Mosaic Mennonites

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Gems and Birds and Good News

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Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field.  Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches”

Matthew 13:31-32, NIV

The ancient rabbis used to say that Scripture is like a gem with 70 faces – every time you turn it, the light refracts differently, and you see something you’d missed before. Jesus’ parable of the mustard seed has always been a personal favorite, a challenging and inspiring story about how we think about size and power in God’s Kingdom.  Recently, however, God’s Light has revealed a new element to the story that I’d missed until now.  

For years when I read this story, I always understood the last line about birds perching in the branches of the mustard tree to be another indication of size: a seed that started so small eventually grows to the point that even a bird can perch in its branches.  

It turns out there’s something more going on here.  At the time, there was a common saying among the Hebrew people: “When God rules the world, it will be like eagles perching in the branches of cedar trees.” That’s how people thought about the reign of God: the biggest, most powerful trees imaginable with the most powerful and majestic of all birds, eagles.  

Photo by nanka-photo at depositphotos.com

When Jesus talks about the Kingdom of God, though, he challenges that perception.  He takes a well-known image and offers an alternative picture: the Kingdom of God isn’t like huge cedars with eagles; it’s like a mustard plant with birds.    

And the word he uses for “birds” is a very specific word.   It’s the Greek word peteinon, which doesn’t just mean “birds” – it means “wild birds.”  These are not the mighty eagles that dwell in huge trees.  There’s a different word for that.  Instead, the word Jesus uses describes the wild, often dirty, detestable birds that people tried to get rid of.  These are the kinds of birds that ate animal carcasses and that farmers erected scarecrows to keep away.  They were unwanted, undesirable animals.  

And yet when Jesus describes the Kingdom of God, he says that even the unwanted and undesirable will find a home … 

… even those animals, and those people, who don’t feel worthy – they’ll have a place in the Kingdom of God.  

… even those people who have been told all the many reasons why they don’t measure up – they’ll have a place in the Kingdom of God.  

… even those people who have been through experiences that make them feel broken and beat up and like damaged goods – they’ll have a place in the Kingdom of God.         

In other words, Jesus makes clear that God’s Kingdom, God’s mercy, God’s grace is for everyone, including and especially for those on the margins, those on the outside, those who wonder whether their lives really matter.  

If you’re reading this post and find yourself wondering whether God could really love someone like you, forgive someone like you, and welcome someone like you – the answer is a resounding YES!  The Kingdom of God is for everyone, no exceptions.  No matter who you are, no matter what you’ve done, no matter what you’ve been through, the Good News at the heart of our faith is that God’s welcome is for all people.  

May our churches be places where this Good News is both known and proclaimed.      

Encouraging Discipleship

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Doylestown (PA) Mennonite Church’s theme for 2021 is “Look instead for what God can do,” based on John 9. Pastor Randy Heacock shared the words of encouragement he wrote last week to his congregation, in response to the attack on the Capitol in Washington, DC. 

January 7, 2021 

I found it difficult to sleep last night. Yesterday was perhaps the most disturbing day in my life as a citizen of the United States. I was too young to really feel the impact of the Kennedy assassination as well as that of Dr. Martin Luther King.  September 11, 2001 was certainly a low point. 

I do not want to relive the details of yesterday, but to see a political protest, led by our elected president, turn violent, disrupt the work of our congress, and threaten the safety of our nation’s capital causes me to be afraid, outraged, and disappointed. If not entirely, it was predominantly led by people who share my skin color and probably some who would claim to share my faith. 

As I prayed, my mind went to our newly introduced theme for 2021, “Look instead for what God can do.”  I am more convinced than ever of our need to both learn and practice this very thing.  Just yesterday I wrote these words of encouragement to my congregation:   

January 6, 2021 

For the remainder of this month, I invite us to practice focusing on those things that are worthy of praise. Perhaps the first place to start is to stop listening to and giving our attention to things that are not worthy of praise. Last I checked radios, televisions, computers, cell phones, and all electronic devices have “off” buttons.  

I suggest we begin the discipline of either turning such things off or at least changing the channel/source when they report things that are not worthy of praise. We will do well to turn off any source such as news feeds, radio personalities, political pundits, or even Christian media, which do not encourage trust in God and love for others. 

What if we assessed the sources we daily tune in to by Paul’s test of being pure, honorable, commendable, and worthy of praise?  Are we willing to turn such things off?  Are we even aware how much of what we take in on a daily basis is not commendable, not pure, and not worthy of praise.  

In order to prepare our hearts and minds to look instead for what God can do, let us  take the first step by making room for those things that are worthy of praise.   It is not a matter of letting the two compete or discerning which side has more to offer but rather what it is that we give our energy and time. 

May we be surprised what God can do in us when we turn off those sources that are not worthy?

Please join me in praying that we, as the people of God, will learn to look instead for what God can do.  May we be diligent to turn off all sources that are not pure or worthy of praise. May we guard our own thoughts and conversations to focus on that which is pure, commendable, true, and worthy of praise.

Let us humble ourselves so that we can see what God can do!

Pastor Randy

Strangers at the manger scene: Seeking truth then and now

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This year I have kept the wise men on the other side of the living room through Advent and Christmas. I have moved them closer to the nativity set as Epiphany approached. They reached their spots near the manger on January 6.

The wise men journey across the living room, to the manger scene in the background. Photo provided by Steve Kriss.

The wise men often seem like overdressed extras in the manger scene. Their gifts are seemingly impractical, likely pawned to pay for the escape to Egypt. Yet they are essential to the story of Jesus for us.

The wise men were spiritual seekers and culturally different. They looked for and read signs in the sky. They were somehow ready for our Messiah king, born as a baby.  Their commitment to seeking the truth was so high that they walked for days to a small town in Palestine.  They didn’t let human understanding, privilege, or power stand in the way of seeking out the truth that God had revealed.  

This week we mark Epiphany or Three Kings Day. I’m fascinated by the character of the wise ones, seeking and finding. They are a holy disruption and exemplars of faithful pursuit. Their visit triggers the state apparatus and forewarns Mary and Joseph of the coming killing of the innocents. They are people who read the signs of the times and pursue the truth of the Christ. 

And I want to be like them.

In last week’s ING podcast, sponsored by Mosaic Conference through MennoMedia, Dr. Soong-Chan Rah highlights the difference between possessing truth and pursuing truth. In pursuing truth, Dr. Rah points out that we continue the journey of discipleship and truth-seeking. In that pursuit, we are shaped and reshaped by our encounters with Jesus. This means a vibrant ongoing relationship with Christ that is anything but boring. This pursuit challenges, reforms, and also embraces us.

We are in a time when truth is frequently contested. Admittedly, there is much to mistrust in the principles and powers at work around us.  However, like the wise ones of old, we must be smart as serpents and innocent as doves in our navigation.  Despite, and maybe even because of the cultural complexities around us, we are called to remain undaunted in our pursuit of truth. We are especially called to be vigilant in the pursuit of truth that is incarnate in Christ, born of Mary, who lived, died, and was resurrected.   

This year I’m leaving my manger set out longer, through the marking of MLK Day and past the presidential inauguration, to honor the pursuit of truth. It will also allow the wise ones, who were across the living room all Advent, to linger a bit longer at the creche scene.  I’ll leave it out as a reminder to me, to make their journey and holy pursuit my own.  

I imagine they hugged loved ones and said, 
“We’ll be back soon.” 
And when loved ones said,
“Don’t leave,”
“It’s risky,”
“You don’t even know what you’re chasing,”
I imagine they put lips to foreheads and said, 
“There is a light in the darkness. I must chase that.” . . .⠀⠀⠀

—from Epiphany Poetry by Sarah Are

It’s Always Winter, But Never Christmas

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This year Mosaic Conference Staff created a Christmas playlist on Spotify. I had fun picking songs that I thought my friends on staff would enjoy. 

One of my favorite bands in high school and college was Relient K. I would blast “Sadie Hawkins Dance” and “Mood Rings” in my 1988 Toyota Tercel while my friends and I sang at the top of our lungs. In 2007, Relient K released a Christmas album, “Let it Snow, Baby…Let it Reindeer,” with some great songs to celebrate the holidays. 

My two favorite songs from the album are, “I Celebrate the Day,” which I included on the Mosaic Christmas playlist, and “In Like a Lion (Always Winter).” Both songs have great melodies and Matthew Thiessen’s voice is awesome as always. 

“In Like a Lion (Always Winter)” was inspired by the book, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. In the book, Mr. Tumnus says to Lucy, “It is winter in Narnia and has been for ever so long…. always winter, but never Christmas.” From that line, the chorus of the song goes:

It’s always winter, but never Christmas
It seems this curse just can’t be lifted
Yet in the midst of all this ice and snow
Our hearts stay warm cause they are filled with hope

With the COVID-19 pandemic, many families did not gather for Christmas. This feels like another huge loss to grieve. How can we celebrate the joy of Christmas without eating together and opening presents in the same room? We wonder, when will the curse of coronavirus be lifted?  Always winter. Never Christmas.

Across the board, our lives have been changed during 2020. As pastors and leaders, lately it feels hard to preach the ‘now-but-not-yet’ message of the kin-dom of God when there’s a lot more ‘not yet’ than ‘now.’” Natural disasters, racism and sexism, broken relationships, unemployment, health issues, addictions, death, and a global pandemic to top it all off. Despite all that, like the song suggests, our hearts are filled with hope—hope in Jesus. 

The final chorus of “In Like a Lion” says,

‘Cause when it’s always winter, but never Christmas
Sometimes it feels like you’re not with us
But deep inside our hearts we know
That you are here and we will not lose hope

Even in the dead of winter, amidst all the ice and snow, hope grows. Hope grows because we know Emmanuel has come to be with us. The lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world has come. True righteousness and justice have come through Jesus. No more let sins and sorrows grow nor thorns infest the ground because Emmanuel has come to make His blessings flow far as the curse is found. 

I will hold on to this hope, even in 2020. We may not have been able to celebrate Christmas the way we wanted to this year, but winter will not last forever. This virus will not last forever. 

Jesus the Messiah has come, and is coming, and I am longing for his grace and truth to cover all of us as we prepare for a new year. We don’t know what 2021 will have for us, but we can trust in Emmanuel, the light of the world, to shine bright and guide us through it. 

May the very presence of Christ himself, warm your hearts this winter. 

May you not lose hope.

May the Holy Spirit reveal to you the new thing that is about to take place.

Lighting Candles

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As we walk through this time of Advent, I am particularly drawn to the idea of Advent as a journey of preparation. The turmoil of this year, with the coinciding stress and desire for the usual ways we celebrate, can distract from the WHO and WHY we celebrate. 

Dinnertime family devotions include burning the daily Advent candle and reading part of the Christmas Story. Photo by Brooke Martin.

As others have shared, this year I want to embrace the quieter season. In many ways that has been fulfilled as my family’s schedule does not hold the normal amount of holiday activities that both celebrate and distract from Jesus’ birthday. Yet in our worn state, disrupted traditions and routines will lead us to numbly drift through Advent without intentionally preparing and looking to Jesus.

This Advent, our family dinner is accompanied with Mosaic’s 25 Days of Advent Family Devotional. We light a candle marking the days until Christmas and read the verse cards which build each day, pointing to and celebrating Jesus’ birth narrative. It is simple. Yet a daily devotional practice instilling the narrative in my children’s hearts, also draws my daily focus back to the purpose and joy of Advent.

The makeshift advent wreath used on Sunday mornings this year. Photo by Brooke Martin.

On Sunday mornings, as my family gathers in our living room for virtual worship, we pull five assorted candles from a cupboard and set them in front of our screen on top of a cloth napkin to build our Advent wreath. It is makeshift, but there is a holiness in bringing what we have before God. I am acutely aware of the individual Advent candle’s call to center my soul and mind, in celebration of Christ’s incarnation. 

During the virtual service an invited household reads the Advent piece for the morning and we join them by lighting the candles in our home. I am struck this year by the call of each week’s candle: Hope. Peace. Joy. Love. Christ. 

As I miss family gatherings, I am appreciating anew Christmas cards and notes. One from my aunt and uncle contained this poem by Holley Gerth. It, too,  helped me pause and recenter:

Five simple candles tell the story of Christ’s birth
and the reasons God sent His only Son to the earth…

The candle of Hope reminds us of the prophets’ words
and the promises they shared with all those who heard.

The candle of Peace reminds us to prepare our hearts,
because it is within us that true worship starts.

The candle of Joy reminds us how the angels came
to announce God’s good news and glorify His name.

The candle of Love is our response to God’s Son
as we so humbly thank Him for all He has done. 

The final candle stands tall above all the rest, 
because it is for the One who is brightest and best…
the candle of Christ reminds us of the reason
we rejoice and celebrate in the Christmas season!

BY Holley Gerth

This Advent and Christmas season, may you find Christ’s Hope, Christ’s Peace, Christ’s Joy, Christ’s Love, and Christ. Amen

How Do You Wait?

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How do you wait when you are expecting something to happen and the wait seems endless?

Some of us withdraw and get depressed thinking about what we cannot do. Some of us disconnect and focus on doing things that give us pleasure like eating, watching sports or a movie, playing video games, shopping, or reading a book.  Some of us isolate and focus on spiritual practices like praying, journaling, or writing poetry. Some of us get impatient and do something active like exercising, composing music, creating a work of art, or organizing our closets. 

During the COVID pandemic, we are all growing weary of waiting, wearing masks, washing hands, socially distancing, and avoiding in-person meetings and events. 

How do you wait?

As we wait for an accessible and effective vaccine to slow down the spread of this costly and deadly virus, we are also celebrating Advent, a season of waiting. Advent is more than waiting to celebrate the birth of Jesus more than 2000 years ago. It is a reminder of the time when Jesus will come again to bring to fulfillment his eternal kingdom. 

God’s people throughout the ages have been waiting for God to free them from oppressive government treatment and policies, personal or communal sin, and disease or hardship in hopes of a better future. The scriptures repeatedly name God’s vision and accompanying promises to restore humanity and all of creation. Scriptures also name the lament, confession, longing, and hopes of God’s people.

Psalms 130 is a poem of waiting for divine liberation. How does the poet wait? From the depths of his being, he cries out to the Lord to listen and hear his voice. He cries out his prayer requests, confession of sins, and hopes from God’s word. Then he becomes silent, to wait for the Lord. His waiting reminds him of God’s steadfast love, power to forgive his sins and the sins of the nation, and promise to liberate.

Many of the gospel texts suggest that this time of waiting is not to be one of withdrawing, disconnecting, isolating, or filling our time with activities. While we remember the past events of Jesus’ birth, life, death and resurrection and anticipate Jesus’ second coming, the gospel writers remind us of Jesus’ teaching to be actively engaged in God’s mission now. Advent is now.

How do you wait? What are ways to wait with hope while staying engaged in God’s mission? During this season when there is increased need, I am inspired to be generous by many individuals, congregations, and organizations in our conference and beyond who are meeting the basic needs of many people. 

Here are a few ideas:

  • Donating money or time to package food items, Christmas gifts, or Mennonite Central Committee kits to ease the burden of those suffering so many losses. 
  • Memorizing a scripture (like Psalm 130) can ease despair and offer hope. 
  • Planning meaningful, family activities that deepen relationships. 
  • Scheduling virtual times with family and friends to keep us connected. 
  • Viewing inspirational concerts, events, and programs online to remind us of God’s creativity, joy, and delight. 
  • Creating a work of art for a family member, friend, or donation to an organization nudges us to serve with joy. (See the photo of my quilt project for my grandson.) 
Mary Nitzsche’s quilt project, a gift for her grandson. Photo provided by Mary Nitzsche.

During this advent season I challenge all of us to wait with hope. May we discover ways to stay engaged in God’s mission to liberate all of creation, for God’s kingdom to be on earth as it already is in heaven. How are you waiting?

5 Ways to Beat the Virtual Slump for the Holidays

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I have a confession. As much as I feel blessed with the technology available for us to use in the midst of this pandemic, there has been more than one time when I think, “Not another Zoom meeting!” 

Zoom meetings are often tedious. People are less likely to get excited over a virtual gathering. But does it always have to be like that? I believe that God has challenged us this year to go out of our comfort zones. We need creative ways to celebrate the gift and be together safely.

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Romans 12:2, ESV)

It’s time to break the stigma of virtual gatherings. Here are some creative ways to make your virtual fellowships more fun and meaningful during this holiday season:

1. Virtual Christmas Vacation

Before the meeting, ask the participants to find a picture of a place that they always wanted to visit. Encourage them to change their virtual background to be their dream vacation spot. (You can even dress up!) During the meeting, each person takes turns guessing “where” the others are. Alternatively, if you’re working with a large group, ask a few people to be a “tour guide” of their locations.

2. Christmas Ornament Challenge

Divide participants into teams and assign each team a breakout room via zoom to collaborate. Ask them to design the “perfect ornament” using the virtual whiteboard option.  By the end of the breakout session, ask them to save and present their ornaments to the larger group. If there is a crowd favorite, the host can print the design into an actual ornament and send it to everyone as a gift.

3. Angel Mails

Use an online gift exchange generator to randomly select an “angel” for each participant. Then, send your assigned recipient a handwritten letter, filled with encouraging words, scriptures, or affirmations for them specifically. Sign it anonymously and mail it to the recipient. Host a virtual gathering to talk about the letters. Each participant shares what they felt after reading the mail, and tries to guess who was their “angel.”

Alternatively, if you find someone who is having a hard time, you can just assign multiple angels for one person!

4. Learn A Christmas Song in Different Languages

Mosaic Conference has six different worshipping languages. Try learning a Christmas song in a language other than your own. You can have someone who speaks a different language join your meeting and teach your group a song that you’ve never heard before.

5. Virtual Interactive Story of Jesus’ Birth

Download or print the Mosaic-made advent family activity. Meeting virtually, each family takes turns to read a part of the story of Jesus’ birth.

Hopefully you’ve been inspired to be more creative with your virtual meetings during this Christmas season. Even though we will be celebrating a different kind of Christmas this year, I hope that the Spirit still keeps the gift alive in each and every one of us.

Solidarity in Voting and Beyond

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Photo by Mary Sanchez

As our country prepared to vote this year, the Mosaic Intercultural Team encouraged many people in our conference to vote as an act of solidarity: solidarity with black and brown people who are fighting for their lives, solidarity with the incarcerated and undocumented who can’t vote, and solidarity with those who are poor and vulnerable. In this way, we bear witness to the reality that God is just, compassionate, loving, and cares for the vulnerable. (To read more, click here.)

This year more than ever, it felt like voting as solidarity was important. In recent years, white supremacy has been allowed to thrive and it has damaged the lives of many people I care about; it feels like every day a new group of people has been attacked or oppressed. As I went to the polls on November 4, I used my vote to bear witness to the God of justice and truth, the God of the defenseless, the God whose love has no borders, the God of freedom and restoration, and the God of who loves all humanity. 

As followers of Jesus, the work remains the same—to fight white supremacy, protect the oppressed and marginalized, and preach the gospel of Jesus. The Mosaic Intercultural Team plans to press forward with that work.

The days after the election I saw many memes and tweets with comments about the results. There was one that caught my attention. The original post said, “You know what I’m going to do the day after Election Day if my candidate loses? Go to work. Be happy. Live my life. Love others. If he wins? Same.” 

Someone in the Twitter-verse decided to correct it. It now read, “Remember that politics are personal to the marginalized and oppressed. Be grateful for the privilege that allows you to be relatively unaffected by policy decisions and show compassion and continued allyship to those who are in pain because of an outcome which may change their life.”

To me, this corrected statement captured the idea of voting as solidarity. To some people, whether their candidate wins or loses, it doesn’t change their day to day life. But for others, who is president directly impacts their well-being, safety, and rights. 

When the election results were announced, some of the country breathed a collective sigh of relief. For my black and brown friends, Muslim friends, LGBTQ friends, and immigrant friends, it felt like the nightmare was finally over. 

With the president-elect and vice-president-elect, it feels to some people like there is hope for things to change. Yet even with the new administration, we know that white supremacy still has a strong hold on this country. Many thought the country reached post-racial status when Obama was elected. Trump’s presidency proved that to be wrong. But it would be equally wrong to think that with Biden and Harris in the White House, white supremacy is defeated in this country. 

As followers of Jesus, the work remains the same—to fight white supremacy, protect the oppressed and marginalized, and preach the gospel of Jesus. The Mosaic Intercultural Team plans to press forward with that work. 

Post-election, solidarity might look like visiting those in prison or advocating for prison reform, supporting a sanctuary church or visiting the border, serving at a homeless shelter or soup kitchen, checking on your black friend or donating to black community organizer groups, or just educating yourself about white supremacy and the ways it impacts society (click here for resources). 

As a conference, when we focus on our priorities of being formational, missional, and intercultural, we will bear witness to a God who is just, compassionate, and cares for the poor and the vulnerable.