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Kingdom Living June 25, 2016

6/30/2016

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.  “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls,  who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it. (Matthew 13:44-46)

Listen to:   Hawk Nelson "Diamonds"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yf1ARbpB0gA

The World’s financial markets have been in great flux the past few days, since the referendum in United Kingdom passed with a vote to leave the European Union. Citing concerns about immigration to foreign control of national affairs, the referendum won by a narrow margin.

While reflecting on the implications of this vote, I couldn’t help but think that as a Christian, we too hold a dual-citizenship. We all belong to the countries and ethnicities into which we are born. Yet as Christians we belong to the Kingdom of Heaven, where as Paul writes in Galatians 3:28 ”There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

Jesus’ teaching and preaching focused on Kingdom of God, in all there are about 80 references in the gospels. Being a citizen of the Kingdom means we conform our lives and our thoughts to those which are Christ-like. Paul again describes it for us like this: “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20)” So we are called to act with the same compassion, joy, peace that passes all understanding, the sacrificial and healing care, boldness of faith, witness and willingness to confront sin and injustice that Jesus exhibited. These are the characteristics of the Kingdom Jesus announced, lived and gave his life for. It is to these kingdom traits we are called.

This kingdom to which we are called is more precious than all the finest gems the earth can produce. Jesus noted it is worth giving everything for, that once we realize how precious it is, we would do everything in our power to retain it. “The kingdom of God is in your midst” Luke 17:21) Jesus further taught – it is not far away or remote, but in the here and now. It is found in how we choose to live, act, react to life’s circumstances around us -- today, right now. Will we be guided by kingdom values or the world’s? In this process we realize that we, by acting by Kingdom values, are turned into precious gems of the realm? Did not Jesus go to the cross to purchase us -- in his loving eyes pearls of great price, worth it all? Following his example we are love unconditionally and to give generously of ourselves to the people who need our help.

Kingdoms, nations, and earthly alliances come and go. The kingdom of God remains. Let us be joyful, active participants willing to give ourselves fully to its values and goals.

Prayer:  Kingdom Lord, help us see the kingdom in our midst, indeed within our very hearts. Help us bring forth the pearls of compassion and love and other jewels befitting your kingdom’s purpose for all humanity. Amen.”

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Vigil June 17, 2016

6/30/2016

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“That was for the Lord a night of vigil, to bring them out of the land of Egypt. That same night is a vigil to be kept for the Lord by all the Israelites throughout their generations. Exodus 12:42”
Listen to:  Melissa Etheridge, "Pulse"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxXs0Irk57w

Across the nation this past week, there have been countless vigils and memorials for the 49 innocent lives murdered last Sunday in Orlando by a lone shooter with an Big Sauer MCX assault rifle.
In times of distress and evil, the faith community is called to prayer and action.   Vigil comes from the Latin word meaning wakefulness.   In the hours of the night, time symbolized by the forces of darkness, we gather as symbols of light, healing and hope. We recall the words of John 1:5:  “The light shine in the world and the darkness has not overcome it.”

Vigils are an ancient practice and they take many forms. There are all night vigils, vigils for two hours or so, vigils that stretch over a period of weeks. Vigils are held for many versions: personal turmoil, the needs of an individual, to the oppression experienced by a group of people to the entrenched problems of the nation. Remember the “Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo” and the “Grandmothers of the Plaza” in Argentina? They kept up an active presence from 1977 to 2006 demanding the whereabouts of their disappeared children.   They are an important example to us of what it means to keep vigil in the long haul. To face evil with truth and spiritual power.

The psalmist repeatedly reminds us of the important to bring our prayers constantly before God “evening and morning and at noon, I will complain and murmur, And He will hear my voice. (Ps. 55:17)” and throughout the night we are to meditate and bring to God the burdens of our heart (Ps. 119: 62, 63:6). Jesus prayed all night (Luke 6:12)   and Paul and Silas prayed and sang hymns at midnight in prison. (Acts 16:25). Vigils are powerful and we cannot neglect prayer in the fight against evil.   However we must be organized and use all our resources at hand to ensure that Orlando, Sandy Hook, Columbine, San Bernardino, Charleston, and too many others, end here. Let this be our vigil: that the candles do not go out and the prayers do not cease and the memories do not fade. Yes this is our vigil and we will pray and act and it will last until this evil ends. A vigil that spans time, space, creed and all distinctions. We will keep the vigil going and strong. Let's stand together and help end this thing.

Prayer:  Vigilant God, help us be vigilant in matters of evil and social justice.   Give us the strength to stay present and awake for however long it takes. Amen.

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Nothing Can Separate Us! June 11, 2016

6/30/2016

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“ Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword…
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.  For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:35-39

Listen: Love and the Outcome "The God I Know"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUT7eBkqMR4

When my son was young, I remember a time he got on an elevator that closed before I could reach him.   I panicked, wondering which floor he would have gotten off onto? Was anyone with him? Would he wander off?   Fortunately we were reunited by a kindly soul.

Being separated by a loved one, whether by accident, distance, misunderstandings, or even by illness or death is heard to bear. Who has not watched a loved one or friend suffer a terrible loss or lose something or someone beloved? We are made for attachment through family bonds, friendships and other acquaintances. Being able to connect in healthy ways, to be ourselves fully yet be in relationship with others, is the hallmark of a spiritually healthy life.

Yet brokenness has entered our world and there may be divisions between individuals or groups, or even nations. However the Scriptures assure us there is no division we can experience from the love of God. God’s love is so powerful and all-encompassing that there is nothing we can do to separate ourselves from it. Not even our fighting or sinfulness! We can separate ourselves – and do – but God doesn’t separate himself from us. We can experience spiritual dryness, denial, emptiness or even darkness, but this does not mean God’s love is taken away from us. God is always near, closer than our heartbeat and the very breath we breathe. No sin, nothing we do, nothing that happens in creation can take away God’s love from us in Christ. The cross conquered all so we all are free to live full, rich lives fueled by the love of God, as conquerors of all the challenges the world can bring to us.

This is also true for those we love. We may we separated for a while, we may not know what is going on, they may face difficulties, but God’s love is always with them, always caring and sharing the richness of divine life.   Imagine the peace we would experience if we embraced the truth: God loves us, with a love closer than our heartbeat, near than our breath, and nothing can separate us from that love. We can face whatever the world has to bring.   Face it, we shall, then, with the love of God in Christ.

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Judge Not! June 3, 2016

6/6/2016

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“Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you.” Luke 6: 37-38

Listen to: Jeremy Camp, "Christ in Me"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ngYXJiqHMg

This past week I served as a “telephone standby juror” in Nassau County. Most of are content to do our civic duty, even if there is an inconvenience to our place of employment or for some, a financial burden. Others speak of having time to catch up on reading or texting during lulls as the legal process unfolds. Of course there are some that would avoid jury duty like the plague.

While we may be entitled to be tried by a jury of our peers by law, in the spiritual court Jesus has made it clear that we are not to judge others. Yet judging seems second-nature and necessary to making good choices. So we compare people all the time against various standards. We make decisions with whom we will spend time, offer resources, including our respect, recommendations, affection and love. If people meet up to our expectations they are included in our life.    We make judgments about others all the time, many of them split-second and unconscious. At other times we take agonizing moments, months or years to reach a decision to limit contact with someone who is dangerous or has been detrimental to those around us. Judging is clearly a complicated act.

Depending on the state of our heart and our relationship with God, how we judge can affect our ability to love and in the long run affects us more than the person judged. Taking a fair but critical judgment is hard enough, but who hasn’t been stung by an unkind judgment from another? This happens all the time. None of us has perfect vision into the souls of other human beings, or can see them through the eyes of God, our rightful judge. So when we judge, we do so on a human level that is prone to distortion and lacking full knowledge. Even if we to judge fairly accurately, we always must take into account the words of Paul:  “Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand. Romans 14:4”

It is the Lord’s will that we stand, and he will help us through the trials and opportunities of life.   So when we feel the inclination to judge or pass judgment, we should pray instead. Pray for the individual to stand, as the Lord desires. Let our words always seeks to upbuild and not tear down. Let us leave the judging to God, who is just and merciful and will enable us all to stand. If we must make some decision, may we pray for the eyes of God, knowing we shall be judged as we are judged. So let love, compassion, mercy, righteousness, gentleness and caring insight be on the jury with us.

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Kingdom Living June 25, 2016

Vigil June 17, 2016

Nothing Can Separate Us! June 11, 2016

Judge Not! June 3, 2016

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