An Elder Pilgrim's Reflections

And Jesus increased  in wisdom and in stature,  and in divine and human favor.  (from Luke 2:41-52 ) If you were searching among a massive crowd for three days and couldn't find your 12 year-old son, what would you be thinking?  It probably wasn't a happy greeting when, after 3 days of anxious searching, Mary finds Jesus in the temple. She says, Where  have you been? What are you doing here ?   Jesus replies, "Well, where did you expect   to find me?" LUKE 2:35 describes Jesus as growing in wisdom and stature. "Growing in wisdom and stature" means having the ability to perceive God's kingdom and act on those perceptions. As the new year begins and as the tensions and divisions of our society continue, we will need to grow in wisdom and stature.  Surely today's tribulations increase our need to be building on the foundation of our faith for spiritual strength to perceive God's kingdom.  Perceiving God's kingdom begins with growing in our ...

And Mary said,  “My soul magnifies the Lord,  and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior." (You can read  Mary's Song   here) What I appreciate most about The Magnificat (Mary's Song) is its poetic form. Her song provides an unusual and surprising insight into the power and goodness of God. For me, Mary is a model of faith by completely accepting her part in God’s salvation plan. Her singing celebrates receiving that role in God's plan.  I particularly like the poetic form because, biblically, it represents singing and singing is powerful. Singing is powerful. It moves our souls. For example, Psalms, such as laments (see  Psalm 79 ), help cope with the difficult emotions of grief and fear while removing their crippling capacity. Songs of praise and thanksgiving (see  Psalm 34 ) unite us to God. And canticles, such as the Canticle of Simeon (see  Luke 2:29-32 ), describing courage, promise, and hopes as they become real. Singing is powerful. It has tr...

The Singing Daughters of Dingmans Ferry UMC Sing, Daughter Zion;     shout aloud, Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart,     Daughter Jerusalem! The Lord, the King of Israel, is with you;     never again will you fear any harm. Zephaniah 3:14-15 When it comes right down to it, I think the most moving, significant part of a worship service is the singing.  Singing for me is a soul-conversation between God's people and God. It's in singing that our souls express their greatest joy, deepest longing, and most hurting pain.  For example, "O for a Thousand Tongues" sings of the greatest joy for God's redeeming Grace. While "Just as I am" is a song of longing for acceptance and the Lord's forgiveness. Right now, it seems to me, people are craving for some joy. The pandemic and its consequences have dragged on like a dirge. School shootings by children seem to constantly repeat.  How are we going to be glad and rejoice with all our hea...

Death Valley   ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be filled,     ...and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.’” See Luke 3:1-6 Does is sometimes feel to you like we're living in a wilderness? Not the hot, barren type like Death Valley. More like the wilderness faced by the Delaware Valley Board of Education.  At a recent Board Meeting a heated exchange took place between a Board member and an audience member accusing some school teachers of Gestapo-like tactics in enforcing mask-wearing. This provoked a response causing immediate adjournment of the meeting. Or the wilderness faced by a Board member who resigned due to death threats against himself and his family. This is a wilderness where violence seems to be the rule of the day. Here people wander in an injustice of scarcity, isolation, and hunger.  It doesn't take much for any of us to ask, "God, are you at work in this wilderness?" The wilderness place of vulne...

"In those days and at that time  I will cause a righteous Branch  to spring up for David;  and he shall execute  justice and righteousness in the land."  Jeremiah 33:15 I waited with hope in an emergency room on a Friday afternoon. The bandages for my dermatology surgery were coming loose and I felt needed attention. I checked into the emergency room and waited. I knew triage was how the system worked and that I was low on an emergency need. I waited for intake from the triage nurse, then for the room, then for the NP to examine the situation, then for the issue to be resolved, then for the discharge papers.  I knew from the moment I entered the emergency room that I would be taken care of, but not how long it would take. I waited with a blessed assurance. Jeremiah waited with hope, a tenacious hope, for a righteous Branch from the line of David. For Jeremiah, imprisoned by his own government for prophesying doom is bad enough, but it gets even worse. He's ...

Acadia NP trail marker "Then Pilate entered the headquarters again,  summoned Jesus, and asked him,  “Are you the King of the Jews?” John 18:33 In 1925, Pope Pius XI established a new liturgical tradition, the Feast of Christ the King. The Pope felt that the followers of Christ were being lured away by the growing secularism of the world. They were choosing to live in the “kingdom” of the world rather than in the reign of God. This scripture ( available here ) for the new liturgical tradition is the scene of Pilate before Jesus.  The scene is tense as Pilate tries navigating between understanding his empire and Jesus's kingdom. Look at two contrasts: On one hand: Pilate’s authority comes from the will of Caesar and is always tenuous. On the other: Jesus’ authority comes from doing the will of God, and is eternal. OR On one hand: Pilate’s rule brings terror, even in the midst of calm. On the other: Jesus’ rule brings peace, even in the midst of terror.  We live in a c...

“What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man said to him,  “My teacher, let me see again. Go,” said Jesus,  “your faith has made you well.” Mark 10:51-52 I The Call   Blind Bartimaeus is sitting on the side of the road, cloak spread in front of him, begging.  He's lower social status and therefore powerlessness. He hears that Jesus of Nazareth is coming. Bartimaeus begins to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” He persists, even when people around him tell him to be quiet. Jesus calls him.  He springs up, throwing off his cloak, representing his his only possession providing warmth, sleep at night or, spreading out, collecting money.  Jesus asks, what do you want me to do for you? Bartimaeus says “My teacher, let me see again. Go,” said Jesus,  “Your faith has your faith has made you well” Bartimaeus' Faith. This is a story about Bartimaeus’s faith and his absolute conviction that Jesus, the Son of God, can and will rescue hi...

Carriage Road Acadia N.P. "He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." Micah 6:8 My lifestyle . My lifestyle included hiking and walking outdoors. BSA 50 milers, Hudson Falls feeder canal path, carriage roads, National Park walks and trails. Faith Lifestyle. I think John Wesley would describe a faith lifestyle as one of holiness of mind with acts of mercy, fasting, prayer, Bible study, and attending to the sacraments. Micah's prophetic lifestyle. Micah's lifestyle begins when God has an dispute with God's people and chooses Micah's prophetic voice. God calls the mountains, hills, and earth’s foundations to hear the debate. God recites the magnificent gifts provided as a brief salvation history with God as liberator, savior, and provider. God then says, “What exactly have I done wrong? I am constantly saving you so you always remember my righteous deeds.”  Th...

"Then the Lord answered Job  out of the whirlwind: 'Who is this that darkens counsel  by words without knowledge? Gird up your loins like a man,  I will question you,  and you shall declare to me.'"  Job 38:1-2 I love a reading a good mystery by authors such as Martin Walker, Louise Penny, and Tana French.  Each of their stories follow a pattern. There is a crime, a cast of characters, and a solution to the crime. Life  can be like that.  A tragedy occurs, a cast of characters surrounds the victim offering comfort, and a resolution appears. Sometimes, though, there doesn't seem to be a conclusion and we ask ourselves, "Where are you God?" When Bad Things Happen to Good People is a book by rabbi Harold Kushner whose son, Aaron, who died at the age of 14 of the incurable genetic disease progeria. Rabbi Kushner asks the question most of us would ask during a tragedy, "Where are you God?" That's what the Book of Job is about: tragedy, characte...

Huntington Beach State Park   "God called the dry ground “land,”  and the gathered waters  he called “seas.”  And God saw that it was good."  Genesis 1:10 For many years Elaine and I would spend 10 days in Acadia N.P.  walking the carriage trails and climb some of the easier mountains.  The Wonderland section for us is  the most refreshing, spiritually renewing, aspect of our time.  At Wonderland we would sit on the rocks beside the ocean watching and listening to the breaking waves. Sometimes they would break gently other times they crashed ferociously.  Recently we spent a weekend  with family who live in Murrells Inlet, S.C  We visited Huntington Beach State Park, toured Atalaya Castle and had a glimpse the beach. Before catching our flight home, we spent time at the park enjoying a light picnic and standing at the edge of a sandy beach.  What a contrast between the rocky coast of Maine and the smooth sands of...

Wonderland, Acadia N.P. "Now Jesus parents went to Jerusalem  every year at the Feast of the Passover.  And when he was twelve years old,  they went up according to custom." Luke 2:41-42   The story of Jesus' parents making their annual pilgrimage to Jerusalem is a familiar story. Mary and Joseph are in Jerusalem for three days. It's time to leave. They travel a days journey only to discover Jesus isn't with them or any other family members. They return to Jerusalem to find him in the temple listening and commenting to the rabbis.  Pilgrimages have similarities. What strikes me about this pilgrimage is its similarity to any pilgrimage. The destination is a sacred or holy place. A pilgrimage may well have some confusion or disorientation. There may be an unexpected epiphany related to the sacred place. Our Wonderland pilgrimage has those similarities.   For us, the Wonderland section of Acadia N.P. is a sacred place where we experience God's presence. T...

"Surely God is my help;     the Lord is the one  who sustains me." Psalm 54:4 I don't know about you, but for me the pandemic has put a strain on my spiritual life. I keep up with my daily Bible study, devotional reading, centering prayer, and meditation. Sunday worship is where there is strain. Gathering in the church with people I know, having scripture read, prayers prayed, hymns sung, sharing communion, is diminished. Giving adequate thanks to the Lord in the sanctuary is diminished. A diminished relationship to the Lord is one main consequence of not being able to sufficiently give thanks in God's sanctuary. As I searched the scriptures,  Psalm 54   spoke to my concern .   Psalm 54 is a prayer beginning as a plea to God for deliverance and vindication from arrogant foes and ruthless people making murderous threats. The prayer expresses confidence that God is listening and will sustain his life and repay his enemies justly.  The psalm ends with a p...

Bass Harbor, ME "I will sacrifice a freewill offering to you; I will praise your name, Lord, for it is good. You have delivered me from all my troubles, and my eyes have looked in triumph on my foes." Psalm 54:6-7 Harry is a sternman on a lobster boat. His job is baiting traps, measuring each catch and throwing back undersized lobsters. Like all sternmen, he wears oil coveralls, oil jacket, and muck boots. To get to the boat he's working on, he rows his dingy out and climbs aboard. One Spring morning, he slipped from the dingy into the icy, bitter water. His boots and oiled overalls filling quickly so he was facing death by drowning or hyperthermia. As a very heavy man rescue is a difficult task Try as he might, pulling himself into the boat became impossible and he began sinking. It's not hard to imagine the fear he's experiencing in the icy Spring Atlantic waters.  Several other captains and sternmen see his situation and rescue him by dragging him through the w...

Cocoa Farmers “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me." Mark 8:34 Chocolate. Really, really good chocolate is one of my weaknesses. I'm talking about Godiva, Lunt, and from the Equal Exchange Co-op. I'm also talking about Snowflake Chocolates , Jericho, VT, and Ben and Jerry's Chocolate Ice Cream.  When I announced to my congregations I was giving up chocolate for Lent, it seemed like a significant sacrifice.  However, Jesus never meant denying something as trivial as chocolate.  Deny Yourself Jesus is laying out what's needed to fully grasp ones identity as a disciple. Jesus says denying ourselves is separation from what defines us and embracing a new understanding of our identity.  For example, when  the disciples followed Jesus they became a community defined by association with Jesus. Self-denial means you have completely redefined your identity. Take up your cross. Taking up your cross implies rejection. I...

What shall I return to the Lord  for all his bounty to me? I will lift up the cup of salvation  and call on the name of the Lord. PS 116: 12-13 Lifting the Cup of Salvation during Holy Communion is, for me, a way of giving thanks to the Lord. It is a sign to me of the Lord's saving activity both in the Exodus story and the cross-resurrection story.    When I hear the "Great Thanksgiving" in holy communion, I am reminded of the Lord's saving activity, not just for me, but for all humanity.  Read the story of the psalmist's  story of salvation  which gives the reason for lifting the Cup of Salvation. In  my 30 years of pastoring, I have had many people ask for prayers for friends, family, or neighbors during the Joys and Concerns in worship. I don't recall anyone saying, “Let me tell you all how my prayers were answered." Prayer Changes Things . Don't give up on  prayer. It seems to me the poet is telling folks to not give up on prayer. ...

But take care so as neither to forget the things that your eyes have seen nor to let them slip from your mind all the days of your life;  make them known to your children and your children’s children— Deuteronomy 4:9 Teaching Confirmation to 12-15 year old's is challenging.  Confirmation class isn't cool, its an expectation, spoken or implied. If you ask a confirmand from a previous year about something remembered, you are likely to get a blank stare or an answer they think you want to hear. The teachings have "slipped from their mind". Moses the Mentor was parked on the edge of the promised land. He has led Israel through the wilderness where God provided food, water, smoke by day and fire by night. Moses instructs the people to hear and follow the God's decrees and laws and teach them to your children and grandchildren. Hold fast to the Lord, Moses says.  Remember and do what you have been taught. Survival in the Promised Land depends on this knowledge. We are p...

Finally, be strong in the Lord  and in the strength of his power.  Put on the whole armor of God,  so that you may be able to stand  against the wiles of the devil. Ephesians 6:10-11 Here's Ephesians 6:10-20 I think it is an understatement to say we live in violent times.  I believe that's especially true for groups experiencing the evils of the systemic powers of racism, sexism, nationalism, and classism. We live with the increasing potential for demonizing enemies and even average folks who simply disagree with us on politics and religion.  Righteous people, I believe, are  attempting to live a life worthy of the Lord  within the evils of these systemic powers.  John Wesley would urges us to, "Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can and as long as you can." What, then, is it that empowers the righteous people to "do a...

Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood  abide in me, and I in them.   John 6:56 As a former Scoutmaster, one responsibility was teaching scouts how to tie knots. This meant teaching a scout a knot, then having him tie it. If he didn't get it, I showed him how again. If he still didn’t get it, I showed him again. Teach, reteach, and reteach again. That's the principle in this passage. Jesus teaches he is manna, the "true bread of life". Just as manna gave life in the wilderness, so Jesus gives life. Jesus then teaches he is the bread from heaven.  Now he says abide in me. "Abide," from the Greek word “meno”, meaning "to continue, to dwell, or to endure."  Jesus is saying, stick with it guys. Learn that discipleship is a long process, a long road. Stick with my teachings and you'll understand them. The disciples get it. They stick with Jesus because they see that his words are life giving. They show us what it means that God will provide manna...

Bread of Heaven "I am the living bread that  came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread  will live forever; and the bread that I will give  for the life of the world is my flesh." John 6:51 There's a story about a bishop asking an ordination candidate Wesley's historic question, "Are you going onto perfection?" The candidate wanting to test the system said, "No!" Without hesitating the bishop asked, "Then where are you going?" Where are you going?   The Israelites were going through the desert. Manna, the Bible says, is something edible God provided during their journey through the desert after the Exodus. For them, manna was God's life-giving power to sustain them as they traveled. God was caring for them. The disciples were going wherever Jesus went.  They need manna, so Jesus tells them "I am the living bread."  Jesus claims to be God's manna, life-giving power extending forever. That's not just a future he...

Our Pandemic Chapel Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty." John 6:31 I am looking forward to gathering at the Lord's Table again. I miss Holy Communion. I miss the pastor taking the bread, blessing it and giving it. Sure, during the pandemic, communion is served in wafer/juice cups. The Great Thanksgiving is said with appropriate responses and prayers. But this is like a slim-fast communion.  In attending a memorial service recently, the altar was set, the bread broken into small pieces, and the cup present for dipping. The next day, a Sunday, I attended worship at a church where the congregation came forward to receive the wafer/juice cups. After both services I was able to catch up with friends from each church.  I felt a strong presence of the Holy Spirit as we gathered at the Lord’s Table. The pastor saying, "pour out your Holy Spirit on us gathered here, and on these gi...

And David became greater and greater, for the Lord, the God of hosts, was with him. 2 Samuel 5:10 Here's the complete reading This is John, a 90+ year-old Maine lobsterman. Like most lobstermen, he's up around 4 a.m. checking the weather then heading to the docks. Around 6 a.m. he's picking up his stern man, buying bait and heading to sea checking some of his 150 traps. Some traps will be empty others will have a decent haul. By late in the day he's headed to the docks again selling his catch. John also knows of lobstermen whose boats sank and had to swim ashore. He knows of others that never returned home. John returns at the end of the day "for the Lord was with him." "I am with you," says the Lord. Beginning with Moses (Ex.3:12), continuing through David, then through Jesus (Mt:28:20). The Scriptures assure us, "I am with you."  We may behave like David and Bathsheba or Judas. The awareness of our own sin may leave us feeling as though w...

“Come away to a deserted place  all by yourselves and rest a while.” Mark 6:31 Elaine loves cooking. She loves getting out a recipe, going over the ingredients, and assembling them. She loves mixing the ingredients and putting them in the pot or pan to correctly cook them. Most of all, she enjoys placing the finished dish on the dinner table with its enticing aroma salivating everyone's palate. After grace, comes enjoying the delicious meal.   But Elaine does other cooking. In one church she prepared a monthly meal for a homeless shelter. In another, she was part of a team that prepared 16 pans of ziti each month which were distributed to several shelters. She was also part of a team that prepared sandwiches for a "Midnight Run" to Manhattan for distribution to street people. In several churches, she was involved in the CROP hunger walk (including co-coordinating one for 13 years). She is an active member of Bread for the World for over 40 years. Currently, she takes o...

Acadia Morning "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness." Lamentations 2:22-23 Click here to read the complete text. Near the end of July, the Charlottes Rhodes Butterfly Park releases hundreds of Monarch butterflies. Children watching this are filled with excitement and wonder seeing these Monarchs launch into an awakening world. It's an awakening world pretty much like their own. The beauty of the fleeting butterfly and the innocence of the child. In the real world there are sin-sick souls struggling with alcoholism, drugs sometimes resulting homelessness. The real world has faithful disciples coping with broken marriages, poverty, and addiction. These are wounded, barren, desert-like places. Lamentations describes them this way:     "Your wound is as deep as the sea.  Who can heal you?" Lamentations also declares God’s healing love and mercy as renewing sin-sick so...

“My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” 2 Corinthians 12:9 Click here to read 2 Corinthians 12:2-10 My heart sank as I watched the condos in Surfside Florida collapse trapping and crushing residents. It was heart breaking to see the rescue workers valiantly searching through rubble trying to find survivors. The sight of the impromptu memorial wall is certainly one that weighs my spirit down. What the tragic collapse makes very clear are the limits of human endeavor which show us our limitations and failures. We are reminded that in the overall scheme of things, we can feel small and powerless.  And so, we pray. We pray for the first responders, for the grieving, for those awaiting answers. We pray for solutions so that similar disasters are avoided.  Paul prayed three times that his "thorn in the flesh" would be removed. It wasn't. The Lords answer was, "My grace is sufficient for you."  We may never understand all the implicati...

Then he took a loaf of bread,  and when he had given thanks ,  he broke it and gave it to them, saying,  “This is my body, which is given for you.  Do this in remembrance of me.” And he did the same with the cup after supper. Luke 22:19-20 United Methodists practice open communion, meaning all at worship are invited to partake. The church proclaims that the table of Holy Communion is Christ’s table. The table is open to anyone who seeks to respond to Christ’s love and seeks to lead a new life of peace and love. Communion is God's gifts to God's people given through Jesus Christ which Methodists call a "means of grace".  My Pastoral education taught me that who does or does not receive communion is not up for discussion.  Communion begins with God’s grace and love as seen in Jesus Christ who didn't make any decisions about who received God's gift. All the disciples present, Judas included, received. He just gave. Period. End of discussion.  That's wh...

“Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?”  He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” Then the wind ceased,  and there was a dead calm" Mark 4:38-39 Click here to read the complete story here. People go down to sea for many reasons. Some for recreation; making a living; escaping oppression; a ferry for transportation.  In this familiar story, Jesus and the disciples get in a boat to cross to the sea. A storm nearly swamps the boat as Jesus sleeps. They wake him. He rebukes the sea. The storm ends. However, this isn't a story about "the storms of life" or and facing them by trusting Jesus in your fears.  The deeper story is Jesus silencing the storm and rebuking it. Those "silence" and "rebuke" are exorcism words Mark often uses in Jesus’ ministry. As strange as it sounds, Jesus is not offering therapy for our fears but an exorcism for a world out of whack. The point of this story is a revelation. The stilling...

"It is good to praise the Lord     and make music to your name, O Most High, proclaiming your love in the morning     and your faithfulness at night,." Psalm 92:1-2 (Read all the  verses  here) Liturgy was a passion in my ministry. The passion included finding ancient prayers, prayers from other cultures, and contemporary ones. I would dig deep into the history of hymns, chants, and songs and their best uses in worship. For me it was and continues to be an ongoing journey. Part of that ongoing journey includes several learnings.  For example, what is acceptable in one church is not in another.  It's necessary to explain the meaning of an addition to the worship service or it will be misunderstood.  For some, the Sermon most important part of worship, for others its the singing of hymns. What liturgy provides is a structure in the midst of crisis. The world may literally be falling around you, but the liturgy in Sunday's service is the same. F...