Godgrown

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  Mark 1:08 pm on December 3, 2010 Permalink | Reply  

  Be Prepared to Be Unprepared 

  In Isaiah 16 the Moabites, fresh from their whipping from the Assyrian Empire in the north, are seen begging Judah to take in their refugee women and children.  They are calling out for asylum, hoping that their long-time rivals will have mercy and let them in as casualties of war.  Judah is already girding up for their own attack from Assyria, and some of the women of Moab begins to sing a song of future deliverance for both countries as they continue to plead with Judah to let them in:

  4b When oppression and destruction have ended

  and enemy raiders have disappeared,

  5 then God will establish one of David’s descendants as king.

  He will rule with mercy and truth.

  He will always do what is just

  and be eager to do what is right.

  The promise from God to the nation of Israel (and Judah) was that they would be blessed by God, and that they would be a blessing to the nations.  I’m sure that few would have guessed that they would have that chance to be a blessing in the midst of their own impending doom.  But as the Judeans offered hospitality to desperate Moabite refugee women, they were fulfilling their destiny to be a blessing to the nations…even as they stared down the barrel of Assyria’s nuke aimed right at them!

  It isn’t easy to be hospitable when you are frantically trying to keep your own house from falling apart.  But then again, when is it ever a good time for a crisis to land in your lap?

  The question isn’t “How ready are you for the stranger to show up at your doorstep?” But: “What will you do with the plates you are busy spinning when that stranger arrives?”

  How ready was Naomi ready to take in Ruth, two widows tied together by pain and loss, but nevertheless gave Ruth a second chance at life and became the grandmother of Israel’s King David!  How convenient was it for a teenage, unwed Mary to receive the Holy Spirit’s gift of a baby that would one day adopt the whole world into God’s family – only to be threatened with stoning and divorce by her village?

  Hospitality is never convenient – but for those with hands open to both give and receive, it can be the door through which God changes the world.

  
   

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  Mark 8:23 am on November 18, 2010 Permalink | Reply  

  We are Not at Peace with Ourselves 

  I enjoyed going through the book of Hebrews – and together with my MICRO community, I am planning to prayerfully read through the prophet Isaiah as part of our MICRO Rhythms.  I believe Isaiah will be a fantastic book to read through together this Advent Season.  Will you join me in welcoming the Suffering Servant, our Messiah?

  Intro to Isaiah

  Author, Place and Date of the Text:

  The text itself says that it was written during the time of kings that would have situated the writing somewhere in the mid Eighth Century BCE. Isaiah, son of Amoz is the assumed author – those many scholars think that 3 different writers wrote this text. The first author may have actually come from Isaiah, while living in pre-exilic Judah, 2nd Isaiah may have been written while in Exile in Bablyon.  Then chapters 56-66 are sometimes connected with 3rd Isaiah, someone who wrote prophecy down while living in Jerusalem, after the Babylonian exile.  The issue for me comes down to whether or not 1) it matters theologically that God used 1 or 3 authors to write this text (I do believe it would matter rhetorically).  And 2) If God speaks to a person about specific future events.

  Text:

  I love Isaiah for its unique and rich language. Its powerful imagery and meaningful message about true devotion to God through loving our neighbor.  It is poetry – flowing chiastic structures to fill the Jewish mind with delight and deep meaning.  But it is also a book filled with real threats and dire consequences.  The civilizations of mankind hang in the balance during this critical point in human history – and God seems to intervene, not through Kings, but through Isaiah – a voice crying out in the wilderness!  – Pleading with people to turn away from destruction and seek God’s life.

  Isaiah 1

  The first chapter of Isaiah in many ways sets up the rest of the book.  It moves from national warnings of destruction because of disobedience and false worship.  God speaks through Isaiah powerfully in this chapter – and turns in v26 to begin speaking of using his punishment of Israel to purify her, and restore her to global beauty – a people that all peoples can look up to.  It feels hopeful, and encouraging, even if the “punishment” is spoken of as if it’s a foregone conclusion.

  It would seem as if the major offenses from Israel to God is their continual practice of the occult (sacred oaks, v29) and the rich making up for their social injustices by giving lavish gifts to God in worship, hoping God would not notice. In the meantime, the orphan and the widow remain unprotected – and the priests and judges seem to go after bribes rather than mediate for all people.  In short – God looks at how the command to “love your neighbor as yourself” is intricately linked with “Love the LORD your God.”  I would guess that this has huge implications for our societal systems in place today.

  Thomas Merton once said, “We are not at peace with others because we are not at peace with ourselves, and we are not at peace with ourselves because we are not at peace with God.”

  There is a strong link between loving neighbor and loving yourself and loving God.

  
   
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  Mark 9:58 am on April 18, 2010 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Eckhart Park   

  …Only Family Can 

  I spent yesterday morning doing some work out in our sunny neighborhood park, pulling weeds and weeding-out trash from blossoming bushes and flowers.  There was quite a crew there yesterday too – some folk coming from the far-corners of the city to help out (about a dozen from a global consulting group showed up for “Earth Day.”)

  I’ve been given a section of the park with a few patch-gardens!  This has been a dream of mine for quite awhile, both to do some real-deal urban gardening, and to break into the neighborhood’s action group (volunteering gardeners, park council, etc).  There are more plants than I can give names to, or certainly more than I can spell.  There was even a secret stash of mushrooms hiding beneath a bale of hay over in one corner of my garden.  It wasn’t until THIS year that I finally saw my first flowers bloom from seed.  I planted some bulbs last fall and to see tulips popping up this past week has been tremendous.

  Being a part of such a tangible day of transformation in my own neighborhood reminds me a bit about why we’re here – we’re here to see vibrant families of Jesus grown in every people group in Chicago!

  Vibrant families centered on Christ is not only critical for individuals living the abundant life, but whole cities are desperate for it too.  No city law can make its citizens love each other – only family can.  No religious creed can reconcile broken marriages, or end homelessness – only family can.  No gang can decrease violence or increase High School graduation rates – only family can.

  Watching folks come together for park transformation pointed me back to this truth – that our goal is to see vibrant families of Jesus in close reach of every person in Chicago — but the OUTCOME of that goal is personal and city-wide transformation.