Christ and Crow

A letter to my children...

My dear babies,

The world is changing in unprecedented ways. The systems that I and my parents and grandparents have lived within are collapsing. Out of the death of that order that no longer serves, new life is emerging and new ways are being born. This is a time in our history of such great importance, such exciting possibility, and, also, a time of unbearable suffering and strife. It is a time of very real frustration, fear, and doubt.

Always remember this; the truth is that LIGHT is pouring out over this planet now at an unstoppable pace. The LIGHT makes the darkness seem darker, even as it illuminates and enlivens the way. This ‘darker dark’ is a lot of what we are seeing around us, but, please know the darkness it is not the end of the story.

During these times it is easy for the people around us to turn to cruelty and apathy as a way of getting by. It is easy for people to blame and shame others, to be angry, to become hardened and cynical. This easier way is simply a temporary stop on the path of life and spiritual growth. Developing compassion and connection in a world under so much transition is a hard and courageous thing to do. It requires time and experiences that deliver all of us through the hard lesson of humility.

The more challenging and painstaking path is the path of love. This is evidenced by Jesus, who walked this path and has shown us the way. With his own life, Jesus showed us that many will resist the path of love, will call those who follow the path of love ‘snowflakes’, will shame the pursuit of love, will be unjust in the face of love, will be violent when given love. He showed us that being those who carry the truth of love can feel like being on the losing side of the battle.

However, he also showed us that LOVE is the only true power there is. He showed us that following the path of LOVE is the only real choice there is. He showed us that practicing LOVE is the only deliverance from what hurts.

LOVE is the only thing capable of bringing LIFE. LOVE is the only thing capable of overcoming the odds. LOVE is the only thing capable of delivering us from the suffering we endure and see around us. LOVE is the only thing with the power to bring the miracles we dream of in our hearts.

More importantly, Jesus waged the war for us. He showed us that the battle is finished. It is done. LOVE ALREADY WON. There is now nothing that can change the outcome.

LOVE IS. LIFE IS. This eternal truth stretches around all: past, present and future. And so it shall be forever and ever, no matter the evidence we may see to the contrary around us, no matter the trials we face as we dream in this new Eden. We have but to align with God’s dream, which is reality, and draw upon this great power given us…. The power in LOVE. It is a power from which God fills us in constancy, an ever flowing river that never ever ever dries up.
I know many say that Jesus life and death were about taking punishment from God to forgive people for their sins, but there is a deeper view that God reveals to those who seek it… The deeper view is this unchangeable and eternal truth: “All things came into being through him, and, without him, not ONE THING came into being, and what came into being through him was LIFE, and the LIFE is the LIGHT of ALL people.” This means that ALL of life, everything that ‘was, is, and will be,’ is in him - everything that ‘was, is, and will be,’ all of LIFE, including this beautiful universe, suffered in him, died, and is reborn again through the power he carried and carries, through the power of LOVE.

We are people chosen, in Christ, to carry LOVE and LIGHT and this unchangeable and eternal truth through this world. We are people who are chosen to remind others of this indelible truth. I know this because I know each one of our hearts. We, and Jesus, share the same heart. It is a heart filled with LOVE, which is LIFE, which is the LIGHT.

Our hearts are sensitive, caring, compassionate, and brave. Our hearts are strong and equipped to do this. Our hearts are made for this.

It can feel difficult and discouraging at times to have such a heart, but be grateful for it, and be brave. It is a beautiful calling to have such a heart. There are jewels and gems in it that you have yet to discover. It is a calling from the great I AM, to whom we belong and who LOVES us, so never forget who you are. Never forget this calling.

My children, you are worth so much more than you know. You are luminaries and guides of so much more than you know. You are essential and valuable. You are precious and brave. You carry within you the TRUTH. Always remember and honor that within yourselves over and above the noisy growing pains of others around you. Steward what you carry well.

You are worthy. You are honorable. You are brave. God knows that. I know that. The most important thing is that YOU know that. Remember it. Affirm it within yourself each day. You carry something vital and necessary through these tumultuous times. You carry the TRUTH.

I am so proud of your courage. I am so proud of your calling. I am so proud of who you are. Let these words sink in…

I love you babies.

Mom.

TO THOSE WHO HAVE LOST THEIR FAITH AND REGAINED IT
Harold Kushner once wrote about the difference between once-born souls (those who retain their childlike simple faith) and twice-born souls (those who lose their early belief and regain a richer, deeper faith):

“The once-born are people who sail through life without experiencing anything that shatters or complicates their faith. They may have financial reverses, problems with their children, and so forth, but they always feel that a kindly God is controlling things. Twice-born souls, on the other hand, are people who lose their faith and then regain it, but their new faith is very different from the one they lost. Instead of seeing a world flooded with sunshine as the once-born always do, they see a world where the sun struggles to come out after a storm but always manages to reappear. Theirs is a less cheerful, less confident, more realistic outlook. God is no longer the parent who keeps them safe and dry. He is the power that enables them to keep going in a stormy and dangerous world. And like the bone that breaks and heals stronger at the broken place, like the string that is stronger where it broke and was knotted, it is a stronger faith than it was before, because it has learned it can survive the loss of faith.”

I am twice born. This Faith is different. It urges me to know over and over that God is so unconcerned with the things my first born Faith believed God was concerned with. None of that matters. This Faith is a very deep and all encompassing view of radical love - no matter what. That is who God is to me now.

When his disciples asked Jesus what the greatest commandment is, they were looking for the absolute most important thing to know. Jesus answered by quoting Deut. 6:4 and then Leviticus 19:18, saying, "You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." Jesus said these two are the essence of all of it.

There are three elements in these commandments. God, yourself, and your neighbor. Most all of us have trouble loving at least one of these. Which one is hardest for you to love? Which one is easiest? Which ones do you forget to love?

In Deuteronomy, the Israelites are commanded to recite the words Jesus quoted each morning and evening. I think God wants us to remember these loves each day because it makes our life better to do so, and God wants us to be happy and free in ourselves, in our relationship with God, and in community.

They say 'God is Love.' The God kind of 'love' is not about acting differently within the same paradigm, but about changing the paradigm. God/Love makes us think in different terms. The desire becomes to strengthen our awareness and care for all, to treat every part of the 'body' as 'self' and heal the places that need it rather than reject and punish them. It's about reordering the things we prioritize and value in ourselves and the world.

God/Love is a different mindset altogether and the only power capable of evoking the changes we all wish to see. Placing God/Love at the center of our lives can bring about radical change in the way we interact with ourselves and the world around us.

Last Sunday I podcasted a story from my life about how God/Love completely changed my mindset about work, wealth, and community through spending time with a group of monks, grapes and wine. You can listen to it here....

https://christandcrow.podbean.com/e/do-i-view-poverty-as-a-christian-capitalist-or-a-capitalist-christian/

SUNDAY SERMON! A sermon on how the Acts 2 community of Believers, a week at a monastery, and finding the kingdom of heaven changed my view of poverty, work, and community. Enjoy, and please subscribe to the podcast if you like it. Also - I'd love for you to share your thoughts on the topic!

https://christandcrow.podbean.com/e/do-i-view-poverty-as-a-christian-capitalist-or-a-capitalist-christian/

If the world around us is but a mirror, it seems counter intuitive not to take it personally. However, taking life less personally is a powerful tool in relieving tension, stress and conflict. When we let go of taking things personally, we free up space to align with love, intention, and values we hold most dear. That realignment, in turn, begins to change the reflection we see in the world around us. It's a paradoxical thing, but taking life less personally goes far in supporting us to create the life we personally want.

It is hard wired in our brains to be on the lookout for things to fear. While dangers in the world are real, our media and headlines can have a real propensity to blow them up and make them much worse than they actually are. Certainly much more attention is paid to everything that we should be afraid of than everything that is good about life, and we are inundated with a 24 hours 'news' cycle about it.

The truth is that millions more things happen in the world each day that are kind, good and hopeful than dangerous and scary.

One way to relieve stress is to absorb less headlines and cultural chatter and focus more on what we wish to create in our lives and in the world. It's an exercise in faith to do so, but greatly relieving when we do.

"All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people." - John 1:3-4

In Christ is all of Creation, including this planet, and so all of Creation hung on the cross, died, and was resurrected into eternal life, including this planet. Just as we are instructed to care for each other even though each of us shall die, loving our neighbors as ourselves, we must also care for this planet.

In the creation story, God creates humankind in his own image and gives humankind dominion over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and every living thing.

"God saw EVERYTHING that he had made, and indeed, it was very good."

If we are made in God's image then we must see Creation as very good, and apply our dominion and power as God does.... by giving love, light, and life.

We honor and emulate God when we care for the earth as we care for ourselves. In truth, there is no separation. We and the planet and all of Creation are One in Christ.

Happy Earth Day! Let us use our hands in this coming year to love and care for God's beautiful creation in all ways!

Some stressors in our lives are existential or beyond our ability to control on our own. Climate change or political partisanship or racism are examples of stresses like this. We can take individual steps in our lives and we do, but the stress remains. So how do we take the actions we can on things of this nature while also unburdening ourselves of the accompanying toxic stress levels?

Focusing on spiritual fitness is huge key. Taking up meditation, reading sacred texts, going to church, spending time in nature are all powerful things to do in keeping our spirits fit. When we are spiritually fit we understand there is a bigger picture than what we can see and we're able to trust in the progress being made and the collective ascension taking place around us.

In the garden, when a plant doesn't have enough nutrients and water it becomes susceptible to pests and disease. We are susceptible to stress in a similar way. Keeping ourselves spiritually fit helps keep the dangers of existential stress and tension at bay.

When we're full of tension and stress it can create a snowball effect. We start focusing more and more on the imperfections around us rather than all that is right and good. Soon enough it can feel like we're drowning in bitterness or hopelessness.

Having the presence of mind to notice we're stressed and take the time to consciously find things that are good, hopeful, and right with the world is a great support in stress relief. It gives us the calm and balance we need to tackle the stressful situation more proactively.

Ever had someone go off the rails on your social media feed? Or a stranger behave aggressively toward you for no apparent reason? Or someone close to you come at you with something out of left field? Have you ever done any of these things yourself?

There's a whole range of unpleasant behavior we witness (or act out ourselves) every day and it's stressful. Humans are passionate about what they believe. They want to be heard. But, often, they don't know how to express it in a way that conveys the true meaning behind what they're feeling.

When we feel stressed and don't know how to express it properly we can lash out with unkind words and behavior. Taking some time to 'tune in' and be present to what's really going on in ourselves and others is a helpful tool. Finding the right words to properly express ourselves in the situation can go far to relieve stress.

Pandemics, politics, mass shootings, financial and personal troubles. . . . Let's face it. This world can be a stressful place. It can seem like kindness, security, and sanity are all but lost in our society. This week, I'm sharing thoughts on stress and some of the practices we can develop to turn down the volume.

A sermon dealing with some of the scary messages we receive from religious people and the true nature of our relationship with God. . . please share widely!

https://christandcrow.podbean.com/e/how-galatians-attachment-theory-and-security-in-our-relationship-with-god-go-together/

This podcast is inspired by the messages we get from religious people sometimes that make us feel insecure about our relationship to God. The apostle Paul speaks into this topic in his letter to the churches in Galatia. This sermon is particularly helpful for anyone who has ever been made to feel their relationship to God is insecure. Enjoy! Listen to the podcast here. With love, Jennifer

https://christandcrow.com/how-galatians-attachment-theory-and-security-in-our-relationship-with-god-go-together/

How Galatians, Attachment Theory, and Security in Our Relationship with God go Together This podcast is inspired by the messages we get from religious people sometimes that make us feel insecure about our relationship to God. The apostle Paul speaks into this topic in his letter to th…

A friend recently told me about 'The Chosen' - a crowd funded series about the life and times of Jesus. I have watched the first season and the premier episode of season 2 (released on Easter Sunday, 2021). I'm impressed by the effort and the way it's been achieved. The show doesn't feel schmaltzy and manipulative the way a lot of Christian productions do and I have to say there have been a few episodes that have brought me to tears as I've watched!

Jesus Christ is beautiful and his story is fascinating. These folks are doing a nice job bringing it to life.

https://www.youtube.com/c/TheChosenSeries

The Chosen - YouTube WHY A TV SERIES ABOUT JESUS?We've been making movies for some of the biggest studios in Hollywood for 20 years. But a subject this important shouldn't be ent...

Today is a day of HOPE RENEWED in the risen Christ for all of Life. What a gift to know that even when things feel hopeless and impossible in this world, there is a hope for us that can never be extinguished. What a miracle.

After he died and rose again, Jesus appeared to his disciples and said, “Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And see, I am sending upon you what my Father promised; so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”

In the miracle of the risen Christ, we live in hope rather than despair. We proclaim that repentance and forgiveness for the fear, anger, deceit and abuse of power in this world is possible, has come to pass, and will be. We witness this truth and wait on God to clothe us in new power, new solutions and new miracles in the spaces where it feels like all hope has been lost.

May you be filled with fresh hope today. Happy Easter and praise Jesus Christ!

ON GOOD FRIDAY:

There is a tremendous amount of fear, hatred, and deceit in the world. There is power abuse. Jealousy. Rage. Confusion. Crowds influencing each other to do evil, to kill, to reject, to maim what is good.

There is grief - overwhelming grief for those of us brave enough to allow ourselves to feel. There are days when our hopes die.

This world is not an easy place. It is harder for those who try to do good in it. It is harder still for those who do good.

On this Good Friday, we remember the one who faced all the very worst the world has to offer: rejection, shame, violence, deceit and lies, the abuses of power without wisdom, mockery, the frustrations when the ignorant are manipulated, hatred, greed….

He was hung up and faced with all of it. He was the target of all of it, of all of the evil there is in this world. All of it.

We think about what he endured and we are shocked and we are saddened. We are horrified. We grieve.

And we are astonished. We are astonished by Him who, in the face of all of the very worst there is in this world, declared that Love is the Truth, once and for all.

We can but barely begin to grasp the enormity of what He did that day. The more we contemplate, the more we understand we have but the smallest glimpse of the true meaning and magnitude in that day in His life.

But we know it was important. Even that small glimpse shows us something more profound than anything we could ever know alone. Because of Him, we know now there is Truth that stands firm against and above all that goes on in this world.

Love is the Truth. And we, struggling in the pain of this world, are forgiven by God for the ways we falter and fall prey to all the lies that lead us away from Love.

And we are grateful. There are times in each of our lives when the world is so overwhelming, so hard, so relentless, that beautiful Jesus and this horrible day of suffering in His life is the only thing powerful enough to remind us of the Truth, to bring us the comfort we need to make it through.

Today we grieve. We are astonished. And we are grateful.

I am a woman, politically progressive, LGBTQ affirming, feminist, believe in protecting the planet, evolution and science. I am also a Pentecostal Christian, a bit of a Mystic, believe we are all a part of One Life, and I follow a call given to me by God to ministry. I am also devoted to healing. I have spent 20 years learning and practicing various ‘alternative healing’ modalities....

https://christandcrow.com/why-im-a-huge-success-and-how-you-can-be-too/

Why I’m a Huge Success and How You Can Be Too I am a woman, politically progressive, LGBTQ affirming, feminist, believe in protecting the planet, evolution and science. I am also a Pentecostal Christian, a bit of a Mystic, believe we are all a…

Jesus came to bring us the gift of knowing that Love is the Truth declared by God, no matter what messages the world might give us otherwise. It's that simple.

It is our choice whether or not we wish to receive this gift that he has offered, but it is there for all of us if we want it, no matter who we are, and there is nothing any other person or institution can do to take the offer of that gift away.

When we believe in this gift and begin to learn how to receive it, we are able to achieve a level of grace in living that we simply cannot without it. This gift adds a dimension to life that is precious, challenging, and helpful in recognizing the wonderful growth and amazing experiences that God wishes to give to all of us.

Another simple truth about Jesus is that he is a loving, faithful, and endlessly rich teacher and guide.

Let's face it. The guy is a spiritual master unlike any other. He's brilliant. And he has a way of teaching that keeps on giving. We can read his words at one point in life and understand them according to where we are then and read them again at a different point and gain an entirely new understanding. Jesus brings learning and growth that is endless.

No matter how much we grow, there is always more to learn from the inspiration of Jesus. His brilliance is humbling.

This is one of the most important simple truths about Jesus. JESUS LOVES US BECAUSE OF WHO HE IS, NOT BECAUSE OF WHAT WE THINK OR DO OR DON'T DO. The love of God is not pay we receive for performing well in a competitive market of spiritual economic exchange.

The love of God simply IS. Because GOD IS. Period.

Let that sink in.

Here's another simple truth about Jesus: HE EMPOWERS US TO FORGIVE.

Forgiveness is one of the most powerful experiences we can have if we wish to know truth and freedom in life. Before I was baptized, I asked someone what she liked about following Jesus and she said, 'the forgiveness has been very profound for me.' I didn't understand what she meant until after I had experienced it myself.

We all hear the words, 'you need to forgive yourself,' and that is true, but there are some things we simply don't have the power within ourselves alone to forgive. Receiving the forgiveness of Christ brings a depth and totality to being forgiven that simply isn't achievable without his presence and authority. That forgiveness opens the way to greater self compassion and helps us give ourselves what we need to heal.

We all have hurts from others that we need to forgive. If we don't, the love inside us stays buried underneath anger, hurt, or other hard feelings. Forgiving is a pathway to growth in empathy and deeper understanding. It allows love to flow once more. Even if we never reconcile the relationship (reconciliation is different than forgiveness), forgiving is necessary in the process of growth and evolution.

The simple truth is that we cannot make real progress as individuals or society unless we practice forgiveness. Without practicing forgiveness, we will be forever at war with ourselves and others and have less freedom to grow into the next phase of life.

Jesus empowers us in the practice of forgiving ourselves and others. We need to be empowered because forgiveness is hard to do. It is a decision we must make over and over again in this world. But, forgiveness is also a very important and necessary key in unlocking the positive potential in ourselves and in life.

Too often, we receive (and give) messages of judgement or punishment for imperfections or mistakes made out of ignorance, anger, fear, or other reasons. The simple truth about Jesus is that he empowers us to practice forgiveness - whether it's forgiving ourselves or others - so that we can move on in life in love.

Though people can really complicate it, the heart of the message of Jesus and his relationship to evolving humanity remains the same, no matter how much religious theologies, politics and societal contexts change throughout history.

'The Lord our God, the Lord is One.'

It's from the shema prayer in Deuteronomy, which is the beginning of the text Jesus referred to when telling his disciples the greatest commandment: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself."

All of life is one and God cares about all of it. If we love God with our entire being, as we are instructed to do, we are to love each other and creation. We are to love our neighbors as we love ourselves, because in this way we show our love for the One that is God.

Jesus has carried that message through the ages to constantly bring us back to that simple truth. We face different circumstances as history marches forward and have to redefine ourselves again and again. Jesus has been, and will remain there to lovingly remind us that, no matter what happens, God is One and, therefore, so are we.

It is the same light that brings life to all. When we love God (as God loves us), we treat ourselves and others with love.

Jesus is a name that can evoke really strong feelings in individuals and wield a lot of power in society. This week, I thought it might be nice to revisit some simple truths about Jesus to help ease some of the tension we might feel around the name. I've seen messaging that tries to exclude some groups of people from the belonging and inclusion Jesus brings to all of life. That exclusionary messaging uses the power in his name for an ill purpose. I think it's important to remember that Jesus isn't the property of any one group, political ideology, culture, or theology. Jesus LOVES AND CARES for all of us, no matter who we are: Gay/straight, cis/trans, Progressive/Conservative, black/white/brown, male/female, etc. Jesus is here for ALL OF LIFE, yesterday, today and forever.

A MINI MESSAGE ON FEELING OVERWHELMED BY THE WORLD:

Do you know that ‘deer in the headlights’ feeling when you get overwhelmed and your brain just kind of short circuits and it’s hard to figure out what to do next? As I prayed this morning Jesus showed me a bunch of rapid fire pictures of different things I’m concerned about in the world and in my community and that feeling of a deer in the headlights came. It’s a feeling I’ve been struggling with lately and I thought it was really nice of Jesus to acknowledge that and then give me some advice.

He showed me a picture of a sidewalk being hosed off after the lawn gets mowed (from back in the day when we used to do that) and all the grass and debris being washed away to reveal a nice clean shiny sidewalk and he said, “Keep your own sidewalk clean.” The image, for me, was a prompt to refocus my energy, take a look at the debris on my own ‘sidewalk,’ and clear that off before I try to address other concerns.

There’s a story in Mark 11 where Jesus is hungry and he goes to a fig tree hoping for a snack, but the fig tree has nothing but leaves and so he curses it. He goes off and attends to his own work (in this case it is cleansing the temple) and when he walks back past the cursed fig tree the next day it has withered away. One of his disciples makes a remark about the withered tree and Jesus says, “Have faith in God.”

I see this morning that many of my cares and worries about the world and my community are like this story of the fig tree. I am hungry for change, but me placing my focus and energy on those things isn’t really bearing any fruit. It isn’t satisfying my hunger. It is better for me to focus my efforts on my own ‘sidewalk’ right now, to take care of myself and my own work. If I do that, then many of these hungry cares and worries will wither away, just as the fruitless fig tree did. I can trust that God is dealing with those things in God’s own way.

I’m grateful for those little pictures Jesus showed me today in prayer. I’m grateful to know that what I need to do is simply work on ‘keeping my own sidewalk clean.’ It relieves me of that ‘deer in the headlights’ feeling and makes life (inside and out) feel more manageable. Today, I’m going to simply do everything I can to take care of my own business (clean up my own sidewalk) and trust God with the rest.

In a paradoxical way (the way life always is when you’re in partnership with God), the more I attend to my own ‘sidewalk,’ the more effective I become at facilitating the changes I want to see in the world.

If you’ve also been feeling overwhelmed by all that is happening lately, I hope these words will bring some peace and a refocusing for you too. I trust God’s Spirit to deliver this little message to those who would benefit.

Grace and peace and God’s abundant love and blessing be to all. Amen.

Tapping into creativity and going with the flow (instead of against it) brings fresh energy to life. New connections get made. New experiences come - experiences we (most likely) could never have imagined if we tried. When we deal with self limiting subconscious beliefs, our hearts spring back to life again and we enjoy more of this great adventure for however long we get to be on this ride.

Ever been curious about whether there's 'something more' in the mystery of life? Maybe there IS something to that alternative form of medicine you keep gravitating toward. Maybe there IS something beyond what your religious leaders have taught you. Maybe it IS ok with God if you explore the mystery in a different way. Maybe you WOULD learn something in that class you've been wanting to take. A lot of times subconscious beliefs that were formed years ago keep us boxed in and hamper us from learning and wisdom that wants to be shared in the now. Dealing with those beliefs opens us up to the help and wisdom that are waiting to support us as we grow and change in life.