Grace Us to Be Tent Dwellers

 

O Lord who may abide in your tent? Who may dwell on your holy hill?

I don’t know about you, but, when I am camping I am particular about who I will or will not share a tent with. Tenting presents its own challenges and having a safe and dry place to sleep is super important. I have rules for tent living: shoes are left outside or brushed off and left just inside the door, the door zips open and shut infrequently and quickly, checking for ticks before entry is a must, no food is allowed, and no one’s stuff or person is to touch the side walls of the tent. To be welcome in the tent I need to trust that you will follow the rules mentioned and the rest of the list that I am not going to bore you with.

 The Psalm begins by asking, “Who may abide in God’s tent?” Some translations use the word Tabernacle in place of tent. In the days of exodus, as the people moved through the wilderness, they moved with them the Tent of the Lord, also known as the Tabernacle.  In scripture, God’s tent refers to the place of worship and ritual, whether the original tent or later the Temple built in Jerusalem. In the tent was housed the seat of God.  It was also the where the tablets of the Law were kept. The tent symbolized God’s presence in the midst of the people; God dwelling in their midst as the focal point and hub.

The Psalm presents the question, “Who may abide in your tent?” 

A great question.

For the first time, many of us are considering this question in relation to our homes. As COVID restrictions are lifted, decisions rest on us.  Whom do you let into your home and what sorts of rules are you considering, if any? Do you ask guests if they have been vaccinated; if not can they come in, yes, no, maybe with a mask? Upon entry do you have hand sanitizer available or ask guests to wash their hands? As a guest do you leave your mask on? What about eating together, or airing out your house, or how many people do you congregate at one time? Everyone’s homes will have different rules.

The church sanctuary has been our home. Inside the doors we want to feel welcomed and safe, and to provide the same for everyone who comes in the door. There are ‘rules’, more covert than overt, with behaviour suggestions, usually verbalized in the form of an announcement when issues arise in the community. These are our rules, placed on God’s tent.  And such ‘rules’ may get more complicated. The opening words from today’s Psalm immediately had me think of a recent article in the Calgary Herald. “Should Churches Require Vaccine Passports?” Communities talk, discern, and make rules.

We set in place rules, codes of conduct, expectations of how we will interact with each other – in the hopes that such will help the community be a community.

 

But, have we ever considered the question from the Psalm? It is addressed to God, asking for God’s answer to, “Who may abide in your tent?”

The answer given in Psalm 15 to the question is a list that reads like a moral compass:

Those who dwell --- in right action, speak truth, refrain from slander, steer clear of the wicked, keep their promises, are honest in business and legal matters, and forgo perverting or denying  justice --  may abide in the tent.

There is an expectation of living as a reflection of God’s presence who is in their midst.

 

The verbs of the first verse of the Psalm are important, abide and dwell. In Hebrew, ABIDE, is connected to the word for landless immigrant, the stranger, the alien – the very people the Israelites are to welcome and protect. DWELL has two understandings: God’s tent or encampment in the wilderness and people peacefully settling down. The verse in asking the question, O Lord who may abide in your tent? Who may dwell on your holy hill?, contains the answer. Welcome is extended to immigrants – to all who are wandering, seeking, trying their best to peacefully settle down.

 

We come to the end of our summer series of praying the prayer book of Jesus; of reciting a Psalm phrase in response to the praying of each verse. As we have abided in praying the Psalms, the Psalm phrases dwell within. Has praying the Psalms and looking deeper into them tented us with the Word of God and the comfort and challenge that comes with that Word? Are we tented in safety and welcome, and thus able to offer the same, from focusing our time in resting in the Word?

 

O Lord, who may abide in your tent? Who may dwell on your holy hill?

is a good way to draw our summer Psalm series to a close.

At the end of the summer, as the season starts to turn and we will move more of our living indoors, let us keep in mind the idea of abiding in God’s tent, dwelling on God’s holy hill.

God’s tent has a set of instructions that create welcome and safety for the whole community.

Dwell in right action, speak truth, refrain from slander, steer clear of the wicked, keep your promises, be honest in business and legal matters, and forgo perverting or denying  justice – in tent terms think of it this way...

I act differently in a tent, than in a house, especially when there are other people involved. I take greater care with a tent, watching the zippers, making sure tent pegs are in, and not poking the sides or throwing things around inside it. I refrain from ruff-housing to protect the tent. I clean the tent of bugs and food to protect from bites and scavengers.  I prepare to avoid unwanted water/leaks, to have soft and flat ground under the tent. I mind what I say inside the tent because words can be heard by anyone close by on the outside. I watch what I do in the tent because shadows can be seen by neighbours on the outside. The space is tight so to survive with others in a tent, one needs to make an effort to get along.

God’s tent, God dwells on a holy hill – which in scripture refers to Jerusalem; with other scriptures that extend the holy hill to the ends of the earth. Consider the earth -all of the earth - under the canopy of God’s tent.

We come as immigrants seeking refuge – a tent-

The people of the world cry for safety and welcome – whether physical, mental, emotional, spiritual – we are all seeking a place to abide and dwell.

As people, with God, in creation.

 

God grant us – this community-  the grace to live as and be tent dwellers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Morsels That Matter

 

--- a sermon for Pentecost 12B -----

I could sit every morning with a simple cup of coffee and reflect on the words that begin the Gospel of John. – I know last week I told you I don’t really care for this Gospel; but I am serious about the beginning – I could quite happily reflect on these words every day:

In the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God and the Word was God. ...

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.

 

To understand the words that we heard in today’s Gospel from John 6, one needs to know how the Gospel starts.  The purpose of the Gospel is written in the beginning verses and everything that follows fits into those words.

Earlier, when we heard read John 6, we heard:

The bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.

Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day; for my flesh is true food. ... Those who eat my flesh ... abide in me, and I in them.;

we are to relate these complicated words to the Gospel’s purpose, where God – Word- is woven into creation and time as we understand it:

in the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God and the Word was God.

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.

 

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.

Dwelt among us...

God came in human form so there could be relationship;

That we might have an inkling of understanding;

Gain wisdom;

Learn to live out the kindom.

 

God didn’t come as Tree, or Water, or Bean, or Sunflower, not as Elephant, or Eagle; God became flesh --- human.   Because, although created good, of all creatures and plants, humans are the creatures to whom healthy relationship is not second nature. It is humans who forget their purpose; it is humans that are not needed in the eco-system; it is humans who see the world as something to conquer, to use, to take; it is humans who turn from the ideal of reciprocity between creatures where purpose is restoration and healing.

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, to teach us relationship and reciprocity, with purpose to live restoration and be healing.

 

Purpose – isn’t that one of our big hungers? To know our purpose or have a sense of purpose? Life to have some kind of meaning, as in where we have been and where we are going? Did pandemic puncture your sense of purpose? Perhaps you have had a moment of seeping doubt as to the point-of-it-all with humanity’s inability to work together to tackle huge social change or the environmental crisis upon us? What of rising tensions and the lack of will to make sacrifices to provide a future for life?

Purpose – what is my purpose? Your purpose? Our purpose as a community of faith?

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.

 

Could it be that our purpose THE PURPOSE of life is to share ’flesh’ – rub elbows – to dwell in relationship and meet God, the Word, in the other, in all creatures? ... even to the point of sacrificing our very life to truly dwell among each other, cradled in the bread basket of Mother Earth?

 

The Word became flesh.  What does it look like to become flesh? To dwell?

 

Mahatma Ghandi said, “There are people in the world so hungry, that God can not appear to them except in the form of bread.”    The answer is bread.

 

Spanish poet Fredrico Garcia Lorca said, “[one] cannot live by bread alone. If I were hungry and helpless on the street, I would not ask for a loaf of bread, I would ask for half a loaf of bread and a book.”  So the answer is bread and a book...?

 

 Mexican journalist Juan Vilaro reflected in an article that the task of bread depends on freedom.

 

Maybe, thanks to pandemic, we better understand the relationship of bread and freedom. Life shifted. We didn’t have the freedom of movement and restrictions were placed on us. We were pushed into discovering what truly feeds us: relationships with people, communities, nature – our siblings of plant and animal, scripture, rituals. We had time, lots of time, to learn about ourselves, our attitudes, and many of us discovered that whatever it is we were pursuing pre-COVID, now (and maybe even then), has little point and is not life’s purpose after all.

 

I could reflect every day on the Word of John 1 because it tastes like Gospel, like good news.

Could it be that the Gospel is telling us what God-given human purpose is?

God was in the beginning and when God spoke over the swirling waters – those words, the Word - was woven into the fabric of life; all creation. From that time, the Word was present, in the good times and in the not so good times – not so good as humans were having trouble with their relationships. God made a decision to try a new approach: The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Jesus taught, healed, illustrated life with purpose.

 

Generally, pastors, when entering the vocation of ministry have a sense of purpose. Along the way that sense of purpose gets questioned, forgotten  and sometimes pastors stop being pastors. Pastors can feel like they have nothing of value to say or actions to do – little to offer- in times of grief, hard circumstances, helping others face life-changing decisions, answering tough theological questions, or guiding people spiritually amidst the complexities of life. It is in these times that I rely on bread given to me by colleagues, wisdom from people of faith, and other relationships --- over the years I have been given and confidently now gift others with the only morsels that matter:

Word that has become flesh.  Word that is bread. Word that dwells among us and is shared as presence from person to person, to creature. Word that is appropriate in every situation, full of meaning, and given in relationship – in the presence- of another:

To live and die well one only need hear, eat, digest, and share the Word----

Peace be with you.

Thank you. Please forgive me. I love you.

 

What if....

No. No ifs!

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.  Those who eat my flesh, abide in me, and I in them. This is life’s purpose, cultivating and living in the reciprocity of relationship.

Life’s purpose is, through the Word who became flesh, to be bread for the hungry.

Dwell in relationship and live: peace be with you. Thank you. Please forgive me. I love you.

The Bread of Life - A Recipe

 

-------a sermon for Pent 11B 

A teacher tells a story of her introduction to Amish Friendship Bread. One child arrived to school with a ziplock full of what looked like dough, and would quietly kneed the bag while listening to the lessons for the day.  A few weeks later a number of children brought a ziplock bag of dough to school. The children would bring their ziplock  to school for many days in a row, and spend time kneeding the bag, playing with it as if it were silly putty. The teacher found out later that: Twice in the first few days a cup of flour, sugar, and milk were added to the dough. On the 10^th day, children would separate the dough into four equal parts: keeping and baking one part to into bread, and putting the other three parts in ziplocks and passing the dough on to friends... who could cook their own loaf of bread, or start the process again.  As long as the yeasty dough was added to and divided, the dough would continue to make bread and grow to be shared indefinitely.

 

Today we read the first 8 verses of Psalm 34. Psalm 34 is written like a recipe.

Each verse is a sentence, a stand alone statement. It is like the Amish Friendship Bread recipe, using simple stand alone ingredients – flour, sugar, water, milk –  that together bake satisfying bread to feed the spirit and soul. The purpose of Psalm 34 is to compel the human spirit to “taste and see that the Lord is good.”

 

1/4c of warm water – I will bless the Lord at all times; God’s praise shall continually be in my mouth.  Vs.1

1c all purpose flour – O magnify the Lord with me, let us exult God’s name together.  Vs. 3

1c white sugar – Look to God, and be radiant; so your faces shall never be ashamed. Vs. 5

1c milk – the angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear God, and delivers them. Vs. 7

 

The final needed ingredient to make the bread – to complete the recipe- is simple but, does not stand alone – it is useless without the rest:

1 pkg of active dry yeast    - O taste and see that the Lord is good; happy are those who take refuge in God.  Vs 8

Mix the ingredients together one gets dough, and the yeast actives the dough to rise and grow.

 

Next week and the week after, we will add to the dough, yes, there are two more weeks of reading simple phrases, adding 6 more cups of ingredients, from the same Psalm:

1c all purpose flour – O fear the Lord, you God’s holy ones, for those who fear God have no want. Vs. 9

1c white sugar – The Lord is near to the broken hearted, and saves the crushed in spirit. Vs.18

1c milk – The Lord redeems the life of the servants; none of those who take refuge in God will be condemned. Vs. 22   ... and so on.

 

The Gospel of John has Jesus say a simple sentence, “I am the bread of life.”

What follows in the text are thoughts and explanations that build from sentence to sentence from that simple phrase to a complex theological argument. It is one of the reasons I don’t care so much for the Gospel of John.  I like simple stand alone ingredients; statements like “I am the bread of life.”  Period. Without explanation. Simple bread. The explanations sometimes toughen the dough, so a simple loaf of bread turns into a heavy dense loaf that takes a lot of chewing.

 

I am the sort that likes to stock my kitchen pantry with simple ingredients – flour, sugar, water, milk – of course I too have on hand active ingredients like yeast, baking powder, baking soda, eggs.

I am the sort that likes to stock my soul pantry with simple ingredients – stand alone, simple scripture phrases:

“the Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.”  “I am the bread of Life.”

Song/hymn statements:

“amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me”

“Be though my vision O Lord of my heart.”

 In my soul pantry I consider the Holy Spirit to be the active ingredient.  When all is mixed up together into dough, I kneed it: think about the words, ponder, question; create, learn more. I keep adding to the dough.

 

As I kneed Jesus’ statement, “I am the bread of life.,” I consider what this means for me.

My consideration starts in Psalm 34 and the commentaries written about the phrases of the Psalm – stand alone statements that together have the purpose of growing the human appetite to “taste and see that the Lord is good.”  

I have tasted this bread. I have experienced life. I have had ‘aha’ moments. I have felt the warmth of God. Tasted hope in the midst of dire circumstances. Been fed by a strength not my own in times of crisis. Been fueled by faith when I lacked courage. Seen prayer rise into miracles. Been witness to the dough of forgiveness being given and the sweet smell of relationship baking.  I have seen that the Lord is good.

This is dough I can share!!!!  I don’t know about you, but, cookies, tea biscuits, bread, cake, all taste better when shared with family or in the company of friends. I have a larder full of stories, staring “the Bread of Life.” As I continue to kneed Jesus’ statement, “I am the bread of life,” I come to a place where my experiences are added to the dough, and I have dough to share. There are times when I bake my dough to satisfy the hungry heart and feed the weary soul. And I am blessed by the gift of someone sharing their dough with me, so I can start again. Living in community means that as followers of Jesus, someone has dough to share ---  the dough rises so much so that it will not stay contained in our ziplock bags... in our own souls... it needs to baked and to be shared.

 

Consider that there are 2.3 billion Christians in the world. What would happen if these 2.3 billion Christians treated Jesus – the Bread of Life- like Amish Friendship bread, giving three parts away? Within 10 days Jesus would be given to 6.9 billion people. Of those 6.9 billion, some would simply bake the dough, make bread, and be satisfied; others would add more flour, sugar, and milk over the next 10 days  - to divide it again in 3 and passing it on to how many billions more?  Exponentially this is mind blowing!!!!!!

 

For the next 3 weeks, as we mix together the simple ingredients of Psalm 34, I invite you to be bakers of bread --- in all aspects of your life --- a recipe link has been provided to you via email and on FB to make Amish Friendship Bread, share the bread of life with those who are physically hungry. Share the Bread of Life, by sharing your stories and experiences of Jesus’ the bread of life. Share the Bread of Life, by sharing the Word of God.  Be the bearer of the Bread of Life through baking loaves of hope, faith, grace, forgiveness, kindness, love.

 

And finally consider your shelf-life. Your expiration date. Bread does not stay fluffy and fragrant and tasty for long. It goes stale or molds. So add, mix in the active ingredient, let the Spirit work in you and through you to be the bread you were meant to be. Feed others. Invite others, wet other’s appetites to ‘taste and see that the Lord is good.’  AMEN.

Amish Friendship Bread Starter Recipe | Allrecipes