All things continue the way they have been since the beginning.

What has happened will happen again;

there is nothing new here on earth.

Ecclesiastes 1:9

This is a picture of the “Maggie Tree”. This time of year, it blossoms and it reminds me of our dear Maggie, our pet mixed breed (OK, mutt) dog whom we cared for and loved from 1988- 2005. She is buried under this tree. In fact, when I buried her, I planted the tree right on top of her. In this way, her body was the basis of the nutrients of this growing tree. It gives me some comfort to know that she still “lives” in this tree. Literally the molecules that comprised her are now living in this tree.

The beauty of creation is that there are no new molecules around. All the molecules that existed in the beginning of time are still with us. There is no new creation or destruction of matter- it simply takes a different form. Amazing right?

So, the cycle of life remains with us very closely. God has promised us that we matter, and we will continue to live with him, in some form, for eternity. What an amazing and comforting thought.

Prayer: Lord, your creation and plans are amazing, Amen

I recently spoke with a client about emotional check-ins during the day. It is a practice that I exercise regularly. Just like we need to have physical disciplines to maintain our physical health, we need emotional check-ins to maintain emotional health. Of course, we also need spiritual check-ins to keep our spiritual health fresh and alive.

The emotional check-ins are really simple. Periodically during the day, one just takes a moment alone, takes a deep breath or two to make a little break from whatever activity we are currently doing, and then we ask ourself, “What is going on with me right now?”

Am I feeling sad, angry, scared, stressed, lonely, grateful- whatever- and we get in touch with it. One must be completely honest and open with what is going on at the moment. Any feeling is just that- it is present at the moment. The feeling need not be negative, although it might be, and we must make room for that possibility.

As we acknowledge what we are feeling- and more than one thing is certainly possible- we accept it and allow ourselves that feeling. Once we acknowledge it, we can decide how we want to react to it. Honesty is the most important part of the exercise. If we are angry, we might want to explore what that is about. Maybe the anger is toward ourself. Maybe it is really fear that looks like anger. Maybe in the moment we don’t really know, but at least we are in touch with what is going on at the present time.

When I suggested this to my client, he admitted that he had never thought to do this, partly because he was more in the practice of checking in with others and how they felt. He agreed that this would be a good little exercise to keep him grounded and self-aware.   

So, just a quick little exercise that we can do to stay aware and healthy.

 How are you feeling?

Prayer: Lord, help us to take time to breathe and be aware of you and our own current state, Amen.

As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;
 for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.
 The life of mortals is like grass, they flourish like a flower of the field;
 the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more.
 But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord’s love is with those who fear him,
 and his righteousness with their children’s children—with those who keep his covenant
 and remember to obey his precepts.

Psalm 103:13-18

I typically give homework to my clients as I have noted in this space in the past. Sometimes I will assign this passage from Psalm 103. What beauty and simplicity is found in this passage. I tell my clients that the Bible writers would often give analogies to teach about the character of God. We can only know of God through the senses, and the tools given to us to understand our world and our environment. Of course, the Spirit of God enlightens us as we give him the room to do so also.

This passage reminds us of God’s love for us – like we love our own children. We can relate to that. I especially like the idea that God knows how we are formed, and he has pity on us. He knows that we are like failed children sometimes, yet he has compassion for us, like we might for a four- year- old child who makes foolish mistakes at times.  God is not interested in shaming and humiliating us. Like a loving Father, he has compassion, grace and understanding.

Remember that.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for these simple reminders, Amen

 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life”                                      John 8:12

We were some of the fortunate people who witnessed a total solar eclipse on Monday, April 8^th. The thing that perhaps struck me the most was the fact that until the sun was completely covered by the moon, there was still a striking amount of light reaching the earth. Even when only a sliver of the sun remained visible, there was substantial amount of light being experienced.

It was not until total coverage of the sun took place that we really experienced darkness. That reminded me of the incredible power of the sun to produce heat and light. Even a fraction of the sun’s energy produces a great deal of light.

A principle I have discussed in the past is this- when there is great darkness, even a little light shines brightly. It doesn’t take much light to pierce darkness. As this physical principle is true, so too is the spiritual one. In a world of darkness, just a little light becomes very prominent. Where pain and darkness are present, the presence of a caring friend with a word of encouragement, or even just their presence, brings light and warmth to those who are hurting.

Where little acts of kindness are performed, a great deal of encouragement is felt. So, as I mentioned in yesterday’s blog, we have the power within us to bring light.

 Even a little light goes a long way.

Prayer: Lord, help us to be light bearers, Amen

When Haman saw that Mordecai would not kneel down or pay him honor, he was enraged.  Yet having learned who Mordecai’s people were, he scorned the idea of killing only Mordecai. Instead, Haman looked for a way to destroy all Mordecai’s people, the Jews, throughout the whole kingdom of Xerxes. Then Haman said to King Xerxes, “There is a certain people dispersed among the peoples in all the provinces of your kingdom who keep themselves separate. Their customs are different from those of all other people, and they do not obey the king’s laws; it is not in the king’s best interest to tolerate them. If it pleases the king, let a decree be issued to destroy them, and I will give ten thousand talents of silver to the king’s administrators for the royal treasury.”                                                                       Esther 3:5-8

Did you know that April is “Genocide Awareness Month”? I didn’t know that until recently, and it made me think about the need for such a month. What an indictment of humanity! The fact is, there have been genocides in existence since the earliest recorded times. Many times, the Jewish people have been the targets of such an abhorrence.

We read early on in the Bible, in the book of Esther, about the plans that Haman had to destroy the Jewish people. Haman’s plot was reportedly fueled by the fact that “those people” were different, and they did not obey the king’s law. Actually, Haman hated the idea that “those people” had their own beliefs and customs, and he hated that he was being diminished and disrespected by them- at least in his own mind.

I read about the genocide in Rwanda where the Hutu people tried to destroy the Tutsi people. Some 800,000 Tutsi were murdered, and 2 million were displaced. All this transpired in roughly a four-month period in April, 1994- almost 30 years ago to this day. The tensions between the tribal peoples had been brewing over generations, but when it broke open, savage killing ruled the land.

How do such atrocities build? They start with the fostering of the idea that differences in people should not be tolerated. That those who are not part of our “tribe” are inferior, and indeed, do not even have personhood.

We need not look far into our own history to see that Americans too, of course, are capable of genocide. Many Native Americans were slaughtered with the justification that they were “savages”.

I discuss this not to impose guilt, although we are certainly guilty of such past sins. Rather, I bring this up to warn that we are all capable of dismissing and labeling other people, which can gradually lead to deciding that they are not really people at all.   

Prayer: Lord, forgive us trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us… Amen

“This evil nation is like a man possessed by a demon. For if the demon leaves, it goes into the deserts for a while, seeking rest but finding none. Then it says, ‘I will return to the man I came from.’ So it returns and finds the man’s heart clean but empty! Then the demon finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and all enter the man and live in him. And so he is worse off than before.”                                    Matthew 12:43-45

Maybe some moms still use this little phrase to encourage their little ones to clean their plate. My mom, typical of her generation, would remind me that there were starving children in India, and that somehow, my eating all of my food, including the dreaded overcooked spinach, was essential for those poor children. Her point was that I should be grateful that I had food when they did not. She was right in that, but that analogy never seemed to be a great motivator to get me to eat that spinach.

I was reminded of this when I recently spoke to a client whose husband had cheated on her. She was struggling to rebuild her trust when he pointed out that he had quit cheating and that he had a “clean plate”. He had not, however, tried very hard to restore the broken emotional relationship.

The problem is, having a “clean plate” is not enough to rebuild trust that has been broken. I pointed out that plates are cleaned in order to have new, fresh food placed upon them, not to just stay clean. The point being, one must work to rebuild trust by filling that plate with renewed emotional and spiritual connection.

The parable from Matthew above points out that just ridding ourselves of bad practices does not ensure anything. We need to replace bad practices with good disciplines and strengthened connection with God in order not to fall back into a bad place.

Avoiding evil is not enough. We need to pursue good.

Prayer: Lord, help us to pursue you as you have forgiven us, and given us a “clean plate”, Amen

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus                                                                                           Philippians 4:7

 “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.”                                           Psalm 19:1

I am certain that everyone is aware that there will be a solar eclipse on Monday April 8^th. I am also pretty certain that there will also be an April 9^th. You see, there are some conspiracy theorists who are using yet another natural, predictable physical phenomenon to say that this is an omen of some far deeper man-made nefarious plot. That maybe the world is going to end, or lives will be terribly disturbed by the eclipse and scientific studies done on it. Indeed, some of those conspiracy folks are making money on huckstering the natural event.

And yes, there are actually people who really believe that the earth is flat, and that QAnon is a viable predictor of truths hidden from regular folks. Yes, there is a conspiracy for every taste.

As my readers know, I am both a man of faith and a man of science. The God of Creation has brought into existence a world of literally unfathomable majesty and awe. I am convinced that we will never totally understand the fullness of this marvelous universe.

So, we were made to be curious, and we do seek to understand this marvelous creation. At the same time, God gave us reasonable, logical minds to bring to bear on understanding this world. So, let us pursue those truths and not be distracted by leaps beyond logic that play into conspiracy theories.

I trust that my readers live in the peace that passes all understanding, and that our faith in God overrides any fears that conspiracies may try to muster.

Prayer: Lord, you know how you have made us, and you desire for us peace based upon your faithfulness, Amen

Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.                                                                                                           Matthew 17:4

“And I tell you that you are Peter. On this rock I will build My church. The powers of hell will not be able to have power over My church.                                                                                                                   Matthew 16:18

I noted with interest the response Peter had to Jesus when Jesus was shown in glory to the apostles along with Moses and Elijah. The Hebrew tradition was often to memorialize great events when God had provided a great victory or miracle to the Israelites. They would stack stones or build an altar to keep the miracle in mind and in sight.

I am not blaming Peter- he was responding out of his cultural roots. He also was acting out of his human nature. It is part of us to want to put “movements” into a system to sustain them. We see this in the evolution of the Church. The early movement of Christianity gradually yielded to a system of theology, worship, governance and liturgical practices. It became a sustaining system.

I don’t blame the practice of trying to sustain a movement with governing and practice standards. Some guardrails are needed in any human movement. The problem becomes when we start to worship the system and lose sight of the movement. We work hard to protect a system, and loyalty goes to the system, not the reason the system was established.

Church denominations sprang up as a way to have some uniformity of theology, and as an attempt to guard orthodox beliefs. Good intentions to be sure. Yet, historically those denominations have sparred with one another, and at times, literally killed one another.

So, I try to be kind to impetuous Peter. He just did what we failed Jesus followers do in different ways. We turned a movement into a system that, while well-intentioned, is flawed.

Prayer: Lord, you know our frailty, and we trust that your Church will prevail and that the “gates of hell” will not overcome it, Amen

Let mutual love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it. Remember those who are in prison, as though you were in prison with them; those who are being tortured, as though you yourselves were being tortured. Hebrews 13:1-3

Almost all Americans have an immigration story. I am the grandson of immigrants. On my father’s side, his father came to America in the mid 1890’s from Germany. On my mother’s side, her family came from the Alsace-Lorraine area of Germany (or France, depending on the year you look at) in the 1840’s. My family immigration story is probably pretty typical.  Unless you are Native-American, your family immigrated (or was brought) to America at some point in the last 350 years or so.

Now the United States faces an “immigration crisis” on the Mexican border. People from South and Central America, as well as Mexico, and really, many countries around the globe, are desperately trying to get into America to escape poverty and violence in their home country. What is the response of Christians to this?

Well, not surprisingly, the Christian response may not line up well with the political response. Obviously, this is a difficult problem, one with no simple solutions. Yet, Christians must adhere to the mandates of their calling and tradition- we are to welcome the stranger and the oppressed as much as we are able.

As I said, there is not a neat answer to this, at least not one that squares with America’s political and national aims. Yet, simply putting up high barriers to people who need refuge is not the response expected of Christian charity. Are we not obligated to try to meet the needs of those oppressed and marginalized?

When our ancestors arrived in America, immigrants were not always warmly welcomed either, because they were considered a threat to jobs. My German/French ancestors did not receive the overt rejection that had accompanied the arrival of some earlier immigrants, or those who later emigrated from southern Europe or Asia. Indeed, because of the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, immigrants from China were legally excluded until 1943. Yes, we have a history of exclusion as well as inclusion.

When immigrants are defined in dehumanizing ways, it is easier to discriminate and exclude them. Unfortunately, this is an old practice that, sadly, continues to this day. People desiring admission to this country- the vast majority- are those simply seeking a better life. Indeed, many come in order to save their life and that of their children.

So, I simply suggest that as we consider how to respond to immigrants seeking asylum in America, we need to decide what might be the Christian response versus the political response.

Yes, that is a tough one. In some future blogs, I will speculate about what we as Christians might do to respond.

Prayer: Lord, give us wisdom to determine how to treat people as you would have us do that, Amen

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.                                                                                                                                                            Philippians 4:8

One of my guiding beliefs is that it is better to go toward the good rather than simply avoid the bad. This concept is applicable to many situations in life. The general principle is that we are energized by striving toward a goal rather than trying to avoid bad situations.

I recently discussed this concept with a client who is recovering from a divorce in a marriage that lasted over 30 years. This client needs to redefine herself, because for so many years, her identity was tied to her husband. It is understandable that this takes time for healing- but healing is possible as long as she can keep her eye on the prize ahead, and not get bogged down in past pain.

Of course she is grieving, and certainly she is in emotional pain, but there is hope ahead for her. As she looks to see her life in view of how God will use her in the future, she will be OK.

It is something that everyone in pain needs to hear.

Prayer: Lord, help us to keep our eye on the prize ahead, Amen.