Shawn Stutz

I used to think it awkward to pray a written prayer. However, there are two prayers that seem to be a part of my spiritual disicplines as of late. They are extremely powerful when you stop to consider the phrasing.

The Serenity Prayer (from Celebrate Recovery)
God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.
Living one day at a time;
enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships
as the pathway to peace;
Taking, as He did,
this sinful world as it is,
not as I would have it; trusting that He will make all things right
if I surrender to His Will; that I may be reasonably happy in this life
and supremely happy with Him forever in the next. Amen.
– Reinhold Niebuhr

Morning Prayer Canticle (adapted from St. Patrick’s Breastplate)
Christ, as a light illumine and guide me.
Christ, as a shield overshadow me
Christ under me; Christ over me;
Christ beside me; on my left and my right.
This day be within and without me,
lowly and meek, yet all powerful.
Be in the heart of each to whom I speak;
in the mouth of each who speaks unto me.
This day be within and without me,
lowly and meek, yet all powerful.
Christ as a light; Christ as shield;
Christ beside me on my left and my right. Amen.

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The following is something I ‘journaled’ about in late November 2006, but never published.

O.J. & M.J. {Michael Jackson that is…}
I have been thinking about the whole idea of ‘celebrity’ lately. It’s pretty wild really when you think about what fame does to people. Remember when Michael Jackson had a nose, didn’t wear a germ veil, and wasn’t dangling babies over balcony railings? And who can forget the runaway white Bronco and the roller coaster trial of O.J. Simpson?

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I’m sitting on my couch watching Memphis verses Ohio State duke it out (can you say “duke it out” if Duke isn’t in the tournament anymore?). It’s stunning to watch college basketball in HD! I got hit by sweat a few minutes ago.

Ohio State is winning at the moment but I am pulling for Memphis– because they are in my online ‘guessing” bracket. It’s funny because I spent many growing up years in Ohio, but they aren’t in my bracket so it changes my ‘rooting’. Earlier in the NCAA tournament I selected an underdog favorite, Vanderbilt. However, it came to a point when I was rooting against them because my bracket demanded allegiance to a prior choice. I’m hoping that more of my bracket choices land in the correct column than not!

As I’m watching, I’m wondering– oddly enough– about the sovereignty of God. Wouldn’t it be weird to see our daily choices put into a God’s will bracket form so that God was rooting for His bracket? Greater still, what if God’s plan for the universe, mankind, and salvation was a bracket? Would that be bad or good to you? What if you found yourself being rooted against? Does God truly root against a person, a people, or a nation? And I would suppose that God’s bracket is never wrong. Tons of thoughts, tons of questions– no answers.

Oh, and here’s a thought: What if the wrong choices in our bracket could be used to still bring consolation-ary glory to God? What do you think? Give your thoughts, comments by clicking here.

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I have been so busy lately that sitting down to type a decent post has been tricky. However here are a few recent lessons learned, or conversations starters and intriguing thoughts.

• That on days like this, life should be lived from a hammock!

• Abraham was asked to move to a place who knew not! And on the way he pitched a tent between Bethel and Ai. Bethel happens to mean “House of God” while Ai means “Heap of Ruins”. Maybe God has asked us to plant ourselves between the House of God and those lives in a heap of ruins (those without hope). Maybe we can be a bridge…

• Abraham was blessed by God at God’s initiative. God found favor with Abraham and chose to make him a great nation. However, this blessing was to make him a channel of blessing for the nations. The grace, “hesed“, that God gave was given in order that Abraham might then give it other nations around him.

• The story of Moses comes full circle in Exodus at the final plague of Passover. Moses, a first-born Hebrew son, was sentenced to die by Pharaoh, and yet God protected him by working it out for Moses to be adopted into the house of Pharaoh. The Pharaoh, who considered himself a god, preserved the life of a first-born Hebrew son. However, the self-proclaimed god, Pharaoh, was no match for the power of the one true God.

• The Cirle Turns: The final plague that God’s servant, Moses, declared over Egypt was that the first-born son of all the Egyptians would die without a sacrifice of lamb’s blood smeared over the door. And when the night is over, the son of Pharaoh had died. I find it intriguing that God allowed Moses, a first-born son to live, so that he might deliver a message to Pharaoh that his first-born son would die. Interesting…

• God loves mankind! That is a startling reality at times. That even though we strive to control everything around us, the God who is truly in control loves us enough to redeem us from that sinful striving! That is truly amazing!

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Over the past few months, I’ve had a few rabbinical-esque conversations with Mrs. Redding. Mrs. Redding (name changed to protect… no just changed) does the mitzvah good deed of serving as a lay rabbi for the local Jewish congregation.  And I must say that it has been some of the most insightful spiritual dialogues that  I have had in a while.

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I was flipping through channels before bed last night and happened to stumble upon David Letterman interviewing Chris Rock. Or it is probably best said, David Letterman was allowing a sit-down comedy routine to take place. Either way…

Rock, was asked about his recent trip to Africa with Oprah in conjunction with her school’s dedication. Chris shared that it was one of the most amazing experiences of his life, and then proceeded to make this statement: “I pray everyday that there is a God, I really do. But I know there’s an Oprah. Just being around here makes you do good all day.” As joking as he was, it’s a powerful quote.

People want a God they can see! Oprah is doing ‘good’ and it’s tangible! You can see a school. You can see children in their new clothes. You can see her hugging kids. But what you really see is hope! And hope wasn’t invented by Oprah. As a matter of fact, the Psalmist declares, “My hope is You (God)!”

Click ‘Read rest...” to Open a Can of Worms about the Social Gospel.

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On Friday I rented the World War II epic film Flag of Our Fathers. It recounts the tale of the brave men that first charged the banks and mountain terrain of the small Japanese controlled island of Iwo Jima. This island is also the home of the famous picture of our soldiers raising the American flag. What I found interesting was that the movie told the darker story surrounding the picture (which was not what I expected).

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“Only a hero can save us and
I’m not going to stand here and wait!”
- Nickelback

I find it so amazing that we, as a people, have such a craving for a hero.

We watch Heroes on NBC, hope for superhuman genetic mutation, and root for a team of people to align against the powers of evil. We have custom season costumes, design toys for children to role play, and spend millions in movie and video game making/enjoying. We are enamored with the powerful and extreme “other“.

And what perplexes me most is that many people cling to the heroic and yet run from all that is deity. Why is that? Why do we love to watch the absolutely impossible and yet have a hard time believing in God that is invisible (at least to our eyes at this present hour)? Why is it that many love their “powers” but can’t believe there is an all-powerful God?

I find it odd. One seems to contradict the other; the desire for a hero and the willing rejection of a Hero God, a Savior, that redeems and rescues His people from death eternal! To me, that is the essence of hero… and the good news of our great God!

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I was chatting with some folks at the local coffee joint, The Firehouse, this morning and I came to a startling revelation. I have actually gained knowledge for life from the great 1987 Classic, The Princess Bride. I hope you may glean from these truths as well.

• When it comes to the woman you love, just remember: “As you wish.”
• Never go up against a Sicilian when death is on the line…
• Unless you’ve managed to, over a period of time, build up an immunity to iocaine powder
• Even a Big Man can rhyme words cleverly
• If you meet a man named Inigo Montoya, don’t kill his father (or prepare to die!)
• Spaniards are often ambidextrous
• Don’t fear R.O.U.S.’s; that is unless you live near a fire swamp!
• Don’t ever ask if someone is mostly dead (it’s usually not received well)
• People with Six Fingers on one hand can rarely be trusted
• Good name for a girl: Buttercup. Bad name for a boy: Humperdinck.
• Booing a Princess is actually funny to watch
• Fred Savage? Wonder where Winnie is?
• and finally: “Marriage…” (need I even say more)

A definite classic, must watch! Order it from Amazon today (cheap)!

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