May the God of patience and encouragement grant you to live
in harmony with one another. —Romans 15:5
I love this passage that speaks about God’s patience—God’s steadfast patience. I love it because it makes so much sense about who God is. It is unimaginable that God would create we humans a little lower than the angels, fearfully made, and not seek to work patiently with us as the potter does the lump of clay.
When I reflect over my life it is abundantly clear that God has been steadfastly patient with me. In my slowness to learn the simplest of Jesus teachings and how they might improve my life, God has kept on teaching. In the horrible choices I have made, God has not been there to beat me up, but to apply the balm of grace when I have beaten up on myself.
Patience and encouragement really are the main ingredients of harmony. They certainly pay dividends in our relationships. A marriage is much more harmonious when both spouses are patient and encouraging with each other. A family is much more harmonious when parents are patient and encouraging with their children.
It is never too late for a wandering world to come home to this idea either. Lucille Clifton is one of the great poets of the last century. In one of her poems she writes:
God waits for the wandering world.
he expects us when we enter,
late or soon.
he will not mind my coming after hours.
his patience is his promise.
It is a new day and no matter how it goes, it will not be too late in our wanderings to bring this day to God, even after hours.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, there are challenges ahead for me this day. It may be the challenge of something great or simply the challenge of the routine and the trivial. Whatever they may be let me not forget that as I wander through them I may, whether now or after hours, entrust them to your steadfast care. Amen.
C. Mac Hamon, Senior Pastor
Castleton United Methodist Church
Indianapolis, Indiana
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Monday, January 17, 2011
To Be More Childlike
Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children,
you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Whoever humbles himself like this child,
he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. —Matthew 18:3-4
It is a statement of Jesus with such clarity that it is difficult to miss his point. Unless we have the simple trust and faith in God that a child has, we’ll never get the central idea of the kingdom of God—unconditional love. Children have been used by other leaders as a means of hearkening us to our more noble selves. In Martin Luther King, Jr.’s speech from the Lincoln Memorial in August, 1963 he said,
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.
President Barack Obama touched on it in his reference to Christina Green, the nine year old girl killed by the carnage in Tucson, in his speech at the service for those victims:
I want us to live up to [Christina Green’s] expectations. I want her democracy to be as good as she imagined it. All of us—we should do everything we can to make sure this country lives up to our children’s expectations.
The same should be said of a church where people will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character and that we all want a church that will be as good as our little children imagine it.
Of course none of this is possible unless it begins with you and me. It begins right where Jesus’ words leave off—unless we become as a child. It sounds easy, and perhaps is easier than we imagine, but for an adult it is a challenge. None of us want to be hoodwinked or otherwise taken advantage of, but at some point such risks must be taken. Especially if we believe in what Jesus stood for and the world he, even today, seeks to transform through those of us who seek to be his followers.
Prayer,
Heavenly Father, fill us with the love and light of your kingdom on this new day that we may be those willing to risk lives lived by the simple but profound love and hope of a child in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Mac Hamon, Senior Pastor
Castleton United Methodist Church
Indianapolis, Indiana
you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Whoever humbles himself like this child,
he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. —Matthew 18:3-4
It is a statement of Jesus with such clarity that it is difficult to miss his point. Unless we have the simple trust and faith in God that a child has, we’ll never get the central idea of the kingdom of God—unconditional love. Children have been used by other leaders as a means of hearkening us to our more noble selves. In Martin Luther King, Jr.’s speech from the Lincoln Memorial in August, 1963 he said,
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.
President Barack Obama touched on it in his reference to Christina Green, the nine year old girl killed by the carnage in Tucson, in his speech at the service for those victims:
I want us to live up to [Christina Green’s] expectations. I want her democracy to be as good as she imagined it. All of us—we should do everything we can to make sure this country lives up to our children’s expectations.
The same should be said of a church where people will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character and that we all want a church that will be as good as our little children imagine it.
Of course none of this is possible unless it begins with you and me. It begins right where Jesus’ words leave off—unless we become as a child. It sounds easy, and perhaps is easier than we imagine, but for an adult it is a challenge. None of us want to be hoodwinked or otherwise taken advantage of, but at some point such risks must be taken. Especially if we believe in what Jesus stood for and the world he, even today, seeks to transform through those of us who seek to be his followers.
Prayer,
Heavenly Father, fill us with the love and light of your kingdom on this new day that we may be those willing to risk lives lived by the simple but profound love and hope of a child in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Mac Hamon, Senior Pastor
Castleton United Methodist Church
Indianapolis, Indiana
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Birth Reinforces Eternity
Where God was revealed to us.
Only the two of us know the magic and awe
of that presence.
Against all odds . . .
Our connection to eternity reinforced,
strengthened.
—Wayne W. Dyer
I hear the word, an overworked word now so devalued it has little emphasis at all—awesome. The word is applied to practically everything anymore—a house, an automobile’s acceleration, a piece of clothing, dessert. Is there any real wonder and awe anymore? Dyer was writing of the awe of his wife conceiving when it was against all odds. The birth of their daughter became for them, as does for so many of us with children, our connection to eternity.
If there is anything in life that is awesome, it is childbirth. It’s a miracle that an infinite number of cells can all come together over a period of time that result in a child with a certain color of hair and eyes along with all of the right number of fingers and toes. It is an awesome privilege to witness it.
In spite of Mary’s song and Joseph’s will, I wonder if either one fully realized their connection to eternity that awesome night with Jesus? Indeed, Jesus became the connection to eternity for us all in a very special way. We no longer have to wonder that it will be—only to know that it will be wonderful! I am in awe when I think about it and infinitely grateful for it, that God chose to be present with us through two very real but human beings that against all odds reinforced and strengthened our connection to eternity.
Prayer
Gracious God, I stand in awe that from the beginning what had only been a word for you became flesh and dwelt among us. I give thanks today that you knitted me together in my mother’s womb, and that I have been fearfully and wonderfully made. If in praying these words I do not yet feel them, then let me sometime during the course of this season feel them once again. Amen.
C. Mac Hamon, Senior Pastor
Castleton United Methodist Church
Indianapolis, Indiana
Only the two of us know the magic and awe
of that presence.
Against all odds . . .
Our connection to eternity reinforced,
strengthened.
—Wayne W. Dyer
I hear the word, an overworked word now so devalued it has little emphasis at all—awesome. The word is applied to practically everything anymore—a house, an automobile’s acceleration, a piece of clothing, dessert. Is there any real wonder and awe anymore? Dyer was writing of the awe of his wife conceiving when it was against all odds. The birth of their daughter became for them, as does for so many of us with children, our connection to eternity.
If there is anything in life that is awesome, it is childbirth. It’s a miracle that an infinite number of cells can all come together over a period of time that result in a child with a certain color of hair and eyes along with all of the right number of fingers and toes. It is an awesome privilege to witness it.
In spite of Mary’s song and Joseph’s will, I wonder if either one fully realized their connection to eternity that awesome night with Jesus? Indeed, Jesus became the connection to eternity for us all in a very special way. We no longer have to wonder that it will be—only to know that it will be wonderful! I am in awe when I think about it and infinitely grateful for it, that God chose to be present with us through two very real but human beings that against all odds reinforced and strengthened our connection to eternity.
Prayer
Gracious God, I stand in awe that from the beginning what had only been a word for you became flesh and dwelt among us. I give thanks today that you knitted me together in my mother’s womb, and that I have been fearfully and wonderfully made. If in praying these words I do not yet feel them, then let me sometime during the course of this season feel them once again. Amen.
C. Mac Hamon, Senior Pastor
Castleton United Methodist Church
Indianapolis, Indiana
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Let the Light Shine
In him was life, and the life was the light of all people.
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
-John 1:4-5
It is darkest before the dawn, is a phrase in common usage. I have used this phrase frequently but have not understood its origins. It refers in actual fact to that period a little past halfway through the night when the sun is directly on the opposite side of the planet. The Irish, very early, incorporated it into their sayings. A seventeenth century theologian, Thomas Fuller, is credited with first putting it in print.
The phrase means that there is hope, even in the worst circumstances or our darkest hours. It is certainly the heart of this passage from John which is one of my very favorite passages in scripture. In Jesus, God becomes more than a word, but one who brings light to the darkness of our lives. It is everywhere in the natal story. It is in the star that guided the wise men. It is in the aura surrounding the angel appearing to the shepherd. And, it is the sole contribution of John's gospel to the advent of Jesus.
There are so many inspiring aspects of the birth story-a young, single, pregnant woman, a gallant man, impoverished shepherds, wealthy wise men, angels, an evil king, etc. As inspiring as these are, the idea that God in Jesus placed light in our darkness, hope in our despair, presence in our loneliness, love in the midst of hatred, peace in the presence of struggle, gives me goose bumps.
Perhaps you are in the midst of a dark moment today. Remember that by the tender mercy of our God, the dayspring from on high is broken upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness . . . [and] to guide our feet into the way of peace (Luke 1:78-79).
Prayer-
Heavenly Father, I am grateful on this new day for the promise of light when darkness surrounds me, hope when despair is close at hand, and peace in the midst of wars. Let me be filled with your light today that I may let that light shine through me that others may be witness to your glory in this Christmas season and throughout all of life. In the name of him in whom your love is fully known, Jesus the Christ. Amen.
C. Mac Hamon, Senior Pastor
Castleton United Methodist Church
Indianapolis, Indiana
12.13.10
The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
-John 1:4-5
It is darkest before the dawn, is a phrase in common usage. I have used this phrase frequently but have not understood its origins. It refers in actual fact to that period a little past halfway through the night when the sun is directly on the opposite side of the planet. The Irish, very early, incorporated it into their sayings. A seventeenth century theologian, Thomas Fuller, is credited with first putting it in print.
The phrase means that there is hope, even in the worst circumstances or our darkest hours. It is certainly the heart of this passage from John which is one of my very favorite passages in scripture. In Jesus, God becomes more than a word, but one who brings light to the darkness of our lives. It is everywhere in the natal story. It is in the star that guided the wise men. It is in the aura surrounding the angel appearing to the shepherd. And, it is the sole contribution of John's gospel to the advent of Jesus.
There are so many inspiring aspects of the birth story-a young, single, pregnant woman, a gallant man, impoverished shepherds, wealthy wise men, angels, an evil king, etc. As inspiring as these are, the idea that God in Jesus placed light in our darkness, hope in our despair, presence in our loneliness, love in the midst of hatred, peace in the presence of struggle, gives me goose bumps.
Perhaps you are in the midst of a dark moment today. Remember that by the tender mercy of our God, the dayspring from on high is broken upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness . . . [and] to guide our feet into the way of peace (Luke 1:78-79).
Prayer-
Heavenly Father, I am grateful on this new day for the promise of light when darkness surrounds me, hope when despair is close at hand, and peace in the midst of wars. Let me be filled with your light today that I may let that light shine through me that others may be witness to your glory in this Christmas season and throughout all of life. In the name of him in whom your love is fully known, Jesus the Christ. Amen.
C. Mac Hamon, Senior Pastor
Castleton United Methodist Church
Indianapolis, Indiana
12.13.10
Monday, December 6, 2010
In the Silence
Let never music sound
Unless an angel make it;
Let stillness reign around
Until a seraph break it-
No song was ever noble
As the unsullied wide
Prairies of silence sleeping
In peace on every side.
-Sara Teasdale
Unless an angel make it;
Let stillness reign around
Until a seraph break it-
No song was ever noble
As the unsullied wide
Prairies of silence sleeping
In peace on every side.
-Sara Teasdale
Have you ever stopped on a prairie side as you rushed from Indiana's flats to Denver's mountains? There is a roadside park on I-70 between Topeka and Manhattan, Kansas offering such an opportunity. One night as I returned from one of the frequent trips to see my parents, who were living in Kansas, I stopped at that place. It was late and there were few people there. The prairie sky was ablaze with stars that seemed so close you could touch them. There was occasional silence from the highway as I sat there on a picnic table watching the stars.
What if in the midst of that silence the heavens sang for joy? There were times during that brief moment on a prairie side I felt they were singing. Would I have heard them sing in my car if I continued the race home and had not stopped? Would I have heard them in any other place where traffic could have deafened my thoughts?
I think the shepherds sharing part of the eternal silence of quiet pastures when the heavens sang for joy! It was perhaps because of this silence that they were able to witness heaven's choir as they sang Glory to God. The angelic stars proclaimed a message that something wonderful had happened, so compelling the shepherds left their flocks and hurried to an otherwise sleepy town.
I wish for you during this Advent season on some evening that a few moments of stillness reigns around you until a seraph break it with a whispered voice and tells you God has good news of great joy which is for you. I hope you are close to some simile of a prairie side and that you pull over with your life long enough to listen for their song.
Prayer
Gracious God thank you for the music of the spheres. Grant to me moments to slow down and in the silence that reigns, if only for a time, may I hear your voice loud and clear-I have good news which is of great joy and it is for you-a savior has been born-Christ the Lord. Amen.
Mac Hamon, Senior Pastor
Castleton United Methodist Church
Indianapolis, Indiana
Monday, November 29, 2010
God's Surprises
Well the carnage of Black Friday has past and the dawn of Advent’s first Sunday has past. Of course it is easy to become jaded this time of year—to bemoan the missing Christmas greeting replaced by a generic Happy Yuletide or Happy Holidays. Just about the time you think it is time to throw in the towel some random act of cultural kindness comes your way and it occurs that God is not lost.
There is a such an random act that has had well over four million hits on Youtube. It takes place in the heart of a great cathedral of consumer worship—Macy’s. In the center of Macy’s is a huge organ that is played during the shopping days. Suddenly the early musical strains of the organ break into Handel’s Messiah chorus and a great combined choir begins to sing. Shoppers stop what they are doing and begin to sing as well.
The whole scene is transformed, and for a moment the child of Bethlehem’s Spirit pervades the whole scene. Take a few minutes and watch it. I think you’ll be moved to the same tears of joy and thanksgiving that has moved so many of us.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wp_RHnQ-jgU
Prayer
Almighty God who does appear in unlikely places and in ways we would not expect, surprise us this day with the joy of this advent season that we might follow you more faithfully as disciples of Jesus the Christ. Amen.
Mac Hamon, Senior Pastor
Castleton United Methodist Church
Indianapolis, Indiana
There is a such an random act that has had well over four million hits on Youtube. It takes place in the heart of a great cathedral of consumer worship—Macy’s. In the center of Macy’s is a huge organ that is played during the shopping days. Suddenly the early musical strains of the organ break into Handel’s Messiah chorus and a great combined choir begins to sing. Shoppers stop what they are doing and begin to sing as well.
The whole scene is transformed, and for a moment the child of Bethlehem’s Spirit pervades the whole scene. Take a few minutes and watch it. I think you’ll be moved to the same tears of joy and thanksgiving that has moved so many of us.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wp_RHnQ-jgU
Prayer
Almighty God who does appear in unlikely places and in ways we would not expect, surprise us this day with the joy of this advent season that we might follow you more faithfully as disciples of Jesus the Christ. Amen.
Mac Hamon, Senior Pastor
Castleton United Methodist Church
Indianapolis, Indiana
Thursday, November 25, 2010
In God's World
The year’s at the spring
And day’s at the morn;
Morning’s at seven;
The hillside’s dew-pealed;
The lark’s on the wing;
The snail’s on the thorn;
God’s in his heaven—
All’s right with the world.
—Robert Browning
The verse above reveals the sort of unbridled optimism for which Browning was sometimes chastised in his lifetime. Browning speaks of a majestic awe and perfection in the universe as if he is saying to us, Take a look around you. Everything is just as it should be. But we know better. We are well into fall and the leaves have fallen from the trees, we’ve raked the leaves as though they cluttered the view of the dead grass, the first frost has come and gone, and the lark’s song has disappeared. This morning we may not feel awe as much as may feel awful.
Rather than seeing ourselves as connected to this world, we often feel we are in it to push it around and make it conform to us and our view of perfection. Rather than accepting it, we twist it to feed our ego, creating havoc, imbalance, and what we than call imperfection. Then the ultimate iron, we blame God for the very conditions we create out of the real perfection that is our gift from God. The fall has its beauty along with the frost and the leaves that cover our grass.
Jesus was particularly good at accepting the world for what it is and the people who inhabit it. He spoke to people of the importance of loving God, one another and ourselves as a means of making the crooked paths straight, bringing low the powerful and exalting the impoverished (Luke 1:46ff). He chastised those who kept trying to perfect the world by loading rule after rule which neither they nor anyone else could keep (Matthew 23:1ff).
Okay. Life is not perfect today or any day for that matter, at least by our estimates. God is still in his heaven. There are things around you in which you may be in awe (you have life, you have opportunity, you have support if you reach for it). Give yourself five minutes to contemplate them. Focus only on perfecting your faith to live in an imperfect world. And when the world goes haywire remember that God is the One who will help you perfect the kind of faith you need to deal with it.
Prayer
Gracious God I thank you for your perfect love. Grant that I may take a few moments to contemplate the wonder of your love for me, and the others who care about me. For this day and for the bounty of your love and grace I give thanks in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Mac Hamon, Senior Pastor
Castleton United Methodist Church
Indianapolis, Indiana
And day’s at the morn;
Morning’s at seven;
The hillside’s dew-pealed;
The lark’s on the wing;
The snail’s on the thorn;
God’s in his heaven—
All’s right with the world.
—Robert Browning
The verse above reveals the sort of unbridled optimism for which Browning was sometimes chastised in his lifetime. Browning speaks of a majestic awe and perfection in the universe as if he is saying to us, Take a look around you. Everything is just as it should be. But we know better. We are well into fall and the leaves have fallen from the trees, we’ve raked the leaves as though they cluttered the view of the dead grass, the first frost has come and gone, and the lark’s song has disappeared. This morning we may not feel awe as much as may feel awful.
Rather than seeing ourselves as connected to this world, we often feel we are in it to push it around and make it conform to us and our view of perfection. Rather than accepting it, we twist it to feed our ego, creating havoc, imbalance, and what we than call imperfection. Then the ultimate iron, we blame God for the very conditions we create out of the real perfection that is our gift from God. The fall has its beauty along with the frost and the leaves that cover our grass.
Jesus was particularly good at accepting the world for what it is and the people who inhabit it. He spoke to people of the importance of loving God, one another and ourselves as a means of making the crooked paths straight, bringing low the powerful and exalting the impoverished (Luke 1:46ff). He chastised those who kept trying to perfect the world by loading rule after rule which neither they nor anyone else could keep (Matthew 23:1ff).
Okay. Life is not perfect today or any day for that matter, at least by our estimates. God is still in his heaven. There are things around you in which you may be in awe (you have life, you have opportunity, you have support if you reach for it). Give yourself five minutes to contemplate them. Focus only on perfecting your faith to live in an imperfect world. And when the world goes haywire remember that God is the One who will help you perfect the kind of faith you need to deal with it.
Prayer
Gracious God I thank you for your perfect love. Grant that I may take a few moments to contemplate the wonder of your love for me, and the others who care about me. For this day and for the bounty of your love and grace I give thanks in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Mac Hamon, Senior Pastor
Castleton United Methodist Church
Indianapolis, Indiana
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
