Practice, Practice, Practice

Faith is a practice. No one is perfect at it. That’s why we keep practicing.

I was reminded of this truth last week when I went to a Yoga class for the first time in several years. Our instructor told us that yoga is a practice, and this freed me to do as much as I could and not worry about what I couldn’t do or didn’t know. It freed me to trust that each time I came back, my practice would be fuller.

The Christian faith is a set of practices, including prayer, music, study of scripture and theology (all the things we do in worship), and also community relationships, service, forgiveness, and compassion for our neighbors. That’s just a partial list, but you get the idea. As we practice our faith, we are drawn more and more into the life of God, the eternal and abundant life that Jesus promised. It doesn’t happen all at once.

Have you heard about the “Couch to 5k” program?  It is a plan to help non-runners work up to a five kilometers. I love the name, because it recognizes the simple truth that you can’t just get up one day with no practice and run a 5k race. Couch to 5k takes nine weeks, three workouts per week. Start slow, and practice. Keep it going, and you’ll run a marathon.

Christian practice takes time. The attentiveness of prayer, the joy of celebration, the strength of our compassion, our willingness to be generous and to forgive: all of these abilities grow over time as we practice them. Often, we are already well practiced at distraction, resentment and fear, but the qualities of faith are already sown in us. To practice the faith is to uncover our real selves and let them flourish.

The Dalai Lama says that the practices of faith will make us like a strong tree with deep roots. Such a tree can well withstand even a terrible storm, but the time to grow roots is not when we see a storm on the horizon. Faith practices take time, and when we are battered by storms, we will find that our spirits are strengthened by a well-practiced attention to God, good relationships with a community, and a depth of compassion for ourselves and for others.

We are blessed by a community in which to practice our faith together.

We aren’t perfect. We practice.

Sermon - Changing the Question

Preached on July 14, 2013 at First Congregational Church of Tallmadge, Ohio, UCC.

Scripture: Luke 10:25-37

  ²⁵Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” ²⁶He said to him, “What is written in the law? What do you read there?” ²⁷He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” ²⁸And he said to him, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.” ²⁹But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 

³⁰Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. ³¹Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. ³²So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. ³³But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. ³⁴He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. ³⁵The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.’ ³⁶Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” ³⁷He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

Sermon

It is a Jewish tradition to hold great discussions – spirited, questioning, testing, even arguing discussions -  about the scriptures, also called the law. These are discussions about how to interpret the scripture for our lives today, and we in the Christian faith continue this tradition in our own ways. In survey after survey of churchgoers about what they want from a sermon, the top answer is not history or information, not encouragement or inspiration, but simply this: apply it to our lives today.

That's what the lawyer asked of Jesus. The lawyer here is a student of the law – the scriptures – and was probably eager for any chance to discuss the law with a rabbi.  In this case it is the traveling rabbi called Jesus.  “Teacher,” he says, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

Eternal life: a good place to begin the discussion. How do we inherit eternal life? Who must we be to receive eternal life? And maybe we should start with “what is eternal life?” because it is not only about life after our death, but is really about life right now.  Eternal life is a life lived in tune with the eternal God here and now. How do we receive that kind of life? How do we live that way?

And Jesus answers this question with his own question: “what is written in the law? What do you read there?”  It's typical for Jesus, in the tradition of good rabbis, to answer a question with a question.

There's an old joke about a rabbi whose disciple became so frustrated he finally burst out: “Teacher, why do you answer every question with another question?” The rabbi thought for a moment, and then answered, “why not?”

Jesus answers with a question: “what is written in the law? What do you read there?”

And the lawyer, who is a good student of the law, gives a good answer. “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and all of your soul, and all of your strength, and all of your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.”

But that's kind of abstract, isn't it? Love your neighbor: what does that look like? And just how big a neighborhood are we talking about? Do I need to love the people next door, or do I need to go as far as my whole street, or is it bigger than that?

Sermon - Not As Expected

Preached on July 7, 2013 at First Congregational Church of Tallmadge, Ohio, UCC.

Scripture: 2 Kings 5:1-14

Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Aram, was a great man and in high favor with his master, because by him the Lord had given victory to Aram. The man, though a mighty warrior, suffered from leprosy. Now the Arameans on one of their raids had taken a young girl captive from the land of Israel, and she served Naaman’s wife. She said to her mistress, “If only my lord were with the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.” So Naaman went in and told his lord just what the girl from the land of Israel had said. And the king of Aram said, “Go then, and I will send along a letter to the king of Israel.” He went, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and ten sets of garments. He brought the letter to the king of Israel, which read, “When this letter reaches you, know that I have sent to you my servant Naaman, that you may cure him of his leprosy.” When the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes and said, “Am I God, to give death or life, that this man sends word to me to cure a man of his leprosy? Just look and see how he is trying to pick a quarrel with me.” But when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent a message to the king, “Why have you torn your clothes? Let him come to me, that he may learn that there is a prophet in Israel.”

So Naaman came with his horses and chariots, and halted at the entrance of Elisha’s house. Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go, wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored and you shall be clean.” But Naaman became angry and went away, saying, “I thought that for me he would surely come out, and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, and would wave his hand over the spot, and cure the leprosy! Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them, and be clean?” He turned and went away in a rage. But his servants approached and said to him, “Father, if the prophet had commanded you to do something difficult, would you not have done it? How much more, when all he said to you was, ‘Wash, and be clean’?”So he went down and immersed himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God; his flesh was restored like the flesh of a young boy, and he was clean.

Sermon

In 2006, Smith Magazine invited people to a creative challenge with the question: “can you tell your life story in six words?”  Since then, they have collected thousands of these six-word memoirs, which tend to be little clues about a person’s life. 

“Made a mess. Cleaned it up.” Reads one.

From a Journalist: “I asked. They answered. I wrote.”

From a veteran: “Two tours, no injuries, thank God.”

One of my favorites, from a 13 year old: “Who says weird isn't a compliment?"

One of the best entries, which became the title of a whole book of memoirs, is this one: Not Quite What I Was Planning. Could that be the story of your life?  My guess is that it applies to a lot of us.  Not Quite What I Was Planning.

When we think back on the lives of our ancestors, we know that life was never what they planned, never what they expected. Our lives are not what we planned, and not as expected, especially when God is at work. If the Bible had a subtitle, I think it should be just that: The Bible: Not Quite What I Was Expecting.

Take today’s story from 2 Kings about Elisha the prophet healing the foreign army general called Naaman. We heard the way the healing went, but let’s step back and imagine how Naaman expected it to go. Naaman is the celebrated general of the army of Aram. He’s a war hero, a respected man in his community, with a nice home and diversified investments. Everything is going well, except that he has this terrible skin disease: leprosy.

Sermon - Freedom

Preached on June 30, 2013, at First Congregational Church of Tallmadge, Ohio, UCC.

Scripture: Galatians 5:1, 13-26

For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another. For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ If, however, you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another. Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh.For what the flesh desires is opposed to the Spirit, and what the Spirit desires is opposed to the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not subject to the law. Now the works of the flesh are obvious: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, competing against one another, envying one another.

Sermon

“For freedom, Christ has set us free,” Paul writes to the church of Galatians. And so Christ sets us free, just as God set the earth free in its creation, and God set the Hebrew slaves free from Egypt, and God set the nation of Israel free from exile in a foreign land, “for freedom, Christ has set you free” from anything that enslaves people; free from that which oppresses people, and free from that which keeps us in the sins of hatred, jealousy, resentment, selfishness, mistreatment of others and mistreatment of ourselves.

Christ sets us free from all of that, and Christ sets us free to live with the fruits that God’s Spirit gives.  Freedom is freedom from, and freedom to: freedom from brokenness; freedom to live full and abundant lives in the love of our neighbors.

Which version of the Bible should I read?

This was the question recently given to me, and I took it as an opportunity to produce this little response.

Devotional reading of the Bible has been a practice for individual Christians since the Protestant reformation in the 1500’s, when the Bible scriptures were translated from the Latin translation into the native languages of the people. With the developments of increased literacy and the printing press, the Bible began to be read individually by many Christians for the first time. In the past century, scholarship has learned much about the ancient Hebrew and Greek languages in which the original manuscripts were written, and this study has produced a number of good translations of the Bible into modern English. But the choices can be daunting. To the question of “which version should be read?” there isn’t one correct answer, but I will offer a short introduction and some recommendations. However, if you have a Bible that you read and which contributes to your faith practice, then keep it. That is the right one.

I recommend the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV). This translation is published by several companies with good notes to aid in understanding the meaning and context, such as the Harper-Collins Study Bible. The NRSV uses modern English language and the best of Biblical scholarship to produce an accurate, readable text.  One of the ways that this version updates to contemporary English language is to use inclusive language when referring to people (whereas the word “men” once referred to all people, it is now used to refer specifically to a group of males). The NRSV makes references to men and women clear.  I can also recommend the New Jerusalem Bibl (NJB) and the Common English Version (CEV). The NJB tends to use more creative language and the CEV tends toward simple words.

I also recommend The Message, which is a paraphrase of the Bible by Eugene Peterson. He intentionally lets go of a strict translation of words and phrases in order to put the meaning of scripture in contemporary, creative language. Sometimes his rendering gives new light to familiar passages, and sometimes I miss the original, but it is well done.

I know that many people love the King James Version (KJV). I also love much of the language of the KJV, but I must warn that the Elizabethan English in which it was composed in 1611 is often confusingly different than the English that we use. Psalm 23 is beautifully put in the KJV (as long as you understand that the phrase “I shall not want” means something like “I shall not lack for anything”), but other sections are much more confusing.

Please remember that the footnotes, introductions to the books, and other study guides in any given Bible do not necessarily reflect what all Christians believe. Some versions come with very specific theological points of view, which may represent a small minority of Christian opinion.

Private devotional reading of the scriptures should be both comforting and challenging. It should help us to see our lives and the world through the lens of the Scriptures, so that we live from our spiritual center where God’s Holy Spirit comes to reside. But Christianity is really a community life, and it is good to bring the insights of our devotional reading into conversation with the church. Ask questions, share what you have found, and we will all be blessed.

Sermon - What We Don't Know

Preached on June 16, 2013 at First Congregational Church of Tallmadge, Ohio, UCC.

Scripture: 1 Kings 21:1-21

Later the following events took place: Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard in Jezreel, beside the palace of King Ahab of Samaria.²And Ahab said to Naboth, “Give me your vineyard, so that I may have it for a vegetable garden, because it is near my house; I will give you a better vineyard for it; or, if it seems good to you, I will give you its value in money.” ³But Naboth said to Ahab, “The Lord forbid that I should give you my ancestral inheritance.” ⁴Ahab went home resentful and sullen because of what Naboth the Jezreelite had said to him; for he had said, “I will not give you my ancestral inheritance.” He lay down on his bed, turned away his face, and would not eat.

⁵His wife Jezebel came to him and said, “Why are you so depressed that you will not eat?” ⁶He said to her, “Because I spoke to Naboth the Jezreelite and said to him, ‘Give me your vineyard for money; or else, if you prefer, I will give you another vineyard for it’; but he answered, ‘I will not give you my vineyard.’” ⁷His wife Jezebel said to him, “Do you now govern Israel? Get up, eat some food, and be cheerful; I will give you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.” ⁸So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name and sealed them with his seal; she sent the letters to the elders and the nobles who lived with Naboth in his city. ⁹She wrote in the letters, “Proclaim a fast, and seat Naboth at the head of the assembly; ¹⁰seat two scoundrels opposite him, and have them bring a charge against him, saying, ‘You have cursed God and the king.’ Then take him out, and stone him to death.” ¹¹The men of his city, the elders and the nobles who lived in his city, did as Jezebel had sent word to them. Just as it was written in the letters that she had sent to them,¹²they proclaimed a fast and seated Naboth at the head of the assembly. ¹³The two scoundrels came in and sat opposite him; and the scoundrels brought a charge against Naboth, in the presence of the people, saying, “Naboth cursed God and the king.” So they took him outside the city, and stoned him to death. ¹⁴Then they sent to Jezebel, saying, “Naboth has been stoned; he is dead.” ¹⁵As soon as Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned and was dead, Jezebel said to Ahab, “Go, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give you for money; for Naboth is not alive, but dead.” ¹⁶As soon as Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, Ahab set out to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, to take possession of it.

¹⁷Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying: ¹⁸Go down to meet King Ahab of Israel, who rules in Samaria; he is now in the vineyard of Naboth, where he has gone to take possession. ¹⁹You shall say to him, “Thus says the Lord: Have you killed, and also taken possession?” You shall say to him, “Thus says the Lord: In the place where dogs licked up the blood of Naboth, dogs will also lick up your blood.” ²⁰Ahab said to Elijah, “Have you found me, O my enemy?” He answered, “I have found you. Because you have sold yourself to do what is evil in the sight of the Lord, ²¹I will bring disaster on you.

Sermon

Reading in the book of Kings about King Ahab and Queen Jezebel, we find ourselves joining a history of God’s people reflecting on how we live, what we value, and the ways that we lose sight of God and are restored by God.

Ahab was king of Israel nine centuries before Christ, and he was just one of many kings who were corrupted by power instead of ruling justly by their covenant with God. But it was three centuries later that his story and other stories were written as the book of Kings at a time when the Hebrew people were in exile in Babylon. The empire of Babylon had destroyed their cities and the great Temple of Jerusalem, and had taken much of the nation into captivity away in Babylon, an exile that lasted for two generations. It was during this exile that the Hebrew people realized the price of their history. Because they had slid away from being a land of justice for all people, including the orphans and foreigners, and had become unjust, with leaders who were corrupted by power.  The trust of the people was damaged, and the leaders sought and broke alliances with other empires with greed instead of honor.  In exile, the people looked back and said “we must live differently.”

They told the story of King Ahab as a metaphor for what had gone wrong.