Praying in Lent

Lent is an excellent period in which to renew one’s prayer life... but so are other times of the year.

The epistle says, “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:17) but of course that cannot be taken literally if it refers to an individual Christian’s prayer. I like this short page (http://www.allaboutprayer.org/pray-without-ceasing-faq.htm) that explains “without ceasing” as an attitude and an openness. One of the first Hebrew words I learned was hinneni, “Here am I!” the response that people like Abraham made when God called to him. Our professor, Bonnie Kittel of blessed memory, noted that the response implied a openness and readiness to hear God. That’s one good way to think about prayer: a communicative attitude toward God that in turn makes us open to God’s leading and guidance.

I’ve several prayer books but usually read from the “Shorter Morning and Evening Prayer” based on the Liturgy of the Hours, and I’ve four devotional quarterlies that I like to use. Recently I got out other resources that I like but haven’t used for a while. My wife’s deceased first husband received a little prayer book ("My Prayer Book") when he was confirmed, and it contains wonderful intercessory prayers. I’ve other books that I use less often, but I found a nice “Minister’s Prayer Book” published by Muhlenberg Press in the 1950s.

I wish I was more consistent day to day to use these resources. I do pretty well, but since my days are filled with teaching and writing on religious subjects, I’m often thinking about God and mentally praying to God but my “organized” religious devotion falls by the wayside unless I make an effort to keep that part of my life on track.

On the other hand … Years ago (1980s?) I read an article in Christian Century that made the point that Jesus seemed not to have a structured way of praying. He prayed a lot and sought time and places for solitary prayer, but the texts say nothing about specified times that he prayed, nor did he make people wait for him to conclude his prayer time. The article noted that being organized in our prayer lives could just mean that we’re … well organized!

We grow in quality and quantity of prayer among our daily comings and goings (Ps. 121:8). When I was in seminary, my prayers were self-doubtful, anxious, and uncertain about the future---not untypical of a “dark night” situation. Seminary is a time for many of us when God tests our calling and vocation. Now … I’m nearly thirty years out of seminary, happy with and amazed at the ways God has led me over the years. So my prayers aren’t self-doubtful in the manner of a young person, but my prayers are offered with a heightened, respectful sense of mortality and the unpredictability of life. During the last ten years my amazing daughter has grown from middle school- to college-age, and I’ve handled my widowed mother’s affairs in addition to all my other responsibilities. Circumstances like these (and others) can help a person turn more of “life” over to God’s care. You really do understand, psychologically, that surrendering to God's care is a happier way to live than clinging to the idea that you have a lot of control over your life.

But mental prayer can carry the risk of self-involvement and self-satisfaction. That’s why I have my little battery of prayer helps that I use to direct my prayers during those secret times of Matt. 6:6. Prayer resources are wonderful: among other things, they explain prayer, they provide accompanying scriptures, they contain great prayers with which we can read along and make our own, and they remind us what to pray for. Prayer resources can also stop us cold when we encounter prayer-words that we really don’t want to pray at that moment! Thus we can think about the present situation of our feelings toward God.

I’m a member of two prayer chains. The requests come by email so I print these out. Much of my daily attitude in prayer is intercessory, but I’m liable to forget to pray for folks whom I don’t know unless I have the prayer requests at hand. I have these words of Oswald Chambers almost memorized: "The real business of your life as a saved soul is intercessory prayer. Wherever God puts you in circumstances, pray immediately, pray that His Atonement may be realized in other lives as it has been in yours. Pray for your friends NOW; pray for those with who you come in contact NOW."

As I wrote this little piece, I grew very insecure. Specifically, I worried that I don’t do enough for God, both in my prayer life or generally. This is a good example of the importance of fortifying our mental prayers with scripture study and resources. We’re saved by Christ’s redeeming work, not anything we do. Although there are numerous ways to pray (some better than others), our prayers are never ways to earn God's favor or to "leverage" God. Prayer is a wonderful way to learn more about the God who has done more for us than we can imagine (Eph. 3:20-21).


* On a related note, a friend tweeted this Christianity Today article, an excellent reminder of God's love! http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/article_print.html?id=86920

Pretty Woman, Watchin' Down the Street

A striking commercial, which can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkz1d0syVSU, caught my attention last week. In the ad, a pretty, dark-eyed woman walks down the street. Her expression brightens, and she watches something in the distance as graphics circle her head. The music is electronic and (to me) reminiscent of a French café. Then you see an Acura ZDX automobile--the object of the woman’s curiosity.

Who is this woman? What is that music? According to this site, the woman is a Polish model named Karolina Wydra, and the song is “Pa' Bailar” by the South American (Rioplatense) group Bajofondo. http://tv-advertising.suite101.com/article.cfm/girl-in-acura-zdx-commercial-outshines-vehicle I downloaded the catchy song from iTunes. As for the pretty Ms. Wydra, who has also appeared on "House" and "True Blood," this site gives more information about her: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2764521/

I love the internet! My students would probably find my appreciation funny and old-foggyish. Over thirty years ago, I tried to find the address of the publisher of the Jack Bruce song, “Theme from an Imaginary Western,” to get permission to quote it. Wonderful as our small town library is, I couldn’t find the resources to help--and then gave up too quickly without thinking I could order a resource from interlibrary loan. Now… if you want to know something, in less than five minutes you usually find what you want, without getting off the couch. Of course, I could’ve spent that five minutes more productively than researching an interesting TV commercial. But hey, now I know who the woman is, and I know there is such a thing as Latin Alternative music!

I’m still neutral about Acura cars, however, and didn’t check them out on the internet. In fact, I keep forgetting which car company it is: Lexus? Infiniti? Acura enriched my day a little with their ad but didn‘t achieve the ad’s purpose. Commercials can be that way: because they’re too clever (or too annoying), you aren’t sufficient intrigued by the product. I love the “Life Comes At You Fast” commercials but I struggle to remember which insurance company they pitch (it’s Nationwide). The ads are almost too entertaining. On the other hand, an ad featuring frogs that croak “bud …wei…ser” isn’t going to make you say, “Oh, I love that beer commercial with the croaking frogs but I can’t remember which beer it’s for. Heineken?”

Kleenex is currently running commercials about how the tissues give you “extra mothering.” The ads feature people who are trying out and discarding mothers until they find a mother they like. There is even an internet component to this campaign: http://www.getmommed.com/#/home. I suppose these ads are funny in a certain way but something about leaving a mother at the side of the railroad tracks while you pick up another mother, or stomping from home to home in a snit till you find the care you want, isn’t, well, thigh-slapping funny. Not only that, the specific brand doesn't stay in my mind.

There is currently a series of commercials (are they run on stations other than St. Louis’?) with a young man against a white background. He urges people to accept Jesus into their lives. The spots are very short--no more than fifteen seconds long--and do not identify the sponsor nor “plug” any particular congregation, denomination, or group like the Mormons. I’m intrigued that someone has sponsored these ads for (apparently) purely evangelistic motives. I wonder if the ads will reach people. The ads are simple and straightforward enough to convey the basic point: no one will later think, “What were those ads about? Jesus? Buddha? New Age?”

In this case, the internet hasn’t helped me at all. Google “Jesus commercial”? Nothing apropos comes up. If I discover anything, I'll let you know. We can certainly pray that the ads (and the efforts of faithful people generally) will be used by the Spirit. Maybe someone could also sponsor TV spots that encourage people to seek justice (Micah 6:8), kindness (1 Cor. 13:4), empathy (Heb. 13:3), and so on.

(Update: those religious commercials were done by the St. Louis Family Church. https://www.slfc.org )

Missing Persons

Random thoughts based on a magazine article. I was browsing through the new issue of “Mojo” at the Barnes and Noble. The cover story concerns Syd Barrett, who helped found Pink Floyd (and named the group), became its songwriter and driving creative force, then became increasingly erratic, drug-dependent, and uncooperative until the band fired him. He released two solo albums, produced by Floyd members, then he left the music scene entirely--still in his mid-20s.

Barrett has long been a legendary, mysterious figure. His impact and influence was tremendous, not just upon the Floyd but other musicians as well. But was he schizophrenic? Autistic? Was he permanently brain damaged from his drug taking? Pink Floyd members and associates have long felt they did not do enough to help him, but from the accounts, he didn’t seem to want help and, apparently, lived most of his life in contented semi-anonymity in Cambridge. He died at the age of 60 in 2006.

The genius who makes a tremendous impact but drops out of sight is certainly a fascinating “trope.” J.D. Salinger, who died recently, is another example. What had he been doing since 1965, the year of his last publication? Did he leave publishable works behind? I enjoyed the movie “Finding Forrester” which, although it had its contrived and predictable aspects, was obviously inspired by Salinger (and also Harper Lee, who published one amazing book and then, believing she couldn’t top it, published no more novels).

Then there is the intriguing figure of Blind Blake, the influential blues artist whose guitar-playing style was widely admired and whose records sold well. But no one knows what happened to him after his last recording sessions in 1932. Theories about where and when he may have died, but nothing has been verified. At the time, he might have become a wonderfully mysterious case like Barrett. (Another interesting trope--the artist who not only withdraws but fakes his own death, dramatized in the movie Eddie and the Cruisers--comes to mind, although that trope probably doesn’t apply to Blake.)

I couldn’t resist thinking about Jesus within this whole context, because Jesus inverts the trope: his tantalizingly mysterious, missing years were before his public life rather than afterward. Was he studying Torah while working at the carpenter shop? Did he travel to the east to meet with the great sages, or south to Jerusalem to the Temple scholars, or still farther south to the Dead Sea and the Essene community? What was his thought process as he embarked on his ministry?

Non-canonical accounts of Jesus’ early years do exist, but I wonder if the paucity of information about Jesus’ early years has a theological, if not historical explanation: all that we have been given to know (canonically) about Jesus is directed toward our salvation.

Now, of course, Jesus is withdrawn from us physically (to allude to an essay by the theologian Eberhard Juengel, “The Effectiveness of Christ Withdrawn”). But that is a wonderful thing, not a disappointment! Absent physically, he is closer to us than ever. In fact, as he promises in John’s gospel, he has to leave his disciples physically in order that they may receive the Holy Spirit and thus know him more intimately and reliably than ever before.

Jesus may certainly seem missing to us during times of trouble or faith-struggle, but he is nevertheless very close by. His eventual second coming will complete that which has already accomplished: an amazing salvation.

Not Funny but Interesting, part 2

During Lent and the upcoming Easter season, I’m working on a curriculum project called “Faithful Christian Citizens.” The project’s sponsors and I hope this material will encourage Christians to be cognizant of important world issues as a way to be faithful to the "two great commandments." The following is nothing more deep than some personal note-taking, "outtakes" from my project. I find these topics interesting as I try to follow and understand what’s going on in the country.

For instance, I read an interesting article in The Economist, in which the author discusses some of the recent congressional impasses and notes that “it is not so much that America is ungovernable, as that Mr Obama has done a lousy job of winning over Republicans and independents to the causes he favors. If, instead of handing of health care to his party’s left wing, he had lived up to his promise to be a bipartisan president and courted conservatives by offering, say, reform of the tort system, he might have got health care through; by giving ground on nuclear power, he may now stand a chance of getting a climate bill. Once Mr Clinton learned the advantages of co-operating with the Republicans, the country was governed better.” (Feb. 20-26, 2010 issue, p. 11). (I noticed a similar complaint online today:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/simon-johnson/does-the-obama-administra_b_487342.html)

In another article that I‘ve read, this one in Newsweek (March 1, 2010), author Peter Beinhart discusses how the GOP has, since the beginning of the Clinton presidency, adopted the “government is the problem” strategy. This was not a GOP strategy during the Reagan and Bush 41 years; for instance, moderate Republicans “helped cut big bipartisan deals like the 1986 tax-reform bill, which simplified the tax code, and the 1990 Clean Air Act, which set new limits on pollution.” At the beginning of the Clinton years, “the Gingrich Republicans learned that the vicious circle [of filibustering] worked.” What that means is that GOP congressmen “have told Americans that they can’t trust government with their health care, and once again, their own actions [of halting legislation and using polarizing tactics] have helped convinced Americans that what they say is true.” But since they are the party out of power, voter anger becomes directed at the Democrats (pp. 22-23; the whole article is pp. 20-24).

What about the matter of “big government”? The promise of tax cuts and small government is still an ideal for many people.

McClatchy correspondent Steven Thomma notes that President Reagan set a vision for a smaller government. Unfortunately President Reagan, too, found the vision difficult to achieve; during his administration government spending increased by about 69%, especially because of the 92% increase in defense spending. Thomma goes on to note that, under Reagan, “the size of the government as a share of total economic production had shrunk slightly, from 22.2 percent to 21.2 percent.” Under President Clinton, defense spending slowed considerably and thus government spending decreased. That, plus the strong economy of the 1990s, means that “government’s size as a percentage of the economy dropped from 21.4 percent to 18.5 percent during the Clinton years.” Under President Bush, in turn, government spending increased 68%, connected to the 126% defense spending increase. (See his article “It only looks different,“ at http://www.mcclatchydc.com/244/story/63361.html).

During President Reagan’s terms, the economy came out of a recession, but, as columnist Paul Krugman writes, “while the rich got much richer, there was little sustained economic improvement for most Americans. By the late 1980s, middle-class incomes were barely higher than they had been a decade before--and the poverty rate had actually risen.” In other words, the benefits of tax cuts for the wealthy did not “trickle down” to the middle class as hoped (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/21/opinion/21krugman.html). But I've read some other authors who argue, yes, the economy did improve, because among other things the earlier, high rate of inflation was curbed.

Politicians aren’t usually, or possibly ever candid about their own party’s agenda and history. In the same piece as above, Thomma quotes one GOP congressman who accused the Democrats of a “spending spree.” In actuality, both parties support billions of dollars of spending, but (to oversimplify) Republicans tend to give priority to spending for defense, while Democrats tend to prioritize spending for social programs like education, benefits for the needy, and so on. One could argue persuasively that both a strong military and a strong social programs are necessary for an overall healthy society: the common good for all citizens, and sound national security. One can also argue very persuasively that deficit spending hampers American economic growth, just as credit card debit hampers a family’s abilities to prosper.

Still another writer, Robert Reich, gets to the point of the matter, I think: our problem is not so much big government but “small democracy.” Public decision making should be open, voters should be able to hear appropriate debate about big issues, and leaders must be accountable to voters for their decisions. Reich worries about the secrecy that presently characterizes both the president’s programs and congressional debates, as well as the strong roll of “lobbyists representing moneyed interests” in Washington. The long-term answer is to “recommit ourselves to cleaning up democracy” (http://robertreich.org/post/367059482/our-incredible-shrinking-democracy).

How do you do that, however? I suppose we can become more aware of the issues (as I’m trying to become) and to write our state and federal leaders (which I haven’t done for a long time, ever since I tried to get my congresswoman not to support the Clinton impeachment). You have to be really careful about burnout and discouragement, though.

It’s simple to say, I guess, but a good “thy will be done” prayer helps me to keep perspective about the imperfections of both political parties, and to have a balanced view of things. As Lincoln said in his second inaugural address, in far scarier times than these, God has his own purposes, and God’s purposes may be wholly different from what you think they are or should be--no matter how right we think we are. Any effort from us Christians to help our democracy can start by affirming Proverbs 3:5-6.

Romantic Repertoire for the Open Road

To state the obvious: music can be a wonderful reminder of places. During the first year of our marriage, my wife Beth and I visited a book store in Frederick, Maryland, which carried a wonderful selection of LPs. (CDs had been introduced the previous year but weren't widely available.) I purchased a two-record set of Mendelssohn’s first two symphonies and also a two-record set of the other three. To this day, Mendelssohn’s music reminds me of the hills of Maryland, no matter what Scottish, Italian, and other inspirations he brought to his music. I could name several other personal examples of favorite associations, but here are just a few more.

Two less-well known composers are also nice reminders of places---actually of highways. While driving on U.S. 89 (now AZ 89) between Ash Fork and Prescott, AZ, on church-related business, I was listening to public radio and really loved a piece of music. I thought the announcer said something about mountains and the composer was “Dandee.” Since I was driving, I couldn't write down the information and hoped I could recall the name later. Eventually I figured out (I don’t remember how) that the piece was "Symphony on a French Mountain Air" by Vincent d’Indy.

D’Indy is not well known today. He lived from 1851 till 1931 and was a student of Cesar Franck. According to the source http://www.dovesong.com/positive_music/archives/romantic/Dindy.asp he was part of the artistic revival that included Mallarme, Causson, Saint-Saens, Degas, Rodin, Renoir, Franck, Faure, Debussy, and others. D’Indy was also a Wagner admirer (and, unfortunately, was also an anti-Semite). His devotion to tonality was one possible reason d’Indy became less known as the 20th century progressed, but today his music has been newly performed and released on the Chandos label. Other pieces that I enjoy are his “Jour d’ete a la Montagne” and his “Dyptique Mediterraneen,” partly inspired by a scenic train ride.

A few years ago my CD club carried the symphonies of Niels Wilhelm Gade (1817-1890) with the encouragement that this Danish composer wrote in the tradition of Mendelssohn and Schumann. So I bought all four CDs of Gade’s eight symphonies! (I tend to do that kind of thing: if I like one piece by a composer, maybe I’ll like others. That’s why I haven’t yet carved out time to explore Mahler’s symphonies.) Gade actually was Mendelssohn’s assistant conductor of the Gewandhaus Orchestra in Leipzig and became chief conductor when Mendelssohn died. Like d’Indy, Gade is not famous today, but none other than Christopher Hogwood conducted these symphonies, which now remind me of sunny but tedious drives upon Interstate 70 across Indiana and Illinois. That was the highway on which I--tired and very buzzed on Starbucks coffee--first listened to the discs. (His music isn't tedious, and in fact it filled sensate gaps as I traveled the visually familiar but unspectacular countryside.)

U.S. 89 also reminds me of Schumann’s symphonies, but I don’t remember if, as in the case of d’Indy, I heard the first symphony on NPR as I drove, or if something about the music brought me back to that landscape. Unlike these other Romantic composers Schumann is not at all obscure. His 200th birthday, soon after Chopin's, is upcoming, with articles about him promised in music magazines, and John Eliot Gardiner has conducted the symphonies on a recent CD set.

Schumann’s music also reminds me of holiday drives with my wife during the 1980s as we traveled to visit parents. We’d randomly purchased a cheap little cassette called "Brass: 3 Centuries of Golden Sounds" for our road trips. We loved this anthology (on the Allegretto label, now on CD); it's a nice selection of mostly baroque and classical repertoire by Scheidt, Vivaldi, L. and W.A. Mozart, Handel, Haydn, Gabrielli, and others. Schumann’s piece "Konzertstueck for 4 Horns" contrasts stylistically with the older repertoire, but it’s the concluding piece and thus isn’t jarring.

Whenever I play some of this music, I still like to recall that expansive Arizona countryside which I've not seen for several years. What was the name of that composer, and what was the title of that piece, as I approached Bill Williams Mountain to the north? What did the announcer say? Dandee? Just an hour and a half to home.

No, Not a Leap Year Baby

My wife's birthday is Sunday, which is February 28th....

Were you thinking, "Almost a Leap Year baby!" If so, GOTCHA!

This is a running joke in our family. Beth was not born during a Leap Year, but SO many people say that about her birthday. And yet when we tell them that she wasn't born during a Leap Year, they look at us uncomprehendingly.

THIS IS NOT HARD, PEOPLE. This is not a Zen koan where, if you asked me "What is Truth" and I could respond, "Go wash your bowls." YOU CAN ONLY BE A LEAP YEAR BABY IF YOU WERE BORN DURING A LEAP YEAR. And yet everyone who says "Almost a Leap Year baby!" are sincerely impressed that Beth missed by one day being born on February 29th.

Interestingly, if her birthday had been March 1, I'll bet you that NO ONE would ever say "Almost a Leap Year baby!"

(I think I've only met one person who was born on February 29. He seemed to have fun with it. Upon turning 72, he said that now he was now 18 and could vote, but he'd have to wait twelve more years till he could drink... )

Part of all this is the way cliches and expressions get lodged into people's thinking. I used to read articles where the author would say something like "It's only X-number of years till 1984," as if, because of Orwell's novel, that year was set in stone as the year totalitarianism would become the norm. "Fifteen minutes of fame" is another cliche routinely used by media writers; you'd swear that someone has a stop watch and is counting how many minutes certain people are occupying within the public's attention.

Church-growth discussions get cliche-ridden sometimes. "Core constituencies," "the mission field," "the seven-day-a-week church," "changing the way we think about 'church'": sayings like these can become signs that pastors and lay leaders are impressed with trends. But awareness of trends needs to be combined with serious, unsentimental thinking about the congregation's health, strengths, and weaknesses.

Speaking of churches: Was it the play Greater Tuna that featured a funeral sermon laced with cliches? So funny! I'll have to find my copy of the play and check.

But back to my wife... we're going out to lunch with some friends tomorrow and going out to Baskin-Robbins later! Then we'll be happy that Monday is March 1---whew, how lucky Beth was that she was born on the 28th!!

Picnic Area on U.S. 51

Because of some other writing projects, I may not write here for a couple weeks. But I thought I’d post this photo which I found among other pictures while I was looking for something else.

Along U.S. 51 between Vandalia, Illinois, which is my hometown, and Ramsey, Illinois, which also has family connections, you can find an earlier highway alignment that lies just west of the main road. When I was a little boy, this short stretch of old 51 featured a pleasant picnic area for travelers. Just north of the area was a quaint metal highway bridge that carried you across a stream before the road rejoined the main alignment. U.S. 51 was Illinois State Route 2 prior to 1926, and I wonder if this bridge dates from the 20s.

Back in the days of Rock City barns and roadside cafes, picnic areas were a common sight along the two-lane highways. They were such pleasant areas, basically a small park beside the road. A very nice picnic area once existed along U.S. 40 west of Vandalia, a few miles east of the intersection with IL 140 near Mulberry Grove, and I’ve written here about another such area along 51 near Sandoval, IL ("The Ways of Old Roads," 5/25/09). I remember a gorgeous little roadside park along Hwy. 40 where we stopped during our 1965 vacation to Washington, D.C. I think the park must’ve been in Indiana or Ohio, but I’ve not been able to find it during sporadic attempts. After all, so many years have passed; for instance, that stop near Mulberry Grove has been incorporated into a farm and is no longer recognizable.

Why would you have a picnic along a highway? Well, you’d probably have food and drinks packed for your trip! My dad certainly did; he’d have bottles and cans of soda and food for our trips. One year he fried a big batch of fried chicken to take along for a vacation. I remember my mother was angry at him because he cleaned the kitchen very inadequately prior to our several days away. We stopped at a roadside park--I don’t remember where---to eat our lunch, and I noticed all the messages people had written or carved into the table’s wood.

I suppose today you’d worry about stopping along a highway to relax; the real-life cousins of Flannery O’Connor’s Misfit might jump out from the trees. But, of course, you can’t stop at all along interstate highways, unless you exit highway completely. Picnic areas seem as quaint as mom-and-pop restaurants, but they imply a pleasant, unhurried aspect of early- and mid-twentieth century road travel.

When I visit Vandalia I don’t usually drive north of town, but several years ago I happened to be driving that way and I rediscovered this little picnic area, so pleasant during my childhood. The place was quite overgrown. Not only that, but the old alignment was mostly closed to traffic, because the old bridge is, apparently, no longer sturdy enough. It is barricaded, but you can pull off the main alignment and stroll upon the old road. The narrowness of these original alignments always intrigues me, especially after I’ve driven multi-lane interstates for a while.

I took this picture of the bridge. It was a late fall day, and the resulting photo was more haunting than I’d planned. Where does that narrow road go? Actually just up the hill to the old picnic area, where future archaeologists may someday find chicken bones and bottle caps and arcane messages like “Tim + Mary” carved into wood.