Words

 I have been thinking about the importance of words for the past week or so.  Words matter.  They have always mattered, but they matter even more today than ever, I think.  In these fractious, complicated times, every word gets parsed and considered, and interactions are increasingly complex and nuanced.  As a word person, I think quite carefully when I speak most of the time, because it is important to me not to be misunderstood or to have my meaning misconstrued.  That has always mattered to me.  Today, it matters even more, when tempers are so on edge and people are so ready to be disagreeable.

Easy or Right

I have missed a couple days of writing about my meditations, but I have been thinking a lot the last couple days about the difference between doing what is right versus doing what is easy. There are examples of both all around, and I have been looking at each one, and thinking about my own life and wondering how I would handle various situations, and thinking about grace in the moment. Because it is not always easy to know, in an instant, what to do, how to react, what path to take, what is moral or right. Sometimes what looks right at the time turns out to be wrong. Sometimes what feels wrong turns out, in fact, after further consideration, to be the long term best option.

Seasons

Here in Minnesota we get to see the seasons in full form.  Well, with any luck, we get to see all four seasons, anyway, although sometimes spring seems to get short shrift.  Each season has its delights.  (Okay, yes, even winter, I guess.  Snow falling on Christmas Eve has its moments.)

This morning I am thinking about the seasons with regard to transformative faith, which is still on my mind.  It feels like most people approach the Ecclesiastes 3 verses with the idea that they are about letting go and moving on from.  But if you continue reading, Ecclesiastes 3:14 says this:

I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it.

So how does this fit the idea of transformative faith?  Doesn't transforming mean you change and leave the old you behind?

Transformative faith

Romas 12:2. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will.

I have been thinking a lot about the difference between conformative faith versus transformative faith the last few weeks, and how that difference drives your actions in daily life.  And this verse has been stuck in my head as I considered what type of faith I have, and how I put it into action.

The prefix trans comes from Latin and means beyond or through.  So to transform means to go beyond your current condition into a new state of being.  The prefix con, on the other hand, also from Latin, means together or with.  Thus, to conform, means that you join together with others in a cohesive group.

Being still and being filled

Be still and know that I am God.  Psalm 46:10

This is such a famous verse, and we often repeat it as a mantra, as though somehow, by simply being quiet, we will know God's plan for our lives and somehow have all the answers without having to do anything more.  But does it work that way?  I don't really think so.  It hasn't worked that way for me, anyway.

Cherry picking

One thing I hate more than almost anything else about Bible reading is cherry picking - choosing to read only some passages in order to justify a position, or in order to make YOUR point, or in order to simply ignore something uncomfortable that you don't want to acknowledge that comes before or afterward.  Proverbs 31 is a wonderful case in point.  Biblical scholars too often start with verse 10, as if verses 1-9 don't exist.  But they do, and they matter, and they are very important.

Ashes and Empathy

 It's Ash Wednesday once again.  A new year, a new 40 day period to think about.  This year, I have been working on being more intentional about meditation, trying to calm my mind and improve my mental health while also focusing more on my faith (not religion, but rather, my personal relationship with God.)  So each day I have a little topic that pops into my head that I think about that day.  I have been sharing on and off, but through the next 40 days, I will share what I think may be interesting to others.  Here is today, Ash Wednesday's thoughts.

My mediation for this Ash Wednesday is a quote from Gustave Mark Gilbert, who remarked on evil following the Nuremburg Trials;

"Evil, I think, is the absence of empathy."

John 11:35 Jesus began to weep.

Jesus became human to share in our human experience. He felt everything we feel, including empathy, grief, and pain, along with joy, love and fulfillment. As we enter the season of Lent, my son-in-law suggested that instead of giving up chocolate or coffee or social media for the 40 day observance, maybe we should give up bitterness or apathy or greed. I have been thinking about that, and I love that idea of addressing something within that is deeper and more meaningful.

I am not going to go into my personal decision. I am just going to encourage you to consider what you can focus on during Lent. Go beyond the trivial, and really dig deep and think about what you need to work on within your own faith life. What fruit of the spirit is weak? What sin keeps tripping you up? What do you wish you could change about yourself that would bring you closer to God? The next 40 days are in front of you. Who do you want to be on Easter Sunday?