Famous Last Words

Reflection on John 16: 1-15

by Mike Hayes

“I have said all these things to you to keep you from falling away. They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God. And they will do these things because they have not known the Father, nor me. But I have said these things to you, that when their hour comes you may remember that I told them to you.

“I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you. But now I am going to him who sent me, and none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me;concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.

“I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he willguide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.”

A quick search of “famous last words” shows that most last words that get memorialized are quite sad. Shouldn’t last words should be more weighty, more meaningful? This past spring I read a popular book entitled “The Last Lecture” by Randy Pausch” Pausch was a computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon. Many professors give a talk called "The Last Lecture" where they consider the end of their career and reflect on what is most important to them. And while they talk, you can't help but consider the same question: What would we impart if we knew it was our last chance? What would we want as our legacy? Randy Pausch was a young professor and father of three children who was dying of terminal cancer. His last lecture was poignant as he shared important life lessons with his children, his students and us. It was a book well worth reading.

John 16 is part of the teaching Jesus shared with his apostles at the last Supper. If you were sitting down with your followers and sharing your “Last Lecture” before everything in the world came unhinged and you were going to be crucified, you would choose your words carefully. Jesus did, and John 16 is part of his legacy to us.

Over and over in his last lecture, Jesus tells us that that he is going away, but he is not leaving us alone. He will send us the Holy Spirit. Like David Pausch, his words are meant to provide comfort and instruction.  Unlike Dr. Pausch, Jesus was able to promise that the presence and power of God would continue in the person of the Holy Spirit. I was struck by the word Jesus chose to describe the coming Holy Spirit. In John and elsewhere in this last discourse he describes the Holy Spirit as the Paraclete. Paraclete is a transliterated word from the Greek text that is recorded variously in John 14, 15 and 16 as Comforter, Counselor, and Advocate. Jesus wants his followers to know that the one he is sending to be with them in his absence, his legacy, is a person mysteriously and intimately part of the triune God, who will provide just what they need.

In verse 7 Jesus says it is to our advantage that he goes away because of he did not go Advocate would not come. The Advocate, the very presence of God intercedes on our behalf, understands our struggles, comforts and helps us, reminds us of our new identity in Christ, a gives us hope.

In the church world we have a word for the “Last Word.” It is "Benediction," Latin for last word. A benediction is God’s last word about us. Weekly at Oakland City Church we are reminded that God our Advocate’s last word for us is this, “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass.” (1 Thessalonians 5:23, 24).

Tomorrow’s reading: Romans 8:1-11

Walking With The Spirit

Reflection on John 14:25-31

by Iana Diesto

These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe. I will no longer talk much with you, forthe ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me, but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here. 

Whenever my one-year-old nephew falls or gets knocked down, his immediate reaction is to cry.  However, there’s a three-second window, in between the fall and the tears, when he looks at me for help. In that moment, I can help him respond differently: I pretend it wasn’t a big deal, or I can rush to his aid and coddle him. If I choose the former, he simply gets up again and continues on.  If I run to him and worriedly pick him up, he starts crying. More often than not, when I show my nephew how I respond, he responds likewise.

I see a similar situation happening with Jesus and his disciples at the end of John 14.  Up until this point, Jesus was saying that he would be leaving them. His crucifixion is about to take place, and He only has a few moments left.

As for the disciples, the person they had built their lives around – whom they had left everything for and in whom they had entrusted their futures – was about to leave them! How would you feel if person or the things you had sacrificed a lot for were gone? Or if your ideas of your future weren’t panning out the way you wanted?

I would feel incredibly frightened and frustrated.  I’d probably cry harder than my nephew. Sensing this is how his disciples would also react, Jesus takes those few moments He has and offers a different way to respond: with the Holy Spirit.

First, He offers the Holy Spirit as a “Helper.” If translated, this means various things: counselor, advocate, and intercessor are a few. When the disciples are faced with an unknown future, the Spirit will give them advice. When they feel like they are unable to speak for themselves, the Holy Spirit will be there to stand in the gap for them. Not only that, but the Spirit will continue to do the things Jesus was doing with them. What comforting news that must be!

Second, Jesus also offers His unique peace. Worldly peace is temporary; it depends on things that may not last (like their jobs, house, or the wellbeing of their families). In contrast, Jesus’ peace lasts forever. Their souls can be at rest no matter what is going on around them, because His peace is within them. It is a peace that covers all of their past and present troubles, and it shields them from fearing their future.

Lastly, Jesus offers joy. In a little while, He’ll be gone and the disciples are unsure when He will return. Instead of fearing this potentially difficult circumstance, Jesus calls for rejoicing.  Somehow, Jesus’ leaving will be better for Jesus, and therefore better for His disciples. Jesus calls them to rejoice in their current hard situation because of what it will mean in the future.

We all deal with difficult situations. There are times when I am stuck and don’t know what to do next. There are people in our community who feel trapped where they are and no one will listen to their voice. In those situations, rejoicing does not seem natural.  Crying, arguing, and making excuses seem more natural. But how would I live differently if I knew there was a Helper who gave me direction when I felt lost in life? Which voices we would hear if we listened to the Spirit interceding on behalf of the voiceless in Oakland? Knowing that there was a peace in the Holy Spirit that the world could not take away, which circumstances is God calling you to rejoice in?

Tomorrow’s reading: John 16:1-15

Am I Grounded?

Reflection on Ezekiel 36:22-36
by Maggie Crosby

[22] “Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord GOD: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came. [23] And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them. And the nations will know that I am the LORD, declares the Lord GOD, when through you I vindicate my holiness before their eyes. [24] I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries and bring you into your own land. [25] I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. 

[26] And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. [27] And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules. [28] You shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers, and you shall be my people, and I will be your God. [29] And I will deliver you from all your uncleannesses. And I will summon the grain and make it abundant and lay no famine upon you. [30] I will make the fruit of the tree and the increase of the field abundant, that you may never again suffer the disgrace of famine among the nations. [31] Then you will remember your evil ways, and your deeds that were not good, and you will loathe yourselves for your iniquities and your abominations. [32] It is not for your sake that I will act, declares the Lord GOD; let that be known to you. Be ashamed and confounded for your ways, O house of Israel. 

[33] “Thus says the Lord GOD: On the day that I cleanse you from all your iniquities, I will cause the cities to be inhabited, and the waste places shall be rebuilt. [34] And the land that was desolate shall be tilled, instead of being the desolation that it was in the sight of all who passed by. [35] And they will say, ‘This land that was desolate has become like the garden of Eden, and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are now fortified and inhabited.’ [36] Then the nations that are left all around you shall know that I am the LORD; I have rebuilt the ruined places and replanted that which was desolate. I am the LORD; I have spoken, and I will do it.

Whenever I hear the pastor say, “please turn your bibles to the Old Testament,” I feel a twinge of anxiety.  Uh oh, I think, what have we done wrong?

As I began reading this passage in Ezekiel, I felt the same panic I used to feel when one of my parents would shout “Maggie Colleen Crosby!”  The full name meant I was in trouble.  Can you relate?  I’d start racking my brain, compiling a list of my most recent transgressions, “1) I told the neighbor kid the truth about Santa, 2) I lied about brushing my teeth last night, 3) I read my sister’s diary…” Which one had they discovered?  After the stern “We’re very disappointed with you” talk with my parents, I would invariably be sent to my room to think about what I’d done.

I tend to personify the God of the Old Testament in that light, as the angry parent who is waiting to send me to my room.

For the first few verses, it’s sounding like this will be the case – that God will lecture the people of Israel for their wrongdoings (How many times do you need to say “profaned”?  We get it, we messed up…) and then “send them to their room” so to speak.

But then God surprised me.  When will I stop being surprised by His surprises?  He promises to vindicate the people, to gather them and cleanse them.

He doesn’t make them do chores to work off their wrongdoings – HE vindicates THEM.  HE gives to THEM a new heart and a new spirit.

He doesn’t send them away to think about what they’ve done – He GATHERS them.  I like that word, “gather.”  It sounds like something you do to wildflowers, to gather them into a bouquet.  Or to friends, to gather them for a nice dinner party.  It doesn’t sound like the verb of an angry parent.

The people of Israel have strayed from the Lord, they have become distracted by idols and things of this world.  But He doesn’t ask them to pack their bags and return to him – He will do the work, he will gather them, renew them and provide for them in spite of their transgressions.

He says something interesting here; He says that it is, “not for your sake that I will act.”  I think that what He means is that he would do the same thing for any of his people.  He reminds them that they have done wrong, and tells them that they should be “confounded” by their sins, because they are so far off from what He hopes for them.  His motives aren’t to shame and fix this one particular group, but instead to make the world right for everyone, to restore it to the way he designed and created it.

In verses 33-36 God shows off a bit.  Repeatedly throughout the Bible, He has said and shown that he can do great things, that he will repair all that we ruin and restore what we break.  He can turn our desolate lands into the Garden of Eden, the ultimate creation that we ruined.

Tomorrow's reading: John 14:15-21

The Spirit of New Life

Reflections on Acts 2:1-18

1 When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. 

5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. 7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” 

12 And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others mocking said, “They are filled with new wine.” 

14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. 15 For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. 16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel: 

17 “‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; 18 even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.

This week, we are starting a series of readings on the Holy Spirit. There is great confusion and ambivalence over the person and role of the Holy Spirit. Very often He is referred to as an 'it'. The Holy Spirit is not a man, but He is certainly not an It! We also wonder at the role of the Holy Spirit. Some of us may feel that the Holy Spirit is exotic or unruly - only leading to charismatic outbursts or divisive fringe activities.

If we feel doubt and ambivalence over the Holy Spirit, we are likely to forget the power and wonder of the third person of the Trinity. That's a tragedy. The Holy Spirit is God In Us, the promise of Jesus to be with us, always.

In this passage, we see the Holy Spirit at Pentecost - the birthday of the church. Note what the Holy Spirit does:

1. The Spirit gives confidence to the frightened disciples.
2. The Spirit teaches the disciples to speak the heart language of the people. This is not mystical speaking in tongues, but a miraculous sign that God is committed to the unity of God's people.
3. The Spirit enables Peter to preach the first good news. The Spirit of truth is all about the message of Jesus. Everything the Spirit does is aimed at pointing people to Him.

What questions do you have about the Holy Spirit? Ask God for a new understanding of God's Spirit in you.

And here's a treat for the bold...www.adventuresoftheholyghost.tumblr.com/

The Call with Spotty Reception

Reflection on 1 Corinthians 1:26-31

26 For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; 28 God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, 29 so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. 30 And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, 31 so that, as it is written, "Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord."

When your phone call starts to break up, the first thing you do is look down at your phone to confirm. "I have four bars. It must be on your end." We say it with a slightly reproachful tone. "Come on," we think to ourselves. "Get it together." Perhaps if we are honest, we feel the same way about God. When the call is unclear, we are sure we have four bars. God must be in a dead spot. Or maybe God has a old flip phone. Typical God. So resistant to new technology.

But have you ever lived in a house with bad reception? You live in a dead spot for your  carrier. You know that when the call breaks up, its your fault. You have the one bar. You know it. And the person on the other end says - "I have four bars. It must be on your end." Oh the shame.

As we have read through the call stories of God in the Scriptures, the constant theme has been bad reception. We have seen that God calls in so many different ways. But in every case, the listener to the call has one bar. Abraham, Moses, David, Jeremiah, Job, Paul all get the signal scrambled (Mary actually does this one pretty well.) They doubt God. They doubt themselves. They doubt the plan. And, if we are honest, when we look at our response, the reception is pretty bad as well.

That's why I love this paragraph from Paul. It reminds me that bad reception is not surprising to God. God's call only goes out to the places with bad reception. God is not calling those in the best location or with the best location. God is calling people who don't get it. God is calling people who aren't impressive. God is calling people who are 'low and despised'.

You may not understand God's call yet. You may be fearful. You may doubt. But that doesn't change the transmission. God is committed to calling you - our of fear, doubt, anxiety - and into purpose and life.

And when the call totally dropped out, and we were tempted to throw the phone against the wall, God did what all good friends do. He yelled into the dying phone, 'I'm coming over.' And that's what he did. The author of Hebrews says it best:

"Long ago, at many times and in various ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days, he has spoken to us through a Son..." (Hebrews 1:1)

Let us boast in and focus on, not the quality of our reception, but the goodness of the one who calls.

Monday's Reading: Acts 2:1-18

When Calling Clashes

Reflection on Acts 26:2-23
by Ginny Prince

“I consider myself fortunate that it is before you, King Agrippa, I am going to make my defense today against all the accusations of the Jews, especially because you are familiar with all the customs and controversies of the Jews. Therefore I beg you to listen to me patiently.

“My manner of life from my youth, spent from the beginning among my own nation and in Jerusalem, is known by all the Jews. They have known for a long time, if they are willing to testify, that according to the strictest party of our religion I have lived as a Pharisee. And now I stand here on trial because of my hope in the promise made by God to our fathers, to which our twelve tribes hope to attain, as they earnestly worship night and day. And for this hope I am accused by Jews, O king! Why is it thought incredible by any of you that God raises the dead?

“I myself was convinced that I ought to do many things in opposing the name of Jesus of Nazareth. And I did so in Jerusalem. I not only locked up many of the saints in prison after receiving authority from the chief priests, but when they were put to death I cast my vote against them. And I punished them often in all the synagogues and tried to make them blaspheme, and in raging fury against them I persecuted them even to foreign cities.

“In this connection I journeyed to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. At midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, that shone around me and those who journeyed with me. And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ And I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles—to whom I am sending you to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

“Therefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those in Damascus,then in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent andturn to God, performing deeds in keeping with their repentance. For this reason the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to kill me. To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so I stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would come to pass: that the Christ must suffer and that, by being the first to rise from the dead, he would proclaim light both to our people and to the Gentiles.”

Some of us have really clear moments of meeting the Trinity for the first time, others of us may not be so sure. All followers of Christ have a trajectory of moments where we encounter the risen Lord and make choices to move towards God or away from God’s character and work. And all of us have some reflective work to do.

Agrippa ruled in Palestine for the Romans yet was sympathetic to the Jewish people and had a Greek education so he was the right man to hear Paul’s case. Paul knows his background and uses everything in his power to his defense -- from using Jewish language around theophany (a moment of revelation from God) in verses 13-14 (falling down, hearing the voice of God in Aramaic, etc.), referring back to the "calling" stories of the prophets (Jeremiah 1, Isaiah 42) to the Greek saying about “kicking against the goads” in verse 14.  His overall goal is to convince Agrippa that both the faith Paul represents and his story are consistent with the Jewish faith which was tolerated by the Romans (verse 23).  Paul has really thought through how to tell his story to men like Agrippa and Festus. 

Paul is certain of Jesus’ work in him, giving him a new identity: as one who was clearly seen by Jesus himself (verse 15); as a servant (verse 16); as a witness of God’s work past and future (verse 16); as one to be sent to a new people group (verse 17); as one who endures suffering but with a promise of protection from God (verse 17). 

What are the new identity labels God is inviting me to use in reference to myself? How am I being changed by past and current or future encounters with the risen Lord? Where are Father, Son, and Holy Spirit sending me to and for what Godly purpose? And how do I articulate these things to people who may or may not understand my cultural context?

This loaded image of the icon Synaspismos is what I hope we can become as we reflect on what God’s call to us is, how to articulate calling to many, and live out this call in Oakland. The icon depicts the Apostles/Saints Paul and Peter in an embrace.  Peter, a Jewish man called to bring the Gospel to the Jews, and Paul, a persecutor of the Jews called to bring the Gospel to the Gentiles. It is an image of the joining and clashing of two calling stories played out. As Andy Crouch says in his book Playing God: “So the Synaspismos icon has become for me a picture of fellowship, partnership and community, and also of difference, distance and difficulty.  Ultimately they are all part of the same thing.  It is perhaps the best portrayal I have seen of the reality that love is as much an act of the will as an impulse of the heart.  In the Synaspismos we witness two strong leaders willing to submit to one another -– to embrace the gifts the other brings and to join together, shields overlapping, in a shared mission.”

Tomorrow's reading: 1 Corinthians 1:26-31

Questioning the Angel

Reflection on Luke 1:26-38
by Liz Lin

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”

And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.” And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

Make no mistake:  I am a planner, and I love my plans.  I thrive on knowing where I need to be and when.  My Google Calendar is meticulously tended to and color-coded.  Deviations from these plans – unexpected interruptions, last-minute changes from other people – bring irritation at minimum and disproportionate anger at maximum.  My plans give me a sense of control over my surroundings; they make me feel like the world is orderly and manageable.

So when I read this exchange between Mary – who is a teenager, mind you – and an angel from heaven, I’m simultaneously comforted and challenged.

First, I’m comforted because Mary is initially “greatly troubled” by this angelic intrusion into her life.  Though Gabriel’s greeting is kind and in no way threatening, this disruption is unusual, to say the least, and her first response is one of appropriate… concern.  Alarm, really.  And that’s me!  That’s how I feel when I’m interrupted, when things pop up unexpectedly.  (Not that I’ve ever been interrupted by an angel.  But if I were ever to be, that’s exactly how I would respond.)

I’m also reassured because Mary’s second response is to question the angel.  She’s not sure about this whole thing.  This also feels appropriate, because what the angel is saying to her – that she’s going to give birth to the Son of God – sounds a touch beyond the realm of possibility.  And that’s also how I respond to unexpected intrusions – I get stressed, and then I ask skeptical questions as I try to process what’s going to happen, how my plans are going to change.  Thus far, Mary and I are very much on the same page.

However, this conversation is also challenging for me, because after the angel’s third utterance – explaining how Mary’s going to get pregnant (which sounds crazy) with the son of God (also crazy) while she’s engaged to a man she hasn’t slept with (which will have crazy consequences for her) – oh yeah, and that her past-her-prime cousin Elizabeth is pregnant (more crazy) – Mary basically says, “As you wish.”  This is the point where Mary and I diverge, because this is not at all how I would have responded; I would have continued being troubled and asking questions.  I would have wrung my hands, wondering how the angel’s prophecy would have fit in with my plans – and all the more so because it sounded so far-fetched.  I don’t think that Mary is completely on board with the prophecy at this point; I don’t think that happens until she visits her cousin Elizabeth, who confirms it.  But at the very least, Mary assents to it at this point, and that puts her way ahead of where I would be.

So when I read this story, I feel reassured knowing that Mary, in many ways, is like me and responds to unexpected disturbances like I would.  She makes me feel like I'm normal.  But she also challenges me, because in the face of a major wrench in her plans – even one that seems as insane and unlikely as what Gabriel says – she willingly agrees, whereas I tend to stew and resist.  And what’s the difference between her and me?  I can make every excuse:  Maybe given the context in which she lived, Mary didn’t have a lot of life options, so her plans weren’t as significant as mine.  Maybe she had less reason to doubt than I do.  But maybe it’s the fact that she trusts, even in the slightest, what the angel says about no word from God ever failing.

I am not Mary.  It appears that I need a lot more processing time than she does, and I have a much higher burden of proof.   But I think I can learn something from this teenager who lived 2000 years ago about accepting divine intrusions – and buying into the notion that God will do what God says that God will do, even in the most unlikely of circumstances.

Tomorrow's reading: Acts 26: 2-23

Tarshish Mon Amour

Reflection on Jonah 1:1-10 

by Aeryn Johnson

Jonah Flees the Presence of the Lord

1 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it, for their evil has come up before me.” 3 But Jonah rose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord.

4 But the Lord hurled a great wind upon the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship threatened to break up. 5 Then the mariners were afraid, and each cried out to his god. And they hurled the cargo that was in the ship into the sea to lighten it for them. But Jonah had gone down into the inner part of the ship and had lain down and was fast asleep. 6 So the captain came and said to him, “What do you mean, you sleeper? Arise, call out to your god! Perhaps the god will give a thought to us, that we may not perish.”

Jonah Is Thrown into the Sea

7 And they said to one another, “Come, let us cast lots, that we may know on whose account this evil has come upon us.” So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah. 8 Then they said to him, “Tell us on whose account this evil has come upon us. What is your occupation? And where do you come from? What is your country? And of what people are you?” 9 And he said to them, “I am a Hebrew, and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.” 10 Then the men were exceedingly afraid and said to him, “What is this that you have done!” For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them.

Jonah is a consummate knucklehead, a clown straight from the commedia dell’arte.  “Go to Nineveh!” booms the voice from offstage.  “No!” Jonah shouts back crossly, and we laugh.  The storm rocks the getaway boat he has stowed away on, and his shipmates panic.  “Who’s responsible for this disaster?”  Jonah trembles and hides, and we laugh again.  Everyone knows you can’t run from God! 

Jonah doesn’t know he’s running from God.  In Jonah’s version of the story, he’s just trying to get to Tarshish, a charming seaside town with a brisk metals trade believed to be in what is now Spain.  And who could blame him?  A guy’s got to make a living, he goes where the opportunity is!  

Maybe he heard the call to get up and go to Nineveh, and maybe he didn’t.  Maybe he did and pretended he didn’t.  Maybe he was too busy trying to teach himself Spanish on podcast in preparation for his new life to hear the still, small voice whispering: “Go to….Iraq.  That’s right.  Nineveh.  In Iraq.”  If you got that call, would you answer it?  Or would you let it go straight to voicemail and then delete it later without listening to it?

We tend to think of this story as a cartoon cautionary tale.  To ignore God is to prolong the inevitable; he’ll have his way with you in the end, so you might as well make it easy on yourself and avoid the part where you’re interred for three days in whale offal. It’s easy to forget that when it’s us in Jonah’s shoes, getting on that boat to Tarshish doesn’t feel like ignoring God.  It feels like striding boldly into a bright and exciting future.  A future where side trips to Iraq would make no sense.  

This story isn’t meant just to make us laugh -- it is also an simply an illustration of how things are. We are a people who flee from God when he calls us.  It’s what we do.  But we aren’t self-aware enough to call it that.  Instead, we usually just call it “going to Tarshish.”

Tomorrow's reading: Luke 1:26-38

Right, Right -- But What's The Plan?

Reflection on Jeremiah 1:4-10

by Austin Dannhaus

Now the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
and before you were born I consecrated you;
I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”

Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth.” But the Lord said to me,

“Do not say, ‘I am only a youth’;
for to all to whom I send you, you shall go,
and whatever I command you, you shall speak.
Do not be afraid of them,
for I am with you to deliver you,
declares the Lord.”

Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth. And the Lord said to me,

“Behold, I have put my words in your mouth.
See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms,
to pluck up and to break down,
to destroy and to overthrow,
to build and to plant.”

Bits and pieces of Jeremiah are famously used as a reminder that God “has a plan for your life” (Jer. 29:11). Right out of the gate, God tells Jeremiah that He’s known him since the beginning, that He’s set him apart, and that He has appointed him as a prophet.

And it gets better.

Sensing Jeremiah’s fear, God tells him to not be afraid. He reminds Jeremiah that he will rescue him.

Just a couple of verses in, Jeremiah has “knowing” and “protecting.” He’s on God’s radar and can reasonably assume God will keep him safe. Not a bad “in” with the man upstairs.

Then Jeremiah is given a purpose. This is the “calling” - God telling Jeremiah that in addition to being known and protected, he’s also got a project to work on, a purpose in life. Turns out it’s going to be a big one too, one that will result in Jeremiah’s story making the cut into Holy Scripture.

Jeremiah’s response is classic. See, being a prophet wasn’t the easiest job in the world. Being unable to speak, as Jeremiah protests, was the least of his concerns. As we see later in the story, the ascetic life of a prophet was not enviable. It was lonely, and as was the case with Jeremiah, often resulted in people conspiring to kill you.

But what do you expect when your job is to go around telling people they are sinning against God?

Now back to Jeremiah’s response. Jeremiah’s not thrilled. He makes an excuse. He looks for a way out. I can’t do it, he says.

You’d think that when the God of the universe audibly tells you that he’s had his eye on you since the beginning, that he’s going to rescue you if need be, and that you have an important task to do – you’d listen.

Jeremiah didn’t want to. He had a sense of what following God's call might mean. And yet somehow, these opening words and the words found later in the book are meant to be comforting,  even hopeful.

Don’t know what to do after college? God knows the plans he has for you.

Going through a mid-life crisis? God formed you in your mother’s womb.

Not feeling unique or gifted? God set you apart; he’s appointed you for a specific task.

Right, right. But what’s the plan? What have I been formed for? Have I been appointed for something fun, exciting, adventurous, and unique?

One of the themes we see throughout scripture is that God’s calling causes a disturbance. It disrupts life-as-we-know-it. And oftentimes it doesn’t end well. Tradition tells us that Jeremiah was exiled and died a martyr.

So instead of Isaiah’s bold “Here am I, send me!” we, like Jeremiah, look for excuses. Or we pull the slot machine of God’s will until all the numbers line up the way we want them to. Or we just pretend we don’t hear Him at all.

There is something else in Jeremiah’s response that’s interesting: his sense of his own shortcomings. This response seems more unlikely in today’s world where we are constantly trying to prove how capable we are.

As our community explores the idea of calling, we ought to see this and other parts of Jeremiah not as hopeful or reassuring reminders. It’s core to the Christian identity to know that we are known, protected, and called. It’s a given, so to speak.

Instead, we should see Jeremiah as a case study in responding well to God. Jeremiah is a reminder that once we’ve been called, we’re not to be afraid, make excuses, or ignore the call.

Like those who’ve gone before us, we are to “[put] our bodies where our hearts are[1]” - setting aside our focus on fears, shortcomings, and self - and chose a path not of our own making.

Tomorrow's reading: Jonah 1:1-10

[1] "The Embodied Word," Pilgrim Preaching, Keeping company with biblical texts and the people who hear and preach them, a weblog for preaching, by Mary Hinkle, Luther Seminary.

The Forgiving Call

Reflection on Isaiah 6:1-8

1 In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. 3 And one called to another and said:

 “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” 4 And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. 5 And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!”

6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7 And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.”

8 And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here I am! Send me.”

As I write this blog today, we are watching the collapse of the political structure of Iraq, which the US and her allies spent 11 years, trillions of dollars and thousands of lives to erect. The illusion of fire power and money has been completely unveiled. As shattering as this is for American self-image, the lives of Iraqis are the ones who are truly shattered. Politically speaking, the Middle East is radically shifting, and nobody knows the outcome. 

Isaiah's call came when everything else was falling apart. The political structure had collapsed, and society was in enormous upheaval. King Uzziah had died and local princes and magistrates were acting in their own interests with impunity.

In the midst of this, Isaiah the prophet has a vision. It's not a vision of a new world order, but a vision of the one who ultimately sits on the throne. There may be confusion at every level, but there is no confusion about who sits at the top. Isaiah's first reaction is to acknowledge that he and his world are not worthy of this God. He is aware of his sin, and the sin of the world he lives in. 

Here's the good news. God is deeply concerned about the injustice of this world. Yet his first word to his people is forgiveness. Isaiah is sent back out into the world, to be a voice of hope and truth, only once he knows he has been forgiven.

We must not go and work and speak in this world out of guilt, anger or shame. We must proceed out the forgiving call of God.

Tomorrow's reading: Jeremiah 1:4-10

A child-like wonder...

“The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper.” ― W.B. Yeats

Sometimes it’s hard to know if my 3-year-old is even listening to me. How can I know if he’s developing a relationship with God? Does it go beyond sitting quietly in church and having answers that please Mommy? And if I’m to become child-like in order to enter the kingdom of God (Matthew 18:3), how does that affect the way my son and I worship together?

One of my favorite blogs is aslanslibrary.wordpress.com. Sarah and Haley, two Bay Area moms, share and review theological kid's literature. Their reviews are so lovely and insightful and I enjoy every post. Right now my son and I are using one of their recommendations, The Garden of the Good Shepherd sticker calendar, by Tomie dePaola. It has wonderful changing scenes like the pasture of the good shepherd and the Lord’s Table with a sticker, scripture and short meditation for each day. There are many resources to help families celebrate Lent and Easter Sunday, but few that celebrate the season of Easter. Easter is such a great mystery (these are words from our Godly Play church calendar story!) that it can’t be contained in one Sunday and so it spills over into its own season and ends with Pentecost (last Sunday, June 8th).

So, one morning my son and I were—I’ll be honest—slogging our way through the sticker calendar and reading of the day. We were behind and I was having to resist the urge to skim through multiple days so we could get back on track; my son just wanted to go outside. Suddenly something struck a chord with him and he began asking one question after another, many of which I didn’t have perfect answers for. (“If Jesus died, did God the Father die too?”) I was so glad to be able to fall back on my training as a Godly Play teacher. Instead of feeling pressure to answer each question “correctly,” I was able to relax and wonder along with him. Sometimes I had answers, but often I could say, “I haven’t thought of it that way” or, “I’ve wondered about that too.” Time slowed down. Tangents became ok. It stopped being “work.” We both felt peaceful and engaged. 

Worship and wonder can be used synonymously. How else do we even begin to approach God, but through the use of our imagination? Wonder is open-ended. It doesn’t always have a single answer. It’s not a test or a checklist. It often involves losing track of time or releasing that false sense of having control that we hold onto so desperately. And it usually goes beyond turning a complex story into a simple fable with a moral take-away. 

As an educator, I’m familiar with a big shift in pedagogy that’s happened since I attended school. Education has moved from “teachers download information into children” to “teachers are guides and memorization is really just the first step to understanding.” This shift applies to spiritual development, too. On Sundays after the story’s been told, the storyteller and community of children do open-ended wonder questions. The way the questions are structured encourages the children to move from replaying the story in their minds (What part of the story do you like best? Which part is most important?) to analysis, evaluation and even creation (Where do you see yourself in the story? I wonder if there’s any part of the story you could leave out and still have all the story you need?). 

Some children are outgoing or they’ve learned to trust their community of children and so they feel comfortable wondering aloud; others wonder internally, silently. And that’s ok. It’s about the communal act of wondering. It’s about trusting God and trusting his story. Wonder allows us to enter into the story, to see that it’s real, that it happened to real people—and also to see that it’s still happening and that we’re in it. We open ourselves to this and we help our children to open themselves to this in order to encounter God’s elusive presence. 

If you are an adult who would like to wonder with our children as a storyteller or greeter...

Or, if you’re a parent who would like to experience a children’s worship class and see how to encourage your children to wonder... 

You’re invited to an adult-only children’s worship class on June 22nd. The class will meet in the chapel at 10am. The story will be “The Circle of the Church Year” and we will (as the the children do) rejoin the big service for communion.

Please email Meg Connell to RSVP, or to share any questions or ideas! meg@oaklandcitychurch.org

The Constant Call

Reflections on Joshua 1:1-9

1 After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' assistant, 2 "Moses my servant is dead. Now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land that I am giving to them, to the people of Israel. 3 Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given to you, just as I promised to Moses. 4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites to the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun shall be your territory. 5 No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. 

Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you. 6 Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. 

7 Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. 8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go."

 This is the passage inscribed in the Bible I received at my baptism. Obviously, the connection with 'Joshua' made it an obvious choice. But throughout my life it has gone deeper than that. It's a story of call that connects deeply to my own sense of call. In moments of inadequacy and self-doubt, this passage reminds me that God's call is constant, even when I am not.

Joshua receives this word from God after the death of Moses. Joshua stands anxious and afraid because he knows that he is not the leader Moses was. Moses led the people out of Egypt, Moses led the people through the wilderness, Moses had given the commandments, Moses had protected his people. Joshua knew Moses. And he knew he was no Moses.

As he stood on the verge of the Jordan river, about to enter the Promised Land, the one person who had held them together, that led them, that saved them - was gone.

How often is the task before us an impossible task? How often do we question our competency in the face of our work, our parenting, our marriage, any of our relationships? Let's not even concern ourselves with any 'world-changing'! If I am honest, when I look hard at the road I want to walk, I am filled with dread.

And this is where God's call comes. God's call is not a direction. Joshua knows where he has to go. God's call is not a new insight. Joshua has already heard the truth. God's call is a reaffirmation of his commitment to Joshua. It's almost comical how quickly Moses' death is dealt with. The passing of Moses is momentous to Joshua. But to God, Moses passing is part of his will, and no big deal. God doesn't need Moses. For that matter, he doesn't need Joshua. But he chooses Joshua. He affirms his support of Joshua. God will never leave nor forsake. Everything that was promised will be fulfilled.

Just be strong and courageous. Focus on God's word, not my inadequacy. Let's stop asking for guidance. We know (in almost every case) what we must do. Be a husband, a father, a wife, a mother, a friend, a faithful child, a hardworking employee, a gracious neighbor. What I lack is the courage to take the step.

But perhaps, like me, the call to be strong and courageous feels overwhelming in itself. Faith in God feels too much. Then, let us note the pattern... God commits to Joshua - I will be with you. Then he gives the marching orders. This is pattern of God - give the promise first, and then the command. God's call is not dependent on our response. The call is constant, even when our response is not.

The Personal Call

Reflection on Exodus 3:1-14

1 Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 And the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. 3 And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” 4 When the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” 5 Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” 6 And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. 

7 Then the LORD said, “I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings, 8 and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 9 And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. 10 Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” 11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” 12 He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”

13 Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” 14 God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” 15 God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.

Again with the questions. These heroes of the faith, so-called, are pretty hopeless aren't they. In this story, we meet Moses as he meets God. Working away as a simple shepherd, Moses sees a strange sight - a bush that is in flame but is not burned up. Out of the bush, God speaks. And Moses receives a call - to go to the king of Egypt and demand the release of the Israelites from slavery. Instead of jumping to it, Moses starts  questioning God. He wants to know details.

 Actually, it's quite a relief, isn't it. The heroes of the faith aren't quite so heroic. And so we can give up on the heroics too.

We can admit that we have questions too. We want details too. When we respond to a call of God, it usually feels scant on the details. When I feel the tug to a closer walk with God, I usually wonder where to place my feet first. So, I ask more questions - about where and when and why. I ask my pastor (yes -- I have a pastor). I read the Bible. I try to pray. And the questions don't seem to get answered.

 How does God respond to Moses? Does God give him all the answers or the details? No. God does something so much more profound. God tells Moses God's name. God unveils the Name - 'I AM WHO I AM'. That's enough.

 Usually, when we are worried or anxious, we ask for direction or clarity about the thing we are anxious about. Perhaps instead we should look for greater clarity on who God is, as revealed in God's Word.

In the book of Acts, when the early church first faced a threat, they prayed. And their pray was not filled with details of their problems or demands for guidance. Most of the prayer is reminding them of one thing - who God is. It might be a good way to start our prayers.
And when they heard [the concerns], they lifted their voices together to God and said, “Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them..." Acts 4:24. 

The Impossible Call

Reflection on Genesis 15:1-6

1 After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” 2 But Abram said, “O Lord GOD, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 And Abram said, “Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.” 4 And behold, the word of the LORD came to him: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.” 5 And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” 6 And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.

No. Way. That's what we used to say as kids to anything that seemed impossible to us. Sometimes you might even put a rude word between the 'no' and the 'way'. There is no way that could be true. There is no way that could happen.

That's what Abram is saying in this story. When God says 'I am your shield, your reward shall be very great', God is promising Abram a family, even though he and his wife Sarai, are way past child-bearing age. Abram doesn't believe God, he doesn't see how it can happen. So, he says to God, 'No way. That's impossible.'

When I believe there is no way, I start looking for another way - a way that makes sense to me, a way that works, a way I'm familiar with. And that's what Abram does. He offers God a way out of impossible. He finds an alternative. Maybe Abram doesn't have a kid. Maybe his servant has a kid and it 'metaphorically' works. But Abram is just grasping at straws at this point.

Before Abram can believe, he wants... no... he needs more details. He needs to know the way. 'What are you talking about?' he says to God. You talk about reward, and I have no idea what you can even offer me. So, God takes Abram outside, shows him the stars and tells him that his promise is even bigger than Abram thought. There is no explanation, no how, no 'here is the way'. There is just a repetition of the promise.

Back when I was a kid, if someone said 'No Way', there was only one response. 'Way!' God says 'way'. God specializes in the impossible - new life, new faith, new hope, new creation. He's "the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not." (Romans 4:17)