Ruach
I have always been fascinated with the Hebrew word “ruach”, and I am reminded of this each year on Ash Wednesday. The Hebrew translation for ruach isbreath, spirit or wind. The same one word in Hebrew represents different words in English. In the Old Testament, it says in the second creation account “Then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being.” -Genesis 2:7. “Ruach” is present in this story and in the dust that created each of us.
So, on Ash Wednesday as I sit in worship, I wonder to myself… Why are these people here? What made them remember that today is the beginning of Lent? Routinely, this day brings two to three times as many people to our churches than any other Wednesday during Lent. Did they hear something on the TV or radio that reminded them? Or, do we just know this day is something different? Maybe in a strange way, even life giving?
Ash Wednesday is somewhat of a dark day, especially when we think of the ashes being placed on our foreheads with the words spoken “Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return”. The darkness is a reminder that we all face the reality of death in our life, and we do not know when that day will come. Some people will die too early and some will die after long and satisfying lives.
Twelve years ago on Ash Wednesday, I had just begun cancer treatments for Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. I had recently learned the treatments were not working very well and the tumor in my abdomen was growing, not shrinking. I was beginning to develop some other complications as well. It was a point in my life when I had to make friends with death and my own mortality- more so than I ever had before. I think others in my life began to face that reality as well. They too were beginning to grieve my death, even though I was still alive.
The pastor from the church I was serving at asked if I would help with the imposition of ashes at worship that year. I asked him if he thought that was a good idea considering my situation and he simply said… “Yes”. So, I agreed to help. When the worshipers began coming forward, I noticed people shuffling from the lines they were originally ushered into. Some were stepping out of my line, while others were stepping into my line. I am not completely sure why, but I think it may of had something to do with there own understanding and comfort with mortality.
As I stood there with my darkened finger, I had several interesting looks from people when they came forward. But the best was when a young child came with her Mom. This child could not even truly understand the words I was speaking to her… “Remember you are dust and to dust you shall return.” She just embraced the innocence of the moment and looked up at me and smiled when touched her forehead. As they walked away, the girl held up her bangs, looked at her mom and said… “Does it look okay mommy?” Others in the sanctuary heard her and this charming moment broke through the somber mood in the room. People smiled, and some even chuckled quietly to themselves. This girl did not know my situation, she was only wondering about her own experience. Did it look okay? This was important to her, so others would know she had a cross on her forehead. That is the Gospel.
This is what Ash Wednesday should be. Gods spirit alive even when we are facing the reality of death and our own mortality. Ruach was in those ashes. Ruach was in that little girl who broke through the somber and silence by creating joy for a moment. Ruach was in me that night and thankfully still today. Ruach is alive in everyone. Even in our darkness, in our wilderness and over these next 40 days, Ruach is present. We began as dust. Ruach gave us our life, our gifts, our breath. We will become dust in the ground again but our Ruach, the Ruach of God will live forever. We trust in all this because though it is now Lent, we know the gift we are given in the end on Easter Sunday.
Read MoreHope In The Stranger
Every so often, there are moments when we have an opportunity to meet someone who is not part of our regular journey in life. Some type of occurrence brings you together in a common bond- like standing outside Target the day after Thanksgiving at 4:00am to await the opportunity to be the first to buy the hottest item for the holidays. In Minnesota, you form bonds very quickly in this situation, as you must have something in common with those as crazy as you who are out waiting in sub-zero temperatures. There is a unity you feel, a peace knowing that most people in the world are good.
A few years ago, I was in Dallas TX, attending a convention for work. After it was over, I decided to extend my stay in Texas a few days and catch a flight to San Antonio to visit family. I walked down to my crowded gate and boarded the airplane. Shortly after I sat down in my seat, the flight attendant made an announcement about the plane being oversold and they were looking for volunteers to take the next flight out an hour later. The compensation would be a $200 travel voucher. I was enticed by the deal, so I picked up my belongings and journeyed to the front of the plane. There were three of us who came forward and that was all they needed to get this flight underway. So we walked off the plane and back into the gate area. After the door to the jet way closed, the gate attendant came over and printed us our vouchers along with our new boarding passes for the next flight. The three of us giggled a bit as we walked to our new gate with our earnings in hand. We all had a story of how this $200 might be used and for what trip we might take. As the departure for our next flight drew close, we heard an announcement about this flight also being oversold and they were looking for volunteers to take the next flight out. The three of us all looked at each other and said, “what the heck, lets do it again!” The next flight was only 45 minutes later, and again the compensation was $200. So we waited in the gate area and watched… Everyone boarded the plane, the door to the jet way was closed and the tug pushed out the plane so it could journey on its way. Once the departure tasks were complete, the gate attendant printed our new boarding passes and our second $200 voucher. We barely had any time to get to our new gate in order to catch this next flight, but once we did, it was once again an ominous scene. We overheard people up at the counter with standby tickets being told this flight was oversold and it was unlikely they would get a seat. So the three of us huddled and thought, could this really be possible? Might we do it again? So, being all smart and savvy about the “bump” process, we decided to be proactive and ask if they were in need of volunteers to take the next flight out. Indeed, they were, and they put us on a list. However, the next flight was not for another 4 hours, so this wait would be lengthy. I began to hesitate a bit, because I was looking forward to actually spending time in San Antonio versus the Dallas airport. One of the guys in our group mentioned he had access to American Airlines Admirals Club, and we would be quite comfortable as they have many TV’s, free food and free beverages. So, we decided to take the deal, especially because now they were offering $400 and meal coupons, due to the longer wait.
Once we were situated in the Admirals Club, our conversation changed. Outside of this common bond we had over the last two hours, we really knew nothing about one another, and we had over 3 hours together. So, we began to talk. I went first. I shared that I worked for the church in youth ministry, and I talked about my education, my family, and why I enjoy what I do. I was with two other gentlemen, and they too began to share their life stores. One was the Chief of Police for Arlington, TX, and the other lived in Missouri and worked for Boeing. Here was a chief of police, an airplane mechanic and a youth director, sitting in the Admirals club together. Never in my life could I imagine sitting at a table having a conversation with these individuals. Our lives were so different, and we really had nothing in common, except the $800 in travel vouchers in our pockets. I learned so much about them, their lives, their families, their joys and their frustrations. Maybe we felt safer sharing these things with one another, knowing that we would probably never see each other again. The time came for us to catch the next flight. It was nearing 10:00PM, and we were all quite tired. We went to the gate, boarded our flight and headed to San Antonio.
The last time we saw each other was in the baggage claim at the San Antonio airport. We wished each other well and went on our way. It was a rather uneventful farewell, especially after the time we had just spent together.
Even though I never plan to see those individuals again, I think about them regularly, especially when I fly on a Boeing Jet, or whenever I hear about the city of Arlington. Maybe in a small way, we grew from one another. There was a worldly connectedness we felt, as we each of us was from a different region of the country with a completely different background. I had to step out of my comfort zone in order to become comfortable around them. These were not the people I would generally choose to be around and share information about my life with … but I did.
I believe God uses these experiences as a challenge for us to see our world differently, outside of the types of people we hang around with, the neighborhoods we live in, the churches we attend and the stores we shop. That day, we were all reminded that in our range of differences, we could still learn, grow and appreciate one another. If nothing else, that experience gave us all hope in the stranger.
Read MoreBe Thou Our Vision
In the early 400’s in Ireland, during the reign of King Logaire, there was a royal decree that no fires shall be lit in the land until the king himself lit a great fire on Tara Hill. This great fire would usher in the spring equinox, which was the start of a pagan festival.
However, a very well-known gentleman by the name of St. Patrick went out to the Hill of Slane in County Meath, on the night before Easter, which was before the spring festival. He lit a fire to celebrate the resurrection of Christ, completely disobeying the kings orders.
Normally, individuals who disobeyed the King would be imprisoned or put to death. King Logaire however, was impressed with St. Patrick for his his courage and wisdom, that he allowed him to live and even encouraged his missionary work throughout Ireland.
100 years later, inspired by St. Patrick’s disobedience, Dallan Forgaill, an Irish poet, wrote the lyrics, and put them to an old Irish folk tune known today as “Be Thou My Vision”.
This Hymn expresses our desire for God’s hand to lead our lives, helping us to see things in a new way- God’s way. God’s hand will guide us in our journey, in our dreams, or even our own flames we light.
What is the flame you light that might signal something you believe in or are passionate about? Our passions come from a guiding hand, something bigger, something greater than what we can be alone. They are spirit driven, spirit led, and when we sing this hymn or pray this prayer, we are asking God’s guiding hand to take ours, and lead the way.
InterServe defied the orders of voices, when we began the dream of what such an organization may look like. In 2005 when we were just getting our start, the economy was just beginning to feel the pressures of a recession. We were told that youth ministry will be the first area cut when stewardship drops and most churches cannot afford this kind of process. We were asked questions like “Isn’t youth ministry too relational?” “How can this really work in congregations?”
So, we went out and lit a flame, not listening to these voices around us, not knowing how long it would last or how strong this flame would burn, but at least we would try. We tried because we believed there was a bigger purpose and reason for this kind of ministry. Within 3 months of organizing, both Kris and I were placed in congregations, beginning our ministry. Then, another phone call came in, and another, and another. Within 2 years, InterServe had grown to 5 Associates and then within 4 years, 10 associates. Over the past 5 years, we have served in over 40 congregations in the state of Minnesota, Michigan and Washington.
And so we have a new vision, which includes our current ministry and the expansion of our ministry to a National Ecumenical level. The door has knocked many times to leave the comfort of our Minnesota Lutheran state, and venture elsewhere. Under our previous structure, we have been unable to open that door and fully walk through.
And, we still hear voices… “This won’t work anywhere else in the country, Minnesota is unique. “ “The economy is terrible, no one can afford you.” “The church is dying. youth ministry is dying, kids are too busy.” Somehow, with God’s vision, we believe it will work, in new ways that we are still exploring and dreaming about. Through prayer, hope and a small amount of wisdom, we move forward, lighting a candle each step of the way, not always knowing what the journey may bring. We trust however, that with God’s guiding hand, we will follow the a path that will bring newness and life to places during times of anxiety, frustration and sometimes, loss of hope for the future of the ministry with young people.
Youth ministry is changing in our churches and our world. Our churches are changing… They have to. Life is about change, always changing, manifesting and growing into new life-giving, God-leading moments.
We believe we are working during a very exciting time in our congregations. These are places where young people can come and experience something bigger and greater than anything else in their lives… The love and care of others, nurturing relationships with adults, and the ever and always present love of God in their lives.
Change will happen. Transition is what you do with it. May it be a transformation.
A New Vision, A New Harvest. O Lord, Be Thou our Vision… always.
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