Reading for Seventh Sunday after Pentecost: Ephesians 1:3-14

Peace be with you!

Somehow I skipped the confirmation class where we signed the waiver advising us of the dangers that come with being an active Christian. No Sunday school teacher tells children about the dangers in the world.

With ISIS constantly in the news, it feels like a risk just walking out the door, let alone admitting you are a Christian. In America, Christians are not being persecuted as they are in the Middle East but watching your fellow brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ be killed for no reason but for being Christians evokes its own fear. Sometimes we bemoan the dangers of being a Christian, but mostly because we haven’t been taught that it comes with the territory.

We believe in a mystery that Biblical scholars spend their lifetime trying to explain, but it always boils down to not having the ability to fully understand it because of the unknown element, like an unsolvable algebra problem. How could God the Father adopt all of us as his children? How can all of us be marked with the Holy Spirit? How do we even deserve Jesus dying for our sins?

Over the next seven Sundays, we will be studying Ephesians and how Jesus unites everyone in the world as God’s adopted children. Ephesians lays the groundwork for what it means to be a child of God in the world. We take a risk when we proclaim the good news is for all people, not just a select few. Over the last few weeks, seven churches have experienced shootings and fires, though some of the fires were naturally caused. When we proclaim that all are welcome, it is always a risk that that grace might be used against us.

The author of Ephesians begins with the proclamation that through Jesus Christ God adopts everyone as his children (Ephesians 1:5). There are no more distinctions between Jew and Gentiles. There are no more distinctions based on race, nationality, abilities, etc. By sending Jesus to die for our sins, God draws all things to him (Ephesians 1:10). Jesus breaks down the barriers that previously separated us from God the Father and from one another in order to make a more inclusive community. God sends his only begotten son into the world to redeem us from all of our sins through his amazing grace (Ephesians 1:7). Through Jesus’s crucifixion, death, and resurrection, God the Father adopts us as his children and redeems us as his people, so we may worship and praise him all of our days (Ephesians 1:11-12).

It is difficult to explain why God the Father goes to great lengths to adopt us as his children by sending Jesus to redeem us from our sins (Ephesians 1:9-10). Nonbelievers struggle to understand how we, as Christians, can just accept and believe in the mystery of God’s love. These individuals feel it is a fairy tale rather than truth. As Christians, we believe in God’s amazing love, forgiveness, and grace, because we understand there is something more than ourselves. We recognize we cannot explain everything by science. ‘We are risk takers, because we believe in a mystery that cannot be explained, even if scholars spend their whole lives trying to do so.

For nonbelievers, it is difficult to believe in a mystery that no one is able to completely understand. There is no Sherlock Holmes who can solve the mystery of God’s amazing grace. As Christians, we live with the unknown mystery and believe it is true, even if we cannot explain it. We have the responsibility of spreading the good news that God redeems us all through Jesus Christ and by believing we inherit eternal life. We worship and praise the Triune God, because he promises us there is more to come after this life. God promises us light in the midst of the darkness. God promises us he will never leave our side, even when he has every right to do so. God promises forgiveness when we repent. God promises us all of it, even eternal life in his kingdom. And all that we have to do is to believe there is something more beyond this world. What do we have to lose?

Thanks be to God!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for adopting us as your children. Help us to live within the mystery of your grace. Be with us as we go out into the world and proclaim your good news. Remind us that you are always with us, even in the darkness. Thank you for your forgiveness, love, and grace. Amen.

Reading for Eighth Sunday after Pentecost: Ephesians 2:11-22

Peace be with you!

Emperors built different portions of the Great Wall of China, especially during the fourteenth century. These walls created a sense of security by keeping the people who lived there safe and keeping others out. In ancient times, Jews and Gentiles were two separate groups and were separated by a visible delineating marker—circumcision (Ephesians 2:11). The Jews lived and worshiped in Jerusalem, while the Gentiles lived and worshiped elsewhere. The Jews were defined by the clear marker of their God-given law as well. The wall marking who was in and who was out was always present.

Then God sent Jesus Christ into the world to break down the dividing wall (Ephesians 2:14). Metaphorically, God takes down the great dividing wall and welcomes all people—Jews and Gentiles alike—to be in a relationship with him. There is no longer a need to be circumcised or to keep the ceremonial law in order to be counted as God’s children.

God creates peace between the two groups and makes one in Jesus’s name through the cross; God becomes accessible to all people (Ephesians 2:15-18). Jesus gives us grace that tares down the wall of the law and gives us peace. The Jews have a difficult time accepting they are one with the Gentiles, because they are used to being special. The Jews have kept the law and the commandments, but now the game has changed. There are these new things called grace and forgiveness, which allows even the worst sinners and unclean to be loved by God and to enter the most holy places. This radical change is difficult for the Jews to accept and appreciate.

Jesus becomes the cornerstone of the faith system, which allows us to be in a relationship with God the Father (Ephesians 2:19-20). Jesus breaks down the great dividing wall in order to allow all people—Jews and Gentiles alike—to enter the holy temple to worship the Triune God. Everyone is made clean through the blood of Jesus and is welcomed into a relationship with God the Father. Nothing can keep us from God’s love.

This foundation supports the work of the apostles and prophets and brings together all of creation. It gives both Jews and Gentiles the assurance that anyone who believes in the Triune God will enter heaven where God dwells (Ephesians 2:21-22). With this assurance, we receive the promise of salvation and eternal life through God’s work in Jesus and in us as we continue his work in the world.

In a world where lines are drawn, God comes through Jesus Christ to redeem all people, regards of race, economical standing, ability or disability, political views, or religious beliefs. God gives us gifts of forgiveness, grace, and salvation through Jesus. God makes us whole and redeems us by knocking down the great dividing wall. He gives us a new foundation through Jesus and assures us a place together in heaven.

Thanks be to God!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for knocking down the great dividing wall and welcoming all people—Jews and Gentiles alike—into your family. Continue to redeem us from our sinful nature and work within us to do your work in the world. Thank you for the assurance we will enter your kingdom. Amen.

Reading for Sixth Sunday after Pentecost: 2 Corinthians 12:2-10

© Copyright 2013 Original Artwork by Erin M Diericx

Peace be with you!

Individuals tend to boast about their strengths. People analyze their resumes and cover letters when applying for jobs in hopes to showcase their best selves. We boast when we accomplish a difficult task, like biking one hundred miles, finishing a home improvement project, or publishing a book. We are all guilty of boasting about our accomplishments to self-promote ourselves. I am guilty of telling people I am a New Testament scholar when I meet them. We boast about what we excel at doing.

In 2 Corinthians, Paul addresses the “super-apostles” who are claiming they have special authority from the Lord. Apostle Paul challenges the “super-apostles’” credentials: being born with the right religious, ethnic, or Christian heritage (2 Corinthians 11:22-29). Lois Malcolm writes, “The proclamation that ‘Christ is Lord’ makes us ‘slaves’ to one another ‘for Jesus’ sake’: it cannot be used — without enacting a contradiction — to deceive, control, or manipulate others (2 Corinthians 4:1-6).”[i] Paul reminds the Corinthians that they are not slaves to anyone, except the Lord. These “super-apostles” were boasting to the Corinthians about being more holy than them and were making the Corinthians feel like they were weak or were missing something. Paul says, “Yes, I have seen the Lord in a vision, but I do not boast that I have special authority or power, instead I boast about my weaknesses” (2 Corinthians 12:2-5).

Acknowledging your weaknesses is never a pleasant experience, because you have to admit you are broken and you cannot do something or you need help doing something. Sometimes people’s brokenness is caused by a physical limitation. Maybe you cannot walk and need a wheelchair to get around. Maybe you have weakness in your hands and need help opening jars. Other times, people’s brokenness is caused by psychosocial condition. Maybe you are a veteran and fireworks remind you of gunshots from the war zone caused by post-traumatic stress disorder. Maybe you were a victim of domestic violence, and anyone who behaves a certain way reminds you of that experience and can trigger anxiety or panic attacks, caused by post-traumatic stress disorder, in you. Maybe you are young or have little life experience and cannot relate to a friend who lost her father. It is difficult to admit you do not understand or are not able to do something.

Paul acknowledges his own weaknesses. Since becoming a Christian, Paul has been beaten, jailed, and torment. Malcolm writes, “In chapter four, Paul draws on imagery from psalms of lament to describe his apostolic life: being afflicted but not crushed, perplexed but not driven to despair, persecuted but not forsaken, struck down but not destroyed (2 Corinthians 4:8-9).”[ii] Here Paul explains that he does not write about his hardships to get sympathy but to illustrate how his weakness is the reason why he needs the Lord—the Lord is his strength.

In our society, weakness and limitations are viewed as negative. One is viewed as not being able to live a perceived normal life due to a physical limitation or not being able to handle certain situations due to a psychosocial condition. The man who runs for cover when he hears loud noises, like fireworks, is viewed as crazy, instead of being viewed as a veteran who protected our country under unimaginable situations. The woman who has experienced domestic violence is seen as not being able to handle life when she leaves her abusive spouse, instead of being strong enough to stand up to an abuser. The young man in an electric wheelchair is seen as weak and uneducated due to his speech impairments and his spastic movements, instead of being a brilliant businessman. We quickly judge people based on their weaknesses without knowing their back story.

Paul challenges us to see our weaknesses as strengths in Jesus Christ and the places where his power is made known (2 Corinthians 12:10). We can never brag about the miraculous ways God uses our weaknesses; those realities are clearly from God’s power alone.

And so, Jesus gives us inner strength when we are weak and persecuted by others. The veteran is always alert to protect others. The brilliant businessman in an electric wheelchair has a nonprofit that gives jobs to people with all abilities. The woman helps others get out of abusive relationships and start new lives, because someone did it for her. Jesus takes our weaknesses and turns them into inner strengths.

Thanks be to God!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for giving the apostle Paul strength during his hardships. Help us to recognize our weaknesses as strength. Be with us during difficult times. Thank you for changing our weaknesses into inner strengths. Amen.

[i] Lois Malcolm, “Commentary on 2 Corinthians 12:2-10,” Working Preacher, 3 July 2015, http://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=2483.

[ii] Ibid.

Reading for Trinity Sunday: Romans 8:12-17

Peace be with you!

Being welcomed into a community is important because it creates a sense of self-worth and dignity for a person. People create communities based on a common opinion or thought process, although each person has a unique perspective as a result of their past experiences. Communities adopt new individuals into their fold and share their ideas.

Erin M Diericx with ladies at Shepherd of the Hill
© Copyright 2015 Original Photo take by Margaret Schrantz

For people with disabilities, being adopted into a new community takes time and patience. The person with a disability has to first overcome physical barriers, such as stairs, lack of space to maneuver a wheelchair, and bathrooms. Second, the person with a disability has to break down psychosocial barriers, such as being seen as different and incapable of functioning like the others. Communities, including congregations, have a difficult time accepting those individuals who are unable to conform to the accepted normal.

As Christians, God adopts us when we confess Jesus Christ is our Savior and allow the Holy Spirit to lead us (Romans 8:14). God has no perceived notion as to what physical abilities his children should have. God does not care if you have a limp, cannot walk, are missing a limb, or cannot hear and/or see. There are no physical or psychosocial requirements to be adopted by God, other than simply believing Jesus Christ is your Savior.

Furthermore, Jesus only gives us two commandments: 1) to love your God with all your heart and 2) to love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:37-40; John 15:12). Jesus gives no other requirements (time, space, or social standing). Jesus himself ate with sinners, prostitutes, tax collectors, Samaritans, Canaanites, and others outside the Jewish tradition. Jesus challenged the Jewish authorities by healing a man on the Sabbath (Mark 3:1-6) and challenged social norms by having a conversation alone with a Samaritan woman (John 4). Jesus pushed against social norms into order to develop real relationships with people. Jesus said, “The healthy do not need a doctor but the sick do” (Mark 2:17; Luke 5:31; Matthew 9:12). Jesus did not come for the individuals who are perfect; he came for broken people.

Then why do congregations turn away people with disabilities? Congregations follow the social model of only inviting those individuals who fit the accepted normal. We fall into the same trap as the Pharisees: making a ritual mold for everyone to fit into. By doing so, we create an exclusive church structure—the very thing Jesus challenged. In Discovering the Trinity in Disability: a Theology for Embracing Difference, Myroslaw Tataryn and Maria Truchan-Tataryn write:

“The categorization of people labeled with disability as ‘those’ people, as ‘special,’ as Other is something of an absurdity, because traits of disability have always been part of human experience. Even the use of disabled as a categorization of people is problematic, considering that the term represents a limitless set of potential human anomalies that would not necessarily render anything in common between those bearing the label.”[i]

In other words, if you live long enough, having some form of disability is inevitable. The older you get, the more prone you are to physical abnormalities due to strokes or heart attacks, which can cause you to need a walker or wheelchair. Congregations take care of the elderly as they decline in their physical abilities, yet a younger person with a disability is discouraged from becoming an active member of the church. Although I disagree that there are no fundamental commonality between the different disabilities, I do agree with the idea that disability is a common human experience.

And if you believe in the notion of disability being as a result of sin being a part of the world, then everyone should have some form of disability. We are all sinners. This is why God sent Jesus in order to give us God’s forgiveness, grace, and love in the world where people have pain and suffering.

Erin M Diericx with Father Ladd & Judy Harris and The Rt. Rev. Gregory O. Brewer, Bishop of Central Florida at Shepherd of the Hills on February 16, 2014.

Church is called to be an inclusive group with people from all walks of life. I am blessed to be a part of a congregation that engages with me and uses my spiritual gifts. Due to my speech impairment and spastic movements, it has taken time to build relationships with various members of the congregation. I had to spend time with various individuals and demonstrate my spiritual gifts and abilities in order to break down any and all psychosocial barriers. God adopts us all into his family no matter what your race, age, heritage, and abilities. In the same way, my congregation has adopted me into their fold and the various members love me for who I am—a child of God who just happens to have cerebral palsy. When a church openly welcomes people with disabilities, the congregation allows God’s love to be expressed to people with all abilities—disabled or abled.

Thanks be to God!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for adopting us into your fold, despite our abnormalities. Help us to resist the need for an “accepted normal” as a community. Lead us to welcome those a bit different from us into our fold and to build relationships with individuals with all abilities. Thank you for giving us space to build relationships with one another. Amen.

[i] Myroslaw Tataryn and Maria Truchan-Tataryn, Discovering the Trinity in Disability: A Theology for Embracing Difference (Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books, 2013), 14.

Reading for Day of Pentecost

Acts 2:1-21

© Copyright 2015 Original Artwork by Erin M Diericx

Devotion

Peace be with you!

According to Dictionary.com, disability is “a physical or mental handicap, especially one that prevents a person from living a full, normal life or from holding a gainful job.” The word disability has a negative connotation, and its definition implies anyone with a disability—let alone someone with multiple diagnoses—cannot live a full, normal life.

As an individual who has had her disability since birth, I have had to wrestle with what it means to be someone with cerebral palsy. Back in the early 1980s, doctors did not know how cerebral palsy affected the person and their ability to live their life. In fact, the doctors told my parents I would never walk, talk, or sit up. The doctors assumed I would be under my parents’ care all my life and would never live in my own house and pay my own bills. In my poem entitled “Never Mind the Doctors,” I talk about feeling the world is against me and seeking to prove the doctors wrong. I feel triumphant that I so often managed to do just that.

Even as we celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the disabled culture is still working educate society that a person with a disability has the ability to hold a sustaining career and have a family. Society still holds on tight to stigmas that people with disabilities cannot lead productive and fulfilling lives, because the prefix dis- implies an inability to do anything.

On the day of Pentecost, the disciples were gathered and a wind filled the entire house (Acts 2:1-2). The Holy Spirit gave the men the ability to speak different languages and to understand one another (Acts 2:4, 6). The devoted Jews who were present began questioning if these men were drunk (Acts 2:13). How could Italians, Serbians, people from Croatia, Romania, and Greece, Asians, citizens of Egypt, Libya, and Arabia, and people in the Middle East all be speaking about God’s deeds (Acts 2:9-11)? How could they even be speaking to one another, let alone be sharing the news? These people did not go together. They did not socialize with one another. And yet here they are, discussing the good news of Jesus Christ and receiving the Holy Spirit together. How could this be?

Peter reminds the Jews of Joel 2:28-32: “In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. Even upon my slaves, both men and women, in those days I will pour out my Spirit; and they shall prophesy. And I will show portents in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and smoky mist. The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the coming of the Lord’s great and glorious day. Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Acts 2:17-21 NRSV).

Peter saw the day of Pentecost as a fulfillment of scripture as the Holy Spirit entered the world. Pentecost started as a Jewish holiday to commentate the fifth day after Passover when Moses received the Ten Commandments. Now fifty days after Jesus’s resurrection from the grave, the disciples and other followers of Jesus receive the Holy Spirit as their advocate. The Holy Spirit breaks down the language barrier, so people around the world are able to hear and understand the good news of Jesus’s crucifixion, death, and resurrection. For the first time, the word of God becomes accessible to all people.

Jesus promised abundance of life by sending the disciples an Advocate who will continue to unfold God’s love for all to know (John 16:8-11). The Advocate will seek protection and prayer requests on our behalf as a mediator. The Advocate will lead the disciples and us by the truth of what is to come in the future. The Holy Spirit bears the good news, so the disciples could be empowered to share it with the world. Jesus sends us the Holy Spirit to embody and model the good news for us, so that we can know and come to understand what it means.

In the disabled culture, the day of Pentecost gives people hope that God recognizes many different abilities. People who have disabilities are able to do many things and should be recognized not by their disabilities but their abilities. The Holy Spirit gives people— disabled or able—of all abilities the power to live fulfilling lives to God’s glory. The Holy Spirit becomes an advocate for people with disabilities by empowering them with other gifts. People with physical disabilities are able to help the aging population with adaptation to homes and in public, because they understand what it means to feel isolated by barriers. People with cognitive disabilities see the world differently, and they are able to better relate to children since they think on their level.

If we as a society could think about people based on their abilities, not their disabilities, maybe we could make the world a better place for people of all abilities. The Holy Spirit equips people based on their abilities to spread the good news. The Holy Spirit breaks down physical barriers in order to welcome people with disabilities into the community where people share the love of Christ. The Holy Spirit advocates for all people to be welcomed to worship God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

Thanks be to God!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for making your word accessible to everyone. Help us to understand each other’s needs in order to allow everyone to live fulfilling lives. Break down the barriers separating us from one another. Set our hearts on fire as we welcome people with different abilities into our community. Thank you for sending us an advocate. Amen.

Reflective Questions

Please answer the following reflective questions in the comments below. Please agree to disagree and be respectful to each other. (If you have not already done so, please also take a moment, to sign the behavior covenant by commenting on it.) You can answer as many questions as you would like.

1. What are your abilities?
2. How has the Holy Spirit advocated on your behalf?
3. Where have you seen the Holy Spirit working in the world?

Reading for Seventh Sunday of Easter

Acts 1:15-26

© Copyright 2015 Original Artwork by Erin M Diericx

Devotion

Peace be with you!

When someone you trust and depend on betrays your trust, it’s easy to be left emotionally reeling. Everyone experiences betrayal at some time during their life. A cheating spouse breaks the trust between husband and wife. A close friend revealing your secret to another person can break your trust. When you lie during a job interview, you are deceiving the employer. Betrayal can occur in many forms, yet the realization of being betrayed causes anguish and distrust.

For individuals who are dependent on personal caregivers to help with everyday care, betrayal is an issue they deal with on a semi-regular basis. For example, a person with a cerebral palsy, such as myself, has to immediately trust any newly hired personal caregivers with intimate parts of their lives—from showering and dressing to running errands. Care tasks even include going to the bank, filling out withdrawal slips, and handling the cash. Sometimes the person with a disability hires a personal caregiver who just does not mesh well with the household (the individual with a disability, any frequently visiting family and friends, and the other personal caregivers). Other times the relationship between the individual with a disability and a personal caregiver can become strained if their friendship affects their working relationship. Sometimes a personal caregiver will become physically or emotionally abusive to get the individual with a disability to do what they want.

No matter the cause, any betrayal of trust can cause emotional heartache. In addition, finding a new aide one can trust and work with can be time-consuming and tedious. Firing an untrustworthy caregiver is not always immediately feasible; daily needs still have to be met even if he or she is unsatisfactory. If the individual with a disability uses an agency, they can ask for the personal caregiver who betrayed them not to be scheduled to do their shifts. Unfortunately many agencies are short staffed and occasionally the personal caregiver will still have to do a shift. If the individual with a disability hires and fires their own personal caregivers, they have to make sure their other staff can cover the open shifts before firing them.

In Acts 1:15-26, the disciples are processing Judas’s betrayal with Jesus. Judas did not just betray Jesus to the Pharisees, which ultimately caused his crucifixion and his death, but he also betrayed the other eleven disciples who shared their lives with him. The disciples shared intimate details of their lives with him. If he could betray Jesus, did Judas violate the personal confidentially? Did they have to worry about their families? How could Judas blindside them?

On top of this, the disciples needed to appoint another man to join them as a disciple and a fellow brother. How could they trust another man not to betray them? How could they open up to someone new? Who could they depend on? Once someone has broken your trust, it is difficult trust others, especially a new person. After firing a personal caregiver who has betrayed me, I find myself in a similar situation as the eleven disciples did in Acts 1:15-26—in a crisis but moving forward in faith.

In their time of turmoil, the disciples trust the Lord to call the right man to replace Judas. The disciples trust the Lord to lead them to a trustworthy man who will walk beside them and keep their secrets. Although casting lots may seem strange, in biblical times nothing was believed to happen by chance. In the Old Testament, Casting lots was not seen as gambling, but by removing the human element it left the decision up to the Lord as commanded by Urim and Thumim. Today casting lots meant acknowledging God’s presence in the discernment process of figuring out his will. The discernment process takes time and energy.

The eleven disciples proposed two men: Joseph called Barsabbas and Matthias (Acts 1:23). The eleven disciples spent time in prayer, asking the Lord to reveal which man was the best one to replace Judas (Acts 1:24-25). The disciples had to discern which man would work well with them to do God’s work in the world. It was an important decision for the disciples and could not be made lightly. In the end, the disciples decided Matthias was chosen to replace Judas (Acts 1:26).

Just as the eleven disciples discerned who would replace Judas in their circle, individuals who need personal caregivers should invite God into their hiring and firing processes. When I invite God into the process, I am always amazed and blessed by who God sends me, although not everyone works out as one would hope. These ladies help me with daily routines, as well they become a part of my household and my family; they become my right hand. I am so thankful God is willing to help me with difficult decisions and that I am not alone.

Thanks be to God!

Dear Heavenly Father, Thank you for helping us make decisions, especially the ones that affect our daily lives. Help us to treat others with respect and care. Guide us to the people who will build us up and let us flourish. Thank you for blessing us with wonderful friends, family, colleagues, and personal caregivers. Amen.

Reflective Questions

Please answer the following reflective questions in the comments below. Please agree to disagree and be respectful to each other. (If you have not already done so, please also take a moment, to sign the behavior covenant by commenting on it.) You can answer as many questions as you would like.

1. How do you invite God in your decision process?
2. Who has God blessed you with in your life?