Water Daily: February 2023

3-1-23 - OS/Infinity

You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.

Let's review the conversation.
Jesus to Nicodemus: You must be born anew to see the Kingdom of God.

Nicodemus to Jesus: How do I do that?
Jesus to Nicodemus: No one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born by water and Spirit.
If I were Nicodemus, my next word would be “Huh?” Jesus’ explanation only confuses me more:

“What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be astonished that I said to you, ‘You must be born from above.’ The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.’ Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” Jesus answered him, “Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things?”

“No, I don’t!” I would cry. But here’s an idea that might help. Jesus is talking about operating systems, as with computers. We run on OS/Human (“flesh”). God-Life, or Kingdom life, runs on OS/God (“Spirit”). If we want to apprehend God-Life, our hardware needs to run OS/God. Human programs can run on OS/God; God programs don’t run so well on OS/Human.

If technology metaphors don’t work for you, this explanation may be worse than Jesus’. I think he is saying that flesh and spirit offer different ways of perceiving reality – “If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?” We will need to operate from our spiritual senses if we want to dwell in God’s light and grow in our knowledge and love of God.

We are hardwired for OS/Human – our natural tendency is to trust only what we can see and touch. We need new programming to run OS/God – and the Good News is that it’s easy to download! Just accept the User Agreement (aka, baptism, or any time we say, “Yes, Lord, I believe…”) and let it install. God’s operating system doesn’t replace ours; we can run both – though that can be quite a drain on our batteries. And it can be hard to transition to OS/God – we know how to do things with our old operating system; living by faith in the spiritual realm comes with a bit of a learning curve. Just think of a time you’ve adopted new technology or new computer programs, or gone from Microsoft to Apple or vice versa - you get the analogy…

Jesus was able to run human programs through OS/God. As we download his life into ours, we become better able to run the Spirit system. And as we make the transition to using OS/God more and more, we find it gradually becoming our default setting, and we’ll run more and more of our programs on it. And here’s a really nice benefit – OS/God doesn’t deplete us. It ships with a built-in power supply that recharges even as we use it. Nifty, huh?

Now that I’ve run that metaphor into the ground, how do we pray this today? Here's a question to explore: What areas of your life you think about entirely in human terms, and in which ones do the Spirit and faith call the shots? Is there a way to bring a more spiritual perspective to the areas that feel like “just human?” Can we invite the Holy Spirit to rewire us so that we perceive with spirit more and more?

I recommend transitioning our programs for perceiving, receiving and giving to OS/God. We become so much more peaceful and effective. And upgrades are free for our lifetime – and to infinity!

To receive Water Daily by email each morning, subscribe here. Next Sunday’s readings are here. Water Daily is also a podcast – subscribe to it here on Apple, Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.

2-28-23 - Water and Spirit

You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.

In the early church, there was a strong understanding that in baptism a new creation is birthed – so strong, in fact, that some baptismal fonts were designed to evoke wombs or even birth canals:

Since many people were baptized as adults, long after their physical births, the experience was meant as a rebirth, in line with Jesus' words:

“Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born anew.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit.”

Maybe Jesus is being frustratingly figurative – and Nicodemus unnecessarily literal in his question about re-entering the womb. But it does prompt Jesus to clarify what he means by “born anew,” or “born from above” (the Greek allows either). He is saying that physical birth – our mere humanness – does not equip us to see nor “enter” the kingdom of God. We must be born of water and Spirit.

Water hints at baptism – John’s Gospel was likely the latest written, when baptism as a Christian ritual would already have been well established. His is the only gospel to mention Jesus baptizing anyone. And, of course, water, or fluid, is an integral part of physical birth as well – that’s partly why it is such a potent symbol of new birth for Christians, because every human comes into being in a bath of amniotic fluid. It is life outside the water, post-birth, that is the real shock.

But what does it mean to be born of Spirit? Well, even before Jesus came on the scene, John the Baptist is heard to say, “I baptize you with water; one is coming whose sandals I am unworthy to tie – he will baptize with the Holy Spirit, and with fire.” The idea of being “baptized” with the Holy Spirit suggests being bathed, immersed, drenched in the power and presence and peace of the Spirit of God. It implies spiritual purification and transformation so complete, it’s like a new birth. In fact, we claim a new creation does result from that union of Christ’s Spirit with ours in baptism.

Does your head hurt yet? Don’t worry – this conversation gets more confusing. Today let’s try to wrap our minds around the idea of being born anew or born from above. And here’s a fact: no one can get themselves born. Being born happens to us. It is someone else’s work. We can’t even really resist the birth process – it happens, ready or not. The only difference with spiritual birth is, we get to say “yes.”

Have you ever had an experience of the Holy Spirit that you could feel? A sense of filling, or being surrounded with love? Sometimes there are manifestations like tingling, or our hands getting hot, or even weeping. Sometimes we feel our spirits want to praise and thank God. If you would like to know that aspect of God, simply ask the Spirit to come. “Come, Holy Spirit, I’m open…“will do just fine. Or ask someone else to pray for you to be filled with the Spirit. And don’t worry if you do or do not feel anything – sometimes we know the Spirit’s been with us later, by the fruits that result from that encounter.

Our physical birth was one event. Long, short, easy or challenging, it was eventually done and we were born. Our spiritual birth takes a lifetime. In some ways, what we are doing all our lives in this world is being born anew, being prepared for life in that Life where there is no death, only life and more life.

2-27-23 - Seeking Out Jesus

You can listen to this reflection here.

This Lent, our Sunday passages come from the Gospel of John, richly drawn encounters with Jesus. The passages are lengthy and told elliptically in John’s sometimes tortured style, and can be hard to follow. They’re worth the work; I will do my best to highlight themes in them.

This week’s story concerns a meeting between Jesus and an important Jewish leader: Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. He came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.” Jesus answered him, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.”

Maybe Nicodemus came by night because he wasn’t ready to be seen publicly talking with this controversial miracle-worker, or he wanted to see him when he wasn't surrounded by a crowd. What is clear is that Jesus’ miracles have gotten his attention: “For no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.”

This is one reason miracles are referred to as “signs” in John’s Gospel; they are demonstrations of how things work in the Life of God, signs pointing beyond themselves to the power that animates them. Water into wine, sight to the blind – these transformations have a purpose beyond the immediate needs they address.

So does the church, meant to be the Body of Christ made visible in the world. We are called to more than meeting needs. We are to be making known, showing forth the Life of God that is around us and in us. Our mission is to reveal the spiritual reality of God as we go about God’s mission of restoration and wholeness. So what we do as church always has a mystical purpose beyond the short-term good.

In what ways do you make known the spiritual reality of God-Life in your life and ministry? When have you last experienced that spiritual reality, even in ways that appear miraculous - maybe in timing that seems suspiciously God-driven, or with unexpected answers to prayer, or urges to reach out to another person in a way that bears fruit?

If you have answers to those questions, note them, give thanks, and explore why you may have been open to manifesting or discerning that God-Life. What are the optimal conditions for you?

If you find yourself unable to answer, there in itself is a question to explore – how might you be more open to the mysterious, the movement of spirit? Might “religion” be getting in the way of “relationship” with the Holy?

Jesus answers Nicodemus’ opening statement with a comment that puzzles: “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.” Whatever else “born from above” means, at the very least it is being able to discern a reality not immediately apparent to our physical sight. That might be a good prayer for today, “Open our eyes, Lord, to see your hand at work in the world around us.” Let me know what you see.

2-24-23 - Devils Flee

You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.

“Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him.”

There’s nothing like getting to the finish line, is there? Whether we’re running a race or finishing chemo or turning in a final paper – to suddenly have the pressure lifted, know we’ve survived, be able to let down our guard, rest, recharge – it’s a wonderful feeling. So Jesus comes to the end of his trial period, knowing he’s prevailed. Matthew says angels came and waited upon him.

The presence of angels reminds us of the level of cosmic entity we’re dealing with when we talk about the devil. The New Testament is unequivocal about his existence, as was the early church, as are our Episcopal baptismal rites. But the Christian tradition has never considered the devil as God’s equal – he is among a sub-order of angelic beings. The devil is described in the Bible as a fallen angel, who turned against God in pride and rebellion; a tempter always seeking to draw humans away from God; the Accuser; the Father of Lies. The label I like best is "The Enemy of Human Nature."

Early Christian thinkers held that evil is the absence of good – evil is what you get where God is not. And the source of evil, in the Christian worldview, is the devil, or Satan. C.S. Lewis once said, “There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them.”

Martin Luther likewise had a strategy, “The best way to drive out the devil, if he will not yield to texts of Scripture, is to jeer and flout him, for he cannot bear scorn.” (He also said, “The best thing you can do is rap the Devil on the nose at the very start. Act like that man who, whenever his wife began to nag and snap at him, drew out his flute from under his belt and played merrily until she was exhausted and let him alone.” Must have been interesting in the Luther home.)

Because we assert that Christ has overcome the devil, we don’t have to be afraid. Alert and wary, yes, about one who seeks to corrupt and harm us, but not so much that we give him attention we might better direct to God. As with a poisonous snake, you want to avoid its bite, yet also know how to deal with its venom. We have been given the antidote – the love and forgiveness of the Father; the comfort and advocacy of the Holy Spirit; the power of Christ in us.

In prayer today, we might simply thank God for providing us protection from this ancient enemy. If you ever feel threatened, pray your way through Ephesians 6, putting on the full armor of God. It was always God’s fight, not ours, and Jesus has won it. As Luther also wrote, in the great hymn A Mighty Fortress:

And though this world, with devils filled, should threaten to undo us.

We will not fear for God has willed his truth to triumph through us.

The Prince of Darkness grim, we tremble not for him;

His rage we can endure, for lo, his doom is sure; One little Word shall fell him.

That Word is Jesus, the name that frightened demons back to hell. It is the only defense we need, whenever we feel ourselves under spiritual attack. The name of Jesus, who lives in us. He's still winning.

To receive Water Daily by email each morning, subscribe here. Next Sunday’s readings are here. Water Daily is also a podcast – subscribe to it here on Apple, Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.

2-23-23 - Power

You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.

Who has more real power – the emperor or the counselor? The president or the chief of staff? The CEO or the COO? In the third temptation, the devil is willing to put Jesus in charge of all the kingdoms of the world – as long as he acknowledges him as the real power behind the scenes:

Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor; and he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! for it is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’"

This always struck me as a really dumb temptation – didn’t the devil know that Jesus had no interest in temporal power? Of course, this Jesus, in whom more divine power resided than the world had ever seen in a human being, was even less interested than most in world domination. He cared more about demonstrating the power to be gained in giving away your prerogatives.

There are at least three ways to wield power – there’s “power over,” when we have dominion over others, and we use it to control them. There’s “power under,” the indirect, passive aggressive power seized by those who use their sacrifices and victimhood to try to control others. And then there’s the kind of power Jesus wielded, what I would call “power with.” This comes from a true sense of who we are, joined with an awareness of the power of God alive in us, so that we use power in a way that empowers others.

As we read the Gospels, we see Jesus constantly empowering people who had been robbed of power, whether by the Romans, by the religious authorities, by illness or prejudice or poverty. This was ultimately what made him such a threat to those who thought they had power over him. It’s what makes him such a threat to the Evil One – because Jesus is still alive, still in the business of empowering us. And empowered, we can resist evil.

When you look at your life, what kind of power is most often at play in your relationships, in your work, in your health? Are there things and people you’d like to dominate?
Are there things and people whom you feel have power over you? Neither is a good position to be in.

Are there ways you employ “power with” in a way that allows you to be true to yourself, true to God, and empowers others to be the same?

This is part of what it means to participate in God’s mission to bring wholeness to the world – when everyone exercises “power with,” the power of God overwhelms the power of evil. That old devil really never had a chance.

2-22-23 - Security

You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.

On the face of it, this devil’s bargain is for the birds:
Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’” Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

Who on earth would toss himself off a high tower to see if God will protect him? Yet don’t we often take lesser risks with big consequences? “Sure, cancer and smoking are highly related, but it won’t get me…” “Sure, the doctor said if I keep on getting fries with everything I’m headed for quadruple bypass, but what I eat today is okay…” Or, “Sure, pesticides kill pollinators and marine wildlife, threatening the worldwide food supply, but it won't hurt if I treat my lawn…”

Feeling safe and protected is important to most of us. Yet the further away dangerous consequences are, the more risks we seem to take. Is this one of the ways we fall prey to the temptations of the Enemy? Maybe… after all, the Christian understanding is that the devil desires to draw us away from the love of God. Often God is the first one we blame when bad things happen, because we forget human complicity, and because we may believe we have an unspoken contract with God guaranteeing our safety. Dig yours out of the file and check it – God never signed it. God promises us presence and power and peace in all circumstances, not protection.

I understand how facile this can sound if we think of people in Ukraine or Turkiye or Syria - or immigrants right here - and I don’t wish to undervalue the very real desire for life and safety. I share it. I’m just trying to remember there’s a bigger story. When security becomes our objective, we often try to get it for ourselves, turning away from God’s provision. And why not, if God hasn’t promised to protect us?

Well, because we gain a deeper gift in the relationship when we decide to trust God with all that we cannot control. This temptation the devil poses to Jesus is really about trying to control our circumstances. What do you most need to control? Can you in prayer today entrust – to the extent you’re able – the people and things you value most to God’s care, knowing you can’t keep them safe from everything, and trusting in God’s love? See how far you can extend your trust today, and then see if you can stretch a little further in yielding control tomorrow.

As we claim the fullness of our identities as beloved of God and chosen in Christ and guided by the Holy Spirit, we can move past a focus on security and live from an eternal perspective. From that vantage point, though what happens in this life matters a great deal, and when others are hurt, we hurt, we also see that this life is not the end of all things. Rather, for Christ followers, it is the beginning, the training zone, the love lesson.

That perspective doesn’t change our circumstances; it transforms the way we live them. Not a bad reminder on a day when many of us will hear the words, "Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return."

2-21-23 - Hunger

can listen to this reflection here.

What were the temptations that Jesus faced in the desert? This year we hear Matthew’s version, which begins simply: “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished.” Ya think?

After Jesus has spent over a month fasting and praying, and perhaps fending off temptations we don’t know about, the devil brings on the big guns. He begins with the most obvious area of need – physical hunger:

The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

Jesus did not refuse because he wasn’t hungry, nor because his power was limited – at other times, he readily commands molecules, plants and animals. I think he was unwilling to employ the power he possessed on a party trick, or to prove his identity. That power in him – which, by faith, is also in us, when we but trust it – is connected to the will of the Father. Maybe Jesus was unwilling to try to bend the will of God to this end for an audience and a purpose so unworthy of it.

Once again, the temptation begins with an attempt to undermine the target’s sense of self: “If you are the Son of God…” Jesus is too smart to fall for it. We aren’t always so confident. If we remembered who we are, and whose we are as beloved sons and daughters of the Living God, we might not be so prone to taking matters into our own hands or falling into patterns destructive to ourselves and others.

Our appetites are an area in which we are most vulnerable to making choices that are not life-giving. Today let’s take stock of how our perceived need for some things can become distorted and cause us to turn away from the Life of God and toward things we think will fill us. In "some things” I include food, alcohol, sex, work, power, screen time, relationships, affirmation, productivity, accomplishment – even exercise can become excessive if our motives are unhealthy.

It’s not the “what,” or even the “how much,” so much as “why do I need this,” and “how much of my energy goes into craving this, securing it, consuming it.” If this is an area of distorted need in our lives, we can feel somewhat empty as soon as we've finished that cycle.

How do we interrupt the cycle when it hits us? We might use Jesus’ words, substituting our need in the blank: “One does not live by alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

We might ask the Holy Spirit to fill us with God’s presence so we don’t hunger for things that can’t fill us. We might ask Jesus to sit with us and give us his peace.

We might even dare to sit with our hunger or desire or need and not rush to fill that empty place. It's important to feel the feelings that come from that emptiness. Certainly our Good News tells us that God shows up in empty spaces in pretty amazing ways ...

2-20-23 - Temptation

You can listen to this reflection here.

The first Sunday in Lent is upon us - time for the story of Jesus being tempted by the devil in the wilderness. This event comes on the heels of Jesus’ baptism, and is presented as a necessary step as he prepares for his mission to make known to the world the power and love of God, to reconcile humanity to the God from whom we had become estranged. Did he need to know his adversary? Did he need toughening up? Did the Son of God have to prove his sinlessness? He wasn't on retreat; he went to be tested.

This event comes on the heels of Jesus’ baptism, and is presented as a necessary step as he prepares for his mission to make known to the world the power and love of God, to reconcile humanity to the God from whom we had become estranged. Did he need to know his adversary? Did he need toughening up? Did the Son of God have to prove his sinlessness? He wasn't on retreat; he went to be tested.

We’ll get into Jesus’ forays with the tempter as the week progresses. Today, let’s talk about temptation itself. How does it work, and why are we vulnerable to it? Our tradition has a “root story” to explain it, the story of First Man and First Woman in the Garden of Eden. In this ancient mythic story woven to explain the disconnect between creator and creation, we see some classic temptation tricks wielded to great effect:

Divide and conquer. The tempter doesn’t approach both humans – he starts with the woman.
Distort reality. The serpent asks the woman, “Did God say not to eat of any tree?,” when God had said they could eat of every tree, except one.
Undermine your target’s sense of identity. When the serpent contradicts God’s instructions, he causes the woman to question God’s goodness and authority, and her place in that relationship.
Make disobedience appealing – Chances are, they wouldn’t have flouted God’s instructions for a wormy, overripe piece of fruit.
Get an accomplice. The woman is quick to invite the man to join her transgression, and he puts up no fight.

This is pretty much how temptation works, in our lives - and in advertising. If we want to stay grounded in the goodness and love we are offered as children of God and followers of Christ, we need to get hip to the wiles of the evil one and say, “No thanks,” when temptation comes along. Of course, that's a little over-simplified; sometimes the temptation seems to originate in our own hearts and minds. That’s a mystery for another day – and for the rest of our lives.

Today, how about we think through the last time we submitted to temptation, to do or say something that was not in our best interest or harmful to another, whether it was consuming more than we needed, or passing along a tidbit of gossip, or indulging in some judgment about someone. Break down the process if you can, and see where you might tighten your defenses. And think of a time when you resisted and stayed true to yourself and to God.

The point of this exercise is not to feel bad about ourselves – we are vulnerable because we are alive and have been given the gift of free will, to choose and choose again. Reflection can help us become more aware of how temptation works on us, so we are able to develop strategies for resisting it.

At Jesus’ baptism, he heard God’s voice proclaim, “This is my son, whom I love.” Our best strategy is to remember that we are beloved of God, and that God doesn’t turn away from us no matter how often we stumble. God’s forgiveness and mercy abound. That’s the best defense of all.

2-17-23 - Witnesses

You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.

As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, “Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”

How nonchalant that sounds, “So, listen, guys, don’t say anything to the others about this until after, you know, I've been raised from the dead…” Say, what? Raised from… What?

Why do you suppose Jesus invited these three on this little retreat up the mountain? I have my theories: I think he wanted them to see more fully who he truly was, the divine identity which his humanity partially obscured. For a moment that veil was lifted and his “God-essence” shone through. Jesus needed them to see that to help them endure the trials he knew were coming, for him and for his band of followers. And he needed witnesses who could testify later, after his resurrection, when the conspiracy theorists and 1st century “truth-ers” and the “he didn’t really die” people got into the act. He needed three witnesses who could say what they’d seen, and what they’d heard.

And testify they did. In his second letter, Peter wrote, “We did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honor and glory from God the Father when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory, saying, ‘This is my Son, my Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.’ We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven, while we were with him on the holy mountain.”

People who were determined not to believe may not have been swayed – but the eyewitness testimony from three leaders of integrity no doubt shored up the faith of many inclined to accept the Good News of resurrection life, and encouraged the movement of Jesus followers in the church's early months and years.

It’s not enough for us to be open to encounters with the living God, which I absolutely believe God desires for us. We also need to tell our stories, even at the risk of derision or doubt. We can give voice to our experiences of God, or to words we believe we have received from the Spirit. Such revelation can and should be measured against the revelation of Scripture, and confirmation from other believers, and ultimately by what fruit it bears in your life and ministry. But don’t keep quiet – somebody needs to hear your story; somebody needs to have their own story confirmed by hearing about yours; somebody needs that little nudge to take the step into faith in Jesus Christ.

Is there a “God-story” from your life that you haven’t told anyone, or haven’t told for a while? Recall it for yourself; even write it out, recover the details. And then ask the Spirit to lead you to someone who needs to hear that story. I believe it’ll happen. (Then you’ll have another story to tell!)

As Peter continued, “So we have the prophetic message more fully confirmed. You will do well to be attentive to this as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.” Sometimes we are called to be that lamp shining in a dark place. Speak up.

2-16-23 - Be Not Afraid

You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.

This is how I understand Jesus' transfiguration: that in this moment he is revealed as pure light, an energy form that radiated brightness. Whatever the cause, the effect was surely splendid, and probably terrifying. And to deepen the scary, it was followed by the appearance of two dead people, conversing as if alive. But none of this seems to frighten the watching disciples; Peter’s only reaction is to want to build three shelters so they can hang out together.

Yet, when a bright cloud comes over them, with a voice in it, suddenly they’re petrified: While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear.

We can absorb unusual experiences until there is too much “unusual” and our circuits overload. Or were the disciples fine as long as they could see – but when their sight was obscured by a cloud that spoke, then they panicked? Or was it that they knew in their spirits that God was speaking to them – and they could hear with their ears? OR was it what that voice said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!” They must have heard the stories about Jesus’ baptism, when a voice from heaven was heard to say almost the same words. Were they overcome by fear because now it was unmistakable – that Jesus was in fact God's Son, holy, divine? Now there was no going back?

True movements of God that we experience with our physical senses tend to be deeply frightening – they’re so far outside our expectation. Many of us encounter God with our spiritual senses; that’s powerful enough. But when we perceive the holy with the same senses that engage the rest of life? Look out! We can’t pretend to be manufacturing it – we’re either crazy, or in God’s presence – and neither possibility is comforting. I only had one experience even remotely like that, on a retreat once, when I felt a room I was in filled with a presence that was so completely “Other,” it seemed to be God… I’ll never know if it was, because I ran from the room back to where other people were.

It can be hard for us to identify with the shock of recognizing Jesus as God… this is a story handed down to us rather than experienced first-hand. And for many it’s such a familiar story, it can be hard to feel the emotions being related. So let’s think today:

Are there times when you’ve been overcome by the presence of God in a way that scared you?
Have your physical senses ever been overwhelmed so that you had to rely on spiritual perception?
Does your expectation of God include experiences that seem supernatural, like this one?
Do you think the Spirit wants you to be open to more? What are we really afraid of?

Fear is never the end of a holy encounter. Someone always comes along to say, “Be not afraid.” It was no different on the mountain: But Jesus came and touched them, saying, "Get up and do not be afraid." And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone.

Every spiritual experience, no matter how deep or frightening, comes to an end. Our perceptions normalize; reality returns. And then we’re left with what? “No one, except Jesus himself alone.” Sounds like a pretty good deal to me…

2-15-23 - Building Booths

You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.

Who among us doesn’t want to keep a good thing going, forever if possible? A perfect day, a lovely dinner, the “in-love” phase of a relationship… And we can’t. Days become twilight; meals yield to fullness and digestion; relationships evolve into other phases. Even the most fiery sunset dims, usually just about the time you get your camera ready.

But this was a really good thing, up there on that mountain – Jesus, and Moses, and Elijah. You don’t get bigger than that trifecta if you’re a Jew in occupied Israel in what would later be termed the first century.

Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. Then Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”

So helpful, our Peter. He’ll just whip out the hammer and nails and make three little huts (earlier translations rendered that "booths"), nothing fancy. And who among us doesn’t recognize that impulse? To fix it, capture it, make it last? I keep taking pictures of my cats in adorable poses, even when I know I've taken the same pictures before, even with other cats. Because I want to keep them forever.

Are there things in your life you’re afraid will change or end, that you’d like to fix in place, build a shrine to? Children, friends, homes, work? It’s great to love something or someone wonderful. But when we try to cling to that, we sometimes close off other gifts God has to give us, gifts that might build on the ones we have, blessings that might even include what we’re trying to keep, but allow that to grow into fullness. When we don’t try to save the precious things, but use and enjoy them, willing to have them end or run out, we often experience more abundance in our lives. When we enjoy the precious people, willing to see them grow up and even away, we experience a deeper, freer kind of love.

Today in prayer bring those people and things to mind, and offer them to God to bless. Offer them with open hands, and a heart willing to grow God-ward. God rarely takes away what we love – God just might show us something deeper and richer about that beloved than we can see from our current “holding” perspective.

It’s kind of funny, a fisherman offering to build a carpenter a hut. Maybe not as funny as that carpenter setting the bait and reeling those fisherman in to become the greatest catch of all, a catch that even includes us.

2-14-23 - Son Et Lumiere

You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.

As a child tourist, one of my favorite things was the “Son et Lumière” shows often mounted at major attractions like ruins or castles or natural wonders. Colored lights played off the site, synchronized with music, punctuated by the “ooohs” and “ahhhs” of the appreciative crowd. I loved it.

Something like that awaited Peter, James and John during their trip up the mountain with Jesus. First the light: And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white.

The sound part came a moment later – and it wasn’t music, but conversation with two people long since departed this earth: Moses and Elijah, Israel’s prophets extraordinaire, and mountain-top witnesses of divine glory. There they were, chatting away with Jesus. “Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him.”

Were they there to signal that the revelation of God in Christ was in continuity with the revelation of Israel’s past? Were they Exhibits A and B for The Law and The Prophets? Matthew doesn’t tell us what they’re discussing, though Luke says, “They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem.” Whatever the meaning, their presence was a major sign that God was up to something. “Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”

Most of us don’t experience God with sound and light and visions. Is that because God isn’t revealing God’s self in that way, or because we’ve so reduced our expectations that we figure a glorious sunset is the closest we’re going to get? It’s tricky – we can’t conjure up manifestations of divinity. We can, however, be open to them – and notice when we come across them.

How do you most powerfully experience the holy?

Have you had experiences that you’d categorize as supernatural?

What happened, and what was the fruit of that experience in your life?

And do you share that story? It builds up other people's faith to hear our holy stories.

God shows up in so many ways in our lives. The more we become attuned to the movement of the divine in and around us, the more we experience it.

And whether it’s eavesdropping on Biblical heroes or marveling at the presence of wild creatures in our back yards, there are sound and light shows all over for us to stumble upon, as we keep our spiritual eyes and ears open.

2-13-23 - Magical Mystery Tour

You can listen to this reflection here.

Next Sunday we come to the end of Epiphany, the season of light. And every year in our gospel reading we go out with the ultimate light show – Jesus being transfigured on a mountain, to the amazement of three of his closest disciples.

Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white.

“Six days later..." What happened six days ago? A conversation in which Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”

Let’s remember that – it just may be a clue to what Jesus was doing up there on the mountain. Another clue is the mountain itself. It was a mountain to which Moses was called to go and spend forty days and forty nights with God, receiving the commandments – and when he came down, his face was shining so brightly, he had to cover it to avoid blinding people. And it was a mountain on which Elijah was told to come out of a cave and see God pass by, not in a whirlwind, nor in an earthquake, nor in fire, but in a sound of sheer silence.

In our sacred scriptures, mountains are places where God reveals God’s self to human beings. It appears that this mountain is no different – for here Jesus is transfigured – his face changes, shines like the sun, and his clothes become dazzling white.

When do you remember last having a sense of God’s presence, a glimpse, a word, a feeling? Can you remember and claim that? Write it down?

And when did you last go to a place apart, on retreat, alone or maybe with just a few friends? Did you sense the presence of God then? Often, when I have taken the time to go apart, God has shown up in mighty ways – not right away, but after a time. At the right time. There might be a “coincidence” or a confirmation we could not have manufactured.

Going away can facilitate our spiritual encounters because the quotidian rhythms and tasks of our lives can dull our spiritual senses. If you’ve never been on retreat, consider planning one. The Spirit also shows up in our daily "apart" times, as we get quiet and open our spirits. Just sit with as much stillness as you can and pray, “Lord, I want to know you’re here with me. Show me…”

And then let it go. You might find a thought or a word popping into your head that doesn’t seem like one you’d have thought on your own; you might have a physical sensation of presence; you might get a picture. You might sense nothing – just give thanks that God is answering whether or not you feel it.

We don’t all get Jesus turning radiant bright in front of us – I’m not sure we could take it. We have been promised that he is always with us. That’s gift enough.

2-10-23 - Chosen For Fruitfulness

You can listen to this reflection here. Today's gospel reading is here.

I suggested at the beginning of this week that Jesus’ tough talk to his new recruits may have been a way of pruning them, or helping them do the kind of pruning of themselves that would make them more fruitful. At the end of his time with them in earthly form, Jesus uses the metaphor of a vine to tell his disciples about staying connected to him and to each other. He isn’t just talking about the vine. He is also talking about grapes, and how a healthy system can produce much fruit. He tells them he has chosen them for a purpose:

“You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name.”

Chosen. Let's dwell on that word for a moment; let's claim that identity. Jesus has just said, “I no longer call you servants, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends…”

His followers received a big status upgrade, and we’re grafted into their apostleship as Christ-followers ourselves. At those times when we might question our value or our reach, we can remember, “Oh yeah, I was chosen by Jesus, who calls me friend.” How might carrying that knowledge change the way we move and interact with the world?

And appointed. Jesus says he appointed us to bear fruit that will last. Our identity comes with a purpose, a purpose which the Holy Spirit helps us fulfill. What do you think your life's purpose is? Some think it’s to care for their family, or make a good living, or stand for justice… What is yours?

Does it change anything to be reminded that Jesus has a purpose for you beyond what you may have for yourself? And that it is simply to bear fruit? That means participating in God’s mission to reclaim, restore and renew all of creation to wholeness – whenever and however the opportunity arises to do that. When we are about the ministry of justice and compassion, exercising healing and peace-making in the power of the Holy Spirit, there will be fruit, and it is fruit that will last, whether or not we get to see the full outcome. We need to hang on to that promise in times when it may feel like two steps forward, three steps back. If we’re moving with God in the power of the Spirit, the fruit will last.

The most visible fruit, Jesus suggest, is our love for one another. Whether or not we like his language, Jesus was talking about how to love well in those harsh teachings we’ve looked at this week. He was talking about faithfulness and generosity in relationships. If we can learn to love with such integrity as Jesus both commends and commands, that could change the course of the whole world.

2-9-23 - Divorced From Reality?

You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.

Oh joy! Today we come to Jesus’ teaching on divorce. He doesn’t say you can’t – just that if you do, you’re committing adultery or causing someone else to: “But I say to you that anyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of unchastity, causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery."

Great! In a nation where some 50 percent of marriages end in divorce, where many find themselves with more mature, even godly relationships in a second marriage, what do we say to this? “Get with the times, Jesus?” Do we ignore this teaching, which goes beyond even the stringent codes of the Mosaic law? Does that undermine Jesus’ authority for us?

Jesus was telling his would-be disciples that following him would mean faithfulness. And guess what? Even though they walked and talked with him for three years, they weren’t always so faithful. They may have stayed true to their marriages, but not always to him or to each other. It doesn’t mean the standard wasn’t there – it means that they failed, and Jesus did not reject them. I don’t believe he rejects us when we fail, either.

Yes – this standard for marriage matters; anyone who’s been through the pain of a broken relationship will tell you that. But it cannot be isolated from all the other areas of sin and pain and failure we endure and inflict, all of which we are invited to bring before the loving, judging eye of the God who made and redeemed us.

So then, is divorce sinful or is it forgiveable? Yes. I don’t think there is an absolute answer – choose the first, and you end up condemning someone who has suffered deeply, either because they have divorced, or because they haven’t. Sin is sin and humans are humans. And God is bigger and more powerful than all of it.

And that might be the point of this whole teaching, as Jesus makes the standards of sinfulness so broad no one can wiggle out. If we are as liable for what we think and feel as what we do, we all have to admit we stand in need of redemption. The man whose teaching here seems so harsh is the same man who reminded a crowd about to execute an adulterous woman that they should feel free to cast stones only if they themselves are without sin. Who among us could in good conscience pick up a stone?

When have we been affected or hurt by the dissolution of a marriage? Perhaps the wound is still fresh, even many years later – divorce has that kind of power to hurt and keep hurting. We cannot give ourselves to another with all the hopefulness that marriage entails and remain unscathed when that hope dies, even if new life arises from those ashes. So pray for the people involved. Pray for the grace to forgive if you need to. Imagine each person blessed by God.

And ask how you can support marriages you know to be difficult or shaky. Marriage is a joy and a burden meant to be carried in community. When a marriage fails, so has the community. In that sense, even people who are single are involved in the enterprise of marriage. Divorce signals a failure of love. We can help fill that gap, to pour our love into the void, bring healing and wholeness, in concert with the God whose love goes beyond death into life.

2-8-23 - Lust and Love

You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.

Jimmy Carter caught a lot of flack back in 1976, when he confessed in an interview with Playboy magazine that, while he had remained faithful to his marriage vows, he had looked on women with lust and “committed adultery in my heart.” He was just quoting Jesus: “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”

Here again, Jesus says that what we think and feel matters spiritually as much as what we do.

What's so bad about lust anyway? Isn't it just natural? Well, it depends on how you define it. As the church understands it, lust is not the same as a desire to be intimate with another person. It is a distorted desire that objectifies another, that – here’s that word again – dehumanizes someone so s/he becomes a source of gratification and not a full person with his or her own story, gifts and needs.

Adultery is sexual or emotional intimacy with someone other than your committed partner. It need not always be defined by lust – in some ways, non-physical emotional relationships can be the more dangerous adulterous attachments. Why? Because they require one to break trust with another, and necessitate lying to loved ones, risking damage to whole families and communities. As natural as it may be to love more than one person intimately, Jesus upholds fidelity as a higher calling, one that builds up rather than tears down.

The remedy to adultery he proposes is harsh, suggesting we’re better off dismembered than being led by our physical appetites. I believe he exaggerates to make a point: We are best able to give and receive love, to know and be known, when our focus is on the love of God. If a person or thing becomes the source of what we think we need, be it sexual, emotional, or ego gratification, we turn away from the Source of love. We worship the object.

Our culture places romantic and sexual love on a pedestal and devalues the difficult, day-in, day-out work of being real and generous in a committed relationship, letting yourself be fully known. Jesus wants his followers to love this way, to be nurtured in authentic relationships that model the love of God.

Today let’s inventory our relationships – the intimate ones, and the more distant ones. Is there anyone from whom you want something? Not necessarily lustfully – sometimes we want others to make us feel better about ourselves, or to keep us from being lonely or meet other needs. Can you see that person apart from what they can do for you? Can you see him or her as a fellow child of God? Can you offer your desire or need in prayer, asking God how God would provide for you? Can you want something for him or her instead of from? That's a good place for prayer today.

Marriage does not represent the fullness of God’s revelation – but at its best it is an icon of God’s love, a transforming power that crosses boundaries of otherness to know and be known. That alone is reason to allow the Spirit to make us faithful, in our hearts as well as in our bodies.

2-7-23 - Sticks and Stones

You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.

“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” Anyone else grow up on that misguided little ditty? It suggests that using words to inflict pain doesn’t have real consequences, to perpetrator or victim. But hurtful words can cause deeper, longer-lasting wounds, as Jesus says:

“You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not murder’; ...But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, ‘You fool’, you will be liable to the hell of fire.”

Whoa, Nellie! Is Jesus really saying that insulting someone is on a par with murder? Invective tossed around in anger is a form of violence? Calling someone an idiot is like killing them? Thank God Jesus isn’t on Twitter!

Might he be saying that, when we insult or libel another person, we temporarily dehumanize them, don't honor them as a fellow child of God, created for life, redeemed in love? I know when I have been the target of scorn or gossip, I have felt “un-selfed.” When we ridicule another, we un-self them. That is a kind of death-dealing, and it causes deep spiritual injury. It may not be actionable in a court of law, but Jesus wants his followers to go beyond the law to the heart.

Jesus suggests that we too are harmed when we use words as weapons. We tend to do that when we feel anxious or powerless – running someone else down can make us feel temporarily inflated. But it also diminishes us, and renders us less whole, less fully who God made us to be. Those who follow Christ cannot be complacent about this area of sin.

If we seek to be reconciled with God (“So when you offer your gift at the altar…”) while in a state of estrangement with people in our lives (“...if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you…”), we need to face that and deal with it, restoring them and us to our full humanity in full humility: "...leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother or sister, and then come and offer your gift.”

Is there anyone in your life who causes you anger, anxiety, annoyance? Sit quietly in prayer and let those names and faces float up to your consciousness. Pray for them to be blessed beyond measure. Yes, blessed with all the fullness of God’s blessing. If they are blessed, you benefit too. And it’s a way to move toward forgiveness.

And is there anyone whom you have injured with words to or about them? Even words you’ve only thought? They’re toxic enough in our own minds. Can you pray for that person to be blessed and ask them for forgiveness? If that seems too much, play it out in your imagination first, going to see them with Jesus at your side. What do you say? What do they say? What does Jesus say?

Being critical and sarcastic takes so much energy; loathing even more. Think what God can do through us and for us when we yield that space to the Holy Spirit. When all our interactions are life-giving, our lives will bear the fruit of such abundant peace, it can only spill over to the people around us.

2-4-23 - Good News, Or Bad?

You can listen to this reflection here.

This is one of those weeks when I question my “ordering principle” for Water Daily, to reflect on the following Sunday’s appointed Gospel passage. This week's isn’t much fun – it’s more of Jesus’ training talk with his new disciples, and he sets standards for them more stringent even than the Old Testament Law. He looks at the commandments against murder, adultery, divorce and perjury and ratchets up the penalties for merely being in the vicinity of such sins.

Why is Jesus so hard on his new recruits – and by extension, later followers like us? Was he employing the old drill sergeant tactic – break down your troops as you prepare to rebuild them stronger? I don’t know if this is what Jesus was up to – but he did know they would face hostility and adversity. They needed to be focused and strong. So do we, facing suspicion and indifference.

Another way to view this teaching is as pruning. At the end of his time with these disciples, Jesus will say, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.” (John 15:1-2) The teaching Jesus gives here, harsh as it sounds, reflects the work of that Master Gardener, who desires that we bear good fruit.

Jesus is also driving home a point he has already made – that the ways of this world and the ways of God’s realm, or God-Life, are not the same. Those who would be Christ-followers need to learn how God thinks, and what God requires. Remember what Jesus said at end of last week’s passage: “…unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

When Jesus talks about the “Kingdom of heaven,” he’s not talking about heaven as a place we go when we die. He is talking about the God-Reality that is already around us, here and now, which he came to demonstrate and open doors into. That is what Jesus was about. So he’s not being punitive; he is simply stating a fact: Those who would learn to dwell in the God-Life need to be able to perceive things the way God does. His followers need to go beyond the behavior the Law demands, to reflect a heart yielded to God.

What Jesus is offering is discipline, just like a trainer or a coach does. The question for us is, Do we want to be disciples, those who take on a discipline? Do we want to be trained? Do we want to bear fruit?

Here’s my prayer suggestion for today, before we launch into Jesus’ tough teaching: Let’s get in touch with the love of God that has us reading this reflection on a Monday morning in the first place. Get centered as best you can, and invite the Holy Spirit to fill you with love, to surround you with love. Ease into it, as you would into a hot bath. Let it fill your heart, whatever that feels like or looks like. Say thank you for every reminder of God’s love you can think of. And, if you’re willing, say you’re open to being trained.

Whatever else Jesus is up to, he is also presenting a view of God’s love, the way a loving parent minces no words keeping a child from traffic or a hot stove. Let’s remember we are God’s children, in every sense, and be glad God loves us enough to want to see us thrive.

2-6-23 - A Good Person

You can listen to this reflection here. Sunday's gospel reading is here.

Most clergy have a few sermons they preach over and over. One of mine says this: being a Christian is not about being good; it is about being loved into goodness. It is about entering into relationship with the One who made us and loves us too much to suffer estrangement from us.

And that message – which I believe is supported in the whole of our salvation story – is pretty directly contradicted by the following words of Jesus: "Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, will be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."

Wait just a minute. What happened to, “Unless you become as a child, you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven?” and “No one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit?” Didn’t Jesus say those things too? If it all comes down to commandments and righteous behavior, why do we need a savior? If it’s a matter of just gritting our teeth and trying harder, we’re pretty much sunk.

Thankfully, this isn’t the only thing Jesus says on the subject. Another time, after setting what his disciples think is an impossible standard, he says, “With humankind this is impossible; but with God, all things are possible.” Phew.

Still, I am caught by this remark, “Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees…” The scribes and Pharisees, the religious elite of Jesus’ time, were known for their uprightness and fidelity to the Law. They appear to have been arrogant and legalistic, but certainly righteous. What could it mean to exceed their righteousness?

Here’s my guess: it means to go beyond the mere observance of the Law to the intention at its heart. It means to go beyond rules and rituals to relationship, relationship with the living God made possible through God’s Son. It means to invite the power of the Holy Spirit to be manifest through us for healing and restoration of all things. It means to truly believe that Jesus is who he said he was and to follow his way of living God-life in the world. That is truly going beyond the legalistic righteousness of the scribes.

Yesterday I invited you to reflect on where you might be caught in “rule-following” rather than Jesus-following. If an area occurred to you, ask Jesus to transform that part of your life, or transform you in it.

And if the idea of having a “relationship with Jesus” or “relationship with God” seems abstract or odd to you, there’s something to explore. For me, it developed as I opened myself to prayer that included silence, imagination and listening. The Holy Spirit brings us into the presence of God – and then Jesus often becomes marvelously specific.

Repeatedly in the psalms and prophets we hear God saying, “I don’t want your rituals and your sacrifices – I want your heart. And don’t worry if your heart is hard – I will break your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. I will put a new heart and a new spirit within you.” We just need to say yes – that’s how we begin to become God's "good person."