ITLOTC
(In The Life Of The Church)
Epiphany
On the Nature of the Work (By Josh)
“There is a pleasure in the work of maintenance, the redemption of things worn or broken, that must go on almost continuously.”
Wendell Berry, Our Only World
In what follows I will give you a curated version of a discussion I had with Taylor on our podcast this week.
A friend of the podcast and UBC, Dr. Harris Bechtol gave us a prompt in which he asked us to examine Jesus repeated refrain from Matthew 6, “your father in heaven will reward you in secret.” This is the gospel reading from Ash Wednesday, so I thought, “how timely.” The trouble, you might imagine, is that this language from the Sermon on the Mount seems to promote a wrongheaded motivation in following Jesus. Are we really promised streets paved with gold or jewels in our crown? And if so,are we only following Jesus for the promise of these rewards. Dr. Bechtol tells me this is a problem that both Nietzsche and Derrida take up.
One time in a thought experiment with myself I conceded that John Piper might be right with his relentless commitment to Christian hedonism. It just may be that it is inescapable to locate our chief desire with anything other than self interest. The question of the Christian life is what kind of life will you cultivate to direct that self interest towards? Towards the love of God? Towards the love of your neighbor? Towards streets paved with gold? Towards job security and luxuries like Netflix and enough extra money for vacations?
As for articulating an answer to the question raised by Doc Bechtol Taylor and I instinctively found ourselves going to a similar place, which was that of the stages of formation. It could be that in an ontological sense Jesus means exactly what he proposes in Matthew 6. God will reward us. I suppose the question then becomes do we want or appreciate the nature of that reward. In my mind this is the role of discipleship, to take that self-interested hedonism and mature the instinct into something congruent with the kingdom. Christianity has called this kind of work - the work of the Spirit in our life - sanctification.
The rewards have evolved as I have evolved. I did want streets paved with gold at one point. I wanted GI Joe toys andOakley blades. I wanted intoxicating worship experiences and job prominence. I’ve translated the rewards into whatever my level of maturity would allow for. So where am I now?
I’ll be forty this sumer and it turns out I’m every bit as cliche as I hoped I might not be. I’ve yet to purchase a red corvette, but mid-life and what it threatens me with is palpable. Chiefly, i find myself asking, have I become what I intended to become? Or as an enneagram 3, I ask the more toxic question, have I accomplished what I wanted to accomplish? Because of diminishing utility the answer to those questions will always be no unfortunately. And therein lies the danger of locating your affections in anything besides Jesus. If I sound like an evangelical at this point, it’s because I intend to be. This part of Augustinian theology they do well.
In my own work--in my discipleship--I find that most of my spiritual work of late is about striving to be content and grateful. It is about relinquishing the temptation to locate those rewards in something that can change again. Rather I’d like to locate those rewards in something that is already mine can’t be taken from me. I’m not there yet, but the rewards I hope for at age 39 are better rewards than I hoped for at age 13. Lately I find myself appreciative of the opportunity for good work. Here you can insert the Wendell Berry quote from above.
On Friday, as our house began to melt, I discovered a compromised spigot on the front of our house. I shut off the water, removed the compromised plumbing, took it to the local plumbing store and was able replace the broken pieces in a matter of a few hours. On Saturday Lindsay and I went on a date to Lowes to pick out a new toilet. I replaced the toilet on Saturday afternoon. A week prior to this even I spent the weekend manufacturing a piece of trim for our porch that can’t be purchased anymore because of the age of our home. When I finished all of these tasks I would find myself stepping back and appreciating the work. Not celebrating myself, but enjoying having the means, knowledge and skill to participate in making my home a better place. A renewed place. A place that holds the joy and sorrow of raising a family and that protects from the seasons, which are also gifts. The joy of enjoying work is that it will always come to you. Work does not run out like resources.
There is a danger in putting too much of my emotional self into work. It could be that I become obsessive about it, which I have in the past. It could be that I lose the use of my hands or other parts of my body that inhibit the work or it could be that work becomes another idol. If that becomes the case, perhaps when it does, the rewards promised to me will need to evolve again with the hope landing me closer to a love of Christ for the sake of loving Christ. Until then I find myself hoping for heaven and it’s streets paved with gold, whatever that may mean.
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Survey can be found here.
JSL Help
Hey UBC(ers)! When this storm hit stronger than we expected, Waco showed up to take care of our people. THANK YOU! Even though the warm weather is back and the water conservation is lifted, we still need your help! As we enter phase 2 of storm relief, Jesus Said Love is providing for the immediate needs of our community and preparing to assist in the larger long-term damage. As with most disasters, the impoverished and marginalized are hit the hardest. While Waco’s water flow is returning to normal, surrounding areas including Bellmead and Marlin are under boil water mandates and in need of clean water. There is also some costly damage to homes, so we are assisting our clients in funding repairs, losses, and damages not covered by FEMA. To support our efforts you can bring water to 1500 Columbus Ave, M-F 10 AM - 5 PM, or give to our relief efforts here. Thank you! Contact pamela@jesussaidlove.com with any questions.
Parishioner of the Week
Adair McGregor for bouncing all the necessary UBC videos from her home Sunday morning so that Jamie could load them and we could worship together.
Work is Worship
Greeters: No Greeters this week
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If you have a concern or an idea for UBC that you’d like to share with someone that is not on staff, feel free to contact one of our leadership team members.
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