Category: Reflections

Dearly Beloved,
Grace and Peace to you.
         
         
Tomorrow is the first day of Spring, but there’s six inches of snow in the yard and it’s still coming down. In the woods where days ago there were pools there are now piles of snow. We are ready for spring to come, but it comes in fits and starts. As a little girl once said, “I’ve figured out the seasons. It goes summer, autumn, winter, spring, winter, spring, winter, spring.” Of course all the seasons do that. This is just the Vernal version of Indian Winter. We notice it most in spring because we long so deeply for renewal.

Sunday is Palm Sunday, and as Jesus enters Jerusalem we’ll celebrate him as a king, shouting praise. But before the service is over we’ll be shouting, “Crucify him!” Winter, spring, winter…. We are saved, but we are still working out our salvation. We are one with God and with all Creation, but we trust our oneness only in fits and starts. We who are made new still long for renewal. We believe; God help our unbelief.

Neither we nor the Church nor society are “getting better every day.” Some days we get worse. But Jesus understands. He knows his disciples will deny him, but says, “Listen! Satan has demanded to sift all of you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your own faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned back, strengthen your sisters and brothers” (Lk. 22.31-32).

Neither our inner nor our outer lives are one smooth, simple arc like a hit baseball. The path is rough and winding. We rise and fall, dip and swing, lurch and stop and lurch again. Stuff happens. But through it all, Jesus walks with us and prays for us. The Spirit bears us on. Spring is in us still, working its life-giving magic, producing renewal. It just doesn’t come all at once, forever. The Beloved breathes in us, and even in our failures and desolations we are becoming more fully the beloved people God creates us to be. Under the snow the crocuses keep pushing up; the buds still swell on the trees.

Even when spring reverts to winter in your soul, shovel the snow, but keep the faith. We are being transformed, from one degree of glory to another. We are being re-created. The world is turning, and our inconsistencies can’t stop it. The Spirit is living and growing in you. Wait for the Lord.

Deep Blessings,
Pastor Steve

__________________
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
Unfolding Light
www.unfoldinglight.net

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Dearly Beloved,
Grace and Peace to you.
         
         

The morning is cold,
sky loaded up with gray,
trees silent, holding
buds in their tiny fists.
Snow has been melting,
but now has second thoughts,
as if spring is further off
than we’d hoped.
Something in the air
is yet to come.

In the woods
the trees are so still,
pondering maybe.

But they are not waiting,
not preparing.
This is just
what they are doing
today.

_____________________

Weather Report

Today expect today,
unfolding in the present moment
like a spark,
as a high pressure area
of preoccupation with something else
is pushed off into the past
and turns out to be nothing.

Deep Blessings,
Pastor Steve

__________________
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
Unfolding Light
www.unfoldinglight.net

To subscribe to Unfolding Light by daily e-mail write to unfoldinglight8(at)hotmail.com

Dearly Beloved,
Grace and Peace to you.
         
         
         Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard,
         anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair.
         Jesus said, “She bought it so that she might keep it
         for the day of my burial.”
                  —John 12. 3,7

The angel of your death
         anoints your feet
                  with fragrant oil
and dries them with her hair.

She loves you, and gives
         the sadness of your dying,
                  the sacredness of your living
back to you.

She alone feels
         your death approaching,
                  knows how precious is your life,
how fleeting.

She gives you,
         before you enter
                  the world’s wound,
her healing balm.

Only thus anointed
         will these feet lead you
                  to stand with those
who suffer.

Befriend your mortality.
         Attend to the hands
                  of death on your feet,
the fragrance of the present.

Always there are the dreams,
         the opportunities, but
                  she awakens you to
this moment.

Welcome her gift,
         the deep desire
                  that in this time
you do what is in you to do.

Let her touch you
         so closely,
                  arouse you to live
while you can.

Deep Blessings,
Pastor Steve

__________________
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
Unfolding Light
www.unfoldinglight.net

To subscribe to Unfolding Light by daily e-mail write to unfoldinglight5(at)hotmail.com

         How joyful I am, Beloved,
         that you forgive my betrayals,
         you erase my sins.
How joyful, Beloved, that I am
         good enough for you!
You have burned away from me
         what is not me.

When I repressed what I knew
         it festered in my flesh.
Something in me wept all day;
         morning till night
I felt the weight of the truth;
         I was shriveled and dry.
                                             (Hm.)
Then I got honest with you
         instead of trying to pretend.
I said, “Here I am. This is the real me.”
         —And you accepted me just so!
                                             (Hm.)

So we open our hearts to you.
Even in a tidal wave of chaos
         the raging water can’t reach us
You are a safe place to hide,
         always between us and trouble
Setting us free, you come at us with open arms,
         with happy shouts of welcome.
                                             (Hm.)

You say, “I will show you a way for your life.
         I will whisper to you from within.
Don’t be like a stubborn mule,
         so sure you know right,
who has to be led with a bridle
         to keep from wandering off.”

Our selfishness only makes trouble for us.
         But trust in the Holy One,
         and we’re surrounded by faithful love.
O, Beloved, how joyful we are who love you!
         How the trusting find nothing but delight!

__________________
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
Unfolding Light
www.unfoldinglight.net

To subscribe to Unfolding Light by daily e-mail write to unfoldinglight8(at)hotmail.com

Dearly Beloved,
Grace and Peace to you.
         
         
         In Christ God was reconciling the world to God,
         not counting their trespasses against them.
         So we entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
         For our sake God made Christ to be sin who knew no sin,
         so that in Christ we might become the righteousness of God.
                  —2 Corinthians 5.19, 20

The dark words, the slammed doors, the hastily packed
suitcase of looks and sentences, acid doubts,
blurry questions of guilt unspoken, unchecked,
the plea unanswered, the curse still burning,
the tangled silences, so much held back, such
passionate asking withheld, sorrow entombed in ice,
mishearing magnified by distance and memory,
the long, poisoned absence and its shadow,
the lost years, the nothing between you
that has become a something,
a wasteland, a long way to walk in regret,
the not knowing what you did wrong, and knowing,
the fine, inseparable mix of it being your fault and not,
your disappointment in both of you, the hidden,
unspeakable disappointment—
this is the unbridgeable gulf,
                                            so narrow, really, so thin,
the Beloved leaps into, and fills with all her being,
becomes the failure itself, becomes the gaping wound,
who all along has been your passion, your loneliness,
your unquenchable love seeking love,
so that there is no space at all, no separation.
Even in a distant land you re held.

Beyond the useless command to make things right
is her patient, simple plea
                                         to let it happen.

Deep Blessings,
Pastor Steve

__________________
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
Unfolding Light
www.unfoldinglight.net

To subscribe to Unfolding Light by daily e-mail write to unfoldinglight5(at)hotmail.com

Dearly Beloved,
Grace and Peace to you.
         
         
         Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard,
         anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair.
         The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.
                  – John 12.3

Despite all desire
and its loveliness,
         — a giving away.

In the sight of those
who criticize,
         —a pouring out.

Amidst the stench
of death and violence,
         —the aroma of life.

Among those
who do not understand,
         —tenderness.

Though there are those
who divide and separate,
         —a being with.

Within reach of those
who strike,
         —a gentle touch.

In sight of the grave
and those who threaten,
         —hope.

For the sake of those
who suffer,
         —a blessing.

At the feet of those
who are accused,
         —compassion.

Throughout the house
of fear,
         —the fragrance of grace.
         

Deep Blessings,
Pastor Steve
__________________
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
Unfolding Light
www.unfoldinglight.net

To subscribe to Unfolding Light by daily e-mail write to unfoldinglight5(at)hotmail.com

Dearly Beloved,
Grace and Peace to you.
         
         
Surely you have them, things on the dresser,
a beer mug from college, a cracked figurine
of an angel your sister gave you,
a small wooden box with special whatnots in it:
a token from a Scandinavian trolley, a peso,
your father’s cuff link, just one, a bit of ribbon
from your wedding invitation, a heart shaped rock.
Maybe on your dresser there are a picture or two.
An old yellow and blue photo of your parents
in the eighties, wearing brown, and one of
you and your sweetheart near the corner
of a house the year after your honeymoon,
looking wise and perfect and a little unsure,
with your dog, dead now, but in the photo
all there, though he does not know why.
Something about that photo is still in you,
you always want it there. You look at it.
Every time you dust the dresser
you move the box, the angel, the pictures,
the mug. You would never think
of not having them. They live there.
Imagine yourself, surrounded by
the ordinary little things in this life,
sitting here on God’s dresser.

Deep Blessings,
Pastor Steve

__________________
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
Unfolding Light
www.unfoldinglight.net

To subscribe to Unfolding Light by daily e-mail write to unfoldinglight8(at)hotmail.com

Dearly Beloved,
Grace and Peace to you.
         
         
         While the younger son was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. “Quickly, bring out a robe—the best one—and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. And get the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!”
        He came out and began to plead with his older son, “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.”
                  — from Luke 15.11-31

The prodigal father extends love and blessing to both his sons. No demands, no qualifications, no judgments, no favoritism. He sets aside any judgment of either son, simply wanting to be in relationship with them. He loves them both, offers himself to them both, and invites both of them to share his joy.

If our Prodigal God is this generous, forgiving and inclusive, how can we be otherwise? If God declines to judge and punish, how can we? Jesus embodies God, giving himself for the sake of the poor, welcoming the outcast, taking his place among the condemned, offering nothing but love and life. And we seek to follow him, to be godlike in the same way.

Prodigal God,
grant us our share of your Spirit,
that by your grace in us we will be
lavishly loving and extravagantly generous,
extending blessing to all without prejudice.
We reject the labels of “sinner” and “righteous,”
for all people are your beloved, sinful children,
and our righteousness comes from you alone.
May we be like you in offering hospitality
to those who walk outside our ways.
Give us courage to hold fast to our mercy
despite those who want us to judge.
May we include all people as our family,
willing to leave our places of comfort and belonging
to welcome the rejected and the outsiders,
to be one even with the condemned.
May we take risks to defend the ties that bind us,
that make us one body in your grace.
In the Spirit of Christ, God,
make us your prodigal people,
wildly generous with your love,
and deeply joyful in your blessing. Amen.

Deep Blessings,
Pastor Steve

__________________
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
Unfolding Light
www.unfoldinglight.net

To subscribe to Unfolding Light by daily e-mail write to unfoldinglight8(at)hotmail.com

Dearly Beloved,
Grace and Peace to you.
         
         
         There was a man who had two sons. The younger of them said to his father, “Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.” So he divided his property between them. A few days later the younger son gathered all he had and traveled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property. …
         …But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. Then the son said to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.” But the father said to his slaves, “Quickly, bring out a robe—the best one—and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. And get the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!” …
         Now his elder son was in the field… and he became angry and refused to go in. His father came out and began to plead with him. But he answered his father, “Listen! For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him!” Then the father said to him, “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.”
         — from Luke 15.11-32

Notice that the sons act exactly alike. Each one:
         – scorns his father
         – removes himself at a physical distance
         – expresses a desire not for love, kinship or blessing but goods
         – make judgments of his worthiness
         – expresses bitterness and brokenness
         – attempts to break his family ties
         – is not prepared to receive what the father offers

And the father treats them both exactly the same, regardless of their behavior, obedience or status, anything we might call “righteousness.” Both times the father
         – goes out from the house to the son
         – expresses kindness and joy
         – refutes the son’s judgment
         – offers more than is legally “due” the son
         – turns the focus from goods to relationships
         – re-establishes the son’s family ties
         – invites him in to the house to celebrate

The word “prodigal” does not mean “wayward,” as many believe (based on our tendency to join the brothers in making judgments). It means wastefully or recklessly extravagant, extraordinarily generous, giving “prodigiously.” The term was meant to refer to the younger son’s lavish living—but it’s really the father who’s prodigal, isn’t it? The father extends generous grace and love to both sons when neither of them “deserve” it.

Coming on the heels of the story of the lost coin and the lost sheep, this is clearly the Parable of the Lost Sons. In his judgment, selfishness and bitterness the older son is as lost to the father as the younger one was. When we judge ourselves or others, measuring our supposed “deserving,” we have left the family; we’re in a foreign land far from God’s perfect, all-including love.

This is the Parable of the Prodigal God who only wants one thing for all of us, regardless of how inappropriately we judge ourselves and one another: God wants us back. God wants us close. God wants us to be family with God and with on another. That’s all.

Our “righteousness” is not a measure of our goodness, obedience or worthiness; it’s a measure of God’s love for us. It’s our good standing in God’s eyes, determined by God’s love, not our behavior. As Paul says, it’s “not a righteousness of my own but one that comes from God” (Phil. 3.9).

This is not just a story about how we ought to repent. It’s about God’s desire for us, God’s absolute generosity in the face of our brokenness and betrayal, God’s immutable joy and faith in us, God’s pure love, unalloyed with even a bit of wrath, condemnation or despair. In light of this, repentance is abandoning our judgments about “deserving,” and saying yes to God’s ridiculous, unfounded love.

While we are still far off the Mother sees us and is filled with compassion. She runs to us and puts her arms around us and kisses us. She rejoices:”You, my child, were dead and are alive again! We must celebrate!” Before you go in to the party in amazement, hesitate just a moment in her warm, enveloping arms. Soak in the love. Feel the joy. Take in the wonder. Let it tell you who you are, in this moment and for eternity: God’s Beloved.

Deep Blessings,
Pastor Steve

__________________
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
Unfolding Light
www.unfoldinglight.net

To subscribe to Unfolding Light by daily e-mail write to unfoldinglight8(at)hotmail.com

Dearly Beloved,
Grace and Peace to you.
         
         
         When he came to himself he said, “How many of my father’s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger! I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.'” …
         … His elder brother was in the field… He became angry and refused to go in… His father came out and began to plead with him. But he answered his father, “For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came back…you killed the fatted calf for him!’
                  —from Luke 15. 17-30

The younger brother distances himself from his father by essentially wishing his father’s death, by seeking his father’s goods instead of a relationship with him, and by going away. Even upon his return the son intends to break the familial relationship: “I am not worthy to be called your son; treat me as a hired hand.”

We usually paint the older brother as the righteous one, but the older brother is an exact mirror of the younger. He distances himself, staying out in the field and refusing to come in, so that the father has to come out to him. He expresses no love for his father or desire for his father’s love, but only for goods. He sees his relationship with his father in terms of “obeying your command” but not love. (In fact he’s quite rude and spiteful.) Mirroring his brother’s attempt to break the familial bond (“treat me like a hired hand”), he says he has worked “like a slave” and calls his brother “this son of yours,” as if they’re not related.

If we’ve thought of the older brother as the righteous one, it’s because he’s been obedient. But he’s selfish, bitter and unloving. Both brothers are equally wasteful (“prodigal”) of their father’s love. And the father does not seem to want obedience—he wants a loving relationship, and offers it to both sons alike. Righteousness is not obedience; it’s love.

The failure of our love—distancing ourselves from God and one another— is at the heart of our sin. In our self-centeredness we break our family bond with God and with others, as if we’re not related. It is not just of our disobedience that we repent, but of our distance, our refusing to get close to God and to others, including those whom we judge.

The good news is that in the end we are unable to break that bond. Despite our attempt to disown God and each other, God stays related to us and keeps us related to each other. The father puts a ring on the younger brother’s finger—a symbol of family. And he corrects the older brother and calls the younger one “this brother of yours.” Despite their failures he invites them both in to the party. The righteousness that we need is not obedience. It’s a loving relationship—and this is not our own doing; it is the gift of God.

In repentance we pray toward both God and neighbor, “I am not on my own. I am yours.”

Deep Blessings,
Pastor Steve

__________________
Steve Garnaas-Holmes
Unfolding Light
www.unfoldinglight.net

To subscribe to Unfolding Light by daily e-mail write to unfoldinglight8(at)hotmail.com