Work the Raw Materials

I regularly sit to discuss various forms of this question: "What does God want me to do with my life?" We talk through this sometimes over the course of a semester, semesters, or years. I love guiding and helping others through this time of searching; it seems to come with the territory as a campus minister. Dan Miller has been a good resource for me in these conversations for some time.

Today's post was a little longer than normal, but contained some great perspective on the raw materials called spiritual gifts. Here is an excerpt:

God’s gifts are raw materials, not finished products. Think about the most revered sacrament in the church – Holy Communion. Does God give us bread and wine? Where can you find those in nature? You can’t. God makes wheat, He doesn’t make bread. He makes grapes – not wine. But when we take the raw materials God gives us, we can add our work and give them back to him as an offering.
And I remember reading in the most popular “self-help” book available: “For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.” ( 2 Thes. 3:10)
This is a picture of the spiritual life for each of us. Every one of you has special gifts – singing, writing, gardening, art, computer skills, selling abilities, teaching others, encouraging others – but whatever our gift is – it’s a raw product. It has limited value until we apply the discipline necessary to make it useful to ourselves and others.
We get nothing but rough materials – life doesn’t hand us the finished product. Life may even bring us obstacles or heartache along the way. But ultimately, our lives are the bread that we prepare. Our lives are what those around us see as the result of what we’ve done with those raw materials.
So the issue is balance – is it all us, NO. Is it all God, NO. We develop the raw products of what God has given us. ...
I recently read a couple books by Franciscan priest Richard Rohr. He comments on how to joyfully surrender ourselves to God, and how to pray: "Asking for something from God does not mean talking God into it; it means an awakening of the gift within ourselves."

I really like how he encourages us to work to enhance the gifts God has given us. Instead of waiting for lunch to be plopped down right in front of us, we can enjoy the same end (lunch) with more perspective, maturity, and transformation having made it ourselves.

We are more fully alive having taken the gifts God has given us and working to make the heavenly banquet the best it can be! It would certainly be great to have "God open all the doors, creating the perfect (and clear) path" for our lives! Yet, we would jeopardize the incredibly important process that can lead to an amazing feast!

Bread of Life 3

It occurred to me that we cannot live without food (duh!). If we do not eat, we die. Jesus talks in a spiritual manner saying that if we do not eat of the spiritual food of Jesus, who comes from the Father, then we will die spiritually. There is part of me that already knew this, but I guess my growing desire to commune with God intimately throughout the day has made this 'eating of the bread of life' more real. The life I have in Christ is only made possible because of the ever-growing relationship I have with him. How could I not eat from the bread of life and still live?

Bread of Life 2

The connection between Jesus' statements about being the bread of life and communion are pretty obvious. Especially since John is the only gospel writer who does not mention the Last Supper with his disciples. So, for most (myself included), John 6 functions as John's "Last Supper" or "communion" passage.

Thinking in terms of the Lord's Supper we see that Jesus' statements take on a new and fuller meaning. As we learn to identify with Jesus by "coming to him" and "believing in him" we begin follow through with this identity in how we live. We take on the flesh and blood of Jesus in living out his life on earth now. This is the eating of his flesh and the drinking of his blood that repulses those literalists in Jesus' day (cf. 6:53-60).

Every Sunday we recommit ourselves to identify with Jesus' death as we take the Lord's Supper. In this act, we receive the bread that truly sustains us. It is the bread of life. It is Jesus' body and blood that we proclaim keeps us going. It is the hope of eternal life right now that sustains the life we live.

Bread of Life 1

Well, here are some of my initial observations on Jesus' statement in John 6. Most of it is going to be text focus, which is where most reflection begins for me anyway.

I notice that the people are drawn to Jesus because they ate bread and were full; the feeding of the five thousand just happened at the beginning of the chapter. They at least recognize that Jesus can provide for them, even though it is physically motivated on banal needs.

Jesus takes advantage of this opportunity to do a little teaching on the true nature of the food that he offers. This is bread that endures to eternal life. He changes their slightly misplaced focus from Moses to God: "...it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father" (6:32). They like the proposal and ask Jesus to not give them something he has already given them (physical bread), but to give them this bread that gives life to the world (6:33-34).

It is at this point that Jesus makes the emphatic statement, "I (not someone or something else) am the bread of life." I can't get past how Jesus says that 'coming to him' (whatever that means) will allay their hunger and 'believing in him' (whatever that means) will assuage their thirst. The presence of Christ in their life will actually take away their hunger and their thirst.

When I really think about this, I want this. To know (and beyond that...to experience) God's presence in such a deep and real way is something for which I passionately long. The only way that I can describe it in words is to be caught up in the Spirit, to be overwhelmed with God's holiness. It forces me to fall down to my knees. I can't help but be taken and shaken, yet firmly established in the hands of the one called 'The Bread of Life.'

Father, continue to help me understand Jesus statement here in John 6. Reveal the depth of this statement to me. It seems a little hidden and I don't understanding it completely. But, I know that you are the revealer of all mysteries. Help open my eyes to this bread from heaven.