The Bogard House Revisited (a Steve Orr Epiphany reflection)

Moonshiners, Al Capone, Prohibition ... A mansion situated deep in the land between the rivers where only the shacks of poor farmers should have been. We'd all heard the stories about the long lost “Bogard House” ... not much more than rumors, really.

Then, one day, we actually found it.

It’s a longish story that I will spare you. Suffice to say that, by the time one of our group found it, “between the rivers” had become The Land Between the Lakes, a modern recreational playground. Long gone were the moonshiners and poor farmers; though some of the shacks still stood along nearly impassable dirt tracks far from the modern highway that traversed it.

It was along those dirt tracks that we traveled that day, dodging pitfalls and uprooted trees, following our friend, wondering which, or if any, of the rumors were true.

And then we came over a rise and suddenly found ourselves staring at a large, multi-story home situated on the banks of the Lake Barkley. It had seen better days, but even then it was impressive. In an area that, before TVA, was known for its poverty, this house would certainly have been a mansion. Someone with some money had lived there.

But, why? Why would someone with money want to live all the way out there in the boonies? As it turned out, many of the stories we had heard were true. Joe Bogard, revered among his neighbors as the "King of Moonshiners," had lived there with his family. Moonshine was produced there and was sold all over the Midwest, including to certain folk up Chicago way. The rumor that airplanes landed on a strip in front of the house, loaded up with hooch, and flew it back to Al Capone? Well, we could never find any evidence of that.

But we did find four secret rooms.

As I say, though, the story of that day is longish. So we will step away for the moment, pausing only to note this: we had heard of that house, stories of other peoples from other times, and then we came to know it ourselves.

Much like the questions in this week's Isaiah selection:

"Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." (Isaiah 40:28-31 NIV)

None of this was news to the people of Israel. They had been hearing of God all their lives. There was a long, documented history of God doing amazing things among their nation. And yet, they had let what they heard cease to be what they knew. They had become theological amnesiacs. God had become more of a rumor to them than a reality.

God's prophets spoke the message He gave them. Those words from Isaiah? Those are the words of God, spoken to His people. They are about His kingdom and they are not rumor. You can put your faith in them. So, seek it, ask for it, knock doors until you gain entry.

Because, one day, you will come over a rise and there it will be.


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A version of this reflection appeared in February 2015.

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For more of my memory about that day at The Bogard House, there is an incomplete memoir at: http://write-craft.blogspot.com/2011/05/in-development-bogard-house-by-steve.html

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Photo: Sadly, that’s not a photo of the Bogard House. Maybe there’s one out there, somewhere, but I’ve not yet found it. This house, situated on Lake Winnipesaukee, looks a lot like it, though. See more of it at https://www.nhlakesrealty.com/newest-listings-on-lake-winnipesaukee/

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READINGS FOR THE COMING WEEK
Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany (February 4, 2018)
https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu/texts.php?id=64

Isaiah 40:21-31
Psalm 147:1-11, 20c
1 Corinthians 9:16-23
Mark 1:29-39
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Friday mornings are times of exploration and discovery at Lectionary Breakfast. We delve into God’s word to find out for ourselves just what is real. Join us at 8:00 at the Waco “Egg and I” restaurant for an hour like no other.

Blessings,
Steve

Ask, Seek, Knock: Are We Getting This Wrong? (a Lectionary reflection by Steve Orr)

I was taught early on that there was a right way and a wrong way to do things; that included asking. It was rare for me to receive, well, ANYTHING if I asked without saying "Please." We had to say, "May I?" instead of "Can I?" And if we failed to say "Thank you," we ran the risk of having any approvals cancelled. It took a while before I learned all the rules, particularly the rules for asking. In fact, being an *ahem* "experiential learner," I often got it wrong.

But, my errors were my tutors. Eventually, much like all of us, I learned how to conduct myself in an appropriate way.

And that brings me to the James passage in this week's Lectionary selections. One of the key points James makes is, "You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, in order to spend what you get on your pleasures." (James 4:2b-3 NRSV)

On reading this, I thought of Jesus' exhortation (or is it a promise?): "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.” (‭Matthew‬ ‭7:7-8‬ ‭NKJV; also in Luke 11:9-13‬‬)

I can't help but wonder: If there is a wrong way to ask, is there also a wrong way to seek and a wrong way to knock? Are we getting this wrong? Are we supposed to tap out a special tattoo to gain entry? Or could we be knocking on the wrong portals? Are we supposed to apply orientation and mapping skills when we seek? Or are we just looking for stuff in all the wrong places?

Some see conflicts between what Jesus taught and this message in James. Personally, I think the gospel passage and the James passage go together, hand-in-glove.

The James passage is part of a longer piece about the problems that keep popping up when we want what belongs to others; bitter envy and selfish ambition; covetousness that leads to contentiousness (even murder!) among believers.

What James writes about "asking" is intended to help them (and us) understand they have gone about things backwards. Instead of coveting and then battling to obtain what they desired, they needed to go to God with their requests; but they also needed to realize that asking God to give them something that belonged to another was not going to work. They could apply the correct process (ask God), but still not receive it because they were only asking for selfish reasons.

The Matthew passage culminates in the Golden Rule ("Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.” ‭‭Matthew‬ ‭7:12‬ ‭NKJV‬‬)

It is exactly the same context as the James passage: “Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.” (‭‭James‬ ‭4:7-8‬a NKJV‬‬)

Turns out: there IS a right way and a wrong way to ask, seek, and knock.

We are to ask, seek, and knock while IN THE PRESENCE OF GOD. That means we are to be praying and listening, being still before God. AND, if we ask, seek, and knock while living the Golden Rule ---i.e., seeking for others what we wish for ourselves; just another way of saying, "Love your neighbor as yourself."--- we will receive, find, and enter . . . as promised.

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READINGS FOR THE COMING WEEK
http://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu/

Proper 20 (25) (September 20, 2015)
Proverbs 31:10-31
Psalm 1
Jeremiah 11:18-20
Psalm 54
James 3:13 - 4:3, 7-8a
Mark 9:30-37

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What are you doing Friday morning? Can you join us at Lectionary Breakfast? If you're in the area, make some time to join us at 8:00 at the Egg and I restaurant. The gathering is an hour like no other. We come away refreshed and fortified.

If you're not in our area, consider starting a group to discuss the scriptures. It's not hard. Ask a few friends, contact a restaurant that will let you order À la carte, and then agree on a day and time. Everybody pays for their own food. We use the Lectionary (it's a convenient organizational structure that we can follow every week), but it is not the only one out there. Find an approach that works for you.

Enjoy the week!
Steve

Wisdom and Perception

Wisdom and Perception

(a brief Lectionary reflection by Steve Orr)

The coming week's Lectionary passages are all about wisdom and perception.  Read through them and see if you agree with me.  It's a quick read; there are only four passages.  What I see there underscores something that has been bouncing around in my head for a while: that these two things need each other; that wisdom without perception is powerless and that perception without wisdom is directionless. 

Wisdom absent perception just sits there.  No matter how wise one might be, without the ability to perceive the surrounding culture, without the ability to grasp the stimuli flowing by, the wise one can only be passive.  Speaking inappropriate maxims to unappreciative audiences or, more likely, waiting until someone comes seeking their wisdom.

Alternately, perception without wisdom has no compass, has no idea what to do with the received stimuli, is just as likely to fight or flee when neither is the best action.  No matter how perceptive one might be, without the reflective qualities of wisdom, without that spiritually informed rubric for decision-making, the perceptive one simply responds to the stimuli.  Slap for slap, eye for eye, life for life.

God gives wisdom.  All we need do is ask.  God gives us ears to hear, and will bless us with vision, when we seek it.  Ask.  Seek.  Knock.

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READINGS FOR THE COMING WEEK
Third Sunday in Lent (March 11, 2012)
Exodus 20:1-17
Psalm 19
1 Corinthians 1:18-25
John 2:13-22

http://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu/

If you are in Waco Friday morning, join our group for breakfast at 8:00 at Cafe Cappuccino (downtown on 6th, near the Courthouse).  Good food and good discussion.

Enjoy the week!

Steve