transformation to a better way

in his book God Bless You, Mr Rosewater , kurt vonnegut tells the story of a millionaire philanthropist who, in his quest for the meaning of life, decides to spend his life and the family fortune on society’s throwaways at the risk of losing control of the foundation’s millions upon being proven insane for doing so. in the book, vonnegut (ever the idealist cynic) makes some wry observations about the way people deal with wealth…

Think about the silly ways money gets passed around now,
and then think up better ways. (Kurt Vonnegut Jr)

on january 12, 2010, a 7.0 magnitude earthquake tore through the ‘poorest country in the western hemisphere.’
I found myself journaling...

O God, what is our role in the relief of this disaster?
the answer was given in psalm 20, my devotions for the day.

this psalm is a song of blessing akin to something that might have been traditionally sung in an irish pub down the road. within the lyric are many 'fare-thee-wells', but it was the first couple lines that had a specific word for me, for us. i mean, if we are comfortable referring to the world as a global village, then we need to accept the responsibility that goes with the metaphor: we need to take care of the people in our village.

in your time of trouble, may the Lord answer
sending help from his sanctuary (psa20.1-2)

the word for 'help' is 'ezer.
it is a noun meaning succour/aid/support/relief.
relief from his sanctuary

in other words, the way God chooses to bring help and relief is to provide some within his sanctuary, his place of solace, refuge and protection, having both means and opportunity to actively and faithfully distribute his grace and mercy to those in need

and yet, in sanctuary, we are so accustomed to be blessed and protected that we can frivolously throw the blessings out into the street on folly and still sleep at night. this is the danger of being entrusted with so much, i suppose.

in Jesus' early ministry days following his baptism and temptation in the wilderness, we find the Lord celebrating at a wedding. someone has made a grave error of calculation, and the party grinds to a halt as the announcement is made that the celebration is over as they are all out of wine. Jesus' mother motivates her boy the way only a mother can, and he gets up, protesting the whole time, goes over to where the big jars for ceremonial washing are standing and promptly changes them into an award-winning chardonnay.

important to note: it isn’t that the water is multiplied- Jesus does plenty of multiplication on other occasions- it’s that it is transformed from

• something common to something miraculous
• something meaningless to something meaningful
• something of social utility to something of social gravity…

what has been basic water, fit not even for drinking but for washing, is transformed into something not simply drinkable, but surprisingly good.

perhaps God intends to do the same with the cash that we keep making and keep throwing away on ridiculous luxury. we know, after all, that the interest against the loan we have taken out to pay for contentment so gravely outweighs the principle itself that we'll never be truly free of the debt. what if we were to take the common currency of commerce and let Jesus have a go at it?

relief is a God thing. God wants to provide it for people and he wants to use the generosity that he has placed in people to be its distribution system. God wants to use his church- his people today- to be part of this action.

*note: this post was drawn from a talk that i gave the week following the earthquake in haiti. at that time, the board of northview community church agreed to simply give that morning's entire offering to the relief effort, releasing our human grip on the cash that God has entrusted to our care in faith. the good people of our local church responded generously and, with matching from the CIDA, a goodly sum was sent to haiti. we have chosen to partner with World Relief and would invite anyone who has not yet done so to participate in the haiti earthquake relief effort by giving generously to the cause.

www.worldrelief.org

the unforgettable fire

What is it, Papa?
Nothing. We're okay. Go to sleep.
We're going to be okay, aren't we Papa?
Yes. We are.
And nothing bad is going to happen to us.
That's right.
Because we're carrying the fire.
Yes. Because we're carrying the fire.
(from 'The Road ' by Cormac McCarthy, p83)

***

when john the baptiser speaks of the long-awaited messiah, (soon to be revealed as his own cousin Jesus in luke 3.15-17), he speaks of someone operating on a higher plane, affecting exponential change to the world. whereas john baptizes with water, he reminds the people of the scriptures they have already learned, announcing that Jesus, will anoint people’s very hearts with the oil of royalty and then flambé them. like Moses’ bush in the wilderness, they will be set afire to burn brightly in the darkness of a fallen, cannibalistic world, but will not be burned up- instead, offering the warmth, illumination, guidance and hope of God's unforgettable fire in the darkness.

however, sometimes we start to be a bit territorial and protective with this flame that has been entrusted to us. although Jesus reminded all who had ears to hear that they were not to hide their light under a thick shade, in fact this is often the case within today's church.

yet in the words of the prophet recorded in isaiah 49.6, we are challenged with the phrase “It is too small a thing…”

"It is too small a thing for you to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring my salvation to the ends of the earth."

it is too small a thing to restrict our focus to our own people, our own programs, our own facility. it is too small a thing to engage only with those who believe as we do, that we would be mutually encouraged. it is too small a thing to protect our traditions in deference to the cries of irrelevance from a world in pain. it is too small a thing to only read christian books by christian writers, only listen to christian songs recorded by christian musicians, only support christian businesses listed in some exclusive christians-only directory. it is too small a thing to, as steve taylor put it in a song over a quarter century ago, "only drink milk from a christian cow."

in the luke 3 account of Jesus' baptism, the whole narrative begins by saying We are challenged to bear this light, to carry this unforgettable fire of God’s love and presence into every situation requiring it. To live with eyes wide open for opportunity to share his hope, that those who are ‘Gentiles’ to us (those who do not know the name of Jesus in a life-changing way), would experience the salvation of a relationship freedom from sin and relationship with Almighty God through Jesus Christ, rather than be somehow swallowed up by the calamity that befalls us all.

as we carry the unforgettable fire of God’s love and presence, let us run fast and sure, that this light would reach into every life and bring warmth, hope comfort and freedom there.

***

You have to carry the fire.
I don’t know how to.
Yes you do.
Is it real? The Fire?
Yes it is.
Where is it? I don’t know where it is.
Yes you do. It’s inside you. It was always there. I can see it.
(from 'The Road ' by Cormac McCarthy, pp 278-9)

the road

my son made an observation recently. apparently all literature placed on high school reading lists has to do with biblical themes- in particular, Christ’s redemptive work through his incarnation, his passion and his resurrection. he brought a few examples, the most recent of which was 'The Road ' by cormac mccarthy.


this got me thinking. if all great literature seems to, in some way, grapple with the common theme of existence: that we feel rather helpless facing the harshness of our physical reality, rife with pain, sickness, betrayal, violence, vengence and death. that we long for a little help as we travel along a mostly cold and impersonal, often completely unexplained road, upon which we often aspire to little more than basic survival with dignity. well what if it’s also true that all scripture is about life?

2Tim3.16 claims that all scripture has a point and is useful, but if we neglect to explore it outside of our own knowledge of it then we might be guilty of reducing the bible to little more than a comic book.

Thy word have I kept in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee (Psalm 119.11)

we’ve gotta be putting it in
if we want to live it out
on the road.