Matthew 18:15-19 How to Adult

Observation: Honestly, I picked this passage because the Daily Lectionary is still in Song of Solomon, and this one's been on my heart a lot more lately. Jesus commands his followers, if someone offends them, to go directly, face to face, one on one, to the offender and talk it through. If that doesn't work, take two or three others from the community as witnesses: not back up, but impartial observers. Finally, if that still doesn't work, take it before the whole church. And if there's still no repentance, treat them like a Gentile or tax collector: except Jesus demonstrated love to them too, so...

Application: If you asked me what is the first lesson in healthy relationships, in following Jesus authentically, in just being an adult, this is it. Talk to people face to face about a problem. I realize there are cases where it isn't safe or possible to do that. And in some cases of gross misconduct, you have to just report the behavior. But that leaves the vast, vast majority of cases where it is safe, possible, and beneficial to talk to a person directly about a problem. But it's still hard, so we don't do it.

Fact is, today it's easier than ever to say what you want to say by saying nothing. By not texting back, not emailing back, not picking up the phone, leaving a friend in the dark about what exactly is going on with you. But in the process of growing up, we learn to do a lot of things that aren't easy. If you can learn to shave, to tie a tie, to parallel park, to show up on time for a job interview, you can learn the practice of open communication. It's not easy, but none of Jesus' other commandments are either. Like anything else, you find someone who knows how to do it, you ask their advice and support, you take a deep breath, and you pick up the phone. That's how adulting works. God took on flesh to speak to us face to face. This is important stuff.

I don't want to turn this blog post into a way of doing the exact opposite of what Jesus says, so I'm going to pray today about who I may need to call and talk with. But I encourage you to do that too. I know there's someone who needs to hear from you. Talk to Jesus about them first, and see what happens.

Prayer: Jesus, this is hard. It's easy to put off and put out of my mind. But I need your help to keep open communication on the front burner, always. Teach me, Lord. Amen. 

Song of Solomon 4:1-8 So I Guess We're Going There...

Observation: This is a sensual love poem. A man describes a woman's beauty using somewhat graphic, and bizarre, similes. Maybe that's what got folks going back in the day, but I wouldn't recommend comparing a significant other's teeth to "shorn ewes" today. Maybe that's just me.

Application: Christians have a lot of hang ups about intimacy in general, and sex in particular, and I'm no exception...it does seem weird to be reading poetry like this in the Bible. But this text is a reminder that God made us--all of us--and God made sex. Like any other aspect of our lives, the things we try to do apart from God will always go wrong. So we need to figure out a way to work past the shame and embarassment, and invite God into our relationships: even the intimate ones. I think the answers to how that would look are as diverse as the people God created. But pray for me, and I'll pray for you, and maybe we can set an example for future generations of how to do this right.

Prayer: God, I blush easily. You know that. But I need your help, because I want to devote my whole self to following you. I don't want any part hidden. Help me be more authentically myself in you. Amen. 

Acts 8:18-24 Did Simon Get a Bad Rap?...Nope. He did not.

Observation: While the apostles are in Samaria, a man named Simon offers them money to transfer the power of the Holy Spirit by laying on of hands. Peter does a little more than politely decline...he instructs Simon to repent and pray for forgiveness, for trying to "pay off" the apostles. This is where we get the word for the obscure sin of "Simony," more common in the middle ages, where wealthy families would try to buy a cushy bishop's job for one of their sons. This is a no-no. The Spirit gives gifts for free, but those gifts are for God's purposes, and put us at God's disposal.


Application: This story doesn't seem so relatable at first--you'll be happy to know I didn't pay anyone off for my role as pastor, unless you count student loan agencies--but I am often tempted to think of my role with the Spirit as transactional. Maybe I don't offer money, but I'll pour lots of time and effort and worry into a project, assuming the Spirit will jump right into it and get things moving because I did the leg work. That doesn't always happen. When I remember that I work for the Holy Spirit, not the other way around, it helps me actually listen and let God set the agenda, instead of trying to entice God into blessing mine.

Prayer: God, let me know what I should be up to. Set the tone. Send me where I need to be, to receive and share the gift of your Spirit, that your Reign may come among us. Amen.

Jesus and the Spider-Verse

Greetings all. If you've been following this blog and missing it, I am sorry. I'm trying to find a new routine as a dad of four, and part of that new routine involves driving the kids to the bus stop when I had previously been doing devotions. Praying for flexibility, and openness to a new way of finding time with God. 

Observation:
Jesus' teaching here goes beyond the simplicity of, "This little light of mine, I'm going to let it shine," but it does start there. Just as it would be wasteful to hide a lamp in the cellar, so it would be wasteful not to share our gifts, and our hope in Christ, with the world.

But Jesus goes on to say that our eye is "the lamp of our body." It makes me picture an eye almost like a window, and our body as an empty house, which will be lit up if we keep our eyes open, but in darkness if we close them. It's a strange image if you take it literally, but in a figurative sense, our "eye" could be our perception. We can only shine with the light we have first been able to find and observe, and if our "eye", our ability to see God at work in the world, is not sound, then we will have no light to shine.
I can understand how for those with a disability that affects vision, this might be a challenging and perhaps painful text. But while we may not all have the same literal ability for sight, we all have been given by God the ability to perceive in a spiritual sense.

Application:
As Jesus talks about keeping our "eye", or our spiritual perception, healthy, I can't help but thinking about the many kinds of eyes, and the many kinds of perception we have in this world. Our perception is affected by  where and how we grew up, who our role models were,  and what our families and communities valued. To me, the idea of having a "healthy eye" means understanding what aspects of our own perception are valuable and "of God," and what things we may need to work past in order to receive God's light. We each have a different perception, and that's a blessing from God.

This calls to mind the recent movie, Spiderman: Into the Spider-Verse. The main character of the movie, Miles Morales, is a biracial teen--his father is African American, his mother from Puerto Rico--living in New York City. By a fairly complicated turn of events, he find himself with new super powers, taking up the mantle of "Spider-man", but there's a twist: he's not the only one. Through a device that brings together alternate universes, Miles meets a whole team of "Spider-men," most of whom aren't "men" at all! Each "Spider-person" brings a unique perception, a unique background, and unique gifts, which combine to help each other grow, and of course save the multi-verse. Miles' perception is not identical to his fellow spider heroes, but that doesn't mean his "eye" isn't sound. It means God made different eyes to see different facets of reality.

Today I hope to take from this the lesson that different perceptions are a gift from God. We need each other in order to see the world, and God's work in it, in a more three-dimensional way. But that does not mean that each and every perception under the sun is equally valid. We also need those different from us in order to keep us alert and prayerful about how our spiritual "eye" could be more healthy, and where healing needs to take place.

Prayer: God, make sound my eyes. Help my spirit to perceive and to let in as much of your light as I possibly can. Remove the prejudices, the fears, the anger, the unhealed hurts, that could prevent me from perceiving what you want me to see. And help me to value the differing eyes and perceptions of  others. Together, let us shine with the light we've been given. Amen.