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My Enemies

March 21, 2007 By dnicewonger@gmail.com Leave a Comment

Last night I participated in a group Lectio-Divina exercise. Lectio-Divina is the practice of reading the scriptures in a prayerful, meditative way, inviting the Spirit of God to speak to us through the word. It was originally a practice reserved for individual, private disciplines but over the past few years has become something practiced in small groups. I have always enjoyed the experience and am awed by the way God speaks to individuals through a set time of quiet and meditation.

The passage we focused on last night was Psalm 143. In a number of places the author mentions enemies, “The enemy pursues me” (vs. 3); “Rescue me from my enemies” (vs. 9); “Silence my enemies” (vs. 12). Following our time of reflection and even into today I have had conversations about exactly who our enemies are, how Jesus invites us to respond to them.

In the midst of this reflection on enemies I received an email in which Brian McLaren shares how God has used a “Prayer Regarding Critics and Enemies by Bishop Nikolai Velimirovic” to help him better understand the role of enemies in our lives and to help shape our Christ like response to them. I was deeply moved as I reflected on this mans experiences in life and the heart which motivated him to respond with grace, compassion and an openness to the leading and teaching of God. May we all respond to our ”enemies” in such a way.

The Season of Lent

March 2, 2007 By dnicewonger@gmail.com Leave a Comment

Growing up my faith tradition did little to recognize, in fact we seemed to ignore, the season of Lent. We had a great Easter morning celebration but everything leading up to Easter did not seem to be important.

In recent years God has really worked in my life to help me see how much I was missing by focusing solely on the Easter morning celebration.

In Matthew we read that after Jesus baptism, “…Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. After fasting for forty days and nights…” (Mt. 4:1-2 NIV)

Jesus spent forty days in the desert in a season of prayer and preparation before beginning his ministry. At the conclusion of those forty days was when Jesus was tested. Jesus was tempted to use the power that is his as the Son of God for personal gain rather than for the good of others. Jesus withstands that testing and after the time of prayer and fasting, and passing the test placed before him enters into his season of ministry.
Observing Lent is one way that we, as Christians, can join Jesus on His retreat into the wilderness.
Whether by prayer, fasting or reflection (or a combination of those) we can join with Jesus in seeking to know the will of God for our lives, counting the cost to see if we are willing to truly live as disciples of Jesus, and then go forth into mission and ministry.

Lent is a time for somber reflection, self-examination and spiritual redirection.

I have come to appreciate this season of the year. While it seems to be extremely busy it also provides a special focus on my spiritual health and my commitment to walk beside my Savior and Lord.

May you find this Lenten Season to be a time rich with exploring in deeper ways the person and work of Jesus Christ.

Christ in Me

February 21, 2007 By dnicewonger@gmail.com Leave a Comment

I recently participated in a conversation on Race, sponsored by the NCCJ, The National Conference for Community and Justice. It was an interesting five weeks as a group of people from different ethnic backgrounds came together to talk about race and racism. Listening to the conversations around the room I am more convinced that it is time, way past time, for the church to begin to deal openly and honestly with the issue of racism. My prayer is that God will give us the strength to move into areas of conversation that may make us uncomfortable with grace, mercy, and forgiveness.

I could talk for hours about that experience and what it meant for me. In the midst of the conversations there was an interaction which challenged me to think again about who, and whose I am. I was sharing with the group and was speaking from what I described as a Christian perspective. I was challenged by someone to stop speaking from behind something, the label of Christian, and to share from myself. The insinuation was that I was not being genuine when I allowed my relationship with Christ to color my comments.

Two thoughts…

1. It is impossible for me to honestly address any issue without Christ, and Christ’s call upon my life being a part of it. For me to talk about such issues without mentioning my relationship with Christ would mean leaving outside the conversation a key peice of who I am. I found myself getting frustrated, I felt as if I was being asked to give up a piece of who I am in order to stay in the conversation.

2. No matter how hard I tried to explain my thought process the individual I was interacting with did not seem to understand and continually asked me to “put aside” my Christian label and speak from myself. It was not that they did not want to understand, it was that they could not understand. They were not rude or beligerent about it, but they saw “christian” as just another label people use to define themselves.

Why do I mention it? Well, I have found myself thinking alot about that exchange and have heard myself recounting the experience with a number of friends. In the moment it was happening I dismissed it as misscommunication…but it obviously meant more to me. I have come to believe that my experience there was not unique and what was happening there probably colors a lot of the conversations Christians have with the world around them. People hear us talking, do not understand the commitment we have made to Christ and the radical implications it has on our lives if we are truly seeking to become a disciple and follow the teachings of Christ. When we are not understood we get frustrated. Having tried to explain it several times we get “frustrated” and walk away from the conversation muttering under our breath, “they simply do not get it.”

Talk about a recipe for miscommunication and damaged relationships. Through this experience I have come to realize, once again, that as I interact with the world I can not assume they will understand my relationship with Christ, nor can I expect them to. I owe it to myself, and those I am in conversation with, to remember that until they experience the life changing power of Christ there is a part and a piece of me that they will not understand.

One of the ground rules during our conversations was “Seek first to understand…then to be understood.” A good ground rule to use as we interact with the mission field that God has placed us in.