Tuesday, February 26, 2013

In Over My Head

I heard my Pastor say he felt as if he was “in over his head” when called to pastor our church.  You have probably felt this way at one time or another.  I don’t have any experience pastoring a church but I have had that feeling in a large percentage of the journey’s that I have set out on or been instructed to go on.   

“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you. Psalm 32:8  

It seemed like there was always smarter guys in the room. Why was I there?  Maybe I misread the meeting invite.  The completed task seemed to always be just out of my reach.   

“And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. 1 John 5:14” 

In the midst of the struggles God can be a “lamp unto your feet” to show you the way.  When the journey seems long and dangerous, the 23rd Psalms says that “surely goodness and mercy shall follow”.   

When the opposition to your success is rising tall and shouting loudly, “What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” Romans 8:31-32 

It is God’s desire to see His people succeed.  When you feel like you are in over your head, remember He has already made the ultimate sacrifice for us.  All was done in an effort to allow us to reach Him…  All we need do is listen for His voice.  “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with them, and they with me.” Rev 3:20 

“Knock Knock” … I think you know who’s there!

Thursday, February 7, 2013

Black History Month

February is Black History Month. Some folks believe there is no need to continue designating this month for this reason. You might be one of them and I respect that. I personally do not share that opinion. I have friends and associates of all nationalities that will receive this email. I hope you can read this objectively because I have the utmost respect for you and your opinions, as I hope you do for mine.

The African American community is experiencing some catastrophic realities. Our children are dying in record numbers and it is only being noticed when the best and brightest of us fall victim. To be true to my faith I am just as concerned with the death of the “gang banger” as I am for the debutant. You might shout out that in the black community it is a result of black on black crime. You might also say that whites are dying in mass shootings because of “mental illness” which is the only reason there is an out-cry for gun control.

This month is a perfect opportunity for my generation to speak up and stress the rich history and struggle of a people that was the subject of the most horrific and diabolical treatment (before and after the 13th Amendment) any one group of people could endure. I reaped the benefits of my parent’s (generational) struggles in the 40’s, 50’s, and 60’s. In the 70’s and 80’s the road blocks to success were passable because of the struggles of my elders. I did not acknowledge their “triumph” or pass on my gratitude. Instead I focused with laser beam precision to realize “my dreams” and prosper. Consequently, I (we) forgot to tell (repeat) the stories of the struggles and show our appreciation for the fruit we ate from trees we did not plant.

Excerpt from “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Perhaps it is easy for those who have never felt the stinging darts of segregation to say, "Wait." But when you have seen vicious mobs lynch your mothers and fathers at will and drown your sisters and brothers at whim; when you have seen hate filled policemen curse, kick and even kill your black brothers and sisters; when you see the vast majority of your twenty million Negro brothers smothering in an airtight cage of poverty in the midst of an affluent society; when you suddenly find your tongue twisted and your speech stammering as you seek to explain to your six year old daughter why she can't go to the public amusement park that has just been advertised on television, and see tears welling up in her eyes when she is told that Fun Town is closed to colored children, and see ominous clouds of inferiority beginning to form in her little mental sky, and see her beginning to distort her personality by developing an unconscious bitterness toward white people; when you have to concoct an answer for a five year old son who is asking: "Daddy, why do white people treat colored people so mean?"; when you take a cross country drive and find it necessary to sleep night after night in the uncomfortable corners of your automobile because no motel will accept you; when you are humiliated day in and day out by nagging signs reading "white" and "colored"; when your first name becomes "nigger," your middle name becomes "boy" (however old you are) and your last name becomes "John," and your wife and mother are never given the respected title "Mrs."; when you are harried by day and haunted by night by the fact that you are a Negro, living constantly at tiptoe stance, never quite knowing what to expect next, and are plagued with inner fears and outer resentments; when you are forever fighting a degenerating sense of "nobodiness"--then you will understand why we find it difficult to wait. There comes a time when the cup of endurance runs over, and men are no longer willing to be plunged into the abyss of despair. I hope, sirs, you can understand our legitimate and unavoidable impatience.

Those that pull the trigger do so with no thought of the countless “somebodies” that endured to allow them to just “be”. They never heard this story (and many others like it). They may only know of the much heralded “I have a dream” speech. One month can’t contain the history of African Americans. My hope is that it can serve as a spring board for conversation.

I can only pray that we all realize that God has given us a short time to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” Matthew 22:37-40

My Lord My God My Father My Counselor, and My Redeemer, Thank you for your loving kindness despite our inability to appreciate your limitless gifts. Your greatest commandment is that we love you with all we have and then love others as we love ourselves. With that in mind, I lift up all relationships to you. All human encounters, rather they be casual or complex. I ask that you be present in them and bring peace to a hurting world… Amen

Sunday, January 6, 2013

If I Had A Choice

Growing up I had several routes I could take to get to grammar school. The route I chose usually depended on how “nimble” I was feeling that morning. A straight shot to St. Killian was quick and I enjoyed walking past the store fronts on 87th street. This route left me vulnerable to guys that were tougher than me and who knew where I hid my lunch money. Hopping the freight train was quick but dangerous, and I still had to contend with the neighborhood when I hopped off. I could use my lunch money to catch public transportation but be hungry all day. Oddly neither of these choices ever caused me to miss a day of school in eight years. So my choice was always based on the consequences I was in the mood to endure. It is not the choices; it is the consequences of the choice that we must consider.

Consider this: The holy trinity having a sit down and deciding on how to bridge the gap between them and man. This was a gap that had existed for 400 man years (just a few days for them). There was only one way to truly bridge the gap. A sacrifice had to be made. Would the first fruit from the fall harvest do? Would the fatted calf do? How about the first 10th of their wages? They spoke in unison; “all of these are mine already. Neither will do. Jesus, this one is on you. You will have to be clothed in human flesh and endure all that is common to it. You will also be mocked and scorn even though you are without sin. All the while we need you to teach folks with severe spiritual learning disabilities. On top of that you will have to endure the most brutal death know to them. After that, you can do your thing and come back home.”

The Father, The Son, and the Holy Spirit made a choice based on their love for us in spite of the sacrifice Jesus would make on our behalf. The heavenly hosts rejoiced this decision\choice. This choice would allow us to go home after these carbon based bodies will no longer hold water. This past Christmas season was based on a choice that was made in heaven. How will you consider the choices that you make this new year? Those choices that put you at the foot of the Father will bring about consequences that will be rejoiced in heaven.

For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. Luke 2:11
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!” Luke 2:13-14

Lord God my Father, thank you for loving me enough to choose to send your son to live and ultimately die for my bad choices. Thank you for being God and God all by yourself. My prayer is that I consider your choice as I make mine. I seek to grow closer to you this year and get to know you better through prayer and studying your word. All the glory and honor you are due for the grace and mercy you have shown towards me. In 2013 I choose to show myself approved… Amen

Glad the Tomb is Empty
Lance C. Peeler