Re-Building Walls

Some questions I have from today:

Is our societal system based on walls, i.e. what I own versus what you (do not) own? Are we about the protection of private property, the right to bear arms and the freedom of speech? Or do we stand for something more than our individual rights, something beyond ourselves? Are we about the universal rights of the people to natural resources, the right to be peace-makers and the freedom to build wholistic community?

God's Economy: No Scarcity

In God's economy, there is no scarcity of resources. Just as there is no scarcity of God's love, there is no scarcity of food for the hungry, shelter for the destitute, or clothing for the naked.

The basic principle of economics is that resources are scarce, and it is precisely this scarcity that gives things their value. Capitalism takes natural resources, which God gave us to provide our basic needs, and turns them into a commodity.

What gives you your value? Your possessions? God doesn't care about what you "own." Your intelligence? God doesn't care about from which school you did or did not graduate. Your unique ability? God doesn't care how you market yourself. God loves you for who you are, wherever you are and whatever you do. After all, like a parent, he created you.

How you respond to God's love will give God joy or pain. To imagine, that we can cause pain in the heart of God! Yet how much more so if we were to give our brothers and sisters joy - so, too, will God celebrate. How audacious!!

I'm reminded of some U2 lyrics:
"Where you live should not decide
Whether you live, or whether you die."

What a world look like where pay were undifferentiated, regardless of what you did? What would a world look where the poor were our celebrities, our role models? What would a world look like where resources, such as access to water, food, shelter and good health, were available regardless of wherever you live?

Maybe it would begin to look like the Reign of God.

Engaged!

Now that I've completed seminary midterm stuff, as in two papers and two tests within two days, I'm able to come up for a breath of fresh air... and declare the rumors (you may have heard) true: Yes, I am in fact engaged to a lovely Ms. Emily Ruth Presley. My version of events, with confirming photos:

It all started when the landing gear got stuck. I was leaving Oakland on my way to meet Emily in the Atlanta airport, where we would continue on to New Orleans, when the plane turned around because the pilot couldn't get the landing gear up. Thankfully it was stuck in the 'down' position. After a second try the next day at noon on the same plane, and the same problem occurred, they put me on a different plane and I arrived almost 12 hours later than expected. Meanwhile, Emily had arrived in New Orleans and spent the entire day getting to know my uncle, Lee, who was celebrating his birthday.

Together At Last

Lee, his partner Doug, Emily and I proceeded to have a wonderful few days in New Orleans, complete with a (day) tour of Bourbon St., various delicious ethnic foods, and even a wading through the streets of NO during a particularly heavy downpour. On Wednesday, October 24th, we flew back to Atlanta, where we would each part our separate ways...

...or so SHE thought! I had secretly made arrangements to fly back with her to Detroit. We had a tearful goodbye at the gate before she boarded the plane, before I then through on a friend's hooded sweatshirt and beanie, and acted like I was on the cellphone to cover up more of my face. I ended up just a few persons behind her in line on the plane, but had put her in the back of the plane and myself in the front. When we deboarded in Detroit, she was quite shocked to see me standing there!

"Oh No He Didn't!"

Her mom picked us up from the airport, and we had a good laugh at how I surprise her... little did anyone know this was just the precursor to the main event. A few hours later I took her to dinner at a nice Italian place in her hometown of Northville, MI. We then went for a walk in the historic park in her town, and came upon a large white gazebo decorated with rose petals and candles, and nicely arranged with a wooden bench, some crates with a large single candle on top and a dozen roses (I had enlisted her uncle Ed, an interior designer, to assist me). By now she new this was probably it... I bumbled through some nice words, saying what I could remember from what I had planned to say, and then got down on one knee and the rest is history.

Engaged in the Gazebo by Candlelight

So, thanks to all who have played an integral role in our relationship - Emily and I both tremendously value your impact on our lives, and we look forward to continuing on this life journey together.

No, really, WE'RE ENGAGED!

May this story bless your day today. It was a lot of fun in the making.

Hiking Mt. Tam

One mile was on a road to the park...


The Crew: Rachel, Nori, Julia & Talitha

There was treacherous wildlife, like this (hardly) poisonous banana slug (at least 5 inches long!)

And the views just didn't stop... the Bay Area looking South, with San Fran rising out of the waters

Hiking Mt. Tam, cont'd

Nori and Myself, overlooking Mt. Tam State Park and Lake Lagunitas


Talitha and Julia, mountain climbers extradinaire, with the Bay and Tiburon Point in the background

Rachel checks out the view, with North Bay and the Richmond Bridge as a backdrop

Two others, Raphael and Elizabeth, joined us at the top with much-needed rations...Who needs Fed-Ex when we've got door-to-mtn-top service?!

Why is Love so Hard?

I've been thinking about this question lately, both in the context of ministry and in life. In particular, I think about how hard it can be love others whom you disagree with or don't know very well. And how much HARDER it sometimes is to love those whom you agree with and know really well!

I think one answer that sheds some light on this question is that we are all needy beings. Our neediness makes us want to control others and the future; makes us jealous of others and their seeming happiness; makes us lonely and wanting of relationship; makes us less perceptive of the truth about ourselves so we feel better; and all of this tends to make us fearful.

In Sondra Wheeler's book, What We're Made For, she sees the Christian faith directly addressing our needs/neediness. She says that, "Worship Limits Control-Seeking", "Communion Responds to Jealousy", "Prayer Answers Loneliness", "Confession Corrects Self-Deception", and Confidence in God Rescues Us from Fear.

While this is a bit formulaic, it helps me think creatively about how and why ministry is so important in this world. No where do we find that money or leisure or travel or shopping or eating or sleeping are an answer to our needs. Only by going beyond ourselves in love do we begin to see past our own needs and rest in God's assurance.

And yes, to do this thing called love is hard. Yet the fruit is worth eating... and sharing.

Listening as Surrender

Tonight in my class, Pasor as Community Organizer, we reflected on how the act of listening can (and possibly should) be an act of surrender. We shared the times when we've felt most hurt by someone. Oftentimes it is by someone we love and trust. At these times, I've felt betrayed, lost, not trusted, misunderstood... I felt the biblical phrase "and his heart was hardened" applied directly to me.

Listening as Surrender meands giving of your time to people, being vulnerable to what they share, being open to whatever happens, and giving your full attention to what they are saying. I've heard that only 15% of communication is verbal: the rest is tone and body language. It takes 110% percent of our attention to fully understand someone. How much are you giving?

Think about the people who truly listen to you. Name them. How are they surrendering their time, their perrogative to do something else, in order to simply be with you? These are some of the most important relationships you can have.

Who do you truly listen to? In a play off of Ghandi's words to be the change you want to see in the world, be the listener today. See what God does in your heart.

John Bell: Loving Our Bodies

Today we had the privilege of having Rev. John Bell, founder and member of the Iona Community in Scotland, and known throughout the world as a wonderful musician and songwriter, talk in our Introduction to Ministry class. He said a number of remarkable, insightful things, of which I paraphrase below.

While the body is subject to the brain, the Word didn't become intelligence but flesh. We are a ministry of bodies, in that all we do and see is physical. Therefore, we must LOVE our bodies; God won't give us another one. To love ourselves and each other, we must love our bodies.

The questions for discernment he gave us: What is God doing in your life and the world? Now that you've identified these things, how can you help to be a part of that work? How do we dare to be a part of God's ministry in the world without getting in the way?

Just as discipline in exercising our bodies is loving them, so we must exercise our love through discipline, in doing what is hard but right, difficult but true. In this way, we love at our utmost, using all of our strength, mind and soul.

Sufi Iftar Dinner

Tonight a group of us joined a Sufi group to share in their Iftar dinner. The Iftar dinner is simply the meal after sunset to break the fast during Ramadan. The people were extremely nice and welcoming, and the food was stupendous - reminded me a lot of Meditarranean food, particularly Lebanese.


Sitting down (on the floor) to eat: Myself, Luke, Alison and Barb.

The Sufis are described as the Mystical Muslims.

This was their holy place. Each time they entered or exited, they bowed towards the center of the room.

A local Imam visited the Sufi center to join us for the dinner.
I thought this was classic, with him receiving a DHL letter, and yes, that's a Macy's bag at his feet!

Second-Wind

Lately I have been dragging. I'm not sure what it is, but I know my friend Lydia was feeling under the weather last week and just lacked a lot of energy. I'm tired but not quite tired enough to take a nap, and as a result I just keep pushing through my tired feelings until I get a second-wind.

When I was in high school, I went to JH Ranch, an evangelical Christian camp in Etna, Northern California. They draw a lot from the Southeast and I was probably their first (and only?) person from Delaware. The motto of the camp is essentially testing ourselves physically and mentally, through ropes course work, white water rafting and wilderness navigation, as a reflection or in preparation of testing ourselves spiritually. Essentially, you get to the point where all you can do is rely on God, rather than your own strength, and take that leap of faith to get to the other side. The program was aptly dubbed "Second Wind."

That is what I am praying for: a daily resurrection, a reversal of my myopic reality, a turning of the tide (to conjure up images of LotR). In digging deep, I hope to rely on not on my own strength, but that of Christ, in which I can do everything (Phil 4:13). My God rejuvenate your soul, reverse your circumstance, and deliver you to the other side.

Muir Beach

The beauty of where I am, Marin County, continues to astonish me.
It's so wonderful to have someone with whom to share it!


Not far from Muir Woods is Muir Beach!

Full of fun rocks to play and climb on!

These rocks are called "haystacks," and are left over when softer, sedimentary rock has been eroded away from this harder, volcanic rock.

A nice view of the Marin Headlands.

To Emily's left (your right) there is apparently a (un)designated nudist section of the beach.
(Not pictured: the two naked people we saw before turning back).

A Walk in the Woods

On our last day, I took Emily to Muir Woods, about a half-hour from the seminary. It is one of the few remaining sanctuaries of the Redwood forests, which used to cover much of Northern California.

These trees can grow upwards of 300 feet tall and are straight as an arrow. The bark looks like sinew, being rooted in the ground only 10 feet deep but up to 100 feet in diameter.

Walking in these woods makes me think of Lord of the Rings. Many of the trees grow in families, intertwining their roots for support. Within one grove, eleven trees surrounded a dead one, which had given birth to its "children." It made me think of the Apostles...

It's as if we'res standing between the legs of one of Tolkein's Ents!

Or being eaten by one!

A Reflective Hike

Today Emily and I hiked up Mount Baldy, about an hour's hike up from the seminary.

Taking time to reflect

It was a great time to exercise our muscles and spend some time reflecting.

A distant view of the city

Despite having a limited amount of time together, we have so much to be thankful for: good health, loving family, supportive friends, few financial worries, wonderful weather, ample leisure time...

Taking It All In

There is so much to be thankful for when we take the time to stop, listen and reflect.

Two Thankful, Happy People

I'm thankful to have a partner to join me on this journey of life and faith.

Parks of SF

There are so many beautiful parks in San Francisco! And many of them are at the top of the hills with tremendous views of the city! (Emily's shirt says: "All I need is Love"

In Bristol Park

Nestling

At Stow Lake in Golden Gate Park
(A little smushed, but I don't mind)

A Golden Gate Sunset

We ended our first day together (strategically) near the Golden Gate at Sunset.


By the Golden Gate at Sunset


Looking towards Angel Island and the Bay

A San Francisco Moment

Dusk at the Golden Gate

Emily Arrives!

With much delight and anticipation, I welcomed Emily to San Francisco today!


We spent the day just looking at each other...

Laughing...

A lil' smooching...

And just enjoying God's presence,
thankful that we have this time (6 days!) together.

Coastal Clean Up

Today was National Coastal Clean Up day. A group of us went down to Rodeo Beach off of Marin Headlands to join about a hundred other people to clean up the beaches. We scoured the landscape and picked up all kinds of stuff. There was some sea kelp that I thought was trash - it was huge! It felt good to get up early on a Saturday morning and participate in a national event, as well as get to know a few friends better. I think it's important we are good stewards of this Earth. As I read in a recent IHT article, it is us, and not the Earth, who are in danger.

The Crew: John Scott, Rachel and Pete

Yeah, Man! We're Hard Core!

Now ain't that a clean lookin' beach?

Scouring the Rocks for Trash

Jammin' In

Live music with friends in the den: It doesn't get much better than this. We've gotten together a few times and jammed over the weekend, and it's been a lot of fun... to just listen, to join in, to simply be, letting the music rock your soul. So far, these jam sessions have been a highlight of my time here; a reminder of past and present fellowship.

Talitha on Base

Pete on Guitar, Elizabeth on Sax

Relaxed

Strummin'