Beauty for Ashes

To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified. Isaiah 61:3

I am attending a women's conference, entitled "Beauty for Ashes", all weekend. We aren't leaving the city, but we will be staying at a hotel. I'm having mixed emotions about the whole thing. It's being presented by a couple of women who travel around Asia doing this kind of thing. Because I really don't know that many people at our church, there wasn't anyone I could call and ask more questions. So, tonight, the night before it starts, I decided to Google and see what came up.

There are a couple of ministries called "Beauty for Ashes". One is based in South Africa, the other in the States. They are both centered around healing.

The text that "Beauty for Ashes" is taken from is Isaiah comforting (bringing good news to the afflicted, vs. 1) the exiles returning from Babylon. Isaiah 61 is considered Messianic. Luke has Jesus quoting it, Luke 4:16-30.

That is about all I know. To summarize, I'll be spending the weekend with a bunch of women I don't know, doing I don't know what. Should be a good time! If it is about healing, it wouldn't hurt me to get honest and do some of that. We'll see how it goes, I would really rather keep up the facade and leave all the pain safely buried. That's healthy.

Wednesday Horse Photo

I know, that's Mr. Ed. Of the three Wednesday riders, one is in Singapore, one is sick and I'm a wimp. The high was 40 and my So. Cal. blood just couldn't handle it alone. Maybe next week won't be so cold. So Mr. Ed is my Wed. horse.

New Health Care Proposal

Maxine's Perfect Solution to Senior Health Care


Here is the solution:
While discussing the upcoming Universal Health Care Program with my sister-in-law the other day, I think we have found the solution. I am sure you have heard that if you're a senior you need to suck it up and give up the idea that you need any health care.
A new hip? Too expensive. We simply can't afford to take care of you anymore. Let's take care of the young people. After all, they will be ruling the world very soon.
So here is the solution. When you turn 70, you get a gun and three bullets. You are allowed to shoot one senator and two representatives.
Of course, you will be sent to prison, where you will get 3 meals a day, a roof over your head and all the health care you need! New teeth, great! Need glasses, no problem! New hip, knee, kidney,lung, heart? Well, bring it on.
And who will be paying for all of this? The same government that just told you that you are too old for health care. And, since you are a prisoner, you don't have to pay any income tax.

h/t Carol

One more time

A Tender Bartender
David Hayward, nakedpastor

"The relationship with God that I attempted never felt very real. He never talked to me. I talked to him, but he was always silent. I had to just trust that he was really there and really listening.

I found what he said in the Bible very confusing and contradictory. It made me crazy trying to figure out which verses applied to which situations. Other people never seemed to have a problem with that. God never helped me to understand.

I finally gave up and decided this whole relationship was an imaginary thing inside my own head.

Aren’t there bare minimum standards for something to be considered a “relationship?”
What are those standards?

I also heard that in Islam, they are not trying to have a relationship with Allah. They revere him and submit, have certain duties, etc., but it’s not a warm and fuzzy thing like in Christianity. Hopefully I’m not misrepresenting anything here. I’m sure you see what I’m trying to get at.

Oh yeah, and would you want to have a relationship with someone you fear? Like they might throw you in hell if you’re not of the elect?

And God TELLS us to love him. Can you love someone just because they tell you to?

I don’t get it." Lynn - from the comments.

I find it interesting, comforting and a little disturbing , how many people seek to have a relationship with God and end up like me or the commenter above. Obviously we are doing something wrong, but it's not for want of trying. Or maybe like one of the other commenters suggested, we're all delusional.

Films in Sarajevo: Where is Redemption?

From movefurther.org
November 16, 2009

Fatalism, Pride, Pain, Mockery, Shame, Apathy… These are the recurring themes in the films that I have been attending at this year’s film festival here in Sarajevo. After three days of faithfully showing up to my ticketed seat, the heavier I feel inside when I walk out, as if my spirit is hiding from the uncertainty and oppression I am taking in with my eye and ear gates.

First of all, I love where I live, and I truly love these people. I understand them, even though they would say that I have no idea, that I’m just another American trying to come here and help. But behind that, I hear the voice of rejection, abandonment and fear. So attending this film festival has reconfirmed to me that I am exactly where I am supposed to be.

Nothing depicts the real situation in a culture other than the arts. If you study history through art you will learn so much more than any textbook. For this reason I took the opportunity to attend as many Balkan movies as I could with the three days I had to attend this festival. And as I mentioned, the themes are all the same.

My question is: where is redemption? Is it even a possibility?

For the most part, all the films would just quietly fade out, leaving us with the hard reality that life here simply hurts. And if you want to survive, begin to own the hurt and make it your identity because it has always been this way and will always be this way.

I had a conversation with someone about this fatalism outside after a documentary. She commented (smiling between puffs of her cigarette) that these films just show us that we’re not perfect. I agree so far, but is there something more we can grasp? Or is this life about accepting the way things are—excusing the chaos by saying that it is just our way of life, that there is nothing we can do about it—then puffing the next cigarette and moving on?

Even the most brutal and voracious of societies (as this place is being portrayed through film) are still not too far beyond the reach of God’s amazing love. It is never too late for redemption. Our heart is designed to know and embrace that.

Maybe that is why love songs (especially ones that are tragic) are the songs that we connect to on the deepest level. It’s amazing to me how much one simple love song can silence a room, bringing the entire audience into one collective breath. What is this medicine called music?

During the festival I watched the documentary about sevdah (love songs). Not a person moved a bone while we listened and watched the screen. It was an amazing experience and at the end of this song, there was a hint of eternal redemption: a tree and a rose growing side by side where the two lovers are buried. I walked out of the theater filled up.

We have had the privilege of becoming acquainted with this organization recently. They are doing wonderful work here, in difficult circumstances. They exemplify, to me, what it means to be a follower of Jesus. We hope to become more involved with them in the future.

The End is Coming

Last night we were invited to watch 2012. Since we are not constantly bombarded with advertising here, I knew very little about the movie. I assumed that it had something to do with the Mayan calendar and the end of the world. To summarize, it's bad. They threw in a few inside jokes that made us laugh out loud while the rest of the theater, reading subtitles, was silent. Crazy foreigners. They had a lot of fun with the special effects destroying LA. Being a native, I always enjoy watching my hometown flattened. Part of the movie did supposedly take place in Western Sichuan, the audience was happy about that. Yeah Sichuan!

This morning I did my usual, reading sermons people have posted from Sunday. Michael Spencer and John Shuck usually get theirs posted promptly, still waiting on Cecilia (ahem). Anyway, they both preached from the lectionary this week, Mark 13. From an apocalyptic movie to apocalyptic preaching, it was the theme for the weekend. Needless to say, the two sermons came from opposite theological poles. I kind of felt like I do in yoga - you want me to bend in what direction?

Michael Spencer's sermon was titled, “Mark 13: What to do While the World Falls Apart.” His point was, while waiting for the end of the world, God expects us to keep doing what He has given us to do. He accepts the passage as apocalyptic prophecy. I love being able to listen to Michael, his southern accent takes me back to my Texas days and he has a easy to follow style of preaching.

John, bless his little progressive heart, goes someplace completely different. His sermon, entitled "Embracing Change", disagrees with the view that "there is a plan and a timetable that has been supernaturally decided and revealed to those who have special insight."

He goes on to state that:

"1) The view is pessimistic. Humanity or even life on Earth is not going to make it.
2) It is escapist. Only the true believers will escape and live forever in some other realm.
3) And it shirks responsibility. There is no reason to address the problems of Earth or contemplate its future because the “Supernatural” will fix it."

The point of the passage is:

"[Jesus] was telling his disciples that the end of this era was not the end of everything. In fact, it was a new beginning. This end while painful and destructive was the beginning of something new. Whether it was Jesus or Mark, they blur, nevertheless, it was encouragement to hope in the most frightening time."

I enjoyed both sermons and find myself somewhere in between.That covers a lot of territory.

That was my apocalyptic weekend, next weekend is our Women's retreat. Hopefully that will be less earth-shaking.

Women should remain silent in the churches

Bruce Reye-Chow posted this link on Facebook: More Protestant flocks are led by female pastors.

The article plus some of the comments, got me to thinking about the church as it existed when I was growing up. I was raised UPC, in a conservative congregation. Only men could be ministers, elders, etc. We could be "deaconesses". Before we left that church, they did decide to allow women to serve communion, as long as they respected the dress-code of a black suit ( I'm sure that's in the Bible somewhere, I'm still looking). We were allowed to take care of the children, cook, and support the men-folk. This is Biblical. The Bible also says the we should cover our heads, 1 Cor 11: 2-16. We Protestants had gotten over that by then, except for those ugly hats that showed up on Easter Sunday. When we were Baptists, my husband and I couldn't even attend the same Sunday School class. The women were taught by women and the men, men. Consequently, my husband quit going.

Leap ahead 30+ years. Now we are debating ordaining LGBT people. Why don't we just hit rewind and go back to following everything, at least in the New Testament? I will sit down and shut-up, 1 Corinthians 14:33–35. It may be a problem if I can only ask my husband questions, he hasn't actually read Bible, or been involved in Bible study, but that's okay, it's Biblical.

We'll be needing to close the churches here in China, most of the pastors are women. I'm sure God will find another way of reaching these 1.3 billion people. Obviously, He doesn't want the women doing it.

I know the argument against ordaining LGBT folks, at least in the PC(USA), concerns sexual sin. On the big scale of things God hates, that's worse than the sin of me just opening my mouth in church. But if we can't look at the Bible in the context of the time and culture it came from, I vote we just go back to following it literally, quit picking and choosing. I know a lot of men that would be very happy and a lot of pulpits, classes, and mission fields, that would be very empty.