Suffering Well.

My assumptions have been challenged lately as my understanding of the Christian sacraments have been explained in a more full sense. I participate in a culture that moves at a very fast pace, thrives on efficiency, and has a supreme deficiency in practicing patience. Most of us would not say that being efficient is bad, and in and of itself it is not. What has challenged me is the notion of "compassion," as it relates to the life of Jesus. Compassion means "to suffer with," and suffering is not neat, cleanly, or necessarily "fast paced." Suffering well, requires the embodiment of compassion.

As our Lord Jesus embodied compassion, so too are we called to embody this counter-culture, and often slow-paced practice. In light of our baptism, we have died to our old self, and have been resurrected with Christ through water into the new creation. We, by practice, have released our autonomous self and have given our entire "being" to God. Likewise, in the Eucharist, we embrace hospitality and commonality as a visible people identified as the Body of Christ. Both of these sacraments give God full control, and thus subvert our fast paced, efficient, and patient deficient lifestyles with complete grace and strength to "suffer well."

Ethically, we must become embodied beings, ready and willing to suffer with those who are hurting rather than becoming indifferent. Abortion becomes less about "pro-life" and "pro-choice," but more about caring for the needy neighbor which includes the mother, father, and unborn child. To suffer well does not give us a definite answer of right and wrong. For the homeless epidemic, it is not a matter of government power, but involves the discipline to suffer well with them - time spent with versus time talking about. Suffering well makes black and white gray, and makes our pre-conceived notions of right and wrong obsolete in light of the baptismal waters and the open table. Suffer well friends.

I think, therefore I am not...

If there is one thing that "thinking" teaches me in light of the cross, it is that I know nothing. I am nothing without the work of Christ. This I must confess, and confess often. The more I try to grasp God the more I cannot fathom. Here is the good news of God for us: He seeks us. Yes. Good News.

In humility I acknowledge that I cannot attain God. However, this does not mean I do not think about it. I think about how the entirety of my life is encompassed and filtered through God's kingdom. Of this, I too must confess that I fall short. Through falling short, I learn that it is only through God's grace and faithfulness that I continue receiving salvation. My life is broken and in need of redemption - always in need of the power of reconciliation.

A wise man once said, "We are never more Holy than when we are confessing." We are most like God when we deny "our image" and continue "being made" in his image. This is where thinking has gotten me. I think, therefore I am not - but he is...always, now and forever. Amen.

Eucharist for All?

The thought has been crossing my mind lately. Should the Eucharist be for all, or for believers only? I have some strong opinions on this subject but I need some healthy dialogue.

My church (Nazarene) states that Communion is for believers. However, in my modest and novel approach, I can't help but think this is a miss. My conviction is this: The
Eucharist is an expression of worship; we worship God because he demands it and he showed true love through the cross; the cross shows us redemption and reconciliation; we are to imitate Christ and live cruciform lives; the cruciform life cannot exist without redemption and reconciliation being the intent of all actions; actions on our behalf occur through the power of the Holy Spirit; the Holy Spirit enables us to partake in the means of grace; the means of grace are for all.

Therefore, as grace, the Eucharist should serve as grace for all. It is not "special reserve," it is a "house special." Christ has done this for us; we should do this and allow this for others.

Peace.

Honesty. Fact or Fiction.

It has been brought to my attention that I often sound depressed on online communication sites (i.e. facebook, twitter, etc). If anyone knows me, they know that I have some kind of profound optimism about me to find the good in just about anything or anyone. However, people do not like this "depressed levi" mood that somehow comes through my status updates. Preface.

With that said, how often are we honest with each other? I speak as a Christian, and when someone asks me how I am doing, I will often be very honest (and honestly it comes across as blah(technical term)). However, Sundays might as well be "lie day," because that is the day that I/We smile, and are happy. In light of the Gospel that we should all be hearing/preaching on Sundays (which should be joyful-differentiated from happiness) the message should come across.

Problem. We have lost ourselves. We do not know our true selves anymore. We play the part of how we are defined, we play into the stereotype. We need to be becoming who we have been created to be. What I mean is that we were created "good," and in "God's image," and by grace we are all on a journey of being restored and redeemed to those people. We have forgotten. We have forgotten our story and wonder why Sundays are flat. We wonder why worship music is too long, too short, too loud, and just plain flat. We complain about the message, or whether or not we got anything out of it. We have forgotten who we worship, why we worship, and even what worship is.

To be honest, let's not kid ourselves. Let's re-discover that to be true to self, we need to truly realize that our lives are not our own. We need to re-imagine our lives with a fresh perspective, enabled by the Spirit. Christ said to be first you must be last, and to be yourself you must lose yourself. A thought. A prayer.

Resolute

My wife and I have a joint resolution this year. Not only is it a resolution, it is what we hope becomes a new mindset and lifestyle. It is not about our image, but about our perception of the created world that we have been entrusted. Being green is more than a fad, it is a lifestyle change. It is a slowing down of our consuming habits; it involves intentional planning and deliberate execution. We have been buying organic food (after two weeks I will say is much better). If God has shown mercy to us, we too must show mercy to those who work hard to provide us with a product, and pay attention to what we are putting into our bodies, what is being put into the ground, and how our food has been prepared. This is not fast, it is not efficient, it is not cheap, but we think it is responsible.

I posted a face book message that stated, "ethical dilemma on how i feed the cycle of oppression in this country..." Our fast paced lifestyles and recession have caused us to consume the most at the cheapest price without even reflecting on what we are doing. We have become so consumed with our autonomous self, that we must literally stop to see the colors around us. Since I am enabled by the Spirit through the Church, I confess that I struggle with this. I understand that organic food is ridiculously overpriced, and that fair trade can be double price of its equal value brand. Our economy flows out of the generosity of God. I fall short, but I wanted to share the beginning of the journey. Peace.