The View from the West Mesa

Do you remember your resolutions for 2019? For those who do, how did you do with them? Here's one for 2020 you might consider. It's simple, but can be hard, complicated, and frustrating. I suppose any attempt to modify our behaviors or ourselves can be those things. This one though you don't have to set time apart for, it doesn't create another bill, and doesn't require sweating or giving up ice cream. This year, become love. You might start off by figuring out what love might do in this moment or for someone. Ask yourself, "what would a loving me do..." in the next five minutes, or for the person next to me, or in anticipation of some event. You might write a reminder at the top of your calendar or journal, or set a reminder in your phone just to prod you to ask yourself that question at sometime during the day. You might, but you don't have to, start your day by anticipating when and where that day you can be love. Conversely, at the end of the day, ...

Good morning and Merry Christmas to each and all of you. 2000-ish years ago, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob decided that the time had come to join us again on this planet He had made for us. This time, rather than hovering over the waters, He overshadowed a young girl. This time, rather than appearing in a Temple made of stone, He appeared within a human temple so that He could not just live with us, but be one of us. This time, He came as a child to portend the kind of life He would live among us. This time, we would see God as the image we are made and called to be. This time, in showing us God, He would show us, us. This coming we know was promised. Promised as grace to relieve, to redeem, to reconcile. This child is Messiah, the Promised and Anointed One who in living among us would show us the way. The way of God, the way to God, the way in God. The Life in God that He offered and offers today. He offers the way to become a child, the incarnated God 's very image and lik...

Ever since the prophecy of enmity between the serpent and the descendants of Adam, we have been looking for peace. Not just between the serpent and humans, but God and humans too. More so, the story of Cain gives us the prediction of enmity between humans themselves. Cain kills his brother and then God has to mark Cain so others wouldn’t kill him. The whole life-with-God-in-the-Garden idea pretty much spiraled out of control pretty quickly.  Humankind finds itself at odds with God, the Devil, the animals, and each other. Even the earth has to be worked harder to give up her bounty. Perhaps more surprising is that even between religions, Christian denominations, and within congregations, there is often a severe lack of peace. Not much peace to be found it seems. God has tried to woo us back and in so doing re-set the entire creation, but with every offer and promise of God, we manage to eventually reject it, insisting that we know better, that we need to look out for Number 1, and g...