The Gaps

Annie Dillard writes:

Ezekiel excoriates false prophets as those who have not ‘gone up into the gaps.’  The gaps are the thing.  The gaps are the spirit’s one home, the altitudes and latitudes so dazzlingly spare and clean that the spirit can discover itself for the first time like a once-blind man unbound.  The gaps are the cliffs in the rock where you cower to see the back parts of God; they are the fissures between mountains and cells the wind lances through, the icy narrowing fiords splitting the cliffs of mystery.  Go up into the gaps.  If you can find them; they shift and vanish too.  Stalk the gaps.  Squeak into a gap in the soil, turn, and unlock – more than a maple – a universe.  This is how you spend this afternoon, and tomorrow morning, and tomorrow afternoon.  Spend the afternoon.  You can’t take it with you.

Can you see?  There is a reason to believe in God.  We have to break out of our grinding routines and look around, look up, look in the ground beneath our feet.  There is life all around.  We should dare to introduce ourselves to strangers. 

Can you see?  Stalk the gaps.  It will take some effort.  You will have to risk by thinking, seeing, feeling, learning.  You will be submitting to change, because when you are paying attention there is no way to remain who you were.  This is the currency of your life.  You were meant to spend it!

Day 36 – Thirty Six Days

Not much is said in the Bible about Saturday, the day after Jesus died.  I am writing this on a Saturday, the day after ‘Good Friday,’ and the day before Easter.  I am imagining what it must have been like.  Last week a young man was killed in a wreck.  He was twenty-nine.  He was killed on a Wednesday and the funeral was not until this last Tuesday.  Every day was hard.  I wonder if that was the experience of the disciples.  I wonder if they were shocked.  Jesus, who had been their teacher, the leader of their lives for the last three years, was brutally executed.  Were they ‘at loose ends’?  Did they wonder what they should do with their lives now, in this new reality?  Was it all over?

 

The gospel writers pick up the story on Sunday morning.  It begins with Mary Magdalene.  Jesus had had a profound impact on her life.  She was determined to honor him in his death.  She and another Mary had gone to the tomb.  The stone had been rolled away.  I am sure that it was for their benefit.  I doubt if Jesus needed help getting out.  Jesus revealed himself to Mary and sent her to tell the ‘brothers.’  They investigated, but were still in this post-death shock.

 

That evening, on the first day of the week, they were behind locked doors (John 20:19) and Jesus came and stood among them.  He said, “Peace be with you.”  That is what they needed.  And that is what we needed and need.

 

The message is, “This is not over.  This death is not the last word.  You are not at loose ends.  Peace be with you.  I have something for you to do.  Don’t be selfish.  Don’t quit.  As the Father sent me, so I send you.” 

 

When the waiting is over, this is the answer.  You can go on.  Jesus breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”  He was saying, “God will be with you.  You are not without power.  You have the capacity to ‘so love the world.’  Peace is no fantasy.”

Day 34 - Thirty Six Days

Matthew 27:45-46 (NRSV) From noon on, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. 46 And about three o'clock Jesus cried with a loud voice, "Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?" that is, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

One of the greatest challenges that I face as a teacher is what people think they already know. Once we learn, it is hard to unlearn. That is especially true with the Bible and matters of faith. I wonder if there is something in us that thinks that knowing the right thing will get us to heaven. If we discover that we still need to learn something, we somehow we have a sense of ‘lostness.’

Consider this. Some people have been taught that God turned his back on his Son while on the cross. Does the passage above teach that Jesus was godforsaken? Was the sin that he bore more than God could bear to see?

I once thought that. However, what I now see is that Jesus is quoting from Psalm 22. He is giving the first line. Psalms 22:1 (NRSV) My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning?

The truth is that God is not so far away from helping. God is near. God is paying close attention. God hears and knows. The psalm goes on to say, For he did not despise or abhor the affliction of the afflicted; he did not hide his face from me, but heard when I cried to him (Psalms 22:24).

Just as God does not forsake Jesus in this critical moment, so also he does not turn away from you in yours. Whatever your predicament, God does not turn away. You may feel godforsaken, but it is not true.

Day 30 - Thirty Six Days

Let me just say something about the sacrifice of Jesus. The beatings were not the sacrifice. The death was not the limit of the sacrifice. Crucifixion was common in the times of Jesus. Thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, were crucified. Jesus was not the first innocent person to die, either. The sacrifice began at his birth. He stopped being the eternal Word.

Philippians 2:7 (NRSV) ...but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form...

In the beginning was The Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth.

He becomes a baby, and person, a nephesh chaya, a living being.
He suffered like you and me. You could not out suffer him.
He had been with God for an eternity in close fellowship. Closer than we can say. Then he was torn from the Father and he will never be able to return to that connection. It is a forever sacrifice. It is not a temporary suffering. It is not a three-day death. Jesus is changed. When he returns we will see him as he went (Acts 2:11).

Day 29 - Thirty Six Days

Mark 8:34 (NRSV) He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.

The cross is coming. If we want to be disciples, a cross is required. No one wants that.

The Roman orator Cicero said this about ‘the cross.’ “...the executioner, the veiling of the head and the very word ‘cross’ should be far removed not only from the person of a Roman citizen but his thoughts, his eyes and his ears. For it is not only the actual occurrence of these things but the very mention of them, that is unworthy of a Roman citizen and a free man” (Rabirius Perd. 16).

My teachers, Fred Aquino and Jeff Childers, say, “Jesus proclaimed that the way to true health leads through suffering and that new life comes only to those ready to die each day. His unjust and inhumane death drove that message home, providing his disciples with a pattern to imitate.”

What we see in Jesus on the cross is God’s participation in our lives from the bottom up. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, even among the least of these.

Do you have a glimpse of that kind of love? Wouldn’t you love to have Someone who would come and be with you. Wouldn’t you love to have Someone who would not flee from your troubles, or your heartache, or your mess, from your truest self? This Someone comes to sit with you, to look you in the eyes, to appreciate you, to encourage you, to show you what love really means. This Someone comes to send you to do the same. That is what the cross means.

Day 28 - Thirty Six Days

Matthew 26:26-28 (NRSV) While they were eating, Jesus took a loaf of bread, and after blessing it he broke it, gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you; for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.”


Jesus and his disciples were having an early Passover meal. The Passover was a celebration that came from the Exodus. I remember the scene from The Ten Commandments movie starring Charlton Heston. The last plague that was inflicted on Egypt, prying the Israelites out of slavery, was the death of the first born. In the movie the death angel was green smoke winding through the streets of Egyptian cities. One could escape that plague, that judgment, if one had marked their homes with the blood of a lamb.

The Passover was a meal made up of lamb and wine and traveling bread. In this scene, Jesus is the host, but he is also in a metaphorical way, the lamb. He is the bread, manna in the wilderness. He is the red wine, the blood of the lamb that would mark our households and our very lives. He is the lamb who died that we might live.
When we share this meal with Jesus we are reminded (and we are proclaiming our intention) that it is God who sustains us, who passes over us in judgment, who forgives.

Day 27 - Thirty Six Days

Matthew 21:2-3 (NRSV) saying to them, "Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, just say this, 'The Lord needs them.' And he will send them immediately."

This is an interesting story. Jesus tells some of his disciples to ‘borrow’ a burro. He has need of it. He is going to make a declaration of who he is. To come riding into Jerusalem on a donkey was a sign of the coming of a new age. The prophet Zechariah had said, “See your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey” (9:9).
However, I don’t think I want the job of going into the village and untying someone’s donkey. I can just imagine the owner (especially in Texas) being a little irritated by the rustling of his burro. Jesus says, “Just say this, ‘The Lord needs them.’ Couldn’t he send me with money?

Following Jesus is not always a comfortable thing. Faith is required. He sends. We go. We trust that there will be people who will give a donkey, when that is required. I think we find ourselves on both sides of this episode. Sometimes he sends us to do difficult things. Sometimes we surrender a donkey.

Not my will, Lord, but yours, be done.

Day 26 - Thirty Six Days

Acts 6:15 (NRSV) And all who sat in the council looked intently at him, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel.

This was Stephen. He had been called to service in the early church and found himself under attack. People did not like that he was confronting and challenging their religious customs. The crowd was about to kill him. They would succeed, but not until he had his say.

What I see in this scene is a non-anxious presence. Stephen was full of the Holy Spirit. Have you had that experience? It is what is supposed to happen to us in worship.

Ephesians 5:18-19 (NRSV) Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery; but be filled with the Spirit, as you sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, singing and making melody to the Lord in your hearts.

I think it should happen in church. I think it can happen in all sorts of places. There are times when we sing together that we turn our faces to God and he moves us deeply. Tears wash our face and our heart. We are encouraged. We are reminded that we are not alone. Our burdens are lifted. We love and are loved.

When we have those experiences our anxiety is cured. Whatever we face is faceable. When you know this peace, you become a gift to those around you. You are the one who can see. You are the one who can think clearly. You are the one who is ready to speak just the right word. Like Stephen, you become an instrument in the hands of God. Do you know that experience? I hope you do!

Day 23 - Thirty Six Days

John 3:22 (NRSV) After this Jesus and his disciples went into the Judean countryside, and he spent some time there with them and baptized.

“He spent some time there with them and baptized.”

Jesus was spending time with his disciples. I suppose that is not remarkable. What is interesting to me is our interest in being disciples of Jesus and the question of time spent.

Annie Dillard wrote a book called The Writing Life. She was meeting with a group of people who said that they wanted advice on how to become writers. She was hard on them. She recommended that they take a axe to their lives. She said nothing changes until you totally reframe your priorities. You are not a writer because you are busy with other things. Your schedule is full. You have chosen to be a parent. You have chosen to be whatever your profession is. Your mind is full. Your life is full. Take an axe and start brutally cutting those things away and then maybe, maybe (if God has called you to be) you will be a writer.

At lot of people want to go to heaven because hell just seems to be such a bad future. What is the least I can do to prevent that? That is not what we are doing, however. That is not the Christian enterprise. The Christian enterprise is to follow Jesus, to do the things that Jesus did.

John 20:21 (NRSV) Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you."

They went to the countryside and “he spent some time there with them and baptized.” Would you be willing to spend time with Jesus? Are you interested in that? Would you be baptized (immersed) into that? How would you, will you, can you, spend time with Jesus?

Day 21 - Thirty Six Days

Acts 2:23 (NRSV) ...this man, handed over to you according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of those outside the law.

This last Christmas season (2007) I had an idea. It came from a news program about soldiers returning from the war in Iraq. It was clear that the spouses and children of enlisted soldiers were bearing a huge burden. Part of the burden was the ever-present anxiety that their loved one would not come home. Part of the burden is the financial reality of the families of enlisted personnel. I wanted Southeast to do something, some small thing, that would help them.

We announced on a Sunday morning that we were going to collect gift cards, or money to buy gift cards, that would be sent to homes of deployed enlisted soldiers. We were not really sure how we were going to get that done, but we started collecting money. Our people were generous. These Christians are sensitive to the sacrifices that these soldiers’ families are making.

I went to the local bank and purchased 300 gift cards worth $100 each. We found a way to get these into the hands of a support group for soldiers at Fort Bliss near El Paso, TX. Howard Bryan found a contact for us. The folks in that office told us that they had soldiers returning from the war and had been working to help them but that their resources were running low. They had been praying for God to help them when our package arrived. They wept as they opened the bundle of Visa gift cards. God had been answering their prayer a month before it was spoken. Our intention to bless, to manifest the presence of God, hit its target.

You see, God knows what you need even before you ask. Peter was preaching at Pentecost. He was saying that a gift had been given. The One and Only Son was given. It was not an accident. It was not a coincidence. It was not plan ‘B.’ God knew that you had a need. God so loved you, that he gave.

Day 20 - Thirty Six Days

Matthew 16:23 (NRSV) But he turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things."

I have the honor to share sacred space with a lot of people. Weddings and funerals are times of vulnerability and important conversation. A couple of years ago I was thinking with a young woman about her marriage that she thought was coming to an end. She was asking me for an opinion. What would be the right course of action. I told her, “I think I know what Jesus would do in this situation, but it is a lot to ask.” Jesus would choose to forgive. Jesus would take the wounds, would sorrow over the choices that had been made and then give himself in love.

Jesus seems always to be doing the perfect thing. We follow him, trusting. At times is seems a little ridiculous.

Matthew 9:24-25 (NRSV) ... he said, "Go away; for the girl is not dead but sleeping." And they laughed at him. 25 But when the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl got up.

The crowd knew a dead little girl when they saw one. They were sure. From a worldly perspective, they were right. They just did not know the resources Jesus had at his disposal. We who follow him wonder. Are those resources still available?

This is what I believe. God is for you. Does it mean we can forgive as Jesus forgave? Maybe. Does it mean we can love as Jesus loved? I think so. Would people think we were crazy for doing it? I think so. However, I think we will feel His Spirit moving in us and through us and for us as we dare to try.