Gary Mintchell

Author Archive

5,000 Men

April 15, 2025

Scholars have debated the meaning of the report on feeding a crowd at one of Jesus’s mega-teachings that notes “5,000 men.”

Why men?

Perhaps the number 5,000 matters (I’m sure it wasn’t an accident, writers don’t add stuff just to add stuff—at least not good ones). And, men.

And consider that they wanted to crown Jesus as king.

5,000? That’s the size of a Roman Legion. If he had led those 5,000 at that point on a march to Jerusalem, think of how large the army would have been by the time they got there. And then the triumphal entry on what we call Palm Sunday. Jesus entered from one gate, so scholars say, at the same time the Roman ruler entered another gate with his troops in order to maintain order during Passover.

He could have been leading a 20,000-strong army on the capital. We know they were armed, since Peter drew a sword and used it at the time of the arrest.

What would have happened?

Well, consider what happened 35 years later when there was a popular uprising. Thousands were killed (and not Romans), the Temple was totally destroyed, and the Jews were dispersed.

Jesus and those 20,000 men would have been slaughtered.

I love stories that unfold in multiple layers. There is the immediate layer that Jesus saved his followers from immediate slaughter that would have nipped his growing project in the bud.

Of course, there is also the theological layer that we all know about–Jesus, the sacrificial lamb, killed for all of our sins.

Good stories bear truth in many layers. I don’t think the gospel writers could have made that up that quickly.

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Handling Conflict

April 14, 2025

The political situation in the US has become so divisive this century that researchers have published several books on handling conflict or having difficult conversations.

Two additional thoughts:

Any reading of US history reveals that this period is not unique
This situation exists in many (most?) areas of the world

Writing is thinking. Since I claim to be a follower of Jesus, curiosity aroused within to discover how he handled conflict. I have been researching for some time and begun writing a slender volume of examples and thoughts.

Jesus was a rabbi. This fact is uncontested in the gospels. There was both a process to become recognized as a rabbi and a culture among rabbis. Part of the culture, I believe still today, entails deep memorization of the essential texts and the ability to debate your points versus other schools of rabbinic thought.

The gospels, especially John, portray these arguments often as attacks on Jesus. Indeed, he was different from the two mainline schools thus inviting debate.

But he also faced real conflicts. Internal (confronting the devil’s temptations in the desert) and physical (the threat of stoning the woman caught in the act of adultery).

What patterns have I uncovered so far in my thinking?

Jesus was secure in his mission given to him by God
He possessed the internal strength to confront others with God’s words
He possessed the internal strength, courage, and appropriate calm to face physical threats with grace
His “emotional quotient” was such that he could find the appropriate level of response

These are qualities that we can, through practice, also acquire. And we should.

More thinking to come.

Thoughts?

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Try Easy

April 11, 2025

A comic strip from long ago called Pogo where the main character remarks, “The hurrieder I go, the behinder I get.”

Perhaps we find ourselves on that great gerbil wheel of life. Running faster and faster, yet going nowhere.

Sometimes being still and waiting for God’s whisper to visit us is the best medicine.

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Teach Us To Pray

April 10, 2025

There was a marketing tag line for one of those gossip periodicals found in the grocery store check out queue—Inquiring minds want to know.

Well, I am blessed, or cursed, with almost infinite curiosity. Inquiring minds want to know.

Jesus’s friends had noticed how he regularly withdrew from them to be alone to pray. So they asked him, “Teach us to pray.”

Did Jesus give them a practice? No. He gave them words. Depending upon our tradition, we call these recorded words “The Lord’s Prayer” or the “Our Father.”

Of course, that is firmly in the Jewish rabbinic tradition. They were focused on words. Boys were accepted into what I call “Rabbi School” when they showed a proclivity as early as eight years of age for memorizing the Laws and the Prophets. They studied under a master Rabbi. They learned to debate the meanings of the words they had memorized.

Jesus surely went through such training. Check out the story of him at 12 in the Temple. Or the fact that everyone accepted him as a rabbi. Or that all his responses to questions except one reflected the teaching of the leading Galilean rabbi of the time. (One answer regarding divorce seemed to reflect the teaching of the more conservative Judean leading rabbi.)

So, he taught the disciples a prayer they could memorize.

I wish he had taught them his practice. Or at least, that his disciples had recorded it if he did.

I do like the prayer, though. As I pray it, I’m reminded of almost the entire gospel.

We are not alone but in the community of all God’s children (Our father). Remembering Jesus’s teaching about the Kingdom of Heaven being all around us, we recognize God as in heaven, that is, all around us, but spiritually not physically. We recognize God as being the leader/ruler/primary focus for obedience. We ask to be fed. We recognize we need to extend forgiveness as much as to ask for it for ourselves. We need help from succumbing to temptation. And it is all within God’s wishes.

But when I sit to pray, I may think of these words or the Jesus Prayer (Lord Jesus Christ have mercy on me, a sinner). But I have a practice of time, place, posture, breathing, awareness, focus.

Posted in Prayer | Leave a Comment »

Physical Activity Boosts Spiritual Disciplines

April 9, 2025

The idea of leading a disciplined life gradually came to me the spring following a “promotion” at work from a position in manufacturing where I walked constantly (before the days of tracking steps) to a desk job the previous summer. I could barely run to first base in the first spring softball practice.

That led to a discipline of early morning runs before heading to work. That discipline got me through COVID when gyms were closed and we had just moved to a new state. I lost some fitness and gained some weight, but it could have been much worse.

Two books came my way years ago—Celebration of Discipline by Richard J. Foster and The Spirit of the Disciplines by Dallas Willard. I have taught classes based on these books.

Recently I sketched an outline for a new class on Spiritual Disciplines. Thinking on these and my experiences, I concluded that a further introduction was needed for the students. Perhaps an introduction of habit forming, such as from Atomic Habits or the Power of Habit.

Then this report on research on exercise and mental health from Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Pump Club newsletter—Researchers conducted a powerful statistical method that combines data from multiple studies to uncover underlying connections between exercise and mental health. The findings were clear: physical activity was strongly linked to increased resilience, and resilience, in turn, was associated with lower levels of anxiety, depression, and overall psychological distress.

Before we jump right into studying prayer, for example, as a spiritual discipline, perhaps we need to pay attention to our bodies and minds and their role in beginning and maintaining discipline. Unless, that is, we join a monastery where we are forced to rise at 4 am for morning prayers.

Pursuing Spiritual Discipline is a “full-contact sport.” We must involve mind and body, as well as, spirit to the extent of our capabilities.

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Fear Not!

April 8, 2025

I carefully curate my news sources attempting to discard the most biased. Yet, whether I’m reading about technology, business, or politics, the message is Fear This!

Contemplating this “feature” of news, God spoke. OK, not like George Burns in the eponymous move or in the young Bill Cosby’s Noah skits. But the message was clear—consider the most used command in the Bible—Fear Not!

God, angels, even Jesus himself command people, “FEAR NOT!”

Let this sink in.

If God tells us not to fear, perhaps I should listen. Perhaps I should pause after reading or hearing, breathe, become aware of God’s presence around and through me, releasing my fears. What happens, happens. “It rains on the rich and poor alike.”

Relaxing into the presence of God takes us to a new level that we can figure it out and get through.

Posted in Attitude | Leave a Comment »

Against These There Is No Law

April 7, 2025

Jesus began his ministry by proclaiming the kingdom of heaven is here—around us, within us. He proceeded to try to explain how to live in the kingdom. Later he discussed leaving the Holy Spirit behind when he physically departed.

How do we live in that spirit? That is the question.

There are few thoughts in the New Testament that intrigue me more than this passage from the end of the Letter to the Galatians. Here, Paul describes two ways of life.

Now the works of the flesh are obvious: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the Kingdom of God.

By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against these, there is no law. If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit.

Let us not be conceited, competing against one another, envying one another.

Think of the people you know who live like the first description.

Now, think of people you know who live the second way of life.

Which would you rather be?

As for me, I would like to live like the second one, but it’s not easy. We must constantly renew our connection with the Spirit. Even once a day doesn’t always work for me.

Posted in spirit, Wisdom | Leave a Comment »

Order from Chaos

April 4, 2025

I sit in meditation. Thoughts chaotically tumble through my consciousness. Focus and awareness are lost.

I scan news or social media. Everything in the world seems complete chaos.

I ponder the creation story. It tells me that God created order from chaos.

What does the creation story tell us about God?

Where can I turn to God to help me sort through my chaos? How can God help me find order in my awareness? How can I find trust in God to bring order out of the chaos around me?

God, help me turn my awareness toward you. Let me sit in calm awareness allowing your spirit to infuse me.

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Helping Others

April 3, 2025

Shall we pause and reflect upon the manner with which we connect with others who are perhaps struggling with something or asking for help with a project?

We seldom realize the weight our words, even the shortest quip, fall on another’s consciousness.

Immediately I think of a quip an older student made to me when I was in first grade that controlled certain behaviors for ten years of school. The slightest comment can cause someone to gain faith…or lose it.

When we offer a critique of another’s work, choose wisely. Will our comment belittle them? Make them feel childish or ignorant or irrelevant?

Perhaps we can find encouraging words that enlarge their perspective giving them hope and positive guidance.

Maybe we have cultivated the life stance of kindness which guides our thoughts and comments.

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Handling Anger

April 2, 2025

Be angry, but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not make room for the devil. —Ephesians

This thought is psychology genius. The writer grasps the depths of human emotion bringing it to light within the spiritual tradition.

Be Angry

Anger is going to visit us. We cannot avoid it. Even recognizing what triggers our anger response does not prevent the emotion.

Do Not Sin

This may be the hard part. When anger visits, what is our response? Can we find a way to avoid the explosion where words and actions create inevitable separation and hurt?

Therapists and gurus advise pausing. Good luck trying that at times. But it’s true. A pause, a breath helps. Cultivating a habit of self awareness also helps. My current meditation teacher, Henry Shukman, says, “We all have emotions. Through meditation we can become less identified with it and simply observers of it.”

Do Not Let The Sun Go Down On Your Anger

One of the most revered of the Desert Fathers, Abba Poeman, when asked about dwelling on these emotions, said, “The axe cannot cut down a tree by itself.”

Do not grab that axe handle of anger and use it. Let it lie. Get over it however works for you. Make any necessary apologies. (Hint: just say “I apologize” or “I am so sorry” and do not add any explanation.)

Do Not Make Room For The Devil

The longer we sit in anger, the more likely that our personality will change. We can become one of those bitter, offensive people whom we avoid. We draw apart from God. Prayer becomes impossible. Other people annoy us.

Close that door before it’s too late.

Posted in Attitude, emotions | Leave a Comment »

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