The Habit of Worship

When I began reading the following illustration, I thought it was going to be a science lesson on plants. One of my favorite classes in college was biology, specifically Plant Biology.  A plant’s unique design is fascinating and it gives us a glimpse of God's marvelous creation.

Organization/business trainers often use plants as a metaphor for the need to nurture and care of an organization.  So I was not disappointed in the story when it shifted from plants to human behavior.

It is an old story that represents the inimitable influence a teacher has over a student. When we are young we are like sponges absorbing everything; and what we say as teachers, parents, grandparents affects not just the future of those we teach and mentor but the generations that follow, our children's children as the cliché goes.

"The story is about an old teacher who was walking through a forest with a pupil by his side. The old man suddenly stopped and pointed to four plants close by his side. The first was just beginning to peep above the ground, the second had rooted itself pretty well into the earth, and the third was a small shrub, while the fourth was a full-sized tree.

The tutor said to his young companion: Pull up the first. The boy easily pulled it up with his fingers. Now pull up the second. The youth obeyed, but found the task not so easy. Now the third! The boy had to put forth all his strength and was obliged to use both arms to uproot it. And now, said the master, try your hand at the fourth. But, lo, the trunk of the tall tree, grasped in the arms of the youth, hardly shook its leaves. 

This, my son, is just what happens with our bad habits. When they are young, we can cast them out more readily with the help of God; but when they are old, it is hard to uproot them, though we pray and struggle ever so sincerely."  [Paul J. Wharton, Stories and Parables for Preachers and Teachers (Mahwah, N.J.: Paulis Press, 1986), 43].

Habits are not all bad; some habits are good for us. Dr. Susan Jaffee, a psychiatrist and author believes once we realize we have a bad habit we need to find a not-quite-as-annoying temporary or permanent replacement for it.  Failure to replace the bad habit with a good habit reduces the probability of successfully overcoming the bad habit because there is a void that needs to be filled. (Denise Mann, WebMD)

I wonder if the same is true when we stop practicing a good habit, does it create a void that gets consumed by another good or bad habit? More and more people today have stopped attending worship. The weekly 'habit' has been replaced by other activities and it is not that these other activities are necessarily bad because they are not. The question is not about the replacement habits, but rather 'what is the purpose or value of worship?' Christians tend to agree that worship is not about being entertained, but I am not so sure Christians can agree on the purpose of worship. Personally, I believe worship is a 'means of grace', a gift from God to help Christians grow in relationship with God and with other Christians. Worship is first about God and second about our neighbors. Jesus said, love God and love your neighbor!

Although, I do not like referring to worship as a habit, it is culturally accurate. So when worship ceases to be important, what are our neighbors (or we) doing to fill this void and how is this new habit affecting their (our) relationships with God and neighbor?  Words to Ponder... 

© Edward E. Judy, Original publication The Morrow Mirror, Morrow First United Methodist Church March 30 2014

The Battle with the Flesh

When I was eighteen I was stationed at Fort Gordon, Georgia for training. Every morning along with several hundred troops I would march to the parade field for physical training, which required everyone to lay on the ground for various exercises.  After running and sweating to the point of exhaustion we often welcomed an opportunity to lay in the grass, even though it was only for a moment as we prepared to do another exercise. However, there were times when laying in the grass was not a good thing. You see it was not unusual, in those early morning hours, to see someone jump up from the grass and go through what appeared to be a psychotic fit. This crazed dance was not the action of a young soldier trying to get out of the Army on a plea of insanity, it was actually the unfortunate result of someone intruding on the domain of the dreadful fire ants.

I sometimes wonder if humanity would have a chance if all the fire ants in Georgia came to the surface at the same time.  Living in Georgia means battling this fierce army year after year and I doubt Georgia will ever be rid of them.

Our battle with the flesh works much the same way. Some of us work very diligently to rid ourselves of bad habits, language problems, addictions, etc. Sometimes these negative forms of behavior disappear altogether and for awhile we harbor the illusion that we have won the battle because we no longer drink, smoke, use bad language or whatever the bad habit was we gave up.

"Our fleshly nature, as Paul refers to our sinful nature in his letters, has a way of surfacing in some other area of our lives, much in the same way that fire ant mounds reappear in a different part of the yard. Worse yet, sometimes we don't discover the most recent uprising of the sinful nature until it is firmly established. Those outward, obvious behavior patterns are often replaced by sinful attitudes and actions which are not so easily seen. We have no trouble recognizing things like sexual immorality and drunkenness. It's much harder to cope with hatred, jealousy, selfish ambition, and envy. Like fire ants, the diseases of the disposition keep returning" [Norman Bales, Pulpit Helps, Illustration Collection I © 1999 by AMG INTERNATIONAL, INC.].

In Galatians 5:16, Paul said, "Live by the Spirit…and do not gratify the desires of the flesh." (NRSV). His warning against the desires of the flesh indicates that the sinful nature is still active even in the life of the Christian. In verse 17 he indicates that our "fleshly desires are opposed to the Spirit." The Gospel of John refers to humanity being born in sin and Paul in his letters assures us that we cannot overcome this sinful nature by eliminating a few sins from our lives. The war against the flesh is a lifetime struggle.  In this Lenten Season, as we reflect on what it means to be Christian, may the work of the spirit strengthen us as we strive to grow in relationship with Jesus Christ.

[Paul uses the word flesh throughout his letters as 'human desires' that are counterproductive to the work of the Spirit.]

© Reverend Dr. Edward E. Judy [first publish: Morrow Mirror, Morrow United Methodist Church March 23, 2014]

A Quiet Spirit

 Henry Ward Beecher, once told of a childhood experience that formed his character and guided him in his pursuit for social justice. "He told of a man who came to his home boiling in rage. He had a grievance with his father. His father listened to the man with great attention and perfect quietness until he had got it all out, and then he said to him, in a soft and low tone, 'Well, I suppose you only want what is just and right?' The man said, 'Yes', but went on to state the case over again.

Very gently his father said to the man, 'If you have been misinformed, I presume you would be perfectly willing to know what the truth is?' He said he would. Then his father very quietly made a statement of the others side; and when he was through the man got up and said, 'Forgive me, Doctor. Forgive me.' His father had beaten the man by his quiet, gentle way. Beecher said he saw it, and it gave him an insight into the power of self-control. Beecher also said, 'It was a striking illustration of the passage, He that rules his spirit is better then he that takes a city' (Proverbs 16:32)." (Cyclopedia of Religious Anecdotes, Fleming H. Revell Co. 1923 / Henry Ward Beecher was an American Congregationalist clergyman, social reformer and speaker; known for his support of the abolition of slavery, and his emphasis on God's love.)

1 Peter 3

In this Lenten season, as we pray and strive to grow in our relationship with Jesus Christ and by giving up bad habits that destroy our spiritual and personal relationship, maybe Beecher's story can help in this journey.  Beecher realized as a young man that a quiet spirit is easier on the heart and most certainly a healthier way of life. Henry Ward Beecher had other problems that he struggled with like we all do, but he was able to conquer this demon, the lack of self-control. So the next time you drive in the Atlanta traffic try gentling your spirit. You might find it spiritually transforming.                                                       

© Reverend Dr. Edward E. Judy, Morrow Mirror MFUMC 3.16.2014