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A True Foot Washing Service

By Jeremy Myers
14 Comments

A True Foot Washing Service

mental illnessI deal with men who are mentally ill on a weekly basis at my job. Recently, a young man named Daniel came into my office and said he had a message for me from God. He handed me a note, which said this:

John, as an honor, asked him how might it be that I should wash your feet. He asked, I am. Would you have your brother too, be he, whom would be left to the way? No, say I! Not thy will, but albeit, your will be done, Lord. Amen.

I thanked Daniel for the message from God. He smiled and left.

You might recognize bits of that message as coming from John 13, where Jesus sought to wash the disciples’ feet and Peter objected.

When people say that they are giving me a message from God, very rarely do I think that it is actually a message from God. But with this message from Daniel, I tend to think it was.

“What!?” You might say. “It’s gibberish. It doesn’t make any sense! God wouldn’t do that!”

Wouldn’t He? Have you read the book of Revelation recently? … But this post isn’t about bibliology, so let’s move on…

Thinking about Foot Washing Services

I think it truly was a message from God because that very week I had been thinking about these “foot washing ceremonies” which we sometimes have in church. Can I be frank? I think they’re stupid. I think that foot washing ceremonies completely miss the point of why Jesus washed the disciples’ feet.

Jesus performed that task because it was the most menial task that a household servant could perform at that time. You’ve heard the cultural background, I’m sure. People wore sandals as they walked around in the dusty streets, which were also full of animal droppings. Nobody wanted all this tracked through their house.

Besides, they ate meals at low tables while they reclined on the ground. Which means that everybody was down near foot level. Imagine how feet must have stunk! So they had the lowest of the low household servants wash everybody’s feet as they entered the house.

To show his disciples how much He loved them, He washed their feet. That is, He became the lowest of the low servants in the house.

foot washing ceremonyDoes a modern foot washing ceremony do this? Hardly. More often than not, people who attend these foot washing ceremonies make sure that they washed their feet in advance and scraped all the gunk out of their toenails. Then they wear a clean pair of socks and shoes.

A True Foot Washing Service

If have often thought that if we really wanted to follow the spirit and symbolism of that first foot washing ceremony, we would find the dirtiest and most menial tasks in our churches, our neighborhoods, or our homes, and do those.

I have heard of pastors who pick up cigarette butts from the church parking lot, and go change diapers in the nursery. That’s foot washing! I have heard of youth pastors who led their youth group on a mission’s trip to the local outhouses near where the homeless people live and cleaned them up. That’s foot washing! My friend, Sam Riviera, often walks around where the homeless are and picks up trash along the street. He says it is not uncommon to find used condoms and syringes. That’s foot washing!

But let me get back to Daniel and his note. His note to me from God reminded me that washing someone else’s feet is not just about what you do, but whom you do it for. Yes, Jesus washed the feet of his disciples, but remember, Judas was there too. Do you think Jesus skipped Judas as being “unworthy”? I doubt it.

It seemed to me that Daniel’s note was an invitation for me to “wash the feet” of the mentally ill I encounter every week. How? By listening to them with patience, even when I don’t understand a word they are saying. The mentally ill are often mocked, neglected, and abused by those who should love, protect, defend, and care for them. Maybe I can be a kind voice. A helping hand. A listening ear. A pat on the back.

If you don’t know anyone who is mentally ill, that’s okay. There are other people whose feet you can wash. Maybe you could “wash the feet” of Muslim neighbors by being kind to them (without trying to convert or condemn them). Maybe you could “wash the feet” of homeless people by giving them a meal, even when you know they waste all their money on drugs.

There are thousands of ways to wash people’s feet, and billions of people who need their feet washed.

Open your eyes. Look around. There is pain and fear all around, just waiting for someone to wash it away. After all, “Would you have your brother too, be he, whom would be left to the way?”


This post is part of the October 2014 Synchroblog. Below is a list of other contributors. Go read them all!

  • Sarah Griffith Lund – Stronger Together
  • Liz Dyer – Finding the Courage to Break the Silence
  • Stacy Sergent – ‪No Longer Protecting Secrets
  • Patricia Watson – Grace Amid Crazy
  • Glenn Hager – When Mental Illness Strikes Home
  • Crystal Rice – Looking Well on the Outside
  • Cara Strickland – Making Peace With My Mental Illness
  • David Hosey – The church, the psych ward, and me
  • Ona Marie – Mental Illness, Family, and Church
  • Carol Kuniholm – A Prayer for the Broken
  • Susan Herman – 3 Self Care Rituals for Managing Tough Transitions
  • Eric Atcheson – Blessed Are The Crazy
  • Joan Peacock – “Alice in Wonderland”, a Bipolar BookGroup Discussion Guide
  • Justin Steckbauer – Mental Illness, Awareness, and Jesus
  • Kathy Escobar – Mental Illness: 3 Sets of 3 Things
  • Leah Sophia – Mental Illness/Health Awareness
  • Josh Morgan – Peace Between Spirituality and Mental Health
  • Tara Ulrich – Breaking the Silence
  • Sarah Renfro – Blessed Are The Crazy
  • Steve Hayes – Mental illness and the Christian faith
  • Mindi Welton-Mitchell – Breaking the Silence: Disability, Mental Illness and the Church
  • Michelle Torigian – A Life of Baby Steps
  • Bec Cranford-Smith – Mental Health and the Pastor

 

God is z Bible & Theology Topics: Discipleship, evangelism, foot washing, homeless, mental illness, mission, service

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Dancing With Jesus

By Jeremy Myers
10 Comments

Dancing With Jesus

dancing with JesusMy friend, Sam Riviera, wrote this about how he spent Easter:

Amazing grace,
How sweet the sound.
That saved a wretch like me
I once was lost,
But now am found.
Was blind,
But now I see.

We spent Easter morning with the outcast — the lame, the halt, the thieves, the alcoholics, the drug-addicts, the murderers. We climbed out of our warm beds and headed out into the streets laden with bags of clothes, food and water. We shared what we had with those who had slept under bushes, on the ground and any other place they could find.

Happy Easter! Happy Easter! Almost every person greeted us with “Happy Easter!”

These are supposed to be the people who don’t know Jesus. Yet they know Jesus. They have seen Jesus walking among them. He has danced with them. He loves them. They like Jesus.

Jesus was with them in prison. He visited them there. He was with them in Southeastern Asia when they spent the years rotting away in bamboo cages lowered into holes. He was with them as they walked the streets of America, looking for a place to lay their head. They told us Jesus was with them.

“Grace. It’s all about grace. No matter had bad we screw up, God’s grace is still good. He never forgets us. He’s always there. He’s always been there for me. He’s been there the last eighteen years while I’ve traveled around the country. I don’t have a dime to my name, but I’ve got God’s grace. It’s all about grace. Don’t ever forget that.”

So said the man sitting on the sidewalk on Easter morning. The man with no home. The man with nothing. But he knows that Jesus lives!

“See this mark behind my ear,” said another. That’s where the VC shot me. The bullet came out through my nose. See this big white patch on my thigh” he said, pulling up his pant leg. “That’s where they got the skin to graft onto the left side of my face. Another bullet ripped a big hole there and they had to patch it. God got me through it and He’ll get you through whatever comes your way too.”

We went to give a cup of water, a warm coat. We found Easter. The risen Jesus had been there. The risen Jesus was there, walking among those outcast and despised by the world. He too had been outcast and despised. He knows what it’s like. He walks among those He loves. They see Him. They see the One who was despised, rejected and afflicted. He is one of them.

He is risen!

He is risen indeed!

He walks among His people.

He loves us. Whether we’re thieves, adulterers, liars, cheats, gluttons, alcoholics or murderers, He loves us.

Whether we see Him in a fancy building with stained glass windows or dancing with us in the streets, He’s there. He’s alive.

If you haven’t seen Him, walk with those who do see Him. Perhaps you’ll catch a glimpse. Perhaps He’ll come and sit with you. Perhaps He’ll dance with you.

There is so much need in the world!

And YOU can help.

Fill out the form below to receive several emails about how to love and serve the poor and homeless.

(Note: If you are a member of RedeemingGod.com, login and then revisit this page to update your membership.)

God is Redeeming Theology Bible & Theology Topics: Discipleship, Easter, following Jesus, He is risen, mission, Sam Riviera, Theology of the Church

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14 Practical Ways to Love Others Like Jesus

By Jeremy Myers
34 Comments

14 Practical Ways to Love Others Like Jesus

Love others

One of the most popular forms of ministry today is the ministry that makes a big splash, garners a lot of attention, and possibly gets reported in the news. 

And while good does come from “Go Big” forms of ministry, there are other ways to love others like Jesus. If we think the big splash ministry is the only way to minister, then we will ignore all the small, effective, practical ways of loving others that might actually make more tangible and lasting impact on the lives of others for the Kingdom of God. This is partly why Jesus spoke of giving a cup of cold water in His name (Matt 10:42) and liked the Kingdom of God to a mustard seed (Matt 13;31-32).

It is often the small, easy, cheap, affordable, insignificant, simple acts of love and kindness that do the most to help people experience the love of Jesus through your life. 

What sort of things? Below are 14 practical ways to love others like Jesus. There are thousands of such ways, but the following are 14 of the things that my family does to try to show love to others. They are not things you necessarily have to do, but are simply offered as examples.

If we want to simply love others, then we can love others simply.

Please feel free to share some of your own suggestions in the comments below. 

14 Ways to Love Others Like Jesus

  1. Love the person right in front of you. There is so much pain and loneliness in the world, you can be pretty sure the person next to on the bus or the checker at the grocery store could use a kind word, a smile, or a helping hand. Get off your cell phone and talk to them. Get to know them. Ask them how their day is going… and mean it. Remember their name. 
  2. Take food to your neighbors. Like what? Nothing fancy… a plate of cookies, a loaf of fresh-baked bread. When you give it to them, don’t drop it in their arms and run. Stand and talk for a bit if they seem to want that. Don’t invite yourself in and don’t invite them to church. Just be friendly. 
  3. Have neighbors over for dinner or dessert. Don’t make it formal or fancy. Just pizza and pop. Or BBQ and beer. Don’t try to turn it into a Bible study. Just laugh, tell stories, and listen. 
  4. Hand out homeless bags to people you see on the street. We carry 2-3 bags  around in our car and hand out them out when we see people begging on street corners. The ones we hand out contain a tarp, a pair of socks, some non-perishable food, a bottle of water, a scarf, and whatever else we can find.
  5. Watch the children of single mothers so they can go shopping alone. Or, men, offer watch all the kids so your wife and the other woman can go get some coffee and chat.
  6. Take up gardening so you can talk to your neighbor who is all alone.
  7. When you take your kids to activities, don’t retreat to your car and listen to the radio or text on your cell phone. Stick around and talk with any other parents who are there.
  8. Do the Twelve Days of Christmas for a friend or neighbor. What is this? It’s Twelve Days of “Secret Santa.” Every day, you sneak over, leave a gift or present on their doorstep, ring the bell, and run! If you have children, they LOVE doing this around Christmas time.
  9. Put together Shoe Boxes with Samaritan’s Purse.
  10. Help raise money to rescue girls in slavery. Sell candy or treats, not for a band trip to Hawaii, but to raise money to rescue girls from slavery or some other human need.
  11. Help a missionary family overseas by doing things they cannot do where they are. Download podcasts and load hundreds of them on a CD and send it to them. Help them set up and run a blog. Send them clothes and crafts they cannot get overseas.
  12. Pack and deliver boxes of food and presents on Christmas Eve to families in the community that are less fortunate. Just give them the presents. No gospel tracts.
  13. Volunteer to help feed the poor and homeless in your area. Bring crafts to do with the children.
  14. Buy food for a homeless person on the street, and then sit and talk with them while they eat (If they don’t mind). Hug them!

The bottom line is that simple (not big and glorious) acts of kindness are effective ways of loving others like Jesus. None of these are glamorous. None of them will get you recognized in church. None of them will get you interviewed on television, BUT they don’t cost an arm and a leg and they won’t burn you out either. They are just simple ways to be kind every day to friends and strangers so that we can offer light and love and hope to the people around us.

love others

Oh…. And please, please, please, do not ever do any of these things with the intention or goal of getting people to attend your church. This is where most Christians screw it up BIG TIME. If we go help our neighbor mow his lawn because he broke his leg, and then after you’re done you invite him to church, he is going to know that you don’t really care about him at all. All you really care about is getting his butt in a pew on Sunday morning so you can brag to all your Christian friends about how you mowed his lawn and rescued him from the fires of hell.

As I have said before, Christian love does not consist in asking someone to come to church with you. If your only reason for loving people is to get them into church, just stay home and watch TV. 

God is Uncategorized Bible & Theology Topics: church, Discipleship, evangelism, love like Jesus, love others, ministry, mission, Theology of the Church

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18 Questions for Re-Imagining the Church

By Jeremy Myers
18 Comments

18 Questions for Re-Imagining the Church

imagining the church

I spent a few posts this week (Questioning the Church, Extreme Church Makeover, What if You Were God?) talking about how you and your church and figure out what God wants you to do in your community with your time, energy, and money.

Part of this process involves imagining different ways of being church, different ways of loving others, and different ways of serving our neighbors.

Some people calling this “casting vision” but in my opinion, the word “vision” is one of those overused churchy buzzwords which makes most people gag. So following the ideas presented in books by Walter Brueggemann and Greg Boyd, I invite you to imagine what the church can be and do.

Imagine new ways of being the church, living within the Kingdom of God, loving others, serving the needy, and revealing Jesus Christ to others.

Here are some great “What if” questions to move you in the right direction: (Note: So I don’t pull a Driscoll… These 18 questions for re-imagining the church originally came from a post by Kevin Bussey in 2008, but I can no longer find that post.)

What would happen if…

  • Followers of Jesus concentrated on sharing their faith with a lost and dying world?
  • Followers of Jesus prayed for the church across the street?
  • Churches didn’t see other churches as competition but as allies?
  • Churches rejoiced when another church is thriving?
  • We realized our view might be wrong?
  • Their church is just as important to God as yours?
  • We recognized God likes variety?
  • Followers of Jesus didn’t shoot their wounded?
  • We acted like Grace really is amazing?
  • We give Grace beyond the point of conversion?
  • We realized God likes worship–no matter what the style is?
  • Churches in a community partnered with each other to reach the lost and hurting people that God has given to them?
  • Churches didn’t criticize other churches?
  • Followers of Jesus didn’t nit-pick other believers, churches or ministries?
  • Followers of Jesus became part of the solution rather than being the problem?
  • We really prayed…?
  • Followers of Jesus could put aside differences in order to minister to a dying world?
  • Followers of Jesus really became one?

Do you have any questions to add to this list? Include them in the comments below? How do you and your church seek to find new ways to share the love of Jesus with others?

God is Uncategorized Bible & Theology Topics: being the church, church, loving others, ministry, mission, missional, service, Theology of the Church

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The Kingdom of God is Like The Little Drummer Boy

By Jeremy Myers
5 Comments

The Kingdom of God is Like The Little Drummer Boy

Pentatonix
This “Little Drummer Boy” video by Pentatonix is so cool on multiple levels:

Little Drummer Boy by Pentatonix

Here is why I love “The Little Drummer Boy” by Pentatonix.

First, it is by far the best rendition of “Little Drummer Boy” I have ever heard. I don’t know why, but it brings me to tears just listening to it.

Second, it is so cool because they are not using any instruments at all… only the amazing talent of their own voices. It is shocking to hear what the human vocal chords can do.

Third, I wrote a while back about how Susan Boyle reminded me that the Kingdom of God is among us, and how eternity will allow us to be and do what we were made for, even if we don’t get the chance in this life. I think it is pretty obvious that the members of Pentatonix are doing some of what they were made for. The things they can do with their voices gives glory to God and reminds us of the beauty and shocking majesty of God’s creation, especially humans made in His image.

Fourth, and most significantly, the lyrics of this song align perfectly with what the members of Pentatonix are doing. I mean, in the song, the little drummer boy doesn’t have much to offer to Jesus… just an ability to bang on a drum. But he offers it anyway: “Just me and my drum.”

So also with Pentatonix. We may be tempted to think sometimes that a voice is nothing special. I mean, everyone has one. We use it tens of thousands of times every day. A voice is about as ordinary a thing as exists. Noise coming through lips is about as common as dirt (from which we come).

But the beauty that a voice can produce is one of the most amazing things in all creation.

You are a Miracle

I think sometimes we humans are led to believe we have nothing special to offer God. We are not famous, rich, powerful, or pretty. We have no great talents or skills. But you know what? God doesn’t really want any of that. God wants what is ordinary and normal. You know, things like dirt. Or a voice. A work-hardened hand. A watchful eye. An attentive ear. Nothing great or special, just things we all have.

But when given to God to use in His Kingdom, these ordinary, every-day things become full of majesty, splendor, and glory.

Pentatonix Carol of the Bells

This Christmas, don’t wish you had some great skill to use in God’s service. Don’t wish for great riches, fame, or power. Just look at the normal, everyday things that everybody already has. Then say, “God, I don’t have much… it’s just me and my drum… but I’ll play for you if you want.” Then watch, wait, and listen.

See how God can use the dirt in your life to plant flowers for somebody else.

See how God can use your voice to speak words of encouragement, love, forgiveness, or hope to others.

See how God can use your work-hardened hands for acts of kindness toward others.

See how God can use your watchful eye to observe the needs of others.

See how God can use an attentive ear to listen for the pain and fear in the lives of others.

You don’t need anything special…. you just need what you already have… which, when you think about it, is actually the most special and amazing miracle in the universe. The miracle of a voice, the miracle of sight, the miracle of touch, these are the ordinary, everyday miracles which tell us time and time again, “The Kingdom of God is within you.”

You are the little drummer boy, and you and your drum are the miracle of Christmas. In the Kingdom of God the most normal of things become miracles of God.

God is Uncategorized Bible & Theology Topics: Discipleship, kingdom of god, miracle, mission, Pentatonix, purpose in life, singing

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