Wow! That was all I could think the first time I saw it in print. It was on a poster sent to us from The Methodist Children’s Home in Ruston. The poster read: There is no substitute for a Good Mother.
The poster and the accompanying special gift envelopes were attempting to raise money for our truly remarkable ministry with children and teenagers (which has now expanded tremendously with three homes and several ministry centers across Louisiana), but the truth is abundantly clear: Even an exemplary ministry like Louisiana United Methodist Children and Family Services (as it is now called) is “no substitute for a good mother.”
That realization became particularly poignant for me earlier this week. I received an e-mail recommending a particularly delightful gift opportunity for Mother’s Day. I followed the link immediately, thinking this would be an excellent gift for my mother. Then it hit me: For the first time in many years I will not be buying a gift for my mother, who died on December 30, 2010.
But perhaps I can share a gift that she would particularly savor. My family’s links to our Children’s Home are long-standing:
A dear family friend (in truth, more like “family” than “friend”) is the daughter of one of the former directors of the Home. We first met Rev. White and became aware of the Home during the early 1960s.
Shortly after that, my parents decided to welcome a foster child into our home. A few years later, when a judge determined that he needed more intensive care than could be provided in an “open, trusting family setting”, we were able to secure a placement for him in The Home. What a blessing it proved to be for us and for Perry! What a challenge for The Home! – but they persevered.
Further, as a pastor I have been able to entrust three troubled children/parishioners to the love and guidance of our Home. “There is no substitute for a good mother”, but the Home has been determined to be a faithful witness and servant in good times and troubled times for these youth who were unable to prosper in their home settings. In recent years, I have been able to call on The Home’s regional counselors to help with families and individuals in their “at-home” settings.
I will be making a special gift to our Children’s Home on Sunday – Mother’s Day -- in celebration of my mother’s life and remembering her love and appreciation for all that the Home has meant to our family. Even though there is “no substitute for a good mother”, I hope you will join me in offering your support for this vital ministry with children and families.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Power-washing
Sometimes that which you are seeking is right in front of you – and you fail to recognize it because you are so busy seeking that you render yourself unable to find.
I was sitting in my office trying to find just the right thing to share with you as our progress through Lent continues. Powerful images from Holy Scripture were competing for my thoughts and expressions, but I was having trouble choosing one.
One thing proved thoroughly frustrating as I pondered the “Dry Bones” passage from Ezekiel 37: A man was power-washing the walls and windows outside my office. I thought, “How in the world can I find the witness I need to share with all this power-washing going on?”
Wait a minute! Power-washing! What better image could I have discovered during the Season of Lent than Power-washing?
Ezekiel was asked by Yahweh, “Son of man, can these bones live?” Ezekiel was smart enough to respond, “You know, Lord Yahweh.” And God caused Ezekiel to prophesy and through him promised:
“And I shall put my spirit in you, and you will live, . . . and you will know that I, Yahweh, have said and done this – it is the Lord Yahweh who speaks.”
All the “mold and mildew” of the ancient Hebrews’ sense of defeat and despair will be washed away and God will breath into them God’s own breath – true power indeed.
May God send you a Power-washing today! (Or send you as a power-washer!)
I was sitting in my office trying to find just the right thing to share with you as our progress through Lent continues. Powerful images from Holy Scripture were competing for my thoughts and expressions, but I was having trouble choosing one.
One thing proved thoroughly frustrating as I pondered the “Dry Bones” passage from Ezekiel 37: A man was power-washing the walls and windows outside my office. I thought, “How in the world can I find the witness I need to share with all this power-washing going on?”
Wait a minute! Power-washing! What better image could I have discovered during the Season of Lent than Power-washing?
Ezekiel was asked by Yahweh, “Son of man, can these bones live?” Ezekiel was smart enough to respond, “You know, Lord Yahweh.” And God caused Ezekiel to prophesy and through him promised:
“And I shall put my spirit in you, and you will live, . . . and you will know that I, Yahweh, have said and done this – it is the Lord Yahweh who speaks.”
All the “mold and mildew” of the ancient Hebrews’ sense of defeat and despair will be washed away and God will breath into them God’s own breath – true power indeed.
May God send you a Power-washing today! (Or send you as a power-washer!)
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
O that today you would listen!
The Season of Lent is a time of pilgrimage – a pilgrimage of the heart, mind, and spirit. On Ash Wednesday, we were not only marked by a smudge on our foreheads, we were invited to embrace a conscious “Observance of Lenten Discipline”:
“Dear brothers and sisters in Christ: the early Christians observed with great devotion the days of our Lord’s passion and resurrection, and it became the custom of the Church that before the Easter celebration there should be a 40-day season of spiritual preparation....”
Most of our Scripture readings during Lent have depicted wilderness experiences: of Jesus’ 40 days of temptation; of the Hebrews 40 years between Egypt and their promised land; of Adam and Eve banished from the Garden; of Abram (later to be known as Abraham) led to “the land that I [God] will show you”; of Nicodemus’ journey from darkness to light, from curious awareness to active discipleship.
Meanwhile, the witness of the Apostle Paul writing to the Romans has been persistent and insistent:
“. . . what proves that God loves us is that Christ died for us while we were still sinners. Having died to make us righteous, is it likely that he would now fail to save us from God’s anger?” (Romans 5:8-9)
“If it is certain that through one man’s fall so many died, it is even more certain that divine grace, coming through the one man, Jesus Christ, came to so many as an abundant free gift. The results of the gift also outweigh the results of one man’s sin: for after one single fall came judgement with a verdict of condemnation, now after many falls comes grace with its verdict of acquittal.” (Romans 5:15b-16)
To borrow again from our “Invitation to the Observance of Lenten Discipline”:
“In this way the whole congregation was reminded of the mercy and forgiveness proclaimed in the gospel of Jesus Christ and the need we all have to renew our faith. I invite you, therefore, . . . to observe a holy Lent: by self-examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting, and self-denial; and by reading and meditating on God’s Holy Word.”
An ancient Psalmist extended the invitation simply and pointedly: “O that today you would listen to his voice!” (Psalm 95:7b) May God guide your hearing, your searching, and your journey with Jesus in these 40 days.
“Dear brothers and sisters in Christ: the early Christians observed with great devotion the days of our Lord’s passion and resurrection, and it became the custom of the Church that before the Easter celebration there should be a 40-day season of spiritual preparation....”
Most of our Scripture readings during Lent have depicted wilderness experiences: of Jesus’ 40 days of temptation; of the Hebrews 40 years between Egypt and their promised land; of Adam and Eve banished from the Garden; of Abram (later to be known as Abraham) led to “the land that I [God] will show you”; of Nicodemus’ journey from darkness to light, from curious awareness to active discipleship.
Meanwhile, the witness of the Apostle Paul writing to the Romans has been persistent and insistent:
“. . . what proves that God loves us is that Christ died for us while we were still sinners. Having died to make us righteous, is it likely that he would now fail to save us from God’s anger?” (Romans 5:8-9)
“If it is certain that through one man’s fall so many died, it is even more certain that divine grace, coming through the one man, Jesus Christ, came to so many as an abundant free gift. The results of the gift also outweigh the results of one man’s sin: for after one single fall came judgement with a verdict of condemnation, now after many falls comes grace with its verdict of acquittal.” (Romans 5:15b-16)
To borrow again from our “Invitation to the Observance of Lenten Discipline”:
“In this way the whole congregation was reminded of the mercy and forgiveness proclaimed in the gospel of Jesus Christ and the need we all have to renew our faith. I invite you, therefore, . . . to observe a holy Lent: by self-examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting, and self-denial; and by reading and meditating on God’s Holy Word.”
An ancient Psalmist extended the invitation simply and pointedly: “O that today you would listen to his voice!” (Psalm 95:7b) May God guide your hearing, your searching, and your journey with Jesus in these 40 days.
Saturday, March 12, 2011
An Apostle of Jesus Christ
There she sat, eating a sloppy roast beef po-boy and visiting with her friend as if it was any other day. And yet, there was a black smudge on her forehead. In south Louisiana, we know two things: It’s Ash Wednesday and she has been to Church in order to be marked as an apostle of Jesus Christ through the imposition of ashes.
An “apostle of Jesus Christ”? Many might argue that it was just a young woman on her lunch break. What makes her an “apostle”, for goodness sake? An “apostle” is one who is sent. An “apostle of Jesus Christ” is someone who goes into the world to bear faithful witness to the truth of Christ.
In 2 Corinthians 5, the Apostle Paul describes his function as an apostle and invites the Corinthian Christians – and us – to claim their proper role as apostles, those who go forth in the name of Christ:
“And so it is with the fear of the Lord in mind that we try to win people over. God knows us for what we really are, and I hope that in your consciences you know us too. . . . If we seemed out of our senses, it was for God; but if we are being reasonable now, it is for your sake. And this is because the love of Christ overwhelms us when we reflect that if one man has died for all, then all men should be dead; and the reason he died for all was so that living men should live no longer for themselves, but for him who died and was raised to life for them.
From now onwards, therefore, we do not judge anyone by the standards of the flesh. . . . And for anyone who is in Christ, there is a new creation; . . . It is all God’s work. It was God who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the work of handing on this reconciliation. In other words, God in Christ was reconciling the world to himself, not holding men’s faults against them, and he has entrusted to us the news that they are reconciled. So we are ambassadors for Christ; it is as though God were appealing through us, and the appeal that we make in Christ’s name is: be reconciled to God. For our sake God made the sinless one into sin, so that in him we might become the goodness of God. As his fellow workers, we beg you once again not to neglect the grace of God that you have received. . . . Well, now is the favourable time; this is the day of salvation.”
Lent might begin with a smudge on your forehead, but God is empowering “apostles”, “ambassadors”, and “fellow workers” with Christ to “hand on” the reconciling love of God. Not sure you are worthy of those terms? How about “a new creation” or “the goodness of God”?
God will be at work in us, with us, and through us as we progress toward the Cross and the Empty Tomb. Do not “neglect the grace of God” – make God’s love known to someone today.
An “apostle of Jesus Christ”? Many might argue that it was just a young woman on her lunch break. What makes her an “apostle”, for goodness sake? An “apostle” is one who is sent. An “apostle of Jesus Christ” is someone who goes into the world to bear faithful witness to the truth of Christ.
In 2 Corinthians 5, the Apostle Paul describes his function as an apostle and invites the Corinthian Christians – and us – to claim their proper role as apostles, those who go forth in the name of Christ:
“And so it is with the fear of the Lord in mind that we try to win people over. God knows us for what we really are, and I hope that in your consciences you know us too. . . . If we seemed out of our senses, it was for God; but if we are being reasonable now, it is for your sake. And this is because the love of Christ overwhelms us when we reflect that if one man has died for all, then all men should be dead; and the reason he died for all was so that living men should live no longer for themselves, but for him who died and was raised to life for them.
From now onwards, therefore, we do not judge anyone by the standards of the flesh. . . . And for anyone who is in Christ, there is a new creation; . . . It is all God’s work. It was God who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the work of handing on this reconciliation. In other words, God in Christ was reconciling the world to himself, not holding men’s faults against them, and he has entrusted to us the news that they are reconciled. So we are ambassadors for Christ; it is as though God were appealing through us, and the appeal that we make in Christ’s name is: be reconciled to God. For our sake God made the sinless one into sin, so that in him we might become the goodness of God. As his fellow workers, we beg you once again not to neglect the grace of God that you have received. . . . Well, now is the favourable time; this is the day of salvation.”
Lent might begin with a smudge on your forehead, but God is empowering “apostles”, “ambassadors”, and “fellow workers” with Christ to “hand on” the reconciling love of God. Not sure you are worthy of those terms? How about “a new creation” or “the goodness of God”?
God will be at work in us, with us, and through us as we progress toward the Cross and the Empty Tomb. Do not “neglect the grace of God” – make God’s love known to someone today.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Listening and Doing
Many of us spent our February Sunday mornings on a mountain with Jesus – or, at least, listening to The Gospel of Matthew’s rendering of Christ’s “Sermon on the Mount” (Matthew 5-7). Roman Catholics, Episcopalians, Methodists, and others who share the “Common Lectionary” (“Lectionary” – a schedule of readings from Holy Scripture) experienced anew the life-giving, life-changing, life-redefining teaching of Jesus – all of it based on the notion that “the Kingdom” is at hand, but that “if your virtue goes no deeper than that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never get into the kingdom.” Jesus does not intend to deny us entrance to the Kingdom, but to warn us that our choices make it unlikely that we will choose to enter and abide in the Kingdom.
On Sunday, March 6 – Transfiguration Sunday according to the Lectionary; the Sunday of Mardi Gras weekend for folks in south Louisiana – the Lectionary takes us to a “high mountain” (Matthew 17:1-9) to witness Jesus’ transfiguration, wonder about what he discussed with Moses and Elijah, and hear God speak to the Apostles Peter, James, and John.
. . . “and from the cloud came a voice which said, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved; he enjoys my favour. Listen to him.’” – the same words spoken at Jesus’ baptism (with which we began the Season of Epiphany and now end the Season) with the added imperative, “Listen to him.”
Listening to Jesus can be challenging. Think again about the “Sermon on the Mount” (“turn the other cheek”, “love your enemy, pray for them”, “if your virtue goes no deeper”, etc.) and you quickly recognize that he asks us to think and to act as he does. There’s the “rub”: Jesus insists that it’s not enough to listen, to agree with him in principle, we must choose to do what he tells us to do.
Just prior to God speaking from the cloud, Peter expressed his inclination to make tents and stay on the mountain, basking in the glory of God’s glory and grace. Many of us have had “mountaintop experiences” – we know how good it feels and how tempting it is to want to stay there forever. Why bother about the world and all its problems? Or the Church, or the family? Let’s just live “above it all”.
Jesus came down the mountain and immediately healed a man. He was constantly seeking the least, the last, and the lost. Join him this Sunday and every Sunday “on the mountain” – and walk with him day by day sharing his ministry “in the real world”.
On Sunday, March 6 – Transfiguration Sunday according to the Lectionary; the Sunday of Mardi Gras weekend for folks in south Louisiana – the Lectionary takes us to a “high mountain” (Matthew 17:1-9) to witness Jesus’ transfiguration, wonder about what he discussed with Moses and Elijah, and hear God speak to the Apostles Peter, James, and John.
. . . “and from the cloud came a voice which said, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved; he enjoys my favour. Listen to him.’” – the same words spoken at Jesus’ baptism (with which we began the Season of Epiphany and now end the Season) with the added imperative, “Listen to him.”
Listening to Jesus can be challenging. Think again about the “Sermon on the Mount” (“turn the other cheek”, “love your enemy, pray for them”, “if your virtue goes no deeper”, etc.) and you quickly recognize that he asks us to think and to act as he does. There’s the “rub”: Jesus insists that it’s not enough to listen, to agree with him in principle, we must choose to do what he tells us to do.
Just prior to God speaking from the cloud, Peter expressed his inclination to make tents and stay on the mountain, basking in the glory of God’s glory and grace. Many of us have had “mountaintop experiences” – we know how good it feels and how tempting it is to want to stay there forever. Why bother about the world and all its problems? Or the Church, or the family? Let’s just live “above it all”.
Jesus came down the mountain and immediately healed a man. He was constantly seeking the least, the last, and the lost. Join him this Sunday and every Sunday “on the mountain” – and walk with him day by day sharing his ministry “in the real world”.
Unity in Christ
The first four chapters of 1 Corinthians – from which we have been reading during the Season of Epiphany – make one point painfully clear: factionalism within the Christian community has always been a problem for the Church which takes the name of Christ. The Apostle Paul writes to the church he founded “not just to make you ashamed but to bring you, as my dearest children, to your senses.” (1 Corinthians 4:14; The Jerusalem Bible). Consider these “highlights” of his argument/appeal:
All the same, I do appeal to you, brothers, for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ, to make up the differences between you and instead of disagreeing among yourselves, to be united again in your belief and practice. (1:10)
The language of the cross may be illogical to those who are not on the way to salvation, but those of us who are on the way see it as God’s power to save. (1:17)
God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength. (1:25)
. . . we teach what scripture calls: the things that no eye has seen and no ear has heard, things beyond the mind of man, all that God has prepared for those who love him. (2:9)
I did the planting, Apollos did the watering, but God made things grow. (3:6)
By the grace God gave me, I succeeded as an architect and laid the foundations on which someone else is doing the building. . . . For the foundation, nobody can lay any other than the one which has already been laid, that is Jesus Christ. (3:10-11)
So there is nothing to boast about in anything human . . . you belong to Christ and Christ belongs to God. (3:21-23)
Paul suggested a new “model” for imagining the role of the Church and of each Christian disciple. It is a powerful directive (and corrective) for its day and for our day:
People must think of us as Christ’s servants, stewards entrusted with the mysteries of God. What is expected of stewards is that each one should be found worthy of his trust. . . . There must be no passing of premature judgment. Leave that until the Lord comes: he will light up all that is hidden in the dark and reveal the secret intentions of men’s hearts. (4:1-4)
We are servants and stewards – in order that the light and love of Christ may shine upon us, into us, and overflow from us into the lives of those “who are not [yet] on the way to salvation.” May God indwell us, unite us, and extend us into the world in the Spirit of Christ.
All the same, I do appeal to you, brothers, for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ, to make up the differences between you and instead of disagreeing among yourselves, to be united again in your belief and practice. (1:10)
The language of the cross may be illogical to those who are not on the way to salvation, but those of us who are on the way see it as God’s power to save. (1:17)
God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength. (1:25)
. . . we teach what scripture calls: the things that no eye has seen and no ear has heard, things beyond the mind of man, all that God has prepared for those who love him. (2:9)
I did the planting, Apollos did the watering, but God made things grow. (3:6)
By the grace God gave me, I succeeded as an architect and laid the foundations on which someone else is doing the building. . . . For the foundation, nobody can lay any other than the one which has already been laid, that is Jesus Christ. (3:10-11)
So there is nothing to boast about in anything human . . . you belong to Christ and Christ belongs to God. (3:21-23)
Paul suggested a new “model” for imagining the role of the Church and of each Christian disciple. It is a powerful directive (and corrective) for its day and for our day:
People must think of us as Christ’s servants, stewards entrusted with the mysteries of God. What is expected of stewards is that each one should be found worthy of his trust. . . . There must be no passing of premature judgment. Leave that until the Lord comes: he will light up all that is hidden in the dark and reveal the secret intentions of men’s hearts. (4:1-4)
We are servants and stewards – in order that the light and love of Christ may shine upon us, into us, and overflow from us into the lives of those “who are not [yet] on the way to salvation.” May God indwell us, unite us, and extend us into the world in the Spirit of Christ.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
"It's too hard"
Jere and Susan tell the story of a neighbor who was not born a Christian but who has apparently spent some time considering the life of Christ and the patterns and practices of those who strive to follow Jesus. He is impressed by the quality of Jesus’ life and teaching – and by the faithfulness of some Christians he has known. But for their neighbor, the “bottom line” is: It’s too hard.
Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount” (Read Chapters 5-7 of The Gospel According to Matthew.) would be enough to frustrate Jere and Susan’s neighbor. Paradoxes emerge immediately:
The Beatitudes contend that true blessing comes to those who rely upon God, even in the face of overwhelming challenges;
We are to let our “light shine before others” and, at the same time, do good deeds, give alms, pray, and fast in secret;
We are to keep even the “least of the commandments” but follow Jesus’ lead even when his fulfilling of the Law seems to break the Law as we understand it;
Not only are we to trust in the Providence of God (“Consider the lilies of the field”), we must recognize the enslaving power of money and things;
We must avoid evil in our own lives while forgiving, serving, and praying for those who are behaving badly – and never judge them.
In moments, the neighbor’s wisdom seems “on target”: It’s too hard to follow Jesus.
Two transformational dynamics emerge for those who would follow Jesus:
“For I tell you, if your virtue goes no deeper than that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never get into the kingdom of heaven”; and,
A true disciple “listens to these words of mine and acts on them”.
To walk with Jesus, we must trust him to foster in us the new life of the kingdom of heaven – now, not later – and live as evidence of Jesus’ presence.
It can be hard – but not too hard – to be a disciple of Christ. Jesus’ invitation “rings” as true to day as it did on that mountain long ago, “Set your hearts on his kingdom first, and on his righteousness, and all these other things will be given you as well.”
Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount” (Read Chapters 5-7 of The Gospel According to Matthew.) would be enough to frustrate Jere and Susan’s neighbor. Paradoxes emerge immediately:
The Beatitudes contend that true blessing comes to those who rely upon God, even in the face of overwhelming challenges;
We are to let our “light shine before others” and, at the same time, do good deeds, give alms, pray, and fast in secret;
We are to keep even the “least of the commandments” but follow Jesus’ lead even when his fulfilling of the Law seems to break the Law as we understand it;
Not only are we to trust in the Providence of God (“Consider the lilies of the field”), we must recognize the enslaving power of money and things;
We must avoid evil in our own lives while forgiving, serving, and praying for those who are behaving badly – and never judge them.
In moments, the neighbor’s wisdom seems “on target”: It’s too hard to follow Jesus.
Two transformational dynamics emerge for those who would follow Jesus:
“For I tell you, if your virtue goes no deeper than that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never get into the kingdom of heaven”; and,
A true disciple “listens to these words of mine and acts on them”.
To walk with Jesus, we must trust him to foster in us the new life of the kingdom of heaven – now, not later – and live as evidence of Jesus’ presence.
It can be hard – but not too hard – to be a disciple of Christ. Jesus’ invitation “rings” as true to day as it did on that mountain long ago, “Set your hearts on his kingdom first, and on his righteousness, and all these other things will be given you as well.”
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Faithful Following
The Gospel Reading for Sunday, January 30, 2011 is Matthew 5:1-12 – The Beatitudes which begin Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount” (Read Chapters 5-7 for “the rest of the story.). Perhaps you remember some of them? Several come to my mind immediately: “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth”; “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God”; “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Some interpreters have called them the “Be Attitudes”.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., a pastor well-versed in the teachings of Jesus, developed a standard for those who would participate in acts of civil disobedience (sit-ins, marches, etc.). His “Pledge” standards are still a wonderful, contemporary extension of Jesus’ Beatitudes and the moral imperatives of the Sermon on the Mount (although in 1963 he referred to them as “Ten Commandments”). Consider these mandates as they apply to our personal lives and our life together as the church:
1. MEDITATE daily on the teachings and life of Jesus.
2. REMEMBER always that the nonviolent movement seeks justice and reconciliation – not victory.
3. WALK and TALK in the manner of love, for God is love.
4. PRAY daily to be used by God in order that all men might be free.
5. SACRIFICE personal wishes in order that all men might be free.
6. OBSERVE with both friend and foe the ordinary rules of courtesy.
7. SEEK to perform regular service for others and for the world.
8. REFRAIN from the violence of fist, tongue, or heart.
9. STRIVE to be in good spiritual and bodily health.
10. FOLLOW the directions of the movement and of the captain on a demonstration.
Jesus calls us to new life – life “marked” by an attitude of transcendent blessing. John Wesley’s Covenant Prayer caused us to say, “I freely and heartily yield all things to thy pleasure and disposal.” Dr. King translated these convictions into a summons to follow in the footsteps of Christ – even when (especially when!) you face the profoundly difficult challenges of life.
Dr. King’s “Pledge Card” invited participants to sign their names below this statement: “I sign this pledge, having seriously considered what I do and with the determination and will to persevere.” I hope that Jesus, John, and Martin will lead you to “sign” your name and to embrace the “Be Attitudes” of life in Christ.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., a pastor well-versed in the teachings of Jesus, developed a standard for those who would participate in acts of civil disobedience (sit-ins, marches, etc.). His “Pledge” standards are still a wonderful, contemporary extension of Jesus’ Beatitudes and the moral imperatives of the Sermon on the Mount (although in 1963 he referred to them as “Ten Commandments”). Consider these mandates as they apply to our personal lives and our life together as the church:
1. MEDITATE daily on the teachings and life of Jesus.
2. REMEMBER always that the nonviolent movement seeks justice and reconciliation – not victory.
3. WALK and TALK in the manner of love, for God is love.
4. PRAY daily to be used by God in order that all men might be free.
5. SACRIFICE personal wishes in order that all men might be free.
6. OBSERVE with both friend and foe the ordinary rules of courtesy.
7. SEEK to perform regular service for others and for the world.
8. REFRAIN from the violence of fist, tongue, or heart.
9. STRIVE to be in good spiritual and bodily health.
10. FOLLOW the directions of the movement and of the captain on a demonstration.
Jesus calls us to new life – life “marked” by an attitude of transcendent blessing. John Wesley’s Covenant Prayer caused us to say, “I freely and heartily yield all things to thy pleasure and disposal.” Dr. King translated these convictions into a summons to follow in the footsteps of Christ – even when (especially when!) you face the profoundly difficult challenges of life.
Dr. King’s “Pledge Card” invited participants to sign their names below this statement: “I sign this pledge, having seriously considered what I do and with the determination and will to persevere.” I hope that Jesus, John, and Martin will lead you to “sign” your name and to embrace the “Be Attitudes” of life in Christ.
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Glimpses of Grace from Dr. King
Human Relations Day in The United Methodist Church is observed on the Sunday before the observance of Martin Luther King’s, Jr.’s birthday; in 2011 – Sunday, January 16. Our special offering on Human Relations Day supports Community Developers, United Methodist Voluntary Service, and the Youth Offender Rehabilitation Program. Our Goal: To change the world one life at a time. We invite your prayers and your special gifts for these ministries and the persons they serve.
Dr. King’s speeches and writings consistently depicted one dynamic – that is, one power – which fosters human relations more than any other: Love. Please consider these “glimpses of grace”:
"Love is the most durable power in the world. This creative force, so beautifully exemplified in the life of Christ, is the most potent instrument available in mankind’s quest for peace and security."
"When I speak of love I am not speaking of some sentimental and weak response. I am speaking of that force which all of the great religions have seen as the supreme unifying principle of life. Love is somehow the key that unlocks the door which leads to ultimate reality."
"Hatred and bitterness can never cure the disease of fear; only love can do that. Hatred paralyzes life; love releases it. Hatred confuses life; love harmonizes it. Hatred darkens life; love illumines it."
"Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend."
"We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power of love. There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies."
"Forgiveness is not an occasional act; it is a permanent attitude."
Celebrate Dr. King’s “Dream” this week and bring a special offering for Human Relations Day on Sunday – and dare to allow the power of love (and forgiveness which flows from love) to set the tone for your “human relations” today and every day.
Dr. King’s speeches and writings consistently depicted one dynamic – that is, one power – which fosters human relations more than any other: Love. Please consider these “glimpses of grace”:
"Love is the most durable power in the world. This creative force, so beautifully exemplified in the life of Christ, is the most potent instrument available in mankind’s quest for peace and security."
"When I speak of love I am not speaking of some sentimental and weak response. I am speaking of that force which all of the great religions have seen as the supreme unifying principle of life. Love is somehow the key that unlocks the door which leads to ultimate reality."
"Hatred and bitterness can never cure the disease of fear; only love can do that. Hatred paralyzes life; love releases it. Hatred confuses life; love harmonizes it. Hatred darkens life; love illumines it."
"Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend."
"We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power of love. There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies."
"Forgiveness is not an occasional act; it is a permanent attitude."
Celebrate Dr. King’s “Dream” this week and bring a special offering for Human Relations Day on Sunday – and dare to allow the power of love (and forgiveness which flows from love) to set the tone for your “human relations” today and every day.
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