Steps Towards Goodbye... Matthew 26: 14-30

Dear family,

I have done something to my laptop, so i could see the new family pictures, and it has affected my entire laptop.  But this little change, so i can enjoy the smiles of my family, pales in comparison to the joy i get as i celebrate their beauty.  As someone, much wiser than i, once said, as i paraphrase her, change is coming, one way or another, so you might as well embrace the changing seasons and make the most of them.  As challenging as it is to work with this new screen and the affect the changing screen has had on my typing font, i will embrace it and accept it as a wonderful growing opportunity.

Too often, though, we get stuck in the anxiety that change brings, and we never get past the panic attacks, cold sweats, or sweaty palms that we all seem to suffer from when our nerves outpace our common sense and ability to control even our heart rate.  Change can be a great thing, and we can all grow and become more whole when we embrace and accept that inevitibility of change, but it can also be the force that causes people to hide their heads in the sand, never to come up for air again.

As i reflect on change, i wonder how Jesus felt on the night he broke bread, for the last time, with the Twelve.  Sure there were others around the table, but the Twelve had such a tremendous impact on Jesus, and they were closer to Him than the others.  Surely, as they made their way to the upper room, as they began the preparations, and as they worshipped the traditional Passover liturgy, Jesus had to have had moments of anxiety.  Tonight would be Jesus' last 'free' night on earth, and Jesus knew it.  Soon he would be arrested, thrown in prison, and as Paul Harvey coined so long again, "the rest of the story."

But through the entire night, as Jesus led his followers through the powerful Passover celebration, He had to feel moments of anxiety.  Change was coming, and Jesus knew He could face the change by hiding from it, maybe even surviving the painful death that lie ahead.  Or, as He chose to do, Jesus could run, head first, courageously, into the pit, embracing and accepting all that lie ahead, knowing that whatever change was coming, GOD WAS IN CONTROL!

But Jerry, Jesus was Divine.  He knew all along what was going to happen.  He can face the change with peace.  WE ARE NOT JESUS!  I hear this all the time, and i lament how much we have missed the point.

The point is not that we are not Jesus.  The point is that Jesus believed in us so much that he trusts us to live as close to His way as possible, so that no one, not even the greatest doubter, could distinguish the difference between us and Him.  And as Jesus broke bread, illuminating the truth that one of them would betray Him, that very night, Jesus' calm, collected, and peaceful resolve points to how we all should deal with change, disappointment, and yes even betrayal.

If we could live and accept life, in all its changing levels, just as Jesus did, might we find something of the Divine resting right among us?  Might we face change with resolution and confidence, because we know GOD IS IN CONTROL! And might we just, even for a little bit, learn how to love, forgive, and embrace not just our family and friends but also our enemies.  And not just love and forgive our enemies, might we, just as Jesus did, also invite them to our tables so we, too, can break bread with them, knowing that they, that very night, might betray us.  If we could embody this Jesus, many would call us lunatics, but they showered Jesus with much worse, so we would have good company.

And being with good people, like Jesus and His authentic followers, makes life worth living and much more enjoyable.  So.  Go into the world, do what needs to be done, live as Jesus lived, break bread with friend and foe, and let GOD BE GOD!  What flows from trusting God, fully, wholly, is something akin to the peace that truly passes all understanding, and in our world of turmoil, we could all use more peace.  Change comes regardless, whether it crushes us or not is our choice.  Amen.

Shalom,
jerry

Love Costs: Matthew 26: 1-13

Dear Family,

I remain a hypocrite. I do. The other day Kendra called me to tell me that she had done something radical, something amazing, something sacrificial. She had piqued my curiosity. I asked what she had done, and she told the story of meeting a man on the off ramp, and she gave that man $20. I protested loudly, at least through the phone and through my emphatic sigh. I was ready to start a fight, an argument, anything to show her act to be the insane act of naivete that it seemed to be.

But just as i was about to really assault her, verbally, something stopped me in my tracks. The Scripture for this Sunday popped into my head, and i found myself silenced and muted by the power of love, even insane, naive love. Was the man going to buy alcohol, drugs, or smokes? Who knows? I dont. Kendra doesn't. No one does. Does it matter? Maybe.

What seems to matter the most, though, is this, Kendra gave, sacrificially, to a man that appeared in need. Our cynicism flows from what could be a serious injustice, but should that change our acts of love? Should we let our 'knowledge' of the world impose its will upon our hearts and ministries? Should we let wisdom and reason and logic govern everything we do, at least as our actions are tied to ministries?

Or is there another way?

The woman didn't think about the loss of expensive perfume or the investment she had in it, as she anointed Jesus with this sweet scent of love. She was mocked, by disciples of Jesus no less, for her insane and wasteful act of love. The poor could have been fed. A house could have been built. Clothing could have been purchased. And the list goes on and on about all that could have been done with the money she 'wasted' on Jesus.

Jesus, on the other hand, simply embraced and loved her ministry. Not only that, with his acceptance of her grace, he immortalized her by including her story in his great story. She went from unknown to a historic figure teaching us all what it means to love, sacrificially. A few weeks ago, Kendra taught me that lesson, i just hope i haven't squandered other opportunities to minister, just because i allowed logic, reason, and common sense to have the upper hand.

Because sometimes the most logical option, the most reasonable answer, and the one that truly embodies the greatest common sense is the right one. Ministry isn't governed by "Common Sense," it is governed by the sense of Jesus, and His sense always is right. Amen.

Shalom,

jerry

Culmination of Consumption: 1 Corinthians 13

Dear Pilgrims:

During Lent i have consumed a lot of things. I have consumed a lot of apples and bananas. I have consumed a lot of hours at work. I have consumed a lot of time by surfing the Internet. I have even consumed a lot of television, as i watched March Madness unfold. But does all this consumption make me a better person? More holistic?

No.

We began this journey, through Lent, with the intentions of finding ourselves in the heartbeat of God, desiring to be consumed by the Divine. How have we done? Are our lives fuller because we begin each day immersed in God? Do we feel wiser because we dance with the Creator all day? And are our days healthier and more vibrant because we lay down to sleep in the hands of our loving Father/Mother?

I hope so.

We all know that we consume stuff. Many of us consume at a rate that our waist lines grow and our brain power shrinks. We absorb useless information and miss out on our knowledge of God. And many, if not most, of us wonder why we feel so lost. If we want to know where God wants us, we must begin immersed, wholly, in God. God alone, through our deep dance with Him, brings wisdom, revelation, and above all things: Peace.

We do not need to win that fight when we are overwhelmed with God's serenity.

We will not harm or injure our sisters and brothers, even if they wrong us, when we are wrapped up in the peace of God.

And we will seek the best for even our enemies, when we sit in the walk with our Savior.

Why? Because at the core of loving God, following Jesus, and being consumed by the Spirit is this: we will live lives full of love. Godly love. Sacrificial love. And we will do all we can to ensure that this world, so full of possiblity and potentiality will experience the fullness of Jesus' love through our acts of love.

Love alone has the power to heal brokenness. Love alone invites dialogue that makes peace possible. And love alone accpets the mystery of ministry, knowing love empowers us to sit and wait on God, because God is GOOD! Amen.

Shalom,
jerry

Join us for the celebration of love this Easter at 10:30. But we will begin the Easter celebration with a pancake breakfast at 7:00ish followed by a sunrise service. And we will continue the celebration with the baptism, at Deeter's Nursery in Englewood, OH, of our dear, dear sister. Come let us rejoice and proclaim the goodness of our God.