Summer

The last languid days of summer...the lazy slow days of sitting in the hammock. Of swim and sauna. Listening to the crickets and the river. Savoring a good book. 

We're spending the end of summer at my brother's house and it's perfect. I feel like summer could go on forever. The kids are entertaining each other. The sky is bright blue and cloudless. Pentti and I go for a leisurely coffee at the bakery in the tiny town of Lumby. We all eat dinner together, all 11 of us, followed by homemade apple pie and ice cream. Our first full day here winds down. The boys are in the sauna...the four cousins. The dog is lying on the floor, exhausted. The rest of us are in our own corners and it's quiet and lovely and relaxed. Outside on the deck, I swing in the hammock and stare at the stars. I can feel the cool, crisp of autumn in the air. What a glorious end to summer 2024...

Providence

God works all things together for good....Oftentimes this is hard to see, but sometimes, especially in reflecting back, you can see how God has been leading and guiding from way back. 

Winnie and I met when our oldest sons started preschool, 16 years ago. We both also had second sons the same age. We were friendly, but not very close. When both sets of our boys finished preschool we lost touch. Unbeknownst to each other, we both had daughters five years later. Then one day, I "randomly" ran into her while on a walk in the forest. We chatted for awhile and agreed we should meet up. Winnie said she couldn't do Tuesdays because that was BSF day. Having never heard of it, I asked what that was and so began a long chain of events which have completely changed my life. All from that "chance" meeting.

I started BSF in 2014. It lead me to deeper Bible study. It introduced me to some of my closest friends. I formed a summer Bible study group with some of those friends which met for three summers to study God's word every week. Through BSF, I was also indirectly lead to the church that we have now been attending for the last eight years. Christ City church has been one of the biggest blessings of my life.

Through Winnie, I was also introduced to my choir. Again, I had never heard of it, but her friend sang in it and we went to the choir's Christmas concert. I was hooked. Through a friend in choir, I was indirectly introduced to Nancy Guthrie, who is a Bible teacher who has profoundly impacted my walk with God and also lead me to other Bible teachers who have inspired me greatly.

All that to say, I do not believe in chance meetings or coincidences. God is sovereignly guiding our lives in a million ways that we often do not see. That one meeting with Winnie in the forest ten years ago has changed the direction of my life in ways I could have never imagined. Amazing.

(Last night I met up with Winnie and Crystal, who was my first BSF leader.)

Powell River

The sound of gentle ocean waves hitting the shore. The sun setting as it lights up the sky in pinks and oranges and reds. The quiet. A delicious meal cooked by my friend eaten outside. An invigorating afternoon swim. A bright oceanside cottage far from the worries of everyday life. Laughter. The joys of a good book. Morning coffee on the blue sofa, gazing in wonder at the vastness of the ocean. The smell of the salty ocean air. Animated discussions about the Bible. 

My soul positively sinks into the rest of all these things. I know that the world is a burning dumpster fire. That work starts soon. That there are hard things. But here, I can relax and enjoy and savor the moments.

Favouritism

James 2:1 "My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim to have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favour some people over others?" 

Our church is in a sermon series on the book of James for the summer. James is one of those books of the Bible that really puts you against the wall. Are you serious about your faith or are you just putting on a show? Are you willing to give anything up or is Jesus just an added bonus in your life? 

The sermon on partiality/favouritism really got me. I want to be gracious. No, I do not want to give the rich people the best seats. No I do not want the poor to have to stand in the corner in the back. I want the church to be more like a hospital where broken people can come, than like a country club that has a dress code and a financial requirement. Or do I? Do I really want to see broken, weird people come to Jesus? If I do, do I hope it happens outside the church, after which they get cleaned up and THEN they can come to church? I'm not gonna answer that, but I can tell you about some people I've come across lately in three different churches, one of them being my own.

There is a loud, disruptive man who clearly has some special needs. His timing for everything is off whether its the liturgy or singing or the prayer. Did I mention that he is very loud? He annoys me. There is an older woman who is different. I am not sure she is homeless exactly, but that's definitely the vibe (and smell) that she gives off. She too is not quiet and can be quite disruptive. I hope she doesn't sit near me. There is an obviously down on his luck man who walks into church in the middle of the sermon. He goes to sit in the front row, eats loudly and calls out during the sermon (and I don't mean the odd amen). The pastor knows the man by name and is not ruffled in the slightest. After this continues for awhile, one of the other pastors goes to sit with the man and he settles down. I find him a nuisance. There is a woman who comes in late. She is bedraggled, for lack of a better word. She is also wearing a tshirt with the playboy logo written rather large on it. I am shocked that someone would wear such a shirt to church. I am indignant.

Do these sound like gracious Christian responses to you? They sure don't to me. In the case of the last woman, I found out later about her struggles and how far she has come in her walk with Jesus. Turns out it was a miracle that she was there at all. I don't know how much clothing she has and whether the offending shirt is actually an improvement. I am ashamed. I vow to do better. Because do you know who was offended by the noisy, dirty, outcast people Jesus associated with? The Pharisees. Enough said.

The Good Work Of Waiting

I feel like I am in a season of waiting...for a lot of things. But maybe that's always true. I am certainly grateful for today and for good health and a chance to go away for the weekend with the family and a whole list of other things. But there are also things that are not as they should be and on those I am waiting. Mostly trusting God's timing, and yet sometimes finding myself frustrated and despairing. The following is a liturgy or prayer for times of waiting that I found. I love it so much I put it on my fridge.

As my life is lived in anticipation

of the redemption of all things,

so let my slow movement in this line

be to my own heart

a living parable and a teachable moment.

Do not waste even my petty irritations, O Lord.

Use them to expose my sin and selfishness

and to reshape my vision

and my desire into better, holier things.

Decrease my unrighteous impatience,

directed at circumstances and people.

Increase instead my righteous longing

for the moment of your return,

when all creation will be liberated

from every futility in which it now languishes.

Be present in my waiting, O Lord,

that I might also be present in it

as a Christ-bearer to those before and behind me,

who also wait.

As I am a vessel, let me not be like a sodden

paper cup full of steaming frustration, carelessly

sloshing unpleasantness on those around me.

Rather, let me be like a communion chalice,

reflecting the silvered beauty of your light,

brimming with an offered grace.

Amen.