Monday, November 30, 2015

“Who receives the first gift of Christmas? He will choose one of you.”


Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the LORD as in the days of old and as in former years.   Malachi 3:4


 As we continue our story of The Polar Express, the little boy and the other children aboard the train have finally reached the North Pole.  The conductor tells them that the elves are gathering in the center of the city and that is where Santa will give the first gift of Christmas.  
"Who receives the first gift?" we all asked.
The conductor answered, "He will choose one of you."

What an exciting time! What a rush of joy! The kids are hurried off the train to meet the elves and see Santa for themselves.  The little boy can hardly believe it's true.  And then in a magical moment he is the one chosen to receive the first gift of Christmas.  But he doesn't just receive any gift. Santa says to him, "Now what would you like for Christmas?"  He is asked specifically by Santa himself what gift he would like.

It is an interesting moment of agency. This little boy who had been struggling with the desecration of his worldview by a cynical friend is faced headlong with the Truth. With a Santa who is living and breathing and real.  And now this Santa wants to know what gift he would like. What would be the 'best' gift of Christmas? 

The scriptures this week point to a messenger who comes to prepare a way.  In Malachi, the prophet speaks of one coming who will be a messenger of peace.  In fact, when the people are face-to-face with this messenger it will be beyond their wildest imagination, not unlike the boy meeting Santa. The prophet writes, " But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears?  
 Interestingly, the world Malachi means "my messenger."  Malachi himself is the messenger and he is looking forward to a messenger who will come to the people, as well.  Much like Santa and the little boy in the story. He is in awe and amazement of the real Santa, but the little boy has his own message to share. And he shares it by the choice of gift he makes. He doesn't choose the latest Xbox or iPhone. He doesn't choose the latest Star Wars toy. He chooses a bell from Santa's sleigh. A bell that rings a sound unlike any he has ever heard.

Which brings us to our second scripture of the week, from Luke.  John the Baptist, another messenger who is sent to prepare the way.  An unlikely appearing prophet, dressed in animal skins and living off the grid, so to speak.  And yet, his message sounds out to those who will hear:

Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low,
and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth;
and all flesh shall see the salvation of God (Luke 3:4-6, NRSV).

Not changing things around you, per se, but changing the mountains and valleys within your own worldview, your own mind.  John is begging the people to look within. To see what they can do to make their hearts pure. To see how they can take away the crooked and replace it with clarity and good purpose. He demanded repentance and forgiveness of sins.

What soul searching must go on within our own hearts this season so we can choose like the little boy chooses.  The boy really 'gets' the reason for Santa when he hears the bell.  He 'gets' the reason for love and giving and goodness.  But that is only because he had really believed and really focused on what Santa means to us all.  Why did Santa choose him to receive the first gift of Christmas? We will never know for sure, but we do know that his choice of gift proves that Santa chose wisely.

How can we prepare the way of the Lord this season in a way that is different than any other season we have prepared before?  How can we make this Advent the one where we really 'get it'?  How can we choose the gifts of hope, and peace, and joy, and love in the middle of the madness that the world offers us?

Email me at peverhart@niwotumc.org or comment below if you have thoughts about preparing for the Christ Child, or choosing wise gifts, or how to 'really believe' or anything else you'd like to dialogue about.



Monday, November 23, 2015

"All aboard... are you coming?"

Luke 21:25-28 (The Message)
In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. --Jeremiah 33:15

All aboard... are you coming?  This Advent season we look at the scriptures through the lens of The Polar Express, a wonderful children's book by Chris Van Allsburg.  It tells the story of a little boy struggling to believe in Santa when a friend has told him Santa isn't real. And he takes a magical trip aboard the Polar Express to meet the real Santa. His journey proves to him that all you have to do is believe and the magic of Christmas and the sweet sounds of the Christmas bells will never leave.

So today, we are at the beginning of the boy's journey. And, according the gospel of Luke, we are nearing the end of ours.  And yet both require the same sort of faith and belief.  Luke tells us of our end times in The Message translation, like this:
It will seem like all hell has broken loose—sun, moon, stars, earth, sea, in an uproar and everyone all over the world in a panic, the wind knocked out of them by the threat of doom, the powers-that-be quaking.  “And then—then!—they’ll see the Son of Man welcomed in grand style—a glorious welcome! When all this starts to happen, up on your feet. Stand tall with your heads high. Help is on the way!”
What chaos can we expect at the end of our own lives?  It could be very tumultuous. We've all been through that with loved ones who have died.  It does sometimes feel like all hell is breaking loose at the end of life. So much chaos!
And in the world, when DOESN'T this scripture fit? It seems like every single Advent season we can find some world or national disaster or upheaval that fits in this box of 'everyone in a panic, knocked out by the threat of doom,' and so on.
And yet, the prophet Jeremiah tells us of a righteous branch that will rise up and show us the way to justice and peace. A righteous branch that will remind us that God is faithful, even when humans are not. A righteous branch that will save us and allow us to live with security and peace and joy even when times become difficult and it feels like our world is crumbling.
In the Polar Express, this little boy's world is crumbling. How can this friend think there's no Santa? Everything he believes to be true has come into question.  And yet... he is invited to take a journey to a land of joy and peace, the land of the real Santa, and, as the story continues we will see that he is the one with the message to share all along. That he is the one who really understands what it means to believe.
So, in this time of year when it is easy to get lost in madness, from bickering within the family to outright warfare in the world, Jeremiah and Luke invite us to stop and realize that what we come here to do each Sunday isn't about any of that... those distractions in the world... it is about coming to worship the God who is getting ready to come down and be among us.. It is about throwing our hands up in the air and thanking God. No program, no person, no song, nothing in this building means anything if our first and most natural impulse isn't to worship God. To believe in God. To trust in the joy of God's kingdom come.
So it is important to spend this time of Advent preparing ourselves. Examining our own lives. Repenting for those things that have caused us to turn away from our walk with Christ.  Choosing to live in the ways Jesus taught us to live.  Participating in the healing of the world in any way we can.  Offering hope, peace, joy, love because that's what Jesus came to us to share. 
And probably most of all, we need to believe. Believing in the miracle of Christmas is so important.
Why is it hard to believe sometimes? Why do we let problems and worldly cares overtake our abilty to just trust and believe?  What do we want the 'rest of our days' to be about?  How can we work on that most effectively?  Email me at peverhart@niwotumc.org or comment below.

Happy Reflective Advent!

Monday, November 16, 2015

Village King

John 18:33-37


 Pilate asked him, "So you are a king?" Jesus answered, "You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice."

I've mentioned before, but it bears repeating, that Christ the King Sunday was added to the liturgical year of the Catholic and Protestant churches during an era when churches were losing a level of respect they had enjoyed before and dominant dictators were taking control of nation states and everything in them, including churches. This was the era of Hitler and Stalin.  Pope Pius XI during this time declared that the Roman Catholic Church would have a holiday to celebrate that Christ is our one and only King... not some dictator with a hate-filled agenda, but instead the Prince of Peace.

So, in this time of unrest and stress and heartache in our global village, perhaps it is important for us as Christians to celebrate with all our hearts and souls and might Christ the King Day this year.  Time for us, as Christians, to declare that Christ is the King of all we say and do and believe... not hate, not war, not terror, but Christ, the Prince of Peace.  And it's a good time to reflect on the idea that our Prince of Peace was an inclusive leader, a man who reached out to those who didn't believe as he did, who didn't pray as he did, who didn't look or act or speak like him.  That was who Jesus ministered to as much as he did to those who were his disciples and followers.  An important thing to be grateful for on Christ the King Day.

In the scripture for this week, we read Pilate asking Jesus if he is King of the Jews. And Jesus declaring that the kingdom to which he belongs is not a worldly kingdom. He is called to lead us to a kingdom of truth and he will testify to that truth, even unto death.

So Jesus doesn't fit neatly into the categories the world designs for him. He's not a fundamentalist or a liberal. He's not a capitalist. He's not an American. He's not a rock star or a Hollywood idol. He is simply and always a path to the way of God, a teller of God's ultimate truth.  If he were here for some other reason, then maybe he would fit in some of the categories we try to shove him into, but since he's only here to show us the truth, the way to God, we mostly scratch our heads and try to figure out who he is and where we should 'put' him in our own lives.

IAll the Sundays that come after this one, the ones in Advent that lead us up to Christmas Day, are specifically set aside to highlight the many different paths we can take to follow Jesus, our King, in his message of truth.  And isn't that  precisely what we need in this peaceable village kingdom we are trying to build? A person, a King, who shares a message of truth through love and peace and hope and joy.  

What do you think are Jesus' greatest attributes?  Why do you call yourself a Christian?  Email me at peverhart@niwotumc.org or comment below.




Monday, November 9, 2015

"Building Materials"


This scripture points out to us that we only have ourselves to offer to God as a temple, a sanctuary. That the actual buildings we designate as our altars are nothing close to the offering God requires. That it is simply impossible for our earthly creations to reflect the image of God the way we humans can if we truly follow God’s path.

Jesus cries out to his disciples that buildings are not lasting offerings to God, that they will be reduced to rubble in the end, when he says, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.” His apocalyptic warning to the disciples is this stark reality: nothing that man builds that will last. Think of, for example, the amazing finds of ancient buildings that archaeologists or even excavators run across that are long disappeared from our line of sight, buried under dirt and rubble of centuries racing by.

He is trying to get us to see that we are the temple. Our lives are the temple.  Not any building, but rather the bones and flesh of the congregation, which we call the Body of Christ.

We. are. an. offering. Our lives build the 'church' and keep it strong.

But we fail to deliver that offering. We fear the commitment of fully laying our lives on the line to be used for God's purposes.   It's much easier to hide  or ignore than to throw ourselves in front of the cross and say, "God, I am yours. Use me as you will."


What are the building materials we are asked to provide for the village? Adding new carpet and projection and attractive hardwood altar areas is nice, but remember Jesus' words when he says it will all be torn down in the end.  So, with that in mind, what building materials are needed for this village?  How can we, ourselves, be the building materials God needs? Do we have what it takes to build Christ's kingdom in this place?

Thoughts? I always appreciate your insights. Email at peverhart@niwotumc.org or comment below.

Monday, November 2, 2015

"Enough!"

Mark 12:38-44


This passage is a complex one.  It tells us of the scribes who parade around in their fine garb, 'devouring widows' houses,' which meant, basically, using up the resources for personal gain of those who could least afford to have their resources consumed. The scribes, all the while, made sure they were publicly seen and acknowledged, that their voices were heard. 

The scripture doesn't stop there, but also tells us of the poor widow who gave every last coin she had to the offering at the temple, an offering, by the way, which was not mandatory for her, but voluntary. Jesus notes that the rich gave large sums, but only gave out of their abundance, in no way a sacrificial offering, in fact, money they would hardly miss at all. He notes the woman gave all of what she had, an amount of great sacrifice.  And not only that, this is a woman who has been of course, ‘devoured’ by the rich establishment to which she is giving her offering.

I can't help but think of the ridiculously insane amounts of money hoarded by corporations, spent by political campaigns, and so on… billions and billions of dollars... while people in this country go to bed hungry each night. And the people in positions of power... often times seeming like scribes parading around in poor communities, 'devouring widows houses' and pretending they care about the needs of those who live there...

And the general church, too, sometimes buys into the numbers game too…seeming to of care more about statistics and numbers of baptisms or attendance than lives transformed by village ministries.

Why are these stories in our gospel reading?  Traditional readings suggest it is to highlight the woman giving all she had… the sacrificial gift.  Yes, that’s clear.

But it is also here to highlight for us the way we let the village be overtaken by power, the way that we turn a blind eye to the widow being devoured… the way that even the widow is ok with the establishment, and puts her own money into the coffers to line the pockets of the scribes.

It makes us want to say “Enough!”
It makes us want to change enough so that we give enough of our hearts and souls to make the world more just.
What would ‘enough’ mean to you? Email me at peverhart@niwotumc.org or comment below.