Practicing Our Scales
Imagine if our walk with Christ, representing his kingdom in the world, were as practiced and pure as Hania Rani’s fingers on the piano keys.
INNtöne Jazzfestival 2021 | Wikimedia Creative Commons
A few years ago, my wife and I, and another couple, co-led a small group for young adults ⏤ the Friends and Followers group. There, I harped on about the benefits of ‘practicing our scales.’ That meant returning to a short list of essential statements that would (hopefully) guide our formation. The idea was that if we worked to practice these ‘scales,’ they would become embodied. Lately, I have been savoring Hania Rani’s piano genius. Just imagine if our walk with Christ ⏤ representing his kingdom in the world ⏤ were as practiced and pure as Hania Rani’s fingers on the piano keys.
If you don’t like the weather, just…
People’s attitudes can swing as quickly as the Spring weather. From Palm Sunday to Good Friday, Jesus’s stock fell from a hoped-for king to a criminal worse than Barabbas, an insurrectionist.
We are going up to Jerusalem,” he said, “and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles — Mark 10:33
When we visited Arkansas one April, we woke up at 2 a.m. to the sound of pouring rain, then drifted back to sleep. At 6 a.m., we woke to the hiss of heavy sleet brushing against the windows like cymbals. When it was time for breakfast, we walked through a quiet snow shower. And for the walk back from breakfast, it was sunny and 65 degrees.
Today, on Palm Sunday, I’m reflecting on how people’s attitudes can shift just as quickly. In the span of just a few days, from “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the king of Israel!” to “Crucify him!” Religious and political leaders collaborated to rid themselves of a shared problem and the crowds were carried on those cultural winds.
Define or Describe
Humans seem to like to define, label, and categorize things. Good definition requires perfect perspective. We can have confidence in definitions like “God is love.” (1 John 4:8) and “Eternal life is knowing the only true God and Jesus Christ whom he has sent.” (John 17:3) These definitions come from God. Rarely is my perspective so exhaustive. But even when I can’t define, I can describe. And I can be confident in my descriptions provided I’m humble enough to consider a new insight or another person’s different description. Defining closes the knowing venture, while describing opens it up. That can be endlessly rewarding!
- love
- Holy Spirit
- humility
- church
- politics & society
- mission & witness
- holiness
- parable & metaphor
- identity
- eternal life
- doubt & deconstruction
- leadership
- grace
- justice
- scripture
- spiritual life
- advent & christmas
- poverty & compassion
- imagination & creativity
- technology & ai
- knowing God
- human dignity
- faith & trust
- incarnation & cross
- kingdom of God
- community
- reconciliation
- spiritual formation
- epistemology
- prayer
- gratitude
- culture
- creation & nature
- discipleship
I practice the spiritual discipline of rescuing earthworms on paved surfaces. It's a reminder to me that I can pause what I'm doing, get a little dirty, and help. Also, that I've been given the responsibility to care.