Busy: A Time for Every Matter and a Time to Refrain from Embracing

5^th Sunday in Lent

March 29, 2020

Ecclesiastes 3:1-13

Busy: A Time for Every Matter

A Time to Refrain from Embracing

            When I was in seminary at Duke, I read the daily university newspaper. One op-ed column stands out in my memory for its title, “Life at 72 Degrees.” It talked about how office buildings, and university buildings, are kept at 72 degrees Fahrenheit year round, regardless of the outside weather. If you’re inside and away from a window, you have absolutely no idea what the weather is like outside or even a clue as to the season, unless you happen to see someone carrying an umbrella or a heavy coat. Office buildings and university classrooms have evened out their climate control so that the climate inside is always the same. Now, I don’t know about your house, but the thermostat in my house is not set to 72 degrees year round. It’s colder in the winter and warmer in the summer; we adjust it according to the seasons. When we lose those seasons of life, then we come to believe that no time is off-limits. When we don’t put boundaries around work and rest, then we’re never “off” and our bodies can’t truly rest.

In the church we have seasons, also. The church year begins with Advent, the four weeks when we prepare for Jesus’ birth, the 12 days of the Christmas season, followed by the season after Epiphany, when the wise men come following the star. After Epiphany comes the season we’re currently in, Lent. This is typically a time to prepare for Easter, to prepare for a massive celebration of Jesus’s victory over death, resurrection. We do so by turning our hearts back to God. We often give something up for Lent to help us refocus ourselves on God, to reconnect with God. I’ve been seeing memes on Facebook from my clergy colleagues about Lent this year. One said something like, “I didn’t know I’d have to give up so much for Lent this year!” Another one said, “This is the Lentiest Lent I’ve ever Lented.” I think I’ve subconsciously tried to make Lent end early, like when I thought this Sunday was Palm Sunday, and a few of you reminded me that no, we’ve got one more week. It happened again with the sign-up for the prayer vigil; I originally put down the dates as being this Friday and Saturday, and that even had a couple other sets of eyes on it before one person emailed to say, Pastor Heather, Good Friday isn’t til April 10. Drat. I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for this Lent to end. And the bad news is that as a society, we’re going to stay in Lent after April 12. We will not be resurrecting until at least May.

            Here’s the thing about this Lent, we’re in a different kind of Lent than most of us have ever been in before. We know the outside season is spring. We know the church season is Lent. Let’s talk about the season we’re in as a country. How would you describe this season? High anxiety? Self-isolating? On edge? A time to “refrain from embracing,” to quote from Ecclesiastes. We’re currently in a brand-new season that none of us have ever been in before. There are similarities to other seasons like when you’re home sick, or when schools and businesses close due to a blizzard; but still, this is different. First times are higher anxiety, even when you’re prepared. Think about when you drive somewhere new for the first time. It always feels like it takes longer to get there than it does to get home. That’s because first times are always more stressful. And, times of isolation are always more stressful.

            I’ve mentioned before that a previous Surgeon General said there is a loneliness epidemic in America. Now, what’s funny about loneliness is that it’s a feeling and a perception. You can feel lonely while in a crowd of people just as much as you can feel lonely in a house by yourself. A study from a year ago found that “Two in five Americans report that they sometimes or always feel their social relationships are not meaningful, and one in five say they feel lonely or socially isolated.”[1] And that was before we had to keep six feet apart from each other if not stay in our homes! “About a quarter of older adults fit the definition of socially isolated — which measures routine social contact — and 43 percent said they felt lonely. You can be socially isolated without reporting feelings of loneliness, and you can be lonely without being socially isolated.”[2] But here’s the problem, “human beings evolved to feel safest in groups, and as a result, we experience isolation as a physical state of emergency.”[3] Moreover, whether in isolation or not, all feelings of loneliness cause stress and sustained stress is never good for our overall health.

            This brings us to the problem with the phrase “social distancing.” I tried to look into the history and origin of the phrase, to see if it predates social media, because it only makes sense if it does. During other pandemics, like the Spanish flu of 1918, isolation meant social isolation. There was no internet. There was no telephone. If you were keeping your physical distance in order to not get sick, then you were also keeping your physical distance. Today, however, isolation does not mean social isolation, it simply means physically distancing yourself. We have so many ways to stay connected socially without having to be in person. I’ve seen memes reminding you that your cell phone can also be used as a telephone! You know I’ve increased my phone calls as I check in on each of you. We’re doing Facebook Live. Another option is video conference calls when then we could all see each other, rather than y’all only seeing me. During this season when we refrain from embracing and being out in public, it is important that we remain as connected as possible. It will help our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. Remember, our Lent theme has been to reconnect with an unhurried God. To compensate for fewer in-person social interactions, we have to increase our virtual communication and remember that phone calls, where you can hear each other’s voices, are richer than texting or emailing. One other meme I saw was about how learning how King Henry VIII of England responded to an epidemic explained a lot about him. King Henry VIII, of course, is the one famous for his 6 wives and for splitting from the Roman Catholic Church to create the Church of England in order to divorce his first wife. Well, a couple times during his reign there was a sweating sickness epidemic, which had a 30-50% mortality rate within 3 to 18 hours of first showing symptoms.[4] In fear of catching it, King Henry VIII literally slept in a different bed every night in order to avoid it. As I said, it explains a few things. Beloved, this is a season that we will get through. And we will celebrate resurrection on the other side when the stone is rolled away.

            In talking about times and seasons, I struggled with what other scripture passage to pair with Ecclesiastes 3, a time for every matter under heaven. I came up with a few ideas, like how Jesus knew when it was time for him to head to Jerusalem. In Matthew’s Gospel, he told his disciples three times, it’s time to go to Jerusalem where I’m going to be handed over to the chief priests and authorities and be put to death. Holy Week starts next Sunday, so that seemed like good timing. There are the times in John’s Gospel when Jesus says it’s not my time, like when his mother asks him to turn water into wine, and Jesus says it’s not my time, because this is the very beginning of what’s called his public ministry, and his mom says please, and Jesus says fine and gives instructions to the stewards for what becomes his first recorded miracle. Then there’s after the resurrection, at the beginning of the book of Acts when the disciples ask “Lord, is now the time?” Jesus, when is your time?

Well, let’s go back to John’s prologue, chapter 1, verse 1, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” The Word is Jesus. Jesus was there at the beginning. He’ll be there at the end. And he’s there at all the times in between, too. Jesus is there when it’s a time to be born and when it’s a time to die. He’s there in the planting and in the harvesting. He’s there in the embracing and in the time to refrain from embracing. Jesus is with you in old times and in news times. He does not ever leave your side. Promise. So as you’re being a good citizen and keeping your physical distance, Jesus is there with you, too. You are never alone. When you feel lonely (not if, but when, because I think it’s going to happen to all of us at one point or another during this pandemic), when you feel lonely, pray. Ask Jesus to remind you of his presence. Ask him to give you the name of a person you can call and connect with so you feel less lonely. If you're really not sure, call me. I am your person to call if you don’t think you have one. This is part of a pastor’s job during a pandemic. I stay connected to God to help you connect to God. I practice different stress-relievers to stay calm so that I can pass on to you that feeling of calmness. I’m calling a couple of you each day to connect with you (and hear different voices!), yet if you are not feeling connected and I haven’t contacted you yet, please reach out to me first. I’m here. Jesus is the light that shines in the darkness and the darkness does not, cannot, overcome it. In many ways this is a dark season that we’re living through. But it cannot extinguish Jesus’ light. Let that light shine through you. Reconnect to that light if you’ve lost sight of it. That’s my job, too – to stay connected to the light, point the way to the light, so that you can remember it’s there, also. No matter how bad the time gets.

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[1] https://www.hrsa.gov/enews/past-issues/2019/january-17/loneliness-epidemic 

[2] https://www.vox.com/2020/3/12/21173938/coronavirus-covid-19-social-distancing-elderly-epidemic-isolation-quarantine

[3] Ibid.

[4] https://www.history.com/news/the-mysterious-epidemic-that-terrified-henry-viii

Busy: Living Light

4^th Sunday in Lent

March 22, 2020

Matthew 10:1-19, Luke 12:22-34

Busy: Reconnecting with an Unhurried God

Living Light

            What a week it has been! I pray you have been using your time wisely, not in anxiety but reconnecting with God. Even if you have been staying in your pajamas, binging Netflix, or become addicted to the news, I hope you are also spending more time in prayer, reading your Bible, and noticing God’s presence in your life this week. As we continue our theme on “Busy: Reconnecting with an Unhurried God,” this weeks’ topic is Living Light. It also feels quite timely for this day and age of living in the time of the Coronavirus.

            Let’s start first with the physical stuff. In Luke, Jesus tells his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes.” That ‘therefore’ is because Jesus just finished telling the disciples the parable of the rich fool. It’s the story of a rich man whose farm produced an abundant harvest, but he didn’t have enough space to store all of it. So, he tore down his barns and built bigger ones, big enough to store all of his grain, which would feed him for the rest of his life. In the children’s book I had as a kid, I remember a scene added where one piece of grain fell out of the barn down to the ground and a hungry person picked it up. The rich man watched his grain at all times, had to keep an eye on it, saw the hungry person pick up the grain, went down and beat him for stealing. God says, “You fool, tonight you will die. Now who will get the things you have prepared for yourself?” Jesus adds, “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God. Therefore, I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or what you will wear.”

            Who hasn’t needed to hear this week: Do not worry. Do not worry about what you will eat. Do not worry about what you will wear. Did anyone go hungry this week? Did anyone run out of clothes? No. It is a lack of trust in God and God’s provision that led to panic and bare shelves at the grocery store the past couple weeks. God will provide. There will be enough. But you can’t hoard it. If you take more than you need, then someone else won’t have what they need. And please, if you know someone who’s got a box of those N95 masks, please encourage them to donate them to their closest hospital. Our medical practitioners are not safe using the same mask all day long nor do the cloth masks provide as much protection. I expect you’ve also heard that if you only buy your normal amount of groceries, then the stores can restock back to normal levels. Fresh fruit and vegetables and dairy items aren’t going to last. It’s like the manna the Israelites ate in the wilderness. The manna fell from heaven every morning and if they picked up more than they needed for that day, the extra manna went bad. It didn’t keep. You couldn’t stockpile it. We’re not going to be told that we can’t go buy food. That is fear talking, not faith. “Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will wear.” If you have found yourself with more than you need, no judgment, but I’m going to make two requests of you: 1, Share what you have with your neighbors. Leave a bag on their doorstep. Or contact a food pantry, many of which are still operational, including the one up Woodbine Road at Morgan Chapel UMC. 2, Start buying only what you need. God knows you need food. “But seek first his kingdom, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

            This also relates to the items in our house. I don’t know about you, but one thing I'm hoping to do is some organizing and sorting. We’ve been here three years and things have accumulated. “As a society, Americans on average are now living in three times more home space than in the 1950’s. And no matter how much more space we live in, we tend to fill it up. In fact, we now have a 2.2 billion square foot personal storage industry. Cheap labor, 24/7 access to online ordering and an attitude that the resources will never run out have contributed to an insensitivity to the amount of stuff we have and the rate of speed we turn over the stuff we have.”[1] I think thanks to the Coronavirus, we are finally becoming more aware of this. Mike mentioned in his message Wednesday night that we’ve taken prosperity for granted. We had a bull market for a long time, the longest one in U.S. history, in fact. But with stores changing to limited hours, if not closing, as we reassess our priorities and how we spend our money, and realizing that some resources become scarce during a pandemic have all contributed to a good wake-up call for us. It was time to shift our mindset regarding things and stuff, figure out what we need and what we really don’t need. Lighten the load. Live lighter.

            Besides the literal clutter that we accumulate, there’s also some mental and emotional burdens that need lightening. “Our lives are weighed down with ‘should’s’ and expectations that hold us captive to the frantic pace we live and mounting debt we accumulate.”[2] Maybe you’ve heard the commandment: “Thou shalt not should on thyself.” Be gentle with yourself, especially during this time of heightened stress and anxiety. Learn from what you should have done so you know what you can do better next time, and move on. ‘Should’s’ can weigh us down, sometimes even paralyze us. Do you what you need to do. Give yourself a reward at the end if it’s something you really don’t want to do. Let go of the ‘should’s.’ Too “many of us live with the tyranny of measuring-up that keeps us weighed down.”[3] It might be trying to keep up with the Jones’s, or whoever you compare yourself to. It’s not helpful. It’s not healthy. You are not the Jones’s, or the Kardashian’s, or anyone else. You are you. No one else is you. Be you. And don’t be too hard on yourself.

            Sometimes there are old stories we tell ourselves, old baggage that we carry around, that unknown to us, weigh us down. What are those stories? Can you name them? I can’t ever do anything right. I’m a klutz. I’m stupid. I’m here to tell you that you are not dumb or silly or little. You can do many things and do them well. I don’t know what specific message you need to hear today about who you are, but go ahead and tell it to yourself now. I remember one in my early 20’s when I was doing hurricane clean-up in eastern North Carolina with a team from my sending church. Now, you may have noticed that I was raised to be independent. And especially throughout high school and college, I felt I had to prove to others that I was not a dumb blonde (my hair was lighter back then), nor was I a helpless female. I can do it myself, thank you very much. Well, a moment of healing came on that disaster response trip. Rather than offering to do the work for me, or ignoring my presence, both of which have happened, a man on the team told me, “Heather, I know you can do it. You don’t have to prove it to me. Just let me know when you’re ready for a break.” It felt so good to hear that. Finally, I could stop proving what I’m capable of doing. Finally, I could acknowledge my limitations without them being seen as weaknesses. I want you to hear that this morning for whatever mental and emotional load you’re carrying. I know you can do it. I believe in you. And, you don’t have to prove it to me or anyone else, whatever ‘it’ is for you. You don’t have to prove yourself. Let go of that burden. Lighten your load. Live lighter.

            Finally, lightening the load reminded me of the time Jesus sends the twelve disciples out with no load whatsoever. Their mission is to proclaim the kingdom of heaven has come near, heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, and drive out demons. These are the same ministries that the disciples have just seen Jesus do. But Jesus isn’t done with his instructions. He says, “Don’t take any money. Don’t pack a suitcase. Don’t even take a change of clothes.” The twelve are sent out “on a mission without even the basic equipment for sustenance and self-defense.”[4] Can you believe that? “Jesus does not equip his own disciples… with lots of discipleship accoutrements.”[5] Instead, they had to trust God to provide. And they had to trust the people to whom they were sent. This is radical discipleship. They had to trust in God’s provision and trust in radical hospitality of the community to where they were sent. The disciples’ physical load was lightened. They had to make sure not to weigh down their mental and emotional loads with anxiety and panic.

Jesus calls us to some risk-taking missions in which we have to show our trust. It’s like Peter walking on water, which I mentioned a few weeks ago. Jesus says, “I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as wise as snakes and as innocent as doves.” We know that we are the sheep and Jesus is the Good Shepherd. The wolves are those “forces that act to deter the daring and risk-taking ventures to which he calls us.”[6] We are to “practice wisdom and discernment in the face of those dangers.”[7] What are those dangers? What does radical discipleship look like in the age of COVID-19? Those dangers include panic, anxiety, hoarding, and disregarding health warnings and precautions. Discipleship looks a lot like it did for the disciples sent out with nothing but the clothes on their backs and Jesus’ mission in front of them. They had to proclaim the kingdom of God is near. And they were instructed to heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demons. We, living lightly, are called to go and do the same.

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[1] From www.worshipdesignstudio.com, “Busy” worship series

[2] Ibid.

[3] Ibid.

[4] Feasting on the Gospels: Matthew, Vol. 1, p. 257

[5] Ibid.

[6] Ibid., p. 261

[7] Ibid.

Busy: Tuning In

3^rd Sunday in Lent

March 15, 2020

Psalm 52; Luke 10:28-32

Busy: Reconnecting with an Unhurried God

Tuning In

            One time, at the church where I was the associate pastor in Chapel Hill, a church member offered me two tickets to an upcoming Hurricanes hockey game. He knew that my husband was a big fan and we enjoyed going to games. The game was on Tuesday. I thought for a minute, and said, “We have an SPRC meeting on Tuesday!” This church member was also on SPRC at the time. Well, come Tuesday night, guess who was at the meeting (me) and who was at the hockey game (the church member)? What do you do when you’re offered last minute tickets to something you’d love to go see, only to look at your calendar and realize you can’t go? “When the present moment offers up an unexpected opportunity and you weigh it against your to-do list, how often does obligation win? That’s what happens to Martha in our scripture today. Jesus is right there in front of Mary and Martha and yet the pressure seems too great for Martha to make a different choice – to take advantage of a moment that will never come again. It’s not that it is bad to work and certainly keeping our work obligations is important. But if it constantly comes at the cost of missing out of important being-in-the-present moments, perhaps it is time to reassess, to “tune in” to the bigger picture. No one, at the end of their life, would say, ‘I should have spent more time in a meeting.’”[1]

            One of the things that Amos said at our Wednesday night Lenten service last week was to ask “Why do we need to be hounded to come home when we are weary?” Why do we have to be told to take a break? Why don’t we more naturally take time to rest on our own, without having to schedule it? Even with the corona virus, some of us would still be out there if we were allowed to be. We’d still put ourselves at risk if we weren’t told by our officials to stay home. Why is that part of human nature? What’s the pull to keep busy? What’s the attraction in always moving? Are we afraid of what might happen otherwise? Are there certain thoughts we’re trying to keep at bay? What’s the fear? If you slow down, you might not get moving again? Even machines wear down after time if they are constantly used.

            Let’s look a little closer at Mary and Martha. Jesus has just finished telling the story of the Good Samaritan, in answer to the person who asked him, “Who’s my neighbor?” Now, while Jesus and the disciples are on their way, Martha opens her house to them. What wonderful and generous hospitality! Here are 13 men who have been traveling, probably more people with them, and Martha invites them all in, “Come stop and rest at my house.”  Her sister Mary defied cultural norms and sat down at Jesus’ feet to listen to him. Martha, on the other hand, is distracted by all the preparations to care for 13 men with no notice. I would imagine it’s a lot of work. Not many places can accommodate 13 people without any advance preparation. Yet even if it’s one guest, what do you do when that person comes over? Regardless of whether you’re done getting ready for them, you sit down with them. Or stand with them if they’re tired of sitting after a long drive. You pay attention to them. You listen. Your focus is on them. Even if you’ve got to finish cooking in the kitchen, you may then invite them to take a stool or a chair to sit so you can talk while you stir the pot. There is no greater hospitality than listening to your guest, being present and in the moment with them. Mary does that. Martha, however, becomes too involved in hospitality, in it for its own sake rather for the sake of her guests, and she has to have the moment pointed out to her. A strength abused becomes a weakness, and while Martha excels in hospitality, she goes too far, and misses out on listening to Jesus. Whether she misses it altogether or not, we don’t know. We’re not told how she responds to Jesus.

            When Martha realizes that she alone is carrying the burden of the preparations, she appeals to Jesus, ““Lord, don’t you care that I’m burning myself out? I’m running myself ragged trying to serve you. Send someone to help me! In fact, my sister’s not doing anything, make her help me.” Jesus replies, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. I’m not going to take that one thing away from those who have chosen it.” Only one thing is needed. What’s that? Tuning in to Jesus. Being still in the presence of the Lord. Recognizing that this is a holy moment and I need to pay complete attention to it. I need to connect to God. Work is not bad. Preparations are not bad. Being ready to host a large group is definitely a good thing. The trouble is when it takes you away from time with God.

We feel pulled by many things, and most of them are good things and our intentions are good, yet if they leave us no time to sit at the Lord’s feet, to be still in God’s presence, then we feel anxious and troubled and our service is going to be devoid of love and joy and we’re going to resent those who aren’t as anxious and busy as we are. Both listening and doing are vital parts of the Christian life. However, you can’t serve well without being nourished first. There’s an example I first heard years ago and then saw illustrated a couple weeks ago. Imagine yourself as a cup, and listening to God’s Word fills your cup. The more time you’re tuned in to Jesus, the fuller your cup gets, until it’s overflowing. (We talked about overflowing cups last week with Psalm 23.) It is healthier to give out of your overflow than to start giving out of the cup itself. Giving out of the cup itself will drain you and make you tired and resentful. Giving out of your overflow is joyful and peaceful. The bottom line is to make sure pay attention to and nourish your spiritual life. Proverbs 4:23 says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” Make sure you’re not emptying your cup, or your heart, because then you’ll have nothing left and you’ll burn out. Tune in to Jesus. Sit at his feet. I added that reading from Psalm 52 for the image at the end: “I am like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God; I trust in God’s unfailing love for ever and ever. For what you have done I will always praise you in the presence of your faithful people. And I will hope in your name, for your name is good.”

            How do we be like that olive tree, flourishing in the house of God? Well, while Martha was busy, Mary chose to be still and tune in to Jesus. The lesson here is not that it is bad to work, but that we also need times of connection to God. Tuning in to the holy may mean just taking time to notice things that are beckoning to dwell with us a while. And so the question is, what contemplative practices can feed and nourish our active lives and help us be more in tune to the present moment? Or the flip side, what distractions and addictions consume our attention and keep us from tuning in? There are many, many contemplative practices, including prayer, journaling, taking a walk, walking a labyrinth, sitting quietly, quieting your mind, centering, silence, lectio divina which is a method in which you read the same scripture passage multiple times and reflect on it, music, singing, volunteering, witnessing, listening, yoga, meditation, reading, even petting your dog or cat can quiet you and help you pay attention to God. It all has to do with focusing your mind, being calm, being aware, paying attention (not hyper-vigilant, just calmly observant), and being open to God’s presence and movement in your life. When is the last time you contemplated God?

            One piece of good news from everything closing and mostly staying home is that you probably have a little more time on your hands now. You have a choice about how to spend that more time: busy and distracted and anxious, or sitting at Jesus’ feet, calm, and at peace. One of the posts going around Facebook is about the idea of treating this time like an extended Sabbath. Use this extra time to reconnect with God. I thought it was fitting at the beginning of Lent when we were just starting this series on Busy: Reconnecting with an Unhurried God, because I was in the middle of an extra-busy season myself yet I had chosen this series back in August when I went on that worship planning retreat. God knew I was going to be preaching to myself just as much as to you. And now, here we are, being forced to slow down, to be less busy, to stop rushing from activity to activity. In case you’d been resisting slowing down, now you have to. So use this time wisely.

I have one more thing to share with you, a contemplative practice that I’ve begun doing over the past week. It’s called the Sacred Ordinary Days planner that a colleague told me about a few weeks ago. I was late to the party and so I ordered the pdf  version to download and print. I was so busy, I had it for two weeks before I started using it. It has the Daily Office readings, which goes through the Bible in a two year cycle, a calendar, a short prayer for each day, space to journal, Sunday’s lectionary readings, and a weekly reflection, called the prayer of examen. The past week that I have been using this I have found myself calmer. I have found myself reading more Scripture, because I’m adding those readings to what I was already reading. I am reflecting more. I’m spending more time tuned in and connected to God. I’m having to carve out the time to do it, but I’m doing it. And I can tell a difference. I pray that you may also be more tuned in to God during this season, reconnect yourself, fill your cup back up to overflowing, and be ready to share out of the overflow when need arises. Amen.

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[1] www.worshipdesignstudio.com worship series “Busy”

The Flying Turtle

(Writing with my children #2, March 18, 2020)

Left: This is a flying turtle and there is a one-eyed monster. Right: What do you call a turtle with wings? A flying turtle!

Once upon a time, there was a flying turtle. At a glance, she looked like an ordinary green turtle. Average size, average shade of green. But, if she needed to get away from a predator in a hurry, she had...

(Before I could decide how to describe her wings, the kids finished their writing and it was time to move on. So, later that day...)

I couldn't decide whether to make the wings realistic or not. I wanted to make them big, leathery, powerful wings, easily able to carry a turtle's weight (which is heavier than a bird's weight). But then you couldn't really fold wings like that down and make them un-noticeable. The other option was lighter wings, like a feather or fairy wings, almost translucent and fragile. But I didn't want fragile, light wings, I wanted sturdy powerful ones, and you can't have it both ways unless there's some magic involved and you move from sci-fi to fantasy. I'm always mindful from my husband (the biologist) how good sci-fi makes sense from a biology standpoint - you don't give a big monster itty-bitty feet that wouldn't realistically be able to support its weight, or the creature in the "Star Trek" reboot that's bright red in a world of white, because biologically, it wouldn't survive predators nor be able to hunt prey sticking out like that.

Anyway, a balance between realism and sci-fi is where I got stuck, because I wanted the wings to somehow blend in to the turtle, but wings and turtle shells don't mix and I don't know how the shell could hide or store the wings.

A mix between realism and fear is where we are today and there are some hard decisions to be made.

Fairies

(While my children are home from school, we're reading, writing, and doing math each day. When they write, I write, too :-) This is today's writing.)

My daughter LOVES fairies. Her first grade teacher introduced her to the Magic Fairies books and she has DEVOURED them. She's read all of her teacher's collection and probably most of the library's. what amazes me most is that she REREADS the books! She doesn't just read one book in this seemingly never-ending series (there are rainbow fairies, jewel fairies, animal fairies, food fairies, etc.), she reads each book multiple times!

I've read one of the books, "May the Panda Fairy." We were both excited to find this book at the library because the panda bear is both of our favorite animals. And I figured I ought to read one book of this series that she's obsessed with. So, about an hour after we returned from that library trip I found the book with a note on top, " Mom you can read this book." It was cute, predictable, and I don't think the plot varies much from book to book. But, she loves them.

My daughter's and son's writing and drawing on the theme of fairies. Daisy Meadows is the author of the Magic Fairy books.

Busy: Preparing a Table

2^nd Sunday in Lent

March 8, 2020

Psalm 23; Philippians 1:1-11

            Anxiety. If you have been out and about this past week, you’ll notice that our anxiety level as a society has gone up. You can feel it walking into a store. A mild winter with tastes of spring is making us more anxious for spring to arrive and stay. Super Tuesday and another election cycle are causing anxiety. And the coronavirus, which hit Maryland a few days ago, has put us even more on edge. Some of us work in Montgomery County, drive through it, or go to doctors’ appointments in it. We’re stockpiling toilet paper and soap, not milk and eggs like for a blizzard. Our anxiety level has increased and it’s pulling us away from other people. There’s an increase in racist incidents against Asians and Asian-Americans. We’re not traveling. We’re not sure we want to be around other people, lest you get us sick. We even implemented a few safeguards at our Wednesday evening service here, some of which we’ll continue and others which we won’t. For example, every winter we give you permission not to shake hands when we exchange the peace. That comes up every cold and flu season. As adults, it’s your call as to how you want to greet your neighbor. Yet it’s important that we do greet our neighbor and not turn away from them. One practice I’m not going to continue is wearing gloves while serving the bread. Here’s my sacramental theology: as long as I’m not sick and I don’t cough or sneeze on the elements and my hands are clean, then you’re not going to get sick from receiving the Eucharist. The bread and the cup have been blessed; they are holy. They are no longer simply bread and wine but signs of Christ’s body and blood, broken and poured out for us. This is where public health policy and theology meet. Public health practices say wear gloves whenever serving food. But communion isn’t an ordinary meal nor are you customers paying for the meal. We are family gathered around the table to receive a holy sacrament together. It’s a place where Jesus meets us. And, personally, I don’t believe I’m going to get sick from taking communion. Jesus and communion are about health and wholeness and restoration. Jesus’ body is broken so that we may become whole. That’s my sacramental theology around communion.

            Communion is another place where we gather together, where we turn toward each other and not away. Any good meal is like that, really. Think of a really good meal you recently enjoyed. Picture the details: the food, the table, where you were, who you were with. If it was a really good meal, chances are good you weren’t dining alone. There is something about eating together that feeds us more than just the actual food. “At the table, we share stories, build upon relationships, learn from each other’s mistakes and triumphs.”[1] A few months ago in my house we started sharing our rosebuds and thorns for each day, an idea I read in a children’s ministry email and which my kids have really taken to. If you ask a child how their day was, they’re going to give you a one-word answer. With rosebuds and thorns, we tell each other stories about our day and the things that stuck out, and the dinner table is the space we have together to do that. Time together at the table creates bonds and “benefits every aspect of our wellbeing — emotionally, physically, socially, occupationally, spiritually, intellectually and mentally – which all acts and interacts in a way that contributes to our overall quality of life.”[2]

            We have a bit of a loneliness epidemic in our country, which only gets worse during times of a pandemic scare. It makes us isolate ourselves even more, and while isolation can be for good reasons, it can still make you lonely. God made us to be in community with each other, and when we’re not, we feel that missing. You know I’ve been meeting with the other clergy who serve in our community, across denominations, and one of the top needs we’ve identified in our community is isolation and loneliness. Some of y’all have grown up here and always lived here. Other folks move out here for the space and to not have neighbors right on top of them. Again, it’s a good reason, but an unintended downside is loneliness, especially if you’re new. Making friends as an adult is hard, partly because we’re busier, which is our theme for this Lent. We’re hungry for company, but we don’t know how to ask or where to find time. We’re afraid of rejection. We’re afraid of getting sick. My husband and I recently found out that our next door neighbors enjoy one of the same board games that we do, Catan. And then our neighbor hesitantly asked if we like Vietnamese food, because his in-laws are Vietnamese. It’s not something we’ve eaten a lot of but we’re willing to try it. Now I just have to text them to set up a date!

            In Psalm 23 we read that God prepares a table for us. God prepares a table for us. We don’t even have to cook the food, much less set the table! God prepares the table. At the table, around food, we tend to relax. We are more at ease. We’re generally less hurried. Yet Psalm 23 also recalls the dark valleys, “yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,” and calls us into the not-so-easy practice of sitting down at the table with our enemies. What was the awkwardest meal you’ve ever had? If it was awkward, changes are good you weren’t eating by yourself then, either. Was it something that was said? Was it because of the surrounding circumstances? Was someone trying to sell you something? Or convince you of something? “God prepares a table for us in the presence of our enemies.” In the midst of this familiar and comforting psalm, God talks about the people we don’t like and we’re going to eat a meal with them! Wouldn’t it be better if it were, “God prepares a table for us in the presence of our family,” or “God prepares a table for us in the presence of our friends”? But no, God prepares a table for us in the presence of our enemies. We sit down to eat with people who might get us sick. We sit down to eat with people who don’t think the same way we do. We sit down to eat with people who we don’t want to be around. That’s part of why sometimes we prefer isolation, right? Better alone than with that person! But what does Jesus say? “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.”[3] “Greater love has no one than this, to lay down your life for your friends.”[4] And you may say, “Aha! Jesus said friends!” Well, 1 John expounds upon that and says, “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.”[5] Lest you forget who your neighbor is, that question is answered by the parable Jesus tells about the good Samaritan. The person least wanted around, the person most hated because of his ethnicity and religion, that’s who helped the man who was beaten up and left on the side of the road for dead. That’s who your neighbor, your brother and sister, and your friend are. God prepares a table for us in the presence of our enemies. And we have to deal with it, because the good news is that an unhurried God is present with us in the good times and in the difficult times and invites us to be radically present to each other in the same way.

            Paul wrote the letter to the Philippians while literally eating with his enemies: he and Timothy were in jail. Jail in the ancient world was even more vulnerable than today because then you relied on friends outside for basic needs like food and blankets. From that place, Paul wrote to the whole church in Philippi, not just his friends, not just the ones with whom he got along better or had more in common with, but the whole church. He wrote, “I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus… whether I am in chains or [not], all of you share in God’s grace with me… And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.” From a place of vulnerability, from a place of daily eating with his enemies, if he eats at all, Paul’s prayer is for the Philippians to increase in love; that their love might just keep growing and flourishing and overflowing.

            You know what else overflows? That cup at the table that God prepared. “You prepare a table for me in the midst of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil. My cup overflows.” My cup isn’t just full; that usually means I’m busy, right? I’ve got a full plate. Well, I don’t have a full cup; I have an overflowing cup. It is spilling over and running down the sides and over my hand and there’s generally two reactions to that. One is to get mad because of the mess and put the cup down so that you can clean up the mess. Or you can laugh at the absurdity of it, take joy in an overflowing cup. Maybe try to sip it down a little. Not be anxious about the mess but rather enjoying the over-abundance that God provides. This week, make it a point to eat with others, especially if you don’t usually. Invite someone over. We’re not in quarantine. Use reasonable precautions like hand-washing and covering your mouth if you cough. Let us draw together, turn toward each other and not away. May your cup overflow with joy, and temper down that rising anxiety that is around us, so that we might be beacons of peace during this season.

 (Worship series "Busy" from worshipdesignstudio.com)

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[1] https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/apr/14/health-benefits-eating-together/

[2] Ibid.

[3] Matthew 5:44

[4] John 15:13

[5] 1 John 3:16

Busy: The Right Tempo

1^st Sunday in Lent

March 1, 2020

1 Kings 8:54-61; Matthew 11:28-30

            What rhythm of life works for you? How do you know when your rhythm’s too fast? Or, maybe it’s too slow. What if you don’t have a rhythm and you’re just going from one fire to the next? I have always said that if I don’t have time to read for fun, then I’m too busy. What’s your marker or indicator that your rhythm is off and not life-giving?

            We read in both Scriptures this morning about rest. Jesus says, “Come to me, all you who are weary, struggling and carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest.” It sounds wonderful, doesn’t it? Then I paired it this morning with the passage from 1 Kings. This is from after King Solomon has built the temple, the first temple, the original one. After it’s built, the Ark of the Covenant is brought in, that structure that was how the Israelites knew God was with them everywhere they traveled. Then Solomon offers God a lengthy prayer of dedication of the temple, including praise for all that God had already done for them. One piece of that is the line we read, “Praise be to the Lord, who has given rest to the people Israel just as the Lord promised.” Isn’t it wonderful when God’s promises come true? The Israelites wandered for forty years before finally entering the Promised Land. They went through a series of leaders, first judges and then kings. It wasn’t until the third king, Solomon, that a temple is built, a place for the people to gather to worship God. The people are now fully settled, entering into the rest that God promised them.

            What’s interesting is how we go about getting that rest. Jesus says, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Now, a yoke is a wooden beam normally used between a pair of oxen or other animals to enable them to pull together on a load when working in pairs, like oxen usually do; although yokes can also be fitted to a single animal as well. So what does it mean to have an easy yoke? It means it fits well. It’s not choking you at the neck so you can’t breathe; it’s not weighing you down so you can hardly lift your head. It’s probably, however, not so light that you don’t notice its presence. When an animal wears a yoke, it’s because the animal has specific work to do and the work may be hard. Jesus never promises that the yoke would literally be easy; that’s a mistranslation. In this context of yoking oxen, the translation means ‘well fitting.’ As we begin our Lenten season and our series on Busy, we discover that each of us has a tempo that fits well, that energizes us. What is that tempo? What’s the rhythm that gives you life and energy? What tempo of life feels toxic to you? What is the cost?

            For an example from pop culture, I’m reminded of a song that came out in 1974, “Cat’s in the Cradle.” Anyone familiar with that song? The refrain goes, “The cat’s in the cradle and the silver spoon/ Little boy blue and the man in the moon/ “When you coming home, dad?” “I don't know when”/But we'll get together then/You know we'll have a good time then.” Basically, the father is too busy for his son the entire time the son is growing up. And then when the son is grown up and the father is retired, the tables are turned. The father wants to spend time with his son but his son is now too busy for him and the father realizes that his boy is just like him; the son grew up to be just like his father. There’s a cost when your rhythm is off-kilter. The cost may be a relationship. It may be your health, physical, mental, or spiritual. But when you don’t pay attention to the rhythm of your life and put in the hard work to keep it one that fits you well and energizes you, then other things get out of kilter as well.

One thing to acknowledge is that there are different tempos for different seasons of life. For example, right now is a very busy season for CPA’s, accountants, and for those who work with them and live with them. It’s a different tempo than the rest of the year for them. Other professions have similar busy seasons, and you prepare for them and you plan vacations or other ways to celebrate when they end. There are right tempos for right times and it’s important to figure out what the right tempo is when you change seasons. For students and educators the rhythm of the school year is different from summer break. When you have a major change in your health, you have to adjust your rhythm to figure out what’s going work best with how life is now. Life changes and what works in one season is not going to work as well in another season.

In the Bible paraphrase, The Message, Eugene Peterson does something pretty interesting in both of our Scriptures. For Matthew, he interprets Jesus to say, “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” I love that middle phrase, “Learn the unforced rhythms of grace.” When you have to work at a rhythm, it’s probably not the best fit for you. The right tempo for your life isn’t going to feel like work; it’s going to feel more natural. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace.

Then, King Solomon’s prayer becomes “Blessed be God, who has given peace to his people Israel just as he said he’d do… May the Lord keep us centered and devoted to him, following the life path he has cleared, watching the signposts, walking at the pace and rhythms he laid down for our ancestors.” What are the rhythms that were laid down? A Sabbath, resting from work one day a week; a Sabbath year every seventh year for the land for the land to rest; 7 times 7, making the 50^th year a year of Jubilee and liberation when everyone returns to their own property, remembering that the land really belongs to God.

The right rhythm is going to give you life and energy. It’s going to fit well and energize you. It’s going to be a rhythm that includes time for prayer and time for work, time for self-care and time to serve others. It’s not going to be too busy.

There was one more song going through my head while preparing today’s sermon. It’s a song called “Little Man” released in 1997 by the O.C. Supertones, one of the earliest Contemporary Christian rock groups, considered alternative and indie.

Lookin' out for number ones's a full time occupation

I'll give to me myself and I my own salvation

Some people try to tell me God can save me from my sin

But God can take a number and I'll pencil Him in

Busy oh so busy I got no time to search

My Sunday's are all booked I've got no time for church

That's for those poor souls, dry as a stone

God bless this child 'cause this child's got His own.

Oh, let my pride fall down I'm a little man

            Well, this Lent we are going to let our pride fall down and make time. We’re not going to pencil God in; we’re going to write the time in in ink! Let us slow down and make time now to pray...

(Worship series "Busy" from worshipdesignstudio.com)