Spiritual Fatigue

Fatigue can be debilitating. It can also be a good thing at times. Sometimes at our house we say, “I’m tired, but it’s a good kind of tired.” You know the difference. A difficult day at work, full of frustrations and obstacles and those people---you know which ones I mean---leads to a type of fatigue that is not pleasant. But then, there’s the fatigue of a job well done, or of physical exertion, like a long hike to a waterfall. This can be a satisfying fatigue. This week we will consider an episode in the story of the people of Israel, just before their destruction/captivity/exile by Babylon. Here is the full text and outline for this episode:

Spiritual Fatigue and Revival

Spiritual fatigue can be related to one person taking on too many responsibilities at church. Or it might be related to personal difficulties in which prayers seem to go unanswered for a long time. Here, though, the Israelites seem to have a bigger problem. They are actually weary of God.

"Yet you did not call upon me, O Jacob; but you have been weary of me, O Israel!” Isaiah 43:22 ESV

God, through Isaiah, points out that destruction awaits those who have fallen into idolatry and apostasy. But, as always, there is a possible solution.

3 For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground;I will pour my Spirit upon your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.4They shall spring up among the grass like willows by flowing streams.5 This one will say, 'I am the LORD’s,' another will call on the name of Jacob,and another will write on his hand, 'The LORD’s,' and name himself by the name of Israel." Isaiah 44:3-5

Isn’t it amazing? We become weary of God’s grace and presence, yet his remedy, if we’ll take it, is more grace and more of his presence. May your week be filled with the good kind of fatigue that comes from obedience to God and service to others. If, however, you may be experiencing spiritual burnout, let his Spirit pour over you again. Say, “I am the Lord’s.”

Tea Parties, the Presidency, and Piracy

Tea Parties and the Bill of Rights.

Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) blasted "tea party" protests yesterday, labeling the activities "despicable" and shameful."
"The ‘tea parties’ being held today by groups of right-wing activists, and fueled by FOX News Channel, are an effort to mislead the public about the Obama economic plan that cuts taxes for 95 percent of Americans and creates 3.5 million jobs," Schakowsky said in a statement.

What? I didn’t go to a tea party. I didn’t have the energy after working all day to pay my taxes. My son went to one in Birmingham and said there was a big crowd. Where does Rep. Schakowsky get off knocking this sort of thing? Here’s something I found:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

It’s called the First Amendment. The Founding Fathers felt the need to spell this out explicitly because they were familiar with abuses of these freedoms. Many brave men and women have served their country defending these freedoms. So, Rep. Schakowsky can get together with her friends and say what she wants, but so can the rest of us. I can’t think of anything more American: baseball, apple pie, and getting together with others to complain out loud about the government. What a country.

Isn’t it interesting how career politicians always get nervous when there’s a groundswell of anti-government sentiment?

On Being President

I reviewed Article 2 of the Constitution. I think we should have a bivocational President. He could keep his regular job (assuming no conflict of interest.). I say this because I think I could do the job in about 2 hours a day.

Uphold and defend Constitution. 30 min
Commander in Chief (meet Joint Chiefs) 30 min
Report to Congress on State of Union (email) 15 min
Sign some treaties 15 min
Appoint a few (conservative) judges 15 min
Visit with foreign dignitaries 15 min

There, done by 10 am. If you can live on 400K a year, then you can just take the rest of the day off. Or go back to your regular job.

Piracy

I was saying just last week that I had the solution to the piracy problem. Shoot them. No lawyers or liberal judges or two decades on death row. Get some really big guns and simply shoot anyone trying to capture your boat. And how about this: pull up your ladders when you are going by Somalia. Thankfully, the US Navy and their SEAL team must have heard my speech. Way to go, guys.

Easter

Our group discussed the passages in the previous post. We concluded that God is creative, spontaneous, purposeful, timely, surprising, self-starting, the Prime Mover, secretive at times, keeping his own counsel, compassionate, merciful, just, sometimes humorous (Google "ashdod tumors"), abounding in joy, and loving. He moved, unseen, in the dark, needing nobody's help, to accomplish his perfect plan. A God who is able to do that could certainly shine light into the dark places of my heart or anyone's heart. Happy Easter.

God Does His Finest Work at Night

There is some profound truth lurking beneath these passages and I haven’t quite figured it out yet. It has something to do with the fact that God does some of his best work in the dark. Read through these. Why would he do these things in the dark, when no one can see? What kind of god is God?

Creation
Gen 1:1-5
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 3 Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light. 4 And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. So the evening and the morning were the first day.

The Last Plague
Ex 12:29-30
29 And it came to pass at midnight that the LORD struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of livestock. 30 So Pharaoh rose in the night, he, all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where there was not one dead.

The Ark is Captured
1 Sam 5:1-4
1 Then the Philistines took the ark of God and brought it from Ebenezer to Ashdod. 2 When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the temple of Dagon and set it by Dagon. 3 And when the people of Ashdod arose early in the morning, there was Dagon, fallen on its face to the earth before the ark of the LORD. So they took Dagon and set it in its place again. 4 And when they arose early the next morning, there was Dagon, fallen on its face to the ground before the ark of the LORD. The head of Dagon and both the palms of its hands were broken off on the threshold; only Dagon's torso was left of it.

A Joyful Announcement
Luke 2:8-11
8 Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. 10 Then the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. 11 "For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

The Empty Tomb
John 20:1-2, 11-18
1 Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. 2 Then she ran and came to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and said to them, "They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him." . . . .
. . . .11 But Mary stood outside by the tomb weeping, and as she wept she stooped down and looked into the tomb. 12 And she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. 13 Then they said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him." 14 Now when she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?" She, supposing Him to be the gardener, said to Him, "Sir, if You have carried Him away, tell me where You have laid Him, and I will take Him away." 16 Jesus said to her, "Mary!" She turned and said to Him, "Rabboni!" (which is to say, Teacher). 17 Jesus said to her, "Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, 'I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God.' " 18 Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that He had spoken these things to her.

Take up your cross

So, yesterday, we did "Stations of the Cross." My first time. I thought it went well, though I wish weather would've permitted us to be outdoors. It was an effective tool for encouraging reflection on all that Christ went through for us. I would do it again in future years, though possibly on Good Friday. One thing that caught my eye was the teen student who actually picked up a (thin, lightweight) replica of the cross. What little Christian art I have seen usually shows Christ carrying the cross with the stipes (long, vertical part) out behind him. Like this:











Our young man, through no fault of his own, carried the cross stipes forward. It looked like he might pole vault with it at any moment. I could only find rare images of it being carried this way. Here's a Salvador Dali:








This looks like a harder way to carry the cross. And who is the buxom female behind Jesus in Dali's lithograph? Who knows. Anyway, all this is probably wrong. Archaeological evidence suggests that the condemned may have carried only the patibulum (cross piece). He would have then been lifted up onto the more permanently situated upright.


So, how would I carry my cross for Jesus? In typical fashion, I have gone off on a tangent about stipes forward or backward, or patibulum only. I don't know. I'd probably carry it the easiest way, the way with the fewest stumbles and splinters. If you think about it, it is really a tough problem. If you carry the cross the easiest and most effective way, then you wind up at the site of execution that much faster. Perhaps all that matters is that we do take up a cross and follow.


I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Gal 2:20 (NIV)

Here's a dark place: Via Dolorosa

As they were going out, they met a man from Cyrene, named Simon, and they forced him to carry the cross.
Matt 27:32 (NIV)

I'm not teaching this week, but my cohort came up with this idea to do "Stations of the Cross." He's from a more liturgical tradition and most of us in the class don't even know what is going to happen. I've been reading about this a bit. I think it is going to be a good thing.

One event along the crucifixion route is the compelling of Simon of Cyrene to carry the cross-piece on Jesus' behalf. Apparently Jesus was too weak from everything else by this point to continue to carry it himself. Here are a few musings on this dark road.

1. You can't get to Easter Sunday and the Resurrection without going down the dark road of despair first. That Jesus had to do this is sorrowful, but also tremendously helpful to those of us on the road.

2. Where were the volunteers? Simon becomes a hero, but the tragedy is this: was there not one of Jesus' followers around with enough gumption to say, "I'll carry it!" I certainly would have. (Not. I'd probably be leading the pack of disciples as we ran in the opposite direction.)

3. The suffering of the Lord validates our observation that the way is indeed sometimes dark and difficult. We experience pain, illness, loss of loved ones. Yet he is the prime example of perseverence despite the pain and the darkness of the journey.

4. God does some of his best work in the dark.

As I approach Easter, I hope to do so with an awareness of God's presence and purpose, even though the way is sometimes dark.

Randy