Friday, November 13th Luke 13:1-9

At that very time there were some present who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. He asked them, “Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were worse sinners than all other Galileans? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as they did. Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam fell on them–do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others living in Jerusalem? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish just as they did.” Then he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and found none. So he said to the gardener, ‘See here! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be wasting the soil?’ He replied, ‘Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and put manure on it. If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.’” Luke 13:1-9

The first part of this text is easy – why do we keep asking why bad things happen to good people? Because bad things keep happening to good people! And each and every time we ask the same question…

Why, with thousands of acres of trees and open fields, does a tornado hit a high school? Insurance companies call such events “acts of God.” Is that why? God fingers innocent high school students? Really??!

Why does a charter bus drive off an overpass while bringing a college baseball team to the first games of their new season? Ah now, this we can seek to explain so it is less troubling. We can blame the driver or the road conditions. As long as we have someone to blame, we can leave God out of the picture. Can we?

Why do Sunni’s and Shiite’s continue blowing each other up, reenacting history instead of learning from it? Why doesn’t God stop them? Would they quit fighting if everybody became Christian? Hundreds of thousands of people in Northern Ireland would argue that doesn’t seem to help much. The people in the Middle East will have to learn the same lesson every other family feud teaches – we will either end up living together as friends or dying together as enemies! But where is God in that?

Jesus was confronted by those who asked him the “why” question. In his answer, he seems to be speaking from both sides of his mouth. First, he rejects the idea that God was punishing the Galileans who suffered under Pilate. But then he suggests that their lack of repentance had something to do with it….or does he? Read it again, read it slowly, and watch closely and you’ll see something else.

Jesus isn’t making a judgment on those who died under Pilate or those who died under the tower of Siloam, instead, he is turning the question back on top of the questioners. He doesn’t ask them about someone else’s past (which would be making a judgment call) but he redirects their attention to their own future. Rather than worrying about what happened to someone else, Jesus asks them to consider what they are going to be doing with and in their own lives.

His answer doesn’t answer the “why” question. The “why” question can’t be answered. It isn’t really a question anyway but an emotional grab for something to hold onto. But his answer does redirect them to focus on what to do next.

If you step back a little farther from these verses and look what happens right before and after them, see how they are “framed”, you will see that just before this story, Jesus comes down hard on our tendency to judge others. And then he heals a woman.

I think it might be as simple as that. In a world where bad things continue to happen to good people, in THIS world where we are called to walk in the footsteps of Jesus, we would do well to refrain from judging others and focus instead on bringing healing and making the world a better place, a little at a time, one day at a time, one person at a time. Rather than being captured by fear, we can released by faith. Isn’t that in fact what repentance is all about?

Let us pray: Dear Lord, our hearts go out to those who find themselves victims of the tragedies of life, those who die too young, those caught up in forces of evil which swirl around them. Set us free from worrying about “why” so we can focus instead on what people can do to make life better, on providing help, hope and healing. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Thursday, November 12th 1 Corinthians 10:1-13

I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that our ancestors were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ. Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them, and they were struck down in the wilderness. Now these things occurred as examples for us, so that we might not desire evil as they did. Do not become idolaters as some of them did; as it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink, and they rose up to play.” We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day. We must not put Christ to the test, as some of them did, and were destroyed by serpents. And do not complain as some of them did, and were destroyed by the destroyer. These things happened to them to serve as an example, and they were written down to instruct us, on whom the ends of the ages have come. So if you think you are standing, watch out that you do not fall. No testing has overtaken you that is not common to everyone. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it. 1 Corinthians 10:1-13

One of the universal ailments which plague humankind is the sense we have of “terminal uniqueness.” This is the often unspoken idea we have that no one else is just like us, no one else has had to deal with what we have had to deal with, no one else has been burdened (or has been a burden) like we have. We are terminally unique.

There is a sense in which this is true. Every one of God’s children is unique, uniquely made, one of a kind and wonderful. No doubt about it. And yet as we move into the world which we share with everybody else, the odds are very good that while there might not be anyone else who has gone through everything we have, at least at the same time, there is probably nothing that ever happens to us that hasn’t happened before to someone else. In that sense, we aren’t unique at all. We’re just another rat in the race, another soul standing under the cross.

This is what Paul is trying to communicate to the Corinthians. Yes, they are a sometimes beleaguered little community within a diverse and cosmopolitan city. Yes, they suffer from the constant pressure to conform themselves to an idolatrous, lustful, dangerous culture. Yes, they fight amongst themselves far more than is healthy or helpful. But they are not the first. They are not alone. And neither are we.

As we will see in tomorrow’s gospel reading, there is always a bit of danger in how we interpret, and how we spiritually experience, the difficult times in our lives. We walk down a road with two ditches. We fall into one ditch when we decide we know exactly what God is doing and we fall into the other when we leave God out of the picture altogether. Between those ditches, with humility, we do well to ask a simple question, “What is God up to in this?”

We ask that question and, like Paul, we can look back at the past for insight or peer into the future for possibilities, either way, when we wonder what God is up to, when we leave the door open to God’s participation in our lives, then we can sense God’s presence and power. We are not alone. We are not the first. We won’t be the last.

But with God’s help, we can learn from, endure and survive the difficult moments of our lives. We can find open windows when doors slam shut. We can find a way out even though we have no idea how we got in. We can trust that, with God’s help, we can find a way.

Let us pray: Gracious Lord, when the trials of our lives become overwhelming and we feel life closing in, we often feel alone, abandoned and powerless. In some ways, we are. That is the place where we need your gifts of surrender, acceptance and courage. Teach us to trust you in all things. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Wednesday, November 11th Psalm 63:1-8

“O God, you are my God, I seek you, my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water. So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory. Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. So I will bless you as long as I live; I will lift up my hands and call on your name. My soul is satisfied as with a rich feast, and my mouth praises you with joyful lips when I think of you on my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night; for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I sing for joy. My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me.” Psalm 63:1-8

Many people would read these verses and come away completely cold. Many people, faithful people, religious people, church-going people, have little or no experience of a relationship with God that is so desperate, so vibrant, so essential, that they could honestly say these verses out loud without at least a little embarrassment.

“My soul thirsts for you.”

“My flesh faints for you.”

“For you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I sing for joy…”

“Normal” people don’t talk about God like that much. People from North Dakota don’t talk like that about anything… It seems strange in our ears to be so desperate for God.

Middle class, working people, caught up in the rhythms of life, plenty of food to eat, enough money for the mortgage, the war happening a long way away, driving the kids around, going to church on Sunday and making sure you’re home in time to watch “Grey’s Anatomy” or “American Idol” (by the way, probably the most aptly named show on television today)…God kind of finds a comfortable place in the mix of everything else going on in life. Heck, God is actually optional! We think of the church as a “volunteer organization.”

But show me one person in the first few days or weeks of recovery from an addictive illness…one person who wants what they see that the other sober people in the world have…and I’ll show you someone who is desperately hungry and thirsty for the kind of God who shows up in their torment and relieves their pain in wonderful, miraculous and healing ways!

Show me one person who has been diagnosed with a potentially fatal disease and suddenly realizes that they might not be there for their kids as they grow up, they might lose a beloved spouse, or their lives might be altered forever, and I’ll show you a person who is praying with a depth they have never known before!

Show me a person who has been taken to the edge of life, who has tasted their own powerlessness, who has taken a bath in their own shame, and who is then brought to new life by the amazing grace of God, communicated through words of acceptance and forgiveness, embodied by real human people who actually care, and I will show you a person who stretches as far as they can reach to praise the God who gave them a new life!!!

Do we HAVE to go there to get there? Do we HAVE to get to the limits of life before we are finally open to seeking a God who is truly there for us? Maybe we do. Or maybe we don’t. Maybe the witness of another is enough for us. The witness of a friend. Even the witness of a Psalmist who has tasted of the deepest shame and humiliation of life and, by the grace of God, has come out whole.

Let us pray: God, in the dry and dirty places of our lives, when we have no where else to go, we turn to you and you are right there beside us. Fill us today with the joy of your salvation, the strength of your Spirit, and the delight of your love. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Tuesday, November 10th Isaiah 55:6-11

Seek the LORD while he may be found, call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake their way, and the unrighteous their thoughts; let them return to the LORD, that he may have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there until they have watered the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the thing for which I sent it. Isaiah 55:6-11

The oldest sin in the book is the desire to be God. To be the Ruler rather than the ruled, the Creator rather than the creature, the Boss rather than the bossed. To make our own way. To be Masters of the Universe.

We want what we want when we want it. We want the people, places and things around us to work the way we think they ought to work. The AA Big Book says we want to be the Director who runs the show. The Bible says that when they saw that the tree was good for food and a delight to the eyes, they took of its fruit and ate – although they knew full well that God had said not to.

What fuels this desire to be like God? That’s a big question that I’m not sure I can answer. “Sin” doesn’t answer it, “sin” only describes it.

Perhaps it is fear. Fear that we won’t get what we need. Fear that we will fall apart, be forgotten, left out or abandoned. Fear that we will get hurt. So we seek to climb on top of everything that gets in our way and threatens us. If we can control the world we can live without fear that the world can hurt us.

Perhaps it is greed. No matter how much we have, we always have room for more. We can always build another barn!

Perhaps it is pride, that age-old combination of fear and greed. The unwillingness to accept ourselves as we are which drives us to put ourselves on top of everyone and everything else.

I try and picture in my mind what it would have been like to grow up as a little Israelite boy born while my family lived in a refugee camp in Babylon. My parents would have told me stories of Israel’s former prominence and the special place we held in God’s eyes. They would have told stories of God rescuing God’s people from bondage in Egypt and they would have assured and reassured me that God would act again to restore Israel and let us return to Jerusalem to rebuild a life. For fifty years, an entire generation, those promises would have been repeated.

And I, like many little boys, would have wondered – Does God really exist? If God really exists, then why are we suffering like this? If God really loves us, then why did God allow our lives to fall apart? And I would think, “If I were God, I would certainly do things differently than this!”

And God says in response, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways… so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the thing for which I sent it.”

God says, “Trust me. Don’t run from me. Don’t try to be me. Trust me.”

Let us pray: Gracious Lord, life is full of mystery. We can’t see the end, we sometimes can hardly see far enough in front of us to take the next step on the journey. We want to trust you and your Words. We realize that it is enough to do our part let alone trying to do yours. So, for today, we will let go and let you be God. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Monday, November 9th Isaiah 55:1-5

Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. Incline your ear, and come to me; listen, so that you may live. I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David. See, I made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples. See, you shall call nations that you do not know, and nations that do not know you shall run to you, because of the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you. Isaiah 55:1-5

Whenever you read a text from Isaiah it is important to realize which part of the book you are reading. Isaiah, written over a long period of time, is divided into at least two, probably three, major sections that correspond to different moments in the history of Israel – we can just call them the “bad times” and the “good times” (and if you accept that there is a distinctive 3^rd Isaiah, the “how to live well in the good times” section.)

The bad times of the first part of Isaiah were written as the northern kingdom, Israel, was falling to the invaders from Assyria. It would disappear forever. The good times of the second part were written as King Cyrus of Persia defeated the Babylonians and the people anticipated the possible return of the Israelite refugees from Babylon back to Jerusalem. The verses for today are at the end of this second part of Isaiah. They are the promise of good times pulling the people out of bad times.

Here is what I know about bad times and good times – bad times and good times are present all the time. When it is night somewhere, it is day somewhere else. The same snow that cancels a ballgame in the winter waters the crops in the spring.

Here is what else I know – you can look back at your life and see many times that were much better, and many other times that were much worse, than what you are going through right now. The future will get better and the future will get worse. Whoever said it was right – “it ain’t over ‘til it’s over.”

But between now and then….

The bad times and the good times are part of all the time, and God is present in all of them. The bad times do not nullify the promises of God and the good times do not define them.

The lesson for today is to trust God through all the times of our lives. His promises will endure and his Word will not return empty.

Let us pray: Dear Lord, so often we feel abandoned by you when life gets difficult but then we ignore you when life is good. This is our weakness and our foolishness. Help us by your Spirit to trust in your presence and promises during all the times of our lives. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Friday, November 6th Luke 13:31-35

At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” He said to them, “Go and tell that fox for me, ‘Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work. Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem.’ Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! See, your house is left to you. And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.’” Luke 13:31-35

Let’s start by making three observations of this text that are a bit surprising. First, some Pharisees came to Jesus to warn him that Herod was looking to get rid of him. At least some of the “bad” guys are “good” guys.

Second, while we normally use masculine gender references for God, here Jesus describes God as a mother hen longing to gather her brood under her wing. If there is room in Jesus’ imagination for seeing God as a “mother”, why can’t there be such room in ours?

And third, Jerusalem, the holy city, the site of the temple and the epicenter of the promises of the faith…is also the killing ground of the prophets. Normally thought of as a place to find God, it turns out to be a place that rejects God. And will do so again when Jesus comes to town.

And yet none of this will stop Jesus. His face is set. His back is bowed. He will not and cannot be stopped until he has walked the entire length of the road set before him.

“Surprise” is an important word for the experience of the Christian faith. The good news of forgiveness, experientially, always comes as surprise. The faith is a lived experience and therefore cannot be pinned down or contained. There are always surprises – the first become last, the least and the last and the lost become the center, the values and ways of the world are turned upside down.

It won’t be long until Jerusalem will have its way with Jesus. But until then, Jesus will not be stopped.

How often does your faith surprise you? How often does your faith take you down roads you didn’t expect, into conflicts you didn’t create, across the paths of people who surprise you? “Good” people who do very bad things or “bad” people who amaze you with acts of love and service?

How often are you tempted to give up? Just throw off thoughts of faithfulness or discipleship and do your own thing? How often are you discouraged?

And yet you haven’t given up, have you? You are still here. You are reading these devotions. You are living your life. You are struggling along. You are following Jesus. Surprise, surprise, surprise – God isn’t through with you yet!

Let us pray: Gracious Lord, we hear that image of you longing to gather us like chicks beneath your wings and we want to cuddle up right there and be with you. And yet we recognize that we are all too often numbered among those who reject you and your will for us. Our faith surprises us precisely when we recognize how little control we really have. So we pray that you not give up on us, that we not give up on you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Thursday, November 6th Philippians 3:17-4:1

Brothers and sisters, join in imitating me, and observe those who live according to the example you have in us. For many live as enemies of the cross of Christ; I have often told you of them, and now I tell you even with tears. Their end is destruction; their god is the belly; and their glory is in their shame; their minds are set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven, and it is from there that we are expecting a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will transform the body of our humiliation that it may be conformed to the body of his glory, by the power that also enables him to make all things subject to himself. Therefore, my brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved. Philippians 3:17-4:1

Philippians is a beautiful letter of Christian encouragement. Whenever I read the letter I’m reminded of the more modern concept of “flow.”

To be in the “flow” is like an 8 cylinder engine powering a well designed car through well paved mountain curves. It just purrs along, performing like it was intended to perform. The driver and the car are one machine.

To be in the “flow” in our lives is that sense of everything fitting together, everything working together, our gifts matching the opportunities of our lives. It is that deep sense that we are where we are supposed to be, that we have been created for this moment and this purpose.

We think of Paul as a Christian missionary, and he was, but he wasn’t necessarily a church planter. He seems to have been more of a church developer. In many places Paul is visiting Christian communities that had previously gathered. But the church in Philippi was the first community that Paul had established in that area. From the beginning there had been opposition from both Gentile and Jewish sources but Paul and the others who established the church were able to weather the storms. The Christian community in Philippi certainly held a special place in Paul’s heart.

It was, for Paul, a community as it ought to be. Together they were in the flow.

When Paul says to the Philippians that they ought to “imitate me” he isn’t elevating himself as someone special or particularly laudatory, he is distinguishing himself (and the gospel he proclaims) from those who continue to threaten the Philippian church. In previous verses, he warns the Philippians against the “evil workers…who mutilate the flesh (3:2).” These are the voices of those who want to add external rituals to the internal trust in Jesus that is the center of the Christian faith. Paul is reminding them that their Leader isn’t about earthly religious power plays or displays but about the transformation of hearts and lives.

Back now to the concept of “flow”…

My experience is that “flow” is a relational term. It isn’t something we sense in isolation from the world around us but a sense that comes in relationship with the world around us. It is a sense when inner resources and gifts align and all things work together. Like the air passing over and under the wing of an airplane, the flowing air provides both lift and resistance. The wing itself is fixed but working in conjunction with the thrust of the engine and the physical dynamics of the universe.

Paul’s encouragement here is for the Philippians to see that Jesus is the fixed wing of their faith, the One to which they cling, on whom they depend, and from whom they draw their purpose. As they live and work together, holding fast to that which doesn’t move, they are being carried to where God wants them to be.

Let us pray: Dear Jesus, the struggles of our faith today are far more subtle than the active opposition of your first followers. And yet the siren song of the gods of our bellies tempt us all the time. Thank you for the words of encouragement from Paul which remind us that you are carrying us to where we need to be, that all things work together for those who love you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Wednesday, November 4th Psalm 27:7-10

Hear, O LORD, when I cry aloud, be gracious to me and answer me! “Come,” my heart says, “seek his face!” Your face, LORD, do I seek. Do not hide your face from me. Do not turn your servant away in anger, you who have been my help. Do not cast me off, do not forsake me, O God of my salvation! If my father and mother forsake me, the LORD will take me up. Psalm 27:7-10

We’ve all done it. We’re not proud of it. We weren’t at our best when we did it. But we’ve all done it.

In the face of conflict with a loved one, rather than taking the time (and the risk) of dealing directly with the conflict and our feelings about it, we have resorted to that age-old trick we picked up sometime after we turned two – we gave the other person the silent treatment.

I hate the silent treatment! I hate receiving it and I hate the feeling I have when I’m the one doing it!

Walking past the other person as if they are not there. Avoiding eye contact…and if a little accidental eye contact happens, giving it that little Clint Eastwoodian squint. Oh that is an awful thing we do to one another!

But we’ve all done it. Even though it has never gotten us anywhere. Even though it doesn’t lead to winning or losing or anywhere in the middle. It just postpones the real relational work that needs to be done. It is a blatant childish manipulative power grab…oh, I hate when I catch myself doing it!

Yet how many times in our lives have we, at least somewhere inside, wondered if that isn’t exactly what God does to us? Is God giving us the silent treatment?

Psalm 27 is a psalm of praise and a song of deliverance from our enemies. It begins and ends with words of confident expectation that God is stronger than any foe or fear. And yet right here, in the above verses, the psalmist speaks of our fears which are stronger than any enemy. Our spiritual, emotional fears which are as numbing and as unnerving as anything a physical enemy could throw our way.

Our fear of rejection, of abandonment, of forsakenness, of receiving the silent treatment from God…

So the writer cries out, “Your face, Lord, do I seek.”

Imagine here that we are standing next to a God who refuses to look at us, a God giving us the silent treatment. Suddenly the pain of such rejection motivates us to do what we would never otherwise have the confidence to do – we reach for God’s head, hands over each ear, and we turn that face toward us like a little toddler in arms will do to her mother.

“Look at me!” we cry. “Look at me! Turn your face to me!”

Then comes the decisive moment. The jumping off point. The place where we either give up the power struggle and open our hearts to one another or we give another Clint Woodian squint and march back to our separate but unequal corners.

Right there we have a choice. My choice is that I’m not going to walk away. I’m going to give up the fight of having it my way but I’m not going to let go. “Look at me! Turn your face to me!” And as we melt together I know the love which binds us is more powerful than anything an enemy could throw at us.

Let us pray: Gracious Lord, we want to know you, not just know about you. We want to feel you, not forget about you. We want a connection with you, as parent and friend, as giver of life, not just giver of gifts. We sense deep inside that to truly know you stills our fears and lifts our faces and enables us to live our lives fully and free. We want to know you, Lord! In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Tuesday, November 3rd Genesis 15:7-18

Then he said to him, “I am the LORD who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans, to give you this land to possess.” But he said, “O Lord GOD, how am I to know that I shall possess it?” He said to him, “Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.” He brought him all these and cut them in two, laying each half over against the other; but he did not cut the birds in two. And when birds of prey came down on the carcasses, Abram drove them away. As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell upon Abram, and a deep and terrifying darkness descended upon him. Then the LORD said to Abram, “Know this for certain, that your offspring shall be aliens in a land that is not theirs, and shall be slaves there, and they shall be oppressed for four hundred years; but I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions. As for yourself, you shall go to your ancestors in peace; you shall be buried in a good old age. And they shall come back here in the fourth generation; for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.” When the sun had gone down and it was dark, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates…” Genesis 15:7-18

Who can forget that great opening scene from “The Fiddler On the Roof” when Tevye sings about the power of tradition? “WHY? TRADITION!” (Or, to quote a line most often attributed to every single parent who has ever lived…”Because I say so, that’s why!”

This text from Genesis is the beginning of the battle that is still being fought today about the rightful ownership of the land of Israel. The ceremony described is the sealing of the covenant between Abraham and God in which God promises to give his people a future home. It includes the recognition that there will be suffering between now and then, that the people of God will experience a period of bondage and servitude but their faithfulness will result in great promise.

Tradition!

I am a creature of habit and I enjoy my habits. Unfortunately, even the bad ones like the cup of coffee sitting next to me on my desk as I type. I have used the same bathroom products since I was in college, the same shampoo, shaving cream, soap and aftershave. I bet that my time in the shower in the morning doesn’t vary by more than a few seconds.

But a couple of years ago I got a free new razor in the mail. A Gillete Fusion. Kind of futuristic looking. A little strange. But it shaved like butter and I loved it. I’m going to make a change! A new tradition!

Which raises the question….when it is good, right and salutary that traditions change? When it the right time to let go of the past and be open to a brand new future? When will the people of Israel and the people of Palestine (who have their own traditions regarding the “ownership” of the land of their fathers and mothers) come to understand that land that is shared can still be land that is enjoyed?

When is the right time to look closely at our lives, at our family histories, at our current state of affairs and ask ourselves, “Is it time for a change? Is it time to rethink how we think? Is it time to try something new, to change?”

The most healthy traditions are those that evolve. Static traditions become ends in themselves rather than the means to the end for which they were initially established. Lent is a great tradition…because it incorporates the reminder of the value of repentance, of changing, of being redirected. What needs to change for you today?

Let us pray: Gracious Lord, you make wonderful promises to us as your children, promises of a love that won’t end, of a presence that won’t go away, of a purpose for living that makes a better world now. We pray for the grace to stay open-minded and open-hearted to the world around us, that the traditions of our faith and our lives might give us life. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Monday, November 2nd Genesis 15:1-6

After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, “Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” But Abram said, “O Lord GOD, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” And Abram said, “You have given me no offspring, and so a slave born in my house is to be my heir.” But the word of the LORD came to him, “This man shall not be your heir; no one but your very own issue shall be your heir.” He brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your descendants be.” And he believed the LORD; and the LORD reckoned it to him as righteousness. Genesis 15:1-6

Read these devotions very long and you will see that there is great importance and value in words. Plain and simple words that have the power to crawl beneath our skin and redefine our reality.

There are phrases that continue to evoke the best in us… “A government of the people, by the people, for the people…” ”The only thing we have to fear is fear itself…” “Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country.” “Some men look and ask why, I ask ‘why not’…” “I have a dream today…”

Today’s passage brings to mind another such phrase that might not be so well known outside of recovery circles but it nonetheless means a lot to many people…”I can’t. God can. I think I’ll let him…” This is the short hand version of the first three steps.

God chose Abraham. From our point of view we can see a certain logic in that choice. Abraham was too old and a very unlikely candidate – which means that anything good that happens HAS to be God’s work, no confusion there. Abraham was a foreigner, an outsider, an Aramean – which opens the door to one of the hardest lessons human beings will ever have to learn, a lesson which must be taught to every generation anew, and that is that there are no outsiders, no foreigners, no strangers, in the Kingdom of God.

We can see the logic from our point of view, but clearly no one in Abraham’s time would have seen it, much less Abraham himself. He was baffled, troubled and uncertain. He didn’t see how it could happen. All he could see was why not.

Well, that’s not quite all he could see…

Despite all evidence to the contrary, over against every bit of common sense and human understanding he possessed, Abraham was willing to be willing. He was willing to trust. The text says “he believed the Lord; and the Lord reckoned it to him as righteousness.”

That line is another of the great lines in human history. It helped Paul make sense of how it is that God can accept Gentiles born outside of the law. It helped Martin Luther stand up against the resistant forces of the Roman Catholic Church. It opens the door to a relationship with God that begins with faith and continues through the response of good and loving works rather than seeking godliness through our good works.

For me, it makes the faith very simple. I can’t. God can. I think I’ll let him.

Let us pray: Dear Lord, in every age, in so many different ways, you send your encouragement into our lives through the power of words. You reach into our spirits as you reached into Abraham’s with the vision of the stars, and you birth the mysterious ability and hunger to trust you. To believe you. And to act on that belief. In Jesus’ name. Amen.