Monday Morning in the Psalms- January 18, 2021

 

Psalm 86

A Prayer for God's Continued Mercy

86 1  Hear me, Lord, and answer me, for I am poor and needy. 2  Guard my life, for I am faithful to you; save your servant who trusts in you. You are my God; 3  have mercy on me, Lord, for I call to you all day long. 4  Bring joy to your servant, Lord, for I put my trust in you. 5  You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to you. 6  Hear my prayer, Lord; listen to my cry for mercy. 7  When I am in distress, I call to you, because you answer me.

8  Among the gods there is none like you, Lord; no deeds can compare with yours. 9  All the nations you have made will come and worship before you, Lord; they will bring glory to your name. 10  For you are great and do marvelous deeds; you alone are God. 11  Teach me your way, Lord, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. 12  I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever. 13  For great is your love toward me; you have delivered me from the depths, from the realm of the dead. 14  Arrogant foes are attacking me, O God; ruthless people are trying to kill me- they have no regard for you. 15  But you, Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness. 16  Turn to me and have mercy on me; show your strength in behalf of your servant; save me, because I serve you just as my mother did. 17  Give me a sign of your goodness, that my enemies may see it and be put to shame, for you, Lord, have helped me and comforted me.

I started out 2021 preaching an Epiphany series called, "God is speaking", each week looking at passages of Scripture where God spoke in a unique way, and then looking to where God is speaking in our lives today. To do this, we have to listen to God.

This Psalm, while having to do with a word from God, is asking to listen to us. 

Psalm 86 is in book 2 of the book of Psalms (remember that the 150 Psalms are divided into 5 "books"), and is the only Psalm in book 2 written by David. And while we call the Book of Psalms the "prayer book of the Bible", this Psalm in particular is a beautiful psalm of prayer and petition. 

"Hear me, Lord" the psalm begins. Some translations say, "Incline your ear, O Lord".  I have a leather recliner in my living room. It was given to me by the previous pastor who lived in this parsonage. It's probably one of the most comfortable recliners I have ever sat in. But you don't really get the full effect by sitting in it, you need to recline in it. You probably are familiar with what it means to recline. 

But in the first verse the psalmist is petitioning God to incline. To incline means to lean in. A few years ago Bishop Richard Looney (who, by the way, gave me teh recliner), led the morning Bible studies at Annual Conference at Lake Junaluska. One morning we took this phrase and talked it about for a good 15 minutes. What does it mean to incline? When we incline we are moving physically closer to the person to whom we are inclining towards. When we incline we are probably making eye contact, more connected to the person we are inclining towards. 

And so to begin this prayer, David is asking God to come closer. Literally to incline to me, or come down here. 

When my children were younger and they had something important to tell me, they would often want me to "come down here". To be more on thier level, to see the thing as they saw it, and to be sure that I was hearing the important thing they wanted to say. 

Prayer is like that. We are asking God to incline towards us, to literally "come down here" because this is really important to me, Lord.

But not only does David ask God to incline, David also asks God to answer. In fact, I believe that David is actually expecting an answer. Do you? 

Take a look through the requests of this prayer:

• hear me 
• answer me
• guard me
• have mercy on me
• bring joy to me
• hear me
• listen to me
• answer me
• teach me
• give me an undivived heart
• turn to me
• have mercy on me
• save me
• give me a sign

David makes bold requests, he never shys away from asking God for exactly what he needs because he knows that God is capabale, that God is able, and that God is ready to give.

This week I encourage you to lose yourself and find yourself in Psalm 86. 

What thoughts do you have on this Psalm? How is God speaking to you today through these verses? What word from the Lord is being spoken to your heart? What prayers do you need God to incline towards you to hear today?

Feel free to comment below and use this week's post as a forum to engage more deeply with this psalm.

Monday morning in the Psalms - January 11, 2021

 The lectionary reading from the Psalter for next Sunday (Jan 17, 2021) is this:

Psalm 139

For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.

1 You have searched me, Lord,
    and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and when I rise;
    you perceive my thoughts from afar.
3 You discern my going out and my lying down;
    you are familiar with all my ways.
4 Before a word is on my tongue
    you, Lord, know it completely.
5 You hem me in behind and before,
    and you lay your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
    too lofty for me to attain.

7 Where can I go from your Spirit?
    Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
    if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
    if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will guide me,
    your right hand will hold me fast.
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
    and the light become night around me,”
12 even the darkness will not be dark to you;
    the night will shine like the day,
    for darkness is as light to you.

13 For you created my inmost being;
    you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
    your works are wonderful,
    I know that full well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you
    when I was made in the secret place,
    when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my unformed body;
    all the days ordained for me were written in your book
    before one of them came to be.
17 How precious to me are your thoughts,[a] God!
    How vast is the sum of them!
18 Were I to count them,
    they would outnumber the grains of sand—
    when I awake, I am still with you.

19 If only you, God, would slay the wicked!
    Away from me, you who are bloodthirsty!
20 They speak of you with evil intent;
    your adversaries misuse your name.
21 Do I not hate those who hate you, Lord,
    and abhor those who are in rebellion against you?
22 I have nothing but hatred for them;
    I count them my enemies.
23 Search me, God, and know my heart;
    test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 See if there is any offensive way in me,
    and lead me in the way everlasting.

Devotional Thoughts

When I was younger my mom and I listened to A LOT of Elvis Presley. And so maybe that's why there are certain things that when I hear them, it reminds me of the King of Rock n' Roll. This Psalm does that to me as well. 

King David, after acknowledging the omniscience of God (that God knows all things), asks a very direct (and perhaps slightly redundant question). 

"Where can I go that God is not?" (Verses 7-12)

As I ponder David's question, I hear Elvis asking it his way, "Where could I go but to the Lord?"

Take a listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_s23-_uK4w

And then, as David describes the omnipresence of God, he moves into a full on praise of who God is. 

I invite you to reflect on this Psalm throughout the coming week and the beautiful imagery that it gives us such as:

• "You have searched me and know me, O God"
• "I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made"
• "How precious to me are your thoughts, God!"

These alone could be a lifetime of prayers for us, and yet the last 2 verses of the Psalm are to me perhaps the most striking of all. 

• Search me
• Test me
• See

Pastor and author Craig Groeschel uses verse 23 as a starting point in his book, Dangerous Prayers.

And I believe this is just that, a dangerous prayer, not meant to be prayed unless you mean it.

Asking God, who knows everything, who can uncover anything, and who shines His light on all things, to search me completely in my heart? All of my personal skeletens that I want to keep in the closet? All of my imperfections that I try to gloss over and known sins that I have buried?

Yes. 

That is want David wants God to search for. Not because God doesn't already know it there (he's covered the omniscient thing already), but because David is ready for God to show it to him. 

But David keeps on praying!

Now, test me and know my anxious thoughts. 

If we are honest, many of us have many anxious thoughts. Perhaps more in the past year than we ever have. And yet in John 14 Jesus told us, "Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not be afraid."

Where are your anxious thoughts today? How has a spirit of anxiety gripped you during this season of our lives? Are you ready to let Jesus in here?

Yes.

And finally, David asks God to see if there is anything offensive in him, and to lead him into an eternal path (the "way everlasting" referring to an eternal journey with God). 

Is there anything offensive in me today. 

YES! 

And so I wonder if these last 2 verses might be a wonderful way to settle into hearing what God desires to speak into our life this week?

I would love to hear your thoughts, and where God is leading you. Feel free to comment below, or email at mvaughn114@gmail.com

I hope to get some thoughts here on the Psalms every Monday, so Subscribe to the blog and get an email notification every time there is something new. 

Blessings on your Monday, and I pray you carry Psalm 139 with you wherever you go. 

After all, "Where can we go but to the Lord?"

Why do you want to be back in Church?

 "I just wish we could be back in church!"

How many times have you said that over the past 10 months? I know that I have many times! And yet, of course, we know that the building is not the church. Now more than ever we know that. We know that we as the people of God are the Church of God, the living stones of the temple of God with God's own Spirit dwelling in us.

For the churches that I pastor, we stopped in person worship last March, then were back together again for outside worship over the summer, then stopped in person worship again, then were back together for in person worship inside, then stopped again when Heather and I were quarantined, then back, and then stopped. Whew! It's like we never knew week to week what we would be doing. You can probably identify with that as well, right?

And so we lamented, "I just wish we could be back in church!"

And I agree. 

But today I wonder...why?

That might sound like a strange (or loaded) question, but I am serious. 

Why do you want to be "back in church"?

This week I picked up an 86 year-old church member and drove him to the church building so that he could go in and pray. He used to be in the building 3-4 times a week, watering flowers, checking on the building to ensure nothing needed to be fixed, and sitting in prayer. Now he is unable physically to go on his own as he is on oxygen constantly, so I picked him (and his O2 tank) up and we drove to Telford UMC.

We sat in the dimly lit santuary withour any other light except for the hazy streams coming through the stained glass. We talked for a moment about the beauty of the place, and the serenity and peace that he felt while here. We prayed and I anointed him with oil. 

And then he told me that he only had a little more than 20 minutes left in his oxygen tank, and asked me if I had any work I needed to do in the office. 

He is rarely subtle, but I picked up on his need, and I left alone to pray for the next 20 minutues. 

I believe that he appreciated the time he spent with me. I believe that he genuinely appreciated praying with me. And I believe that he was blessed by the oil we shared. 

And yet there was something more that he needed. 

He just wanted to be back in Church, just like we all have been saying. And yet as I stood behind this man as he prayed, I wonder if we share the same reasons for our want.

Why do you want to be back in Church? 

Is it that you miss being around others, in particular your church member family? This is not a bad reason at all! 

Christian fellowship is vitally important to who we are as disciples, and integrated into the very fabric of what being a cohesive "body" is about. In fact, Hebrews 10:25 reminds us to "not give up meeting together". Part of this is because we need one another to "spur (us) on toward love and good deeds" (Hebrews 10:24), but also because we were created to be in community. 

And we have been, even in our distance. Thanks be to God for this wonderful age that we live in where we have been able to remain connected in some ways, even when we have been physically apart. 

Or maybe your reason for wanting to be back in Church is to be reconnected with a mission or ministry that your Church has been involved in that has been altered over the past year. That is not a bad reason at all! 

In both Churches I serve, there are ministries that have been forced to stop due to this pandemic. But, there are new ministries that have emerged, as well. 

We have a desire to serve others, that is at the core of who we are also. We strive to love by living out the words of Jesus that, "I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me" (Matthew 25:35-36).

Or maybe your reason for wanting to be back in Church is to sing. And that is not a bad reason at all!

I think back on all the conversations that I have with church members over the years about singing and music in worship, and how many times these conversations centered around what they "liked" in worship, i.e., Contemporary and praise bands or Traditional with a robed choir, or some blend in between. I wonder if when we are able to once again safely gather inside a building for worship and sing together if we will still care so much about that, or if we will simply be so grateful to stand with others and sing praises that we won't care if we are accompanied by an organ or a band. 

The book of Psalms, the prayer book of the Bible, says much about singing. In fact, the beginning of the 105th chapter tells us to "Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of his wonderful acts. Glory in his holy name, let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!" (Psalm 105:2-3). I have heard it said that to sing is to pray twice. I love that image. We were in years past known as the "Singing Methodists". What a beautiful accolade! When we are so full of joy we sing. When we are struggling in despair and pain we sing. When we gather together we sing. I picture the Sulphur Springs Camp Meeting worship services as I think of this singing. Hundreds of people of all ages, gathered outside on wooden pews, singing praises that fill the air, echo through a community, and bless the heart of God. 

And yet we can still sing. We can sing as we make our morning coffee, we can sing as we drive to work, we can sing in our hearts as we "give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever!" (Psalm 106:1). My bathroom is filled with singing every morning as my wife gets ready for her day. I have seen some amazing and uplifting videos where people sing in thier own homes, and then their songs are integrated with others from around the world singing the same song. Songs sung by different people, in different places, at different times, sometimes even in different languages, but brought together digitally in one voice of praise. (Thank you to our global United Methodist Church for the connections we have with this "UMC Virtual Christmas Choir").

Or maybe your reason for wanting to be back in Church is to hear a rousing sermon by the preacher you love. And that is not a bad reason at all! 

Bishop Richard Looney served at Telford UMC from 2009-2012

Craig Zirkle heard his call into pastoral ministry at Telford and is currently serving a charge in the Three Rivers District

One of the things I miss the most is preaching about the love and grace of God to a gathered together in-person group of people, and interacting with them through the dialogue of the sermon and Scripture. 

And yet we all have access to a wealth of sermons from books and the internet to TV. And while none of them can replace hearing "your" pastor speak directly to you (because she/he is the one who knows you and what you are going through and how the Scriptures directly relate to where you find yourselves), there is a good word in there to hear. 

And hopefully your pastor had been already teaching and preaching in a way to prepare you to hear words from others, and rightfully discern what is true and what is right, taking what you need and leaving what you don't.

As I write these words I would also say that I am teaching more now than I ever have. From Sunday morning worship services, to Facebook Live Bible study that is co-led with my wife, to a virtual Children's Sunday School and an upcoming Youth ZOOM group, the opportunities to engage have grown as opportunities to by physically with one another have been altered.  

So, why do you want to be "back in Church?"

While all of the reasons listed above, and probably more (yes, like potlucks!) are valid reasons that we can all identify with, I wonder if the real reason for us is that for perhaps for many years, this has been a place for us to feel the presence of God in a unique way. Yes, of course, God is always with us. There is no where that we can go that God is not (Psalm 139), and the Spirit of the living God dwells within us. 

But there are some places where we feel more, well, connected. And I wonder if the sanctuary, this "safe place", is one of these distintively special and holy places. 

I wonder if our reason for really wanting to be back in Church is as pure as the man I took to pray. 

A holy want and desire to simply sit in the presence of his Lord, to feel a sense of peace in a world that has been anything but peaceful in many ways as of late, to be in a place free of distractions and noises and competing voices so that the small, still, loving and accepting voice of the Holy Spirit could be heard, and discerned. 

After our 20 minutes were up I took him home. Then I went back to the sanctuary and sat in the darkening quiet space myself. And I realized in that moment why I want to be back in Church.

But who is my enemy?

Here is a lectionary based devotion that ran today as part of the Holston Conference daily devo emails. 

Luke 6:27-31

27 “But I say to you who are willing to hear: Love your enemies. Do good to those who hate you. 28 Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who mistreat you. 29 If someone slaps you on the cheek, offer the other one as well. If someone takes your coat, don’t withhold your shirt either. 30 Give to everyone who asks and don’t demand your things back from those who take them. 31 Treat people in the same way that you want them to treat you.

 

 

Devotion

I believe that most people are familiar with this last verse, even if they don’t know that Jesus said it. We know it as the “golden rule,” to do unto others as you would have them do unto you. But to really get to the heart of this “rule of life”, we need to go back and see the context in which Jesus spoke these words.

 

Luke’s gospel speaks often and directly to the marginalized, the poor, and the oppressed, and in particular to those who have the power, and those on whom that power is wielded.

 

And so Jesus calls his followers to do good, to offer blessings, to pray, to not seek retaliation, and to give freely without expectation or even repayment.

 

And the basis for all these actions, Jesus said, is in “loving your enemies.”

 

Have you ever wondered who Jesus had in mind?

 

Who is my enemy?

 

Later in Luke’s gospel Jesus told an expert in the law to, “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.” To this the man asked a very pointed question: “And who is my neighbor?” (Luke 10:27-28).

 

Jesus’ response was to give us the beautiful parable of the Good Samaritan.

 

That answered the question, “who is my neighbor?”

 

But what about the question, “who is my enemy?”

 

Unfortunately we don’t have a cocky expert in the law asking Jesus this question on this occasion, so we are simply left with what Jesus said, and our own lives to interpret this.

 

Later Jesus had said, “If you love only those who love you, why should you be commended?” (Luke 6:32).

 

In one sense perhaps our enemies are those who do not love us. But in another, perhaps our enemies are those who we do not really love. Perhaps there is a stronger connection between our neighbor and our enemy than we often admit. Sometimes it is the people who are closest to us, that we disagree on one thing with, that can be most contentious. Maybe it is religion, or politics, or any host of other issues that seek to divide us as followers of Christ and as the Church.

 

And yet Jesus seems clear on what the response of his followers should be, whether to neighbor, or enemy, or both. And that is love.

 

Love God. Love others.

 

And yet Jesus began by saying, “I say to you who are willing to hear”.

 

And maybe that’s the catch here. Are we willing to hear this command of love? Are we willing to hear this command of love and actually live it out in doing good to those who hate us, blessing those who cuss us out, praying for those who mistreat us, turning the other cheek when we are slapped, and giving without expectation.

 

Are we willing to really love those who vote differently, live differently, love differently?

 

Are we willing to do all these things to others with the hope that they will return and do these things to us? And will we keep doing these things when our neighbor/enemy doesn’t reciprocate? Will we just….love?

 

Prayer

Holy and Loving God, as we are beginning this new year, help us to really love You and others today and every day. Amen.

Shalom Aleichim

 

 

This time of the year we talk a lot about peace.

I love this clip from Miss Congeniality (Sandra Bullock, 2000).

It’s almost cliché now, this idea that world peace is even possible in our lives. In 1969 John Lennon and Yoko Ono sang a song called, Give peace a chance (listen here) And while it was an anti-war protest song, at the heart of the message was the idea that humanity has a role to play in the peace of the world. Maybe John and Yoko were getting to the heart of a theological dilemma.

Is peace possible?

This past year has seen an increase in incident and an in intensity in racial and social upheaval in our country. Covid-19 has been a peace-stealer for a lot of people. Wars are commonplace for many nations in the world, and even though we aren’t technically “at war” as a country at the moment we have over 150,000 US troops currently stationed overseas. There are political wars in the Middle East, the economic wars in several countries in Africa, the race war that continues to be fought, the drug wars in Mexico and South America, there is just such war, and division all over the world.

And we haven’t even begun to talk about our own inner struggles. The tensions in many families, depression and anxiety. We are a culture that is the most stressed out of any people to ever live. There are even members in our United Methodist Church who want the Church to separate next year because we can’t agree on how our doctrine should reflect our understanding of human sexuality. And we’ve been fighting amongst ourselves every General Conference since 1972.

Is peace even possible?

Let’s try to get a good definition of peace. Because it’s not just the absence of conflict. I have seen family members who are great mediators in the midst of a family feud. It’s not just the absence of pain. I’ve seen chaplains who embodied a peaceful presence in the midst of suffering and dying.

Peace is not so much about what’s happening—OUT THERE, but rather what is happening—IN HERE, inside our hearts and minds.

When the Bible talks about peace, which it does over 300 times, it uses a Hebrew word called Shalom. In fact a common greeting during this time was “Shalom Aleichim”, which means “Peace be with you.”

The rabbis define Shalom as completeness, and soundness, as an ethical state of mind. The Apostle Paul said Shalom was a fruit that comes from living a life grounded in the Spirit, and the author of Hebrews said that Shalom is something that we are all to strive toward in our living to be at peace with everyone.

Jesus said the shalom-makers, the peacemakers, those who actively work toward the pursuit of peace are blessed, and will be called the children of God.

But is peace possible? In our world and in our lives?

There is an old hymn that proclaims, “Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.”

Psalm 85 is a wonderful picture of peace in the. Verse 8 says, “I will listen to what God the Lord says, he promises peace to his people.”

I believe that God is speaking to each of us right now, in this moment.

But if we aren’t listening, how will we ever hear him standing at the door knocking?

How will we ever hear him saying you are my beloved in whom I am well pleased?

How will we ever him reminding us we were created in his divine image?

And how will we ever hear him say my peace I give to you. I do not give as the world gives, so do not let your heart be troubled, and do not be afraid? Unless—we are listening?

 

When the heavenly choir arrived on the scene at Jesus’ birth this is how Luke describes it: “Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace, goodwill toward men” (Luke 2:13-14).

Peace on earth. Offered through the Prince of Peace. That’s a beautiful image.

But read how Psalm 85 describes it: “Love and faithfulness meet together, righteousness and peace kiss each other. Faithfulness springs forth from the earth, and righteousness looks down from heaven” (Psalm 85:10-11)

Perhaps peace is not found in a treaty or a contract, but in a…kiss.

Only a poet would describe it this way. But maybe that’s how we are meant to understand peace.

Is world peace possible in our lifetime? I believe yes it is! But peace is the promise of God to his faithful servants.

If you don’t know Jesus as the Lord of your life then peace isn’t possible.

But if you do then peace is a fruit that the Spirit is cultivating in you, so work with the Spirit. Pray for peace. Seek after peace. Work toward peace.

And then, in the words of the Apostle Paul to the Philippian churches, “may the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus, Our Lord.”
Shalom Aleichim.

At the Table

  I have been really focused on the idea of “the table” lately. Not so much because I just want to eat at one, although I do enjoy that. But mainly the idea of the table as an extension of the Church ministry; a picture that is very compelling to me, as well as being able to answer the questions, “Is everyone invited to the table, and does everyone have a seat at the table?”

    

This has prompted a November sermon series in the two churches I serve called, “At the Table” in which we are wrestling with these questions in our own context by looking at times in the Bible when Jesus sat down with people at a table to eat. There are many times in Scripture where we see the importance of sitting down together and sharing a meal. I believe that this can be a holy act, and the table can be so much more than just a wooden structure that holds our food. It can be a holy setting where God is indeed with those gathered together in eating, drinking, and conversation. 

Luke 5:27-32 recounts Jesus calling Levi to “come, follow me.” And Levi does. He leaves his tax collector booth, his job, his way of life, and he takes off to follow this itinerant preacher as the newest disciple. 

But we are also told that Levi does something else, he throws Jesus a party! And he invites all his friends. But since Levi was a tax collector, those are the only friends he has, and so he invites them to the party. All of this causes a stir for the religious leaders of the day, the Pharisees, and so they ask Jesus’ disciples a question.

“Why do you eat with and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”

It’s a great question, and one that the disciples don’t even get a chance to answer because Jesus jumps in with the answer. And before we look at what Jesus said, I want us to think about our own tables for a minute. The literal tables where we eat with family and friends, as well as the metaphorical table of the church’s hospitality and invitational outreach. Do the people at our tables look just like us, think just like us, vote just like us, sin just like us, or do we have a variety of different people at the table? 

I am convinced more every day, that Jesus is the table setter and that we are simply supposed to extend the invitation to others to come to a table that we have not prepared, that we have not set, and that we do not get to pick and choose who gets invited, or even how they respond. 

I wonder if more people who disagreed about more things would sit down at a table and eat together, could they come together? I don’t mean would one person be able to change another person’s mind, I just mean would they be more likely to accept the differences that they encounter, and find more common similarities that they share. Could it be that what we have in common is more than what we differ on? I don’t want to oversimplify this, and I know that there are so many very important things that we disagree on, even in the Church. I am just wondering if maybe our role as the Church, the Body of Christ, is to be more of an inviter-to-the-table as opposed to a discerner-of-who-gets-to-eat. 

I know that many of us, deep down inside, want to welcome all people to the table, especially the ones we deem as the “sinners”. After all, that is how Jesus responds to the Pharisees question. He in turn answers them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (Luke 5:32). 

But I also believe that only the Physician can provide the diagnosis. Last week I was talking to a 3rd grader who told me she had asthma. I asked if the doctor gave her an inhaler to use. “Oh, a doctor didn’t tell me I have asthma,” she answered, “I looked up my symptoms on the computer and I figured it out myself”.

Sometimes I think we treat other people the way that this little girl treated her symptoms. And the result is not good. It’s not up to us to diagnose others, only God can do that. We don’t have the right, or the spiritual diagnoses capabilities, to exclude others from the table because they sin differently than we do. And we don’t have the right, as the Church, to determine how long those sinners can come to the table before they change in the way in which we deem that they should. 

We are just asked to share a table with others. To love them and accept them as children of God. If you disagree with me, I hope that sometime soon we can share a table together and talk, eat, and drink in holy conversation. May God bless your tables this week.