Away To A Quiet Place

'Then Jesus said, "Come to Me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest." ~ Matthew 11:28

The past several weeks have been extremely stressful, caused by various situations and encounters with some difficult people in my life.  Yesterday was the clincher, a day that just about drove me over the edge.  A good majority of the time, I felt as if I had a huge weight bearing down on my chest, making it hard for me to breathe. And I spent most of the afternoon and evening battling to keep several panic attacks at bay.

I woke up this morning, with remnants of stress still hanging on.  I felt like a bee trapped inside of a jar and my time alone with the Lord was ruined by the distractions running through my head, like words on those scrolling TV news tickers.

Afterwards, as I prepared to take one of my children to their early morning job, I felt a whisper in my soul:

"Come away with Me to a quiet place."

"Well, alrighty then, Lord. And where might that be?" I wondered.  And as I ran out the door, I grabbed my camera, just in case I got some clearer directions along the way and found the need to document my time wherever I wound up.

Which, of course, I did.

At 6 AM, I found myself at the marina of a nearby park, where a certain bloggy friend of mine, Toni, from over at Lakeside Lessons, often spends some quality time with Jesus.  It was cold, a bit windy and the sun was just beginning to make a glorious appearance.  It was also peaceful, save for the excited cries and chatter between some feathered friends and the sound of the water lapping up on the shoreline.

In the gospel which bears his name, Mark paints a picture of Jesus' disciples returning from a mission to which He sent them.  There is no mention of how long they were away, but as tired as they must be from the journey, they ARE very excited about all they did and everything they've witnessed.  As they're in the midst of sharing with Jesus their stories of preaching, healing and driving out demons, we are told that there are many people coming and going all around them. So much so that they weren't even able to eat a meal. 

That's when Jesus issues this invitation to His weary and hungry friends:

"Come away with Me. Let us go alone to a quiet place and rest for awhile." (Mark 6:31)

Jesus takes them away by boat to a lonely place. Just Him and them.  A place of rest and peace. Because that's what they needed.

And that is where Jesus invited me today. To a place of rest and peace. Just Him and me. Because He knew that's what I needed.

Won't you join me?

Tenth Avenue North -- Worn

The Bondservant's Way

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It was just before the Passover Festival. Jesus knew that the hour had come for Him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end. ~ John 13:1

Feet.  Would you agree they're fairly essential body parts? Without them, we’d be hard pressed to stand, walk, run, ski, rollerblade. Kicking a ball might prove difficult.

But honestly – feet can be ugly. And smelly.

Granted, there are some women who were just born with dainty little photogenic feet. They probably have no need to scrape and slough them with pumice stones, to spritz them with perfume, or to slather them with Intense Skin Repair Lotion with Shea Butter on a daily basis.  But some of us do.

Then there are those of us who enjoy decorating our feet with brightly colored nail polishes, rhinestones, toe rings, tattoos, etc. 

And c’mon, who doesn’t love pudgy, smooth-as-silk, baby lotion scented tiny, little baby feet?

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Guys – sorry, but it seems you all are pretty much stuck with those Fred Flintstone appendages of yours. If you indulge in any of the aforementioned activities, that’s fine, but please keep it to yourselves. I really don’t want to know.

Our socks and shoes protect our feet from the elements and the environment. We have so many types and styles available for every season, event and activity. But back in the day – Jesus’ day – not so much. You had your basic leather sandals or else you went barefoot. Either way, that made for some extremely dry and dusty, filthy and funky smelling feet.

And yet, one evening long ago in an upper room, as Jesus and His disciples were in the midst of their Passover meal, their final meal together, these were the very body parts that Jesus chose to attend to at that moment.  Not their hands or their faces. But their feet. Their dirty, dry, disgusting feet.

The evening meal was in progress, and the devil had already prompted Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus. Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him. ~ John 13:2-5

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In those days, the custom of foot washing was a courteous, hospitable gesture done for a person's house guests. The host would provide the water and the other necessary items, as well as the servant to take care of the guests. The servant performing this task was known as a doulos, the Greek term for bondservant, the lowliest of the low. And a bondservant was the role that Jesus -- Son of God, King of Kings, the Anointed One and Messiah – was born to play.

Jesus, the One the disciples called ‘Master’ and ‘Teacher,’ was showing these men another side of Himself. A tender, loving, compassionate and very HUMBLE side.  As Jesus washed the feet of each of His disciples – and please keep in mind that included Judas, the one who would betray Him MINUTES later – His actions displayed pure and uncensored agape love. Redeeming love. Humble love. Jesus began to take on a new form to His friends.

He was now their bondservant.

When He had finished washing their feet, He put on His clothes and returned to His place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” He asked them. “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am.  Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.  Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.  Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them. ~ John 13:12-17

Why would Jesus do something like this? Something so lowly, humiliating, perhaps even embarrassing and obviously uncomfortable for the Twelve.  Why? After all, Jesus was the Son of God. Throughout all four Gospels, people were either throwing themselves at His feet; laying things and people at His feet; or sitting at His feet.  Yet here, we find Jesus exchanging that posture, placing Himself at the feet of others.

He explains His actions in verses 14- 15: “Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.”  Jesus wanted them to learn humility and loving service to others. And not just to learn and know these things, but to take action.

The world – our world – aspires to pride, domination and entitlement, no doubt more so today than it did back then. But Jesus wanted to show His disciples, His friends, as He longs to show us now, another way. A better way. His way. The Bondservant's way.

“If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.” ~ John 13:8

Will you let Him? On this Maundy or Holy Thursday, will you find a quiet place of solitude, and take some time with Jesus? Will you allow Jesus to humbly kneel before you today and wash your feet? Will you refrain from being embarrassed and uncomfortable and crying out like Peter did, “No, You shall never wash my feet!”

And then, will you humble yourself even further, look around and ask yourself this next question:

‘Whose feet do I need to wash?’

And They'll Know We Are Christians By Our Love

"A new command I give you.: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another" ~ John 13:35

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Yesterday in my post, The Snarkiness of Christianity,  I ended by wondering what Jesus might be thinking about all the arrogant, self-righteous and mean-spirited attitudes and comments from His followers that have been flying around on the Internet recently concerning the announcement of the new pontiff, Pope Francis I, and about the Catholic Church in general.

I cannot be so arrogant and self-righteous myself to state that I KNOW  exactly what Jesus is or could possibly be thinking.  But I do know from Scripture that Jesus reserved His harshest criticism for those who were considered the religious elite of His day -- the Pharisees and teachers of the law.  These holy men followed Jesus, too. But not because they believed He was the Messiah, but to judge and criticize and condemn every word He spoke and every move He made.

In the Bible, Matthew 23:1-36 is subtitled in one translation as ‘Seven Woes To The Scribes and Pharisees,’ and ‘A Warning Against Hypocrisy’ in another. Jesus admonishes their actions, telling His disciples and the crowd of people following Him not to do what they, the religious leaders, do, because they do not practice what they preach.

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“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites!”  Jesus says to them over and over, calling them blind guides, blind fools, whitewashed tombs, snakes and a brood of vipers.  These men gave the appearance of righteousness and holiness on the outside, but inside they were unclean and dead. Hypocrites.

Might these same accusations aimed at the Pharisees and teachers of the law by Jesus so long ago strike a chord with many of His people today who are speaking maliciously of other folks who love and serve the Lord? Might these same warnings resonate within them, making them uncomfortable in their sin?

I must say, I am all too aware that while we may be followers of Christ, we are also an imperfect bunch of people.  We make mistakes. We give in to temptations. We fall down. We say hurtful, inappropriate things.  We set bad examples. Most times unintentionally, but sometimes not.  

And to be painfully honest, there was a time when I was what some call a ‘baby Christian’ (someone immature in their faith in Christ) and I would often sarcastically and self-righteously refer to myself as a ‘recovering Catholic,’ as I toggled between looking down my nose at and feeling sorry for anyone who still found themselves ‘trapped by the tradition of guilt and shame’ (my words) within the Catholic Church.

Can you say ‘World’s Biggest Jerk?’ Yes, that was me to a T, my dears. I THANK GOD for His grace and mercy with me over the years. I am thankful for His persistence in pointing out my arrogant stupidity and Pharisaecal attitude, for His help in removing this ugly attitude in me. And I’m grateful that today, God still sends loving, yet stern reminders and lessons whenever I seem about to veer over onto that path again.

May I ask for something here? Could we all just be willing to lay down our verbal swords? Could we all  just be willing to put aside our differences and disagreements on theology and doctrine? Could we – as a people who profess to love Jesus Christ – learn to see one another as beloved children of our Father God and precious brothers and sisters in Christ, united by and with and through the Holy Spirit?

As a matter of fact, in John 17:20-23, this unity is what Jesus prayed for in the upper room after the Passover meal, the night He was betrayed:


“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in Me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as You are in Me and I am in You. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that You have sent Me.  I have given them the glory that You gave Me, that they may be one as we are one—  I in them and You in Me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that You sent Me and have loved them even as You have loved Me.

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Could we -- dare we -- as Christians, humble ourselves and pray this way, too, for our Catholic friends, family members, neighbors, classmates and coworkers and for their pope? Could we -- dare we -- pray for those whose religious denominations and traditions aren't mirror images of ours?

I’ve said this before, but it’s worth repeating – we need to be ever so careful about what we post, how we speak and act. The way we live and love.  Others – non-believers, new believers and people of different faith denominations -- are watching us. And they’ll know we are Christians…not by our Christian T-shirts, key chains and car magnets displaying clever slogans; not with our Jesus jewelry and our Bible verse Pinterest boards…but they’ll KNOW, without a doubt, we are Christians by our love.

The Solitary Chair -- Reflections From The Upper Room

Jesus Washing The Feet of His Disciples, by Albert Edelfelt

Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under His power, and that He had come from God and was returning to God; so He got up from the meal, took off His outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around His waist.  After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash His disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around Him. He came to Simon Peter, who said to Him, “Lord, are You going to wash my feet?” Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.” 


“No,” said Peter, “You shall never wash my feet.”


Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with Me.” ~ John 13:3-8, NIV

On the church calendar, today is known as Maundy Thursday or Holy Thursday, commemorating Jesus’ last supper with His disciples.  In the upper room that night before they ate, Jesus humbled Himself and did something shocking for His friends -- He washed their feet.  The ever impetuous Peter instantly balked at the mere thought of such a thing.


How would we feel, if Jesus came to us with basin and towel in hand?  I wondered….and felt moved to write about it.

The Solitary Chair

In my heart's home and my mind's eye, there is
a room;
A room with two chairs in which You wait for me
Each day.


You call my name......


Some days I come to You,
Some days I pass on by;
Too busy.


Or pretending I don't hear......


Today, Your voice invites
Me to
Come and spend some time
with You.


As I step through the door I see
a chair;
A solitary, lonely chair.

You smile and welcome me
to sit;
A towel is wrapped around
Your waist.


You hold a basin filled
with water;
Steam rising from it to
Your face.


I hesitate......


Confused
Unsure
Anxious


What is this that You have for me?


But to the chair I walk
and sit.....


Now with a look of compassion upon Your face,
for me,
A look which I just 
cannot comprehend, 


You kneel 
before me! 


Taking my feet --
My dry, dirty, shoeless, 
ugly feet --
Into Your beautiful, gentle, yet
powerful hands, 


And place them in
the basin.....

"OH NO!," I cry,
I don't deserve such honor, such tenderness;
I don't deserve such love from You,
Almighty King.


I am shaken
Humbled
Embarrassed even.


But there You are......


Choosing to take on the role
of bondservant,
Choosing to take Your place
at my feet!


Touching them
Washing them
Cleansing them.


Cleansing me......


Removing my feet from
the water;
Your once clean hands now stained,
From the dirt and filth
and ilk
That was once on me;


But now transferred 
onto You......

You take the towel from around
Your waist,
And proceed to dry
my feet.


From top to bottom, each and 
every toe;


Slowly
Deliberately
Tenderly
Lovingly.......


Your eyes, with Your sweet
unwavering gaze, 
pierce my heart to its core;


I am overwhelmed......

Overwhelmed by the love I see
in them.


Immense
Amazing
Unfailing
Unconditional


Who am I
that You would do such a thing
for me?


I am a forgiven sinner.


A recipient of Your grace and mercy.


I am Your Beloved.