On the Way to Wonder

Luke 24: 40-43

“Chai” is a word I learned in Kenya that refers to drinking a milky, sugary cup of tea.  The word came from Arabic traders who traveled the coasts of Africa and brought with them the habit of serving tea.  The word implies fellowship.  Many times I heard, “Now that you have had chai at my house, we are friends!”  I must also admit that the word “chai” is used to imply bribery at the worst and a gratuity at the best, no dissimilar to our “tipping” the waitress. It is possible to be stopped at a road block and asked for “a little chai.”  It does not mean a cup of tea.  Sharing chai is important.  When we fellowship over food, relationships develop.

         Jesus walks into the locked room Easter night and encounters fearful followers.  They are shocked by the events churning around them, his appearance unnerves them, and they were trying to understand what was going on.  He breathes “peace” on them first and then invites them to look at his hands and feet, touch, and then he requests, “Do you have anything here to eat?”  He ate a piece of boiled fish with them.  Luke wants us to have no doubts that the Jesus that was brutally crucified in-front of many people, is now alive and somehow still human.  Jesus is still able to do the miraculous – go through locked doors – but he is still definitely human – eating fish.  We call it “true God and true Man.”

         What can we draw from this passage we have been pondering this week.  Jesus is not just part of some God in the sky.  He understands all that we go through – even the hungers that drive our lives.  I know I am guilty of sometimes allowing the verse on a calendar to be my quick check-in with the Lord or prayers while driving along.  Today having a cup of “chai” and spending a few minutes in Scripture might be time well invested.  The Psalm for the readings Sunday is the 23^rd Psalm, “The Lord is my Shepherd.”  Now there is a thought to not rush past.  Blessings.

Luke 24: 39

At the end of the day when we are tired, it is easy to allow ours doubts and memories of seeming failures to fill our mind.  Perhaps we should have….  What did so and so mean by this or that?  Shadows of the evening can also be shadows of our discouragement.  The followers of Jesus came to the end of the first Easter day.  They had gone through the amazement of hearing that the tomb was empty.  They had been confused by some people saying they saw a risen Jesus.  They had been shocked at the stories of the guards saying the followers stole the body of Jesus.  The followers are locked behind doors, afraid.  In the middle of this exhaustion, confusion and shock Jesus appears. They think it is a ghost!  John says Jesus breathed on them peace.

         Jesus then invites them to touch him.  “Look at my hands and feet.  It is I myself!  Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.”  You cannot touch shadows.  You cannot touch fear.  Jesus invites them into relationship with a real person with a real body.  Each Sunday or each time we take communion, we receive the same invitation.  “This is my body.”  “This is my blood.”  We are invited to experience and communicate with the risen Jesus.

         Don’t wait for Sunday. Christ is risen.  Where do your spiritual senses experience Jesus today?  For some it is the hug of a child, the laughter with a friend, the cool breeze on a warm evening, or maybe a beautiful sunrise or sunset.  It may be a quiet time of prayer when your heart burns within you.  Jesus breaks through the spiritual shadows of fear and invites us to see his hands and feet and touch him.  Take a moment today during your devotions to identify the different ways Jesus touches your life today and where you see him as you look around.  He is there, inviting you to experience him.  Read a favorite Bible verse!  Blessings. 

Luke 24: 37-39

Easter evening, followers of Jesus huddle behind locked doors, afraid.  Jesus appeared and they are…afraid.  Not only are they afraid of the Jews on the outside but they are afraid they are seeing ghosts on the inside.  They are overwhelmed with fear.  Some days are like that.  We are afraid of that which we think threatens our security externally and afraid of our own imaginations from within.  In that state of dismay, Jesus appeared.  He didn’t wait til they had their act together.  He simply asks them a question, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds?”  The question focused them and helped them see reality more clearly.  Jesus was present.

     Sometimes we need to be asked honest questions.  What are we afraid of?  Are we afraid that God is not enough and will not live up to his promises to be with us?  Perhaps we are afraid that we are not enough and God cannot work through us.  We run from fear and it is only as we face those fears and face Jesus that life falls into order. “Failure is not final.”

      As a missionary, one morning as we drank tea the man who worked at our house shared about being gored by a rhino.  He then went on and asked if I knew how to kill a lion.  Rule number 1, never turn and run.  Rule number 2, never throw away your spear.  Rule 3, plant your spear in the ground and let the lion jump on the spear.  You may get hurt but your friends will come and kill it.  Never run because we have no protective armor for our backs.  Think about our spiritual armor.  All the spiritual armor found in Ephesians 6:10-17 are for facing forward.

         The followers needed to be reminded they need not be driven by fear and they need not doubt.  So today let us pray and turn over the things that bother us to God.  He is resurrected and is with us even when doors are locked, even when our faith is challenged and we are afraid.  Blessings.

John 20:19

Easter season looks at the reports of the risen Christ and what it means to us today.  John, Luke, and a later addition to Mark report on the evening of that first Easter day.  Early that morning some women followers had gone went to the tomb and found it empty and reported to the disciples.  Peter and one other ran to the tomb and confirmed that the tomb was empty but understanding was slow in coming.  The two people on the road to Emmaus in the afternoon encountered the risen Christ and rushed back to Jerusalem to report.  The apostles and other followers were huddled behind locked doors, “for fear of the Jewish leaders.”  Matthew reports the guards had been paid off to tell the story that the disciples had stolen the body.  The meaning of “resurrection” was not obvious nor it’s implications. Even we struggle to fully grasp the meaning today.

         In the midst of all that was swirling around, the followers huddle confused and fearful.  We were in Kenya during the first elections in a transition to democracy and we huddled behind closed doors.  Tribal unrest broke out, people were killed, homes burned and everyone was scared.  We were in Minneapolis when a tornado swept through and took out six miles of houses in six seconds just three blocks from our house.  Police were on bicycles and horseback for there was no electricity and 1000 fallen trees and torn up sidewalks.  People in Ukraine huddle behind locked doors for fear of bombs.  We do not have to stretch our imaginations to know how those followers were feeling.

         Jesus appears in that room and says, “Peace.”

         Today we hear the reports of Covid, we see the prices at gas stations and markets climb, and we listen to reports of all the political fighting in our country and around the world.  It is in times like then and now that Jesus appears and offers peace.  Termination of turmoil will not happen tomorrow and it is in these times of fear that we turn even more intensely to our faith.  “Jesus came and stood among them.”  Jesus is among us.  We are not alone.  We can prepare ourselves as best we can but often the struggle is bigger than we can control.  It is at those times we look to a risen savior who is with us.  He is not stopped by locked doors!  He breathes into our fear and confusion peace.  Let us take a moment this morning to turn our eyes off the factors that scare us and onto the God who travels with us.  Think of five words to modify “thank you” and five words that describe “peace” and as you breath in deeply his peace, exhale the fear that would defeat you.  Blessings.

Luke 24: 13-35

Recently I was asked to share in a meeting about my spiritual journey.  It seemed like most had a story about listening to missionaries visiting their church when they were young and being inspired by the stories and hearing “the call.”  I did not attend churches that had missionaries visiting regularly.  My journey was not that direct, nor based on a personal encounter.  I remember this song being sung at church “back in the day” and “my heart burning within me.”

         We looked at the story of the two people on the road to Emmaus this week.  They were headed away from Jerusalem to Emmaus, probably going home.  They were swapping stories about the events of the week.  Possibly not dissimilar to Sunday school stories for children.  Figuring out a theme to Biblical stories is a lifetime adventure.  Jesus joined their conversation but they did not recognize him.  He took them back through all the Bible stories of him and showed them how the Messiah had to be born to suffer and die, not to defeat Rome, to defeat sin – our separation from God.  Jesus agreed to stay with them and ate with them.  In the breaking of the bread, they recognized him and he disappeared.  They exclaimed, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us!”

         Burning hearts led to realization and the story did not end there.  They returned to Jerusalem to tell others.  The resurrection does not end at the empty tomb or just meeting the risen Christ.  The resurrection results in sharing about a savior who lives and reigns.  Please enjoy this old hymn sung by “the nations!”

Luke 24: 28-32

Two people walking to Emmaus on Easter afternoon, discussing all the events of the week, are joined in their conversation by Jesus who walks with them, but they don’t recognize him.  Grief clouds our thinking.  They explain to Jesus the events of the week from their perspective.  He, on the other hand, takes them to their own ethnic history, the stories of the prophets, to give them a new perspective for their experience.  The two are so touched that they invite this stranger to stay with them and they dine.  As Jesus breaks bread with them, their eyes are opened and they recognize Jesus.  As we share the stories of our history and as we dine together, we begin to see that which is common to us all and our identities become more apparent.  The person explaining the prophets is indeed Jesus. 

         When Serendipity first became a dynamic in the 70s, I went to a conference and was deeply touched when they said people must laugh together and share history before they can meaningfully pray together.  We do not sit down and pray with strangers unless it is artificially organized in a meeting.  For the church, it is in the communion experience that we remember Jesus in a physical, three-dimensional way.  “This is my body, broken for you.”  “This is my blood shed for you.”  “Remember.” We remember we are forgiven and can drawn near to God who is present.

         In “Lion King” the father lion, Mufasa, challenges his son, Simba, “Remember who you are!  You are more than you have become.”  We all have various ways to get in touch with ourselves, our truth and God.  Prayer is common.  A  labyrinth works for many.  Some visit cemeteries.  We keep mementos and keepsakes of our departed.  For these two people, it was in the breaking of bread that they recognized Jesus.  So how do you recognize Jesus has come near you?  Does your heart burn within you?  Do special songs or verses come to mind?  Spend a minute thanking God that he is alive and draws near and is willing to reveal himself to us at the right time.

Luke 24: 25-27

Jesus listened to the two men walking to Emmaus as they shared their crushed hopes.  He listens as we pour out our despair to him.  The men did not realize it was the risen Jesus walking with them on their journey.  Often we do not recognize Jesus as he walks with us.  When they shared about their despair, Jesus did not lecture, did not guilt, did not tell them they were wrong but helped them build an alternate explanation by going back to the prophets and the history of the Jewish people.  Suffering is part of the journey!

         Grief isolates us and we can easily feel the universe is upset with us or that we have done something wrong for which we are being punished.  Grief gives us tunnel vision and we focus on our little woe-is-me.  Jesus helps the men broaden their thinking.  I worked at a suicide call -n line for a couple years post college.  People contemplating suicide cannot perceive the resources at their disposal.  Talking helps them see a bigger picture and helps them reconnect with their humanity.  When we collapse in on ourselves we are being foolish.

         As we review the lessons and stories of history and listen to the struggles of others we are able to agree with Paul that our struggle in Ephesians 6:10-17:

            ¹⁰ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. ¹¹ Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. ¹² For our struggle is not against enemies of     blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. ¹³ Therefore take up the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. ¹⁴ Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate  of righteousness. ¹⁵ As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. ¹⁶ With all of these, take   the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷ Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

The truth, we are not alone, Jesus walks with us.  We need truth, righteousness, peace, faith, salvation and the Holy Spirit to teach us the Word of God.  May we remember this when we feel crushed.  Let us not be foolish.  And may we remind others that they are not alone and help them to see their resources.  Blessings.

Luke 24: 21-24

Two men open their hearts to a man they don’t recognize as they walk home to Emmaus, Easter afternoon. They were deep in conversation about all they had been through in the previous week trying to piece a shocking report that the tomb was empty. What did it all mean? They were so engrossed in conversation they did not recognize Jesus when he joined them and asked what events they were discussing. They shared about events but then continued, “we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel.”  Their hopes crushed but also women and disciples reported the tomb was empty. Crushed hopes and unbelievable stories. Resurrection was not part of the expected script.  They did not understand this turn of events and were not sporting new clothes.  Many of us know what it is like to have “crushed hopes”. We never expected to come up empty handed.

         So what marks this scene? For many of us, being crushed blurs our boundaries. We bounce from a broken relationship into some users arms…rebound…we call it. Hurt in one church we bounce to another searching for an answer. During the Great Stock Market crash, people committed suicide. Failing standardized tests also leads to suicide among youth.  When we are crushed sometimes we share with strangers and don’t even recognize Jesus reaching out to us.

         When we are crushed we need a friend to walk with us, to help us reconstruct reality. We cast about for an explanation. And when we are crushed, we can get snarky. The men snap, “Are you the only one who doesn’t know what’s going on?”  I call it “mouth in motion, beware!”

         But it is the presence of friends that help us talk it through and offer alternate explanations that help. Judas was alone, alienated from the other disciples and guilty. He committed suicide.  These men had each other and Jesus, yes unrecognized, joined them.

         So are you the sort of person who will walk with another when their hopes fall through? Have you been snarky and need to apologize? It happens. Jesus was there in their presence and he is here with us now helping us get through the dark days. Let’s be open to walking with someone trying to sort out their life today and be aware of Jesus in our presence.  He is alive!  Thank you Lord!

“But we had hoped…”

Luke 24: 21-24

Two men open their hearts to a man they don’t recognize as they walk home to Emmaus, Easter afternoon. They were deep in conversation about all they had been through in the previous week trying to piece a shocking report that the tomb was empty. What did it all mean? They were so engrossed in conversation they did not recognize Jesus when he joined them and asked what events they were discussing. They shared about events but then continued, “we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel.”  Their hopes crushed but also women and disciples reported the tomb was empty. Crushed hopes and unbelievable stories. Resurrection was not part of the expected script.  They did not understand this turn of events and were not sporting new clothes.  Many of us know what it is like to have “crushed hopes”. We never expected to come up empty handed.

         So what marks this scene? For many of us, being crushed blurs our boundaries. We bounce from a broken relationship into some users arms…rebound…we call it. Hurt in one church we bounce to another searching for an answer. During the Great Stock Market crash, people committed suicide. Failing standardized tests also leads to suicide among youth.  When we are crushed sometimes we share with strangers and don’t even recognize Jesus reaching out to us.

         When we are crushed we need a friend to walk with us, to help us reconstruct reality. We cast about for an explanation. And when we are crushed, we can get snarky. The men snap, “Are you the only one who doesn’t know what’s going on?”  I call it “mouth in motion, beware!”

         But it is the presence of friends that help us talk it through and offer alternate explanations that help. Judas was alone, alienated from the other disciples and guilty. He committed suicide.  These men had each other and Jesus, yes unrecognized, joined them.

         So are you the sort of person who will walk with another when their hopes fall through? Have you been snarky and need to apologize? It happens. Jesus was there in their presence and he is here with us now helping us get through the dark days. Let’s be open to walking with someone trying to sort out their life today and be aware of Jesus in our presence.  He is alive!  Thank you Lord!

Luke 24: 17-20

Easter afternoon, two men travel home from Jerusalem discussing all that took place during the Passover week they just celebrated.  An already big holiday ended with the crucifixion of Jesus, a popular Prophet? Teacher? Healer? Hoped for Messiah?  Stories were swirling around the town about the empty tomb, Judas hanging himself, Barabas being released and more.  The two men walk along swapping stories they have each heard.  It must have been something like listening to the news trying to decide what really happened on January 6^th.  They did not recognize that the man walking with them and engaging them in conversation was Jesus.  The text says their faces were “downcaste.”  They were confused and grieving.

         Jesus does not lecture them but first asks them to share what they’re talking about.  He first allows them to verbalize reality as they are experiencing it.  The two are astounded.  How could this person not know about things going on?  Jesus asks them to explain what things they are talking about.  Sometimes we jump into conversations assuming we know what is being talked about.  In fact, we cannot know for sure what someone else is thinking or how they are responding to events swirling in the news.  A conversation based on assumptions about the other can easily go astray.  Jesus starts relationship with us by starting with them.  He did not start with theology of resurrection but asked them to explain first what they understood and experienced.

     In chaplaincy training, we learned about “the gift of presence.”  Sometimes just being present and listening as a person shares is a wonderful blessing.  Often we don’t need people to pity us but to accept us in our situation and to believe that we can handle it.  On the “road” of life to where ever our Emmaus is, we have the blessing of traveling with others.  Sometimes we are challenged to be the Good Samaritan when we find people destroyed by life but other times we walk beside, listening and sharing.  It is the first step in building relationship.

      So, think back over the events of your last week, since last Tuesday.  What stands out to you?  Does any event come to your mind?  Perhaps think about it and where you see God’s hand guiding and thank him.  Thank God for those who listened and those who comforted you as you pondered events.  Is there someone you could give the “gift of presence” to today?  Blessing on your journey!

Luke 24: 13-16

What did you do Easter afternoon?  There must have been a football game to watch.  Perhaps your family had their Easter feast at 2 or 3 pm so watching a good movie to help the food digest is an option.  Monday is a workday so teachers have to get back to planning lessons.  For people in war zones, the bombing and fighting continued.  On that first Easter, Luke tells of two people who came to the Passover in Jerusalem and who are now headed home to Emmaus.  They are talking and digesting the news of the week.  As they are talking Jesus approaches and walks with them but they do not recognize him.  In fact the text says, “but they were kept from recognizing him.”  Not only did they not recognize Jesus, the topic of conversation, but they were walking away from the action.

         What kept them from recognizing Jesus?  Perhaps it was the rocks in the road.  My husband uses a walker and he has to concentrate so hard on walking that I doubt he notices who is even talking to me.  Perhaps their expectations blinded them to the reality of the moment.  When the doctor gives the diagnosis, the illness is so unexpected that we are stunned and we don’t comprehend what is being said.  Remember in the movie “Sulley” when the jet goes down shortly after take off because a flock of birds take out all the engines?  The stewardesses are announcing, “heads down” and people are in shock.  We see someone from the past who is now older and “out of place” and we don’t recognize the person.  Many times, I suspect, Jesus walks beside us and we just plain don’t recognize him because the events of life blind us.

         Take a moment and ponder some of the ways that you recognize the divine in your presence.   I’m guessing, a visual sighting is a very rare occurrence, if ever.  The two people reflect at the end of the scenario, “Were not our hearts burning within us.”  For some a thought pops into the mind that rings true to divine suggestion.  A verse from Scripture comes to mind that speaks specifically to the dynamic that is challenging you.  A peace might flood your soul with the assurance that all is going to be all right.  The meaning of resurrection is that often Jesus is walking with us, trying to enlighten us but we may not recognize him.  But he is alive and he is present in ways we don’t recognize.  Lord, open our eyes that we may see.  Open our ears that we may hear.  Open our hearts that we may receive the truth you would share with us today.