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"Praying for the President" by Jim Harnish
In his instructions to Timothy, Paul commands Christians to pray “for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.” (1 Timothy 2:1-2)But how?
How do I pray for a president whose personal behavior and political agenda are a consistent contradiction of just about every biblical value I hold? How do I pray for an administration which seems intent on destroying things for which I have labored throughout my adult life and undermining the basic institutions of our democracy?
Does prayer change things?
I’ve seen the pious maxim "Prayer Changes Things" on all sorts of Christian kitsch. But whether or not prayer changes things, I’m sure that prayer changes me. So, I’ve been thinking about the difference praying for our president makes in me.
Praying for compassion
Jesus said, “You will know them by their fruits.” (Matthew 7:16)
We aren’t called to judge, but we can be fruit inspectors. Inspecting the fruit of Trump’s life over the years, I see a tragically broken man. When I’m centered in Christlike love, I feel compassion for a person whose behavior reveals a terribly damaged, unhealthy — physically, spiritually, relationally — human being.
God never intended for anyone to be as miserable as he appears to be, driven by greed, anger, narcissism, resentment and fear so that he has to attack or demean anyone who dares to question him. God never intended for anyone to be that mean, dishonest and downright cruel.
So, I can pray compassionately for his healing; for some work of redemption in his life that would bring wholeness, joy and love; some movement of the Spirit that would break the bondage to his pathological narcissism and enable him to be responsive to the pain of others.
Praying for perspective
I’m a news junkie. But never in my lifetime have we had a president who dominates the 24-hour news cycle the way Trump does with his relentless barrage of tweets and his persistent way of defining reality around his own delusions, better known as lying.
Drowning in the flood of the tweets and headlines, I need to come up for air now and then. I need to discipline the amount of space he consumes in my mind and soul by limiting the amount of time I spend watching cable network news.
In prayer, I am drawn to Paul’s words, “Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” (Philippians 4:8)
In her new book, fellow pastor and faithful friend, Ginger Gaines-Cirelli defines sacred resistance as the way we “participate in God’s way, guided by God’s wisdom, empowered by God’s grace…It provides both a vision to work toward and the traveling mercies to get there.” (p. xxii-xxiii) It’s about love that looks upon human community with a desire for healing and peace with justice…with a desire for mending.” (p. 4)
For me, sacred resistance is standing with and for everyone and everything that is consistent with Jesus’ vision of the Kingdom of God, coming on earth as it is in heaven, while standing against anyone or anything that undermines or contradicts that vision.
Praying for my political leaders takes me deeply into Jesus’ vision of the Kingdom and leads me to pray for courage to participate in its coming and wisdom to know now to do it.
Praying for the fruit of the Spirit
Paul said, “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22-23) Seeing the absence of those fruits in the President’s behavior forces me to face up to places where I fall short of them in my own. It leads me to pray more deeply for the Spirit to be at work to grow those fruits in my life and relationships. It calls me to practice the spiritual disciplines that open the way for the Holy Spirit to be at work in me.
This prayer for the church becomes my prayer for the president, for our nation’s leaders, and, most of all, for myself.
O gracious God, we pray for your holy Church universal,
that you would be pleased to fill it with all truth, in all peace.
Where it is corrupt, purify it;
where it is in error, direct it;
where in any thing it is amiss, reform it;
where it is right, establish it;
where it is in want, provide for it;
where it is divided, reunite it;
for the sake of him who died and rose again,
and ever lives to make intercession for us,
Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord. Amen.
Praying for the President and our political leaders may not change them, but it might just change me.
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"Gender essentialism and ordination" by Kira Schlesinger
A new book by Benjamin R. Knoll and Cammie Jo Bolin, She Preached the Word: Women’s Ordination in America, explores the question of what factors lead people in the pews to support female clergy. Based on an analysis of the 2006 and 2011 Faith Matters survey, Ryan Burge found that support for ordaining women was widespread, with a full 78% of Americans agreeing either somewhat or strongly that “women should be allowed to be priests or clergy in my house of worship.” Even among members of traditions that do not currently ordain women, support was well over half.A new book by Benjamin R. Knoll and Cammie Jo Bolin, She Preached the Word: Women’s Ordination in America, explores the question of what factors lead people in the pews to support female clergy. Based on an analysis of the 2006 and 2011 Faith Matters survey, Ryan Burge found that support for ordaining women was widespread, with a full 78% of Americans agreeing either somewhat or strongly that “women should be allowed to be priests or clergy in my house of worship.” Even among members of traditions that do not currently ordain women, support was well over half. Interestingly, the strongest predictor of support was religiosity and partisanship, not gender or age. Supporters of women’s ordination were more likely to identify as Democrats and less likely to attend worship frequently.
Knoll and Bolin then interviewed American worshippers in 2015 and 2016 who stated they at least “seldom” participated in a faith community. Their findings were similar to the Faith Matters survey, with 72% of American worshippers supporting women as principal leaders of congregations. Not surprisingly, those who attend congregations who ordain women are 40% more likely to support women’s ordination, including traditionalists and conservatives.
In the qualitative interview portion that they discuss on the Religion in Public blog, both those who support and those who oppose rely on similar justifications. Both use appeals to sacred texts to validate their position. But most concerning to me is that both those in favor of women’s ordination and those against it rely heavily on gender essentialism to make their points. Supporters believe that women tend to be more nurturing, better at communicating, and more compassionate, all necessary qualities in religious leadership. Opponents think that women are too emotional, impulsive, or moody for effective religious leadership.
Certainly, women and men are socialized in different, not always entirely healthy ways. Compassion and nurturing qualities in women are praised at a young age, while men are taught to be more aggressive and less emotionally expressive. However, this does not mean that these are inherent qualities based on one’s gender. I have known clergywomen whose spiritual gifts bent more towards the traditionally masculine and clergymen who were well-known for being nurturing.
These survey results are a reminder of the insidious ways in which the patriarchy inserts itself. Someone can be supportive of women’s leadership but for reasons that still rely on gender stereotypes rather than the call of God to use all of our gifts, regardless of gender. Additionally, these kinds of statements are damaging to men by perpetuating the stereotype that being communicative and emotionally intelligent are “feminine” characteristics rather than something to which all leaders should aspire. Meanwhile, assertive women leaders are frequently told that they need to be “nicer” and more compliant when exercising their gifts.
While men and women are socialized according to gender-based expectations, not least within our faith communities, God’s call to preach, pastor, celebrate the sacraments, and teach is not based on gender. Each of us has unique gifts, qualities, and capabilities that may or may not correspond to what society tells us a man or a woman should be. Even though support for women’s ordination is high, the underlying attitudes and assumptions about giftedness and gender should concern all of us.
Fifth Sunday after Pentecost
Mark 4:35–5:20 (Lectionary Gospel reading is 4:35-41)
The Stilling of the Storm
Jesus demonstrates his authority over nature and the demonic.
Mark 4:35 That day, when evening had come, Yeshua said to them, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.” 36 So, leaving the crowd behind, they took him just as he was, in the boat; and there were other boats with him. 37 A furious windstorm arose, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was close to being swamped. 38 But he was in the stern on a cushion, asleep. They woke him and said to him, “Rabbi, doesn’t it matter to you that we’re about to be killed?” 39 He awoke, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” The wind subsided, and there was a dead calm. 40 He said to them, “Why are you afraid? Have you no trust even now?” 41 But they were terrified and asked each other, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the waves obey him?”5:1 Yeshua and his talmidim arrived at the other side of the lake, in the Gerasenes’ territory. 2 As soon as he disembarked, a man with an unclean spirit came out of the burial caves to meet him. 3 He lived in the burial caves; and no one could keep him tied up, not even with a chain. 4 He had often been chained hand and foot, but he would snap the chains and break the irons off his feet, and no one was strong enough to control him. 5 Night and day he wandered among the graves and through the hills, howling and gashing himself with stones.
6 Seeing Yeshua from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him 7 and screamed at the top of his voice, “What do you want with me, Yeshua, Son of God Ha‘Elyon? I implore you in God’s name! Don’t torture me!” 8 For Yeshua had already begun saying to him, “Unclean spirit, come out of this man!” 9 Yeshua asked him, “What’s your name?” “My name is Legion,” he answered, “there are so many of us”; 10 and he kept begging Yeshua not to send them out of that region.
11 Now there was a large herd of pigs feeding near the hill, 12 and the unclean spirits begged him, “Send us to the pigs, so we can go into them.” 13 Yeshua gave them permission. They came out and entered the pigs; and the herd, numbering around two thousand, rushed down the hillside into the lake and were drowned. 14 The swineherds fled and told it in the town and in the surrounding country, and the people went to see what had happened. 15 They came to Yeshua and saw the man who had had the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were frightened. 16 Those who had seen it told what had happened to the man controlled by demons and to the pigs; 17 and the people began begging Yeshua to leave their district.
18 As he was getting into the boat, the man who had been demonized begged him to be allowed to go with him. 19 But Yeshua would not permit it. Instead, he said to him, “Go home to your people, and tell them how much Adonai in his mercy has done for you.” 20 He went off and began proclaiming in the Ten Towns how much Yeshua had done for him, and everyone was amazed. (Complete Jewish Bible).
The original New Testament texts were not divided into chapters and verses. Although the practice of dividing NT books into chapters dates back to at least the fourth century (see Codex Vaticanus, an important manuscript from the fourth century), dividing chapters into verses is usually associated with Stephanus’s fourth edition of the New Testament, which was published in 1551.
U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions speaks at a Police Week candlelight vigil on May 13, 2017.
Church charges brought against Sessions by Sam Hodges / United Methodist News Service
Sam Hodges
More than 600 United Methodist clergy and laity say they are bringing church law charges against U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, a fellow United Methodist, over a zero tolerance U.S. immigration policy — a policy that includes separating children from parents apprehended for crossing into the U.S. illegally.However, an authority on church history and polity said he’s unaware of a complaint against a lay person ever moving past the district level.
The group claimed in a June 18 statement that Sessions, a member of a Mobile, Alabama, church, violated Paragraph 2702.3 of the denomination’s Book of Discipline.
Book of Discipline: ¶ 2702 Chargeable Offenses and the Statute of Limitations
¶ 2702. 1. A bishop, clergy member of an annual conference (¶ 370), local pastor,9 clergy on honorable or administrative location, or diaconal minister may be tried when charged (subject to the statute of limitations in (¶ 2702.4)10 with one or more of the following offenses: (a) immorality including but not limited to, not being celibate in singleness or not faithful in a heterosexual marriage;11 (b) practices declared by The United Methodist Church to be incompatible with Christian teachings,12 including but not limited to: being a self-avowed practicing homosexual; or conducting ceremonies which celebrate homosexual unions; or performing same-sex wedding ceremonies;13 (c) crime; (d) disobedience to the order and discipline of The United Methodist Church; (e) dissemination of doctrines contrary to the established standards of doctrine of The United Methodist Church; (f) relationships and/or behavior that undermines the ministry of another pastor;14 (g) child abuse;15 (h) sexual abuse;16 i) sexual misconduct15including the use or possession of pornography, (j) harassment, including, but not limited to racial and/or sexual harassment; (k) racial or gender discrimination; or (l) fiscal malfeasance.
2. A bishop, clergy member of an annual conference, or diaconal minister may be brought to trial when the appropriate body recommends involuntary termination.17
3. A professing member of a local church may be charged with the following offenses, and, if so, may choose a trial: (a) immorality; (b)crime; (c) disobedience to the order and discipline of The United Methodist Church; (d) dissemination of doctrines contrary to the established standards of doctrine of The United Methodist Church; (e)sexual abuse; (f) sexual misconduct;18 (g) child abuse; (h) harassment, including, but not limited to racial and/or sexual harassment; (i) racial or gender discrimination; (j) relationships and/or behaviors that undermine the ministry of persons serving within an appointment; or (k) fiscal malfeasance.
4. Statute of Limitations—No judicial complaint or charge shall be considered for any alleged occurrence that shall not have been committed within six years immediately preceding the filing of the original complaint, except in the case of sexual or child abuse and in the case of immorality or crime, when the alleged occurrence(s) include allegations of sexual abuse or child abuse, there shall be no limitation (¶ 2704.1a).15
Time spent on leave of absence shall not be considered as part of the six years.
5. Time of Offense—A person shall not be charged with an offense that was not a chargeable offense at the time it is alleged to have been committed. Any charge filed shall be in the language of the Book of Discipline in effect at the time the offense is alleged to have occurred except in the case of immorality or crime, when the alleged occurrence(s) include allegations of sexual abuse or child abuse. Then it shall be in the language of the Book of Discipline in effect at the time the charge was filed. Any charge must relate to an action listed as a chargeable offense in the Discipline.
9. See Judicial Council Decision 982.
10. The statute of limitations went into effect as law on a prospective basis starting on January 1, 1993. All alleged offenses that occurred prior to this date are time barred. See Judicial Council Decisions 691, 704, and 723.
11. The language beginning "including but not limited to . . . " first appeared in the 2004 Book of Discipline, effective January 1, 2005.
12. See Judicial Council Decisions 702, 984, 985, 1185
13. The language beginning "including but not limited to..." first appeared in the 2004 Book of Discipline, effective January 1, 2005.
14. See Judicial Council Decision 702.
15. This offense was first listed as a separate chargeable offense in the 1996 Book of Discipline effective April 27, 1996. See Judicial Council Decision 691.
16. See Judicial Council Decision 736,768.
17. See Judicial Council Decision 767.
18. This offense was first listed as a separate chargeable offense in the 2000 Book of Discipline, effective January 1, 2001. See Judicial Council Decision 691.
From The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church - 2016. Copyright 2016 by The United Methodist Publishing House. Used by permission Specifically, the group accuses him of child abuse in reference to separating young children from their parents and holding them in mass incarceration facilities; immorality; racial discrimination and “dissemination of doctrines contrary to the established standards of doctrines” of The United Methodist Church.
“I really never would have thought I’d be working on charges against anybody in the Methodist connection, much less a lay person,” said the Rev. David Wright, a Pacific Northwest Conference elder and chaplain at the University of Puget Sound in Washington State, and organizer of the effort to charge Sessions.
But Wright said the Trump administration’s zero tolerance policy as enforced by Sessions, combined with Sessions’ use of Romans 13 to justify the policy, led him and others to conclude that more than a statement of protest was needed.
Sessions did not immediately respond to a request for comment left with his press office. In recent speeches, he has said the zero tolerance policy on illegial immigration is in the national interest and will protect children by discouraging immigrant parents from taking them on dangerous journeys to cross into the U.S.
The Rev. William Lawrence, professor emeritus at Perkins School of Theology and an authority on Methodist history and polity, said anyone in the church can bring a charge against anyone else. While it’s not uncommon for pastors, district superintendents and bishops to get complaints about a layperson, he said a formal complaint bringing charges is extremely rare.
The Book of Discipline allows for a church trial and even expulsion of a lay member, but the first step in a long process would be for the member’s pastor and district superintendent to solve the complaint through “pastoral steps,” Lawrence said.
“I’m not aware of any circumstance in the 50-year history of The United Methodist Church when a complaint against a lay person moved beyond the stage of its resolution by a district superintendent or a pastor,” he added.
Wright said the group’s goal in filing charges was to prompt such discussions.
“I hope his pastor can have a good conversation with him and come to a good resolution that helps him reclaim his values that many of us feel he’s violated as a Methodist,” Wright said.
He added: “I would look upon his being taken out of the denomination or leaving as a tragedy. That’s not what I would want from this.”
Wright said the complaint has been emailed to Sessions’ home church in Alabama, and to a Northern Virginia church that Wright said he understands Sessions regularly attends.
Sessions’ pastor at the Alabama church did not return calls.
Bishop David Graves of the Alabama-West Florida Conference did not respond to a request for comment on the group’s move against Sessions, whose home church is in that conference. A spokeswoman said he hasn’t been given details of the complaint.
Graves did release a statement that specifically addresses the separation of parents and children.
“I implore Congress and the current administration to do all in their power to reunite these families,” he said. “Changes to these laws need to be addressed starting today. Let us join our voices in prayer for the separated families, for those working to end this injustice and for our nation’s leaders.”
The Trump administration’s zero tolerance policy, specifically the separation of parents and children, has been widely criticized by religious leaders, including conservative evangelicals.
Last week, Sessions cited a verse from Romans to support the policy, prompting another round of criticism. Those critics included United Methodists.
The Rev. Susan Henry-Crowe, top executive of the United Methodist Board of Church and Society, decried both the policy and Sessions’ invoking of the Bible in its defense.
Calling the Trump administration’s zero tolerance policy “immoral,” former first lady Laura Bush, a lifelong United Methodist, said the policy that separates children from parents “breaks my heart.”
Bush, writing in the Washington Post, said people on all sides agree that the current immigration system is not working but said zero tolerance is not the answer.
“In 2018, can we not as a nation find a kinder, more compassionate and more moral answer to this current crisis?” she wrote. “I, for one, believe we can.”
Laura Bush and her husband, former President George W. Bush, are members of Highland Park United Methodist Church in Dallas.
Some individual United Methodists have written Sessions’ pastor on their own, asking for accountability from Sessions on the immigration policy.
The Rev. Valerie Nagel Vogt, associate pastor of Travis Park United Methodist Church in San Antonio, mailed such a letter on June 15. She said she was prompted, in part, by imagining her own feelings if she were separated from her two young children.
Vogt also hopes for a searching conversation on immigration and United Methodist values between Sessions and his pastor.
“I believe it is in community that we learn, grow and become more like Jesus,” she said. “There is abounding grace and an ongoing need for all of us who claim to follow Jesus to ask for forgiveness.”
The Rev. Abigail Parker Herrera, community outreach coordinator for Servant (United Methodist) Church in Austin, Texas, also wrote a letter to Sessions’ Alabama church.
She too is hoping Sessions will be persuaded to a new position on immigration, based on conversation with his pastor.
“Christianity wouldn’t exist if we didn’t believe people could change,” she said.
A number of interfaith leaders signed a June 7 letter calling for an end to the policy of separating families, including two United Methodists, Bishop H. Kenneth Carter Jr., president of the denomination’s Council of Bishops, and Jim Winkler, top executive of the National Council of Churches.
“Tearing children away from parents who have made a dangerous journey to provide a safe and sufficient life for them is unnecessarily cruel and detrimental to the well-being of parents and children,” the letter said.
The Clergy Letter Project, an organization representing a wide array of religions and denominations, including The United Methodist Church, also has voted to condemn the government’s separation of immigrant children from their parents.
Criticism of the use of family separation as part of a zero tolerance policy has come from a number of other religious groups and individuals, including Roman Catholic bishops and the Rev. Franklin Graham.
Romans 13;1 Everyone is to obey the governing authorities. For there is no authority that is not from God, and the existing authorities have been placed where they are by God. 2 Therefore, whoever resists the authorities is resisting what God has instituted; and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. 3 For rulers are no terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you like to be unafraid of the person in authority? Then simply do what is good, and you will win his approval; 4 for he is God’s servant, there for your benefit. But if you do what is wrong, be afraid! Because it is not for nothing that he holds the power of the sword; for he is God’s servant, there as an avenger to punish wrongdoers. 5 Another reason to obey, besides fear of punishment, is for the sake of conscience. 6 This is also why you pay taxes; for the authorities are God’s public officials, constantly attending to these duties. 7 Pay everyone what he is owed: if you owe the tax-collector, pay your taxes; if you owe the revenue-collector, pay revenue; if you owe someone respect, pay him respect; if you owe someone honor, pay him honor. 8 Don’t owe anyone anything — except to love one another; for whoever loves his fellow human being has fulfilled Torah. 9 For the commandments, “Don’t commit adultery,” “Don’t murder,” “Don’t steal,” “Don’t covet,”[Romans 13:9 Exodus 20:13–14(17), Deuteronomy 5:17–18(21)] and any others are summed up in this one rule: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”[Romans 13:9 Leviticus 19:18]10 Love does not do harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fullness of Torah.
11 Besides all this, you know at what point of history we stand; so it is high time for you to rouse yourselves from sleep; for the final deliverance is nearer than when we first came to trust. 12 The night is almost over, the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and arm ourselves with the weapons of light. 13 Let us live properly, as people do in the daytime — not partying and getting drunk, not engaging in sexual immorality and other excesses, not quarrelling and being jealous. 14 Instead, clothe yourselves with the Lord Yeshua the Messiah; and don’t waste your time thinking about how to provide for the sinful desires of your old nature. (Complete Jewish Bible)
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The steeple of St. Michael’s Episcopal Church in Charleston, S.C. The historic property will return to the control of the Episcopal Church in South Carolina. Photo by Spencer Means/Creative Commons
(RNS) — The Episcopal Church in South Carolina is preparing to reclaim control of more than two dozen properties worth an estimated $500 million after the U.S. Supreme Court decided not to hear an appeal brought by a breakaway group of conservative Anglican congregations.
b“We are grateful for the clarity that this decision offers, and hopeful that it brings all of us closer to having real conversations on how we can bring healing and reconciliation to the Church, the Body of Christ, in this part of South Carolina,” said the Rt. Rev. Gladstone B. “Skip” Adams III, bishop of the Episcopal Church in South Carolina, known as TECSC, in a statement.
In the same statement, TECSC Chancellor Thomas S. Tisdale Jr. said there would be no “immediate change in the physical control of the properties” because of the Supreme Court denial. However, the South Carolina Episcopalians and the parent Episcopal Church body have asked the state court to place the properties and assets under TECSC control and transfer ownership to both groups.
A spokesperson for the breakaway group, which calls itself the Diocese of South Carolina, acknowledged that the congregations and their 22,000 members might need to leave the properties if the Episcopal Church in South Carolina won’t work with them.
“We are preparing for all eventualities, including moving our worship and ministries from buildings we have been in, in some cases for over 300 years,” said the Rev. Canon Jim Lewis, a spokesperson for the breakaway group, in an interview with Religion News Service. “If we must restart, replant congregations, we have plans in place for going about how we’ll do that.”
The Cathedral of St. Luke and St. Paul in Charleston, S.C., will return to the control of the Episcopal Church in South Carolina. Photo courtesy of Creative Commons
This latest development marks an important victory for the Episcopal Church. The denomination had initially lost in a lower court ruling that sided with the breakaway group, but a state high court decision overturned that ruling last year. Occupants of the 29 properties appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, but the high court decided not to get involved.The multiyear battle traces to theological differences between the groups, which have divergent views on human sexuality and biblical interpretation. Differences intensified after the Episcopal Church consecrated its first openly gay bishop, the Rt. Rev. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire, in 2003. Since then, the Episcopal Church has gone on to redefine marriage to include same-sex couples.
The litigation has been closely watched around the country for indications of how the courts would adjudicate competing claims to contested church properties. Some observers now wonder whether the Episcopal Church in South Carolina will try to use and maintain the properties or consider selling them to their current occupants and former legal foes.
“What does the Episcopal Church plan to do if and when it assumes control of these properties?” asked Jeff Walton, spokesperson for the Institute on Religion and Democracy, a conservative advocacy group based in Washington, D.C. “If they expel the (breakaway) congregations, it’ll be costly and a hollow victory.”
But working together after a long, bitter court fight could prove challenging. Calls to reconcile have not been accepted.
“What they really mean, when they use the word ‘reconciliation,’ translates to: ‘You completely surrender, give us back everything, and all returns to the way it was before, with us in charge,’” Lewis said. “That’s not something anyone in our diocese is interested in. We’re not interested in their definition of reconciliation.”
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This week, we have two stories with a storybook, almost fairy-tale feel about them. Before we linger over the marvelous Old Testament text, 1 Samuel 17, David’s thrilling victory over Goliath, let’s look into the Gospel, Mark 4:35-41 — a familiar, reassuring, confusing, dubious and theologically rich passage.
bWhen I think of Jesus in that boat, I think of the so-called “Jesus boat,” the first century fishing boat archaeologists almost miraculously managed to retrieve and save from underwater back in 1986. Pilgrims who travel with me to Israel are gaga when they see it. I wish they found an engraving on the prow, like “S.S. Simon Peter.” Surely it’s a boat Jesus saw, and maybe (probably?) stepped in to at some point in his life on the lake. The boat reminds us of the reality of the Gospel narratives: real fishermen in real boats on a real lake. That’s where Jesus taught, healed, and fished.
It’s precisely this mundane reality that then is called into question by the rest of the story. Jesus, creator-like, simply speaks and the waters grow calm. Did this happen? It feels symbolic, and yet who knows? Skeptics shudder.
Yes, storms blow up rapidly on Galilee; anyone who’s spent time there has a story about a sudden turn in the weather. Regarding preaching this text, I once saw the charismatic Methodist preacher Walter Kimbrough walk down into the crowd as he was re-narrating the story. When he got to the part about them finding Jesus, he grabbed a guy on a pew and began shaking him, pleading with him, “Don’t you care if we perish?” I tried this in my own church. It went well at services one and two, but then at our third service I just picked the wrong guy. Try this at your own peril…
The theology is profound. I love the question: when Jesus said, “Peace, be still,” was he speaking to the sea (of course he was) or to the jittery, frenzied disciples? Psalm 46 echoes through it all: Be still, and know that I am God. The creation aspect underlines what I think N.T. Wright has argued for — that God’s redemptive work isn’t limited to the salvation of individual people, but is a creation-wide recovery project.
* * *
So, now to the Old Testament, 1 Samuel 17, the cool episode you probably adored as a child (as it features a child! Although as an adult, you shudder when you realize its climax is grisly). The battle between David and Goliath has a fairy-tale feel to it, but if we’re attentive, there’s a lot there. Why does it resonate even with grown people?
Francesca Murphy (in her Brazos commentary on 1 Samuel) may be right: “It is because we yearn to believe that ‘strength is made perfect in weakness’ (2 Corinthians 12:9).” David was small. His role in the war with the Philistines was to carry his big brother’s lunchboxes. But this small one was the one who rose to Goliath’s challenge.
"Weak Enough to Lead: What the Bible Tells Us about Powerful Leadership" (Abingdon Press, 2017). Order here: http://bit.ly/2rYxHac
King Saul, tall and covered with armor, was the official leader. And yet David was the one who led. The Bible’s crazed logic comes into play: “A little child will lead them” (Isaiah 11:6). It was the little one, the laughable one, the one who felt clumsy in the armor no soldier would do without, who won the day. Unprotected, unknown, uncredentialed, David was small enough, even weak enough, to lead.We wouldn’t extract “leadership principles” from this story, or we’d be putting little kids with pluck in charge of all the big churches and companies. Malcolm Gladwell wrote about cases where the underdog wins through cunning and surprise and how a disadvantage can become an advantage; he titled his book David and Goliath.
Our story in 1 Samuel 17 is very different. It’s not that the underdog beat the big guy. The real confrontation that day was theological. The question was not Who can beat the other guy? but rather Who is God and who isn’t? David brazenly responded to Goliath’s mockery by saying, “But David told the Philistine, ‘You are coming against me with sword, spear, and scimitar, but I come against you in the name of the Lord of heavenly forces, the God of Israel’s army, the one you’ve insulted. Today the Lord will hand you over to me. . . . Then the whole world will know that there is a God on Israel’s side’” (1 Samuel 17:45-46).
Goliath had a hilariously unfair advantage in size and armor, but he did not have “God’s armor” (Ephesians 6:11). Who is God? Not Goliath or the Philistine deity, and not even David, the small one.
There are moments when the leadership required is for somebody, anybody really, to stand up for God, to insist on what is right — even if everyone else chuckles, even if the one standing up is unarmed and doesn’t stand a chance. Many times in my ministry such crucial moments have presented themselves. Sometimes I’ve taken my stand. Sometimes I’ve leaned forward but too carefully. Sometimes I’ve slinked away to safety. Sometimes I’ve failed to notice that now is the crucial moment. And sometimes I’ve thought I was defending God’s honor when really I was picking a fight for myself. Courage, discernment, and humility are what we need and pray for.
Saul had been on point when he pushed back: “You can’t go out and fight this Philistine” (1 Samuel 17:33). David listed a few of his achievements, but Saul was right: David was not able. It is not human ability that will finally achieve God’s good end and deliver God’s people. Yes, David whirled his slingshot and planted the first stone into the lone unarmored spot on Goliath’s huge body, right between the eyes. Was this a divinely directed shot? Incredible skill? Luck? All three? When God’s work gets done, when good unfolds, is it skill, providence, chance, or some holy and secular mix of them all?
David does appear to be something of what Peter Drucker would call a “natural,” someone with confidence who effortlessly inspires and understands priorities. David’s shedding of conventional weaponry is intriguing, isn’t it? Do we stick with tried and true methods? With what has always been effective? When can leaders travel a little lighter, experimenting with the unconventional? Can we get out of a rut by asking a real child? Or at least asking what impact our action might have on a small child? I know a real estate developer who got involved in educational equity in his spare time. Realizing one of his projects would unwittingly contribute to skewed disadvantages for children not far from his project, he altered his plan, made allowances for poorer residents, didn’t cash in as much profit as he could have, but did what he believed God was asking him to do.
The beheading is grisly, but I love the suggestion I first heard in Hertzberg’s classic Old Testament Library commentary on 1 & 2 Samuel: the anachronistic notice that David took Goliath’s head to Jerusalem (which wasn’t a place for the Israelites just yet), which is a titillating reference. Jesus was crucified at Golgotha (hear the Gol in there, as in Goliath), the “place of the skull.” Perhaps it was a traditional understanding that the big stone outcropping was the head of Goliath, deposited there by David centuries before. The theological suggestiveness of this is rich indeed...
"What can we say come June 24? 5th after Pentecost" originally appeared on James Howell's Weekly Preaching Notions. Reprinted with permission.
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Making sense 
by Jake Owensby
Nothing makes sense. That’s how I read the author of Ecclesiastes when he says, “Vanity of vanities. All is vanity.” Repeatedly. by Jake OwensbyMaybe you’re a superstar in your chosen career. You’ve got a house in every state and the size of your stock portfolio makes Bill Gates feel small. So what! You’ll die like everybody else and your heirs will call themselves a big success if they manage to hang on to ten percent of that loot.
Then again, maybe you’ve washed your hands of the emblems of worldly success. Instead, you live among the poor. Feed the hungry. Comfort the suffering. Console the dying.
Swell! You’ll be called a saint and admired by people who would never consider following in your footsteps — and then you’ll be worm food like everybody else. Trust me, the sun will keep rising and setting like it always has.
Nasty jerks live like kings and get away with murder. Compassionate, generous souls go hungry, get eviction notices, can’t make bail. Vanity. All is vanity. Nothing makes sense. Fairness is a sham. Justice is an illusion. There’s no point in doing anything.
You might ask yourself, “How on earth did a book like this make it into the Bible!?!” Cynicism, disappointment, and discouragement leap off the pages of Ecclesiastes. And honestly, I’m really glad that those pages made the cut for the final edition of Scripture. They assure me that truth resides between chapter one of Genesis and the closing lines of Revelation. Real human truth.
Sometimes we are disappointed. Discouraged. Even appalled. Sometimes the news tips me toward cynicism. Vanity. All is vanity.
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You see, I take Jesus at his word. The kingdom has drawn near. The first will be last and the last will be first. We are moving toward God’s dream of the world where all of us see each other as the beloved children of God. We love God by loving our neighbor as a part of our very own flesh.And then I see images of children in cages. Children ripped from the arms of their parents. Parents who had stumbled over perilous miles to reach a place of safety. A place that promises liberty and justice for all.
I hear the president of a nation built on the principles of freedom and equality praise a dictator, a well-fed autocrat whose subjects starve and who enforces rigid compliance with his regime by threatening deadly violence.
It’s jarring. The kingdom seems farther, not nearer. As my heart breaks, an unwelcome voice deep within me suggests that what I’ve taken to be God’s dream of justice is little more than a daydream. Vanity.
But Jesus has words for the writer of Ecclesiastes. Jesus has words for me and for those who have had a similar experience.
Mark’s Gospel passes along two parables that speak to us when things aren’t making sense to us. When justice seems like an illusion and we’re tempted to give up.
In the first parable, Jesus tells us that the kingdom is like someone scattering seeds. Eventually the seeds take root and sprout. Crucially, the one who scatters the seeds has no idea what actually makes those seeds grow.
For a time, nothing happens with the seeds. All that scattering work may seem to have been for nothing. After a while, the seeds grow and mature. They may not come up where the person expected. The waiting may have been frustratingly long. But they do grow.
Those seeds would not have grown without the scattering. That was the person’s only job. Scatter the seeds and trust it to someone else to make them grow in some way that you can’t quite understand. Do the good that you can do now. Even when it seems fruitless. Keep scattering seeds.
The second parable conveys a related message. The kingdom is like a mustard seed. Though tiny, that seed grows into a large plant. Some have pointed out that the mustard plant isn’t really as huge as the parable suggests. But that doesn’t undermine the parable’s truth.
There are large, powerful forces at work in this world: armies and governments and corporations. Our individual hands and friendship circles and churches may seem hopelessly small and ineffectual by comparison.
But Jesus assures us that something great at is at work in what seems small and insignificant on the world historical stage. God’s kingdom is drawing near through the humble, loving lives of people like you and me devoted to following the way of Jesus.
Sometimes we will grow discouraged. Appalled. Cynical. Circumstances on this planet can make the road we’re on seem to lead nowhere. We’re tempted to give up, give in, and collapse in a heap in the dust. Things stop making sense.
Jesus gets it. He was human, too. So, Jesus reminds us that we’re not in this alone. God is among us. The road is long, but it is not endless.
We have it in us to take the next step. And, oddly enough, we begin to make sense of things again precisely when we take even the tiniest step forward.
"Making Sense" originally appeared on Looking for God in Messy Places. Reprinted with permission.
The power of authentic friendship 
by Samantha Tidball
by Samantha Tidball
Released this spring, the dystopian science fiction movie, Ready Player One, was adapted from a New York Times bestseller novel written by Ernest Cline. The story occurs in the year 2045, a time when the real world is so miserable that people escape in the Oasis, a virtual reality universe. When the creator of the Oasis passes away, he reveals his fortune to whomever can find a digital Easter egg hidden in the Oasis. Teenager Wade Watts is an unlikely but fierce contestant in the competition; but he quickly realizes he can’t win without the help of his friends. However, all of Wade’s friends are digital representations of people he’s only met in the Oasis. He must navigate his online friendships with his real-world friendships.
Real world realityThe idea of swapping present-day for virtual reality isn’t just science fiction. Young people spend on average six-plus hours a day on a screen. The rate of depression, anxiety and suicide are increasing among teenagers and, coincidentally, so is screen time. Teens spend more time online and less time interacting in person with friends. Does it truly matter if interactions are face-to-face or texting through a screen? Absolutely! According to research reported by the Washington Post, teens who spend more time online and less physical time with friends are more likely to be depressed. Social isolation is a major risk factor for suicide. Personal interaction is incredibly powerful for our overall well-being.
Spiritual reality
In the movie, Wade Watts discovers how much better life is when he connects with his friends in the real world. Communicating with others through technology isn’t terrible, but it shouldn’t replace face-to-face time with our friends. Our virtual time will never satisfy our relational need to be physically present with others. God designed us to need and be empowered by the physical presence of others.
Question of the day: What do you and your friends spend the most time doing together?
Focal scriptures: John 15:13-17; 1 Samuel 18:1-5; 20:30-42; Ecclesiastes 4:7-12
For a complete lesson on this topic visit LinC.
COLOR: Green
SCRIPTURE READINGS: 1 Samuel 17:(1a, 4-11, 19-23) 32-49; Psalm 9:9-20; 2 Corinthians 6:1-13; Mark 4:35-41
CALLS TO WORSHIP
Call to Worship #1:
L: In the midst of life’s storms, God is there.
P: What have we to fear?
L: In the darkness and terror, God is with us.
P: Of whom shall we be afraid?
L: Rise up, people of God, for you are loved and saved.
P: Thanks be to God who cares deeply for us. AMEN.
Call to Worship #2:
L: God’s love for us is great!
P: God is like a loving parent, who watches over us.
L: God’s mercy for us is great!
P: God reaches out to us in healing patience and peace.
L: Praise be to God who has called us here.
P: Praise be to God whose love and mercy is given to us. AMEN.
Call to Worship #3:
[Using THE FAITH WE SING, p. 2056, “God Is So Good”, offer the following call to worship as directed’
Soloist: singing verse 1 of “God Is So Good”
L: When the waves of doubt threaten us
P: God is with us.
L: When fears seem to swamp our lives
P: God is with us.
Soloist: singing verse 2 of “God Is So Good”
L: Awake! God is here!
P: Rejoice! We are loved!
L: Get ready! There is much to be done!
P: Prepare us, Lord, to work for you. AMEN.
Call to Worship #4:
L: Who has the Lord called to serve?
P: Is it the great and mighty?
L: In whom has the Lord found favor?
P: Is it those with power and prestige?
L: In each one of us, God has found favor!
P: Let us serve the Lord with gladness and joy. AMEN.
PRAYERS, READING, BENEDICTION
Opening Prayer:
Lord, we have come this day, seeking your presence and healing love. Be with us as we hear the words of hope and compassion. Give us courage to learn and grow that we might serve you faithfully all of our days. AMEN.
Prayer of Confession:
God of love and power, we listen to the stories of miracles and doubt that these things can happen today. We look at the waves of misfortune, distress, misery, distrust, and anger and wonder how we can still those waves. We feel the pressures of power and fear flooding into our lives, threatening to drown us and wonder where you are. Forgive us for the littleness of our faith. Forgive us for our doubts. Help us to place out trust in you, Lord Jesus. Help us to fix our eyes on you and on the ministries to which you have called us. For we ask these things in Jesus’ Name. AMEN.
Words of Assurance:
Fear not! God is with us, stilling the storms and raging fears in our lives. Place your trust in God always. AMEN.
Pastoral Prayer:Lord of wind and water, of calmness and peace, be with us this day. Calm our fears as we face uncertain futures. Help us to relinquish control and to place our trust totally in you. Remind us to continue to faithfully work for good, with gratitude for the many blessings you have poured upon us. When the waves and torrents threaten us, let us again to turn to you, remembering your saving mercies and love. Give us courage to become disciples who can calm the seas of doubt and anger, bringing hope and peace. As we have brought before you situations that require help and healing mercies, remind us again that you are with each person and situation, offering your love and mercy. We thank you for the many ways in which you have healed us. For all the goodness you have poured on us, we offer prayers of gratitude and love, as we ask these things in Jesus’ Name. AMEN.
Reading:
[Soloist: singing verse 1 of “Stand by Me” - UM Hymnal p. 512]
Reader 1: I just lost my job. Just when everything was looking good….the job disappeared. I don’t know what I am going to do? I have responsibilities, a family that needs me. Help me, Lord!
[Soloist: singing verse 2 of “Stand by Me” - UM Hymnal p. 512]
Reader 2: I can’t seem to fight this addiction. I am enslaved to this substance. It owns me. I am being pulled down into the turbulent sea of fear and hell. Help me, Lord, help me!
[Soloist: singing verse 3 of “Stand by Me” - UM Hymnal, P. 512]
Reader 3: Everything I try seems to turn to mud! I fail time and time again. Everytime I try to “pick myself up by my bootstraps” someone seems to have cut the bootstraps. I don’t know what to do. I feel as though I am drowning. Help me, O help me, Lord!
[Soloist: singing verse 4 of “Stand by Me” - UM Hymnal p. 512]
Reader 4: What is it that draws all this hatred toward me? Is it the color of my skin? Is it my nationality or ethic background? Is it my religion? Why am I being persecuted, singled out for abuse and judgment by those around me? I do the best I can, and they still don’t understand. Lord, help me, O help me!
[Soloist: singing verse 5 of “Stand by Me” - UM Hymnal p. 512]
Reader 5: I’m tired, Lord. I’m old and tired! I just can’t tread this land any more. My eyes have grown dim, my step has slowed, my bones and joints ache, and my heart is weak. I did all that I could to serve you, Lord. Bring me home! Reach out to me with your eternal healing. Lord, help me!
Voice: Beloved ones, in the midst of all your pain, your fears, your loss, your infirmities, I have been and will continue to be with you. You are home in my love, whether in the here and now or in your eternal home. Rest in my care. Place your trust in my love for you. I will not let you fail. Rest now in my peace and I will take your burdens and deal with them. Come, rest.
Benediction:
As the Lord has given to you such peace and healing, now go into the world offering God’s love and hope to others. Go in peace and remember that God goes with you. AMEN
ARTISTIC ELEMENTS
The traditional color for this Sunday is: Green
[Note: Images of water, boats and waves dominate the Gospel message today. My tendency is to use blue or shades of blue as the dominant color rather than the customary green.]
SURFACE: Place three risers on the worship center. At the center back, place a 12” riser; Then place an 8” riser on the right center, a 6” riser in the center, and a 3” riser on the left center. Place a riser in front of the worship center which is about 6” lower than the surface of the center. Place an additional riser in front of this one which is about 3” lower than the previous one.
FABRIC: Cover the worship center in medium blue fabric, making sure that all risers are covered. Over the top of this fabric, place a long strip, about 30” wide, of the silky blue fabric that you may have used for a “stream” setting. Make sure that this fabric is loosely placed.
CANDLES: Not recommended for this setting
FLOWERS/FOLIAGE: not recommended for this setting
ROCKS/WOOD: Use some larger rocks to anchor the silky blue fabric onto the floor. If necessary you may use small stones to anchor the silky blue fabric in various places.
OTHER: Place the brass cross on the large center riser on the worship center. Create 5 “Boats”, each with a sail. On the first sail print the words: “Storms of Life“; on the second sail, “Tribulation”; on the third sail “Faults and Failures”; on the fourth sail “Persecution”; and on the fifth sail “Weakness/Aging”. Attach these sails to the boats you create, placing each boat on a riser, on top of the blue silky fabric. To the side of the setting have two fans (get ones that are as quiet as possible). Set them on the floor, pointing toward the boats. The air should blow on the fabric so that it “moves in waves”. You will have to experiment with this. You may mask the presence of these fans by using cardboard panels shaped like rocks and painted to look like rocks. You may want these panels to be two or three sided depending upon how you need to place the fans Be sure to test out the work with the fans before the worship service.
Ministry Matters
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