Frederick Buechner "If the world is sane, then Jesus is mad as a hatter"

If the world is sane, then Jesus is mad as a hatter and the Last Supper is the Mad Tea Party. The world says, Mind your own business, and Jesus says, There is no such thing as your own business. The world says, Follow the wisest course and be a success, and Jesus says, Follow me and be crucified. The world says, Drive carefully—the life you save may be your own—and Jesus says, Whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

The world says, Law and order, and Jesus says, Love. The world says, Get, and Jesus says, Give. In terms of the world’s sanity, Jesus is crazy as a coot, and anybody who thinks we can follow him without being a little crazy too is laboring less under a cross than under a delusion.

David Loar, Fairlawn West United Church of Christ, Akron, Ohio

morning meditations

I taped ten 1 minute devotions for radio station WAKR. The first one started yesterday. Here is a link where you can read each of them.

I love this quote about reality of scripture:

Forget about Bible reading and "the quiet time"; Bible reading is the disquiet time. And don't read Scripture text to fuel devotional feelings, but to ignite imaginative faith in the God who dares us to think and act otherwise. Scripture text is not intended to confirm for us our spiritual and theological status quo, but to call us and our communities of faith into question, to unsettle our settled convictions because God is always urging us beyond what we already know and have learned to live with.

- Jim Gordon, Principal of Scottish Baptist College

driven to spiritual discipline

The more tired I feel, feel like I am being put upon, or unfairly judged or anything in that vein, the more I tend to isolate. Then I only see things that are all about my world and my self in that world.

However, my path and passion is to glorify God. The one who has created, forgives, and continues to redeem me in all time and circumstance.

At the very time it feels like pressure from both outside and inside myself is driving me down, that I need to spend more time "doing my job" and fulfilling the expectations of other folks, I am aware that I really need to spend more time in the spiritual disciplines both individually and with others.

Worship, Bible reading and reflection, and prayer are three that I desire to spend more time in with other people. I need to invite others to do that.

Meditating, prayer, reading the Psalms, waiting on God...at least in the morning and at night...I am starting to do more of on my own.

I am developing a journal for folks who visit with Fairlawn West to help them in their spiritual journey and possibly how they could do that through Fairlawn West. I am copying from a journal that Kate (my older daughter) received when she visited Goshen College two years ago. I started working on it at that time, but couldn't quite discern all the kinds of things that I would need to do to transfer it from the college context to the church context. Then a few months ago I received a little booklet from Renovare that spelled out 6 ingredients that could help us in our spiritual journey and with some very specific things we could do in that process. Those six were what I was looking for. I hope to have this personal journal done with in a few weeks to have available so that as folks are guests of our congregation, they could take this with them to help them become more clear about their spiritual journey and the process they are in to find a spiritual home.

I am looking for folks who are also "weary and heavy ladened". Together we could journey to Jesus who will give us rest. That we might take his cross upon us. I am having coffee this afternoon with an old friend who was a powerful spiritual influence in my life and I know he is feeling the burden in his life. It starts with us burned out sinners seeking Jesus...as brothers and sisters on the road.

the days of...

With all the details of prep for the services the of this week and the weekend, plus all the other church stuff that needed to get done, I am tired.

Have I spiritually prepared myself? I think not. I have tried to live the ordinary, regular pace and then expect that I will be able to "observe" these holy days. It is as if Lent lost its way in these last days. And I like the disciples with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane couldn't keep watch with him even for a little while.

I am worried that with my anxiousness about these days, I have acted in ways that has upset other people. I have felt impatient. I want to get back to the spiritual path and it seems as though the worldly path has made it into a six lane expressway with traffic buzzing all around. Which lane should I be in? Will I find the Christ on this road?

I have amends to make. But right now I don't know if I am feeling truly sorry or just plain tired.