{"id":948,"date":"2011-04-02T01:05:07","date_gmt":"2011-04-02T06:05:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/customwordpresssites.com\/mjb\/?p=948"},"modified":"2026-02-26T13:54:40","modified_gmt":"2026-02-26T19:54:40","slug":"coloring-outside-the-lines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/customwordpresssites.com\/mjb\/2011\/04\/02\/coloring-outside-the-lines\/","title":{"rendered":"Coloring outside the lines"},"content":{"rendered":"

Guest blogger: Elizabeth Diedrich<\/em><\/p>\n

Scripture reflection for the Fourth Sunday in Lent<\/p>\n

Scripture Readings: 1 Samual 16:1b, 6-7, 10-13a; Psalm 23: 1-3a, 3b-6; Eph 5:8-14; John 9:1-41 <\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cThis man is not from God, because he does not keep the sabbath.\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n

Throughout the Gospels, Jesus maintains a continual conversation with the religious leaders of his day. In today\u2019s Gospel, Jesus heals a blind man on the Sabbath and the Pharisees question him for his actions.<\/p>\n

I think it is important to remember that Jesus was a Jew. He grew up in the traditions and customs of the Jewish people. He called the temple His Father\u2019s house. He worshiped in the synagogue on the Sabbath and celebrated Passover.<\/p>\n

The Pharisees had painted a picture in their mind of what it meant to be Jewish. Anything that deviated from this picture was neither faithful to Judaism nor to God. Thinking inside the box is safe. The status quo is comfortable. Coloring inside the lines is easy.<\/p>\n

Yet, Jesus never let his life be defined by the Pharisees. He constantly challenged the Pharisees to expand their ideas of what it meant to be a faith-filled servant. Jesus did not fit in the Pharisees\u2019 picture. Jesus colored outside the lines. He loved his enemy, overturned the money tables, and healed on the Sabbath.<\/p>\n

Some lines are good. They act as a guide, show us wisdom, and can help lead us into community with others. Yet, when lines become too rigid, they separate us from each. Rigid lines cause us to not be able to think of the world in a different way and can lead us to become unconscious of the decisions and actions we make each day.<\/p>\n

Our faith is not a color-by-numbers assignment. Rather, God gives us a gigantic box of crayons. We have the options of different colors, different combinations, and different patterns. We are called to color outside the lines of class, gender, race, religion, age, peer groups, politics, and social and economic classes. As Jesus said, \u201cwe are to become like children\u201d and our lives are to be a canvas full of color, light, imagery, and the love of God and neighbor drawn out through radical action and love.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

This week I invite you to reflect what lines you have drawn that you need to cross over. Where have unbending lines been drawn that inhibit faith? What areas of your life need color? Where in your life has Christ\u2019s light not shined? Today is the day to break out your box of crayons and color your life to reflect the radical Gospel message of Christ.<\/p>\n

Originally from Madison, WI, this week\u2019s guest blogger, Elizabeth Diedrich, is currently a Catholic Worker at Andre House of Hospitality <\/a>in Phoenix, AZ. She spends her free time hiking, playing Euchre, and making pottery. Elizabeth and Sister Julia enjoy sharing tea, chocolate, cheese and long conversations on peace and justice. Read Liz’s other Messy Jesus Business guest blog entry, in your own soul<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Photo credit:\u00a0http:\/\/www.morguefile.com\/archive\/display\/592496<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Guest blogger: Elizabeth Diedrich Scripture reflection for the Fourth Sunday in Lent Scripture Readings: 1 Samual 16:1b, 6-7, 10-13a; Psalm 23: 1-3a, 3b-6; Eph 5:8-14; John 9:1-41 \u201cThis man is not from God, because he does not keep the sabbath.\u201d Throughout the Gospels, Jesus maintains a continual conversation with the religious leaders of his day....","protected":false},"author":20022957,"featured_media":1000,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2178641],"tags":[54192091,177,10051,132675,21728344,214,11120,221530,54192093,401,18090808,8329,17497291,5136925,12717,2054,49434,3785,832243,321731,54192092,54192112,116,106265,25731,1494],"series":[698756626],"class_list":["post-948","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-prayer-and-spirituality","tag-1-samual-161b-6-7-10-13a","tag-art","tag-bible","tag-blindness","tag-christs-light","tag-christianity","tag-coloring","tag-crayons","tag-eph-58-14","tag-faith","tag-fourth-sunday-of-lent","tag-jesus","tag-jesus-was-a-jew","tag-john-91-41","tag-judaism","tag-law","tag-lines","tag-love","tag-love-your-enemy","tag-pharisees","tag-psalm-23-1-3a-3b-6","tag-radical-gospel-message","tag-religion","tag-sabbath","tag-scripture","tag-spirituality","series-messy-jesus-business"],"acf":[],"episode_featured_image":"https:\/\/customwordpresssites.com\/mjb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/04\/acraypen-008neat-mapped.jpg","episode_player_image":"https:\/\/customwordpresssites.com\/mjb\/wp-content\/plugins\/seriously-simple-podcasting\/assets\/images\/no-album-art.png","download_link":"","player_link":"","audio_player":false,"episode_data":{"playerMode":"dark","subscribeUrls":{"apple_podcasts":{"key":"apple_podcasts","url":"","label":"Apple Podcasts","class":"apple_podcasts","icon":"apple-podcasts.png"},"stitcher":{"key":"stitcher","url":"","label":"Stitcher","class":"stitcher","icon":"stitcher.png"},"google_podcasts":{"key":"google_podcasts","url":"","label":"Google Podcasts","class":"google_podcasts","icon":"google-podcasts.png"},"spotify":{"key":"spotify","url":"","label":"Spotify","class":"spotify","icon":"spotify.png"}},"rssFeedUrl":"https:\/\/customwordpresssites.com\/mjb\/feed\/podcast\/messy-jesus-business","embedCode":"

Coloring outside the lines<\/a><\/blockquote>