Resurrection! Our Lord has written the promise of the Resurrection, not in books alone, but in every leaf in spring-time. Martin Luther Where do you see resurrection in your life? I often find it in the hope of springtime. On that first day of warm sunny weather, with the trees bursting with fresh green buds, bird frolicking and blue sky dotted with cotton balls - I have rolled down my car window or stood outside on my deck and yelled, "Welcome back, Spring!" Yep, I get that excited. I like Luther's words here about the promise of resurrection. At times, we can't see the next step or what the future holds - we are confused, our vision cloudy, our circumstances dim - but we can hold onto the promises of God that he is with us. That he will show us the way, That someday, not now, maybe not for quite a while but someday - we will see and understand. Luther also mentioned books. As a professor in a university and a writer of multiple volumes of work, Luther highly valued books. … [Read more...]
The Season of Easter
Time to put away the bunnies? The plastic eggs? Didn’t we just celebrate Easter and it’s time to move on? When I was little, I thought Easter was only one day. I love it now that our churches celebrate a whole season of Easter, starting with Easter Sunday and continuing up to Pentecost. A whole 50 days! Our church’s liturgy during this seasons begins each week with the words, “Christ is risen. He is risen indeed!” This is a time to behold the resurrection and to study the appearances of the risen Christ. Maybe even see Jesus in unexpected places in our lives too. How can we celebrate the season of Easter? Here are some things I am pondering: Read the various Bible passages about Jesus’ appearances. One of my favorites is the Road to Emmaus story found in Luke 24. I think I will rewrite this story in my own words, journal as I unfold its meaning and silently sit with the Lord as I imagine what it would be like to be one of those disciples. How would my life, your … [Read more...]
Wow And Awe!
Two words: Wow! Awe! These words leap from our hearts seizing our breath when we dive into wonder. We are so mesmerized, captured by amazement, we can barely mumble one syllable. Anne Lamott describes it as when we feel the breath of the invisible, of the eternal. We are shaken awake, we notice, we grasp that there is more than just ourselves, our lives. On Easter morning when I reflect on the depth of God’s love – I stand in awe and wonder and hold my hands up in a thrilling WOW! This is how I felt watching this TED talk about wonders when movement is slowed down so we can really see what is happening or sped up for us to enjoy. To ponder the tiny and consider the immense. Take a moment to enjoy, then thank the Lord of Creation for reminding us of his Wow and Awe. The Wonder of God. [ted id=1969] (The winner of Spiritual Misfit, the book giveaway from last week is Colleen. Congrats Colleen. Your book is in the mail!) … [Read more...]
I Have Seen The Lord – Lectio Divina
Mary was standing outside the tomb crying, and as she wept, she stooped and looked in. She saw two white-robed angels, one sitting at the head and the other at the foot of the place where the body of Jesus had been lying. “Dear woman, why are you crying?” the angels asked her. “Because they have taken away my Lord,” she replied, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” She turned to leave and saw someone standing there. It was Jesus, but she didn’t recognize him. “Dear woman, why are you crying?” Jesus asked her. “Who are you looking for?” She thought he was the gardener. “Sir,” she said, “if you have taken him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will go and get him.” “Mary!” Jesus said. She turned to him and cried out, “Rabboni!” (which is Hebrew for “Teacher”). “Don’t cling to me,” Jesus said, “for I haven’t yet ascended to the Father. But go find my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Mary … [Read more...]
Holy Saturday – Quote of the Week
Holy Saturday What is Holy Saturday? A celebration of the sacrament of honest, raw doubt that precedes the resurrection and reigniting of faith. Anonymous What does Holy Saturday mean for you? Can you name your emotions in the in-between day between Good Friday and Easter Morning? Just imagine how the disciples felt. What their future looked like? The word in this quote that jumps into my heart is sacrament - I place my doubt - all of my vulnerable feelings, uncertainties, and fears into God's hands and wait. Wait for resurrection. What for His spirit re ignite my faith. Wait for his coming once again to bring us home into his loving arms forever. The second word that resonates with me is celebration. I don't think the disciples did much partying on Holy Saturday - when they hid in fear, shame and discouragement. So when I face those same emotions I too find it difficult to celebrate. But that is part of the sacrifice to God, isn't it? To come to him, honest and real, … [Read more...]
Favorite Quotes from Spiritual Misfit by Michelle DeRusha
As I wrote on Tuesday, I really like Michelle DeRusha’s new book, Spiritual Misfit. She openly shares her struggle with her faith in a real and honest way. Her words remind me of an incident I experienced in a Sunday School Class a few years ago. We were studying different people of the Bible. I mentioned the old song “Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho” and how the whole story of Joshua being obedient to walk about the walls of Jericho seven times always spoke to me. The message in this story reminds me that my job is to obey God, so God could do his job of removing walls. God wins the battle; my assignment is to be faithful. One of the other participants responded quietly that she didn’t know that song and had no idea what story I was talking about. You see, she didn’t grow up in the church and didn’t know the lessons from the Bible like I did. I didn’t mean to intimidate her and she didn’t take it that way. She was just being honest and reacting to my comment from a very real … [Read more...]
Spiritual Misfit – A Massive Missive – Book Review and Giveaway
Michelle DeRusha’s memoir Spiritual Misfit – A Memoir of Uneasy Faith releases today and let me tell you her missive, her message in this book is massive. I love her honesty and her humor in telling the story of her faith. This book will bring a smile to your face and faith to your heart. Every one has a story, but many times we don’t share our inner struggles, our doubts and even the times when we feel ashamed of our unbeliefs. In this book Michelle describes her time of wearing the masks we think others want us to see and how revealing our raw selves leads to discovering our true selves we find only in Christ. I really liked this book. We can be brought to tears by hearing someone’s dramatic testimony while our own faith lies idle, growing at a snail’s pace that often we can’t see. Michelle shares her faith walk that shows us, there is a path laid out for us that God is unfolding in his magnificent way. Thanks, Michelle for reminding me of this! The poet Rainer Marie Rilke … [Read more...]
A Donkey and a Colt – Lectio Divina
“Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied and a colt wither; untie them and bring them to me…The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them; they brought the donkey and the colt and put their cloaks on them.” Mathew 21: 2,7 Wait, Lord, there were two donkeys? A mother and a colt? Lord, I love it when something new pops out of your Word and pokes my spirit, waking me up. Why a mother and her colt? I know the Old Testament prophesized about riding on a colt, but I never imagined two donkeys that day. I wonder if they were frightened. I wonder if they knew. I wonder if Jesus whispered into their ears, thanking them. Is there a meaning to two donkeys? Learning to sharing celebrations with others? Learning to help to carry burdens with others? If I were God you would have entered Jerusalem as a King – in a regal carriage or on a prancing stallion. But you knew better, Lord. You knew how the story would soon … [Read more...]