Fire on the Mountain (a Steve Orr scripture reflection)

I thought it was Charlie Daniels. 

The first time I heard the phrase, it was part of “The Devil Went Down to Georgia.” It was right there in the chorus: ”Fire on the mountain, run boys run!” Charlie Daniels and band belt it out each time they play the winning side of the fiddle war between Johnny and the Devil. *

It was a while before I learned that each line of that chorus was an homage to a well known Bluegrass tune; the tunes hardest to play; the tunes fiddlers are supposed to play as fast as possible. It was a while longer, still, before I heard Bill Monroe and The Bluegrass Boys play what I thought was the original “Fire on the Mountain.” It’s just what you would expect after hearing Charlie Daniels fire off a snippet: rollicking, hand-clapping, boot-stomping fast. You can just see the dancers whirling about the floor. **

But it didn’t start with Bill Monroe, either. Turns out, “Fire on the Mountain” has its roots in traditional folk tunes reaching well back into the early 1900s. A little more research led me to Boston, Massachusetts in 1825 and the person who likely was the first to actually write those words on paper: Mother Goose.

“Hogs in the garden, catch ‘em Towser;

Cows in the corn-field, run boys run;

Cats in the cream-pot, run girls, run girls;

Fire on the mountains, run boys run.”

I was beginning to think I might never stop finding people running from firey mountains. Who knows where a search like that might end? Maybe we’ve had that image with us for millennia. 

There are certainly real people experiencing a real fire on a real mountain in this week’s Deuteronomy passage.  

Try to imagine what it was like to stand at the foot of Mount Horeb, hearing the thundering voice of God and experiencing the overwhelming intensity of His fire. How big was it? How bright was it? How hot was it? I'm guessing it was way, way up on the scale, well above volcano level. Who knows, maybe there is no scale. If mere angels are beings of light and are so bright they have to open with "Fear not!" ... Well, no wonder God's people wanted no more exposure to "this great fire."

And that's how we got prophets.

Here's the thing about fire: we like it. But we like ... a certain distance. Same, it turns out, with God. We humans can only take just so much direct exposure to God. God's solution to this was to send Prophets who would speak in His name. 

We must never make the mistake of believing we worship a teddy bear god. God is not snuggly. Our God is loud, and hot, and very, very bright. He is the "stuff" of the universe, the fuel that fires the stars; volcanoes are but a tiny part of Him. He is not just "powerful." He is where power comes from.

The descendants of Jacob got that, and wisely chose to put some distance between themselves and God. 

Today, it’s different. "This great fire" chose to loose His claim on heaven and, instead, inhabit the body of a human. He once again speaks with humans directly; up close and personal, like in the days of the first Adam. Knowing this, we appreciate, anew, the sacrifice Jesus made for us and the intermediary He continues to be for us. “Fire on the mountain, run boy run” takes on a whole new meaning. 

Now, unlike God's people who drew back from that fire on that mountain, we can draw near. We can run toward it. 

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PHOTO (and a fascinating little article explaining how Pentecost connected to that “fire on the mountain” when God came down to speak the law to the Israelites): 

https://ffoz.org/discover/shavuot/fire-on-the-mountain.html

* The Charlie Daniels Band performing “The Devil Went Down to Georgia” - 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBjPAqmnvGA

** Bill Monroe and the Bluegrass Boys performing “Fire on the Mountain” - 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOlJs3gObkg

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Can you be with us Friday morning? DaySpring’s Lectionary Breakfast starts at 8:00 and is the most Zoom fun you will have this week! Bible, discussion, laughter, and fellowship ... BYOBB. 

See you there?

Steve

Here’s the Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89947678414

NOTE: Zoom allows you to mute the camera if you don’t wish to be seen and to mute the microphone if you don’t wish to speak. 

SCRIPTURES FOR THE COMING WEEK

Find them here: 

https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu//texts.php?id=63

Deuteronomy 18:15-20

Psalm 111

1 Corinthians 8:1-13

Mark 1:21-28

Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany (January 31, 2021)

God and the Toy Story That Time Forgot (a Steve Orr scripture reflection

And I thought Toy Story 4 was a gut punch.

Let’s just get this out of the way: if you’re not watching the Toy Story shows, you’re denying yourself some true joy. And if you haven’t watched them, I think you should set this down and go do that. Frankly, this reflection won’t make much sense if you don’t have the context. 

There has been much written about the Toy Story franchise and its continuing success. To me, that boils down to a simple, but extremely important, difference between them and your average “cartoon.” A lot of animated films exist for one purpose: to entertain. What Disney/Pixar has done with Toy Story is use their medium to tell stories. 

In Toy Story films, story is everything. The animation is excellent, of course, but it always serves the story. Yes, the films are entertaining, but they are so much more because the filmmakers will not accept less.

And that brings us to Toy Story That Time Forgot. Here, Woody and Buzz play supporting roles. Front and center are Trixie the triceratops and Bonnie, the child to whom all these toys belong. 

I’m not giving much away be telling you Trixie feels Bonnie is not playing with her, properly. She should be a dinosaur, not have antlers stuck on her head and called a reindeer. She envies that Rex is always seen as the dinosaur he is by Bonnie, but that she is always employed as whatever Bonnie’s imagination decides ... and never what she so obviously is. 

Ever felt that way?

We know what we are .. and we are clear on how God should best use us. Yet, for reasons beyond our understanding, God continues to thwart our best efforts to be who we think we are. Frustrating. 

If that sounds even remotely familiar, then this week’s Psalm 62 passage is for you. The Psalmist has wrestled with this and has found an answer ... and a refuge. 

How Trixie works through her relationship with Bonnie makes it a film everyone should see. Also: Battlesaurs, Reptillus Maximus, and the Arena of Woe. But, no spoilers here. 

Let’s just say: who we belong to matters; and what we might become if we trust the one whose mark we bear. 

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PHOTO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUiFhyxumPI

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Friday mornings are special. Join us for DaySpring’s Lectionary Breakfast (via Zoom) and find out why. Bible, discussion, fellowship, and laughter are front and center for the hour. Connect at 8:00 and BYOBB (bring your own breakfast beverage).

Blessings,

Steve 

Contact me for the Zoom link.

NOTE: Zoom allows you to mute the camera if you don’t wish to be seen and to mute the microphone if you don’t wish to speak. 

SCRIPTURES FOR THE COMING WEEK

Find them here: 

https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu//texts.php?id=62

Jonah 3:1-5, 10

Psalm 62:5-12

1 Corinthians 7:29-31

Mark 1:14-20

Third Sunday after the Epiphany (January 24, 2021)

Fast & Furious 67 (a Steve Orr post-Epiphany reflection)

Fast cars ... really fast cars. 

Have you seen any of the Fast & Furious movies? While they have clever plots and interesting characters, it’s no stretch to say the central theme of the films is cars careening along streets and highways at racetrack speeds ... and the occasional crash.  

There have been several of these films, seven as of this writing (though ... why stop there?). The 67 in my title doesn’t refer to film count; it’s the year I turned 16 and earned my driver’s license. 

Neither fast nor furious was part of that process. 

When the incident occurred, it was less than a month before my 16th birthday. Mom had become my driving instructor, because, I later learned, it frightened Dad. This was in the days before mandatory Driver’s Education classes. 

After taking me out to drive a few country roads —just to be sure I could keep the thing between the ditches— she decided I was ready for town streets. Much of this period is a blur in my memory, but I clearly recall sitting at the green light at the intersection of Ninth Street and Kentucky Avenue that fateful day

As we approached the traffic signal on Ninth, it turned red. So, of course, I brought the car to a halt. I was feeling pretty good about it all, that being my first time to stop at a traffic signal. And then, the odd thing: Mom looked over and said, "When the light turns green, don't go. Wait until I tell you." 

I remember being puzzled. I had read my driver's handbook. I knew we were supposed to stop on red and go on green. In fact, not only was it expected, it was my right. When the light is green, I have the right of way. 

But, when that light turned green, I just sat there.

I sat at that green light —even though the driver behind me honked his horn at me— because my mother told me to. 

Then, a car ran the red light.

Fast and furious, that car cut straight through the space we would have occupied. If I had asserted my rights and driven forward as soon as I had the green light, we would have been T-boned from the right. 

I learned a life lesson that day. 

I call it "jumping the green." That’s my phrase for those actions we take simply because we can. They are allowed, so we do them. But, as was so stunningly demonstrated to me that day late in my 15th year, such actions, though allowed, may not always be wise.

As life moves around us, often fast and sometimes furious, contemplating this week’s Corinthians passage might be useful. Yes, we have incredible freedom, but we don’t have to always exercise that freedom. Something might be technically legal, but not helpful, wise, or spiritually appropriate. Since we have the choice, we should choose what is best.

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Photo of a 1967 Plymouth Barracuda very similar to the one in which I learned to drive: 

https://www.hemmings.com/stories/article/flying-fish-1967-plymouth-barracuda/amp

Different versions of this reflection have appeared in prior years.

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Zoom with us Friday morning at DaySpring’s Lectionary Breakfast. We start at 8:00 and enjoy a great hour of Bible discussion, laughter, and whatever breakfast you bring to the Zoom meeting ... it’s wide open here; absolutely no restrictions on what you eat or drink 😜

NOTE: Zoom allows you to mute the camera if you don’t wish to be seen and to mute the microphone if you don’t wish to speak. 

Contact me for the Zoom link.

Blessings,

Steve 

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SCRIPTURES FOR THE COMING WEEK

Find them here: https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu//texts.php?id=61

1 Samuel 3:1-10, (11-20)

Psalm 139:1-6, 13-18

1 Corinthians 6:12-20

John 1:43-51

Second Sunday of Epiphany (January 17, 2021)

The Mystery of the Planetary Alignment (a Steve Orr Epiphany reflection)

Did you see the planetary alignment? 

Jupiter and Saturn, the largest planets in our solar system, came “near” each other on December 21, 2020. By that, I mean their orbits brought them to where they appeared to be right next to each other. 

Being so “near” to each other, they looked like a very bright star in the night sky. I keep putting near in quotes because the two planets, even when they appear near to each other, are actually many millions of miles apart in space. 

From our perspective, the two giants appear near each other about every 20 years ... but not this near. This kind of close appearance —where they seem to be touching— hasn’t been seen in our night sky in over 800 years. 

Some folk call this planetary alignment “The Bethlehem Star.” It’s probably not much of a surprise to find people looking for a scientific explanation for that event. Scripture tells us quite a bit about that “star” and the Magi —those wise men from “the East”— who followed it. 

But, is that planetary alignment what they saw and followed? What did they see? When did they see it? How did they follow it? Where did they go? This week’s scripture from Matthew tells the story of the Magi. But there are many questions left unanswered. 

Here’s what we think we know. Some astronomers from somewhere east of Israel saw a light in the sky they had never seen before. They interpreted its presence to mean a new “King of the Jews” had been born. Somehow, this light —the star— appeared, to them, to be moving westward, in the direction of Israel. The wise men (or Magi) took note of when the star first appeared, packed up some supplies and gifts, and headed west without knowing their final destination. They upset Herod “and all of Jerusalem” when they told why they had come. Scripture suggested the child had been born in Bethlehem. The Magi left Jerusalem, followed the star until it “stopped” over a house. They went into the house where they presented their gifts to Mary and the baby. Finally, based on the Magi’s calculations, Herod concluded the child had been born within the past two years. 

None of that actually explains what the Magi saw or why they believed it heralded the birth of Israel’s new king. It could be the planetary alignment, but could the planetary alignment appear to move westward? Maybe. 

We are left with lots and lots of supposition, and little clarity about those visitors from the East. 

But here’s what we can know. 

God got their attention by placing something unusual where they couldn’t help but see it. God enticed them to leave the comfort of their homes and travel to meet Jesus ... and bring gifts fit for a king. God led them to Jesus using that same unusual thing. 

Does it matter what God used to draw them to Jesus? No. And the same is true today. God calls us in ways we understand, and then leads us gently to that place of meeting. 

And the only gift the king wants is us. 

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PHOTO (Jupiter on top of Saturn as seen through the SKYVIEW app): Steve Orr

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I hope you can join us Friday morning on Zoom for DaySpring’s Lectionary Breakfast. We start at 8:00. Bring your breakfast beverage of choice and enjoy the fellowship of others who seek “the King of the Jews.”

NOTE: Zoom allows you to mute the camera if you don’t wish to be seen and to mute the microphone if you don’t wish to speak. 

Contact me for the Zoom link.

Blessings,

Steve 

SCRIPTURES FOR THIS SUNDAY

Find them here: 

https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu//texts.php?id=59

Isaiah 60:1-6

Psalm 72:1-7, 10-14

Ephesians 3:1-12

Matthew 2:1-12

Epiphany of the Lord (January 6, 2021)