Chris Yaw

My pregnant wife had never been heavier.

But when she stepped off the scale after a recent weigh-in, curiously she didn’t collapse in a ball of distress, rather she remarked, “Wow, now I know what many of my patients go through.”

As a nurse, the average weight of a patient at her hospital is 274 pounds. That means most are experiencing difficulties walking, sitting down, getting up, and catching their breath - all things that pregnant women suffer through. And now that she had put on a few pounds, my wife better understood the plight of her patients.

Empathy.

This is just one way suffering can make us better.

If you’re like me, when Jesus calls his disciples to deny themselves, to lose their lives, and to follow his example of suffering, it can seem like a real buzz-kill. After all, we like our comfort, convenience, and freedom.

But what if denying ourselves was actually good for us?

I think that, deep inside, we all know that’s true. And not just because we can become more empathetic, but because we can become more resilient, and we can become more like the ‘Suffering Servant’ whom we have dedicated our lives to follow.

I think Jesus calls us not just to suffer, but to change our attitudes about suffering. What we discover is that often times it’s not as bad for us as we suspect, but suffering is something God uses to better ourselves and the world. Count it all joy, therefore, when you suffer, God is at work.

I made a big mistake with this super-quiet friend once.

We were out to dinner and I put my foot in my mouth, which is not untypical, and called him ‘passive’ - when the truth was he wasn't passive, but quiet.

In other words, just because he preferred being thoughtful and introspective didn’t mean he lacked an opinion or an idea.

The problem with a religion like Christianity is that it’s best known for serving, forgiving, and letting the other person go first - so that we Christians often get this reputation for meekness, submission, and compliance - and the assumption is that we lack ambition, courage, and a strong desire to achieve.

In Sunday’s gospel Jesus commends an ambitious woman for knowing what she wants and going to great lengths to get it, the subtext being that there’s nothing wrong with ambition, it’s a natural drive to cooperate with God’s plan as we pursue the improvement of our particular set of abilities.

This should serve as motivation for you and me to cultivate our ambitions - not for more money, possessions, or experiences, but for the things that pumped up Jesus:

Can we be ambitious about serving people around us?

Can we be ambitious about jumping into campaigns and movements that serve to heal the world?

Can we be ambitious about practicing the presence of Christ at all times - realizing that He’s with us always - looking hard to see Jesus in everyone and everything that’s here?

In Matthew 28, Jesus’ last word to his disciples wasn’t ‘stay’ but ‘go.’

Don’t ‘stay’ mired in the ‘way things have always been’ and a mentality not to 'rock the boat.'

But ‘go’ follow the ambitions of your heart - stir things up - cause a ruckus.

Racism, suicide, opiate addiction, political gridlock - there’s no shortage of mountains to climb.

Let’s not be afraid to look at that mountain and say ‘yep’ - I can climb that.

Hard working young marrieds moved into Green Acres, she a teacher, he an assistant city clerk.

Unfortunately, selfish neighbors lived next door. After-midnight music blared, grass wasn't mowed, leaves weren't raked, complaints were rudely ignored.

The selfish neighbors did not use garbage cans. On trash day animals ate through plastic bags strewing garbage everywhere. Police came. After the rude neighbors were ticketed mysterious scratches appeared on the young married’s cars, tire tracks burned into the lawn. Nothing was proven but everyone knew.

One day a home remodeling application from the rude neighbors appeared in the young neighbor's city office. Time for revenge? Deny or endlessly delay... What to do...

At dinner the young marrieds decided the application should be approved. Their faith said so. But, boy was it difficult.

This is often why people leave Jesus. It's difficult.

Tempted to retaliate, we forgive.

Tempted to worry, we hope.

Tempted toward selfishness, we share.

Tempted to being cold and closed, we risk love.

A few weeks later a knock at the door. His rude neighbor held out the application. He knew. The nastiness subsided, peace came, then friendship.

This is a happy ending, most aren’t. But the only way to make an enemy a friend is to love them. Period.

The Paradox of our time is that our city, Detroit, is dying, at the same time it's coming back to life.

And so we live with these very active voices is going through our heads.

One tells us to cut bait, to move out, and to move on, because the future here is not very bright.

The another voice, says things are just starting to get interesting. It tells us that there is something rumbling underneath the surface, just beginning to explode with a power of potential that we may have no ability to quantify much less contain.

And yet it's a third voice that seems to leave the biggest impression, the one that we tend to follow too often, which is a voice of mediocrity, hesitation, and timidness. It does not fully embrace the negativity about Detroit nor does it fully embrace the possibility of Detroit.

It's as if everyday we are asked to go “ all-in" on one side or the other, yet we can't make up our minds, so we follow the third voice.

In church this weekend, you and I will hear Jesus addressing a similar paradigm, confronted with the group of people who can't decide if they should go all-in or all-out.

“Are you the one? Or is there somebody else we should be waiting for? “

They too seem to be unsatisfied with their constant hesitation, straddling the line, unable to commit to one voice or the other. So Jesus comes to them with a clear and graceful invitation to see things as he sees them: our lives teeming with possibility, brimming with potential, urging them not to take the broad gate of negativity, that everybody seems to be going through, and to take the narrow gate of possibility, hope, and imagination.

Friends, there's certainly something going on in each one of our lives in which we are also straddling some sort of fence. And God comes along side us with the same invitation: to take the difficult road, the risky road, the challenging road.
After all we are always more resilient, more capable, more up to the task than we suspect.

The world is waiting for us to make a move, take a step, put ourselves out there.

Urged on by the saints and our savior, let's do it.

A woman named Nell called the church this week - she needed money for rent and a water bill -

She lost her job and was feeling scared, alone, and desperate - a place you and I have probably been before-

And as I prayed with her I couldn’t help but think of the Gospel story you and I will hear this weekend -

Quick quiz: What’s the only miracle story that’s found in all 4 Gospels?

It’s the loaves and the fishes - the feeding of the 5,000-

And in this weekend’s story, the Disciple Phillip comes to Jesus and says, ‘All these people have followed us out to the desert and nobody’s got any food”

And the passage says that Jesus tested Phillip by asking, ‘What are you going to do?’

And the disciples said, ‘Well, there’s a little kid here with some loaves and fishes’

And Jesus took those, gave thanks, broke them, and handed them out -

And everyone was fed.

When we apply that to Nell and her bills - and learn three things -

First, let’s never forget that in every challenge: God is up to something.

We don’t know why Nell is broke, or why 5,000 people walked into the desert without any food -

What we do know is that God is up to something - sometimes it’s a test -

Because tests are meant to make us better - nobody develops a callus without skinning their knee -

Second, we see these disciples looking on the up side.

They said, ‘Hey, we’ve got some bread and fish!’

Ever hire someone? Look for two things: Are they on time? And are they enthusiastic?

Nell and you and me make things better when we look for the up side and remain positive about what God may be doing.

This leads us to our third point - give thanks.

This is the act of getting the spotlight off of ourselves and our own problems and onto something more productive - in this case, it’s thanking God for provision.

Of course. we many not always get the answers we want -

Nell may or may not have gotten what she wanted -

But we don’t pray ‘Our will be done’ - we pray ‘God’s will be done’

God has not forgotten about us, God is well aware of our needs, and God is working on God's own timeline to meet those needs.
In every challenge, let’s look for the blessing.

"Come away, to a deserted place, and rest" - Jesus.

One sentence, three pieces of advice, to 12 disciples - plus you and me.

Come away from that toxic air that’s all around us - the negativity the anxiety, and stress.

Come away from:

everybody else’s expectations for us-
the 24-hour "breaking news” cycle that leaves us over-informed and under-educated.
and from our own propensity to expect more from ourselves than we can possible deliver - then get depressed when we don't achieve it!

Come away to a deserted place -

What’s deserted?

How about that room that ‘hope’ lives in?

Or all those empty canals of optimism-

And the hallway of faith - that things have a purpose and are working towards a positive end - certainly that place could use a few more warm bodies..

Come away to a deserted place-

Yes, the gate is narrow,

The road is less-travelled,

And way too few people are taking it - so there’s plenty of room for us...

Come away to a deserted place and rest.

Rest in the long view of our cosmic existence - overall let’s remember the great strides being made in human equality, food and water production, and our capacity to truly care for one another.
Rest in the world's overall track record of working things out to the good over time - we know life always takes us two steps forward and one step back.
Rest in the reality that we’ve made it this far - think about it, we’ve overcome loads of things we thought would kill us - but none of them have.

Jesus calls us to come away, to a deserted place, and rest - not to escape life but to really live it.

How Centering Ourselves Saves Us

"Thai Soccer Coach Gives Team Greatest Victory Ever"

That would be my headline.

Trapped in a dark cave for more than 2 weeks with little food, water, or light, a dozen young boys should have simply freaked out, flipped out, and burned out.

But as you may have heard, their coach, a former Buddhist monk, wisely assessed the situation and used his skills in meditation and prayer to invite his boys into quiet contemplation, which lowered their heart and breathing rates, conserving energy and resources. This bought them precious time for rescuers to figure out how to bring them to safety.

Coach Ek is credited with saving these lives - and with inspiring us all with a real-life lesson in the importance of keeping focused, calm, and centered on that force which is saving us too.

This story parallels our Sunday gospel, that familiar and cautionary tale of King Herod’s absurd execution of John the Baptist.

Herod, overcome with the wine, women, and revelry, makes a stupid oath that traps him into executing John. Herod gives in to peer pressure, the nagging of his wife, and his own shameful pride that renders himself helpless against obeying his conscience.

In the overlap of these stories you and I see the importance of centering.

When you and I center ourselves on Jesus, the life-giver, whose message of calm in the storm, clarity among the distraction, and peace in the moment, we cultivate the power we need to stand up to the things that handcuffed Herod.

Our challenge is to do it - to take that time - to stand up to the head-spinning distraction and monolithic humanism that surrounds us - and to put more Jesus-time into our lives. How might we do that today?

After all, centering ourselves both calms us and saves us.

At a coffee shop I go to there’s a man who sits near the door who’s always smiling.

He’s not a weirdo, just conscious of people who enter the shop, and to many of them, he offers a warm smile.

One day I asked him why.

“Well, I figure there are many people who come into this place with a lot going on in their lives, and I’m not rich or even that smart, but I figure if I smile at ‘em, just one person might have a better day.”

He’s right.

Mother Teresa famously said, "Every time you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.”

In Sunday’s gospel you and I will hear two of Jesus’ miracles, he heals a woman’s wound and raises a child from the dead. These are vivid examples of how Jesus used the resources he had to touch the people he loved.

You and I have resources we can use that way too.

When we smile at others it makes them feel accepted, welcome, special, and appreciated

I remember someone telling me to smile when you’re on the phone - because people can actually hear the difference - it’s true - and it can make them smile too.

You and I have the motivation to smile because we’ve got God in our lives - go ahead - pause for 30 seconds and look at your gratitude list -

We’ve also got this wonderful resource that’s free, easy to use, and has the potential to really impact someone’s life - so go ahead - allow the feelings in your heart to go just a little bit north - and smile.

When he was 67 years old, Thomas Edison returned home from work late in the evening to news that his plant was on fire.

Immediately he turned around and headed back to work, knowing that the vast collection of chemicals and compounds at his plant would surely produce a spectacular conflagration.

“Son, go get your mother!” Edison instructed his oldest, “And follow me! You will never again see a fire like this!”

When Edison arrived at the plant, sure enough, he and his hundreds of employees, friends, and relatives witnessed an amazing fire. Nearly everything was lost including reams of priceless notes, records, prototypes, and projects that were crucial to his ongoing business. And the building, which was supposed to be fireproof, was only insured for a fraction of its worth. Tears and wails of lamentation could be heard: what would happen to the company, the jobs, the future of this once-promising enterprise?

Yet when a news reporter asked for comment, Edison calmly said, “Well, there was a lot of junk in that plant that needed clearing out anyway. This just made the job easier.” He then added, “I’m not too old to make a fresh start.” Sure enough, within the year most of the plant would be rebuilt and revenue would exceed $10 million.

To this day people marvel at the calm reason Edison exhibited that day. What the inventor knew was that his priceless ideas and stamina had not been lost - and what had, could be (and would be) replaced.

This Sunday we witness Jesus asleep in a boat as a storm churns all around him. When his frazzled disciples awaken him, Jesus calmly speaks to the storm and calms the seas. Clearly, those things that frazzled the disciples did not worry Jesus.

In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus tells us not to worry about what we eat, what we wear, or where we live, assuring us that our Heavenly Father knows our needs and will provide. Easy for HIM to say… after all, how many of our worries revolve around our livelihoods - and act as tempests that tip over everything else in sight?

Sure, we all know that Jesus can calm storms. But how can he calm MY storms?

I think this can happen as we imitate Him.

Think about it, if the routine worries of the day put Jesus to sleep, what kept him up?

Easy, 1) prayer, and 2) healing the broken. Time after time we hear of Jesus praying while others slept - remember the garden of Gethsemane. And more than once we hear of Jesus spending long days and nights tending to the never-ending crowds of people looking for healing.

Does prayer keep us up? How about tending to the needs of others? Perhaps when we get better at these, our abilities to let go of our daily worries will improve.

Did you know that lobsters never stop growing?

The largest one on record was 50 years old and weighed 45 lbs.

This is all the more remarkable knowing that lobsters outgrow their shells every couple months. And growing a new shell is a painful and painstaking process.

When a lobster grows too big for his shell, he swallows large amounts of water in order to crack the shell from the inside, he then expels the water and begins to wiggle out of his old shell, even closing his eyes for long periods of time while the shell around his head is removed.

Once a lobster is free from his shell, he just sort of wiggles around, vulnerable, exposed to predators, all the while waiting for the new shell to harden.

St Paul writes, So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!" This makes the lobster the most Christian member of the animal kingdom.

However, St Paul did not write this passage for lobsters, he wrote it to remind us that God is doing something new in all of us.

Our lives are a series of growing shells that eventually become too small. Friends can come and go. Mentors can come and go. Homes, jobs, and relationships all have ways of no longer fitting, constricting us, and keeping us smaller than we really are.
How are we outgrowing our shells?

What is stirring in our spirits, waiting for bigger shells, bigger visions, to grow into?

What if we understood ourselves as ever-growing, ever-evolving, ever improving? What's keeping us from cracking our shells? How are we allowing the bigger, better, self inside of us to emerge, grow, and live?

I recently acquired a t-shirt that reads Safety Third.

I am aware that this is a common, if not hackneyed phrase from the tech world along the lines of ‘move fast and break things’ or ‘it’s better than good, it’s done.’ However this "slogan-ette" stuck out as something not just for tech entrepreneurs, but for Christian disciples.

After all, Jesus regularly put his personal safety third by putting obedience to God first and care for his neighbor second. The spirit of God does not always take us to safe places, ask any of the 12 disciples, 11 of whom were martyred. Or ask any Christian who has run into a burning house or dove into a raging river to save someone’s life.

In other words, the right road is not always the safe road - nor, for that matter, the convenient or comfortable one.

What does that say to us?

Let us give Jesus our all be removing the preconditions to our obedience, praying, ‘Take me Lord’ - wherever that may lead.

Chris Yaw

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When Suffering Is Good for You

Can Christians Be Ambitious?

Greetings Fellow Hypocrites...

Why Following Jesus Is Difficult

Let's Do This

Let's Look for the Blessing

Come Away...

How Centering Ourselves Saves Us

Smile!

How to Live More Calmly

You're a Lobster!

Safety Third

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