The Grace found in the Common and Ordinary

   Let's talk about the Christian Year. Are you familiar with...

   Easter? Yes, we’ve heard of that. 

   Christmas? Of course, we know about that. Everyone knows about that.

   Lent? Isn’t that the time when we are getting ready for Easter? 

   Advent? I recall hearing a preacher say it’s the four Sundays before Christmas where we prepare and anticipate the coming of baby Jesus.

   Common Time? What? Huh? I don’t know much about that. When is it?

   Common Time,  also known as Ordinary Time, is located at two different places in the year of the Church’s worship calendar. Don’t worry too much if it is not a season you recognize because it was only recently introduced in 1969. The Second Vatican Council of the early 1960s brought about sweeping changes to the way Roman Catholics interacted with the rest of the Christian world, how they organized themselves, and even how they patterned their worship. One of the most significant changes was to the way they designated the Sundays after Epiphany in January - when we mark the visit of the wise-men bringing gifts to Jesus - and the Sundays after Pentecost in May or June - when we celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit to birth the church. Starting in 1969, Catholics and most Protestant churches refer to these two seasons as Common Time. 

   Christians have been thinking about the time since the early days after Jesus departed the first disciples and ascended into heaven. But, what value is there to time? Fifteen years ago in seminary, I highlighted these words of James White, 

 The calendar of the early church centered upon what God had done and continued to do through the Holy Spirit. The point of the Christian year is that all is done for us. All we have to do is accept what God has done. Then we really are free to act. The church’s liturgical year both underscores the futility of our efforts and exults in God’s victories for us. In short, the church year is a constant reminder of gifts that we cannot create but can only accept. 

- Introduction to Christian Worship, p. 67

  I like to think that our worship helps us to recite the marvelous works of God in history and in our stories. For me, Common Time is the reminder that even though every day is not a major holiday or date to celebrate a certain event in history, every day and week is a gift to be used. We can use ordinary days and common moments to praise God for the constant grace we have been given in the living of our lives. 

   Grace and Peace to you, Scott  

 

Thankful for Freedom, Charged to Use it

   It was a holy moment to stand alongside the Rev. Marty Barnes at the 11:00 a.m. worship service on Sunday and hear him recount his ministry as a chaplain with a special operations wing of the United States Air Force. For those of you in worship at 9:00 a.m. or away this past weekend, Captain Barnes was in worship with us for two Sundays as his unit was training at Fort Benning.

   I heard him share two words with us. He opened and closed his brief remarks with a deep sense of thanksgiving for being able to worship in a place that felt like home. He is a a United Methodist Elder from Oklahoma who serves as an extension of our denomination as a Chaplain to the USAF. He appreciated the warm welcome he received. 

   More than just a word of thanks, though, his words came with a charge. He spoke of freedom and shared with us a taste of the messages that he regularly offers to the airmen he serves alongside. He stated plainly that we have a duty to live lives worthy of the freedom that the airmen, soldiers, sailors, marines and guardsmen are fighting and sacrificing to protect. He believes that the best way to live such a life is to use our freedoms. 

   I cannot help thinking how much this resonates with the Gospel. Jesus died for our sins: freeing us from captivity and slavery to sin and death. He did not die that we might squander life, still chained to old habits or passions, or that we might let our freedom sit idle only to waste away. We are to live fully and freely. I believe the next three weeks in worship, when we spend time around teachings from the Scriptures and our Methodist tradition, will connect with this message of grace offered with a purpose.

   May you live this day aware of the great sacrifices that have been made for you to live freely. Peace, Scott

George Clooney and Bob Watson

   If you were like us, most night of television don't offer enough choices to warrant the high prices we pay to have six billions channels stream into our homes. Every once in a while, there are two things on that we want to watch at the same time. On Sunday, we were mostly watching an NFL game with a couple of channel changes from time to time for Julie to stay up to date with the Golden Globes over on NBC. This is the three hour show that recognizes winners from the world of television and movies for great acting, directing, music, and a host of other categories. The night was hosted by two brilliant - though not without controversy - female comedians, Tina Fey and Amy Poehler, who keep the night going with their commentary and humor.
   We didn't watch much of the awards show, but people have been talking about one particular moment ever since. Julie showed me a clip the next day. Commenting on something that had just happened, Tina Fey said this:

“George Clooney married Amal Alamuddin this year. Amal is a human rights lawyer who worked on the Enron case, was an advisor to Kofi Annan regarding Syria and was selected for a three-person UN commission investigating rules of war violations in the Gaza strip ... So tonight, her husband is getting a lifetime achievement award.”

Apparently they love to poke fun at Clooney, so this moment had extra meaning for those who keep up with their annual appearances at this event.

   Really, Fey was not joking, was she? So very often, we recognize the wrong things. We give awards for the wrong categories. We highlight the wrong statistics and appreciate the wrong achievements. Whether it be trophies for professional athletes, accolades for celebrities, or contests to find the next big star, our compasses point in every direction but true. Andy Unger says he once heard that Americans used to look up to television stars because the best people were on television and we aspired to be like them. Now, we often tune in to see some of the worst people and are just proud we are not as bad as they are. 

   On Tuesday, I stood before Barbara Watson, some of her family, and the other members of the downtown Columbus Lions Club to speak at a memorial service they had in honor of Mr. Bob, a Lion since 1976. Before it was my turn, twenty people had already taken their turns expressing appreciation for his legacy. I must say, at that moment, there was no question to whom the award was supposed to go. Four months after he has passed, his legacy still shines brightly.

   Our vision for 2015 is that Epworth GLOWS. We believe every person is called to Give God first place, Learn God’s truths, be Open-minded and forgiving, Worship 24/7, and Serve and give generously. This is the kind of life that heaven applauds. This is the kind of life that receives the greatest of recognition. Grace and Peace to you, Scott

The Teacher Within

   I am in the midst of taking the second to last required course in my Doctoral program before I begin the yearlong work on my final paper. The class is on the ministry of teaching and Parker Palmer's The Courage to Teach was one of the assigned readings. It is brilliant. He proposes that every person has a "teacher within." This might sound strange to those who don't lead classes on a regular basis, but I think he is right; all persons are made to influence those around them.

   Delving deeper than the surface of subjects or methods, Palmer proposes that teaching begins inside the teacher. He says first, "that what we teach will never take unless it connects with the inward, living core of our students’ lives,” and second, that “we can speak to the teacher within our students only when we are on speaking terms with the teacher within ourselves.” As I read more about this first difficult truth, I was struck at how it sounded like one of the distinguishing characteristics of Jesus’ ministry with the persons he met and those with whom he conversed. Jesus was different than other contemporary religious teachers of his time in the way he valued people. At one point Matthew 9 summarizes his ministry by saying, “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” The Sermon on the Mount, in Matthew 7, ends with the statement, “Now when Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.” I wonder if the root of that authority could be traced back to the compassion he had for them. He slowed down and made himself vulnerable to them by offering his presence even when the time didn't seem right or there were other demands on him. This seems to be what Palmer talked about when he says that, “The courage to teach is the courage to keep one’s heart open in those very moments when the heart is asked to hold more than it is able.” 
   I think all followers of Christ should regularly consider and pray about how their own hearts are open to those with whom they are doing life together. We are people of influence, like it or not. What influence are we having? Is it for good? It starts with caring enough to engage in the inner work of listening and learning: from those around us and from ourselves.
   Grace and Peace, Scott