Lent - Beach Theology

Opening Prayer

This week has been very hectic so I am sharing a poem from my book, Negotiating the Shadows: Daily Meditations for Lent. Eugene, OR: WIPF and Stock, 2010, pg. 17-18. This week’s Gospel reading is of Mary anointing Jesus. This poem reflects primarily on the Mark and Luke version of the story but is relevant this week. Opening … Read More

A Prodigal’s Bidding Prayer

by Rachael Keefe

Holy God, you came to reconcile the world and bring new life. No one is excluded from your embrace. Open the arms of your church as wide as the arms of your love. Enliven this body of Christ that we may rejoice when any of your sons and daughters come seeking refuge and healing in our midst. Let us not cling to our traditions so firmly that we fail to be ambassadors of Christ seeking your way and listening for your counsel. Reconciling God, show us the way to new life that we may be alive again.

God of creation, your love for the world is something we so easily forget. More often than not we believe a stranger to be an enemy and dismiss those who suffer. Yet, you would have us throw our arms around the lost ones without judgment. There are places in our world –near and far– that know only violence and despair. Your heartbreaks every time a life is lost in violence or fear or ignorance. God of safe places, widen our reach, open our hearts. Reveal the way of peace to all your people, especially those in positions of leadership and power.

Surprising God, you would have us welcome one another with joy and celebration. But we live in a country divided on nearly all things. Much harm is done in your name, even here. We are a nation of great wealth, power, and resources and still we fail to care for those who cannot care for themselves. Help us to see beyond budgets and party lines to the face of real people who seek hope, safety, and life. It does not matter how much or how hard we have labored or for how long, if any of your children are hungry or hurting. God of abundant life, lead us in ways of justice and equity for all those who live in this great nation.

God of mercy and grace, you offer safety in times of adversity. Remind us that you offer yourself to all people, even those who call you by another name. Our communities are changing and we grow fearful. We tend to forget that all that you have is ours. We are free to share the abundance of your grace because there will always be more than enough. Show us the path to welcome our neighbors from foreign places. May our churches be true sanctuaries for the refugee, the immigrant, the mentally ill, the developmentally disabled, the elderly, the homeless, and all those who are vulnerable and feel unloved and unwanted. Welcoming God, open our hearts to the joy of knowing you that we may kill our fatted calves and rejoice with those who find new life in you.

Healing God, we long to rejoice with you whenever a son or daughter comes alive again. Too often we are overwhelmed by all the broken places in our world, our country, our community, and our lives. We ask that you surround with deliverance all those who are lost to addiction, to illness, to poverty, to hunger, to injustice of any kind. Empower us to stand with those who cannot stand on their own. Make us mindful of the needs of all your children. We pray for the countries, the towns, and all people who are in need of healing and reconciliation. Rejoicing God, unite us with our brothers and sisters around the world. Let us all work with your hands to mend our ways and bring healing to all.

God of abundance and life, we thank you for all that we are and all that we have. We know the benefits of life in you. Too often we are distracted from the joy of living in you. But in this moment, we are grateful. You have called us to be your body in this place and we celebrate our call to be the church today. We will continue on this journey through the wilderness, removing those things that separate us from your love. We know that wherever we go or wherever we have been, you welcome us with open arms. We rejoice in your steadfast love and seek to honor you with all that we do. Gracious God, words fail to express the wonders of your love for us. Keep us firmly in your embrace while reminding us that there is room enough for all your children.

In the name of Christ who reconciles the world to you, we pray. Amen.

RCL – Year C – Fourth Sunday in Lent

Joshua 5:9-12
Psalm 32
2 Corinthians 5:16-21
Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32

(image from pdphoto.org)

We Are a Hungry, Thirsty Nation

by Rachael Keefe

Irony lurks in this week’s texts. It’s the third Sunday of Lent and some people have given up certain foods or are fasting to a greater extent. And here we have two passages (Isaiah 55:1-9 and Psalm 63:1-8) that speak of hunger and thirst. The Isaiah pericope opens with an invitation to a feast: Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Sign me up!

The bigger irony is that Americans are kind of obsessed with food. Fast food, junk food, healthy food, dessert food, breakfast food, all kinds of food 24 hours a day. It’s amazing, really. We use food to comfort ourselves (chocolate or mac and cheese anyone?), to celebrate (birthday cake), to ease boredom (ice cream in front of the tv), and sometimes when we are actually hungry. Beverages are similar. When did America start running on coffee? When did everyone start carrying water bottles everywhere? When did coffee mugs or soda bottles begin to accompany us to every meeting? We are a hungry, thirsty nation.

But there is something really off with all this, right? The obesity rate is climbing. Eating disorders afflict many. Food allergies plague more and more people. We’re eating, but we are at the wrong table. Then I read about a petition to the FDA to be able to add aspartame to dairy products and not have label it that way. Why? I’ve also read too much about Monsanto and genetically modified grains and vegetables. Then there is how animals are “raised” in horrid circumstances and fed hormones just to get the kind of meat that is pleasing to the consumer. We ingest ridiculous amounts of chemicals daily, even when we try to eat healthy foods. And, with a few exceptions, the healthier you try to eat, the more it costs you. So we remain hungry, thirsty, and obsessed.

Isaiah raises a timely question! Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Why do we spend our money and our time on those things which do not nourish us? We’re really good at it and incredibly creative. Aspartame in milk! Who would have ever thought? It’s not just corporations and lobbyists wasting time and money and walking away dissatisfied. This lack of nourishment seems to be a real problem nearly everywhere. Look at Congress and the endless debates over budget, gun control, and immigration. Look at New Hampshire where the governor wants to pay for mental health care and education with a casino. Look at your own life and ask yourself how many times you walk away from something shaking your head and wishing you’d done something else instead.

Lent provides us a perfect time to ask ourselves where we are nourished. Whose table are we dining at? And do we walk away satisfied or do we remain malnourished?

Isaiah issues a call to a banquet, a promise to feed all who are hungry and thirsty. No one will walk away without being nourished and satisfied. Our obsession with food and drink in this country belies a much deeper yearning. The psalmist names it: O God, you are my God, I seek you, my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

Lent is the perfect time to seek a better sustenance, to reclaim our faith which we know can make us whole. Stop doing the things that waste our time, and begin doing the things that fill us, satisfy us, and make us better people. It’s the right time to find our way back to the banquet table. Isaiah’s invitation is still open. We don’t have to keep thinking we are eating and feeling we are starving. We don’t have to be super-sized. It takes an honesty with ourselves. It takes time to sit and be still and realize how hungry we really are, and how empty we can let our lives become. There are weeks still in this Lenten season. Life without God is empty, and we will never be satisfied.

Seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake their way, and the unrighteous their thoughts; let them return to the Lord, that he may have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

RCL -Third Sunday of Lent – March 3, 2013

Isaiah 55:1-9
Psalm 63:1-8
1Corinthians 10:1-13
Luke 13:1-9

Promise, Prophecy, and Prayer

by Rachael Keefe

As I drove to work yesterday morning I found myself singing “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot.” I sang it all the way through before I realized what I was doing. It filled me with a strange nostalgia. The next thing I knew I was thinking of other songs and hymns that mark different eras in my life. “Beautiful Savior” was the first hymn I learned in youth choir. “Crown Him with Many Crowns” was a favorite in high school. In college it was Petra’s “For Annie.” In seminary there were many, but “Here I am Lord” was at the top. Later, “It is Well with My Soul” topped my list of favorites. These days, I often find myself humming “Grace Like Rain.” My ride to work went by very quickly.

Today it occurred to me that in a generation or two these songs that have such meaning and power for me, will fade away. Of course, I experienced a twinge of sadness that this music doesn’t connect with younger generations so much today. But then excitement and wonder pushed any sadness away. What songs will the church of tomorrow sing? Will another generation be able to create a soundtrack of hymns and praise songs for their lives?

And strangely, I kept thinking about Abram. In one conversation with God about the promise of children, he entered into a covenant that changed nearly everything about his life. Did he know that he stood on the brink of something totally new? Did he wonder how God would speak to future generations? Did it occur to him that his sons and grandsons would know God in ways he couldn’t imagine or foresee? Did he look to the future with hope and expectation? God made him a promise that changed everything.

We don’t have these kinds of conversations with God today. Partly because the world is different. Partly because Jesus took away the need for such promises. Jesus is the conversation we have with God. Love. Grace. Forgiveness. Salvation. Words spoken right out loud.

But things change. We forget. We get lost. Lent is a good season for remembering. It is the perfect time to be still and listen for God. How is God speaking today? Where is God speaking today? Who is listening and what are they hearing?

Things can change and still be okay. God can lead us anywhere. No matter what changes, as long as we are in conversation with God, it is okay. We are not alone, lost in the wilderness and left to our own devises. Everything may feel and look different, and yet people still find a way to praise God, come together to worship. It has been happening for thousands of years. We don’t worship the way Abram worshiped. We don’t worship the way the disciples worshiped. People that come after us aren’t going to resemble our practices either. That’s not important. What matters is the relationship we have with God, one another, ourselves. THAT is what gets lost in the cacophony of sound around us. And when the worship itself, or the music itself, becomes more important than the relationship, we are not listening anymore.

I don’t know about you, but I think there is prophecy and promise still to come.

I believe that I shall see the goodness of God in the land of the living. Wait for God; be strong, let your heart take courage; wait for God!

RCL – Year C – Second Sunday of Lent – February 24, 2013

Genesis 15:1-12, 17-18
Psalm 27
Philippians 3:17–4:1
Luke 13:31-35

Lent, a Few Temptations, and a Challenge

by Rachael Keefe

As we begin the season of Lent I have a challenge for us all based on the temptations Jesus faced. Satan tempted Jesus with the things we are all tempted by – appetite, control, and power. Of course, Jesus was able to resist these temptations and Satan left him alone “until an opportune time.” We live in a global wilderness. There is no place where uncontrolled appetites don’t ruin lives, the need for control does not oppress many, and a drive for power doesn’t destroy countless people. We are all susceptible to these temptations to one extent or another – as individuals and as faith communities.

So here is my challenge in response to these three temptations. Don’t think about giving anything up. Instead, for the duration of Lent, commit yourself (individually and/or as a congregation) any or all of the following. Or come up with your own way of facing these temptations and strengthening your faith.

Uncontrolled appetite – Create Healthy Practices

Individual –

Commit to a healthy change (join a gym, a Bible Study, a support group)
Volunteer (in a shelter, at a hospital, in a library, helping an elderly neighbor)
Spend some time every day “unplugged” (start with 10 minutes and see if you can get up to an hour of time without radio, TV, internet etc.)

Congregation –

Do something new in worship each week (music, prayers, décor)
Start or participate in a “hands-on” local mission (shelter, soup kitchen, other local need)
Begin or continue a daily Bible Study or prayer time (gather together for this or members commit to it on their own)

Need for control – Accept and Celebrate Your Strengths

Individual –

Try something new every day (a new food, a new walking route, a new game)
Explore a new spiritual practice (journaling, painting, baking – anything that will center you and connect you with a sense of balance and well-being)
Write a daily affirmation about yourself and your life

Congregation –

Replace committee meetings with a time to worship together
Celebrate your current identity and strengths as a congregation
Worship in a different space (try visiting another congregation, make a change to your current worship space, worship outdoors)

Power – Opening Yourself to Possibility

Individual –

Start a daily gratitude journal where at least one thing each day has to be something that you have not yet expressed gratitude for
Forgive yourself or someone else; make amends if possible
Learn a new skill or hobby

Congregation –

Try beginning worship with individuals expressing their own gratitude (We do this in the hospital chapel services and it is a great lead in to lighting the Christ candle in gratitude, in invitation, in celebration)
Let go of something that no longer meets a need
Plan something new for the celebration of Easter

RCL – Year C – First Sunday in Lent – February 17, 2013

Deuteronomy 26:1-11
Psalm 91:1-2, 9-16
Romans 10:8b-13
Luke 4:1-13

Opening Prayer

A Prodigal’s Bidding Prayer

We Are a Hungry, Thirsty Nation

Promise, Prophecy, and Prayer

Lent, a Few Temptations, and a Challenge

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