Word pictures

Mark 4:33
With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it;

Describing the kingdom

in words

that evoked pictures

Grounding that kingdom

in the everyday

Bringing the kingdom

within reach

that we might glimpse God

in the people we encounter

and in the places we inhabit

as we walk humbly

love deeply

and act with compassion 

wherever life takes us

in whatever company we keep

experiencing kingdom breakout

all around

as God continues to whisper 

daily parables

into our lives today.

Oh for eyes to see

and ears to listen

and minds to comprehend

the glorious shenanigans of God

in all of life

for all of life.

Created for growth

Psalms 139:15-16
My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes beheld my unformed substance.
In your book were written
all the days that were formed for me,
when none of them as yet existed.

The one who beheld my unformed substance 

Is the one who, still today,

calls me into being

The one whose love enables me to grow

and to embrace

the fullness of life

which consists of abundance

and flourishing

leads me

step by step

into new restlessness

new discoveries 

new surrender.

This growth is not passive

but demanding.

It asks for more than acceptance

Rather, wholehearted submission

with abandonment and joy.

Such  is the vulnerability

of  saying yes

to God

intricate 

perpetual

weaver

of the story book

that never ends.

Home

Mark 2:1
Jesus Heals a Paralytic
When he returned to Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home.

Sometimes, I get caught up in the story

Other times, I notice the detail

Today is about paying attention

Attention to home

One word

Many connotations

Many expressions

This narration

of Jesus at home

lends new meaning

to the concept of home

The Son of God

who once announced

he had nowhere to lay his head

created home

in myriad places

In the quiet

In the midst of crowds

In certain towns

With certain friends

Sometimes home

is physical

Often it is

a state of being

That place

where we know acceptance

where we are nourished

where we practice our craft

where our spirit finds rest

That place

be it physical

or spiritual

where God is

calling on us

to be

our authentic

grounded

beloved

self

Just as we were created to be.

Home.

Enough...

1 Peter 1:13

A Call to Holy Living

Therefore prepare your minds for action; discipline yourselves; set all your hope on the grace that Jesus Christ will bring you when he is revealed.

May I be enough..

Enough 

to convince the sceptical

Enough 

to cajole the reluctant

Enough 

to win round the doubters

Enough 

to challenge the comfortable

Enough

to sit with the weary

Enough

to walk with the fearful

Enough

to encourage the hesitant

Enough

to restore the hurt

Enough

to lift up the broken

Enough

to love the lost

Enough

to notice the overlooked

Enough...

In fact, Lord,

never mind

Help me to move over

and make room for you.

That is enough.

Like a dove

Matthew 3:16-17
And when Jesus had been baptized, just as he came up from the water, suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.”

The Spirit always shows up
And her presence 
is as disruptive today
as it was 
when Jesus was baptised by John
Baptised in the face of oppression and despair
Baptised in the grimness of life
For Baptism always proclaims the love 

and the mystery of God
and the presence of the unquenchable Spirit
Whenever baptism is offered:
At the beginning of life
as a symbol 
of hope and promise,
As a rite of passage

building on family tradition,

As a response to faith

that has grown slowly and surely,

At the bedside of  a beautiful 93 year old saint
embarrassed  to admit
that she had never been baptised,
Or with parents 
anxious about their newborn’s hold on life,
Whether sprinkled,
Dunked
Immersed
or with the gentlest whisper 
of a touch
Always, always, always.
the Holy Spirit
makes herself known
as angels gather
to sing a Gloria
declaring the wonder of God
who calls us
Beloved 

Beyond the star

Matthew 2:7-10
Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.” When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy.

May we always be willing

to be led by a star

to search diligently

to pay homage 

to revise our plans

and to change direction 

And may we be

overwhelmed with joy

when we encounter

God with us

May we travel expectantly

with hope

in the power of God

to make a difference

especially when all seems lost

And may we not rest

when we think we’ve arrived

but, giving thanks for what is,

move on with purpose

to what will be.

Epiphany

The gift that keeps on giving.

Getting out of the Manger

Matthew 2:10-11

When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

5 years out of parish ministry - and the high days and holy seasons are not any easier to navigate, or any less painful. Being on the periphery, welcomed so far and no further, is an interesting place to be, providing insight into the seduction of ‘making Christmas right’ for everyone else. It’s an insight that transcends the season, lending perspective on the way we tame the radical nature of the incarnation. We persist in cooing over the baby wrapped in swaddling clothes, we smile indulgently at the boy who gets lost in the temple, we listen intently, if in confusion, to the sermon on the mount and then cringe inwardly when the baby, all grown up, gets up close and personal, asking us to renounce family, wealth and safety.
It s a bit like receiving a cute puppy at Christmas and not being able to keep up with the demands of a grown dog by Easter.
Engaged in the work of renewal, that seduction is one I see played out every day. Making things ‘right’ and ‘comfortable’ for others. Not placing too many demands on otherwise busy folk. Negotiating the least rather than the best. Sanitising a gospel that is costly and demanding and not just for those in full time ministry. Being so caught up in how things ‘should’ be done that we can no longer imagine how things might be different. Making space, in the midst of tradition and sentiment, for encounter that upsets routines and dismantles stereotypes is not a popular choice.
I’ve already packed away my Nativity scene for this year - I didn’t want the clutter any longer, the disruption to routine. I didn’t want to dwell on the storm those magi kicked up by alerting the oppressors to a threat to their power. It’s a reality that cannot be minimised but that is playing out all over our world today. It seems we’d rather gaze on the manger than be involved in dealing with the aftermath. And yet, kneeling by the manger was enough to catalyse the shepherds and the magi. Their encounter with God made flesh was enough to give them insight into a whole new world, a whole new peaceable kingdom. So what difference will Christmas makes for us this year?

Will we greet Epiphany

like a long lost friend

Full of familiar symbols

and comforting themes

Or will we allow

the jarring sounds

of carnage and chaos

to guide us to another truth

That God with us

is a message

that strikes terror

into the hearts of those

whose power is threatened

inciting violence

doubling down on oppression

resisting all that unites.

God with us

is a call

to muster courage

to move beyond comfort

to “not be afraid”

to see angels 

and starlight

that lead us on paths

we didn’t know existed 

to find our way home

by another way

journeying alongside

strangers who will guide us

by their wisdom

forged in the depths

of sorrow

and hardship

with only their awareness

of Incarnation

enabling and empowering

their every step

Such are the ones

who will bring 

the light of Epiphany

into our lives today.
But, first, we have to
move away from the manger.

2020 Vision

A prayer for a new year - and a new decade 

Ephesians 3:16-17
I pray that, according to the riches of God’s glory, you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through the Spirit, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love.

May this be a year

of sticking my neck out

of boldly speaking truth to power

of refusing to live up to expectations

of disappointing those

who are looking for conformity

and offending those

who are seeking complicity.

May this be a year

of spending less time

trying to be

who others would rather I be.

Of embracing all the gifts 

God has given

to enable me to serve

uniquely

with passion

and with humour.

May this be a year 

of practicing what I preach

of living the abundant life

into which I invite others

of refusing to play it safe

of entering wholeheartedly

with abandonment

and joy

into all the shenanigans

where God leads me.

May this be the year

I change the world

for good

because God calls me

to pitch up 

boldly

bravely

radiantly

loudly

without apology
practising extravagant love
forgiveness
and grace

Beloved of God.