Eric Church - Like Jesus Does

The Kingdom of the Father is spread upon the Earth and men do not see it.

- The (non-canonical and possibly heretical) Gospel of Thomas

We are surrounded by Grace, in ways sometimes large but mostly small, and (mostly) we do not see it.  This song reminds us that the Lord's ever present gospel Grace is not only here for us on Easter.  He has given us signs if we have eyes to see.  The Queen Of The World shows this Grace to me on the regular - remember, Grace is forgiveness that is undeserved but granted anyway.

Wolfgang showed this unconditional love to me, too.  It wasn't exactly Grace, but he loved me like Jesus does.  We see ourselves reflected in our dog's eyes, not as we are but as we would like to be.  This song reminds us that this is how the Lord looks at us, too.

She Loves Me Like Jesus Does (Songwriters: Casey Beathard, Monty Criswell)

I'm a long gone Waylon song on vinyl, 
I'm a backroad sinner at a tent revival, 
She believes in me like she believes her bible, 
And loves me like Jesus does.

I'm a lead foot leaning on a suped up Chevy, 
I'm a good ol' boy, drinking whiskey and rye on the levee, 
But she carries me, when my sins make me heavy, 
And she loves me like Jesus does.

All the crazy in my dreams, 
Both my broken wings, 
Every single piece of everything I am, 
Yeah, she knows the man I ain't, 
She forgives me when I can't, 
That devil man, he don't stand a chance, 
Cause she loves me like Jesus does.

Always thought she'd give up on me one day, 
Wash her hands of me, leave me staring down some runway, 
But, I thank God each night, and twice on Sunday, 
That she loves me like Jesus does.

All the crazy in my dreams, 
And both my broken wings, 
Every single piece of who I am, 
Yeah, she knows the man I ain't, 
She forgives me when I can't, 
And the devil man, no, he don't have a prayer. 
Cause she loves me like Jesus does

Yeah, she knows the man I ain't, 
She forgives me when I can't, 
That devil man, he don't stand a chance, 
Cause she loves me like Jesus does.

I'm a long gone Waylon song on vinyl

The Kingdom of the Father is spread upon the Earth and men do not see it.

See it. 

Grace is something that you can never get but only be given.  There's no way to earn it or deserve it or bring it about anymore than you can deserve the taste of raspberries and cream or earn good looks.  A good night's sleep is grace and so are good dreams. Most tears are grace.  The smell of rain is grace.  Somebody loving you is grace.

- Frederick Buechner 

Beacon

Free Will is a mixed blessing, to be sure, but it's a thing without which life would not be worth living.  There's a whole blog post category here about freedom, all of which would be meaningless without Free Will.

This is a gift, one that makes us uniquely human:

But man is freer than all the animals, on account of his free-will, with which he is endowed above all other animals.

- St. Thomas Aquinas

Easter is a very old holy day, one of the oldest still celebrated.  Things don't stick around that long if they don't speak to something deep in the soul.  If they don't speak from an upwelling from some mysterious depth of great wisdom.  The mystery, and the great strength of Christian doctrine is that it captures the human cycle of growth, middle age, and old age in a view of two gifts: Free Will and Grace.

As a child, we have no Free Will that anyone need respect.  Children hold a special place in society and Law precisely because of this.  In a sense, they represent mankind from the days before the Fall, innocence that calls for protection provided by more capable beings.  But you can't stay a child forever.  Free Will must develop, and the child must set sail, setting his or her own course as they will.  Adults are exposed to risks that we would protect children from.

To never have the chance to risk is to never fully be human.  The chance to take these chances is a gift that most don't much think about.  They should.

No Noble Thing can be done without risk.

- Michel de Montaigne

But the other side of the coin is Grace.  As the Child must go into the world to find his own place, so must the Man return from his journeys.  We watch our children grow, and gain independence.  Sometimes that independence causes friction, or worse.  Sometimes the young adult becomes cut off from the old, because of careless words or foolish pride.

For the longest time, I was confused about the Crucifixion.  Sure, I understood what happened, but I simply couldn't understand why it was needed.  Now I think I know: it's a beacon, lighting the way back.

As we go about our days, exercising the gift of Free Will, we have a marker for our return.  And we should remember that as we are given Grace, so must we also give it.  That we are also beacons, marking the safe return for those loved ones who might even now be seeking safe harbor.   That we should shine out of the darkness of hurt feelings and foolish pride, telling them that their safe harbor is here.  With us.

[God’s love] is at God’s initiative and choice; it isn’t given out on the basis of my performance. God’s gospel love is not wages that I earn with a model life; it is a gift. It is a gift that I cannot earn; more than that, it is a gift that I do not even deserve. God loves weak, ungodly, sinful enemies. The gift is the opposite of what I deserve. God ought to kill me on the spot. Instead, He sent His Son to die in my place.

- David Powlison, Seeing With New Eyes

Instead, he sent his son as a beacon for us.  As an inspiration for us.

Shine.

(Image source, Image source) 

Originally posted April 24, 2011.

Eric Church - Like Jesus Does

Out of the crooked timber that is Man, nothing straight was ever built.

- Immanuel Kant

Bless me, Father, for I have been a Dumb Ass.  It's happened over and over again, throughout all my years on Planet Earth.  I fear that this will continue throughout the rest of my days.

But I'm lucky that I have The Queen Of The World.  No matter what the next Dumbassery, she is there as this world's manifestation of the gift of Grace for me.  She is the Lighthouse that always provides me a beacon in the dark.  It's quite amazing, really.

But she carries me, when my sins make me heavy,
And she loves me like Jesus does.

Easter is an old, old holy day.  It dates back to when christianity was just a tiny group of believers in a vast and unfriendly Roman Empire.  And yet it took over that empire despite the long odds.  I think that the reason is that from the very beginning, the story told by the christian church was about Grace.

None of us is as strong as we would like; all of us need that Grace to keep us from sinking, at least from time to time.  That gift of Grace took the Roman Empire by storm, and is one that I see here today.  The Queen Of The World shows it to me.  It's the gift she gives not when I deserve it, but when I don't deserve it.  And therein lies its power.

Yeah, she knows the man I ain't,
She forgives me when I can't

That's a precious gift to me.  It is in those moments that the spirit of Easter surrounds me.  It may even be that I'm a Dumb Ass as much as I am because I like that moment of Grace from her.  In a sense, it's always Easter here at Castle Borepatch, thanks to The Queen Of The World.

Always thought she'd give up on me one day,
Wash her hands of me, leave me staring down some runway,
Yeah, I thank God each night, and twice on Sunday,
That she loves me like Jesus does.

This Easter weekend you are as lucky as I am.  Well you don't have The Queen Of The World so you're not quite as lucky as I am, but you have that gift of Grace.  That gift doesn't give up on you some day because you've been a Dumb Ass once too many times.  That gift carries you when you when your sins make you heavy.  That gift forgives you when you can't.  We're surrounded by Grace, if we'll just open our eyes. Songs like this tell us some of the places to look, if we dare.

Dare.

She Loves Me Like Jesus Does (Songwriters: Casey Beathard, Monty Criswell)

I'm a long gone Waylon song on vinyl, 
I'm a backroad sinner at a tent revival, 
She believes in me like she believes her bible, 
And loves me like Jesus does.

I'm a lead foot leaning on a suped up Chevy, 
I'm a good ol' boy, drinking whiskey and rye on the levee, 
But she carries me, when my sins make me heavy, 
And she loves me like Jesus does.

All the crazy in my dreams, 
Both my broken wings, 
Every single piece of everything I am, 
Yeah, she knows the man I ain't, 
She forgives me when I can't, 
That devil man, he don't stand a chance, 
Cause she loves me like Jesus does.

Always thought she'd give up on me one day, 
Wash her hands of me, leave me staring down some runway, 
But, I thank God each night, and twice on Sunday, 
That she loves me like Jesus does.

All the crazy in my dreams, 
And both my broken wings, 
Every single piece of who I am, 
Yeah, she knows the man I ain't, 
She forgives me when I can't, 
And the devil man, no, he don't have a prayer. 
Cause she loves me like Jesus does

Yeah, she knows the man I ain't, 
She forgives me when I can't, 
That devil man, he don't stand a chance, 
Cause she loves me like Jesus does.

I'm a long gone Waylon song on vinyl

I'm a lucky man.  The Queen Of The World is there to give me that gift of Grace when I need it.  Even when I don't deserve it - especially when I don't deserve it.  She reminds me of what this weekend is all about.  That's a neat trick, right there.

Grace is something you can never get but can only be given. There's no way to earn it or deserve it or bring it about any more than you can deserve the taste of raspberries and cream or earn good looks or bring about your own birth.  

... 

A crucial eccentricity of the Christian faith is the assertion that people are saved by grace. There's nothing you have to do. There's nothing you have to do. There's nothing you have to do. 

... 

There's only one catch. Like any other gift, the gift of grace can only be yours if you'll reach out and take it.

- Frederick Buechner, Beyond Words: Daily Readings in the ABC's of Faith

By their works shall ye know them

Senator McCain has passed over to that Undiscovered Country whose shores will one day welcome each of us.  Old NFO has some thoughts that are well worth your time.

I'm of two minds.  Old NFO highlights some of the more sordid events in his career, but his passing was a particularly nasty one (I remember what the cancer did to Dad). It brings to mind the passing of Talleyrand, foreign minister successively to French King Louis XVI, the French Revolutionary regime, Napoleon, and then Kings Louis XVIII and Louis-Philippe.  That's quite an odd set of bed fellows, and highlights Talleyrand's (ahem) flexible principles.  But the end comes for all, and Talleyrand was no exception; he fell ill and was in great pain.  It is said that Louis-Philippe came to visit his minister on his death bed.

Inquiring how he was that day, Talleyrand replied "I suffer the agonies of Hell", to which the King is said to have remarked "What, already?"

On the other hand, I recall the words from the Volgi on the event of Senator Kennedy's passing:

I’d instead ask for God’s mercy upon his soul, for if we ask only for justice, we may receive only justice, and even a saint would flinch at that.

May the Lord grant Grace to us all, even such as Sen. McCain.

Grace

I am Jacob Marley.

We all are. We forge our own psychological chains. Each time we let down those who love us, each act of Foolish Pride, another link gets forged. The longer we live, the longer the chain becomes. Our nature is perfectly imperfect: Out of the crooked timber that is man, no straight thing straight was ever made.

When I was a younger man, this wasn't tangible. I took Scrooge's attitude: nothing for serious reflection - probably indigestion. You may be an undigested bit of beef, a blot of mustard, a crumb of cheese, a fragment of an underdone potato. There's more of gravy than of grave about you, whatever you are!

As Mom could tell you, I was a slow child. 

Even children know that these chains are only broken by grace. You can't earn it, it's given freely, a gift:

When I was in the third grade, my teacher planned activities for our class to celebrate spring: For weeks I looked forward to making treats and dying eggs. I remember telling my mom how much fun it was going to be and I imagined what colors and designs I would choose. Before the big day, my teacher told us to come to class on Friday with a hollowed out egg. We were also told to bring our spelling test signed by a parent, and if we didn't, we would have to sit out from the activities.

At nine-years old, I was the perfect student. I was studious, I was obedient and I was responsible. So when I forgot to bring my spelling test that Friday, I was devastated. I knew what the consequence would be. When my class jumped from their chairs to collect art supplies, I sat still in my desk examining my perfect, hollowed out egg, overcome with disappointment as I fought the inevitable tears.

It wasn't long before my teacher pulled me aside. She knelt down, descending below my sad self and said I should join the rest of the class. With tears in her eyes she told me I could bring my spelling test on Monday. And then she gave me a hug. I couldn't believe it. My disappointment disappeared with this unexpected gift.

Twenty years later, I remember this moment.

That teacher turned a link of chain into a lesson on grace, one that's been carried down through decades.

You can never break your own chains. You need grace. We're surrounded by it, but there's a trick that many people seem not to learn.  Frederick Buechner describes the maddening simplicity of the situation:

A crucial eccentricity of the Christian faith is the assertion that people are saved by grace. There’s nothing you have to do. There’s nothing you have to do. There’s nothing you have to do.
...

There’s only one catch. Like any other gift, the gift of grace can be yours only if you’ll reach out and take it. 

This Easter Sunday, I hope you see the grace that surrounds us. Unexpected, unlooked for, that takes your breath away, that shatters chains.  

Take it.  Give it:

If you were going to die soon
and had only one phone call you could make,
who would you call and what would you say? 

And why are you waiting?

Originally posted on Easter 2009.

Tennessee Ernie Ford - Noah Found Grace In The Eyes Of The Lord

(image source)

Easter is a celebration of grace.  Infinite, and offered to all, it is the center piece of the holiest of Christian holy days.

The Bible is full of passages about grace.  Indeed, the New Testament is a prolonged tract on the subject.  But grace also appears in passages of the Old Testament.  In fact, its very first appearance is in Genesis 6:8:

7 And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.

8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.

The message of Easter is that we can all of us receive that same gift of grace given to Noah.  Tennessee Ernie Ford song a recorded a great many hymns and spirituals, and ended his 1950s daytime TV show with a religious song.  The network executives objected, thinking that it might cause offense to some viewers, but it became the most popular part of his show.



Noah Found Grace In The Eyes Of The Lord (Songwriter: Robert Watson Schmertz)

The Lord looked down from His window in the sky,
Said, "I created man but I don't remember why.
Nothing but fighting since creation day.
I'll send a little water and wash 'em all away."
The Lord came down to look around a spell,
And there was Mister Noah behaving mighty well,
And that is the reason, the Scriptures record,
That Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.

Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord,
Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord,
Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord,
And he landed high and dry.

The Lord said, "Noah, there's gonna be a flood.
There's gonna be some water and there's gonna be some mud.
So take off your hat, Noah. Take off your coat.
Get Ham, Shem, and Japheth and build yourself a boat."
Noah said, "Lord, I don't believe I could."
The Lord said, "Noah, get some sturdy gopher wood.
Never know what you can do till you try.
Build it fifty cubits wide and thirty cubits high."

Noah said, "There she is. There she is, Lord."
The Lord said, "Noah, it's time to get aboard.
Take of each creature a he and a she.
And, of course, Missus Noah and your whole family."
Noah said, "Lord, it's getting mighty dark."
The Lord said, "Noah, get these creatures on the ark."
Noah said, "Lord, it's beginning to pour."
The Lord said, "Noah, hurry up and shut the door."

The ark rose up on the bosom of the deep,
And after forty days, Mister Noah took a peek,
Said, "We're not moving, Lord. Where are we at?"
The Lord said, "You're sitting right on Mount Ararat."
Noah said, "Lord, it's getting mighty dry."
The Lord said, "Noah, see my rainbow in the sky.
Take all your creatures and people the earth.
But be sure you aren't more trouble than you're worth."

Allman Brothers Band - The Sky Is Crying

Nelson Mandela has passed away, one of the last of the true Statesmen.  George Washington's greatness was that he could have been King, and wasn't.  Mandela's was that he could have led a bloodbath of revenge, and steered his country away from that gory road.  His story is one that we see all too rarely these days.  Peter tells it well, as someone who lived through those days in that land.

Mr. Mandela was, in my opinion, a statesman - one of very few politicians who rise to that status.  His death removes one of the last restraining influence on more militant African nationalist politicians - and, yes, Communist-influenced politicians - who have been pressing for swifter and more ruthless redistribution of the country's wealth (such as it is).  I think the restraint they've shown in the face of Mr. Mandela's implacable opposition to such destructive tactics may now evaporate, and politics in South Africa may become much more radicalized.  I hope I'm wrong . . . but only time will tell.  One can only pray that his legacy of wisdom, restraint and pragmatism will endure.  Thank you to Quotespick for putting that legacy into this image.

May the soul of Nelson Rohihlahla Mandela rest in peace, and may his sins be forgiven him.

I have no doubt at all that Mr. Mandela is bound for glory.  And may he have the Allman Brothers Band to sing him to his rest.



I myself recall being in Jo'Burg in 1996, soon after Mr. Mandela took up the Executive powers in that land.  There was a driver in the office of the business partner I was there visiting; of course, the driver was black.  In a quiet time when everyone else was in a meeting, he was the only one in the room and I struck up a conversation.  He was middle aged - about what I am now, if I read it right - and I asked him what the biggest changes to his life had been.  He said that he didn't need to apply for a permit to travel to see his family.  Instead, he just bought a train ticket.  That's a big change, that happened only a brief time ago.

He also said that a lot of the younger men had a lot of anger in them, and that the older men were working to keep that in check.  He said that Mandela gave them someone to point to, as an example.  An example of Grace.

Grace is something you can never get but can only be given. There's no way to earn it or deserve it or bring it about any more than you can deserve the taste of raspberries and cream or earn good looks or bring about your own birth.

...

A crucial eccentricity of the Christian faith is the assertion that people are saved by grace. There's nothing you have to do. There's nothing you have to do. There's nothing you have to do.

...

There's only one catch. Like any other gift, the gift of grace can only be yours if you'll reach out and take it.

- Frederick Buechner, Beyond Words: Daily Readings in the ABC's of Faith

He could have led a blood soaked Reckoning.  Instead, he reached out for that gift of Grace.  Instead, he gave that gift to an entire people.  Instead, he showed the world what the Living Word means.

Peter has another, older post that gives essential background to understand Mr. Mandela, written by a native (white, or as he explains "White" in the proper grammar of apartheid) South African.  In it, he says this:

I remember the time of Mr. Biko's death . . . and I still mourn for him and so many other leaders, murdered before their time. Some were my friends.

South Africa might be a very different place today, with far fewer problems, if they'd lived.

He also posts this amazing song.  You'll have to click through to his post for the lyrics, which are basically the whole thing.  I think it's fair to say that you simply cannot understand modern South Africa without listening to this, but you know how sentimental I am.  However, long time readers also know that I am a student of history.  This is history, a rare event that causes us to look back on the road taken, and the road not taken.  At least for now.  If that changes then the Sky will cry indeed.



God Speed, Nelson Mandela.  You were a far better man than most, and far better than most could have hoped for.

Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine.
Et lux perpetua luceat eis.

Quote of the Day: Hope

So let it be written:

Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come;
'Tis Grace that brought me safe thus far
and Grace will lead me home.

So let it be done.  Amen.

Your moments of Zen

Zen questions (koans) are challenges intended to challenge you to break through to a higher plane of understanding.  Postsecret sometimes delivers this in spades.

And this:

And this:

And this:

I look on these and think on the saying from Frederick Buechner:

Listen to your life. See it for the fathomless mystery it is. In the boredom and pain of it, no less than in the excitement and gladness: touch, taste, smell your way to the holy and hidden heart of it, because in the last analysis all moments are key moments, and life itself is grace.

That's Zen dialed up to 11.  If we listen, and if we dare.