Warts and All

In the time of Oliver Cromwell in Britain, it was customary for noble people to be painted by portrait artists. Much like today’s obsession with airbrushing and “Photoshopping” images of celebrities and models, the painters would ignore any ‘blemishes’ in their subjects and paint them as they would look were those blemishes removed. Apparently, when Cromwell was sitting for his portrait, the artist began to paint him as he usually would, but then Cromwell, who was not the most beautiful person to have graced the planet, instructed the painter to paint him “warts and all”. The story goes that he insisted that every blemish be included in the painting or he would refuse to pay the artist for his work.

It still amazes me that when we gather for worship we so easily believe that we can present ourselves to God as an “airbrushed” version of ourselves. We may dress in special clothes, sanitise our language, and hide our fears and angers behind smiles and light banter, but we know the truth that lurks inside of us. It’s telling that these broken parts of ourselves, that bring us so much pain and rob us of so much life, are known as “skeletons in our cupboards”. As long as we pretend that we’re ok, as long as we hide our worst selves behind the façade of religious observance or pseudo-goodness, we remain broken and we find ourselves living a double life – saying, singing and praying one thing on Sunday and living a contradiction through the week. Such an existence is brings us neither healing nor true intimacy with God.

If we genuinely seek to live life to the full, and if we recognise that deep relationship with God is the key to this life, we cannot continue in this deception. Rather, we will find that we need to lay down our hypocrisy and become ruthlessly honest with ourselves, with others and with God. It is only when we are ready to face and deal with the truth about ourselves that we can embrace life in all its complexity and creativity and beauty and abundance. And this is why one of the most important – albeit difficult – disciplines in Christian worship is the practice of confession.

While in some churches confession has been formalised and ritualised, offering a safe and ongoing way to confront ourselves and the truth about our lives, it does not necessarily require this. In fact, each time we gather for worship we are (or should be) offered a chance to do this work. I have already written about how an encounter with God inevitably leads us to an honest encounter with ourselves. This is actually true of any genuine experience of intimacy, whether it’s with God or another human being. It is only as we allow others to get really close to us that they can reflect back to us the things in us that need to change – which may be why so many of us avoid intimacy at all costs. If however, we are courageous enough to take the risk of letting our true selves show – especially with God – we discover an amazing, healing, truth. We find that we are loved, appreciated and accepted – warts and all!

So, next time you are invited to spend time in confession try to resist the urge to run or to disengage until it’s over. Rather, seek to be honest with God about yourself – the good and the bad – and allow God’s grace to heal and change you. You’ll be so glad you did.
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John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

Perspective

Preaching is an interesting activity. I like to ask questions in my sermons, but I have seldom received an answer. At times, when I’ve really wanted people to talk back to me, I have had to push really hard before they give me some response. But, only once have I been interrupted.

I had been reflecting on how we view the world – whether we feel it is getting better or worse – and I asked people to think about our their own feelings. Suddenly an elderly man stood up and, looking around with eyes that were filled with grief and sadness, said, “I don’t think the world could get any worse…” Then he sat down.

For many people in our world today, there is no question that the world is terrible and that it’s only going to get worse. But, while we may deny it, this is not fact. It is simply perspective.

None of us is capable of seeing the world clearly. How we view our circumstances, our political and economic realities, our futures and our neighbours is all filtered through our upbringing, our religion, our language, our experiences, our culture and many other lenses. But, what we don’t always realise is that these perspectives impact how we live. If we feel that things are bad, we will tend to be pessimistic, fearful and suspicious of others, and we will act in ways that protect what we have and ourselves. But, if we feel that the world is a good place, we will tend to be much more positive, trusting and open. Whether we are optimists or pessimists, the world remains the same. It is only our perspective that is different. Which is why we so desperately need something bigger than ourselves to give us a better perspective on the world.

Every Sunday, as we gather for worship, we are engaged in the work of “perspective-shifting”. We may not even know we’re doing it, but as we sing and pray, as we read the Scriptures and listen to their meaning for us, our view of the world, of ourselves and of others is being subtly, but significantly, changed. As we encounter God, and as we are given again the vision of God’s reign that worship offers us, we begin to see things from the perspective of God’s purpose and God’s presence. We begin to think about things in the light of God’s grace, God’s justice, God’s compassion and God’s salvation. And this divine perspective changes our human perspective in remarkable ways.

One of the most important activities in worship that feeds this “perspective-shifting” is adoration. When we lift our eyes from our own limited view, and begin to focus on who God is and what God is doing among us, we cannot help but see everything differently. As we express our praise of God, we are reminded that there is another reality at work in our world. As we allow God to reveal God’s self to us, we discover that our resources and abilities are only a small fraction of all that God makes available to us, and we are reminded that, in the light of God’s glory and eternity, our sufferings and struggles are small and temporary (See 2 Corinthians 4:17).

We don’t offer praise in order to receive God’s strength and inspiration. We praise God simply because God is praiseworthy. But, in God’s grace, when we do this, we are changed. And the world begins to look very different when we realise that God really is at work in it – in ALL of it.
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John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

Wide-eyed Wonder

“I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn't receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it." (Mark 10:15)

One of the things I miss about having little children is the constant wide-eyed wonder with which they journey through the world. Everything is new, everything is amazing and everything is mysterious. If there were a single word that most adults would do well to relearn from their childhood it’s probably “Wow”.

But somehow, as the years move on, as we learn more about how the world works, as we get hurt and tired and each day becomes a stumble through the routines that keep us alive, we grow cynical. It’s common to hear adults mock the optimism and possibilities of youth. It feels rare to find a grown up who still really believes in anything meaningful in a way that actually affects how they live. It’s like skepticism, pessimism and despair have come to be seen as the marks of someone who is really in touch with reality. If we have really become adults, if we really function properly in society, then we should always be suspicious, always be disillusioned.

In the words of Jesus we find a different way of living. Jesus recognised that when we lose our sense of wonder, when we stop being awed by the world, we lose an important part of what it means to be human and to be fully alive. When we can no longer appreciate beauty, joy, creativity, mystery, newness, and playfulness, our lives are little more than existence. We are no longer truly living.

If there is any spiritual practice that can reawaken wonder and inspire our sense of possibility again, it is the act of praise. As we gather for worship, and we make the choice to focus on God’s glory, beauty, grace, compassion, majesty and love, we are changed by the vision of God we receive. As we express our praise, we are drawn into a new awareness of all that there is around us and within us to adore. We begin to learn to see God’s presence and extravagant creativity not just in church, but in every moment and every place. We discover that there is so much to be surprised by, there is so much to be moved by, there is so much that can stop us in our tracks and leave us breathless with wonder and amazement. And we discover how inspiring and energising it is to recognise and really notice the glory in our lives and our world, and to express our awe in words and actions of praise.

If your heart is becoming heavy, if your spirit is becoming dry, then there is no better remedy than to turn to God in praise and allow God’s Spirit to open your eyes and your soul to the luminous Presence of God, the glowing beauty of creativity, and the life-giving attitude of wonder that is your natural, human state. And once you have opened the doors, you will discover that there is reason to praise in every situation and every moment in which you find yourself.
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John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

Worship for the Long Haul

It’s an instant world we live in. If our needs aren’t met immediately we get frustrated. Longevity has lost it’s attraction. We upgrade our cell phones every two years wishing it was sooner. We measure companies quarterly, and we choose our activities by the instant rush we hope to receive. It’s an instant world, which has given us so many benefits, but there’s a sting in the tail.

In the realm of spirituality, ‘instant’ doesn’t cut it. If we want a deep and fulfilling relationship with God, if we long to grow into the people we are meant to be, if we hope to make a positive difference in the world, this is going to take time and commitment. In spite of the promises in the books on the self-help shelves, no one becomes whole, healthy and spiritually strong overnight. And when I read a review of a book that promises to teach its readers to meditate like a Buddhist monk in just 30 days, I can’t resist the sorrow that floods me. I weep for those who sell themselves short by treating their most authentic selves, and their connection with the creator, like something you buy at a fast food outlet.

Unfortunately the culture of the instant has infiltrated our churches. While I love contemporary worship music, I worry when the music becomes the focus of our efforts. I love technology and I believe in using it in worship, but I know how seductive it can be, and how it can divert us into instant gratification, rather than the long, slow road of spiritual development. When we measure our worship by the goose bumps we feel, or by how well the band mimicked the latest worship CD, or by how dramatic the video production was, we have missed the point. We may feel an instant reward, but our souls have suffered the malnourishment of spiritual fast food.

At the start of a New Year we have a wonderful opportunity. We can make a commitment to long haul spirituality. Instead of measuring our worship by the weekly experience, let’s commit ourselves to waiting until the end of the year. And then, let’s judge our worship by how we have changed - by how we have become a little more like Jesus in his love for God and the world. Each week as we come to worship, let’s open ourselves, not to the instant gratification of a thrilling experience, but to the slow nurturing of a weekly discipline that will, sometimes, be thrilling, but, sometimes challenging, and sometimes just quiet and ordinary.

At the start of the New Year is a good time to reaffirm two profound truths about our worship. First, worship is not about what we do in church, but about how what we do in church changes the way we live when we’re not in church. Second, worship is not a weekly “fix” to uplift us and carry us through the week until our next “fix”. It is a discipline that we embrace with commitment and faithfulness, so that, through repeated practice over time, we are changed so that the world is better off for our presence.

Now that’s a resolution worth making.

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John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

The Sacrament of the New Year

How has 2012 been for you so far? Do you already feel like you're falling behind or are you on track, and ready to go into the rest of the year with confidence and faith?

There's always so much hype around a New Year that it can be tempting to just ignore the whole thing. After all it's just a few numbers on a calendar, isn't it? Well, I want to suggest that there's another way to look at New Year. I believe that it can be an incredible opportunity, or even better - a sacrament. The sacraments are ordinary things that are part of our everyday lives – bread, wine, water – that God fills with God's presence and purpose in order to touch us and transform us. One of the reasons for the sacraments is to teach us to view all things – every situation, every person, every moment – as a potential sacrament.

So, what is the “sacrament” of New Year? I believe it is a time when we are called to remember one of the most liberating truths of the Gospel – that God is a God of new beginnings. Right from the first, whenever someone failed, or got lost, or was hurt in some way, God was there offering a new start. Abram, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, David, the prophets all experienced new beginnings and were able to touch others with God's grace because of it. Through Christ, many broken and desperate people were given new lives, new hope and new connection with God. God is the God of new beginnings, and New Year offers us the invitation to experience this again for ourselves.

For most people 2011 was a tough year. But, now we're at the start of a New Year. Yes, it's just numbers on a calendar, but it creates a space for us to pause, reflect, take stock and reset our life's direction. It creates a way for us to lay aside what has passed and start again.

2012 may already have started badly for you. Well, it's still not too late to begin again. Each month offers another new beginning. Each week, each day is a blessed gift from the God of second chances. How would it be if you embraced this sacrament this year? Imagine taking each new day, each new week, each new month, each new season, as a new beginning and opening yourself to the hope and possibility that God offers. This one thought, lived and applied, really can change your entire 2012!

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John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

Christmas Eyes

I love the story of the shepherds in the Christmas narrative. To begin with, they find themselves in a very ordinary situation - out on the hillside, while everyone else is in their warm homes asleep. But, then, suddenly, the whole scene is unexpectedly changed. Radiance surrounds them, and they’re seeing angels, receiving messages, and even hearing choirs. No wonder they were afraid. They were terrified not just for their safety, I bet. They must have been frightened for their sanity!

I can’t imagine what they actually saw, or what the experience really felt like for them, but as Luke recounts the story, we find the angel speaking, and it’s an almost ridiculous message. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Saviour - yes, the Messiah, the Lord - has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!” So far so good. But, then he goes on: “And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.” (Luke 2:10-12 NLT). The shepherds must have been looking for the hidden cameras right about now. Someone who is called “Saviour”, “Messiah” and “Lord” is going to be found in a feeding trough? This is not the obvious place to look for a child of significance at all.

But, here’s where I am challenged by the shepherds. They make the choice to open their eyes and see this coming of God’s Messiah into their world. They somehow have the eyes to look beyond their expectations, their stereotypes about wealth, celebrity, status and importance, and see God in this most unexpected of places. They have the humility to believe that someone of significance can appear in a place that feels completely insignificant. They have the capacity to embrace the ridiculousness of the message, and find the glory in it - and as a result, they become the first witnesses to God’s miraculous incarnation.

The Scriptures are always calling us to this kind of seeing, this choice to open our eyes, and, with childlike wonder, find God where God (according to our sensibilities and expectations) shouldn’t be. The incarnation of God in Christ is not really a surprise when you trace God’s presence through human history. In truth, God has always been appearing, coming, incarnating in all sorts of ways. For those who were willing to let their usual way of seeing go, God was happy to speak through donkeys, appear in smoke and fire, and stillness, and be revealed in outcasts, foreigners and ‘sinners’.

God almost seems to take great glee in hiding from us in the most unexpected - and offensive - places. Perhaps this is because until we can find God in the places we believe God has forsaken, we haven’t really known God at all. And when we can see God’s presence in feeding troughs and insignificant villages, in babies and teenage mothers, we can suddenly see God everywhere. The entire world becomes filled with incarnation - with God revealed and present and working in every person and place and moment.

May our celebrations this year teach us to see the world with Christmas eyes, and to recognise God in every one of what Mother Teresa called his “distressing disguises”.

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John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

Advent Irony

It’s common, in this Festive Season, to hear people of faith complain about the consumerism, the materialism, the commercialism, and all manner of other “-isms” that abound at this time of year. We long for people to see the real “reason for the season” and to slow down enough to be open to receive the God who comes to us in Advent. Am I the only one who sees the irony here?

I have been part of the Church for pretty much my whole life, and in active ministry for more than half of it. I have served in a number of different capacities, organisations and denominations, and I have been connected with a number more. If there is one thing I have always been amused and challenged by, it’s our capacity to miss the point of our own message – and Advent is no exception.

It is common at this time of year for Churches to pull out all the stops and go to great lengths to create the most vibrant, dramatic and impactful expression of the Christmas story we can. I know this because I’ve been doing it for two decades. But, ironically, even as we point to the simplicity of the Christ Child born in a manger to parents of modest means, we may be tempted to shun all simplicity in the creation of our celebrations. As we praise God for coming to us in unexpected ways, in ordinary places and people, in surprising moments of peace, joy, love and hope, we may easily find ourselves so rushed and busy that we have no time to actually experience the presence of God that we proclaim. As we speak about the importance of following this Christ in ways of love and sacrifice, we may be hard pressed to avoid excess in our end-of-year parties, our gift buying and even in our Christmas services.

Not all of this is bad. It is a good thing to celebrate and to mark significant moments in special ways. It is good to be reminded of the joy of giving gifts and to have opportunities to worship with great creativity. If, however, our celebration leads us to be less mindful of the Child we celebrate, we have no right to protest at the inappropriateness of the celebrations around us.

I’m reminded of a story I once read about a proud couple who invited family and friends to a party to celebrate the baptism of their new baby. The special event happened in the midst of a very cold winter, and as the guests arrived, their coats were thrown on to the bed in the master bedroom while they enjoyed the warmth of the celebration. After some time someone mentioned that the baby, whom they all come to see, was strangely absent. After a few minutes of searching, the parents discovered to their horror that the child was lying under all the coats on the master bed – now dead from suffocation.

The point is clear. Whatever we may be dealing with this Advent, however we may choose to celebrate the coming of the incarnate Christ, let us not get so caught up in our busyness and creativity that the simple reality of God’s presence is lost to us. May our eyes and ears and hearts remain ever open – especially as we worship – to the God who is always available to those who seek.

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John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

The Fruit Of Worship

Author, speaker and theologian, Leonard Sweet, in an interview once made this telling comment:
“People will come to church. They will get into their cars and barrel down the highway 50 to 60 miles an hour. They are two to three feet from other cars. They are two to three feet from strangers, trusting them not to bang into them. They are ten feet away from cars that are coming straight into them. We take huge life and death risks trusting strangers to get there. When we get to church, we immediately freeze up and play it safe.”
(Find the interview here: http://portal.vineyard.ca/index.cfm?i=10024&mid=12&id=200002082)

Worship in many churches, it seems, has become the place where nothing changes. In a reaction to this some churches have made themselves all about change. Anything that smacks of tradition, routine or ritual is thrown out in favour of the new, the spontaneous, the innovative. Yet, in my experience, even these churches often don’t really embrace the kind of change that matters. Every Sunday churches fill with worshippers, yet research has shown that all of this worship has made little difference to our lives. Worshippers are just as likely as anyone else to get divorced, commit adultery, become addicted, or cheat on their taxes (See the book “UnChristian” by David Kinnaman and Gabe Lyons).

I firmly believe that one of the primary reasons our world is wrestling with such huge crises is that we have lost our ability to truly worship. We have made worship about a good feeling, about a weekly “fix” that inspires and energises us, about rehearsing for an eternity spent in some otherworldly bliss. But, our worship has increasingly disconnected us from the world and its problems. As Wendell Berry wrote:

“If it comes to a choice between the extermination of the fowls of the air and the lilies of the field and the extermination of the building fund, the organised church will elect – indeed, has already elected – to save the building fund… [T]he fowls of the air and the lilies of the field can be preserved only by true religion, by the practice of a proper love and respect for them as creatures of God. No wonder so many sermons are devoted exclusively to “spiritual” subjects. If one is living by the tithes of history’s most destructive economy, then the disembodiment of the soul becomes the chief of worldly conveniences.” (Wendell Berry, What Are People For? (New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1990), 95-96. Quoted in McLaren, Brian D., Everything Must Change (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2007), p.141f.)

It’s time for us to change how we approach worship. It’s time for us to allow worship to change us. It’s time for us to leave worship as those who have been recruited as agents of God’s change in the world. This does mean that we will need to be inspired and empowered by our encounter with God, but it also means that the energy we receive in our gatherings cannot be squandered on ourselves for the sake of a good feeling. Rather, it must be used to strengthen us for the task of working for justice, peace, equity and restoration for all.

This is why the final word of worship, the “good word” of the benediction, is so important. It is not just a way to end the gathering. It is a call to action, a set of marching orders for those who have enlisted in the mission of God’s Reign. My prayer is that each week our worship will end a little like the way the “Mission Impossible” stories usually begin – “Your mission should you choose to accept it…” And once we’ve heard the call, I pray that we may have the faith and courage to embrace it and go into our lives as people with a vision of a different world, and the commitment to bring it about. For, in the end, if this is not what worship is about, what is the point, really?
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John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

When Worship Overflows

In the last few years I have had a number of conversations with people who have either stopped attending worship gatherings or find them deeply painful and frustrating. I can understand their reaction, and, when they tell me about the ways they encounter God in nature or through beautiful art, I resonate with their experiences. Yet, I remain deeply committed to the weekly gathering of Church.

I believe that one of the reasons for the current disillusionment with worship relates to our language. It has become increasingly common to speak of worship as a “lifestyle”. The intention is to emphasise how what we do on Sunday should overflow into the rest of our lives, but the language of “lifestyle” doesn’t really help us here. Rather, referring to worship as a lifestyle has simply confused us as to what our worship gatherings are really meant to do. If worship is a “lifestyle”, then why do I need to meet in church? I can worship just as well in the cinema, the art gallery, the wilderness or the golf course.

Which is why I prefer to speak of worship as a spiritual discipline. A spiritual discipline is a practice that we engage in regularly in order to form our spirituality – to change us into people who reflect the attitudes, ethics, values and actions of Christ. When we see worship this way, we begin to recognise that the only reason we can truly and effectively worship God in nature or in art is because we have learned how to worship God through the practice of the discipline of worship. This means that we do not need to choose between worship in church and worship outside of it. Rather, we allow what we do in church to train us for what we do outside of church.

We also stop expecting the worship gathering to be more than it is intended to be. We do not come to worship to get a weekly “fix” to carry us through the week (because if this is what we’re expecting, when worship doesn’t uplift or inspire us, we will feel deprived). Rather, we come to worship to learn the practices that we carry with us through the week and that enable us to remain in constant communion with God, no matter where we are or what we’re doing.

When we really understand this, two significant changes happen. The first is that we stop focussing on getting a “good feeling” from our worship. We come to worship, instead, like musicians practicing scales, or sports people going through fitness exercises. We come to learn and grow and be equipped for the business of living. The second change is that we stop making worship an end in itself. We recognise that our worship can only be completed in lives that emulate Christ and that embody the vision of God’s reign that we receive in church.

All of which brings me back to a small, but very important, practice – the Benediction. As people of “The Word” we believe in the power of words to change us. This means that the final words that are spoken in a service are very, very powerful. The climax of the worship is not the song just before the sermon, nor even the sermon itself. Rather the climax comes as the last words are spoken, sending us out to live out what we have been practicing for the last hour or so. These last words are the gift that we carry with us into the rest of our week, the final command that lets us know what we are to do to live the Gospel in our own corner of the world.

Ultimately our neighbours will only know that we have truly worshipped by the difference they see in our lives, and by the difference we bring to theirs. If we will open ourselves to the lessons of the worship gathering, and receive the final words as a call to action, then everyone will know that we have encountered God – because they will encounter God through us.

Being Sent

There’s an old hymn that, in its day, created quite a bit of debate in the circles in which I moved. It went like this:

“Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in his wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace”.

I know that there may be some valid reasons behind the writer’s decision to include those words in the hymn, but I have always struggled with what that line has meant for those who sing it. In so many ways it can be tempting to see worship as an escape from the world and its struggles – a retreat from the daily wrestle for justice and peace, and a place to imagine, for a moment, that we are already in the heavenly bliss that awaits us in the future. But, when we allow worship to be viewed this way, it loses its purpose and power.

When we gather for worship there are at least two significant truths that, I believe, should impact us and change us. The first is that God’s Reign – or heaven, if you will – is not so much something that we can only experience after we die. Rather, as we sing and pray together we are reminded that heaven is among us and within us, and that we can experience and live God’s Reign in our lives now. The second truth is that worship does not offer us an escape from the world, but rather challenges us to engage the world from God’s perspective. So, rather than the things of earth growing “strangely dim” they should be growing “strangely clear” in the light of God’s presence and purposes.

When our worship is driven by these two truths, we cannot help but take what we do in church out into the streets. We can only claim to have worshipped authentically when our worship changes how we speak and act, how we choose to spend our money and cast our vote, how we interact with others and participate in works of justice. If other people don’t see a difference in us after we have worshipped, I wonder whether we have really worshipped at all.

Which is why the final act of worship carries such significance. The benediction, or blessing, that closes most worship gatherings is also a moment of challenge and sending. It’s a final call to commitment that demands a response from us. And when this call comes, if we seek to be true worshippers, we had better be listening. We cannot move into worship for a time, and then think that we can leave God and God’s call on our lives in the sanctuary as we go back to “business as usual”. No, it is how we respond to the final words that really reveal how much our worship has been a genuine giving of ourselves to God.

One of my favourite benediction prayers is an ancient one:

“Go in peace. Go in the power of the Spirit to love and serve God.”

It is difficult to hear these words without recognising that God has a claim on our lives, and that our worship must bring every thought, word and action into line with God’s purposes. The question we should be asking as we hear words like these at the end of our worship gatherings is this: have we come to worship to escape, or are we ready to be recruited into God’s service once again. I pray that more and more our answer will be like that of Isaiah - a resounding “Here I am. Send me!” (Isaiah 6:8).
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John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

Tutu urges support for 'extraordinary' Climate Change Concert

Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu has urged South Africans to join world faith leaders, political leaders and music stars at an “extraordinary” mass rally and afternoon concert on November 27 at the King’s Park Stadium in Durban.

The Archbishop is to host the “We Have Faith - Act Now for Climate Justice” rally and concert, at which he will lead a call to world leaders attending the COP17 climate change talks in Durban that they should reach a fair and legally binding agreement to curb climate change.

Musicians including Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Yvonne Chaka Chaka, Arno Carstens, rap star HHP and Kenyan Gospel rapper Juliani have confirmed they will perform at the rally, which will be free. The COP17 talks start in Durban the day after the rally.

Faith leaders including Pope Benedict XVI, Chief Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks and Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, have also been invited. Those who cannot attend have been asked to send video clips of support.

Environmental campaigners and motivational speakers Lewis Pugh, the “human polar bear”, and Braam Malherbe, a 50/50 presenter, will be among the many who will address the crowd.

“Apartheid seemed an overwhelming challenge that could not be defeated but we mobilised and defeated it. We need the same passion and determination to defeat climate change,” says Tutu.

“Climate change is an even greater threat to us than apartheid was, because as temperatures rise, millions of Africans will be deprived of water and crops. This will cause enormous suffering. It is something we simply cannot allow.

“In the face of such a huge threat, many of us feel numb and throw up our hands, believing we can’t make a difference. But we can make a difference - come to the rally. It will be an extraordinary event. And if you cannot come, please sign our petition on www.wehavefaithactnow.org. We want to have over one million signatures on these petitions at the rally to hand over the world leaders.

“Along with the many other faith leaders in the campaign, I appeal to you all - don’t hesitate to join us. Your support could help make a world of difference in keeping our planet cool.”

At the rally, Archbishop Tutu will hand over the petition to COP17 Chair, South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, who has confirmed she will attend to receive it.

UNFCCC executive secretary Christina Figueres has confirmed she will attend the rally, and President Jacob Zuma is among the many key politicians who have been invited.

The “We Have Faith” petition calls on world leaders to commit to a fair, ambitious and legally binding agreement, for a renewal of the Kyoto Protocol, and for funding to help Africa adapt to climate change.

Learners from dozens of schools throughout KwaZulu-Natal will also participate in the rally, presenting environmental-themed posters and messages to the leaders and performing song-and-dance numbers.

The faith leaders participating in the campaign are reiterating scientists’ predictions that that if greenhouse gas emissions are not curbed, by the end of the century average world temperatures will rise between 2˚C and 4˚C, and up to 6˚C in parts of Africa.

Climate change is already causing unpredictable, extreme weather across the
world, they say. Large numbers of people, especially in Africa, are struggling to survive amid increasingly severe droughts, floods and other disasters. Although Africans have done very little to cause climate change, they will be among the most devastated. A new climate change treaty is crucial to prevent enormous suffering and loss of life.


The rally starts at 2pm. Doors open at noon, and there will be local entertainment until 2pm. The event is free and all are welcome! However, as a safety and security precaution, tickets will be required to enter the Rally. Tickets will be available from November 11 at The Shark Tank Shop, the Diakonia Council of Churches and various other organisations ahead of time.

Tickets can also be collected on the day at the stadium ticket office.

For more information, log on to www.wehavefaithactnow.org, follow the campaign on Facebook (“We Have Faith - Act Now” community) and Twitter (“COP17ActNow”). Watch the YouTube video of Archbishop Tutu’s call to people to sign the petition, on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEcOT34ORXE &feature=feedu

For public queries about the rally, contact: The campaign Faith Secretariat on (031) 310 3500 / 3512.

Three Words

My visit to Israel in my late teens was a tough time. I found myself getting increasingly frustrated with the conflict I saw between different faiths and denominations, and I disliked the way huge church buildings had been erected over every site that had any kind of spiritual significance. Where I had expected a journey of spiritual inspiration and nourishment, I discovered instead a growing dryness in my soul.

One of the exceptions to this pattern was a visit to the Church of All Nations at the Garden of Gethsemane. This beautiful church was built, as the name suggests, as a place of welcome for all people. There was no sign of conflict, and no visible agenda other than providing a place of worship for whoever needed it. As I walked toward the entrance, there was an old priest sitting on a stool. He looked me in the eye and, with feeling, said three words: “God bless you”. In this cool, quiet sanctuary I immediately sensed the peace and presence of God. I slipped into a pew and began to pray and meditate, feeling my soul expand as I drank in the blessing of this place. When the call from the tour guide came to move on, I reluctantly left this sanctuary, but I offered a heartfelt word of thanks to the old priest as I passed him again.

Was it those three words that made the difference that day? I’ll never really know, but I do know that they touched me, and I am certain that they helped me to relax and receive the blessing that awaited me. I also know this – words have power, and words of blessing are an underutilised force for good in our world.

In Genesis 12 when God calls Abraham he speaks two primary words to him – he will be blessed and he will be a blessing. It is not a new thought that God’s blessing is given in order that we may bless others – it is a central tenet of the Scriptures. Yet, somehow, we have developed a culture where blessing is seen as a gift to individuals, which may be hoarded and used only for personal benefit. The impact of this view has been dramatically shown as we continue to struggle through the worst economic crisis of our generation and as the unnecessary evil of poverty persists across the globe.

This is why I believe so strongly in a simple act that concludes every worship gathering in many churches – the benediction (literally a “saying of wellness” or “good word”). It is significant that in the moment when we turn our attention from the spiritual discipline of worship to the daily business of our lives we receive a blessing, a “good word” to send us on our way. The benediction reminds us of the blessing we have received in our encounter with God, and sends us back out into the world to be a blessing – to carry the blessing with us and to share it with others. When we use this short, but powerful moment well, we leave the sanctuary with one final resource with which to touch and change the world.

So, next time you join a community at worship, don’t allow yourself to mentally leave the sanctuary during the last hymn. Stay focussed and wait for the final gift. Receive the blessing openly and intentionally, with a thankful heart, and then, as you leave the sanctuary, think about how, in the coming week, you are going to pass the blessing on. Then, give thanks that God has blessed you and made it possible for you to be a blessing in turn.
__________
John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

Tutu urges support for “extraordinary” Climate Change Concert & Rally

Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu has urged South Africans to join world faith leaders, political leaders and music stars at an “extraordinary” mass rally and afternoon concert on November 27 at the King’s Park Stadium in Durban.

The Archbishop is to host the “We Have Faith - Act Now for Climate Justice” rally and concert, at which he will lead a call to world leaders attending the COP17 climate change talks in Durban that they should reach a fair and legally binding agreement to curb climate change.

Musicians including Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Yvonne Chaka Chaka, Arno Carstens, rap star HHP and Kenyan Gospel rapper Juliani have confirmed they will perform at the rally, which will be free. The COP17 talks start in Durban the day after the rally.

Faith leaders including Pope Benedict XVI, Chief Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks and Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, have also been invited. Those who cannot attend have been asked to send video clips of support.

Environmental campaigners and motivational speakers Lewis Pugh, the “human polar bear”, and Braam Malherbe, a 50/50 presenter, will be among the many who will address the crowd.

“Apartheid seemed an overwhelming challenge that could not be defeated but we mobilised and defeated it. We need the same passion and determination to defeat climate change,” says Tutu.

“Climate change is an even greater threat to us than apartheid was, because as temperatures rise, millions of Africans will be deprived of water and crops. This will cause enormous suffering. It is something we simply cannot allow.

“In the face of such a huge threat, many of us feel numb and throw up our hands, believing we can’t make a difference. But we can make a difference - come to the rally. It will be an extraordinary event. And if you cannot come, please sign our petition on www.wehavefaithactnow.org. We want to have over one million signatures on these petitions at the rally to hand over the world leaders.

“Along with the many other faith leaders in the campaign, I appeal to you all - don’t hesitate to join us. Your support could help make a world of difference in keeping our planet cool.”

At the rally, Archbishop Tutu will hand over the petition to COP17 Chair, South African Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, who has confirmed she will attend to receive it.

UNFCCC executive secretary Christina Figueres has confirmed she will attend the rally, and President Jacob Zuma is among the many key politicians who have been invited.

The “We Have Faith” petition calls on world leaders to commit to a fair, ambitious and legally binding agreement, for a renewal of the Kyoto Protocol, and for funding to help Africa adapt to climate change.

Learners from dozens of schools throughout KwaZulu-Natal will also participate in the rally, presenting environmental-themed posters and messages to the leaders and performing song-and-dance numbers.

The faith leaders participating in the campaign are reiterating scientists’ predictions that that if greenhouse gas emissions are not curbed, by the end of the century average world temperatures will rise between 2˚C and 4˚C, and up to 6˚C in parts of Africa.

Climate change is already causing unpredictable, extreme weather across the
world, they say. Large numbers of people, especially in Africa, are struggling to survive amid increasingly severe droughts, floods and other disasters. Although Africans have done very little to cause climate change, they will be among the most devastated. A new climate change treaty is crucial to prevent enormous suffering and loss of life.


The rally starts at 2pm. Doors open at noon, and there will be local entertainment until 2pm. The event is free and all are welcome! However, as a safety and security precaution, tickets will be required to enter the Rally. Tickets will be available from November 11 at The Shark Tank Shop, the Diakonia Council of Churches and various other organisations ahead of time.

Tickets can also be collected on the day at the stadium ticket office.

For more information, log on to www.wehavefaithactnow.org, follow the campaign on Facebook (“We Have Faith - Act Now” community) and Twitter (“COP17ActNow”). Watch the YouTube video of Archbishop Tutu’s call to people to sign the petition, on http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEcOT34ORXE &feature=feedu

For public queries about the rally, contact: The campaign Faith Secretariat on (031) 310 3500 / 3512.

Benediction

My visit to Israel in my late teens was a tough time. I found myself getting increasingly frustrated with the conflict I saw between different faiths and denominations, and I disliked the way huge church buildings had been erected over every site that had any kind of spiritual significance. Where I had expected a journey of spiritual inspiration and nourishment, I discovered instead a growing dryness in my soul.

One of the exceptions to this pattern was a visit to the Church of All Nations at the Garden of Gethsemane. This beautiful church was built, as the name suggests, as a place of welcome for all people. There was no sign of conflict, and no visible agenda other than providing a place of worship for whoever needed it. As I walked toward the entrance, there was an old priest sitting on a stool. He looked me in the eye and, with feeling, said three words: “God bless you”. In this cool, quiet sanctuary I immediately sensed the peace and presence of God. I slipped into a pew and began to pray and meditate, feeling my soul expand as I drank in the blessing of this place. When the call from the tour guide came to move on, I reluctantly left this sanctuary, but I offered a heartfelt word of thanks to the old priest as I passed him again.

Was it those three words that made the difference that day? I’ll never really know, but I do know that they touched me, and I am certain that they helped me to relax and receive the blessing that awaited me. I also know this – words have power, and words of blessing are an underutilised force for good in our world.

In Genesis 12 when God calls Abraham he speaks two primary words to him – he will be blessed and he will be a blessing. It is not a new thought that God’s blessing is given in order that we may bless others – it is a central tenet of the Scriptures. Yet, somehow, we have developed a culture where blessing is seen as a gift to individuals, which may be hoarded and used only for personal benefit. The impact of this view has been dramatically shown as we continue to struggle through the worst economic crisis of our generation and as the unnecessary evil of poverty persists across the globe.

This is why I believe so strongly in a simple act that concludes every worship gathering in many churches – the benediction (literally a “saying of wellness” or “good word”). It is significant that in the moment when we turn our attention from the spiritual discipline of worship to the daily business of our lives we receive a blessing, a “good word” to send us on our way. The benediction reminds us of the blessing we have received in our encounter with God, and sends us back out into the world to be a blessing – to carry the blessing with us and to share it with others. When we use this short, but powerful moment well, we leave the sanctuary with one final resource with which to touch and change the world.

So, next time you join a community at worship, don’t allow yourself to mentally leave the sanctuary during the last hymn. Stay focussed and wait for the final gift. Receive the blessing openly and intentionally, with a thankful heart, and then, as you leave the sanctuary, think about how, in the coming week, you are going to pass the blessing on. Then, give thanks that God has blessed you and made it possible for you to be a blessing in turn.
__________
John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

You Are What You Eat

There’s an old saying in health and fitness circles: “You are what you eat.” This is not just a slogan, but reflects the truth that everything we put into our bodies becomes part of us, nourishing our cells, impacting our energy levels, and either moving us toward health or toward disease. It is because of this that famous chef, Jamie Oliver, is on a campaign to change the way people eat – especially children in schools. (If you have about twenty minutes spare, it’s well worth watching his TED Award Acceptance speech on the TED web site.)

In biblical terms, the idea that we are what we eat goes to a whole new level. When Ezekiel received his call to the prophetic ministry, he had a vision in which he was given a scroll that he was instructed to eat. It was covered in words on both sides, and was representative of him “consuming” God’s word in order to deliver it to the people (Ezekiel 3:1-4). In a similar way, in the book of Revelation, John is given a scroll to eat and the instructed to prophesy to the nations (Revelation 10:9-11). These two prophets they became the proclaimers and the embodiment of what they ate!

Which brings us to the meal that is at the heart of Christian worship. It is not surprising that when Jesus calls us to follow him – to become like him, and to embody his message and mission – that he also invited us to regularly share in a meal in which the main course was said to be his body and blood. For literalists this may feel quite disgusting and may appear to hold overtones of cannibalism (as it did for some of Jesus’ listeners in John 6:51-52). But, when we place these words in the context of our discussion so far, a whole new meaning opens up. When we are able to receive the bread and wine as Jesus’ body and blood we are, in effect, saying to God that we want to become like Jesus, that we want the very being of Jesus to enter our entire being and transform us into Christ’s likeness.

In many liturgical churches, when Holy Communion is received, we pray a prayer, called the epiclesis, which asks God’s Spirit to fill the bread and wine so that they become for us Christ’s body and blood. Then, in the second part of the prayer, we ask God’s Spirit to fill us so that we may become the body of Christ to the world. By eating Christ’s body, we become Christ’s body. We are what we eat!

So, what does this mean for us practically? It means that eating – not just at Holy Communion but at every meal – is not just about shovelling some food down our throats. Rather, for the sake of our health – body, mind and spirit – we need to eat mindfully, aware of how the food nourishes and changes us. It means that when we gather for worship and share in the bread and wine, we are inviting Christ to fill us and change us and enlist us in God’s saving work in the world. It also means that we begin to live out the justice, grace and love of God’s reign at the Lord’s Table. As one writer put it, Communion is a “hungry meal” – we only receive a small portion that could never satisfy our hunger. And in so doing, we are invited into solidarity with all those who live with hunger constantly.

You are what you eat. If you long to be someone who knows and shares the life of God, then I can think of nothing better to eat than the Body of Christ.
__________
John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

Table Talk

In Luke 14:7-11 Jesus offers a small piece of what author Michael Frost calls “etiquette”. It’s a challenging, but pretty common sense, piece of advice, really:

When Jesus noticed that all who had come to the dinner were trying to sit in the seats of honor near the head of the table, He gave them this advice: "When you are invited to a wedding feast, don't sit in the seat of honor. What if someone who is more distinguished than you has also been invited? The host will come and say, 'Give this person your seat.' Then you will be embarrassed, and you will have to take whatever seat is left at the foot of the table! "Instead, take the lowest place at the foot of the table. Then when your host sees you, he will come and say, 'Friend, we have a better place for you!' Then you will be honored in front of all the other guests. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted."

It’s a simple lesson in humility, but, the implications go far further than just our view of ourselves. Choosing a seat at the table is not just about where we believe we deserve to fit into the social pecking order. It’s also about who we choose to sit with – and this is where it begins to get really uncomfortable.

If we are to take Jesus as our example, then we may just find ourselves faced with companions at the Lord’s Table that we might not have intended or wanted to sit with. Jesus, after all, was known to share meals with religious leaders and with the shadiest characters of his time – tax collectors and prostitutes. In one incident, while a guest in the home of a Pharisee (who had treated him rather rudely according to the customs of the time) a prostitute came in and began to wash Jesus’ feet. The Pharisee was offended and wondered how Jesus could allow it, but Jesus, knowing his thoughts, used the moment to teach his host about God’s all-welcoming Reign. (See Luke 7:36-50)

At the heart of our worship, and of our faith, is a meal to which Jesus invited us. We call it Holy Communion, and it’s the primary way by which we are instructed to remember Jesus. The tragedy is that this meal has too often become a place of division and exclusion. If we truly mean to remember Jesus, then this exclusivity must be removed. Rather, the Lord’s Table can be nothing other than the most inclusive and welcoming place in the world.

But this means, of course, that we don’t get to choose the people with whom we will share the meal. We may find ourselves breaking bread with people who think or act or believe differently from us. We may be required to kneel beside those that we would prefer not to be in the same room with. But, that’s the challenging, miraculous invitation of God’s Reign – all are welcome. Even those we would rather keep out.

If we are to find a way to deal with the tremendous struggles in our world – the conflict between wealthy and poor, between powerful and marginalized, between races, religions and nations, we could do worse than to come together around Christ’s Table. There we are all equal, and when we learn that, we may just discover that the others who share the meal are loved by God just as much as we are.
__________
John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

New Perspectives

How do you feel about the state of the world today? Do you feel the world is improving, or do you believe that it is sliding inexorably into chaos and evil? These are important questions. Our answers determine how we relate to this world, how we interact with others - particularly those who are different - and how we understand the role of our faith in our earthly existence.

Unfortunately, too many of us see the world extremely negatively. We have been taught that the world is going to get worse, until the time when it is ultimately destroyed and when we are evacuated to another realm called heaven. And so we look for - and find - evidence that evil is winning the battle over this planet. We see our faith as an insurance policy that guarantees our salvation when God finally swoops in and destroys it all in a final conflict with the forces of darkness.

But, I’m not sure that this is a biblical perspective. In fact, the story I read in Scripture is almost the exact opposite! What I see in the Bible is God creating a world and pronouncing it “very good” (Genesis 1:31). I see human struggle and brokenness often bringing pain, but also human nobility - given and inspired by God’s Spirit - bringing goodness, healing and restoration. I see Christ proclaiming that God’s reign is among us in this world, and teaching us to pray that God’s reign would come more fully to earth and work among us here (Matthew 6:10). I see a purpose in history in which God teaches us and challenges us to become more compassionate, more generous, more selfless and more attuned to God’s presence and purpose for creation. And, within the evil and pain of our world, I see this glorious vision being played out. In this scenario, faith is the commitment to live according to this glorious vision of God. It is not a guarantee of safe evacuation, it is a recruitment call to service here and now.

There are a number of spiritual practices that help us to get God’s perspective on the world, and that empower us to live from this new perspective, but perhaps the primary one is praise. The practice of praise is a simple, but powerful activity. Praise can be spoken or sung; offered in silence or in sound; enacted or simply imagined. However we may choose to express our praise, though, we can never engage in this activity without being changed.

Praise requires awareness and reflection. The heart of praise is the recognition of who God is. When we take the time to slow down, and focus our awareness on God, to open the eyes of faith to God’s presence and purpose, to reflect on God’s attributes and actions, we are inevitably filled with a vision of God and God’s reign. And then our hearts cannot help but cry out in awe and wonder, in adoration and in surrender to the mystery. As we regularly open ourselves to the praise experience, we enter the world with open eyes and hearts, and we cannot help but see God’s presence and activity everywhere. And then, the ultimate act of praise happens - we choose to participate in God’s saving, beautifying, restoring, glorifying work.

How we see the world - what perspective we have on it - is a direct reflection of how committed we are to the discipline of praise. And if the world needs anything right now, it is people who bring hearts of praise into every situation and moment. May we be those people!
__________
John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.
Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

Nourishing The Body

Although many people have told me they find this difficult to believe, I am both an introvert and something of a loner. I’ve always needed long periods of time on my own to be healthy, and I enjoy working on my own even when I’m contributing to a collaborative project. But, I also know that I need other people. I need those who will support and encourage me, and I need those who will question and challenge me. I need friends to play with, colleagues to work with and family to love with. And I have discovered that often the best way to connect with others is over a meal.

A few months ago on my blog I spoke about an old Jewish friend of my father’s who used to come to dinner at our house from time to time. Solly was a gregarious, outspoken gentleman who would passionately debate pretty much any subject with my father. One evening, something he said stuck in my soul. “Sharing a meal,” he explained, “is not about the food. It’s about the discussion, the ‘talking Torah’ that happens over the food!” I believe he was right, but I would expand what he said beyond just the talk. Sharing a meal is not just about the food; it’s about the community that is built and nourished over the food.

The Scriptures refer to the community of Christ-followers as the ‘Body of Christ,’ and, in the same way that our physical bodies are nourished by the food we eat, so the Body of Christ is nourished by the connections and conversations, the laughter and debates, that happen over the food. When we share a meal we nourish our bodies, and together we nourish Christ’s body!

Have you ever noticed that when you visit a really poor community, the first thing they want to do is feed you? I believe the reason for this is that when someone is able to offer hospitality, however little, they nourish their own dignity, and they give the gift of welcome, of community, to those they invite. Here, again, the food that is provided is unimportant. It is the shared recognition of one another’s humanity, and the nourishing of our togetherness that counts.

Which is probably why Jesus chose a meal to be remembered by. Jesus was committed to bringing people together. Just a quick look at his disciples – a volatile combination of fisherman, tax collectors, religious elite and freedom fighters (oh, and two brothers with a bad case of sibling rivalry) – shows that Jesus held reconciliation, peace-making and community-building as high priorities. He regularly shared meals with people from all walks of life and used these times to teach and challenge those who ate with him. For Jesus a meal was not just a routine to keep body and soul together. It was an opportunity to nourish a community of faith and shared life.

This opportunity still remains for us today, in the simple, ritualised meal we call Holy Communion. It is impossible to really draw close to God alone. Spirituality always requires a community for it to be real and transforming. And spiritual communities are nurtured by sharing meals – even sacramental ones. And so here is an invitation: if your soul needs feeding, if you need a community to journey toward God with, if you long to contribute to something bigger than yourself and you want to find a way to nourish your own journey and the community which welcomes you, why not take your place at God’s table? As you share in this sacred meal you will not only nourish your own soul and body, but you will be part of nourishing the body of Christ.

The Gift of Lament

A while back I wrote about the little deaths we all endure, and how important it is that we face them head on, trusting in the resurrection which is sure to come. The problem with this is that we sometimes take faith to mean that we shouldn’t grieve, express doubts or acknowledge our pain. We seem to think that the truly faithful rise above these dark emotions and go through suffering with a blissful smile. I’m not sure where we got this picture from, but it wasn’t from the Scriptures.

In the Bible we discover a lot of grief and suffering, and often it is the most faithful, devoted people - the prophets and apostles - who face the worst of life. We might expect them to handle this calmly and gracefully, but instead what we find is a liberating honesty. These men and women of faith had no problem expressing their raw anger at God, their complaints and questions, their doubts and fears.

Take Jeremiah as an example. When faced with persecution for his message, he tries to keep silent, but finds that he can’t do it - which means that all he can expect is more persecution. He feels angry that he wasn’t told that it would be like this, and so he complains to God in Jeremiah 20:7-9, essentially calling God a liar! But God doesn’t strike him with lightning. Rather, Jeremiah’s faith remains strong, and he goes on to have one of the longest and most difficult ministries of any prophet.

Lament is a healing practice. Here the realities of our lives and the realities of our faith come together, and this always leads to a renewed faith. There are four basic parts to any true lament. First, a complaint is laid against God, expressing the details of the suffering being experienced. Second, God’s promises and previous gracious acts are remembered and offered to God as both the basis for the complaint (because God doesn’t appear to be doing what God promised) and the basis for hope that God will intervene. Third, a request is spoken for God to act on behalf of the suffering one and bring healing, liberation and comfort. Finally, a commitment is made to continue to trust, to hope and to praise God, no matter what the outcome may be.

It is unfortunate that worship has all too often been seen as nothing other than celebration. Joy and inspiration are emphasised and any signs of grief, doubt, pain or fear are to be hidden or left outside. The result of this is that worshippers are forced into a double-life in which their real feelings and experiences are either ignored or concealed. We get good at pretending that we are “blessed” on Sundays, and we cling to our faith with white-knuckles, hoping our grief won’t overwhelm and betray us - which it inevitably does.

Perhaps both we and our churches would be healthier if we just learned to lament more - to express our grief, to make our complaints against God, and to commit to faith even in the dark times. We all face both the little deaths and the big ones, and to try and deal with grief without the gift of lament is to rob ourselves of both healing and comfort. But, if we trust God enough to be honest about our pain, we will find the comfort we seek, and the light of hope will continue to shine in our hearts.

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John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.

More Than Just A Meal

It was a tough time for the two men walking that long road that day. Their hopes and dreams had been completely devastated when their friend and mentor had been executed. They would never have believed it could end like this, but it did, and now they were lost, aimless and confused.

When the stranger started walking beside them, they may well have been tempted to ask him to leave them alone, but they weren’t so far gone that they couldn’t fulfil the basic requirements of hospitality. So, they talked, and since their grief was foremost on their minds, they couldn’t stop the conversation turning to recent events and their struggle to deal with it all. But then the stranger began to explain things to them. He made it sound like there was a purpose to everything that had happened, that it wasn’t the great failure they thought it was. In spite of themselves they were captivated by what he was saying – so much so that when it came time for them to leave the road and settle into their accommodation for the night, they invited him to join them.

Then, as they sat down for the meal, the stranger did an unusual thing. He took the bread and lifted it up, speaking a word of blessing and thanksgiving, and then he broke it. They had seen this before, and as they realised what he had done, they suddenly knew that this was no stranger. This was their friend, their mentor, alive and with them. Before they could say anything, he was suddenly gone, but they knew what they had experienced, and they were changed. They now knew there had been no failure, that death had not been able to silence the one whose words had made such a difference to their lives. And they also knew that they would be forever changed, because in that one miraculous moment when they had thought that all was lost, they had discovered, through a simple meal, that the Rabbi Jesus was alive and would be forever with them.

This story from Luke’s Gospel (24:13-34) demonstrates the significance of meals in the life and ministry of Jesus. We know more about what Jesus taught at the table, than what he said in the synagogue. Jesus enjoyed meals with the wealthy and the poor, with religious leaders and with sinful outcasts. In fact, Jesus enjoyed a good dinner party so much that some of his opponents even called him a glutton (Matthew 11:17,18). I suspect that Jesus knew how powerful meals can be in building relationships, in giving space for conversation and connection, and in opening us to new ideas and experiences. It’s hard to sit at the same table with someone with whom you are in conflict, or to share a meal with someone with whom you would rather not associate. But, it’s equally tough to write someone off when you’re eating with them. More than this, meals also provide a chance to really get to know someone. Watch how a person eats, how they interact with others at the table, and how they organise their space, and you learn an incredible amount about them.

Which is why the Scriptures remind us that the risen Jesus was often recognised at meals, notably here, in the Emmaus road story, and in the early morning fish breakfast in John 21:1-14. This is probably also why Jesus instructed us to remember him in a meal, and why one of the central acts of our worship is a meal called Holy Communion. If you long to know God better, if you’re yearning for a deeper connection with Christ, and with a community that follows him, perhaps you could begin with joining a meal at your local church. You’ll find that it’s more than just your body that gets fed, and it’s more than just people you’ll be sitting with.

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John van de Laar is a Methodist minister, liturgical consultant and the author of the book Food for the Road – Life Lesson from the Lord’s Table. He holds a Master’s Degree in theology from UNISA, and is the founder of Sacredise.com, an international worship training and resourcing ministry. John is married to Debbie, and they have two sons.

Visit www.sacredise.com for more articles by John, as well as resources for personal and public worship – music, prayers, liturgies, images and drama scripts.