On Sunday, August 30, 2009, Claire (Wang Yiran) from Beijing, China, was Baptized into the Body of Christ at Christus Victor Lutheran Church.  

Up until one year ago, Claire did not know about or believe in Jesus Christ.  A year ago Claire heard the Good News of God’s love and forgiveness through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, she experienced the love of God in her heart, and became a follower of Jesus.  A year later, while on an internship at the Minnesota Zoo, to improve her English language skills, half a world away from her home she found a group of Christians gathered together for worship and Christian fellowship near the apartment where she was living.  These Christians called themselves Lutherans, which she had never heard of before.  But that didn’t matter to her so much because a number of these Lutheran-Christians greeted her and made her feel welcome and at home, and through their worship, praise, words, and actions she knew these people loved Jesus Christ.  So she asked them a question…

“I have never been Baptized.  I want to be Baptized, and want to be Baptized in this church, among these Christian people, before I go back to China.”   Through emails and in the conversations that followed, it became clear how much Claire knew and loved Jesus, and how much she desired to be Baptized into the life of God, into the forgiveness of her Sin, into the Family of God, which is the Body of Christ, the Church Universal.   Her passion and commitment to continue to learn and grow in her knowledge, understanding, and spiritual life in Christ, was deeply moving.  And she is so excited to share her faith in God with her friends and classmates in China, most of whom have never heard the story of Jesus Christ, and the love God given to every person on earth.  

Claire had never heard about Martin Luther or the Reformation.  She knew very little about Church History, the development of the creeds and doctrines of the Church, nor the long process of determining the Canon of Scripture known as the New Testament, let alone all that is contained within those scriptures and the various interpretations thereof.  She had no idea what the differences might be between her church in China and our church in America (At one point she asked, “what’s a denomination?”), but she did know that we believed in and followed Jesus Christ and had the love of God in our hearts.  And I saw the same in her!  What a witness to the vastness of the Body of Christ (Beijing, China – Apple Valley, USA – Mlowa, Tanzania – Dominican Republic), and to the power of the Holy Spirit to work through very different people from very different places, to build each up in faith!!

The Body of Christ is bigger than any ethnic group, culture, country, or denomination.  God’s intention, revealed throughout the Bible, is to gather all the people of the world together into the love of Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit (this gives you the jist of churchy words like redemption, salvation, and sanctification).

In the midst of denominational rivalries and struggles, in the midst of the conflicts and divisions within the ELCA, in the midst of our  own struggles and challenges, both large and small, within our own congregation, to experience first-hand that God’s love and work is more wonderful, powerful, and beyond any of our comprehension or control gives me great hope and comfort.  To see the Holy Spirit overcoming and transcending any and all barriers to bring people to faith, strengthen people in faith, and bring people of faith together is to know that all we really can do, or need to do, is give witness in our own lives to the love and forgiveness of Jesus Christ that has been given to us.  ”Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.” – 1 John 4: 7

 

Fishing and Hunting Shack in the Honey Island Swamp.

Living in a Swamp

When I heard my friends had moved to New Orleans with their three girls and were living in a community ten miles from the Gulf Coast, in an area still recovering from Hurricane Katrina, surrounded by swamp and bayou, my media-formed imagination thought of something like this shack I saw while down visiting in mid-August.  My imagination also assumed swarms of mosquitoes thicker and hungrier than their northern siblings in Minnesota, gators crawling in every watery mud hole, and hurricane ravaged wildlife and communities.   My bias was wrong on those counts and more.

I was pleasantly surprised at the beauty and peacefulness of the swamp, that though hot and muggy (it was mid-August), there was a cool breeze off of the water and few mosquitoes buzzing in my ear.  The trees, plants, and flowers were an exotic backdrop for the many egrets, herons, and birds we saw while on our boat tour, just ten minutes from my friends’ beautiful new house.  Truly, they do live in a swamp.  But unless this was brought to your attention you really wouldn’t know.  That is until, after a particularly hard rain, seeing the water standing in all of the ditches and people’s yards, with no where to go, you really knew you were near a swamp in a low lying area, which pretty much sums up the entire area, and helps you understand how the devastating waters of the hurricane could have gone so far inland to reck havoc.  

Of ‘Gators and Real Danger

Alligator swimming to our boat.

It was rather disconcerting to find alligators swimming around the swamp as we drove by in our tour boat.  Most of which were rather small (4 or 5 feet long), but still seeing something that big, with large teeth, coming your way, touches a primal fear within you.  From somewhere within comes the fearful voice, “that thing could eat me.”  And of course, in the right (or wrong) situation and conditions, one could attack, but alligators usually stay clear of people and rarely attack.  In fact, they only come close when there is promise of some tasty marshmallows or hot dogs on a stick.  Still, seeing a 15 foot ‘gator lunge out of the water 3-4 feet just for a hot dog does make one weary and keep a respectful distance. 

The two dangerous things you have to be careful about are the aggressive and poisonous water moccasins and falling out of a boat.  Falling out of a boat and hitting your head on some submerged object and drowning is probably the most dangerous thing, and simply requires not acting stupid.  Actually people usually don’t fall out of boats, they are usually jumping out of a boat or off a dock without knowing what’s below the water, that gets them in trouble.  Again, the most dangerous thing in a swamp are people who do things without thinking. Snakes you can stay away from pretty easily. 

Facing unexamined prejudices

I was not aware that I held such prejudices about the south.  Only after the hurricane and our churches subsequent support of the relief and rebuilding efforts through our sister church in Mississippi, did I give any thought to what daily life might be like in the southern states along the Gulf Coast.  My attitudes and prejudices have been formed from bits and pieces from the news, tv shows, movies, music, and through the stories of people who have lived or visited a particular place.  It takes an open mind, a desire to learn and experience new things, and a willingness to change your beliefs and attitudes about people and places when what is really real clashes with your prejudices.  It also takes good friends who will show you around, tell you some of the history of a place and people, and plan some new experiences for you.  

 

The French Quarter in New Orleans.

Sabbatical Close to Over

It truly seems only a short while ago that I closed and locked my office door to head to the cabin for Memorial Day weekend and the start of my sabbatical.  What seemed like a long stretch of time has quickly come to a close, and I am incredibly grateful to the leaders and members of CV for their support and this gift of time away to refresh, renew, and recharge my mind, body, soul, and relationships for the sake of on-going ministry.

Sabbath does what it means, “Stop!”

Driving through the Rockies in Colorado, Melissa and Daniel wondered at the emergency braking sand pits for trucks.  ”Why do the trucks need such long sandy stretches up the side of the mountain?”  Because a fast moving, heavy vehicle takes a long time to slow down to a safe stop.  

I have been putting the pedal to the metal myself for the last few years.  OK, probably always, from the stories my high school friends tell.  Just like those trucks without brakes hurtling down the mountain side, it took me a while to stop.  By the end of June I had finally begun to slow down to a healthy level, both mentally and spiritually.  It took me three weeks to totally decompress from my fast pace of ministry and life.  Since starting at Christus Victor at the end of October 1998, I have slowed down only enough throughout each year to take a deep breath before plunging back into the fray.  

Sabbath Keeping Needs to Continue

Like almost everyone I know, keeping the Sabbath Holy, is a quaint concept removed from the fast pace and demands on our lives.  Yet if we continue to live without keeping the Sabbath, as a weekly gift of rest and renewal from God, the results are deadly.  I don’t exactly know how yet, but finding weekly, even daily, Sabbath time will be an important priority in the months and years to come.  For when we are too busy, too hurried, too “stressed-out” all of the time, we really cannot pay much attention to God, to Christ in our midst, or to the breath of the Holy Spirit, let alone the people God has placed in our lives to love and care for.

Stop, then Look, then Listen

My spiritual director, Jon Ackerman, has shared with our CV staff and leadership a simple method to help us pay attention to God.  The three steps are STOP, LOOK, and LISTEN.  Not surprisingly you cannot skip the first step to pay attention and listen to God.  You must STOP, which is the literal meaning of Sabbath.  Check out his link for more resources you can use yourself and with your family.

Lead Listener

One final connection between Stopping/Sabbath Keeping and what I’ve learned on this Sabbatical.  One of the main responsibilities I have in my role as senior pastor is to be the Lead Listener.  This is something I have not done as well as I should or could.  In my busyness and the constant rush I tend to fall into being the Lead Problem Solver instead.  (Not that solving problems isn’t important, it’s just not the most important).  Listening to others and listening to God takes both time and intentionality.  But even more is to help others learn to listen to God as well, because to be a follower of Jesus means we better be listening and paying attention to His voice, in Word and in Prayerful attentiveness.  Keeping the Sabbath is a critical discipline to being able to listen to God.  We’ll see how it goes.

Soul friends is not a term we are used to, and many have never heard of the term.  It does not refer to an acquaintance, or even a “best friend.”  Remember as a kid trying to figure out who was your “best friend” as opposed to just a friend.  ”Best friends” are forever, but we sadly learned not all of the time.  There are good friends, best friends, casual friends, the infamous “just friends,” and whatever other adjectives you would choose to add.  Friendships of whatever level are important and needed in our lives.  In any case, what I mean by soul friends is something different, beyond, and deeper than “best friends.”    It is a person with whom you have shared glimpses into each others souls; your deepest beliefs, questions, doubts, failures, fears, and hopes.  This person is most likely not your spouse and probably of the same sex, not sexual relationship, though very intimate.  

In listening to countless people over the years talking about their relationships with friends, and observing the interaction of people with their “best friends” over time, I find this kind of soul friendship very rare.  A rare and priceless gift.  And one that takes much time, risk, and commitment.

Soul friends can look you in the eye and tell you truths you would rather avoid or deny, but need to hear.  At the same time, because of the love you share, you receive the truth as a gift, even as it cuts.  It goes both ways as you challenge, support, encourage, and love each other into spiritual growth and wholeness.  Why spiritual growth and wholeness?   Because at the center of the relationship between soul friends, God is present.  It is not that God is not present in other relationships, but that soul friends intentionally pay attention to God in the midst of their friendship.  Whenever you are dealing with issues of the soul, you are necessarily dealing with God.

As I wrote, it takes time, risk, and commitment, but also patience.  This kind of friendship usually doesn’t just “happen.”  It develops and grows over time.  It takes a willingness of both friends to share not only their faith journey, but also the real struggles and brokenness, as well as joy and happiness that dwell deep in our souls.  

I am still working at this with a number of my friends.  Sometimes we’re intentional about it, sometimes not, but we continue to work at our friendship with love, patience, and trust that God will guide us along the way.