We've Moved!

sites that is!

i've moved the blog over to posterous because it is much easier to update and upload from my phone - and to add video files.  we'll continue our journey there.

you can find me at http://thegreatplains.posterous.com/.

i'll keep this site up until the end of the month (or if i forget!) before taking things down.

christmas eve!

it has been one crazy week around here.  the chaos was getting bigger and bigger and bigger until it reached it's apex - christmas eve.

Here's a breakdown:

• day starts at 7 am, because the new big girl bed is going to be delivered and put together!  everyone is excited.
• bed set comes and is set up and we redecorate ain's room - while she decorates in her own way.  
• dino dan (ains) and her trusty sidekick chuck (papa) spent the morning searching for dinosaurs -
• until chuck remembered that it was against the law to hunt dinosaurs on christmas eve.  it seems they have a legal right to one day of shopping for their families.
• everyone tried to take a nap, but everyone was either uncommitted (ains) or unsuccessful (everyone else).
• nana made a pair of cow ears and i made cow tail for someone to wear in the 6pm children's service as we gathered around the manger.  
• as i left the house to prepare for my first worship service ains was running around the house in a pair of pink tights.  
• and around the christmas tree singing - jacking around the christmas tree! :)
• during worship, ains came forward and sat with all the pastoral staff on the front row of the church, complete with tail, ears and cowbell.
• rather than singing "gloria in excelesis deo" she sang "moo" because "thats what cows say mom."
• during a hymn one of the angels wandered over to where the cow was standing and they began a spontaneous liturgial dance on the chancel steps.
• during our moment at the manger ains was - until the wise men- a very well behaved and adorable cow.
• as the moment at the manger started winding down, she got obsessed with my large candlelight candle.  by obsessed i mean banging it on the chancel steps while i shared my meditation.
• during a song, i took the candle away and she upped the ante by standing up during another part of my meditation, jerking my stole a couple of times and saying loudly, i want my candle back! NOW!
• during the offertory, when i took the candle away again, she broke down, complete with tears, screams, and lying down on the floor.  
• so, during the offertory, we walked back to the narthex to get her very own candle, which she examined closely and realized did not meet her expectations.
• she stood in the chancel with the pastoral staff, holding her candle, as we lit our candles to share with the congregation.
• then she followed me up and back down the aisle as i shared the light of the world whispering 'mom! light my candle!  light my candle!'
• returning to the front, she sat down as we sang away in a manger and i spent my time trying to keep her from burning her own hair or setting someone else on fire until i finally blew her candle out.
• then nana and papa took her back home, put her to bed, and got ready for santa while i stayed and worked on the 10 pm service.  

papa said someone must have slipped her some speed during the day because she was ON FIRE all day long. she was on the jazz to stay the least.

the only good part the best part of this, is that because she was just worn out we didn't have to get up until 8:30 on christmas morning!  :)

Is it possible to keep greed in check during the shopping sprees associated with the holiday season?

The holiday season is a time we’re inundated with one single message from all sides – CONSUME!  The commercials, radio ads and store signs are up after Halloween and it seems every night there is a news story on the latest must have item, whether for children or adults.  It is extremely easy to get caught up in the entire fracas.

We hear of campaigns to ‘put the Christ back in Christmas’ and encourage one another to remember ‘the reason for the season’.  These are all empty words and meaningless action if we stay caught in the cycle of desires and demands. 

Following the example God sets before us in scripture, the holidays should be a time of focusing on community, celebrating the time we have with each other.  Our attention should focus on meaningful gifts that will carry memories; gifts that will be cherished long after New Year’s Day.  Consider something handmade, personalized or individual. 

Turning our attentions outward, we should focus on community, both local and international.  Support local businesses.   It’s a fantastic way to celebrate and strengthen Lawrence.  Gather up the old jackets, scarves and mittens in your home and bring them to the Lawrence Community Shelter.  Never pass a Salvation Army bucket without donating some money. 

Non-profit organizations around the world, like Human Rights Campaign, offer Christmas gifts as a way to raise money and awareness for the need they serve. Organizations like Heifer International offer the opportunity to provide livestock, seeds or training to families struggling with hunger and poverty around the world.  Their goal is sustainability and self-sufficiency. 

Most importantly, when we remember that the holidays are about others, and how God calls us to love our neighbors, we can set aside the trappings of this season and embrace its true spirit.

This article first appeared in the Faith Forum column of the Lawrence Journal-World on Saturday December 18th, 2010.  

Joseph the Dreamer - Third in a series of sermons on Joseph: More than a Silent Partner

I’ll let you in on a little secret – Matthew is my least favorite gospel.  Really.  It’s not even a contest.  I’m always dreading year A in the lectionary because it is Matthew focused.  But Matthew is really the only gospel that tells Joseph’s story – although Matthew doesn’t say much! – and so I’ve found myself trying to set aside my bias and hearing Matthew tell his familiar story with new ears.

But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.  When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife. 

 Now after they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.’ Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt.

 When Herod died, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, ‘Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child’s life are dead.’ Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And after being warned in a dream, he went away to the district of Galilee. There he made his home in a town called Nazareth, so that what had been spoken through the prophets might be fulfilled, ‘He will be called a Nazorean.’[1] 

Dreams figure heavily in Matthew’s gospel, not just in Joseph’s story, but throughout the narrative.  I got out my concordance of the bible, flipped it open to the d's and looked up dream.  There were LOTS of selections from the Old Testament, and just a few from the Gospels and writings of Paul, mainly in Matthew.

Now how many of you dream?  How many of you remember them?  Lately for me, it’s been like someone has unplugged my power cord from the moment my head hits the pillow until the dog licks my hand or Ains crawls into bed to make me ‘imaginary breakfast’ in the morning.  When I do remember what I’ve dreamed about, it’s some sort of sensory mash up of things I’ve been watching, reading or thinking about.  Like dreams where Scottish immigrants are on spaceships smuggling goods across the galaxy while running guns with their motorcycle club.  So I usually don’t give my dreams much credence.

Joseph on the other hand, allowed his dreams to change his life.   In truth, most of the changing comes from the other main actor in Matthew’s version of the birth narrative – the Holy Spirit. For Matthew, the two most important parts of the story are Joseph and the Holy Spirit.  The messenger who appears to Joseph takes the role of voicing God’s plan. 

Joseph clearly saw God at work, and Matthew tells us that when he awoke, he did as God asked.  This is repeated not once, not twice, but three times.    Communication through dreams is not something unusual in the Hebrew tradition.  Samuel, Jacob, Joseph (in Egypt), Solomon, Jeremiah, Daniel – Joseph of Nazareth is simply another in a long line.    Joseph knew the stories about the Spirit stirring over the waters of creation, bringing order out of chaos; or breathing creative force into the dust that we’re all made of; or stirring over Ezekiel’s valley of dry bones – recreating them and bringing new life.  As a righteous and faithful man Joseph recognized and trusted in the call and movements of the Spirit.

As Kent has pointed out over the last two weeks - The writer of Matthew goes to extended lengths to demonstrate that Jesus was, according to Jewish law, the son of Joseph and therefore descended from King David.  But Matthew equally focuses on the Spirit’s activity in the life of the Holy Family.  It is as if he wanted to deliberately hold the two elements in tension – the work of humans and the work of God.  Everything Joseph did was right – the accepting Mary, claiming the child Jesus – but we know that it wasn’t simply Joseph’s doing.  In each moment of this narrative, God is at work over and under and around us all.

Joseph recognized that something beyond his ken was at work and saw his role in the larger drama.  This story we gather to hear again and again, this birth narrative  is a radically new beginning and more importantly – it’s God’s doing, not our own!  This advent is something for which human beings, no matter how worthy or highly credentialed, can claim no credit.[2]  Matthew simply reinforces that.

So what do we learn from Joseph’s story?  That unexpected things, things outside convention can often be wonderful signs that God is at work.[3]  We often forget what a scandal the incarnation really must have been, both Mary’s pregnancy and Joseph’s decision not to dismiss her quietly or shame her publically. It is not something that would easily have been forgotten in a community the size of Nazareth.

Spirit-led events take us places we don’t intend and show us things we didn’t know.  Joseph wasn’t planning for this life.  But he accepted its coming anyway. As Joseph journeyed toward that first Christmas he didn’t know where God was taking his new family – only that something wonderful had been promised and that they were beckoned to follow.[4]

Joseph’s story calls us to follow as well.

Like the story Will Willimon tells of a young girl who went off to college, but not just any college. She went to one of the elite schools, one that regularly makes the U.S. News and World Report's Top 10. What was all the more impressive was that she was the first in her family to even go beyond high school. Never before had it happened, and her family was rightly proud. They looked forward to her future. They just knew that someday they would introduce her as "Our daughter the doctor" or "Our daughter the lawyer." And it was possible. She had that kind of mind and drive.

 But something happened there at college. Something got into her-and it was God. And that changed everything-even her relationship to her parents. No longer was their dream her dream. She began to hear God’s dream.  And so today, when her parents are asked about her, they have had to learn to say, "Our daughter? Oh, she's a Peace Corp volunteer digging ditches in Ethiopia."

Or to follow like Oswald Smith.  In 1920 Oswald stood before a missionary board. 

 One dream dominated his heart. He wanted to be a missionary. Over and over again, he prayed, "Lord, I want to go as a missionary for you. Open a door of service for me." Now, at last, his prayer would be answered. When the examination was over, the board turned Oswald Smith down. He did not meet their qualifications. He failed the test. Oswald Smith had set his direction, but now life gave him a detour. What would he do? As Oswald Smith prayed, the Spirit moved and God’s dream was planted. If he could not go as a missionary, he would build a church which could send out missionaries. And that is what he did. Oswald Smith pastored The People's Church in Toronto, Canada, which sent out more missionaries than any other church at that time[5].

I think the most important thing we learn from Joseph is that advent means change.  It did for Joseph, just as for us.  We gather to celebrate a birth that promises to change the world –but rarely in ways we imagine.  As we sing “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” and pray “Come, Lord Jesus”, we are asking for our lives to be overturned.  Eugene H Peterson tells us that “the work of the Spirit in creation no longer is confined to asking the questions “When did this take place? How did this happen?”  We are now asking, “How can I get in on this?  Where is my place in this?” and praying, “Create in me…” (Ps 51:10).”[6]

 Are we prepared to hear God’s call this advent season? 

Are we looking for the movement of the Spirit in our lives? 

Are we kneeling before the manger praying “Create in me a clean heart of God and put a new and right spirit within me”?

The dream was enough for Joseph. 

What would it take for you and me to hear God’s messengers?

I have learned recently that over time, trees that have to stand out in the open become shaped in the direction the wind is generally blowing. I knew that plants would grow toward the light, but I didn’t know this about trees.  Unless there are other trees around to block it from happening, a tree will eventually be shaped by the force and direction of the wind. After a day like yesterday that’s not so hard to imagine. 

Do we, as individuals, and as a congregation, show any evidence of being shaped by the Winds of God's spirit?   Of being bent and molded to God’s will?

How would our lives show the marks if, like Joseph, we trusted God’s dreams?

Friends, I can only imagine.  But I do know that the Christ child was born into this world, that we might take the risk and find out.  Amen.

---

[1] Matthew 1:20, 24; 2:13-14, 19-23.  NRSV.

[2] Charles M Wood, “Matthew 1:18-25 Theological Perspective’, Feasting on the Word Year A Vol 1, ed David L Bartlett and Barbara Brown Taylor (Louisville KY: Westminster/John Knox Press 2010) 96.

[3] Aaron Klink, “Matthew 1:18-25 Pastoral Perspective’, Feasting on the Word Year A Vol 1, ed David L Bartlett and Barbara Brown Taylor (Louisville KY: Westminster/John Knox Press 2010) 94.

[4] Aaron Klink, “Matthew 1:18-25 Pastoral Perspective’, Feasting on the Word Year A Vol 1, ed David L Bartlett and Barbara Brown Taylor (Louisville KY: Westminster/John Knox Press 2010) 96.

[5] Brian L. Harbour, Rising Above the Crowd, (Nashville, TN: Broadman Press 1988).

[6] Eugene Peterson, Christ Plays in a Thousand Places, (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans 2005)  22. 

sickness

so ains got sick the other night.  not suprising, some of the kids in daycare have been sick too.  some sort of stomach bug.

but apparently i've got the most laid back sick child in the world.  it appears that she vomited during the night, then simply turned her pillow over and went back to sleep.  apparently she vomited later and managed to get most of that on a blanket that was on the floor.  she then went back to sleep again and got me up in the morning to tell me she'd made a mess.

i gather all this from the csi-esque walk-through i did in the morning.

i didn't hear a bleeping thing.  that's not unusual though.  her room is down the hall.

but when we were living in north carolina, her room was right next door to ours.  even with the monitor on, there were a couple of times she vomited in the night and didn't wake anyone else up.

i had a roomate in college like this.  i can't tell you how many times i would wake up to her holding a trash can and making no noise.   no coughing, no dry heaves, no retching.  no sound. simply open mouth and it came out.  like turning on a faucet.

wow.  this blog is really really gross.

but not as gross as cleaning vomit up off the floor.

sorry.  :)

christmas time is here!

and you know that in my house when the soundtrack from a charlie brown christmas can be heard in nearly all the rooms!

and when we get the tree decorated and ains' gets to meet Santa.

 as you can tell - santa was a much better hit this year than last year!















we had a great time decorating the tree and ains was adamant that she get to put the star on top!

getting the ornaments on was a little harder though! :)

love and marriage

anyone who has been married knows that its not easy.  sometimes its so wonderful you feel you'll burst into a million small pieces.  other times, you think you'll take a hammer and break your partner into a million small pieces.  it's a process.  :)

the hardest part about being married has been not having a place that is my own. when i get mad, i can't escape to my apartment, there to ignore any phone calls, emails, or texts from my spouse (not that they would actually come mind you, but i'd be prepared to ignore them when they did). i can't storm out in a grand gesture, holding my head high and slamming the door. (that's not to say i don't just slam doors because it makes me feel better!)

when you're making a life together and in particular raising a child together you cannot resort to all the childish things you want.  it doesn't serve any purpose but to make things worse.

you can however:

• not speak to each other directly, but only through your child.
• not speak of the incident that led to the fight in the first place.
• let go of the incident so you're not throwing it in each other's faces weeks and months from now. 
• refuse to forgive your partner until they have apologized for their slight
• as long as your willing to recognize you probably need to apologize too.

and that's the rub.  every time we fight, i am as much at fault as he is at least a little responsible for the way things turned out.  you need to be prepared to accept that about yourself.  even when its hard.

because, there are those moments when your partner goes to the redbox and brings home twilight:eclipse, the movie that is so horrible that it is fantastic, and watches it with you, asking you to explain the complicated relationships between vampires and werewolves in forks, washington.

that my friends, is love.