine there was one heck of a celebration in heaven and on earth on that first Easter, too.

To reclaim the joy of faith, we need to learn how to throw a good party that celebrates all that's good in life, all that's from God. Jesus died for your sin and you have a place in eternity with him. Who wouldn't want to celebrate that?

If you're in the Metro DC area this weekend, won't you join us as we redefine the word "party?" We worship at 10:30, and Bible Study is at 9:15. For those who'd like learn more about our ministry partner the American Baptist Convention, come meet Ray Schooler in the fellowship hall at 10am. He'll also be bringing greetings in worship, and meeting with anyone interested in mission work immediately after worship.

Ready to celebrate,
Pastor Gary

Reclaiming the Joy of Faith - Simplicity

2010-02-19T13:09:00.000-06:00

Do you ever feel burned out on religion? Does your spirit thirst for God's spirit? The Lenten sermon series Reclaiming Joy speaks to the human need to jump off the fast track and into the full life.

In the book of Second Kings and Second Chronicles, we learn about King Josiah, who led a reformation of Israel. During a renovation of the temple, workers found the "Book of the Law." They presented the book to Josiah, who after reading it, realized how far from God the people had come. He led a season of repentance and led the nation back to obedience of God's laws and the practice of their faith and worship.

Over the Sundays of Lent we'll think like Josiah as we seek to nourish our faith. We'll deal with different spiritual habits that we can renew. Each of these can lead us to deeper joy in life, and especially in our relationship to God. There are many spiritual habits we could study, but we're going to add each of the following, one week at a time:

Simplicity
Celebration
Sabbath Keeping
Silence
Solitude
Humility

Every member of FBC is going to be invited and challenged to take part in a special shared project at the end of Lent. If you make the commitment to listen to the New Testament on CD for 28 minutes a day for 40 days, you'll get a free CD of the New Testament from our friends at the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. The 40 day period will begin on Easter Sunday and is the challenge that will come out of ourReclaiming Joy series. Please begin praying that 100% of our church family will make this commitment! Watch for more news about this during March.

Hello, my friend, hello. It's good to see you.

2010-01-22T13:53:00.005-06:00

I've not been posting much material the past year. There are several reasons.

One of them is that I've taken a new pastorate, and it's been a tough year of transition. My family is trailing behind me, waiting for the oldest sister to finish high school. It has been bearable, but the "back and forth" has exacted a toll on my creativity and desire to be extroverted via this blog. Sometimes you just have to turn inward for a while to conserve and preserve yourself for the most essential tasks of life: family, faith, and work.

Another reason is that I've been focusing more time on preparing better sermons, writing for doctoral research, and writing curriculum for spiritual formation. Those venues have tapped a different voice from within me, but have made a recluse of my blogging brain. I imagine that's also an inward turn. Some would say my preaching was just fine - I would argue that it still has a long, long way to go.

But I suppose the biggest reason is that I've not been blogging is that I had little to say. The cup has been dry, but not for the reason you might think. You see, I'm turning 40 this year and I've been reflecting on what I've written and said in the past. Much of that older material is uttered by a less mature voice than what is at work in me now. I've been reading widely and learning that I have a lot still to learn about the craft of writing and preaching. I'm starting to see how good writing goes beyond elegant ordering of well-chosen words. Good writing must come from within a person who knows themselves well and I am only just now beginning to know myself. And only in glimpses can I even see me!

Further, good writing stems from full living. If a writer has explored his life fully, it's time to go live some more. That's the feeling I got when I read David Sedaris' last book, When You are Engulfed in Flames. I wanted to tell David, "Go live some more before you write another one."

So I'm slowing down on my writing, letting things more substantive and mature emerge. That will inevitably mean less output, but hopefully of higher quality. In the mean time, thanks for continuing to read here. I thank you for the visits to my page and I hope you'll keep checking back.

U2 or the Beatles?

2010-01-22T13:50:00.001-06:00

If you don’t know who the Beatles or U2 are, you might be above a certain age that I wouldn’t dare name. That’s OK, you only need to know that they’re both wildly successful rock bands.

The bands had extremely different styles for song writing. With the Beatles the songs were written by one individual and then taught to the band. Usually it was John Lennon or Paul McCartney. With U2, every member of the band collaborated to create the “sound” for the song. Both bands were critically and commercially successful.

Some churches are like the Beatles, some are like U2 in this regard. Some churches are run from the top down – pastor and deacons/elders make the decisions and the church goes forward. Some churches are more collaborative in decisions and direction. Both models work for different reasons in different places.

Paul is addressing a troubled church in his letter to the Corinthians. In the second half of chapter 12 Paul reminds the church of their unity in Christ, despite the differences that exist among them. And whether they’re going to be top-down or collegial, they’re going to have to work together.

The same is true for churches today. We have no choice but to pull in the same direction with all our talents and passions. The work is too important, and the unity of the church is too valuable. The means that we Christians need to belong – really belong – to our churches. How? ·

- By fully investing in our church, not simply attending it. ·
- Acting as co-creators of community, not just consumers. ·
- Embracing our diversity, not disparaging our differences.

If you're in the Metro DC area this weekend I hope you'll join me at First Baptist Church Gaithersburg for worship at 10:30. If not, I hope you'll attend the church of your choosing and invest yourself anew. You need your church and your church needs you!

All you need is love where the streets have no name,

Pastor Gary

Through Fire & Water

2010-01-08T13:07:00.002-06:00

I remember my baptism, but only in snippets. I remember the bright red hair and glowing face of the woman who was baptized before me. I remember the square-edged voice of the preacher who buried me and pulled me out. I remember that the water was warm and the light was soft. And I remember that family was there, and we went out for ice cream. Those images are priceless and peaceful to me.

Remembering baptism is important because it is a singular time of calm in the sea of life, a rough and tumble tide. John the Baptist warned the people, "I baptize you with water...He [Jesus] will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire." What John shouted in the wilderness of Bible times is still true in the city life of modern times. The life of following Jesus will involve some trial, some hard work, and some suffering. If I had my "druthers," I'd be content to take my salvation and go merrily along my way without hardship. Seems God has other plans, other things to teach us in the shaping of our character into the image of Christ.

The good news is that we do not go it alone. We have the fellowship of the saints, the support of friends, and above all, we have God who does not leave us alone. Isaiah 43.2 promises,

"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;

and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;
when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,
and the flame shall not consume you."

Join us on Sunday to remember your baptism and to reestablish contact with the God who wants to go with you through the water and fire of life. We gather at 10:30 for worship and 9:15 for Bible study!

Reaching for my asbestos life jacket,

Pastor Gary

Long Story, Short is a weekly column I write to get you thinking about church on Sunday. If you're in the Washington, D.C. Metro area on Sundays, I invite you to join us at First Baptist Church, Gaithersburg. You can catch back issues of this column and other original pieces on my blog at www.tothelees.blogspot.com.

Nice Poem

2009-10-28T10:45:00.003-05:00

Not feeling very inspired to blog lately, I've been writing a lot for work and for school. However, this poem spoke to me today:

"On Swimming" by Adam Zagajewski

The rivers of this country are sweet
as a troubadour's song.
the heavy sun wanders westward
on yellow circus wagons.
Little village churches
hold a fabrid of silenc so fin
and old that even a breath
could tear it.
I love to swim in the sea, which keeps
talking to itself
in the monotone of a vagabond
who no longer recalls
exactly how long he's been on the road.
Swimming is like prayer:
palms join and part,
join and part,
almost without end.

Long Story, Short - October 2, 2009

2009-10-02T11:59:00.001-05:00

A cow by any other name...

A USA Today report verifies what wise dairy farmers have said for years: a cow will give more milk if she’s called by name. If the farmer knows the cow and interacts with the cow, she is more productive - to tune of about 68 more gallons of milk per year. These are the findings of Catherine Douglas of Newcastle University in England.

Perhaps that statistic can aid us in our reading of Hebrews 2.11, “...Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters...” You’ll want to read the whole of chapter 2 to see if you agree, but I’m thinking that Jesus calls us brothers and sisters in order that we might know our place as children of God.

And perhaps be more productive as disciples of Jesus.

Admittedly, thinking of ourselves as God’s cows is not all that flattering. But how far off from being the sheep in the “Good Shepherd’s” pasture is this image? How far off would it be to think that God wants us to have productive, meaningful lives?

If you’re in the DC metro area this weekend, why not join the herd for worship this Sunday at First Baptist Church, Gaithersburg? Who knows, you might find the experience very mooooooooving. Worship starts at 10:30 and we’ll observe communion, baptism, and a parent-child dedication! You might even want to audition for a Chick-fil-A commercial afterward!

Udderly excited,
Pastor Gary

Dirty Preacher

2009-09-08T11:18:00.001-05:00

This is a photo from "Mud Ball 2009." It's an event our church puts on that basically involves a mud pit for volley ball and a long slide down a hill into a pond.

This is one event that lives up to the hype.

Is the Mission a Success?

2009-08-19T16:13:00.002-05:00

I found this little gem of a question in a preaching journal I read called Homiletics. What do you think?

The Book of Heroic Failures contains a story about a 1978 strike of British firefighters, when the army filled the gap. One afternoon, the replacement firefighters got a call to rescue a cat caught high in a tree. The soldiers rushed to the scene, put up a ladder, brought down the cat and gave it back to the owner. The woman was so grateful that she invited them in for tea, an invitation they accepted. After a wonderful time, they said goodbye, got in the truck and backed away — over the cat.

Which prompts the question, “Could that rescue mission really be considered a success?”

—Adapted from George Sanchez, “How to succeed God’s way,” Discipleship Journal (Sept./Oct. 1983).

Selling the House Before the Roof is On

2009-07-30T14:04:00.005-05:00

Alexis de Tocqueville was researching the American prison system on behalf of the French in the mid 1800's when he wrote of American culture, "An American will build a house in which to pass his old age and sell it before the roof is on; he will plant a garden and rent it just as the trees are coming into bearing … he will take up a profession and leave it, settle in one place and soon go off elsewhere."

Is it simply part of the American experience to wanderlust? Is he highlighting a kind of stupidity that is still inherent to us? Not every American was or is like his generalization, but is there a common trait amongst us that contributed to our current economic plight? Are we selling the house before the roof is on it when our system seeks an ever expanding economy and encourages the frivolous and extravagant use of credit?

I'm jus wondering.

The Senility Prayer

2009-07-27T18:13:00.002-05:00

Ran across this today, thought you aged ones might enjoy this. You know who you are!

Dear Lord,
Grant me the senility to forget the people I never liked anyway,
The good fortune to run into the ones I do, and
The eyesight to tell the difference.
Amen.

Forever Begging for Just One More Day

2009-07-20T14:33:00.002-05:00

May you and I live this day so fully as to find needless the prayer uttered at the end of this amazing poem. Thanks, Billy Collins, for continuing to amaze us.

Statues in the Park

I thought of you today
when I stopped before an equestrian statue
in the middle of a public square,

you who had once instructed me
in the code of these noble poses.

A horse rearing up with two legs raised,
you told me, meant the rider had died in battle.

If only one leg was lifted,
the man had elsewhere succumbed to his wounds;

and if four legs were touching the ground,
as they were in this case--
bronze hooves affixed to a stone base--
it meant that the man on the horse,

this one staring intently
over the closed movie theater across the street,
had died of a cause other than war.

In the shadow of the statue,
I wondered about the others
who had simply walked through life
without a horse, a saddle, or a sword--
pedestrians who could no longer
place on foot in front of the other.

I pictured statues of the sickly
recumbent on their cold stone bed,
the suicides toeing the marble edge,

statues of accident victims covering their eyes,
the murdered covering their wounds,
the drowned silently treading the air.

And there was I,
up on a rosy-gray block of granite
near a cluster of shade trees in the local park,
my name and dates pressed into a plaque,

down on my knees, eyes lifted,
praying to the passing clouds,
forever begging for just one more day.

-Billy Collins

I couldn't resist

2009-07-19T21:01:00.002-05:00

Props for this joke to the source editors at Homiletics. You guys are some of my favs:

A fellow has a parrot who swears like an old salt. The bird is a pistol. He can swear for five minutes straight without repeating himself. Trouble is, the guy who owns him is a quiet, conservative type, and the bird’s foul mouth is driving him nuts.One day, it just gets to be too much. The guy grabs the bird by the throat, shakes him really hard and yells, “QUIT IT!”

But this just makes the bird mad, and he swears more than ever. Then the guy gets angry and says, “Okay for you” and locks the bird in a kitchen cabinet. This really aggravates the bird, who claws and scratches. When the guy finally lets him out, the bird cuts loose with a stream of vulgarities that would make a sailor blush.

At that point, the guy is so mad that he throws the bird into the freezer. For the first few seconds, there is a terrible din. The bird kicks and claws and thrashes. Then it suddenly gets very quiet.

At first the guy just waits, but then he starts to think that the bird may be hurt. After a couple of minutes of silence, he’s so worried that he opens up the freezer door.

The bird meekly climbs onto the man’s outstretched arm and says, “Awfully sorry about the trouble I gave you. I’ll do my best to improve my vocabulary from now on.”

The man is astounded and amazed at the transformation that has come over the parrot. Then the parrot says, “By the way, what did the chicken do?”

Rough Verse

2009-07-10T19:16:00.004-05:00

Draft of a first verse of a poem I'm working on. My Maryland friends may recognize the "blue train" as the MARC - speeding by, of course.

I’d love to settle into that restless breeze,

Tagging along behind that blue train to the land

Where no one owns a cell phone, nor needs one,

A place where ringing things have no squeeze on me.

McDiet

2009-07-10T19:15:00.000-05:00

It only takes one 10 p.m. McDonald’s commercial to stoke my appetite. Even with a great dinner just over my shoulder I’m dreaming of a milkshake in my left hand and hot fries in my right. If I’m strong I’ll settle for some of that cardboard stuff known as “Fat Free Popcorn.” Hey, we all crave the wrong things occasionally.

In a world of Little Debbie cakes, fast food on every corner, and grocery stores gaudy with too many choices, we are a culture addicted to food that is bad for us. We are some serious snackers in the spiritual sense, too, having too often settled for a fast-food religion rather than the life sustaining gourmet feast that is really ours. Jesus challenges us in John 6.26 with a word to the throngs following him around after the feeding of the 5,000, “Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves.”

The message of the munchies is that we’ve settled – once again – for something less than God’s best for us. We’ve chosen ritual over relationship, sappy over substantial, and flashy over the real nourishment of Christianity. Many a modern minister has used the worship table to dish up stones for bread, but Christians have endorsed it, gobbling down the byte-sized pabulum that passes for preaching like Scooby-Doo and Shaggy tearing into a foot long hero. Long story short, we need to look for a little more substance in our relationship to God.

That’s what we’ll be discussing this Sunday as we look at John 6.24-35. The sermon is called McDiet and I hope you’ll come hungry.

(p)Reaching for a crispy fry,

Pastor Gary

Long Story, Short is an email I send to get you thinking about church on Sunday. You can read similar things at my blog, Life to the Lees. This week’s sermon is part 2 of 5 in the series Hunger. Upcoming titles and texts are:

July 19 – Tastes Great John 6.35; 41-51

July 26 – Stuffed John 6.60-69

August 2 – True Bread John 6.51-58

John 6:24-35

²⁴So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus.

25 When they found him on the other side of the lake, they said to him, ‘Rabbi, when did you come here?’ ²⁶Jesus answered them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. ²⁷Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal.’ ²⁸Then they said to him, ‘What must we do to perform the works of God?’ ²⁹Jesus answered them, ‘This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.’ ³⁰So they said to him, ‘What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? ³¹Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, “He gave them bread from heaven to eat.” ’ ³²Then Jesus said to them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. ³³For the bread of God is that which^* comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.’ ³⁴They said to him, ‘Sir, give us this bread always.’

35 Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.

Kobe and Phil and Leadership

2009-06-10T22:47:00.002-05:00

Watching the ESPN docu-drama tonight, I heard Kobe Bryant give a great insight on leadership of winning teams. He said, roughly, that Phil Jackson, Lakers' coach, doesn't draw up plays for the team. "He draws up sequences, he gives us options to follow based on what we see happening on the floor at the moment."

Makes me think of Paul's instruction for pastors to equip the saints.

When God Moves Slowly

2009-06-05T16:47:00.004-05:00

A friend of mine asked recently if God was ever going to answer a particular prayer. I answered with a quote from Tom Petty that "the wai-ai-aiting is the hardest part" and said something about God moving slowly to create change in our lives. That sounded pithy at the time.

Hours of mindless tasks later, I recalled something I'd read from Frederick Buechner in The Sacred Journey. He writes about the obfuscation of God's speech into our lives, saying, "God speaks to us in such a way, presumably, not because he chooses to be obscure but because, unlike a dictionary word whose meaning is fixed, the meaning of an incarnate word is the meaning it has for the one it is spoken to, the meaning that becomes clear and effective in our lives only when we ferret it out for ourselves."

It took me a while to find the quote, but I finally dug it out. Maybe the search was a kind of metaphor for my own spiritual waiting and searching - part hazy memory, part dim epiphany, part grubbing about in my library. As I consider all my own "waits" and all the "waits" of others, I think the waiting is part of the process of finding meaning in God's speech, the speech that becomes effective "only when we ferret it out for ourselves."

But couldn't God do things in an easier way? Just a little quicker, playing things out nice and clean, like a thirty minute sit-com?

But really, who am I to judge God's speed and efficiency? God's economy holds little similarity with my system of skewed values and prejudices, anyway, and besides that, there is that other little nagging thing that just may be an absolute truth: God's ways are not my ways.

I do hold hope for the future, though. One day there will be a kingdom where things like mustard seeds, yeast, pearls, workers in vineyards, the meek, the poor, those who grieve, all these things, they will come to a place of prominence and the human economy will emulate God's economy. I'm ready for that day.

But since I don't see it on the horizon, I'll simply wait, just like I told my friend to do. And I'll hope for continued dim epiphanies and ghostly memories all grubbed out in the room I call my study while God moves slowly all around me.

Quick line

2009-06-05T15:06:00.004-05:00

Who was the man behind the mask?
None of us ever dared to ask.
Poetry was Everette's shield and sword.

Line from Everette as sung by Slaid Cleaves

Holy WOW!

2009-06-05T15:04:00.001-05:00

When did you last say, “WOW!” and really mean it? Was it a sunset, an amazing vista, or a summer shower? Was it an unexpected phone call from an old friend, a smile from a stranger, or the breath of an infant on your neck? Whatever it was or whenever it happened, each and every large and small “wow” in life is a gift from God.

You might even call such moments a “Holy Wow!”

Isaiah experienced a “holy wow” during a vision where he saw the angels before God’s throne singing “Holy, holy, holy.” He recognized the holiness of the moment. He saw the distance between his humanity and God’s perfection. He heard God’s question of “Whom shall I send?” and responded in the moment with the heart of a true volunteer, “Here am I; send me!”

Which leads me to believe that a “Holy Wow!” moment calls for a response from me. At minimum it’s a word of thanks. Ideally it becomes a question of “What should I do now?”

What do you do with the “Holy Wow!” moments of your life? How do you respond? What do you do in reaction to God’s presence in your life? Those are the questions I’m pondering in advance of this Sunday’s sermon on Isaiah 6.1-8. It’s called Beyond Wow. If you’d like to share some of your “Holy Wow!” moments, I’d love to read about them...jot me a line back at glong@fbcgaithersburg.org.

Holy cow!
Pastor Gary

Long Story, Short is a Friday email I write to get you thinking about church on Sunday. You can read more of my writing at Life to the Lees. You’re invited to worship at First Baptist Church of Gaithersburg this Sunday at 10:30 am.

Isaiah 6:1-8
A Vision of God in the Temple
6In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lofty; and the hem of his robe filled the temple. 2Seraphs were in attendance above him; each had six wings: with two they covered their faces, and with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. 3And one called to another and said:‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;the whole earth is full of his glory.’ 4The pivots* on the thresholds shook at the voices of those who called, and the house filled with smoke. 5And I said: ‘Woe is me! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!’

6 Then one of the seraphs flew to me, holding a live coal that had been taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. 7The seraph* touched my mouth with it and said: ‘Now that this has touched your lips, your guilt has departed and your sin is blotted out.’ 8Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?’ And I said, ‘Here am I; send me!’

Unknown user or password incorrect.

2009-05-29T00:28:00.004-05:00

My assistant at my old church emailed me earlier this week and asked if I was ready for her to remove my email account from the system. I told her yes and promptly forgot about it. Thursday night I logged in - or tried to - only to find that I no longer had the old email account.

The blue web page had only one line of text on it: Unknown user or password incorrect.

Suddenly I'm an unknown user on that old email account, and it caused the strangest rush of grief. I'm really gone. I can't go back. Another piece of my identity as pastor of Willow Meadows Baptist Church is gone.

I love where I am. It's a great fit and I'm really thriving at FBC Gaithersburg and happy to be back in the metro DC area. But I gave nearly seven years of my life to serve the people of WMBC and it's something more than eerie to read Unknown user or password incorrect after logging in to a webmail account almost every day for nearly 2400 days.

Leaving WMBC has been one of the hardest things I've ever done because our family has become enmeshed with the many families there. Like one of those tentacled brain tumors that cannot be extracted without damaging the brain itself, I'm wondering if full extraction is ever possible? Will the pain go away? Can I ever leave another church again?

"It's too painful," my wife says. "I don't have many more of these moves in me." She's not talking about packing and unpacking either - she's talking about leaving the people we love.

And that's substantially more substantial than changing addresses, email or snail mail. I can't imagine a day when the people of WMBC say Unknown user or password incorrect to me, and I know I can't say it to them, or the many friends we've shared life with in Houston. But my old email account reminded me bluntly and coldly that I am no longer the pastor of WMBC.

And my training as minister reminds me that we grieve much because we have loved much.

The Strangest Moment Arrived

2009-05-26T09:56:00.003-05:00

Someone very close to me told me about a long over-due conversation that happened for her this past week. She commented to me that during the conversation she realized she'd reached a certain point in her life where - and this is my paraphrase - the need to please had been overtaken by her need to be herself. It struck me as a beautiful mark of maturity and self-confidence - something I'd already seen, but now she saw for herself.

I'm left contemplating: Why does it take so long to see the good stuff in ourselves? That we are confident, remarkable creatures imbued with God's very nature? That changes come about in our lives that indelibly mark us, often for the better, but only to be realized later?

Do you ever have moments when you realize "you ain't so bad?" They are gifts, and we should receive them as gentle reminders from our heavenly Father that we are “enough.”

Kate Light has a great poem called There Comes the Strangest Moment that describes this moment of truth.

There comes the strangest moment in your life,
when everything you thought before breaks free —
what you relied upon, as ground-rule and as rite
looks upside down from how it used to be.

Skin’s gone pale, your brain is shedding cells;
you question every tenet you set down;
obedient thoughts have turned to infidels
and every verb desires to be a noun.

I want—my want. I love—my love. I’ll stay
with you. I thought transitions were the best,
but I want what’s here to never go away.
I’ll make my peace, my bed, and kiss this breast . . .

Your heart’s in retrograde. You simply have no choice.
Things people told you turn out to be true.
You have to hold that body, hear that voice.
You’d have sworn no one knew you more than you.

How many people thought you’d never change?
But here you have. It’s beautiful. It’s strange.

– Kate Light

Blog Recommendation

2009-05-22T16:06:00.001-05:00

If you're a poetry, photography, or aphorism fan, take a look at this wonderful website -

Austin Granny

Women

2009-05-22T16:05:00.001-05:00

It is interesting to speculate how it developed that in the two most anti-feminist institutions, the church and the law court, the men are wearing dresses. — Florynce Kennedy

Table Manners

2009-05-20T13:36:00.003-05:00

Did your mother or father teach you table manners? In my family the rules were pretty much like everyone else’s: no elbows on the table, close your mouth when chew, don’t talk with food in your mouth, and so on.

One rule was especially important. We weren’t allowed to wear hats in the house, especially at the supper table. To this day I cringe at the sight of a man in a hat in a restaurant or any other meal table. I don't know why, but I’ve been programmed. It’s a rule. Period.

This Sunday’s Gospel lection is Luke 24.44-53. The context for this passage is a dining table. Jesus appeared to the disciples on that Easter evening, but they were scared to death of him, thinking they were seeing a ghost. He let them touch him, but they still didn’t believe it was him, so he ate a piece of broiled fish to prove he’s real. Ghosts don’t eat fish, did you know that?

He then gives a table talk. Around the meal he opens their eyes to the reality of the resurrection, then he opens their minds to the story of scripture, and then he opens their hearts to the world’s deep spiritual needs. Those three things served as the outline for a sermon I delivered at FBC Gaithersburg on April 26. And that table sets the context for what Jesus says next:

Luke 24 (NRSV)
24:44 Then he said to them, "These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you--that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled."
24:45 Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures,
24:46 and he said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day,
24:47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.
24:48 You are witnesses of these things.
24:49 And see, I am sending upon you what my Father promised; so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high."
24:50 Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and, lifting up his hands, he blessed them.
24:51 While he was blessing them, he withdrew from them and was carried up into heaven.
24:52 And they worshiped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy;
24:53 and they were continually in the temple blessing God.

Jesus leaves the table, leading them out to Bethany.

But not all meals are so pleasant. Sometimes people leave the table in anger. Robin Williams describes Thanksgiving dinner in his Episcopalian home. “Dad has a few gin and tonics and then confesses, ‘You know I never loved you mother.’”

To which Williams responds, “No Dad, I didn’t know that. But she’s sitting right there, why don’t you tell her again.”

Ever been at a table with an argument going on? My whole gut seizes up and I can’t eat. The table is no longer a table, but torture. Some of my worst memories of childhood were flare ups around dinner that made me lose my appetite completely.

In Homiletics I read this related piece about a meal that went awry because of an argument:

In his book I Never Forget a Meal, actor Michael Tucker tells of an incident in his family that forever changed the way he looks at cooking and hospitality. When he was young, his extended family gathered for Passover. His mother and sisters, who worked very hard on preparing holiday meals, also tended to be emotional.

At this particular Passover, which took place at his uncle’s house, an argument broke out between his mother and his uncle over whether the Seder liturgy should be read in Hebrew or English. The tensions rose ever higher. Some people sought to defuse it with humor, to no avail.

His mother left the table.

His uncle, too, left in anger — getting into his car and driving away from his own house.

Tucker’s mother ran outside, into the night. While the men searched for her, the aunts wrapped up the uneaten food. The children sat there in awkward silence: scared for their mother, but also embarrassed by her “crazy” behavior.

From that day on, the family disintegrated. Never again was there a happy holiday meal involving the extended family.Tucker explains in his book that he now understands why he has a passion for cooking. He is trying to finish that meal, once and for all. It is “to finish that meal with grace and calm and convivial family conversation, with laughter and warmth,” he writes. “Mostly, I think about warmth; so that I can melt away the cold of that uneaten dinner.”— Michael Tucker, I Never Forget a Meal (Little Brown, 1995).

You’re probably wondering, how does this all tie together? It’s this: Jesus didn’t leave the table in anger, and in fact left us with the Holy Spirit as an aid to living and loving. Jesus didn’t split theological hairs at the table, he communicated, taught, and affirmed.

Jesus took care of some unfinished business at that table, but there is an unfinished meal for us Christians. The Lord’s supper is never finished, never complete.

Until we have made emotional, physical, and spiritual space for everyone at this table, the kingdom of God is just an abstract concept.
Until we can eat in peace with all those around us, the kingdom of God remains distant.
Until we can get over our petty differences with fellow Christians, there will be no dessert.
Until we get the table right, our families will be in disrepair, our lives will be a clumsy clunking, and our future will be hazy and uncertain.

The table is metaphor, of course. What we’re really talking about is your willingness to welcome the stranger, to feast with foe, and live at peace with the difficulties that all our human relations present us.

So here are some questions for reflection:

1. Who is at your table that wasn’t there a year ago? Last month? How can you work to make sure they are welcomed in an ongoing way?
2. Why did it take Jesus eating food for the disciples to see that he was real? What is the “magic” that happens around meals?
3. Who has tried to elbow their way to your table, but you thwarted their efforts? Is your exclusion a sin?
4. With whom would you be unwilling to share the table? Why? Will that ever change?

My Final Email

2009-05-15T13:56:00.002-05:00

Iknow all about the last will and testament. I’ve read them, written one personally, and as a minister I’ve helped folk with theirs. A friend recently introduced me to a whole new level of “last words” with the website “My Last Email.” It’s a website that allows you to write your own obituary and read or add to the obituary of others. What caught my attention is the option to send an email to loved ones after you die!

Their marketing schtick goes like this:

The two longest words in the English language are “If only.” We may regret not telling someone how much we love them, or regret the harsh words we once had with a friend. We regret not letting friends and family into our lives a little more and sharing our thoughts and feelings with them. “If only I had told them”, “If only they could have known.” And once we die that opportunity is lost – but it need not be. Here at mylastemail.com we offer you the opportunity to make that “If only…” into a reality.

It sounds kind of creepy, I can only imagine the "weird factor" of receiving an email from a dead friend. But it’s not altogether unlike the words we find in John 15. Part of what the Bible scholars call Jesus’ “Farewell Discourse,” it’s a kind of “last will” from Jesus to his disciples, and a kind of “last email” to us today.

If it’s Jesus’ last email to us, perhaps we should read it closely, pondering and treasuring what he is still saying to us. Perhaps all of scripture should hold us captive in the same way? What would you see differently if you read the Bible this way?

Not my last email,
Pastor Gary

Long Story, Short is a column I write on Friday to get you thinking about church on Sunday. If you'd like it sent to your email inbox, let me know at glong@fbcgaithersburg.org. I really like to hear from you, and frequently your responses wind up as a living part of a sermon on Sundays. For example, my friend Thom Gagne wrote this story in response to this week's thoughts:

Hey Gary,

Last Thursday morning my Dad died. I flew home from Mauritania N Africa Thursday night with my 15 year old son Elliot.My wife Connie stayed behind to finish closing down the house and the Cafe.

Your " My Last Email" bit on your blog became especially poignant.In 1991 my folks were traveling back from Florida and stopped in Atlanta to visit my brother Martin. My Mom was near the end of a twenty year battle with cancer. Knowing that she would precede Dad in death, she had a wish for his eventual memorial, which she entrusted to my brother.

That day as Dad and grand kids went outside to sit in the sun, Mom called Marty to the side.She handed him an old copy of the collected works of Shakespeare. She explained that she had purchased this volume for Dad early in their marriage, but that he had never read it. It would become readily apparent however, that she had.

"Turn to page 1086" she whispered.

There Marty found the following underlined passage:" ...and when he shall die, take him and cut him into little stars, and he shall make the face of heaven so fine that all the world will fall in love with night and pay no more worship to the garish sun." Romeo & Juliet - William Shakespeare

I just thought you would appreciate this,
Thom

John 15:9-17
9As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. 10If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. 11I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.

12 ‘This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14You are my friends if you do what I command you. 15I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. 16You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name. 17I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another.

Who do you say that I am?

2009-05-11T09:05:00.001-05:00

I was visiting an old, dear friend the other day: Parker Palmer’s Let Your Life Speak. In it, Palmer points out that Douglas Steere, the Quaker teacher, was fond of asking the question, “Who am I?” He liked it, I think, because it led him to the question, “Whose am I?” I raise these two questions because as I mature in my life and in my faith, I’ve come to believe that there is no self-hood outside of relationship.

We begin as children by relating to our parents. We gain nearly all of our identity from them as young little people. The circle expands slowly to include our teachers and then our classmates. By the teenage years we are finding all of our identity in the words others use to describe us. That’s probably why “cut-downs,” as we used to call them, hurt so badly, and are hurled so frequently in those angst-filled adolescent years. I remember once realizing that one of the ugliest girls I ever knew as a teenager was ugly because of her words. I don’t mean curse words, but her insults to others. I understand now, sympathetically, that she was just working out her stuff, just like the rest of us.

By the time we make it to adulthood, we’re not really improved in this respect. We’ve simply learned to block out some of those words, and turn to the mirror for a little more of an identity fix. But still, we try on different masks, imagining ourselves as being better or worse than we really are. Anne Lamott expresses this in Grace Eventually when she wonders why we look at pictures of ourselves that are years old and think, “I was beautiful,” but never think that about ourselves in the here and now.

Our identity is a thing which we chase after and grapple for throughout every stage of our lives. We long for identity as a sibling, or as a child of someone, or even as the parent of someone. I go to the little league field and watch all these dads yelling at their kids, or cheering for their kids, living out their unfulfilled childhoods right there on a miniature baseball field. I’ve seen grown men yelling at their kids for messing up on the field and it makes me want to cry for the kid who’s out there just trying figure out their identity as a kid and play a sport that’s nearly too awkward for their little bodies.

I’ve seen grown women primping their daughters for dates or saying, “You’re too thin,” or more likely, “You’re too fat.” You’re too this, you’re too that. Mom’s and dad’s working out their identities like this, always thinking they are to blame for their kids’ mistakes, and ready to take all the credit for their kids’ glories and accomplishments.

Who am I? It’s a timeless question that evolves into “Whose am I?” because of the interconnectedness of our mis-woven identities. You tell me who I am, and I’ll tell you who you are.

I think Jesus natively understood this when he said, “I am the vine, you are the branches.” He continues in John 15.5, saying, “Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing.” There is a statement of identity that changes everything. If you know much about grapevines, you understand what he’s saying. There’s no fruit in our lives if we’re not connected to the true source of our identity, a very rootedness in God.

I connect this thinking to a poem I read in Billy Collins’ Poetry 180 – A Turning Back to Poetry.
Dorianne Laux wrote "Singing Back to the World":

I don’t remember how it began.
The singing. Judy at the wheel
in the middle of Sentimental Journey.
The side of her face glowing.
Her full lips moving.
Beyond her shoulder
the little houses sliding by.
And Geri. Her frizzy hair tumbling
in the wind wing’s breeze, fumbling
with the words. All of us singing
as loud as we can. Off key.
Not even a semblance of harmony.
Driving home in a blue Comet singing
I’ll Be Seeing You and Love Is a Rose.
The love songs of war. The war songs
of love. Mixing up verses, eras, words.
Songs from stupid musicals.
Coming in strong on the easy refrains.
Straining our middle aged voices
trying to reach impossible notes,
reconstruct forgotten phrases.
Cole Porter’s Anything Goes.
Shamelessly la la la-ing
whole sections. Forgetting
the rent, the kids, the men,
the other woman. The sad goodbye.
The whole of childhood. Forgetting
the lost dog, Polio. The grey planes
pregnant with bombs. Fields of
white headstones. All of it gone
as we struggle to remember
the words. One of us picking up
where the others leave off. Intent
on the song. Forgetting our bodies,
their pitiful limbs, their heaviness.
Nothing but three throats
Beating back the world – Laurie’s
radiation treatments. The scars
on Christina’s arms. Kim’s brother.
Molly’s grandfather. Jane’s sister.
Singing to the telephone poles
skimming by. Stoplights
blooming green. The road
a glassy black river edged
with brilliant gilded weeds. The car
an immense boat cutting the air
into blue angelic plumes. Singing
Blue Moon and Paper Moon
and Mack the Knife, and Nobody Knows
the Trouble I’ve Seen.

For these women, singing the old songs pushed back against all those things that sought to define them and their identities. I like the poem because of its pervasive sadness and close staring into the mirror of life, but yet an unyielding belief that the songs fought against all of those things.

For me, when the madness of the world brings that pervasive sadness, I find the reminder that I am a branch on the vine restorative. But I wonder about you? What do you do to “sing back the world” when it becomes too forceful in it’s forging of your identity?

Palmer concludes his thought on Steere’s questions with this:
“As I learn more about the seed of true self that was planted when I was born, I also learn more about the ecosystem in which I was planted – the network of communal relations in which I am called to live responsively, accountably, and joyfully with beings of every sort. Only when I know both seed and system, self and community, can I embody the great commandment to love both my neighbor and myself.” p. 17

So, some questions:
1. Do you sense that you are your true self most days? When does that happen? Where?
2. Do you buy the idea that our identities are shaped by competing factors around us? By others around us?
3. How does the phrase, “abide in me” work to define our identity?
4. How might we more closely “abide” in Jesus?
5. Have you ever been “pruned” by God? How did that feel?

Of Vines and Pruning

2009-05-11T09:04:00.002-05:00

On my grandfather’s North Carolina farm were two grapevines that seemed twenty feet tall in my child sized memory, but only six or seven in reality. The thick scuppernong vines draped heavily over a trellis of six creosote posts. Tough hulls protected the fruit, and you had squeeze the sweet innards in your mouth. They were pure sugar shots, especially good when the cool morning lingered in them. My cousin and I hid beneath to eat grapes in the shade, or fill our ball caps with grape bombs, climb high in the magnolia tree, and see who could spit the hulls the furthest.

Sadly, only one of the vines remains, the other fell victim to bad pruning by a renter after my grandfather died. Perhaps they thought the vine an eyesore and cut it all the way down to its main trunk. Or maybe they pruned unknowingly into the current year’s new growth. Whatever the reason, they didn’t know how to carefully prune a scuppernong vine.

I’ve been thinking about that vine this week as I’ve prepared a sermon from John 15. It’s about Jesus the vine and us the branches. Jesus talked about grapevines to say that God is the vintner who prunes and shapes the vines to bear good fruit. Unlike that renter who pruned my grandfather's vines incorrectly, God prunes perfectly, shaping us to bear the good fruit of faithful and fearless living into a world that desperately needs the sweetness of the gospel.

I wonder, where do I need pruning to bear better fruit? What can I do to be more deeply connected to the vine? How can I “abide in Jesus” to produce sweetness in the lives of others?

On Childhood

2009-04-27T14:59:00.003-05:00

Kinky Friedman wrote in Texas Monthly (November, 2008), "...children are dreamers who never sleep..."

Ahhh, the child like faith.

Ever Seen a Ghost?

2009-04-24T17:44:00.001-05:00

Once as a teenager I saw something that I can’t logically explain other than to imagine it might have been a ghost. I wasn’t hallucinating and it scared me to death! I don’t tell that too often, basically because Christians don’t talk about ghosts too much.

There’s no shortage of them in scripture, though. For example, Saul goes to see the witch of Endor in 1 Samuel 28 and she channels up a dead Samuel for him. I’d be willing to bet a small corner of the farm that your pastor has never preached on that passage! Over in the gospels the disciples confuse Jesus for a ghost on more than one occasion. And Jesus tells them in Luke 24.39, “Look at my hands and my feet; see that it is I myself. Touch me and see; for a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.”

The Bible doesn’t skirt the issue, and Jesus partly defines what a ghost is by saying what a ghost isn’t. The point of the passage is that Jesus is showing himself as a real body, resurrected, back from the dead. They thought he was a ghost, so he let them touch his hands and feet. They remained skeptical, so he did something no ghost could do – he ate a meal with them. Broiled fish to be exact.

With a human, bodily action, Jesus opened their eyes to a new realm of possibility. They were in joy and disbelief. And I’m left to wonder if maybe, just maybe, their joy and disbelief is something we might borrow as we ponder our modern day living? How can we remain daily dullards in light of the resurrection of Jesus? Do your eyes need to be opened to impossibilities of life that God can make possible? Have you lived too long without the sense of wonder, joy, and even disbelief that God can do anything?

Perhaps our faith might be better lived if we thought we’d just seen a ghost!

Squinting at the mirage,
Pastor Gary

Long Story, Short is a column I write to get you thinking about the sermon on Sunday. I preach at First Baptist Church of Gaithersburg, Maryland and if you’re around at 10:30 on Sunday mornings, join us there for worship. You can find other stories about life, love, and levity at my blog To the Lees.

Luke 24:36b-48

36 While they were talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, ‘Peace be with you.’* 37They were startled and terrified, and thought that they were seeing a ghost. 38He said to them, ‘Why are you frightened, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39Look at my hands and my feet; see that it is I myself. Touch me and see; for a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.’ 40And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet.* 41While in their joy they were disbelieving and still wondering, he said to them, ‘Have you anything here to eat?’ 42They gave him a piece of broiled fish, 43and he took it and ate in their presence. 44 Then he said to them, ‘These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you—that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled.’ 45Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, 46and he said to them, ‘Thus it is written, that the Messiah* is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, 47and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48You are witnesses of these things.

Updates and Transition

2009-03-02T22:12:00.002-06:00

For those of you who've been reading my stuff over the years, thanks! There are lots of changes in the works for me and my family. I have resigned my post as Senior Pastor at Willow Meadows Baptist Church in Houston. I will be assuming the pastorate at First Baptist Church of Gaithersburg, Maryland in mid-April. My last Sunday in the pulpit at WMBC will be April 5.

I'll be posting more details in the coming days. For now you may still correspond with me at glong@wmbc.org. I will continue blogging here, and you can look for a new weekly email column in mid-April. I hope you'll keep reading. I have new titles for this blog in the coming weeks, including "Daily Specials May Vary," and "Hey, Catholic Boy."

Grace & Peace,

Relaxtion Technique #1

2009-02-10T16:25:00.006-06:00

If you guessed this to be in the Florida Keys, you're right. This is at Fort Jefferson, in the Dry Tortugas.

The picture doesn't do it justice!

Rise Up

2009-02-06T11:07:00.002-06:00

Bruce Springsteen's music is pretty much the soundtrack of my life. At 16, I didn't know where I was going, but I knew for sure I was "born to run." It was only in adulthood that I began to understand the prophetic voice that Bruce brings to rock-n-roll. Right now it's Friday morning and I'm working on the Sunday sermon as I hum a song by "The Boss." It's the stirring "My City of Ruins" about Asbury Park, a resort town where he'd hung out as a kid (Lyrics included below).

The song is laced with gospel, and begins by mourning the neglect of the city that has become a place of "ruins." The chorus comes in strong with hints of Nehemiah, imploring the city to "Rise up, rise up, rise up." Another verse turns to lament a lost love, and the awareness of how neglect led to the "ruins" of the relationship.

It is the final chorus, though, where the gospel shines through in a prayer for strength, faith, and love that he might use his hands to build up what has been torn down. It's a fitting song to listen to while you read Isaiah 40.21-31, which ends with, "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."

Isaiah believed in a time when the people of Israel would indeed "rise up" and live in God's might, power, and strength. He also knew that sometimes we get weary pursuing justice, sometimes we fall, and sometimes we can't make it on our own strength. The good Word for Sunday's sermon is that no matter how tired you are, God does not grow weak. God will indeed help you "rise up."

I hope you'll join us for worship this weekend. Traditional liturgy is at 10:45. Not-so-traditional is at 11:45. No matter which service you attend, I'm praying you'll lift your face to the heavens and "rise up."

Listening for the sweet bells of mercy,

Pastor Gary

Isaiah 40.21-31

21 Do you not know?
       Have you not heard?
       Has it not been told you from the beginning?
       Have you not understood since the earth was founded?

22 He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth,
       and its people are like grasshoppers.
       He stretches out the heavens like a canopy,
       and spreads them out like a tent to live in.

23 He brings princes to naught
and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing.

24 No sooner are they planted,
       no sooner are they sown,
       no sooner do they take root in the ground,
       than he blows on them and they wither,
       and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.

25 "To whom will you compare me?
Or who is my equal?" says the Holy One.

26 Lift your eyes and look to the heavens:
       Who created all these?
       He who brings out the starry host one by one,
       and calls them each by name.
       Because of his great power and mighty strength,
       not one of them is missing.

27 Why do you say, O Jacob,
       and complain, O Israel,
       "My way is hidden from the LORD;
       my cause is disregarded by my God"?

28 Do you not know?
       Have you not heard?
       The LORD is the everlasting God,
       the Creator of the ends of the earth.
       He will not grow tired or weary,
       and his understanding no one can fathom.

29 He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.

30 Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;

31 but those who hope in the LORD
       will renew their strength.
       They will soar on wings like eagles;
       they will run and not grow weary,
       they will walk and not be faint.

My City of Ruins

There's a blood red circle

on the cold dark ground
and the rain is falling down.
The church door's thrown open
I can hear the organ's song
But the congregation's gone,
My city of ruins
My city of ruins

Now the sweet bells of mercy
drift through the evening trees
Young men on the corner
Like scattered leaves,
The boarded up windows,
the empty streets,
While my brother's down on his knees
My city of ruins
My city of ruins

Come on, rise up
Come on, rise up
Come on, rise up
Come on, rise up
Come on, rise up
Come on, rise up
Come on, rise up
Come on, rise up

Now there's tears on the pillow
Darlin' where we slept,
and you took my heart when you left.
Without your sweet kiss
My soul is lost, my friend
Tell me how do I begin again?
My city's in ruins
My city's in ruins

Now with these hands,
with these hands, with these hands
with these hands, I pray Lord
With these hands, with these hands,
I pray for the strength, Lord
With these hands, with these hands,
I pray for the faith, Lord
With these hands, with these hands,
I pray for the faith, Lord
With these hands, with these hands,
I pray for the faith, Lord
With these hands, with these hands,
I pray for your love, Lord
With these hands, with these hands,
I pray for your faith, Lord
With these hands,
With these hands,
I pray for the strength, Lord
With these hands,
With these hands,

Come on, rise up
Come on, rise up

A Hammer in Heaven

2009-02-03T22:56:00.003-06:00

It is earth's loss and heaven's gain that Millard Fuller has passed away. You may not recognize his name, but I bet you recognize the organization he founded: Habitat for Humanity.

His life included giving away his fortune in responding to the gospel of Jesus Christ with a kind of radicality I rather envy.

His life also included creating an organization that has helped more than 300,000 people own a decent home at an affordable price.

His vision mobilized countless people (like me) to give up Saturdays and vacations to labor alongside other volunteers to build houses and help improve the lives of others.

Most of us will live our lives today focused on feathering our own nests, but if you're reading this, stop and take a moment to learn how Millard engaged the world with his faith. Then appreciate your own house and the abundance of your life. Then ask God to show you ways to help others around you.

Jesus told his disciples at the last supper, "In my father's house are many mansions. I go there to prepare a place for you." Call me hokey, but I've got this strange hunch that Millard is working on one of those mansions in heaven for someone else right now. Millard heard, "Well done, my good and faithful servant." Then he picked up his hammer and went to work building a house for someone who will be joining him later.

Sin Management or Careful Discernment?

2009-01-23T10:38:00.000-06:00

There are a lot of occasions when I can't tell the Christians apart from the non-Christians. At parties, grocery stores, courts of law, even in church. Seldom do the actions of Christians distinguish them as Jesus followers. We are these walking contradictions to grace. For example:

We preach a gospel of grace that is inclusive of all - yet our churches are frequently cliquish and exclusive.

We preach against marriage rights for homosexuals - yet our divorce rates and adultery indicate we don't know much about heterosexual covenant keeping.

We proclaim that Jesus became powerless on the cross - yet are unwilling to give up our own idols of power.

It's impossible to measure the distance between what we do and what we say we believe, partly because we have made following Jesus about sin management instead of a life of careful discernment. We have exchanged Jesus' radical way of pursuing the spirit of the law for the actual law, perhaps because quick absolutes are easy to grasp in a life that moves at warp speed. The problem is that absolutes don't flex, and they certainly don't allow for grace. And, oh by the way, the law is impossible to keep.

Paul dealt with this in his letter to the church at Corinth. It appears that they were struggling with whether or not it was right to eat meat that had been used as a part of pagan sacrifice ritual. It all seems strange to our modern ears because we mostly buy our meat at a store, but pay close attention, because the case makes extremely clear that careful discernment about right and wrong trumps moral absolutism.

Paul says that the meat ought not be a problem because those pagan rituals mean nothing, and, after all, the Christians there knew there is only one true God, so the meat was fine to eat. Except for one little caveat. Paul points out that not everyone had this knowledge, and so everyone must be careful "that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak." In other words, if eating the idol meat might cause problems for others new to the faith, don't do it. The fact was that love for others had to trump freedom to eat the idol meat. The implication for us? We must question our moral proclamations as Christians and admit that not everything in life is so black and white.

Sometimes the answer to "is this right or wrong?" is "it depends."

And "it depends" means we have to think carefully, pray carefully, and live carefully. "It depends" is a heavier burden than strict adherence to the law because it requires that we ignore the sound-byte theology of pop religion, and engage in the utterly serious question of, "Is this right or wrong for me in the here and now?" To fail to ask - and answer - this question is a diminishment of Jesus' grace that frees us from the law. It is a stark refusal to appeal to love, rather than knowledge or law. Hence, it is always easier to manage sin than to discern carefully.

This Sunday our church family will renew our covenant with one another. It's something we do every January. The sermon is going to hover over the issue of careful discernment because it is the task of any congregation trying to faithfully follow Jesus. We'll talk about how to walk this path of discernment together in a sermon called Wii Church. It's based on 1 Corinthians 8.1-13. Bring your Bible and join us at 10:45 or 11:45.

Carefully,

Pastor Gary

Nathaniel and Barak

2009-01-16T13:37:00.001-06:00

Nathaniel and Barak

The lectionary assigned us John 1.43-51 for this Sunday when we will be two days out from the inauguration of our nation's 44th president. Is there a connection?

Christian Century reported this week that Jacob Javits, a Republican senator from New York, predicted in a 1958 essay that America would elect it's first black president in the year 2000. While Javits was off by 8 years, his prediction was right on one front. Kavits wrote that, "despite his other characteristics, he will have developed the fortitude to withstand the vicious smear attacks that came his way as he fought to the top of government and politics." You can read it for yourself in Esquire.

Just four days from the inauguration of our country's first black president, I have been reminded by a new flurry of racist emails and jokes about the President-Elect that our nation is still a long way from being unified on matters of race. Whether you are a Democrat, Republican, or neither, it's time for us to enter into some honest dialogue about our differences so that we can find some operational ground where we have similarities.

Nathaniel, when hearing about Jesus from Philip, asked, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" It was a slur against Jesus based on Nathaniel's prejudices. He took the reputation of Nazareth as a whole and hung it on the individual named Jesus. Nathaniel had an awakening, though, and the proclamation he makes after his encounter with Jesus is "You are the Son of God!"

This is not an exact comparison because Mr. Obama is not the Son of God and he may end up being the worst president in US history. However, Nathaniel exposes the need in all of us to examine our prejudices and make a conscious effort to withhold forming our opinion until we get to know a person. As Nathan gawked in wonder at who Jesus really was, Jesus told him, "I will show you even greater things than these."

So, this Sunday we're going to talk about discipleship, and how following Jesus begins with examining our inner stuff that must be changed. We'll start with our prejudices, look for God in some unusual places, and try to accept the fact that God wants our faith-lives to evolve from where we are.

If you're in Houston this Sunday you are invited to worship at Willow Meadows Baptist Church at 10:45 or 11:45. And if you're off for MLK's holiday on Monday, I challenge you to make it more than another day to lounge around and barbeque, but to find a way to work for equality. We are diverse by design.

Jesus Calls Philip and Nathanael - John 1

43The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, "Follow me."

44Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. 45Philip found Nathanael and told him, "We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."

46"Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?" Nathanael asked.
"Come and see," said Philip.

47When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, "Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false."

48"How do you know me?" Nathanael asked.
Jesus answered, "I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you."

49Then Nathanael declared, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel."

50Jesus said, "You believe^[a^] because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You shall see greater things than that." 51He then added, "I tell you^[b^] the truth, you^[c^] shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man."

Another take on Israel

2009-01-08T14:50:00.003-06:00

So many in my Christian circles automatically jump to the defense of Israel given the current news. I'm still undecided about who's right and who's wrong in the current Gaza occupation. I do know that I hear a lot in favor of Israel, so for another side, I include a quote that came in today's email via Sojourner's. I welcome your thoughts on this:

Most people agree that Israel, like any other country, has the right to defend itself from outside attacks. However, in this unequal conflict between Israel and Hamas, Israel, as usual, has overdone it. When it comes to dealing with its enemies, Israel has a pattern of being extreme. “An eye for an eye” does not satisfy. It has to be more like one hundred eyes for one eye and one hundred teeth for one tooth.

- Alex Awad, dean of students at Bethlehem Bible College in the West Bank of Palestine. (Source: God's Politics)

The Historical Timeline of the Nativity

2008-12-24T23:37:00.006-06:00

Or, How Are Parents Supposed to Know all this Stuff?

A new tradition for the Long family is watching the feature length live-action film The Nativity somewhere around Christmas each year. It's a great film for giving kids a visual on the Lukan birth narratives.

We watched it last night and somewhere around two thirds of the way through the Younger Sister asked, "Was the Ice Age before this, Daddy?"

I stifled my giggle and replied as flatly as possible, "Why, yes, it was."

She's seven now, so the question didn't really surprise me. It was cute that she knows enough history to ask the question, but not enough to place the two pieces in a contextual time line. You child development specialists could have a field day on that. But I think the more telling part of the story is not her question, but me stifling my giggle.

Why did I do that?

I didn't think long about that question. I know. She's the youngest of the three, and she's not acting like a little kid much these days. I stifled the giggle in the same way I push down on top of her head teasingly and say, "Stop growing up!" I stifled the giggle - probably mistakenly - because I like that fact that she knows some things but still needs me to place them in context for her. I stifled the giggle because of my own need to be needed.

I suppose we spend much of our parenting years in this important work of contextualizing life: helping kids make sense out of pain, plugging the holes in the meta-narratives, and answering those most important questions about love, sex, faith, power, and, yes, even where the Ice Age falls on the timeline relative to the birth of Christ.

Two Kinds of Waiting

2008-12-18T16:02:00.000-06:00

You just wait 'til your father gets home!"

Bill Cosby in a stand-up routine once told about coming home from work only to be greeted by his wife with the words, "I want you to go upstairs and kill that boy." I've waited in my room, nervously knowing that my posterior was going to meet an inanimate object at the end of my father's arm. I usually deserved it, too.

That's one type of waiting.

There's another type of waiting, a glad kind. It's what I experienced when my father took a business trip. He'd be gone for several days but upon returning, he almost always bore a souvenir of some sort. One time it was a piece of petrified tree from California, another time a perpetual calendar from Niagara, a pencil sharpener in the base of the Empire State Building, or a bag of volcano ash from Mt. Saint Helen. No matter where he went or how long he stayed, I knew my dad would return to his family bearing gifts. Those gifts were neat, but the real power was in how they conveyed a deeper truth: He'd been thinking of us while he was gone, and had definite plans to return.

We Christians wait similarly. We've been taught that though Jesus ascended to heaven, he is planning a return, and at that return he will bring about justice and restore God's rule. That's a heck of a gift to bring your children after a celestial business trip. Chapter three of a letter in the Bible entitled 2 Peter deals with how it is that we are to be found waiting. Again we have two types of waiting - as those who live with no regard to holiness and may expect punishment for our deeds, or as those who pursue holiness and can expect to take part in God's great kingdom.

In Advent, we celebrate the first arrival of Jesus by celebrating his birth. But we also celebrate his impending return. Peter suggests that as we await that return we should "...strive to be found by him at peace, without spot or blemish...and forewarned." The promise of Jesus' return is good, but there is a darker, nearly foreboding side to the promise: How we wait matters.

I'll be talking about this further in a sermon this Sunday(12/7) at Willow Meadows Baptist Church. If you're in Houston I hope you'll join us for worship at either 10:45 or 11:45 that morning and see what all this "waiting hype" is about. In the mean time, me and Richard Marx will be -

Right Here Waiting For You,

Pastor Gary

And no, Richard Marx will not be singing at our church this Sunday - that was my attempt at humor involving a rocker from the 1980's - although it's debatable if Richard Marx could be accurately called a "rocker."

For the Record

2008-12-18T15:58:00.000-06:00

Rich Cizik's forced resignation as director of the National Association of Evangelicals was just plain wrong.

Peace & Righteousness Will Kiss

2008-11-30T08:55:00.002-06:00

Peanut Butter and Jelly

Larry, Moe, and Curly

Christmas and Carols

Some things just go together. But sometimes things that belong together aren’t always kept together. Like that lone ranger in your sock drawer, or the hex nut in your hand that is separated from the bolt that has declared “sanctuary” in your garage. Through the course of time things that belong together get separated. Maybe it’s you and a friend, maybe it’s you and your spouse. Maybe you’re estranged from someone whom you love very much, but you find it exceedingly difficult to reach out to him.

Advent, as it moves us toward Christmas, offers the promise of many things to come when God fulfills the Kingdom that is both here and “not yet.” Psalm 85 speaks of a time when two things seemingly separated in our day will be reunited. Psalm 85.11 speaks of a day of salvation when “love and faithfulness meet together, righteousness and peace kiss each other.”

That doesn’t sound much like the world we see around us. The great news of Advent is that it points us again and again to the birth of the Christ. And the birth of Christ set a plan in motion whereby God intends to bring back together all the things that belong together. Me and you, us and God, the world unto itself. This Psalm speaks of a day when the promise of peace and righteousness will become a reality.

Join us at Willow Meadows this Advent season to prepare your soul to celebrate the birth of Christ as if it were the first time. As you take stock of the things in your life that belong together but are separated, may you find joy in God’s promise that broken things can be made whole again. Even your separated socks.

A good prayer for this December: “God, help me to see my part in the broken relationships of my life and to work to mend those things. May peace and righteousness, as well as love and faithfulness, guide me to participate in bringing peace and righteousness together in Your world. Amen”

I'm a Winner

2008-11-25T16:35:00.001-06:00

So far today, I've won the following things, and was informed via email:

1. The Irish Lottery (1.1 million pounds - I didn't know the Irish had a currency in pounds???)

2. A $1.15 million dollar inheritance from a man I apparently nursed to health in the Vietnam war who remembered me and wanted his estate to go the "brave soldier who saved his life." Funny, I was born in 1970.

3. A $550,000.00 sweepstakes claim from Benson & Hedges cigarettes. I was a little confused, however, when the email told me to reply with my name, age, social security number (for tax purposes, of course), my mother's maiden name, my phone number, my mailing address, and my employer's name. It gave me a specific address to which I should reply because the "reply address" on the email was not monitored. You'd think Benson and Hedges would at least take the time to send an email awarding half a mil from a monitored address, don't you think? Strangely, the information they asked sounded just like the credit app I filled out for my mortgage.

And that's just today. One can only ponder what will be in my email tomorrow! What have you won recently?

Thursday Aphorism

2008-11-20T13:24:00.000-06:00

I don't think I got this from anyone else, if I did, my apologies:

A short memory is grace's good companion.

Grace for Monday

2008-11-17T10:37:00.000-06:00

I know Monday's are hard for a lot of folk for a lot of reasons. Here's a good quote from Frederick Buechner to keep things in perspective:

The grace of God means something like: Here is your life. You might never have been, but you are because the party wouldn't have been complete without you. Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Don't be afraid. I am with you. Nothing can ever separate us. It's for you I created the universe. I love you. There's only one catch. Like any other gift, the gift of grace can be yours only if you'll reach out and take it. Maybe being able to reach out and take it is a gift too.

That's from his book Beyond Words - Daily Readings from the ABC's of Grace.

I'm reading a collection of his sermons called Secrets in the Dark and they are fabulous. I've never really enjoyed reading sermons in print because sermons are to living in a spoken kind of way. This set is different, though.

My prayer today is that you and I would be able to reach out and take the gift of grace.

Forgive Me Lord, for I am Becoming Intolerant

2008-11-14T09:56:00.001-06:00

My Intolerance of Southern Baptists is Growing.

This article from Associated Baptist Press illustrates why Baptists are having an increasingly difficult time sharing the gospel with a lost world. A gathering of the Baptist State Convention in North Carolina this week voted down a giving plan that would allow churches to designate a portion of their financial support to go to the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.

I don't find this startling news. After all, "they's kin." What I mean is, I came from good ol' North Carolina (EXCURSIS ALERT! By the way, the UNC basketball regular season tips off on this Saturday - from the moment of this writing, that's just over 27 hours, but who's counting? And to my brother-in-law Andy, I am praying for you in your grief on November 19, the day after UNC plays UK. Andy's a Kentucky fan who will watch his boys wilt under Roy's hand again this year). Now back to Baptist stuff. I understand the mentality. Or at least I think I used to.

Having been raised a Baptist in NC, I was taught that local churches participated voluntarily with state organizations. I was also taught that part of being Baptist was expressing our differences and celebrating our diversity - not about lockstep uniformity. That uniformity now seems to be the highest value among conservative pastors there, not church freedom. The details in the ABP article support my position.

This is deeply troublesome to me, but I really shouldn't be surprised. Baptists have increasingly marginalized themselves over the last few decades as a few tyrants in shepherd's clothing have grappled for power and prestige. The carnage along the side of the path to power includes good men and women, pastors and professors who have served Baptists faithfully for years. That doesn't even count the lay people so disgusted by it all they have either gone to other expressions of Christianity, or left the Church altogether. And who could even reasonably estimate the number of folk Baptists will never reach because of our tainted image as hypocrites and Pharisees. We were so concerned with inerrancy and keeping women in "their place" that we forgot about telling the Good News, never mind acting justly and with mercy. I believe God does not walk with the machine called Southern Baptists, because Southern Baptists have not walked humbly with God.

My fears about the ultimate isolation of fundamentalist Baptists subculture, and their ultimate irrelevance in American culture, were realized when I read that fellow pastor Eric Page of Victory Baptist Church actually said, "It's time for us to pop out a can of spinach and put an end to tolerance." On the convention floor. In public. To other Christians. I'm sorry, but there is no contextualizing that my feeble mind can fabricate to make this an ok statement.

How can any self-respecting Christian say such a thing? To "put an end to tolerance" would be a setback to our society, and to the cause of Christ. Jesus' ways were about respect and grace. Jesus did not call Pastor Page to "follow me and eliminate tolerance." Jesus calls each of us to "follow him" - and there is no further amendment to that call, except to say that in following him we are to live out that Golden Rule.

Ending tolerance sounds antithetical to "loving neighbor as self." Pastor Page and NC Baptists, for the sake of us all, could you please retract that or explain it? Meanwhile, I'll be on my knees asking God's forgiveness of my intolerance of your intolerance.

Guest Column

2008-11-10T09:45:00.002-06:00

Todd Ferguson is one of the Associate Pastors at Willow Meadows Baptist, where I serve as Pastor. Todd handled the graveside portion of a funeral recently and wrote this great piece about the funeral industry. Thanks, Todd, for sharing. You may direct comments to him by posting here.

The Factory

The art on the wall was mass-produced, and the ficus was definitely fake. The carpet was supple and industrial and dark forest green to make sure no stains would show. There was even a coffee station. The woman with the name badge looked at me with a genuine but well-rehearsed smile. I told her who I was, and she replied, “Yes- You are in Grand Room 3.” I graciously smiled back, but internally, I sighed deeply as I walked passed other rooms with fake ficus trees and fake art.

I sighed because I was not walking to any ballroom at any national hotel in America. Sure, places like Holiday Inn or Double Tree are known for their Hobby Lobby-esque art, their industrial carpet, and their coffee stations. I sighed because I was at a funeral home.

“Funeral Home” is such an ironic term for what I experienced today. The word “home” implies a place of familiarity, of comfort, and of knowing. The family that I saw today was not familiar with the couch on which they were sitting. There was no dip in its springs from years of watching TV with the rest of the family, no Dr. Pepper stain from a Friday night 3 years ago. Instead, this family- in the midst of their grief- was removed from all comfort and familiarity and placed in a foreign “home” so that they could mourn.

However, they couldn’t mourn too long because the genuine-but-rehearsed woman with the name badge guided us to the actual gravesite (while another family moved into Grand Room 3). As we drove to the site, we passed thousands and thousands of other graves. They were testaments to the thousands of other families who sat on that same couch back in Grand Room 3 looking at the same fake ficus tree through their weary eyes.

I could go on and on to describe the experience, but I’ll stop. This funeral home, which is a franchised chain of thousands of funeral homes, did the best they could. I am not blaming them. The woman with the name badge was pleasant, respectful, and extremely helpful in facilitating a funeral. I think, however, that the funeral home is a product of our culture.

Since the 1780’s, our culture has been creating factories because the factory system can accomplish things more quickly, efficiently, and cheaply. It’s easier to build watches if all parts are made in one location with one streamlined method with one series of interchangeable parts. That’s the factory system. Before this process became popular, each watch piece had to be handcrafted at the watchmaker’s shop.

Today, I experienced a funeral factory. In this location, there was a streamlined method for how to take care of a loved one’s death. Chapel, Grand Rooms, gravesites- they were all there at this one place, and it was efficient. We celebrated this beautiful woman’s rich and full life in under 30 minutes.

My question is this: “Is this the best place to honor Grandmother’s life and to lay her body to rest?” A funeral and a gravesite are places where a person’s life is both celebrated and remembered. But at these funeral factories, life can not be celebrated because life was not lived there. This beloved Grandmother did not worship week in and week out in that chapel. She did not get up and make coffee every morning at that coffee station, and she did not take a long nap every Sunday afternoon on that couch. This place is not known. And because it is not known, it is not a “thin place” where the holy meets the mundane.

Instead, the funeral “home” is a location that removes death from everyday life. It keeps the sacred apart from the profane. This funeral factory contained acres and acres of thousands of graves, separated from actual daily living that continues after the funeral is over. Having death so far removed from our society keeps us arrogantly unaware that we, too, are mortal, and we will die.

Many people, especially Christians, are realizing the factory-like nature of funeral homes. They are wanting to hold together the sacredness of death and the holiness of everyday life. One way many churches fuse these two is by building columbaria within their garden walls. These places allow a loved one to rest in piece in the space where they worshiped God each week; it is a familiar place. And because it is familiar, it is known, which is the perfect “thin place” for God to meet us.

Sarah and the Moose

2008-11-10T09:39:00.000-06:00

Here's a picture - not an endorsement - of me with Palin again. It was hysterically funny to watch all the little kids get their picture made with her at Trunk or Treat (outreach event at our church).

Palin-ized!

2008-10-28T21:40:00.001-05:00

Guess who's getting "Palin-ized" for Halloween? This is me and the wife working on our costumes for Halloween.

Guess what? She even plays the flute!

I'm back...

2008-10-28T21:06:00.001-05:00

Yikes, it's been over a month since I've written anything for the blog. I've been very busy writing for a Bible Study publisher, working on my doctoral project, and writing a series of sermons. And that little storm that blew through Houston has been more than distracting.

For mental breaks I've been playing the Eyeball Game - it is quite addictive, but I justify the time by saying it's good for my geometry skills. You can find it at Woodgear.

More Ike Photos

2008-09-14T18:47:00.001-05:00

For those of you friends and family reading from around the country, Ike has decimated Houston. There are over 2 million people without power, trees block many of the roads, and water continues to be a problem in low lying areas and the typical flood zones. Here are few more pictures to give you a "look see." We have tons more, but have to convert them from raw to jpegs and computer access is presenting a challenge in this regard - they'll be up as soon as possible.

Photo above is Braeswood near Fondren.

The photo above is a home in Maplewood - this is typical for most every house in SW Houston that I've seen. Unfortunately, Willow Meadows neighborhood is one of the worst hit, but I've not captured photos from there yet. The western eye-wall of Ike passed right over Willow Meadows.

The photo above is Fondren Middle School - notice the sign blown out.

Ike Photos

2008-09-13T18:53:00.000-05:00

The Long family has thankfully survived Hurricane Ike. The long-time Houstonians we've spoken to said this is worse than Alisha in 1983. Having been here only 6 years I have to take their word on that one. What I can say is that this damage is some of the worst storm damage I've personally ever seen.

The house in the above photo is three doors down from us in the Braeburn Valley neighborhood. That and all the photos of storm damage were either shot by me or Traci.

These two houses are about 3 blocks from us. The house on the left was under renovation, and received heavy damage not visible in this photo.

Above photo - still in the Braeburn Valley neighborhood - two friends are having a beer together to cool down. Ike blew over the brick wall these guys are sitting on, as well as the fence in the background. Next photo is right across the street from these guys.

I'm a Little League Dad

2008-09-05T12:33:00.002-05:00

I know that the sports fans among you are anticipating the arrival of football. The fall sport really kicks off this weekend, but I've got my mind on baseball. Little League baseball to be precise! One of my favorite pastimes is being involved with my son's Little League experiences. The ball park where he plays is sacred ground to me and it's a mini-vacation every time I go out. I'd almost swear it's even 10 degrees cooler out there.

Some years I've helped coach, some years I've watched from the sidelines, but either way I thrill in knowing that Fall Ball is starting soon. Candidly, I must admit that part of the reason I love it is that I get to be a kid, too. And I remember, like Bruce Springsteen, my "glory days." No matter what I'm doing at the Westbury Little League field, I'm doing something Biblical - I'm remembering and I'm participating.

Such is the case for the ritual of the Passover, explained by Moses in Exodus 12. In that passage Moses lays out the plan by which God is going to deliver the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. Out of their bondage, the Jews will later learn that the "liturgy" he described had to precede their liberation, that relationships came before religion, and that the Passover wasn't all about celebration.

Like me at the baseball field, the Jews and Christians alike are called to remembrance and participation in the Passover as a part of God's ongoing plans for liberation of people. If you'd like to hear more about what I mean, come take part in a series of teaching called Teach Your Children Well, Sundays between now and the end of October. There will be eight familiar stories of faith for you to talk about with your children and others, as well as a new way of looking at what God was doing then and is doing now.

Play Ball!

Pastor Gary

Not a Sermon – Just a Thought is a weekly e-column written by me, Gary Long. I’m the pastor of Willow Meadows Baptist Church in Houston. To read more of my writing, check out my blog, Life to the Lees. To subscribe or unsubscribe to this list, just contact me at glong@wmbc.org.

Edgar Lee Masters

2008-08-28T12:02:00.001-05:00

I've just discovered this poet, and have a new fav that I thought I'd share. My blessing for you: May you have a broken fiddle.

The earth keeps some vibration going
There in your heart, and that is you.
And if the people find you can fiddle,
Why, fiddle you must, for all your life.

What do you see, a harvest of clover?
Or a meadow to walk through to the river?
The wind's in the corn; you rub your hands
For beeves hereafter ready for market;
Or else you hear the rustle of skirts
Like the girls when dancing at Little Grove.

To Cooney Potter a pillar of dust
Or whirling leaves meant ruinous drouth;
They looked to me like Red-Head Sammy
Stepping it off to 'Toor-a-Loor.'
How could I till my forty acres
Not to speak of getting more,
With a medley of horns, bassoons and piccolos
Stirred in my brain by crows and robins
And the creak of a wind-mill--only these?
And I never started to plow in my life
That some one did not stop in the road
And take me away to a dance or picnic.
I ended up with forty acres;
I ended up with a broken fiddle--
And a broken laugh, and a thousand memories,
And not a single regret.

Back to the Kids

2008-08-06T17:19:00.001-05:00

So much blogging lately has been about Bible studies and sermons. Important stuff, but time for a brief change of pace. On Saturday we were working on "moving in" to the house we've been living in since November. Why we're still unpacking is a long story and not really cogent.

So my wife is putting things away and comes across a plastic tub of clothing that belonged to the Older Sister and was saved for the Younger Sister. It was a nice trip down memory lane to the not-so-distant past of my teenager's childhood. In the tub were some cute dresses, various outfits, and a jacket that I loved on the Older Sister because it looks like Joseph's "Coat of Many Colors."

And some training bras.

Of course they needed explanation, which the Younger Sister took in rather stoically. They went through the box trying various clothes on to see what fit, packing away for later the clothes that were "too big," piling what was "too small," and putting on hangers what was "just right."

Finished at last, her mom starts putting the "save for later" stuff back in the tub and the Younger Sister asks, "When will I need to wear those practice bras?"

Ahh, the Buffet

2008-08-01T16:32:00.000-05:00

It’s the all-you-can-eat buffet. Eyes bigger than your stomach, you load up a plate and gorge, consuming substantially more food than you need.

Is it true hunger that drives you? Not likely, because most of us haven’t missed a meal lately.

Is it the need to “get my money’s worth” from the restaurant? That’s not likely either, because if you can afford to eat out you probably don’t truly worry about money.

So what drives us to gorge? Perhaps it’s that at our most basic level of belief there is a fear that there won’t be “enough.”

In Matthew 14 is the account of one of Jesus’ better known miracles – the feeding of the 5,000. Jesus’ cousin John the Baptist had been executed, so Jesus withdrew to a deserted place, only to have 5,000 or so people follow him for his teachings. It is near dinner time at the end of a long day and the disciples urge Jesus to send everyone home since they are all getting hungry. But Jesus says no, “you feed them.”

The disciples inform Jesus there’s not near enough food to feed the crowd, only five loaves of bread and two fish. I can almost hear Jesus sigh with exasperation and say, “Bring it to me.” You know how the story ends.

Why is this an answer to why we gorge at buffets? Because we see the world the same way that those disciples saw those fish po-boys – from a view of scarcity. We say, “there just isn’t enough.” Jesus says instead, “There’s always room for one more at the table.” God’s provision was more than the people needed to be fed.

Scarcity versus abundance.

It’s a choice that shapes our interactions with the world. A scarcity view causes us to hoard and possess to the exclusion of others’ well-being. An abundance view helps us to be generous and kind with our lives and resources.

We Christians are children of the Father who not only created and “owns” everything in the cosmos, but also freely gives us all that we need. So when God calls us to feed the world our response shouldn’t be “we only have these loaves and fishes” but “with God, we can do that.” Let’s live together out of the view that God is “enough” for all our needs and concerns. He fed 5,000 but it could have just as easily been 5,000,000. That’s the way our God rolls.

Abundantly yours,
Pastor Gary

Quick Joke

2008-07-27T07:29:00.000-05:00

Here's one I came across, thought others might enjoy this sappy pun:

Lost on a rainy night, a nun stumbles across a monastery and requests shelter there. Fortunately, she's just in time for dinner and was treated to the best fish and chips she's ever had.

After dinner, she goes into the kitchen to thank the chefs. She is met by two brothers, "Hello, I'm Brother Michael, and this is Brother Charles."

"I'm very pleased to meet you. I just wanted to thank you for a wonderful dinner. The fish and chips were the best I've ever tasted. Out of curiosity, who cooked what?"

Brother Charles replied, "Well, I'm the fish friar."

She turns the other brother and says, "Then you must be...?"

"Yes, I'm the chip monk."

Go ahead and groan, but you know you wanna laugh!

Extraordinary Wisdom for Everday Living - June 1, 2008

2008-07-08T13:43:00.000-05:00

Hello my dear readers - the next five posts are from a Bible study series I wrote for The Baptist Standard onine edition for the month of June. Use them if you can!

STUDY THEME OUTLINE

The five Sundays of June, 2008 bring a great opportunity for your learners to grow in wisdom and strategy for living the Christian life well. By looking at five major portions of Proverbs, we will find Extraordinary Wisdom for Everyday Living. Here is how the lessons will break down for June:

Study Theme Structure:
Week of Lesson Title and Focal Passage

June 1 Your Ticket to Real Success
Proverbs 1:1-7; 2:4-8; 3:5-6,11-12

June 8 Three Rules for Working Smart
Proverbs 6:1-15

June 15 How to Storm-Proof Your Home
Proverbs 23:22–24:4

Revised 2/28/2007 June 22 Word Power Made Wise
Proverbs 17:27-28; 18:20-21; 25:11-12; 26:20-22,28

June 29 If Your Money Could Talk
Proverbs 3:9-10; 11:24-26; 13:11; 15:16-17; 16:11; 23:4-5

Study Theme Description:
Many people spend years getting an education and then learning a trade or becoming an expert in a particular field. Yet too often all those years of study do not prepare people for life itself. They know how to do things and solve problems, but they don’t know how to live wisely. In the Scriptures, the Lord has provided extraordinary wisdom so that people might know how to live successfully. These lessons are based on passages in the Book of Proverbs, a biblical book specifically written to teach wisdom, form character, and encourage an obedient relationship with the Lord.

The study theme focuses on selected biblical proverbs about characteristics of truly successful living, guidelines for conducting one’s work life, help for strengthening family life, benefits of using speech wisely, and principles for earning and using money well.

LESSON for JUNE 1, 2008

Study Theme: Extraordinary Wisdom for Everyday Living

Date: Week of June 1, 2008

Title: Your Ticket to Real Success

Adult Life Context:
Adults want to succeed in their lives. Just watch most of TV’s infomercials. They’re geared to show adults how they can succeed with little effort—in making a fortune in real estate, in getting physically fit, or in finding a perfect new love relationship. Many adults bounce from program to program and shell out bucket-loads of money in an attempt to discover their ticket to success. But are any of these programs about real success in life? As important as making money, pursuing good health, and finding romance may be to adults, the Scriptures point to something greater as the ticket to real success. They point out that God wants people to succeed in life by trusting in Him and living according to His ways.

Life Question:
How can I have real success in life?

Bible Passage(s):
Background Passage(s): Proverbs 1:1–3:35
Focal Passage(s): Proverbs 1:1-7; 2:4-8; 3:5-6,11-12
Sidebar: Word study on “Wisdom” (1:2,7; 2:6)

Biblical Truth:
The Lord wants people to succeed in living right, and He instructs those who know and trust Him in how they can do so.

Life Impact and Learning Goals:
This lesson is designed to help you exhibit godly wisdom in your everyday life by . . .
• agreeing that God wants you to succeed in living right; and
• adopting the Scriptures’ wise guidance for successful living.

General Instructions:
1. Assume Solomon’s authorship of the Focal Passages in this lesson.

2. A possible teaching-learning procedure for some adult life stage groups is to construct a personal vision statement for living successfully based on the principles they encounter in this lesson.

3.
Revised 2/28/2007The word success is mentioned specifically in Proverbs 2:7 (KJV, “sound wisdom”). Throughout the lesson, contrast the biblical view of success as right living to the worldly idea of success as mere self-fulfillment. Explain that “real success” in biblical terms involves fulfilling the purposes God has for His children.

Focal Passage Outline:

1. Learn from Scripture (Prov. 1:1-6)
Most of us get it backwards when it comes to the definition for success. For many success is about self-fulfillment, but real success in Biblical terms involves fulfilling the purposes that God has for us. That kind of success is more difficult to achieve, but it is possible! Success of the real kind can be found and experienced by applying principles of wisdom learned from scripture.

For this study we will focus on the wisdom literature attributed to Solomon, but likely gathered from many sources. This literature, called Proverbs makes up a body of ideas about how to live life as it was understood by the Hebrews. This collection of sayings and sage advice is God’s path to knowledge, wisdom, healthy relationships, and to a more satisfying life.

To get the most out this book, we need to explore it diligently. God’s wisdom in these holy verses is plain, straightforward, and understandable. But to make it work, you have to study it. Therefore, the first step to wisdom is to become willing to learn from the Scriptures and understand the Bible as authoritative and guiding in our lives.

Application Idea:
• By continuing to explore and apply diligently God’s wisdom in the Holy Scriptures, believers can increase in living rightly—and thus in living successfully. Share a plan for daily Bible reading with your learners. Some websites will email a daily Bible reading straight to your in-box. If your church provides daily devotional material, bring samples.

2. Revere the Lord (Prov. 1:7; 2:4-8)

Real success – in the Biblical sense – is based in living out God’s plan for our lives. Discovering and understanding that plan begins with reverence. Solomon taught that the way to wisdom began with this. The Psalms are full of supporting evidence with the view that the Lord is God and we are not. Thus, it is a matter of position, and more precisely, it is a matter of recognizing our position as subject of the heavenly King.

Proverbs 2 teaches that wisdom begins when a person acknowledges reverence for God. Once this proper positioning takes place then – and only then – can true wisdom to live successfully come into play. Various sports offer illustrations of this. A baseball batter cannot hit a pitched baseball until assuming the proper batting stance. A baseball fielder must in “baseball ready” position before the baseball is ever pitched if they hope to make a great catch. A tennis player cannot make an “ace” serve until the mechanics of the serve and timing are perfected. Both of these are based on the posture of the player, and this is especially so when it comes to receiving wisdom from God.

Application:

• We show that we treasure wisdom by diligently seeking to understand God and to follow God’s ways. But how does this look practically speaking? In other words, how can a Christian be “baseball ready” when it comes to living the faith? It begins with a position of humility that allows us to look in the mirror and say, “God is in charge here.” It continues with an attitude of dependence that says, “If I am to please God with my life today, I must choose to trust God for decisions and actions.” Ask your participants to assess their readiness for gaining wisdom. Ask them to assess their reverence for God.

3. Live by Faith (Prov. 3:5-6)
Living by faith is indeed a challenge. Solomon understood this when he suggested that we trust in God and relied on God’s guidance for insight and guidance. Living by faith means trusting God to take us beyond the limits of our own understanding into where God would have us go.

The challenge for us is trusting that God knows the ways to real success far better than we do ourselves. The great temptation is to think that we can figure it out on our own, or work hard enough. The reality is that we need a guide and that God can be that guide – if we will trust God and live by faith.

Living by faith necessarily includes lots of time spent learning God’s ways. Praying, studying Scripture, and fellowshipping with other believers is a great way to do this. Living by faith is difficult if not pursued with some discipline, as well as some sacrifice of “self” along the way. The good news is that the Lord wants to guide us in all our decisions – great or small – and help us to find the right pathway.

Application Idea:
• Recognizing the limitations of our understanding, we can succeed in living right by trusting in the Lord completely and following His guidance in all we do. A good illustration of this principle is that of a guide for hiking or fishing. When we trust someone experienced and follow them, we can be rewarded with incredible vistas and views we’d never find on our own. Or, in the case of a fishing guide, we’re able to catch fish better than if we tried based on our limited experiences. You might introduce this section of material by telling about a time you followed someone else’s experience or wisdom and reaped a benefit.

4. Appreciate God’s Correction (Prov. 3:11-12)
Solomon advised that the Lord’s instruction and loving correction are to be desired, not despised. But who among us has received discipline or correction and enjoyed it? It is difficult to hear things about our flaws that need improvement. It is embarrassing and sometimes damaging to adult egos to be reminded that we are not without a source of authority and correction – God the Father.

Mark Twain is often credited for this saying:
When I was 19 years old my father was the dumbest man on the earth. It’s amazing how much he learned by the time I turned 25.

We always appreciate the wisdom of God’s correcting love long after the affect is first felt. When a loving parent takes the time to discipline and confront a wayward child, in the long run that child knows that he or she is loved. When an unloving or lazy parent takes no time and fails to engage the child with corrective action, the child ultimately comes to understand that as a less loving parent. So it is with God!

Application Ideas:
• We can be sure when God corrects us through His Word or by some other means that His correction is proof He loves us and desires our success in life. Provide your participants with a personal story of a time when a parent corrected you and, although it was painful, you grew from the experience. Parents who are raising difficult children will be encouraged to be reminded that correction and guidance are good for the child, even though the child doesn’t like such treatment. You may want to give parents of young children a chance to discuss this together – understanding their children’s need for correction can help them understand their own need for correction from God.