Preach from scars not wounds

So far in 2015 there have been 353 mass shootings in the United States (see Mass Shooting Tracker). That about 1.05 mass shootings per day. 

This Sunday, many preachers are going to feel compelled to address the shootings this past week in California and Georgia. Many directly addressed the shootings in Paris a few weeks ago. And, assuming this mass shooting thing is not going away, many more preachers may feel compelled to address future tragedies.

If there is one thing that I have learned as a preacher and communicator of the Gospel it is the value and necessity to preach from our scars and not wounds. 

Wounds are open and still healing. They are fresh and raw. They may still be bleeding and often put a person in a situation where they may be in shock or irrational. It is not the time to preach the message of Christ because you, as the preacher, are not in a good place to receive the Holy Spirit. The pain of the wound can be so overpowering that the preacher's own voice becomes the dominate voice in the sermon rather than the voice of the Holy Spirit. If you are a preacher and you are preaching from your wounds, you may be doing more harm than Good. 

But more than that, feeling like we need to preach from the raw wounds also may be an expression of a lack of faith. Lack of faith that there will be more or better time to address these hurts. When Jesus was on the cross and wounded, he did not at that time talk about the resurrection or the power of the work of God. He cried out. He bled. He died. He did not teach or proclaim. He trusted that there would be a more and a better time to address the injustices of the moment. 

Which is why, in part, when Christ appeared to the disciples he showed them his scars. He was able then to address the problems and the pain of the world, but only after the bleeding stopped. This was the more and better time to teach the disciples about how to live in light of death and resurrection. 

Preaching from our scars and not our wounds is not limited to preachers but all interpersonal relationships. When you find yourself wounded it is very difficult to help usher in reconciliation. Tend to the wounds and when there is a scar that protects the wound, then speak to the hurt. 

Sit in your cell for it will teach you everything

Too many times we think that spirituality is something that we do. Perhaps it is our need to feel like we are in control of our own lives or perhaps it is just the way we have been taught, but doing is often not helpful for spiritual formation. 

There was a desert father called Abba Moses who once said, "Go sit in your cell and your cell will teach you everything." It was also said that a monk outside of his cell is like a fish out of water, only able to live for a little while. 

Why would sitting in a cell be the great teacher to Abba Moses and the other desert Christians? 

I would suggest that sitting in a silent and quiet place helps God find us. 

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Imagine you are in a totally dark forest. Imagine that God is also in this forest. You each are looking for each other. Because you are both moving it is much harder to locate each other. Your yelling out for God drowns out the still small voice of the one you are searching for. Groping among the trees, you grow frustrated at your inability to find the source of all life and love. And so you sit down.

And when you sit down, you finally hear what you could not hear before. You hear the still small voice. And, in due time, God finds you. 

Sit in your cell, for it will teach you everything.  

Best use for your cell phone at Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving means a lot of things, but it also means it is the National Day of Listening. It is the day that you are invited to interview a loved one and hear from them some of their story and life. Recently, StoryCorps put out an App for your phone which comes set with all you need to conduct your own interview. It is easy to do and will take about 8 minutes if you don't know what you are doing to get the hang of it.

Even if you don't use your cell phone to record a great conversation with a loved one this Thanksgiving, it is my hope that you will join me in not only giving thanks but opening our ears to listen to others. 

God knows we could all use a little more listening these days.