Uninspired

Ever had one of those days that is simply a day...not good or bad...it just simply is. Nothing earth shaking happens. Nothing inspiring comes along. It's not necessarily a ho-hum, hum-drum day...it simply is a day. The pace is even. The work is productive. The feelings even. Smooth. This has been my day. I don't have a lot to write about at all. God is good. I don't have to experience the hills and valleys of life to conclude that God is good. God is good even in days like today where nothing's shaking. Maybe this is the "peace that passes all understanding."

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Smile

A few years ago as my wife and I were walking out of Circuit City, a woman approached us, "Excuse me you dropped your smile" she said pointing down to the ground. Instinctively we looked down too. The three of us looked up at the same time after a moment with smiles on our faces. She had gotten our attention. She went on to try and sell us something...blah, blah, blah...but I liked the way she got our attention.

Long ago a Christian leader wrote to the new community of followers of Jesus, "Let mutual love continue" (Hebrews 13:1). Commenting on loving one another, Mother Teresa wrote in A Gift for God,

Some people came to Calcutta, and before leaving, they begged me, "Tell us something that will help us to live our lives better." And I said, "Smile at each other; smile at your wife, smile at your husband, smile at your children, smile at each other--it doesn't matter who it is--and the will help you to grow up in greater love for each other" And then one of them asked me: "Are you married?" and I said: "Yes, and I find it difficult sometimes to smile at Jesus." And it is true, Jesus can be very demanding also, and it is at those times when he is so demanding that to give him a big smile is very beautiful.

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3D community

Yesterday I spoke in worship about community, in particular, a three dimensional community. On Friday last week Rolling Stone came out with its 1000th issue. The cover was a 3D picture of the rock and roll/Rolling Stone community over the course of 40 years. It was so engaging and interesting that I forked out the $6 and bought the magazine. I haven't regreted it. Inside I've found interesting articles about the history of music and background stories about some of the people who have graced the covers of the magazine. I've even thought that I'd become a subscriber for a year of Rolling Stone.

Why? Why would I consider a subscription? Four reasons...

Engaging cover picture of a community. It is creative.
Engaging content. (See above)
Engages my thinking about culture. While I might disagree with some of the political commentary and viewpoints expressed by the musicians, actors, and writers, it does touch on the common culture that I experience around me and spurs within my thoughts and viewpoints of my own.
Engages my interest. I like music and movies and it's a magazine devoted to the industry.

What about Christ's community. Are we as engaging as a Rolling Stone magazine? Are first impressions by guests good when they enter our communities? Are people as "awed" by our community as I was by the cover of Rolling Stone? Is our content engaging? Are we connect with the culture around us enough so that we can add our voice to the voices speaking about and helping to shape the culture around us? Jesus said, "Be in the world but not of the world." Are we a community that allows people to pursue their passions and interests in a meaningful way as a way of serving the world in Christ's name?

May the Lord continue to shape us to be a community that is engaging, challenging, and graceful in the name of Christ.

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Prayer

Maybe it's because I'm 35, but I find myself at a time in my life where I wonder about the future. I wonder if the path I am currently on, while a great one, is the only path I will take for the rest of my life. I end up with no answers. But I stumbled across a prayer recently that has been helpful.

"O Lord, you know me.
You know when I sit and when I stand.
You have me always present in your mind.
For this, Lord, I thank you.
You know the path for my life and what is best for me.
Lord, reveal to me the path I am to walk.
Bless me and guide me and be Lord to me
so that whichever road I take
I may do all for your glory.
In Jesus' name. Amen.
--from the Beech Grove Benedictine Community

Every hour saints

This from Carlo Carretto,

"Joy or sadness, war or peace, love or hate, purity or impurity, charity or greed, all are tremendous realities which are the hinges of our interior life. Everyday things, relationships with other people, daily work, love of our family--all these may breed saints.
Jesus of Nazareth taught us to live every hour of the day as saints. Every hour of the day is useful and may lead to divine inspiration, the will of the Father, the prayer of contemplation--holiness. Every hour of the day is holy. What matters is to live it as Jesus taught us.
And for this one does not have to shut oneself in a monestery or fix strange and inhumane regimes for one's life. It is enough to accept the realities of life. Work is one of those realities; motherhood, the rearing of children, family life with all its obligations are others."
--From Letters from the Desert

Immigrant rallies

Last night I was struck by the pictures and video footage of the immigrant rallies across the U.S. Honestly, I'm still trying to sort the whole thing out. Maybe you are too. But God's words to the people of Israel long ago keep coming back to my mind and heart, "Do not oppress an alien; you yourselves know how it feels to be aliens, because you were aliens in Egypt" (Exodus 23:9). One of the main ideas God was trying to get across to the people was to have empathy for the foreigners in their midst. This law mandated empathy. Do we have laws of empathy too? I for one, don't know what it feels like to be an "alien" or an immigrant in this country or another one. My ancestors who came to the U.S. did long ago, and I suspect that you who are reading this blog entry has the same American history as I do. We don't have a fresh collective memory of immigration within our family or friends. So, can we empathize with these immigrants? Or do we appeal to the law of immigration within the U.S. law code? Can we do both? Can we stand beside those who are being pushed aside and who contribute to the U.S. economy while maintaining the law? Like I said, I'm still trying to sort it all out.

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