Dear Family,
In the movie, "The Bucket Lists," Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson find themselves wondering what to do before their time on this earth is through. They make a list of all the things they have never done, but they want to, before they "kick the bucket." My sense is that this is not a new phenomenon. In fact there are songs about "live like you are dying." Or other references to how you live, if you knew you only had a few months to live. And as i rehearse these movies, songs, and books, i realize something: these aren't stories about dying. They are stories about living, and i wonder how much living we really do.
In our text for today: Genesis 49, Jacob blesses all of his sons, because Jacob knows the time is near. He makes sure they know he loves them. He makes sure they have what they need. He is making sure that his legacy, through them, will live on and that they will carry the family name and narrative into the future. But as i reflect on Jacob's blessings, on his deathbed, i wonder what would his life had been had he spent everyday of his life blessing people? What would his life had been like if he, instead of waiting to his death bed, lived each day like it was his last? What might he accomplish? How many lives might he bless? How would his relationships be? Many questions, and no way to find answers.
Except the questions remain, don't they? What would we do if we had only six months to live? What would our bucket lists look like? What have we been putting off, claiming there is always time? And how many relationships would we restore, believing we may never see these people again, and we want to go into our eternal life with no regret? I want to challenge each of us to think about our own bucket lists. I want us all to think about what if? What if we only had six months to live, what would we do?
And instead of living like we were dying, i want us to live, truly live. The reality is that i dont know what six months from now holds, but my sense is life will continue beyond that, but if all i do is the same, mundane, day to day routine, without living, without embracing life, or without fulfilling what i want to do, then i am already dead, aren't i? Was life meant to be lived for only the last six months? OR...
Were we created to live our entire life as if it were our last six months?
How much more full would our live be then?
And one other question that has puzzled me and confused me a lot, lately. Let me get this right. I want to save up, work hard and long now, save as many pennies as possible, not spend, put away, put away, and put away, live like a miser, for what fifty years? Until i am seventy and want to retire? Is that the plan? So lets do the math. I work my butt off, save and sacrifice for FIFTY years, so that, at seventy or a little older, i can retire and finally enjoy life, which means i might, if the average holds, have another twelve to fifteen years of living? Which sounds more like insanity? Sacrificing for fifty or enjoy my entire life, all eighty years of it?
Just a thought..
Shalom,
jerry
Friday, June 25, 2010
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Father's Blessing
Friends,
My good friend Matt, who i have found more and more to be much wiser than i, practices something, every night, with his kids. He has a son, Braxton, who is three and a half, and he has a daughter, Sadie, about eighteen months, and he is an amazing father. But it is what he does, every night, that struck as truly a loving, caring, fatherly duty. Every night, after reading to his kids, after praying with his kids, he blesses them. He blesses them.
What does it mean to bless someone? It is not the obligatory, "Bless You," after someone sneezes, though that is important. No. To bless someone requires something from the Divine, and the Bible is full of Jewish blessings that have been passed on from generation to generation. And now Matt gives one of these blessings, whatever he finds in the Bible, to his children. Over the last week, i have implemented the same practice for Daniel. Every night, after reading, praying, and before we rock, i say to him, "May God's face shine upon you and give you peace..."
It feel amazing to look into my son's eyes and say those powerful words to him. I am giving him something beyond praying for him. I am inviting God's presence to rest upon him and overwhelm him in peace. This is a good thing folks. And after reading Genesis 48, i realize it is more than a good thing, it is a fatherly duty to bless his children.
Jacob, not Joseph, after adopting Manasseh and Ephraim, blesses them, and he blesses Joseph too. And as the patriarch of the family, as the holder of God's promise to Abraham and Isaac, Jacob's blessings carry a lot of weight. It is as if God were speaking through Jacob and affirming the blessing being bestowed upon Jacob's sons. And when i think hard about this, one clear powerful thought comes to mind. God is there. God is in that blessing, just as God is in every blessing. Why?
Because God loves to bless his children. More than that, God understands that to be a good father/parent, He must continually offer his blessing upon His children. It is a parental duty to shower our children with blessings, and God wants to continue to prove His worth as the greatest parent ever.
So now i offer you all a challenge. When was the last time you thumbed through the Scriptures to find a blessing that you could speak to a friend, a spouse, or even a son or daughter? If you haven't done it in a while, return to the practice. Because to bless someone enables the blesser to feel God's blessing all the more. And if you have never spoken a blessing to someone, try it. You will find a lot of peace and love and awe in the blessing you share.
Sunday is Father's Day, so dads lets return to our title as spiritual leaders in our families. Lets return to our job to bless our families and our children. And lets lead by example, so that a new generation of Jesus followers will experience the love of God through the love of their earthly fathers. We, dads, have been absent long enough. Its time to reclaim our role, and what a role it is. Amen.
Salaam, Shalom, Peace,
jerry, or as Daniel says, "my daddy, my daddy"
My good friend Matt, who i have found more and more to be much wiser than i, practices something, every night, with his kids. He has a son, Braxton, who is three and a half, and he has a daughter, Sadie, about eighteen months, and he is an amazing father. But it is what he does, every night, that struck as truly a loving, caring, fatherly duty. Every night, after reading to his kids, after praying with his kids, he blesses them. He blesses them.
What does it mean to bless someone? It is not the obligatory, "Bless You," after someone sneezes, though that is important. No. To bless someone requires something from the Divine, and the Bible is full of Jewish blessings that have been passed on from generation to generation. And now Matt gives one of these blessings, whatever he finds in the Bible, to his children. Over the last week, i have implemented the same practice for Daniel. Every night, after reading, praying, and before we rock, i say to him, "May God's face shine upon you and give you peace..."
It feel amazing to look into my son's eyes and say those powerful words to him. I am giving him something beyond praying for him. I am inviting God's presence to rest upon him and overwhelm him in peace. This is a good thing folks. And after reading Genesis 48, i realize it is more than a good thing, it is a fatherly duty to bless his children.
Jacob, not Joseph, after adopting Manasseh and Ephraim, blesses them, and he blesses Joseph too. And as the patriarch of the family, as the holder of God's promise to Abraham and Isaac, Jacob's blessings carry a lot of weight. It is as if God were speaking through Jacob and affirming the blessing being bestowed upon Jacob's sons. And when i think hard about this, one clear powerful thought comes to mind. God is there. God is in that blessing, just as God is in every blessing. Why?
Because God loves to bless his children. More than that, God understands that to be a good father/parent, He must continually offer his blessing upon His children. It is a parental duty to shower our children with blessings, and God wants to continue to prove His worth as the greatest parent ever.
So now i offer you all a challenge. When was the last time you thumbed through the Scriptures to find a blessing that you could speak to a friend, a spouse, or even a son or daughter? If you haven't done it in a while, return to the practice. Because to bless someone enables the blesser to feel God's blessing all the more. And if you have never spoken a blessing to someone, try it. You will find a lot of peace and love and awe in the blessing you share.
Sunday is Father's Day, so dads lets return to our title as spiritual leaders in our families. Lets return to our job to bless our families and our children. And lets lead by example, so that a new generation of Jesus followers will experience the love of God through the love of their earthly fathers. We, dads, have been absent long enough. Its time to reclaim our role, and what a role it is. Amen.
Salaam, Shalom, Peace,
jerry, or as Daniel says, "my daddy, my daddy"
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Hesed....
Dear Family,
In the movie "Saving Private Ryan," Tom Hanks leads a group of soldiers, during World War II, into the heart of Europe, to rescue one man, the man: Private Ryan. This order to rescue Private Ryan, in the heart of the battle of WWII came to be, because Ryan's three other brothers were killed in action, and his mother got the notices pretty much all at once. The US Government recognized the need to rescue Private Ryan, so his family could have some hope, some belief that things could go on. Hanks and his fellow soldiers had to track through serious battles just to save one person. And they did.
But it was at a serious loss. Most of the men, in the original company, were killed in action. They gave their lives for one man, one young man, in the middle of a war, who no one would ever have thought twice about had they simply stated that they were too late. He had been killed, or they just couldn't find him. For these men, however, their word to follow Hanks and the US Government meant more than their own lives. That faithfulness, that loyalty is what the Hebrews call "Hesed."
And in our chapter for this week, my sense is that "Hesed" is at the foundation of what is happening. First Joseph's "hesed" to God enabled Joseph to be in a position to save his family and the rest of the Israelites from the severe famine. While Egyptians sell themselves into slavery, the Israelites prosper. Joseph's "hesed" to God produces fruit. Joseph proves that God's promise to walk with us, guide us, anoint us, enable us to bear fruit in all seasons is true, if we, like Joseph, remaine faithful, or give God, "hesed."
Joseph's "hesed" doesn't stop there. At the end of the chapter, his father, Jacob, asks Joseph to swear an oath, a "hesed," to Jacob. What was that "hesed?" That when Jacob died, Joseph would bury Jacob with Jacob's father: meaning Joseph would take Jacob home. Jacob trusted Joseph's word, because Joseph's life reveals a person of incredible character and loyalty. Jacob knew that Joseph would show "hesed" to him, if Jacob asked for it. And Joseph kept his word.
In our world, we hesitate to let people in. We lock our doors. We stash our cash. We block our cell numbers. Why? Because we don't trust people. We don't trust their intentions. So we build walls up, literally and metaphorically, to keep people out. And that's sad. It really is. Whatever happened to God's people being a people of incredible "hesed?" Our world needs it. We need it. It will change our lives. And change, whether we want to hear it or not, is a good thing. Amen.
Shalom,
jerry
In the movie "Saving Private Ryan," Tom Hanks leads a group of soldiers, during World War II, into the heart of Europe, to rescue one man, the man: Private Ryan. This order to rescue Private Ryan, in the heart of the battle of WWII came to be, because Ryan's three other brothers were killed in action, and his mother got the notices pretty much all at once. The US Government recognized the need to rescue Private Ryan, so his family could have some hope, some belief that things could go on. Hanks and his fellow soldiers had to track through serious battles just to save one person. And they did.
But it was at a serious loss. Most of the men, in the original company, were killed in action. They gave their lives for one man, one young man, in the middle of a war, who no one would ever have thought twice about had they simply stated that they were too late. He had been killed, or they just couldn't find him. For these men, however, their word to follow Hanks and the US Government meant more than their own lives. That faithfulness, that loyalty is what the Hebrews call "Hesed."
And in our chapter for this week, my sense is that "Hesed" is at the foundation of what is happening. First Joseph's "hesed" to God enabled Joseph to be in a position to save his family and the rest of the Israelites from the severe famine. While Egyptians sell themselves into slavery, the Israelites prosper. Joseph's "hesed" to God produces fruit. Joseph proves that God's promise to walk with us, guide us, anoint us, enable us to bear fruit in all seasons is true, if we, like Joseph, remaine faithful, or give God, "hesed."
Joseph's "hesed" doesn't stop there. At the end of the chapter, his father, Jacob, asks Joseph to swear an oath, a "hesed," to Jacob. What was that "hesed?" That when Jacob died, Joseph would bury Jacob with Jacob's father: meaning Joseph would take Jacob home. Jacob trusted Joseph's word, because Joseph's life reveals a person of incredible character and loyalty. Jacob knew that Joseph would show "hesed" to him, if Jacob asked for it. And Joseph kept his word.
In our world, we hesitate to let people in. We lock our doors. We stash our cash. We block our cell numbers. Why? Because we don't trust people. We don't trust their intentions. So we build walls up, literally and metaphorically, to keep people out. And that's sad. It really is. Whatever happened to God's people being a people of incredible "hesed?" Our world needs it. We need it. It will change our lives. And change, whether we want to hear it or not, is a good thing. Amen.
Shalom,
jerry
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Journeys..
Dear Family,
When you blessed me with a chance to spend two and half weeks in Israel/Palestine a year and a half ago, you have no idea how you changed my world, my life. Why? Because you gave me an exciting chapter to add to the narrative that is my life. You made it possible for me to have experiences that enhanced my journey, and those stories have become memories that will remain with me until i journey home. Your grace allowed me to live life, truly live life. And i will forever be grateful for that opportunity.
I rehearse that now, because Genesis 46, with an initial reading, has little to offer. It is in three sections, but it seems to be filler material, or a segue until something greater, more exciting happens, which makes Genesis 46 easy to forget and quick to gloss over. But after rereading it, for the third time, something caught my attention, something that i had looked past twice before. Though this is a chapter that serves as a segue, almost, between the promise of Abraham and the end of the story of Jacob to the Exodus with Moses, it does serve a very real purpose. It reminds us that life is not about reaching a "destination." It, life, is about the journey.
And as God revisits Jacob, before Israel/ Jacob enters Egypt, we are reminded that behind every challenge, every joy, every disappointment, and every celebration is our amazing Creator. He stands ready to remind us that if we remain faithful, and we trust in His promise, His promise, in His time, will come to fruition. We might not see it, as Jacob didn't. But we can have faith that it will happen.
More than that, as Jacob traversed the land with his entire family, nearly 70 in all, it reminds us that journeys are meant to be shared with other persons. No journey, whether facing tear gas in Hebron or uniting under God's vision as a struggling church, no journey works alone. We must share our journeys, or they simply become caveats and not the chapters that God intends them to be. We must invite others to share in our life stories.
When we do, when we unite under God's love, then nothing can stop us from making the most of our time on earth. We, each of us, have but a few years, and if we share those years with sisters and brothers, in a life altering faith, we will make the most of them. We might not see the Promised Land, Moses didn't, but we will know our lives existed for a purpose, to bring glory to God. That knowledge, that knowing, will give us the peace we need to enjoy each day God gives, together.
So get ready for a new adventure, a new exciting journey as the West Milton Church of the Brethren. I dont know, still, where God will take us, but i dont need to. If you join me, thats all i need for the trip. And we will make the most of what time we have and what God gives us to do. Amen.
Salaam,
jerry
When you blessed me with a chance to spend two and half weeks in Israel/Palestine a year and a half ago, you have no idea how you changed my world, my life. Why? Because you gave me an exciting chapter to add to the narrative that is my life. You made it possible for me to have experiences that enhanced my journey, and those stories have become memories that will remain with me until i journey home. Your grace allowed me to live life, truly live life. And i will forever be grateful for that opportunity.
I rehearse that now, because Genesis 46, with an initial reading, has little to offer. It is in three sections, but it seems to be filler material, or a segue until something greater, more exciting happens, which makes Genesis 46 easy to forget and quick to gloss over. But after rereading it, for the third time, something caught my attention, something that i had looked past twice before. Though this is a chapter that serves as a segue, almost, between the promise of Abraham and the end of the story of Jacob to the Exodus with Moses, it does serve a very real purpose. It reminds us that life is not about reaching a "destination." It, life, is about the journey.
And as God revisits Jacob, before Israel/ Jacob enters Egypt, we are reminded that behind every challenge, every joy, every disappointment, and every celebration is our amazing Creator. He stands ready to remind us that if we remain faithful, and we trust in His promise, His promise, in His time, will come to fruition. We might not see it, as Jacob didn't. But we can have faith that it will happen.
More than that, as Jacob traversed the land with his entire family, nearly 70 in all, it reminds us that journeys are meant to be shared with other persons. No journey, whether facing tear gas in Hebron or uniting under God's vision as a struggling church, no journey works alone. We must share our journeys, or they simply become caveats and not the chapters that God intends them to be. We must invite others to share in our life stories.
When we do, when we unite under God's love, then nothing can stop us from making the most of our time on earth. We, each of us, have but a few years, and if we share those years with sisters and brothers, in a life altering faith, we will make the most of them. We might not see the Promised Land, Moses didn't, but we will know our lives existed for a purpose, to bring glory to God. That knowledge, that knowing, will give us the peace we need to enjoy each day God gives, together.
So get ready for a new adventure, a new exciting journey as the West Milton Church of the Brethren. I dont know, still, where God will take us, but i dont need to. If you join me, thats all i need for the trip. And we will make the most of what time we have and what God gives us to do. Amen.
Salaam,
jerry
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