Rouge River Community Church

Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Maze

Wall.

Wall!

How did I get here if every direction is a wall? How can I be closed off...

... from family

... from friends (what friends?)

... from hope?

... from God?

I am not alone in this box. Love is here. Community is here. Hope is here. All trapped...

... by the restrictions we put on each other

... by the "no's" we put on each other

... by the frustrations of life we put on each other

God, I know I chose the route through this maze. It's my fault, but I need you to...

... show up

... knock these walls down

If I am free, why do I am so bound? Why can't I just be bound...

... to you God?

(Based on Habakkuk's complaints in Habakkuk 1)

Posted By Andre Lauzon At 9:39 AM •

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

What Are You Giving Up For Lent?

I grew up in a predominately Roman Catholic context in Eastern Ontario. Each year at about this time, I can remember various friends and family members asking, "What are you giving up for Lent?" I didn't think much of the question, being a non-observant Protestant at the time. As I came to faith in Christ, in an evangelical sense, and then wandered off to ministry training and pastoring, the question seemed even less relevant. Of late, however, the wisdom of the ancients has found a place in my meditations.

Ash Wednesday is the beginning of the 40 day (46 day if you count Sundays) period of repentance and humility leading up to Easter. This is meant to be a season of quiet introspection, a time of giving up luxury and addictions, for the sake of a closer walk with Christ. Lent is a movable fast (dates change from year to year), and Ash Wednesday is the starting gate. In Roman Catholic, Anglican, and other traditions, the service or mass on Ash Wednesday includes the spreading of ashes onto one's forehead, sometimes in the shape of a cross. In ancient days in the middle east, throwing ashes on one's head was a sign of grieving and repentance. That tradition was picked up in the Roman period of the church.

So, what are you giving up for Lent? A season of introspection and humbling one's self doesn't sound like a bad idea. Those ancients just may have been on to something. Have you sins for which you are grieved? Why not make them right (even if you are reading this and its not Ash Wednesday)? Are you coming out of a winter of excess, a winter of too much self and too much indulgence? This is a perfect time and a good reason to refocus, to set aside the addictions and selfishness and luxuries that hinder a closer relationship with God. While not a mandated celebration, according to the Bible, still not a bad idea. What are you giving up for Lent?

Posted By Andre Lauzon At 8:45 AM •

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Not In My House

As a family, we went to the Hockey Hall of Fame yesterday. As we were looking around the gift shop, I was witness to a uniquely Canadian exchange between a father and his child. The girl, about ten, was wearing her teams jersey. Obviously, she was a hockey player. The father was wearing a Toronto Maple Leafs jersey. Obviously a troubled soul (sorry Leaf fans, had to say it!). The father was leafing (ha ha) through the child size jerseys, looking for something in particular. He called over his shoulder to his daughter, "How about a Kessel jersey? You like Kessel, right?" It sounded like he was trying to convince her more than ask her. She immediately shot back, with some panic in her voice, "No Dad! I like Ovechkin. I want an Ovechkin jersey!" Dad turned back to the rack. Almost right away, he pulled out a Washington Capitals jersey with "Ovechkin" and the star's signature #8 on the back. He turned to show his discovery to his daughter, "Look! I found one!" At the same time, the daughter exclaimed, "Me too! How about this one!" She held up a team Russia jersey with Ovechkin's name and number on the back. The dad became quite serious, his only response, in a low voice, almost a growl,"Not in my house."

I guess a father's love has limits. Go Canada Go.

Posted By Andre Lauzon At 9:17 AM •

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Waiting

  I will climb up to my watchtower
      and stand at my guardpost.
   There I will wait to see what the Lord says
      and how he will answer my complaint. (Habakkuk 2:1 NLT)

Habakkuk was a musical priest in Israel about 600BC. He was also a prophet, a "mouth-piece" of God. He got to be a prophet through his complaint to God about the degenerating situation in his society. The place was falling apart; murder, violence, corruption, injustice at every turn. The fear of God, a tenet in Israel for centuries, was no longer recognized, and the civil authorities sold fairness to the highest bidder. So, Habakkuk decided to take it up with the boss.

"Hey God! Your people are in chaos down here! Don't you care? Why aren't you doing something about it, God?!" He shouted at the Lord. God's answer? Less than positive, at least from Habakkuk's perspective, "Hey Habakkuk! You know your worst enemy? That country over there with the most ruthless and terrifying and powerful army? I'm going to let them invade Israel. You think you've got injustice and violence now! What a bit, and then you'll see how the big boys do it!" Great answer, eh?

So Habakkuk complained again. His second complaint, in Chapter 1 of the book that bears his name, is pleading. "God, you want to wipe us out? Is this invasion punishment for our sin? OK God, I get that, but why destroy us completely? We have expectations of you and you don't seem to be living up to them! As far as we're concerned, you 're breaking your promises to your people. Where are you! Show up!"

And then Habakkuk says the above (see beginning of the blog entry). The grammar in the original gives the feeling of someone who just challenged another to a fight, at a time and place. See you behind the gym at 3pm! Habakkuk has put God on warning. He is going to vigilantly wait for God to answer his complaint. "I'm watching you God. You can be sure that when you do something, I'll be right there to see what it is."

When was the last time you waited on God? Not a passive, "Oh, God will do His thing in His time." But rather an active, focused, "OK God, show up!". Habakkuk throughout this book is respectful to God. This isn't a whiny child having a tantrum because he did not get his way. This is a passionate spiritual leader trying to reconcile why everything he has been taught about God is not measuring up in the current circumstances. His watchtower is a symbol of a man on guard for his people, and actively waiting for God's next move.

What is he difference between active and passive waiting on God? Passive waiting surrenders one's own will to the timing and wisdom of God. Active waiting stands alert for God's actions, respectful and expectant. Passive waiting on God turns everything over to Him and lets go of it. Active waiting partners with God. Passive waiting is the crowd watching a relay race at the stadium. Active waiting is the runner waiting for the baton.

In the Old Testament (where waiting on God is taken to spiritual heights) divides the two based on interest. Passive waiting is appropriate when one is self-interested. Active waiting is called for when the interest is the welfare of others. For example, If I am stressed about a personal problem, and have done everything I can do to solve it, asking God to help and then trusting Him to intervene, results in appropriate passive waiting. This grows personal peace and faith. However, if I see another in need, it's too easy to just "give it to God". That is an abdication of love.

Several months ago at the River, we had a client desperate for a refrigerator. This client had no means to purchase one (neither did we) and was in trouble. We put the word out everywhere looking for one. We actively searched Craigslist and the like, and kept looking, waiting for God to show up. We were beginning to wonder what was taking so long! Then one Sunday morning, first time visitors to the church came up to me after service and said they had a fridge to donate. God showed up. They had not even heard about the specific need of the fridge for our client, but just knew generally what kind of things we did for others. We had all the pieces in place; the pickup to carry the fridge and the men to lift. All we needed was the fridge, and here it was. We actively waited for God, on behalf of the just need of another, and were able to respond so quickly when God showed up!

Habakkuk looked around at his culture, his society and said, "Enough!" (Note: This wasn't a fundamentalist rant against the lifestyle choices of his nation, nor its "media" consumption, but rather a pleading for peace and justice in world gone mad.) As a priest, he was actively involved in the betterment of society, but was overwhelmed. He called out to God, on behalf of the other (others) and actively waited for God to show up. And when he didn't like God's answer, he went into aggressive negotiations with the Creator to make things right. Oh, that we would pursue justice with the passion and commitment of a Habakkuk!

Posted By Andre Lauzon At 9:58 AM •

Wednesday, February 03, 2010

Clean, or How to Clean Up Vomit in 4 Easy Steps.

I spent the last couple of days cleaning up after kids (and me) suffering with some kind of stomach flu. Eeew! I am proud to say that my house has never smelled cleaner, however! If you were to enter my place right now, the pungent, clean smell of Pine-Sol™ would greet you. It might cause your eyes and nose to burn, but you wouldn't smell anything else, that's for sure!

When you meet someone you know is sick with something communicable, how do you respond? Do you rush to embrace them like long lost family, or do you keep your distance? Heck, when I left the house today, I shooed my wife away from a hug and kiss, "Don't touch me, you could be a carrier!" Our response to disease is telling. We hold our own health over short-term relationship almost every time. The same was true in Jesus day concerning spiritual health.

The ancient Israelites of the first century believed that one became unclean through a whole host of activities; touching a dead body, coming into physical contact with someone with a skin blemish or disease, getting close to a menstruating woman. There were elaborate rituals that needed to be followed to become clean again. Several examples of this belief of transmission of uncleanliness appear during Jesus' earthly ministry recorded in the Gospels.

Luke 17:11-19 gives some small insight into this. Ten lepers called out to Jesus as he entered a certain town. Jesus heals them from a distance, and tells them to go see the priests to be declared clean, just as instructed in the law of Moses. The lepers would not come close for fear of making Jesus unclean. Luke 8 also shows us this same attitude in the Israelite culture. Jesus is on his way to a synagogue ruler's house to heal the man's sick daughter. On the way, a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years reaches out and touches Jesus' cloak hem. Her back-story reveals a desperate women, ready to risk a death penalty in the hope of healing. In that culture, a woman who was bleeding for that long would not have been touched by anyone, not even her husband. Can you imaging having no physical contact with anyone for twelve years? We'd likely go mad. This woman had been to doctors, sought the advice of priests and wise women, but nothing helped. In a last desperate act, she found the miracle worker Jesus, and lunged to touch him for healing. Jesus noticed the touch, even in the midst of a large and pressing crowd. The frightened, but healed woman stepped forward to explain why. Jesus tells her that her faith has healed her. A new paradigm has also just kicked in- cleanliness is what is transmitted, not uncleanliness. Jesus reinforces this immediately with the raising from the dead Jairus' daughter. The synagogue ruler's daughter died while Jesus was en route, but that did not dissuade the healer from saving the day. Jesus, the child's parents, and a couple of disciples stay in the room with the dead body. Jesus takes her hand- he touched a dead body!- and orders her alive. She is raised to life! Jesus has committed the ultimate unclean act, he has touched a dead body! Yet it was the girl who was revived. Jesus remained clean.

Les we think that this rule of passing on cleanliness applies to Jesus alone, we need only look to the early church to see that they assumed the same attitude. The early church rescued orphans, took in sick people, ministered to lepers, the infirm, the marginalized, the hopeless. They took the spiritual cleanliness given to them from a renewing relationship with God through Jesus Christ, and passed it on. Look to Mother Teresa and Henri Nouwen for modern examples of "passing the clean". Our source of spiritual cleanliness is the forgiveness of God found in the work of Jesus Christ, in his life, death and resurrection. With a relationship with God the Father, we can pass on to others purity, hope, belief, faith, love, and peace. What should be left behind? Religious fear and superstition.

I once performed a wedding ceremony for nice young couple. At their reception, the bride's grandparents made a big show, at least to me, of leaving when the dance started. They didn't want to be contaminated by the uncleanliness of the dance. I didn't think much of it at the time, I just dismissed it as an example of their age and religious background (fundamentalism). But, the more I consider the event, the more I think that their actions were either based on fear or selfishness. Fear that someone would judge them for staying at their grand-daughter's wedding dance (sin!), or selfishness in that they used a "religious conviction" to justify leaving. In hindsight, their act of leaving was a declaration that they did not believe that uncleanliness could be passed on. In the least, they denied the power of Christ in their lives to keep them clean in the midst of the dance. Jesus would have stayed for the dance. I guess they figured they were more holy than Jesus. So, who (or what) are you avoiding for fear of contamination?

Posted By Andre Lauzon At 10:28 AM •

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