24 hour Agile Vision

Few months back I was attending a Business Analysis workshop where the instructor was explaining about how the modern IT projects are more driven by Agile vision as compared to the traditional waterfall model of working. For the less instructed, in software engineering a waterfall model refers to a highly systematic way of executing a project with more time spent in planning and documentation. While this system works well, it takes a lot of time planning for the future which was the reason why modern projects depend on an Agile vision- wherein the entire work is divided into small chunks say a 24hr chunks of work and dealt accordingly. As a disciple of Christ I felt like laughing simply because 2000 years ago or even 3000 yrs ago God has already told us this simple formula for fullness of life.

Lamentations 3:23 says "The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning! He didn't say the love will deepen as days goes by or his love from yesterday will be strengthened today, NO!, he says it is new every morning; it comes new every 24hrs!In psalm 143:8 we see the psalmist affirming this – "Let me hear in the morning of thy steadfast love, for in thee I put my trust."

Jesus puts this plainly before us in Mathew 6 verse 27 onwards where he points to the lilies in the field and sparrows in the sky and brings forth the futility of the anxiety of man. Let's go straight to his conclusion on verse 34 - "Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Let the day's own trouble be sufficient for the day". Later St.Paul also follows this 24hr theme when he talks about anger in Ephesians 4:26 – "Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger ".

Hence the instruction is very clear for a disciple of Jesus – follow the 24hr agile lifecycle to deal with your life. Your worries should be strictly about the next 24hours. Your failures will last only 24hrs. Your anger should last only next 24hrs. So then what about planning for future? Are we not obliged to work for our better future? Yes we need to think about future. Yes we need to do adequate planning but should we make it our point of concern for today? Jesus firmly says NO! He radically says anything, any matter which makes us anxious of tomorrow or takes away our focus from the lord today are not worth our 24hrs!!

Practically speaking this warrants a filtering process from our side. To explain further let me go back to the Agile framework with which we started. In this methodology every day there is a scrum meeting to discuss the 24hr chunk of work assigned for that day. There will be a scrum master who decides what to include and what to exclude from today's work. We also need to do this scrum meeting everyday with our scrum master – The Holy Spirit! We need to sit with HIM daily before we start the day to decide our own 24hr chunk of work, worries and winningJ. The scrum master is assigned by the Project Manager (Jesus!) and the entire project is owned by the Product Owner (Father God!).

Time is precious…Let's not lose it…Are we game for the 24hour Jesus challenge?

Feast NOT Funeral

"Sorry, but I believe that a good worship service should be based on Word of God (Bible) than a ritualistic one, no offense meant!" replied the receptionist to my query on the nearest Catholic Church in the new place (where I came for job interview). I felt happy at her openness towards the WOG and tried to share in few sentences about how I agree with her and how 5years back I started finding meaning in Holy Mass and ever since never willfully tried to miss daily mass. Soon I left for the nearest church (she gave me the directions:)) pondering on the oft repeated question of why Catholic mass is boring while protestant worship services are so vibrant? Ok, before answering this, let me take a detour here.

It's pin drop silence…the priest walks in solemnly and starts the holy mass…during the time of response the church is silent…first reading..responsorial psalm…even after repeated exhortation from the reader, there is only silent mumbling…priest takes up the role of responding…people wore solemn faces and looks blank…they seemed determined to be mute spectators or silent observers!!

The above scene is from the daily 5pm Holy Mass which I used to participate in my college chapel. The fact that hardly 10-15 comes to fill up a 300 capacity church only adds to the 'thickness' of silence during the Holy Mass. If we want to excuse ourselves (or justify!) saying this s a week day mass even the situation on Sunday mass is not different - pull out the church choir and stop distributing the missalette - u will be left with a church full of silent worshippers! After all someone has said – "Silence is the mother tongue of God"!!  

So whom should we blame? The Catholic church (read bishops/priests) or the congregation (baptized Catholics)? As usual I went in search (read google) on what the church has to say about active participation in Holy Mass:

The first chapter of Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy (promulgated by the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council) explains the meaning of active participation by the faithful in the sacred liturgy: "Mother Church earnestly desires that all the faithful should be led to that fully conscious and active participation in liturgical celebrations which is demanded by the very nature of the liturgy. Such participation by the Christian people as 'a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a redeemed people' (1 Pt 2:9; cf. 2:4-5), is their right and duty by reason of their baptism. … for it is the primary and indispensable source from which the faithful are to derive the true Christian spirit" (14).The faithful are encouraged to participate so that: "when the Church prays or sings or acts, the faith of those taking part is nourished and their minds are raised to God, so that they may offer Him their rational service and more abundantly receive his grace" (33). The assembled faithful, then, should not just be at Mass … as strangers or silent spectators; on the contrary, through a good understanding of the rites and prayers they should take part in the sacred action, conscious of what they are doing, with devotion and full collaboration" (33).

"If you wish to participate in the Mass actively, you must follow with your eye, heart and mouth all that happens on the altar. - Pope Saint Pius X

Keywords: fully conscious, active participation, right and duty by reason of baptism, faith is nourished, minds are raised to God, abundantly receive grace, devotion & full collaboration, follow with eye, heart & mouth and finally through a good understanding of the rites & prayers.

For me this seems to be the root cause – a lack of good understanding of the rites and prayers, of what is happening in the Eucharistic celebration. Most of us seem to be clueless on what is happening on the altar. If we fully understand that we are transposed to the Calvary heights, (oh yea tats what happens every time we offer mass for it's a perpetual once for all sacrifice!) to the foot of the cross; heavens open up and Jesus is truly substantially coming down as flesh and blood to make us co heirs with him, little could we afford to stay inactive or praise-less! Shouts of joy and praises will rise up, not murmurs and whispers because it's a Feast not Funeral!

P.S:- On a lighter note, when I gets frustrated with no response to the responsorial psalm; I would imagine the words of Jesus turning real - "I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out." (Luke 19:40) :)

Click ‘Refresh’

                        One day while sitting in a restaurant I saw one lady nearby using a Nokia 3310. Immediately my memories rushed back to my college days when I first started using a mobile phone – a borrowed 3310. The feel, the ease of using the keypad, the single buzz sound (for messaging while in class!), the tough look etc started flashing in my mind. Feeling nostalgic I went and bought an old Nokia 3310 (against the warnings of all my friends). It’s been 6 years since I used my favourite 3310 and I rushed back home to run my old buddy once again. I guess this phone might have been produced way back in 2000 and it showed all signs of old age. It blinked and coughed 2-3 times and then it died! Yes, that’s it. I was not able to use it even for an hour! As an MBA student I had done the worst investment in my life, but it taught me a great lesson – never try to relive your present with nostalgic feelings!

Some of us do the same mistake in our relationship with Jesus. We come into renewal or into the Jesus Youth movement through a powerful God experience. It may have occurred either while praying in a retreat/prayer meeting or while dealing a difficult situation in our life. We usually tend to associate this encounter with the personal image of our Lord Jesus Christ. Whenever we are able to experience the same feeling we are happy and whenever we are not; we feel out of touch with God. Though normal and to an extent healthy (in the initial days of our growing relationship with Jesus); this “always seeking first encounter” attitude will prevent us from getting closer to him. Scripture says “The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning;” (Lamentations 3: 22-23).

Translated it means a new encounter every day. We get to know a new facet of the omnipotent and omnipresent Lord each new day. If we search for the same feeling every day we are limiting God. We are obstructing his amazing grace which flows to us in thousand different ways. It can be through the cool winter breeze (that refreshing feel?) or through the dry breeze (when we thirst for HIM?) or through that email from an old friend (when we feel wanted?) or through the unexpected smile of a stranger (got a new friend?) or after many failed attempts we finally stayed awake through that boring lecture (loving that boring professor or that tough subject?) or when we start praising lord in our sickness (THY will over our will?) or thanking Jesus for that tough situation (started kissing your cross?). This list is endless for you and me. Let’s start adding a new one every new day. 

P.S: Just now I experienced Jesus through the typed word - a reason good enough to keep me blogging :)