Hallowe'en Fun

Courtesy of Reverend Fun:

Musical Monday: Worship

Yesterday's sermon was on trust (and faith, since the two are so deeply connected). I sometimes wish my trust in God was stronger during the dark times, such as the past few months. Yet, in retrospect, I don't think that my faith changed a whole lot. I knew that God was in control of the situation, I just wished I knew what he was up to.

Maybe he was waiting for me to make sure that I was ready to live with my choice: abandoning our business of seven years for the stability of corporate employment. And so, now, I face a fresh challenge that is exciting, nerve-wracking, and another potential leap into the great unknown (the job puts me in the "hot seat," with a high risk of being burned due to close proximity to the fire). But through it all, God remains the one I must trust.

While I was mowing the lawn yesterday, this song was playing, and I thought it would be perfect for today's post. It's a departure from my custom so far of featuring secular music, but my life is about to make a big change from the customary. Here's You Are God Alone by Phillips, Craig, & Dean.

Thanksgiving

I decided not to play the RevGals Friday Five today...not because I have anything against Halloween, but I didn't grow up with it. Instead, I'm looking ahead to "Thanksgiving" and find myself, as usual, turning to Psalms. This is Psalm 4:5-8:

Offer right sacrifices
and trust in the Lord.

Many are asking, "Who can show us any good?"
Let the light of your face shine upon us, O Lord.

You have filled my heart with greater joy
than when their grain and new wine abound.

I will lie down and sleep in peace,
for you alone, O Lord,
make me dwell in safety.

The fortune-cookie God

As some of you may know, for the past couple of months I've been praying for discernment in the job search process. I had not entirely given up on my plans for continuing the business, but prayed that God would make it very, very clear which path I should take. Above all, I prayed for stability in our financial situation.

Today, I accepted a job offer at a company here in town. The position is very similar to the one I held seven years ago, before I started the business. I'm grateful for the opportunity (although I have some reservations about entering the corporate world again) and especially grateful for the paycheck.

Today was also D's birthday, so we went out for lunch to a Chinese restaurant...this is typically the extent of our family celebration. At the end of the meal, I picked up a fortune cookie, broke it open, and read:

"You will never need to worry about a steady income."

It's gratifying to note that God never loses his sense of humor :)

Poetry invitation: Beauty of broken things

It's time for another poetry invitation from Abbey of the Arts. This time, I'm going back to my favorite poetry form, and I'm beginning to appreciate the infinite variety of the sonnet. This one's a little rough around the edges, but it's been a long day...
On Grief and Growth
Its wizened fingers pointing at the sun,
The tree cries out. It seeks someone to blame,
But, finding none, it bows its head in shame
And grieves for what is lost. And so to run

Its course (or so it seems) why, grief must shun
The swampy depths of truth. Should it then look
For answers that are writ in stone? The book
Of life conceals adroitly what is won

At length, accompanied by pain: grief must
Rip pages out. It is the only way
That roots can grow. The leaves shall turn to dust
Before the dawn and promise of the day.

Then spring abrades, with gentle touch, the scars
That grief endures, and hope brings healing powers.

World (sorta) Series

D is usually the one who posts about M's exploits, but it's my turn now...

M finds baseball (and other sports on TV) "boring." She will try her best to change the channel if we're watching baseball (which we don't do that often, unless the Red Sox are in the playoffs). So last week, guess who was walking around with a home-made banner that read "GO BOS GO"? It's a good thing she hasn't seen this:
It's hard for me to mention the World Series without an aside about how self-important Major League Baseball is. A World Series, with one country playing--at most, two? Contrast that with a cricket World Cup where you have 16 qualifying countries. Now, that's a World Series.

Musical Monday: On simplicity

Most of us remember simpler times growing up. One experience that stands out for me was how the radio was a primary source of entertainment. Although TV was around when I was a kid, my parents refused to buy a set because there wasn't much on that was worth watching. And so we'd sit around the radio, listening to broadcasts from around the world--plays, music, game shows. And, of course, cricket. It was an art form that is almost meaningless now, listening to the commentary and watching the plays being made in your head.



It's ironic that Queen's video for Radio Ga Ga became more popular than the song itself. For me, the song evokes memories of simplicity and a slower pace of life. When I think about spirituality, however, simplicity can be a double-edged sword.

In one sense, I wonder if we have buried the sacred among the razzle-dazzle, multimedia-driven Christianity that is so popular (or, just as bad, the traditional, overly ritualistic version), and if the simple message of the radio broadcast has got lost among the "background noise." Yet there's a danger in simplifying theology: it sometimes results in Christianity where the Bible is taken literally and used as a weapon to judge and condemn, where the world is black and white.

What are some of the ways we can simplify our faith without losing the meaning?

Friday Five: Food edition

Mmmm...Friday Five (from the RevGals):

1. If you were a food, what would you be?
Dark chocolate (non-dairy)...does that count as a food?

2. What is one of the most memorable meals you ever had? And where?
A fifteen-plus-course meal at a Chinese wedding (in Boston).

3. What is your favorite comfort food from childhood?
I didn't really have one. I ate just about anything, though.

4. When going to a church potluck, what one recipe from your kitchen is sure to be a hit?
Something with chick peas...usually aloo chole.

5. What’s the strangest thing you ever willingly ate?
Probably sea cucumber, at the aforementioned Chinese wedding. There were other strange items, too, where I followed the "don't ask, don't tell" policy. In case you're wondering, no, sea cucumber is not a vegetable.

Bonus question: What’s your favorite drink to order when looking forward to a great meal?
Not so much anymore, but I used to really like dry, full-bodied red wines.

My political leanings

Several blogs have links to "candidate selectors" that are supposed to help you identify candidates that most closely match your views. I tried a couple and was not impressed with the results. So I found another site that let me map my "political compass." The results were somewhat surprising:
After comparing my results to those of the current crop of candidates, I began to realize why I was disappointed earlier (and why I liked Mike Gravel in spite of his cantankerous and even comic showing in the debates). It's probably a good thing that I'm not yet entitled to vote...

Musical Monday: Hanging on

I've had a few posts recently where I've mentioned our downward spiral. It seems that one door has closed, but another has yet to open...my job search has not yielded any results thus far. As a result, we face another month of living on credit.

Some day, none of this will matter. And so we hang on to that frayed thread of hope, and continue with our lives as best we can. Living on a prayer...

More joy

Today's sermon was on laughter, and I was reminded of a post I wrote a couple of years ago. That post was written when we were at our previous church. There was joy there, but ultimately it wasn't enough. Now, we're at a church where the joy is perhaps less exuberant but no less real, backed up by faith, action, and a true sense of caring for all human beings. It has been hard to find a lot of joy this past week, so today was a breath of fresh air, a reminder that the Spirit is working even when it's difficult to summon enough energy to laugh out loud.

And even though today isn't Musical Monday, since the reading was from one of my favorite passages, I'll offer the following:

The Jubilee Act

I received a message from ONE today about the Jubilee Act. This is something we can all do, it takes just a few seconds, and it's a lot easier than fasting for 40 days.

A bill in Congress would cancel that debt for countries that commit to using the savings for poverty reduction, giving dozens of nations and millions of people a real chance at a better future. That bill is the Jubilee Act, and there is man who is dying to get it passed.

Reverend David Duncombe is taking 40 days off from his day job to walk the halls of Congress, asking our elected officials to support debt cancellation and the Jubilee Act. For 40 days, he's stretching his body to the very limits of human survival to pressure Congress to cancel the debt. And we can help him.

His 40 day fast ends October 17th on the Global Day of Action Against Poverty. That gives us one week to back up his fast with our voices. Let's all take action and send 40,000 letters to the U.S. House of Representatives—1,000 letters for each day of the fast—asking for support for the Jubilee Act and an end to the debt trap.

To help, by sending a letter to your Congressional reps, visit ONE's web page--they will even send the letter for you.

Friday Five: The B-I-B-L-E

This week's RevGal's Friday Five is about the Bible:

1. What is your earliest memory of encountering a biblical text?
I don't really have one, but I do remember reading a children's bible when I was around five. I'm sure I was exposed to scripture before that, though :)

2. What is your favorite biblical translation, and why? (You might have a few for different purposes).
I grew up first with the King James, then the RSV. At the moment, I'm still using a St Joseph edition of the NAB because I like the commentary and footnotes, although I prefer the NIV. And, of course, for taking the bible with you, there's nothing better than eSword, although sadly, there is no free NIV module.

3. What is your favorite book of the Bible? Your favorite verse/passage?
Favorite book: probably Luke/Acts. I'm not good at memorizing verses, but the ones that I do remember are usually from the same ol' hymns that were sung in church throughout my childhood. The one that comes to mind most often is Psalm 23: The lord is my shepherd, I shall not want...

4. Which book of the Bible do you consider, in Luther's famous words about James, to be "an epistle of straw?" Which verse(s) make you want to scream?
Oh, there are probably too many to single out. I'm not a big fan of the OT in general, and even Paul gets a bit bombastic at times. I've often said that if I started a church, it would be the "Church of the Gospels" (Acts included).

5. Inclusive language in biblical translation and liturgical proclamation: for, against, or neutral?
This may offend some of you; if so, I apologize in advance. I'm speaking as writer, not a reader. I do believe that political correctness gets carried too far, resulting in clumsy and awkward writing. That said, I recognize the need to make writing from a very different time and culture relevant today. I do not, however, like The Message. As far as gender issues go, I don't believe that God should be represented as either male or female; however, Jesus used the illustration of God as the Father throughout his teaching, and that's what I use as a default.

Bonus: Back to the Psalms--which one best speaks the prayer of your heart?
See #3: Psalm 23

Poetry invitation

Better late...

This time, I'm resisting the temptation to write another sonnet. Instead, here's my entry for Christine's poetry invitation:


Metamorphosis

the winged beast waits;
his eyes pierce the night,
watching. time flows
in an endless loop
that he has mastered
long ago.

a mouse approaches,
hungry, worn, and weary,
seeking shelter. the warmth
invites. the feathered arch
beckons with its promise
of comfort.

a shriek. a squeal. talons grip
the furry body. a razor
tears through flesh.
shelter was a promise
never kept. instead of haven,
extinction.

At least I'm in good company...

Ps 13:1-3

How long, O LORD ? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?

How long must I wrestle with my thoughts
and every day have sorrow in my heart?
How long will my enemy triumph over me?

Look on me and answer, O LORD my God.
Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death;

Introductions

I've been reading and commenting today, but not blogging. So I thought I'd link to a couple of blogs that I read instead. Since most of my regular readers are RevGal or Moderate Christian Blogroll members, here are two blogs that don't belong to either group:

At Quiet Musings from Virginia, LJ discusses what she's learned from her adopted beagle.

And over at Mumbai Magic, here's another great photo essay.

Musical Monday: For lives lost

I had made plans for this post. It was to be an uplifting one, about the permanence of hope. Then I read this news.

What struck me, more than anything else, was the age of the killer (and the victims). He was just a kid, 20 years old; at that age, he shouldn't even have been in the police force, let alone trained in the use of a deadly weapon.

In this Sunday's sermon, our pastor read from James 4:13-14:

Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.

As always, when faced with tragedy of this magnitude, I find myself asking why. And as always, God doesn't provide answers (at least, none that I want to hear). All he promises is that he is watching over us, that he will help us see it through, and he will protect us in the night. As he has always done, in silent lucidity.

(In case you don't recognize the song, it's Silent Lucidity by Queensryche.)

Friday Five: Thankfulness list

This week's RevGals Friday Five is simple: a list of five things for which I'm thankful. Optimism and thankfulness has been in short supply lately, so this is a good exercise for me.

I'm thankful for:

1. A roof over our heads that is relatively new. We couldn't afford to get the old one replaced, but then a hailstorm intervened.
2. Seven years of learning, struggling, discovering new skills, and spending time with D, M, and F when it was needed most. Something that very few of us get to do.
3. New challenges and opportunities, even though I still can't see where the road leads.
4. The support of D (and M, although she doesn't know exactly what is going on: she has gone from "Daddy works all the time" to "Daddy doesn't work much anymore." I can tell you that neither is entirely true!) .
5. The RevGals and other blogpals, and the reminder they have given me to continue holding on to hope.

Free Burma

Spread the word: Free Burma blogging day tomorrow

I normally don't have much faith in online petitions or e-mail campaigns. However, this one is different. It's a show of solidarity by people all across the globe, a way to unite with those in Burma defending their freedom (and their lives). And it doesn't take much effort at all.

You can read about the International Bloggers' Day for Burma, and then participate tomorrow if you can.

Musical Monday: First edition

I've decided to try a regular blogging feature...maybe it will prompt me to be more consistent about writing.

Some of you know that music is very important to me, so you probably won't be surprised that this new endeavor is called "Musical Monday." There are many songs--good, bad, and indifferent--that, for various reasons, trigger a memory or association with certain times in our lives. They may be from prolific artists or one-hit wonders, and most of them will probably not be from Christian artists. My posts will consist of either a video or song lyrics, with commentary, and an invitation to share your own thoughts and memories.

So I thought, "What better way to kick off this series than Manic Monday, by the Bangles?"



For many years now, Mondays have not had special significance for me. Yet there was a time when I hated the thought of beginning the work week--I even used to get really depressed on Sunday nights. I wonder how many of us are trapped in jobs that we hate, and make it through the week just waiting for the weekend to arrive. And for some of us, the weekend is even more hectic, and so we're burned out before we even begin a new week.

God had this figured out a while ago, when he commanded us to take a day off and spend some time with him. Yesterday was a special day for us, as M participated in communion (it was "family Sunday"). Although she's done this once before at our previous church, it seemed like this was the first time she absorbed some of the meaning and significance.

Are your Mondays manic? If not, how do you find balance in your work week?