Super Chickens

Leadership “is an activity in which conditions are created in which everyone can do their most courageous thinking.” – Margaret Heffernan, “Forget the Pecking Order at Work

A dispute also arose among them as to which one of them was to be regarded as the  greatest. But [Jesus] said to them, ‘The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those in authority over them are called benefactors. But not so with you; rather the greatest among you must become like the youngest, and the leader like one who serves. For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one at the table? But I am among you as one who serves. – Luke 22:24-27

Ms. Heffernan begins her “TED Talk” with a study of “super chickens.” These chickens were selected and bred to be the most productive egg layers.  After six generations of chickens the “super chicken” productivity was compared with the control group – regular, healthy chickens.  All but three of the super chickens were dead.  They had pecked each other to death competing for food and space.  The other chickens, obviously, out-produced them.  Ms. Heffernan goes on to suggest that competition is, perhaps, not the best model for business.  Maybe it is not the best model for life.

In talking with a music producer, she asked him about the superstars.  He told her they had superstars, but they didn’t last very long.  The musicians who did last were those who were collaborators. He said,

“Bringing out the best in others is how they found the best in themselves.”

Almost 2000 years ago Jesus said pretty much the same thing: “the greatest among you must become like the youngest, and the leader like one who serves.”

It is somewhat amusing (and perhaps a bit sad) that the world is suddenly discovering what Jesus has been saying for 2000 years.  It is equally amusing that many churches don’t recognize it either.

Jesus was speaking to the early church, which may have had the same problems that the modern church has.  Folks want to be superstars.  They want to be elected to positions of prestige and power because it strokes their ego.  Jesus says, “Check your ego at the door.  This ministry is about servants.”

I have written before about servant leaders, but I will remind you what Robert Greenleaf’s definition is: “A servant leader is one who helps others become wiser, healthier, freer, more autonomous and more likely themselves to become servant leaders.”

We are searching for a leadership model that will help this congregation become wiser, healthier, freer, more autonomous and more likely to become servant leaders.  This is not an easy road to travel.  We are looking for signs that others have passed this way so that we might be guided.  We are looking for signs that God has placed so that we might be reassured.

You’ve all seen movies about various people who have set out on a life-changing journey.   You are aware of the Hollywood pitfalls.  There is always some dark creature, evil person, or physical obstacle that taunts and threatens the traveler.  It can represent a wide variety of things – ego, longing for the past, unforgiveness, etc.  Throughout we must stay focused.  Keep the words of Jesus in mind, “I will be with you.”  But also keep some other words in mind – “the greatest among you must become like the youngest, and the leader like one who serves.”

The Presbyterian Church of Hagerstown is a family church.  I am glad to see that you are becoming comfortable with that, finding here a place not only of refuge but a place for re-energizing.  Life is often hard.  For some it is harder than for others.  I don’t know why.  But here we can be encouraged by each other, lifted up by each other, challenged to strive forward by each other.

The forest that lies ahead looks dark and scary.  But we must go through it.  “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil for You are with me.”

Peace,

Your pastor,

Rick

Impossible Possibilities

12when you were buried with [Christ] in baptism, you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. 13And when you were dead in trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive together with him, when he forgave us all our trespasses, 14erasing the record that stood against us with its legal demands. He set this aside, nailing it to the cross. 15He disarmed the rulers and authorities and made a public example of them, triumphing over them in it.

16 Therefore do not let anyone condemn you in matters of food and drink or of observing festivals, new moons, or sabbaths. 17These are only a shadow of what is to come, but the substance belongs to Christ. 18Do not let anyone disqualify you, insisting on self-abasement and worship of angels, dwelling on visions, puffed up without cause by a human way of thinking, 19and not holding fast to the head, from whom the whole body, nourished and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows with a growth that is from God.

20 If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the universe, why do you live as if you still belonged to the world?

Colossians 2:12-20

The story of Easter is not just the story of Jesus’ death and resurrection.  It is also our story of death and resurrection.  Christ led the way so that we who were already dead would have new life, a resurrected life, a life in which the entire world is seen differently.  This is the world of the spirit, not of the flesh.  The two are still together, but now we are invited to see the spiritual dimension of the world that God created.

That world is a world of mystery.  We recognize that there are things going on that we simply do not understand.  We have no idea how God might be acting across town, much less on the other sider of the universe.  God is at work behind the scenes in sometimes quite mundane ways.  No spectacle, no burning bushes, no smoking mountaintops. A smile here, a kind gesture there.  An act of compassion, words of mercy, thoughts of hopeful insight.  We do not know how, when, why.  We simply believe that behind each act of love, compassion, mercy, kindness, hope there is God.

That world is a world of connections.  We are connected spiritually with all of creation.  We are connected to folks in our town, in our country, in our world.  We are connected to whatever life there might be in other places.  That is a design of God’s own making.  We are connected.  That connection means that we are all in this together.  It is not just about our own personal relationship with God.  Our relationship to God needs to be expressed in our relationships with all of creation.

That world is a world of hopeful possibilities.  Our Creator is always confident and encouraging.  God never gives up.  Even in death there is resurrection.  God wants us to be the creatures we were designed to be, living in faithfulness, living in trust, living in harmony.  Life is often difficult, the world is often an unfriendly, chaotic place.  God calls us to live in faith and to stop seeing the world as God.

Easter is a reminder of impossible possibilities.  The prodigal returns. The lost coin is found.  The seed brings forth a hundred-fold.  The enemy becomes a friend.  The dead find new life.  The world is not the way we see it, touch it, smell it, think it.  It is a world of awesome mystery created and overseen by the unknowable God.  We marvel at its mystery and then do the best we can to live into that vision that God holds for us.

Peace,

Your Pastor,

Rick

The Lord has comforted his people…

From the pastor…

If I could work my will,” said Scrooge indignantly, “every idiot who goes about with ‘Merry Christmas’ on his lips, should be boiled with his own pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through his heart. He should!”

“Uncle!” pleaded the nephew.

“Nephew!” returned the uncle, sternly, “keep Christmas in your own way, and let me keep it in mine.”

“A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens

Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth;
break forth, O mountains, into singing!
For the Lord has comforted his people,
and will have compassion on his suffering ones.

Isaiah 49:13

All of us have a little bit of Ebenezer Scrooge in us.  By the time we are finished with Christmas, many of us are exhausted and don’t want to hear another Christmas carol or another well-wisher’s “Merry Christmas.”  The problem is not new.  Dickens’ book was published in 1843 and the problem was, even then, well-entrenched in both church and society.  Scrooge takes it to the extreme to help make Dickens’ point.  It doesn’t have to be that way.

“Are these the shadows of the things that Will be, or are they shadows of things that May be, only?”  

Stave 4

We will be using Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” as the foundation for our Advent worship.  Some question might be raised as to why we are using a secular story as the foundation for worship services.  There are several places in the story where Dickens recognizes the need for church attendance and clearly understands the theology of a God who has a heart for the poor and suffering.  But this story is, ultimately, a story of redemption.  It is the story of a man who has slowly veered from the path of joy and righteousness onto a path that leads him deeper and deeper into greed, cynicism and loneliness.  Christmas Eve becomes the focal point and the turning point.

With the help of four ghosts, Scrooge is given the opportunity to see the world through the eyes of God.  He transcends time and is able to move backward and forward catching glimpses of his own past, present and future which he has tried to hide from himself.  The ghosts bring his inner, spiritual self slowly to the surface until Scrooge finally cries out, “Spirit! hear me! I am not the man I was. I will not be the man I must have been but for this intercourse. Why show me this, if I am past all hope!” (Stave 4)

The God who came to earth so many centuries ago is the God of persistent hope.  Jesus Christ is the manifestation of the always hopeful God who is always with us. We find this to be a joyful occasion because nothing else is able to bring us persistent hope.  It is God through Christ who shows us the things that really matter, the things that are most important.

Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth;
break forth, O mountains, into singing!
For the Lord has comforted his people,
and will have compassion on his suffering ones.

How does God do that?

Certainly there have been times in my life, and probably yours, when you have suddenly felt a sense of calm amidst the chaos, or when you have had a sudden enlightenment, an “aha!” moment when the path became clear.  I am sure you have had moments when, for unexplainable reasons you suddenly felt courage or strength.  All those are gifts from God – the God who comforts.

But I am equally sure that you have had other moments when you have been surrounded by friends, family co-workers, neighbors and through them you have felt uplifted, cared for, strengthened, nurtured.  This also is a gift from God – the God who is with us, Emmanuel.

These are the gifts that Scrooge consistently missed.  There were people all around him who were truly concerned for him.  His nephew, Peter, and his employee, Bob Cratchit.  They really did care for him and they always tried to show him that.  His other family and acquaintances tolerated him at best, but even they welcomed him in without a sign of skepticism when he was redeemed.

So, we will be looking at “A Christmas Carol”, stanza (or stave) by stanza through December.

It is my hope that you will be truly blessed this Christmas, joyfully surrounded by family and friends.  It is my hope that you will find time to simply breathe and allow the wonderful mystery of God become flesh to envelop you and rejuvenate you.

Peace,

 

Your pastor,

Rick

Make Your Bed!

Once Jesus was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God was coming, and he answered, ‘The kingdom of God is not coming with things that can be observed; nor will they say, “Look, here it is!” or “There it is!” For, in fact, the kingdom of God is among you.’
Luke 17:20-21

“The gospel is about the Kingdom of God breaking in to our world, even as this world races toward destruction – destruction caused by the very creatures God made in God’s image. To do nothing about this collision course, to choose entropy, is to deny God’s goodness and Christ’s resurrection. To live as resurrection people is to say: ‘I will speak up, I will stand against the evil we inflict on one another, I will sacrifice my privilege for the sake of others, and I will acknowledge God’s image in the face of every human, even those who anger or baffle me. Things are getting worse, but I partner with God to make things better. And even if things continue to get worse, I will still choose hope by working for good.'”
– Rachel Young “Hope as Self-care

“If I have learned anything in my time traveling the world, it is the power of hope. The power of one person, a Washington, a Lincoln, a King, a Mandela, and even a young girl from Pakistan, Malala, one person can change the world by giving people hope. So, if you want to change the world start each day with a task completed (making your bed). Find someone to help you through life. Respect everyone. Know that life is not fair and that you will fail often. But if you take some risks, step up when the times are the toughest, face down the bullies, lift up the down-trodden and never, ever give up. If you do these things, the next generation and the generations that follow will live in a world far better than the one we have today.”
Make Your Bed” Former US Navy Admiral, William H. McRaven

One of the primary purposes of the church is to give people hope. All day long we are told that the world is a mess and getting worse. We see it all around us. We are frustrated by the perpetual chaos, hatred, fear, and despair. Jesus confronted people who were in similar situations with a message of hope: “the kingdom of God is among you.” The kingdom is still among us and it is our calling to live our lives with that as the foundation.
It is my life goal to leave this world a little better than it was when I entered. That may seem like a tall order considering the billions of people who seem mired in complacency or, as Ms. Young calls it , “entropy.”

There are times when I get bogged down, overwhelmed by negativity and failure. I get up every morning and make my bed. Admiral McRaven says that’s a good way to start your day. I have known that it was, but I never knew why. He says that it is because it is one thing accomplished. And, if your day has been filled with failure, you come home to a neatly made bed. It really is a good feeling and it gives me hope to get up tomorrow and try it all over again – after I have made my bed.

I believe strongly that the Kingdom of God is among us. And we have every responsibility to live our lives in such a way that it is demonstrated. We don’t always succeed (“Know that life is not fair and you will fail often.”) but that is part of the beauty of the Kingdom of God. When we fail the Kingdom is still here. It is the power of God to overcome all obstacles. It is the power of God to resurrect.

“And even if things continue to get worse, I will still choose hope by working for good.”
Peace,
Your pastor,
Rick