Meditation on Morning Coffee and Cookies

This morning, as is my custom, before I read anything or turned on the computer or spoke with any one, I enjoyed coffee–one cup, lots of milk, no sugar, extra hot–and two cookies. Made them myself.

The first sip melts its way down to my stomach radiating warmth through my entire core. Pause. Rehearse my morning mediation: “Grace and peace. . . . Grace . . . . . . . . and Peace.”

Then the first bite of cookie, dense with whole wheat flour and oatmeal, interrupted with the glorious flavor and texture of a chocolate chip. Chew. . . . Savor. . . . Rehearse . . . . Exhale.

Wait.

Another sip. Flavor on the tongue. Heat in my mouth. Warmth flowing into my gut. Rehearse.

My mind wanders: Life of God received. Heat. Liquid. Flavor. Texture. I give thanks. Savor. Wait. Enjoy.

Bite of cookie. Chew. Savor. Give thanks. Life of God received.

This single bite connects me with a web of thousands, all children of God. All animated by his life-giving spirit. Wheat farmers. Cocoa growers. Sailors. Train engineers. Hourly workers in the factory that made the combine that gathered the wheat. Bankers. Grocery story cashiers. The older sisters who watched their little brothers and sisters while mom and dad worked.

The lingering taste of chocolate connects me with them all and with the God of them all.

It takes half an hour to receive one cup and two cookies.

I finish. Life of God received. Thank you. Eucharist. Coffee and cookie. Communion.

I begin my day. My prayer: make me, too, an agent of divine warmth and holy sustenance.

Hands of Grace; No Fingerprints

Some years ago I gave a presentation at a young adult gathering on Sabbath afternoon. I stayed after my lecture to listen to a vespers sermon by Jon Dybdahl. At the end of his sermon, he talked about God’s power to heal. Then he invited anyone present who needed special healing to stand. A number of people stood, including a young man in the row in front of me.

Next Dr. Dybdahl asked those sitting near someone who had stood to stand also and place our hands on the people needing healing. I stood and put my hand on the shoulder of the young man in front of me. Dr. Dybdalh prayed, and we sat back down.

After the service was over, the young man came over to me. It was his first time hanging around Adventists. The friend who had brought him said I was a preacher. Could we get together and talk sometime that week.

“Sure,” I said and gave him my card.

When we sat down to talk on Wednesday he told me he had felt the power of God flow from my hand all through his body. He had been suffering from severe back pain. He was healed, immediately and completely.

I had felt nothing at all.

I don’t know what would have happened if when Dr. Dybdahl had prayed no one had been standing there with their hands on Mike’s shoulders. I do know Mike felt God’s power and my hands were involved. Apparently God did not need to inform me of what he was up to.

* * * * *

It’s something like that in church. North Hill Adventist Fellowship is an agency of God’s healing. People have experienced release from addictions. They have found solace. They have found new hope. The people of North Hill have been agents of heaven. Through your hands God has touched many with his grace.

You might think, “I’ve never been part of a miracle.” You may never have felt God’s power flow through you as others received healing. Still, even though you may have been completely unaware, you have, indeed, been agents of grace. How? Let me count the ways.

Right now we have fourteen people on our cleaning teams. How likely is it that anyone would hang around here long enough to encounter God if no one cleaned the toilets? If no one vacuumed the lobby, mopped the kitchen floor or emptied the garbage cans?

Every time you’ve pushed a vacuum, every time you’ve washed a window, every time you’ve given attention to some small detail of cleaning here in this building, you have participated in the work of God. You have been an indispensable part of the ministry of God.

A week or two ago a college student sent me a message saying he had appreciated a recent sermon. He lives at college. He hasn’t been here at North Hill for over a month. How did he hear the sermon? On line. Which means that if he got anything out of that sermon God’s power must have passed through the hands of Jeff Keating or Kirsten Dovich at the sound board. Then it passed through the hands of Randy Wiser who posts the sermons to the web.

That student probably did not notice Jeff’s, Kirsten’s or Randy’s finger prints, but they were there.

People occasionally show up here at church talking about the landscape. They have noticed the slow emergence here on this corner of the classiest, most attractive landscaping within many miles either way on Meridian Ave. These people don’t know Wayne. They have no idea of how much time he has invested here. And the hundreds of hours a few others have invested as well. They can’t see the fingerprints of the volunteers who planted and weeded. They do see the handiwork of God in the beauty of the landscaping.

I could tell similar stories about people affected by those of you who are here consistently, touching children with programs and smiles and affection.

Lives have been transformed because some of you have the skills and take the time to make wonderfully good food for our potluck dinners creating an atmosphere of welcome and ease.

Fact is, every part of God’s kingdom depends on invisible hands.

One of the greatest stories in the Old Testament is set up by the words of a young woman whose name is never given. The maid of Naaman’s wife suggests to her mistress that a prophet in Israel could cure Naaman’s leprosy.

Naaman was a VIP. Like Colin Powell or the Secretary of State or the Secretary of Defense. He was SOMEBODY. He goes to Israel for the cure. The prophet Elisha heals him. It is a fantastic story with lots of drama. Great characters–the kings of Israel and Syria, the prophet Elisha, Elisha’s servant Gehazi. The story ends with the conversion of Naaman to the worship of the God of heaven and the end of endless war between Syria and Israel.

It’s all set up by a nameless maid, doing her job, unnoticed, unheralded.

In the New Testament, the fantastic miracle of Jesus feeding 5000 people is set up by a kid with no name who hands over his lunch. I’m sure that kid could see nothing extraordinary about his five pieces of bread and two fish. Sure the food was going to taste good. He was not unhappy about his lunch. But he had no idea that his meager lunch held enough food for thousands to eat and be satisfied.

He just handed over his lunch. God fed the crowd.

Don’t spend too much time trying to spot God’s activity. Don’t be over-concerned how significant your labor is or how powerful your hands are. Just speak up for God when you get a chance. Hand over your lunch when it’s needed. Do what you can where you are. When you know it or not, you're acting as an agent of grace. Your hands are the conduits of miracles. God moves through you while you are busy doing what needs to be done.

So do it.

Saved by the Law

If your concern is being saved from hell, the law won't do you much good.

If your concern is to be saved from avoidable harm and futility here and now, "law" is just what you need.

I read an article not long ago in Forbes magazine that described the dramatic turn around in AIDS infection in that country. What has made the difference? A campaign to get people to change their behavior. Quit having sex outside marriage.

I saw an ad recently on the back page of a magazine. What happened to New Jersey teens when the state decided to delay issuing drivers licenses until they turned 18? A lot more of them arrived alive at 18 years of age.

I don't spend much time thinking about hell. I do spend a lot time thinking about how to help my people live well here and now. And "lawfulness," that is life ordered in harmony with sound principles turns out to be far more effective in saving them from disease, death, relationship failure and poverty than any amount of purely theoretical faith. Miracles sometimes happen. Law happens far more often.

(Sorry for absence of references for the Forbes article and the ad. I'm in a hurry to get out of town. If you want the references, leave a comment and I'll supply them next week when I return.)

Barnabas the Encourager

(This is a long blog--1200 words. So here is a synopsis: Barnabas, the encourager, was God’s indispensable agent in launching the ministry of Paul. Barnabas lived the grace Paul preached. If your calling is more that of “encourager” than “apostle” blessings on you. Your ministry is no less significant than that of those who are more flamboyant, forceful or famous. Keep encouraging.)

If you want the whole thing, here it is. Or you can check out the audio once we get it posted. See the links to the right.

Barnabas: My Model for Ministry

When a guy named Paul showed up in Jerusalem looking to spend some time with the followers of Jesus there, he needed help. The church would have nothing to do with him. For good reason. Sure, they had heard the stories of his conversion in Damascus. But the people in Jerusalem knew his other side better. It was their relatives and friends Paul had arrested and prosecuted. Their relatives and friends had been subjected to Paul’s enhanced interrogation techniques.

Paul was scary. He was forceful, brilliant, outspoken, domineering, and . . . well scary. If he wanted to believe in Jesus, that was all well and good. But it would be recklessly irresponsible to give him ready access to the social networks of the church. Who knew how long his “conversion” would last. Maybe his “conversion” was a mere ploy, a set up for more dramatic arrests and prosecutions.

Then Barnabas got involved.

Barnabas was rich. Devout. Cultured. Respected. When the early church ran low on cash, Barnabas saved the day (Acts 4:36).

So when Barnabas took Paul around to visit the apostles, the apostles listened. When Barnabas insisted Paul’s conversion was genuine, his opinion mattered. The church doors opened, at least a bit.

This was just Barnabas’ first act in setting up the ministry of Paul.

Some time later word reached Jerusalem that crowds of Gentiles were showing up at church to hear about Jesus. The apostles had already been confronted with the story of Cornelius, the Roman centurion, whose non-Jewish household had been demonstrably filled with the Holy Spirit before they were even baptized. Probably the apostles remembered the words of the Jesus about the gospel going to all nations. But what to do with crowds of Gentiles?

They turned to Barnabas. Would he go and check out the situation?

Barnabas heads off to Antioch. “When he arrived and saw the evidence of the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the lord will all their hearts.” There is ample evidence that the early church included people with all sorts of personal, moral and spiritual problems. What did Barnabas see when he met with these new believers? “Evidence of the grace of God.”

When Barnabas arrived, he saw evidence of grace and encouraged them. Not a bad model for us. Maybe the reason Barnabas saw so much grace is that his own life was full of grace. Luke writes about Barnabas: “He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith.” One of the highest commendations given in the Bible.

While Barnabas was helping the believers in Antioch grow in their spiritual life he remembered Paul. Paul had dropped off the radar screen. Barnabas thought he should be involved in public ministry. So Barnabas traveled over a hundred miles to Tarsus, looking for Paul. When he finally found him, Barnabas insisted Paul come help in Antioch.

The two of them spent a year teaching and preaching in Antioch. They had such an impact the people in town began calling the believers “Christians, ” the first time that term was used.

Later that year, a prophet predicted a severe famine. In response to the prophecy, the church started an emergency fund for the believers back in Jerusalem. When they had enough money together, they asked Barnabas to deliver it to Jerusalem.

Who did Barnabas take with him? Paul.

The leaders may not have been impressed with Paul’s scholarship and preaching when Barnabas first introduced Paul. But they could not fail to be impressed if Paul showed up with a large donation. So Barnabas and Paul traveled to Jerusalem carrying the offering from the church in Antioch.

After delivering the aid, Barnabas and Paul returned to Antioch. There, while they were fasting and praying with three other church leaders, the Holy Spirit told the group to consecrate Barnabas and Paul for a special mission. They did so, and Barnabas and Paul took off on a missionary trip.

Paul was in his element. New people. New challenges. He was a fiery preacher. His first Sabbath in the town of Pisidian Antioch, Paul preached in the local synagogue. His sermon was so compelling that the next Sabbath nearly the entire city turned out to hear him preach. Whether or not you agreed with Paul, he was hard to ignore.

Paul was a riveting preacher, a compelling teacher. He had the gift of healing. He performed exorcisms. Paul was a terrific evangelist. He was a lousy pastor. He was skilled at preaching grace. He was lousy at practicing it.

On this missionary trip, Barnabas had invited his relative John Mark to come along. Mark dropped out part way through the trip. He couldn’t handle the pressure. When Barnabas and Paul got ready to go on their next trip, Barnabas wanted to give Mark another chance. Paul was adamant. No way! He’s a wimp, a wuss. I won’t have a quitter with me doing evangelism.

When Paul insisted he would not do mission work with John Mark, Barnabas said, “Fine. You don’t have to come.”

For all of Barnabas’ appreciation for Paul’s gifts and calling, Barnabas would not allow Paul to shut down another person whose gifts and weaknesses were different from his own.

Paul went on to the famous ministry we know about. He traveled widely, planting churches through his fiery preaching. He wrote letters that are still studied and quoted today. God clearly used Paul in a mighty way.

I think it is valuable to remember without Barnabas, we would have never heard of Paul. Barnabas could not have done Paul’s work. Paul could have never done his work without Barnabas.

God needs both fiery evangelists and sensitive pastors. Sensitive pastors make lousy evangelists (if you measure by counting). Fiery evangelists make lousy pastors (if you measure by sustainable church life). In the large scheme of things both are vital for the long term health of the church.

Barnabas’ story gives me courage in my work as a pastor. I’m a lousy evangelist (if you evaluate me by the numbers). But I’m pretty good at encouraging.

Congregations also have personalities or gift profiles. Some congregations are rigorous and strict in their teaching and church culture. Other congregations are known for their warmth and openness. Both kinds of congregations are needed to do the whole work of God.

North Hill is unabashedly committed to Barnabas as our model. We are more concerned with warmth and affection than we are with order and structure. We find our greatest joy and effectiveness in encouraging persons and ministries.

Those who use Paul as their “model” Christian are often critical of a Barnabas approach to pastoral work and congregational life. These critics are adamant that the church must ruthlessly proclaim the pure gospel and rid itself of any taint of uncertainty or impurity. I smile at the criticism. It sounds just like Paul talking. And the reason we know what Paul sounded like, the reason we have access to his words is because of a man named Barnabas.

Who knows, maybe our own Barnabas ministry will give birth to a new Paul, full of zeal and fire, impatient with our own patience with those who are less than perfect.