Forgive me as I have not yet figured out how to post the audio for this sermon, but I'll leave the details of inflection to your imagination for now.
John 2:13-22
13 When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. 15 So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. 16 To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!” 17 His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.”[a] 18 The Jews then responded to him, “What sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?” 19 Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” 20 They replied, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?” 21 But the temple he had spoken of was his body. 22 After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.
Think for a minute about the artistic representations of Jesus you’ve seen throughout your lifetime. Can you remember the pictures that hung on your Sunday School classroom walls growing up? Or maybe you’ve been a part of an email chain letter with pictures of Jesus and an inspiring message? I would imagine you’re now thinking of something in watercolor or Thomas Kinkaid. Maybe that one of Jesus meandering across the luscious green pastures with a soft snow-white lamb snuggled around his shoulders. Something deserving of a hallmark card or a precious moments figurine. I have never seen a picture of Jesus running around spinning a whip over his head, screaming, and throwing furniture. Why do you think that is?
Help me imagine this picture. The people are preparing for a big holiday, the Passover. They’ll need to make sure they are ready – they’ve gotten all the groceries, their bags are packed and they aren’t forgetting their phone charger. As for their temple sacrifice, that’s one less thing to haul, they’ll just pick one up in front of the temple when they get there. Could you imagine trying to keep track of the kids, the bird cage, and a cow on a leash when the streets are packed elbow to elbow and the dust is so thick you can hardly breathe? This week is the South by Southwest Festival, so anyone who’d like to try their hand at it can just head downtown this afternoon and don’t forget to bring the livestock. In the text, this is exactly what Jewish families are doing. So it makes absolute sense to put the supermarket, complete with ATM’s, right out front of the temple and the merchants know it. The merchants know the Jews have to have these things, and so turn a time for worship into a time for financial gain. But why would anyone want to mess with this system? We’re getting smarter, more efficient, and more profitable. And surely, this isn’t the first year it has been this way. So why, this one day, does Jesus flip out? Perhaps it was daylight savings time and he got one less hour of sleep, was cranky, and just having an off day. We can understand. I’m sure there was a perfectly reasonable explanation, so let’s just ask. Jesus, what what what are you doing? We’re all willing to put this behind us, if you’ll just show us a sign.
This is a perfectly reasonable question. Signs are requested and given throughout the bible – the Rainbow is given to Noah, Moses gets the burning bush and then performs signs for Pharaoh. Remember, this Passover celebration about to happen is all about signs. Exodus 12:13 talks about the lamb’s blood on the doorposts of Jewish homes and says “the blood will be a sign on the houses where you are, when I see the blood I will pass over you.” In the Gospel of Luke, shepherds are told that they will find a baby in manger and this will be a sign to them. We talk about signs every Sunday. Sometimes when we gather our offering, we say that “these gifts are signs of God’s gracious love.” In communion, we talk about bread and wine becoming “signs of the new covenant in my blood.” Signs are important. They function as markers, way posts, directing, pointing to God.
However, the sign Jesus offers was not exactly what the people had in mind. “Destroy the temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” Come again, Jesus. The temple? This one? Oh, You mean the one that we finally got back centuries after the Babylonioans turned the first one to rubble? The one we just got a new sound system in, the one we’ve finally paid the mortgage on? That temple? Well, yes and no.
Of course it seems silly to tear down a building, only to put up the same thing in its place. It’s silly and wasteful, but that’s not quite what he’s talking about. Our second reading from Corinthians reads that “the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” At first glance the gospel seems ridiculous, but if we dig into it we start to uncover a new way of thinking of the same old things….like the temple…or church. I remember one of the first songs we learned in Sunday School, complete with hand motions: The church is not a building, the church is not a steeple, the church is not a resting place, the church is the people. The church is an important physical place. There is something special here, but not because of the new carpet. The church as building comes alive because of who it serves. Sheetrock can be helpful, but not without people to give it meaning. The temple that Jesus talks about isn’t the four walls, but himself. The sign he offers isn’t the greatest general contracting boast of all time, but his life and his love.
If this is the case, then we can follow John to say that signs aren’t one-time miraculous events. They can be that, but here signs aren’t things that happen, it’s who we are. This, too, is a definition of signs that we see examples of in biblical history. Ezekiel is told that he is a sign to the Israelites, the Psalmist declares “I have become a sign for many, and Luke 11:30 says “For as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so also will the Son of Man be to this generation.”
Ok, so we have a role to play in this. Our entire being is a sign of God’s love, we are a living temple. But what does that even mean? Is Jesus saying then, that we should destroy ourselves? Look back at his statement, “destroy the temple and in three days I will raise it up.” The main point isn’t destruction but rebuilding. We’ve been talking about how Lent isn’t a time for deprivation, a time to cause ourselves the pain of caffeine withdrawals, but a time for renewal. Here, it’s not ultimately about destruction, it’s about putting things in the right order. Jesus is pointing out that things have gotten way out of order and we need to take notice. He doesn’t say that all marketplaces are evil and never go there. He says we have to put things in the right order, and God is on top. It’s the very first commandment.
Now, does renaming destruction as renewal really make it any easier or painless9? Not really, not necessarily. Make no mistake, Jesus is still flipping over tables and smashing stuff up. This place will never be as it used to, we cannot remain the same. In Christ, we are a not a refurbished creation, we are a new creation. With the Gospel, that message isn’t a threat nor should it leave us in despair, it is a gift. Becoming a living breathing sign of God’s love means that things will change. Not just some things, every thing. It is a change so profound, so deep, so complete that somehow in the midst of that dusty marketplace we stand up, look around and realize, “I suddenly want to help Jesus whip this place into shape too.” Look at the disciples – “they remembered,” “they recalled.” The disciples and everyone else had no clue what was going on until…they did. Not that there was a flash of lightning, but they looked back and saw the contrast in themselves.
It’s not something we intellectually assent to or choose, as if we could pull ourselves up by our spiritual bootstraps and manually wrench ourselves around. In fact, it’s much gentler than that. Becoming a living temple is not about trying to hold on to Jesus tighter, but relaxing our muscles and releasing him. We release God from our ideas of containment of “how things are supposed to be,” from what’s appropriate in polite society. We release ourselves to join in. The zeal for God’s house consumes us too. God is loose, running wild through the streets, and it’s so exciting! Can you imagine it? That which has been bubbling under the surface, tucked away, repressed, even sealed off? And then something turns and it is allowed to step out, stretch out its cramped legs, and run. Maybe you can just faintly remember the feeling, the rush, the exhilaration! It’s the feeling of a great release, terrifying and triumphant. This is the moment some will say is when they finally feel alive. Maybe you are still waiting to feel this way, but oh you can imagine it. You can imagine imagining it.
With this rising, swelling within you, remember that this isn’t Lord of the Flies, Jesus isn’t some 1970’s punk screaming “Anarchy in the UK!” It is the demonstration of God’s love that is so important, so radical, that Jesus literally dies trying. This passion that bursts out of Jesus is the desire to put God first. To honor God with our whole lives. To put things in right order. Such overwhelming passion can result in rich beautiful discussion and insightful reflection as we’ve seen in the parables and in our bible studies, but it’s just not satisfied to stay there. It can’t be contained in word form. Inevitably, it shows up in how you live. God’s love breaks loose into the world. What that looks like for each of us is different. For Jesus, here, blurring the line between God and money is clearly not an option. What are the things that get your heart pounding, your blood flowing? The things that make your heart leap? The things you cannot keep silent or still? What, even this very moment, stokes the fires of God’s justice inside you? Where is God inviting you to be a part of the passion of Christ? Don’t go out looking for a new cause to adopt, or a facebook page to ‘like.’ Just stop, look around you, notice where things seem out of order, notice where God has given you gifts to care and let loose.
Friday, March 16, 2012
Sunday, January 8, 2012
All Love does is Win
Summer camps mean a lot of things to a lot of people and this one means a lot to me. You know those kids that wait at the mailbox for the registration brochure, attend the very first week of camp, are the last ones in their cabin to leave, and sing every new song they learned over and over on the ride home until they pass out or their parents scream "uncle?" Well, my name is Ashley, and I'm a campaholic. I've been coming to Lutherhill since I was old enough and spent 9 summers here as camper, intern, and staffer. I love this place so much I married it (well, I got married here anyway). So when I heard there was a wildfire coursing it's way through the area in September...I was not a happy camper. I had just left our farm 5 minutes down the road when the fire started but got all the way home to Austin before I heard the news. Now we all had to wait, hands tied, unable to help until the smoke cleared (despite some valiant renegade missions for news and recon).
I say "we" because camp is family and this place has been home. Family of intimate friends new and old, even some blood relatives, but all family of God. Not just in a trite/cliche way, but a "you're one of the people/we are bonded before Ai'wa" kinda way (don't get it? Go watch Avatar). Now it's round 2 of cleaning up this battered and bruised wilderness and they've asked for help. And when family needs you, you show up. Do I know how to wield a chainsaw, pull stumps, or put out hotspots? Can my two month old baby clear brush? Nope, but it's doesn't matter. Just show up and you'll figure it out together.
The day after the fire started:
I say "we" because camp is family and this place has been home. Family of intimate friends new and old, even some blood relatives, but all family of God. Not just in a trite/cliche way, but a "you're one of the people/we are bonded before Ai'wa" kinda way (don't get it? Go watch Avatar). Now it's round 2 of cleaning up this battered and bruised wilderness and they've asked for help. And when family needs you, you show up. Do I know how to wield a chainsaw, pull stumps, or put out hotspots? Can my two month old baby clear brush? Nope, but it's doesn't matter. Just show up and you'll figure it out together.
The day after the fire started:
Today:
Fire - 0, Love - 1
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Blueberry Muffins - that happen to be healthy
I've always loved blueberry muffins but most of the time I settle for the packaged mixes. Don't judge - you know you do too, because they're not terrible and they're easy. But, like many people this time of year, I have been struck with a compulsion to take care of my body and put a little more thought to the things I put in my mouth and it turns out - blueberries are good for you. I saw something about them including that buzz-word antioxidants, even though I don't know what's so wrong with oxidants. So last night I set out to have a healthy evening and bake some muffins from scratch. We made some great lean pork chops and broccoli and then....I had several pieces of toffee, a couple pieces of lefse (crepe-like potato tortilla-esque things stuffed with butter and brown sugar)....and no blueberry muffins. Then tonight we tried again with turkey tacos and....a glass of homemade raspberry chocolate port wine. But alas, I did finally get around to those blueberry muffins. I found a good recipe from this lovely lass at Ginger Rose and gave it my best shot. Bonus, she even provides an awesome Arcade Fire soundtrack.
First, as all people naturally do, I gathered all the necessary ingredients and posed them for glamour shots.
Bonus points to the nerd who figures out which ingredient I forgot in this picture.
Next up, put all the dry ingredients - flour (both regular and fancy schmancy organic whole wheat flour) sugar, salt, and baking powder - into a bowl and stir em up.
Pour your 1/3 cup of apple sauce into a larger 1 cup measuring cup (I actually used a two cup one to give an allowance for the giant mess I make in mixing), crack in the egg, and fill the cup up with milk until it reaches the 1 cup mark. Then you're going to need to take a trip to Mexico, drink a fresh Margarita, and buy one of these GIANT liters of vanilla. This bottle has literally lasted me 6 years. Add the vanilla to your liquid concoction and stir.
Add the concoction to your dry ingredients and stir until almost blended. Here's my interpretation of "almost blended."
Gather up 1 cup of blueberries, toss them with a heaping tablespoon of flour and add them to the mix. Stir them in, but don't cream the suckers. Roll that beautiful blueberry footage.
Of course I had responsibly preheated the oven and lined the muffin tin with cupcake liners. I didn't have any pretty minimalist french kitchen white ones, so I just had to settle for these sassy ones.
I scooped the mix into these blue beauties and got to work on the sugary crumbly topping. The recipe says to mix the brown sugar, butter, flour and cinnamon with your hands but I thought I'd be smart and use a fork (you know, like you think you always know the way better than mapquest). Then I gave in and got those hands dirty. Also, I'm not the biggest fan of the texture of oats, so I left those out of the topping and this is what we got:
Stick em in the oven for 20-25 minutes, remove, do your best to wait until cool, and devour in such a manner as to defeat the purpose of health achieved in moderation. And here's the thing - they're actually good! Because those of you who know me know that it may be good for you, and I may WANT to like it, but if it isn't delicious...I ain't gon be eatin it.
Enjoy!
Makes 8 large muffins
Ingredients:
Muffin Batter
3/4 cup whole wheat all-purpose flour
3/4 cup white all-purpose flour + 2 tbsp
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup applesauce
First, as all people naturally do, I gathered all the necessary ingredients and posed them for glamour shots.
Bonus points to the nerd who figures out which ingredient I forgot in this picture.
Next up, put all the dry ingredients - flour (both regular and fancy schmancy organic whole wheat flour) sugar, salt, and baking powder - into a bowl and stir em up.
Pour your 1/3 cup of apple sauce into a larger 1 cup measuring cup (I actually used a two cup one to give an allowance for the giant mess I make in mixing), crack in the egg, and fill the cup up with milk until it reaches the 1 cup mark. Then you're going to need to take a trip to Mexico, drink a fresh Margarita, and buy one of these GIANT liters of vanilla. This bottle has literally lasted me 6 years. Add the vanilla to your liquid concoction and stir.
Add the concoction to your dry ingredients and stir until almost blended. Here's my interpretation of "almost blended."
Gather up 1 cup of blueberries, toss them with a heaping tablespoon of flour and add them to the mix. Stir them in, but don't cream the suckers. Roll that beautiful blueberry footage.
Of course I had responsibly preheated the oven and lined the muffin tin with cupcake liners. I didn't have any pretty minimalist french kitchen white ones, so I just had to settle for these sassy ones.
I scooped the mix into these blue beauties and got to work on the sugary crumbly topping. The recipe says to mix the brown sugar, butter, flour and cinnamon with your hands but I thought I'd be smart and use a fork (you know, like you think you always know the way better than mapquest). Then I gave in and got those hands dirty. Also, I'm not the biggest fan of the texture of oats, so I left those out of the topping and this is what we got:
Stick em in the oven for 20-25 minutes, remove, do your best to wait until cool, and devour in such a manner as to defeat the purpose of health achieved in moderation. And here's the thing - they're actually good! Because those of you who know me know that it may be good for you, and I may WANT to like it, but if it isn't delicious...I ain't gon be eatin it.
Enjoy!
Makes 8 large muffins
Ingredients:
Muffin Batter
3/4 cup whole wheat all-purpose flour
3/4 cup white all-purpose flour + 2 tbsp
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup applesauce
1 egg
1/3 milk (1% cuts back on the fat but delivers the same results as higher fat milk)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup fresh blueberries (do not increase amount)
Topping:
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 tbsp white all-purpose flour
2 tbsp cold butter
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp rolled oats (optional)
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400ยบ and line muffin tin with paper liners.
2. In a medium-large mixing bowl, stir together the whole wheat flour, white flour, sugar, salt and baking powder for the muffin batter.
3. In a 1-cup measuring cup pour in the applesauce. Crack the egg into the applesauce and top with enough milk to fill the cup. Add this into the dry ingredients along with the vanilla extract. Stir until almost just combined. Toss the blueberries with a heaping tablespoon of flour to coat and gently stir them into the batter until just combined. Do not over mix!
4. Using an ice cream scoop, scoop muffin batter into paper liners in muffin tin with the batter just reaching the top.
5. In a small bowl make the crumble topping. Using your hands, mix together the brown sugar, flour, butter, cinnamon, and rolled oats. Evenly sprinkle the topping over each muffin and bake for 20-25 minutes.
1/3 milk (1% cuts back on the fat but delivers the same results as higher fat milk)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup fresh blueberries (do not increase amount)
Topping:
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 tbsp white all-purpose flour
2 tbsp cold butter
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp rolled oats (optional)
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400ยบ and line muffin tin with paper liners.
2. In a medium-large mixing bowl, stir together the whole wheat flour, white flour, sugar, salt and baking powder for the muffin batter.
3. In a 1-cup measuring cup pour in the applesauce. Crack the egg into the applesauce and top with enough milk to fill the cup. Add this into the dry ingredients along with the vanilla extract. Stir until almost just combined. Toss the blueberries with a heaping tablespoon of flour to coat and gently stir them into the batter until just combined. Do not over mix!
4. Using an ice cream scoop, scoop muffin batter into paper liners in muffin tin with the batter just reaching the top.
5. In a small bowl make the crumble topping. Using your hands, mix together the brown sugar, flour, butter, cinnamon, and rolled oats. Evenly sprinkle the topping over each muffin and bake for 20-25 minutes.
Monday, January 2, 2012
The Year In Review
The past week or so the news have been covered with "the year in review." Looking back at headlines that already seem ancient, I am reminded how quickly we forget about things that shaped our entire lives at that moment. SO....because I needed the forced reflection....and I've been lax in posting and needed to catch my devoted audience of readers (yes. that was uber-sarcastic) up on my life....I've dug through my own pictures.
January: I went to Luther Seminary's campus for the first time as a student and met my classmates in person. I can hardly believe I've only known them a year because they're awesome. Also, after spending 2 weeks of my life in a Minnesota winter, I have a MUCH greater tolerance for "cold" here in Texas.
February: A big month! Can you believe it snowed in Austin, TX!?! AND it stuck to the ground long enough for everyone in the neighborhood to find their laundry baskets and go "sledding" down the drainage ditch.
Oh, and we learned we were going to have a baby!
What a witty ultrasound tech.
March: I went to the Gulf Coast for spring break with our youth group then to the West Coast (L.A.) for the first time to visit an old friend and meet her new bebe. Also, I learned to quilt (thanks to some very patient old ladies at the church) and got to give my first completed piece to his royal sweetness.
April: I got to spend another weekend telling youth and young adults that God loves them just the way they are at the Spiritual Pride Project
May: The whole family went up to New York to see my lil bro graduate from college. Now he's living in the city and working on broadway (can you tell I like to brag on him?).
June: My fellow Texan seminary student, Jen, and I made the road trip from TX to MN for two more weeks of school. We found some amazing small town Iowa antique shops and what would any road trip be without some tunes?
I also attending a week long workshop led by the super-talented Mandy of Amand Faucett Photography and finally learned how to use all those manual functions on the camera. I also had to face the fact that I would now NEED a fancy DSLR.
and...my belly started to grow...
July: Went with the High School youth at church to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. A great road trip with great people and a great experience.
August: The hubster and I escaped the hustle and bustle of our lives to enjoy some quiet moments (the last ones for...a....while...) in the Rocky Mountains.
September: It was Labor Day weekend and I had just left the family farm, forgot something OF COURSE, and so turned around to meet my parents at my aunt's house in Bastrop when one of the largest and most destructive wildfires in history started. The next week would have us on pins and needles as the fires raged terrifyingly close to the places and people we love, but we were lucky. With the exception of the first family homestead, everyone and everything of we were immediately connected to was kept safe.
We also ran an antiques booth at the famed Warrenton Antique show with my aunt. WHAT!?! Here's hoping we get to do it again in April!
October: My belly grew much rounder.
and....we welcomed Marley Rose Dellagiacoma into the world.
we made our best attempt at a Halloween outfit at 4 days old
November: Our lives were filled with baby, family, friends, and Thanksgiving (including our own shotgun pumpkin chunkin). Unfortunately, our hands were full and we didn't take a lot of pictures so you'll just have to imagine how awesome it was.
December: I started a new job and moved from youth worker to office pro. Marley gets a cousin from my cousin! First Christmases all around!
I haven't sat down to make any resolutions or goals for this year. I'll probably just try to reduce, reuse, and recycle last year's. I've already missed the goal of posting this post on Foto Friday. Here's the family on Foto Friday - enjoy the mild Texas winter on Town Lake.
And, as we all know...Foto Fridays are followed by Shotgun Saturdays
Happy New Year everyone, I hope it's a blessed one with joy overflowing!
January: I went to Luther Seminary's campus for the first time as a student and met my classmates in person. I can hardly believe I've only known them a year because they're awesome. Also, after spending 2 weeks of my life in a Minnesota winter, I have a MUCH greater tolerance for "cold" here in Texas.
February: A big month! Can you believe it snowed in Austin, TX!?! AND it stuck to the ground long enough for everyone in the neighborhood to find their laundry baskets and go "sledding" down the drainage ditch.
Oh, and we learned we were going to have a baby!
March: I went to the Gulf Coast for spring break with our youth group then to the West Coast (L.A.) for the first time to visit an old friend and meet her new bebe. Also, I learned to quilt (thanks to some very patient old ladies at the church) and got to give my first completed piece to his royal sweetness.
April: I got to spend another weekend telling youth and young adults that God loves them just the way they are at the Spiritual Pride Project
May: The whole family went up to New York to see my lil bro graduate from college. Now he's living in the city and working on broadway (can you tell I like to brag on him?).
June: My fellow Texan seminary student, Jen, and I made the road trip from TX to MN for two more weeks of school. We found some amazing small town Iowa antique shops and what would any road trip be without some tunes?
I also attending a week long workshop led by the super-talented Mandy of Amand Faucett Photography and finally learned how to use all those manual functions on the camera. I also had to face the fact that I would now NEED a fancy DSLR.
and...my belly started to grow...
July: Went with the High School youth at church to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. A great road trip with great people and a great experience.
August: The hubster and I escaped the hustle and bustle of our lives to enjoy some quiet moments (the last ones for...a....while...) in the Rocky Mountains.
September: It was Labor Day weekend and I had just left the family farm, forgot something OF COURSE, and so turned around to meet my parents at my aunt's house in Bastrop when one of the largest and most destructive wildfires in history started. The next week would have us on pins and needles as the fires raged terrifyingly close to the places and people we love, but we were lucky. With the exception of the first family homestead, everyone and everything of we were immediately connected to was kept safe.
We also ran an antiques booth at the famed Warrenton Antique show with my aunt. WHAT!?! Here's hoping we get to do it again in April!
October: My belly grew much rounder.
and....we welcomed Marley Rose Dellagiacoma into the world.
we made our best attempt at a Halloween outfit at 4 days old
November: Our lives were filled with baby, family, friends, and Thanksgiving (including our own shotgun pumpkin chunkin). Unfortunately, our hands were full and we didn't take a lot of pictures so you'll just have to imagine how awesome it was.
December: I started a new job and moved from youth worker to office pro. Marley gets a cousin from my cousin! First Christmases all around!
I haven't sat down to make any resolutions or goals for this year. I'll probably just try to reduce, reuse, and recycle last year's. I've already missed the goal of posting this post on Foto Friday. Here's the family on Foto Friday - enjoy the mild Texas winter on Town Lake.
And, as we all know...Foto Fridays are followed by Shotgun Saturdays
Happy New Year everyone, I hope it's a blessed one with joy overflowing!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)