Wednesday, June 10, 2009

e-vo for week of June 10

Dearest e-votees-

Welcome to the green season of the church. We now enter what is called ordinary time.

May all of our times--ordinary, extraordinary, joyful, challenging, monotonous or breathtakingly new--be blessed. And may we bless others as we journey with them through those times as well.

Peace,
Karl

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So we are always confident; even though we know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord—for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we do have confidence, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. For all of us must appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each may receive recompense for what has been done in the body, whether good or evil.

Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we try to persuade others; but we ourselves are well known to God, and I hope that we are also well known to your consciences. We are not commending ourselves to you again, but giving you an opportunity to boast about us, so that you may be able to answer those who boast in outward appearance and not in the heart. For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. For the love of Christ urges us on, because we are convinced that one has died for all; therefore all have died. And he died for all, so that those who live might live no longer for themselves, but for him who died and was raised for them.

From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view; even though we once knew Christ from a human point of view, we know him no longer in that way. So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!

2 Corinthians 5:6-17, NRSV


What does it mean to NOT regard people from a human point of view?

We know all too well what it means to regard people from a human point of view. We look at others as competition. We look at others as means to our own ends. We look at others as ways to satisfy our "needs" and wants and longings. We find ways to tear others down so we feel better about our broken selves. We go after the accomplishments of others since we didn't make it so far or fly so high. We find ways to draw the life out of them. And in the process we draw the life out of ourselves as well.

Jesus was viewed in such a human way. The jealousy and the rage and the hatred directed at him was lethal. Yet he opted to look down from the cross with a different view. He looked at us not through the human point of view of hatred and revenge and disdain but through the eyes of God--with love and forgiveness and grace.

Many people still regard Jesus in a human way. They look at the church and Jesus' followers that way too. How do we respond when we find ourselves on the wrong end of negative attention? Do we glare back and seethe with snide comments and revenge fantasies? Do we grin and bear it hoping it will stop soon enough? Do we deny our connections as we warm our hands over fires of denial? (see John 18:18)

WWGHUD? (What would God have us do?)

At my first call we used to greet people during the worship service with "I see the image of God in you." It was a discipline we tried to engage as a community that meant to displace our human views of one another with a view shaped by the eyes of faith. Sometimes I could say that phrase with great authenticity and conviction. With others it was more whimpered as a prayer ( translate "I wish I could see the image of God in you better than I do." ). That greeting/prayer we embraced was one of the ways we can choose to not regard people from a human point of view.

In Christ we are all new creations. In baptism and as we walk into our baptisms we are formed and reformed. The old is fading away. New is coming. We do well to learn how to regard Jesus, others and ourselves with new eyes that embrace that which is coming into being while not denying that which is and has been.


God, shape our eyes to see more like you would have us do. Give us grace and mercy and love and long-suffering for those in front of us and those behind the mirror. Amen.

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