University of Cancer

Couldn't resist. . .refreshment of the heart

The lasting alternative

Empire of Love

The empires of the world, as Napoleon said in a moment of candor, depend on force. They have come and gone; and the ones that now exist will follow in their turn. They make fear and death their weapons, and they themselves die when the fear they have generated turns into violent rebellion. Jesus, at his ascension, was given by the creator God an empire built on love. As we ourselves open our lives to the warmth of that love, we begin to lose our fear; and as we begin to lose our fear, we begin to become people through whom the power of that love can flow out into the world around that so badly needs it…. And as the power of that love replaces the love of power, so in a measure, anticipating the last great day, God’s kingdom comes, and God’s will is done, on earth as it is in heaven.

N. T. Wright
Source: Following Jesus

Vision

Possibility

If I were to wish for anything I should not wish for wealth and power, but for the passionate sense of what can be, for the eye, which, ever young and ardent, sees the possible. Pleasure disappoints, possibility never. And what wine is so sparkling, what so fragrant, what so intoxicating as possibility?

Soren Kierkegaard
Source: Either/Or

Same Old Hustle

It happens to me a lot, especially around church settings.

The latest experience came on Christmas Eve as I attempted to make my way into the late night service.

I saw the old man, bent over, but determined as he approached me.

I'd seen him before, and often outside the YMCA downtown.

He worked the same con on me.

 "Sir, I mean no disrespect, but I'm just out of the hospital and I'm trying to get home to Abilene, " he made his pitch as he extended a handful of documents and offered his Texas ID.

I'd heard the story, with a variation or two many times from him.  In previous iterations his health distress was complicated by his having missed a bus west.

"Sir, we've talked often.  You need what I don't have, my previous counsel didn't satisfy you, nor can I tonight," I tried to explain.

He walked away in disgust.

I watched him, feeling conflicted as I walked into the warmth of a dimly lit sanctuary about to burst with celebration, memories, rich sentiment and the inspiration of grace made real.

I know I did the correct thing technically, unless my goal was to purchase him a bottle of comfort.

Still, as I walked my way and he his, I knew in a deeper way possibly as never before that to the one I'd come to remember and thank, I appeared and behaved like this poor, struggling man.

I have my own cons with their ridiculous pitches.

I want my needs satisfied in my own ways, and on my terms, thank you very much.

At times I fool myself, and even try to fool those around me, including the one I'd come to worship during Advent.

The bent over gentleman and I need exactly the same thing: grace, honesty and another chance to get life right.

Neither of us can make much progress without a mutual respect for one another.

Both of us need to ditch the pitch, the hustle, the passing game.

I hope to see him again.

Possibly we can talk about what we both really need.

Great "shout out" from Wilshire Baptist!

ACU and the "way" of CitySquare

Good Friday: Faith costs. . .

What people don’t realize is how much religion costs. They think faith is a big electric blanket when, of course, it is the cross.

Flannery O'Connor

Source: Flannery O'Connor's Library: Resources of Being by Arthur Kinney

Add your thoughts at inward/outward

Alternative lives

Faith, alive and well on inner city streets

Consistently over the years, well-meaning people have asked again and again what we do at CitySquare to "share our faith" with the people we serve.  Again and again, I've tried to explain that the matter and the issues of faith come up again and again in our various workplaces.  The interesting twist, however, is the fact that our neighbors, those who come seeking our assistance in various ways, initiate conversations about spiritual things.

I've learned over the years that "faith" keeps poor folks going.  Most would tell you that faith is about all they have upon which to depend.

One of the latest examples of this reality--it happens numerous times every day--can be viewed in the video below.  I caught this "testimony" out at "the Corner" where I hang out on Thursdays.  What this friend said just erupted from his heart after I asked him how he was doing.

And, I'll say again, it happens all the time in my world.

The Spirit in Our Life

Have we ever kept quiet, even though we wanted to defend ourselves when we had been unfairly treated?  Have we ever forgiven someone even though we got no thanks? Have we ever been absolutely lonely? Have we ever tried to love God when we are no longer being borne on the crest of the wave of enthusiastic feeling?  Let us search in our life. If we find such experiences, then we have experienced the Spirit.

Karl Rahner

Worlds Apart!

Last Sunday, I spoke to the folks at The Hills church in North Richland Hills, Texas.  It was really good being with the church led by my friend, Rick Atchley.

My sermon, "Worlds Apart" can be seen below:

Rauschenbusch on "The Kingdom of God"

"The Kingdom of God breeds prophets; the Church breeds priests and theologians. The Church runs to tradition and dogma; the Kingdom of God rejoices in forecasts and boundless horizons. The men who have contributed the most fruitful impulses to Christian thought have been men of prophetic vision, and their theology has proved most effective for future times where it has been most concerned with past history, with present social problems, and with the future of human society. The Kingdom of God is to theology what outdoor colour and light are to art. It is impossible to estimate what inspirational impulses have been lost to theology and to the Church, because it did not develop the doctrine of the Kingdom of God and see the world and its redemption from that point of view."Walter Rauschenbusch, A Theology for the Social Gospel, 1917.

Lenten Prayer of Cesar Chavez

Show me the suffering of the most miserable

So I will know my people’s plight

Free me to pray for others;

For you are present in every person

Help me to take responsibility for my own life;

So that I can be free at last.

Give me honesty and patience;

So that I can work with other workers.

Bring forth song and celebration;

So that the Spirit will be alive among us.

Let the Spirit flourish and grow;

So that we will never tire of the struggle.

Let us remember those who have died for justice;

For they have given us life.

Help us love even those who hate us;

So we can change the world.

Amen.

Risk discomfort!

Often, progress is about "breaking out!"

$3 Worth of God

 I would like to buy $3 worth of God, please, not enough to explode my soul or disturb my sleep, but just enough to equal a cup of warm milk or a snooze in the sunshine. I want ecstasy, not transformation; I want warmth of the womb, not a new birth. I want a pound of the Eternal in a paper sack. I would like to buy $3 worth of God, please.

--Wilbur Rees

Source: Leadership, Vol. 4, No. 1

Found at inward/outward

Connection

Our Unique Brokenness

Our brokenness reveals something about who we are. Our sufferings and pains are not simply bothersome interruptions of our lives; rather, they touch us in our uniqueness and our most intimate individuality. The way I am broken tells you something unique about me. The way you are broken tells me something unique about you. That is the reason for my feeling very privileged when you freely share some of your deep pain with me, and that is why it is an expression of my trust in you when I disclose to you something of my vulnerable side. Our brokenness is always lived and experienced as highly personal, intimate and unique.

Life of the Beloved

Henri J. M. Nouwen