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John Habili pt 3

Exodus 34:29-35… I have some thoughts… 😆In summary - Moses has received the Ten Commandments from God and is coming down from the mountain to rejoin his people. He doesn’t realize it but his face is shining in such a way that the Israelites are scared to come near him. Moses calls his people over and speaks with them, then he shares the commandments that God has given them and covers his face from them. This is the pattern. Speak with God uncovered, come back with a shiny face, share the insight with his people, cover face, repeat.As an ADHDer this sounds impossible to me. Ask Mina. I learn something, it rocks my world, the very next time I see her I cannot contain it. I have to share it, and I share it with this expectation that it is going to be as meaningful to her or whoever happens to be in my path as it is to me.This isn’t what Moses does - I imagine that Moses knows he has changed. How could he not? He knows that what he has learned effects his view of God, himself, and all of the people he is leading. I’m not sure if Moses would have blurted it out if people hadn’t been actively avoiding him because of the change they witnessed, but this isn’t a passive distancing. It is noticeable that he is being avoided so he invites those people closer. He speaks with them first and then tells them of this revelation.He hears what they are experiencing, learns something about himself that he hadn’t yet known, then shares what caused the change and what is now expected of himself and them. After that he hides it away. He doesn’t walk around with it on full display as a constant reminder or as something to get used to and forget.When he talks again with God he uncovers his face, as what is happening in him cannot be hidden from the God who is making these things to happen in and through Moses. Moses is enlightened mentally, emotionally, spiritually AND physically, returns to his people, they see that God is still doing something in Moses and he shares this knowledge with them, then puts it away.Knowledge is most useful when needed. In elementary school we learn basic math, how to spell 2 and 3 letter words, how to interact with peers and authority, how to mix paint to get purple and green, and these things have immediate use to us. Later we start to learn more advanced concepts in math, and grammar, and instead of just mixing colors we learn about paint techniques, and how to navigate more complex emotions both personally and with others.If you are anything like me, some of those things were interesting and some of them you cared about so little that you barely took notice of them. I personally had no immediate interest or use for Algebra or World History so there was no way I was going to elect to listen, reflect, or process that more than I was required to.I imagine Moses would have known this too. He had insight that was deeply meaningful, enlightening, and practical to him because he directly experienced these moments with God. It is only as meaningful to the Israelites as it is useful or of interest to them.When I have experienced change in a way that I am conscious of and can appreciate, I want to be like Moses is here in this passage. When I am overcome by insight, or emotion, or conviction - share enough to make sense of what noticeably is happening within me and how my expectations have changed, then move on. I don’t want to hold back and keep it only to myself, but I don’t want to shove it in people’s faces or try to force someone to think or be something they have no use of knowing or being. I want what has enlightened me to be enlightening to others and it can only be so if they are in such a place as to be enlightened.This is why the vast majority of the time the person standing outside the fairgrounds with a microphone, flyers in their hand, and a big loud sign is unappreciated. Maybe they have something great to say, but in that moment I do not care, I only know that it is a loud and obnoxious nuisance on the way to being where I want to be. When I unload all the implications of whatever topic has caught my attention this hour to Mina, or my family, or my closest friends, it’s only useful if I understand enough of what it means to me to share enough of what it needs to mean for them.Know your audience - when you are with God or someone who can appreciate the full breadth of what you are passionate and convicted about, let it all out. When you aren’t, maybe just share what they need to know in order to make sense of you, not the essay. They can read it later if they want to, and by that point I might understand it better myself.

Aug 8, 2023
John Habibi Pt 2

If the salvific work of Christ’s death and resurrection are to strip that same death of it’s finality, then death becomes nothing more than a blip on the radar of life. I only left the safety of my parent’s home 16 years ago. I just graduated from college 12 years ago. I met the love of my life only 14 years ago and recently married her - 10 years ago. I became a father for the first time only recently, 4 years ago, and again only 2 years ago.Many of us molded by the teachings of Christ and the church operate with 2 different understandings of death; either it changes everything and so we must do as much as possible now while we have the breath in our lungs, or, because it finally brings about our lives to full we must bide our time living right so that we can finally live in full when we close are eyes for good.If death is not the end, and in dying Christ stripped it of it’s power, I do not want to wait for death to begin living nor do I want to rush through an exhaustive checklist on my way out the door. I want to begin living into The Kingdom of God now as we pray for it to be “on earth as it is in heaven”, and I am free to engage with life and all of God’s creation with genuine curiosity and care.

Aug 8, 2023
John Habibi Pt 1

a love for the Bible. I am a Christian and it isn’t because of the teachings of Jesus. I am a Christian and it isn’t because I was convinced by some great reason or logic to believe. I am a Christian because I was raised to be one. Some of my closest friends and family were also raised to be Christians. They aren’t Christian anymore. Them not being Christian isn’t something that I determined, I’ve grown not to dare to do that. No, they have told me so plainly that they cannot be that anymore… Christian, I mean. Truthfully, God bless them! They did not leave because of some desire to live in a way that is separate from the teachings of Christ, the Church, or even those that brought them into the world. They know how desperately their parents believe and how desperately they want their children to believe too. This is good.I am a Christian and it isn’t because I believe in the Creeds, though I confess and I do believe. I am a Christian and it isn’t because of spiritual experiences I have had, though I have had them and I still do not understand what they are to accomplish. Did they accomplish something? There are those like our Jewish brothers and sisters whose faith and teachings are the bedrock of Christianity, yet they mostly do not believe their Savior has come. There are our Muslim brothers and sisters who believe in Jesus, but as a prophet and not Lord. May God continue to bless them both. I do not judge them for not converting, and I don’t judge them when they do. God knows that there are so many others who follow ancient teachings, often times even older than Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Lord bless them in their adherence and seeking. There are those who were taught to do good and be kind without any religious affiliation, maybe even a disdain for it. May God continue to bless them and may they continue to seek truth and do good.I am a Christian because I inherited a faith that resonates with me and helps me process the awe I experience in the love of my children, the selflessness of my spouse, and the charity of my community. I am a Christian because in times of sadness and despair I take comfort in belief that God is there, not as an observer but as a partner who does not judge me or even attempt to rescue me, but simply remain with me. I am a Christian because I am convinced by the ministry of Jesus the Palestinian Jew who was not what anyone expected, but came to be what we all need. I am a Christian because I believe that the love of God is for all and that it is given freely to all, to the Jew, the Muslim, the Hindu, the Atheist, to the former Christian, and even to us - the Christians who think we have it all figured out.May God grant us wisdom to seek truth, humility to let go instead of doubling down, and love for those who can remain, those who never were, and those who cannot stay. We will all be reconciled - or maybe this is what God’s Kingdom actually looks like. I don’t know, but I’ll be wondering.

Aug 8, 2023
Prayers for Dewey at the departing of his soul

O Lord God Almighty, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who willA that all should be saved, and should come to the knowledge of the truth; who desires not the death of a sinner, but that he should turn again and live: We pray thee and implore You, absolve the soul of Your servant, Dewey, from every bond, and deliver him from every curse. Pardon his transgressions, both of knowledge and of ignorance, both of deed and of word, which he committed from his youth up. You alone loose those things which are bound, and guides aright the contrite, and are the hope of the despairing, and mighty to remit the sins of every one who puts their trust in You. O Lord who loves mankind, give Your command, and he shall be released from the bonds of the flesh and receive in peace the soul of this Your servant, Dewey, and give him rest in the everlasting mansions, with Your Saints; through the grace of Your Only-begotten Son, our Lord, and God, and Savior Jesus Christ: with whom Your are blessed, together with Your all-holy, and good, and life-giving Spirit, now, and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen. Another prayer for Dewey We pray unto You, the Father who is from everlasting, and immortal, and unto Your Only-begotten Son, and unto Yoiur all-holy Spirit, that You will deliver Dewey from the body onto repose, entreating, also, forgiveness through Your ineffable goodness of any sins, whether of knowledge or in ignorance. O Master, Lord our God, hear our voices in this hour, and deliver Your servant, Dewey, from this intolerable sickness which holds him, and give him rest where the souls of the righteous dwell. For Your are the repose of our souls and of our bodies, and unto thee do we ascribe glory, to the Father, and to the Son, and to the HolySpirit, now, and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Nov 26, 2022
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