Ash Wednesday Meditation

Delivered by Rev. Rebecca Weltmann, Ash Wednesday 2012                

           

            When I was a little kid, I loved the movie “Wizard of Oz.” I don’t remember this, but my father will tell you that when I was really little, I would make him go outside with me and we would walk around the backyard singing “Follow the Yellow Brick Road” over and over again. A few years ago, I discovered I also love the book series by L. Frank Baum. I want to read you an excerpt from the second book, “The Land of Oz.” To give you just a brief synopsis of what’s going on, the Scarecrow has been ousted from his throne in a political revolt – well, as political as it can be in the Land of Oz – and he, along with others are being kept prisoner in the castle. He sits and thinks, using those brains that the wizard gave him and he remembers that the wizard escaped Oz in a hot air balloon, so they decide what they have to do is create something that will carry them out of the castle by flight. They have this powder of life that will allow whatever they create to carry them. So, here is an excerpt from “The Land of Oz.”

            “Then let us search through the palace,” continued the Tin Woodman, “and carry all the material we can find to the roof, where I will begin my work.”

            “First, however,” said the Pumpkinhead, “I beg you will release me from this horse, and make me another leg to walk with. For in my present condition I am of no use to myself or to anyone else.”

            So the Tin Woodman knocked a mahogany centre-table to pieces with his axe and fitted one of the legs, which was beautifully carved, on to the body of Jack Pumpkinhead, who was very proud of the acquisition.

            “It seems strange,” said he, as he watched the Tin Woodman work, “that my left leg should be the most elegant and substantial part of me.”

            “That proves that you are unusual,” returned the Scarecrow, “and I am convinced that the only people worthy of consideration in this world are the unusual ones. For the common folks are like leaves of a tree, and live and die unnoticed.”

            “Spoken like a philosopher!” cried the Woggle-Bug as he assisted the Tin Woodman to set Jack upon his feet.

            “How do you feel now?” asked Tim, watching the Pumpkinhead stump around to try his new leg.

            “As good as new,” answered Jack joyfully, “and quite ready to assist you all to escape.”

            “Then let us get to work,” said the Scarecrow in a business-like tone.

            So, glad to be doing anything that might lead to the end of their captivity, the friends separated to wander over the palace in search of fitting material to use in the construction of their aerial machine.[1]

            I love that line, “I am convinced that the only people worthy of consideration in this world are the unusual ones.” The Scarecrow was always by far my most favorite character in the Oz series. But growing up, I was always sort of different from the other kids my age, so with that in my background I appreciate the kudos for the unusual people. As human beings, we are a little bit like Jack Pumpkinhead, woven together in what might seem like an arbitrary fashion. But piece by piece we are put together. Sometimes, like the Pumpkinhead, our parts wear out and we need replacements, and sometimes there are parts of us that look a little more fashionable than other parts. But all of those things combined are the things that make us what we are. Unusual is one word for it. Fearfully and wonderfully made is another.

            Ash Wednesday is the beginning of the season of Lent. Whether we are anointed with ashes from the palms of last year or healing oil, it’s a season when we remember that we are all sinners and in need of God’s grace. It’s a day when many Christians focus their attention on fasting, praying, and almsgiving. In Lent we realize how totally dependent we as human beings are on the love of our Lord Jesus Christ.

            But how unusual that love is! How unusual is grace that God wants to be in relationship with us, a messy, less than perfect species. Traditionally Ash Wednesday is a day of mourning for our sin and the sin of all humanity before God, but I think we also need to take time to celebrate the fact that despite all those things that make us messy, rebellious, and resentful – we were worth dying for. The grace of God is an unusual thing. We don’t deserve it. We can’t earn it. A lot of times we don’t even recognize it and there are certainly times when we forget to extend grace to others. But through Jesus Christ, God gives us His grace freely and because of the love of Christ we have hope for the future. That is something to celebrate.

            And yet we still want to be mindful of how dependent on God’s grace we really are. We can do nothing apart from our Lord and Savior.

---

[1]               Baum, L. Frank The Land of Oz (Octopus Books Limited: Great Britain, 1979) pgs. 378-9.

The Transfiguration

Begin this blog entry by reading Mark 4:2-9

Tomorrow is Transfiguration Sunday, that transitional Sunday between the season of Epiphany and the Lenten season. I've been somewhat preoccupied with putting things together for our weekly Lenten study that starts up soon, so I thought it might be a nice break to step aside from Lent and think about something else. Since it's on the liturgical calendar and in the lectionary this week, it's no wonder that the story of the Transfiguration popped into my head.

It's a unique little story about how the disciples saw Jesus transfigured on the mountain top and they saw, standing next to him, Moses and Elijah (not to be confused with Elisha, who comes later). I wonder what the disciples must have been thinking when they saw Jesus the Christ with Moses (representing the law) and Elijah (representing the prophets and the prophesy that Elijah would return to mark the appearance of the Messiah).

We know what Peter was thinking.

"DUDE!!!! That was WICKED AWESOME!!!!"

Okay, he probably didn't say dude. Or wicked. Or awesome. But he was struck with awe and he did immediately suggest that they build homes for Moses and Elijah. Beyond that, Peter, like the other disciples, was rendered speechless by fear. Or awe. Or both. At any rate, scripture reports that he "did not know what he was saying."

Have you ever seen something so awesome happen that you just start talking without even knowing what you're saying? You ramble or babble because the only thing you can think to do is move your lips and make sound come out, even if it's incoherent sound. I'm trying to remember if I've ever had a moment where I was so awe-struck that I just started to babble. I'm not sure I can recall that ever happening to me.

It did, however, happen to the disciples as they witnessed the transfiguration. The word "transfigure" means to change appearance, as if to be glorified or exalted. In witnessing the transfiguration of Jesus Christ on that mountain top, the disciples witness Jesus, perhaps for the first time, as both fully human and fully divine. It's not that this is the moment that Jesus becomes God. It's the moment where the disciples catch a glimpse of Christ's divinity. We celebrate it as a liturgical holiday because it's a good reminder for us, too, that Jesus was both fully human and fully divine. We remember this especially as we go into Lent because it is only as a human being that Jesus could die on the cross and it is only as God that Christ could take away the stain of our sins and offer us His perfect grace. Transfiguration Sunday is a reminder of something truly beautiful and something truly awesome.

I have a new awe for this story. I've heard  it so many times that I can't even begin to tell you when I first learned about it (though I suspect I remember the story better from worship than from Sunday school), but for some reason this story has hit me in a new way this year. I keep thinking about the disciples and what must have been going through their minds when they witnessed this incredible thing. What a gift Christ has gievn them, to see a glimpse of His divinity!

...And what a responsibility.

What does it mean for us, as readers, to stand alongside the disciples and witness the Transfiguration? Do you witness this with awe and perhaps a little fear? Or are you, like the disciples, terrified beyond the capacity to speak clearly? Are you indifferent? Or are you wondering what drugs someone slipped into your drink?

As you hear the story read in worship tomorrow or as you read the story to yourself now that I've encouraged you to do so, may you hear it with new ears, see it with new eyes, and stand in awe of the glory of Jesus Christ as we go into this season of Lent together.

Yours in Christ,
Pastor Becki

Fare thee well, facebook.

Lately I've been feeling over-saturated by media. I've been really happy to keep the television off and not go on the computer as much at night. I'm hungry for a technology sabbath.

So this morning I deleted my personal facebook account. I was maintaining two accounts: a personal account and my professional account. Today I deactivated the personal account. Why am I friends with all these people that I never talk to? Why do I feel guilty un-friending them? The people I really need to talk to or keep up with are either a) on my professional account or b) in my phone so we text message each other or actually call each other. So I deleted my personal facebook account.

And it actually felt kind of liberating.

Yesterday I did something else bold. I organized my office. I emptied the closet and rearranged all my books according to subject. And it felt liberating.

I've been thinking a lot about this concept of "liberation." Liberation is a pretty big biblical theme (just look at Exodus). What does it mean for us to be liberated in our own time?

For me, liberation means trying to neutralize those things in my life that feel like weights on my shoulders. At the onset, they don't seem like big things. Is having two facebook accounts really a big thing? Is having a messy closet hidden by a door really a big thing? Not really. They are what they are. But if I can subtract and divide those things that drive me just a little bit crazy, it makes a huge difference. And really, who doesn't want to delete those things in their life that add stress?

In his letter to the Colossians, Paul says, "Let the peace that Christ gives control your thinking, because you were all called together in one body to have peace. Always be thankful." How beautiful it is to think that we were called to have peace. In a world where it seems like we're constantly seeking liberation from something -- from facebook, from financial stress, from family arguments, from questionable tv programs, from unfortunate friend drama, from the burdens of past hurts...fill in the blank -- it seems so wonderful to think that we're actually called to peace. I want peace. I want serenity. I take comfort in the fact that I can find those things in Christ and in Christ, I can do all things.

What does liberation mean for you? What are those things in your life that you might need liberation from? How can you ask Christ to help you neutralize those things?

May the peace of Christ envelop you.

Yours in Christ,
Pastor Becki

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

I've been thinking a lot about church membership lately for some reason. When I was ordained, the pastor who gave my charge and the congregation's charge pointed out to everyone that my home church was the only church I had ever -- or would ever -- be a member of. In the Presbyterian Church (USA), once a pastor is ordained, that pastor becomes a member of Presbytery. Presbytery is my church; I am no longer a member of any one particular church. That hit me in a strange way when the pastor doing my charge said that and for some reason I've been thinking about that a lot lately. It probably has something to do with my congregation's focus on how we increase on our membership.

People have very different views on church membership. Some think the obvious thing to do when you start attending a church is to become a member. Others believe that membership is just a way for the church to get new leaders and new pledge cards.

Which, I have to admit, is probably partly true.

There are different reasons for becoming a church member, and several pros and cons to church membership that I'm not going into here. What I'm really interested in this week is the importance of membership not in the particular church, but in the body of Christ.

As a church, we are just one part of the body of Christ. Even the Presbyterian church as a denomination is just one part of the body of Christ. Our brothers and sisters in Christ of every time and every place -regardless of denomination - are a part of that body.

I noticed when I led a new member's class that one of the first things I focused on was what makes the Presbyterian church stand out from other churches. When you come right down to it, the things that are really different are how we do communion, when we do baptism, and how we conduct our church's polity. In retrospect, I kind of wish I'd started that conversation differently. Instead of beginning with where we are different, I wish I had started with where we are the same. We are the same in our belief in Jesus Christ. We are the same in our belief in God's amazing love for us. We are the same in our belief that the power of the Holy Spirit dwells within us and empowers us to live in the grace of God. That's the heart of the week of prayer for Christian unity.

I asked an older member of my church once why she was still Presbyterian. She answered with a smile, "Find me a church where I agree with absolutely every single theological point." Point taken. There really isn't the "perfect denomination." She's totally right.

Our Book of Order reminds us that "Unity is God's gift to the Church in Jesus Christ" and that "Division into different denominations obscures but does not destroy unity in Christ." We talk about how we as a church are to strive towards diminishing that obstruction of unity. How is it that we actually do that? In Washington, Illinois, we have a very active ministerial board. That ministerial board is a gathering open to all the clergy in our community. While not every clergymember in town is active on the board, we are represented by a wealth of ecclesial traditions. At our meetings, we don't talk about what makes us different. Actually, we actively avoid that. We talk about how we as a board can offer pastoral support to each other as well as to the community around us. We hold several events throughout the year, including a community prayer service, a Good Friday service, and Thanksgiving service. We also participate in the Mayor's Prayer Breakfast in the fall. I feel so blessed to be a community where the ministerial board is dedicated to striving towards minimizing the ways in which having different denominations obscures the unity of Christ.

I take comfort in the fact that being part of one denomination or another doesn't mean we are destroying the unity because there are things about being Presbyterian that I certainly don't want to give up. I feel strongly that God has called me to minister in the Reformed tradition.

So this week I'm praying for unity among the entire body of Christ, regardless of what denomination you subscribe to. I'm also praying for unity within the Presbyterian denomination itself. Lord knows we need those kinds of prayers right now. I hope that as you think about how God is calling you in your walk of faith, you think about how you are helping to strive towards minimalizing the obstruction of unity in Christ. How does your church support Christian unity? How do YOU?

Yours in Christ,
Pastor Becki

Praying for Each Other

I have to say, I'm rather embarassed to note that the last time I posted on this blog was in November. I really do have the best of intentions to update this reguarly. Life, as you might have guessed, happens and the Advent season is especially crazy for pastors.

We did something new this year for Advent that I wanted to share with you because it really went over much better than I thought it would. I've heard of "Stations of the Cross" as a spiritual journey we undertake during the Lent season and I was looking for something comparable for Advent. I really wasn't finding what I was looking for, so I decided to make something up and I entitled it "Stations of the Manger." Each classroom downstairs had a different station. Each station had a scripture passage, a devotion, and a prayer practice. Each person went through the stations as individuals instead of as groups. I put up a sign by the door that said, 'Quiet please, prayer in progress' and encouraged people to go through each station at their own pace. Most people took about an hour to get through all five stations. What was really interesting for me was that I didn't see anything actually happening. I stayed up by the front door at a table handing out instructions and maps outlining where each station was and the whole event kind of ran itself. The only way I knew what was actually going on downstairs was the feedback I received from people after the event. Most people were grateful to have something the week before Christmas that actually forced them to slow down, take a deep breath, and encounter Christ in Advent. I even had to make more photocopies of things, something I've never had to do before. The "Stations of the Manger" was truly a testiment to what a powerful experience engaging in prayer can be for people.

Among the changes to the Presbyterian Book of Order is change to the ordination/installation vows. The eighth question for those being ordained or installed as ruling elders, deacons, teaching elders, or certified Christian educators is this: "Will you pray for and seek to serve the people with energy, intelligence, imagination and love?" (bold print notes the new language). There is something profound, I think, about our leaders taking a vow to pray for the people they serve. We are asking the congregation to trust the decisions this group of people make. It makes sense to hope that they are not making decisions in a vaccuum; it makes sense to hope that decision makers in the church are making decisions based on the direction they hear God calling us as a congregation, not just making decisions based on their own agendas (which does, unfortunately, happen occassionally in church politics). Reminding our leaders to be praying for the people they serve reminds us as a congregation that church politics is not just about the politics; it's also about people serving, encouraging, and praying for other people.

The other side of the coin is that not only should congregations expect their leaders to be praying for them, but leaders should expect their congregations to pray for them, as well. During installation and ordination services, congregations take a vow to agree to "pray for them, to encourage them, to respect their decisions, and to follow as they guide us, serving Jesus Christ, who alone is Head of the Church." As pastor, I hope that my congregation prays for me. Lord knows we pastors need prayer!

This coming Sunday my congregation will be ordaining and installing new officers to the offices of ruling elders (session) and deacons. As we hear the candidates make their vows to pray for us and as we vow that we will pray for them in return, I truly hope we take that vow seriously. As a congregation, we agree to trust each other. Officers trust that congregations will do what they can to make sure our congregation continues to thrive and congregations trust the officers will make decisions that paint a clear picture of God's call for our church.

I deeply encourage you, whether you are an officer of the church, a member (whether a member on roles or a visiting member) of a church, or even someone not connected with the church at all to keep your leaders in your thoughts. I hope this also includes our secular leaders who, Lord knows, also need our prayers. If we keep each other in prayer, I suspect we will quickly feel the evidence of so many hands keeping us uplifted. And if you are praying for someone in particular, I encourage you to tell that person you pray for him or her. Your leaders will appreciate knowing that they are in your prayers and congregations will appreciate knowing that their leaders are keeping them in prayer as well.

Yours in Christ (and keeping you in prayer),
Pastor Becki

Intentionality of Wholistic Living

"Intentionality of wholistic living means being all of who I am and the best of who I can be at church, home, and work." -- John C. Maxwell, Life@Work

One of my goals this year has been to pray more. I know that probably sounds funny coming from a pastor, but since becomming a pastor I've been noticing that one of the areas in which I struggle is my prayer life. It's not that I don't pray, or don't know how to pray because I do and I do. But I don't pray often, and I struggle with praying out loud in front of my congregation.

My congregation members reading this are either a) flinching because they've thought maybe my prayers of the people could use some improving or b) flinching because I openly admit that I struggle with prayer. Or maybe there's a c) and they're just glad to hear that even pastors struggle with prayer. Hopefully it's a little bit of C mixed with either A or B.

I digress.

So one of my goals this year has been to pray more. I got a book on prayers and it's just simple, simple prayers for every day beauties and it reads more like a book of Christian poetry than Christian prayers (though I'm a firm believer that poetry can be prayer and visa versa). Today was one of those days where I was reminded of the power of prayer and how awesome this God we worship really is.

This has been an interesting week. It's involved trying to figure out how to adopt a cat that I've been taking care of in an apartment that doesn't allow pets and getting stressed out about trying to clean through the clutter that has accumulated in said apartment. I stopped yesterday to pray about it. I especially prayed about this cat (whom today I named Jael). I admit I prayed for God to help me find a way to adopt her, but I also prayed for God to take care of her because she deserves better than being stuck outside all winter. Jael is a large, short-haired black cat who was abandoned around my apartment building and she goes from apartment to apartment on the bottom level. We take care of her, give her food and water, and I've even been letting her sleep in my apartment because it's been getting really cold out. The cold is what had me worried. Winter is not kind, especially for a cat that seems to be okay outside but is definitely amazing around people. She's a great cat, and I've gotten pretty attached to her. So I decided I want to keep her, but I need to find someone to look after her until June when I can move out of the apartment.

Yesterday afternoon I put a message on facebook hoping someone had such a someone in mind. By last night, I had a response from the daughter of my executive presbyter who said she'd be happy to take Jael until June and it would be a good trial run to see what having a pet is like. I am SO EXCITED. Truly an answer to prayer!

Jael spent the night with me last night and we had no heat. It made for an incredibly cold night. This morning I attended a Mayor's Prayer Breakfast in town, and on my way I dropped off my pet rodents at my church office where they could have heat and not be around when my landlord comes to check on the furnace (of course, leaving the church I managed to fall down a flight of four stairs and twist my ankle, and this was 6 a.m., so you can imagine what my mood was like after not having heat and now I've fallen down a flight of stairs).

"Dear God," I said, "please give me patience and strength to make this through this morning. Help me to praise you even when I'm super cranky." I might have added an expletive accidentally. When I got home, I had to call my landlord about the heat. Not only was my landlord IN THE BUILDING when I called, but he was there WITH A MAINTENANCE GUY. I had heat by 10 a.m.

It was one of those moments where I just felt humbled. Leave it to God to interrupt a bad day with something amazing. In my case, it was amazing timing. Not only was I super relieved that the gerbils and guinea pig were already out of the apartment since my landlord was coming right over, but my landlord was literally a flight of stairs away from me. God has this amazing ability to know what we need and take care of us, and I think I'm going to add a line to my prayers asking God to help me remember that God takes care of what we need.

I feel really blessed today, and I don't say that to brag. Or maybe I am. I'm bragging about God. God is so awesome and so amazing and so good to us, even on those days where we have to get up at 5 a.m. after 3 hours of sleep in a caccoon because we're so cold. Thank God for God! Makes me think differently about prayer. I still wrestle with prayer and how I pray, but I've been trying to remember to pray about that, too. God is so good to us, and my prayer for you is that you are able to see God in the world around you and may that brighten your day whether your day is filled with stress or joy.

Yours in Christ,
Pastor Becki

Off the Map

I apologize for my complete neglect of this blog to those who actually do faithfully follow what I write. I had an experience recently that took me "off the map" figuratively and then "off the map" literally that have made me actually realize how nice it is to get unplugged. Thus, I've been "off the blogging map" as well.

The figurative experience: I recently visited a friend of mine living in Iowa (I was attending a Board of Pensions conference at the seminary in Dubuque) and for those three days, I did not have any internet access. I was able to check email in the church where my friend works, but while I was in the actual 8-hour conference and in my friend's apartment, I was internet-less. And it made me realize (or reminded me, I guess) how NICE it is to just get away from the computer for a while. Since then I've felt much less tied to the computer and my tv. On Sundays, I give myself a "technology sabbath" which includes turning off the television and the computer for the entire day unless it is absolutely necessary for work. I've been reading, doing sudoku puzzles, sitting outside, and catching up on some quilting. It's been NICE to be unplugged.

The literal experience: This week I attended a new pastor's retreat that my local synod sponsors and we were at a camp grounds with, again, no technology. My cell phone worked, but I was without computer and television for three days. Instead of trying to figure out how I might check my email, I decided to use my free time on Tuesday afternoon to go for a walk. I teamed up with another pastor at the retreat and together we explored the grounds of the camp. We stopped first at the welcome center to get a map, and we picked a destination. We ended up walking in circles several times before we finally decided the only way to really get to our destination (a place called David's Tower) was to ignore the map and just follow the treeline. It wasn't really a great map to begin with, and even when we got to the tower we were still not really at the tower but rather at the base of another big hill with a sign saying "David's Tower." It took us a few minutes to figure out that we could juuuuuust make out the outline of the tower up on top of the big hill, but we elected to forgo climbing yet another hill as we had already been wandering around for over an hour.

And the hill leading back into the camp was monstrous. My thighs are still sore. It's a good kind of sore, you know? The kind where you're like, "It hurts, but the hurt means I did something productive with my body rather than just laying around."

Sometimes we get off the map and it's a good thing. It's good to get off the map and take a technology sabbath as a way to remind ourselves that the world around us isn't totally plugged in. We're incredibly reliant (myself included) on our technology, for better or worse. And when our computers crash or our phones fall out of the hoodie pockets into the toilet and suffer irreversible water damage, it's almost like our world is coming to an end for just that brief moment in time. Getting unplugged once in a while, taking that technology sabbath, reminds us that just because we're in the digital age doesn't mean we have to spend every single nanosecond of the day being digital. Write a card, for goodness sake, instead of an email.

Or actually write in a journal instead of an online blog. Yes, I see the irony here.

Sometimes we get off the map and it's not a good thing. When my fellow pastor and I were wandering around off the map looking for this tower, we didn't have much chance of being lost. The camp is not so big that we couldn't eventually run into the property line by the fence or the river or the highway. We were going to find a border that would tell us at least we were on the camp.

Plus he had a satalite on his phone that could get us back to our lodge if we needed it.

God creates a map for our lives and there are times when following the map is hard. Sometimes (some of us more often than others, perhaps) we think we have a better way of going. I'm one of those people who plugs in my GPS and actually tells the GPS, "No, I'm not going you're way. I'm going this way. You'll just have to reprogram and still get me there safely." God's map doesn't work like a GPS. When we try to reprogram it on our own, we get into trouble. When we allow the Spirit to move us and direct us to where God is calling us to go, it makes our lives so much simpler.

I know, I know you're cringing. It's hard to trust the spirit and those of you who really know me are thinking, "You're one to talk!" because I have the hardest time letting God do the driving in my life. I'm a control freak; I admit that freely. But I also know that those times when I am able to pray about it and spend some time doing spiritual discernment and hand things over to God...life really is much more simple.

And I like simple.

It's good to stay on the map. Sometimes we get off the trail and need a little help navigating our way back to the path that God calls us to, but for the most part, it's good to stay on the map. God gets us where we need to go when we trust in Him that made us. God is so good and we have been blessed in so many ways. My prayer for you is that you are able to spend some time praying and discerning where God is calling you and my second prayer is that you are able to go where God sends you.

Yours in Christ,
Pastor Becki