Do not be conformed...

Today in worship we practiced being a counter-cultural alternative to the

busyness of contemporary American life.  The heart of my message on living as a part of God's cosmos was an 8 minute musical meditation on the Taize change:  Veni Sancte Spiritus.  There was room for recorder and piano improvisation, extended quiet chanting as well as simply soaking in the well ordered beauty. (I hope in the days to come to be able to post this...)

Two thoughts were driving my insistence on resting in the quiet:

+ First, after the insanity and chaos of the Washington Navy Yard shootings, it is clear that NOBODY in the United States knows what to do about our carnage.  NOBODY - not Republicans or Democrats, not the churches or synagogues or mosques, not the NRA or the advocates of gun control - NOBODY.  We are all increasingly aware that we are living in an imbalanced and troubled way, but what to do?  Nobody really knows...  So rather than contribute to the noise I sensed it best to simply spend some time trusting that beyond the obvious, God is in control.  Learning to radically trust the Lord strikes me as the best course of action at this moment in time. 

Once again, my old friend Psalm 37 is calling with time-tested wisdom:

Do not fret because of the wicked;
   do not be envious of wrongdoers, 
² for they will soon fade like the grass,
   and wither like the green herb. 

³ Trust in the Lord, and do good;
   so you will live in the land, and enjoy security. 
⁴ Take delight in the Lord,
   and he will give you the desires of your heart. 

⁵ Commit your way to the Lord;
   trust in him, and he will act. 
⁶ He will make your vindication shine like the light,
   and the justice of your cause like the noonday. 

⁷ Be still before the Lord, and wait patiently for him;
   do not fret over those who prosper in their way,
   over those who carry out evil devices. 

⁸ Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath.
   Do not fret—it leads only to evil. 
⁹ For the wicked shall be cut off,
   but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land...

Wait for the Lord, and keep to his way,
   and he will exalt you to inherit the land;
   you will look on the destruction of the wicked.

+ Second, because there is a sacred rhythm and order to the

cosmos that aches for life, each of us needs to feel deep within how troubled our souls really are at this moment in time.  I believe that as a people we are grieving in a profound way, but we are mostly too freaking busy to notice.  So, part of waiting on the Lord is honoring our wounds so that when we are sick and tired of living in chaos, we might avail ourselves to God's impulse towards life. We simply can't continue spinning more and more out of control:  it is killing us.  So, let us stop and wait - feel and listen - for God is faithful and trustworthy and filled with life.

Another old friend from Scripture seems to be making a come back: Romans 12: 1-2.  

I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters,^* by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual^* worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.

One scholar has noted that "the phrase 'be not conformed to the world' was written in the middle passive voice of the Greek. This means that it is something we do to ourselves."

'Do not conform yourselves to the way of our society', I said to my

congregation. And then I was able to spell out some of the ways that we attempt to do this through our efforts at becoming a success by our own hard work, or by trying to self-construct a life through our choices or by simply trying to collect as much as we can.  These are all agendas of sour society that relentlessly confronts us. 'But be transformed,' the aposle continues.  And since that phrase is written in the passive voice, it calls us to a life of receiving the work of Christ. Most American congregations today are filled with people who do not know a thing about receiving. (We know TONS about giving and doing, but not much about receiving...) (The Pastor as Minor Poet, M. Craig Barnes)

So after explaining why I felt the call to rest and wait in God's ordered beauty - and giving a context grounded in the madness of the moment - we did so.  And there was a quiet sense of awe afterwards:  we're not much practiced in receiving... and it is important at this moment in time.