Jesus the Healer

The Choir's anthem at 11:00 worship was Fanny Crosby's wonderful hymn Pass Me Not, O Gentle Savior. The lyrics are below.

As you read the lyrics, I encourage you to imagine yourself as one of the lepers that Jesus healed (Luke 17:11-19). What would you do after the healing? How do you respond in real life when you sense God working for good in your life? Then imagine one of the "untouchables" in your life as the one crying out to Jesus. Remember that as Jesus reached out to the lepers, Jesus wants us to reach out to all people.

 

Pass me not, O gentle Savior,
Hear my humble cry;
While on others Thou art calling,
Do not pass me by.

 

Refrain:
Savior, Savior,
Hear my humble cry,
While on others Thou art calling,
Do not pass me by.

 

Let me at Thy throne of mercy
Find a sweet relief;
Kneeling there in deep contrition,
Help my unbelief.

Trusting only in Thy merit,
Would I seek Thy face;
Heal my wounded, broken spirit,
Save me by Thy grace.

Thou the spring of all my comfort,
More than life to me,
Whom have I on earth beside Thee,
Whom in Heav’n but Thee.

Jesus the Lawbreaker

I spent some extra time this week reading about the Pharisees. Honestly, I didn't know as much about them as I thought I did. One of my primary resources was a great Bible Dictionary I own called the New Interpreters' Bible Dictionary. At $80 for the whole set it's really a good deal. Even more interesting is to read up on the history of the Sabbath. Like much of early Jewish history, the concept of sabbath has roots in the Near Eastern world that the early Jews lived in.  What made the Jewish people different was the way they interpreted sabbath in the context of their religious faith. This specific example of taking a cultural artifact and giving it new meaning was new to me, but there are lots of examples throughout history. Celebrating Christmas on December 25 is one good example. There's also nothing wrong with it. We can readily acknowledge that God gives truth to the world in a whole variety of ways. God's presence and grace is everywhere, after all.

Back on the subject at hand, though, here's the challenge from this week. What social norms (rules, laws) do you follow that God would want you to break? I'm sure there's at least one. Feel free to share some in the comments.

In the World vs. Set Apart

Like with the previous two weeks, today I set a contrast between two choices. Of course those aren't really the only two choices for how the Church functions in relation to the world. But it was either that or spend a whole afternoon preaching! If you want to look at a range of views, the classic book on the subject is Reinhold Niebuhr's Christ and Culture. It's pretty academic, but really is well written.

I'm not really into art (Some quick St. Paul's staff trivia - Sandra was an art history major. Don't tell her I'm not  an art fan!) but I love Scott Mutter's work. There's an online exhibition of his work here. Extraordinary stuff.

You may have noticed I used two words, hermit and anchorite, as synonyms. Techncially they're not the same. Anchorite is a broader term that can refer to monks in monasteries as well as hermits. An anchorite is anyone who is seeking refuge from the world for a lifetime. Hermits are those who live entirely on their own and, as much as physically possible, do not come into contact with others. As I was writing the sermon the word hermit cracked me up, so I decided to use anchorite instead. Bottom line is the intent of both is to escape the world. For the purposes of the sermon the distinction between the two was irrelevant.

Panic Attacks

Looking back on it, I can now identify that I had my first panic attack when I was a Senior in high school but I didn't have a second one until several years later. The causes, triggers, and symptoms of panic attacks can vary dramatically for different people. Check this site for several good resources to learn more.

For me, the strangest part of the experience is knowing intellectually that there is nothing wrong at all but feeling in imminent danger. I knew it was not real...but it seemed so real. I tell people that if I had not experienced this myself I would think it was entirely in a sufferer's head. Pretend. Make believe. There is a real physical reaction to the trigger, neurons start firing, and, at least in my experience, no matter how sure you are that everything is fine your body just doesn't believe it.

The most helpful thing for me was to know that my wife Tracy believed me when I said it was real. It didn't make the attacks stop, but it helped me know that I wasn't losing my mind. Having a supportive spouse made a huge difference. If you know someone who has panic attacks, please start to help by simply believing it's real.

The second most helpful thing for me was medicine. It doesn't work for everyone, but for me a very low does of an anxiety medicine has done the trick. It has been years since I've had a signficant attack.

Finally, it's important to be able to talk about it. Panic attacks can be very debilitating. I'm really fortunate that even at their worst my panic attacks were better than what many others have experienced. Regardless of the severity, panic attacks are like any other medical condition. They can be treated and in many cases cured or completely managed. They are also more common than most people know and absolutely not something that should have a stigma associated with them. Hopefully my sharing will help you or someone you know feel a little less "anxious" about anxiety issues like panic attacks.