Monthly Archives: August 2022
“Hoping for or Hoping in?”
“Psa. 42:0 To the choirmaster. A Maskil of the Sons of Korah.
Psa. 42:1 As a deer pants for flowing streams,
so pants my soul for you, O God.
2 My soul thirsts for God,
for the living God.
When shall I come and appear before God?
3 My tears have been my food
day and night,
while they say to me all the day long,
“Where is your God?”
4 These things I remember,
as I pour out my soul:
how I would go with the throng
and lead them in procession to the house of God
with glad shouts and songs of praise,
a multitude keeping festival.
Psa. 42:5 Why are you cast down, O my soul,
and why are you in turmoil within me?
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,
my salvation
6 and my God.
My soul is cast down within me;
therefore I remember you
from the land of Jordan and of Hermon,
from Mount Mizar.
7 Deep calls to deep
at the roar of your waterfalls;
all your breakers and your waves
have gone over me.
8 By day the LORD commands his steadfast love,
and at night his song is with me,
a prayer to the God of my life.
9 I say to God, my rock:
“Why have you forgotten me?
Why do I go mourning
because of the oppression of the enemy?”
10 As with a deadly wound in my bones,
my adversaries taunt me,
while they say to me all the day long,
“Where is your God?”
Psa. 42:11 Why are you cast down, O my soul,
and why are you in turmoil within me?
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,
my salvation and my God.” (Psalm 42, English Standard Version)
Sometimes, you have to talk to yourself—in addition to talking to God. In Psalm 42, the psalmist is doing both. It is a prayer, but it is also self-talk.
One of the things that the psalmist said to himself was a command. It is repeated twice in the psalm. He is talking to himself, to his own soul, and commanding his soul to hope in God. The English Standard Version turns a command into a determination. I am not convinced that this is the best translation. A command, and imperative, is not the same thing as a declaration in either English or Hebrew.
Sometimes, we need to not only talk to ourselves, but also to command ourselves. Hope is not an option for people who believe in God. It is essential.
But notice carefully: Here (and in many other Scriptures), hope isn’t about a what, but about a Who. Too often, we hope in particular whats. Some Scriptures do speak in that way. However, the lion’s share of references in the Bible talk about hoping in God. Hoping in particular whats makes a highly questionable assumption, the assumption that we know what we need. What if God has other ideas? What if God Himself is what/who we most need?
So, here is the deal: If you are hoping for particular outcomes, self, you may be entirely off-base. Perhaps you should just trust in God. Yes, I know it’s a radical concept, but you still might want to try it. After all, my dear self, hoping for particular outcomes doesn’t seem to be working all that well for you.
DTEB, “The Uncomfortable Bothness of Anger”
One of my twelve-step friends said very helpful thing to me the other day. “I know that anger is a huge red flag for me. I also know it’s super normal to get frustrated and angry sometimes. All these new spaces are so full of bothness, and it makes them uncomfortable to be in, but in truth, this too is the easier, softer way. This is the path to growth and joy and freedom.”
I love the word “bothness” even though my spell-checker flags it as not being a word. There are a lot of bothnesses in the world. Anger is a red flag, and anger is also super-normal. In fact, I believe that God gave us the gift of anger. Often, good change and growth are fueled by anger. This is true for both individuals and society. Almost every positive change is provoked by being provoked to anger.
But, as is always the case, good things can go horribly bad. The desire to alleviate pain is a good desire. Such desire can lead to positive changes in our diet and exercise. It is also one of the key components of the opioid addiction crisis.
In Ephesians 4:26, Paul says that we are to be angry and yet not sin. Some translations tone down the radical nature of what Paul is saying. “For example, The New Language Bible: The New Berkley Version translates the verse, “When you are angry, commit no sin . . . .”
However, in the original Greek, the word is in the imperative. The King James Version has it right: “Be ye angry, and sin not . . . .” Anger is not just commended; it is commanded!
But Paul, who was more into bothness than many of us are, follows up with the words “. . . and do not sin. Don’t let the sun go down on your wrath.” Anger is so good that it is commanded, but it is so strong that it has a statute of limitations, which is very short indeed.
Instead of either expressing or suppressing our anger, perhaps we need to slow our roll and ask ourselves (and God) some questions.
- Why am I really angry?
- Can I do something positive with this anger?
- If I can do something positive, what is it?
Neither blowing up nor bottling up is the best response to our anger. Recognizing the bothness of anger is exceedingly important. Anger is certainly uncomfortable, but as my friend pointed out, it is indeed “. . . the path to growth and joy and freedom.”
“Love: The Only True Adventure”
“Love God and love people like you love yourself.” (Jesus, my paraphrase)
“We are plain quiet folk and have no use for adventures. Nasty disturbing uncomfortable things! Make you late for dinner! I can’t think what anybody sees in them.” (J. R. R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, or There and Back Again)
One of my 12-step readings for today is as follows:
“Sunday, August 7
We love because it’s the only true adventure.
—Nikki Giovanni
In loving, we meet ourselves. As we have become more honest, we no longer make excuses about our relationship problems. We can’t blame our troubles on our partner. Our problems with love were often because we didn’t know how to be close or we didn’t dare to be.
When we let ourselves engage in this adventure, we meet many obstacles – things we can’t control, and sometimes we want to quit right there. We have arguments and disappointments as well as good feelings. But what adventure is without difficulty or surprises? Part of the reason for choosing new experiences is to confront forces outside our control. A relationship is a dialogue. Only if we stay with it through the frustrations, express our deepest feelings openly, and listen to our partner, do we achieve a new level of understanding and confidence in the relationship. Then deeper levels also open within ourselves.”
Today, I will let honesty guide me in this adventure of my love dialogue.” (From Touchstones: A Book of Daily Meditations for Men ©1986, 1991 by Hazelden Foundation.)
In the above reading, I was especially struck by the sentence “But what adventure is without difficulty or surprises?” The fact that I was struck by the sentence should not be construed to mean that I liked the sentence or the truth that it expresses. The truth is that I like easy and predictable. On the other hand, is easy-and-predictable really The Truth?
My wife likes Hallmark love stories. (I do too, but don’t tell my wife. Hopefully she won’t read this post.) Have you noticed that they generally end with the wedding? That is an excellent idea. Why? Because the difficulties and surprises begin after the wedding. It is difficult—verging on the impossible—to wrap a marriage up in a neat package and put a pretty bow on it. Having a beautiful wedding and a beautiful marriage are two very different things.
And, of course, most of every adventure consists of boring, demanding slogs through dismal country. Almost no one tells you that. However, that also is part of the adventure.
My affirmation for today is as follows: “Today, by God’s grace, I am daring to love myself, God, other people, and all creation.” It takes some daring. Even Hallmark shows have some difficulty and surprises as part of their script.
I hope that you have an adventuresome and loving day!
“How to Avoid Being a Tyrannical Hero”
“The hero of yesterday becomes the tyrant of tomorrow, unless he crucifies himself today.”
― Joseph Campbell, The Hero With a Thousand Faces (https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/971054-the-hero-with-a-thousand-faces, accessed 08-04-2022)
“I die daily.” (The Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:31, my translation)
Probably, we all would like to be the hero sometimes. Most of us who are over the age of thirty would be quick to moderate this heroic desire by saying, “Well, maybe in some small way, I would like to be a hero.”
Perhaps we should thank God that we aren’t heroes. Why? There is a simple answer: Today’s hero easily becomes tomorrow’s tyrant.
But no matter whether we are ever heroes or not, here is the thing: Today is the only day we’ve got. Since I am feeling very tired, old, and useless today, I am especially aware of this. Sometimes, just living the day and doing ordinary things is heroic enough. And avoiding being a tyrant today is also being a hero.
“On the Leash, Off the Leash, and Free in Both Cases!”
I learn a lot about God and myself from my dog. I’m not saying that my dog is well-trained, but I am saying that she is training me well.
Sometimes, I have to keep her on short leash. She doesn’t weigh very much, but she is really fast and more than a little willful—especially around cats, squirrels, and birds. If I give her too much freedom, even on the leash, her quick and sudden sprints could pull my arm clean out of joint. More importantly, she could break her own neck or run out in front of a car.
Sometimes, perhaps usually, I also need to be on a leash. Today, my 12-step affirmation was as follows:
“God is with me today, whether I like it or not. I am asking God today to keep me on a short leash whenever that is needed, and to allow me to run free whenever God knows that I can do that safely. I will return consciously to God, the source of my protection and freedom, often during the day.”
Well, I’m writing this post late in the day, and I really have no idea how I’ve done. I can think of several times that I needed a leash. I didn’t break my neck—nor anyone else’s, thank God! I didn’t run out in front of any cars, either. But I could think of several times when I wanted more freedom. But I wasn’t ready for freedom. I needed to be kept on a leash.
An ancient Israelite was warned by God, “Don’t be like a horse or a mule that have to be controlled by a bit and a bridle.” (Psalm 32:9, my translation.) Perhaps “Don’t be like a dog that needs to be controlled by a leash” would work too. In any case, I need to enroll myself in obedience school. Dogs aren’t the only ones who need some training. Other species could benefit from something like that as well.
“Thoughts on Our Forty-Ninth Wedding Anniversary”
I love my wife more than ever. I think that she has improved over time, but she was awful good, even when I married her. I think that the main reason I love her more is that I have improved. I suspect that nobody loves anybody because the one who is loved is better. No. If anybody loves anybody better, it is because the lover has grown.
I can think of 10,000 reasons why I married my sweetheart. I can only think of two reasons why she married me. The first is that she needed a fixer-upper to satisfy her creative instincts. She saw potential where it took a lot of guts to see. The second thing that I bring to the party is that I really and truly value her. I haven’t always shown that, but I think that she correctly intuited that I appreciated her. And I appreciate her more with each passing day.
To be young and in love is a wonderful thing. The poets and singers are right to praise such love. But to be old and more in love than ever is an even more wonderful thing.
Of course, as you grow older, your ways of expressing your love change a bit. Sharon demonstrated her love for me today by going to my Thursday morning senior softball game. I just learned today that my coach for the Thursday team and his wife (our score-keeper) were married on August 4 as well. They are celebrating sixty years of marriage. It makes me feel like a newlywed!
If I were asked the secret to a long and happy marriage, I would answer with a two-part response that sounds a little like a Buddhist koan: Marriage is an amazing free and gracious gift that requires incessant work. Today, I am most aware of the Gift. Tomorrow, I will get back to work.
“Redefining Losing”
“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33, New Living Translation)
These words, according to the Gospel of John, were spoken by Jesus’ disciples a few hours before the arrest, “trial” (if you can call it that), torture, and crucifixion of Jesus. In fact, the “all this” that Jesus had told his disciples included these horrible things. So, how on earth can Jesus speak of overcoming the world. It sounds more like Jesus is a loser to me.
Perhaps we need to redefine what it means to lose in the light of Jesus’ life, teachings, and death. Years ago, when everybody was talking about “yuppies” (young urban professionals), I saw one of them wearing a t-shirt that read: “The Winner is the one who dies with the most toys.” This struck me at the time as being inadequate to the point of laughter or tears or both. It still strikes me that way.
In the shadow of the cross, Jesus claimed to be able to give peace to his disciples. Jesus claimed that he had achieved a decisive victory—not over the Romans or the Jews, but over the whole world. In fact, the Greek word that is translated “I have overcome the world” is in the perfect tense. This conveys decisive action completed in the past, with ongoing results.
I freely admit that the world doesn’t look very conquered by Jesus, but appearances can be deceiving. Perhaps appearances are always deceiving. According to the earliest followers of Jesus, he was raised from the dead. That, among other things, should give us pause for thought about how to define losing.
DTEB, “The Most Important Day of Your Life: a Day Called ‘Today’”
“Psa. 95:1 ¶ Oh come, let us sing to the LORD;
let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!
Psa. 95:2 Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving;
let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!
Psa. 95:3 For the LORD is a great God,
and a great King above all gods.
Psa. 95:4 In his hand are the depths of the earth;
the heights of the mountains are his also.
Psa. 95:5 The sea is his, for he made it,
and his hands formed the dry land.
Psa. 95:6 ¶ Oh come, let us worship and bow down;
let us kneel before the LORD, our Maker!
Psa. 95:7 For he is our God,
and we are the people of his pasture,
and the sheep of his hand.
Today, if you hear his voice,
Psa. 95:8 do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah,
as on the day at Massah in the wilderness,
Psa. 95:9 when your fathers put me to the test
and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work.
Psa. 95:10 For forty years I loathed that generation
and said, “They are a people who go astray in their heart,
and they have not known my ways.”
Psa. 95:11 Therefore I swore in my wrath,
“They shall not enter my rest.”(Psalm 95, English Standard Version)
“Like Jesus, Today is often crucified between two thieves: Yesterday and Tomorrow.” (Source unknown)
The Bible talks a lot about today. Psalm 95 is a command to sing to the LORD. Ample reasons are given to do so. However, in verse 7, there is this crucial word “today”. “Today, if you hear his voice . . . .” Then the psalmist turns to history, an incident that happened on the way from Egypt to the promised land. After seeing many miracles in Egypt and along the way, the Israelites still didn’t really trust God. The problem wasn’t God. The problem was the human heart. Specifically, the Israelites “hardened their hearts” and grieved God.
The upshot of all this was that they put God to the test. They wanted to see even more miracles. They went astray, not geographically, but in their hearts. God got royally ticked off and swore an oath. “No rest for you!” he said.
How can a psalm that begins so positively end so negatively? Well, I guess that’s what happens when we willfully harden our hearts and go astray. Ancient Israel had no monopoly on such hardness and heart-straying. It can happen to any of us. Keeping a tender and grateful heart toward God is not easy, but if we want to enter into the rest that God gives, it is absolutely essential. It is a daily task. Why? Because our hearts can get hard and go astray in a day—or even a small part of the day. The most important day of our lives is always Today.
DTEB, “God the Recycler—and the Scavenger”
“Once you were dead, doomed forever because of your many sins. . . . But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so very much, that even while we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s special favor that you have been saved!) For he raised us from the dead along with Christ, and we are seated with him in the heavenly realms—all because we are one with Christ Jesus.” (Ephesians 2:1, 4-6)
My pastor made an intriguing comment in yesterday’s sermon about God being a Recycler. That is a wonderful metaphor for God. However, in my usual ADD manner, I let the metaphor run away with me. It occurred to me that God is not just a Recycler. God is also a Master Scavenger. I like to think of God in this way because I myself am a scavenger.
I grew up fairly poor, though I didn’t realize it until recently. I was taught to make do, to make repairs, and to do without. It was a good way to grow up, and I am profoundly grateful for it.
But even as an adult, my conservative—sometimes overly conservative—nature manifests itself on a regular basis. Usually, this happens on Wednesday mornings. There is a reason for this being my weekly scavenging day. Wednesdays are trash day in the really nice development across the road from us. I walk and pray and scavenge. What the folks across the road call “trash”, I call “Oh boy!” We’ve gotten a nice table, some golf clubs (we gave them away), and a couple of grills. Also, a nice bench and various and sundry other items.
Probably most of us humans sometimes feel as if we have been kicked to the curb. Or perhaps, we were carried there. It doesn’t even have to be Wednesday for us to feel as if we’ve been left for the garbage truck to pick up. We feel useless and unwanted and like has-beens that are ready for the trash bins. Sometimes some other human being comes along who values us, someone who likes the saying, “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.”
I think that God likes that saying, too. God is the Master Recycler. God is also the Supreme Scavenger.
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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