Ash Wednesday - Turning to God in Crisis

A World in Chaos

At the risk of sounding dramatic, both the U.S. and the world seem to be reaching a level of chaos unmatched since 9/11. The confusion and shifting loyalties, not to mention the 26,000 federal jobs that disappeared in the past few weeks, has led to widespread outrage, hostility, and mudslinging between those who support Donald Trump and those who find his leadership wanting.

For those of us who grew up on the U.S., where Russia was seen as public enemy number one, many of us are confused by the President's apparent turn toward Russia, which invaded Ukraine without provocation. Many U.S. citizens are experiencing geopolitical whiplash, leaving many of its citizens unsure of our identity.

Many are asking the question, "Are we still defenders of democracy?" The question is more pressing as we watch Britain and other European nations pick up the pieces we’ve dropped.

And that is only to focus on the situation in Europe, with no mention of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, I couldn’t help but think of a line from Psalm 46:6,

The nations rage, the kingdoms totter.

How should Christians respond?

The Nations are Raging

It feels like there's a lot of nations raging and kingdoms tottering. Ways of “doing life” we're accustomed to seem suddenly up for grabs.

If you turn to social media, your channels are probably ablaze with blaming, mudslinging, name-calling, etc. A quote from Craig Springer is especially relevant. Originally written about evangelism, it is just as relevant to the world of politics we inhabit.

We’ve lost the art of discourse in our time, and proclamation alone only perpetuates this contemporary problem. If someone has a legitimate question in a disagreement-equals-judgement culture when it comes to faith and we respond with a quick one-sided, one-dimensional, one-directional proclamation of hard truth, we won’t get from question number one, which is lodged in the head of the asker, to questions five and six, which are lodged in the heart. 

With proclamation as our primary model, the dialogue ends far too soon, and people retreat to their respective corners, all congratulating themselves on a rhetorical victory, all wondering why their ‘win’ feels so hollow. [1, emphasis mine]

Does that sound familiar? Maybe in your family? Your community? Certainly, the internet. There are a lot of one-sided, one-dimensional proclamations of hard truth right now. 

And while it may feel good in the moment to give it to our political adversaries, in the end we have to agree with Springer that our “rhetorical victory” feels hollow, as relationships become strained to the point of no return.

This is not an argument that "everything is fine" and "we should all calm down." I am, like the majority of Americans, deeply concerned with some of the decisions this new administration is taking. And I am more than happy to voice those opinions, but I would hope that I wouldn’t be willing to do so if it meant the breaking of a relationship.

The question we must ask is “what does it look like to be a faithful follower of Jesus in the midst of such tumultuous times?”

Surrendering Ourselves to God

The first step, of course, is to turn to the true source of our security. That is, to the God who “is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” But that’s fairly easy to say. And it's not false to say, "in times of trouble, turn to Jesus." But it also isn't very helpful unless we also know how to turn to Jesus in times of trouble.

It may be helpful to start by acknowledging that many Americans (maybe us, too) have a potentially unhealthy relationship with our country. The Bible is very clear that our hearts are prone to idolatry. John Calvin once stated, “Man’s nature, so to speak, is a perpetual factory of idols.” Anything can turn into an idol, even the good things in our lives. C. S. Lewis, at the height of World War II, made the point particularly well in "The Weight of Glory,"

He who surrenders himself without reservation to the temporal claims of a nation, or a party, or a class is rendering to Caesar that which, of all things, most emphatically belongs to God: himself. (quote)

It is easy, perhaps, to read the quote and instantly think, “See!” That's the problem! That’s exactly what the other side is doing! And that may be correct.

But Jesus made it exceptionally clear that the posture of the Christian is one of humility,

Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? (Matt. 7:3)

We all at times idolize our countries and our communities. And it is when they are threatened that we can become aware of the hold they have over us, a hold that only God is supposed to have.

But, there is an opportunity in such moments, one that we should not ignore.

The Crisis Opportunity

I like the quote often (wrongly) associated with Winston Churchill:

Never let a good crisis go to waste. (quote)

The quote has Machiavellian overtones. But I have a Christian spin. The Greek word krisis (origin of “crisis”) actually means "decision." Appropriately, when we find ourselves in the midst of a crisis, it places a decision before us. As therapists often say, there are only two things we can control, our thoughts and our behaviors. All crises offer an opportunity to take stock. In the sage words of Homer Simpson, a "crisi-tunity." [2]

When we are in a crisis, we have to ask, "what is within my control to change?" And for the rest, “why is this causing so much existential angst?”

Here the crises on the national and international stage intersect with the season of Lent. During Lent, we are called to reflect not just on our physical death, but also on those areas of our lives where we are experiencing spiritual death. We are called to repent of the idols that have gotten in the way of God’s love. 

A Lenten Practice of Self-Examination

One way to understand this period of self-renunciation is to learn from the work of Ignatius of Loyola and his Spiritual Exercises. Ignatius speaks of “unordered loves” that form into attachments. These can be physical, such as food, drink, sex, or exercise. 

But there are also emotional habits that form into attachments. Vinita Hampton Wright, writing for the Ignatian Spirituality center at Loyola University, asks us to consider, “what’s my first response to stress, fear, worry or pain?” 

These questions often lie at the heart of our emotional attachments. If we can reflect on them in prayer, we may be able to begin to untangle the web of unhealthy and uncomfortable attachments we have developed throughout our lives. 

It is in these attachments that the idols we need to set aside entangle us.

A Prayer for Difficult Times

A few years ago, in a spiritual formation group, I was introduced to Thomas Keating’s amazing “Welcoming Prayer.” It is a prayer about “letting go.” In it, we let go of our "desire for power and control," our "desire for affection, esteem, approval, and pleasure." In it, one even prays to “let go of [one's] desire to change any situation, condition, person, condition, person or [oneself].”

That’s hard! I want to change lots of situations! And I think so do you! 

But as we discussed earlier, the only two things we can control are our thoughts and our behavior. We cannot control the government, the President, Russia, the United Kingdom, or any other country. 

We can't even control ourselves some of the time.

The Welcoming Prayer is an opportunity to regularly release our need to control others and even the circumstances of our own lives. My absolute favorite line from the prayer comes in the second sentence,

I welcome everything that comes to me today, because I know it’s for my healing.

Wow! 

Is that even possible? That every single situation, thought, and feeling exists for my own healing?” That’s a fairly revolutionary statement. It’s also deeply comforting and potentially life-changing.

So my prayer for you as we enter this season of Lent, is that you may join me in praying the Welcoming Prayer, which offers a different way of living as the nations rage.

Here it is:

Welcoming Prayer

by Father Thomas Keating:

Welcome, welcome, welcome.
I welcome everything that comes to me today, because I know it's for my healing. 
I welcome all thoughts, feelings, emotions, persons, situations, and conditions.
I let go of my desire for power and control. 
I let go of my desire for affection, esteem, approval, and pleasure. 
I let go of my desire for survival and security. 
I let go of my desire to change any situation, condition, person or myself. 
I open to the love and presence of God and God's action within. Amen. [3]

[1] Craig Springer, How to Revive Evangelism (Zondervan, 2021).

[2] Quote found inseason 6, episode 11, "Fear of Flying" of The Simpsons. (clip)

[3] It is hard to chase down the exact origin of this prayer in Keating's writings. Some sources also attribute this prayer to Mary Mrozowski, who worked with Keating.