Dehydrated?

It is as hot as it gets in Central Florida these days. It is estimated that 75 percent of Americans are chronically dehydrated already. We aren't getting enough water on a regular basis to keep our bodies working like they should.

Considering water is the second most important nutrient to the human body next to oxygen, this is not good. The body is made up of about 70 percent water, which plays a vital role in nearly every bodily process; water is essential for proper digestion and circulation, numerous chemical reactions, nutrient absorption, waste elimination and flexibility of the blood vessels.

This week the triathlon team coach at the YMCA gave everyone on the team a "come to Jesus" speech about staying hydrated this summer. One of the guys on the team got dehydrated and had a heat stroke. He is ok, but his recovery is going to take months and he very well could have died. The summary of her speech is, "Drink regularly." She said it is not only important to drink during a workout, but also before and after. And you shouldn't wait until you are thirsty.

Now the pastor in me can't help making a connection to our spiritual life in all this. First of all, Jesus is our source of "Living Water" according to John 4. And I wonder how many of us feel "spiritually dehydrated" because we only drink from this Living Water occasionally, not at all, or only during our worship "workout" on Sundays? It's great that you are drinking that Living Water on Sundays, but you're going to continue being spiritually dehydrated if you don't drink regularly, before and after worship on Sunday.


Being a disciple of Jesus isn't just about going to worship occasionally or bargaining wtih God to get something we want from God. Being a disciple is regularly following Jesus and drinking regularly of His Living Water so that we become who God created us to be. The goal is to be so regularly hydrated with this Living Water that we begin to love the things God loves.

I challenged everyone in worship last week to consider the last time you made the time to encounter the love of God in Jesus. Seriously, how long has it been? That is the only thing that will truly satisfy us in this world that is chronically spiritually dehydrated.

If you are vacationing this summer, do not neglect your spiritual life. Do not take a vacation from worship. Do not take a vacation from meeting with God in reading the Scriptures. And if you've never done it before, start this summer with one of the gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke or John. Set an appointment wtih God everyday to meet Him and be hydrated by Him. Try the "You Version" app if you have one of those fancy devices. Or ditch the device and go old school - open The Book.

It is dangerous and foolish to not drink regularly in this heat. It just takes some awareness and planning to do it. The same is true for spiritual hydration.


I love the picture of the person handing off water to the runners in the race. It reminds me of the communal nature of our lives both physically and spiritually. Jesus might love you personally, but he never made you to follow him privately. Staying spiritually hydrated isn't possible without a community who will encourage you, hold you accountable and at times give you a "come to Jesus" speech about drinking more reguarly.

Drink well and often this summer (and throughout the year!)

Disagreement and Communion

One of the reasons I am United Methodist is because on any given Sunday former president George W. Bush can share a pew with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. They both happen to be United Methodist. That might be awkward, yes. But I believe it is a sign of God’s new creation revealed in Jesus when two people who hold such different opinions meet together at the table of the Lord. For a God who spent a lot of time hanging out with sinners and talking about loving enemies, it makes sense that God might even like to hang out in a United Methodist Church too. We’ve got no shortage of sinners and enemies for God to enjoy.

Last week I attended a day of the United Methodist Church General Conference as it gathered in Tampa. According to the UMC Discipline the General Conference is the legislative body of the church. Every four years, lay and clergy delegates from around the world meet to review the church’s Discipline, adding or editing language as we attempt to be faithful to our mission to make disciples of Jesus for the transformation of the world. The General Conference is the only body that can “speak officially” for the United Methodist Church.

Riding the bus over to Tampa last Thursday morning I listened to Rev. Adam Hamilton (pastor at the Church of the Resurrection UMC in Kansas City) present a proposed amendment to the United Methodist Book of Discipline that basically served to acknowledge our disagreement in the United Methodist Church over the long held wording in our church’s Discipline regarding homosexual persons. The current wording states : “The United Methodist Church does not condone the practice of homosexuality and considers this practice incompatible with Christian teaching.” Basically, Rev. Hamilton wanted the General Conference to at least come clean with the reality that there are some United Methodists (long-time, faithful ones) who are have monogamous, committed homosexual relationships and read the story of God in the Bible in such a way that their life together is affirmed by God rather than abhorred and rejected.

I thought it would pass. But I’ll admit that I don’t know that much about the politics of General Conference. All Hamilton was doing was stating the reality that we are living with in order for us to take steps forward as a church on an issue that has painfully divided and hurt people for nearly 40 years. Rev. Hamilton’s words struck me deeply. “If there were an issue within my congregation where 40% of the people strongly disagreed, then I wouldn’t continue on as if that weren’t a reality.” Exactly, I thought. That’s what we call “denial.”

We can’t heal a wound that we won’t acknowledge is there. In my opinion this acknowledgment would have been a positive step toward coming to the table in order to have an open and respectful conversation in order to understand and appreciate our differences in the context of God’s grace. Perhaps it would have, in the words of Martin Luther King Jr,. been a step toward building the beloved community.

When the petition failed and we were left in the same place we began the Conference, it took me a while to realize what had just happened. Those who were standing at the edge of the assembly in visible advocacy for those who are excluded looked at one another in disbelief. The crowd then moved slowly to the center of the room where there was a large communion table. They began to break bread and share the cup of Holy Communion. Looking back on the event, I can’t think of a more appropriate thing for Christians to do in the face of defeat, misunderstanding, confusion and division. We don’t have the words or actions to transcend such things – those words only belong to the Body broken and Blood outpoured of Jesus. The story of Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection is the only story big enough to handle fractures that seem impossible to heal.

As bread and cup were held high and broken, it was a gesture to say, “One day, by God’s grace, we will become the reconciled community that we proclaim in this gospel of Jesus Christ.” And so, once again, in the midst of our very broken world, this meal was a glimpse and anticipation of God’s reign on earth as it is in heaven.

“For Jesus himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility.” Ephesians 2:14

One day the people to which God has entrusted the message of reconciliation will be reconciled. Until that day I pray that we keep coming to the table with our differences and with hope.

Garden Dreams

Good theater always takes you to another place. That was the case for me when I got to see the Lake Nona High School student drama department perform “The Secret Garden” this week. If you didn’t get the chance to see it, you’ve got one last chance on Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. They are a talented bunch of students!

Of course, I couldn’t help making some theological reflections during this invitation to imagination. Among other things, the garden in the play is a place of death and new life. It becomes a lens through which we can see the world, full of sadness and death that it is. While at the same time the garden is also a lens through which we can see the world bursting with life and new possibility.

It’s no accident that the Biblical writers use the image of a garden to convey the beauty of God’s creation in Genesis and another garden called Gethsemene in the gospels to convey the bitter sorrow of God in the face of death (see Matthew 26:36, John 18:1). But even that garden of Gethsemene isn’t where the story ends. There is yet another garden (we assume it’s a garden because Mary mistook the risen Jesus for the gardener in this story – see John 20:15). In the greatest transport of imagination that the world has ever known, the risen Jesus meets the weeping Mary, symbolic of all the world, calls her by name and inaugurates a new creation/garden that we couldn’t have imagined if left to our own resources.

God has moved from garden to garden, from creation to new creation in order to bring new life out of death. This is far more than a metaphor to give us hope that all our dreams will come true. This is a gift from God which gives us different dreams than we had before. What are these new dreams? Here are two that God has impressed upon me. How about you? What new creation, new garden dreams has the risen Christ given you?

Peacemaking that wields the weapon of self giving love.

Treating creation as a gift to be cared for rather than a commodity to be consumed.

Easter and Improvisation

It has been a few days and I’m still thinking about the implications of Easter Sunday’s experiment at Spring of Life using improvisational theater as a metaphor for responding to the resurrection.

During my Easter sermon I pointed out that Mark’s gospel ends abruptly after Jesus’ resurrection from the dead, and the oldest original manuscripts don’t have anything past verse 8. Three women come with spices to the tomb looking for a body and leave with spices in hand bound for Galilee to look for a living Jesus. And that’s where Mark leaves us. It’s like Mark is prompting us to pick up from there, respond to the resurrection ourselves, meet Jesus in the ordinary, everyday places of life – in the “Galiliees” where we live.

As an improv actor, one important rule to follow is accepting what you are offered and building upon it. One of the actors with us on Easter said that he listens carefully and treats the offer like a gift. That shapes the way he responds. He’s not thinking about trying to be funny or making things turn out “right.” That kind of thinking creates anxiety and paralyzes the drama.

Because of Jesus’ death and resurrection, we are able to make a major liberating assumption: It isn’t up to us to make everything turn out right. That’s God’s job, and in fact, God has already made things turn out right through Jesus’ life, death and resurrection.

Have you ever thought of Jesus’ resurrection in that way? Its implication is much bigger than just good news for Jesus (as in, Yea for Jesus! Your’re not dead anymore!). Its implication is bigger than “there’s hope for life after death” (as in, we get to go to heaven when we die). The apostle Paul talks about Jesus’ resurrection as the first fruit of God’s new creation. Jesus’ resurrection is both the evidence and the promise that God’s reign is coming on earth as it is in heaven. Jesus’ resurrection is evidence that the forces and powers of evil at work in the world have been defeated, and that any evil at work in the world today will not have the last word. We can claim the power of the risen Christ at work within us to make everything turn out right. It isn’t up to us to make everything turn out right.

We can say along with the apostle Paul: “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.” Galatians 2:20

Most of us have a general idea about the way we’d like our lives to go. And when we sense that circumstances beyond our control are pushing us in a direction that we don’t want, we tend to get anxious, angry, depressed and controlling. This is classic non-acceptance. For an improve actor, this non-acceptance will kill the drama. For a Christian, this non-acceptance is really our attempt to be God and it kills the adventurous life God hopes for us.

What makes improvisation fun and adventurous is when the actors accept each offer as a gift without trying to force their own agenda or try to be creative, funny or original. They simply continue the story by responding to the offer in a way that is obvious.

This is fairly easy to do when you get offers that are kind or friendly. It’s easy to accept “kind” offers as gifts. The important next step is to learn how to accept the offers that you think are negative as gifts too. I’m not talking here about just “having a positive attitude.” I’m talking about learning to accept every offer in light of the bigger story of God’s resurrection hope. This is the basis of Christian hope.

Take the example of Jesus being offered crucifixion. He could have rejected the offer and fought to the death like many perhaps thought he should have. Instead, Jesus accepted the negative offer of crucifixion. However, he did so with faith that his death would not be the end of God’s story. Jesus accepted the negative offer of crucifixion with trust in God’s bigger story – something far more substantial than “having a positive attitude.” We don’t need a God who raises the dead in order to have a positive attitude. But we do need a God who raises the dead in order to have hope in the face of death.

This points toward a second major assumption we can make because of Jesus’ death and resurrection: God’s story started before and will continue after evil and death have had their way. Another way to put this is “death doesn’t have the last word.” In his book “Improvisation: The Drama of Christian Ethics,” Sam Wells suggests that we use the word “and” after every negative offer.

Wells writes, “This word, “and,” constitutes a significant statement. It indicates that the sentence is not yet finished. The story is not yet over. There is more to come, even when evil has done its worst. . . . For the power of Christ lies in the fact that he accepted death, even death on a cross; he was able to do so because he believed in the “And.” He believed that his death was not the end of the story: and so it proved.”

Because the living Jesus is at work in us, we are capable of accepting negative offers followed by the word “and.”

Think about a negative offer you have received and consider the way you can now accept it with the word “and” in light of the resurrection of Jesus. Here are some examples of what I’m talking about.

• I’m offered betrayal .. . . . and I will forgive you.
• I’m offered terminal illness . . . . and I will pray to see God present in this suffering.
• I’m offered a pink slip . . . . and I will remember that this isn’t the end of God’s story.
• I’m offered my own death or that of a loved one . . . . and I will remember that death doesn’t have the last word.
• I’m offered injury or other unexpected negative news . . . . and I will enjoy this detour because God will show me things I wouldn’t have seen otherwise.
• I’m offered physical or emotional attack . . . . and I will take this opportunity to learn to love my enemies better.
• I’m offered the irresponsible choices of a loved one . . . . and I know it is not my responsibility to make everything turn out right.
• I find myself becoming angry at the actions of another . . . . and I will seek first to understand before being understood.
• My teenage child offers me the words, “I hate you!” . . . . and I will love you.
• My loved one rejects Jesus . . . . and even so, God will have his way and get what God wants!

None of these responses are creative or original or clever. They are obvious in light of what Jesus has done through his resurrection from the dead. They are all responses that make sense in light of the new creation that Jesus has made possible through his defeat of evil and death. They are all things that Christians can and should learn to take for granted so that they become a kind of second nature response to the negative offers we receive. The extent to which these responses sound unusual, shocking or abnormal reveals the extent to which we have been formed by the way of the world rather than the way of Christ.

I’m not talking here about memorizing responses. I’m talking about being trained in the habits of Jesus so that these kind of responses become the obvious, “knee jerk,” kind of things we would do when we are given a negative offer.

Now for the next obvious question: How is your training in the habits of Jesus going these days?

Building the Beloved Community: Reflections on Modern Racism

Beginning February 27th, Carolyn and I attended a two and a half day diversity and sensitivity training for all appointed United Methodist clergy in Florida called “Building the Beloved Community.” Though it was not planned in response to the shooting death of an unarmed black 17 year old boy named Trayvon Martin which happened February 26th, the things I learned during that training have echoed in my mind in the wake of his violent death.

I wish I could say that it was my idea to attend the training. I’m not that good. We went to the training out of duty. Our bishop, the Rev. Timothy Whitaker, had a vision for the clergy and churches of the Florida Conference United Methodist Church to address the crisis which not only threatens our future, but renders us unfaithful in the present. Our crisis is a church that is far too homogenously white, aging and middle class.

The United Methodist Church in Florida inadequately reflects the diversity of people who live in the state of Florida. Why is that? Are we ok with that? Wait, the better question: Is God ok with that?

Perhaps you agree with me that God is not ok with that. Perhaps you agree that the angel in Luke’s gospel was right when she announced Jesus’ birth to the shepherds by saying, “I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people.” You might also recall the vision of God’s kingdom that the writer of Revelation imagines in chapter 7, “After this I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the Lamb [Jesus], robed in white, with palm branches in their hands.” This diverse and inclusive people of God are worshipping God together.

It is God’s hope that the church be a community that recognizes differences and seeks to understand and appreciate the diversity that exists in the world. Notice that these Scriptures don’t call us to be “color blind” or a “melting pot,” but rather multi-cultural. I’m learning that there is a difference.

This vision, though beautiful I think, sounds simpler than it is to achieve. One reason for that is discerned in this quote by William Faulkner: “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.”

My assumption as a white, able bodied, middle class, male is that racism is mostly a problem of the past. I assume this because of the progress made through the civil rights movement of the 1960’s to change laws that were unjust toward black people. As a result of this progress, I assume that racism exists today only in isolated pockets and is perpetrated only by a few.

What I’m learning is that the experience of black people is different from mine. I’m learning that racism is still very much a reality in the present. And I’m learning that this reality is as much subtle as it is overt, indirect as it is direct. I’m also learning that racism is a reality that extends beyond personal and interpersonal hateful actions said or done because of someone’s color.

It is difficult for me to imagine what it is like to be considered “suspicious” because of the color of my skin. I’ve never been watched by the manager while I walk through the aisle of a store. I expect people will want to hear what I have to say when I talk in a group. And it has never occurred to me that I wouldn’t be welcomed, have the opportunity to participate fully and have my culture represented and appreciated in my neighborhood, church and school. Those experiences of modern racism are all too common for black people.

Faulkner was right, “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.”

[For more on this reality see columns by Darrell Owens, Mark Pinsky and Drew G.I. Hart ]

Our bishop reminded us that the work of Martin Luther King Jr. may be most noted for his confrontation of unjust Jim Crow laws and a call for the nation to start obeying the 14th commandment of the US Constitution which states:

“No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”

“But,” said our bishop, “King gave us a vision that was bigger than simply obeying the 14th amendment. He led as a Christian who longed for something bigger than that – a vision of becoming a beloved community."

Our faith gives us resources of love, forgiveness, humility, courage, joy, perseverance and hope (just to name a few) that will sustain us in the difficult, confusing, fearful task of confronting the ongoing problem of racism which fractures our churches, communities and nation. We will make mistakes. We will not agree. And that is ok. We can courageously enter the conversation.

So what do we do next?

Another Faulkner quote is instructive: “The man who removes a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.”

Here are the small stones I’m picking up (I’ll start with one):

• I’m going to read authors and writers who are not white men (admitting that two of my favorite authors are white men!). I need to learn more about the perspectives, differences and contributions of black men and women. I’ve decided to do this instead of visiting my black friends with endless questions to educate me and "help me understand." One place to start are the editorials referenced above and this article by Valerie Batts, Ph. D., Executive Director, VISIONS, Inc. “Is Reconciliation Possible: Lessons from Combating Modern Racism”

Toxic Work

Ever since I wrote about “Take Your Pastor to Work” day, I’ve had the privilege of visiting several workplaces. I’ve been to schools, diners to meet those searching for work, Dunkin Donuts to meet Realtors, a national plant nutrient group, a world-wide database company, a tax accountant, a world-wide missionary mobilization center and a fitness boot camp (yes, I did push-ups).

What impresses me about all these people at work? They all like their jobs. Even the guy looking for work was having fun doing it. Perhaps I caught him on a good day, but he was leaning into the opportunity to be part of God’s next adventure for him. These folks talked about working with great people who supported and respected one another – even prayed for one another. They all had great talent for the work they did and felt a connection to the mission of their organization. But this wasn’t always the case.

I heard some of them talk about previous experiences working in toxic environments. They spoke of distrust. They spoke of gossip tearing at the company culture and undermining its mission. They experienced people who had power and liked to use it for their advantage and people without power who passively sabotaged those who had it.

Those conversations came to mind as I read a New York Times Opinion blog this week by former Goldman Sachs executive, Greg Smith. He spoke of the culture when he started at Goldman Sachs almost 12 years ago and how it changed over the years.

He writes, “[When I first arrived, the culture] revolved around teamwork, integrity, a spirit of humility, and always doing right by our clients. The culture was the secret sauce that made this place great and allowed us to earn our clients’ trust for 143 years. It wasn’t just about making money; this alone will not sustain a firm for so long. It had something to do with pride and belief in the organization. I am sad to say that I look around today and see virtually no trace of the culture that made me love working for this firm for many years. I no longer have the pride, or the belief.”

Not having the power to change the culture of the company and not being aligned with its current toxic culture led Mr. Smith to resign. That choice is difficult in any economy, but in one that’s struggling, it’s even harder. Some of you know exactly what that is like and think, “Hey, toxic work is better than no work.” Maybe.

If you are in a toxic work environment, let me ask you this: Is God compelling you to stay for some reason? Just because your workplace is toxic doesn’t necessarily mean God wants you to leave. There are plenty of Biblical stories of God sending people into toxic environments with a mission in mind. [See Elijah, Jonah, Jeremiah, Isaiah, Jesus and his disciples]. Those folk had a calling to run toward toxic places like rescue workers toward a burning building. God had given them power to speak truth, model a new way, be agents of change. Even though the sacrifice would be great, they were led by a higher calling. Some people have that calling. Do you? If that’s your calling, then lean into it with all your heart.

In fact, that’s good advice for all of us: “Lean into your calling with all your heart.” Called to stay? Then stay. Called to leave? Then leave. Either way, it’s a leap of faith in the face of fear.

There is something of God that can only be known when we are obedient to go where he calls us to go, no matter what the environment is like.

Next blog will be about the practices of discerning God’s call. How do you know where God is calling.

Invite Your Pastors to College Day

It’s been almost 20 years since I graduated from college. Wha?! For a guy who still thinks he’s barely out of high school, this is difficult to believe.

I thought about my distance fromcollege days this week when Carolyn and I were in Gainesville for a continuing education conference. In addition to the conference we took the opportunity to meet for dinner with all the Spring of Lifers who are attending the University of Florida. I was so glad everyone’s schedule worked out so we could meet.

We started at the United Methodist campus ministry building known as “Gator Wesley” at the corner of University and 13th. In case you don’t know, the Spring of Life UF students are Adam Gutman, Tyler Crossley, Nathan Githens, and Alex Githens. I was particularly glad too that our friend the Rev. Dan Wunderlich, one of the campus pastors at Gator Wesley could join us for dinner as well. Incidentally, Dan was in the youth group at the Conway United Methodist Church when Carolyn and I started as associate pastors. We pestered Dan about God calling him into the ordained ministry the whole time we were at Conway. He’s a great guy, a talented preacher and I’m so glad that we got to introduce our college students to him.

After a brief conflict over sushi or BBQ, we made our way to the famous “Adam’s Rib Company” just down 13th street from the Gator Wesley building. It was meant to be. Adam’s Rib Company sells good BBQ in large quantities for a low price – the perfect place for 7 hungry Gators. In fact, one peek at the menu and we knew what we were ordering: “The Pro Platter.” The sub title for the Pro Platter said, “Enough to feed 8 hungry Gators.” Perfect. Only after we were finished, I suggest that they update their menu to read: “Enough to feed 7 hungry Gators.” There were no leftovers. I’ve never seen a human being eat so much, so fast (Nathan!).

The time for eating and conversation went by fast. I found myself feeling like more of a parent than a student (even though I clearly look more like a student). We listened as they shared about adjusting to new freedom and responsibility. We heard about challenging course work, deciding on a major, interesting internships, roommates, apartment living and of course football and basketball. And no dinner with your pastor would be complete without a little encouragement: “And if you haven’t ever gone to worship at Gator Wesley . . . Dan’s a really good preacher! What time did you say those worship times were, Dan???”

Going to college can be an exciting and fun experience, and it can be a challenging, frightening, difficult experience too. I hope you will join me in remembering to pray for all our college students from Spring of Life. I wish we could visit them all, but since we can’t I ask you to pray for them all. Here are their names: Kayla Hilkert, Kayla O’Donnell , Tyler Crossley, Kira Peterman, Brain Gutman, Adam Gutman, John Tomlinson, Nathan Githens, Alex Githens, Carson Sherrod.

If you’d like to do a little more, like send a card or a care package then send Debbie Sherrod an email request for address. She wants to help our church support our college students while they are at school.