Grace and Growth

An Upside Down Kingdom Dream

I had a dream this week. It was our last day in England, and we were in Bath.  Bath is built on a lengthy descending slope to a river.  Near the bottom, just above the river, the Romans in A.D. 100 built the baths, famous for their mineral content, their warm water and for healing.  The original spa, hence the name of the city.

In my dream, we had parked the car at the top of the hill, and were walking through the streets of the city, down towards the baths.  I was anxious about spending too much time there, and ready to start our return to London, and back home. All this happened on our last day, and repeated in my dream. 

But then everything changed.  As we walked down through the city, we would meet people.  I remember expecting to have to 'deal' with them, perhaps because they were owners of shops all over the city, or because they were residents busy with their day, or maybe they were tourists like us - pushing an agenda.  But everyone we met had only one agenda.  They were kind, joyful, unhurried, and genuinely glad to see us.  It was exactly the opposite of what I expected. 

Several times moving down through the city we came to people and asked for help.  I cannot remember what we needed - just that I was working on some project.  I remember thinking that it would be impossible to get help, but then people flowed out of shops and homes to come alongside and pitch in.  Again they were cheerful and glad to join us, and things started to happen and go up right before our eyes.  People were creating goodness together with glad and generous hearts - and there was nothing else that mattered. It was exactly the opposite of what I expected. 

I remember walking away from our car; the further down we went, the more I worried about getting lost.  But as people kept responding to us this way, instead of lost, we knew that we were found.  I was worried about getting home, and thought we were getting farther away as we went down the hill.  But the further down we went, I knew that we were getting closer to home, not further away. I was afraid I was going to get exhausted, but I was getting stronger.  I didn't want to go down the hill, because my car was at the top.  But the lower I went, the closer to home I was.   I said to myself in the dream, "this is exactly backwards." 

I knew what it was, after a while.  I was walking down (no other way to get there) into the Kingdom of God; where everyone had gladly given up their own self-kingdoms for the sake of His Kingdom.  No one was manipulating, no one was grouchy, no one was angry, pushing people into an agenda of their own.  Everyone was glad and happy with God and joyous with what He wanted.  And it turned everything upside down.  After a while there was a palpable sense of joy that filled and lifted us, flowing like a living and warm stream through our hearts and spirits.  I laughed and laughed and woke up happy in my heart.

During our (non-dreaming) visit to Bath, the Anglican Abbey at the bottom of the hill had a remarkable Holy Table, covered with this frontal, taken from the River of Life in Revelation 22. (See Becca's blog - July 19th - for better comments on this)

"Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city ... and the Spirit and the bride say "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life."

The Main Thing is to Make the Main Thing the Main Thing

Take a look at this picture. What do you see?

I would have said a few months ago that it was church ruins. But now I have a new word for it: an "empty clay pot".

In 2 Cor 4.7, Paul, speaking about his ministry, his sufferings and the treasure of the gospel, wrote, "we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us." He was speaking, of course about his body, calling it a "jar of clay" in comparison to the surpassing worth of the gospel. Ha! That's what we are! Clay pots! (Have to admit I look more and more like one!) Tasked with holding and carrying the greatest treasure the universe has ever known! Well, clay pots are important, and God is happy to use them. Paul is making the point that the pot has a purpose stunningly beyond its own value: to serve and carry God's gospel treasure.

Our bodies and ministries aren't the only pots around, either. Church buildings are clay pots. Church structures are clay pots. Denominational systems are clay pots. Human traditions can be clay pots, too. God raises them up to serve and carry the treasure of the gospel.

But here's what happen over time: People can confuse the pot and the treasure. They can grow to love the pot more than the treasure. Especially when the pot is beautiful, or expensive, or impressive. Or, more darkly, when the pot has lost its heart for the treasure. Then, instead of the pot serving the treasure, the treasure is asked to serve the pot. And people are asked to serve the pot. That can happen to ministries and leaders and congregations and whole denominations.

Look at the empty churches in Europe, look at the ruins in Ireland pictured on these pages, walk with me on the streets of modern Oxford, or look at the history of the mainline denominations in America over the past 50 years.

Leith Anderson wrote about this: "While the New Testament speaks often about churches, it is surprisingly silent about many matters we associate with church structure and life. there is no mention of architecture, pulpits, lengths of typical sermons, rules for having a Sunday School. Little is said about style of music, order of worship, or times of church gatherings. There were no Bibles, denominations, camps, pastor's conferences, or board meeting minutes..."

What the New Testament speaks volumes about, of course, is making disciples of Jesus. That's the focus, and everything else is a servant of this goal. Everything. Budgets, buildings, liturgies, lessons, programs, strategies, staff: they are all servants - not masters, but servants of Jesus and his gospel.

When we lose that focus, God no longer honors and protects the pots; structures and ministries and leaders, raised up by God to serve the Gospel, just waste away: empty shells, relics and museums of a past faith. Graveyards.

Marriage is kind of like...

Well, marriage is kind of like putting a jigsaw puzzle together... That occurred to me as I spent time with Matt and Abi in Pensacola this past week. It was good to share some days together, and I was grateful for long and important conversations. What a joy to have extended hours without the pressure of jobs. I am on Sabbatical and they are in between Air Force assignments. Matt goes next to Survival School and then (if he survives!) to Fighter Fundamentals. They should be at their new assignment (in N.C.) sometime in September if all goes well.

So we worked on this jigsaw puzzle for two full days. It became a little parable of our lives. First you have to put the Boundaries in place. The Boundaries frame everything and protect everything and give shape to everything.

Then you have to pick out the Main Features and put them together. For us that was a white picket fence, a bunch of sunflowers, and a garden house. By that time you have an outline of the puzzle that serves as a skeleton- but you also have a lot of empty space.

Then you have to fill in all the remaining spaces. On our puzzle, there were about 100 pieces that all looked the same! No way to do that but one at a time, looking carefully at the tiniest details or even individual shapes. And when you find the right piece, you laugh and celebrate! And you go back again and again to the Picture on the Box so that you build according to the Master Pattern. The Picture on the Box is the guide.

 
It takes patience, and care, trust, and persistence, a lot of conversation along the way, a willingness to be guided by the Picture on the Box... and it is really good to celebrate along the way, sometimes at the smallest details coming into place. In the end it sure enough all comes along and takes shape and is beautiful.

That's something about how God builds marriages.

Memorial Day

Small Town Memorial Day - Sewickley, Pa.

We slept late this morning (finally!!), and heard the sounds of the Memorial Day parade as we were eating breakfast. One of the simple pleasures of small town living is parades like this. Having been here for some 10 years, now, it seems like we know every tenth person who walks by or stands watching.

There are friends with us on the corners, friends in the vets who walk by, friends among the kids in the scout troops, friends among the politicians riding in the cars. All of this hardly ever happens in the big cities, where anonymity reigns. But in the small towns, everyone still knows everyone else. In moments like Memorial Day, one family’s sacrifice is carried by all. Another family’s pride is shared by all. I have come to love the parades and what they stand for.

 

Today, of course, we stand to honor and remember those who served and sacrificed for the freedoms we enjoy. We have new eyes for all this since 9/11, and since our second son went into the Air Force two years ago.  We have a fresh clarity about how deeply the roots of America tap into our Judeo-Christian heritage.  God has raised this country up for his own soveriegn purposes, among them human dignity, religious liberty, equality of opportunity and responsibility before God.  The legacy and destiny of America in the history of humankind will rise or fall upon our faithfullness to those purposes.   

 

It was at President Reagan's funeral that I first heard the words of "Mansions of the Lord".  You can hear them as background to slides of his funeral here.  It is worth listening to today; his funeral captured the dignity and thanks due all who have laid down their lives for our country.  They have been on my iPod ever since; they are words of tribute to those who served in generations past and to those who serve today, a salute from the heart from those of us who live in the liberty they secure.

The Mansions of the Lord

To fallen soldiers let us sing
Where no rockets fly nor bullets wing
Our broken brothers let us bring
To the Mansions of the Lord

No more bleeding, no more fight
No prayers pleading through the night
Just divine embrace, eternal light
In the Mansions of the Lord

Where no mothers cry and no children weep
We will stand and guard though the angels sleep
Through the ages safely keep
The Mansions of the Lord

Puppies at Prayer

Have you ever noticed that it is just plain hard to eat in the presence of your dogs? Mine will just sit there like this - looking, waiting, hoping, asking. They ended up with the crust of pizza I was holing in my hands, split between them. I love those dogs. They know it. So they wait and hope and ask. And got their pizza.

This is the way of Kingdom prayer, Jesus says: “How much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him.” (Matt 7.11) Because that is the kind of God he is. That is the kind of Father he is. And in the Kingdom, that is the “power of the ask”, as Dallas Willard puts it.

It is also the way of Kingdom love, Jesus says. In kingdom relationships, it is the ask that prevails. Not criticisms or condemnations or demands (Matt 7.1-6), but requests. Because “the ask” honors and respects and trusts God’s work in others. So we ask of others, and the “power of the ask” gets more done for the kingdom that our demands ever will. “Ask, and you will receive” is true of all relationships in Jesus’ Kingdom; in his kingdom, love is the rule. “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” (Matt 7.12)

Why “Passion and Purpose"?

When we put up this blog last week, the most difficult task was to come up with a name. Names are important, and we wanted one that spoke. After an overnight of thought, and prayer, and thesaurus… we came up with “Passion and Purpose”. Why?

It was the issues of “heart” and “purpose” that led me to follow Jesus some 33 years ago. After years in the radical left, years spent following all my own passions and opinions, I found that what we were doing was not building life, but shredding it. It was an expensive, sometimes deadly, way to live. “There must be more” I said over and over again. There was. Much, much more. Real life, and real hope, and healing for our hearts, and real purpose for our years.

 

Everyone is asking the question of purpose. Jacob wrestles with the angel, and Calvin spurts out his ideas to Hobbes,

"The secret to happiness is short-term, stupid self-interest!"
Been there and done that!

Even King Solomon has his season of frustration…

"Life is useless, all useless. You spend your life working... but what do you have to show for it? ... the world just stays the same… Everything’s boring, utterly boring— no one can find any meaning in it. Boring to the eye, boring to the ear. What was will be again, what happened will happen again. There’s nothing new on this earth. Year after year it’s the same old thing. Does someone call out, “Hey, this is new”? Don’t get excited—it’s the same old story.

(Ecc 1.2-4, 8-10 Good News & The Message) 

Emptiness and boredom are signposts, pointing to better answers!  Here is Rick Warren on the issue:

"In our affluent culture, where so many needs are already met and comfort is maximized, heaven is not as interesting as it is for those in pain and poverty. What most people (both believers and unbelievers) are looking for today is meaning: What is my purpose? What on earth am I here for? That is life's fundamental question and the answer is found in the Kingdom of God, not through self-help books."

Here is Dallas Willard (Divine Conspiracy, pp. 14,15) on the same subject:

“Everyone from the smallest child to the oldest adult, naturally wants in some way to be extraordinary, outstanding, making a unique contribution… We were built to count, as water is made to run downhill. We are placed in a specific context to count in ways no one else does. That is our destiny.”

 
“Passion and Purpose” because it links three themes that have become central to our lives. The passion of Jesus. The healing of our hearts. And God’s purpose for our years upon this earth. Christ’s passion reorders our hearts, and ignites our life mission.

That is the hope we find in Jesus.