11-9-18 - Radical Abundance

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

We've explored giving when you have nothing, when it costs you everything. Today let's look at the more common way we give, out of our excess, out of our abundance.

Ah, but what if we don’t view our circumstances as abundant? What if we’re wired to see scarcity? I daresay it is impossible to grow up in our culture unaffected by the advertising industry, and that industry is fueled by scarcity. “Are you rich enough, are you pretty enough, do you smell good enough, is your car x enough….” (Rarely are we asked to wonder if we’re smart enough.)

Can you think of a crowd in which every hand would go up if you asked, “Do you have enough money in the bank?” Most people would say, “Enough for what? For today, sure. But for the next 25 years? For retirement? Ah, no, never enough…”

Then he called his disciples and said to them, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For all of them have donated out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”

Trusting in our abundance is inextricably connected to staying rooted in the day we’re in. “Give us today our daily bread,” Jesus taught us to pray. And most of us have plenty in the day we’re in. Jesus invites us not only to trust that we have enough for the day, but to give everything we have, trusting that we’ll also have enough tomorrow.

I once attended a weekend retreat. At noon on the second day, each participant was given a bag stuffed with cards of prayer and encouragement from people at our churches as well as from total strangers. It was overwhelming to realize how many people were praying for me and took the time to write a note. I read a few notes, and decided to save the rest, to parcel out to myself when I got home. I wanted to spread out the affirmation.

But that evening we got another bag, and more the next day, and the day we left. It was unbelievable, the abundance. And still I was going to save most of them – until with the fifth batch it hit me: this is God’s love made tangible. God’s love is abundant. It never runs out. You can’t save it for the next day – you have to receive it all, open it all, read it all, accept it all – or you won't be open to the blessing God may have for you tomorrow. So I opened every single note, by faith, trusting there would be love when I got home too.

It’s the same thing with our money, our food, our time, our love. We don’t have to save them up. We can spend them lavishly, allowing God to bless others through us, and us through others. Radical abundance is God’s gift to us. Radical abundance can be our way of giving. Radical abundance is the road to true joy and freedom.

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11-8-18 - Out of Nothing, Everything

(You can listen to this reflection here.)

Would you invite someone to dinner if you had no food? Who gives when they have nothing? Apparently, that’s what the poor widow in our Gospel story did, as Jesus tells it:

A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, worth a penny. He called his disciples and said to them, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For all of them have given out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”

Out of nothing – everything she had. This challenges the notion that you have to have something to give something, that you can only give if you have something left over. What would it look like if people gave whether or not they had anything?

When groups serve meals at shelters, they never ask the guests to give anything – but why not? Why do we assume that, just because they have no home or financial resources, they have no assets to share as human beings? We could ask them to pray for us or with us. We could invite them to help set up or take down the chairs.

What if we invited recipients of charity to give generously as well as receive? I don’t mean that people who come for a meal should sweep out the kitchen. I’m not talking about charging for help we give. I’m suggesting we create a culture of giving even among those who “have nothing,” as a way of fostering wholeness and integrity in community. We’d have a lot more empowered people filling our soup kitchens, and empowered people do a lot better on job interviews.

There is a spiritual principle at work here. We claim that God created the universe ex nihilo, out of nothing. We proclaim that Jesus, who had no earthly goods, poured himself out completely, giving his entire life and spirit to what looked like defeat. And on Easter we trumpet his victory out of nothing, celebrating an empty space, a void, where a corpse was supposed to be. Out of nothing, everything.

Lakota peoples have a tradition of the "give-away" during funerals. Families that are dirt poor will not only feed out-of-towners for funeral rites lasting several days, but will also host a gathering at which each and every guest is given something. The more honored may receive valuable gifts like quilts and beadwork; others might get plasticware from the dollar store, or hand-me-downs. The principle is the same: even in times of loss, even in poverty, we have something to give, and no one goes away empty-handed.

That widow in the temple might have given her last coins because she was out of options, out of strategies – she was casting herself entirely upon God’s mercy. She gave what she had and left herself empty and ready to receive. We all know how to give out of our plenty. Where do you feel you have little or nothing? What would it look like to give from that place? Where is God inviting you to try that?

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11-7-18 - When Less is More

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

One person puts a $100 bill into the collection plate. The next person puts in 50 cents. Who has given more?

[Jesus] sat down opposite the treasury, and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny. Then he called his disciples and said to them, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”

Sometimes less is more, and more is less. That’s why Christians are encouraged to think about percentages in giving rather than set amounts. Giving a percentage of our income levels the field – the person whose income is $40,000 a year can give at the same level or higher than the one with a six-figure income. In fact, often those who have less to give make proportionally higher donations. Perhaps having less to play with can free us up to take bigger risks.

Indeed, the higher our incomes, the ouch-ier the math can be. Ten percent of $40,000 is $4,000; a goodly sum, but conceivable. But say your income is $200,000 per year; now we’re talking a $20,000 pledge. Heart palpitations set in. Why? Not, I suspect, because we actually need that $20,000 to live on if we’ve got $180,000 left, but because our culture says it’s crazy to give $20,000 to support a religious ministry. Spending $20,000 on a big vacation or a new car is reasonable; giving that away is counter-cultural.

The life of the Christ-follower is meant to be counter-cultural, risky, and exhilarating. We are invited to gratefully enjoy the resources we do have, to live simply and in a way that does little or no harm to our fellow humans and fellow creatures, and to give lavishly, as God has given us. When we’re not so worried about how much we need, we are freer to enjoy what we have. Freedom is God’s desire for us, and a source of infectious joy.

Today let's pray with our calculator and tax returns handy.
Look at your adjusted gross income for last year. Look at your pledge or giving record. 

Do the math. Maybe you’re giving more than 10 percent, maybe less.
Do you feel free? Do you feel joyful? Open-handed?
Do you feel anxious, closed in, put upon? Pray those feelings.

That widow gave it all. Maybe she had nothing left to lose. 

Today I am asking myself, “What do I have to lose?” And whatever the answer is, I pray for the grace to loosen my grip on it, and coast on the winds of the Spirit.

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11-6-18 - Offering

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

I guess Jesus liked to people-watch, and the temple courts were great places to observe human behavior, good, bad and indifferent. One day he decided to watch people putting their offerings into the temple treasury.

He sat down opposite the treasury, and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny.

Giving was clearly a very public activity, as it can be today. In some churches the collection of financial gifts takes a whole section of the Sunday service, with an exhortation, an invitation to people to rise from their seats and walk their money to ushers waiting with baskets, a lengthy prayer of blessing over the collection, a counting during the service and sometimes a second offering if the first fell short. Giving is public, expected, and celebrated.

In contrast, many of our mainline churches make as little fuss as possible. Pledges are secret, money or checks are folded so no one can see how much – or how little – was given, and people are often uncomfortable discussing their offerings. The only pageantry is when the offering plates are brought to the altar during the singing of an offertory refrain, and the celebrant raises them heavenward for blessing, as if to say, “Dear Lord, please multiply these like the loaves and the fish…”

Giving is intrinsic to our Christian faith, and one of the most tangible ways we can express our faith and put it into action in the world. Giving is something to be celebrated – that we have something to give, that we’re willing to part with it, that we’re excited to add our money to that of others in our faith community and see what God will make of what we bring. We don’t have to be apologetic about discussing money, handling money, or celebrating money.

If you are a regular church-goer, you’ve probably been sent a pledge card recently and asked to “prayerfully consider” how much you can envision contributing to God’s mission at your church in the coming year. What if that prayer begins with, “Lord, thank you for giving me everything I have. How much do you want me to pledge to see your mission in this world carried forward through my church?” See how God replies!

At my churches our pledge theme this year is “Giving and Growing in Gratitude." We’re encouraging people to give not just out of their excess, but out of their principal, and to give joyfully. Maybe on Harvest Sunday we should put on some dancing music and dance our pledge cards to the altar. Think I can get away with that in an Episcopal church?

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11-5-18 - Vipers and VIPs

(You can listen to this reflection here.)

Next Sunday’s Gospel reading finds Jesus on familiar ground: ragging on the religious leaders. This time it is the scribes who have raised his hackles. He has been in an extended exchange with scribes seeking his learned opinion on several matters – or trying to entrap him. Maybe he’s had enough, for he does not mince words:

As he taught, he said, “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets! They devour widows’ houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”

Jesus doesn’t use the term “vipers” here, as he elsewhere describes Pharisees – but he lambastes these scribes for acting like VIPs. I suppose we’ve all known clergy like this, who take as given their country-club memberships and access to the halls of power. These scribes seem to have expected and exploited the elevated status accorded them as religious leaders. Perhaps the limits on their power, under the ever-present thumb of the Roman occupiers, made them all the more eager to take on airs.

People who have been given the power of high position have extra responsibility to regard themselves as no better than those whom they serve. We all know that, but privilege is very seductive. It is human nature to enjoy, even exploit it.

True humility comes from seeing ourselves as God sees us – as beloved sinners, redeemed royalty, capable of tremendous good and immense damage. When we know how loved we are despite our flaws, we are better able to love others instead of using them to make us feel important. That’s a prayer for today: “Lord God, show me who you see when you look at me.” The answer always surprises.

Tomorrow we will go to the polls and elect leaders to serve us. Everyone who offers herself for elected office, and anyone who exercises his right to vote, would do well to remember Jesus’ advice:

Take the worst seats, greet people with humility before they have a chance to butter you up, seek justice for all people - and keep your prayers short!

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11-2-18 - So They May Believe

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

How could anyone watch a dead man four days buried walk out of a sealed tomb, and not believe in the power of God? Jesus said that's why he was doing this great work of power, "So that they may believe."

So they took away the stone. And Jesus looked upward and said, “Father, I thank you for having heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.” When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth.

Could anyone see this and not believe? Yet soon after this, Jesus himself was executed by people who observed this miracle and did not believe (or perhaps believed to the point of terror...). And a short while after that, Jesus stood among his disciples, himself risen from the dead, and even some of them did not believe. Thomas, whom the writer of John's gospel places with Jesus during the Lazarus story; Thomas, who watched Jesus bring Lazarus back from the dead, is unable on the testimony of others to believe that Jesus is risen. He has to see for himself. And in that story, Jesus says, "Blessed are they who have not seen and yet believe."

Is faith that is ignited by signs and wonders less worthy? I hope not - for Jesus went about doing many signs which brought people to faith, and the book of Acts is full of such wonders. Witnessing the power of God is the beginning of faith for many. I confess that sometimes when I pray for healing, I remind God of the benefit his reputation might enjoy from a positive outcome. (Surprisingly, God has not hired me to be his agent...)

Jesus did invite people to believe based on the signs and wonders he performed, but not to rest there. We go astray when we focus on the signs themselves instead of who they are pointing to. Mature faith endures during times when it is harder to see God's hand in the world about us. That doesn't mean God is less active. It's an invitation to pray for keener faith vision to see how God is all over our lives.

Where do you see evidence of God in your life, in this world?
And where is it hard to find? That's where we pray...

Evidence of God's power can be like the romantic phase of a relationship; it invites us to go deeper into knowing the Other, and allowing ourselves to be known. Finding ourselves known and yet loved can be the most transforming miracle of all, bringing back to life parts of us that have died, inviting us to emerge fully into the light of God’s overwhelming love.

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11-1-18 - Saints Unbound

(You can listen to this reflection here.)

Hearing this gospel story on the day after Hallowe’en may set up some jarring mental images. What did Lazarus look like, emerging from that tomb at Jesus’ command, “Lazarus! Come out!” It’s hard not to summon one of those old-time B movies about mummies coming to life. Here comes this form, wrapped in cloth from head to toe, unable to walk:

The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth.

It must have caused pandemonium. Or utter silence. And Jesus didn’t say anything like, “Whew – glad that worked,” or “Welcome back, Lazarus!” He simply said, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

Unbind him. Undo all the work you did to prepare his body for burial. Now you need to prepare him for life, renewed life.
Unbind him. Release him to move freely, to reenter relationships, to fully be who God made him to be.
Unbind him. Set him free forever from having to fear death.

That is the work we are called to as saints in God’s mission of reclaiming, restoring and renewing all of creation to wholeness in Christ. We unbind people from the bondage of poverty and addiction, from the pain of infirmity and broken relationships, from the paralysis of depression and materialism. We unbind structures of injustice and cruelty that hold back people, animals, this creation itself from fully living. We are in the business of releasing the captives, as Jesus has released us. “Unbind her, and let her go.”

Tuesday was the birthday of my older sister Paula, who died in 1996, tightly bound by ailments and addictions. A few months after her death, I was given a picture in prayer of Jesus taking her hand and leading her out of the door of the apartment in which she died. I knew that now she was free from the turmoil that often mitigated the many joys of her earthly life; free to be fully herself, fully the saint she was made to be, with all her uniqueness, her incredible gifts and intelligence and love. She is a saint unbound, fully alive.

That is our invitation too – to become more and more free in this life, released to love and be loved; and in the life to come completely unbound. What a dance of joy that will be!

We may as well start dancing now - it's what all the cool saints are doing.

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