From My Nature Journal: A Jesus Blessing

OK, I think it’s time for another Celtic-style blessing. I’ve shared some of these blessings before, some I have written and some I’ve found elsewhere, and you can check one out here if you’d like. But this is one I wrote seven years ago during another Eastertide.

My heart is full these days, having come off a rich and reflective Lenten season here in our church. But it has also been an unusually intense and busy Lent, thus my inability to get a new post up at all yet this month. Still, the unusual Lent made me also unusually eager for Easter, to be able to celebrate again the victory of Jesus over sin, death and the devil, what Martin Luther called ‘the unholy trinity.’

So, Jesus be praised! Christ is risen! May you receive the blessing Jesus is able to provide as a result of his victory!

A Celtic Blessing

The love of Christ to win you,

The joy of Christ to keep you.

The peace of Christ to settle you,

The patience of Christ to suffer you.

The kindness of Christ to overwhelm you,

The goodness of Christ to delight you.

The faithfulness of Christ to encourage you,

The gentleness of Christ to heal you.

The hope of Christ to assure you,

The glory of Christ to inspire you.

The purposes of Christ to occupy you,

The rest of Christ to renew you.

The light of Christ to draw you,

The path of Christ to guide you.

The hand of Christ to lead you,

The arms of Christ to surround you.

The absence of Christ to humble you,

The presence of Christ to strengthen you.

The grace of Christ to amaze you,

The touch of Christ to restore you.

The creativity of Christ to enchant you,

The imagination of Christ to form you.

The watchfulness of Christ to protect you,

The serenity of Christ to calm you.

The face of Christ to behold you,

The smile of Christ to warm you.

The mercy of Christ to correct you,

The forgiveness of Christ to cleanse you.

The majesty of Christ to overshadow you,

The breath of Christ to enliven you.

The exhilaration of Christ to thrill you,

The stillness of Christ to quiet you.

The provision of Christ to satisfy you,

The beauty of Christ to be seen in you.

The Spirit of Christ to overtake you,

The word of Christ to hold you.

These blessings of Christ be yours

This day and every day.

In the strong Name, amen. 

~~ RGM, April 20, 2017

From My Nature Journal: Ho-ho-hum...

Martin Luther said in the 1500’s, “The greater God’s gifts and works, the less they are regarded.” Such could be said of God’s astonishing creation gifts and works, to which, if I remember correctly, Luther was referring at the time. People would do well to pay better attention to creation, both its beauty and its care; therein they might find possible avenues toward greater peace with God, others and themselves. And that’s to say nothing of greater spiritual purpose, well-being, delight and joy.

The greater God’s gifts and works,

the less they are regarded…

~~ Martin Luther, 16^th Century

But the same could be said of God’s salvation gifts and works. Fewer and fewer in our western culture, which was founded upon the ethics of the Bible if not the Scriptures themselves, regard God’s incarnation highly, or for that matter, much else having to do with Biblical ethics or salvation history.

I’m usually not a doomsayer or pessimist, actually find the proverbial pony in the room of horse manure quite regularly. But I keep running into things that trouble me at worst, or simply mystify me at best, about our cultural depravity. This morning while checking the news online, I clicked a story about Pope Francis, whom I try to follow;  I like the man, don’t agree with everything he says, but still like him and pray for him. While reading the article, though, some video popped up featuring an unmarried same-sex couple in a sexual escapade, the dialogue complete with the f-bomb. What? I did not ask for this! I’m just trying to read the news. I turned away, but not before my incredulity kicked into highest gear. What is going on here? It’s no wonder a good portion of the world looks askance on the cultural exports of the West, let alone declares holy war against it.

Jesus, in a parable about two men who died, one who went to heaven and one to hell, tells of the one in hell pleading with ‘Father Abraham’ (the parable’s stand-in for God) to send a messenger back to his five brothers to warn them of their danger. In the parable, Abraham says it would be futile; they would disregard both the messenger and the message, remain unimpressed, ‘…even if one were to rise from the dead’ (Luke 16:19-31). Jesus sure got that right.

So, I know I have a choice here, one I am finding I need to make more and more often: I can remain in my incredulity about people’s disregard of God’s various gifts and works. Or I can do something else: I can be God’s person, during Advent and every other season, and seek to fairly and lovingly represent him even in the midst of that disregarding world and the worst that it can offer; and I can share my high regard for the works of God, both his creation works and his salvation works, as long as God gives me voice. Henri Nouwen puts it well:

The central question is: Are the Christian leaders of the future truly men and women of God, people with an ardent desire to dwell in God’s presence, to listen to God’s voice, to look at God’s beauty, to touch God’s Incarnate Word and taste fully of God’s infinite goodness?

Will you please join me in the latter choice?

~~ RGM, December 15, 2015

QOTM...*: Martin Luther on Fishing

(*Quote of the Month)

With a shout out to George Gershwin and Ella Fitzgerald, it’s “…Summertime, and the livin’ is easy…" Since I’ll be heading to the Northwoods in the next couple weeks for some easy livin’, and very likely to hold a rod and reel in my grip for some portion of that time, my daydreams have turned to fishing. Note that I say ‘fishing,’ not ‘catching,‘ but that’s all right with me. In fact, it’s all good, because I’m a firm believer in the ancient Babylonian proverb: The gods do not deduct from a man’s allotted span the hours spent fishing. And since I do far more fishing than catching, I may live forever…

OK, so I’m a paragraph in and have already quoted two sources other than whom I had intended. Forgive me, though I have warned you before that naturalists can go on and on about the simplest of things. Luther on fishing is what I said I’d get to, so let’s get to it then.

Martin Luther -- the Great Reformer of the 16^th Century, the founder of the Lutheran Church, the debater of long-held theology, the rebellious monk standing up to the monumental powers that be, the writer of what may be the most brilliant and well-rounded catechism in the history of Christian discipleship, that guy –once met up with his friend, Phillipp Melancthon, perhaps the greatest systematic theologian of the Protestant Reformation. Melancthon, ever the heady intellect, wished to lay out the day’s agenda with Luther and announced:

“Today, Martin, you and I

shall discuss the governance

of the universe.”

--Phillipp Melancthon

Luther replied:

“No, Phillipp. Today, you and I

shall go fishing and leave the

governance of the universe to God.”

--Martin Luther

~~ Get Outside, 

RGM, July 25, 2014