American Idol

Scripture: Luke 4.14-21


Maybe you’ve heard of this TV show. You may say, “You’re a little late to the game, Rich.”

It’s not that I’ve never watched American Idol before, it’s just that I’ve never been a big fan. I watched parts of a couple episodes when they had the finals. I know who a couple of the winners are. That’s about it.

But I watched it the other night when it was the first episode of the new season. American Idol was launching a new talent search starting in Minneapolis. Wow. I didn’t know what I was missing.

The people that auditioned were so. . .horrible. They made William Hung look like John Legend. And as I watched the other night I realized that this beginning part was the best part of American Idol. It’s better because most of the acts are really bad and everybody in America gets to experience the badness. I mean, a train wreck is a horrible thing, but it is fascinating to see. Everybody laughed at William Hung. His lack of talent was so notable and popular that he actually landed a record contract.

These contestants are a harmless guilty pleasure. Most of us, who can’t really sing that well ourselves, can laugh at these people who are worse than we are. We can all laugh because, well, they’re doing it as a joke. Aren’t they?

Well, I began to wonder that the other night after a young man did his singing and juggling act to be told by Simon, Paula, and Randy that he was really bad. The young man didn’t take the rejection well. He stormed out of the audition room cursing and crying. He wasn’t the only rejected contestant to respond with what I assume to be real tears. They were crying because they really wanted to do well. More than their love for singing, they all wanted to become famous. American Idol has captured the spirit of our culture today in that anybody can become famous. The aforementioned Paula Abdul put it this way, “Anybody can be famous now. It’s like a disease.” You don’t need talent, you just need a little help and a little luck to have, in Andy Warhol’s famous words, “you’re fifteen minutes of fame.” Hello, William Hung!

Newsweek cites a poll of teenage girls, 43% of whom say their No. 1 career goal was to be a celebrity assistant – want they want to do with their life is to fetch bottled water for Paris Hilton. “Just being close enough to smell the red carpet has become its own reward.”




One of the reasons its hard for some people to read and understand the Bible is that it describes peoples and cultures that share some very different values than our own. If you took a poll of teenage boys in Jesus day, maybe 43% of them would aspire to be a rabbi. And for boys and girls, men and women alike, the values of learning, faith, and family were the norm. There was no cult of celebrity. It’s true, someone could become famous. But the fame was of a different nature than we think of fame. Fame in Jesus day was obviously for different reasons.

Luke tells us that Jesus became famous soon after he started his public ministry in the Galilee. By the time he is thirty years old, Jesus has assumed the familiar role of rabbi or teacher. Notice the natural means for Jesus to get his message out was through the local synagogues. This was the most effective way for him to penetrate the social fabric of the culture with his message. The crowds who come out to hear him soon number in the thousands. People push and shove to get close to him. They tear roofs off houses to get inside to where he is teaching.

Why is Jesus so popular? Those who hear him say he is unlike any teacher or rabbi they have ever heard. The customary method of teaching for a rabbi was to build your teaching on the reputation and learning of other rabbis. There were two main schools of rabbinical thought in those days, and as a young disciple you decided which teaching tradition you were going to ally yourself with. You would cite Shammai or Hillel to support your own teaching, which never went far afield of the masters. You used a lot of footnotes.

Jesus used very few footnotes - the Psalms, the Prophets, the Law, yes, but never other rabbis. This was not necessarily a sign of disrespect. It was merely that Jesus didn’t need to cite other interpretations of God’s Word.

Jesus cited himself.

He did not teach “in the manner of the scribes” but instead “as having authority in his own right.” Matthew 7.29

As Dallas Willard writes, “In effect, Jesus was saying just watch me and see that what I say is true. See for yourself that the rule of God has come among ordinary human beings.”

When some asked if he were the true Messiah Jesus didn’t try to reason with them or bully them into belief, he simply cited the power of God that was obviously working through him to transform people.

“The blind see, the lame walk, the dead are raised, the poor have the Gospel preached to them,” was his answer. Jesus left it up to others to decide.


“The Spirit of the Lord is on me because he has anointed me to preach the good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. . .Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

In other words, Jesus didn’t just teach the good news. He was the Good News . Still is.

Now imagine a world in which little children sing, “I wish I were a (certain kind of) wiener. That is what I really want to be. For if I were (that certain kind of) wiener. Everyone would be in love with me.”

Think of what it would mean to be a weenie, or for someone to love you as they “love” a hot dog. Think of a world in which adults would pay millions of dollars to have children perform this song in commercials and in which hundreds of millions of adults find no problem in it. You are thinking of our world.

If you are willing to be a weenie to be loved, what else would you be willing to do?
We turn to the cute and clever because we fear that deep down, life is absurd and we are irrelevant and unloved. Absurdity and cuteness are fine to chuckle over, but they are no place to live. They provide no shelter or direction for being human.

We know our culture is messed up. Is there anything to be done about it?

It begins with diagnosing the real problem and looking for a real answer.
William Hung is not the problem. If you want to you could make the argument that young men and women trying to become famous are really just crying out to be loved. The real American Idol is inside of us. It is our insistence that we can have life and live life on our own without any help from above.

Genius lies in scrutinizing the obvious. The Idol is the same as it’s ever been – Pride and Rebellion against God.

In order to slay the idol we must call for help. We must invite the Master of Life to come and give us his life.

As C.S. Lewis said, “our faith is not a matter of hearing what Christ said long ago and trying to carry it out. Rather, the real Son of God is at your side. He is beginning to turn you into the same kind of thing as Himself. He is beginning, so to speak, to ‘inject’ His kind of life and thought, His Zoe into you; beginning to turn the tin soldier into a live man. The part of you that does not like it is the part that is still tin.”

Whether the idol is made of tin or of doubt, insecurity, anger or longing, there is a better way to live. Let us pray to the Lord for his help and his life.

New Start

Scripture: Isaiah 43.1-7, 18-21; Acts 8.14-24; Luke 3.15-17, 21-22



There was this obituary in the paper the other week. It appeared originally in the San Francisco Chronicle and was picked up by the Associated Press. The obituary was titled, “Author dies.” Here is what it said:


Richard Carlson, a Bay Area psychotherapist who became the
world-famous writer of “Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff” and 30
other motivational books stressing love, gratitude and kindness
above all other values, collapsed and died Wednesday on a
flight from San Francisco to New York. Carlson was 45.


It was that last line that really caught my attention. The expert author on stress relief died at age 45 on an airplane. Now let me be clear that I’m sure he will be missed by those who loved him and I’m not making light of his death. But. . .I wonder if this expert author really knew what he was talking about. I’m wondering, maybe you should sweat the small stuff.

This is the time of year when people make resolutions and set goals for themselves: I will read more. I will take that trip. I will not try to keep Krispy Kreme open by all myself. I will get a new family. . .

I know that a certain amount of willpower is required in any change, because, really willpower is just effort. So a little sweat never hurt. But it takes more than sweat and effort.

True change in life doesn’t reside in a book or a gym, or in a method or a diet or a program. True change starts from within and it happens by the power of God’s Spirit as we cooperate in faith with Him.

In Acts 8, we find the Holy Spirit being gifted to many believing Samaritans through the ministry of Peter and John. There was a man, Simon, who saw what was obviously a supernatural event taking place, and assumed that the key to the whole thing was in the proper technique of the laying on of hands. Simon thought of it like a magic spell, an incantation. He offered to buy the secret off of the apostles. They rightly scolded him. They told him the secret was not in the hands but in the heart. And his wasn’t in the right place.

What’s also interesting is Peter and John seemed to know fairly accurately what was in his heart:

“Repent therefore of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you. For I see that you are poisoned by bitterness and bound by iniquity.” Acts 8.23 New King James


One of the tasks I wanted to accomplish this week was taking down the tree and putting away the Christmas presents. I soon realized that if we were going to fit the new toys and clothes into the boys rooms, some of the old would have to go. I carried out two big bags of clothes that he had outgrown this past year. Amazing!

If this is true with stuff how much more true it is that in order for God to do a new thing in us, we must be willing to clean out the old and make room for the new.

What it is implicit in this is a conviction that the new is better than the old. Dallas Willard writes, “The early message (of Jesus) was not experienced as something its hearers had to believe or do because something bad – something with no essential connection with real life – would happen to them. The people initially impacted by that message generally concluded that they would be fools to disregard it. That was the basis of their conversion.”

Jesus doesn’t call us to dogma or to religion. He invites to a way of life that is the best way to live life. The author of life wants to suggest to us that life doesn’t work very well other than the way he designs and shows us to live. Life doesn’t work very well without Him. Anyone who is changed by God soon realizes by the impact in their life that Jesus is a person of great ability.

It’s shocking how little we really listen to Jesus. We just don’t do what he said. And that, my friends, explains why most people, religious and nonreligious, see no relevance in the Christian faith toward individual character development and overall sanity and well-being.

Yet, there are those who still hear Jesus say, “Whoever hears these words of mine and does them is like those intelligent people who build their houses upon rock,” standing firm against every pressure of life.” Matt. 7.24-25


Just as true change doesn’t happen by a program or fad or willpower alone, true change is not just feeling warm and fuzzy inside, inspiration must turn into perspiration. We must begin to participate in the Jesus Way of Life and get side by side, if you will, with the Holy Spirit as He does His work.

In Isaiah God says to us, “Do not remember the former things, or dwell on the past. I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?”

Erwin McManus writes, “We have a lot of great assemblies that we call churches, yet the very word church means ‘to be called out’. No football team has ever won a Super Bowl on the strength of the huddle. It’s what happens after the ‘ready, break’ that brings the victory.


The boys got this great game for Christmas. I suggested getting it because I wanted it too. It’s called Twenty Questions. The way it works is, you think of a thing, anything, and the little computer in the game asks you questions to try and figure out what it is you’re thinking of. It’s amazing how often it knows what you’re thinking.

Computer: Is it animal, vegetable, or mineral?

Me: I’m not sure.

Computer: You’re thinking of your Aunt Edna’s tuna noodle casserole.

Me: That’s amazing!

What if we played that game right now, and our thought was, our Christian selves. You know what the little computer will ask us? It will ask us to describe who or what we are by what we look like and by what kinds of things we do. That’s all that matters to it in naming us. It won’t ask us what we believe, because, frankly, that’s not relevant to figuring out who we are.

Jesus is now taking students in the master class of life. He has things to teach us and things for us to do. Will we listen to his words? How life-giving it would be if all of us were to simply reply, “I will do them! I will find out how. I will devote my life to it! This is the best life strategy I ever heard of!” and then go and do it. We would be fools not to.

The Legend of Prester John

Scripture: Matthew 2.1-12; Ephesians 3.1-12


They were the Ph.D’s and professors of their day. They were part of an international wisdom movement. They are depicted as both kings and astrologers. And their journey to Judea and Jerusalem is the beginning of the proclamation of Jesus to the Gentiles. They are called the Magi, the Wise Men. They brought three gifts so we number them at three. They followed a star that they believed to be special, a sign that was pointing them to the birth of a King. They didn’t know the Biblical prophecies. They were probably not very familiar with Hebrew history. They simply went on a journey in search of truth.

They, of course, make it to Jerusalem and inquire of the vassal king of Rome, Herod the self-titled Great, about where they might find his replacement. They are directed to Bethlehem. They bring their gifts and place them at the feet of the Christ child and then they quietly go home.

What ever became of the Magi? What compelled them to go on so great a journey? What did they end up believing about this child king of the Jews named Jesus? What, if any, difference did their beliefs make to the rest of their lives?

These are difficult, maybe impossible, questions to answer. But there were those who once tried to answer them. The legend of what happened to the Wise Men gave birth to another legend, the Legend of Prester John.

Fast forward to the twelfth century. It is a perilous time in Christendom. The territorial conquests of the First Crusade are being reversed by the Moslem armies of Syria and the Ottoman Turks. Certain Bishops are urging the Pope to call for a second crusade. But only a great legion of crusaders from Europe can hope to stem Moslem tide. And then, one of the Bishops of the near East tells this story to the Pope:

Not many years ago a certain John, a king and a priest who lives in the extreme Orient, beyond Persia and Armenia, and who like his people is a Christian. . .made war on the brothers known as the Samiardi, who are the kings of the Persians and Medes, and stormed Ecbatana, the capital of their kingdoms. . .The ensuing battle lasted for three days. . .At last Presbyter John, for so they customarily call him, put the Persians to flight. . . He is said to be a direct descendant of the Magi, who are mentioned in the Gospel, and to rule over the same peoples they governed, enjoying such glory and prosperity that he uses no scepter but one of emerald. Inspired by the example of his forefathers, who came to adore Christ in his cradle, he had planned to go to Jerusalem.

How this story of a Christian king in the far East got started, perhaps God only knows. It was based on the fact that there were Christians in the East who were descendants of the first converts made by the Apostle Thomas and others, descendants perhaps also of the Magi. These Christians were “cut off” as it were from the rest of Christendom by the Moslem kingdoms. To suppose that there was a great Christian kingdom ruled by a Christian king named John was a bit of stretch to say the least. But one cannot overestimate the impact this story had throughout the Christian world at that time. Here was hope of a powerful Christian ally in the cause of the faith. If only they could find this Prester John and his Christian kingdom! It lay somewhere on the other side of the Moslem world. This hope led to the first European exploration of Africa and the Middle East since the time of Alexander. I probably don’t need to tell you that there were evils done under the banner of Christ during the Crusades. But it is also vitally important to note that there were, in addition to the land and power mongers, sincere believers who desired to preach the gospel to all nations. These men were often the first white people to venture into these far countries, ala David Livingstone and Henry Stanley in East Africa. They were adventurers sure, but first and foremost they were Christian missionaries wanting to point others to Christ.

The irony today is that the powers of Christendom at that time, England, France, Portugal, Spain are countries were you are more likely to find practicing Moslems than faithful Christians. Meanwhile the Church of Jesus Christ in Africa and Asia flourishes, sending missionaries back to the West that once sought to proselytize them.

What can we learn from this?

First, sincere desire to witness for Christ coupled with unreserved commitment and resource will always have effect. The effects may not be immediate. They were not for those first European missionary/explorers. But who can doubt that seeds of truth and good were planted by some that are now bearing fruit in our world?

Second, if we live in a world where it is difficult to get your bearings among so many voices and so many truths, it is still possible to find wisdom that leads to truth. Think about the Wise Men and what they didn’t have. They didn’t have the benefit of growing up in a Christian (or Jewish) land or culture. They didn’t know anything about the Bible. They were probably already indoctrinated in some other belief system of the Near East. And yet, they went on a journey in search of truth and found God. We call their journey Epiphany, or “awakening.”

An awakening is still possible today.

“The scripture says, ‘No one who believes in him will be put to shame.’ For there is no distinction between Jew and Gentile; the same Lord is Lord of all and is generous to all who call on him. For, ‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’”
Romans 10.11-13


“This is right and is acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God; there is also one mediator between God and humankind, Christ Jesus, himself human, who gave himself a ransom for all.” 1 Timothy 2.3-6

It’s possible for your friend, your neighbor, your family member, or your coworker to find the key to their lives, to be awakened to the truth, if someone that knows them is willing to tell them.

None of us have all the knowledge we might. None of us have, from a human perspective, a clean slate with no skeletons in the closet. But as we seen, God uses imperfect missionaries to do the work for his perfect kingdom. You are a missionary. Go boldly for the sake of the Gospel!

A Body Thou Hast Prepared

Scripture: Hebrews 10.5-10; Luke 1.39-55


I’m generally a positive person. In fact, call me Mr. Sunshine.

But lately my skies have been cloudy. In case you haven’t heard, I’ve been sick. . . for two months! I think I have malaria. Whatever I have, I think it’s starting to take its toll. I’m getting a little cranky.

I’m snapping at my pets a lot. You know, they’ve been pushing me and pushing me! I know I’m getting cranky because I’m paying a lot of attention to the way people park in parking lots. People are not parking between the lines and this is upsetting to me. I mean, all they have to do is park it in the rectangle.

I simply ask for your patience and understanding. It’s the Sudafed talking.

Now, I know my problems pale in comparison to the problems of so many other people. People I know and care about are dealing with much bigger problems than I have. And I am humbled by their courage and perseverance.

I am reminded of a world that doesn’t have access to the kind of medicine and care that I assume will be there for me at a moments notice.

I am reminded of the genocide and war in Sudan and the ravages of Aids through the African continent.

Tom Brokaw gave a helpful reminder on Letterman the other night, and I thought he put it well. “No matter what you think about the war in Iraq, if you hate it, and there’s good reason to, don’t lose sight of the fact that there are young men and women over there, who this very minute, while we are enjoying the blessing and festivity of the holidays, are putting their lives in danger in service to their country. They deserve our support.”


There is a world of trouble that dwarfs my own in significance.
Who will do something about it?

Does God hear the prayers of the cancer patient? Does Heaven care for the cries of the Sudan and the Congo? Is anyone watching over the soldier on post in Baghdad?

God’s Word tell us that for the troubles of the world, radical intervention is needed. Sacrifices and offerings won’t do. They are the remedies of a religion making supplication to an as yet relatively hidden and distant God.

God must come closer. Mere words and ideas about God cease to comfort and satisfy. What do I mean? Well, I’m sure most everyone and every family here has, at some time, been touched by serious illness or tragedy. Think back to that time. Who provided the most comfort to you?

Hopefully, there were at least several friends for you in your time of trouble. Perhaps even one of these friends had some wise and comforting words to share with you. Maybe they even had faith to share with you. But what I bet you remember most is the friend who went beyond words, beyond saying, “If there’s anything I can do for you. . .” And they actually did it. They cooked. They cleaned. They chauffeured. They held your hand and prayed. They showed up.

This is called, in pastor parlance, “The ministry of presence.” You gotta be there. You don’t always to say anything, but you have to be there.

And elderly man in Phoenix telephoned his son in New York a couple weeks before Christmas. He said, “Son, your mother and I have been married for 40 years and I just wanted to call and tell you we’ve decided to get a divorce.”

His son was aghast. “Dad, hold on, don’t you and mother do a thing until I’ve had a chance to come and talk to you. I’ll be on the next plane to Phoenix!”

The son hung up and called his sister in Chicago and told her the news. “Like heck they are! I’ll meet you in Phoenix, and we’ll talk some sense into them.” She called her father. “Dad, brother just called and told me that you and mom are getting a divorce. Don’t you do anything until I’ve had a chance to talk with you. I’ll be on the next plane to Phoenix.”

Her father hung up the phone, turned to his wife, and said, “Honey, both kids are coming home for Christmas, and they’re paying their own way!”

When it matters, you have to be close to those you love. You have to show up.

I see ministers of presence in this group, ones I have seen in action showing up in our lives to be comfort and help and strength.

And in so doing, these saints are reflecting quite clearly the image of God. Because God was not content to watch the world’s troubles and express sympathy from afar.

God prepared a body. Through a young virgin, God inhabited the body. God showed up in the body to do a radical intervention on behalf of the world he created. God’s love came close.

“And it is by God’s will that we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all.” Hebrews 10.10

“The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth.” John 1.14

If you believe this, you are called not just to assent to this idea but to love as God loves. With more than words and ideas, but with a real ministry of presence, in the flesh, if you will.

James puts it this way, “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill,” and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? So faith, by itself, if it has no works, is dead. . .I by my works will show you my faith.” James 2.14-18

Friendly Beasts

Scripture: Luke 2.1-7

“Jesus, our brother, strong and good, was humbly born in a stable rude, and the friendly beasts around him stood, Jesus, our brother, strong and good.” The Friendly Beasts, a 12th century French carol

This carol may have been one of the earliest songs or meditations on Christmas that tell the nativity story from a bovine perspective. Of course, there have been many such meditations in countless children’s plays since the writing of this carol.

Here is another: we are, almost literally, the shaggy beasts who gather round the manger scene these days. We are friendly, no doubt, but there is also no denying we are beasts.

I hope I’m not spoiling the Christmas fun by reminding us of the reason our strong brother Jesus came – we need a Messiah to save us and the world from our sins.

How shall I describe our condition? Have you ever been on a long journey on an
interstate highway and you weren’t quite sure where you were? The speed limit is 65
mph - which is to say there really is no limit - so you go roaring down the highway, not
sure where you are or where you’re going, but you’re making good time. So that’s nice.

I think that describes the spiritual condition of many. We are a curious mixture of good
And evil. When a person falls into a life of exceptional wickedness we often refer to them as “beastly.”

The group, Jars of Clay, as a song called, “Good Monsters.” Let me recite as few lines:

All the good monsters open their eyes
To see the wasteland where the home fires rise
And the people shouting “Why, why, why”

Do you know what you are?
Do you know what you are?

All the good monsters rattle their chains
And dance around the open flames
They make a lot of empty noise

Do you know what you are?
Do you know what you are?

Not all monsters are bad
But the ones who are good
Never do what they could, never do what they could

We’re all good monsters, but we’re monsters nonetheless. Not only do we love ourselves too much and things that aren’t worthy of our love, but we fail to do the good we were created for.

The Apostle Paul relates this struggle in Romans chapter 7,
“I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do.” Romans 7.15, 19

The latent image of God in us is trapped in the prison of a sinful nature. We can deny this truth all we want, and we can mock it as fundamentalist noise, but truth it remains. We’re afraid to look in the mirror, because of what we find looking back at us, something shaggy and sometimes ugly, our good monster.

Dan Haseltine wrote his song as a way of being honest about himself, not to strangers but to his family and friends, to people who knew him best but didn’t really know him. They didn’t know because he had been hiding from him, even, maybe especially, as a Christian. “The song was born out of many experiences and conversations between addicts, failures, lovers, loners, believers, and beggars.”

Sometimes when I look in the mirror and see the evil I’m capable of, yet, and the good I’ve missed doing, I can only cry out, “Oh my God!”

“Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” Romans 7.24-25

The first step to becoming more than a monster is a cry for help to the One who can help us.

I do know this, we can’t change ourselves. As the song says, “Nothing ever changes by itself.”

When my dog chews on a Christmas ornament or drinks from the toilet, I can correct it and I can get upset, but I understand that my dog is just being a dog. A beast can only be a beast. Do you what you are? Do you know what you are?

C.S. Lewis, in a famous passage from his book, The Weight of Glory, remarks:

It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you can talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and a corruption such a you now meet, if at all, only in a nighmare. . .There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit –immortal horrors or everlasting splendours.


You are more than a friendly beast. You are meant for greatness. You are meant to someday look into your reflection and see not a beast, but something like an angelic being staring back at you. That hope of greatness has its humble beginnings in stable rude.

Christmas is the beginning of a new world. It is supposed be the beginning of a new you. Will you simply dance around this holiday and continue to rattle your chains, or will you aspire to something more?

“Thus all the beasts, by some good spell, in the stable dark were glad to tell of the gifts they gave Emmanuel, the gifts they gave Emmanuel.”

Break Down the Walls

Scripture: Philippians 4.4-7; Luke 2.19; Luke 3.16


“Do you remember where I was when you helped me?” the man asked.

How could I forget? The man was in jail years ago. He was put there over allegations of sexual misconduct with a minor. His family had asked me to go see him. I visited him regularly for about a year. I know that year was hard on him. But in that year God did something in him. He came out a changed man.

I saw him recently and he thanked me profusely. It was almost embarrassing because, as I think back on that time, I can remember doing very little for him except praying. Certainly, I had no wise words for him on “how to endure being jail.” I certainly didn’t know. We just prayed together over the jail phones, across the plexiglass divider.

Just prayed. What difference does a prayer make? Does God really care whether we get words from him or not? Why wouldn’t he do the good thing anyway?

We have often heard that prayer does make a difference; for example, in the life of those facing surgery. There have been some studies done to suggest that this is true. So, it should not surprise you that a group of researchers with the Templeton Foundation decided to put that truism to the test. Dubbed “The Prayer Project”, these researchers studied a group of 1,800 heart by-pass surgery patients. These were divided into three groups: a group that were prayed for and told that it was happening; a group that were prayed for but that were told it was only a possibility; and a group that were told it was a possibility but no one was assigned to pray for them.

The study concluded that prayer made no positive effect in these patients.

So, should we quit praying? No, I say it again, no. Because you can’t study prayer scientifically. You can’t measure it, dissect it, or quantify it. When you try, it kind of vanishes, like a puff of smoke.

A prayer is an act of faith. It such a naked, solitary gesture, an offering up of words and thoughts and feelings in trust to an invisible God. That’s why it’s striking how bold and loud are the Apostle’s words concerning prayer in Philippians:

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! . . .The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving present your requests to God.”

Be bold with your prayers is Paul’s advice. Don’t worry. Be confident. This brings to mind James admonition:

“Count it all joy, brothers and sisters, when you encounter various trials. . .” (James 1,1)

Obviously, James and Paul are confident about their situations. Their faith is big. Why? Is it because their lives are going so well?

Umm, well, Paul is writing his letter from behind prison bars himself. James, I’m not sure how he fared at the time of this letter, but I know he was put to death by the priestly authorities in Jerusalem around A.D. 70.

The confidence of the Apostles is not in their circumstances of their lives, it’s in the God they trust.

“The Lord is near.”

If God is close, then He can hear us. He can help us. Don’t worry. Pray.

Jane Vennard

Got to Get You In to My Life

Scripture: John 11. 1-4; Hebrews 9.11-14


Lazarus had died four days previous was buried. There was a Jewish belief that when anyone died the soul of the dead person lingered in the vicinity of the body for three days. But by the fourth day the soul had left, which meant that there was no longer any possibility that the soul would reenter the body and a recovery take place. Four days of death meant that Lazarus was really dead and would stay dead. Hope was gone.

In the ancient world, death was the ultimate horror show. Because death was the end of everything. There was not a lot of talk of resurrection or afterlife. Some people thought there was a form of existence after death, like the “shades” in Hades, ghosts who haunt the space between this world and the next. But that was understood to be a dreary and shadowy affair. If you could look at the tombs of ancient pagans you might find expensive materials and elaborate craftsmanship, but the epitaphs on them were full of hopelessness. “There is no more,” might be found on many a grave marker.

Some people still look at death like this. It’s not a coincidence that before All Saints Day we dress up in masks of horror to express that primal fear of the ultimate mystery and the specter that haunts our future. We like to be scared because it connects us with that mystery. Boo! Remember the movie The Sixth Sense? Remember the cute little boy cursed with that special power? His special power was that he could see the death. He couldn’t help but bump into them, everywhere. “I see dead people walking around.” Talk about scary. . .

Lazarus has died. Jesus is told this by messengers from the family. The message is, “Lazarus is dying,” but by the time Jesus gets the message it’s clear Lazarus is already dead. It’s true, Jesus delays coming, for reasons of his own, but he assures his disciples that Lazarus is only sleeping. This confuses the disciples. They’re not familiar with the euphemism. What does Jesus mean? He doesn’t mean that Lazarus isn’t really dead. In fact Jesus comes out and says that – “he’s dead.” – to clear up their confusion. But what Jesus means by “sleep” is that Death for Lazarus and death for anyone who believes in him is not as final as everyone thinks.

“I’m gonna tell you some things only dead men know,” Bob Dylan sings. This might have been the tune Jesus was humming as well.

He has this conversation with Mary. And before we get in to that let’s quickly note that Jesus is not being cavalier about death or insensitive to the suffering of the grieving family. Jesus loved them. (John 11.5) When He saw them weeping he was deeply moved. He cried too. (11.33-35)

“Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” John 11.32

The people are wondering why this miracle-worker couldn’t have done something. They have a lot questions they want Jesus to answer.

It’s like the two friends who met a coffee shop one day. One was a woman whose life was a mess and she needed guidance and counsel from her friend. Her marriage was on the rocks, she had had an emotional breakdown, her social life was in ruins and yet when she came to ask for his help, she was wearing a sweatshirt which had the slogan on it, “Jesus is the answer.”

Her friend took one look at it and said to her, “I think you should scrap the idea that Jesus is the answer. Because he never said that. He said, ‘I am the way.’ I think that you need to walk with him to find the answer to your problem.”

Jesus doesn’t answer all our questions for us.


Jesus doesn’t answer the question as to why he didn’t prevent Lazarus death or anyone’s death for that matter. His answer is his tears. But as he asks Mary and Martha to believe in Him, he asks us to believe as well. Notice, the women already have a belief in the resurrection (verse 24), but Jesus directs that belief to himself.

“I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in me, though they die, yet shall they live.” Verse 25

Jesus is telling them that His Life is stronger than death. Death cannot blot out life, not the life Jesus gives. For his followers, death is a kind of sleep from which we shall awaken.

This time of year it’s not surprising to see all the movies about ghosts and ghouls and all the shows about haunted places in Ireland or spooks of Pennsylvania. There is this belief that there are those places, in between places, where ghosts are known to linger. I don’t deny it. The Bible doesn’t really either. The Bible simply says, don’t go there. Don’t consult mediums. Don’t listen to “Ghost Whisperers.” Why?

Because there is a better way to get a peek at the afterlife.

C.S. Lewis uses to talk about “thin places” in the fabric of our world. In these places one might be able to get a glimpse of another world beyond. These thin places where not always where you might expect them to be. They could be found in the most ordinary of places. A little girl might wander into a wardrobe and find herself walking to the snow of Narnia. In fact, Lewis believed that the Kingdom of God was just such a reality that by faith we could see glimpses of. This world we live in is the shadow world, Shadowlands really. The other world, that we think of as the next world or afterlife, is the real one. Right now we are only ghosts of what we will become.


Jesus pointed to this reality many times. “I am the Way,” he said.

As it tells us in Hebrews chapter 9, Jesus, as High Priest, entered into the Holy Temple with is own blood, he made a Way for all of us to enter into the Life of God. That Holy Place was the thin place between his life and God’s life. Notice verse 14 says this happened “through the eternal Spirit.”

Jesus is offering entry into another world and another life. “I am the Door,” he said.

“I am the door; if any one enters by me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.” John 10.9

Remember Christians, New Life! Not improved old life, but new life because we are new creations!

Jesus wants to get his life in us and get us into His life. What does the Lord’s Prayer say?

“Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
The prayer is, Jesus, may what up there come down here; your life, your eternal life. Eternal life starts now in the presence of Jesus for all who will believe and receive. This is a thin place. This is the Holy Place. We are invited in.