Perception and Reality

In this increasingly relativistic cauldron we call “the world,” a lot of anxiety and insecurity is fueled by the notion that everyone is entitled (encouraged?) to form their own reality based primarily, if not solely, on their individual perceptions. It goes something like this: “The way I see the world is the world as it is.”

“Perception is reality” has become an almost universal cultural assumption, leaving little room for things that may be objectively and ultimately real but don’t match perceptions. C. S. Lewis had little patience for this idea, noting, “You cannot go against the grain of reality and not expect to get splinters.” Reality is reality regardless of how I see things.

In this week’s Epistle, St. John, seeking to encourage seven churches struggling in the cauldron of the Roman Empire, writes something that’s objectively and ultimately real, but may not have matched the perceptions of his original readers much more than it does ours today: “Jesus Christ…the ruler of kings on earth”.

Really?!? Putin? Xi? Kim? Assad? Those closer to home who shall remain nameless? (I’m not foolhardy.)

Hmmm…

See you Sunday.

Steve+

Easter Sunday

O God, who for our redemption gave your only begotten Son to die upon the cross, and by his glorious resurrection delivered us from the devil and the power of death: Grant us grace to die daily to sin, that we may live with him in the joy of his resurrection; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, now and for ever. Amen.

Excruciating Prayers

This Sunday is the day we commemorate Palm Sunday, a celebration of Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem at the beginning of what has come to be known as Holy Week: “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”

But the week—and the service—turn quickly from celebration to passion (from the Latin “passio”, suffering), culminating in the crucifixion, a suffering so indescribable that a new word had to be coined to describe it: excruciation, literally meaning “from the cross”.

This is not to be pedantic (though I can be prone to that). It’s important to understand that “passion” doesn’t mean “really super excited”, and “excruciation” isn’t a word meant to describe an ingrown toenail, much as it might hurt. Because in this week’s Gospel reading, it’s at the height of passion, from the cross, that Jesus prays two of the most beautiful, comforting, and instructive prayers in Scripture.

See you Sunday.

Steve+

Greedy Tenants

This week's Gospel reading is a hard one. Here, Jesus shares a parable with ominous affect upon a group of greedy tenants. The owner of the vineyard cleans house and installs new leadership. It is violent: the tenants kill the owner's son and they in turn are destroyed; stones crush people. It sounds more like The Godfather than God the Father.

But there is great risk to our faith if we turn away from these challenging stories. If we avoid them, they create ambivalence in our hearts and minds about whether God is as good as we thought.

God is as good as we thought...even better! And whenever and wherever Jesus acts, it is to bring about the Kingdom of God where justice, mercy, and love prevail. Jesus is not offering a contradictory picture of God, nor is he intending to confuse his followers. Rather, he is engaging in an epic struggle on their behalf and describing the cost of liberating them from oppression--a cost that he will bear himself.

Parables like these are especially important and it's good to explore them together. I look forward to being with you on Sunday to do that.

Steve Engstrom+

Loving Pharisees

All of Luke 15—a Tale of Three Parties—is a response by Jesus to an accusation made by a bunch of Pharisees: “This man receives sinners and eats with them.” Three parables of God’s literal passion for the lost, and his joy at their finding. Found sheep? Party. Found coin? Party. Found son? You guessed it…party! You’d have thought it was 1999.

But the party in the third story was a huge problem for one person, the older brother (representing the Pharisees themselves), who hadn’t squandered half his father’s life savings, thank you very much.

The thing is, if you read with care the response of the father to his older son’s anger, you read Jesus’s tenderest words to the Pharisees recorded in the Gospels.

They strike me as poignant words for us, too.

See you Sunday.

Steve+

Three Little Words

The 2007 memoir, Three Little Words, by Ashley Rhodes-Courter is a gripping story of her early life and ten-year journey through foster care to adoption. It chronicles a life of doubt, fear, and bewilderment that came down to three little words tenuously spoke in a courtroom at the age of twelve.

The book’s title was taken from an answer at Ashley’s adoption proceedings when she was asked by the judge for her consent to be adopted. “I guess so,” was her reply, indicating her tenuous faith not only in the system, but in people in general. Ultimately, that seed of faith took root and blossomed in her new home, where she was encouraged not only to tell her story, but also to act boldly on behalf of others.

She went on to become a powerhouse, championing radical reforms in our nation’s foster care system—literally freeing thousands of children from the bondage of a broken system.

Three little words made all the difference.

And though it’s obviously completely different in detail, the overall narrative of the book bears a striking resemblance to the story of Moses in Exodus 3, who would go on from the burning bush to become an Old Testament powerhouse. Years of doubt, fear, and bewilderment that came down to three little words spoken tenuously in the desert.

See you Sunday.

Steve+

Partnering

In her delightful book, Partnering, Jean Oelwang—a remarkable business and philanthropic leader—asserts that every significant good thing that happens in the world, or nearly so—from the discovery and closing of the ozone hole in the 70s and 80s, to the dismantling of apartheid—happens as the result of robust partnering that gives birth to an ability to work at remarkable scale, do great good, and also find great fulfillment. She prefers the word partnering to partnership, by the way, because partnership is a noun whereas partnering is a verb.

In reading her book I’ve found incredible resonance, not just because of the inspiring case studies, but something deeper in my soul…and I think I understand why. We are made for partnering. Literally created by and for it. From the Holy Trinity in Creation, to the creation of humankind in the image of “Us”, to our mandate to steward the earth and make culture, to the solution to the Fall in Genesis 3:15 (and all the rest of the redemptive history, really), partnering is integral to it all.

Even this week’s Gospel reading in which the idea of partnering doesn’t at first seem obvious (or maybe even relevant), it is integral. And when you think about it, for the most obvious reason.

See you Sunday.

Steve+

Resilience

When my two sons were in highschool, they worked for a window-washing company. They often sprayed exterior windows and siding with cleaning solutions. I asked them how they protected the bushes and flowers surrounding the houses from harmful chemicals. They explained that prior to washing exteriors, they would first drench the surrounding foliage with water. The plants would soak up the water and would therefore not ingest the cleaning solutions that followed.

I was thinking about that while pondering Jesus' resilience to the temptations of the devil that we'll explore together in Luke 4. Jesus was full of something other than what the devil was offering. I think that says a lot about how God's people face trials.

I look forward to seeing you on Sunday to dig a little deeper together.

Steve Engstrom+