Sleep

We don't turn off just turn our page

World on Fire

They seemed to know what they were doing when I came along

They bought things like regular gas sounded right

Dear me I love me

Nothing here is my fault

I was not asked to be here

I do not really know where here is

I see positive signs in faces I see

I hear words that resound in my soul

How do I know I have a soul?

Words resound there

Sympathetic vibrations that tear at my soul

Pain is what shows me my environs

Everywhere are we

Everywhere are them

I am me

I am we

Everything I've done in muscles memory

Nothing lost just not remembered

I am all there

I was all there

I know no way besides the way

Loving only the beginning

I lean me I teach me I send me I receive me

Forever new until forever is now

Consistency

It is what you are made of

What making kombucha reminds me

A two thousand year old connection

I like to put things together

With the new millennium we searched for sustainability

We created an unsustainable recycling industry like morons we are

A hundred years before there wasn't much garbage

Yes we were fewer but we made fantastic desserts from orange peals

Happy

Hallow brown in the eye

Blue haired to say blue eyed

Heard to describe what you smell

Tree people taking the bus to work

Diapers cleaned by hand and reused

The Roma scatter as the siren sounds

Dalmatia and they say every one has their own

Prose would do you fairer

A deep study 

Transcendental in thought

Helping good for you

A reciprocal relationship

You honor me let me honor you

You take some times from the least of us

Because it would be an insult not to

We drove away with the meat in the car

No words could be

A story I have now often told

From our perspective we had done nothing

There was this reflection in her eyes

A new beginning for her children

We brought art supplies and painted on the walls of one room

I was happy that day I would have liked to stay

Just above Visoko

There was a grim sense to war

We did so that we could

The hungry and cold easy to help

we are able

Our theme for this week again we find ourselves challenged.  If you don't find yourself challenged in your faith life, well I don't know how that would be.  I don't have a lot to say today, but something important to remember.

Somos del Señor: God Gives the Growth

This theme beautifully relayed in our scripture from Corinthians today.

1 Corinthians 3:7-9 Amplified Bible (AMP)

7 So neither is the one who plants nor the one who waters anything, but [only] God who causes the growth. 8 He who plants and he who waters are one [in importance and esteem, working toward the same purpose]; but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor. 9 For we are God’s fellow workers [His servants working together]; you are God’s cultivated field [His garden, His vineyard], God’s building.

 There is seeming contradiction here, but it is an important starting place for us today.  We are the most important to God each of us.  Only in faith can we understand this fact.  We need to understand our value in what we do.  In My professional life I understand that I am completely replaceable.  Those moments I experience are however mine forever.  I often feel I am in the right place at the right time.  In our spiritual life we are not replaceable.

So much work that you could work to the end of you life and find your self at the beginning.  It is kind of surprising and what the old can't truly share with the young.  As I aged I often wonder why people didn't tell me more what to expect.  The world being so difficult actually makes it easier to help.  Not sure where to start, start where you are their is work all around.

Had an interesting time recently completing the first half of basic lay speaker training.  My first goal which I failed was to be on time.  Not only late I made Pastor Wilma and Sister Terry late.  My second goal was to try and learn something.  We took an overview of  the basic history of the church.  Well trodden territory as I a had helped recently with a confirmation class and also because I find history interesting.

We talked about what manifestations of God's power we experience in our life.  What came to me was the web of relationships that make all the small miracles of life.  Taken apart they almost seem like a God wouldn't have time to worry about such small things.  Pastor Moore spoke recently at Brother Keith's funeral how God always put him on his path when he needed dug out of the snow.  Several occasions he outlined.  

People when they think of religion they think of the big miracles.  I always think of the parting of the Red Sea.  That I am sure is because I watched the Ten Commandment movie so many times at my Granny's.  I didn't think I would ever see a miracle as big.  As we spoke about how the power of God manifested in our lives that day the thing that came to me was how the parting of the Red Sea was probably a very easy thing for God.  Water listens.  The Red Sea didn't debate.  Well guys like Keith never debated about helping, but you know people like that are all too rare. 

The greater miracle is that we find our way ever to where God wants us.  We have moments in our lives when we feel like we are in the right place at the right time.   Certainly we have quite a few that don't work out so well.  But these comedies of errors that our lives sometime become lead us in clear direction.

Today we are confronted by a Jesus in Mathew as tough as I know him.  Maybe that day flipping tables in the temple I think he was more fierce, but this scripture in Mathew is here for us everyday.  The entire scripture we read today Matthew 5:21-37 is kind of impossible.   The Jesus we are confront with here today in Mathew is the reason why so many Christians prefer to read Leviticus. 

Verse 21 and 22 read:

21 “You have heard that it was said to the men of old, ‘You shall not murder,’ and ‘Whoever murders shall be [a]guilty before the court.’ 22 But I say to you that everyone who continues to be angry with his brother or harbors malice against him shall be guilty before the court.

Yes Jesus is equating anger with murder.  That sounded impossible to me a child to not be angry.  Or to know that it is mentioned in the same breath as murder doesn't seem possible, but here we find it.

In Matthew 5:33-37 Amplified Bible (AMP)

33 “Again, you have heard that it was said to the men of old, ‘You shall not make false vows, but you shall fulfill your vows to the Lord [as a religious duty].’ 34 But I say to you, do not make an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God; 35 or by the earth, for it is the footstool of His feet; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. 36 Nor shall you make an oath by your head, for you are not able to make a single hair white or black. 37 But let your statement be, ‘Yes, yes’ or ‘No, no’ [a firm yes or no]; anything more than that comes from the evil one.

Pastor Debbie often recommends a second translation to look at scripture.  Here another look at the section on oaths.  Do you hear anything different.  What is it you hear.  What catches your spirit?

Matthew 5:33-37 Modern English Version (MEV)
Teaching About Oaths

33 “Again, you have heard that it was said by the ancients, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall fulfill your oaths to the Lord.’[a] 34 But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35 nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 But let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these comes from the evil one.

We are here in the the sermon on the mount today.  A nice place to be I always think. Jesus here is was also rebuking those opponents he had at the time who were clearly hypocrites.   The context of this passage tells us te importance for our lives.  Jesus denounced those who took oaths with great words and no action.  A good definition for politics.  We don't need to swear great oaths with grand words at all.  These really serve no purpose.

I was pondering this scripture last week watching the new Picard Star Trek show.  I enjoy those shows for several reasons probably mostly because I watched with my father when I was young.  In any case I also enjoy the pan galactic mythology wisdom myths represented.  In this episode Thursday a character admonished a student to not make a promise. Don't be a jailer.  The details elude me, but the point remains.  Also reminds me of some of the best advice I ever got.  Do what you can.  Don't promise just do what you say you will.  Jesus ever radical.

We are able to follow this model presented here.  We can connect to more than two hundred years and we can connect to more than two thousand years.  You ask me how?  Well I don't really know that many ways, but I do know that there are many ways. 


I've found one in the last six months here in the youth center.  I've been experimenting with brewing Kombucha.  My long term goal is to create a new project, but this far I have only been in a testing phase.  I won't swear to anything righ now.

Things have been going along well enough that I have felt comfortable to share with friends.  I have been drinking regularly what I have brewed and have received no complaints thus far from those I have shared.  What makes me feel comfortable is the product I have managed to produce has been very consistent.  It reminds me  how we get to know anything.  

I have two scobies living in the Youth Center now each in their own glass container.  A mother and daughter if you will.  They create similar output each week.  The input to the process is sweat tea.  The scoby unlike my body loves sugar.  I like Kombucha because I have been habituated to having a drink.  Water might be a better choice, but kombucha is a better choice to many other drinks available.

Interestingly my thoughts of water remind me why they would make kombucha for so long.  Truth is for most of human history water was very sketchy.  Most of the middle ages in Europe the drink would be a fermented product.  Having this living kombucha keeps the bad stuff away essentially.  It is when I realized this it made sense to me why Kombucha was easier to make than I thought it would be.  People have been doing it for at least two thousand years.  What people do often isn't hard, this we have experience with as well.

So my mind finds this two thousand year old relationship in my life.  It's not so unusual to be connected through the millennia.  

I say all this to say something small.  The greatest miracles of God are in relationships that last and can be depended upon.  We know thing change, but we have things that remain consistent as long as we remember to teach.  There are many things in this world that are not broke.

Lord, we are able. We can see the connections that demonstrate your presence in our lives.  We can try to be where and when we are needed.  Some people find this world of evil daunting and do not know where to begin.

I myself have seen that it is easier to help where thing are worse.  In a war displaced people need shelter and food.  In Cleveland it isn't always clear what it is people need.

I would argue it isn't too much different from the struggles I see kids make everyday at school.  They often can not find the right answer because they don't fully accept what the question asks them.  47 what?  A math classic teaching about units, but the point is people fail to see connection.  

Do you see miles per hour as a division problem?  I enjoy teaching about units.  You know it isn't only numbers and variables we do math with: meter times meter is meter squared.  Well I think math is good fun.  It is our reading comprehension tested here.

Paul is reminding us that we are children of God who need to mature in God.  We have plenty of work.  To my mind I see Paul still hoping to feed  us solid food soon.  Spiritual colic is like the regular one about learning to digest and accept.

Let Us Pray: God of all creation, the offering we bring to your altar this day is the fruit of our labors; and we want to bring you the best we have. No harvest comes from us alone but starts in your goodness; and many have contributed to every good gift we bring. Working together in your fields, generous God, we pray that our gifts might be used to bless others who hunger for connection with you. We pray in the name of Christ, our savior and redeemer. Amen. (1 Corinthians 3:1-9)

Nottingham Feb 16, 2020