I made numerous trips to the hospital yesterday. It included good news and bad. The day ended holding a baby close to my chest. As I held her I thought about the heart that was healing from surgery one floor up, the cancer that was claiming its home two floors up, the snow storm that was coming, the stuff going in Syria, the fact that the sign needs to be changed again, the gas pric….
No I didn't. To be honest, reflecting back, I don't remember thinking about anything.
Holding that new life did something. That one day old girl didn't erase everything else, make pressure go away, or protect me or anyone else from anything. But, somehow for 5 minutes she captivated my thoughts from everything else. Tons of potential in a 7 pound body.
Innocent. Needy. Helpless. Holy. She opened her eyes a few times. She grunted. Then she helped me with my sermon for Sunday.
Jesus said to Nicodemus, you're not anywhere near the kingdom unless you're "born again." (John 3) Innocent because of the grace of God. Needy for the direction of God. Helpless without the Spirit of God. Holy through of the presence of God.
I've been thinking. We're following the Lord into a ministry of growing people in Him, but we need to hear the call to be born again. Some of us may have tried to learn to ride a bike in the womb. Birth - then bike.
For some, it may be that's why sin is so hard to leave, empty religion has such a tight hold, faith is shallow, forgiveness is impossible, and transformation has been reduced to self-adjustment. Maybe we've turned being born again into being a better person. Maybe we've surrendered those words to the abuses of the past or sacrificed them on the altar of "there are no absolutes" - I want them back. Born again. Born from above. New Life. Saved. Words that reveal the changed life of following Christ.
I don't hunger for them because they are relevant or old fashioned, but because Jesus said "no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again." I'm glad that baby and I had a talk. She had a lot to say.
OK with Baby Talk,
Pastor Dave
Friday, February 24, 2012
Friday, February 17, 2012
Other
Last week we asked people at our church what they worried about.
The point of the question was not to get information so I could pull out the Jesus gun of Matthew 6 and fire off, "Jesus said not to worry." I wasn't setting people up so I could sweep in with a Paul hammer and hit them with, "Do not be anxious about anything." Worry is a topic that requires grace, teaching, and the Holy Spirit's work. It's not the place for a surprise attack.
We gave four options to choose from; future, money, health, or other. Of those who answered, it turned out that "other" was marked more than the other three. Future was next, followed by health, and last was money.
Do you know where my mind went when I was told that? I can imagine the issues of the future - I've got a bunch of those concerns. I can imagine what someone might have been thinking with health things - I'm in the middle of some. I can imagine money issues - I have a house and car payment too.
My mind was caught up with the "other" and what that represented. Then I thought about the fact that we all have areas of life that don't fit into someone else's three neat categories. Maybe we all have "other" in our worlds. Those life elements that seem to bring us the challenges that we didn't expect and don't feel equipped to handle.
Even the ones who identified a specific area on Sunday have an "other" that doesn't fit in anyone's category.
Maybe that's what Jesus was doing when he invited the people who were "weary and burdened" to come to him. Maybe he was reaching to the people who had the "other" stuff in their life that gets heavy.
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." (Matthew 11:28-29)
Jesus didn't preach against the causes, he spoke to the result - weary, burdened. He gave them the answer, "Come to me, take my yoke, learn from me."
Resting from the other,
Pastor Dave
Friday, February 10, 2012
Reflecting
This week I had quite the silly day and it showed up on Facebook. A friend of mine from high school celebrated in his comment, "Kessler's back!" The next day I posted that I was feeling more "dignified" to which my friend expressed a "boooooo" and his desire for "yesterday's Kessler." A thought I'm sure my wife and he would have to sit on opposite sides of the aisle on.
I know he was referring to the lighter post of the day before, but I was stuck on the words "yesterday's Kessler." (Which by the way does need to happen more often. I am a very firm believer in we could all stand to lighten up a little.)
Let's be honest, other than a simpler lifestyle, less flesh on TV, lower prices, and a 90 kazillillon dollar nation debt, yesterday has little to offer me. So, although "yesterday's Kessler" wore pants that had a smaller waistline I was thinking through some reasons why I'm glad he's not around.
1. He didn't know how to be himself. He was really focused on watching other people and trying be them. He had a hard time just being who God made him to be.
2. He didn't know he was human. There's nothing like a physical limitation to remind you of how human you really are and how precious and fragile life really is.
3. He didn't take the faith journey seriously enough. No excuses. You know in your heart of heart when you're taking it serious and when you're not. For too long I don't think I did.
4. He didn't know how to be a husband. That takes time. I'm still learning. But, the "old Kessler" didn't know what he didn't know.
5. He didn't know how to reflect. Maybe that's a phase I'm going through now. I like thinking on God, friends, prayer, the Word. I think reflecting is cleansing. "Old Kessler" thought only mirrors reflected, and they were for girls.
6. He didn't know how to walk on the water. Now that I'm flawless I realize how easy it is to be me. That's why I wouldn't want to be the "old me," it was too much work to pretend to be flawless. Oh, but not pretending anymore, that's liberating.
7. Of course I know #6 isn't true. And the "old Kessler" knew that too. The difference is the "old Kessler" hated and hid the truth of it and the "new Kessler" is learning not to. I'm a follower of Christ. I'm not flawless - He is. I'm not a Savior - He is. I'm not the leader - He is. I'm not called to save the world - He is. I'm not the miracle worker - He is. I am a follower. The "old Kessler" didn't understand that.
I do.
Dave
I know he was referring to the lighter post of the day before, but I was stuck on the words "yesterday's Kessler." (Which by the way does need to happen more often. I am a very firm believer in we could all stand to lighten up a little.)
Let's be honest, other than a simpler lifestyle, less flesh on TV, lower prices, and a 90 kazillillon dollar nation debt, yesterday has little to offer me. So, although "yesterday's Kessler" wore pants that had a smaller waistline I was thinking through some reasons why I'm glad he's not around.
1. He didn't know how to be himself. He was really focused on watching other people and trying be them. He had a hard time just being who God made him to be.
2. He didn't know he was human. There's nothing like a physical limitation to remind you of how human you really are and how precious and fragile life really is.
3. He didn't take the faith journey seriously enough. No excuses. You know in your heart of heart when you're taking it serious and when you're not. For too long I don't think I did.
4. He didn't know how to be a husband. That takes time. I'm still learning. But, the "old Kessler" didn't know what he didn't know.
5. He didn't know how to reflect. Maybe that's a phase I'm going through now. I like thinking on God, friends, prayer, the Word. I think reflecting is cleansing. "Old Kessler" thought only mirrors reflected, and they were for girls.
6. He didn't know how to walk on the water. Now that I'm flawless I realize how easy it is to be me. That's why I wouldn't want to be the "old me," it was too much work to pretend to be flawless. Oh, but not pretending anymore, that's liberating.
7. Of course I know #6 isn't true. And the "old Kessler" knew that too. The difference is the "old Kessler" hated and hid the truth of it and the "new Kessler" is learning not to. I'm a follower of Christ. I'm not flawless - He is. I'm not a Savior - He is. I'm not the leader - He is. I'm not called to save the world - He is. I'm not the miracle worker - He is. I am a follower. The "old Kessler" didn't understand that.
I do.
Dave
Friday, February 3, 2012
language...
I read about orthomyxoviridae. Those pesky little viruses that have been visiting so many of our homes. Flu. “Hemagglutinin and neuraminidase molecules cluster into a bulge in the cell membrane.” I know that because I read it on Wikipedia.
No wonder some of us didn’t feel good our hemagglutinins were clustered with our neuraminithingys! Nothing good can come of that.
Reading the about the common flu is like reading the list of possible side effects of a prescription. Intimidating. Read the possible side effects for a prescription for an antibiotic and you may need an antidepressant too. Frustrating. Read the possible side effects of an antidepressant and you need a vacation. Overwhelming.
I don’t understand the language.
Super Bowl! Just the word will cause some to salivate and others to yawn. And let’s be honest, drop the male female stereotype here - both do both. Forget the intricacies of the game, the strategies of timeout management, the passing game and running game, penalties, shots on goal, birdies, double dribble, and what partner’s best even mean.
If the voice wasn’t on the commercial most wouldn’t even know what in the world a Super Bowl XLVI was! How do you even pronounce Xlvi?
There’s a language issue.
When people don’t understand the language they tend to devalue what isn’t understood. “It’s only____________. It’s not that big of a deal. I really don’t care.”
Think this through - the last thing that you “devalued,” was it something that someone else valued and you didn’t understand why? The last time someone devalued something you valued was it possible that they didn’t understand the code?
Now think about being someone who is walking into your church as a guest. We just talked to them about our “hemagglutinin and neuraminidase” or our “half back option.”
I think we should keep the good news real. I think we should keep the good news reachable. I think we should not get too big for our own religious britches. I think we should be sure we are there for those who might not know our language.
Dave.
No wonder some of us didn’t feel good our hemagglutinins were clustered with our neuraminithingys! Nothing good can come of that.
Reading the about the common flu is like reading the list of possible side effects of a prescription. Intimidating. Read the possible side effects for a prescription for an antibiotic and you may need an antidepressant too. Frustrating. Read the possible side effects of an antidepressant and you need a vacation. Overwhelming.
I don’t understand the language.
Super Bowl! Just the word will cause some to salivate and others to yawn. And let’s be honest, drop the male female stereotype here - both do both. Forget the intricacies of the game, the strategies of timeout management, the passing game and running game, penalties, shots on goal, birdies, double dribble, and what partner’s best even mean.
If the voice wasn’t on the commercial most wouldn’t even know what in the world a Super Bowl XLVI was! How do you even pronounce Xlvi?
There’s a language issue.
When people don’t understand the language they tend to devalue what isn’t understood. “It’s only____________. It’s not that big of a deal. I really don’t care.”
Think this through - the last thing that you “devalued,” was it something that someone else valued and you didn’t understand why? The last time someone devalued something you valued was it possible that they didn’t understand the code?
Now think about being someone who is walking into your church as a guest. We just talked to them about our “hemagglutinin and neuraminidase” or our “half back option.”
I think we should keep the good news real. I think we should keep the good news reachable. I think we should not get too big for our own religious britches. I think we should be sure we are there for those who might not know our language.
Dave.
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