Heading into Mission Presbytery Mid Winters

James 1:19-27
You must understand this, my beloved: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger; for your anger does not produce God’s righteousness. Therefore rid yourselves of all sordidness and rank growth of wickedness, and welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls. But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves in a mirror; for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like. But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act—they will be blessed in their doing. If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.


Dear Fellow Followers of the Way:

January brings Mission Presbytery’s youth Mid Winter Conferences at Mo Ranch. This year’s theme “The Word: It’s What You Do” is based on James 1:19-27. Last weekend Robert Quiring and I got to accompany several of our middle school youth and this week Robert and Lesley Fields will take some of our high school youth.

As I have been preparing to keynote the high school weekend, the words of James have been ringing in my soul. Be quick to listen and slow to speak. Words that I think we all need. How many conversations do you have in the course of a day that you actually stop and listen? That you set yourself aside and don’t have a prepared response before the other has finished speaking?

When we listen, truly listen to another, we honor them with our full attention and presence. It is not just their words that we hear, but we pick up on non-verbal messages. We hear all the things they are not saying. However, this is not a skill that comes easily, we have to work at it.

The second part of the passage speaks to being doers not hearers of the word. How do we put our faith into action. The concept of works is what has made the book of James questioned. Martin Luther did not think the book belonged in the Bible, that it talked about doing good things instead of having faith, but James speaks to works stemming out of faith. Our deeds, according to James, are our faith lived out. It is what keeps us from being in the Christian secret service. Those who show up on Sunday and then go undercover the rest of the week.

To live out our faith in daily life is to put our faith into action. These don’t have to be heroic size actions. It is as simple as praying for others, sharing your faith, helping those who need it, or listening to people. These actions stem from our love of God and cause us to share that love with others.
The last part of the passage talks about true religion. For James, true religion is about caring for widows and orphans, those who are most vulnerable in society. Who are the people around us who are the most vulnerable? It may look different. It may be someone you work with who is struggling with a problem and needs someone to listen to them. It might be someone who has lost a job or who has lost their way.

How do you live out your faith? Do your actions show your faith? We are called to be in community with others, to be involved in others lives. May we all work toward being quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to anger and to find ways to live out our faith through the things we do.

Grace, mercy and peace,
Karen