Running from Rest
Christ has taken our failures and defeats and exchanges that yoke for his own.
Read the article at https://www.1517.org/articles/running-from-rest
When I was younger, I ran track. I wasn’t good. I honestly don’t think I can recall winning anything. Conceptually, I knew in those races that I needed to run faster if I wanted to win. Yet, at some point, the best I could do still wasn’t as fast or faster than those I was racing. I could try to give that little extra, but it just wasn’t there………..
What The Gospel Means For Rich People
What she needed was for her particular form of poverty to be seen so that the good news of Jesus could be shown to her.
read the whole article here. https://mbird.com/theology/what-the-gospel-means-for-rich-people/
What she needed was for her particular form of poverty to be seen so that the good news of Jesus could be shown to her.
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This article, written by Nathan Hart, first appeared in the “Money Issue” of The Mockingbird magazine:
Catherine appears flawless on her Instagram profile. The most recent picture shows her in a designer dress receiving an award for philanthropic leadership in our community. Last week she posted a picture of her husband, Tom, playing with their kids in the infinity pool behind their multimillion-dollar home. (“Catherine” and “Tom” are not their real names, but their story is true.)…………………………………..
Imagination: A Handmaid of the Gospel
Our Lord is not only the King of creation but the King of creativity.
Hang around Lutheran musicians long enough, and you will, no doubt, hear these famous words of Martin Luther. “Music is a handmaid of theology.” It is easy to understand why this quote is so popular. Luther’s words are rich in their simplicity, beauty, and truth. They point to the heart of every good Christian hymn: Christ crucified and risen for you.
The Problem with Self Optimization
A look at what Jesus taught about Christian self-optimization.
John came to college as a self-professed atheist, which made his appearance at the small campus Christian fellowship something of a curiosity. He had grown up without any religious background and wanted to know what the whole Christianity thing was about. John did the same for the other religious groups at the school. This voyeurism soon turned to devotion. He went to every meeting, every retreat, every bible study he could. In a matter of weeks, the atheist label he once wore proudly was soon exchanged for another: Christian…………………
The God Who Gives Life to the Dead
Unlike us, God is not limited by impossible situations.
Read the whole article here The God Who Gives Life to the Dead - Mockingbird (mbird.com)
The hand of the LORD came upon me…and set me down in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones […]
So I prophesied as I had been commanded; and as I prophesied, suddenly there was a noise, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. I looked, and there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them; but there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, mortal, and say to the breath: Thus says the Lord GOD: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.” (Ez 37:1, 7-9)……………………….
Not Captain Material! Rejection and the Good News
An essay by David Zahl from the newly released, The Jesus I Wish I Knew in High School
Read the whole article here https://mbird.com/religion/testimony/rejection-and-the-good-news
It was a lock, they told me.
The team would meet for its annual post-season banquet. We’d eat some pizza, our coach would hand out a few awards, and then we’d elect next year’s captains. I say captains, plural. My sophomore year there had been three. My junior year, two.
Water polo is what you call a niche sport -- in New England at least. Sunny places like California and Florida boast robust high school programs, both public and private school leagues. These states tend to feed the US Olympic roster. Up in Connecticut, though, the sport is mainly something for swimmers to do during the off-season. No one takes it that seriously.
COVID-19 Killed Our Sense of Personal Progress
Scripture says that might be a good thing.
Read Whole article at https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2021/august-web-only/covid-19-coronavirus-pandemic-personal-progress.html
“The average human lifespan is absurdly, terrifyingly, insultingly short.” That’s how Oliver Burkeman begins his new book, Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals. In it, he confronts readers with the disquieting truth that we have a paltry 4,000 weeks on this earth, and a lot of what we do with them is meaningless, at least by some human standards.
As bleak as it sounds, that is exactly the message we need to hear right now.
Life expectancy in the United States has dropped for the first time since World War II. Thanks in large part to the COVID-19 pandemic, Americans can now expect their 4,000 weeks to be reduced by roughly 78 weeks (or 18 months). The fact that life is hard and death is coming would be unremarkable news in any other time or place. But for those of us in the modern West (and perhaps America, in particular), mortality is a question we’ve found ingenious ways to avoid…..
Cross Country: The Great Equalizer
Being on a cross country team could bring out my best, but it could also bring out my worst.
Read the whole article at https://mbird.com/sports/cross-country-the-great-equalizer/
Every September, I get emotional about grass. A whiff of earthy sod on a crisp September morning means one thing to my mind: it’s cross country season. First as a spectator and then as a participant, I spent my September Saturday mornings from 1999 until 2011 running through the muddy grass of cross country courses. Sunday mornings were for church but also for scouring the sports section of The Sharon Herald to read results from that weekend’s invitationals. In the fall, life was cross country and cross country was life. And I loved it.
Don't Say No: The Ludicrous Nature of Faith
Saying No comes at zero cost; saying Yes could very well cost everything you have.
Read the whole article at https://mbird.com/everyday/dont-say-no-the-ludicrous-nature-of-faith/
How would you define faith? Does it require action or is it simply a form of trust? Is it better illustrated as taking a leap or sitting down in a chair? The word is used 270 times in the Bible, but its definition is endlessly debated. For such a familiar word, it feels difficult to translate into everyday life.
My wife and I recently moved our family from the town we called home for the past sixteen years. It was a daunting life change as both of us felt deeply rooted to our house, church and community. As our moving day approached, a friend of mine offered a three-word nugget of advice for after the move: “Don’t say no,” he said.
No Scrubbing Necessary
Jesus Didn’t Wash His Hands
read the whole article here https://mbird.com/bible/no-scrubbing-necessary/
Matters of cleanliness took on a renewed importance about 16 months ago with the onset of the pandemic. People disinfected everything they could get their hands on (including groceries), but as we learned more about how the virus is transmitted, our need to sterilize waned and the need to put on masks (and get a vaccine when offered) waxed. One thing that hasn’t left is the common understanding of how important it is to wash our hands.
When and how to wash your hands has always been a debated topic. It’s even a controversy Jesus addressed in his day, debating with some local leaders over proper adherence to social customs. Jesus was kind of dirty, actually — neither he nor his disciples washed their hands. The local leaders were aghast, but not because they cared about hygiene………………………….
A Reflection On The 20th Anniversary of 9/11
Never Alone on Scorched Earth
Read the Whole article here https://mbird.com/featured/a-reflection-on-the-20th-anniversary-of-9-11/
There is a land of love that I used to visit. It was lush and light. Full of sweet memories and conversations with both of my parents. I would show up there almost daily. In phone calls, text messages, long emails, and as many visits as we could manage. We could talk for hours.
I would recall to my mother how, as an adult, I have discovered I know almost no music from the 1980s. In my childhood she played Motown exclusively. We would laugh together remembering dancing in the dusty living room light to Aretha Franklin or the Temptations. And my Dad’s stories from childhood were always astonishing to me. One I would have him tell all the time happened at his father’s airport. It was kind of a hangout for local men and this odd pair of elderly gentlemen would meet weekly there to play chess, whisper quietly in German, and weep. One had been a member of the Nazi youth and the other was from a Jewish family who left Germany right before the Holocaust. I mean, who else has stories like that?………………………………..
Independence Can't Buy Me Love
We Don’t Have To Be Independent, Self-Sufficient Problem Solvers.
Read whole article here https://mbird.com/social-science/identity/independence-cant-buy-me-love/
I hear a lot of talk about independence the older I get. And I get it, I really do, independence is important if you want to successfully find a place to live in besides your parents basement. It’s also important if you want to find a job that can support you, but more importantly, one that can indulge your newfound pescatarian lifestyle and sustain your iPhone upgrades.
Why we're Not Going Back to Church
If the church was actually what they said it was — a hospital for sinners — then our sanctuaries would be full of bodies.
Read whole article here https://mbird.com/religion/church/why-were-not-going-back-to-church/
When hosting a party, it’s hard not to take a person’s absence personally, especially if the reason goes unmentioned. Without an RSVP, the host is left to assume the worst. Did the person die on the way over? Or worse still, did they have better things to do and never really like you in the first place? Such is the case, it seems, for clergy who are wondering where some of the pre-pandemic stalwarts have gone. I’m currently in my third year of seminary and, as someone who is hoping to be a future leader in the church, I went to a Sunday service four times this summer. (My kids went once.) I could provide a list of excuses, but none of them feel truly legitimate.
We Need Eighth Commandment People Now More than Ever
Breaking the Eighth Commandment can destroy a community, but more importantly, keeping it can strengthen a community. What a wonderful opportunity we have as believers to positively affect our world.
Our Savior, Jesus Christ, was wrongly accused and wrongly convicted of a crime He did not commit. The Sanhedrin would go to any means necessary to silence this rabbi, even to the extreme of breaking the Eighth Commandment to have Jesus put to death.
Now the chief priests and the whole council were seeking false testimony against Jesus that they might put Him to death, but they found none, though many false witnesses came forward. (Matthew 26:59–60)
What Does the Eighth Commandment Cover?
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. (Exodus 20:16)…………………………
The Jagged Little Pill of Grace
When Abundant Grace Exposes Our Tendency Toward Self-Reliance
Vitamins are good for you. Or so I am told. And because I am an “adult,” I’ve graduated from the Flintstone gummy bear vitamins to the little oblong pills without any taste — good for the body, but impossible to consume.
Grace is good too. I know that for certain. But just like the vitamins, it is difficult to ingest. In a society that values meritorious efforts, how can one accept the undeserved gift of love and mercy? But there is another, less obviously part of grace that presents its own challenges. When something is freely given to us it is easier to take it for granted. And as humans, we know that when we feel taken advantage of, we usually ditch the person like a popsicle stand.
But God doesn’t ghost us like an unrequited romantic interest — in other words, He is not contained by the box of human standards. His love transcends mere human judgments and can be captivated by us, like the father in the story of the prodigal son. A son who s…………….
Simply Human: Don't Believe The Hype
It Might Be Human Nature to Turn People into Heroes, But We Often Destroy Them in the Process.
Read the whole article here https://mbird.com/sports/simply-human-dont-believe-the-hype/
If there’s one thing I can’t stand, one thing that makes me cringe in sympathy, one thing that makes me nauseous with foreboding or dread — it’s hype. Anyone who follows sports knows what hype can do to a kid and has likely seen dozens of bright young prospects in any major sport chewed up and spit out onto the ash heap of history. If those once can’t-miss prospects are still remembered at all, it is only for the potential that went unfulfilled. That forever defines them in the public’s eye. But it even haunts the great ones too. Hype is a toxic friend to have.
In basketball, my preferred sport, big prospects often……………….
The Time St Peter Got the Yips
Peter sank in the water. Danny Rojas couldn’t put a ball on frame. Simone Biles got lost in the air.
This article comes to us from Jason Mehl:
The yips. The twisties. Last week, the theater of sports invited us, through comic imaginary and tragic reality, to participate in the drama of a rare athletic phenomenon and the two quirky words used to describe it. The comedic world of Ted Lasso featured gifted striker Danny Rojas succumbing to and overcoming a public case of the yips, described by Coach Beard as “when, just out of nowhere an athlete suddenly can’t do the basic fundamentals of their sport.” A few days later, Simone Biles experienced the twisties with results that were thankfully not physically tragic, but were visually shocking, emotionally devastating, and personally (for her) tragic. As the Washington Post explained,
When gymnasts have the “twisties,” they lose control of their bodies as they spin through the air … And after experiencing the twisties once, it’s very difficult to forget. Instinct gets replaced by thought. Thought quickly leads to worry. Worry is difficult to escape.
Even Your Doubts Are invited to the Party
Faith Is Strengthened Not So Much by a What, But by a Who
Read the Article at Even Your Doubts Are Invited To The Party - Mockingbird (mbird.com)
The Nicene creed is something you may or may not have learned growing up. And if you did grow up with it, reciting it may feel like repeating the basic dinner prayer. Actually, quickly saying grace at the table so that you can shove mashed potatoes in your mouth is a lot like monotonously chanting the creed so that you can hurry on to post-church brunch. Either way, we have memorized many phrases at church.
A Penny and God's Goodness by Martin Luther
Christ strikes a blow first against the presumption of those who would storm their way into heaven by their good works.
For the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. After agreeing with the laborers for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. And going out about the third hour he saw others standing idle in the marketplace, and to them he said, ‘You go into the vineyard too, and whatever is right I will give you.’ So they went. Going out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour, he did the same. And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing. And he said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’ They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You go into the vineyard too.’ And when evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last, up to the first.’ And when those hired about the eleventh hour came, each of them received a denarius. Now when those hired first came, they thought they would receive more, but each of them also received a denarius. And on receiving it they grumbled at the master of the house, saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’ But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for a denarius? Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or do you begrudge my generosity?’ So the last will be first, and the first last” (Matt 20:1-16).
The substance of the parable consists not in the penny, what it is, nor in the different hours; but in earning and acquiring, or how one can earn the penny; that as here the first presumed to obtain the penny and even more by their own merit, and yet the last received the same amount because of the goodness of the householder. Thus God will show it is nothing but mercy that he gives and no one is to arrogate to himself more than another. Therefore, he says I do you no wrong, is not the money mine and not yours; if I had given away your property, then you would have reason to murmur; is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own?
Now in this way Christ strikes a blow first against the presumption of those who would storm their way into heaven by their good works. These all labor for definite wages, that is, they take the law of God in no other sense than that they should fulfill it by certain defined works for a specified reward, and they never understand it correctly, and know not that before God all is pure grace. This signifies that they hire themselves, out for wages, and agree with the householder for a penny a day; consequently, their lives are bitter and they lead a life that is indeed hard.
Christ strikes a blow first against the presumption of those who would storm their way into heaven by their good works.
Now when the gospel comes and makes all alike, as Paul teaches in Romans 3:23, so that they who have done great works are no more than public sinners, and must also become sinners and tolerate the saying: All have sinned, and that no one is justified before God by his works; then they look around and despise those who have done nothing at all. Then they murmur against the householder, they imagine it is not right; they blaspheme the gospel, and become hardened in their ways; then they lose the favor and grace of God, and are obliged to take their temporal reward and trot from him with their penny and be condemned; for they served not for the sake of mercy but for the sake of reward, and they will receive that and nothing more, the others, however, must confess that they have merited neither the penny nor the grace, but more is given to them than they had ever thought was promised to them.
Therefore, if one were to interpret it critically, the penny would have to signify temporal good, and the favor of the householder, eternal life. But the day and the heat we transfer from temporal things to the conscience, so that work-righteous persons do labor long and hard, that is, they do all with a heavy conscience and an unwilling heart, forced and coerced by the law; but the short time or last hours are the light consciences that live blessed lives, led by grace, and that willingly and without being driven by the law.
Therefore, we clearly see, if we look into their hearts, that the last had no regard for their own merit, but enjoyed the goodness of the householder. The first however did not esteem the goodness of the householder, but looked to their own merits, and thought it was theirs by right and murmured about it.
The substance of this gospel is that no mortal is so high, nor will ever ascend so high, who will not have occasion to fear what may become the very lowest. On the other hand, no mortal lies so low or can fall so low, to whom the hope is not extended that he may become the highest; because here all human merit is abolished and God's goodness alone is praised.
God is on the Bathroom Floor
Modern Day Psalm
I don’t remember most of Autumn, because I lost my mind late in the summer and for a long time after that, I wasn’t in my body. I was a lightbulb buzzing somewhere far.
Read the whole Article at https://www.nightbirde.co/blog/blog-post-title-three-2rjnk
I don’t remember most of Autumn, because I lost my mind late in the summer and for a long time after that, I wasn’t in my body. I was a lightbulb buzzing somewhere far.
After the doctor told me I was dying, and after the man I married said he didn’t love me anymore, I chased a miracle in California and sixteen weeks later, I got it. The cancer was gone. But when my brain caught up with it all, something broke. I later found out that all the tragedy at once had caused a physical head trauma, and my brain was sending false signals of excruciating pain and panic.