Once upn a time

Stories are the workshop of our faith
Mike Yaconelli
I remember when I was a little boy my mom bought a book entitled "my book about me". It was one of those books that traces your growth and development. You write down your favorite things, the date you lost your first tooth and all kinds of autobiographical thrillers. I'm not sure whether I taped any hair from a haircut in there or not. If so, I may go back and check into some transplant opportunities. Anyway, I am reflecting on this book because of my recent studies about the importance of "stories" in our culture. The Biblical record is full of stories that reveal the story of God. I am convinced that the better we become at recognizing our place in God's story the better we will become at delivering the message of God to others. My story is filled with God's grace. Your story is filled as well. Yet, often we fail to recognize it. More often, we fail to share it in such a way as to reveal the message of God. As we grow up we realize that it is not really "my book about me". It's my book about God's work in and through me.

Reaction to Tragedy

Media coverage of the tragic shooting at the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church in Knoxville has been extensive over the past few days. I was shocked as I turned on my radio in the car on Sunday afternoon and learned that a man had entered the church during the morning service and opened fire on the congregation. Two people are dead and six others are wounded as a result of his actions. Details about the shooter, 58 year-old Jim Adkisson have been emerging in the coverage. As information fills the airways, it seems that we all like to formulate some understanding of the "why" and "how" of such painful events. Thus far, the details that have emerged have done nothing to ease the pain.

Shield or Gun?

Today in chapel I was sharing a message with the preschoolers about God. Great subject by the way. The message was about how strong God is and I shared some descriptions from the Psalms. As I started the message, we played a little impromptu game of "charades". I pretended to be a soldier holding up a shield and I asked the kids to guess what it was. They shouted "stick", "gun" and a few answers that I couldn't exactly discern. None of them guessed shield. I suppose shield is a little dated for the images of warfare that our preschoolers see today. It caused me to think a little bit about the difference between a stick, a gun and a shield. I realize that making these comparisons puts me into the category of military strategist - so stay with me. If I have a stick or a gun I can use those for an offensive attack. If I have a shield, I have to trust in it to defend and protect me. In life, it is a natural instinct to want to protect ourselves. On the other hand, it takes intentional cultivation to learn to trust in God. I would say that we tend to shout "stick" and "gun" to God a lot more than we thank Him for being our shield.

Legacy

There has been a lot of discussion about "legacy" in the news this week. On one end of the spectrum there has been a lot of talk about Bret Favre's football "legacy" with the Green Bay Packers. Brett has changed his mind about retirement the past couple of years about as often as we change the message on the church sign. It seems that this week he has decided he wants to play again. But the Packers are not in the mood. On a more serious note, talk of the late Heath Ledger's acting legacy has been the subject of many headlines as the "Dark Knight" opens in theaters. Ledger's performance as the Joker (scary stuff!) is receiving high marks. Legacy is a subject that interests me greatly. For one reason, the definition of "legacy" and "heritage" are very similar. As I consider our commitment at "Heritage Fellowship" it strikes me that our legacy is a gift that follows after us. The word has it roots in a legal gift that is deliberately bequeathed to a relative. It seems to me that one of the missing links in our consideration of popular use of the word is the intentionality that should be attached to legacy. It should be deliberate. The legacy of our church fellowship cannot be left to chance. It is an intentional process. It is a mission. This translates into an individual commitment to mission.

Reservations for dinner

I had a wonderful vacation last week and am only beginning to accomplish "re-entry" into a normal routine. So, blogging has been slow. Two things I really enjoyed on vacation: being at the beach with my family and lots of great food. So, it's not surprising that my thoughts this week have been on a passage in Luke 14. This is a chapter that is rich in teaching from Jesus in the context of a meal. Jesus went to eat at the house of a Pharisee on the Sabbath. Ahhh, I have pictured a great Sunday meal. The food may have been great, but I'm not so sure about the company that surrounded Jesus. The Pharisees, we are told, watched Jesus suspiciously during the meal. Sure enough, Jesus gave them plenty of cause for concern. He healed a sick man on the Sabbath! This event gave him a great intro to some Sunday storytelling. The first story is about another meal. It has to do with the tendency of the Pharisees to seat themselves in places of prominence. Jesus proceeded to let them know that the "host" (God himself) is prepared to remove the proud and arrogant self-promoters and then promote the humble. Sunday, I look forward to exploring some of the implications for our lives. Not only is self-promotion at epidemic levels in our culture, I have noticed a growing tendency to watch "God" with suspicious eyes.

The microphone is always on

If you have kept up with the political news the past couple of days you have probably heard about Jesse Jackson's comments about Barack Obama. It seems that Jackson didn't realize that a microphone was picking up his comments. Now some very disturbing comments that were made under his breath to a man sitting next to him have been broadcast around the world. We live in a day and time when this happens more and more. Because of technology, audio and video can be captured and passed along the world instantaneously. Venues such as youtube have made it popular to capture embarassing situations. As I thought about the situation it occurs to me that we really don't believe that God sees and hears everything. Would our behavior change?

What do you see?

I'm enjoying a week of vacation. It's an opportunity to return to a place I haven't been since I was a teenager. Of course it has changed a lot. But has it changed more than me? The buildings have changed a lot, but the big blue beautiful Atlantic Ocean is still there. I am continuing to reflect on John 4. On Sunday, we took a look at the meeting between Jesus and a Samaritan woman at a well outside of Sychar. John provides a great lesson that is much deeper than the emerging testimony of the Samaritan woman. It fits into John's liturgy of how Jesus helps the blind learn to see. Learn from the Master. Jesus saw a woman who was thirsty for a life change. The disciples didn't see her that way at all. Jesus saw a city that needed a Christ. The disciples were looking for a Piggly Wiggly to pick up some Milk and eggs and bag of chips. Jesus was focused on the big constant. People need a Savior. The disciples were focused on their own momentary needs.

Freedom

Happy 4th of July. There will be a lot of talk about freedom and independence today. That's an interesting combination of words. When I think of freedom I usually think of freedom "from" something. I beleive that freedom "from" must be connected to devotion "to". We celebrate the 4th because of the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4th, 1776. It's interesting to read the perspective of John Adams on the celebration of the 4th. Adams spoke of the need to commemorate our independence from Great Britain as a "day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty". True freedom and deliverance can never be separated from the "Deliverer". We are wise to remember than. Too often we relish our freedom without sincere devotion, commitment and surrender to our Great Emancipator. I am glad to be free "from" all other things that enslave me. But, I am also glad to be given in devotion and service to the one who set me free. I belong to Him.

Buying Popcorn and a Coke

Not long ago I went to the Orange and White game at Neyland Stadium. It's a little different than a real game in the Fall, but it's a lot of fun. Nick has always enjoyed going to football games - I have to admit that some of his enjoyment is attached to popcorn, hot dogs and other refreshments. So, as usual I made my way to the concession stand at the beginning of the game. I had a real problem finding the right concessions and I was gone for quite a while and I missed a good portion of the start of the game. To me this is an accurate picture of what happened in Samaria in John 4. Jesus sat down at a well and brought life to a hurting woman who had a great thirst for new life. Meanwhile the disciples went to the concession stand and missed the game. (John 4:8) When the disciples got back Jesus tried to explain what happened. Most of the time I have focused on the conversation between Jesus and the woman in my studying of John 4. This Sunday my message will include some thoughts about our similarity to the twelve disciples.