Monthly Archives: July 2022
“A God Who Does More than We Can Ask or Think”
“20 Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. 21 Glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever! Amen.” (Ephesians 3:20-21, New Living Translation)
I know that there is a lot that I can’t do. I think that I frequently make God in my own image. However, a “god” made in my image is a very small god indeed. On the other hand, the Apostle Paul had a God who was extremely powerful, wise, and loving.
The quote from Ephesians that leads off this post are the verses of the day in the YouVersion app. As the author of the story that comments on these verses notes, when read in its context, these verses are not primarily about God’s power in the lives of individuals. Instead, the context invites us to realize God’s power to overcome really serious divisions in our society. In Paul’s day, this was the division between Jews and Gentiles (Ephesians 3:1-19).
The author of the comments on these verses in the YouVersion notes that this would be like Yankees fans and Red Sox fans loving one another, or like Democrats and Republicans actually valuing one another.
Now that’s power! It is a power that only God has. Yet God also gives such power to us. It is, according to Paul, God’s “. . . mighty power at work within us . . .”! If we are to love people who are “not like us” (and who is like us, when it comes down to it?), we will need this power. If we try to work up a power like that, the divisions will go on their not-so-merry way, dividing us from everyone else, God, and our own better selves.
Only God can bring oneness into our divided hearts and world.
“Hallowing God’s Name is God’s Business. Our Business is to Pray”
Is our business as Christians to make God’s name holy?
No and yes. And the “No” needs to come first.
Here is a long quote from Karl Barth that sets out what we must be doing. Barth is discussing the words addressed to God “hallowed by your name” in the Lord’s Prayer.
“It is clear that we pray in the midst of our present in which God’s name is not hallowed but is desecrated in the world and even in the church and our own lives as Christians by the division which dominates all things. But now we are not abandoned to the scandal and evil of this division nor thrown back on our own resources. We are not directed either to sink into a hopeless silence or assault the clouded and covered heavens with hysterical cries of protest and distress and appeals for help. Jesus Christ lived once, but not only once. As the one who lived once, he also lives today, even in this confused present of ours. As he forbids us to come to terms with our confusion, he does not leave us stuck in our impasse in relation to it, but shows us the way out by ordering us to turn to God with the request that he himself will take in hand the sanctifying of his name.” (Karl Barth, The Christian Life, translated by Geoffrey W. Bromiley (New York: Bloomsbury, 2017), p. 237. Italics mine.)
I don’t always (ever?) entirely understand Barth, but I think what he is saying is this: Only God can make God’s name holy. The world won’t and the church can’t. In fact, the church can and does frequently bring shame on the name of God. We do so by our inconsistent behavior—as well as by venting our spleen and calling it speaking the truth.
So, if God’s name is to be holy, it must be God who does it. However, we are given the task of praying that God will do precisely that. And as we take the posture of humility and pray, perhaps we will also find that we do a better job of living holier, more consistent lives—even in this confused present.
“Refraining from Complaining”
“From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom. And the people became impatient on the way. 5 And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.” 6 Then the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died. 7 And the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD and against you. Pray to the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. 8 And the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” 9 So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live.” (Numbers 31:4-10, English Standard Version)
“Everybody complains about the weather, but nobody is doing anything about it.” (A common saying.)
“Can’t complain, but sometimes I do.” (Another common saying, and possibly part of the lyrics to a song I can’t quite recall.)
My affirmation for today is this: “Today, by God’s grace, I am choosing to refrain from complaining about anything or anyone.”
I started to add the words, “It is not going to be easy.” However, I caught myself before I did so. It occurred to me that I was about to complain about how hard it was not to complain. Complaining about my tendency to complain is part of the complaining loop.
I just read a bit about the positive aspects of complaining in a prestigious psychological journal. However, even in this article, the author acknowledged the many negative aspects of complaining.
The truth is that complaining can even harm us physically. Apparently, complaining releases cortisol into our system, and cortisol triggers stress. So, you may think that you’re decreasing your stress by complaining, but you’re not; you are actually increasing it.
None of us likes to be around a person who complains a lot. Guess what! If you are the complainer, you are probably around yourself a lot. But, like body odor, we can’t smell the stench of our own complaints.
So, in the midst of writing this post, my sponsor (to whom I send my report and daily affirmation) responded, “What do you think about _____________?” The blank wasn’t a blank. I added the blank. Let it suffice that there was a name of a person whom I do not care for. Suddenly, I was confronted with my tendency to complain about this person.
My reply to my sponsor was as follows, again with blank where a name would be.
“I am trying to use _____________’s frequent attitudes, words, and behavior to give me some insights into myself during my own not-so-good times.”
Perhaps this gives me some notion of how to use my own grinchy tendency in a healthy fashion. I can use the things and people that I am inclined to complain about to give me a doorway to work on some things that need to be changed in me.
And a final thought: For me, as a person who says he believes in a good God who supplies everything I need, complaining is also a practical form of atheism. Complaining that I don’t have enough time, money, prestige, or anything else is a practical denial of what I am only theoretically believing.
And then there are also the snakes.
“Willing to Submit my Will”
“Not my will, but yours, be done.” (Jesus, praying in the Garden of Gethsemane, just before his death and crucifixion)
“Not your will, but mine, be done.” (My prayers most of the time)
The simplest insights can bring me up short. They can also help me to stand a little bit taller and to walk a little bit straighter.
An Italian psychologist that I had not heard of until today said some very simple and profound things about the human will. In an interview with Sam Keen of Psychology Today, Roberto Assagioli asserted the following:
‘The will is not merely assertive, aggressive, and controlling. There is the accepting will, yielding will, the dedicated will. You might say that there is a feminine polarity to the will – the willing surrender, the joyful acceptance of the other functions of the personality.’” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roberto_Assagioli, accessed 07-28-22)
Assagioli had not had an easy life in some ways. He had been imprisoned in solitary confinement for 27 days by Benito Mussolini for “praying for peace and inviting others to join him along with other international crimes.” After his release, he went into hiding in the Alps. His young son died there, likely due to their living conditions.
Assagioli was almost eighty-two years old when he did this interview. He would die the following August after the interview.
At the end of the interview, the interviewer, Keen, concluded:
“It is hard to know what counts as evidence for the validity of a world view and the therapeutic it entails. Every form of therapy has dramatic successes and just as dramatic failures. Enter as evidence in the case for psychosynthesis an ad hominem argument: in speaking about death there was no change in the tone or intensity of Assagioli’s voice and the light still played in his dark eyes, and his mouth was never very far from a smile.”
To be willing to yield—even to death—is an amazing use of the will.
In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus used his will to submit to the will of his Heavenly Father. He told God what he wanted, but Jesus also bowed to the will of God. Many people believe that Jesus’ willing submission to the will the God has transformed their lives. I am one of those people.
Oh God, help me to use my will wisely today, whether that means exercising my assertive will or my submissive will. Amen!
“Working with The Gift”
Most real things in life are simple. However, these simple things are almost always inherently complex. Take life, for example. There are lots of verses in the Bible that indicate that life is a gift. There are many others that point out that life is a task. Sometimes, this gift-life combination is spoken in the same breath. Here are two samples.
“See, I have set the land before you. Go in and take possession of the land that the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give to them and to their offspring after them.’” (Deuteronomy 1:8, English Standard Version) The land was given to Israel, but they still had to go in and possess it.
“Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work forhis good pleasure.” (Philippians 2:12-13, English Standard Version) We are to work out the gift that God has worked into us.
One of my twelve-step readings today was particularly helpful for setting this gift-and-work tone for the day. It is from a book titled Touchstones, published by Hazelden.
“Wednesday, July 27
You cannot get it by taking thought;
You cannot seek it by not taking thought.
—Zenrin poem
We are transported into unfamiliar worlds in this program by ideas that sometimes confound our mind. In the spiritual realms we learn things we didn’t learn anywhere else, and gradually they bring us peace. We can decide with our will to follow a spiritual direction, to turn our life and will over to the care of our God. We cannot control what God will do with them. When we learn that part of our problem was trying too hard, being too self-sufficient, or being too controlling, our old ways tell us to try hard to control that. But then we are only doing more of the same old thing. We learn that after making our decision, our Higher Power takes over. Now it is possible to be released from our own trying, to move beyond our own efforts by falling into the caring hand of God.
I must give this program first priority in my life, remembering my spiritual progress comes as a gift, not as an achievement.” (From Touchstones: A Book of Daily Meditations for Men.)
I was especially struck by the following sentences: “When we learn that part of our problem was trying too hard, being too self-sufficient, or being too controlling, our old ways tell us to try hard to control that. But then we are only doing more of the same old thing.”
Yes! I have often been guilty of trying to control the realization that I am not in control. I am like a dog chasing his own tail. I may be getting exercise, but I’m not really getting anywhere.
Life is hard work. Life is also a gift. When I am lazy and discontented (and discontentment is laziness for me frequently), I need to get busy and do the hard work. But when I get too focused on working hard (and do that occasionally), I need to call to mind the truth that life is a gift.
Don’t chase your own spiritual tail today, dear friends. Instead, fall into the hands of our (and your) loving God. Once you’ve done that, you’re ready to work diligently through the day.
“Self-Discipline: The Good, the Bad, and the Very Very Ugly”
“22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; . . . .” (Galatians 5:22-23, English Standard Version)
Usually, I think of self-discipline as a good thing. However, in a recent twelve-step meeting, a couple of people pointed out that it ain’t necessarily so.
One of my fellow-addicts said that, for him, a rigid self-discipline and a tight schedule were ways of avoiding reality. And (of course) all that addicts ever want out of reality is out—out of reality, that is. Another twelve-stepper commented that acquiring self-discipline is, in a sense, part of the problem. What we really need to acquire is humility.
It is true that sometimes people use self-control in unhealthy ways. They can use their own self-control to manipulate and control others. (“I am losing weight. Why aren’t you?”) Also, people can use self-control in one area—or even in many areas—of their life to justify being out of control in another. (“Sure, I drink too much, but I always show up for work on time.”) I’m sure that there are other ways of misusing self-control. There are always many ways of turning our virtues into vices. Humans are quite adept at this.
This doesn’t mean that self-control is inherently a bad thing. It does mean that self-control can be used in misguided ways. Perhaps this is why, in Paul’s list of the fruit of the Spirit in his letter to the Galatian Christ-followers, Paul mentions self-control last. Maybe it is only as we cultivate love (which leads off the list) and all the other virtues in the list that self-control assumes its proper role in our lives.
“When Joyous Truth Stands Before Us”
“Psa. 100:1 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth!
2 Serve the LORD with gladness!
Come into his presence with singing!
Psa. 100:3 Know that the LORD, he is God!
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Psa. 100:4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him; bless his name!
Psa. 100:5 For the LORD is good;
his steadfast love endures forever,
and his faithfulness to all generations.” (Psalm 100, English Standard Version)
I had the privilege of hearing a good sermon from my nephew, Caleb, on Psalm 100 yesterday. He said many good things and said them well. One of the things that he did was to connect truth and joy. Or, rather, he pointed out that truth and joy are connected.
Psalm 100 is full of joy. And that joy is not optional. As Caleb pointed out, joy is commanded in this psalm. But there is a good reason for this joy. The LORD is good (verse 5) with a goodness that is absolutely rock-solidly faithful. The psalmist speaks of two ways in which God’s goodness is made known to us: God’s “steadfast love” and God’s “faithfulness”. (In the King James Version, the translation of these two Hebrew words are “mercy” and “truth”.)
The Hebrew word that is translated as “truth” in the King James Version isʾᵉmûnāṯô. “Truth” is certainly one possible translation of this Hebrew word, but the word is so rich that it is almost untranslatable. It relates to God’s faithfulness in support of us ornery cusses. It is the opposite of fickleness.
Commenting on Jesus before Pilate and Pilate’s question “What is truth?” my nephew said something to the effect that “Truth doesn’t yell at us. It just stands before us.”
This truth (which is also named “God”) stands before us offering us mercy. To receive mercy/steadfast love and truth is a humbling and awesome thing. It is also a joyous thing.
However, I’m not sure that I had ever seen the connection between truth and joy as clearly as I did during Caleb’s sermon. I had always thought of truth as solemn—even grim. Thinking of truth as a bringer of joy sounds like a really appealing way of reframing truth.
One final thought: Both truth and mercy are attributes of God. According to the Bible, they are also expected of human beings. However, we humans need to remember that, first and foremost, they are aspects of who God is. This will keep us from the stupidity of thinking that we as individuals (or our little in-groups) somehow possess the truth. We don’t. If anything, Truth possesses us. And that’s where the joy is.
“Canine Potty Habits, Anger and Aristotle”
I do a reading from a twelve-step meditation book for some of my fellow-addicts each morning. Unbeknownst to me, I prepared for the reading by taking the dog out to do her business.
First, I should tell you a bit about our dog. She is several years old and is pretty good about doing her business outside—except when she isn’t. We still put down a pad in the hallway just in case. So, I got up early this morning (5:00 a.m.), put on the coffee, and went downstairs to take our little dog outside. I figured she was good to go (pun initially unintentional) since my wife had taken her out fairly late last night. I was mistaken.
I began to get angry, but I checked myself. “I’m not going to fly into a rage about this,” I told myself. And I didn’t.
I went upstairs, poured my coffee, opened the message app on my phone, brought up my text message group, and opened my twelve-book. Here is the epigraph, a quote from Aristotle, that began the reading:
“It is easy to fly into a passion—anybody can do that—but to be angry with the right person to the right extent and at the right time and with the right object and in the right way—that is not easy, and it is not everyone who can do it.”
Whoa!
The Bible says, “Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger;
for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. (James 1:19-20, English Standard Version)
Way too often, I get things all turned around. I am quick to speak and get angry and slow to hear. We talk a lot about “righteous anger”, but how often is our anger actually righteous? Very seldom, I suspect. We don’t handle our anger very well. In fact, we don’t handle it at all. Anger man-handles us.
DOWN TO EARTH BELIEVER
- DTEB, “Getting Christ and Ourselves Back in Focus” November 11, 2024“Col. 3:1 ¶ If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Col. 3:2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. Col. 3:3 For you have died, and your life is hidden […]
- “Search Me!” October 27, 2024“Psa. 139:23 Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! 24 And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!” (Psalm 139:23-24, English Standard Version) I am participating in a Bible study, and this is a prayer […]
- “Christian Speech” October 26, 2024“Eph. 4:29 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.” Foulkes, in his excellent commentary on the Book of Ephesians, writes the following, which I quote at some length: “29. Now the […]
- “God is in the Details” October 11, 2024“The devil is in the details.” (A general saying, often quoted by lawyers, reporters, and negotiators.) “God is in the details.” (Me, almost certainly not original.) “Luke 12:7 Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.” (Jesus) God does not micromanage, but God […]
- “Grandma’s Pump” October 8, 2024When I was a little critter, I would stay at my grandma’s house for a night or two sometimes. I liked this for a lot for many reasons. One thing I liked about staying with her was that Grandma’s house was much more technologically advanced than ours was. For one thing, she had indoor water—sort […]
- “Wearing the #14 Wrong-Side-Out” October 5, 2024Pete Rose, #14, is dead. Many of the old guys with whom I play softball watched him play and appreciated him greatly. I do as well. He was one of the greatest players who ever played the game. Yes, he admitted (eventually) to betting on baseball. But many of us still regard him as one […]
- “Passing Along the Love (and a Link)” October 4, 2024Several years ago, a friend of mine put me onto a daily meditation by Richard Rohr and friends. I don’t read them all the time, but I probably should. They are good! I thought that today’s writing was especially good, and I also figured that this would be a good way to post something. I […]
- “Witnessing Versus Being Witnesses” September 19, 2024“Acts 1:1 In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, Acts 1:2 until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. Acts 1:3 He presented himself alive to them after […]
- “A Bathroom Prayer for Hurting Hands” September 11, 2024A week ago Sunday, my hands were hurting so badly at church that I went to the bathroom to run hot water over my hands. Arthritis perhaps, or carpal tunnel, or general orneriness—I don’t know why my hands hurt, but they do. They have for years. So, while I was running hot water over my […]
- “Waiting and Seeking” September 10, 2024“Lam. 3:19 ¶ Remember my affliction and my wanderings, the wormwood and the gall! Lam. 3:20 My soul continually remembers it and is bowed down within me. Lam. 3:21 But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: Lam. 3:22 ¶ The steadfast love of the LORD […]
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