August 8, 2017 Devotions
Your G-d is Too Small – Parental Hangover 

Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai, saying,  “Go at once to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before me.”  But Jonah set out to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid his fare and went on board, to go with them to Tarshish, away from the presence of the Lord.  But the Lord hurled a great wind upon the sea, and such a mighty storm came upon the sea that the ship threatened to break up.  Then the mariners were afraid, and each cried to his god. Then they said to him, “Tell us why this calamity has come upon us. What is your occupation? Where do you come from? What is your country? And of what people are you?”  “I am a Hebrew,” he replied. “I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”  Then the men were even more afraid, and said to him, “What is this that you have done!” For the men knew that he was fleeing from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them so. Then they said to him, “What shall we do to you, that the sea may quiet down for us?” For the sea was growing more and more tempestuous. He said to them, “Pick me up and throw me into the sea; then the sea will quiet down for you; for I know it is because of me that this great storm has come upon you.”  Nevertheless the men rowed hard to bring the ship back to land, but they could not, for the sea grew more and more stormy against them.  Then they cried out to the Lord, “Please, O Lord, we pray, do not let us perish on account of this man’s life. Do not make us guilty of innocent blood; for you, O Lord, have done as it pleased you.”  Jonah 1:1-5, 7-14

The impact of parenting on the development of a child’s self-differentiation cannot be down-played, especially the first three years of development. There are many people who have some sense of a poor adjustment to life that can be traced back to the tyranny of a parent, or the absence of the same. And, unfortunately, too many children are growing up in households with one or both parents absent some or most of the time. Many will develop an early conception of G-d based on their idea of parental styles they have experienced. If the parents were absent, understanding the idea of “G-d as Father” or even “Mother” will have little impact. If the parents were tyrants, the child may grow up with an unhealthy fear of G-d. These concepts of G-d present us with what some might call the “Parental Hangover”– and of course presents us with a G-d that is Too Small.
Now, some religious traditions go to great lengths to influence believers through exploiting this “fear” of G-d by exacerbating the “guilt” of their sins. They are told to feel the “Conviction of their sins” which is more of a spiritual assault, if you ask me, than an understanding of G-d’s Amazing capacity to give Grace. If this is your G-d, then Your G-d is Too Small. When Christ called to his Father saying “Abba, father”, he was speaking as one who was in relationship to the other. Christ will teach the disciples to regard G-d as their “Father in Heaven” – with the intent of establishing and stressing a relationship. G-d seeks a relationship with us that is about intimate, unconditional, Grace-filled love, forgiveness and mercy.

Whether we grew up knowing our parents or not, or were raised by grand-parents or aunts and uncles, every person we encounter is an opportunity for us to be in relationship. Some will be good; some not so good. But our relationship with G-d through Jesus Christ is one that solidly stands on the Rock of Ages. It is a relationship that will never fail us – and is always available. 

Pastor Dave  

August 7, 2017 Devotions –Your G-d is Too Small 

For this week, I am abandoning my usual topic, Lutherans in North America, and I am taking a “small” detour. I have decided to form my devotions based upon a small book I discovered in the Seminary library titled “Your God is Too Small” by J. B. Phillips. The themes come from his book – I have adapted some of the narration, and of course added my own thoughts. I will get back to “LNA” series soon. Until then, enjoy!

Your G-d is Too Small – Resident Police Officer  

“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; you shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name. Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work. But the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.
You shall not murder.
You shall not commit adultery.
You shall not steal.
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” Exodus 20:1-17 (not inclusive)

For too many Americans, G-d is that duality described by the familiar scene of the Devil sitting on one shoulder and an Angel sitting on the other. For many this is the only voice of G-d they know. This is how they view G-d controlling their lives – the only way they feel that G-d speaks to them – as a Divine, Resident Police Office”. They believe G-d is simply the little voice in their head thinking, like Flip Wilson, “The Devil made me do it.”  But this is relegating the presence of G-d to conscience – to the resident police officer – that G-d is all law. And when we turn God into one who only “serves and protects” the law, it denies the mysterious breadth of G-d’s character – which we should realize is loving, merciful, worshipful, grace-filled Divinity. 

Now, having a conscience does not mean we will understand anything about our morality other than our own bias of what is right and wrong. You see, without G-d, the only authority for what is “right” comes from our own singular, personal experiences and influences. So our attitude toward women, children, immigrants, as well as LGBTQ, the poor, the weak and marginalized is not so innate as we would hope and think. To relegate G-d to simply conscience or that Divine Resident Police Officer who polices our thoughts and actions can never truly capture the essence of G-d. And, if this is your G-d, then Your G-d is Too Small. G-d is much bigger than that. G-d is bigger than the localized “voice” of conscience which appears when a decision needs to be made – particularly a moral decision. We need to meditate on our G-d – this broad, vast, expansive G-d which exposes all of the little god’s that may spring from our understanding of the Decalogue (Ten Commandments). They may be a sure guide, but only scratch the surface of the all-encompassing Grace-filled G-d revealed through Jesus Christ. You see, G-d is more than “Do This” and “Don’t Do That” – and if we remain open and attentive, we will begin to see how big G-d really is.  

Pastor Dave