Friday, October 16, 2009

Speak with confidence, Love with conviction

"One night in a vision the Lord said to Paul, 'Do not be afraid; Go on speaking, and do not be silent, for I am with you. No one will attack and harm you, for I have many people in this city.' He settled there a year and a half and taught the word of God among them." - Acts 18:9-11


It is so wonderful to live in a community of Christians. Some days it hits me more than others, but every day I thank God for where he has brought me in my life. It is such a blessing to be surrounded by friends who genuinely care about me and others. It is freeing to be able to openly speak about Christ and to gather as community in prayer each morning. Finally, it is comforting to always have someone there whom which I can depend upon in times of struggle and suffering. Is this not what God has in mind for all of us? Yet, how many people in this world are unable to express those same feelings of joy which I mentioned? How many people whom we know (perhaps ourselves) feel alone or afraid in our faith? Last blog entry I spoke about refining our words and this time I would like to reflect upon the strength of our words and actions through Christ.

In the passage above Paul has arrived in Corinthian as part of his mission to preach the Gospel to all the ends of the earth. In particular he was preaching to the Jews in the area; however, many "opposed him and reviled him" (Acts 18:6). Paul during his life suffered a great deal for the pursuit of spreading the Good News. (He in fact brags about it in 2 Corinthians 11:23-29) Although, this time God speaks to him in a vision and tells him that he should continue speaking and to do so without fear, for He has many people in the city. What a powerful statement, but not just to Paul in his day, also to us. God is telling us that when we are amongst believers in Christ, we shall not fear, we shall speak boldly about our love of Christ, and we will be safe!

Problems occur in our lives when communication is broken down. When we don't understand instructions at work or school and don't ask questions, we turn in a bad assignment. When we are not able to express our feelings to our families, we feel alone in our homes. When two cultures fail to understand one another, violence and fear is bound to rise. And when we fail to discuss our faith with others, our faith deteriorates. We must communicate with God through prayer and we must communicate with love to one another in order to keep each other strong in our faith. This communication is not always with words, but also acts of kindness and giving of ourselves. We all have learned at some point during our lives that actions speak louder than words.

The question then, is why don't we speak? Often times we do not speak up (or out) because we are afraid. We are afraid of what others might think of us, do to us, or say to us. We are afraid of the consequences of our words and actions. Paul, being a good example shows us through is life that he was not afraid of the consequences of his words. In fact, the more he was persecuted the more he spoke. He was able to do so because he was confident in his faith and through his passion for Christ and genuine care for others; his love shined through.

Let us reflect on those we surround ourselves with. Are they a good influence in our lives? Do they allow us to speak freely about our faith in Christ? If so, give God thanks and praise for nurturing people who grow in love with one another through His Son. If not, pray to God for the strength and courage to speak freely about your faith with those who may not be the most receptive. Also, reflect on ways that which you can incorporate more Christians in your lives so that you can begin to form a loving and caring community in which your faith can continue to develop. Lastly, be the comfort and peace for someone else so that they can feel Christ's love. Speak with confidence and love with conviction so all the glory and honor be to God and His son Jesus Christ.

Welcome Home,
Nazareth Farm

Saturday, October 10, 2009

Circumcise the tongue

"If we put bits into mouths of horses to make them obey us, we also guide their whole bodies. It is the same with ships: even though they are so large and driven by fierce winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot's inclination wishes. In the same way the tongue is a small member and yet has great pretensions. Consider how small a fire can set a huge forest ablaze. The tongue is also a fire. It exists among our members as a world of malice, defiling the whole body and setting the entire course of our lives on fire, itself set on fire by Hell. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless the Lord our Father, and with it we curse human beings who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. This need not be so, my brothers. Does a spring rush forth from the same opening both pure and brackish water? Can a fig tree, my brothers, produce olives, or a grapevine figs? Neither can salt water yield fresh." - James 3:3-12

Fall has begun here at the farm and it looks beautiful! The trees are changing and with each big wind leaves rain down on our lawn. Also with this change of scenery, the weather is getting colder each night. Volunteers haven't been around the farm since August and besides the random visitors who have come, as well as the 30th Anniversary, it has been rather quiet. This has been a time for us (staff) to get to know each other, do much needed repairs around the farm and to finish up projects in the community which need to be completed before winter. In the quietness that is here at the farm I have been able to reflect upon the "noise" in life. Particularly the noise which comes from myself. How do others perceive me when they hear me talk and what kind of message do my actions portray to those I come into contact with. Often times it is the ones who we are closest to that we treat the worst. We feel as though we "know" them we are entitled to do and say anything we want around them; we tend to let our guard down.

In the letter above written by James, we are reminded that as Christians we are called to a higher standard of speech. He warns us that the tongue is a "flame from hell" which can ignite our whole body. We begin to speak loosely and say things which we do not mean or things which hurt others, but the more we speak these things the more we begin to actually become the things we speak about. This is a scary thought. It causes me to reflect upon the jokes I hear and speak. Why are they funny? Even though I may not be serious about something I am saying to get a laugh or to be sarcastic, saying "Oh, I don't really mean that"; James is saying that eventually those words are going to ignite my whole body. He notes, some day I may actually be doing the very thing I am joking about.

Another passage comes to mind from the Old Testament. In Isaiah chapter 6 we read about a vision that comes to Isaiah. In this vision he sees God up on a throne with Seraphim's flying about covering their faces and feet while crying out "Holy, Holy, Holy". In this sight he immediately reflects upon how unworthy he is because he has "unclean lips" and hangs out with people who have "unclean lips". God, being a God full of grace and forgiveness, burns Isaiah's lips to cleanse them and then sends him out on his mission. James recognizes this also and informs us that our mouth is meant to praise God and that we can not praise God with our tongue one minute and then speak unclean words another.

In our lives we will meet an abundance of people and we do not always know how they will take our words; some things we say will effect a person one way while another day it will have the opposite effect. We are called to show love and kindness to all people and this starts with our words. The only thing we have control over is what WE say and do. Let us focus on our words and actions this week. Can what we say or do be interpreted in a way which would not properly reflect Christ? It takes great courage and strength to hold your tongue and James points out that no man has ever fully tamed his tongue. If we did then we would be perfect, like Christ, and this is what we must strive to be like. Center yourself in prayer and reflect upon people in your life who you consider "holy" people and take note to how they speak and present themselves.

Welcome Home,
Nazareth Farm