Just a short one this week, I promise. My list is long. See this is the practice run for when my wife, La Donna is in Africa. You did know about Africa, didn’t you? This coming Thursday La Donna and a team from the Indiana Conference are going to Africa for three weeks. It is a mission trip, learning trip to Africa University. La Donna has been working with the library at AU for a little while and now is going to go and see if she can help get things set up for her and others to work online. At least that is part of the task ahead of her. You’ll have to ask her what all is involved.
I’m excited for her, and proud of her, and pretty sure we will survive over here with the teenagers and the crazy dogs while she is gone. Pretty sure. Which brings us back to the practice run. She is gone to a UMW event this weekend and we are charged with filling her with confidence that we can handle things while she is gone. So, job one is doing something with the billions of walnuts that have fallen in the yard in this wind we are having. So, I don’t have a lot of time to work on this bible study. A little time since said teenagers are still sleeping at this point. But not a lot of time.
I want to do this well. I want her to feel good about leaving, about trying this new thing and not worried that we will fall apart back home while she is gone. Or maybe just a little. I also don’t want her to feel like we don’t need her. It is a fine line we walk.
That’s the way it is with those we love. A fine line between too independent and not dependent enough. We want them to be confident in our love, but not be burdened by it. We want them to know that they are loved but not be smothered by it. We want ... well, to be honest we almost wish that Jesus hadn’t made it such a big deal. We almost wish that this faith thing had been an internal, belief relationship just between each of us and Him. But no, he had to go and include the whole world and especially those within the community of faith.
John 13:34-35 I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."
Not just a good idea, not just a clue to better living, not just a suggestion for health and happiness, no he made it a commandment. Love one another. And not only that, but also the sign. The sign that we belong, that we are a part of the fellowship, a part of the family. Not by how many bible passages we read, not by the acts of charity that we perform, not by the hours of pew time we put in throughout our lives, the lives of pure moral character - none of that is the sign that we belong to Christ. All of that is good stuff, and stuff we ought to be doing. But the sign is something else entirely, “by this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” It is not about what is inside of you, but what comes out.
How do you show your love for one another? That’s the question in front of us. And who has shown you love like Christ’s love? The question in our Extravagant Generosity series for this week is “Who has in our church family has made a difference in your spiritual life?” Who has been the “one another” for you? Teaching you how to be the “one another” for someone else. For some of those “one anothers” it is the words that you say, for others it is the deeds that you do (like picking up walnuts), for some it is the gifts that you give and for others it is the presence and attention that you give. It is in our plans to spend some time in 2012 talking more about how we do this loving one another thing - as spouses, or co-workers, or neighbors, or friends and strangers. But for now we hear it as an invitation.
Not an easy one, to be sure. Loving takes time, takes sacrifice, takes effort. Especially when we look back and see that what Jesus actually said was not love the best you can, love with what is within you. No, what he said was love as I have loved you.
Wow. Love like Christ loves. I’m not sure I know exactly what all that includes. But at least it has to be another load or two of walnuts.
I’m excited for her, and proud of her, and pretty sure we will survive over here with the teenagers and the crazy dogs while she is gone. Pretty sure. Which brings us back to the practice run. She is gone to a UMW event this weekend and we are charged with filling her with confidence that we can handle things while she is gone. So, job one is doing something with the billions of walnuts that have fallen in the yard in this wind we are having. So, I don’t have a lot of time to work on this bible study. A little time since said teenagers are still sleeping at this point. But not a lot of time.
I want to do this well. I want her to feel good about leaving, about trying this new thing and not worried that we will fall apart back home while she is gone. Or maybe just a little. I also don’t want her to feel like we don’t need her. It is a fine line we walk.
That’s the way it is with those we love. A fine line between too independent and not dependent enough. We want them to be confident in our love, but not be burdened by it. We want them to know that they are loved but not be smothered by it. We want ... well, to be honest we almost wish that Jesus hadn’t made it such a big deal. We almost wish that this faith thing had been an internal, belief relationship just between each of us and Him. But no, he had to go and include the whole world and especially those within the community of faith.
John 13:34-35 I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."
Not just a good idea, not just a clue to better living, not just a suggestion for health and happiness, no he made it a commandment. Love one another. And not only that, but also the sign. The sign that we belong, that we are a part of the fellowship, a part of the family. Not by how many bible passages we read, not by the acts of charity that we perform, not by the hours of pew time we put in throughout our lives, the lives of pure moral character - none of that is the sign that we belong to Christ. All of that is good stuff, and stuff we ought to be doing. But the sign is something else entirely, “by this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” It is not about what is inside of you, but what comes out.
How do you show your love for one another? That’s the question in front of us. And who has shown you love like Christ’s love? The question in our Extravagant Generosity series for this week is “Who has in our church family has made a difference in your spiritual life?” Who has been the “one another” for you? Teaching you how to be the “one another” for someone else. For some of those “one anothers” it is the words that you say, for others it is the deeds that you do (like picking up walnuts), for some it is the gifts that you give and for others it is the presence and attention that you give. It is in our plans to spend some time in 2012 talking more about how we do this loving one another thing - as spouses, or co-workers, or neighbors, or friends and strangers. But for now we hear it as an invitation.
Not an easy one, to be sure. Loving takes time, takes sacrifice, takes effort. Especially when we look back and see that what Jesus actually said was not love the best you can, love with what is within you. No, what he said was love as I have loved you.
Wow. Love like Christ loves. I’m not sure I know exactly what all that includes. But at least it has to be another load or two of walnuts.
Shalom,
Derek
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