Is it harder to have faith today?

a verse or two

“You have searched me, LORD, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you, LORD, know it completely”. Psalm 139: 1—4

Spiritual Walk and Musings: Is it harder to have faith today?

This past week on the early morning walks with Gypsy, Vivienne and I have been able to see the alignment of several planets. In fact, it’s looked quite impressive during these recent clear mornings in the minutes before the birdsong begins their pleasant tune. Apparently this month the planets of Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Earth, Venus, and Mercury are all fairly lined up in a row. Well, looking up at the planets got me thinking. I wonder what the people back in the Bible times thought when they saw such things. Back then the astrologers would predict the future by searching the stars and what not; back then it would have been considered a rather learned way of thinking – kind of scientific. And so I wonder if back then people who had faith in the unseen God were considered a bunch of nincompoops.

So I muse – perhaps for each generation there have been plenty of things and voices to draw one away from placing faith in the unseen God, and therefore it’s no harder for any particular generation to have faith than any other. There are always things to cause deception and always things to test one’s faith. So even though we might think it’s harder to have faith in God today than back then – the reality is for each generation there has been plenty of competition and voices saying faith in God is stupid, eccentric or unwise.

Think to some of the Bible characters. The so called wise people of the day might have said people are dumb trusting an unseen God, but at the end of the day the ones with faith in God were proven correct. Daniel mentioned he would rather trust God than deny God – he wasn’t eaten by the lions. David said he would rather place his faith in God than fear a giant with a sword and a spear – who won?

Can I encourage you in your faith in God. In the end Christianity comes down to faith in an unseen God. There are many voices that say Christianity is stupid and this week we have seen some stupid things done in the name of Christianity—like saying the world is going to end – yeah right! But whether Christians do stupid things or not – it does not change what God is like. If I believe in God or not; it does not change if God is or is not. It’s a bit like the wind, I can say I don’t believe there is such a thing as the wind (because I can’t see it), but the reality is there is such a thing as the wind. My own belief does not change what is already true.

And ponder this: at times we can all see the effects of the wind; likewise when someone places faith in God, if we know them before and after they place their faith in God, often we can see the effects of God in them, just like we often see the effect of the unseen wind.

So is it harder to have faith today? I don’t think so. Yet in the end – it comes down to faith in an God who died on a cross for the forgiveness of our sins. Be encouraged to place continual faith in Him.

Something to do: Look at the stars and planets and talk to the Creator.

Why not wrap up warm, take a hot coffee or warm mulled wine and sit outside in the dark to observe the heavens (the planets in alignment are just visible before first light in the morning). Count some shooting stars. Ponder the great distances. The number of them is more than the sand particles on every beach and the creator knows about everyone of them and not only that, the creator knows the numbers of hairs on your head, the thoughts on your mind, and the words you speak before you speak them.

To Ponder and Pray: Psalm 139.

Read Psalm 139. Read it again and ponder its meaning. Then read it in a different translation and ponder it some more. Then read it again in another translation as a prayer to the creator God – Father Son and Holy Spirit.

If your enemy is hungry, feed them – part two.

a verse or two

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” John 10:11

Spiritual Walk and Musings: If your enemy is hungry, feed them – part two.

Following on from last week musings on the killing of Osama bin Laden. One does not need to be a rocket scientist to know repaying evil for evil does not work – but let’s face it, it comes so naturally – we all want to get even, have the last word, to win the argument.

In 1992 Vivienne and I were helping the Kurdish people after the first gulf war on a project to help provide clean water to some villages in the mountains of North Iraq. I remember our translator telling us “there was a person killed in that village today…someone from another village shot him”. He explained that meant in a week or two the brother or relative of the dead man will kill the person who shot the dead man. And it just goes on and on and the cycle is never broken.

And so I am musing, that perhaps the only way to break the cycle of evil is to not retaliate, perhaps even back down, to lose. Perhaps the only way to break the cycle of evil is to die on a bloodied cross – hands spread wide saying “I will not retaliate to your bullying”. Saying words like “honey – let’s not argue, let’s talk instead”.

Perhaps a way to break the cycle of evil is to use the words I am sorry.

Something to do: Feeding the enemy in Richmond if they are hungry.

What does feeding one’s enemy in Richmond look like?

Maybe feeding the enemy is deciding to follow Jesus’ weird example of being friends with losers. And so our attitude towards that person, that farmer, that worker, that neighbour, that employee – that person who is considered a weirdo, our attitude is to decide to be their friend and no longer think of them as weird.

Maybe feeding the hungry enemy is taking the weird person to a café which means being seen in town with a drop out (shock horror – the respectful elder is sitting with a hooker). And while seen in public, feeding the hungry enemy means transferring some of the dropout’s low respect onto oneself and publicly transferring some of one’s own healthy respect onto the dropout – lifting them higher in the eye of all.

Maybe feeding the enemy is befriending that person who is always rude, looking past their rudeness realising that maybe they are lonely and have lost the art of mixing socially. And so what they need is a friend who looks past their mannerisms and instead calls them by their name, has them around for a meal, invites them to church so they can learn God loves them heaps—because look at the other strange people in church and ‘if God loves them, surely He can love me’.

Maybe feeding the enemy means really listening to the other side of the story – not just pretending to hear. Maybe it means to not win the argument; instead realising that winning is not that important because often wining at all cost is not about truth, but about the pride and arrogance of the winner.

May we learn to feed our enemy if they are hungry.

God Bless
Jon

To Ponder and Pray: To love the unlovable.

Lord – it is in you and in you alone that I have status or worth.
Help me not cling to status if it means I hold back from loving someone of nil status.
Let me be interested in those thought to be uninteresting.
And may I love the unlovable.
Amen

If your enemy is hungry, feed them.

a verse or two

“What a week! For a start it’s been pretty wet. There was the big wedding, the big killing and the passing away of a dearly loved one from our own church. Below are some thoughts from that mix of events.”

Mothers Day

On this Mothers Day I wonder if mums ought to be awarded some kind of management CEO type of award after successfully managing to dry all the washing even though it rained every day. Even more kudos ought to be heaped on mums who don’t own a clothes dryer and still managed their taxi service, to feed everyone, kept things ticking along and dried the clothes. God bless all mums.

Spiritual Walk and Musings: If your enemy is hungry, feed them.

It was a sad memorial service on Thursday as we said good bye to our dearly loved Kath – peace filled Kath. In a way it was good she didn’t have to hear the news of the US vengeance. For surely it wasn’t justice, there was no trial, instead the US acted as judge, jury, and executioner. Oh, if only world government leaders would listen to the Bible reading beamed out to over 2.5 billion people during the Royal Wedding. The verses were from Romans chapter 12 (my favourite chapter of the Bible), although sadly not all the verses were read aloud. One thing to muse on is that it’s important we read even the verses we don’t like; so we can understand the verses we do we like.

Back to Romans 12. Verses 17 & 18 were read out “Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” Why do militaristic types not listen to such words? When spoken at the wedding I wondered if there was a message of peace trying to be made clear to the world and powers that be. Perhaps they also needed to hear the remaining verses which can seem harsh but possibly offer a why of not needing to repay anyone evil with evil.

Romans 12 verse 19ff “19 Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. 20 On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

It is not our job to seek revenge. If we felt sickened by television images on September 11th 2001 when we saw certain people in the Middle East celebrating the destruction of the twin towers, I hope we were just as sickened this week by the sights of people celebrating the killing of another person. Osama bin Laden was evil, as Jim Wallis writes “he was truly an apostle of hate, a dedicated purveyor of violence in response to every grievance, a manipulator and distorter of religion for political purposes, and a man responsible for the deaths of thousands of people.” But Wallis rightfully reminds us as followers of Christ, “it is never a Christian response to celebrate the death of any human being, even one so given over to the face of evil. Violence is always an indication of our failure to resolve our conflicts by peaceful means, and is always an occasion for deeper reflection.”

The apostle Paul said “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Ro 12:21). May we do what Paul says in our homes (as it is a form of spiritual warfare, it is a coming against an evil spirit with an opposite spirit). May we teach this to our family and friends, and we may pray that world leaders might see the folly of vengeance.

God bless you all, Jon.

Something to do: Pray for peace.

Please pray that the world will seek ways for every event to be an occasion for further growth of peace and not of hatred as the following from the Vatican suggests:

“Osama bin Laden, as we all know, bore the most serious responsibility for spreading divisions and hatred among populations, causing the deaths of innumerable people, and manipulating religions to this end…[yet]…in the face of a man’s death, a Christian never rejoices, but reflects on the serious responsibilities of each person before God and before men, and hopes and works so that every event may be the occasion for the further growth of peace and not of hatred.” [Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, the Vatican spokesman]

To Ponder and Pray: a quote from Martin Luther King Jnr

"I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: Only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: Only love can do that."

A prayer:

O God of justice and mercy,
we have heard the news that Osama bin Laden is dead.
For many this has brought relief and the hope that hate and violence will cease.
For many this event has stirred feelings of hatred and revenge in the celebration of his death.
Forgive us where we have turned from relief and hope to hate.
Your love knows no bounds.
Your love calls us to face up to ourselves.
Your love confronts the hatred and violence in us and in our world.
Your justice sets us right, challenging our wrongdoing,
restoring our humanity, offering us hope of forgiveness and change.
Your mercy knows no hate, knows no limits, knows no end.
Grant that as we share relief at the end of Osama's leadership
we may be strong to embrace your mercy and your justice in our world
that love may replace hatred, justice, injustice, hope, hopelessness,
and healing and peace take root where there is alienation and pain,
In the name of him who is full of grace and truth.
Amen [by Revd William R. G. Loader Emeritus Professor (New Testament)]