A Conception of Refuge

From the Concise Oxford Dictionary (What else??!?)
10th Edition, Online:

sanctuary
• n. (pl. sanctuaries)
1 a place of refuge or safety. > immunity from arrest.
2 a nature reserve. > a place where injured or unwanted animals are cared for.
3 a holy place. > the innermost recess or holiest part of a temple. > the part of the chancel of a church containing the high altar.
– ORIGIN ME (orig. ‘a sacred place where a fugitive was immune from arrest’): from OFr. sanctuaire, from L. sanctuarium, from sanctus ‘holy’.

Last week, a small group of us were spending some time in the early morning, praying for our church. We’ve established a focus to “impact… families with the transforming love of Jesus Christ,” and were seeking God’s will and mind in what that means, and perhaps how we are to go about same. It was a truly sweet time, and God led us individually and collectively to realize that a big part of this task has to do with extending ourselves outside of our campus, reaching into the neighborhoods surrounding… showing and sharing His love of people. This was heartening, as He was not talking about programs, schedules, or plans, but about attitudes, hearts, and sharing.

So in the middle of all this, I asked, “God, if we’re supposed to be extending beyond our campus, beyond our property, beyond our grounds, then what’s the purpose of gathering here in your sanctuary? What are we supposed to do here, in church?”

Have you ever been praying and had God chuckle in response? No, really, God chuckled and said, “Kit… my sanctuary is not a building, it’s in my people.”

Oohhh! God, I see! (Albeit through a glass darkly!) You say in your word that our bodies (and our hearts) are your temple… and the sanctuary is the holiest part of the temple; we carry your sanctuary with us! So then, I thought, sanctuary is really a state of being, a state of mind… “Yes,” said God, “that is why the Christian martyrs in the Roman coliseum, were able to sing, while being torn apart by lions.” They were in sanctuary… the holiest part of the temple; a place of refuge and safety. And sanctuary is in the mind of the occupant… the one who is safe… the one who is protected; he or she can be in sanctuary regardless of the environment or the surrounding circumstances… safe in the Father’s arms.

In musing further, I put this in the context of my last post. What about that place of ‘unconditional acceptance,’ of ‘unconditional love,’ and universal positive accord… not a place where people ignore our faults, but where people appreciate our strengths (which are used to build one-another), and where people stand by one another as they grow through their faults and weaknesses, depending entirely on the strength of the Lord… is that not sanctuary?

As he quotes someone much wiser, I'm increasingly convinced: Dallas Willard is right… “The Kingdom of Heaven IS at hand.”

"When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny." -Psalm 73:16-17

The Magic Mirror

“Romper, Bomper, Stomper, Boo.
Tell me, tell me, tell me, Do…
Are my friends havng fun today?”

Miss Rosemary would sit on her Romper Room couch in her Romper Room classroom in the TV in our living room, and recite this incantation as she gazed through the screen (and through an empty, circular frame), at her “magic mirror” that enabled her to see many of her small fans at home as they sat, raptly watching her.

“I see Billy, and Susie, and, oh! There’s Fred… I hope you’re feeling better Fred! And there’s Ann and Taylor, and…” Miss Rosemary would run down the roster of urchins in attendance (some of whose parents must have dropped her a line regarding the status of their offspring so that she could be more specific.)

I confess that I wasn’t much of a Romper Room fan, and I didn’t pay much attention to Miss Rosemary. Possibly because she NEVER saw me… but the idea of a magical device that would allow one to see others across vast broadcast distances did hold some appeal. It seemed too, that Miss Rosemary’s mirror not only enabled her to bridge distances, but it somehow filtered what she saw… there was never a “Uh Oh! I see little Dennis sneaking into the cookie jar!” or “Woops! Kit is NOT doing his homework!” (I told you she never saw ME!). Miss Rosemary, employing her mirror only seemed to see the positive and the good in her young audience. There’s something to be said for that.

I’m not talking about some syrupy, sugar-coated distortion of reality, where all is goodness and light, but an honest, and real assessment of who it is that God created when we look at the people around us.

Our high-school small group has embarked on an adventure (or at least an experiment) recently, in which we’re attempting to look at those around us as Jesus would see them, and then to treat them accordingly. This by no means requires seeing only the good, or overlooking faults or errors, but rather, “considering the source” of all these… a source that is the Creator of everything in the universe… a source that is ultimately and infinitely good… and loving. Imagine, just for a minute what it would be like to be in a room full of people with Jesus’ perspective on one another… recognizing that each person is in fact, one of the best creatures that God ever created, and holding each in a regard that is founded in complete and unconditional love and acceptance…

What would that feel like, how would it be to know that even if we messed up, that there would be loving correction and forgiveness? That we are accepted, and valued not for who we think we should be, not for “measuring up,” but for simply being what we were created to be. And imagine the incentive to discover the extent of that creation… to actually strive to live out the life set before us… completely free in that love.

Not possible? Well, in Matthew’s Gospel, Chapter 4, Verse 17, Jesus tells us to "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." Dallas Willard teaches that we have a lot to do with where we stand in relation to the Kingdom. Our attitudes and consequent behaviors determine how close we stand to or within that Kingdom… so perhaps our adventure will offer at least a taste, if not a sojourn.

It isn’t easy though… the temptation is to forgive too quickly (which isn’t really very loving), or to fall into the trap of “societal norms” which condone sarcasm, and put downs, and ‘one-upsmanship’ humor. Fundamentally, seeing and appreciating each other AS WE WERE CREATED, is pretty tough stuff… but then, I guess God made pretty tough folks… stay tuned.

Passages...

I’ve been listening to the Mosaic series “Passages,” where Erwin McManus will take a particular passage from Scripture and discuss how God is speaking to him/us through it. That’s really not at all what I was expecting…

I was thinking of ‘passage’ in the sense of moving from one place to another. And “passage” is a kind of romantic way to phrase it, in the sense that one “takes passage” on an ocean steamer to go adventuring off into some far-away, exciting place.

There seem to be many such ‘passages’ recently. Toph is off to Canada, Brady to Virginia, Chris to Orlando (!), Chad to Azusa, Andrew to West Valley (well, perhaps not SO romantic…). Passages… probably leading to metamorphosis, growth, change… I think about the new frontiers that Ryan is scaling at Crossroads…

And I wonder what God is saying to us in these passages…

Island Odyssey

Sometimes, I’m just not very clever. The last two weeks in July, my wife, Wanda, and I are celebrating our 30th Anniversary in Hawaii. A few really glorious nights on the back-side of Oahu, and then nine nights on the Valley Isle, Maui. When we arrived in Maui, we set about purchasing our own snorkeling gear. Hawaii is really the only place we snorkel… warm water, amazing marine life, and… good company, but we finally decided not to rent any more.

So we visited the Maui Dive Shop. And next thing we knew, we had snorkels, fins, diving masks (mine actually has corrective lenses), and a document safe. A document safe is a little plastic box with a hermetically sealed top (‘o’-ring and all) used to store critical documents on your person while you’re in the water… that way nothing important gets left in the car (to be stolen). Armed with my gear and my safe (safely keeping my driver’s license, credit card, and hotel room key), we swam into the waters just south of Kaanapali Beach… wonderful tropical fish, flora, and five or six sea turtles… really close to shore. It was a delightful afternoon.

Sometimes, I’m not very clever. I had stowed my safe in the back pocket of my swim trunks… the one with the zipper. I knew the safe was still there, ‘cause the pocket was heavy. Yep… reached right back there, and came up with a handful of… sand. It’s probably best if you zip the zipper… Yep… not very clever!

Well, we searched around the beach, and Wanda even swam out with her gear to search, but… nothing… nada. We went back to our condo and called the credit card company. “No problem sir! We’ll cancel the card and send you a new one by express… it’ll be there in three business days!” Well, at least that was reasonable.

Then there’s the matter of the driver’s license. It seems that getting a replacement is a simple matter, you just fill out a form and show up, in person, at the DMV office, pay the fee and voila… in two weeks you get a new photo ID. Photo ID… did I mention that we flew to Hawaii? It seems one needs photo ID to do things like board airplanes. This could be interesting… Oh… did I mention that the day after we get home, I need to fly out of state on business, and rent a car? It seems you need a driver’s license to rent a car.
Photo ID in two weeks. Yep. Sometimes I’m not very clever.

Wanda and I prayed. We asked our friends (via phone and e-mail) to pray. We prayed some more. And some more.

Fast forward two days. We’ve returned from an afternoon of snorkeling (Nope, didn’t have a document safe… didn’t have anything to put in it!). The phone rings, and it’s the lady at the front desk. She tells me that someone has found my safe, in tact, and has left her name, phone, and hotel information so that I can go claim it. I called Terry and she indeed had found my stuff. Since the hotel key was in it, she called to see if we were here. We were. We made arrangements to go over to her hotel… picked up a bottle of California sparkling wine (a nice Domaine Chandon Etoile), and headed out.

Met Terry and her husband rich in the lobby of their hotel on Kaanapali Beach. As you’d imagine, we asked where they found the little box. Apparently, Rich found it that morning at a place called Shipwreck Beach… on the island of Lana’i, across fourteen miles of open ocean channel. Seems they took the ferry 45 minutes to the neighboring island, took a tour bus to the top of same, and then rented a jeep, and drove down to this beach. Apparently, it’s not much of a swimming beach, but before they left, they wandered over to the water, Rich looked down, and there was my little box, having sailed itself across the sea.

Some might say, “What a coincidence!” Me, sometimes I’m not very clever… I’d just say God is unabashedly awesome!

Thanks Lord! (And I hope Terry and Rich enjoy the Domaine Chandon!) This picture is taken from where I lost the 'safe.' You can see where it was found in the distance.

Good Things -- Small Packages

There’s an old saying, “If you want something done, ask a busy man [person!].” I’m also familiar with a corollary axiom, “If you want something done, ask a lazy man [no PC clarifying remark].” The implication of the latter being that someone who is lazy will automatically know the easiest, fastest way to complete something so that the he might return to his indolence. Teaching fifth grade Sunday school, one often encounters the ‘lazy man’ when it comes to memorizing Scripture. 10 year-old boys often gravitate toward a strong sense of achievement, garnered while seeking short and easy verses to remember. I think beyond John 3:16, which seems requisite to any young life aspiring after Christ, then next most popular verse is John 11:35; renowned and appreciated for its brevity, if not downright terseness. In this verse, John writes, “Jesus wept.” Interestingly enough most of the contemporary translations of the Bible set forth this verse in pretty much the same way.

Well and good. The ten year-olds have a corner on “the shortest verse in the Bible.”

I encountered this verse the other day, of course in the larger context of the eleventh chapter of the Book of John. In this chapter, John’s narrative describes the death of Jesus’ friend Lazarus, and the reactions of those impacted by his death… Jesus, of course, Lazarus’ sisters Mary and Martha, and some of the neighbors in Bethany where the “Lazarus Family” lived. The tale talks ultimately about Jesus’ raising of Lazarus from the dead. We know that Jesus’ intent was to do this because early in the chapter, when told that Lazarus is very ill, He says, “Lazarus’s sickness will not end in death. (v4).” Jesus knows at the outset that He will have this opportunity to bring glory to God through the miracle of resurrection… he delays his departure to Bethany for four days… in essence assuring Lazarus’ passing… and yet, when the reality of Lazarus’ death actually confronts Jesus in Mary’s tears, Jesus too “weeps.” The question that arose for me was, “Why did Jesus weep?” Certainly not just to provide ten year-olds with a short verse.

Prayer, reflection, and some discussion led me to a more revealing conclusion. Let me offer the context of verse 35:

30Jesus had stayed outside the village, at the place where Martha met him. 31When the people who were at the house consoling Mary saw her leave so hastily, they assumed she was going to Lazarus’s grave to weep. So they followed her there. 32When Mary arrived and saw Jesus, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

33When Jesus saw her weeping and saw the other people wailing with her, a deep anger welled up within him, and he was deeply troubled. 34“Where have you put him?” he asked them. They told him, “Lord, come and see.” 35Then Jesus wept. 36The people who were standing nearby said, “See how much he loved him!” 37But some said, “This man healed a blind man. Couldn’t he have kept Lazarus from dying?”

38Jesus was still angry as he arrived at the tomb, a cave with a stone rolled across its entrance. 39“Roll the stone aside,” Jesus told them. But Martha, the dead man’s sister, protested, “Lord, he has been dead for four days. The smell will be terrible.” 40Jesus responded, “Didn’t I tell you that you would see God’s glory if you believe?” 41So they rolled the stone aside. Then Jesus looked up to heaven and said, “Father, thank you for hearing me. 42You always hear me, but I said it out loud for the sake of all these people standing here, so that they will believe you sent me.” 43Then Jesus shouted, “Lazarus, come out!” 44And the dead man came out, his hands and feet bound in graveclothes, his face wrapped in a headcloth. Jesus told them, “Unwrap him and let him go!”

Two facts spring (at least for me) from the page... one, as the 10 year-olds note so well, "Then Jesus wept." When confronted with the pain and anguish of Lazarus' sisters and neighbors, I beleive His heart overflowed with compassion, and He wept with them. This short, tiny verse speaks volumes about the heart of our Lord, and his true empathy with, and compassion for us.

John also tells us that Jesus was angry. Verses 33 and 38 attest to his ire -- so we're left with a question for the next post... Whay was Jesus angry?