Reflections Post Ash Wednesday

On Wednesday evening at Seneca Presbyterian Church, we gathered in silence for a traditional Ash Wednesday service of worship. As I prepared for the service and the season it begins, I was taken by the delicate balance found in this thing we call sin. Lent is intended to be the season of self-examination. We ponder the darkness of our lives - our failures, our sorrows, our short-comings - anything that keeps us apart from God. Such a discipline is a good thing. We need to take an honest look at ourselves every now and then! We keep the discipline of Lent in anticipation of the glorious Good News of Easter when we shall experience once again the grace of God's amazing love that is more powerful than all our sins, our failures, our sorrows, and our short-comings. Thanks be to God!

But I wonder if there is more to the balancing act? When we are honest with ourselves and see the wrong of our lives, we cry out for grace and trust that God will bypass judgment. But when we are the ones who have been wronged, we cry for accountability. Heading too quickly to forgive denies the justice of judgment that we feel we deserve. It is a delicate balancing act, isn't it? For grace to be real, should we not also be accountable for the wrong we have done?

It would seem that we do need this season called Lent. For we need to be more than sorry for the wrong we have done. We need to repent - to turn around, to change, and to be made new. For when we are willing to be both judged and forgiven, the shortcomings of our lives can be redeemed – which is more than simple forgiveness. In the end, even the sin of our lives can become more powerfully good. For sin is whatever keeps us from knowing – in our head, our heart, our gut, and our spirit – that God is truly Lord of all.  

Reflections on Children

I'm a bit pressed for preaching time tomorrow because we will be introducing 15 of our 18 new members at Seneca Presbyterian. What a delightful problem to have! I've chosen to focus on the spiritual and theological aspects of our challenge to become a multi-generational congregation again, and not necessarily strategies to achieve the dream. I think that's the best place for me to begin.

So many of you have offered your thoughts, concerns, and dreams. You've spoken of past attempts that did not hold the "magic bullet" and bring in "mass quantities" of children and youth. You've been honest with me about what you think our future prospects are. And all of you who shared have endorsed the dream to welcome children and youth again - someday, somehow.

As our Session, committees, and leaders work toward planning our future - trusting the guidance of the Spirit - we will always keep a watchful eye on this concern, challenge, and dream. I hope we will undertake an intentional study of our community - its needs for services of compassion and care as well as its needs for spiritual care. Perhaps instead of focusing on what will bring us children, our focus should be on what will touch the lives of the unchurched and how our unique gifts and unique witness can minister to and welcome them.

If you want to understand the challenge more completely, I highly recommend a book that was published just this week. It is Christianity after Religion: The End of Church and the Birth of a New Spiritual Awakening by Diana Butler Bass. I hope we can find a way to study it together, mining its resources and letting it be a springboard for us as we seek to be faithful to our calling, our gifts, and our God.

Thank you - saints of SPC!

Like a Child

My current series of sermons ends this Sunday as we contemplate together one of the most important questions facing Seneca Presbyterian Church: Are we called to become an inter-generational congregation again - a congregation with a vital mix of babies and children, teens and parents - and grandparents? This question is a candid acknowledgement that we are a retiree congregation and initiates a conversation about what that means for our future and what that means for our faithfulness to God's call among us. It is not an easy question to answer and therefore should not be answered quickly. But it is still an important question to be contemplated intentionally and with care. If the answer is yes, the question of how becomes an even more profound challenge, with no guaranteed results. But I think this initial question is the place to start. So I invite you to share in the dialogue and the discernment - and thank you for doing so.

If we turn to Jesus for his example, two traditional texts come to mind. One is the well loved story of Jesus blessing the children (Matthew 19:13-15). The other comes as Jesus presents a child as an example of humility when his disciples are arguing about greatness (Matthew 18:1-5). So what did Jesus mean when he said: "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me."

So please consider with me: 

• Are we diminished without children and youth? 
• Would our congregational life and ministries be enhanced with children and youth?
• If you believe that to be true, to what extend should we devote our time, attention, and resources to seek and invite families with children and youth to Seneca Presbyterian Church? 
• What do we have to offer to the children and youth of this community - and their parents? 
• What would it be like to have a congregation where no one remembers being a child in that place?   

This post is humbly submitted in grateful acknowledgement of our healthy, vital, and gracious congregation and with deep gratitude to God for Roxi, Reagan, Cokeleigh, Sarah, Lilli, Parker, Jonathan, Emily, Madison, Eric, Tristan, and Sam.

Duke Divinity Call & Response Blog | Faith & Leadership | L. Gregory Jones & Benjamin McNutt: Encountering Christ in the stranger

Here's a blog post that I should have used in yesterday's sermon! It comes from a Methodist institution but highlights the vision of John Calvin. Very ecumenical! Our ministries of care and compassion are a means of sharing Christ - because we see in the face of the stranger the image of God.

Duke Divinity Call & Response Blog | Faith & Leadership | L. Gregory Jones & Benjamin McNutt: Encountering Christ in the stranger

Working the Neighborhood

This Sunday at Seneca Presbyterian Church, we are turning to one of the most challenging texts in all scripture. It comes to us from the wisdom of the great prophet Isaiah. Scholars believe that what we know as the book of Isaiah contains teachings from several generation of prophets who were schooled by Isaiah himself - the great prophet of the 8th century BC.

Our text for Sunday comes from chapter 58 (verses 1-12). This last section of the book probably dates from the time after the exile, when those who had been deported from Jerusalem to Babylon had returned home. They faced the challenge of rebuilding the city and the Temple. They also faced the challenge of discerning what it meant to be faithful to God. God's people had failed to be faithful. As a consequence, they had lost everything that was sacred to them: a king, the land, and the Temple. Now they had a second chance - and they did not want to fail again. But what was the key to faithfulness? Was it showing their devotion to God through pious and humble worship? Or was it something more?

As we read these words from the prophet, we sense a difference of opinion on the matter. But the prophet spoke clearly. Faithfulness to God meant faithfulness to the neighbor. If they were to fast - to deprive themselves in order to show devotion to God - what had to go was self - indulgence. Look to the need of your neighbor first - the need for food, for shelter, and for clothing - then you will know what it means to be faithful to God.

I invite you to read these powerful words and then to reflect with me:

• God's favor seems conditional here - IF you do this, THEN that will happen. Is that what you hear? If so, how do you respond?
• What echoes of the teachings of Jesus do you hear in these words?
• What are the marks of faithfulness and what are its rewards?
• Is this a requirement or an invitation?
• When have you felt like a "watered garden" or a living spring of water? When have you known a rich and deep inner joy that comes from being faithful to God?

On Sunday, we will celebrate the faithfulness of the saints of Seneca Presbyterian - your devotion to ministries of care and compassion for others. And we will seek to discern what more God is calling us to do. So pray for wisdom and join the dialogue!

FYI: the "yoke" spoken of here probably refers to the burden of paralyzing debt. And this was written when??

Rich Toward God

The text for this Sunday's sermon at Seneca Presbyterian Church is the parable of the rich fool found in Luke 12:13-21. Many of the parables of Jesus are difficult for us to understand - for a variety of reasons. For one, they reflect a time and culture that is not ours. Hence we don't "get it" that a bush growing from a mustard seed was considered not a blessing but a curse - a nuisance; kind of like kudzu in the south. Knowing that makes the parable so much more powerful. Other parables reflect the wisdom and passion of Jesus and may have been difficult even for the disciples to comprehend. I'm thinking here of the parable of the dishonest manager - another gift to us from Luke (chapter 16). Just try figuring that one out!

Then there are some parables that reflect kingdom values so clearly that we have no difficulty understanding what they mean - only living what they teach. The parable of the rich fool is one such parable. Reflect with me on its truths:

• What strikes you about the rich fool's interpretation of his predicament? What is wrong with protecting the just fruits of the investment of his own labor? 
• What do you think of God in this parable, especially when God calls the rich man a fool? Is God judging the man, scolding the man, or merely sorrowful for such a loss and such a waste?
• What actions do you think qualify the man to be labeled a fool?
• Do you interpret his sudden death as a sign of divine judgment? 
• What does it mean to be "rich toward God"?
• Can we be rich in things AND rich toward God, or are they mutually exclusive? Be honest here!

On Sunday we will not only reflect on this parable, but also remember the rich bounty we enjoy at Seneca Pres reflected in our endowment funds, celebrate the good they have done, and dream about what might be. But most of all, we will give thanks to God for the abundance of His blessings and seek His wisdom to be faithful stewards of His great mercy.