Sit at the feet of Jesus

Truth be told, during the past month or so my reading of God's Word has not been very consistent (You may have picked up hints of this in my blogs about the "Shred.")  It's not that I haven't spent some time in the Word of God or wasn't listening when my pastor opened the Word and explained it.  But it has not been a daily occurrence for me recently.

Today is my required Personal Retreat Day.  I decided that rather than reading through the entire Bible by the end of the year or some other discipline, I would, for a season, read Romans.  After slowly reading the first four chapters of Romans, I decided to also read some comments from others on the text. I glanced up at my bookshelf and there, on the shelf, was a devotional commentary by John G. Mitchell, one of the founders of Multnomah School of the Bible, the finest Bible college in the world.  Normally I don't read the introduction to a commentary, let alone a "Tribute," but today I did. The tribute was to Dr. Mitchell by Dick Bohrer, editor of the commentary and long time friend of Dr. Mitchell. In his tribute, Dick relates a conversation in Dr. Mitchell's office at Multnomah (which I was privileged to be in a time or two while at Multnomah) in which Dick wanted to know more about pastoral ministry.  The tribute is full of Dr. Mitchell's gems of wisdom for pastors, church leaders and those who follow Jesus regardless of their designated role in the local church.  (I was reminded how much my view of pastoral ministry was shaped by Dr. Mitchell.  One of the great joys of our early days as a couple was living in Dr. Mitchell's house the summer after we were married.  In fact, John and Mary lived there with us for a short time before they went fishing in Canada as they did each summer. We shared a few meals together.  Like Dick Bohrer, I was able to ask Dr. Mitchell questions about this life and vocation I was entering. But I digress.)

On the last page of the tribute was the gem that rocked my world and will, I pray, move me off center.  One sentence put my negligence back into context.  

Dick Bohrer asked Dr. Mitchell if he had any word just for him.  Dr. Mitchell placed his hand on Dick's and replied, "Some years ago, a friend of mine was on his way to a mission field in southeast Asia.  He had all his belongings on the ship and, just before departure, he called me and asked if I had a word to give him for China.  Let me give you that same word today.  I said to him, 'Sit at the feet of Jesus--and tell people what you see.' "

Day 24

I've lost 8 pounds (and regained 3 on my recent road trip) and, yes, there are some ab muscles beneath the flab.  I'm not where I fantasized I'd be, but I am more flexible, more toned and more exhausted than I was on Day 1.  So, I guess it goes to show.  If you stick with a discipline, it will make a difference eventually.  And, in case you missed the spiritual analogy, whatever time I spend developing my relationship with God Almighty is not wasted time.  It does make a difference.  

Oh, and by the way, I'm looking forward to Day 30 so that the day after I can go back to sitting around on the couch eating bon bons.  Or as a friend said, "The only exercise I get is raising the spoon of ice cream to my mouth while watching "The Biggest Loser."

Shredded

This is the part where I admit that I am getting up at 5:30 (ish) each morning to work out with my wife for 20 minutes using Jillian Michaels' "30 Day Shred." My complaint is that this morning was Day 13. Those who know me know how weak my math skills are, but even I can figure out that's almost half way through the 30 days and more than 1/3 of the way through the 30 days. Here's my question: Why are my abs not almost half, or at least somewhat more than 1/3, of the way toward looking like the pictures on the advertising? I mean, seriously, I spent $9 for this video. I expect results. I'm giving up sleep. I'm cutting back on dessert. I was so sore on the second day that I couldn't raise my arms in church without serious pain.

What's the point of doing this if I don't see immediate results? I'm an American. In fact, I'm an American Christian. In fact, I'm an American Evangelical Christian. We don't do "long view." We do 4 spiritual laws (Did you ever wonder if there might be 5?). We do "How to have a happy and meaningful life." We do "7 Keys to Improving Your Life Everyday."

Wait! Maybe it's not about getting quick results. Maybe it's about the process as much as the product. Maybe those ripped abs that are hiding behind my still-too-large belly are working their way out where I can see them, but it's going to take far more than 30 mornings because of all the years of NOT exercising. Maybe those 20 minute "devotions" really do make a difference over the long haul. Maybe I've spent so much of my time not exercising my relationship with God that it will take far more time to get "in shape". In fact, maybe it's a life-long process of daily "working out my salvation" that gets me in shape and helps keep me there. Maybe this life of faith is a marathon (or at least a half marathon) instead of a sprint. Maybe I can't ignore my spiritual life for long periods and then expect to do a 30 day Bible study (or even 40 days of Purpose) and see dramatic results.

Nah!

Excluded from the Conversation

In this morning's Orange County Register was the following letter to the editor. It was entitled, God Isn't a Factor and was written by Carey Strombotne of Laguna Beach, California.

"Our American principles include a separation of church and state. If church and state are separate, why then do religious people have the right to weigh in on the issue of Proposition 8? God shouldn't be a factor in this argument at all.

"If these God-fearing people can't separate the doctrines of their churches from state issues, they should be excluded from this conversation altogether. They have no right to take away basic human rights from others."

Now there are many points of her letter that I could address, such as the fallacy that "separation of church and state" is even an American principle. The phrase occurs nowhere in the founding documents, but was part of a letter sent by Thomas Jefferson to Nehemiah Dodge, Ephraim Robbins, & Stephen S. Nelson, a committee of the Danbury Baptist association in the state of Connecticut. It is clear from his letter that the concern was to separate the state from the church, not the church (or the opinions and values of those who attend church) from the state.

Another point I could address is the supposition that only those without religion should be able to "weigh in" on state issues. Ms. Strombotne certainly has opinions on state matters, Proposition 8 in particular. Just because her opinions were not formed in the context of religion, does that make them any less a reflection of values? And if her opinions reflect values, are hers the only values that should be considered when matters of state are discussed? Or at least, only those values which have no religious underpinning whatsoever?

Yet a third point would be the fact that if religious people were "excluded from the conversation," this would be a violation of the First Amendment of the Constitution, which is certainly a document that articulates our "American principles." The First Amendment states clearly that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, or abridging the freedom of speech or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”

What I did write in response to her editorial turned out to be about twice as long as the OC Register allows. Here it is, regardless of whether it's ever published or not:

"Carey Strombotne appears to misunderstand the First Amendment in her letter to the editor of March 9. In it she suggests that "God-fearing" people should be excluded from conversations about Prop 8 (or any other state issue) because of the separation of church and state. The First Amendment reads: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, or abridging the freedom of speech or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” The restriction in the First Amendment is on Congress, not churches, individuals or the press. The First Amendment which guarantees Ms. Strombotne’s freedom of speech also guarantees our freedom of religion. If there is no wall of separation between the press and State, then there is certainly no wall of separation between the church and State. The First Amendment protects the letter-to-the-editor writer and the church member. The First Amendment was written because the founders did not believe government has all the answers. They believed government would function best when individuals and institutions were free to bring their influence on the government. Freedom of speech, press and religion were established to ensure the government would always have individuals and groups calling them to accountability, integrity and justice. What the First Amendment guarantees is freedom to speak one’s mind and vote one’s conscience whether you are religious or not. Every person votes on the basis of their values, regardless of where those values are derived. The person of faith has the constitutional right, and privilege, to be involved in public discourse, political activities and vote their values without fear of being censored or censured."

...it is by means of repeating ordinary rituals and routines that we enhance the relationships that nourish and sustain us

In her latest book, Acedia & Me, Kathleen Norris writes about marriage in the chapter entitled, "The Quotidian Mysteries." She captures, for me, the things that I've discovered after almost 35 years of marriage. What she writes applies, also, to deep friendships. Here are a few highlights from the chapter to stimulate your thinking. (Quotidian, by the way, means "everyday, commonplace, ordinary.")

"The very nature of marriage means saying yes before you know what it will cost. Though you may say the 'I do' of the wedding ritual in all sincerity, it is the testing of that vow over time that makes you married...

In the give-and-take of married life, as each person learns from the other, both become, individually, and as a couple, much more than they could ever be on their own...

Over time we found that the accumulation of shared experiences provided a storehouse of memory that helped us bear the worst of circumstances. Our situation might be bad in the present, but it had not always been so...

...it is by means of repeating ordinary rituals and routines that we enhance the relationships that nourish and sustain us. A recent study that monitored the daily habits of couples in order to determine what produced good and stable marriages revealed that only one activity made a consistent difference, and that was the embracing of one's spouse at the beginning and end of each day...

Whatever you do repeatedly has the power to make you over into a different person--even if you're not totally 'engaged' in every minute...

It is all for the glory of God, and how we perform those often dispiriting duties, from the changing of a baby's diaper to the bathing of an aged parent, reveals what kind of God we worship."