HANDS

There are several things we like to do when the girls, Ella and Olivia, come to visit from Columbus, Ohio for the weekend. There is usually a trip to WonderLab. There is usually some time spent riding scooters on the sidewalks in our subdivision and feeding the goldfish. There is usually time playing on the playground at a park near a creek on the north side of town. And there is often a trip to Brown County.

Just last weekend we made two trips out to Brown County State Park. Saturday we hiked the trail around Ogle Lake, and on Sunday afternoon they sprinted -really!- around Strahl Lake on a perfect Fall afternoon.

One cool thing is that everything is an adventure for them. Everything is a wonder.

The other thing I've noticed is that usually, when we are walking, they reach up and take my hand. (Or do I reach back and take their hand?) No one usually says anything about holding hands. Somehow we just link up. Ella (the 6-year old) or Olivia (the 4-year-old) either reach up and over, or I reach down and back, and we end up walking together.

No one does that, usually, because there is a threat. No one does that because it is expected. It's not an "ought." There is just something so right, so good, about heading down a sidewalk or trail holding their hand in mine. (That's Olivia and me walking along in Brown County in the picture with this email.)

Jesus often reaches out with his hands to touch people. In Matthew 8:3, Jesus reaches out with his hand and touches a leper. The daughter of the leader of the synagogue has died in Matthew 9, and when Jesus gets to the house he reaches out, takes her by the hand, and she gets up. In the early Church -and today- people would pray over one another and lay hands on one another. The laying on of hands was a sign of blessing. It was indication that God was at work in the people who were being blessed.

In a moment of need, the psalmist (Psalm 28:2) lifts up her hands as she petitions God for help. In Psalm 37 the psalmist remembers how even though we stumble the hand of the LORD holds us up.

Why do our hands end up finding one another?

Maybe because holding hands reminds us that we aren't alone.

Maybe because holding hands reminds us that we are loved.

An African proverb I read the other day says, "If you want to travel fast, travel alone. If you want to go far, travel with others."

I'm curious: Are you and God holding hands as you head up the path today? Do you know you're not alone? Do you know you're loved?

I love walking in Brown County. Even more, though, I love the way our hands find one another as we head down the trail.

In Christ and for Christ,

Mark

CALENDAR TO GOD'S HEART & YOUR PURPOSE

First, spend some time praying and thinking about who you are and your life mission. Who are you and what are you about? You'll want to know this so your use of time, your commitments, and your calendar are purpose-full.

Second, make a list of the three to five things in your life that matter the most to you. What really matters to you? What are the key priorities in your life?

Third, make a list of your "Big Three." Those are three big things you want to be sure you get done in the next one to three years.

Fourth, make a simple listing of where your time goes in a typical day and week. Especially, look at the time you have away from work. In other words, where & how do you use your discretionary time? Compare where your time goes with what you have said is most important to you. If your priorities aren't priorities in your calendar, if you don't see room for the people and the things that matter most to you, then prayerfully put together a simple Action Plan.

Fifth, the Action Plan is nothing more than a simple statement, in a short paragraph form, that lists several changes you will be making in your calendar and commitments. This plan should be action-oriented. This plan should be doable...realistic...often involving incremental steps. And it should take into account who you are. Any plan will fail if it doesn't fit or match who you are in terms of personality type. I read about someone who worked hard to set aside 15-30 minutes a day for silent prayer and meditation. It worked for about four days, and then the whole thing fell apart because she is a "doer." She is "wired" to be moving. So instead of being still and quiet she now prays as she jogs. The physical work of running frees her mind for prayer. Sitting still was a distraction.

Sixth, share your observations and plan with someone who knows you well, and someone to whom you will be accountable. Be sure to talk through, with the people who will be most impacted by your plan, the changes you are considering. Don't be rude or surprise people without some kind of an explanation up front.

Seventh, expect resistance. Change is never easy.

Eighth, once you, God and the people who love you best have worked out a sustainable, healthy calendar, remember to pray and "count the cost" before you add something new to your calendar. If you are considering a major new commitment, then be serious about removing another major new commitment off your schedule. If you are adding something big, then remove something big.

Ninth, before you begin a day make a list of your "A" projects and "B" projects. This list making may only take 3 minutes, but it is a way of mapping out the day. Identifying the essentials that must get done. (A friend told me to also make a list of "C" projects and then throw that list away.)

Tenth, leave "margins" in your calendar. In other words, don't schedule yourself solid. Assume interruptions. In the construction business they call these "expansion joints." So that the deck of a bridge or the skin of a building can expand or contract in response to sunlight or the temperature of the air. Don't schedule yourself solid but leave some open space. Unexpected things may fill in some of those open spaces, and if not then you will have some time to get ahead...think...breathe.

No calendar or life is perfectly balanced. In fact, the goal isn't perfect balance but a life where some things come first...and are more important than other things. The best lives are "unbalanced" in favor of God, relationships and justice! "Seek first the kingdom," the New Testament says.

Remember to be gracious with yourself. If you have a crazy week or your calendar crashes, don't give up! We all need grace...

"This is the day the LORD has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it!"

In Christ and for Christ,

Mark

TO THE SIDEWALK AND BEYOND

Just how far does the faith we proclaim in worship extend? Does it make it out of the sanctuary and reach the sidewalk? Does it travel well reach home so it shapes how we live with the people closest to us? Does our faith connect with the real lives we lead?

I thought of this as we wrestle with the question of intervening in the Syrian civil war. (Experts tell us American assistance is already established there.) We follow the Prince of Peace so violence seems not to be an option for us, and yet scripture calls for justice on behalf of the powerless, widows, orphans and strangers. What do we do? One friend suggested we "bomb" the country with food packages, medical care, and tents. Does our faith shape our stance on this question?

I thought of this when I saw workers for fast food restaurants striking for higher wages. The UMC supports the right -this may surprise you!- of workers to collective bargaining. "The character of God demands...integrity in matters of economics," writes Weems and Berlin in Bearing Fruit. Isaiah 58 says, "Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free?"

I thought of this when I see good, church-going folks on Facebook posting messages that are hateful and exclusionary. Two months ago I saw a person of faith post a message about the President that was demeaning and racist. Soon thereafter he posted a message that was dismissive and unkind to those of us who are gay and lesbian. I sent him a message and asked, "Is this you...really?" Does our faith shape how we handle social media?

I thought of this when I read about the number of arrests in Bloomington of persons for underage drinking. Do those of us who are God's beloved let that knowledge shape how we handle our freedom on Friday and Saturday nights? The new testament teaches us to look out for our neighbor, not to misuse our freedom by using others to get what we want, and I wonder if our Sunday morning faith reaches Friday and Saturday nights in apartments and housing units in and around IU.

I thought of this when I read about bankers fighting oversight regulations, and heard folks on Wall Street saying that we are risking another financial collapse because of greed and irresponsibility. Conservative bankers have told me they are nervous. "No one is watching us," they have told me.

Just how far does our faith reach? If our faith doesn't reach the sidewalk and beyond then all of this is just talk.

I can see, in so many of you, how your faith shapes your living. I see how your involvement makes a difference all across the city and state and world. I'm so thankful.

Do you know one of the reasons Jesus ended up on a cross? He insisted that what is happening between us and God must...must!... radically change what is going on between us and our neighbors.

I invite you to let God give you such a bold, courageous faith that it will carry you all the way home...and to the office...and to the classroom...and to your floor in the dorm...and to your conversations at Nick's and the Bake House.

In Christ and for Christ,

Mark

THRIVING (OR “Sometimes Good Things Come from Notre Dame”)

Some people are failing at life.  Some people are surviving…they endure and survive.  But there are other people who thrive.  They’re the ones Jesus was talking about when he said, in John 10:10, “I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.”

Matt Bloom is on the faculty at the Mendoza College of Business.  He happens to be a United Methodist and is married to a gifted UM pastor named Kim.  Matt and his team have done a study of clergy here and across the country, and they have just issued a report they call Flourishing in Ministry.

When you look through the report what you find is an outline of what a life looks like when someone is thriving.

First, people who thrive have a sense of “meaning and purpose in life.”  They can tell you what they are all about.  They can describe their purpose and identify key life goals.

Second, thriving includes being able to “invest one’s best personal resources - talents, capabilities, energies, time, etc. - into the attainment of cherished goals, admirable pursuits.”  Another way of putting this is people not only can identify the purpose of their existence but feel they are able to spend their time, talent and energy “pursuing that meaning and purpose.”

Third, those who thrive “have a clear understanding of their knowledge, skills and abilities.  These people know their strengths and their weaknesses.  They don’t feel a need to be all things to all people, or to be strong at everything.  I would describe this as someone who leads with their strengths instead of tinkering with their weaknesses.

Finally, to thrive is to have a “sense of authenticity.”  These persons are able to “live in accordance with (their) true self.”  People who thrive are able to “think, act, and speak in ways that feel genuine and faithful to their true-self and (are) congruent with their deeply held values and beliefs.”   Another way of putting this is thriving people are comfortable in their own skin.  I love the veteran preacher, Fred Craddock, who is very comfortable with the fact that he is short, has a reedy little voice, and sounds like he belongs in the hills of eastern Tennessee.  That’s who he is and he doesn’t pretend to be someone else!

I believe Jesus calls us to be a community where people come to terms with their God-given purpose/mission in life.

I believe Jesus calls us to be a community where people are invited to invest their best energies and gifts in a great cause and for a great purpose.  (Remember this if you are asked to serve during the coming year on a ministry team as a participant or leader!)  We want people to serve in the areas  -and in the ways-  that matter the most to them. 

I believe Jesus wants us to be a community where people are free to turn their strengths loose and not try and lead with their weaknesses.  None of us can do it all, none of us are good at everything, and so God has put us together…our strengths complementing one another.

And, lastly, we are called to be a community where it is safe and good to be who God made you to be.  We encourage real, and we discourage pretending.  Someone I heard a few weeks ago in Chicago said we all have a need to belong, but the problem is that in too many churches and organizations you have to pretend to be like others to “fit in.”

Two questions for you.

First, are you failing, surviving or thriving?  If you’re failing or barely surviving, what needs to change and when will you and God begin a new chapter?

Second, are we the kind of community where people are helped to thrive?  If so, let’s keep on!  If not, help us become that kind of community!

In Christ and for Christ,

Mark