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Re: Spring Cleaning! 

By: joe-taylor in FFFT | Recommend this post (1)
Wed, 27 Feb 13 3:11 PM | 52 view(s)
Boardmark this board | Food For Further Thought 		Msg. 50466 of 65535
(This msg. is a reply to 50433 by joe-taylor)
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Remember


"The Lord is mindful of God's convenant forever, for a thousand generations." Psalms 105: 8

When I was growing up, I learned that God could see me every minute, knew what I was thinking, and remembered everything that I did. God was omni-everything. It wasn't comforting.

Of all God's attributes, all remembering seemed the most awful. The sin I committed on a Tuesday at noon eleven years ago? God sees it in memory as vividly as the sin I commit today. God will forgive, but forget? Not according to my catechism teacher.

Many personal disasters and tender restorations later, I no longer think of God's memory as a file cabinet stuffed with details of past waywardness, indexed for easy access when a shaming seems in order. God's memory seems more like a meeting house, a treasure chest, a trysting place where Love's dreaming and delight reside. They are stored up there for savory revisiting. Year after year to the thousandth generation, the details of memory and steadfastness pile up. Year after year to the thousandth generation, revisiting each one stimulates more and stronger love. God remembers, and God falls in love again.

That our God remembers like that is not just a nice sweet thing for us whom God loves. It is the fierce saving grace of the human heart, the foundation and fount of human courage. If God does not remember, Jesus will not dare set his face like flint towards Jerusalem. If God does not remember, neither will we.


Remember us, mindful God. Never let us slip from view. And call us to remember you, daily savoring details of love stored in our hearts. And when your mercies spring from memory to lips in grateful song and story, let the whole world hear and fall in love; and we, with it, take heart again. Amen.

Mary Luti is Visiting Professor of Worship and Preaching at Andover Newton Theological School.


To say that "God exists" is the greatest understatement ever made across space and time.


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The above is a reply to the following message:
Re: Spring Cleaning!
By: joe-taylor in FFFT
Tue, 26 Feb 13 3:19 PM 		Msg. 50433 of 65535

Artists Formerly Known as Christians


"As I have loved you, so you must love one another." John 13:36


It seems that on all sides of the Christian spectrum, it has become fashionable to discredit religion, and in particular, Christianity. I'm beginning to think many of the members of our churches are like the pop singer Prince--they want a new name for what they do, like the artist "formerly known as Christian." There are all sorts of organizations and speakers springing up these days whose primary identifier is that they are not the church. It is considered most unhip these days to be a Christian. What is hip is being a follower of Jesus, and to do it all solo. It's hip to love Jesus but avoid all his friends.

Now. lets be honest, I get why people do that. The church has done some embarrassing things in its day, and I personally do not want to be associated with a lot of it. But here's a news flash: Human beings do a lot of embarrassing, inhumane, cruel and igorant things, and I don't want to be associated with them either. Especially when I'm one of the ones doing those things.

And here, I think we come to the crux of the problem that he people "formerly known as Christians" have with the church. If we could just kick out all the human beings, we might really be able to do this thing.

If we could just kick out the fallibe people, like you and like me, the church might attain the lofty ideals of those too righteous to attend it.

In the meantime, count me among the unhip, gathering with other unhip people to try to be the church.

We may not meet the standards of those watching from a distance, but at least we're in a place that offers weekly confession.


Reform and renew the church, Lord Christ. And feel free to get started with me. Amen


Lillian Daniel is Senior Minister, First Congregational Church, UCC, Glen Ellyn, Illinois.

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