Persistence

Some critter (or likely, more than one) has been an unwelcome presence in our garden and yard this spring. We first noticed small holes in the compost pile which we supposed had been made by an armadillo digging around for grubs, but then our suspicions shifted when I bought a couple of zinnias and placed them in large planters on the deck. I put them out one evening, and the next morning, one of them had been pulled out of its container and was lying on the deck, covered in potting soil/compost mixture which had been dug from the pot. It seems unlikely an armadillo could negotiate the steps on the deck or climb into the planter.

Other plantings in the yard and garden have suffered the same fate. Whatever is doing it, is nocturnal and targets just about any place where we've used compost or wood-chip mulch or even have loosened up the existing soil. Where plants are present, it pulls them up, tosses them aside and digs like crazy. We've lived on our place 30 years and have never had this problem before. We were beginning to wonder if it might be a skunk, but after reading about raccoons behaving badly and Allen's late evening venture out to the garden with a flashlight, we have decided those masked marauders are the culprits. I am not a fan of their efforts, but I do admire their persistence. Good-sized rocks, placed on top of the loose soil, do not dissuade them. A wire tomato cage placed around a newly-planted tree saved the tree from being uprooted, but they dug a diagonal hole to get to the compost.

I am reminded of the scripture in Luke chapter 11 where a fellow goes to his friend's house in the middle of the night asking for bread because the first man has had an out-of-town guest arrive and has nothing to feed him. The second man does not want to get up and disturb his whole household to loan bread, but apparently the first one won't go away until he gets what he wants. So, eventually, not because of friendship, "yet because of his persistence he will get up and give him as much as he needs." (v. 8)

Worthwhile endeavors in life usually require more than one try. While being a pest, wearing someone down to get what we want, is probably not a good model for the way to live, neither should we give up on a good idea just because we encounter resistance. Creative change is happening every day because of concepts which started as thoughts which wouldn't go away. What can you do to help change the world for the better? What's stopping you?

Thinking About Food

I think it's time for serious conversations about food. How, why and what do we consume? As a society, we are overfed. Obesity rates continue to climb. It's taking a huge toll on our health. If we're being honest, food and obesity issues are the main components contributing to the healthcare crisis in this country. It doesn't help that this issue has become politicized, along with almost everything else. I don't care what side of the aisle you're on, can we all please agree, as a nation, we need to eat less and eat better?

It's not an easy conversation to start or have. I don't want to offend anyone, cause hurt feelings or sound preachy (probably too late for that). But I read an interesting article the other day about the unhealthy food which churches offer (think ice cream socials and potluck dinners), and I was glad to see some in the church world are thinking about health as it relates to spiritual issues.

I will begin by confessing I don't always make the best food choices. Because I tend to be busy, often I don't take time to prepare meals using the fresh ingredients I know I should be using, and as a family, we don't sit down and enjoy our food as often as we should. But we are taking steps to eat better. We don't eat out as much as we previously did, and we are cutting out processed food -- adding more fresh, organic fruit and vegetables. Our garden will be expanded this year, and we're vowing to be regulars at the farmer's market. Do we still eat chocolate and other sweets? Yes, but we've cut back.

There are other important issues related to food. For example, where it comes from and how our food-related decisions affect the lives and livelihoods of our neighbors and others around the world. Food -- the sharing of meals, the feeding of the poor, the simplicity and gratitude involved in eating -- was an integral part of the teachings of Jesus, and we should be more focused on this crucial issue.

There is a "local food" movement which is gaining momentum, and I'll be writing more about it in the weeks ahead. I hope each of you will investigate the benefits of local food, and for my friends in the West Plains area, there is a meeting on the topic next Saturday at 3:00 p.m at the West Civic Center. Ruell Chappell (a member of the Ozark Mountain Daredevils and local food activist) will be sharing information vital for local food producers, processors, retailers and consumers. I invite you to like his "Truth is Local" Facebook page and also go to the "Ruell Chappell/Truth Is Local" event page and plan to attend the meeting next Saturday.

What we eat matters. Where it comes from is important.

Reflecting

Many of the traditions of the Easter season have less meaning for me, personally, than in previous times. In fact, as I have studied the New Testament, the importance of many "church things" has faded for me. (I don't mean "the-Body-of-Christ-is-the-Church" things, I'm talking about manmade religious rituals. There is a big difference, in many cases.)

I'm not suggesting anyone forsake dressing up in nice clothes to attend special services because I know there is great significance for many believers in those sorts of activities, and whatever draws us closer to God is good. But I also find no precedent in scripture suggesting any particular attachment should be placed on Easter, especially as Easter is not mentioned in the Bible at all and is historically associated with non-biblical practices. It seems more in keeping with the teachings of Jesus to find the same holiness, sacredness, in every day as in any holiday, even though finding joy in a celebration is a good thing.

During this time of year, I do, however, find myself considering my faith, reflecting on what I believe and why I believe it. In recent months, I have had several conversations with friends about the physical history of the world, discussions about creation and evolution, God and history. I have opinions which have changed over the years, quite honestly, opinions that early on in my journey I would have considered unshakable. I have also reached the conclusion that much of what any of us argue as fact, when it comes to certain issues, is merely opinion, as there are many things which are simply unknowable.

As it turns out, I'm fine with not knowing everything, and I spend a lot less time considering the past these days. Mostly, because every time I work through my questions about science and history, I reach the same conclusion: I don't believe what I believe because of what I know as much as because of what I don't know. To put it another way, many of the things I may accept as fact don't matter as much to me as does the infinite realm where God's love resides, where laughter, creativity, spontaneity and beauty are in abundance. Some things can be explained based purely on logic and reason, but many more things have no apparent explanation. I believe God is the author of the inexpressible truths written in our spirits. It is truth, along with the unknowable, which draws me to God.

A Pause

I'm taking a bit of break today. After doing a lot of agitating lately, on various issues, I feel the need to pause and appreciate a beautiful spring day.

It should be easy enough to do, as spring has arrived in spectacular fashion, as it always does. For instance, in addition to the usual mallards, wood ducks and geese, we've had such a wonderful variety of water fowl on our ponds this year. Right now I'm watching American coots dive and paddle, and yesterday, scaups, I don't remember seeing them before, were gliding around on the water. Other visitors have stopped by, too. Such diversity in nature and such harmony.

So, I'm embracing harmony today. I'll be back to agitating soon, but for now, I just need to take a deep breath and appreciate many blessings. Take care, friends -- I hope you find something to smile about today!

How Might It Really Be?

The idea of a nation with laws built strictly around the Bible, a country in which there is no separation of church and state, is gaining traction in certain circles. However well-intentioned that notion might be (and I'm giving some promoters of the idea the benefit of doubt in huge way when I say their intentions might be good) if it were to happen, it would not have the desired effect of making our nation a better place.

Let's put aside political leanings and personal beliefs for a moment and think about this issue logically, in the context of the Constitution and of scripture. Christians, our religious beliefs should guide our individual lives, but as I have been trying to make the point over the past couple of weeks, we are never instructed by Jesus to try to FORCE our beliefs on others. It was not his Way, nor should it be ours. Let's consider some things.

If we used what Jesus taught as the law of the land -- not political or religious IDEAS about the Bible, but what Jesus SAID -- many things would no longer be permitted: calling someone a fool, lawsuits, greed, gossip, lying, not taking care of the poor and war, for instance. Jesus spoke against those things.

Interestingly, since Jesus did not specifically mention contraceptives, abortion or gay marriage, it would be difficult to build a case making them against the law. Yes, it might be possible to take bits of scripture, here and there, and come up with reasons to outlaw them, but then you would have to ignore some very direct commands about other things which are mostly overlooked in this debate. For example, adultery and divorce (simply based on incompatibility) would definitely be illegal. If the New Testament were to be our nation's policy manual and law code, we would have to accept it all, not part, and that's simply not practical, quite honestly, because almost everyone would be in jail.

Are we prepared for divorce, outside of adultery or abuse (and perhaps with no exceptions), to be illegal, especially since the divorce rate is as high among Christians as non-Christians? What about adultery? If it were against the law, many high-profile preachers and politicians, along with millions of others, would be among those who do jail time or pay hefty fines. Most who are promoting separation of church and state probably don't intend for those things to happen or think that they would, but that doesn't mean they would not, eventually, if we ever started sliding down that slope.

Jesus intended for his followers to heed his teachings and do right, but there is no evidence he meant for any nation's legal system to be governed by his words. Believers should strive to live according to what Jesus proclaimed, even though we all fall short. Thankfully, our Christian faith provides for making mistakes, seeking forgiveness and going on, hopefully learning lessons along the way. We may pay for disobedience with our personal peace or well-being, but we are not put in prison for our sins nor should we be.

I, personally, would love for the conscience and decision-making process of every leader, at every level, to be influenced by the intent of Jesus, but that is not the same as the joining of church and state. Let us please never ask for that union. And let us please stop asking others to live their personal lives according to our standards.

The Irony of Christ's Church - Part 2

Having been emboldened by positive responses to last week's post, I'm going to venture a little further down the same road: I've never met a Christian who believes every word of the New Testament is relevant to our lives today. Many of us think we do, but when it comes right down to it, we don't.

Mostly because of the churches or denominations in which we were raised, or at some point became a part of, we have certain prejudices about what we accept and what we don't. For example, some denominations believe miracles still happen, and others think those times are past. Some embrace speaking in tongues and others do not. Some adopt certain clothing preferences. There are those who won't drink alcohol and some who think men shouldn't have long hair (and yet, interestingly, they often have "portraits" on display in their homes of Jesus with flowing locks). All sides of those issues can be justified using the New Testament, by the way.

I won't undertake to comment on what practices in those areas might be right or wrong, because it is not my job to do so. I will say almost all of those positions, and many more, have been reached not based on what Jesus taught, but on cultural and religious traditions and on letters written by followers of Jesus to address specific problems going on within other groups of followers.

If we actually believed and practiced what Jesus taught, first of all, we would not worry or fret, and we would also realize many of the things which have become important to organized religion, don't matter all that much to Jesus. His teachings focus on love, peace, relationships and trying to get us to break free from the bondage of tradition. I encourage you to read it for yourself in Matthew 5-7.

What is important to each of us? What are we passionate about? Good questions to ask ourselves, but for those who follow Jesus, a better question is, in the context of the Sermon on the Mount, especially, what is Jesus passionate about? If what is important to us doesn't match up with what is important to him, we know where the adjustments in thinking need to be made.

The Irony of Christ's Church

Philip Gulley, who is a Quaker minister, has written a book titled If the Church Were Christian. In it, he says, "This is the great irony of Christ's Church -- a significant number of its members care more about believing certain things about Jesus, than following his example of love and service. If the church were Christian, mirroring the compassion of Jesus would be more important than echoing the orthodoxy that has built up around him."

I have often contemplated this issue over the years, but never more so than in recent days. The judgmental attitudes flying around in the name of Jesus -- what some of his followers claim he would and would not approve of or demand of others in the context of society-at-large -- are truly astounding. The simple teachings which Jesus proclaimed about the Way have been distorted and complicated with the passage of time. Now that Jesus has been fully-politicized, the situation has become downright disgraceful.

Jesus did not teach we should change the world by insisting that others get in line "because we say so and because we know better than you." He made it plain he did not intend to force his message on anyone and neither should believers attempt to do so. His teachings were meant to inspire his followers to live lives free of hypocrisy, filled with joy and contentment which would lead others to want to become his disciples, too.

Jesus lived during a time of extreme government corruption and when the world around him was, in many ways, a cesspool of immorality. Yet he did not expect to change those circumstances by condemning indecency or those who did not believe in him. He expected his followers to concentrate on fixing their own shortcomings to become lights shining in the darkness, and it is the same now.

The instructions from Jesus are for his Body of believers, for his Church, to follow. This includes anyone running for any office who claims to be a Christian. If you're attempting to use Jesus to get elected, you better be on board with what he taught and not be promoting your own interpretation of what you think he meant because it lines up with what you believe.

Much of the church world has it backwards today. A certain segment of those calling themselves Christians pat themselves on the backs because they are so "good" and "right," and then they hurl insults and abuse at those they identify as "sinners." This is not the Way of Jesus. His harshest words were aimed at the religious people of his day who were filled with hypocrisy, telling others how to live while continuing in unrepentent sin themselves. His kind words and actions were toward those believers who walked in humility and who sought forgiveness, as well as for the outsiders who had not yet come to know to him. We should stop believing most of what we think we know about Jesus and start knowing him for who he was.