ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHING
November 10, 2021
This past Sunday, we did some time traveling as we returned to 2015 and the beginning of the Crossing Over Campaign. At the time, CCCC had a significant mortgage and not much of a plan on how it was going to pay it off. The people of CCCC caught the vision and stepped up in significant fashion. Along with debt reduction, the Campaign included some AC replacement and an outreach component. The plan was good, but it did not include a flood. Yet even when we find ourselves a bit overwhelmed by the interruption to our plans, God remains faithful. Since God is always working with flawed human beings, the path forward after an interruption might be bumpy, with some unexpected turns. And even the finish line might look very different than what was imagined originally. For me, it is a testament to the tenacity of God and the get ‘er done attitude of the people who are Cypress Creek Christian Church. But even more importantly, I truly believe we have not been brought to this moment for a party alone. This is not a finish line, but a starting line for a whole new mission and direction. On Sunday, we were called to worship with words from Isaiah 43 where the Prophet declared on behalf of God, “Behold, I am doing a new thing!” Too often we confine God’s “new things” to some past moment as we are beholden to the old thing of the present. We can’t imagine God wanting to change what we have come to enjoy. Yet when you look at the story of scripture, that appears to be the exact point at which God begins a new thing.

God, I do not want to be known in heaven as a holy curmudgeon. You love me in spite of my flaws and insecurities, yet I don’t want to be the example in a chapter of the angel training book when it comes to dealing with the killjoy of your plans. Amen.

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ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHING
November 9, 2021
This past Friday, I posted to Facebook a picture of a few of us who went to hear Keeton Coffman do a live show. I talked about how much I enjoyed listening to live music again, and how Keeton is a fabulous performer. I posted it late Friday evening after getting home, and I didn’t even turn on the TV or check the news online. Of course, I was unaware of the tragic events at the Astroworld concert. It wasn’t until mid-morning on Saturday that I read the news. Suddenly, my post about enjoying a concert at the very same time another concert had caused such pain and grief felt insensitive and out of touch. I doubt people said to themselves, “Bruce is an insensitive jerk for posting what he did,” but it still didn’t feel right. And for that reason, I took the post down. We live in a world where people are bickering about our culture not being sensitive enough or being too sensitive. Like a lot of things, we can probably find clear examples of both, but I have always thought people should police themselves… choosing to err on the side of caution and compassion. And most of the stuff that could be construed as hurtful or callous is not going to contend for a Pulitzer Prize in Literature. I still support freedom of speech and will defend people’s right to say just about anything, but taking something down out of an abundance of caution or a demonstration of compassion would go a long way. The Apostle Paul spoke strongly to the Church in Corinth about the freedom to be cautious and mindful so as not to bring injury to another. Remember, freedom to do something means you have the freedom to not do it.

Life is complicated, God, and though it is important for there to be a free exchange of ideas in this world, I pray that my freedom helps there to be more exchanging of love, mercy and kindness. Amen.

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ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHING
November 8, 2021
Prayer for the Week: Whatever I have planned for this week and whatever interrupts those plans and forces me to make other plans, I request the eyes of faith, O God of Holy Vision. Allow me to perceive the sacred opportunities found in the unexpected. Allow my heart to see the beautiful human beings I might have never met had it not been for the disruption to my well planned week. By your grace, may it be so. Amen.

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ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHING
November 7, 2021
I was in a denominational training yesterday with 40 or so of my DOC colleagues, including Rev. Katelin Jordan. Katelin is a member of Cypress Creek Christian Church, and she is an ordained Disciples of Christ minister. She currently serves a nonprofit in the area that many of our folks know well: CarePartners. The online training was on the topic of Anti-Racism, ProReconciliation in the life of the church, and I will confess it was some of the same stuff I’ve heard before. And then toward the end, Katelin asked a question that took it to a whole new level within my own mind. I will dig into some of the specifics at a later time, but for the remaining 20 minutes or so, my mind was racing. Katelin is an exceptionally insightful human being. In the 3rd chapter of James, we hear a question: Who among you is wise and understanding? Katelin would be one such person. I’m a bit ashamed to admit it, but I had started to fade toward the end of the meeting, but then Katelin’s question awakened me as if I had received a spiritual defibrillator. I love those moments when you feel your energy level slipping away, then something jolts you to a whole other level of thought. Thank God for those moments!

I do thank you, O God, for taking me places in my journey of faith that challenge me and inspire me and force me to reflect more deeply upon who I am. Amen.

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ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHING
November 6, 2021
Tomorrow, we will begin a new worship series entitled: With Mud Between The Toes. The title found its conception in my imagination which is always a strange, if not disturbing place to visit. With all seriousness, I love sitting with a scripture for a while to give my imagination the opportunity to walk around the scene, interact with some of the characters and definitely allow for my senses to be involved. What do I hear, smell and feel? In reading the story from Joshua 4 where we find the Israelites crossing over the river on their way into the Promised Land, I found myself feeling the river bottom underneath my feet. Or even if wearing sandals, I envision them getting stuck in the sludge and walking right out of them. Too often our faithful imaginations are skewed by movies depicting Bible stories where everyone looks as if they showered that morning, their hair remained unmoved by the elements and no one perspired even in the desert. Let’s be honest, it was a messy and gritty world. They were most certainly celebrating on the other side of the river, but the mud between their toes reminds us of how the work of faith is almost always messy and gritty.

For all the good work being done, O God, continue to encourage us even when we are left disheveled and exhausted. Amen.

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ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHING
November 4, 2021
This past Tuesday, I shared at staff meeting a quote from Father Richard Rohr (from his Daily Meditation on July 7, 2016). He wrote:

We keep praying that our illusions will fall away. God erodes them from many sides, hoping they will fall. But we often remain trapped in what we call normalcy – “the way things are.” Life then revolves around problem-solving, fixing, explaining, and taking sides with winners and losers. It can be a pretty circular and even nonsensical existence.

To get out of this unending cycle, we have to allow ourselves to be drawn into sacred space, into liminality. All transformation takes place here. We have to allow ourselves to be drawn out of “business as usual” and remain patiently on the “threshold” ( limen, in Latin) where we are betwixt and between the familiar and the completely unknown.

This resonated with me as I have a real bad habit of trying to push past those places “in-between” where nothing appears to be happening, but in fact, a lot is happening. It may not be measurable in the traditional ways of measuring, but I think about my grandmother baking pies. If I got up early enough, I would see the kitchen lined with ingredients, different utensils, pie plates (pie birds) and a whole host of things I didn’t know how they might be used. By the time I usually got up, the pies were in the oven and the kitchen was now a prep area for lunch. I usually saw only the final product without understanding the full extend of work involved. Of course, my grandmother had the specific goal of pies. In threshold moments along the faith journey, the goal – at least from our vantage point – is vague at best. We might speak of God’s dream, but the specifics are unknown. Maybe the “in-between” time is like God’s kitchen where God’s final product is difficult for us to imagine with the many ingredient on the counter unassembled.

Gracious God, I trust you to always be at work within me and around me for the sake of your vision. Even when the space I find myself appears to be on a pause, you are never on a break from loving and shaping me for the sake of your kingdom. Amen.

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ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHING
November 3, 2021
The other day, I was listening to the wonderful Gospel song, “The Best In Me,” sung by Marvin Sapp. It speaks of how God sees the best in us even when everyone else sees the worst in us. In the version I was listening to, Sapp goes through a litany of folks who told us that we would not amount to anything, always pointing out the negative in us. Just the way he sings it, you feel the ache and torment of those voices, yet the Good News keeps showing back up no matter how often those other voices speak their destructive falsehoods. In Ephesians 2:10, Paul wrote: “…we are God’s accomplishment, created in Christ Jesus to do good things. God planned for these good things to be the way that we live our lives.” Those words of scripture alongside Marvin Sapp’s voice is a hope-filled and transformative pairing. Remember, God sees the best in you, and through divine grace, God is working to draw out, celebrate and empower the amazing person you are.

There might be some parts of me that need a little work, yet your love, O God, is always seeking to speak a word of blessing and encouragement into my life. I give you all the praise and gratitude for that gift, and then I seek to speak a word of blessing and encouragement in to the lives of those I meet. Amen.

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ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHING
November 2, 2021
On this day after All Saints’ Day (officially on November 1), I am reminded of Helen Keller who said, “Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired and success achieved.” Most of us would rather choose the “ease and quiet” if it were an option, but some of the great inspirational saints (including Helen Keller on the list) validated these words with their daily lives. Paul wrote in Romans how suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character. Many people who are suffering greatly will suggest they didn’t want that much character as if someone (usually people point to God) is out to teach them something or help them grow in their endurance and character. I’ve never believed God to be the source of the suffering. Instead, I see God as the One who helps us translate the suffering to something positive, something like endurance or character or, as Paul later suggested, hope.

Whether I am experiencing suffering or joy or a combination of the two this day, I turn to you, O Gracious and Transformative God. In my frustration or pain, I might point a finger of blame at you, but the life of Jesus directs our attention to a different understanding of who you are and what you seek. May the church be one of the instruments you use as you bring about your dream. Amen.

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ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHING
November 1, 2021
Prayer for the Week:
I am who I am
because of so many others.
I am who I am
because of those who served you.
I am who I am
because of the humble saints
whose life witness revealed Jesus.
I am who I am
because of faithful followers
who were unwavering
in their commitment to you.
Holy and Magnificent God,
the life of faith has never been
an individual enterprise.
You invite us to live in a community
that stretches across the globe
and across generations.
We are bound together,
one body in many places,
one body in many eons.
We are who we are
because of you.
We are who we are
because you showed us in Jesus
what it means to serve.
We are who we are
because of his fidelity
to the way of love.
Holy and Magnificent God,
thank you for ushering us
into this grace-filled community.
Thank you in the name of Jesus.
Amen.

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ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHING
October 31, 2021
Tombs are often the setting for the climax in a horror movie. It is usually dark and there is a good layer of fog. The wind is blowing just enough to cause the leafs to swirl around and for the branches to crackle. An owl usually gives off a startling call as a distant dog (or something else) echoes back with a chilling howl. Hollywood is quite good at setting a scene that causes us to tense up and even close our eyes. Today is a day of tombs, and though we may find ourselves experiencing a moment of fright, we really have a different vision of the tomb. It is not a place of fear, but a place of joy. A number of years ago, I went to Italy with four other clergy. We had a great time, and during our visit to the Vatican we toured an area under St. Peter’s Basilica where many of the tombs of former Popes are found. I was really taken back when we approached the tomb of Pope John Paul II, one of the most beloved Popes in recent history. There were twenty or so people hanging on his tomb sobbing. We stayed there for 30 minutes, and the people never left. Later I was told that some of the same people come to his tomb everyday, and cry and moan for hours. I understand how important he was to many people, and he truly was a saintly man, but I’m pretty certain that is NOT what he would want. Of all people, I feel pretty confident in saying that he is not there. He is enjoying life with the One he served, and desires for us to view the grave, not as an ending, but a beginning. On this Halloween, when goblins and ghouls are causing us to quiver in fear; when images of tombs and graveyards are the source of anxiety, when people enjoy being the source of other people screams, let us remember the tomb that was empty. Let us remember the joy!

Gracious God, you are the source of resurrection. Through you, new life is found. As the world enjoys an evening of fright around the images of death, let us remember how your love frees us from all these fears. Let us celebrate the power of grace to liberate humanity into new life. Amen.

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