Faith Venture

Colored lights were strung across streets. Lights were strung in plazas reaching from the ground upward toward a point representing conifer trees. No snow–I’m in Madrid.

Reminders of the season.

Some anticipating the joys of giving.

Others anticipating the joys of receiving.

Some people with no anticipation not having family or friends or sometimes even a place to live.

Some striving to experience once again the reason for the celebration.

How do we balance all of these conflicting emotions, desires, demands?

Isn’t that the real act of sanity for the next three weeks?

That is for disciplines of study, prayer, music to help us stay grounded and balanced.

Apologies to all of you country music fans. But the song title seems to fit the blizzard of headlines from the past couple of months. Thanks to the Internet, even being in Spain this week has not blocked all the news.

Evidently we still need a lesson in New Testament Greek, because people must be misreading the Gospel of John where we are told over and over to love one another.

In English we have one word. In Greek, Jesus talked about Agape rather than Eros. The love that flows from God, rather than the love that flows from hormones and emotions.

I studied a lot of 19th century philosophy at university. Marx, Nietzsche, Bakunin–all thought that Jesus was weak talking about loving enemies and sheep. They misread the human condition.

It is actually stronger to love in the Agape sense. Yielding to the power of hormones and emotions leads us to destroying our lives.

Just look at the many reports of the fatal mixture of money, sex, and power we read about every day.

It takes strength and faith to resist temptation. I’m betting we all realize that at some level.

People may think that a spiritual discipline is something you have to do over many hours a day. Actually, 15 minutes a day can be sufficient for many things. I am learning Spanish through an app called Duolingo. It recommends 15 minutes a day. It will send a reminder that you forgot your 15 minutes.

15 minutes a day reading directly from the Bible or other spiritual text, especially first thing in the morning, can fill your spiritual energy tank for the day. Maybe I need an app for that to send a reminder and then congratulate me for keeping up my discipline.

I love the picture from John about Jesus being the vine and we being the branches. Think of it as a system where energy flows from the root through the vine and then through the branches until fruit grows from the branches.

When I take time in the morning, then I will have better fruit during the day.

Fruit is personal–the way I live, my attitude, my interactions. Fruit is outside–my service to others. I just have to remember the source.

Last weekend I had the opportunity to worship at Willow Creek Community Church. It’s one of those “mega-churches” I write about often.

There was a great leadership lesson there aside from Bill Hybels’ teaching.

The worship team came on stage. The worship leader was at the side of the line of singers. The light came up on him to welcome everyone.

Then the worship music shifted focus to each of the singers. Even though they are professional quality they have the ability to involve everyone. It never felt like just a performance.

The important symbolic act, though, was that there was no one star. The leader made sure that everyone got some spotlight.

I thought about how that reflected the changes at the entire organization. It used to be a lot of Bill Hybels many years ago. Increasingly over the past 15 years or so he has shifted the spotlight on others. The midweek service features many of the leaders.

A true leader has the strength to allow others to take the spotlight. That’s humble leadership.

It’s 11 am in Madrid. My first trip to Spain. I just checked in to the hotel about 30 minutes ago. Time to walk a little, grab lunch, and then take a power nap.

Once I was shopping in Paris and a store clerk asked me in French if I was Spanish.

Today, even though I was speaking English at the reception desk, the manager who was escorting me to my room to show me the amenities started to ask me something in French.

I told her about the store experience. She said, well you do look Spanish.

My formula, keep your mouth shut as much as possible and smile. In Western Europe, they’ll just assume I’m one of them–at least for a while.

Actually, the same formula works anywhere in the world, even if you don’t look like a local.

Courtesy is a universal language.

There are rhythms to life. I had training as a percussionist as a child and had a time with the University of Cincinnati band. I was trained in rhythms.

So I notice.

I have a rhythm to my normal life. But traveling enforces its own. My daughter has a rhythm similar to mine. But I’m at my son’s. They have a different one. I can’t stay up until 12 CST and get up at 5:30 EST. Next week I will be in Madrid. The country of Spain has its own rhythm.

It may be one reason that the time from Thanksgiving to New Years has so many of us feeling “out of sorts”.

Our rhythm of life changes.

We try to pack in extra–visits, parties, lunches, gift shopping, travel.

No wonder that sometimes our bodies and our psyche rebel.

We’ve no doubt forgotten some basics because of the changing rhythms. When you go from a steady beat like from Handel that mirrors the body’s heart beat to a Bossa Nova, well, you’re going to notice a change.

The best course is to take a deep breath and enjoy the new rhythm while it lasts.

To my American readers–I wish you a Happy Thanksgiving.

For all my readers outside America, enjoy your day, too.

Blessings, everybody.