What is life?

Life is not a journey;

Life is the journey.

Greatness revisited

A friend asked me today if I had ever put in the "10,000 hours" needed to achieve mastery in any of the skills I have tried to develop. For the unfamiliar, I was lamenting about the "sea of mediocrity" in which I seem to have spent my life: Jack of all trades, master of none.

He also implied that to arrive at greatness, one has to be in the right place at the right time.

I homed in on two words: mastery and greatness.

It may well be that huge amounts of practice time are required to reach mastery. Ten thousand hours is the equivalent of five years of 40-hour a week effort. Not many of us are willing or able to devote that much time to an avocation. An hour a day comes to 365 hours a year. So to reach the 10,000 hour threshold would require 27 years.

This isn't an unreachable limit, but certainly requires persistence and dedication. I also imagine that somewhere along the way I would require "progress payments:" that is, indications of progress to motivate me and justify my investment of time.

It is at this point that I seem to have failed. Golfers, runners, and other skill-builders tell me that they periodically "hit a wall" where it seems like they will never progress further, but they ultimately "break through." I can only conclude that my walls have been to high or thick for me to have the patience.

On the other hand, perhaps I really did lack that one magic ingredient: talent.

In spiritual matters, we all have the span of our lives to practice until we either give up or progress toward "mastery." Here, I think, is where the "right place at the right time" enters my spiritual journey. I have heard how some soar to the pinnacle of spiritual enlightenment in a moment of epiphany. For me, God has said (s)he doesn't work that way.

But at least this is one quest I have not given up on. Do I have 10,000 hours in? If I count 24 hours a day as being practice in my spiritual journey, I should have reached mastery between my fourteenth and fifteenth month of life. Obviously I didn't. At twenty minutes a day I am unlikely to make it before my life is over. But, by the same logic, if I live spiritually every waking moment from now on, the possibility exists that I will reach that moment at the correct time when I'm at the right place, too.

On the other hand, God just might change his/her mind and provide me with an epiphany.

The peace of God be with you.

Mind control

http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=182441

This article details how, in some Universities across our nation, authorities are demanding that deeply-held Christian beliefs be abandoned in favor of acceptable policies of other institutions. I fear that if these cases are not clearly and promptly found to be violations of our fundamental constitutional rights that religion in this nation will be in jeopardy.

This is not about the issue of homosexuality but about the misuse of power. Today it's homosexuality and abortion. Tomorrow it could be anything.

Failure?

All my life I've searched for something I could do really well. Not just sort of well, but really, really well. After 68 years I feel awash in mediocrity.

I've tried education, electronics, mechanics, avionics, aviation, foreign languages, singing, guitar, autoharp, banjo, mandolin, fiddle, golf, shooting, aero/thermodyamics, dog training, computer programming, and woodworking. In all those enterprises, I reached the point where I had to stop and admit to myself that I could become "pretty good," but in order to really achieve, I had to have something else: talent.

Don't let this talk of "Renaissance (wo)men" get to you. It's just another label for somebody who seems to know less and less about more and more until (s)he knows nothing about everything (the generalist). The other side of the pancake is, of course, as the joke goes to completion, one who knows more and more about less and less until (s)he knows everything about nothing (the specialist).

Shouldn't there be one thing... just one... that each person could do really well?

One of my retirement endeavors has been woodworking. I wanted to do a project for the church that would complement my spiritual journey, so I selected one to construct a wooden replica of the labyrinth at Chartres Cathedral that could be used as a meditation guide, held on one's lap while tracing the path with the finger. So far, I have created four prototypes, each one of which has been a failure.

In each, I found myself doing what I considered to be "really good work;" then, in each prototype, I committed a catastrophic error that spoiled the work completely.

What message can I take from this? So far, it has been discouragement. Maybe the failures are experiences for me to overcome through persistence and faith in myself.

So far, I'm still wandering. I can't take this project up again until I have the faith I need to go on for a while. So I'll try to be patient with myself.

Discussing differences

The 2010 General Assembly (GA) of the Presbyterian Church (USA) had a couple of very controversial items on their agenda this year. To provide some groundwork for discussion of the homosexual marriage agendum, the GA formed a Special Committee to Study Issues of Civil Union and Christian Marriage.

This committee issued their final report to the GA this month. It can be found at http://www.pc-biz.org/Explorer.aspx?id=3333&promoID=168.

The most interesting thing about this report, to me, is the words used to describe the process used to discuss the differences and the recommendations made in the conclusions to the Church.

It takes a little while to read, but I found it very helpful.

Prayer and Meditation

This morning's church service paid off for me. I've been practicing meditation for several months now and have been frustrated because I have not had any "bright light" or "enlightenment" experiences. Sure, I have managed to let God run the universe for 20 minutes or so without the benefit of my help but I wonder if that's more assistance to God than to me.

I don't mean to blaspheme. My God has a sense of humor.

As the prelude was being played (Alex is just getting better and better) I realized that I was feeling the music, rather than letting it cause my thoughts to wander from one disassociated thread to another. This opens the door to me being able to let my feelings lead to inspiration from the Holy Spirit in the right environment. And perhaps it will even take my mind off my petty troubles for a while, too.

Another thought: in our opening hymn, we sang
"Angels, help us to adore him;
ye behold him face to face;
sun and moon, bow down before him,
dwellers all in time and space.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Praise with us the God of grace."

I related that to an earlier post where I pondered the possibility that we step outside of time before we enter and when we leave this mortal coil. Just who are the "dwellers all" who are "in time and space?" If God is included, what is the point of this verse? Sun, moon, and we who behold Him certainly dwell in time and space.

Hadn't thought about stepping outside space, though...

Sharon's sermon about the Good Samaritan (I should probably say, "the Samaritan," because, as she pointed out to us, nowhere does the Bible say he was "good") asked us to identify with a character in the story. As Sharon suggested, I found some of myself in every character. I'm going to strive to be more like the Samaritan and the innkeeper and less like the victim, the perpetrators, and those who passed by on the other side of the road.

Especially the innkeeper.

General Assembly approves "overture 06-09" which would permit ordination of homosexuals

It seems that I have been caught be surprise yet again. Should the congregation not have been notified that this issue was to be presented to the General Assembly? Whichever opinion one has with regard to this matter, it is of importance to many if not most members.

===========================

MINNEAPOLIS
With a 50-vote margin (373-323-4), the 219th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) approved an overture from the Presbytery of the Western Reserve that would amend the so-called “fidelity and chastity clause” of the Book of Order (G-6.0106b).

The amendment will now go back to presbyteries, where a majority of the 173 presbyteries must approve it for the change to make it into the Book of Order.

===================
This is the "overture 06-09" which is being proposed and has been approved by the General Assembly, PCUSA:

Shall G-6.0106b be amended by striking the current text and inserting new text in its place: [Text to be deleted is shown between triple brackets, "[[[ ... ]]]"; text to be added or inserted is shown following.]

[[[“b. Those who are called to office in the church are to lead a life in obedience to Scripture and in conformity to the historic confessional standards of the church. Among these standards is the requirement to live either in fidelity within the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman (W-4.9001), or chastity in singleness. Persons refusing to repent of any self-acknowledged practice which the confessions call sin shall not be ordained and/or installed as deacons, elders, or ministers of the Word and Sacrament.]]]

Standards for ordained service reflect the church’s desire to submit joyfully to the Lordship of Jesus Christ in all aspects of life (G-1.0000). The governing body responsible for ordination and/or installation (G.14.0240; G-14.0450) shall examine each candidate’s calling, gifts, preparation, and suitability for the responsibilities of office. The examination shall include, but not be limited to, a determination of the candidate’s ability and commitment to fulfill all requirements as expressed in the constitutional questions for ordination and installation (W-4.4003). Governing bodies shall be guided by Scripture and the confessions in applying standards to individual candidates.”

=============

Does UPC have a representative at the 219th General Assembly? How did he/she vote? What input did our putative representative receive in order to decide how to vote? Did our Session publicize this and/or ask for input from the membership?

Prayer request

Please pray for our Armed Forces standing in harm's way around the world, and for their families -- especially families of those fallen Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen, who granted their lives in defense of American liberty.

Time

I attended Della Matthews' memorial service today. It was a beautiful and moving tribute and I was privileged, as Lamont's friend, to be there.

As the service unfolded, I began thinking about our human concept of time. We have a space in which we live, bounded by what we call "birth" and "death." To us, what are those temporal spaces before our birth and after our death?

It seems to me that our spiritual selves must exist outside time except for this brief flicker that we call "life." When we die, we believe we return to that "place" (there's another very human term) from which we came. Likewise, it seems likely to me that when we are born, we step into "time," and when we die, we step back out of it.

When asked His name, God told Noah, "I am." Simple as that. Does being require a time frame, or can a spirit just "be" without being temporal? The times when I am most at peace are those times when I can "let it be" (whatever "it" is).

Maybe, like Bill Clinton, I'm headed for trying to define what "is" is. But as Presbyterians, I think we believe that God and Jesus existed since the "beginning of time." If time is just our own invention, that wouldn't be too hard now, would it?

Generations

Just finished a weekend in Idaho with son and grandchildren and daughter-in-law. I can say it had some very pleasant times. Like most grandparents I dote on my grandchildren. It can be hard to bridge the generation gap immediately adjacent to my own, however.

I've heard it said that grandparents and grandchildren get along so well because they have a common enemy. Taken as a joke there's good humor in that. But there's also irony because of the larger dose of truth.

Today I must remember that in marriage a man leaves his father and mother and cleaves to his wife. I also recall instruction to honor one's father and mother.

today I pray for wisdom and humility.

Lesser-known verses

A few weeks ago, on Memorial Day Sunday, we sang the first three verses of "America the Beautiful." Looking further into it, I was surprised to discover that Katherine Lee Bates composed eight verses to this song. Verse seven particularly came back to me on this Independence Day Sunday:

O beautiful for glory-tale
Of liberating strife
When once and twice,
for man's avail
Men lavished precious life!
America! America!
God shed his grace on thee
Till selfish gain no longer stain
The banner of the free!

How sad that we must still deal with the selfish gain that stains our government. On the other hand, of course, Winston Churchill pointed out that democracy is a terrible form of government except for all the others. Or something to that affect.

But this verse also calls on us to remember those men and women who gave their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor so that we could have the nation in which we now live.

A Facebook friend also pointed out that only two people have ever offered their lives for me: the soldier/sailor/pilot/marine who gave his/her life; and Jesus Christ. I am thankful today for both.

Staying focused

It's eleven o'clock at night and everyone's in bed here in Hailey, Idaho. Since it's Saturday, I was thinking today about church tomorrow. There are Baptist and Episcopal churches within a block of my son's house, so I figured I'd catch a service at one of them.

Then my daughter-in-law came around and told us that they thought it would be nice to have the family all have breakfast out tomorrow at about nine o'clock so that we could be ready for the 4th of July parade down Main Street. Of course, there is the City Fair and the Old-Time Western Days program tomorrow, and it also happens to be my granddaughter Sophie's first birthday.

"WWJD?" I asked myself.

I suspect He would advise me to take advantage of the opportunity to spend an extra hour with my grandchildren, my son, and my daughter-in-law. I only get to do that a couple of times a year.

I think I might be forgiven for missing church tomorrow. Besides, I can always offer an extra prayer of thanks.

On the road today. These new tech communications methods are truly amazing. God has given us such limitless abilities. We have a huge obligation to use them well.

As we set out on a 600 mile trip to Idaho with AAA watching over us, I thought of Paul setting out on his travels with only his faith in God to sustain him. of

Of course, my trip would consume two days and his was substantially longer. I suspect I had more anxiety as my faith in Toyota and AAA was probably not as great as Paul's faith in God.

Beautification

Placing advertising signs within ten feet of the public right of way is a violation of the Albany city statutes. The array of advertising for UPC on the parking strip makes our church look sort of shabby. I think they should be removed.

We have had a visitor from Illinois for the last week: a friend of Marian's who she last saw in the sixth grade in South Bend, Indiana. Marian and she just left for her return home. This has given me cause to think about hospitality.

I have heard that Muslims value hospitality greatly, and their tenets compel them to offer it to strangers who come into their midst. But what if the strangers don't come? We have many visitors to our church, but most of them are very much like us. They don't stand out.

Glenn has said to me that one of the reasons we don't have many (any?) black members or visitors is that during the Civil War, Presbyterians would not condemn slavery. Do you suppose they still hold that against us to this day? I guess there has to be some reason why they don't come.

Could it be that we don't welcome them as well as we could. When we visited here, we were invited to lunch by one of the members. Jesus said, "The King [the Son of Man, come in His glory]will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'" Further, he says that whatever we didn't do, we didn't do for Him.

At least, we offer them a coffee drink at no charge. I hope we do a little more.

In Acts, Philip meets a eunuch on the road. In the course of their conversation, Philip asks the eunuch if he understands the scripture he is reading. The eunuch replies, "How can I, unless someone explains it to me?"

This unvarnished, honest reply reflects where I find myself much of the time. The Holy Spirit is my first resource, of course, but sometimes it seems to me that I am unable to avail myself of the understanding that I should have. So I too ask, "How can I [understand] unless someone explains it to me?"

UPC has two pastors who complement each other very well. Glenn's scholarship and Sharon's empathy with her congregation have proven to be great resources to me. By this I don't mean to indicate that Glenn has no empathy, nor Sharon scholarship, but I have found their strong points to be as I described.

I have been troubled by my inability to reach to the heart of the spirituality I seek, so I have been asking what I will call the "Eunuch's Question" more frequently.

A couple of weeks ago, Sharon recommended Barbara Brown Taylor's book, "An Altar in the World" to me. I have found it very helpful in terms of redirecting me from a search outside of myself to that which I encounter every day with my human senses. It's very fine to seek a supernatural experience, an epiphany, an "AHA!" moment, but when it comes to spiritual matters, the Holy Spirit says to me more often than not, "Come on, Tony; you know I don't work that way!" (Some readers may recall God speaking this line to Bill Cosby's Noah back in the 70s.)

It only took me a week to read, but has profoundly affected my spiritual thought process. It's available from Amazon, and is in Kindle format (my favorite).

Disinterested "democracy"

When decisions are made in your name without your participation, can it be a democratic process?

Turns out that in our Presbyterian Church, decisons are made by a group known as the "Session," a body of elected elders. From there, groups of church sessions form collectives of "Presbyteries," which then can be formed into "Synods," and, ultimately, into a "General Assembly."

Today I learned that the Presbytery to which our church belongs made a decision that, in my humble opinion, was controversial. Yet this decision was made by a near-unanimous vote of almost four hundred representatives.

One Session member from our church reported this issue to a group of members in an informal meeting. Turns out that none of us was aware that this was even an issue for discussion by the Presbytery, yet it commits funds from all the member churches.

This seems to be a general method for doing business. Is it because of apathy among the membership or failure to adequately provide information from the church staff? Perhaps responsibility lies in both areas.

I have only been a member for a couple of years, but don't remember any notification of agenda for Session, Presbytery, or General Assembly ever being highlighted or called to the attention of the church membership.

I would like to propose that Session investigate methods by which members can better inform themselves of these matters. Email or Internet postings should facilitate this process and make it at least as easy as a single telephone call.

Such efforts would greatly democratize a process which presently seems oligarchical at best.