Jon C. Swanson's Blog, page 14

On love and love and love.

Why talk about this on Mother’s Day? Why have a text that talks about God’s deep love for us which comes before our actions?

Because most of the mothers I know are concerned about being good enough as mothers.

I have heard it from mothers who are close to death, concerned that they have not done a good enough job with their children. Children now in their sixties.

I have heard it from mothers who are just starting out, watching the commercials about being Parkview moms and then strug...

Wisdom And Right Thinking

Rich Dixon is wiser than he admits.

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I told you a while back about Una – Dr. Uname Mulale.

The FREEDOM TOUR 2018 team revisited her inspirational story as we talked about wisdom and right thinking.

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Una had never been on a bike (let that sink in) before she felt God’s call to join our team on a 500-mile tour from Cincinnati to D.C. in July. So, in March she bought a bike and hired a coach to teach her how to ride a bike – in New York City. On Day 1 of the tour, Una cra...

On love and a shepherd.

Love is an expression of unearned, undeserved care.

That’s at the heart of the words that Jesus spoke on a winter’s day in Jerusalem.  He was walking in Solomon’s colonnade, or Solomon’s porch. It was a massive covered walkway on the outside edge of the temple.

He was just there, a person visiting the temple. Some of the religious leaders spotted him. They gathered around him, maybe even cornered him.

“How long are you going to keep us in suspense?” they said. “Are you the messiah?”

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On love and the shepherd and Mother’s day.

For those who know the church calendar, yesterday was the Fourth Sunday of Easter. In the majority of the church, that is all it is. A day when we reflect on the compassionate shepherding of Jesus.

It is not, for the majority of the church, Mother’s Day. That’s not a church holiday, which is probably good. Because it is such a complicated commercial day.

Not that mothers are not important. But there is a danger in creating pictures of what mothers must look like, pictures created throug...

A prayer for the fourth Sunday of Easter

God

We are in a hospital chapel on Mother’s Day.

We need to have tears wiped away from our eyes. None of us wants to be here. Except, perhaps, for those in the Family Birthing Center who have just been through labor and are holding a newborn, healthy and squalling or content.

The rest of us are working rather than celebrating, worrying about treatments, anticipating what may happen before the end of the day.

We’re missing mothers who are gone or who have never been around.

We ...

A prayer for Friday.

God.

We know that we’re invited to love each other, that it’s the heart of your commandments.

“If you love me,” you said, “you will keep my commands.” And then a bit later you said, “here’s my command: love one another.”

And then you loved us. As you always have and always will.

I fear that we look more for exemptions than opportunities. We look more for adequate than extravagant. We look more for boundaries than boundless. We look for definition more than dedication. We argue abs...

Tell her.

I was in the room because it was Sunday, and he had done church at home for them for a few years since she couldn’t get out. And, you know, I’m a chaplain. And they needed a little church right now.

Decades into the relationship, only days left.

We were talking about her a bit. And about them. Remembering history. Telling stories. They had ice cream every day. Together.

He moved back to his spot at the head of the bed and she opened her eyes. They focused on his.

He talked to her...

One At A Time

Rich Dixon talks about why his riding matters.

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Last time I told you Sumi’s story.

Reflecting on her experiences, I’m reminded of a few things I tend to forget.

One single life holds infinite value for Jesus. He sacrificed himself for all of us, and for each of us. To paraphrase C.S. Lewis, “Jesus would have gone to the cross if Sumi were the only person in the world.”

Rescue and restoration are one-at-a-time processes. The horrible evil of human trafficking is changed by r...

Follow him.

On the night before Jesus was killed, Peter promised that he would always follow Jesus. To the death. It’s the kind of promise we want to make to God.

Within a few hours, to three different people, Peter denied that he had been with Jesus, that he had known Jesus. Three times. He was scared. It’s understandable. And it was predicted by Jesus.

But Peter still felt awful. He felt like a failure.

He watched from a distance when Jesus died. He showed up the morning that Jesus was raised....

I want to see.

“I want to see everything.”

That’s our three-year-old grandson, Ben. He walks into the garage. He walks into my study. He looks around. He gestures. And he says, “I want to see everything.”

Often, seeing everything includes seeing with his hands.

And then starts the process of distraction, redirection, explanation, experimentation, education, and resolution.

The latter, resolution, is for me. “Before he comes the next time, put that away, put that out of sight.”

And I usually f...