They are Us

A major news story in the religious community over the last week has been the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing of the Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove, California. The church, which sits on a 40-acre campus and once employed approximately 450 people, has been a mega-church icon for more than 50 years.  Once wildly successful by any human measurement, the church is now more than $46 million in debt, including an outstanding mortgage of $36 million.

At least one article documenting the bankruptcy filing included a link to a story about the rise and fall of Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker.  The author obviously perceived a common thread between the stories and was quick to point it out.
One common thread that no doubt exists is the bashing, from both inside and outside the global church, of the Bakker and Schulyer families.  

Fortunately, the rest of us are made from holier cloth.

Or not.

Non-Christians and Christians alike are swift to assign blame and make self-aggrandizing statements when larger than life figures fall from grace.  While some such statements may contain elements of truth, often the only real difference between "them" and "us" is that our ups and downs are not considered newsworthy.  Thank you, God!  Rather than join the chorus of nay-sayers and mockers, may we remember that there but for God's grace, go we.


Romans 15:1- 7  (The Message)

 ^1-2 Those of us who are strong and able in the faith need to step in and lend a hand to those who falter, and not just do what is most convenient for us. Strength is for service, not status. Each one of us needs to look after the good of the people around us, asking ourselves, "How can I help?"

 ^3-6That's exactly what Jesus did. He didn't make it easy for himself by avoiding people's troubles, but waded right in and helped out. "I took on the troubles of the troubled," is the way Scripture puts it. Even if it was written in Scripture long ago, you can be sure it's written for us. God wants the combination of his steady, constant calling and warm, personal counsel in Scripture to come to characterize us, keeping us alert for whatever he will do next. May our dependably steady and warmly personal God develop maturity in you so that you get along with each other as well as Jesus gets along with us all. Then we'll be a choir—not our voices only, but our very lives singing in harmony in a stunning anthem to the God and Father of our Master Jesus!

  
⁷So reach out and welcome one another to God's glory. Jesus did it; now you do it!

We are Takers

You are the giver of all good things.
   All good things are sent from heaven above,
      rain and sun,
      day and night,
      justice and righteousness,
      bread to the eater and
      seed to the sower,
      peace to the old,
      energy to the young,
      joy to the babes.
We are takers, who take from you,
   day by day, daily bread,
   taking all we need as you supply,
   taking in gratitude and wonder and joy.
And then taking more,
   taking more than we need,
   taking more than you give us,
   taking from our sisters and brothers,
   taking from the poor and the weak,
      taking because we are frightened, and so greedy,
      taking because we are anxious, and so fearful,
      taking because we are driven, and so uncaring.
Give us peace beyond our fear, and so end our greed.
Give us well-being beyond our anxiety, and so end our fear.
Give us abundance beyond our drivenness,
      and so end our uncaring.
Turn our taking into giving...since we are in your giving image:
   Make us giving like you,
         giving gladly and not taking,
         giving in abundance, not taking,
         giving in joy, not taking,
         giving as he gave himself up for us all,
         giving, never taking.  Amen.




Brueggemann, Walter.  (2003.)  Awed to Heaven, Rooted in Earth: Prayers of Walter Brueggemann.  Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Fortress.  P. 33.

Lightening and Rainbows

The fall rains have begun and today was a day of consistent drizzle with the occasional thunderstorm and downpour added in.  Early this evening, I stepped outside to come face to face with an incredible double rainbow.  The inside rainbow shone with brilliant and deep colors while the outside rainbow echoed in pastels.  As I stood and took it all in, a stunning crack of lightening, streaking in many different directions, broke into the scene.  

This shared image of lightening and rainbows immediately brought to my mind certain realities of our faith.  Everyone experiences storms of life, with flashes of stress and fear and worry streaking through their being. While the storm rages, its power seems insurmountable.  Into this chaos, however, God sends the rainbow, his reminder that he stands firm in his promises, never wavering in his awareness and protection of his creation.  The storm may continue on its course, but through it, God remains eternally faithful.

May the words of Isaiah 43: 1-4 (The Message) provide comfort and reassurance to you as the storms arise:
 
But now, God's Message, the God who made you in the first place, Jacob,
   the One who got you started, Israel:
"Don't be afraid, I've redeemed you.
   I've called your name. You're mine.
When you're in over your head, I'll be there with you.
   When you're in rough waters, you will not go down.
When you're between a rock and a hard place,
   it won't be a dead end—
Because I am God, your personal God,
   The Holy of Israel, your Savior.

Great Door of Love

Great Door of Love,
assure me of your protective presence
as I wander about the landscape of my life.
When I become lost, clear a path of hope.
May every seeking footstep of mine
take me through the doorway of your love.
Be my passageway today.  O, be my passageway.
I open the door of my heart to you.
I open the door.

Opener of Hearts,
you are the true guide of my life
helping me unlock every door that leads to you.
As I move amid the mystery of myself,
I seek to know your desires for my growth.
Keep showing me the way to you
as I turn to you with trust and with faith.
I open the door of my heart to you.
I open the door.


Rupp, Joyce. (2008.)  Open the door: The Journey to the True Self.  Notre Dame, Indiana: Sorin Books.  P. 24, 27.