One Thing - Christ

Jesus had just healed a man that was born blind and the authorities were pressing him to say something negative about Jesus.

He answered, ‘I do not know whether he is a sinner. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.’

John 9:25

Such a simple statement. The man dosen't know the answers to all the comlicated questions he just knows he is healed and healed by Jesus. Jesus the Christ.

• Christians don’t follow Christianity; Christians follow Christ.
• Christians don’t preach themselves; Christians proclaim Christ.
• Christians don’t point people to core values; Christians point people to the cross.
• Christians don’t preach about Christ: Christians preach Christ.

How do you practice your Christianity?

The Advent Possibility

First Sunday of Advent

Passage Isaiah 2:1-5

The word that Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. In days to comethe mountain of the LORD’s house hall be established as the highest of the mountains,and shall be raised above the hills; all the nations shall stream to it. Many peoples shall come and say, ‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.’ For out of Zion shall go forth instruction, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations, and shall arbitrate for many peoples; they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

The great possibility of Advent is that we can all receive the enlightenment of God. Each year we are challenged to look inside of ourselves and prepare our hearts for the coming of the Savior. As we welcome our Lord into our world our hearts are lightened and our burdens are eased. We will find that elusive peace that we so desperately seek. In His church we gather to prepare for his coming. Isaiah says: “let us walk in the light of the Lord’ Let it be so for our church. Mr. Wesley has an interesting thought below.

"The temple of the Lord which is upon mount Moriah; which yet is not to be understood literally of that material temple, but mystically of the church of God; as appears from the flowing of all nations to it, which was not to that temple, nor indeed was fulfilled 'till that temple was destroyed."

John Wesley

• What great possibilities do you see for yourself during this Advent season?
• What are you doing to prepare yourself for new possibilities from God?
• Do you truly want “new possibilities? 

Read the entire passage through three times and ponder your “Advent Possibilities.”As you worship this Sunday allow God to show possibilities beyond your reach.

Things Are Just Different

I am the kind of person who likes to have things figured out ahead of time. That's my style and  I can be a little stubborn about it. I wonder if that a good thing for a Missional Christian? Let look to see how God handled people like me in the Bible. let's pick three,Moses, Jonah and Peter.

Moses-Long before God had tapped Moses for his mission to lead His people out Egypt Moses had begun his own freedom movement. After seeing one of his fellow Jews being mistreated by an Egyptian he killed the Egyptian. The result. Moses had to live in hiding and exile for 40 years. Moses did it his way. When he submitted himself to God at the burning bush he became the leader of the nation.

Jonah-As soon as he received God's call to preach to the people of Nineveh, Jonah ran away because he knew that "those people" were not worth his effort. After spending three days in the belly of the fish Jonah led one of the most dramatic revivals in history.

Peter- He was just a simple fisherman who just didn't seem to know when to keep his mouth shut. In his time he had a tendency to talk BIG but on the night that Jesus was condemned he didn't talk so big. Jesus later confronted him and he expressed sorrow for his denial. After that experience with Jesus he seemed to know when to talk big and when to be silent.

The point is simple. When we encounter God -things are different. It doesn't matter that we have everything figured out. When we allow God to speak,and we really listen, things are just different. As Missional Christians we have to be forever aware of the still small voice of God prodding and poking us every moment of the day. He has a message for you. Please listen and things can be so different.

The Desert Fathers

The Desert Fathers were monks, asethics and hermits who lived mainly in Egypt beginning around the third century. Their objective was to remove themselves from the many corruptions of the world and to seek God in the "emptiness" of the parched dry desert. The greatest of these was Antony who live a remarkably long life of 95 years and is considered the father of monasticism.There main practices were: love for all men., silence and stillness to wait for God,recitation of scripture and withdrawal from society. They truly tried to get as close to God as possible.

I shared in an earlier post that I had committed myself to a study of the wisdom of the desert. This has been a most fascinating journey for me. It has led me to open myself to new ways of thinking about and listening to God. The study of the sayings and history of these men of the desert has brought out a yearning for a "desert place" of my own. One of the outgrowths of this journey has been to establish a Contemplative Worship time at St. Luke's.

From time to time I will be sharing one of the preserved "sayings" of the fathers on this blog along with a few thoughts that I have about it. It will be my attempt to apply these sayings to the life of a Missional Christian. I hope it may be helpful or encouraging and I invite your comments so that I might add your wisdom to this discussion.

A Turn in the Journey

The Missional Journey is not a straight path but rather it has many turns and surprises. This month I will begin perhaps the most radical turn that I have undertaken in many years. In an effort to truly live up to the the mission of the UMC--"to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world"--I have felt compelled by the Lord to broaden the scope of worship at St. Luke's. This is being accomplish by the addition of two new worship services.

One is called "The Retreat". The service features a time of silence,contemplation , prayer and Holy Communion. It primarily seeks to use symbols,quiet music and sacrament to draw us closer to God. It is "Contemplative" in nature.

The other is called "The Highway". It is a "contemporary" worship time that seeks to use a casual atmosphere, lively music and a focused biblical message to draw people to the Christian journey.

These happenings represent the ongoing growth of my Missional Journey. In the coming months I will attempt to share,with some regularity where this journey is going. Along the way I will be putting small thoughts about ministry, worship and just living and I invite your feedback.

Moving Day

Today is "moving day" in our subculture of itinerant United Methodist Pastors in Louisiana. That means that a certain number of my colleagues pack their belongings and head to a new place of ministry. For some the change will be most welcome but for others it will be somewhat sad. As for me I will remain in New Orleans to continue my search for the Missional ministry God has for me.

Once again, we face a sad and tragic situation in Coastal Louisiana and New Orleans. We've had hurricanes, a crime "wave" and now an oil spill of unbelievable proportions descending upon our coast. At times like these I can't help but ask the question-Why? I know inside of me that that is a useless question. Certainly not one to spend much time thinking about. The only problem with that position is that thousands of people are hurting and asking that very question. I am not moving and I thankful to God for that. It is time to be more than thankful. The time has come to be present in places and times that make others uncomfortable. The pelican in the picture above has become a sort of "poster boy" of the sad plight of Coastal Louisiana. As strange as it may seem one of the highlights of my day when I moved to post Katrina New Orleans was that I could see pelicans as I rode my bicycle along the lakefront or through City Park. (I saw no pelicans when I rode yesterday.)The bird in the picture represents the sadness I feel when I think about what is happening . Why is this happening? I don't know.

The real question is --What? That has become somewhat simple for me. As a Missional Christian I do not ask why but what must I do to serve God's mission. I gladly begin my new year and commit myself to give my all to this city and its people. I look forward to participating in times of prayer, counseling and maybe cleanup if it comes to that for me. On this moving day I'm glad I'm not moving. My heart is in New Orleans more that ever-- for in being here I fine a strange sense of purpose.Yes, I want to build a great church but more than that I want to be a part of a servant ministry that will bring comfort and hope to the people that I might touch.

My Spring Retreat

The routine of my retreat began with a worship followed by breakfast. After breakfast I would retire to my room for a time of solitude and study until about noon. I would then had lunch with the workers of the community and after lunch I would retire, once again, to my room for a time of solitude, prayer and additional study until 4:30pm. My evenings were spent with times of recreation and discussion with Fr.David and friends of the monastery. The topic of study was the Desert Fathers of Egypt. I believe that we Christians can learn much from these Desert Fathers. Their dedication to the purity of Christianity and determination to find God in the dry parched lands of the Egyptian desert is an inspiration to me. They had to get away to find the true wisdom of God. For us they have left behind a wealth of wisdom that can be a real blessing to our rushed and worried world.

What Did I study?
My study book for the retreat is Desert Mystics by Linus Mundy. I am using selected readings from The Sayings of the Desert Fathers by Benedicta Ward SLG.

What Do I Take Home?
A retreat is an intensely personal experience. It is very difficult to really express in just a few words the content that I take home with me. This I can say -- that my study of the Desert Fathers led me to re-examine the way I live my life day-to-day. In our world we assume so many things. The world of the Desert Fathers is so different than anything we can imagine. It was a world that required an intense closeness to God. No one could live in the desert without being committed and dedicated to survival each day. That survival was directly link to their relationship with God.

I take home the notion that a relationship with God requires constant attention. We must be willing to allow ourselves to be emptied of all that we are in order that we might be filled with all that He has to offer. It is in discovering the parched condition of our very souls that we find the refreshing nature of God's Spirit. We begin to get our nourishment from our daily walks and talks with God. Desert spirituality helps us to discover the importance of making the simplest of tasks a spiritual offering to God. The chores we do around the house, the cutting of the grass, the washing of the car and all these other simple tasks are part of our pilgrimage which God.

  

What Actions Am I Led to Take?
Just a few Thoughts:

• Pray the Psalms every day
• Observe at least 30 minutes of silence a day
• Choose a work that is dedicated to God (something outside of my profession)
• Work with the poor whenever possible

My retreat took place May 10-14. I write this as an attempt to get back into the discipline of blogging. In the coming weeks and months I will attempt to share some thing thst strike me as I study and read the writings of the Desert Fathers.