following Jesus

Quiet Time

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Sabbath Day Thoughts — “Quiet Time” Mark 1:29-39

The evidence is in. Prayer is good for us. Dr. Andrew Newberg, the author of How God Changes Our Brains: Breakthrough Findings from a Leading Neuroscientist has found that twelve minutes of personal reflection and prayer has a profound impact on our brains. Prayer enhances our neuroplasticity, the brain’s capacity to grow and develop at all ages. It also increases blood flow to the frontal lobes and anterior cingulate cortex, those areas of our brain that are essential for our fundamental cognitive processes, including motivation, decision making, learning, cost-benefit calculation, as well as conflict and error monitoring. You might even say that a robust prayer life boosts brain health and equips us to learn, grow, and develop as people.

Prayer isn’t just good for the brain; it’s good for the whole body. It’s good for our heart and lungs. Prayer reduces our heart rate, synchronizes our breath and heartbeat, and has been clinically proven to reduce blood pressure. Prayer benefits our endocrine system, too. It stimulates the body’s production of helpful hormones, like melatonin to regulate sleep, serotonin to boost our mood, and oxytocin, that feel-good hormone that we experience when we snuggle a child or a puppy. Prayer may also keep us healthy and promote healing. Studies have found a correlation between prayer and an increase in our body’s immune response.

Prayer may even help us in the workplace. It has the power to reduce stress levels and curb anxiety. Prayer can make us less reactive to criticism and the negative moods of others. It enhances our critical thinking and even gives our self-esteem a boost. Neuroscientist Andrew Newberg, says he isn’t sure if God exists. He can’t prove that in a lab, but he can prove that our belief and prayerful engagement with God are fundamentally good for us in body, mind, and spirit.

Jesus didn’t need a neuroscientist to tell him that prayer was good for him. Today’s reading from the first chapter of Mark continues the story that we began last week of a very full day of ministry in Capernaum. First, Jesus wowed worshippers by teaching. He made the scriptures come alive in ways that felt authentic and authoritative. Then, Jesus helped a man who had been troubled by an unclean spirit, healing and restoring him to his right mind.

Jesus had earned an afternoon of sabbath, but as soon as they entered Peter’s house, he learned that someone was sick. Peter’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, an illness that in the first century could be life-threatening at worst and a crisis for sharing hospitality at best. Undeterred by the report of illness, Jesus went to the woman’s bedside and, in a private moment of compassion, lifted her up, a minor miracle that left the woman eager to serve the Lord.

You know how people like to talk. It wasn’t long before word had spread from one side of Capernaum to the other. So, at sunset as the sabbath ended, the door to Peter’s house was thronged by folks in need of every sort of healing and deliverance.

What comes next is important. We might expect Jesus to rest up and sleep late. We might expect him to enjoy a leisurely breakfast with his new disciples, cooked up by that doting mother-in-law. We might expect him to take a victory lap in Capernaum, checking in on all those people he helped. But Jesus doesn’t do any of those things. Rather, we find him in a deserted place, spending some quiet time with God in prayer.

Those prayerful times of retreat would become characteristic of Jesus’ ministry. Even before he preached his first sermon or worked his first miracle, Jesus spent forty days in the wilderness, communing with God. Before naming the inner circle of his disciples, Jesus spent an all-nighter in prayerful discernment. After feeding the 5,000, Jesus sent his friends ahead and lagged behind for some private prayer time. On the night of his arrest, Jesus would pray, face down in the garden of Gethsemane, pleading with God for the strength to face the cross. Even while dying, Jesus prayed, asking God to forgive his executioners. Jesus was a man of prayer, and he encouraged his friends to do likewise. He hoped his friends would see that God was with them on the journey and with God they would find the courage and grace to meet each day. He even gave us a simple formula for talking to God that we use every Sunday: the Lord’s Prayer.

We know all this. We know that Jesus was the ultimate prayer warrior. We know that the Lord taught his followers to pray. We probably even know that prayer is good for us. Yet we struggle with cultivating a practice and discipline of prayer. Our spiritual forefather John Calvin taught that this is part of the legacy of our total depravity and original sin – that we are incapable of doing good until the Spirit moves within us.

I’m not so sure about Calvin’s conclusion. I am more inclined to agree with author and prayer expert Richard Foster, who compares our reluctance to find the quiet time to be with God to walking through a shopping mall with a two-year-old, something he did one day with a dear friend. The little boy was in one of those fuming and fussy moods that frustrates every parent. The dad tried everything to quiet the child, but nothing worked. At last, he scooped the boy up and held him close to his heart and began to sing a silly, made-up, off-tune song. “I love you! I’m so glad you are my boy. You make me happy. I like the way you laugh.” On and on he sang. The child relaxed and was soothed. When they got to the car later, the father buckled his son into the car seat and the little boy said, “Sing it to me again, Daddy. Sing it to me again.” Foster says that our resistance and God’s persistence are like this. Prayer is “to be gathered up into the arms of the Father and allow[ing] him to sing his love song over us.”

We need to find that daily time to rest in the arms of God, to listen to the heartbeat of the Almighty, and know that we are beloved. We can do what Jesus did, find the quiet moments that can be carved out of even the busiest and most productive of days. Jesus liked to retreat to his quiet places in the morning, while the world was hushed and the sun was a promise on the horizon. That might be your quiet time, too. Or, you may wish to find a quiet place on your lunchbreak to turn away from the rush of your day and turn to those waiting arms of the Almighty. Perhaps you are a night owl. Your thoughts turn to God as the shadows lengthen and the busy day ends. Morning, noon, or night, we are invited to find the quiet time to pray, listen, and be soothed.

Researchers have found a further benefit to prayer. It’s not only good for us; it’s good for others. Researchers at Florida State University determined that prayer helps our marriages. It shifts us from being at odds with one another and reminds us that we are on the same team. Husbands and wives who pray report greater relationship satisfaction. As someone who is celebrating their eighteenth anniversary today, I say, “Who doesn’t want that?” Just twelve minutes of personal reflection and prayer each day are enough to strengthen the neural circuit in our brain that enhances social awareness and empathy. Prayer grants us a heightened sense of compassion and eases negative emotions that we feel about others. Those who reap the greatest mental and physical benefit from prayer are the people who approach God in prayer like Jesus did, looking to the Almighty as our guide, partner, and collaborator on this life’s journey. With God’s help we find the refreshment and balance that are needed to step back into the world for positive action. Dr. Paul Hokemeyer writes that “prayer is the fuel that lights the fire of action.”

When the disciples finally caught up with Jesus in his quiet place, the Lord was refreshed and ready for action. In his prayerful time with his heavenly Father, he discerned that God was calling him onward. There were other people and places in need of his good news and healing love. One sermon at a time, one miracle at a time, one shared meal at a time, one caring interaction at a time, he would draw this fuming and fussy world into the arms of his heavenly parent, so that others might know that they are beloved. May we do the same.

Resources:

Andrade, Chittaranjan. “Prayer and healing: A medical and scientific perspective on randomized controls” in NIH National Library of Medicine, Oct-Dec 2009. Accessed online at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles.

Beebe, Dr. Gayle D. “How Faith and Prayer Benefit the Brain” in Westmont Magazine, Spring 2012. Accessed online at https://westmont.edu

Bernstein, Elizabeth. “The Science of Prayer” in The Wall Street Journal, May 17, 2020. Accessed online at www.wsj.com

Foster, Richard. Prayer: Finding the Heart’s True Home, San Francisco: Harper, 1992.

Skinner, Matthew. “Commentary on Mark 1:29-39” in Preaching This Week, Feb. 8, 2015. Accessed online at https://www.workingpreacher.org

Spector, Nicole. “This Is Your Brain on Prayer and Meditation” in Today: Wellness, Oct. 20, 2017. Accessed online at https://www.nbcnews.com/

Mark 1:29-39

29As soon as they left the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. 30Now Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told him about her at once. 31He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up. Then the fever left her, and she began to serve them. 32That evening, at sundown, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed with demons. 33And the whole city was gathered around the door. 34And he cured many who were sick with various diseases and cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him. 35In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. 36And Simon and his companions hunted for him. 37When they found him, they said to him, “Everyone is searching for you.” 38He answered, “Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do.” 39And he went throughout Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons.

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Stumbling Blocks

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Sabbath Day Thoughts — “Stumbling Blocks” Matthew 16:21-28

What gets in the way of following Jesus? Faithful people have been debating that for years.

In his first miracle, Jesus may have changed the water into wine, but there are a number of Christian traditions that teach that alcohol and faith are incompatible. Mennonites, Amish, Seventh Day Adventists, Holiness Pentecostals, Wesleyans, the Church of the Nazarene, and a number of Baptist denominations expect their members to practice temperance. The Rev. Jerry Falwell Sr. was well-known as a teetotaler and banned student drinking when he founded Liberty College in the early 1970s. Falwell saw alcohol as a dangerous stumbling block to faithful living, perhaps because his father, Carey Falwell, had been a bootlegger who shot and killed his own brother during a drunken argument.

Some Christian traditions have seen dancing as incompatible with the life of faith. For the first five centuries of Christianity, the church opposed dancing. According to early church leaders and theologians, dance incited idolatry, lust, and damnation. Christians were expected to distinguish themselves from pagans and set an example of pious behavior amid a Greco-Roman culture where dancing was an important part of religious life. Augustine condemned pagan worship for “the rustling of dancers, the loud, immodest laughter of the theater; and voluptuous pleasures that maintained perpetual excitement.” Even Presbyterians took a long time to warm up to dancing. In 1649, the Scots Presbyterian Assembly voiced concern about the “scandall and abuse that arises thorow promiscuous dancing.” They recommended that Presbyteries exert care and diligence in disciplining dancers. Offenders could be fined or made to stand in the “place of repentance” at the front of the church, where they were rebuked during the sermon.

While Catholic churches are well-known for their Bingo and raffle fundraisers, Protestants have long seen gambling as a stumbling block. In the Protestant tradition, games of chance have historically been condemned as an abdication of responsible stewardship and an illicit opportunity for gain that comes at the expense and suffering of others, often the poor. Gambling can also be enslaving. Between 1% and 2% of the U.S. adult population, or 2 to 4 million adults, are compulsive gamblers who struggle with big losses and big debt. Another 3% to 5%, or 5 to 9 million people, will, at some point in their lives, report that their gambling has become problematic. As recently as 2000, the PCUSA reaffirmed its opposition to organized and institutional forms of gambling, and it called upon Presbyterians to refuse to participate in such gambling as a matter of faith and to join efforts to regulate, restrict, and eliminate it.

What gets in the way of following Jesus Christ? Drinking, dancing, gambling? Stumbling blocks abound. Just ask the disciple Peter.

In the verses leading up to today’s reading from Matthew’s gospel, Peter affirmed Jesus as the Messiah and Son of the living God.  For Peter, the title Messiah was packed with promise.  The Messiah was a charismatic leader and military strategist like David, who united the tribes of Israel and defeated the Philistines.  The Messiah was a king like Solomon, who ruled with wisdom and amassed untold wealth and countless concubines.  The Messiah was someone like Judas Maccabeus, who defeated Israel’s Greek occupiers, cleansed the Temple, and purged the nation of foreign influence.  When Peter affirmed Jesus as Messiah, Peter anticipated big changes for Israel.  Peter dreamed of a nation where Jesus ruled instead of Herod.  The yoke of the Roman Empire would be broken, and the purity of religious leadership would be restored.

With expectations like that, it’s little wonder that when Jesus warned his friends of the betrayal, suffering, and death that awaited the Messiah, Peter refused to believe it.  Peter pulled Jesus aside and tried to change his mind.  “Come on, man. A life lived in fidelity to God’s word could never bring such pain!  Surely, God would never allow his Messiah to suffer!  The cross? What’s wrong with you, Lord.” 

But Jesus refused to listen. Indeed, Jesus’ response to Peter’s well-intended counsel was harsh, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”   Peter, who moments earlier had been lauded as the rock upon which a church would be built, learned that his expectations of worldly power, wealth, and military might were a stumbling block.

When it comes to discipleship, the Christian tradition has devoted much energy and enthusiasm to decrying those moral stumbling blocks that keep us from following Jesus, like drinking, dancing, gambling, and more. At its best, that focus on moral stumbling blocks has prized holiness and a life lived in devotion to God.  At its worst, our preoccupation with moral stumbling blocks has made us judge, jury, and executioner of our neighbors. Our attention to the sins of others may even give us feelings of moral superiority and self-righteousness. We imagine that our purity earns us a seat at the table and place in the kingdom to come.  Without question, drinking, dancing, and gambling, when they preoccupy our lives and capture our hearts, are a danger. But I don’t think they are what Jesus had in mind when he brought Peter up short and called him a stumbling block.

Instead, Jesus characterized our stumbling-blocks as a failure to follow.  Peter’s words were a stumbling block because they exhorted Jesus to not follow God’s will for the Messiah. In Matthew’s gospel, discipleship is following. After all, Jesus called his friends with the words, opiso mou, “Follow me.”  Discipleship, following God’s will for humanity, found a blueprint in the life of Jesus. He associated with society’s outcasts. He healed those who were deemed unclean, untouchable, and unwelcome. He cared deeply about feeding hungry people. He spoke uncomfortable truths to power. He taught women and cherished children. If anyone wanted to be a disciple, all they had to do was follow Jesus, even though the cost to prosperity or social standing might be steep, even though it might take people like Peter to the cross.

I suspect that for most of us, our drinking, dancing, and gambling are not what gets in the way of following Jesus. Nor do we share Peter’s assumption that following the Messiah should lead to wealth, influence, political powerful, or military might, although there are plenty of adherents to a prosperity gospel that continues to teach that lie. Instead, our stumbling blocks are mundane and prevalent. We fail to follow because we are busy. We live over-committed, mile-a-minute lives that leave little time for the essentials of discipleship like prayer, worship, and service. If we aren’t too busy, we may think we are ill-equipped or insignificant. We think we don’t have the right words for prayer, we don’t have the right gifts to serve, or the Lord doesn’t need us or want what we have to offer. If we aren’t swept up in busyness or convinced that we don’t matter, we may be frightened about what following entails. It could change our values. It could threaten our priorities. It would get us out of our comfort zone. It might put us face-to-face with people whom we would prefer to keep at a distance. What gets in the way of following Jesus? What keeps us from living discipled lives?

As tough as this scripture lesson may be, there is good news for us this morning. First of all, although Jesus was bound for the cross and most of his disciples would face crucifixion or execution, no one worshipping here today is going to be crucified. That’s something to be celebrated in a world where Christians continue to face persecution and even death for their belief. Next, when we follow Jesus in a life of discipleship, we can trust that he is on the road with us. He is out there ahead of us, showing us what is needed and making a way. Following brings us closer to Jesus, now and forever. A last point, when we follow Jesus in his Way of welcoming, helping, healing, speaking truth, and living in love, we begin to embody his Kingdom, and we make it come alive, here and now. We are transformed, and so is the world around us. We begin to see the Son of Man coming in his Kingdom, just as Jesus promised his disciples all those years ago when he invited them to pick up a cross and follow him. The coming Kingdom, that’s something I’d like to see. How about you?

As we go forth into this week, there will be stumbling blocks—drinking, dancing, games of chance, busyness, inadequacy, fear. May we dare follow Jesus. Amen.

Resources:

Bob Smietana. “Report: Jerry Falwell injured in fall while drinking according to 911 call” in Religion News Service, September 17, 2020. Accessed online at https://religionnews.com/2020/09/17/report-jerry-falwell-injured-in-fall-while-drinking-according-to-911-call-libertyuniversity/

Kathryn Dickason. “Why Christianity put away its dancing shoes – only to find them again centuries later” in The Conversation. Accessed online at https://theconversation.com/why-christianity-put-away-its-dancing-shoes-only-to-find-them-again-centuries-later-156369

“Why don’t we dance?” in Christianity, Stack Exchange Network, May 2012. Accessed online at https://christianity.stackexchange.com/questions/7061/why-dont-we-dance

Presbyterian Mission Agency. “Gambling” in What We Believe: Social Issues. Accessed online at https://www.presbyterianmission.org/what-we-believe/social-issues/gambling/

Richard Ward. “Commentary on Matthew 16:21-28” in Preaching This Week, Sept. 2, 2023. Accessed online at workingpreacher.org.

Audrey West. “Commentary on Matthew 16:21-28” in Preaching This Week, August, 30, 2020. Accessed online at workingpreacher.org

Matthew 16:21-28

21From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. 22And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you.” 23But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”

24Then Jesus told his disciples, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 25For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. 26For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life? 27“For the Son of Man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay everyone for what has been done. 28Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”

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