Trinity Sunday - I will admit that I, at times, find myself wounded and bruised when overhearing deep discussions of the Trinity. It is personal, I guess, as my own encounter and relationship with God is very much a walk through life with God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. The wounds and bruises come when I am told that what I know to be true in my own life might not be true at all and I shouldn't write in such "Trinity" words (that's what I get for hanging out with such a wonderful and diverse group of clergy, from many denominations, who love to ponder!). Oh, it is a mystery for sure! A child doesn't understand what is so hard with this kind of relationship! Maybe, I'm still a child ... and that is OK.
TRINITY FAITH
The child stands very small,
hidden in a great tall crowd
of ponderers and speculators,
of those who rename and rework
and those who murmur …
“There is no way. I don’t believe.”
She strains to see,
who holds their attention,
who is causing such commotion …
but she cannot see.
Their tallness surrounds her
and their voices try to drown out
the voice she is so wanting to hear.
But then she hears …
“Come unto me, little child.”
She looks around.
She seems to be the only child.
So the little one squeezes and pushes
her way through the crowds
who are still murmuring,
“There is no way. I don’t believe.”
In the clearing … in this place
between the murmuring ponderers
and the One who said, “Come, little child”,
she finds herself running,
with arms open wide,
as any child would run
toward LOVE.
The little one expected a hug from the One,
but instead, he took her hand and saw the bruise.
“What happened?” he asked
(knowing all along that someone had slapped
her little hand for not being a part of
the renaming and reworking and disbelief).
Yes, the little one expected a hug from the One,
but she received hugs from the Three.
The One who whispered, “beloved child”,
the One who healed her tiny bruised hand and
whispered, “Forgive and forgiven,”
the One who whispered, “I will not leave you as an orphan.”
It was too mysterious, yet entirely enough for her.
She looked at the huddled-together ponderers
and knew that they saw only One.
And she herself pondered …
Is that why he called out,
“Send the little children to me,
for such is the kingdom of heaven?”
The child embraced the Three….
and those huddled together
still saw only One,
and still murmured…
“There is no way. I don’t believe.”
anna murdock 2010©
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
"The Fire That Consumes Us"
(Please read Acts 1:4-5 and Acts 2:1-4)
Lectionary Scriptures - The day of Pentecost
Moses saw the fire – a fire that did not consume the burning bush yet consumed the remainder of his life. Out of the fire, he heard the words, “Remove your sandals. You are standing on holy ground.” Out of the fire, he heard, “I AM GOD.” Just as the burning bush marked the ground as holy for Moses, the tongues of fire that separated and rested on each of the disciples on the day of Pentecost marked that very moment and place as holy ground. For those disciples, as it was for Moses, this was a fire that consumed the remainder of their lives.
There were 120 gathered in a room, waiting for the "gift" that had been promised. They had been told by Jesus to wait in Jerusalem, and so they did. They came together in one place and waited in expectation, but for what? These disciples and followers would soon discover that this "place" where they waited was a place where the Holy Spirit would fill their whole being and where their Lord's own prayers for them would be answered. But first, they found themselves together - waiting and praying.
There was a hodge-podge of people gathered together for sure - good, yet stumbling disciples. There were those who had once admonished Jesus and denied him and those who had fled in fear after his crucifixion. There were doubters. Some had stood sobbing yet steadfast at the foot of the cross. Others had returned to their sameness for a while. These were the men and women who had walked with Jesus, who had heard his words and who had witnessed miracles. Among those in this gathering were the very ones who first looked directly into the eyes of our Risen Lord. All had different pasts and bumblingS and shining moments. All had their own personal encounter with Jesus.
In this room, they waited and prayed. They were shaped, molded and transformed much like babies yet to be born. The disciples found themselves, at last, to be moving toward one accord as was Jesus’ prayer for them (and for us). A sound like a violent wind filled the whole house and what seemed to be tongues of fire rested upon each of them. The fire consumed the very hearts of those who are present yet burned nothing around them. There was an immediate empowerment of the Holy Spirit. The place where Jesus' prayers were and are answered is not to be found in the square footage of this gathering room. This "place" of answered prayers is to be found deep within each believer. The gift of the Father is given and the Church begins to take shape as a living, breathing entity in this world and those who gather are "birthed" into Spirit-filled, Spirit-empowered and Spirit-led disciples.
This is the story of the birth and empowerment through the Holy Spirit of our own churches and of our own lives as disciples. And so we gather together in our churches just as Jesus commanded his disciples to gather together. We too are disciples with very different pasts. We gather. We worship. We pray in earnest that we might be of ONE accord - free from attitudes of who is the greatest, free from trivial pettiness, free from prejudices, from fears and from apathy. Perhaps our greatest focus in renewal and revival is to be gathered together in worship and expectant prayer, to move toward the body of Christ that is truly with "one accord" and to prepare our own hearts so as to make a welcomed home for the Holy Spirit to dwell within us. It is then when the doors of our churches will fling open, and we, the gathered, the hodge-podge of disciples, will go out into the world as Spirit-led disciples of Jesus Christ with hearts consumed by this holy fire within us.
Gracious and Giving God … Your Son has said that this fire that consumes is your gift to us. Perhaps we are too hesitant to pray for such all-consuming fire for our lives and for our churches. Forgive us for not reaching out to receive this incredible gift. In this moment, in both our alone times and in our gathering-together times, we pray that we might have willing hearts to receive your great gift. May each of us be consumed by your Holy Fire so that we might be a part of bringing the impassioned Church into this world, fueled by the flames of your Spirit and fanned by holy winds of your very breath. Come, Holy Spirit, Come. Amen.
anna
Lectionary Scriptures - The day of Pentecost
Moses saw the fire – a fire that did not consume the burning bush yet consumed the remainder of his life. Out of the fire, he heard the words, “Remove your sandals. You are standing on holy ground.” Out of the fire, he heard, “I AM GOD.” Just as the burning bush marked the ground as holy for Moses, the tongues of fire that separated and rested on each of the disciples on the day of Pentecost marked that very moment and place as holy ground. For those disciples, as it was for Moses, this was a fire that consumed the remainder of their lives.
There were 120 gathered in a room, waiting for the "gift" that had been promised. They had been told by Jesus to wait in Jerusalem, and so they did. They came together in one place and waited in expectation, but for what? These disciples and followers would soon discover that this "place" where they waited was a place where the Holy Spirit would fill their whole being and where their Lord's own prayers for them would be answered. But first, they found themselves together - waiting and praying.
There was a hodge-podge of people gathered together for sure - good, yet stumbling disciples. There were those who had once admonished Jesus and denied him and those who had fled in fear after his crucifixion. There were doubters. Some had stood sobbing yet steadfast at the foot of the cross. Others had returned to their sameness for a while. These were the men and women who had walked with Jesus, who had heard his words and who had witnessed miracles. Among those in this gathering were the very ones who first looked directly into the eyes of our Risen Lord. All had different pasts and bumblingS and shining moments. All had their own personal encounter with Jesus.
In this room, they waited and prayed. They were shaped, molded and transformed much like babies yet to be born. The disciples found themselves, at last, to be moving toward one accord as was Jesus’ prayer for them (and for us). A sound like a violent wind filled the whole house and what seemed to be tongues of fire rested upon each of them. The fire consumed the very hearts of those who are present yet burned nothing around them. There was an immediate empowerment of the Holy Spirit. The place where Jesus' prayers were and are answered is not to be found in the square footage of this gathering room. This "place" of answered prayers is to be found deep within each believer. The gift of the Father is given and the Church begins to take shape as a living, breathing entity in this world and those who gather are "birthed" into Spirit-filled, Spirit-empowered and Spirit-led disciples.
This is the story of the birth and empowerment through the Holy Spirit of our own churches and of our own lives as disciples. And so we gather together in our churches just as Jesus commanded his disciples to gather together. We too are disciples with very different pasts. We gather. We worship. We pray in earnest that we might be of ONE accord - free from attitudes of who is the greatest, free from trivial pettiness, free from prejudices, from fears and from apathy. Perhaps our greatest focus in renewal and revival is to be gathered together in worship and expectant prayer, to move toward the body of Christ that is truly with "one accord" and to prepare our own hearts so as to make a welcomed home for the Holy Spirit to dwell within us. It is then when the doors of our churches will fling open, and we, the gathered, the hodge-podge of disciples, will go out into the world as Spirit-led disciples of Jesus Christ with hearts consumed by this holy fire within us.
Gracious and Giving God … Your Son has said that this fire that consumes is your gift to us. Perhaps we are too hesitant to pray for such all-consuming fire for our lives and for our churches. Forgive us for not reaching out to receive this incredible gift. In this moment, in both our alone times and in our gathering-together times, we pray that we might have willing hearts to receive your great gift. May each of us be consumed by your Holy Fire so that we might be a part of bringing the impassioned Church into this world, fueled by the flames of your Spirit and fanned by holy winds of your very breath. Come, Holy Spirit, Come. Amen.
anna
Monday, May 10, 2010
"But Wait !"
Please read John 17:20-26
Lectionary Scriptures Easter 7-C
Do you remember the moment, the very moment when you first heard someone sweetly and earnestly pray for you in your presence? Whatever the reason might have been, someone looked to the heavens and called out to God for you and you overheard. The feeling that swept over you surely is etched in your memory. The actual words might have faded over time but the sense of humility, of peace, of healing and of purpose remains forever. It is overwhelming. God’s ear is turned on words offered on your behalf by another. Often it is that very moment that fills us with God’s strength and sends us into the world as disciples.
Jesus’ disciples had gathered and were waiting together as instructed. In their waiting, no doubt there were whispers as they prayed, as they wondered and as they pieced together the words that Jesus had earlier offered to them. Oh, how they must have felt to have overheard Jesus’ beautifully intimate prayer for God’s glory to shine through his life and in his suffering. How powerful and yet how humbling it must have been to be counted among the disciples as they overheard his prayers for God’s power and protection to come upon them. They now found themselves in a room, waiting for this holy power to come and send them out into the world.
But wait! What is that we hear? Did Jesus offer prayers to his Father for us as well? These very prayers have brought us into the room with the disciples. We are listening even closer than before. Jesus is praying in earnest for us. Staring death in the face, Jesus remembers you and me. We are always on his mind.
We hear Jesus whisper “may they be one.” His words resound throughout the ages. This is a prayer for complete unity among believers not unlike the unity of Jesus and God … a unity of love and faith-filled obedience. This overheard prayer is for the body of Christ to be of like mind, realizing that the diversity of its parts is not a division in the body. He prays for us, the body of believers, so that we might stand before the world in Jesus as he is in his Father. He prays that through this strength found in unity, of like purpose and of love, the world will come to know that the very same love that God has for him, God has for us as well. In our unity, in our oneness, Jesus prays that we mirror his divine relationship with God so that the world might know of this tremendous love for all and that we might bear witness to it.
And just as we want to run out into the world, filled with the loveliness of Jesus’ prayer for us, he says “But wait … You are witnesses of these things. I am going to send you what my Father has promised, but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.” There are times when it is good to be overwhelmed by the prayer that Jesus has prayed for us in our presence. It is good as well to be wrapped in the swaddling of this love before going out into a world fully clothed with this holy power. So wait … wait until …
Holy God … Thank you for allowing us to overhear such intimate conversations. This prayer that has been whispered on our behalf has truly touched our hearts in overwhelming ways. But who are we to be counted among the disciples? Who are we to be chosen to share your great love with others? Who are we to have our very names whispered by Jesus in such a way that they might fall before you? We are yours and we are loved and that is enough, isn’t it? Give us like purpose, Oh God. Bring us to that place were Pentecost happens. Amen
anna
Lectionary Scriptures Easter 7-C
Do you remember the moment, the very moment when you first heard someone sweetly and earnestly pray for you in your presence? Whatever the reason might have been, someone looked to the heavens and called out to God for you and you overheard. The feeling that swept over you surely is etched in your memory. The actual words might have faded over time but the sense of humility, of peace, of healing and of purpose remains forever. It is overwhelming. God’s ear is turned on words offered on your behalf by another. Often it is that very moment that fills us with God’s strength and sends us into the world as disciples.
Jesus’ disciples had gathered and were waiting together as instructed. In their waiting, no doubt there were whispers as they prayed, as they wondered and as they pieced together the words that Jesus had earlier offered to them. Oh, how they must have felt to have overheard Jesus’ beautifully intimate prayer for God’s glory to shine through his life and in his suffering. How powerful and yet how humbling it must have been to be counted among the disciples as they overheard his prayers for God’s power and protection to come upon them. They now found themselves in a room, waiting for this holy power to come and send them out into the world.
But wait! What is that we hear? Did Jesus offer prayers to his Father for us as well? These very prayers have brought us into the room with the disciples. We are listening even closer than before. Jesus is praying in earnest for us. Staring death in the face, Jesus remembers you and me. We are always on his mind.
We hear Jesus whisper “may they be one.” His words resound throughout the ages. This is a prayer for complete unity among believers not unlike the unity of Jesus and God … a unity of love and faith-filled obedience. This overheard prayer is for the body of Christ to be of like mind, realizing that the diversity of its parts is not a division in the body. He prays for us, the body of believers, so that we might stand before the world in Jesus as he is in his Father. He prays that through this strength found in unity, of like purpose and of love, the world will come to know that the very same love that God has for him, God has for us as well. In our unity, in our oneness, Jesus prays that we mirror his divine relationship with God so that the world might know of this tremendous love for all and that we might bear witness to it.
And just as we want to run out into the world, filled with the loveliness of Jesus’ prayer for us, he says “But wait … You are witnesses of these things. I am going to send you what my Father has promised, but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.” There are times when it is good to be overwhelmed by the prayer that Jesus has prayed for us in our presence. It is good as well to be wrapped in the swaddling of this love before going out into a world fully clothed with this holy power. So wait … wait until …
Holy God … Thank you for allowing us to overhear such intimate conversations. This prayer that has been whispered on our behalf has truly touched our hearts in overwhelming ways. But who are we to be counted among the disciples? Who are we to be chosen to share your great love with others? Who are we to have our very names whispered by Jesus in such a way that they might fall before you? We are yours and we are loved and that is enough, isn’t it? Give us like purpose, Oh God. Bring us to that place were Pentecost happens. Amen
anna
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
"MY Peace I Give"
(Please read John 14:23-29)
Lectionary Scripture - Easter 6-C
We gathered together behind closed doors to share those most unexplainable moments in our journeys of faith. Time and time again, I heard variations of the same words. "I can’t explain it. It was a peace that washed over me." Every person in the room, as they shared their spiritual journey with the others, ended by saying those same thoughts in some manner. Had they not heard the others speak of this same Peace? It was as if they must end their own sharing by saying these very words or their stories would not be complete. This unexplainable Peace proved to be the common denominator in our many different experiences. God’s Peace-giving was too defining of a moment in our lives for it not to be told once more. It was a Peace that had washed over every person. A holy Peace that now flowed through them, at times more recognizable than other times, but always there. It was that Peace that passes all understanding.
This is the very same Peace that put a song in the hearts of the imprisoned Paul and Silas. This is the Peace that lifted the eyes of Stephen in his last hours on earth. It has carried so many through the challenges of life and finds its way into the darkest of days. And this is the Peace that keeps us resting in the arms of God. It is not of our making for it is holy through and through.
Search as hard as you can. Try to find this kind of peace in possessions, in books, in money or in the words of others. You will not find it. Jesus looked at his followers and said, "Peace I leave with you; MY peace I give you." Did you hear that? He said, "MY Peace." This Peace is certainly not as the world gives and one that passes all understanding for Jesus’ Peace comes from an intimate relationship with his Father. He has seen God’s face. He has rested in God’s loving care. He has trusted his Father in all things. And Jesus has heard God call him “beloved”. THIS is the Holy Peace that flowed like a river through the veins and heart of Jesus himself. THIS is what Jesus calls “MY Peace.”
Oh, the glorious words. “MY Peace I GIVE to you. It is a gift, this Peace. Not earned, but given. As much as I would like to give it to you myself, I can’t. It is Jesus’ Peace, not mine. It is his gift for you, not mine to give. How can one preach or write about something so intimate as the giving and receiving of such Peace? I don’t think that we can. But we can offer the hope that comes in the waiting and the testimony of those who cannot share their faith-journey without ending with the words of such Peace.
Holy God, Giver of Peace … You know just the perfect time to give this gift to each one of us. Often it is when we least expect it. Many times you pour out this Peace upon us when our lives seem to be farther away from you than they should be. You are patiently persistent, carrying this gift with you always, waiting for a time when an ounce of faith slips out from a broken-apart heart or your name falls from our lips in a way that surprises us. You wait, with this gift of Peace in hand and wait and wait until the time is right for the gift-giving. Thank you, oh God, for this Peace-With-Us that washes over us and quenches our thirst with the waters of Shalom. Amen.
anna
Lectionary Scripture - Easter 6-C
We gathered together behind closed doors to share those most unexplainable moments in our journeys of faith. Time and time again, I heard variations of the same words. "I can’t explain it. It was a peace that washed over me." Every person in the room, as they shared their spiritual journey with the others, ended by saying those same thoughts in some manner. Had they not heard the others speak of this same Peace? It was as if they must end their own sharing by saying these very words or their stories would not be complete. This unexplainable Peace proved to be the common denominator in our many different experiences. God’s Peace-giving was too defining of a moment in our lives for it not to be told once more. It was a Peace that had washed over every person. A holy Peace that now flowed through them, at times more recognizable than other times, but always there. It was that Peace that passes all understanding.
This is the very same Peace that put a song in the hearts of the imprisoned Paul and Silas. This is the Peace that lifted the eyes of Stephen in his last hours on earth. It has carried so many through the challenges of life and finds its way into the darkest of days. And this is the Peace that keeps us resting in the arms of God. It is not of our making for it is holy through and through.
Search as hard as you can. Try to find this kind of peace in possessions, in books, in money or in the words of others. You will not find it. Jesus looked at his followers and said, "Peace I leave with you; MY peace I give you." Did you hear that? He said, "MY Peace." This Peace is certainly not as the world gives and one that passes all understanding for Jesus’ Peace comes from an intimate relationship with his Father. He has seen God’s face. He has rested in God’s loving care. He has trusted his Father in all things. And Jesus has heard God call him “beloved”. THIS is the Holy Peace that flowed like a river through the veins and heart of Jesus himself. THIS is what Jesus calls “MY Peace.”
Oh, the glorious words. “MY Peace I GIVE to you. It is a gift, this Peace. Not earned, but given. As much as I would like to give it to you myself, I can’t. It is Jesus’ Peace, not mine. It is his gift for you, not mine to give. How can one preach or write about something so intimate as the giving and receiving of such Peace? I don’t think that we can. But we can offer the hope that comes in the waiting and the testimony of those who cannot share their faith-journey without ending with the words of such Peace.
Holy God, Giver of Peace … You know just the perfect time to give this gift to each one of us. Often it is when we least expect it. Many times you pour out this Peace upon us when our lives seem to be farther away from you than they should be. You are patiently persistent, carrying this gift with you always, waiting for a time when an ounce of faith slips out from a broken-apart heart or your name falls from our lips in a way that surprises us. You wait, with this gift of Peace in hand and wait and wait until the time is right for the gift-giving. Thank you, oh God, for this Peace-With-Us that washes over us and quenches our thirst with the waters of Shalom. Amen.
anna
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