Broken into Beautiful

Three weeks ago, we sat in the choir loft at St. James Methodist Church, joining their choir in a performance of a beautiful song by Gwen Smith called, "Broken into Beautiful." The song is from a cantata or musical, and references the story of the woman who tried to see Jesus, but the crowd wouldn't let her, because of who she was. The crowd felt that her past had tarnished her character to the point that she was unworthy to see the Lord.

There are a number of stories in the Gospels of people being deemed "unworthy" by society to come before the Lord. And in each one, Jesus sees them and through his intervention, they are healed; made whole again.

Often these stories are used to present the healing power of God. We come to Him as sinners, and through his forgiveness, and his strength, we are cleansed of sin, forgiven, and able to repent and start over again.

It occurred to me, as I listened and sang at that Lenten Service, that maybe the story is much simpler than that. The woman was being kept from Jesus, not by Jesus Himself, but because of the PEOPLE'S judgement of her. Whereas our understanding of the tale was that she was unclean in the eyes of God, and then healed of her sinfulness; in actuality, she was fine in the eyes of God, but she believed she was unworthy because that's what THE CROWD told her.

This is the essence of Bullying. Beyonce Knowles was a beautiful young child with a lovely voice. She'd win talent competitions, and come back to school to meet people who would bully her. Of all things, she was bullied for being TOO pretty, TOO light skinned, TOO talented, TOO successful. The bullies turned something she should have been proud of into something she was ashamed of.

What Jesus does in the story is not a miracle. He doesn't lay hands on her, removing her stains and sins. He doesn't use the power of God to heal her of leprosy or some other horrible, disfiguring disease.  All he does... is acknowledge her being there. He sees her as a woman, worthy of God; one of God's creations just like the rest of us. But after being shunned by society, and told that she was "less than;" Jesus' simple inclusion and acknowledgement was EVERYTHING.

When this occurred to me, I thought of my job as music director. Often, when asked to sing in choir, people say, "Oh, you don't want my voice." "I'm not good enough." "I'll just make you sound horrible." My response is always as it has always been: "Yes, I do; Yes, you are; and No, you won't." (Respectively.) I don't believe in people who "Can't Sing;" only people who haven't learned how to sing. My job as Choir Director is to teach people how.

Think about people who you have seen shunned by society, left out, dismissed as being unworthy, because of OUR judgement, not God's. And think about how you, as a follower of Jesus, could acknowledge them, assure them that they're a child of God, and allow them to be included in our world.

The Three Temptations

As we enter the season of Lent, our thoughts turn towards Jesus' fast in the wilderness. For 40 days, he ate and drank nothing. And towards the end, he was tempted by Satan. 
Now, Satan didn't have a special temptation for the Son of God. Perhaps his intention was to derail Jesus' ministry before it started by tempting Him the way he would tempt ALL men; thus proving that He was merely a man, and not the Messiah. Satan followed the same pattern of temptations with Jesus as he would with any of us; with Mary, the dieter who wants to cheat on her diet; Bobby, the young person being tempted to get into a fist fight; or Steven, the married man tempted to cheat on his wife. 
The first temptation of Jesus was "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." (Matthew 4:3) At the moment of Jesus' greatest starvation, He was tempted to simply create bread out of the stones here; to immediately satisfy his hunger while abandoning what he came out here to do: seek the voice of God and prepare for his mission. Thus, He is tempted with instant gratification.
Mary may be tempted to satisfy her craving for sweets with "just one little bonbon." Bobby, being annoyed by a bully, may be tempted to let out his building anger by punching out the guy; "just one punch, and that'll teach him." That woman may be flirting, and Steven may be feeling certain urges, "who's gonna know, go ahead, kiss her."

Jesus' response was "It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God." (Matthew 4:4) In other words, my hunger is one thing, but my commitment to God is more important. Sure, I'll ease my hunger, but I'll have betrayed my Lord. Mary might say, "I can't have that bonbon, I'm trying to be healthy." Bobby: "It WOULD feel good to punch that guy out, but I'm not a violent person." Steven: "I made a commitment to my family, and no amount of instant gratification will make me betray that."

Second Temptation. Satan tried the next tactic: "If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written:‘He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone." (Matthew 4:6) Some think that he was tempting Jesus into suicide, but I think he was trying to make Him prove his divinity. "If you're REALLY divine, then you won't die, Angels will save you."

"Come on, you can manage your own diet. A few calories now, and you'll eat an extra salad later." "What are you a wimp? This guy is challenging your manhood. Are you going to take that from him?" "What, does your wife decide what you do? Are you THAT hen-pecked?" 

Jesus' response: "It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’" (Matthew 4:7) In other words, I AM the son of God, which means I don't HAVE to prove it. 

"Yes, I HAVE will power, which means I'll have a celery stick." "A real man would never have to beat up another man to prove it." "I do what my wife would want because it's MY choice to honor her."

On to the final temptation. "All this I will give you,” Satan said, “if you will bow down and worship me." (Matthew 4:9) If you worship Satan, I'll give you whatever you've always wanted.

"Don't you want to be happy? A Celery stick won't make you happy, Chocolate will." "If I fight this guy, I'll be mightier than him, stronger, better. And in the eyes of all these people watching, I'll be awesome." "She's probably REALLY good. I'll be a stud if I can make it with her."

Very tempting, indeed, how do we battle that? Well, Jesus said, "Begone, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only." (Matthew 4:10) Satan's offer is not the only way to seek satisfaction. He made the choice to serve His greater commitment to God, rather than be superlative in any way. Only with God's help will He become the savior He's meant to be. 

"Think of how happy I'll be when I'm thin and healthy, and feeling good about myself." "I'll be the stronger man when I walk away from this argument." "I'm a great man in the eyes of my wife, and that's all I need to be."

In this Lenten Season, I've chosen to deepen my commitment to God by reading an online bible study every day, and to find inspiration in music and share that message with others. No doubt, I'll be tempted with instant gratification: "I'm kinda tired and busy, maybe I can skip it today;" a challenge to my ego: "What are you, one of those crazy, over-preachy Christians?" and probably, an offer to satisfy personal status, "Nobody's listening anyway, wouldn't your time online be better served sharing links to cooking videos?" 

But, as every year, I'll remind myself of how Jesus battled His temptations, and this was after 40 days of NOTHING to eat, Nothing to drink, and blistering wilderness. Compared to Him, my little sacrifice is minuscule. How can I come before Him and say, "Please understand, Lord, I was tired. I was embarrassed. I didn't want to come off as being uncool."  

The Touch of the Master's Hand

So one day my wife got me a gift. It was a thoroughly well thought out, and home made gift, the best kind of all. She had been listening to "Chicken Soup For the Soul" audiobooks, and was particularly touched by a poem called, "The Touch of the Master's Hand" by Myra B. Welch.

Twas battered and scarred, and the auctioneer thought it scarcely worth his while

To waste much time on the old violin, but held it up with a smile;

"What am I bidden, good folks," he cried, "Who'll start the bidding for me?

A dollar, a dollar; then two! Only two? Two dollars, and who'll make it three?

Three dollars, once; three dollars twice; going for three..." But no,

From the room, far back, a gray-haired man came forward and picked up the bow;

Then, wiping the dust from the old violin, and tightening the loose strings,

He played a melody pure and sweet as caroling angel sings.

The music ceased, and the auctioneer, with a voice that was quiet and low,
said; "What am I bid for the old violin?" And he held it up with the bow.
A thousand dollars, and who'll make it two? Two thousand! And who'll make it three?

Three thousand, once, three thousand, twice, and going and gone," said he.

The people cheered, but some of them cried, "We do not quite understnad

what changed its worth." Swift came the reply: "The touch of a master's hand."

And many a man with life out of tune, and battered and scarred with sin,
Is auctioned cheap to the thoughtless crowd, much like the old violin,

A "mess of pottage," a glass of wine; a game - and he travels on.

He is going once, and going twice, He's going and almost gone.

But the Master comes, and the foolish crowd never can quite understand

The worth of a soul and the change that's wrought by the touch of the Master's hand.

In her mind, the poem spoke about the way we as teachers make a difference in people's lives. A student comes to us, sometimes not believing in themselves, often told how worthless they are. Then we bring out some knowledge which helps them discover how meaningful they can be. They have a success in our classroom, and that inspires them to have a few more.

So she typed it up, and printed it a beautiful paper, and framed it and gave it to me for inspiration. I was so inspired, that I set it to music.

It was only later on, when I performed the song in church, that someone pointed out to me that it wasn't "The touch of A master's hand." It was "The Touch of THE Master's Hand." The master, of course, being God. The song also works on the level of meaning how God's presence in our life can change us from the path of self destruction, and failure; towards the life of success and abundance.

I enjoy songs that work on multiple levels like this. It means that even the cynic can gain wisdom, even if they won't acknowledge the sacred in it.

Charity

1Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. 2And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. 3And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. - 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 (King James)

The first time I heard of this passage translated as "...and have not charity," I was taken aback. I had always heard "... and have not love." I understand that the definition charity involves love, as in caring for others; caring enough to give to meet their needs. The meaning of the passage is clear, you can walk the walk, but without truly caring for others, it means nothing.

 

The third sentence puzzles me, though. The author is hypothetically giving to the poor, which means charity to me. He's sacrificing his body for the good of others. How does one do that without charity?

 

Perhaps it is possible to perform acts of charity, without really FEELING it. I'm reminded of Mitt Romney after Hurricane Sandy. He was campaigning in the mid-west at the time, and he collected cans of food for the victims of the storm. It was a kind gesture, but some wondered if it was genuine. There were rumors that he gave out the cans to people as they entered the rally, only to have them donate it back to him as a photo opportunity. Others felt that collecting canned food was kind of an empty gesture, as people in the flood areas didn't need canned food, they needed other things.

 

What Romney's act of charity really is depends on whether there was "charity" in his heart when he performed this act. Did he truly have love for the victims of Sandy? Was he trying to help, or was he doing what seemed to be the right thing at the time. (There's a disaster, we collect food.) I like to think that Mitt Romney wanted to really help out. Even though people may criticize the level of impact the collection made, anything, no matter how small, when done with love, makes a difference.

 

Lord, when I do the things I do for others, please make my heart truly caring and thoughtful. Keep my mind on how to help, rather than wanting to appear to help. In Jesus' name I pray.

 

And I Think to myself, What a Wonderful World

25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? 28 And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith?" - Matthew 6:25-30

In high school, I was eleventh in my graduating class. I know this because I had the exact same GPA as the 10 ranked student, and Scholarships were awarded only to the top 10 students; and not to me. I argued this as much as I could, but to no avail. There was no additional funds for another scholarship, and to give it to me would mean taking it from the other guy. These rankings are arbitrary, of course, but it was a terrible feeling, being NOT in the elite of the school. It was very easy to get into a funk about it, and to feel like I'm somehow "less than;" ignoring the fact that I was every bit as good as the number 10 student.

I was also denied admission to the National Honor Society. The claim was that I didn't have enough "service" on my application. I had shown how I participated in fund raisers, and performances which benefited charities, but apparently, that wasn't what they were looking for. I became very resentful of this and the fact that I missed out on the scholarship, and began creating conspiracy theories about how the NHS was prejudiced against musicians. See, most of my grades came from music classes, and nearly all of my service was performance-related. I chose to exist in a world where people were actually trying to keep me from succeeding out of jealousy, or prejudice. I have no idea why I would want to live in that world, it seems to me to be rather miserable.

Especially since the world WASN'T out to get me. It turns out that the world is pretty good. It's a world where I get to participate in all of those classes and performances, and help the charities I helped. It's a world where I'm NUMBER 11 in my class, which is not too shabby after all! It was my personal mental attitude that prevented me from seeing the wonderful world around me.

Jesus taught us to reconsider the world WE live in. In Matthew 6, He tells us not to see the world as one where we might run out of food or clothing at any moment. To stop worrying about how we will survive, and instead begin to see the world as God actually created it: Abundant, Beautiful, and Plentiful. There is, it turns out, a lot to be thankful for, we need only choose to recognize it.

Lord, thank you for the wonderful world You created. Help us to see the world as a bountiful place to enjoy, and not as a horrible place that we need to survive. Help calm our minds when we begin to doubt. In Jesus' name we pray.

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. - Jeremiah 29:11
 
Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care.And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. - Matthew 10:29-31

Rejecting the World of Measurement

14Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.15Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 16And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 17If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. - 1 Corinthians 12:14-18

Chapter 2 of Rosamunde and Benjamin Zander's book, "The Art of Possibility," describes what they call the "World of Measurement." This is a world where we are constantly measuring our own worth as compared to standards given to us not by God, but by man. It is a world where we feel like we're in constant competition with others. It's the source of most of our angst and depression. How often do we feel sad or disappointed with ourselves, not because we did something wrong, but rather that we didn't reach that standard we had in our mind. 

Our Choir often feels that way. They'll do a perfectly fine piece of music, and then afterwards with say to me, "Well, we weren't that bad today." As if to say, "Despite the multitude of mistakes we so obviously made, the congregation seemed to like it." I find myself reminding them that it's not about doing a perfect performance, but rather, about participating in the making of music for the glory of God.

I had to struggle with this kind of "Stinking Thinking" all of my life. I often find myself obsessing over how well I did in comparison to others. This would lead to a downward spiral of depression which would just ruin my life. Two things that saved me: My return to the church in 2004, and letting go of perfectionism. 

To me, that's what this passage from Corinthians means. I should not be made to feel "less than" simply because I don't fit in with someone else's idea of what a Christian should be. God made me with the talents that I possess, which I can use for the glory of God. And if I stop comparing myself to others, and instead view myself the way God sees me, I see that I am an integral part of His plan for the Universe.
Lord, thank you for reminding me to see myself through Your eyes, not through those that make me feel inadequate. Help me to use my talents to fulfill Your will. In Jesus' name I pray.

"You May Have Heard That You Were Told..."

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor[a] and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be children of your Father in heaven." - Matthew 5:43-45

I've always been interested in the wording of this Passage. In Godspell, the Musical, it is worded: "You may have heard that you were told...." Not "You were told," or, "It is said," but "You have HEARD that it is said."

I'm reminded of what used to be taught in English Classes about primary and secondary sources. A primary source is like a newspaper, the AP feed, or direct witness accounts, where you're getting the information first hand. A Secondary source is like when Sean Hannity writes a book which cites an article in the New York Post. He's not directly reporting it, he's reporting that the Post reported it. The further away from the primary source you get, the LESS reliable the information is.

Much of what people believed about their faith back in 30 A.D. didn't come from the Primary source: God, or a prophet; but through secondary or even tertiary sources: priests, politicians, and others. God's message was somehow twisted since the days of Abraham, Isaac, and Moses. We were no longer practicing what God said to us, as written in the Torah; but rather, we were doing what somebody TOLD us God said to us. Many of these ideas, such as "Love your neighbor and hate your enemy," came not from God, but from man. Jesus came to clarify what God really wants for us. Jesus came to tell us that "man" got it wrong.

Often we find ourselves acting on a pre-conceived notion of how our religion works, based on something a person told somebody that God said to them.

You have heard that it is said... that you must marry someone of your own faith and race.

You have heard that it is said... that anyone who says "Happy Holidays" is anti-Christian.

You have heard that it is said... that you should protest the funerals of soldiers to make your political point about gay marriage.

I used to only follow what I KNOW Jesus said, according to the Gospels. We sometimes call people like that, "Red Letter Christians," as in they follow only the words highlighted in red. I now understand that the Holy Spirit flowed through Paul, James and the authors of the other books as well. Whenever I hear someone making a very religious statement, I check it against what I know from the Bible. I often second guess extreme ideas, especially if they conflict with Jesus' message of peace and love.

Rosamunde and Benjamin Zander, in their book, "The Art of Possibility," encourage readers to be conscious of the fact that we perceive the world according to certain ideas, many of which are false. They also encourage us to "invent" a different scenario that opens us up to more possibilities. I think we, as Christians, need to do the same from time to time. Checking our ideas about God and the world against GOD's plan for the world, as taught to us by Jesus Christ. Often, I find, that when things get confusing and hectic; doing this clarifies everything and makes the solution clear.

Lord, thank you for sending Jesus to clarify what you want from us, and to teach us your will. Help us to filter out the false ideas of the world, and to focus on your view of the world. In Jesus' name we pray.