In a class once a professor set a glass half full in front of the class and asked us to just write about the glass of water.  There were no directions other than to write what we saw.  Now you can imagine the writing that followed once the complaints about the vague directions died down.  There were people who wrote about the glass be half full or half empty.  There were those who wrote about the glass representing all of those who had access to water as opposed to all of those who do not.  There were the literalists who wrote about a glass measuring so many inches tall with a certain amount of water in it sitting on a table.
     Then there were those of us that wrote about the properties of the water itself and or what water represented to them.  Words like: cool, refreshing, cleansing, calming, healing, sacred, soothing and peaceful described what we saw.  Rivers and oceans, ponds and streams came to life as some wrote about where the water came from, seeing the beginning of its journey before arriving in the glass.
    I think of all that was written about a simple glass of water and then I rethink the words of Jesus: 

"Why anyone by just giving a cup of water in my name is on our side.  Count on it God will notice."  Mark 9:41 (The Message)

     Jesus isn't saying we need to share miracles to be a part of the mission, the mission to love God with all our hearts, minds and souls, to love our neighbors as our selves. We just need to share a cup of water.  One word, one bit of awareness, one action.
     Whenever we think of our beginnings, whenever we are conscious of others needs, conscious of what we have to share, whenever we dispense healing and kindness through words or action, God will notice. 
     

Fall is just around the corner....

 

Delicious autumn!

My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird

I would fly about the earth seeking successive autumns.    

George Elliot

 

               I have begun my fall cleaning, yes fall cleaning.  Though all our children are grown and there is less debris from the summer… clean up is necessary.  Closets no longer bust open with old water shoes with holes in the toes, outgrown bathing suits, deflated floaties and chewed up noodles (don’t they always end up looking like someone chewed them?), and of course the summer league grass stained baseball pants; yet still I have my own messes.

 Let’s face it, spring cleaning is all about dusting up the cobwebs so we can get out and play, open the windows to bring the outside in.  But autumn calls us back into the house.

               I prefer my autumn cleaning, in the midst of window washing, summer picture sorting, and swapping out clothes for the season; I drink hot pumpkin coffee.  Autumn is when I actually will sit down with a cup of coffee and think.  Think about nothing, think about family, think about cooking again and think about what it means to lose something with the promise of restoration.  As I sit and ponder, my actions become a bit more deliberate.

               In the spring I am impatient as I wait for the bulbs to bloom, the last patch of snow to melt, and for flip flops to become my shoe of choice.  The fall teaches me patience, who wants to rush the last leaf to fall off the maple tree in the back yard only to expose its bare limbs for months to come? 

James 3:13 says “Who is wise and understanding among you?  Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom.”

            This seems like fall to me, as our homes and clothing becomes more “cozy” so may our hearts and minds.  Wisdom is celebrated with the start of a new school year.  Children arrive to refreshed teachers; parents can still walk their children to school if possible.  Hands are held, hugs and kisses exchanged and new parents watch the bus pull away or peek in a window to watch their young one navigate a new classroom.  

               The old soul of autumn shares with us its wisdom, gently leading us into winter.  We will live less extravagantly as we prepare for the soon to come fuel bills.  Gardens will be harvested with thoughts of how they can be improved next year.  Clothes will be bought with the intent to last, unlike the disposable purchases of summer.  The thought of future snow storms allow us to look at our yards and homes with a practical eye.  Our backs may even begin to ache a bit as we imagine shoveling, raising the question  “is it time to pay someone else to do this?” 

               As we draw back inside our homes let us celebrate our good work, recognizing that our wisdom gives birth to gentle actions. 

As the leaves drift slowly to the ground, the oak remains dignified.

 

Sticks and Stones

Sticks and stones may break your bones but words....well actually...

James 3:1Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.

 It seems appropriate this time of year to be talking about the importance, the responsibility of being a teacher.  How many jobs allow someone to hold a captive audience for 40 minutes or more?  How many jobs allow that same person to prepare a lesson or sermon with no prior review?  

I have been fortunate enough to experience some really wonderful teachers in my life.  One I remember so well, Mrs. Gutman.  She was my teacher in fourth grade and I loved her instantly because she had once been my father’s teacher as well.  She was an amazing woman who not only taught me academics but social responsibility.  As a Jewish woman she reigned in my new found Christian dos and don’ts.  Ahhh…you see at the ripe old age of 10 I thought I knew enough to teach as well.  Certainly we can all be teachers at any age, but she taught me that I better be ready for the questions that come with teaching, especially questions such as: “you say this but you do this.”

          Mrs. Gutman had the unique ability to make me think more.  I can remember walking down the hall with her at the end of the day and often those conversations would end with her gently asking me “Why do you think that?”  I never stopped asking myself that question.

          I have had other great teachers but not as many as one might like to think, considering there were more than twelve years of school to follow.  The teachers that made a difference were the ones who loved what they taught, and wanted others to love learning as well. 

          As a parent and teacher I am aware of the power a teacher’s words hold. I have seen an 80 year old man’s eyes well with tears as he recalled the treatment he received from an elementary school teacher.  Often the treatment one receives in school colors their opinion of school well into adulthood.  The parent that does not show up for parent teacher conferences may be the very person who associates the school experience negatively.

          One word, one action, one bad day can hurt enough to be remembered a lifetime.  This goes for pastors and churches as well.  I have been blessed by the gifts and talents of wonderful clergy/teachers, these people like Mrs. Gutman taught me to ask the question “why?”  However as a pastor I also know that many people cannot come back to a church that hurt them in the past.

          James continues to say: “look at ships: though they are so large that it takes strong winds to drive them, yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs.”

          At some point in our lives we all will teach. Whether it is teaching someone how to change a tire, tie a shoe, use a new tool, a computer, or even about scripture; how we teach and the words we use are powerful.  Words can inspire in subtle or fantastic ways, they can challenge us to be better people, to look at how we live and to ask the questions that encourage growth or they can discourage us and stunt growth.

 Our words can get away from us, causing us to rush for damage control, and of course that is only when we are aware of the fire we have set.  Or they can get away from us the way Mrs. Gutman’s words did.  Words that would motivate a 50 year old woman to write about her fourth grade teacher, forty year old words that encourage me still to ask “why”.  Words that taught me well that what I say can hurt or heal.

Don't tell, well just yet anyway....

Our first child was almost born at home.  There was quite a bit of excitement as we realized what was happening, doctors were called, the car started in the dead of winter, and me laying in a snow bank during a contraction.  It was a crazy night, 21 minutes later we were holding our daughter in our arms, stunned, amazed and thrilled.

Over the next weeks we would tell each other the story of her birth as if we were hearing the story for the first time, we couldn’t stop talking about it.  Of course we loved sharing the story with each other, but I think back at that time and I am sure we bored those who had never had children to tears.

How could they relate to the experience we just had?  Those who had experienced childbirth listened eagerly, those who were attached to us by relation listen lovingly and then there were those who just didn’t care.  I am not sure I can blame them, we were over the moon!

Mark 7:36--Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one; but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. 

          How many times does Christ say “go-your faith has made you well, but hey, don’t tell anyone” I don’t know for sure, but I do know it is more than once or twice, to those healed of illnesses, afflictions, and emotional distress.  These same people also revealed or discovered their faith.

          I know that I have often struggled with the thought of Christ telling those so full of the spirit, so full of healing not to talk about it.  How do we grow the body if we don’t talk about it with others?

          We can think of this from the point of Christ-“don’t tell anyone because I can barely make it from town to town as it is.  I have some things to do and all this news about me healing people is slowing me down”

          Or we can think about how we might actually sound once we have had an encounter with Christ---over the moon!  How do we sound when we are speaking with our feet off the ground?  Well…the words, rambling, unfinished sentences, with lots of ‘you knows’ in between, come to mind.

          And what if those words, excitedly spilling forth from our mouths fall upon the ears of someone who has not known healing?  Has never encountered Christ, never experienced new life? 

          Maybe Christ was just giving good advice, don’t tell, let this be between us for now and when you have had time to settle down, to think, to really own your story, then tell it and tell it well.  Tell it with a love that need not boast but would rather share. After all it is about relationship.