Even if I knew that tomorrow the whole world would go to pieces, I would still plant my apple tree." - Martin Luther Is it worth all the work?
How much difference does it make? What do I do when I want to quit?
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Thanksgiving is in two weeks. We all have our rituals.
Turkey cooking and pecan pie baking. Traveling. Passing out in a tryptophan-induced food coma. Vegging on the couch while watching the Cowboys or the Lions lose. Another admirable Thanksgiving Day ritual is to “count your blessings.” Allow me to put a spin on that. On November 28th, count your curses. I was on a date with my nine-year-old, Emily. Over ice cream, I quizzed her with a number of questions. I came to, "If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?"
"With you, Daddy." Cue the "dad tears." For now, I'm better than Disneyworld and the beach. Too often, we hear that the stated goal of Christianity is heaven. It's not. Restless. That word described how I had felt for months.
“What’s next?” “Where should I go? What should I do?” “Am I supposed to be somewhere else?” It’s common, even for non or non-practicing Christians, to “give something up for Lent.” Fasting during this somber season is an ancient Christian practice. What is fasting? Why should (or shouldn't you) give something up for Lent?
Last year I walked in Armstrong Woods, a redwood forest in northern California. It is home to Colonel Armstrong, a giant tree estimated to be 1,400 years old. It’s a humbling experience to stand before a living tree that makes our nation's history seem infantile. How do these trees come to be? A little further is a sign about redwood forest regeneration. It states: "Redwood seeds cannot penetrate the thick layer of decomposing plant material that covers the forest floor. Crisis, such as a forest fire, allows the tiny seeds to reach the layer of mineral soil required for germination; overall the best way for redwoods to reproduce." If things go on as normal, the seeds will never get below the duff to the soil. Redwoods only regenerate in crisis, by severe disruption. Disruption is a popular word today. It is used to describe forces of change in economics or technology. I've been pondering Scripture and life through this word recently. What role does disruption play in the life of faith? What do you do when you experience it? Let me suggest five responses to the disruption you may experience. Social media has provided an odd phenomenon. You get to see pictures of friends at parties you weren't invited to. We hear regular reports on the increase of loneliness in our country. Much of it is tied to this sense of being "uninvited," and then the "fear of missing out." This "uninvited" feeling seems to be on the rise. "I'm on the outside." "I don't belong." "I'm forgotten." "Everyone ignores me." "I'm out of place." Catholic monk and writer Thomas Merton once wrote: “Into this world, this demented inn in which there is absolutely no room for him at all, Christ comes uninvited.” “The ship is safest when it is in port. But that’s not what ships were made for.” There is a time to harbor and rest. And then there is a time to set sail and face the pounding surf. It is easier to dock at the port in a static state of comfort and ease. It's crushing when the compass points you to a white-capped field of landless horizon.
Sailing is perilous, and so is the Christian life. The Great Commission (Matt. 28:19-20) and Great Commandment (Matt. 22:37-39) set our rudder toward the tempest. Love takes us into open seas that require the sailor to be relentless and brave. Are you suffering for a call God has placed on you? Has he pointed you in the direction of gale and gust? Set your face to the wind. Endure. Keep going. For you know the harbor from which you come and the Captain who leads on. Hold fast to his promises. "Fear not." "I will never leave you." "I am with you always." He is our Refuge and Strength in times of trouble, our Harbor in the sea. Hebrews 12:1-2 Philippians 3:8-11 Rev. 1:17, 2:3 Although he also traveled by water, walking was the primary mode of transportation for Jesus of Nazareth. As a child, we know Jesus journeyed with his parents to Egypt. Outside of that, most of his life took place in a small territory in Palestine. His public ministry spanned a region no further than 100 miles. I love these four words from John 9:1: "As he passed by . . ." A great many events in the gospels happened, “as he passed by,” along the way. On the road. In the marketplace. Out in the countryside. By the city gate. On the shoreline, by the water. In a home, at the dinner table. Very little of Jesus' ministry took place "at church," in the temple. Jesus’ ministry happened while he walked, “as he passed by.” Speed is an ultimate asset in our culture. We have a lust for expediency. Orders from Amazon come faster. We eat fast food. Microchips in computers and phones get exponentially faster. (See Moore's Law.) We want to make money faster, retire faster, finish a degree faster, get projects done faster. Life is done in a rush. We get to the end of a day and it’s a blur. We think, “I did a lot today, but what did I do?” I was watching 60 Minutes on Sunday night. (Yes, I'm an old man.) There was a segment on an upcoming documentary about Pope Francis. 60 Minutes interviewed the unique choice for this project, German “art house” director Wim Wenders.
Wenders is a lapsed Catholic. He’s known for his eclectic body of work which includes U2 music videos and “Buena Vista Social Club,” a documentary about a group of aging Cuban musicians. I was interested in Wenders' perception of the Pope, for he would not be enamored like a devout Catholic. Nor did he seem to bear the stinging criticism of an anti-religious secularist. He made two observations of Pope Francis that struck me. |
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