SOMETHING IS WRONG AND WE SEEM UNABLE OR UNWILLING TO FIX IT

Melinda Gates once said, “All lives have equal value.”

Nepal. As of this writing, more than 7,500 people dead, twice that number injured, 2.8 million displaced.

People are helping. Lutheran World Relief, the agency I know best, has responded with more than $1 million and continues to raise funds for additional help. LWR is also shipping 9,240 Quilts and 1,000 Personal Care Kits and 100 water filtration units so safe water is available.

Nations are helping: Switzerland, $18.6 million. Norway, $17.3 million. United Kingdom, $23 million. USA, $10 million. The list goes on.

But then along come Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao, and “the fight of the century.” All of a sudden the world begins to seem silly, stupid even. A $300 million payday. $180 million ($4.9 million per minute) to the winner. $120 million ($3.3 million per minute) to the guy who came in second. Three to four million people buying “pay-per-view” to watch two grown men hit each other. $10,000 to reserve a seat on the main floor of the hotel. $1,500 to sit in the worst seat in the house. $1,600 to stay for one night in the hotel where the fight took place.

Something is wrong with us.

In February of 2014, Tom Brokaw, well respected national news reporter and a South Dakota boy, was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a cancer affecting blood cells in the bone marrow. In December he announced that the cancer was in remission. He wrote these words: “My last year was a challenge, but I was meeting it in world class hospitals with brilliant physicians.”

I like Tom Brokaw, and I am glad the cancer is in remission, glad he had “brilliant physicians” in “world class hospitals.”

But what if everyone diagnosed with cancer could say the same? What if “the greatest nation in the world” figured out a way to provide health care for all who live in this country?

That is not a political question. It is a faith question.

Jesus, our Good Shepherd, said, “I came that my sheep may have life and have it abundantly.” Another translation reads, “. . . that they have life, and have it to the full.” (John 10:10)

So he gave sight to a blind man, caused a deaf man to hear, enabled a leper to be able to go home once again. The task of the Church is not only to announce God's forgiveness and proclaim the promise of heaven, we also work and give and teach in the hope that all God's children have an abundant, full life here on earth.

As the Church, as disciples of Jesus, we will help the neighbor when troubles come, like the tornado in Delmont or the earthquake in Nepal. We will send a few bucks to feed the hungry and ship quilts to people we will never meet.

But we will also strive to figure out a way to pay people a decent wage and we will work toward the goal of available quality health care for everyone, regardless of income or status. We will work to stop domestic violence and we will demand that all people be treated with respect.

Will we succeed? Probably not. But shame on us if we don't give it our best shot.

Horace Mann (1796-1859) said, “Be ashamed to die until you have won some victory for humanity.”

Jesus came into this world because something is wrong with us. He came to open our eyes to see that truth, and to give us the courage to work to fix it. In the Bible, God is always telling us not to be afraid. I believe that word is not just about being afraid of what goes bump in the night, but also about not being afraid to do that which is right and good, even when it is hard, maybe impossible.

There is a story in the Bible about a man who runs up to Jesus and asks, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus asks him if he has kept the commandments of God. The man says, yes, since I was a child. Then, “Jesus, looking at him, loved and said, 'You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor . . .'” (Mark 10:17-21)

What must I do, asks the young man, what must I do to be as one with Jesus, to be a citizen in God's kingdom? What must I do to be whole, complete?

Give to the poor, Jesus says. Give to the poor.

Gary

When my father left the farm in North Dakota at the age of 37, and moved west to work in a paper mill, he was able to wash the dirt from under his fingernails but never from his soul. For the next 48 years he kept up with the price of oats and barley, and read the Rugby weekly newspaper. And when he settled in Washington state, he bought a house in the country, which sat on a hilly 2 ½ acres of land covered with trees, wild grass, blackberry bushes, and thistles. My father was at constant war with those thistles. It was land that would not be farmed, but one could keep a few sheep and a couple of goats for the sake of memory and loss.

I was, at times, the shepherd of those sheep. There was a creek which ran next to our land, at the bottom of the hill on the south side. It was never deep or wide, so if one wanted, it could be walked across. One day those sheep tried and got stuck in the middle of that muddy creek. I found them that way and knew I had to get them out. I was alone in the task, but with some effort and time, I finally succeeded to getting them back to dry land.

Later that sane day, I went to check on them, and found them in the middle of that same creek, stuck pretty much in the same spot.

I do not remember if it was that summer or another, but one day I went looking for those sheep and found their bodies in the corner of a fence line. That is where the wild dogs finally caught them and ripped their throats out.

It has been thought that sheep are not intelligent, and they do fall below the pig and are on par with the cow in IQ. But they have this: they stick together, and they recognize the faces of other sheep and remember those faces for years. And this too, they recognize the faces of human beings.

So Jesus says of his sheep, “I know my own and my own know me.”

his name is Jesus

and he is lamb

and he is shepherd

sent by God

for he is son

born among us

so God came

this gentle one

he is lamb

and he is shepherd

lamb of God

without spot

nor blemish

yet slaughtered

yet slain

yet dead

lamb of God

now shepherd

of the earth

now prince

of peace

now risen

from the dead

he is lamb

and he is shepherd

searching for the

lost and scattered ones

lost in hunger

lost in fear

lost in sadness

longing for

a shepherd's voice

to hear

he is lamb

and he is shepherd

leading us

with grace filled

words

words of peace

words of justice

words of welcome

he is lamb

and he is shepherd

see him now with

eyes of faith

for still he comforts

still he leads us

hold him close

this lamb of God

follow him still

this good shepherd

we are sheep

and we are shepherds

sometimes lost

and scattered too

yet we seek

to find

the missing

the wounded

the broken

to listen

to heal

to forgive

because we have been

found

and healed

and forgiven

his name is Jesus

and he is lamb

and he is shepherd

and he is good

Gary

Thomas

Thomas came to church

the Sunday after Easter

and Jesus was still there.

To his amazement

he discovered

he did not

need to touch him.

Presence

was sufficient.

Word

was grace.

And Thomas

believed.

Gary

Stupidity

Stupidity is a more dangerous enemy of the good than evil is. Against evil, one can protest; it can be exposed and, if necessary, stopped with force. Evil always carries the seed of its own self-destruction, because it at least leaves people with a feeling of uneasiness. But against stupidity, we are defenseless. Neither with protest nor with force can we do anything here; reasons have no effect. Facts that contradict one’s own prejudice need only to be disbelieved – in such cases stupid people even become critical, and when facts are unavoidable, they can simply be swept aside as meaningless isolated cases. Stupid people, in contrast to evil ones, are satisfied with themselves. Indeed, they become dangerous in that they may easily be stimulated to go on the attack. Therefore, more care must be taken in regard to stupidity than to evil…  

Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Climate change is not a matter of faith.  It is a matter of science.  It is amazing and sad to listen to people elected to public office, who have a responsibility of making laws that benefit and protect not only the citizens of our country, but also the citizens not yet born, and the citizens of this world, claiming they are not scientists and therefore cannot even comment on this real issue that does and will continue to have an adverse affect upon the earth we share.

Gary

MY GOOD FRIEND, WHO IS BOTH AFRAID AND BRAVE AT THE SAME TIME

My good friend, a kind and gentle woman of faith and compassion, with a great sense of humor, has been diagnosed with ALS.

I write these words for two reasons. One, I want her to know how much she is loved. And two, I believe she can teach us.

Some say that faith in God will fix life. Believe in Jesus and all will be well. Put your trust in God and God will deliver security and wealth.

By the late 1930's, Adolf Hitler had taken control of the Christian Church in Germany. Many leaders in the Church were silent. But one young pastor by the name of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a pacifist, joined a conspiracy to “rid the world of a madman.” In a Christmas greeting in 1940, Bonhoeffer wrote that in the Church, “Germans . . . want a 'vacation from life,' 'a wisp of magic asking nothing and promising everything.'” (“Strange Glory” by Charles Marsh, p. 302) Bonhoeffer was imprisoned and hanged just before the war ended.

The Apostle Paul, in prison awaiting trial, writes a letter to a congregation in the city of Philippi, which includes these words, “. . . for I have learned to be content with whatever I have.” (Philippians 4:11) It is a remarkable testimony of faith in the worst of times, but faith did not get Paul out of jail. He will remain in prison until he is executed.

In many Christian Churches, the Sunday before Lent is called Transfiguration Sunday and the gospel reading is the story of Jesus and three members of his congregation walking to the top of a mountain, where Jesus' appearance is changed (transfigured); “his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white.” The disciples hear a voice declaring, “This is my son, the beloved; with him I am well pleased . . .” (Matthew 17)

That beloved son is eventually betrayed, beaten, and nailed to a cross, where he is heard to cry with a loud voice, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27)

We live on this side of Easter, so we believe Jesus was not forsaken, but was raised up from death to life, that he lives. But at the time of his great suffering, he too asked “why.” Why is this happening to me? What have I done to deserve this? Why is God allowing this to happen? Has God abandoned me?

There is fairly good evidence that two of the disciples with Jesus on that mountain died for their faith in him. Faith in God did not guarantee comfort or wealth, or freedom from troubles.

The blessings that flow from faith may have a greater impact upon the neighbor than upon the one who is faithful.

I am not sure if I know how to say this, but I believe that my friend's faith, her grace and compassion, her kindness and gentleness, are no guarantee she will be saved from troubles, but it does guarantee she will be a blessing to others. Her faith in Jesus is not a promise that her troubles will be over and her life full of joy. But her faith in Jesus is a promise that she will strive to help others in their troubles and she will bring joy to this world.

So my dear friend, if you read this, I hope you know how much you are loved, by me and by so many others, and I dare trust and say you are loved by God, even though it may be difficult to believe that now. But know this, you are a blessing in this broken world. You make a difference.

I do not understand why this world is filled with so much injustice and suffering. Some, for sure, caused by us. Caused by our greed and selfishness. We are sinners and therefore we sin. We do wrong to one another in many ways. We bring hurt to those we love and even to ourselves.

So perhaps we can explain, even though it seems impossible to comprehend, the imprisonment and execution of people like Paul and Bonhoeffer. We only get to chapter four in Genesis before Cain kills his own brother. Much of the pain and suffering we witness is on us.

But that does not answer all our questions. How can God, who we confess to be all good and, at the same time, all powerful, allow illness and calamity to come down upon God's children?

It does not take long on this earth to discover that some things do not make any sense, no matter how we may try to explain them.

Maybe there is a plan, as some say. In truth, I do not know. I am pretty sure no one else on this earth knows either. But it is hard to see God's purpose when you are diagnosed with ALS or cancer, or when you lose a child, or when a flood comes raging through your community, or when you have a heart attack at age 50, or your spouse begins to show signs of dementia.

When those things happen, somehow you still believe. You still pray. You still strive, as best you can, to follow Jesus and do what you can to help others in their need, but there are times, many times when you want to raise your voice loudly and cry . . .

My God, my God, why?

Gary

Belonging

Jesus answered, “I have told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name testify to me; but you do not believe, because you do not belong to my sheep.”

– John 10:25-26

We are used to hearing, even saying, “If you will believe as we believe, then you can belong with us; you can be a part of us, be a part of our community.”

In other words, believing comes first. Believe and then you can belong.

Which also means that if you do not believe, you cannot belong.

Jesus seems to be saying something else. Tag along with me, and let’s see what happens. Be a part of my community. Maybe faith will come.

In other words, belonging comes first. Belonging may lead to believing.

It works for children.

Gary  

WHY?

The community met in community

to talk about building a building

for the community.

A community building.

For swimming

and basketball.

For walking machines

and exercise.

For basketball

and pickle ball.

For walking

and for running.

A building for play.

One gentleman stood up

and asked, why?

Why are we building a place

just to have fun?

He was serious.

Gary