The Litany of Humility cannot help but to offend our 21st century American sensibilities, and that is precisely why we should wrestle with it at least a little. Even if hyperbole, it gives pause, it sucks the oxygen out of the room and makes us uncomfortable, and we realize how centered we are on self. It was written by Rafael Cardinal Merry del Val (1865-1930), Secretary of State for Pope Saint Pius X. 

O Jesus! meek and humble of heart, Hear me.

From the desire of being esteemed, Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being loved,
From the desire of being extolled,
From the desire of being honored,
From the desire of being praised,
From the desire of being preferred to others,
From the desire of being consulted,
From the desire of being approved,
From the fear of being humiliated,
From the fear of being despised,
From the fear of suffering rebukes,
From the fear of being calumniated,
From the fear of being forgotten,
From the fear of being ridiculed,
From the fear of being wronged,
From the fear of being suspected,
Deliver me, Jesus.

That others may be loved more than I, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it. (repeat after each following line)
That others may be esteemed more than I,
That, in the opinion of the world, others may increase and I may decrease,
That others may be chosen and I set aside,
That others may be praised and I unnoticed,
That others may be preferred to me in everything,
That others may become holier than I, provided that I may become as holy as I should, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

What are you afraid of?

Most have a fear, phobia or neurosis: spiders, snakes, heights, tight spaces, going broke;

What are you worried about? It’s a slightly different question: Finances, health, unemployment , situations, relationships, it can be endless. So what’s the problem with worry? Let’s define.

Worry: “to fret, be anxious, overwhelmed, even paralyzed”

Wyrgan: Old English “to strangle”

Merizo: Greek “to be drawn different directions, divided, distracted”

So, paralyzed, strangled, drawn and quartered pretty much sums it up.

You are probably neck-deep into worry if it’s the first thing you think about in the morning and the last thing you think about at night, when it’s your constant topic, and when you’re wide awake at 4am, and when you’re not thinking about it… you’re worried that you’re worried… or worried that you’re not worried.

What we worry about can be, or become a little false god or idol in our life.  Jesus said “No one can serve two masters” False god’s love for you to worry. Father-God does not.

One of the biggest challenges in the life of a disciple is the willingness to develop trust, reliance, and dependence on God. This is our primary aim and goal, yet it is an uncomfortable one at times. He truly doesn’t want us to worry but to live life to the full! Instead of any false god that ultimately cannot deliver and cannot satisfy, He wants us to “Seek first the kingdom of God”. If…

“WORRY is an indication that we think God cannot look after us…”

~ Oswald Chambers

and if…

“No Grand Inquisitor has in readiness such terrible tortures as anxiety…”

~ Soren Kierkegaard

Then Jesus instructed us not to worry because He has more for us than that. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. (Matthew 6:33 nlt)

John the Baptizer
John who’d lept in Elizabeth’s womb when Mary came near
John who’d baptized by the River Jordan
John, who when seeing Jesus exclaimed
“Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world”
The first Old Testament prophet in 400 years
Calling Israel to repentance
Calling them to look for Messiah
and like Elijah, calling out the sins of the King

John, baptizing Jesus at his insistence while exclaiming
“I need to be baptized by you”
John, who said “He must increase, I must decrease”
Who was thrown into Jail by Herod
John, who asked Jesus
“Are you the one-or do we seek another yet to come…”
John, who was put to death
because of a king’s debaucherous and drunken diversion

Of whom Jesus said
“What did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes! And more than that…”

The powers of this world never understand the anointing of God.
To them they seem foolish, crazy, inconsequential…

Such was John:
Walking about in a rough shirt made of animal hair and eating locusts and honey
Yet the foolish things of God confound the wise
And that which seems insignificant to the world of influencers
is of great significance to the Kingdom of God.
John performed no miracles
Yet his calling to Israel for repentance was truly miraculous

John considered
A Pearl of Great Price
And sold everything to have it.
He considered the Treasure hidden in the field
And bought the farm to obtain it.

He was humble
He was God’s mule
Doing the work he’d been harnessed to do.
He was a dollar in God’s pocket to spend however God saw fit
And God spent him well.

At the same time
the world was not worthy of him as he wandered in deserts and mountains, living in caves…
Exclaiming
“Prepare ye the way of the Lord,
Make straight his paths
Every mountain will be brought low
And every valley filled
the rough ground shall become level,
the rugged places a plain.
And the glory of the Lord will be revealed,
and all people will see it together.”

John was the forerunner of the kingdom
exclaiming that the messiah was coming!
A herald with a message

And in many ways
He is the example of what the church is to be today…

In a few weeks we’ll begin the season of Advent
We look back to Jesus’ 1st coming
The baby in a manger
Who for us and our salvation
Came down from heaven and became a man
By the power of the Holy Spirit
Born unto the virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate
Was crucified, died, was buried
And on the 3rd day he rose again in accordance with scripture…

In Advent we remember Jesus’ 1st coming
But we also look forward to his second coming
As a victorious King of a Kingdom
Where every wrong is made right
And every tear is wiped away
And where God has made for himself a people
From every tribe and tongue and nation…

And like John
we live in between the times
Of what has been and what will be

And WE the church are like John the Baptist
We are a voice of one crying in the wilderness
“Prepare the way of the Lord”
Make straight a pathway to your heart!

Let’s Pray
Almighty God,
by your providence your servant John the Baptist
was wonderfully born,
and sent to prepare the way of our Lord
by the preaching of repentance:
lead us to repent according to his preaching
And example,
May your church be constant to speak the truth,
Even boldly when necessary, like John,
and patient to suffer for the truth’s sake when necessary;
And may we take joy in proclaiming the coming
Advent of Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
Who will come again.
Keep your church
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Recently my college friend Ed Stetzer, who is at Wheaton College as Exec. Director of the Billy Graham Center, published a book titled Christians In The Age Of Outrage. I’m so glad Ed put this book together, it’s something I, and I’m sure others, have been thinking on and wrestling with for several years now as we watch our society become less and less civil in public discourse. The following is an article I wrote two years ago on the subject specifically exploring how we should conduct ourselves as Kingdom People in a turbulent world.

The Rule of Saint Francis for regular people belonging to a secular order, known as the 3rd order, was first penned in the early 13th century. Third Order Franciscans work their jobs, raise their kids, and live into the Franciscan ideas of generosity, love, and prayer while surround by, and participating in, the world around them.

I first read the rule, around 2005, as an oblate in The Company of Jesus, a blended Franciscan, Benedictine, and Celtic third order now associated with ACNA under the Diocese of the Great Lakes. As I read the rule it seemed foreign and antiquated to me in some places, but also oddly relevant and fresh in others. I felt I had discovered a long forgotten treasure that is vitally needed today.

In chapter 4 of The Rule of Saint Francis, The Way To Serve And Work, we find this:

Let the sisters and brothers be gentle, peaceful and unassuming, mild and humble, speaking respectfully to all in accord with their vocation. Wherever they are, or wherever they go throughout the world they should not be quarrelsome, contentious, or judgmental towards others. Rather, it should be obvious that they are “joyful, good-humoured,” and happy “in the Lord” as they ought to be (c.f. Philippians 4:4). And in greeting others, let them say, “The Lord give you peace.”

Speaking Peace to the World
In a day and age of rage that does not produce the righteousness of God, the Franciscan Rule challenges us to live life in a stark contrast to what we witness on TV, and in the news. Bad news brings good ratings, but good news brings life to those all around.

The spirit of Francis’ words challenge us to be gentle, peaceful, unassuming, mild and humble, being respectful to all. These things bring life and peace in society. To be quarrelsome, contentious, and judgmental can rob society of blessing, shows our own tendency toward hypocrisy, and reveal our own blindness to our unfairness and our sin. Francis admonishes us to speak peace over our world, but that we must be sure to first allow peace to have its place in our own hearts.

The Challenge of Peace
Francis says we should be joyful, good-humoured, and happy. We ought to be. When I remember and center myself on Jesus, and his love for me, I am happy and at peace. It is challenging to live this kind of life, but I know it is also the best way to live. It’s the best way to dismantle the atomic bomb of hatred, rage, anger, and un-peace so prevalent now in our culture.

It is completely counter-cultural in our context to be happy, kind, and nice. It was probably somewhat counter-cultural in Francis’ day too, or he would not have made such a point of it.

Real Power
I confess to you, sometimes I struggle to bless instead of curse the person who is inconsiderate, blindly opinionated, or who cuts me off in traffic. Am I the only one? My challenge is to have peace on my lips, and also in my heart towards that person, as much of the time as I can be mindful to do so.

How about you? This may not sound like real power to the conventional structures of our world, but it is power, first according to Christ, and also according to Saint Francis. It is great power, real power that heals and gives new life. “Pax et bonum!”, “Peace and all good!” is a traditional Franciscan greeting.

May the Lord give you peace as you go, and may you also spread peace to those around you, and to the world!

(originally published at Anglican Pastor dotcom in September 2016)

Great insight from 17th century Carmelite monk, Brother Lawrence:

“I regard myself as the most wretched of all men, stinking and covered with sores, and as one who has committed all sorts of crimes against his King. Overcome by remorse, I confess all my wickedness to Him, ask His pardon and abandon myself entirely to Him to do with as He will. But this King, filled with goodness and mercy, far from chastising me, lovingly embraces me, makes me eat at His table, serves me with His own hands, gives me the keys of His treasures and treats me as His favorite. He talks with me and is delighted with me in a thousand and one ways; He forgives me and relieves me of my principle bad habits without talking about them; I beg Him to make me according to His heart and always the more weak and despicable I see myself to be, the more beloved I am of God.”
― Brother Lawrence, The Practice of the Presence of God

It’s easy to be hard in this world. It’s easy to be frustrated. It is easy for us to get into a cycle of frantic mediocrity as we go throughout our work-weeks. Have you found yourself impatient and over-reacting to things that are really too small to merit the response given?

This week I have been reminded of God’s kindness, and I have also been praying to be aware of His kindness, and to experience and receive His kindness. God’s kindness heals the deepest wounds I have.

The Expressions Of Faith from The Northumbria Community are a perfect reminder of God’s kindness, and a perfect prayer if you are seeking to experience afresh God’s kindness towards you.

Creation is so much more sacred than we acknowledge on a daily basis. Every few days it seems there is another headline of ecological tragedy. You don’t even have to believe in global warming to know that we still have a problem with pollution. We poison our streams and rivers without thought.

In light of the hard hits the earth has been taking lately I think it’s appropriated to pause and humbly give thanks for creation. We should also consider how we can get back to our original work to keep and tend the garden. If we do then maybe we can leave the world better than we found it.

Saint Francis Canticle-Giving Thanks for & Celebrating Creation:

Most high, all powerful, all good Lord! All praise is yours, all glory, all honor, and all blessing. To you, alone, Most High, do they belong. No mortal lips are worthy to pronounce your name.

Be praised, my Lord, through all your creatures, especially through my lord Brother Sun, who brings the day; and you give light through him. And he is beautiful and radiant in all his splendor! Of you, Most High, he bears the likeness.

Be praised, my Lord, through Sister Moon and the stars; in the heavens you have made them bright, precious and beautiful.

Be praised, my Lord, through Brothers Wind and Air, and clouds and storms, and all the weather, through which you give your creatures sustenance.

Be praised, My Lord, through Sister Water; she is very useful, and humble, and precious, and pure.

Be praised, my Lord, through Brother Fire, through whom you brighten the night. He is beautiful and cheerful, and powerful and strong.

Be praised, my Lord, through our sister Mother Earth, who feeds us and rules us, and produces various fruits with colored flowers and herbs.

Be praised, my Lord, through those who forgive for love of you; through those who endure sickness and trial. Happy those who endure in peace, for by you, Most High, they will be crowned.

Be praised, my Lord, through our Sister Bodily Death, from whose embrace no living person can escape. Woe to those who die in mortal sin!

Happy those she finds doing your most holy will. The second death can do no harm to them.

Praise and bless my Lord, and give thanks, and serve him with great humility.

What does Saint Francis have to do with us in the 21st century? Possibly everything.

We are not, in many ways, that far removed from Francis of Assisi. In his day the church had been tainted with greed, and it was in need of renewal. He saw a need for prayer, for a new kind of monasticism, not cloistered off away from the world, but in the thick of it, in the nitty-gritty-ness of every day life. We must also embrace the outcast, those who are “lepers” in our world, as well as those who are simply wandering lost all around us. Francis seemed to have time for anyone in need. Do we have time or are we too busy?

In his day and age he was an apostle, pretty much as the original apostles had been in the Roman world which they had lived, only with the additional challenge of how do you convert people who already see themselves as “christian” at least culturally?

We find ourselves with these challenges and opportunities: How can we be apostolic in our world? The world is our cloister, therefore ministry can happen anywhere. We can be peacemakers in a violent and changing society; ours is changing, and is also very often violent full of angst, hypocricy, and rage.

Man’s anger does not produce the righteousness of God. Father Francis challenged us to walk in peace. Sometimes we fail, but we are called to be missionaries to our local area, to those who are not “christian”; showing the way of Christ and peace. Also, we are to convert many from “christian” to “follower of Jesus.”

As Francis said “We have been called to heal wounds, to unite what has fallen apart, and to bring home those who have lost their way.” Go.

(“Francis of Assisi” by Cook & Herzman may be helpful for your further exploration)

As disciples in this world we live in the dominion of a reality of what we see and can touch, but at the same time we are residents or citizens of a “Kingdom” we cannot always see or touch which is also a reality. It seems we live among two kingdoms in contrast:

In John 10:10 Jesus says “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” And in Colossians 1:13 Paul explains “He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves…”

So, here’s a real clarification by Paul; one is a dominion (of darkness) and the other is truly a kingdom (of light). The words used here are totally different. A dominion is a power or authority, but a kingdom is altogether different. A kingdom is the power and the authority. Satan has a dominion, but no “kingdom”. He has authority because man has allowed it by falling into deception, but Satan is not The Authority.

We live in a time in between what has been and what will be:

John Wimber,  of the Vineyard Movement often used an analogy of D-day:  Similar to the D-day landing that signaled the end of WWII Jesus’ 1st coming signaled his 2nd coming, and the end of Satan’s dominion. In Jesus’ first coming He set in motion the events that will ultimately end in the final overthrow of Satan’s dominion and initiate what will be. Just as D-day signaled the beginning of the end of WWII, so with Jesus’ 1st coming, it’s the beginning of the end of the dominion of darkness. We’ve begun, but we are not there yet. We live “in between what has been and what will be”.

Slave or Son? So you and I are faced with many “realities” in this world that seek to keep us in slavery. This could be lies of the enemy to keep me down, or many situations to dash hope and make me give up. They pursue you, like in a rear view mirror which says “object in mirror are closer than they appear” the dominion of darkness seeks to over-run you and I, keep us in fear, and keep us imprisoned (even though the cell door is standing wide open)

A great story that clarifies this is found in Exodus chapter 14: The Egyptians—all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots, horsemen and troops—pursued the Israelites and overtook them as they camped by the sea near Pi Hahiroth, opposite Baal Zephon. As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. -Exodus 14:9-10

So with us; as we begin to step into freedom, the situation, issue or lie wants to come after us and keep us down. Intimidation is always used and objects in the rear view mirror may seem very close to overtaking us. We can easily lose heart and give up. This is the mind-set of a slave.

Fear & Complaining

They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!” – Exodus 14:11-12

Human nature is the same no matter what century you live in…

Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” – Exodus 14:13-14

He calms the people and leads, settling their fear and reassuring them to trust God. But then God says something interesting, :

Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground. – Exodus 14:15-16

He calls them not only to trust and reliance but also to action. This is characteristic not of a slave, but of a son. They too were in between what had been and what would be. They were no longer slaves, as they left Egypt and slavery they were regaining and reclaiming their place as sons and daughters (though they didn’t comprehend it yet)

Check out what Galatians 4 says:

…When we were children, we were in slavery under the basic principles of the world. But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. – Galatians 4:3-5

Attitude & Action- So both our attitude and our actions need to grow to be that of Sons and Daughters, and not that of slaves! The prison door is open and we are free if we will simply walk out of the cell and into freedom as a son!

Galatians continues…Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir. – Galatians 4:6-7

ATTITUDE: That is to be our attitude; not pompous or prideful, not spoiled but never the less a son or daughter of a king and therefore a responsible son who acts like his big brother, Jesus, who didn’t come to be served but to serve and was humble, and took appropriate action as a child of the king.

ACTION: Augustine said “Pray as though everything depended on God. Work as though everything depended on you.”

God was delivering the slaves from Egypt but all they could see was what was in the rear view mirror. Even after seeing at least 10 miracles that would ultimately set them free, all they could do was complain when what they should have been doing was walking or even running to freedom. Ultimately Moses had to lift his staff, divide the sea and the ex-slaves had to take action to gain the freedom that was already theirs. Slavery behind, the promised land ahead, they were in between what had been and what would be, but their attitude AND their actions had to change.

Frederick Douglass, ex-slave and abolitionist, 1800s, said: I prayed for twenty years but received no answer until I prayed with my legs.

The sailors say: “Pray… and row away from the rocks…”

As ex-slaves who are now Sons and Daughters of The Kingdom what pursues you and wants to overtake you or enslave you? “Pray…  and ____(fill in the blank)_”

When I was diagnosed as diabetic, the first week I was in shock,  I suffered overwhelming depression, I was enslaved. (The objects in the rear view mirror seemed much larger and closer and were overwhelming me) But then my attitude and actions began to change. I believe God will keep me, even heal me because He has before. I still fully trust in him).

As a son I also had to change my actions. I changed my diet, I take my meds regularly, and I am exercising daily. I’m putting legs to my prayers, I’m working as if it depends on me, as a son. I have to. But I also want to.

Always remember “you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir!” – Galatians 4:6-7