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ProudDog
Posts:498
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| 06/30/2008 9:17 AM |
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| This week we're talking about John and Jesus. We're also talking about rest from (but not the absence of) burdens. Take a look at Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30 (and the verses in between, if you like), Sacred
Rest and The
Patty Duke Show. Let's have a great discussion! |
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-Kirk Moore |
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kate huey
Posts:45
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| 06/30/2008 2:18 PM |
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For several weeks in a row we've been reading about the cost of discipleship, but this set of instructions from Jesus ends with an invitation to rest in him, to share our burdens with him. While it sounds comforting, it doesn't really sound like most of us in a culture that prizes self-sufficiency, achievement, and busyness. Barbara Brown Taylor's words make it clear that she feels that same pressure, and it's really important because, after all, it's not just about success but about her salvation: "I may believe," she writes, "that I live by God's grace, but I act like a scout collecting merit badges. I have a list of things to do that is a mile long...that I had better do or God will not love me anymore..."
We say we long for rest and need God's help to carry our burdens, but do we really let go? I don't think I do, most of the time. So perhaps this ending to Jesus' instructions is just as challenging as his earlier words about being rejected and having little to live on. Do you find it possible to find rest in God while we are still here in this life? Do you have one of those lists of things you have to do so God will love you? |
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ProudDog
Posts:498
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| 07/02/2008 6:21 PM |
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I think I've been conditioned to say, "No way -- I don't have a list that I have to do so that God will love me!"
And then I fret over all the things I have to do so that other folks will love me and think that God loves me . . .
Letting Jesus have everything is easy to talk about, eh? |
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-Kirk Moore |
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MamaGavone
Posts:27
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| 07/06/2008 8:40 PM |
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| Here’s what I read into this week’s excerpts (keep in mind that I am relatively new to stuff like this, so I apologize if what I’m saying is a little rudimentary):
The heaviest burden I’ve carried for most of my life is my past. My history has been filled with many hardships and struggles—monetary, mental and physical battles that I’ve had to endure and I was always constantly wondering ‘why me?’ and constantly thinking that somehow I made some mistake somewhere to bring this all on to me. I wasn’t raised with any religion whatsoever, so for most of my life the idea of ‘God’ was just as much a fantasy as Santa Claus or the Tooth Fairy. All I could see was that my life was utter chaos that couldn’t possibly have any meaning and I was completely alone in this fight. And so there were many times when I thought ‘what’s the point,’ and out came the pills and out came the blades and third time was the charm because the third time actually stopped my heart until the doctors started it for me again—yea the doctors and no one else…at least that’s what I thought at the time.
It took me years to finally realize that YES I might have gone thru so many terrible things, but still I *SURVIVED*--thanks be to God I survived and even managed to thrive. Though I denied the Lord, He NEVER denied me. And yes I endured some hard things—I literally died—but through nearly losing my life, now I KNOW just how valuable it truly is—such a blessed gift that the Lord held that life fast inside my hurting body even as I tried to drive it out. It was a hurting body soon to be healed.
And so now, through the salvation of our Risen Savior, the lead-weight burden of my past is now but a feather on my shoulder. I can make peace with that past—because I now understand how much that past strengthened me, tested me, and proved to me how much of a survivor I truly am. And my testimony is that much more powerful because of it. All along the Lord was grooming me for something—there was a reason for what I lived through and knowing there was a reason brought about the inner peace I had been missing all my life. And through that peace, I can find rest—rest from all the aching of my heart—and rest from all the torment I put myself through wondering why me and what I had done to deserve all this.
Christ’s yoke is indeed an easy one. Because life is so much easier knowing we have a holy guide who blesses every last footfall we press into the earth. Life is less fearsome knowing we are always protected. It’s not perfect—although our burdens are LIGHTER, they are still burdens nonetheless, but it’s a burden worth the bearing because it makes life that much more meaningful. And so, in a way, that burden becomes a blessing. And that’s certainly a thought that helps me *rest* more peacefully at night…
A few months ago, our pastor encouraged us to write our own doxologies to the tune of the old hundredth. And it was right around that time that I had discovered the passages that have been this week’s weekly seeds reading. So I know it’s dorky and it doesn’t quite fit the tune, but I thought I’d share what I wrote:
Praise God whose word shines through darkest night;
Praise Christ who makes all our burdens light;
Praise Holy Spirit who helps us stand,
Carried through hardship by Holy Hands. Amen.
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"What is therefore, our task today? Shall I answer: 'Faith, hope and love?' That sounds beautiful. But I would say – courage. No - even that is not challenging enough to be the whole truth. Our task today is recklessness ... [t]o restlessly seek to change human history until it conforms to the norms of the Kingdom of God."
from The Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne
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MamaGavone
Posts:27
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| 07/06/2008 9:13 PM |
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| “..Jesus said, ‘I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will.’”
When I read this passage, I can’t help but think of my own two boys. One is almost 3 and the other is 15 months old and they do nothing but teach me so much about what I fail to miss in this world. When my oldest sees a dandelion growing in the green midst of our lawn, he just HAS to stoop down, mesmerized by the tangy bright yellow interrupting all those grass blades. He sees a ‘boootiful fower!’ (to put it in his words). But as an adult, all I see is a nasty weed messing up my yard. And I think that speaks to the fundamental difference between kids and adults.
Kids appreciate things as they are. They are not worried about diagrams or schedules or patterns; they don’t try to force the rest of the world to fit into their own prescribed boundaries. They let life spill out all over them. They scream when they need to scream. They crack up in unbridled laughter when they find something funny. They are not worried what other people think of them. They have not yet acquired the self-consciousness and the obsessive need for control that adults are always constantly railing against. In the eyes of children, everything is new and fascinating and has its own gifts to bring—and that’s all that matters.
As adults, we get so bogged down into categorizing and theorizing and over-thinking and needing to know how and why and when and where. Children have not yet lost the ability to see miracles for what they are—and those miracles can take the tiniest form—a butterfly landing on a window pane; the ripple caused by underwater toe-wiggling; wind kicking the leaves back onto the path that leads to your door. When we see leaves on our sidewalk, we think ‘oh great now I gotta get the rake again.’ But a kid thinks ‘yay, it’s crunching time.’ A dandelion sends me into the shed digging for the weed-b-gone, but before I can even find the bottle, my son has already plucked it from the grass, completely enamored of all those gorgeous colorful folds. It causes him no stress. It’s yet another opportunity for discovery. And maybe that’s part of what Jesus is getting at when he mentions those infants.
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"What is therefore, our task today? Shall I answer: 'Faith, hope and love?' That sounds beautiful. But I would say – courage. No - even that is not challenging enough to be the whole truth. Our task today is recklessness ... [t]o restlessly seek to change human history until it conforms to the norms of the Kingdom of God."
from The Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne
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kate huey
Posts:45
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| 07/07/2008 10:42 AM |
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What incredibly beautiful posts! This morning I stumbled upon the phrase "orientation toward the present" as a sign of psychological health, and I was reminded of it when I read your description of your children's response to dandelions. (How true, how true. My children did the same thing, and now my grandchildren do, too. )
I once had a magnificent garden of flowers and stone (a gift from friends - can you believe I am so blessed?). But every time I tried to sit in that garden and relax, I noticed every little weed and every little bit of trimming I needed to do. I was never able in that garden to be oriented to the present because I thought I would finally relax once the garden work was done, which of course it never was, because that's the nature of gardens! I think that's the thing about children - they are more oriented toward the present than we are. Also, of course, they see beauty in ways we miss.
It seems to me that Jesus' preaching about the reign of God has something to do with both - seeing beauty in everyone and everything, and being fully present to what and whom we encounter. Is that one of the reasons he was such a powerful presence? And wouldn't those things be easy to miss if you're a person of power (with a list of more important things to do) but quite obvious if you're one of "the little ones"? Is that why tax collectors, prostitutes, and other outsiders, along with those who were hungry and in need of healing, all recognized him so easily and followed him so willingly? And wasn't he able to see the beauty in each of them, a beauty missed by those with more important things to do?
I once learned the difference between the words "childish" and "childlike." Perhaps that difference is helpful here.
Also, I think the doxology idea is inspired! Isn't that the best way for all of us to learn the meaning of that very "churchy" word? Yours is just wonderful, too.
And I also appreciate your Claiborne quotation. Coincidentally, I've been sharing it in my presentations this spring. Holy recklessness certainly up-ends our carefully made plans, doesn't it?
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MamaGavone
Posts:27
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| 07/07/2008 5:35 PM |
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Posted By kate huey on 07/07/2008 10:42 AM
What incredibly beautiful posts! This morning I stumbled upon the phrase "orientation toward the present" as a sign of psychological health, and I was reminded of it when I read your description of your children's response to dandelions. (How true, how true. My children did the same thing, and now my grandchildren do, too. )
I once had a magnificent garden of flowers and stone (a gift from friends - can you believe I am so blessed?). But every time I tried to sit in that garden and relax, I noticed every little weed and every little bit of trimming I needed to do. I was never able in that garden to be oriented to the present because I thought I would finally relax once the garden work was done, which of course it never was, because that's the nature of gardens! I think that's the thing about children - they are more oriented toward the present than we are. Also, of course, they see beauty in ways we miss.
It seems to me that Jesus' preaching about the reign of God has something to do with both - seeing beauty in everyone and everything, and being fully present to what and whom we encounter. Is that one of the reasons he was such a powerful presence? And wouldn't those things be easy to miss if you're a person of power (with a list of more important things to do) but quite obvious if you're one of "the little ones"? Is that why tax collectors, prostitutes, and other outsiders, along with those who were hungry and in need of healing, all recognized him so easily and followed him so willingly? And wasn't he able to see the beauty in each of them, a beauty missed by those with more important things to do?
I once learned the difference between the words "childish" and "childlike." Perhaps that difference is helpful here.
Also, I think the doxology idea is inspired! Isn't that the best way for all of us to learn the meaning of that very "churchy" word? Yours is just wonderful, too.
And I also appreciate your Claiborne quotation. Coincidentally, I've been sharing it in my presentations this spring. Holy recklessness certainly up-ends our carefully made plans, doesn't it?
thanks so much for all your kind words! 'orientation toward the present'--that sounds good to me. and i think that is most definitely something that children live by, and something that jesus prizes in the 'little ones.' they live in a land of no 'to-do' lists--no planners or palm pilots or incessantly ringing cell-phones to lure them out of the moment they are in. i think that is something jesus urges of his disciples; that ability to retain a crystal-clear focusing on what is around you and in front of you--a vital link to the world that exists beyond the border of your skin. go back to matthew 6:25-34; i think these verses touch on this idea as well, maybe. children dont worry about things the way adults do. they have a sort of singularity of mind that allows minutia to remain minutia--and i think that is what frees their minds up to wonderment and uninhibited joy. they dont spend hours tooling around inside their own heads thinking 'i shouldn't have said this,' or 'that presentation could have been better,' or 'i hope these pants dont make me look fat' or whatever........
and i, too, think the doxology idea is an inspired one! my pastor is a master of teaching us technical and scholarly churchy-ness in the most colorful and creative ways. her semons always manage to weave in some commentary about the structure and history of the day's scripture reading, along with all the spiritual, joyful, and faith-feeding elements. every sunday, i leave church feeling educated and inspired as well as lifted......
i cant remember where i first came across the claiborne quote...possibly it was on this site. but i love the idea. to me, church and faith shouldnt have to be quiet and polite and careful. it should be bold and outspoken and it should shake you and compell you to take hold of the world around you and speak back to it and let it know where it falls short. after all, is that not the example set by christ? what would he have accomplished had he not challenged the society of his time or spoke back to all the reprimanding and condemning voices that challenged him? and even when he wasnt speaking, his actions spoke for him. and so he paid the ultimate price and his death falls upon us in the form of salvation and so the least we could do is follow his example. and that's what i think claiborne is saying...
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"What is therefore, our task today? Shall I answer: 'Faith, hope and love?' That sounds beautiful. But I would say – courage. No - even that is not challenging enough to be the whole truth. Our task today is recklessness ... [t]o restlessly seek to change human history until it conforms to the norms of the Kingdom of God."
from The Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne
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