September 6, 2022 – 2 Timothy 3:16, The Funny Shape of Faith

“All scripture is inspired by God.” 2 Timothy 3:16

“What if the Bible were written like People magazine? Here are some possible headlines: Adam and Eve Start a Nudist Colony; Baby’s Father Is 100 Years Old; How Mary Lost That Pesky Baby Weight. The Bible and People magazine are similar in that they contain stories about real people (and some of those stories are scandalous). The similarities stop there. People is about people. The Bible is about God loving people. People contains fashion advice. The Bible contains the saga of God’s love for us. The Bible is more than a collection of stories. It reveals God’s love. Its pages don’t carry juicy gossip-they carry Christ.”  (Laurie Hanson. The Funny Shape of Faith: Devotions for the Rest of Us (Kindle Locations 263-264). Kindle Edition.)

Jesus is Real People

I am not a fan of most magazines you find on the grocery isle shelf. I find them to be intrusive and vindictive most of the time. Therefore I find the premise for the above note from Laurie Hanson quite instructive. On the news sites that I peruse for quick updates on the events of any day, I find the headlines are written for one purpose: to get me to click on the story.

We know the people of the first century had a sense of humor – and to see their stories in the form of tabloid headlines is quite eye opening. Just imagine the people of Jesus’ day opening up the latest edition of “Palestine People Magazine” and reading these headlines:

Local Bethany man Comes Back From the Dead; Blames Community

Local Woman Sited For Exceeding Sabbath Restriction on Travel; Pictures of Stoning Inside.

Local Blind Man Sees Again; Mud Facials All the Rage

Fortunately the stories of the Bible are not the products of “Rag Magazines.” The stories give us a glimpse into the life and times of Jesus and His followers. But they also give us a glimpse into the human condition – they struggled with the same issues we struggle with today. As Laurie Hanson states: “Its (the Bible) pages don’t carry juicy gossip-they carry Christ.”

Let us pray,

Lord Christ, we thank you for your words that are our source of eternal life. Give me the strength today to meditate on these words. Amen.

Pastor Dave

September 5, 2022 – Exodus 3:14, The Funny Shape of Faith

 “… say to the Israelites, ‘I AM has sent me to you” Exodus 3:14

“Find yourself a Christian Sunday school in Saudi Arabia and the little kids will be singing about Allah. “Wait a second,” you ask, “isn’t Allah the name of the Muslim God?” Yes, it is. Muslims, Jews, and Christians all trace their roots back to the God of Creation, the God of Abraham and Sarah. “Hold on,” you exclaim, “what’s going on here?” Allah is Arabic for God. When Arabic-speaking Christians say “Allah,” they mean “Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.” There are many names for God in the Bible. Watch for them. Sing them. Use them to talk to God in prayer.” (Laurie Hanson. The Funny Shape of Faith: Devotions for the Rest of Us (Kindle Locations 257-259). Kindle Edition.)

You Say “Tomato”, I Say “Tomate”

Lost in translation. Autocorrect. Trying to communicate with our friends and family today is getting more and more complicated. People rely so much on phones and texting and computers and email that the “art” or having a face-to-face conversation seems a thing of the past. Recently an older member of my family sent me a text that had a lot of autocorrected words it was hard to decipher what they were trying to say. Sometimes when I am trying to understand what people are trying to tell me I feel as if I am a “code breaker.”

Names are important. They were important in the Bible and they are important to us today. I used to visit a parishioner a few years back who, invariably, when I was praying for her, I would forget her name. It became so embarrassing to me I would panic even when I repeated her name over and over again in my head. 

Even though Christians worship our G-d in “Three Persons’, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, there is no reason for us to get confused about which name is most appropriate to call our G-d. We can call G-d: Allah, Jehovah, Abba, Father, Jesus, the Advocate….on and on it goes. What matters most is that we are meditating on and praying to G-d – no matter which name we use.

Let us pray,

Lord G-d, no single name is big enough to describe you. Thanks for being so complex and thanks for remembering my name. Amen.

Pastor Dave