2 Samuel 15:19-37; Acts 21:37-22:16; Mark 10:46-52

Today in Mark, Jesus heals a blind man named Bartimaeus.  Here Jesus goes again handing out free healthcare.  

Despite how close this theme of his hits home, I see this story in a different light.  This is not merely a story of healing, but of one that attests to the breaking in of the new kingdom.

Mark is much more crafty than to just have a story of healing pop in for no reason.  This story ends a major section in Mark.  As we begin Chapter 11, we see a radical departure from Jesus normal modis operendi, with his triumphal entrance into Jerusalem and the Holy Week sequence.

The context: This whole chunk of scripture previous is the disciples and others struggling to see who Jesus really is.  They are struggling to understand what it means to be the “Son of Man” and be “handed over to the chief priests and scribes.”  We see a transfiguration, and requests to be at his right and left side.  The disciples are confused.  They are blind to Jesus’ true identity.  They can’t see what’s coming.

Jesus’ words to us become all the more powerful then: “Go, your faith has made you well.”  As post-resurrection people, standing on the other side of the cross, how much more powerfully do Jesus’ words come to us, as Bartimaeus hears them.  We know the end of the story.  We are not blind to the crafty literary workings of Mark.  We know just a bit more than the characters in the story, like any good novel.  In this case, we know what Jesus knew – that the secret got out – that the tomb was empty – that he will rise again, just like he said.

May all the blind see this, and come to know that “He is not here.  He is risen!”  May all come to know that their lives are not held by the present afflictions, but that we will all be released and made whole, washed in the blood of the lamb, and comforted by the heavenly angels.

-Matt

P.S. Our faith has never been in our temporal leaders!  So turn off the news feed.  It is of little consequence.  We follow the one who transforms every fiber of our being.  He is in control: of all.

2 Samuel 14:21-33; Acts 21:15-26; Mark 10:17-31

Usually my Morning Reflections are geared to “my flock” (i.e. those in my congregation, those in my presbytery under my care, etc.).  Today, I shift to a different gear.

Today I talk to my minister friends and colleagues: Don’t let Donald Trump get you down.  Don’t give one person the power to manipulate and destroy your day.  No one should have that power.  I see many of you on Twitter: grieving, freaking out, organizing.  Others might say it is over-functioning.  Let’s pause.  Let’s focus on that which is most important.

I mean, I understand what you are doing…you are challenging your people.  You are working for them to deepen their theology and become engaged – to have folks inwardly digest God’s Word and put it into action.  And that is frankly something we should all be doing more.  But I would urge you to turn off Twitter for a few days.  Unplug from FB.  Turn off the news.

Our chief concern as clergy is developing relationships, reaching out to those in need, loving our flock, and connecting them to God’s Word.  And that can happen with a simple hospital visit.  It can happen in Bible study.  It doesn’t need to be rally or a march against hysteria.

Some of us have fallen into the same things we accused the other side of the aisle of being guilty of.  And I can see their point, because some of us are looking hysterical, unhinged, and frankly sleep deprived.

I turned to our Mark passage today and discovered one of the major themes of all of scripture: God will turn things on its head.  Here, the rich will become poor, the ones with power will have little power, the poor will be raised up, etc., etc.

Today this theme takes the form of the rich young man who comes to Jesus asking what he must do to inherit eternal life. After telling him a litany of commandments, which he declares he has followed, Jesus answers with, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me”

Unable to do so, the rich young man leaves grieving.

In Job and Proverbs and many other places in Scripture we find that wealth jeopardizes spiritual health and is looked at with much disdain.  This may come as a great shock to many Americans who strive for money and power.

How wonderful if today we could remind our flocks of this remarkable major theme of scripture.  Talk about good medicine!  I am guessing there are many who have never realized this theme, thinking that money and power is the point, the barometer of success.

We don’t have to talk about politics today with our scripture readings, because our flocks are smart people who can make the connection without us overtly doing it today.  Money corrupts.  Yes it does.  Leaving it at that is alright.

Rest in this my clergy friends: Our God is a God of justice.  The psalms declare time and time again that those who flaunt God’s law will get their just reward.  In order to find God’s blessing, one must have priorities straight, putting people first.

At other points in scripture we see how great wealth can be a blessing and a vehicle of God’s grace or God’s wrath, but this is not the message we get from Jesus.  He is emphatic that money corrupts spiritual health.  He demands that our priority must be to follow him.  All else, it seems, is secondary.

Let’s remind our people of that today.

And let’s forget about Donald and the whole Washington crew.  And just for one day, let’s focus on those in our midst and not worry about all the rest.

– Matt

2 Samuel 14:21-33; Acts 21:15-26; Mark 10:17-31

Usually my Morning Reflections are geared to “my flock” (i.e. those in my congregation, those in my presbytery under my care, etc.).  Today, I shift to a different gear.

Today I talk to my minister friends and colleagues: Don’t let Donald Trump get you down.  Don’t give one person the power to manipulate and destroy your day.  No one should have that power.  I see many of you on Twitter: grieving, freaking out, organizing.  Others might say it is over-functioning.  Let’s pause.  Let’s focus on that which is most important.

I mean, I understand what you are doing…you are challenging your people.  You are working for them to deepen their theology and become engaged – to have folks inwardly digest God’s Word and put it into action.  And that is frankly something we should all be doing more.  But I would urge you to turn off Twitter for a few days.  Unplug from FB.  Turn off the news.

Our chief concern as clergy is developing relationships, reaching out to those in need, loving our flock, and connecting them to God’s Word.  And that can happen with a simple hospital visit.  It can happen in Bible study.  It doesn’t need to be rally or a march against hysteria.

Some of us have fallen into the same things we accused the other side of the aisle of being guilty of.  And I can see their point, because some of us are looking hysterical, unhinged, and frankly sleep deprived.

I turned to our Mark passage today and discovered one of the major themes of all of scripture: God will turn things on its head.  Here, the rich will become poor, the ones with power will have little power, the poor will be raised up, etc., etc.

Today this theme takes the form of the rich young man who comes to Jesus asking what he must do to inherit eternal life. After telling him a litany of commandments, which he declares he has followed, Jesus answers with, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me”

Unable to do so, the rich young man leaves grieving.

In Job and Proverbs and many other places in Scripture we find that wealth jeopardizes spiritual health and is looked at with much disdain.  This may come as a great shock to many Americans who strive for money and power.

How wonderful if today we could remind our flocks of this remarkable major theme of scripture.  Talk about good medicine!  I am guessing there are many who have never realized this theme, thinking that money and power is the point, the barometer of success.

We don’t have to talk about politics today with our scripture readings, because our flocks are smart people who can make the connection without us overtly doing it today.  Money corrupts.  Yes it does.  Leaving it at that is alright.

Rest in this my clergy friends: Our God is a God of justice.  The psalms declare time and time again that those who flaunt God’s law will get their just reward.  In order to find God’s blessing, one must have priorities straight, putting people first.

At other points in scripture we see how great wealth can be a blessing and a vehicle of God’s grace or God’s wrath, but this is not the message we get from Jesus.  He is emphatic that money corrupts spiritual health.  He demands that our priority must be to follow him.  All else, it seems, is secondary.

Let’s remind our people of that today.

And let’s forget about Donald and the whole Washington crew.  And just for one day, let’s focus on those in our midst and not worry about all the rest.

– Matt

2 Samuel 14:1-20; Acts 21:1-14; Mark 10:1-16

It was just a couple Saturdays ago, we were remembering the life of Dr. Suzan White at the Presbyterian Church in Ada.  During her career she was a child psychiatrist, but what brought me to Ada was that she was also the mother of Rev. Scott White, the pastor there.  At her service not surprisingly we read the words from Mark’s Gospel, Let the Little Children Come to me.

I talk routinely about the Bible as a story of upsidedown-ness.  Those of you who have been a part of Morning Reflections for a while have heard me say this a lot.  All throughout, we see God’s understanding of the world or God’s choices are opposite about what we might think – from God’s choosing of Jacob over Esau, Joseph over the other brothers, David over the other brothers, and on and on and on.  God’s ways are not always our ways.

God’s upsidedown world continues in the New Testament.  One could look no further than the selection of the disciples for that.  Fishermen and tax collectors.  Are you serious, Jesus?  Why not have some political strategists, man?  Some Doctors?  Lawyers?  People of influence and repute?  God says “I’ve got this” and makes some surprising choices.

Then we hit Mark’s 10th chapter.  “Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs.”  Children, too, were pushed to the fringes of society in that time.  Jesus turned that around.  Certainly Suzan did in her life too.  And many of us in our work as well – teachers, parents, nurses, so many – giving voice to those who can’t.

And our job is also to approach faith like children too – courageous, free, uninhibited, carefree, extravagant.

In a culture convinced we can outthink God, we really need to hear these words.  Our intellectual pursuits are eclipsed by our financial obsessions and material hoardings.  We don’t just believe we can outthink God; we believe we can outdo God!

And God’s response?  Have faith like a child.  Return to simplicity and wonder. 

In the Old Testament it was “I do not delight anymore in your burnt offerings;” in the New Testament it is “I do not revel in your theological trickery.  Your obsession with the Law has brought you no closer to God!  Try the way of children and return to a simple faith: trust, sharing, and faith.”

Humans are always trying to draw lines in the sand.  We like to decide who is in and who is out, who is blessed by God and who is lacking.  And God continually surprises us by welcoming others in.

-Matt

2 Samuel 13:23-39; Acts 20:17-38; Mark 9:42-50

If you have ever made a recipe from scratch and forgot to add salt, you know how important salt as a flavor enhancer can be.  So many of our canned foods have so much salt, there are some recipes I don’t even add salt to anymore.  But true home-cookin’ without salt is one of the most bland experiences life can dole out.

In our lesson in Mark, there is talk of saltiness.  It is pretty evident that Mark has put together a series of detached sayings by Jesus all in one place, all relating to sin, temptation, and self-sacrifice.  He ends with “For everyone will be salted with fire.  Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can you season it?  Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.”

If you don’t believe the Bible is full of metaphors, today will be a struggle.  Jesus is not saying “Salt yourself” when he says “Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace….”  Instead he is talking about being authentic.  Be who you were meant to be.  Live genuinely in relationships with one another.

Back in those days, salt wasn’t a food enhancer as much as it was a preservative.  No electricity – no refrigerators – a lot of hot weather.  If they didn’t have salt, there wasn’t going to be much storage of food.  Salt meant life, just like water meant life. 

Jesus wants us to be the best disciples we can be.  This means a life of self-sacrifice, and giving to others. That is what we are meant to be.  We are meant to serve in love, and not sugar coat things, but be genuinely loving people.  There is not pretending, or trying in Jesus’ world – there is radical transformation and a radical path of selflessness and joy and peace. 

-Matt

2 Samuel 12:1-14; Acts 19:21-41; Mark 9:14-29

If you are new to Morning Reflections, here is my routine: I generally get up and even before the first cup of coffee, I read through all the lectionary bible lessons for the day.  Then I enter into about 20 minutes of contemplative prayer.  In the course of that, it often becomes clear to me – usually through a word or phrase – what God is wanting to tell me that morning.  I rise from that silence and begin to write.  (OK, let’s admit…this is the point I go get a cup of coffee.)

Today I have found that routine disrupted today.  Not the coffee of course!  But being perplexed by the story in Mark made prayer time, well let’s say, strange.  No centeredness today.

Jesus heals the boy who cannot speak or hear.  Before he heals him he complains to the crowd: “You faithless generation, how much longer must I be among you?  How much longer must I put up with you?”  The disciples had tried to heal the boy, but were unsuccessful.  Afterward, in private, they ask him about this: “Why could we not cast it out?”  He said to them, “This kind can come out only through prayer.”

What is Jesus saying?  Is Jesus on “empty”?

It took me 15 minutes of contemplative prayer to center myself and move past this conundrum.  Sometimes it is easy to get entranced by the story, and forget the main character – God.  My first 15 minutes of prayer time were story-centered, not God-centered, just as the disciples were not prayerfully God-centered.

So often we try so hard.  The disciples certainly were trying hard, and were unsuccessful.  So too, until I was ready to rest in God, did the answer come.

Our goal isn’t to “figure it out” but to live in faith and hope.  That is easier said than done.

During my many years as a hospital chaplain, I would regularly encounter ministers who were completely untrained in how to deal with crisis, and in their own discomfort they would say the stupidest things, sometimes tormenting congregants with awful theology because they were anxiety-filled but felt the need to say something.  The worst of which was: “If you just would pray hard enough, your son would get better.”  It would make me wanna smack these ministers.  What a terrible thing to say in crisis!

This healing story is coming out of a tradition where this is how sickness was understood.  And Jesus was responding to something deeper – he was focused on selfishness versus Godly prayer.

Our goal was never to figure it out, but to live into hope.

-Matt

2 Samuel 11:1-27; Acts 19:11-20; Mark 9:2-13

This morning the sun shines, after another evening of rains and even a little thunder and lightening.

How ironic that the readings for this morning deal with the transfiguration – “seeing the light of the gospel” in a new way as Paul says in 2 Corinthians.  “‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”

Just as the gospels account the Transfiguration story where Jesus in shining splendor reveals himself to Peter, James and John, so too Paul speaks of the light and the veil.  The presence of Moses and Elijah confirm the Law and the Prophets foretell Jesus as the Messiah, and for a moment the veil is lifted and Peter, James, and John get a glimpse of the heavenly splendor of the fullness of God.

Paul speaks of this same veil, but in a different way – a different light (pun intended)  For Paul, the gospel is veiled, and it appears it is veiled by their ignorance, keeping them from seeing the light, the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

And so as I wait for the heaven to open and the light of the morning to break forth, I sit back and reflect on God’s light to me today.  It is bright and radiant – a splendor of grace and forgiveness.

Have you seen the vision of Christ in your life?  When has he been the brightest?  What has veiled his splendor for you and made the world seem dull and lifeless?  How has God transfigured for you over the years, perhaps from a childhood understanding of God to today?

-Matt