Wednesday Wisdom

 ANNOUNCEMENT: Given my changing personal schedule, it looks like I will be switching to either "Tuesday Thoughts" or "Wednesday Wisdom" from my traditional "Music Mondays" feature. I anticipate still incorporating musical thoughts, memories, and opinions but I will probably tackle a more diverse range of subjects here.

If you read my last entry, you know that I've started a sermon series going through The Sermon on the Mount of Matthew 5-7. I'm taking the Beatitudes one by one and last Sunday we studied 5:7 "Blessed are the merciful for they will be shown mercy."

Mercy is a concept I know from growing up in church but it first registered in my mind from TV, specifically Uncle Jesse on Full House. 

  

From the show's inception, he employed the catchphrase "Have Mercy!" whenever something good happened or his girlfriend/wife Aunt Becky gave him some loving, family-appropriate affection.

It was funny but even as a kid I knew it didn't quite jive with what mercy actually is.

Later on, I learned the oft-cited definition of mercy as it relates to the concept of grace. Grace is "getting what you don't deserve" while mercy is "not getting what you do deserve."

When reading through Scripture, it becomes quickly apparent that the above definition is too simple. Mercy is more than the absence of something. Mercy is something that is active, demonstrated, given and received (Hosea 6:6, James 2:12-13, etc.).

Mercy is the Good Samaritan. Mercy is raising Lazarus from the dead. Mercy is operating a local food pantry. Mercy can even be lived out by getting a COVID vaccine. In his commentary on The Sermon on the Mount, Scot McKnight defines the merciful this way, "The 'merciful' are those who...because they have experienced God's merciful love, empathize and show compassion to others."

During this week, we've seen political and national turmoil chaotically descend on the nation of Afghanistan as our nation has withdrawn our military presence. Heartbreaking images have flooded the news and social media as people desperately try to flee the coming darkness that is Taliban rule. I pray that our government leaders change course and act in mercy towards those people. 

Outside of prayer, it feels like there's little someone like me can do to really make a difference in that situation. But the overwhelming scope of the latest tragedy should not stifle my impulse to be merciful. Instead, to quote Ernie Johnson, I'm going to ask myself "what can I do today to make someone else's life better today?"

Music Mondays/Sermon Snippets

So I went the entire month of July without posting here. In retrospect, I'll call it an unintentional blogging sabbatical. 

This month has been filled with hot weather, family get-togethers, church events, yard work, our denomination's national conference, a mini-vacation...and now we are getting into August all of the sudden.

As I've traditionally done in the past, this summer I switched to a sermon series that lends itself to people's summer schedule (ie, traveling-vacation-inconsistent church attendance). I picked "The Sermon on the Mount" in Matthew 5-7 and am in the middle of the Beatitudes. 

Yesterday brought us to, "Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted" in Matt. 5:4. Like many of these other sayings, Jesus doesn't seem to make worldly sense with this assertion. I had some extra time to prepare leading up to this and providentially I kept finding myself personally confronted with lamentable situations.

I'm convinced more and more that mourning/lament are the most ignored part of Christian discipleship in our modern times. Read Scripture with an eye for this and you'll find it everywhere. Whether it's mourning over the death of faithful saints (Gen. 50), the deplorable condition of God's city (Nehemiah 1ff), the depraved condition of God's people (Lamentations 1, all the Prophets), or simply suffering injustice (Ps. 22, 86), lament is an integral part of what it means to walk with God. It's not just about being sad. It is about seeing how the world is not as it should be - but still trusting in God to make it all right.

This brings me to our music for today. A Facebook memories reminder pointed me in this direction. Of all the modern CCM artists out there, I find Jars of Clay to have utilized this lament genre as much as anyone. Here are a couple examples I find notable and meaningful. 

If you find yourself in a time of lament, grief, or mourning - may you find God's comfort and consolation. And may we all learn to patiently protest the present while confident of God's future reconciliation.