Category: Scripture For Rising Strong™

No Greater Threat (Day 31)

There is no greater threat to the critics and cynics and fearmongers than those of us who are willing to fall because we have learned how to rise. Brené Brown.

Brothers and sisters, join in imitating me, and observe those who live according to the example you have in us. For many live as enemies of the cross of Christ; I have often told you of them, and now I tell you even with tears. The Apostle Paul (Philippians 3:17-18)

The critics and cynics and fearmongers…

As we read the Apostle Paul, we see how he had people problems. Does anyone reading this have a people problem?? Think: controlling parent, angry teen, uncaring boss, competitive co-worker, mean teacher, emotionally detached partner, betrayal by a friend… Or what about a problem in our culture?  Corrupt politicians, mass incarceration, illiteracy, toxic social media, neighbors threatened with deportation…

Some people read today’s passage and assume Paul was calling everyone outside his group an enemy. To many vocal Christians in today’s world, an “enemy of Christ” would be anyone who does not share that Christian’s view of the Bible and brand of morality.

Paul was referring to something else entirely. Here’s the background: Philippi was a Roman Colony. And naturally the citizens of Phillipi resented some of the tactics used by Rome to keep the colonial citizens in line: Violence, control, unjust economic practices, ethnic persecution. And! The oldest trick in the book: “Bow down to our emperor, or off to jail you go.” Furthermore, Paul had trouble with people in his own religion—fundamentalists who were pushing a purity agenda over and against the actual Good News of Jesus.

So, Paul is sick and tired of the cynics, critics and fearmongers of the day. And he is beseeching his little group to discover (and use) their true power. Paul knows he has discovered the secret of contentment and actual influence, and he wants to empower his listeners to follow his example in dealing with both petty and life-threatening challenges while remaining hopeful and full of faith.

Chapter 11 of Rising Strong is about pulling together the key learnings of the rising strong process, and beginning to apply them faithfully. The chapter ends with The Manifesto of the Brave and Brokenhearted—a celebration of those who choose to work through life’s challenges with True Power. The manifesto is an apt summary of what Paul has in mind when he says, “imitate me and people who live out a good example.”

Tomorrow, we will continue into the high-point of Philippians, where Paul describes the place of belonging for everyone who chooses life along the Jesus Way.

Starter Prayer

LORD God, point me to the people worth imitating and following. Help me be a good example and lead the way for others.

Reading Focus for Rising Strong, by Brené Brown

We are now in week 5, of this 6-week study. The focus is Chapters 9-10 of Rising Strong. The topics are: rumbling with failure and self-worth.

Resurrection Hope Happens (Day 30)

Hope happens when we can set goals, have the tenacity and perseverance to pursue those goals, and believe in our own abilities to act. Brené Brown.

Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. All of us, then, who are mature should take such a view of things. The Apostle Paul (Philippians 3:13-15)

Have you noticed that we’ve been moving through Philippians, passage by passage? If not, it doesn’t matter. We’re here, and today is a big day! It’s time for Paul’s famous statement on perseverance. He’s using his own discipleship experience as an example—trying to explain WHY there is no person who is so mature that they have ‘arrived’. There is always more traveling to do.

Our teacher is gently warning against the tendency toward religious entitlement—the assumption that if we believe the right things and do the correct practices, we can have the blessed life without waiting and longing and straining for Resurrection itself.

Paul is clear. He has not reached the goal, and neither has anyone else.

We need Paul’s kind of Resurrection HOPE: We have not arrived, and we must keep pressing forward towards the goal. A true athlete knows that the race isn’t over until the end has been reached. To see oneself in front of the pack, and therefore having arrived at the finish, is crazy. (Some of us can’t even to relate to that kind of misplaced confidence, because we’re painfully aware of how much work God is still doing in us!)

What then is the goal (or the finish line)?

Paul calls the goal: the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. And some people take that to mean simply ‘heaven’ or life after death. But if we look ahead in Philippians, we see that Paul doesn’t talk about going to heaven. He speaks instead of the Spirit of Christ transforming the world and all who live here. For Paul, living in ‘heaven’ isn’t the goal we are straining for; rather, it’s living as our transformed selves in a whole new world. So, the ‘upward call’ seems to be Resurrection itself—or whole-life, whole-earth, new-birth and transformation. (This is not to say that the afterlife doesn’t matter. I’m saying Paul was not straining to get there.)

Straining forward toward whole life transformation, means living in the present with our hope set on Resurrection. (See also Colossians 3:1-4.)

And none of this means living in a joyless, earthly struggle. Paul says he is eager to ‘overtake’ Resurrection because Christ Jesus has ‘overtaken’ him. There is no English word to capture the double meaning of ‘overtaken’ here. Paul is saying two HUGE things at once, which cannot exist apart from one another: He still has work to do to catch up and reach his goal (overtake); and at the same time, the Spirit of Christ has created a supernatural drive and zeal within him, which powers him forward (overtaken by Christ).

Brené Brown addresses the topics of hope and perseverance in Chapter 9 of Rising Strong in the section about Rumbling with Failure. Her research aligns with this passage in Philippians. I encourage us to read both passages and envision how rumbling with failure is a necessary part of transformation in individuals, families and society.

Starter Prayer

LORD God, give me Resurrection Hope, and teach me how to persevere.

Reading Focus for Rising Strong, by Brené Brown

We are now in week 5, of this 6-week study. The focus is Chapters 8-9 of Rising Strong. The topics are: rumbling with failure and self-worth.

Going in Again (Day 29)

When I see people stand fully in their truth, or when I see someone fall down, get back up, and say, Damn. That really hurt, but this is important to me and I’m going in again—my gut reaction is, “What a badass.” Brenè Brown

Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. The Apostle Paul (Philippians 3:12)

Eric Liddell was the Olympian who refused to run his preferred 100-yard dash, because one of the qualifying rounds fell on the Sabbath. Instead he went on to win a gold medal in the lung-bursting 440. The scene was made famous by the movie Chariots of Fire.

How can we talk about Rising Strong, or the Book of Philippians, without a nod to this infamous moment in the history of sports?

The stage was set, and the final sprint to be run: 440 yards. Liddell and the runners were still bunched together around the first bend when Liddell was pushed over and fell entirely off the track. In a flash, he was back on his feet, as though charged within by a divine force. At the last moment he overtook the leaders for the win in his final step.

What would you have done? I suspect I would have accepted from the moment I fell that I was out of the race, with no hope left. I would have set my sights on rising strong next year. With Liddell it was the opposite. It was as though he was illustrating this passage of Paul— or Brenè Brown on the true meaning of “badassery”.

Brenè makes a deal of that ‘term’ in the introduction of Rising Strong; because she doesn’t want us to confuse the process of rising with cultural obsessions about “grit”, “swagger” and what she terms—“badassery”.

This morning I read Philippians 3:12-16 and re-read the Introduction of Rising Strong and re-watched Manifesto of the Brave and Brokenhearted.

Together, they paint a picture of the person who is willing to live bravely—not because of grit, swagger or perfection, but because they have LEARNED how to rise strong.

More on Chasing on to the Finish tomorrow.

Starter Prayer

LORD God, teach me the difference between faking it and rising strong.

Reading Focus for Rising Strong, by Brené Brown

We are now in week 5, of this 6-week study. The focus is Chapters 8-9 of Rising Strong. The topics are: rumbling with failure and self-worth.

GOOD Grief (Day 28)

Owning our stories of heartbreak is a tremendous challenge when we live in a culture that tells us to deny our grief. Brené Brown.

Be merciful to me, Lord, for I am in distress;
    my eyes grow weak with sorrow,
    my soul and body with grief. Psalm 31

One day I asked my Grandma B., “How long did it take you to get over Uncle Donnie’s death?”

I was about 15 and unaware of how grief works. I had no idea that a mother will never “get over” the death of her son. Uncle Donnie was killed in Vietnam when he was 19 years old. There is a photo in the family album of my grandparents standing in their living room with the Marine who presented them the purple heart medal. My grandpa and grandma posed for the photo, but their gaze is not at the camera. They look lifeless.

Looking back on my own life, I have endured one Great Grief so far—my parents divorce. Only a week ago, I went out of my way to drive past our little family home in north Boulder. Every time I drive through Boulder, a feeling washes over me. It is some type of longing for home—a longing for the life I loved and lost in that divorce. I love my life now and both of my parents, and the new lives we created are beautiful. Yet the longing remains.

In Rising Strong, Brené Brown describes the three most foundational elements of grief that emerged from her studies: loss, longing, and feeling lost.

Spiritual Practice

Since we live in a culture that has no patience for grief, and since rumbling with grief is crucial to the rising strong process… Please give yourself the gift of lingering over the section on grief in Chapter 7. I encourage you to read the section and reflect on your own feelings of loss, longing and feeling lost. Try something new: indulge your memories. Then Read all of Psalm 31. Like the psalmist did, talk it out with God verbally or in writing.

If you are walking with a long-lasting and ‘complicated grief’, please go the appendix and read the notes on complicated grief. If you would like to talk to a pastor or trained volunteer, please contact us at Crossroads Church. Call 970-203-9201, and ask for Perry. We have skilled, trustworthy people who can walk with you in your grief for as long as you like.

Starter Prayer

LORD God, be merciful to me as I rumble with my grief.

Reading Focus for Rising Strong, by Brené Brown

We are heading into week 5, of this 6-week study. The focus is Chapters 8-9 of Rising Strong. The topics are: rumbling with failure and self-worth.

Life-giving Endings (Day 27)

What has to end or die so we can experience a rebirth in our relationships? Brené Brown.

I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,  and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead. The Apostle Paul (Philippians 3:10-11)

For me, today’s passage is the most personal and telling statement Paul makes in the Prison Letters. Paul wants to experience whole-life transformation, and he realizes that something must die in order for that to happen.

He realizes that Resurrection is a mystery, and he’s not sure how this will be accomplished. I suspect he is gazing at two horizons in his mind’s eye: Living in union with God now; and the assurance of safe passage through a physical death into eternal life with God.

I cherish Paul’s statement, because I have these longings myself. I want to know True Life today: healing, character transformation, JOY, freedom, creativity, Love and Wisdom… I want these goods in my heart, my home, our church, my workplace. I want a flourishing life in the kingdom of God with the family of God—NOW. And I want to see this Resurrection happening in the world, where individuals and groups of people are living in spiritual darkness, hunger, war, persecution, loneliness or exclusion in their earthly lives.

I also want to be a part of the ultimate Resurrection that God is accomplishing in all of creation and which is everlasting and beyond our dreams.

This understanding that something must die as a part of Resurrection is actually addressed by the author in Rising Strong. When she discusses Rumbling with Forgiveness, Dr. Brown frames ‘forgiveness’ as the process of healing from loss and experiencing new birth. I want to refer you to read this section in Chapter 7. Here are a few bites to whet your appetite:

“In order for forgiveness to happen, something has to die. If you make a choice to forgive, you have to face into the pain. You simply have to hurt.”

“The death or ending that forgiveness necessitates comes in many shapes and forms. We may need to bury our expectations or dreams. We may need to relinquish the power that comes with “being right” or put to rest the idea that we can do what’s in our hearts and still retain the support or approval of others.”

“So, forgiveness is not forgetting or walking away from accountability or condoning a hurtful act; it’s the process of taking back and healing our lives so we can truly live.”

After you read Rumbling with Forgiveness in Chapter 7, consider these questions:

  1. Where are you holding on too tight, because you are afraid of experiencing the pain and grief of letting go of an expectation (forgiveness)?
  2. What will you lose and grief if you let go of this expectation?
  3. What will be resurrected in your soul or relationships if you choose to walk through this grief?
  4. What expectation did God let go of when Christ Jesus came and died among us?
  5. How do you feel about this larger way of thinking about forgiveness?

Starter Prayer

LORD God, light the path of forgiveness before me. Help me make forgiveness a regular practice of rising strong.

Reading Focus for Rising Strong, by Brené Brown

We are in week 4, of this 6-week study. The focus is Chapters 7-8 of Rising Strong. The topics are: Rumbling with difficult emotions and human need. Next week our discussion groups will focus on chapters 8-9.

Empathy (Day 26)

Empathy is the antidote to shame and it is the heart of connection. Brené Brown

“Today was a Difficult Day,” said Pooh. There was a pause.

“Do you want to talk about it?” asked Piglet.

“No,” said Pooh after a bit. “No, I don’t think I do.”

“That’s okay,” said Piglet, and he came and sat beside his friend.

“What are you doing?” asked Pooh.

“Nothing, really,” said Piglet. “Only, I know what Difficult Days are like. I quite often don’t feel like talking about it on my Difficult Days either.

And as Pooh sat there, working through in his head his Difficult Day, while the solid, reliable Piglet sat next to him quietly, swinging his little legs…he thought that his best friend had never been more right.

I am taking a break from the Bible today, because the topic is Empathy, and Piglet’s got this one.

In Rising Strong, Dr. Brené Brown makes the claim that empathy is the antidote to shame. Her claim is based on research data, and I find it immensely helpful. I hope you linger over Chapter 7. Her definition of Empathy and its relationship to Compassion is worth the price of admission:

Empathy is an emotional skill that allows us to respond to others in a meaningful, caring way. Empathy is the ability to understand what someone is experiencing and to reflect back that understanding… The prerequisite for real empathy is compassion. We can only respond empathically if we are willing to be present to someone’s pain. Empathy is the antidote to shame and it is the heart of connection.

Starter Prayer

LORD God, teach me the Wisdom of Empathy.

Reading Focus for Rising Strong, by Brené Brown

We are in week 4, of this 6-week study. The focus is Chapters 7-8 of Rising Strong. The topics are: Rumbling with difficult emotions and human need. Next week our discussion groups will focus on chapters 8-9.

Values Light the Way (Day 25)

We don’t have to be perfect, just engaged and committed to aligning values with actions. Brené Brown

But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. The Apostle Paul (Philippians 3:7-8)

Yesterday we made the connection between ‘core values’ and the way the Apostle Paul aligned his thoughts and actions with one BIG thing—knowing Christ and spreading the gospel.

Now that I know my two ‘core values’, I can look back on my life and see many tough moments when these values guided me through the darkness.

Two of my daughters are artists, and the other two chose fields in the humanities. When they were transitioning from high school to college, people would ask them: What are you going to do with your life? (That’s a funny question to ask an 18 year old, but anyway…) When the girls would say: music, fine arts or humanities, sometimes the inquirer would ask, “How will you make a living doing that?” Or “I bet your dad hates that idea; he’s an engineer!” Or “Our kids chose real majors.”

When I heard these reports I wanted to box these adults. Sometimes I would rehearse my counter attack with the family at dinner. But on my better days, I let my values light the way. I would use the opportunity to tell the girls, “It doesn’t matter what you study. The important thing is that you learn to think, write and speak. More important is that you discover your purpose and develop the gifts God gave you. Don’t listen to fearful adults with rigid opinions. Listen to your own heart and the people you trust.”

Looking back, I realize that my values were guiding my parenting in these moments. One of my values is freedom. When the girls received misplaced feedback, I stepped up to affirm their freedom to choose their vocation irrespective of societal values. When the pressure to conform came upon my family and me it was my values that helped us keep our integrity and stay the course.

I could give many more examples, of how values light the way, and so can you. (I can also see the moments when I lost sight of my values and lost my way!)

Once you discover your core values, you can go even deeper and reflect on how these values guide and protect you.

Let’s try it.

Once you’ve identified your two core values, you’re ready to reflect on HOW those values light the way. The Lantern Exercise will help you do that. Bring your values list exercise and lantern exercise to the next group discussion. In my experience, people get energized when they talk about this topic with others.

Starter Prayer

LORD God, show me how my values guide me in the darkness. Help me align my values with action.

Reading Focus for Rising Strong, by Brené Brown

We are in week 4, of this 6-week study. The focus is Chapters 7-8 of Rising Strong. The topics are: Rumbling with difficult emotions and human need.

Clarity of Values (Day 24)

A value is a way of being or believing that we hold most important. Living into our values means we do more than profess our values, we practice them. We walk our talk—we are clear about what we believe and hold important, and we take care that our intentions, words, thoughts and behaviors align with those beliefs. Brené Brown

But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. The Apostle Paul (Philippians 3:7)

If the Apostle Paul were to do the ‘values exercise’ I am about to suggest, he may have chosen a write-in option—’The Gospel’.

‘The Gospel’ is the good news about Christ Jesus on two horizons: First, the message Jesus himself taught, and second, the spreading of that message.  For Paul, spreading Christ’s message was the way of being and believing that he held most important. He was willing to place everything else secondary to the value of the ‘the Gospel’.

In Daring Greatly, Brené Brown explains the importance of values. When going into the arena, many people ask what they can bring. The answer is: clarity of values. You need to figure out what values are important to you so when you’re face down in the arena, you’re able to lean against your values for clarity. For example: “I know I’m in the arena in the service of being brave because I believe in my value of _____________.” When we deny our story, it defines us. When we own our story, we get to write our own ending. We don’t want to be a character in our story – not a villain or even a hero. We want to be the author.

During these 40 Days of Rising Strong, I’m suggesting we take a long, loving look at our values. Perhaps you’ve done some work identifying your core values already. I’ve done this many different ways in several different settings, and now I’m sold on the method we teach in The Daring Way™.

In this exercise, you pick only two core values. At first it seems hard and weird, and you feel guilty for the dozens of values that you leave on the page or cross out. But I can attest to the power of this exercise. For the past couple of years I’ve been crystal clear on my two core values. This clarity has saved my bacon dozens of times over. I’ve watched myself go from brave to braver in some very difficult situations, by the grace of God and by focusing on my TWO core values.

Here’s the thing. When you’re in the arena, it will be dark and you will feel alone. When things are difficult, you may question why you’re in the arena. Clarity of values is like a lantern that lights the way.

Let’s try it.

Print out this List of Values, and put a check mark next to those you treasure most. Now, pass back through and circle only five. Next, pass back through and put a box around the top two.

Remember: Which two do you not only profess, but you practice on a daily basis? Don’t feel guilty if “family” or “faith” does not rise to the top. I’m a pastor and a mother, and in the end, I chose “freedom” and “wisdom”; because pretty much everything I love and do boils down exercising or safeguarding those two values, whether at work or at home.

Trust, that God has been shaping your heart and life, even in the midst of your faults and failures. These two values are not things you think you SHOULD practice; your core values are things you DO practice. These are things you are already good at.

Complete the process over the next few days, hopefully before your group meets for your session-five group discussion.

And have fun!

Starter Prayer

LORD God, give me clarity of values.

Reading Focus for Rising Strong, by Brené Brown

We are in week 4, of this 6-week study. The focus is Chapters 7-8 of Rising Strong. The topics are: Rumbling with difficult emotions and human need.

Action On Injustice (Day 23)

Acknowledging privilege and taking action on injustice require constant vigilance. Brené Brown

If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh (‘privileged’), I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless. But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. The Apostle Paul (Philippians 3:4-7)

Continuing story…

Several months later, I attended another church leader gathering in our area. A guest pastor and his team were sharing about their work in western Africa. These men were faith-filled and genuine, but it was obvious that they do not consider women co-equals in leadership at home or in the faith community.

At the end of the presentation, someone asked all the pastors in the audience to come forward and pray for this team. I was the only female who went forward in a sea of local male pastors. Once we were in place, the event host asked my colleague Scott to lead the prayer aloud, to which he replied, “I think Katie should lead it.”

Once again, Scott was passing his privilege to me.

My story relates to Paul’s warning in Philippians: Don’t trust in ‘the flesh’.

For the purpose of this reflection, I’ve paraphrased “flesh” to “privilege”. When Paul refers to the ‘the flesh’ here as well as Galatians and Romans, he is talking about the pride of physical descent, in which the Jews placed their confidence. Paul admits that ethnic privilege had been his confidence too.

Ethnic privilege was big in the ancient world, and continues in our day. And there are many other forms of privilege in our society: race, gender, sexual orientation, class, family status, age group… Privilege means that you can afford to look the other way, because you are not the one being harassed, underpaid, pulled over, deported, lynched, shut out, etc…

Paul’s message in Philippians 3 is that he had taken a long, painful look at privilege and decided to pick it apart and remove it from his life. I don’t think he’s bragging. I think he’s telling a painful story of ‘humiliation leading to transformation’, which we can only hear if we listen without judgment.

And Paul is now clear in his thinking: If I passively rest in my privilege, I cannot be the distinctive light of life that God has created me to be—I cannot be the transforming presence that the children of God are made for. Furthermore, whatever privileged identity I am resting on will eventually fall apart and no longer be able to support True Life. (Hence Paul’s choice of the term ‘flesh’ that decays.)

In the rising strong process, The Rumble is for doing deep work with two things: 1.) Painful emotions and 2.) Human need (Chapter 8). Within the scope of human need, Brené Brown addresses such things as connection, self-worth, privilege and asking for help.

I invite you to read Chapter 8 of Rising Strong alongside Philippians 3. What is Paul teaching us about rumbling with privilege? We’ve heard Paul’s story, Brené’s story, a bit of my story. What is your story; and how does it lead you to take action against injustice?

Starter Prayer

LORD God, help my awareness of my privilege embolden me to look injustice in the eye and take action.

Reading Focus for Rising Strong, by Brené Brown

We are in week 4, of this 6-week study. The focus is Chapters 7-8 of Rising Strong. The topics are: Rumbling with difficult emotions and human need.

It’s Our Privilege (Day 22)

I’ve learned enough about privilege to know that we’re at our most dangerous when we think we’ve learned everything we need to know about it. Brené Brown.

Finally, my dear family, rejoice in the Lord!  It’s no trouble for me to repeat myself, and for you it is a safeguard. Beware of the religious elite! All they are interested in is protecting their image. True believers trust God’s Spirit, follow Jesus’s teachings, and place no confidence in their privileged status (My paraphrase of Philippians 3:1-3)

I entered the meeting space late and overheard the guest speaker asking the event host to move the audience to a smaller room. The speaker had noticed that the room was only half full. He prefers to speak to a crowded room. (I get that!) The host explained to him that the conference room would not have enough seats for everyone. To which the speaker replied, “That’s good! I like the energy when the room is over capacity. Once the conference table is full, set up some chairs around the perimeter.”

My heart began to race, and I immediately lost my appetite. I was turned off by this speaker’s philosophy of event management, but why did I feel upset by it? If this guy wants a dopamine hit to get his energy up for speaking, why do I care? Then I realized: This whole scene is a ‘values violation’ for me; and being in a room full of male clergy always ‘triggers shame’ for me. (More on values violations and shame triggers later this week.)

Back to the story… I lingered in the auditorium, until the final few of us were ushered into the smaller conference room. Expecting to sit on the perimeter, imagine my surprise when my colleague Scott was already reading the situation, setting up chairs, and motioning to several local guests to sit on the edge of the room with him. When I made eye contact with Scott, he raised his eyebrows, smiled, and wryly motioned for me to take an open seat at the table.

This would not be the last meeting where Scott takes action. (I’ll share another story tomorrow.) Being aware of the power and privilege in the setting, Sam was making room at the table for others and me.

You may or may not have thought about the kind of religious privilege Paul writes about in Philippians 3 or I encounter at male-dominated clergy gatherings. Brené Brown addresses other types of privilege in Chapter 8 of Rising Strong.

How does privilege affect you on a daily basis? Either the privilege you have or the privilege you don’t have?

Starter Prayer

LORD God, teach me more about my privilege. Help me make the choice to connect with people outside my privileged group.

Reading Focus for Rising Strong, by Brené Brown

We are in week 4, of this 6-week study. The focus is Chapters 7-8 of Rising Strong. The topics are: Rumbling with difficult emotions and human need.