Healing, Crisis, and other brief reflections

• Thanks for prayers! Dr. Tom came out of surgery fine and is in the process of recovery. He is doing cross word puzzles. He stated, "Two miracles. I am alive and I am not brain dead." Routine surgery. Routine miracles. Every day we wake up is a miracle and a gift. We get used to it and forget to marvel and thank God.
• Overheard at lunch a few days ago. Two women met there and got to talking about schools. One in public, one in private. Both attend one of Memphis' largest churches. The first lady spoke about two Christian schools her daughter had attended. She said the second was better, it had more Bible emphasis. She was very complimentary of the teachers, especially their faith. She clearly thought they were committed. But here was the kicker, "The kids are out of control, sex, drinking, drugs. If I had it to do all over again I would have stayed in public school." Now this is one lady and one view point, so I want to remember that. However, I have read data which indicates that "Christian" (i.e. Evangelical) children are statistically not much different from other kids in society. That would be a problem.
• Historically, the Church has suffered from the same corruption as the world. Princes of the Church acted like Princes. Human sin does not dissipate in large religious institutions. Perhaps we need to factor that into our theological reflections on the work of the Holy Spirit. Our leaders and our kids are not always noticably better...
• Acts 12. " [Herod] had James, the brother of John, killed with the sword." So ends the career of one of the more famous apostles. One verse. The next eighteen recount that Peter is arrested and then an angel springs him from prison. The story is riveting. God really taking a hand in human affairs. There is even a comic moment where Peter is banging on the door where everyone is gathered and the maid, Rhoda, is so excited that she leaves him standing out there as she goes and tells everyone. It is the sort of extended narration that smacks of historicity. It is the sort of detail which one assumes would long be remembered. The miracle of Peter's escape gets more focus. James' martyrdom, not so much. We like to the good news, don't we? Yet, both happened. Christians need to expect that miracle escapes are possible, but not the only possibility. Sometimes we die. (and we heard rumors that Peter ends up martyred later in Rome, too)
• Starting Mark in Morning Prayer. It is a fast paced Gospel. Years of reading it have provided me insight into the levels of meaning and the clever construction. Just read the call of Levi. He worked as a tax collector. Jesus was very radical in His choices and one wonders what He saw in Levi that inspired Him to say "Follow Me." "Those who are sick need a doctor," Jesus said. Perhaps the Church needs to focus more on "medical care" and less on flash and sizzle. I will see what I can do about that today....