THE CLOUD OF GOD'S PRESENCE

This morning during my Quiet Time I sat looking out of my window at the exquisite clouds rolling through the sky.  With the trees standing tall in their winter bareness, the sky is big and so were the clouds.  It was beautiful.  As I watched them I was reminded of a poem I wrote about clouds back in the 60s.  They spoke to me about wandering and freedom.

CLOUDS

White puffs of smokeless smoke, airless air, cottonless cotton,

Floating freely and uninhibitedly through the sky

Wandering aimlessly, coming from everywhere, yet going nowhere

Changing their patternless shapes with no hesitation

Not one taking the form of another.

Scattered haphazardly and helter-skelterly across the

Brilliant blue background of the sky

The white puffs attract the attention of dreamers

And romantics everywhere

Their nomadism and freedom is admired and desired by all.

I thought about the Exodus story and how God Presence was always with the folks walking through the desert in the form of a cloud by day; how when Moses used to go to the Tent of Meeting, the cloud of God’s Presence would descend upon the tent and Moses would speak to God face to face. On the Mount of Transfiguration God came in a cloud and said, “This is my Son.  Listen to him”.  Jesus’ disciples watched him ascend to heaven in a cloud; and Jesus will return to gather us together in a cloud at his Second Coming.

The clouds that surround me day by day are really God’s Presence, which is everywhere.  It made me appreciate clouds all the more.  I was reminded of times when my mom and I would lie on the ground and look up at the clouds and see all kinds of shapes and forms in them.  She was a cloud watcher as well.  Going through her photo albums there were pictures and pictures of just clouds.  It’s nice to know she is up there within touching distance with them now.  It’s nice to know that she and I both are continually immersed in Clouds of God’s Presence, both on this side of heaven and the other side as well.

IN DUE SEASON

“Work at your tasks in due season,

And in His own time God will give you your reward.”

Ecclesiasticus a well known name,  51:30

This verse jumped out at me this morning.  I had a down day yesterday, one of those “what’s it all about Alfie?” days that come occur from time to time, when I think about all I’ve done and didn’t do, and asked, “So What”.  So I saw this verse as a note from God, so I would have a better day today.

I was especially taken by the “in His own time God will give you your own reward.”  I tend to be more of an immediate gratification type and kind of want to see some acknowledgment and appreciation after I do something; nothing big, just some kind of response. When I don’t get them and it causes me to go to places in my head that I really don’t want to go.  I have tried to discipline that habit and many times it works; sometimes it doesn’t.

After reading the verse over again several times I then had to ask, what are my tasks, and what does it mean to work them in due season?  I have had many due seasons in my life and I have accomplished many tasks in those seasons.  As I look back I can honestly say I did the best that I could do at the time.  I feel good about the work I did with the folks in the various Church positions I had through the years.  I feel good about the work I did in all the various jobs I had through the years.  I especially feel good about my Camp work, may raison d’etre so to say.  I also feel good about the work I am doing now, in these on my own days.  All in all I feel I have been faithful to work at my tasks in due season, and for me that is reward enough.

Where I get in trouble is when I look at where others have gotten in this life with all their accomplishments; fame, fortune, a well known and respected name for themselves.  Outside of God and a few family and friends, no one knows I exist.  Most of the time I could care less, but every once in awhile I wonder why some people, and not others?   Thankfully I don’t stay in that mind set for long.  My go to verse in those moments is when Jesus is talking to Peter on the shore, telling him about the struggles he will have.  Peter turns around and points to John and says, “Lord, what about this man?”  Jesus says to him, “If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you?  You follow me!”  (John 21:21,22).

I do well to keep my focus on me and work at my tasks in due season.  Whatever reward I have coming will be in God’s own time and it will be sufficient.

HOW I SEE THE CHURCH

The history of the church is not good or pleasant to look at.  There have been many mistakes and I agree that things need to change and get back on track to what I believe God would want the church to be.  Unfortunately, in times of change it happens that we throw out the baby with the bath water.  I believe this is happening today and the results will be just as harmful to people as we have seen in the past history of the church.  I am offering my humble vision of what I see the church the church can be in these days.

I see the church as a fountain of forgiveness, a realm of redemption, a community of compassion, a city of refuge where it is safe to expose one’s sins, wrong doings, and waywardness.

I see the church as an encourager and enabler of conviction, not condemnation; confession, not concealment; change, not conformity.

I do not see the church as a country club for the comfortable, the content, and the cozy with anything goes.

I see the church as a place to alleviate quilt by alleviating sin, not accommodating it.

 I see the church as a place that does not conform to the world’s standards of eliminating guilt and sin by negating them altogether.

I see the church filled with love and compassion that opens its doors to all sinners and encourages conviction, confession, forgiveness, repentance, and change, and stands by and with those who need to do those things to be right with God. At one time or another that is true of all of us.

True love and compassion don’t overlook or accommodate sin.  True love and compassion help others deal with their sins and then experience the joy of knowing that God will forgive and remember their sins no more.

MALACHI 2:17

“You have wearied the Lord with your words.

“How have you wearied him?” you ask.

By saying, “All who do evil are good in the eyes of the Lord,

And he is pleased with them.”

Sin, where is thy sting

Quilt where is thy sting

Remorse where is thy sting

Repentance where is thy sting?

Fondled now in human acceptance

Feelings of worth fanned by humans

Forgiveness is a forgotten gift

For now one is included and one with the world.

Saved from the hatred

Saved from the sneers

Saved from the persecution

But not saved from the separation from God.

The doors of the world are open

The doors of the government are open

The doors of the church are open

The doors to the kingdom of God are closed

But not locked.

How can you look to human affirmation

And neglect the need for God’s?

How can you be pleased with “doing it my way”

And neglect the Way of God’s?

How can you sell your birthright

And settle for temporary inclusion

How can you settle for temporary acceptance

And sacrifice eternal blessing?

All In One

There is One I can trust

Who’s been tested by time

The Source of all being

The now and the then

The beginning and the end

All in One.

There is One I can turn to

Who’s been faithful and true

The Source of all seasons

The good and the bad

The fruitful and barren

All in One.

There is One I can love

Who’s been steadfast and pure

The Source of all life

The joyful and mournful

The happy and the sad

All in One

There is One I can worship

Who’s been awesome through time

The Source of Creation

The special and the ordinary

The beautiful and the plain

All in One

THE GREATEST FREEDOM I 'VE EVER KNOWN

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” 

Matthew 11:28-30

I have gone from seasons of freedom to seasons of control in my life.  As I look back on those times I can see I was never truly free and never rightly controlled; both of those conditions left me a mess; I grew weary and worn out from both.

My seasons of freedom were in the 60’s and 80’s.   The first was to follow the hippy generation and throw off all the standards and rules I had been raised by.  The second was to follow the advice of mental health therapists who were telling me how to release the “real and authentic me”.  In between those two seasons I put myself under the control of “men of God” who were telling me, according to them, how God wanted me to live my life.  The freedom seasons left me empty and weary; the control season left me heavily burdened.  None of it left me happy, finding my “authentic self”, or well taken care of; I was miserable, not knowing who I was, and abused by myself and by others.

Thirty years later, in the 90’s, I took a long vacation from the life I had made for myself that had gone so badly.  I quit my job, packed my car with all my possessions and went to Stockbridge, Ma.  I had visited there before several times and always seemed to meet up with the real Pat there.  I wanted to find her again and make sure I kept her.  I did a lot of reading in my Bible and a lot of writing from my heart.  Eventually I found where I had a disconnected wire deep within.  That wire was my true connection to Jesus; not what others told me but what I had heard from him the first time I experienced him face to face. 

For the next several months it was just me and him and the Bible.  I yoked myself with him during this season of healing, found the real me, and have never regretted it.  Being yoked with One who truly loves me and wants the best for me, enough to be yoked with me, gave me the true meaning of being controlled as a servant of a loving Lord, and the greatest freedom I have ever known.

ALL YOU NEED IS GOD... THE LOVE WILL COME

“I am the Lord your God…You shall have no other gods before me.”

Exodus 20:3

I am a child of the 60’s.  The word of that era was LOVE.  There was love in the air and everyone believed that love could conquer all.  Love one another was the standard of the day.  Communes were created as groups of people lived in love with one another.  The Beatles sang the anthem of the day; “All you need is love.”  It was all beautiful, groovy, far out, and unfortunately short lived.  It was missing a major element.

Fifty years later I hear the same sentiment; all we need is love.  The movement of spirituality over religion is raising up groups of people just loving each other and everyone else in the world.  They are reimaging the church on a foundation of love.  New communes are being formed where people are committed to love one another.  It all sounds beautiful, groovy, and far out; but it is missing a major element.

The missing element is God.  God IS love.  It is an attribute of His; a gift of the Spirit.  A love that isn’t subjected to God will have no substance; it will merely be a wishful sentiment and will not be steadfast and sustainable.  To worship love is to worship one of the things of God rather than God Himself, and that is idolatry.

Those who consider themselves to be God’s people, God’s children, are commanded to have no other gods before Him.  Love is not to be a foundation; God is the only firm foundation.  From that firm foundation love will come, as will the other attributes of God, like compassion, social justice, care for the poor, and truly caring for one another.

Love is beautiful, groovy, far out, and an attribute of those who love God.  But it is God who IS love who is to be the firm foundation from which to build on.  It is God who is to be honored, worshiped, and lifted up before all else.