Our Calendar

Numbers 29:1“ ‘On the first day of the seventh month hold a sacred assembly and do no regular work. It is a day for you to sound the trumpets.' "

     Often our calendars are important to us. They keep us on track with our days. They remind us of important moments and celebrations. They help us to not forget anniversaries and birthdays! As a husband, I am thankful for this!
     But calendars can also become our slave masters. They can drive us and hold us captive. They can hedge us in and confine our activities in a way that limits our ability to stay present in the moments we have with those around us. We can always be running to the next thing, rushing ahead in hopes that the next thing will bring us satisfaction (hopefully).
     The Scriptures tell us that the LORD is in charge of the calendar. He created light and darkness (Genesis 1:3) thus marking out the time frame for a single day. He put the stars in the sky marking out different seasons. (Genesis 1:14-18) He created ordered worship around days, weeks, and years. He highlighted the passing of seasons various feasts and festivals, times when His people gathered to celebrate and remember what the LORD had done on their behalf. (see Numbers 28-29)
     Who has the rights to put events on your calendar? Do you give the LORD permission to add events? Do you let Him order your days, weeks, and years?
     Or do you fill the calendar yourself, or with your boss's help, or with your spouse and children, and then see if you can fit the LORD in in some of the empty spaces that are left?
     Maybe it is time to listen to His schedule first, and after He has placed His priority in our lives, then we can see how to fit our things in the places that are left. We say He is LORD, but do we live it with our schedules, our calendars?

“Squirrel”

Mark 13:1

      In the movie “Up” the dog Dug gets easily distracted. Even when important things are happening, his mind gets pulled other places. Does this sound familiar? I know it does for me. Life today is filled with so many side attractions, so many things that can pull our hearts and minds away from what really matters. It could be very easy to spend life on side pursuits and end up empty at the finish line.

      I don’t think the disciple who remarked about the beauty and majesty of the architecture there in Jerusalem wanted to know about the future. I don’t think he was asking about the city’s destruction. I also don’t think he was wondering if alien technology had been used in the construction. I think he was just making small talk at the end of a long day.

      If you have been to ancient cities, there are often ruins of buildings that boggle the mind. Walking through the ruins of Pompeii my mind and imagination could imagine the city in its moments before the destruction from the Mount Vesuvius eruption. It had beautifully painted homes and businesses, sculpted gardens, public buildings and theaters, bistros and coffee shops. It was a very modern city. It even had running water controlled by faucets.

      Rome is filled with magnificent buildings, buildings that trumpeted the wealth and influence of the empire. Anyone who came to that city knew that it was the seat of power. The Aztec and Incan ruins speak of power and values. New York, Washington, DC, Paris, Shanghai, Singapore. All these cities speak about their cultures and their values, and the power of the human spirit to make a profit, impose taxes, and self-promotion.

      Jerusalem and been built as the model city, as a place worthy of the presence of the LORD, the Creator of the Universe, sustainer of His people, and the “God with us” God. Rulers of that day come thousands of miles to see this city and its treasures. But because of the rebellion of His people, the city had been handed over to enemies who carted off the riches and destroyed the rest. The poorest of the poor were allowed to stay and maintain the crops so that the new sheriff in town could get their spoils each year.

      It had then been rebuilt, but not with the splendor of the previous city. They didn’t have the wealth and power they once had. And it was this rebuilt city that this disciple sees. And even these rebuilt walls were wonderful to see. Despite the presence of the Dome of the Rock on the Temple Mound today, the ancient city is still speaking of its greatness today.

      But if we miss the message of this disciple we might miss the LORD. Although he is probably making small talk, he is distracted from Jesus. These are the final days of Jesus’ life prior to His death and resurrection. These moments are important, perhaps more important than any other. Ask anyone who spends time with a dying relative. The last moments seem very important.

      Jesus is just a few steps away, and this disciple is looking at the buildings. He pulls out his cell phone and takes a few selfies. He posts them to FB. He responds to a few text messages. And all the while Jesus is right there.

      We go out to eat a meal with family or friends. Do we spend it with them, or do we allow ourselves to be distracted? Do we silence our phones when family is around? Or do we, like a family we saw recently, sit in a circle and text and surf, without any conversation across the table. Are we so busy traveling that we don’t take time to notice the people with whom we are making the journey of life?

Eavesdropping

Mark 12:28

      Have you ever listened in on a conversation without really being in the conversation? You happen to walk in the room and you enter the conversation midstream. Your brain scrambles in order to try to make sense of what they are saying. It seems as if you are missing a few vital pieces of information. You continue to listen in without being noticed.

      And then there is a shift in their voices as they realize that they can be overheard. That is when listening in becomes even more difficult. You focus your concentration and pick up what you can. You continue to put the pieces of the conversation puzzle together. And then it happens; you finally figure out what they are talking about. And it wasn’t at all what you thought it was. Your first guesses were wrong. You were missing a few key pieces of information.

      Our text tells of a man who has walked in on the conversations Jesus has had with two groups of antagonists. These two groups want Jesus out of the picture. They are plotting His death. We don’t know if this man is part of the third group’s official offensive line or not. We don’t know if he was sent with a specific question or not. We don’t know lots of facts. It is almost as if we are eavesdropping on these events. So we try to fill in the gaps.

      I believe that this man was the official spokesperson for the teachers of the law. He had been sent with the assignment of getting Jesus to stumble, to incriminate Himself. He might have been sent with the official question selected by the group. We don’t know the history of contact between Jesus and this man. Had he ever heard Jesus in person before? Had he only heard second and third hand reports about Jesus?

      But something happened as he listened to Jesus. He is actually paying attention. He isn’t just waiting his turn in the succession of questioners. He is listening to their answers. And while he listens, something changes. He goes from being a close-minded antagonist to someone who hear Jesus in a new way. He recognizes that Jesus is giving good answers, serious answers to the other questions. And I think something happens in his heart. Perhaps like the Grinch, his heart grew three sizes that day.

      It seems as though he goes from someone on a criminal mission to someone with honest curiosity. When he hears Jesus something happens. So he asks a question. Was it his official question, or was it one he made up on the spot? We don’t know. But he wants to know Jesus’ take on the commandments. Which is the most important?

      You can tell a lot about someone when you find out their priorities, both their stated priorities and their lived priorities. And with honest reflection, I have to say that I have never met a person whose stated and lived priorities were always congruent. We all fail to live our stated values 100% of the time. We all fall short.

      So this question about commandments and their role in life is an important one to this teacher. He wants to hear Jesus’ heart on the matter. He wants insight into what makes Jesus tick. And in the process, Jesus finds out what makes him tick.

Finger on the Pulse

Mark 10:20-22

      Some people have a way of knowing exactly where to touch to find out what is really happening in a situation. They are able to walk into a room, spend a few moments observing, and then engage in a way that brings the greatest change. Some of this power comes from their personality, since people often seem to look up to them. Some of it comes from their ability to size up people and situations.

      This is a skill that is very useful in life. If you are a negotiator, then being able to pick up on people’s agendas and motives is important. It is often the unspoken that carries the most weight. It can pay to be like Sherlock Holmes, seeing every detail and forming conclusions from the data in a moment.

      Jesus is engaging with a man who is tormented. He wants desperately to know if his life matters. He wants to know if he has been following the right path, doing the right things, behaving the right way. He wants to please God, but he isn’t sure he has done it. So he comes to Jesus with a question.

      He answers Jesus’ answer with a statement of completion. He in essence says, I’ve got all that covered. If that is all there is to it, then I have it made. And yet Jesus sees something more in him. Deep inside, this man knows he isn’t good enough. He knows he falls short. He can feel it. Otherwise, there would be no need to ask Jesus about the entrance criteria. He wants it, but he knows he hasn’t gotten it yet.

      At the root of Jesus’ answer is the truth that only God can provide the means to heaven. No matter how hard we try, no matter what we do, we will fall short of divine perfection. So Jesus zooms in on this man’s hesitancy. There is one area over which the LORD doesn’t have control in this man’s life. This man has not yielded his wealth.

      Notice that Jesus loves this man. He is not giving him a difficult task because He despises this man’s wealth. Wealth is not the issue. The issue is the place wealth occupies in this man’s life. It stands center stage. Jesus knows this and wants to help him. He loves him, after all. He is not trying to drive him away.

      This man could have responded by saying, “Yes, Lord! I will do it right away. Save me a spot on your team.” He could have taken Jesus’ advice and done the ‘do’ that he had asked for with his initial question. Remember, he asked, what must I do! Jesus has told him what he must do.

      Jesus tries to help this man by pointing out that wealth had him, rather than he having wealth. So many, even the poor, don’t have wealth. Wealth, or that lack of it, has them. Some ride the disability train, or the prejudice train, or the nobody’s helping me train until they have long run out of track. They spend money on SUV’s,  big screen TV’s, smartphones with data plans, addictions, and expensive shoes, but get food stamps because they don’t have money for food. I am afraid Jesus would call on these people to stop living off other people’s efforts.

      If we don’t work, we don’t eat.  I have found hunger to be a great motivation to do something. Handouts are a great motivation to do nothing. I want to encourage you to read the book by Robert Lupton, Toxic Charity, if you want a better way to help the poor.

Distractions

Mark 6:45-56

      How many times do you get pulled away from something you are working on to do something else? It might be someone at work who thinks you have nothing better to do than do their work. It might be the ‘emergency’ that arises that really is the result of someone else’s poor planning. And of course children bring with them the unexpected and the interruptions. There are so many things that can get us off track from what is really important in life. Mine is Netflix in the evenings! They say confession is good for the soul.

      Sometimes these distractions are actually good things, worthwhile endeavors, things with lasting value. Sometimes they are a complete waste of our time and energies. The real question I want to ask is this. What do we do after the distraction? Do we get back on track with what is important?

      We all get distracted. Even Jesus in His training plan for His disciples seems to have gotten off track. He wanted to pull them aside and give them some one on one time, some time to rest. But with every move to accomplish this plan the crowds show up and change the training plan for the day. I am sure Jesus has the ability to make the most of it, but it was still different from His original stated plan.

      They have fed the crowd and gathered up the leftovers. Jesus knows His disciples need some time away from the crowds, so He puts them in a boat even before the crowds have dispersed. He wants to give them a break, and He takes the burden of all the loose ends.

      Our text doesn’t say this, but I bet there were a lot of needs met as the crowd dispersed. I am sure people came and asked for prayer, for healing, and for deliverance, people who couldn’t get close because of the size of the crowd. We see it in church, after the final prayer, people come forward to talk to the pastor. Jesus didn’t need His disciples around to have compassion. He was compassion embodied.

      And then when the crowd is gone He goes aside for prayer. Prayer is what Jesus turns to when He needs refreshing. We see it repeatedly in His life and ministry. He pulls aside and spends time in prayer. Not a bad example to follow!

      But I think so many of us, myself included, have lost the essence of prayer. Or perhaps we only experience one aspect of prayer, say petition. For many of us we have not learned the power of being silent in God’s presence, of quieting our soul and allowing Him to speak with His presence in the core of our being. There may not be words in those times, but words fail when His presence is present. It is like the hug when bad news comes. The hug speaks more than any words could.

      Pull aside and spend time in prayer.

Physical Touch

Mark 5:23-24

      There is power in human touch. Babies need human touch or they will not survive. They need to know that someone will care for their needs. They need to feel safe in order to develop into healthy adults emotionally and physically.

      One of the deficits that soldiers have when they are deployed is touch. They don’t get the positive, touches that we need. They become physically isolated, even though they live in very cramped quarters. Even adults need touch.

      Sports have created rituals to reinforce positive touch. Opposing teams often shake hands after the competition has come to an end. They file past each other and shake hands. “No hard feelings. Today just happened to be our day. Don’t give up.” The words might not be there, but the handshake, the thump on the shoulder, the ‘high five’ and the dance, the whole body lift or pile-on all signify togetherness, connectedness and security. We are on the same team.

      Our text explores Jairus’ need to have Jesus come and touch his daughter. Jesus’ physical touch was not necessary for healing to happen. He could “just speak the word” and the daughter would be healed. The touch was not so much for the daughter as it was for Jairus. Jairus needed the touch. He needed the physical sign of Jesus’ care.

      Jairus needed Jesus to come to where his daughter was. I guess she was so ill that she couldn’t be moved. Or perhaps this was an impulsive act by Jairus. Maybe he had no intention of asking Jesus for help. Jesus was considered dangerous, His teaching too far from the mainstream to be accepted. But Jairus doesn’t care that Jesus will be in his house and home. All those things are not that important in that moment.

      Jairus needs the physical touch that Jesus had demonstrated on other occasions with other people to be physically present with his daughter. She was so ill she needed healing, and healing to the extent that if healing does not take place, she will die.

      A friend of mine recently died of an illness. Within eight days he went from diagnosis to death. His illness was desperate and acute. Fortunately for my friend, he had settled the eternity question years ago. He lived in the grace provided to him by Jesus’ death and resurrection. His body may have ceased to function, but he is now in eternity, where not tears or sorrow or pain exist. His battle is over. He is at peace.

      Jairus had no such assurance when he came to Jesus that day. Jesus could have refused to come. He could have said that there were other priorities, that there were great numbers of people who needed Him and going to help one young girl would limit His impact that day. But Jesus often sought out the one in spite of the needs of the many.

      How do you balance the one and the many? How do you “divide your time” with work, family, community, and self? How do you know when enough is enough?