The Gift of Grace

Grace, it can’t be bought, earned or bribed. Grace can only be freely accepted. Why then is it so difficult for us as human beings to accept the gift of God’s grace? Why do we feel as if we somehow have to earn grace through self-imposed back straining efforts? Why are we so hard on ourselves? Can’t we accept the fact that by his death Christ bought for us a new life grounded in forgiveness of our sins and reconciliation? Jesus even prayed for his “inhuman” tormentors from the cross, forgiving them.

The truth is that we are hard on ourselves. Society teaches us that nothing is free and if it is, there must be some kind of hidden trick written in the fine print that we are unable to see or read. But that is not the case with grace! Grace is absolutely one hundred percent free. The only way we can bring it into our lives and spirits is to simply accept the gift that keeps on giving.

We are also called to share this divine gift with others as well. There is so much hurt and pain in this world. Just think what life would be like if the grace of God touched the heart of every human being. Think for a moment what the world would be like if we freely accepted the gift of grace and then freely gave it away; especially to those we consider our enemies.

The blood of Christ was spilled for us all. It knows no boundaries, nor does his blood have any limitations. There is no crack or crevice too small or tight for the redeeming blood of Jesus Christ to fill. This means absolutely none of us are beyond the grasp of God’s divine and life giving grace. 

I pray that the blood of our Lord and Savior finds every single nock and cranny in each of our hearts. I pray that God’s light brings to those hardened and battle tested areas of our lives a new hope and a new life. It’s all grace, and it’s free. There is neither fine print nor any charge. 

Gregorian Chanting Monks ~ Music for Paradise ~ Music For The Soul ~ Dal...

Gregorian Chant - "Salve Regina"

Gregorian Chant - "Dies Irae"

The Holy Spirit and Life Beyond our Self-imposed Limitations

Do we honestly trust and believe in the power and love of the Holy Spirit? For some reason people find the Holy Spirit frightful. Perhaps for some they believe that a life in the Spirit means a person has to be “super” charismatic. For others perhaps it means letting go of the need to control their life and surroundings.  Nevertheless we often neglect or take the Holy Spirit for granted. The theologian Alister McGrath, says, “The Holy Spirit is like the Cinderella of the Ball, every one is invited but her!” Yet the Spirit shows up despite our best efforts to avoid her.

The Spirit works! I have personally witnessed the Holy Spirit allow people and churches to achieve goals and experience growth due to their trust in the Holy Spirit; goals that by our standards seem most difficult, if not impossible to meet. As a church we often try to create a microcosm world when it comes to items such as funds, budgets and various ministries. In other words we limit ourselves because we don’t believe in what we don’t see. But I have to ask, isn’t that what faith is all about? Prayerfully stepping outside of our imprisoning boundaries and trusting in God? Trusting that through the Holy Spirit God will provide us with what we need?

There is a profound saying in recovery that is so true, “We have to give ‘it’ away in order to keep it.”  We have to be willing to step out in faith; a faith that requires us to give even when we don’t believe in our human hearts we have anything left. Yet through faith and the Advocate (the Holy Spirit) we can accomplish goals and achieve objectives that we could never do if left to the self-imposed limitations; constraints that are part of our humanity.

God will provide! We see this throughout Scripture from Abraham, Moses, Joshua, the Judges, Paul and the rest of the apostles. Through us the Holy Spirit can accomplish those things that seem most unlikely if not impossible.

Trust in the Holy Spirit and do not be afraid. In the Gospel of John, Jesus tells the disciples he is sending an Advocate of the Father who will empower them beyond their limitations. That Advocate dwells among us today, all we have to do is say, “Come Holy Spirit Come.”

Quiet Shades of Darkness

Rain pitter pats on the windowsill just behind my back. It’s only a slight drizzle but the sound is delightful and methodical in the still blackness. The night draws late and sleep comes so very slow. My mind is wandering to and fro lost in a world of amazing grace. The power of the Holy Spirit has overwhelmed me, providing me the energy and need to write about God and his infinite glory. The urge is so real I can feel the power of inspiration created before me. I realize in astonishment that I am but a mere caldron of the Divine and Heavenly Light. The words flood upon the paper effortlessly as if my spirit is an open and blank space for God to emboss his grand stamp.

In the quiet shades of darkness only a small light burns softly against the back of my hands. The sound of Celtic music from ancient days long gone plays in my heart as I reflect on the majestic glory of this day. The beautiful sound of the Irish flute and the strings of the mandolin pluck the strings of my lively soul.

Why am I so awake and ablaze with God’s heavenly passion? What makes this day so special and nighttime so bright? The fact is so simple that it is often overlooked. I was able to breathe another breath of holy, and God given life today. Despite the problems and worries of the world God gave me the gift of another day of life.

We often take life for granted. Perhaps some of us think we shall exist in this world forever. But that is only a dream of profound denial. Every single day no matter how good or how bad is a gift from God, for I know not when I shall perish. Despite the struggling economy and lack of worldly possessions, my life is filled with the Holy Spirit. As I sit here in the darkness all I can think of is how glad I am that love divine has touched my inner most being in an unearthly manner. Lifted are the veil of depression and the cataracts of despair. Gone are the tears of sorrow and the discontentment of the heart.

While I still struggle with the worldly economy, tonight in this divine darkness I can let it go in order to embrace a different kind of economy; the economy of God, the Blessed Trinity – Father, Son and Holy Spirit. For it is in the economy of God that my true unfailing investments lie.  It is in that relationship that reconciliation to people and creation frees my spirit to move forward looking to enjoy another day. And the rain continues to pitter pat upon the windowsill, as I drift off to sleep knowing that all is well in this particular moment with God this night. Tomorrow is a new day. 

GUEST BLOGGER COL. MATT WOODBERY

“For the LORD God is a sun and shield; he bestows favor and honor.

No good thing does the LORD withhold from those who walk uprightly.

O LORD of hosts, happy is everyone who trusts in you.” Psalm 84: 11-12

One of my favorite TV commercials is the one where children are shown making very adult-like declarations of their dreams and goals they want to achieve in life: “I want to be an underachiever!” says one little boy. “I want to make poor decisions and be an embarrassment to my family!” a little girl says with a twinkle in her eye and a smile on her face. Of course, the irony is intentional and the point is well made: no one starts life deciding to be unsuccessful; no one gets up in the morning saying “today, I’m going to do my best to screw things up.”

Of course life events occur that are beyond our control that may contribute to failures or unachieved goals. But the commercial’s point is that we all are motivated at some point in our lives, and at some level of commitment, to do good; to make the most of the lives with which we are blessed. For some of us, there is a very clear and specific sense of calling; of deep meaning and purpose to life and the vocations we enjoy realizing that sense of purpose. For others of us, we are always exploring and examining this idea of “the good life” and experience life not as a set of goals or milestones to achieve, but to be lived in moment. For either of those perspectives, there come consequences. For instance, for those who are driven by ambition and goals, considering the richness of life along the way and “stopping to smell the roses” is often perceived as an obstacle to achievement, causing that person to miss out on some of the richness that comes from being in the moment. For those who are about enjoying life along the way and not being goal driven, a lack of intentionality may lead the course of life down routes that are filled with regret and lost time. The truth—as with many things in life—is in the mean; a balance between the two perspectives.

The ancient writer of this poem—actually, scholars tell us that this was probably a hymn sung in an ancient worship service—writes vividly of the goodness it is to be in the presence of our creator God. Even the sparrows have a place within the care of God. The Psalm culminates with the last two verses proclaiming that God provides all good and useful things to those who “walk uprightly” and “trusts in” God. Those two principles are simple but profound. To “walk uprightly” means to honor and pursue God’s wisdom and ways of life, found in our traditions of faith. It means to follow a way of God’s intent for the human experience, not relying on our own ways. And then trusting that God knows better, and has a better plan than any we could ever conjure up.

So perhaps we could be filmed saying “I want to be one who seeks to walk uprightly and is seen as one who is flawed but trying.” Or “because I trust God, I will celebrate God’s favor and honor of my life no matter what may come.”

Chaplain (Colonel) Matt Woodbery is the command chaplain for the 7th Signal Command (Theater), Ft Gordon, GA and a United Methodist minister.

Bread, Bread and more Bread!

It seems like we have been talking about bread in the Sunday Lectionary for weeks now. (I’m getting rather hungry just thinking about it, as it is lunchtime as I write this message).  Yet the Bread of Life is at the center of what it means to be a Christian (as well as a good Episcopalian!). After all as the Episcopal Church we are a Eucharistic centered Church. We gather as One Body in Christ Jesus each week to partake of the Bread (Christ’s Body) and wine (Christ’s Blood). This is what our Lord commanded us to do as his followers in the upper room at the “Last Super.” Acts 2 reminds us that we are to gather in the breaking of the bread, the prayers and fellowship.

At the heart of the Eucharist is our restoration with God. Like it or not we are all sinners and the nature of sin is to separate. We are constantly separating ourselves from God and one another. In the Eucharist we lay our aside our differences and share in the one, holy, broken and reconciling Body of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is not only an act of salvific love and restoration with God; it is an act of reconciliation and unity with each other as well.

When we come to the altar and receive Holy Communion we are asking God for forgiveness of our sins and renewal of our hearts, minds, souls and bodies in Christ. We are saying, “We belong to Jesus” and are willing to live out what Christ calls us to do in this life: love God with all of our hearts and our neighbors as ourselves.

So the story of the Bread that never fails us is vital to our faith. We can’t hear that message enough!

The Third World And What ONE Can Do!

5am came early as I rose from my sleep in a dank hotel room in Dodoma, Tanzania, East Africa. I still suffered from intense jet lag after the 20-hour flight from New York City to Dar es Salam, and then another two-hour flight aboard a missionary prop plane to the center of the country, the city of Dodoma.

In the darkness of the early morning hour my good friend and colleague Fr. Yohana anxiously waited for me to arrive at the front desk of the hotel. After a shower that was nothing more than a pathetic luke warm dribble of water I gathered my gear, met my friend and we set out on our adventure; and oh what an adventure it was!

We next boarded the bus for a twelve-hour ride to the city of Arusha in northeastern Tanzania. Of course to go north in Africa meant we had to go south first! A long ways south to be exact! Aboard the unairconditioned bus I witnessed crowded conditions as masses of people crammed tightly into a vehicle not made to carry so many folks. In Africa they say, “The bus is never full.” The reason is not because people don’t use that form of transportation, but because the bus continually picks up more and more people along the way! It was the craziest ride of my life. Yet I experienced Africa the way the average African experiences the daily struggle and hardships of life. I experienced Africa as if I were a part of the native population. That long, difficult and uncomfortable bus ride was spiritually transforming and created an uncomfortable yet profound awaking of what it means to live as an average citizen in a third world country. I witnessed everything from beggars to drug addicts, to a girl’s Christian school who sang beautiful hymns of praise in their native Swahili language. We were stopped every ten miles by road blocks in which policemen armed with machine guns boarded the bus only to be bribed by the bus driver in order to allow the over flow of numbers and avoid harassment. Corruption is an accepted way of life in these underdeveloped areas of the world.

Sub-Sahara Africa is a land that is deplete of all its natural resources. In order to make charcoal for fire the largely inland area of Tanzania has very few trees. They’ve all been cut down and burned as cooking fuel. The assets the country does possess, such as diamonds, are exploited by government officials and the mining companies for their personal benefit. The citizens are left to survive the best they are able.  Consequently sickness and death are common experiences in the life of the average African in Tanzania. Still, despite the deplorable living conditions there are many faithful Christians who gather to praise God and sing to the highest heaven every day. They smile and laugh in the face of poverty, sickness and hunger. Despite the fact that death lurks around every corner they embrace the salvific mission of Christ Jesus. Despite he slightest injury, which often results in illness and deadly infection, these people dance and find joy in the presence of God.

 

I am a strong advocate for the health and wellbeing of sub-Sahara Africa. Having traveled there I have witnessed first hand the poverty that these wonderful and cheerful people live under. Government corruption is ramped, leaving many people (mostly Christians) with little food, unclean water and inadequate medical supplies.

I experienced first had the hospital in Shenyang, Tanzania. It was a filthy and wretched place filled with the smell of human excrement.

Education is vital and there are several mission schools, but that is still not enough. Pressure needs to be placed on the shoulders of the corrupt governments. They take what they need from the aid sent to the county by missionaries and use those resources for their own selfish greed.

The Millennium Development Goals and the One Campaign are so important if we wish to see a better and healthier third world, not only in Africa but also around the globe. I encourage people to go to the One Campaign’s website to learn more about what we can do as ONE to end poverty, improve the quality of life, create clean drinking water and eradicate extreme diseases that threaten the populations of the third world. Go to www.one.org.