thoughts on the news of the day: accidents

hmmm…..

            When I was in seminary, we spent a lot of time studying Systematic Theology.  It was very cerebral and worked great for left brain types who loved to analyze everything.  You know the type: they are rational, planned and structured.  They prefer established, defined information and problem solve by logically and sequentially looking at parts of things. God works for them that way, too. 

            But God doesn’t work that way for me.  I am more what you might call an accidental theologian.  My right brain sees God as intuitive, fluid and spontaneous.

I have a really hard time putting God in a stiff, structured, analytical system.  Needless to say, my grades weren’t all that terrific in Systematic Theology.

            It does make me a pretty good pastor, though.  Because to me, we will never understand why God does the things God does.  The questions will always be there. Let’s face it; God is just a whole lot smarter than we are.  Sitting with someone who is struggling with their faith is a holy moment and the pain a person feels cannot be explained away. 

            So I don’t try.  And it seems to work fairly well.  We are not going to get all the answers this side of heaven.  But letting go of the need to understand explains everything.  Now, I do respect those who need to explain things.  I am sure God loves them, too.  But at the end of the day, for all the analysis, we still don’t have a whole lot of answers about why things work out the way they do.   But it’s probably not by accident.

            hmmm…..

thoughts on the news of the day: joy and sorrow

hmmm…..

            What does joy look like?  Today it looks like the radiant smiles of Prince William and his new bride, Kate.  A royal wedding took place early this morning and billions of people watched.  Happiness surrounded the event and commentators on television couldn’t gush enough about the grandeur and excitement of the day.  Joy seemed to be wrapped up in a beautiful package and distributed worldwide.

            What does sorrow look like?  Today it looks like the destruction and devastation of the tornadoes that ripped through the southern states of Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee.  Even my home state of Arkansas was not exempt from the ravages of the spring storm.  Hundreds of people lost their lives and thousands of people lost their homes and businesses.  Pictures on television describe the sadness and grief of a whole section of the country mourning loss.

            Joy and sorrow – seems impossible that two such opposite emotions would be showcased on a day like today.   But they are.  There is joy and there is sorrow in the world – and oftentimes it happens simultaneously.  So, we need some time to catch up on it.  We need some time to look at joy and rejoice; we need some time to look at sorrow and grieve.  And in the midst of it, we need somehow to find where we are and where God is.  For God is there through our happiness and joy – through our pain and our sorrow.  God is always there.

            hmmm…..

thoughts on the news of the day: floods

hmmm…..

We have been studying the Prophet Amos in our Wednesday Morning Bible Class.  The name Amos means “burden” or “burden bearer” and it is completely appropriate for the writings of this book. There is very little really worth quoting in Amos; he mostly rants and raves about how wrong the leaders, kings and priests are, their selfishness, and how they are stealing everything from the poor.  And that is true, they were; there was no justice at all in that time and place. 

            One quote stands out in Amos 5: 24:  “let justice roll down like water and righteousness flow like a mighty stream.”   If it sounds familiar, you might have heard it in Martin Luther King’s speech, “I Have a Dream”.  King used it to call our country to seek justice in the treatment of African Americans.  But the quote fits so many circumstances in our world today.

            It has been flooding in our part of the world and the power of flowing water has been at the forefront of the news.  Mudslides, washed out roads, and overturned buildings are all part of the weather patterns lately.  Amos’ visual of justice rolling down like powerful water in the same way floodwaters have flowed lately gives a mighty picture of just how much God wants justice to be a part of our world.

            Maybe we don’t deserve our world – good or bad, but it is good to know, as Amos tells us, that God will repair our broken places, restore our ruins and build the world as it used to be.  In the meantime, we must walk in faith.

            hmmm…..

thoughts on the news of the day: a word of thanks

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            It used to be called Secretary’s Day.  Toward the end of the month of April, a day would be designated to recognize the contributions of the secretaries in companies.  Bosses (usually male) would take their secretary to lunch, or maybe buy them a flower arrangement or plant.  At the very least, a card was in order.

            All that’s changed now --  first of all, since secretaries are almost a thing of the past, the name of the day has been changed to “Administrative Professionals Day”.  If you ask me, it just doesn’t have the same ring to it.  Now, I admit that with computers, most of us do our own secretarial work – typing letters as we compose them, communicating by email and answering our own cell phone.  So, former secretaries, now administrative assistants do a lot of, well… administrative work. 

            I am not sure what we would do without the secretaries and the office manager we have in our church.  They know everything.  Things like: where the key to the storage building is kept, the name and phone number of our electrical guy, how many bulletins to make for the Easter Sunday service, and the name and phone number of that couple who used to be a member of the church 10 years ago, but moved to a ranch in Montana. 

            So hats off to all of the secretaries, administrative assistants, office managers, and other administrative support persons.  Today is their day!  Say thanks to them and let them know their work is valuable and needed!

            hmmm…..

thoughts on the news of the day: hymn

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            “How Great Thou Art” went viral.  As performed by Carrie Underwood and Vince Gill, the well-loved Christian anthem is covering the internet. According to one internet server, searches for Underwood’s version of the hymn spiked at 36% on Saturday and it continues to climb.

            Carrie Underwood can sing a song, no doubt about it; but choosing a gospel tune and performing it on national television with such popularity is something else.  That is true especially when it becomes an internet phenomenon.  

            “How Great Thou Art” is arguably the most favorite hymn sung today.  Although it was originally written in Sweden, it was not widely known until 1957.  At that time, Billy Graham chose it for his Crusade in New York City.  Because of its popularity, it was performed on Graham’s Crusades nearly 100 times throughout the world. 

            The first verse of the hymn begins a beautiful and inspiring statement of God’s incredible creation.  It goes something like this:  “O Lord my God, When I in awesome wonder, Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made; I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder, Thy power throughout the universe displayed. Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee, How great Thou art, How great Thou art.”

            Christian or not, it’s hard to hear the hymn and not be touched by the magnificence of creation and God’s love for us.  Take time today to listen to the hymn, or read the words, they will bring you to wonder and delight.

            hmmm…..

thoughts on the news of the day: trash or treasure

hmmm…..

            A rare copy of the book, The Nuremberg Chronicles emerged recently at a fund raising event in Sandy, Utah.  This German language edition published in 1493 is about 500 years old.  It is a world history beginning in biblical times and is considered to be one of the earliest and most lavishly illustrated books of the 15^th century.

            You would think it would be worth at least a million dollars; and it would have been if it was in mint condition.  But this particular book had pages missing so it was estimated to be worth about $50,000, which is still a lot of money, if you ask me.

            One person’s trash is another person’s treasure.  This treasure was discovered in an attic and had been in the family for years.  But it could have just as easily been discarded as old papers, worthy only of a trash can.

            We are having a rummage sale at our church in a few weeks.  Our members will be combing their homes, garages and attics for items and it is hoped that they will find more treasures than trash to bring to the sale.  Household items and furniture seem to bring the best sales, clothing and books not so much.  Jewelry is a pretty good sale item, but shoes almost never sell. 

            I am beginning to collect small cream pitchers (the kind used for coffee) and have found two or three at my Dad’s house, left over treasures from my Mom’s dish collections.  One of them is badly chipped and cracked and would be trash to most folks,  But I remember seeing the pitcher sit on my Mom’s table, serving milk or syrup, so it is still a treasure to me.

            Trash or treasures, its all a matter of perspective and memory, isn’t it?

            hmmm…..

thoughts on the news of the day: alleluia

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            It’s Easter morning and in churches all over the world, in a universal language, the word “Alleluia!” will be spoken to remember the day that the women emerged from the tomb and shouted, “He is Risen! Alleluia!”

            The word is sometimes spelled, “Halleluiah” which means, “Praise the Lord!”  In the Hebrew bible, the “hallel” means praise and the “Yah” is the shortened version of the word for God, “Yahweh”.   In 1741, George Friderick Handel wrote a whole chorus using the word and it is oftentimes sung or played at the Easter service.  The tradition is that the audience stands when the piece is sung in tribute to it, even though it comes in the center of the musical oratorio, Messiah.  Our organist always plays the Halleluiah Chorus at the end of our Easter service, and we hope that folks will stand and listen until it is completed, but we are still working on that. 

            Shouting “Alleluia!”  is not that common in our church, although last year, I tried to get folks in the mood, and by the end of the service, they were almost getting the hang of it. Whether you shout out loud or quietly acknowledge the “Alleluia!” take some time today to Praise God – from whom all blessings flow!!  And rejoice that life can break forth anew  – even when it seems the darkest. 

            Happy Easter, Alleluia!