Obama and me: a common journey
[Official White House Photo: Pete Souza]
Yesterday morning, I tuned in to watch the National Prayer Breakfast online. I managed to catch the end of author Eric Metaxas' keynote, and then the President's address. I've always resonated with President Obama's expressions of his faith, even from when he was a Senator, and before he ran for president--from his keynote speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention to the passages in Dreams from my Father. Yesterday, he drew upon several verses that form the foundation of my own engagement in politics, advocacy, and public life:
"Love your neighbor as yourself."
"To those whom much is given, much will be required."
"Speak up for those who cannot speak up for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute."
He continued:
Treating others as you want to be treated. Requiring much from those who have been given so much. Living by the principle that we are our brother’s keeper. Caring for the poor and those in need. These values are old. They can be found in many denominations and many faiths, among many believers and among many non-believers. And they are values that have always made this country great -- when we live up to them; when we don’t just give lip service to them; when we don’t just talk about them one day a year. And they’re the ones that have defined my own faith journey.
They're the ones that have defined my faith journey as well, which I shared when I graduated from Fuller Theological Seminary. I got to be one of the speakers at Commencement, and shared a little bit of my own journey:
***
Meanwhile, over at the Sojourners blog, Wes Granberg-Michaelson, former General Secretary of the Reformed Church in America, shares his thoughts in a great response. Notably:
Money controls who gets elected and controls how laws and policies are made, I think, in utterly dangerous ways. More than ever, for those who gathered in prayer Thursday morning, money is power. And it’s the power of money in politics today that must be confronted — by people of faith — as a moral issue.
So I wondered (and prayed), where is the William Wilberforce of today, a leader who will take the message of the Bible to heart, rise up to confront the ways in which money enslaves our modern political life, lead a movement to end it, and then, one day, be celebrated for his or her courage and faithfulness to the gospel at a future prayer breakfast?
Even as we celebrate a common faith and shared values, we need to continue working to see these worked out in the world we inhabit.
I love The District Church
This past Sunday's service at The District Church was a simultaneously humbling and inspiring experience. We're in the middle of our "My Most Important Question" series, where we talk about some of our biggest issues. Part of the reasoning is that we don't want to be a church that tells its people to leave their questions at the door. That's not what God asks us to do--the Psalms are full of honesty, even brazen honesty. God doesn't get worried when we voice our questions, our doubts, our struggles; all he asks is that we voice them to him, that we include him in our conversation, that we're in relationship with him.
And so this past Sunday, Blythe, Bruce and Lindsay shared their stories, respectively: "What if I'm not doing enough?", "What grace is there for those who have not met Jesus Christ?", and "What is freedom?" And what stories. Their honesty, their passion, and the clear evidence of the Spirit of God clearly at work in their lives were such an encouragement to me. God has brought an amazing band of people to this church, and God is doing an amazing work in the life of every person that calls him- or herself a part of our community.
So grateful to be on staff at The District Church. All glory to God.
You can listen to the podcast online here.
The Difference You Made
My last sermon, preached on July 17, was on Colossians 3:18-4:1--the "Wives, submit to your husbands" passage, and it was entitled, "Can We Make A Difference?" I'll let you listen to it for yourselves if you haven't already, but my main point was that oftentimes we wait for this or that situation or circumstance changes before we do what we think God wants us to do--just let me get this job first, or let me be in a relationship first, or let me get to this level of income first. But God calls us to make a difference where we are, in the places he has placed us. Right now.
And you already have, in my life. Because, with nine months of my year-long Leadership Residency over, I'm happy to announce that I've achieved the budget that I'd set out at the beginning of the year. To those of you who gave one-time, thank you. To those of you who have given regularly and committed to continue giving, thank you. To those of you who were unable to give but prayed instead, particularly when I asked for the provision of a job, thank you. Because it's been a combination of your giving, and the prayers you prayed, which I credit for my landing the position at ONE, which has launched me over my target. So, thank you, thank you, thank you.
In my last email, I said that we're still working out the future, and this remains true. Nothing's been set in stone and there's much still to be finalized, but I can say with a tiny amount of certainty and a large amount of faith that I'll be in DC for a few years to come. I am, as I have felt all year, exactly where I am supposed to be, doing exactly what God has made me to do. An update will be coming soon, I (hope and) promise.
As always, grateful for your friendship and your faithfulness,
Justin.
Job
So I've been reading through the Bible in a year. Today I reached the end of Job.
It’s a fascinating book. And bemusing, too. My understanding of what it says has definitely changed over the years, and even now, I’m not completely sure what to make of it all—especially all of the words that Job’s friends say. But I recognize the truth in God’s words, and I recognize the importance of Job’s admission at the end of the encounter (42:1-6):
Then Job answered the LORD:
“I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted. ‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’ Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. ‘Hear, and I will speak; I will question you, and you declare to me.’ I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.”
“Knowing one’s place” is far too simplistic and loaded a phrase to encapsulate what’s going on here; I don't think God is, as some think, bullying Job into submission. But perspective is key. As humans, we think of ourselves as the pinnacle of creation—more and more so with the continuing developments in technology and science—and so it’s almost unfathomable for us to think that we might be as nothing to ... well, anything at all.
But God is so far above, so high and holy, so awesome and wonderful, so majestic and glorious. There is no comparison. There is no comparison.
And you know what? This is a good way to start the day: to be reminded that, as NT Wright says, it’s not great faith we need to live truly, but faith in a great God. It's a freeing thought, too: that the weight of the world does not rest on our shoulders, that the responsibility and capacity for changing our lives, our situations, and our world does not come primarily from us, but from the Maker of the heavens and the earth, the Creator of the universe, the God who is above all and in all, and yet who calls us his own.
As Delirious? sings, "God is bigger than the air I breathe, the world we'll leave ..." ("My Glorious").
[image from Good News Bible]
Easter messages
If you're wanting to listen to one sermon series this Easter ...
... go listen to The District Church podcast. 
I preached this past (Palm) Sunday, on expectations and reality--"What are you expecting?" And Aaron will be preaching this coming Sunday. (We'll have a Good Friday service tomorrow evening, but won't have recording capacity.)
But I also highly recommend this short series from John Ortberg and Menlo Park Presbyterian Church--"Friday, Saturday, Sunday." John's a pastor and author I respect greatly, and the first two messages of this series have really hit home for me. Go listen to 1) Friday and 2) Saturday.