"Thank you, God, for making me an athiest." - Ricky Gervais

I really enjoy Ricky Gervais.  There.  I said it.  I think he is very funny, at times (I know that not everyone agrees).  At other times, he is WAY OVER THE TOP (I think that many would agree).  And even those moments intrigue me, and, yes, often make me laugh.  Therefore, I was sorry to have missed last Sunday night's Golden Globes.  I had actually been looking forward to the show. 

Even though I missed the show, I have not missed the fall out.  I understand that Ricky was typical Ricky.  He was cutting, funny, unreserved and irreverent.  I have found it interesting that even the people who were responsible for the production of the Golden Globes have felt the need to speak out about some of the things Gervais said (Come on folks.  You hired the guy and knew what you were getting into when you signed the contract. But I digress.).  Gervais wasn't going to change his ways, for better or for worse.

Amidst all of the hullabaloo about his hosting, the comment that has gotten quite a bit of the buzz is how he signed off for the night.  In case you missed it too, Gervais said, "Thank you, God, for making me an atheist."  He has been panned, prodded, and vilified for this comment.  He has appeared on talk shows and has been asked to defend the way in which he closed the show and define the reasons why he decided to do it in such a way.  One interviewer even asked, "Did you not know you were offending people by saying that?" 

I am not sure I understand what all the fuss is really all about.  Is someone claiming to be an atheist and making a joke about it a reason to get upset?  What is it about this simple statement that frightens people?  What is it that has been exposed in ourselves in what Mr. Gervais said? 

In my opinion, his statement has opened up a door for discussions about faith and belief in God.  There is no reason to be intimidated or frightened by someone's words about their own belief set or lack there of.  If we really believe God to be who we say God is, then why would Gervais' words bother us?  Let us use this opportunity to enter into intelligent, honest and open conversations with others about beliefs, doubts and uncertainties.  There is no reason to get defensive or be offensive!  Just listen.  Open your heart and your mind; listen and share.  I think you will be surprised at the results.

Look at Paul's approach to the Athenians (Acts 17:17-27).  He did not condemn their ways or beliefs.  Instead, he affirmed their belief system, and then talked about his own.  You do not have to defend or go on the attack.  Simply be willing to enter into the conversation.

Thank you, God, for being Immanuel, God with us.  God with us as we work out what it is that we believe.

Genesis - A New Beginning

In the creation myths found at the beginning of the book we call Genesis (the word "myth" is being used here as referencing "a usually traditional story of ostensibly historical events that serves to unfold part of the world view of a people or explain a practice, belief, or natural phenomenon"), the ancient storytellers tell a dramatic tale of the beginnings of all things, and the creativity that was the source of the creating.  These stories are wonderfully colorful, epic, poetic and multi-layered. 

The debates have lingered throughout the millennia about whether or not these stories should be taken literally or figuratively.  Those on each side of the debate are equally convinced that they are right.  There are interesting arguments from each camp.  However, within the debate, the beauty and rich poetry of the creation texts can be lost.   

In the first of these creation stories, creation comes about in an ordered fashion.  This story tells us something about nature, something about God, as well as something about the relationships involved in the process.  The divine creative narrative comes to a climax with the creation of humanity. We read, "Then God said, 'Let us make humanity in our image to resemble us so that they may take charge of the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock, all the earth, and all the crawling things on earth.'
     God created humanity in God's own image,
          in the divine image God created them,
               male and female God created them.
God saw everything he had made: it was supremely good" (Genesis 1:26-27, 31, Common English Bible).

Allow the beauty of this brief passage to soak into your being.  Read the words again.  Seriously, take a second and reread the text above.  The words that follow this aren't going anywhere. 

So, what did you hear in the depths of you as you read and reread these words?

You and I, your friend and your foe, your allies and your enemies, those who are like minded and those who are completely divergent in their thinking, those who are exactly like you and those who couldn't be more different - we, one and all, are created in the "divine image."  Can you imagine that?  And what if we are most beautifully representative of that divine image in our corporate complexity as well as our precious individuality? 

Then..."God saw everything (God) had made: it was supremely good."

Allow yourself the opportunity to see the other as one who was not only created in the image of the divine, but also as one who is "supremely good."  Then, allow yourself the GRACE to see yourself as one who also is created in the image of the divine, and is "supremely good."

This beginning changes everything.  May your day be a day filled with the goodness of all that God has created.

Dr. King's Challenge

In January of 1955, in a speech titled “A Realistic Approach to Progress in Race Relations” Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. boldly declared to an audience that included many clergy, “You must do more than pray and read the Bible” in order to destroy racism and segregation, “you must do something about it."  

He also wrote, "How often are our lives characterized by a high blood pressure of creeds and an anemia of deeds!  We talk eloquently about our commitment to the principles of Christianity, and yet our lives are saturated with the practices of paganism…This strange dichotomy, this agonizing gulf between the ought and the is, represents the tragic theme of man’s earthly pilgrimage" (Strength to Love 40).

Dr. King famously over and over called the church to truly walk in the footsteps of the one whom we claim to follow, Jesus.  He admonished that we must follow his example of extravagant love not only when it is convenient and confortable.  Our lives are to be characterized by this love even when it is difficult and brings great discomfort.  This is the radical call of the Christ. 

As we read in 1 John, "By this we may be sure that we are in him: whoever says, "I abide in him," ought to walk just as he walked. Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you have had from the beginning; the old commandment is the word that you have heard. Yet I am writing you a new commandment that is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining. Whoever says, "I am in the light," while hating a brother or sister, is still in the darkness. Whoever loves a brother or sister lives in the light, and in such a person there is no cause for stumbling. But whoever hates another believer is in the darkness, walks in the darkness, and does not know the way to go, because the darkness has brought on blindness" (1 John 2:5-11).

What would it look like if we were to truly walk in the footsteps of Jesus, the Christ?  What would happen if the the "agonizing gulf between the ought and the is" where closed?

It is a question Dr. King asked long ago and is a question with which we must still wrestle.

Breathing the Divine

Fr. Thomas Keating, Trappist monk, once wrote, "We rarely think of air we breathe, yet it is in us and around us all the time.  In similar fashion, the presence of God penetrates us, is all around us, is always embracing us, and it is delightful."

In Genesis we read these words, "On the day the LORD God made earth and sky - before any wild plants appeared on the earth, and before any field crops grew...the LORD God formed the human from the topsoil of the fertile land and blew life's breath into his nostrils.  The human came to life." (Genesis 2:1-7, Common English Bible) 

We rarely think of the air we breathe.  However, maybe we should.  The Divine breath is in each one of us.  We cannot get away from it.  It permeates the very blood that courses through our veins and the air that fills our lungs.  We cannot flee the presence of God any more than we can run from our own breath. 

Take heart.  God is with you.  God fills every breath you draw. 

Divine Breath

Ceaseless

Ever present

Change of seasons

Passage of time

Simplistic rhythm

Enigmatic process

Filling with life

Purging of death

Ceaseless

Ever present

Rising of the sun

Appearance of the moon

Proximity unnoticed

Necessity irrefutable

Providing life’s essence

Expelling its poison

Ceaseless

Ever present

Air we breathe

Sustenance we need

Intimacy overlooked

Impact undeniable 

Bestowing new life

Conquering sin’s infliction

Ceaseless

Ever present

Beat of life

Power to live

Heart’s desire

Spirit’s yearning

Loving with passion

Living within

                      --- by Brian Shivers

Let me know what you are thinking and DON'T FORGET TO BREATHE.

The Face of Grace

What is grace?  What does it look like?  Does it have a face?

Here is a thought-provoking quote from theologian Paul Tillich about grace.
"Grace strikes us when we are in great pain and restlessness. It strikes us when we walk through the dark valley of a meaningless and empty life. It strikes us when we feel that our separation is deeper than usual, because we have violated another life, a life which we loved, or from which we were estranged. It strikes us when our disgust for our own being, our indifference, our weakness, our hostility, and our lack of direction and composure have become intolerable to us. It strikes us when, year after year, the longed-for perfection of life does not appear, when the old compulsions reign within us as they have for decades, when despair destroys all joy and courage. Sometimes at that moment a wave of light breaks into our darkness, and it is as though a voice were saying: ‘You are accepted. You are accepted, accepted by that which is greater than you, and the name of which you do not know. Do not ask for the name now; perhaps you will find it later. Do not try to do anything now; perhaps later you will do much. Do not seek for anything; do not perform anything; do not intend anything. Simply accept the fact that you are accepted!’ (emphasis added)  If that happens to us, we experience grace. After such an experience we may not be better than before, and we may not believe more than before. But everything is transformed. In that moment, grace conquers sin, and reconciliation bridges the gulf of estrangement. And nothing is demanded of this experience, no religious or moral or intellectual presupposition, nothing but acceptance."

Grace is inexplicable.  Grace is more than what we imagine.  Grace sustains.  Grace exclaims, “You ARE accepted.”

The Apostle Paul wrote, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God – not the result of works, so that no one may boast.”  Ephesians 2:8-9

What or who is the face of grace to you?

Blessings in the peace and grace of God who accepts you for who you are.