Flee Time

The Earthquake, The Hurricane, and The Search for Gadhafi
God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change,
though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea;
though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains tremble with its tumult.
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy habitation of the Most High. (Portion of Psalm 46)
I felt the earth move under my feet – remember Carole King’s lyrics. This time it wasn’t love, it was a real live seismic event – close to 6.0 on the Richter Scale. The earthquake is now history, but now Irene is bearing down on the eastern coastline from the Carolinas to New England and all things in between. Category 2 or 3, it still will mean some significant destruction because of its high winds and its high water. And then there is the seismic, earth shaking events in the Libya and the Middle East. Decades of a horrid dictatorship are ending. Earthquakes, hurricanes, changes in the international geo-political map, and yes a volatile economy…. while some of the change we applaud, at times like this we feel like everything is out of control and we look for some center of solitude that can calm us during the chaos.
The verb for the Hebrew word translated “refuge” means to “flee.” Some days we just want to flee from “it all.” And the text says we need to look for a stream – water is so important in the Israel and the Middle East because it is in such short supply. It is not the powerful roaring and foaming waters that bring refreshment and solace…it is the almost inaudible stream that brings shalom, peace.
Today I watched the birds on the feeder in my back yard and then went to sit by one of the many salt water lakes near my home on Cape Cod. It reminded me that when all things seem to be out of control, God in the background can bring our souls to gladness and peace if we take the “flee” time that is so often at a premium. I recommend some flee time even when the earth isn’t shaking and the waters aren't roaring and foaming.
Getting Ready for Our Date with Irene on Cape Cod,

The Presidency and The Literal Interpretation of the Bible – Beware!

My father was a CFO of a mid-sized corporation and treasurer of a merged company that included Union Carbide Corp. He was a registered Republican in name only! He once told me his Presidential voting record and it was all over the place. At least once he voted Socialist. And occasionally he voted Democratic. Let me explain the reason for his eclectic political viewpoint. His much loved Grandfather was a William Jennings Bryan populist. Bryan three times ran on the Democratic ticket for the presidency. My father at least once voted for Norman Thomas, a Socialist. Thomas ran six times for the presidency. I know what you’re thinking, where am I going with this. Bryan – a champion for the average citizen and Secretary of State in Woodrow Wilson’s administration and who often took pacifistic stances – was a devout Presbyterian. His devout nature caused him to fight against evolution in the famous Scopes Trial. Thomas was a Presbyterian clergyman, a pacifist and had a significant ministry with the least and the lost in Hell’s Kitchen in NYC. Both took the Gospel message literally. They both saw Jesus as the Prince of Peace and the one who said many things about grace and love toward friend and enemy alike / toward all regardless of social or economic standing.
Today a number of people interested in the presidency say that they interpret the Bible literally. They say they are ardent in following the teachings of the One who said pass no judgment on others; who said do not return evil for evil; who said regardless of race or tribe all are cherished children of God. Can you believe he made a Samaritan – someone equivalent to a Palestinian today - a hero in one of his parabolic stories. There is a danger in taking the Bible really literally – it makes the living of each day a little difficult. It humbles us and puts the welfare of others as paramount in going about our daily doings.
I think I now understand why my church attending, Bible reading, financial whiz Father was enamored with Bryan and Thomas. Like them, he too read the words of Jesus and took them literally. I wish both Democrats and Republicans, Libertarians, etc., and, yes, Democratic Socialists took the Gospel literally. It would make a whole lot of difference in how we set our personal and national agendas and how we deal with deficits and jobs and international relations (And how we go about our politics).
P.S. Just started reading a recently released book, Conscience. It is the story of the four Thomas Brothers. Two of the brothers served with valor in WWI and two brothers – including Norman, protested the war and were pacifists. It is written by Norman Thomas’ great-granddaughter. Great reviews.


God of the Living Word, hidden, yet profoundly seen in the words of Scripture, instill in us the courage to live your Word literally. We know it will most likely alter our standard operating procedures with which we have become too comfortable. Yet because you are a gracious God, we also know that you will refresh us and surprise us in our literal living with holy moments in which we experience a delicious taste of your realm. We pray this in the name of the One who spoke and lived your Word so that we might live out in word and deed your love. Amen.

BE NICE
Went to worship yesterday! Gretchen and I have done this numerous times since my leave-taking from weekly pulpit appearances. Yesterday’s service was fine. Good sermon; traditional music; mostly gray hair in the pews. It was fine but not all that inspiring. In the last few months I have been to all sizes and shapes of churches. On Palm Sunday there was little reference to Palm Sunday but there was 50+ verses of Jesus’ trial read with no dramatic energy. I heard about Windex for six minutes in a sermon on Maundy Thursday. I sang Kumbaya on Good Friday. On Easter Sunday I heard sermon that lack enthusiasm and joy (Spiritually leaving Jesus in the tomb). I have heard good sermons surrounded by dreadful music and, on other occasions, uninspiring music that matched the sermon. Having worked hard to establish a partnership with my fellow worship leaders and having pondered how each small part of the liturgy might be handled in creative ways so that even the silent moments and the reading of Scripture would be inspirational, I now realize how fortunate I was to have served in local church settings that encouraged creativity.
But this reflection is not about “how to” be creative in worship, it is rather about my fault finding when I am supposed to be worshipping the Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. Before and after each worship service Gretchen is into the habit of reminding me to “Be nice!” “Nice” seems like such a trivial, syrupy-sweet, shallow word. So I went to the dictionary to find how it is defined – pleasant, kind, pleasing, agreeable, respectable. Kind – love is kind!......it does not insist on its own way. I learned that somewhere. Legend – and maybe history - has it that the profound thinking German theologian, Karl Barth, when asked about the essential message of all theology responded – “Jesus loves me this I know for the Bible tells me so.” Maybe the essential message of Jesus with his message of welcoming strangers and loving enemies can be summed up in two words “Be nice!”
We haven’t had a whole lot of being nice in Washington and in politics in general lately. It seems that anger and rage are on the increase in everything from sports to driving behavior. It appears that our society is quick to anger and slow to listen to others who may not see it our way. Nice – love – kind – good – four letter words that might just sum up the depth of the divine mystery of faith. So, let us “Be nice” in all situations and at all times. Maybe God is trying to teach me how to learn to be nice even when I think the sermon goes nowhere and the music is a little off key.

Giving as a Way of Curing the Down Turn Blues

For two weeks the bottom has fallen out of the stock market. Yesterday was the 600+ Dow Jones drop day. My retirement portfolio took a real hit. So in the midst of it all I shut off the TV and went for a ride – saw a beautiful rainbow and listened to some crashing waves – I reside on Cape Cod in the summer. Started to feel somewhat better because I realized God is paying me dividends everyday – if I stop and just be in the moment.
On the way home I stopped for an ice-coffee! I was asked if I wanted to donate to the Jimmy Fund – Dana Faber Cancer Center. It is not a good thing for children to have to do battle with cancer. So, out of my diminishing assets I made a donation. When I arrived home I found Gretchen making a nice donation to one of her favorite causes. There go more of the assets. As I watched the evening news I became heart-sick at the situation in Somalia – 12 million people fighting starvation. So I decided to make a generous donation to the UCC hunger relief fund. There went more of my diminished assets. Yet, somehow I felt better again – sort of a feeling of well-being that was spiritually based, not temporally based. And today I turned on the TV about mid-day and the market was up! If the market stays solid today I will have gained more in my retirement account than was given away to help others in much greater need than I. Call it the beginning of a little bull in the market or a lot of God in my life. Singing the down turn blues; try standing in the moment for a moment and giving so others might know at least a little of God’s abundant love. There is never a down turn in that!

Second Thoughts Resurrected

Second Thoughts Resurrected
The name for my blog originally came from my being the Senior Minister of the Second Congregational Church of Greenwich, CT. Now that I am a freelance pastor, consultant, aspiring artist and umpire, I thought a name change would be necessary. But then I had a second thought. In the consultant work I will be doing with churches, I will be encouraging clergy and the members of those churches to think outside the box…….to not go with their first thoughts, those thoughts which usually are shaped by past experience or preconceived ideas. Change requires second thoughts. As I have said about the thinking which I want to lay as a foundation for churches (and even individuals) looking to the future is – “If you don’t ever think outside the box, you’ll almost always end up in the same old box.” My consulting program In Church Imaging is about outside the box thinking. I have been fortunate to minister in churches which were open to second thoughts – as I call it “innovative imagining.” So Second Thoughts it shall continue to be. Looking forward to sharing my second and, maybe even third and fourth thoughts with you. inchurchconsult@yahoo.com
Bob