Sermons

First Christian Church

“A Different Kettle of Fish”

Exodus 19:2-8a

In this portion of scripture there is a core message that comes through loud and clear for the people of God. What it amounts to is God didn't bring the people out of Egypt so they could do whatever they felt like doing with their freedom. He brought them out of Egypt so they could become his people by living out the covenant he gave them.

By extension the same is true for us. We've not been freed from the bondage of the ego so we can do whatever we please. We've been freed so we can better discern the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit can create a vision for us to follow. In strict religious terms you might call it a path of righteousness and an even better word for righteousness is justice.

By the same token, we've been gifted with the guidance that comes through scripture and by reciting the twenty-third psalm we see how justice can aptly replace the word righteousness:

“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want, he makes me to lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside the still waters, he restores my soul. He leads me in paths of justice for his names sake.”

Illustrated in the text is that the people become God's people when they make the attempt to live out the covenant God has given them. Christians also have been given a covenant to live out which is specifically referred to during the words of institution at communion. Jesus calls it the “New Covenant.”

The New Covenant has three defining features including the forgiveness of sins not through animal sacrifice but due to the ultimate sacrifice made by Jesus on the cross. It also indicates an internal transformation mentioned by Jeremiah where God promises to write his laws on the hearts of his people (Jeremiah 31:33). Also, Jesus' followers receive the Holy Spirit which empowers us to discern what early Christians would come to call The Way.

The Way brings us back to the path of justice we're to follow not for our sake but because we belong to God we want to stay as close as possible to him. Isn't that the way it is when you identify with something? You don't want to stray too far off the path because straying leaves you feeling lost and alone without purpose and ultimately unloved which is not a desirable place to be.

There is a world of difference between a covenant that's written on stone tablets and a covenant written on the human heart. The most obvious difference is one comes at you from the outside in and the other from the inside out. The covenant Jesus instills within us through a divine transformation eventually leads to no longer being predisposed to sin.

The reason for this is the divine transformation results in an internal connection with God and any behavior that might disrupt that connection is avoided. What becomes most important is to do whatever facilitates and enhances the connection including depth prayer, scripture, acts of compassion, and being in community with God's people.

Sinful acts which can also be defined as selfish acts run contrary to the Spirit that wants to flow from the inside to the outside world. In this way, selfishness interferes with the development of relationships with other people. This may lead to alienation and loneliness and can affect the persons mental and psychological health. Continued self-focus stifles the Spirit impeding spiritual growth. The following story serves as an illustration as to the affect selfish acts can have upon us:

Once, in a small village nestled between rolling hills, there lived a man named Elias. He was a gifted teacher, respected for his wisdom and kindness. For years he had led Bible studies, mentored young people, and shared God's word with humility. But deep inside, Elias harbored a quiet selfishness – a desire to be seen as the most important person in the group, to have the last word, and to be remembered above all others.

At first, his selfishness was subtle. He would volunteer to speak last a meetings, not because he had more to share, but because it gave him the last chance to impress. When others offered praise, he would smile and nod, but his heart was not truly grateful. He began to compare himself to others, measuring his worth by how much he could contribute rather than by how much he could receive from God.

One day, a young woman maned Miriam approached Elias with a question about prayer. She was thoughtful, patient, and genuinely seeking God's will. Elias, eager to be seen as wise, gave her a long complex answer, but it was more about impressing her than listening to her heart. Later, Miriam confessed that she felt misunderstood and discouraged. Elias, surprised, realized he had not truly heard her.

Over time, his selfishness grew. He stopped inviting others to lead, avoided open discussions, and began to withdraw from the group. His focus shifted from serving others to protecting his own reputation. He missed opportunities to pray with humility, to share God's love without ego, and to grow in dependence on the Holy Spirit.

One evening, as Elias sat alone in the study hall, he felt a deep emptiness. He had taught so much, yet he felt spiritually dry. He remembered a verse for Philippians 2:3: “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty pride.” That night, he wept – not because of failure, but because he had been so focused upon himself that he had lost sight of God's purpose for his life.

Elias began to change. He started listening more than speaking, inviting others to lead, and sharing his own struggles with humility. He learned to value the fruit of the Spirit – love, kindness, and self-control – over the fruit of the flesh, which included selfish ambition – Slowly, the group grew closer, and Elias found joy not in being the center, but in being part of something greater.

At one point in the story it describes Elias as not growing further in dependence on the Holy Spirit which is a central aspect to that intimate connection with God I spoke of earlier. It becomes apparent over time that this connection is greatly enhanced by a consistent and deepening desire to rely more on the Spirit and less upon self determination.

In letting go of attempts to be in control of your life, or the life of others, the guidance of the Spirit makes itself known and accessible. Praying with humility means to sincerely seek God's presence, and by extension his guidance, because it's more trustworthy than your own limited wisdom and resources, and, quite simply, it's pleasurable. Being in God's presence is deeply restful even more so than REM sleep because it's happening at the level of your soul.

Following are the words of Jesus as translated in contemporary language: “Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me – watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace.” (Matthew 11:28a-29b; The Message Bible)

The covenant written on stone gave the Israelite's guidance they needed to become a people of God but such guidance from the outside has limitations. Jesus changed all of this by writing the covenant on our hearts through a divine transformation. If we'll allow the transformation to happen the covenant can continue to come forth from the inside out. It's a better way but we have to be open to it and that takes a lot of prayer, thinking and self-examination which a great many people are simply not willing to do.

Rev. Mitch Becker

June 14, 2026

Port Angeles

First Christian Church

“Fire Alarms!”

Hosea 5:15-6:6

Just a couple verses prior to our text we find described not the illness of a single person but the collective moral, political, and spiritual sickness of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. Some representative or a group of representatives go to the king of Assyria for help. God through the prophet Hosea tells Ephraim (a name that represents the Northern Kingdom) that the king can't help them.

Much like normal human behavior Ephraim (F-fram) doesn't take responsibility for this collective malaise (mal-laze) but sees it as God's punishment for their lack of sincere devotion. God's not going to return to help them until they change their ways. Changing their ways begins with acknowledgment of their guilt and when they hit rock bottom maybe they'll turn to God.

Ephraim does decide to seek God for healing and refuge because though God has wounded them severely he also has the power to heal and restore. Next comes the affirmation about God's willingness to restore them completely on the third day. Though this reference to being raised on the third day is not quoted exactly as it is in Hosea the notion itself is often seen in the New Testament.

Ephraim next makes a vow to take God more seriously in the future and doubles-down on God's sure care for them emphasizing that God's love is indisputable. God's response to this leaves much to be desired as he discounts their vows saying they're like “the dew that goes away early.”

God justifies his use of prophets whose intention is to wake up these spiritually sleepy, half-hearted people. It all culminates with considerable clarity that God doesn't want more religion and rituals. What God wants is a sincere love that doesn't fade away like dew in the morning.

Ephraim needs to begin with some good, old fashion fessing up which is what God is trying to drive them to with his persecution and ill-treatment. We all need to be better in the acknowledgment of our own crimes and misdemeanors. Often we have to hit rock bottom before we give up our illusions and denial. It's never an easy process. Episcopal priest and author Barbara Brown Taylor expands on this as she begins by talking about repentance:

Repentance begins with the decision to return to relationship: to accept our God-given place in community, and to choose a way of life that increases life for all members of that community. Needless to say, this often involves painful changes, which is why most of us prefer remorse to repentance. We would rather say, “I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I feel, really, really awful about what I've done” than actually start doing things differently....

“All sins are attempts to fill voids,” wrote the French philosopher Simone (See-moan) Weil (Vay). Because we cannot stand the God-shaped hole inside of us, we try stuffing it full of all sorts of things, but it refuses to be filled. It rejects all substitutes....It is the holy of holies inside of us, which only God may fill....

I do not believe sin is the enemy we often make it out to be, at least not when we recognize it and name it as such. When we see how we have turned away from God, then and only then do we have what we need to begin turning back. Sin is our only hope, the fire alarm that wakes us up to the possibility of true repentance.

God is pummeling Ephraim into repentance, of course, this is hard to see as an expression of love. But as Ms. Taylor points out true repentance only comes about when we recognize our wrong-doing and take responsibility for it. She further describes the process as “involving painful changes.”

The second to last verse just before God tells them he wants their sincere love sounds like this in contemporary language: “That's why I use my prophets to shake you to attention, why my words cut you to the quick: To wake you up to my judgment blazing like light.” If we could keep our eyes on God and his “judgment blazing like light” in the first place Ephraim, and us by extension, wouldn't have to suffer so much.

In this regard, its much like golf. When I drive a golf ball off the tee it can travel a hundred sixty to a hundred seventy yards if I hit the ball squarely which in golf terms is called a “flush strike.” An interesting aspect of making a flush strike is you don't have to put in any extra effort in striking the ball. By hitting it squarely the ball and golf club do all the work and the most important component in all of this is keeping your eye on the ball.

If you raise your head too soon you often slice the ball meaning the face of the club is left open and the ball travels to the right of your target. You've got to keep your eye on the ball at the moment of impact. We run into the same sort of problems when we take our eyes off of God and try to live without the guidance of the Spirit. We're soon in deep water because the ego takes over compelling us to seek selfish desires, wants and imaginings.

If we can keep our eyes on God, then we can avoid being pummeled to the point we reach the end of our ropes and repent. Like the chorus we just sang from the hymn, “Living for Jesus:” “I own no other master, my heart shall be thy throne, my life I give, hence-forth to live, O Christ for thee alone.”

Such a committed lifestyle is not possible until we reach a state of thorough enlightenment and nearly totally free of the egos grasp. That doesn't describe too many people who are walking the face of the earth. But it is possible to sin less and enjoy the fruits of a relatively ego free life. But on this plane of existence to a certain extent, we'll probably always need to rely on some sort of hardship to drive us to repentance.

Something we're all witnessing in the culture these days are wanton actions that seemingly have no consequence. Violence being done against the innocent, political strife followed by revenge being touted and practiced openly, arrogance resulting in anger being exercised without restraint nor followed with any degree of remorse. I've never seen anything like it in my life and I've been around for awhile as you have been. What are we to make of this?

Though we didn't cover all the verses that precede our text what they're about is the source of the Northern Kingdoms misbehavior. The prophet is condemning them for slaughtering their own people specifically at sacrificial sites. There was also political strife and revenge being practiced, and an alliance was formed with Syria to violently attack the Southern Kingdom of Judah. Arrogance in their own imagined independent abilities rather than seeking God's guidance and support is seen as the ultimate source for their misbehavior.

This all results in Ephraim being brought to the end of their rope by the pummeling of God as described in contemporary language: “I'm a grizzly charging Ephraim, a grizzly with cubs charging Judah. I'll rip them to pieces – yes, I will! No one can stop me now; I'll drag them off. No one can help them.”

For Ephraim (as well as the Southern Kingdom of Judah) God made them accountable for their misbehavior to the point they finally decided to take God seriously and reinstated their faith. It was a painful process and it is for us as well because we can't separate ourselves from our culture. This is our home but as people of faith we have something many others don't which is the power that comes with knowing. We know that God is ultimately in charge.

Rev. Mitch Becker

June 7, 2026

Port Angeles

First Christian Church

“Freedom Isn't Free”

1 Samuel 2:1-10

This morning we begin at the beginning of the monarchy in Israel incorporating both humility and despair. Hannah is married and without child which would leave her carrying something of a social stigma. This is very unlike today where raising a child can cost upwards of a couple hundred thousand dollars, but in ancient Israel children were seen as financial assets.

Beyond this they could provide physical labor from an early age and they guaranteed a continuance of the family name and any property that was owned. Children represented both hope and continued vitality for the future of the family. Considering these factors it's easy to understand Hannah's despair not to mention she had to share her husband with another woman!

Hannah's sadness was deep and protracted, so much so that her husband tried to console her with double portions of food all the while expressing disillusionment with questions like, “why are you crying” and “why don't you eat” and “why are you so sad” and finally pleading in desperation with a patriarchal flare saying, “Aren't I better than ten sons?” These disappointing responses only made things worse as she continues to weep.

As Eugene Peterson interprets the first Beatitude: “You're blessed when you're at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule.” (Matthew 5:3; The Message Bible) Hannah, at the end of her rope, prays to God asking God to look upon her distress and bless her with a male child. If God will fulfill her request she'll offer him as a nazirite or as one dedicated to the Lord.

While she's praying in the temple Eli the priest accuses her of being drunk and scornfully reproaches her but after she pleads her innocence he blesses her. His blessing coupled with her sincere prayer must have been influential in heaven because the “Lord remembered her” and she receives a son! Hannah does not disappoint and offers him in committed service to the Lord.

Our text centers around Hannah's Song which surprisingly has nothing to do with the miraculous birthing of her son but is totally focused upon God's grace and dominion: “There is no Holy One like the Lord, no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God”

Hannah's Song will become inspiration for generations that follow demonstrating that God can turn barrenness into fruitfulness, transform despair into hopefulness, and change any bitterness about past events into joyful anticipation of the future. Hannah reminds us that God is the sole source of our salvation!

There are problems that have easy solutions. We only had one key for the small room in the barn that contains the lawn mower. Whenever someone needs the lawn mower they have to come to me for the key. So, I stopped at Swain's and had one made and now at least Roger has a key. Oreo has mostly stopped eating her breakfast at home. So, I put her food in a sandwich bag and empty it into a paper bowl in the office where she eats it at her convenience. These are problems with easy solutions.

Hannah's problem is of an entirely different nature. Her womb is barren and in ancient Israel that's a problem with multiple consequences including being shamed, possibly facing divorce (though Elkanah seems committed to the marriage), it created financial hardship, possible social isolation in old age, and feelings of abandonment by God. Hannah's distress becomes perfectly understandable when facing these possibilities.

But it's that very distress that becomes the first factor in what appears to influence God's intervention with the ultimate solution being fertility. Something else that seemed to be influential was her vow to commit her son to serve the Lord as a nazarite or one who has taken strict religious vows. The other seemingly important factor was Eli's blessing even though at first he was reluctant to help her.

What the story doesn't mention, however, is that the really difficult problems often require the courage to change. This means initially something has to be let go of so it can be replaced with something better. Marcus is the incarcerated friend of ours that Karen first encountered at the church in Lancaster, CA.. Marcus has been in jail for around forty years and he never stops talking about the possibility of being granted his freedom.

But if you were incarcerated as a youth and the only adult lifestyle you're familiar with is prison life how well are you going to be prepared to cope with life on the outside? Marcus has a roof over his head, a bed to sleep in, and food to eat all of which is provided by the state. As far as I know he has no income, therefore, the IRS doesn't care about him. You get the idea...much of what we have to deal with here on the outside doesn't even apply to him.

Upon release Marcus will have to find employment (with a criminal record), stable housing, means of transportation, and all of this coping with the social stigma of being an ex-con.

He'll even need a crash course on how to work with the new technologies like smart phones and the internet. He may be on parole meaning he has to follow strict rules and he'll need to take care of both his physical and mental health. In a word, he'll need to reinvent himself in order to cope with life on the outside and that'll take courage along with a willingness to let go of what doesn't work anymore.

Now for the shocking news: Most of humanity is living within the prison of the ego which means trying to function with dualistic thinking. Lets let Father Rohr jump in here:

Liberation from the ego self is liberation from the world of forms and images. Jesus's word for that was “mammon.” “You cannot serve God and mammon” (Matthew 6:24). If we're playing the game of appearance and power, prestige, and possessions, Jesus says we cannot know God. That's pretty absolute! There's a correlation between our preoccupation with image and how much – or how little – we've experienced the inner life.

Jesus also liberates us from the ego self with constant warnings against negativity and oppositional thinking. In general, his word for that liberation is “forgiveness.” Two thirds of Jesus's teaching is directly or indirectly about forgiveness. To live oppositionally is to be holding some degree of resentment or unhealed negative energy that we have not brought to the divine presence for transformation.

What he's calling “oppositional thinking” I called dualistic thinking and it's how the human mind works before enlightenment. Oppositional thinking means to see the world in terms of us verses them or right verses wrong. It creates rigid categories that results in judgmental thoughts and is the source of much of the hatred and bigotry we're experiencing these days.

Forgiveness dissolves these rigid boundaries and aligns us with a non-dual state of wholeness, compassion, and a sense of being interconnected with all that exists. Forgiveness requires tremendous courage because it changes us at a core level. The old way of thinking ends and is so much a part of who we are that it culminates in a feeling of death and dying.

This is the cost of liberation and we're only going to pay that kind of price when we feel that God loves us and are in his grace. We have to be assured that God is going to be there to catch us when we fall. It is experience with the inner life that will convince us, in time, that God will be there to break the fall.

Rev. Mitch Becker

May 31, 2026

Port Angeles 

First Christian Church

“A Deluge of Wallabies”

Acts 2:1-21

At the heart of the narrative about the Holy Spirit coming down upon the apostles is the wonderment of the people listening to them. In all there were 120 other disciples who were present but in addition to these were thousands of devout Jews from many countries. All these people were in Jerusalem for the Feast of Pentecost.

The narrative describes fascination to the point of bewilderment of these others who couldn't understand how they were hearing the apostles in their own language. There are sixteen countries represented with an unspecified number of people belonging to their own respective country.

On Tuesday evening following the graveside service for Celia we entertained her son Mark, his wife Donna, and daughter Brittany over dinner at our house. The meal was not elaborate consisting of hot dogs, baked beans and potato salad plus dessert, and it's always interesting to be with people you don't know very well in such a setting.

We had a good time, and as usual Karen did most of the organization and preparation, but it was something Mark said before he was even in the house that struck me. After trying to convey something to his wife and failing he turned to me and said something to the effect of: “There are few things more difficult than human conversation.” And I immediately knew what he was talking about being someone who communicates for a living.

Perhaps that's why the comment was directed toward me, I don't know, but after they left, I had to ponder his statement and subsequently it caused me to recognize its relevance to our text. There are about ten verses right at the core devoted to the communication of “the mighty works of God.”

To emphasize how communication can affect the course of our lives I can contribute my early exit from my first pastorate in Bakersfield to the manner I chose to communicate with the congregation. I was fresh out of seminary and all fired up about my new role as a leader (associate pastor) in a pretty good sized congregation by Disciples of Christ standards. Around two hundred people came to church on any given Sunday.

I remember the pulpit was so tall I had to stand on a wooden box to be seen, but I made up for my stature with the power of my preaching. I identified as a progressive Christian and with little alteration considering the conservative nature of the congregation preached what was on my mind and heart.

I think they tried to give me the benefit of the doubt, but when I theologically challenged the pastor's wife in Sunday School that proved to be the straw that broke the camel's back! They had a very nice going away party for me around Christmastime.

The following comes from a commentary written by Rebecca Dean:

In attempting to describe the events of the first Christian Pentecost to the people of Pukatja (Poo-cut-ja), Central Australia, missionary Ron Trudinger (True-ding-er) once mistakenly referred to the Holy Spirit coming through a “deluge of wallabies” rather than through the tongues of fire of the Acts account. This makes for an amusing anecdote, of course, yet it also captures some of the key issues that emerge from the biblical passage itself: the bridges and barriers formed by human languages, and the wider sense-making challenge posed by Luke's extraordinary account of the outpouring of the Spirit. As modern interpreters of the text, we can find ourselves asking, along with the crowd of witnesses, “What does this mean?”

Peter tries to explain to everyone what is happening by quoting the prophet Joel saying the Spirit will be poured out in the last days. The “last days” is a reference to the time between Jesus' first coming to earth and his second coming or return to earth. In these last days prior to Jesus's return their will be a pouring out of the Spirit causing sons and daughters to become prophets, young men to see visions, and old men to have dreams.

There will also be cataclysmic events occurring in the heavens with the sun going dark and the moon turning blood red. All of this is reminiscent of descriptions of events recorded in the Book of Revelation; but in truth the sun does go dark during a total solar eclipse and the moon turns red during a total lunar eclipse, hence the name “Blood Moon.” And people have always prophesied and have had visions and dreamed dreams.

What I'm getting at is something that Thich Nhat Hanh (Tic-Not-Hon) suggested in a recent meditation on my daily devotional calendar. He suggested that we write the words “Are you sure” on a large piece of paper and post it somewhere you'll frequently see it. It's an interesting suggestion and if followed causes one to bring into question anything and everything you might feel assured of. In other words, it veers one in the direction of humility.

With this in mind how do we know that Jesus hasn't already returned. With that thought I want to share with you what amounts to the closing thoughts in Marcus Borg's first best-selling book, “Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time.” In it he begins with the phrase “believing in Jesus:”

He explains that during his childhood that phrase meant believing things about Jesus. It meant that you believed in what you read in the Bible and what was conveyed to you in church. He says it was easy to do this as a child but as he grew older it became increasingly difficult to except all that he'd learned and previously took for granted.

But now as an adult he sees that believing in Jesus means something quite different. You only need to consider the root meaning of the word “believe.” Taken from either the Greek or Latin the word “believe” actually means: “to give one's heart to.” The “heart” in this case (as well as its frequent meaning in the Bible) represents the self at its deepest level.

Therefore, “believing” doesn't mean some kind of intellectual assent to something like I “believe” Jesus was resurrected after the third day or I “believe” Jesus changed water to wine. What “believe” means is to give your heart or to give of yourself at it's deepest level.

We're to give our hearts to the post-Easter Jesus or the Jesus that still exists after his death. Not the man who once walked on the earth teaching and healing, but to the Lord who is also the Spirit. The same Spirit that Paul encountered on the road to Damascus. The Spirit that changed him at a soul level from the chief persecutor of the early church to its greatest propagator.

Marcus further explains that what happened to Paul, and what God wants to have happen for each of us, is to make the movement from secondhand religion to firsthand religion. That means from believing in things that we've heard about Jesus to being in an intimate relationship with the Spirit of Christ. This is what changes Jesus from being a figure of the past into a figure of the present. He ends the book with this line: “Meeting that Jesus – the living Jesus who comes to us even now – will be like meeting Jesus again for the first time.”

In this regard, we can say that Jesus has already returned or even that Jesus is always in the process of returning because he comes forth within each of us who invite him to do so. The Apostle Paul beautifully summarizes this in the letter to the Corinthians when he says: “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being changed into his likeness from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” (1 Corinthians 3:18)

Rev. Mitch Becker

May24, 2026

Port Angeles

Pentecost Day

First Christian Church

“Caring for Creation”

Psalm 93

Christ the King Sunday isn't until Advent but let's take a sneak preview and consider this text which expands on the meaning of Christ as king. Beginning with considering it as a whole where we see God as Creator and caretaker of the creation.

With little effort we can also place Jesus in it by taking note of the first stanza that declares, “The Lord is king!” Then all we need to do is recall the words of Jesus when he reveals that, “My kingdom is not of this world....” (John 18:36) When Pilate asks Jesus if he is king of the Jews, he was actually thinking too small. In this way the psalm places Jesus into a greater context that Pilate and the other powers in the world simply can't see.

The second stanza is humbling because it demonstrates that God's concerns far exceed human affairs. The images are arresting as “....the floods lift up their roaring.” We only need to reflect upon the recent flooding in Washington State to confirm the terror and troubles flooding can bring. Such events were also frightening to the ancients because the troubled waters were the very definition of chaos.

When the world goes insane either from the creation unleashed or due to human intervention it can be comforting to be reminded that God is ultimately in control. The worldly power wielded by the likes of Pilate seems small and inconsequential in relation to a God that can control the raging waters.

At this point we need to be careful and not assign natural disasters to God's doing. The natural world has its own set of rules and boundaries whether it be a change in the weather or the earthquake of the century. What complicates matters, as far as humans are concerned, is we keep multiplying and we no longer follow the herds. By remaining stationary we become vulnerable to the chaotic side of creation.

It is not often that we think of God as the maintainer of the creation but here and in other psalms that's what is being implied. God even maintains the course of the moon and sun: “Thou hast made the moon to mark the seasons; the sun knows it's time for setting.” (Psalm 104:19) Because we are so often focused on human endeavors God's command of the earth and heavens often escapes our conscious awareness.

As God's hands and feet in the world we faithful have a responsibility to assist God in the sustaining of the creation. What the ancients didn't know is that eventually humankind would wield the power to inflict harm upon the creation which is the opposite of what we've been called to do.

This is where our role as followers of Jesus gets a bit complicated when he declares to Pilate that his kingdom is not of this world. Our self-centered tendencies often restrict us from fully participating in God's caring for creation. We're so immersed in our ego pursuits that even though the natural world is alive and blazing in color all around us it's as if we have blinders on. The blinders narrow our vision where we think we're seeing everything but in truth, we're seeing only a small part of what is.

One metaphor suggests looking at the world through the ego is like looking through a knothole in a fence. The knothole allows only very restricted vision of what's on the other side, yet most people believe they're seeing everything that is visible. In reality their vision is severely limited and biased. We typically see only what we want to see or whatever confirms our particular worldview.

Jesus is trying to change all this through a profound transformation described by the Apostle Paul and here presented in contemporary language: Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings out the best in you, develops well-formed maturity in you. (Romans 12:2; The Message Bible)

This passage from Paul can be understood as shifting your attention away from self to God, but there is a deeper dimension to it because seeing God in the outside world means correspondingly seeing God in your inner world. Another way of saying it is it results in making contact with your True self. The more you make contact with the True self the more it is allowed to come forth replacing the ego with its mental illusions and social conditioning.

One problem that often puts the brakes on the transformation is that this process feels like dying. It feels that way because people think they're a collection of thoughts about themselves. These thoughts are a compilation of the egos mental illusions and social conditioning. They have to be eliminated before what's real can come forward to take their place.

That's why the central image of our faith is a man dying upon a cross. To be resurrected, or reborn in this case, you have to die first and what I'm describing is how this happens in a psychological/spiritual way. 

Jesus describes this in the Gospel of Luke when he says: “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” (Luke 9:23)

Note the word “daily” which describes something you're doing repeatedly, and the “cross” is obviously an image for death. Hence, we're being called to die to the ego and it's mental illusions and social conditioning everyday of our lives until we're gifted by grace with the mind of Christ. And after that the challenges can become even more daunting because love will cause you to do things you'd never even consider from the standpoint of the ego.

When we've been freed from the ego's constraints, we can more aptly see God in the world around us. This is what is meant by Eugene Peterson's interpretation of the sixth Beatitude which says: “You're blessed when you get your inside world – your mind and heart – put right. Then you can see God in the outside world.” (Matthew 5:8; The Message Bible)

After the divine transformation clears our vision, we can more fully participate with God in the caretaking of our world. We're free from the ego and its constant pulling and pushing to meet various wants and desires. This is what virtually all the enduring religions of the world describe as “waking up.” The Buddha, for example, simply means “the awakened one.” People that are awake are not typically distracted by selfish desires and can be present to whatever needs to be taken care of.

This constitutes God's plan for the salvation of humanity, but I also want to acknowledge that God can use people whether they're spiritually awake or not. One such example comes from Global Ministries reporting on women's workshops in Kenya:

Discussion covered various topics related to regenerative farming to restore soils, biodiversity, and ecosystem functions, and to care for Mother Earth, the environment, and everything in it, including human beings. Participants discussed faith in action through smart agriculture and innovation, sowing seeds of collaboration, women's leadership in food and climate solutions, the place of sustainable architecture, and African heritage foods.

Though our country has entered a period of soul-stilling denial much of the rest of the world is moving forward in participation with God in the care of the creation.

Rev. Mitch Becker

May 17, 2026

Port Angeles

First Christian Church

“Hide and Seek”

Acts 17:22-31

On our trip to Greece, during COVID no less, we stood on the Areopagus (Air-ree-op-puh-gus) which is a rock outcropping just below the Acropolis. It was not well kept as there was trash strewn about never-the-less it was fascinating to stand in the very place Paul spoke to the people of Athens. Historically, it was actually used as a court of law specifically in the case of homicides, but on this occasion, Paul finds it useful in addressing a crowd of Athenians.

The reference he makes to “an unknown God” is a way of connecting with them theologically as there were many altars with such inscriptions. For the Greeks this “unknown God” was the creator of heaven and earth. Further, he makes the claim that humanity was created so that we could search for this God.

One of the most mystical phrases in the Bible and often quoted by my professor Marcus Borg is: “In him we live and move and have our being.” This is taken from a Greek poem in which its original intent was to glorify Zeus the father of Greek mythology. A close parallel to this mystical text is found in the psalms: “Whither shall I go from thy Spirit? Or whither shall I flee from they presence? If I ascend to heaven, thou art there! If I make my bed in Sheol, thou art there! If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there thy hand shall lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.” (Psalm 139:7-10)

The crux of the text is found in the following statement: “We ought not to think that the deity is like gold, or silver, or stone.” In other words, how can we imagine God to be any of these things if we live and move and have our being in God? This amounts to a direct confrontation made against any form of idol worship.

In the entirety of this argument there is only one point, which comes at the very end, made in reference to Jesus Christ when he affirms Jesus as “the judge” who was raised from the dead.

Considering the text as a whole we can say that God dwells in the entire created order and is as near to us as our breath. We were created to seek God and to repent if we're not doing so. Specifically, we're called to completely turn away from any type of idol worship. This includes addictions, any form of materialism, or pursuits of power. The final vision is of Jesus who brings justice and was confirmed by God through resurrection.

As I was driving down our driveway on my way to work a bald eagle flew directly above me circling and apparently looking for food. The sight brought to mind that it was the National Day of Prayer. Karen suggested just a few minutes before that I some how recognize this important day and use it to inspire our national leaders to be more compassionate. Further, to pray that they would act to reinstate wages for government workers.

Pay for government workers is, of course, only one effect the general lack of compassion and indifference is having in regard to the plight of others. But prayer is a good start because it has an influence in heaven petitioning God to act. But just as important is the effect it has on us when we engage in prayer. When we connect with our True self within we are changed.

We are directed by a deeper spiritual experience to act in ways that God acts. It also feeds the transformation that is always in process for the person of faith who practices prayer on a regular basis. We are always being changed into Christ's likeness, and nothing contributes more to this holy transformation then prayer.

Maybe the Apostle Paul understood the importance of prayer more than anyone, other than Christ, in all of scripture. In one letter he simply tells the faithful to “pray without ceasing.” (1 Thessalonians 5:17) In our passage the primary emphasis is really two-fold beginning with the importance of seeking God, and this is soon followed with admonishing to avoid any false seeking though idolatrous behavior. The following story illustrates what it means to seek God:

There is a popular game that children like to play called hide and seek. Bryan and his sister, Susie used to play it until they were bored to death with it. They played it so often because they lived on the Oregon coast where there were ample pine trees, salal bushes, salmon berry and huckleberry, beach grass and even skunk cabbage. There were a lot of places to hide!

It's been a while since most of us have played the game, so a quick review is in order. You begin by determining who is going to be “It.” The person that's “It” stays stationary and the other person leaves looking for a good hiding place. Then the person that's “It” begins to count to one hundred, though often times they cheat skipping numbers to reach one hundred prematurely.

After reaching one hundred “It” comes looking for the person(s) hiding and when they're found one of two things can happen depending upon how you play the game.

Sometimes the person that is first found automatically becomes “It.” But some play the game where after the person is found you have to run and beat them back to “base,” and if you do beat them they become “It.” Bryan and Susie used to play the latter version because that final run to base made the game more exciting!

But there was a problem that would sometimes arise and that had to do with Bryan being very good at hiding. He knew how to wiggle into the skunk cabbage or lie flat in the beach grass totally concealing his presence. On occasion, Susie just couldn't find him though she would search with great diligence and perseverance.

At such times Bryan would at first become haughty about it all, so proud he was good at hiding, but after a while he'd begin to worry that he might never be found, and that's no fun. When this would happen, and after several minutes of hoping against hope to be found, he'd make a noise in the skunk cabbage or expose his head a bit in the beach grass, so he'd be seen by Susie.

She'd catch a glimpse of him and the race would be on. The lesson Bryan would learn, time and again, is that though it's fun to hide from someone at a deeper level you want to be found. Bryan had to learn this lesson many times before it really began to sink in.

Our Bible passage today tells us that God doesn't want to play hide & seek with us – God just wants us to seek him out because, like all of us, God wants to be found! This is what it sounds like in contemporary language:

Starting from scratch he made the entire human race and made the earth hospitable, with plenty of time and space for living so we could seek after God and not just grope around in the dark but actually find him. He doesn't play hide-and-seek with us. He's not remote; he's near. (Acts 17:26-27; The Message Bible)

Rev. Mitch Becker

May 10, 2026

Port Angeles

First Christian Church

“Slow and Surely”

1 Peter 2:2-10

Eastertide ends on Pentecost Sunday, May 24, which puts us a little beyond mid Easter season. By this time the magnificence of the resurrection of Christ has dissipated because we've been immersed in our lives of meeting daily requirements. This makes our text for today especially important since its an attempt to resurrect resurrection.

This portion of Peter's first letter is chock-full of metaphors of which some of them convey the magnificence of the resurrected life. This includes metaphors having to do with iconic structures or places, precious stones or newborn babies! The tone for these inspirational metaphors was actually set in the previous chapter with the following words:

What a God we have! And how fortunate we are to have him! This Father of our Master Jesus! Because Jesus was raised from the dead we've been given a brand new life and have everything to live for....” (1 Peter 1:3; The Message Bible)

Maybe the metaphor of a newborn baby best captures what it means to “have been given a brand new life” with all the promise and possibilities that entails. But this new life also requires us to follow certain pathways that lead to the unfolding of it. Some things depend on us if we're to do what is necessary to ensure the “living waters” continue to flow up and out of us! This often means to turn away from fears and anxiety to trust in the presence of God both within us and on the outside.

It brings to mind something I used to face playing on the North Shore Golf Course in Tacoma. We lived in an apartment just off the sixteenth hole and watching people play through often inspired me to get out and play the course.

On the fifteenth hole there was a large body of water you had to hit over from the tee. I often found it a bit intimidating. What made it difficult was starting from the tee. This meant you had no momentum since you weren't hitting from midway of the fairway.

I would overcompensate trying to hit the ball too hard and invariably end up in the water. When really, all I had to do was hit the ball solid and it would travel the distance every time. My overcompensating was a result of being anxious about not clearing the distance. But when I would be quiet and calm myself through prayer and taking slow, deep breaths prior to hitting all would be well.

And so it is in these brand-new resurrected lives we've been given. Whenever we become fearful or anxious when trying to accomplish tasks or repair relationships or achieve some ego desire we invariably overcompensate. This often complicates matters or we simply fail all together. But if instead we turn and lean into our resurrected lives trusting in God's power we're much more likely to hit the ball squarely, so to speak.

One way to talk about what I'm doing at the fifteenth hole is I'm intentionally slowing down so God can do his thing through me. The philosopher Bayo Akomolafe (Bay-o A-com-moe-la-fay) expands on this by suggesting slowing down when we're confronted by a crisis:

To “slow down'”...seems like the wrong think to do when there's fire on the mountain. But here's the point: in “hurrying up” all the time, we often lose sight of the abundance of resources that might help us meet today's most challenging crises. We rush through the same patterns we are used to. Of course, there isn't a single way to respond to a crisis; there is no universally correct way. However the call to slow down works to bring us face to face with the invisible, the hidden, the unremarked, the yet-to-be-resolved....It is about staying in the places that are haunted.

Facing a body of water to hit a golf ball across isn't a crisis situation nor is it a “haunted place” but there are such places in our lives that we want to rush through rather than slow down and wait for God. That takes practice until eventually we learn that slowing down is the best path to follow. It's really what it means to be loving as Barbara Holmes explains in the following excerpt:

In order to love, you have to slow down. There is no such thing as “drive-by loving.” You have to give attention to the object, to the person, of your love. There has to be reciprocity and mutuality. It is giving ourselves over, letting go so something else can do the loving through us, because we're not capable of it.

Admitting we're not capable of loving is an expression of humility because humility is knowing our rightful place in the world. Humility is to be aware of our limitations and to accept them. It is to not pretend or a more positive way to say it is to be our True self. Sometimes it takes a crisis to get us to let go to the point we can drop down into our True self and the following story illustrates the process.

Some time ago Karen and I took a vacation on a Carnival Cruise to Ensenada. The cruise itself turned out to be one big party with a festive atmosphere and ample drinking of alcoholic beverages. It wasn't really our type of cruise but we made the best of it. There are still a lot of enjoyable experiences on any cruise including good food, great massages and entertaining shows.

My crisis came in the middle of the first night trying to sleep in a claustrophobic inside cabin. I awoke feeling uncomfortable and needing some air but we were entirely enclosed in a very small cabin. I had no idea what to do other than I needed some breathing room and as my anxiety increased so did the frequency of my breath accompanied with shallow breathing.

This is how you arrive at a full-fledged panic attack because as your breathing becomes increasingly rapid and shallow you change the oxygen/carbon dioxide ratio in your blood. This actually results in a mild sensation of suffocation which feeds the panic leaving you caught in a downward vortex.

The best way to stop the downward spiral is to slow down and take deep breaths while centering in God at the same time. And that's exactly what I did by reciting the psalms and taking slow, deep breaths. Because I've practiced quiet, centering prayer for so long I soon dropped down into that sacred, spacious place within myself and all of a sudden had more room than I ever needed.

In a heartbeat I went from panic attack to the peace of God and it wasn't long before I was fast asleep again. An added benefit was the religious experience stayed with me for the remainder of the cruise helping me to enjoy most everything else that happened. I let go of the panic so something else could love me, and the letting go was involuntarily. It happened by the grace of God.

The tendency at the onset of a panic attack is to take flight! You want to get through it as quickly as possible, but if you stay in the “haunted place” trusting in God the possibility of a genuine escape can emerge. I stayed in the haunted place by reciting the psalms and consciously slowing my breathing until God provided the escape.

The scriptures encourage us to stay in the haunted place until God arrives specifically in this passage from the Letter of James:

Consider it sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don't try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way. (James 1:2-5; The Message Bible)

Rev. Mitch Becker

May 3, 2026

Port Angeles