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Do We Desire God’s Presence? Do we Desire Eternity?

Do We Desire God’s Presence? Do we Desire Eternity?

Aug 21

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Devotional/Discussion Thought of the Day       :This was the church of my parochial school... a beautiful sanctuary in Lawrence, Massachusetts..now used for something else.

4  I have asked the LORD for one thing; one thing only do I want: to live in the LORD’S house all my life, to marvel there at his goodness, and to ask for his guidance. Psalm 27:4 (TEV) 

11  Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end. Ecclesiastes 3:11 (NLT) 

857 Someone we know well told us sincerely, in confidence, that he had never been bored, for he had never been on his own, without our Friend. It was late in the evening, and there was a great silence… You felt very intently the presence of God… And, in the knowledge of that reality, what peace!  (1)

Each morning that I find myself in my office, I start the day with the morning liturgy from “Celtic Daily Prayer”.  Each morning I do so, after remembering my baptism while making the sign of the cross, the very next thing is Psalm 27:4. I read the words and often ask myself a question.

Do I really want only that – to live in His house all my life, for all eternity?

Let me confess, I struggle with that, as I imagine you do.

And if I struggle with living with Him here, in this time and place; I also struggle with seeing that which Solomon mentioned, that God has planted eternity in my heart.  For often my heart and mind are not centered there.  Some things I desire may be good and beneficial, like seeing people given the gift of faith, and the promises that come from Baptism and receiving the Body and Blood of Christ.  I desire the church to grow, to find reconciliation where it is so needed.  But anxiety over making that happen.

Is my first desire God’s presence, to be where He abides?

There are times it is, and I can think back over the years and long for those times again.  The quiet sanctuaries of my youth, the incredible retreats I’ve been on, the baptisms, the putting into people’s hands the body and blood of Christ. The holding someone’s hand while they passed away, just silently praying.  Praying again with my son, when he fit in the niche of my arm, praying that God would bless him, and through him many people.  They are my treasured times, they are the best moments of my life.

Yes I do desire this, and I cannot but help look forward to eternity, because of promises like this:

9  However, as the scripture says, “What no one ever saw or heard, what no one ever thought could happen, is the very thing God prepared for those who love him.” 1 Corinthians 2:9 (TEV)

The times are precious, when I can sit and meditate on this, when I contemplate my baptism, or the Eucharist, or receiving the incredible news that my sins are absolved.

It is then I realize the peace the Josemaria’s friend new, the silence, the presence of God.  That which we do desire the most, if we take a moment to realize it.

Be still, my friends, and know there is a God, and you are His…..

It is worth every micro-second.  For there eternity, the eternity planted in our hearts is revealed.

For eternity is yours already.  He is with you…

 

 

(1)Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 3511-3515). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.

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A Glorious Sample!

A Glorious Sample!

Jul 20

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A Glorious Sampling!SAMSUNG

Romans 8:18-27

 

† In Jesus Name †

 

May the Holy Spirit’s presence in your life not only assure you of the grace and peace of God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ that is yours now… but also that is eternal and yet to be fully revealed!

 

Anticipation…..

To be fair, I should start this sermon with a warning.  So here it is.

You are warned, that carefully listening to this sermon may make you very, very, very hungry.

Back in the day when our only television was a 12 inch B/W, there was a commercial that was so well done, that even in black and white, the ½ inch thick perfectly cooked, juicy hamburger was so well pictured, that it could make your mouth water…

There was a poor starving salivating child waiting for it, as a Heinz catsup bottle was hovering over it, taking 20 seconds for the first drop of catsup to lead the thick, rich, delicious catsup stream that would make complete the burger.

If you are old enough to remember those days, how many of you didn’t wait for the catsup, but got out a butter knife to encourage the catsup’s flow?

Anticipation, is making me wait!  Making me wait for this delicious, juicy, perfectly barbecued hamburger, which will be ice cold by the time the catsup leaves the bottle!

I never waited for the catsup – just tossed some onions on it, and started eating!

Some of us have trouble waiting patiently, whether it is for food, or to see God’s will revealed in our lives, and to see our lives become perfect.

Yet, it is a glorious thing when we see it, and knowing us, God has given us a little foretaste of what is to come.  That is what Paul is talking about, in the passage from Romans 8 that we heard a few moments ago….

It is just hard to wait, he is right, we long for the days when we are released from sin and suffering, and our adoption as God’s kids is fully realized.

The Struggle with Waiting!

We have a problem with waiting, probably because the other terms for waiting are not pleasant.  We have to have patience, or to use an older phrase – we have to be “long-suffering”.

Patience means we don’t get what we want, when we want it.

We don’t like that opening verse of the reading,

 Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later!

It is a struggle to wait, such a struggle is its own kid of suffering.  We get frustrated, whether it is waiting for catsup to pour out of a bottle, to get a seat at a restaurant, or to wait in line at a grocery store.

We struggle with those little things, and often we pour out our frustration in those situations, because we can’t figure out how to give address other struggles, other heavier, more personal and painful suffering.

Suffering we endure as our bodies cannot do what they used to do.  When we wake up with aches and pains, instead of energy and strength.  The suffering that happens because of age, or disease, or even common things like allergies.

Like the suffering that comes when we struggle to make ends meet, or as we wait for test results, or when our expectations don’t become reality.

There are even deeper sufferings, the pains we feel as we watch people we love suffer, as marriages suffer, as grief weighs on people, as financial struggles crush them, as addictions rob life from them.  Even more so as we look at those we love, who could know God’s peace, and instead continue to struggle to play God, and fail.

Those times where the suffering is so great, we can’t even find the peace or the words to pray, where our very heart is crushed by the suffering. This isn’t even starting to talk about the suffering of martyrdom, the suffering that can accompany sharing God’s love for people.

We aren’t alone in the suffering, Paul tells us the whole creation – the earth and stars suffer as well, waiting for that which we hope for…. The transformation that all creation groans for, as it awaits Christ’s return.

How can we wait patiently, expectantly for that, if we struggle to wait for some tomato paste and vinegar to make it’s way from a bottle onto the aromatic, juicy, perfectly barbecued hamburger?

What are we waiting for? 

I joke about the burger, but we need to see that for which we hope. Hope, not like in hoping that I win the lottery, but more hope as in we fully expect Christ’s return.

Paul uses some incredible words to describe that for which we hope.

“we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering!”

And,

We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us!

Those are a lot better to wait for than that catsup – right?

Imagine – no more body, no more effect of sin on our lives, or the lives of those we love and care for, just the presence of the Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit; who welcomes us home into a life beyond experience, beyond our imagination.

There are days I long for that! There are days I cannot wait…..

Especially when I hear the news of more churches being burnt to the ground, of Christians being threatened with death,

I long to know the glory we will share in, and be done with the suffering of this life…

Then again, I had trouble waiting for catsup!  How do you expect me to wait for eternity to be revealed?  How can we wait for it, when waiting means struggling, sacrifice, and suffering?

How Can We wait?

I warned you at the beginning of this sermon that it might make you hungry, but I wasn’t talking about the hamburger with the Heinz catsup on it.

What I hope you are hungry for, nearly starving for, is that day when we realize how true it is, that the sufferings of our lives is nothing compared to the glory awaiting for us.

I pray you are hungry for the revelation of God’s glory, of our eternity spent with Him, or as Paul explains it to the church in Colossae,

1  You have been raised to life with Christ, so set your hearts on the things that are in heaven, where Christ sits on his throne at the right side of God. 2  Keep your minds fixed on things there, not on things here on earth. 3  For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4  Your real life is Christ and when he appears, then you too will appear with him and share his glory!     Colossians 3:1-4 (TEV)

Set your hearts on it!  Put your hope in God!  Expect Him to fulfill all His promises – and know what those promises are!

God provides for us as we wait as well!  Paul describes two ways in which the Holy Spirit work.

The first is as we pray, as we groan and endure, when we are so week, that we don’t even know how to pray.  The promise is that the Spirit is with us, praying with us, groaning with us, pleading for us, as verse 27 states, in harmony with God’s will.

We don’t suffer alone! Our prayers are heard!  God is listening, for the Spirit who dwells in our hearts communicates clearly and the Father hears.

The other, even more significant is that the Holy Spirit’s presence in our life!  I love how the NLT translates it…

23 And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory

The presence of the Holy Spirit, the gift of God given to us when we were born again in baptism.  The presence of the Lord and Giver of Life, the Comforter, the Advocate, the One who gives gifts to the church to serve the word the good news of Christ.  The One who assures us our prayers are heard by God the Father and answered, the Healer of our souls.

Who is a foretaste, the Holy Spirit who is present in our lives – a glimpse of what to expect when the suffering we now know is replaced by the glory of that day.

May we revel in the presence of the Holy Spirit, may we drink deeply of the love revealed to us, and may it help us realize the peace of God, as we anticipate the glory that is yet to come!

AMEN?

 

 

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A Very Different Sports/Church Parallel…

Devotional Thought of a long weekOLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

4  God’s various gifts are handed out everywhere; but they all originate in God’s Spirit. 5  God’s various ministries are carried out everywhere; but they all originate in God’s Spirit. 6  God’s various expressions of power are in action everywhere; but God himself is behind it all. 7  Each person is given something to do that shows who God is: Everyone gets in on it, everyone benefits. All kinds of things are handed out by the Spirit, and to all kinds of people! 1 Corinthians 12:4-7 (MSG)

There is a saying coined by Pat Riley (and brought to my attention by ESPN’s Louis Riddick) that is called “the innocent climb.” Riley described it this way in his book The Winner Within: The innocent climb is the surge that occurs within a team as they are accomplishing more because of the synergy that occurs within a team. Innocence means understanding that the team comes first and being carried along by that; being naive means being ignorant. Innocence doesn’t mean being naive. Teamwork and all of its benefits happen when everyone puts the team first. Innocence comes when the leader believes in something and puts him or herself out to accomplish that.  (1)

First off, I can’t believe I am quoting Riles, even more that I borrowed the quote out of a article about the SeaHawks.  (It followed an article about Tom Brady…:-)

But the author nails something about the church, and how it should function in Christ, that is well described.

Our “Leader” believed in something, and put Himself out there to accomplish what He believed in, He put himself out there literally to the point of death.   We have lots of church words for it, Salvation, Deliverance, Redemption (which includes justification and sanctification) Reconciliation,.  It is why Jesus was born of Mary, why he lived, suffered, died, rose and ascended to Heaven and it is why He will return.  This “something” is why the Father in Heaven sent Jesus, it is why Jesus asked, and the Father sent us the Holy Spirit, and why we trust in that promise enough to know those who trust in Him live in His presence now, and will eternally.

It is that accomplishment, the very relationship that God establishes with us, with you and I and all the saints today, those before us, those after us, that creates the synergy that we call the church.  It is an innocent climb, innocent and yet not naive or ignorant.  We know it is His presence that does it, in a very real way, it has nothing to do with us, and yet everything to do with us in Christ, united in His death and resurrection, united by the Spirit.

This can’t be programmed, it can’t be manipulated.  It can’t be forced or manipulated, though some may try, and some may seem to succeed.

It just is who we is.   That’s the “synergy” as the article puts it.

It’s why I contend (as others have) that sermons need to lead people not to the foot of the cross – but through His death, into the resurrection, into His glory, into the point we know He is present in our lives.   Where we serve together, each different, but the difference not mattering, as Paul tells the Corinthians,   Where our gifts flow, out, even those in others we aren’t always sure of, that we aren’t always comfortable with, even though we know they are in scripture.

It is why we gather to worship, to receive His blessing, to celebrate them together, for that is the nature of His accomplishment, His goal.

When a Bible Study, a youth group, a church, a group of churches or even a denomination are focused on Christ, in Christ…. the synergy is incredible.  The focus of God results in praises – no matter the style of worship, no matter the era of the music, things happen without thought,   Walls come down, barriers are cross, people are loved, and more are saved…

Not because we force it, just because it is natural…. in Christ, led by the Spirit.  What most consider supernatural, it just is.

Because He has had mercy…. and that creates synergy in ways that even pro sports teams cannot imagine….

It’s all about Jesus – and our innocent journey with Him…

(1) http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2083325-mike-freemans-10-point-stance-give-tom-brady-his-due

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Pastors and Ministers: Do We Care About the Return on Our Investment of Time, Talent, Treasure?

Pastors and Ministers: Do We Care About the Return on Our Investment of Time, Talent, Treasure?

May 19

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Devotional Thought of The Day:Concordia Lutheran Church - Cerritos, Ca , at dawn on Easter Sunday

6  I planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase. 7  So then neither is he that planteth anything, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase. 1 Corinthians 3:6-7 (ASV)

215 The ploughshare that breaks up the earth and opens up the furrow sees neither the seed nor the harvest.  (1)

In Business, often you make decisions based on a data that provides a potential “ROI”.  Te acronym means, “return on investment”.  Here is a quick summary.

You only have the resources to fund one project, and you have to decide between..

Project A – you invest 1 million, and the result in you make 50,000 in profit, pretty much guaranteed.

Project B – you invest one million, and you have a 50-50 chance of returning 500,000.

Your decision is a matter of risk versus the return you get for the investment. Some would apply this kind of idea to the ministry, where do we plant churches, which direction do we lead the church, how do we decide about staff people.  It even is applied to our daily priorities, which things will I do today, that will build the kingdom?  Who will I invest my time in, who will I pass off to to others.  What will be my best ROI as a pastor?  Do we use such thoughts to justify why we don’t talk to this person, or don’t try that in ministry.  Either the ROI is to minimal, or the risk is too great?  We can’t spread ourselves that thin, or we have to concentrate strongly on this or that.  We use concepts from time management and strategic planning.

I started thinking about this last night – and the challenge my own congregation has in reaching out.  I started thinking about my first congregation and its growth, which was significant given its size.  It wasn’t were I planned to “invest” that provided the growth.  In fact, it was what I had to do besides being a pastor that resulted in growth.  First, my work as a part-time instructor at a college, and as a hospice chaplain.  Neither was supposed to be something I was doing to help our church grow, but that’s what happened.

If we are honest, all of our statistical analysis and projected ROI’s don’t mean diddly squat when it comes to the world of the Holy Spirit.  We don’t know if the nurse watching us minister to the person with alzheimer’s or in a coma will have seeds planted that will result in their baptism.  We don’t know that the student we failed in a class will later come by the office to apologize, and then reveal struggles that only God can heal.   We don’t know if the person who watched us grab someone’s check at a restaurant will ask why we did such a thing, and find our about God’s love.  Or the person we smiled at in the checkout line at Walmart needed some encouragement on a very hard day.

We don’t know when God is using us to break through a hard heart, or plant the seed of His love.  We might not ever know.  That kind of investment cannot be quantified, it cannot be studied, it cannot be controlled and reproduced.  That present to many of us a problem.

We’ve been trained since birth, to look for results, We’ve been trained to do things in a way that can be evaluated by criteria, we’ve been instructed to get the best grade, to aim for successful goals, to describe our mission in life with quantitative elements.

And evangelism, as St.Paul points out, isn’t so easy to see the results of, because it is a matter of teamwork.  It is the Holy Spirit working through all of us, not just one or two.  It is as Fr. Josemaria indicates, often we have no clue of the harvest we’ve been working towards, because that is not our role.  We’re aren’t the owner of the field, or the foreman.  We have our vocations, our gifts, and we follow His lead.  It’s unnerving.  especially as we invest and invest and invest in some people. Being the plow blade that breaks up hardened ground, or hardened hearts is a tough job…. and it is made only tougher because we do not know the result.  Yet it is a necessary job, this work where the Holy Spirits works through us.

What gets us trough?  What eases our frustration our doubt that what we invest will have some positive return?  What helps us to keep going?

Knowing the heart of God.  Realizing that is desire is that non one should perish, but all come to know the transformation to everlasting life. Knowing is promises, how He sustained Jeremiah, how he called Paul, how e worked through Peter.  Those live serve as a legacy, a testimony to us who in this generation serve……

Not knowing the gruit of our labors, but assured He does…..

Lord Have mercy on us, in this amazing, complex, frustrating, ministry of reconciling the world to You….and increase our trust in You!
.

(1)  Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 1107-1108). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.

 

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Another Thought About What Jesus Would/Did Do…. as Did His Followers

Another Thought About What Jesus Would/Did Do…. as Did His Followers

Apr 28

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Devotional Thought of the Day!photo

40  They called the apostles in, had them whipped, and ordered them never again to speak in the name of Jesus; and then they set them free. 41  As the apostles left the Council, they were happy, because God had considered them worthy to suffer disgrace for the sake of Jesus. 42  And every day in the Temple and in people’s homes they continued to teach and preach the Good News about Jesus the Messiah. Acts 5:40-42 (TEV)

7  “He was treated harshly, but endured it humbly; he never said a word. Like a lamb about to be slaughtered, like a sheep about to be sheared, he never said a word. 8  He was arrested and sentenced and led off to die, and no one cared about his fate. He was put to death for the sins of our people. Isaiah 53:7-8 (TEV)

2  Let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from beginning to end. He did not give up because of the cross! On the contrary, because of the joy that was waiting for him, he thought nothing of the disgrace of dying on the cross, and he is now seated at the right side of God’s throne. Hebrews 12:2 (TEV)

11  “Happy are you when people insult you and persecute you and tell all kinds of evil lies against you because you are my followers. 12  Be happy and glad, for a great reward is kept for you in heaven. This is how the prophets who lived before you were persecuted. Matthew 5:11-12 (TEV) 

123         Do you see? With Him you have been able. Why are you surprised? Be convinced: there is nothing to be surprised about. If you trust in God—really trust!—things work out easily. And, what is more, you always go further than you imagined you could.

Right before Easter, a bunch of FB Memes appeared, asking the “What Would Jesus Do” question, and reminding people of Jesus’ clearing the Temple.  As if to justify Christianity on the offensive, a militant form of beat them into submission, a warrior version of Protestantism that confronts and boldly takes on the world and those who oppose the faith. Maybe we don’t want to go to physical war with them, but we want to win the battles of words, the debates.

Sunday, as the first reading ended in church with the quote above from Acts 5, I thought about the fact that the apostles were doing what Jesus did.  They didn’t fight back, they didn’t revile their persecutors, they rejoiced!

Even as Jesus embraced the cross for the joy that was waiting, the apostles rejoiced that because they bore the name of Christ, they were whipped and beaten and brought before authorities – because there, they could share about the love of God, proven at the cross. They knew, because they heard the words on the sermon on the mount, the blessing that such persecution was, not because they loved pain, but because of the gospel.

It is not as if our suffering merits someone else’s salvation, or even ours.  But if we are truly persecuted for our faith, it shows our connection to the one whom we bear witness to.

How many of us are willing to endure persecution, or allow others to do that in this day and age?

How many of us are willing to serve others by sharing about Christ, if that means persecution, pain, suffering, even death?  And yet, even as we go through it, rejoice?

Will we embrace suffering and persecution, knowing that it too testifies of our trust in God?  Or will we fight, complain, slander and disrespect?

Will we do what Jesus’ did?  Will we do what the disciples did, with the attitude they had – one of joy?

In order to do so, our trust has to be in God, we have to know He reigns, that we are His people, and that everything – even that which is meant for evil (like the cross) will work for good.  That is asking us to trust Him in a way most of us are uncomfortable in trying.  We would rather fight, we would rather plan strategic countermeasures, But simple rest in Him, trust Him while others role over us?  Heck even our own people may think us wimps and join in the persecution, mocking us.

That takes a level of trust only possible if we abide in the presence of God, or more precisely, if the Holy Spirit dwells in us.  Because of our baptism, we know that promise is true… He dwells in us, He is transforming us,

Transforming us into the image of Christ, St Paul teachings in 2 Corinthians 3, into the image of the Lord who loved enough to endure punishment, to bring those who persecuted Him into the family of God.

May we learn to love our enemies, and pray for those who persecute us, and realize that even under persecution we bear witness to the Love of God.

Lord have mercy on us!

 

 
Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 706-709). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.

 

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Called and Loved and Holy: The reason for the Reason of the Season

Dec 22

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    Called and Loved and Holy:
The reason for the Reason of the Season

 † IHS †

During the Christmas celebrations this year, may we know the
grace, the mercy and peace of God that is the reason for the reason of the Season!

Confusion about IHS!

It is amazing how easily this world can get confused about the message of Christmas, and never see the real reason for the season, or the real reason for the real Reason of the season. In this year, I think there is more of that going on than ever, not just in the world at large, but in the church.  Part of that is we often get confused ourselves, and instead of asking questions, and doing our research, we simply go with what makes sense.  Let me use a story from my youth to explain.

When I was growing up, there was a place in the church where the chalices were kept, and the cup that held the bread over which the words of institution was already said. On its brass locked doors, there were three letters, very ornate in their carving.

I  H  S

Sometimes on the bread, those letters were seen as well.  The Chrismons that we used to hang on the tree here had them as well! As a curious kid, I always wondered what they meant, and one day I thought or heard someone say that they stood for “In His Service.”  I would later hear they meant things ranging from Jesus, Savior of Men, to Jesus, Son and Savior.  All of which make some sense.

Doing some more research, it seems the oldest use of them, was just the monogram of Jesus, the first three letters of His Name.

All sorts of different stories, most of them seeming to make sense, yet each obscuring a little of the simplicity of referring to who is with us, whose body and blood is given and shed for us.

Sometimes I think we need help focusing, especially now at Christmas, and that is what this reading from Romans does for us today.

An Ambassadors Limitations

In each of the letters Paul wrote to churches in various cities throughout the Mediterranean, he starts them with a reference to who he is, usually using the title apostle, with clarification that his role is by God’s choice and calling, not his own. He writes to the church in an area – not necessarily to a single congregation, but to all whom are called and gathered as God’s people there.

An apostle is like an ambassador, a person who is entrusted to speak for the one who selects and sends them. They are trusted with opening up relations and enhancing the relationships, but within the guidelines he has been given, with the powers with which he’s been entrusted.

The Greek word for sent emphasizes it – it is the word we get horizon from, and is defined as the boundaries Paul is given as an apostle. Despite his position, despite His call, he can’t change his mission and say he is only sent to these people, nor can he change what God has defined.  Simply put, he can’t say, I don’t like baptism, so instead do this to enter a relationship with God.  Nor can he change the rules and say, I don’t think gossip is as bad as sex outside of marriage, so let’s hear all the stuff about your neighbors, and what is that friend of yours doing now?

He was given a message, a very specific message with a very specific goal in mind.

Our challenge is to keep that message central in our lives, to depend on it, for it makes all the difference in the world.  To be focused on Him, and what He has done, not on all the other things that can confuse the message, like I was confused about all the different possible meanings of IHS.

To declare the good news that God has sent His only begotten son into the world, into the family where God had always said he would be for the sake of rising from the dead to prove that Jesus cares for each one of us… and has taken responsibility for each one of us.  Paul was to bring this message to a certain people group.  A large group, this is sure, for it is everyone who isn’t Jewish. So that they can trust in God, and really hear Him, as He loves them, and calls them to be the people that are set apart to be God’s people.

That’s the limit of Paul’s work, the limit of the work of the church.

But that word – the one we get horizon from – the setting of the boundaries and limitations, is not just used for Paul’s ministry, or the ministry he has passed down to us through generations of generations of believers.

It’s used in regards to Jesus as well.

When it says in verse 4, that He was shown to be the son of God, when it talks about the dimension of His being shown as death could not stop Him.  There is the evidence of His love, His call on our lives, His desire to make us Holy.

Even death could not stop him on the mission that God the Father sent Jesus on!

The Reason for the Reason of the Season

That is the reason for this Reason for this season to come.  To make it abundantly clear that we do not walk alone, that this manger and this cross has a reason for us, not just eternally, but in the eternity that started when this good news became our good news!  When the Holy Spirit replaced our heart of sin hardened stone with His heart, when He brought us to a life that is lived with Christ.

When we understand its not about our serving Christ, this time, but it is when Christ comes among us.  Whne we are revealed to be the ones God loves and adores, when we care chosen and called to be His saints the people made Holy, set aside to be His.

That’s us.

That’s the message we’ve been given the responsibility of revealing to the world.

Like Paul, it is what our focus is to be on…

For it is what makes the difference. Look there – we are the ones in the last verses –

6 And you are included among those Gentiles who have been called to belong to Jesus Christ. 7 I am writing to all of you in Rome who are loved by God and are called to be his own holy people.

His Love, His calling to us, His being our God, and making us His people…

That is what makes Christmas so radically different.  Realizing it isn’t about the presents, or the people who would stop us from decorating our lawns, or the most recent action of a company that is perceived to be against God.  That’s the difference between whether it is an acronym “In His Service”, or simply a monogram saying “Jesus”  One focuses on us, the other, simply points us to the reality of Jesus Christ being our Lord, our source of life.

It makes an eternal difference, rather than just putting a burden on us, that we can’t possibly live up to.

His work, saving us, redeeming us, fixing our brokenness, restoring us to life with Him, that is the reason that Jesus is the reason for this season, and no other.  Everything else, simply isn’t eternal, and doesn’t give us the grace and peace we’ve been given, the grace and peace that we can invite others into sharing.

English: Icon of Jesus Christ

English: Icon of Jesus Christ (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

But this news – that He is our Lord – that He has promised to be with us and care for us… that is what this is all about.

He is IHS our Lord!

AMEN?

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This News Strengthens Weak Hands Unsteady Legs and Racing Hearts

Dec 15

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The Birth of Our Lord Jesus Christ

The Birth of Our Lord Jesus Christ (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This News Strengthens Weak Hands

Unsteady Legs and Racing Hearts

† Jesus, Son, Savior †

As we experience the grace and mercy of God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ, may our hearts be calmed, and may we find ourselves strengthening others we encounter!

  The Kingdom of God is like.. Christmas Morning…

There was a rule in the house I grew up in, we were not allowed to have our feet touch the first floor of our house until 6:30 on Christmas morning.

Needless to say, by about 5:45, my sister Kelly, my brother Steve and I were crowded on the first step of the stairs, pointing out the presents under the tree, wondering which presents were for which of us.  Some of it was easy – if there were two boxes the same shape and size – one was Stephen’s, one was mine – my folks like to buy us the same thing. I think to see who would break the item the fastest?

At 6:31, my mom could be heard descending the stairs, a few moments more, my dad. That was the morning of instant coffee, for they were up late the night before, for we often didn’t get home from grampy’s until after 11.  Then they had to wrap presents, and get everything ready.

Exhausted when we woke them up, something always happened as they watched us rip open presents with the energy that only children can have.  They began to laugh and smile and enjoy themselves, despite their tired, cold, achy bones. A transformation occurred, as the tiredness somehow evaporated.  There is something about sharing joy that is transforming.

The coming of the Kingdom is like that!

The dramatic change of Isaiah’s desert and desert highlands is lost on most of us.  We can’t picture a place like Arizona suddenly looking like Yosemite, or the coastal redwoods of Santa Cruz.  We don’t see the area between here and Las Vegas all of a sudden looking like the Everglades.  The transformation is that incredible, as God comes among us.  Can we even begin to comprehend it?

We can understand the language found in verse three and four, about having the tired hands, and knees that just want to give out, and hearts that are so crushed, that they are racing because of stress and wear and tear they undergo.

We need this season of Advent to not just about to be about waiting – but to hear the news –that God is coming, that God is with us…. For then, as the King David says –

11  You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy, 12  that I might sing praises to you and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever!Psalm 30:11-12 (NLT)

This week, the third of our advent journey, that is what we find joy in, the news of how the tired, weary and anxious are more incredibly transformed than parents were on Christmas morning!

What causes our weaknesses?  What causes our hearts to race?

It was once said that a pastor’s sermon should afflict those comfortable in sin, by comfort those afflicted by it.  Those who spiritually are tired, worn out to the point of stumbling, those whose heart races.  In other words, a lot of us in this place – are not in need of me ranting about the condition of the world, or of the sins that cause consequences in our lives.

We’ve felt them often, enough so that I can joke about needing to invest in whatever corporation owns Kleenex.  It’s why this place is called a sanctuary, a refuge – and why Sunday is our day of hiding in Christ and finding rest.

We know those Isaiah says need to be strengthened and encouraged and to lift our hearts.  Sometimes, like John the Baptist in the Gospel, we are the ones who ask – are you really there Jesus, are you really listening to us God?  Not because we don’t know – but we need to remember.

We need to know we have a real God whom cares for real people with real problems.

We need to hear God’s message, as we struggle in what seems to be a desert wilderness.

Be calm, be strengthened by this… Immanuel!

That is what advent is all about – this time where we recognize our need for God’s presence, where we try to imagine what going through this life would be like in ancient days.

Not talking about the days with black and white televisions, brownie cameras, pong video games and rotary phones.  I am talking about the days before Christ’s being born of Mary, when they knew of God, but because of Jesus not coming yet, they couldn’t quite understand the promises of the Messiah spoke of a hope beyond belief.  The hope of a desert suddenly growing plants and trees like a rainforest, the promise of ground cracked and dry, not just having enough water to become muddy, but to become a tropical paradise.

Lives that seemed dry and useless, become lives that are alive, as we bring people to Christ like freeways bringing people to LA.

Though we know Christ, and though we are learning more and more about His love, we still tire out like John the Baptist. We still lose focus on what God is doing here, Advent reminds us – that what is coming when Christ returns is incredible, a wondrous transformation even more radical than what happens when we realize that He has saved us.

That there will be a day when what we know is true in our lives, will be seen in all of creation! When everything is redeemed, when Heaven and earth is recreated, when there is no more sorrow or sadness or tears.

When God display His glory, His splendor, when life begins anew.

Not later, the change is now, if you look at it

It is with such a vision that we can revive hands and legs, and calms anxious  hearts.  This is the reason we have been entrusted with this news!

Because the truth of such a vision is that, we don’t have to wait for the transformation to begin.  It already has, the glory of God revealed clearly in ways that go beyond speech.

The Son of God, choosing to enter into this world, to come and abide with us, to restore us to the image in which we are created. To reverse in us the effects caused by sin’s brokenness.

That same Man, hanging there on a tree, paying for the sin of the past year, the sin of all creation, Our being united there in His death, so that we could rise with Him.

This vision of Isaiah that strengthens us, our weary hands, our wobbling knees and calms our hearts, that even though He has died, all the forces of evil couldn’t keep Him dead… He rose and is at the Father’s side… working on our behalf, our of love for us.

Because He was transformed from death to life, so are we. Get that, it isn’t that we will be.  We have been.  We have been changed, and we are no longer lost in the desert – we have become that highway in the desert.

As we become the highway for others in the wilderness, the work Christ does in us brings the water of life to others, and brings them to comprehend this transformation, as the Holy Spirit brings life into their barrenness.

Just as He has into ours.  We may not get it completely; we may not see the fruit and vegetation yet, but we knows His presence, and the promises that have been made sure as He has cleansed us in baptism – as He increases our faith in our times with Him.  As we pray, as He nourishes us with His word, and the promises like these in it. As He invites us to lay our burdens down, and as He strengthens us with His Body and Blood.

That’s why we become the road for others, so that they can learn of the healing, the restoration, what it means to be saved and rescued.

For Christ has come, and it changes everything far more than a parent’s weariness fades as kids unwrap presents..

That is the peace that passes all comprehension, but which we know guards our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

AMEN!

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A Blessing for you, that “Works”

Dec 12

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Jesus is considered by scholars such as Weber ...

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Devotional Thought of the Day:

 20  Now may the God of peace— who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep, and ratified an eternal covenant with his blood— 21  may he equip you with all you need for doing his will. May he produce in you, through the power of Jesus Christ, every good thing that is pleasing to him. All glory to him forever and ever! Amen!  .Hebrews 13:20-21 (NLT)

So many times we say, responding to someone’s sneeze, “God bless you!”  But what kind of blessing do we actually desire?

As we pray, as we ask God to bless people, do we consider how God would have them blessed?  Is it all about our lives being pleasant, or rescued from the place we’ve gotten ourselves into?

Or is there more to a blessing?

The author of Hebrews ends this incredible epistle with the blessing above….one that we often end our church services with, because of what it says

First it deals with who God is, defining the Father and Son and the role they have in our life.  How they establsihed a relationship with us (the covenant) where resurrected Christ guides us, and guards us in the very peace of God. This can occur because of His death (the blood that establishes and guarantees that we are found in this incredible relationship.  God is identified as such so we know who the blessing is from – and therefore – knowing this is God’s blessing – are assured that the blessing will come to pass.

It is as when we pray the Lord’s prayer.  We pray that certain things will happen – from God’s will, to having food, to protecting us from evil. We don’t pray this because if we do not, God will not have these things occur, but because as we pray, we realize that He is doing this!  So we are assured who is “backing” this blessing, who will make it happen.

Secondly, this blessing is one that has a clear idea of what the blessing is.- that our lives, transformed by the gospel, would be what God desires and plans for them to be.  That we become the masterpiece of God (see Eph. 2:10) That like little children wanting to please our Father, this happens, we really can, for the power of the Holy Spirit empowers us, even as God’s promises to us, happen because of Christ!

This is something that amazes me, as I struggle as we all do with sin.  So much like Paul I want to please God, but feel I don’t – because sin seems ever present. I don’t do what I want, I do what I don’t want to do.  Yet my heart cries out to God, for I want to please Him.  There are days I know I do, but just as often, if not more, I wonder what I did for God during the day. Yet this blessing goes beyond what we are aware of, the little things we do naturally, because we are being conformed to image of Jesus. Just as there are sins we commit that we are unaware of, so there are words we do, where God directs our words, or our works, and we are unaware of it.  Yet these things – these acts of love, bring joy to the Father as well.

So my friends, know the God who blesses you, and be amazed at what He empowers and transforms your life into – the actions and words that will bless others.

And remember to pray such for those around you, that they two would share in this blessing!

And know and rejoice in this most of all – for God to promise and bless you in this way… means that the Lord is with you!

 

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Grieving our Condemnation of a Photo being taken

Grieving our Condemnation of a Photo being taken

Dec 11

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Devotional Thought of the Day:

1  Remind the people to respect the government and be law-abiding, always ready to lend a helping hand 2  No insults, no fights. God’s people should be bighearted and courteous. 3  It wasn’t so long ago that we ourselves were stupid and stubborn, dupes of sin, ordered every which way by our glands, going around with a chip on our shoulder, hated and hating back. 4  But when God, our kind and loving Savior God, stepped in, 5  he saved us from all that. It was all his doing; we had nothing to do with it. He gave us a good bath, and we came out of it new people, washed inside and out by the Holy Spirit. 6  Our Savior Jesus poured out new life so generously. 7  God’s gift has restored our relationship with him and given us back our lives. And there’s more life to come—an eternity of life! 8  You can count on this. I want you to put your foot down. Take a firm stand on these matters so that those who have put their trust in God will concentrate on the essentials that are good for everyone.   Titus 3:1-8 (MSG) 

16  If a hostile witness stands to accuse someone of a wrong, 17  then both parties involved in the quarrel must stand in the Presence of GOD before the priests and judges who are in office at that time. Deuteronomy 19:16-17 (MSG) 

758  You say that he is full of defects! Very well… but, apart from the fact that people who are perfect are found only in Heaven, you too have defects, yet others put up with you and, what is more, appreciate you. That is because they love you with the love Jesus Christ had for his own, and they had a fair number of shortcomings. Learn from this!

Yesterday my twitter and facebook accounts were flowing with criticism of three world leaders for taking a picture of themselves ( a “selfie”) at the celebration of Nelson Mandela’s life. They were smiling, but the atmosphere of the celebration was a joyous one. How “shameful!”, how “horrible”, “How disrespectful”. were the cries.   To be honest, the two prime ministers, both of very reserved countries, were not criticised as much as President Obama was.  I wonder, if he had said no, and insulted the Danish lady who asked, how the press and the cybersphere would have handled it?

I challenged a few of the more virulent attacks, wondering where their compassion and understanding went, when the rush to judgment occured.  I asked a few questions,

1.  When exactly in the celebration was the picture taken?

2.  Who asked for the picture?

3.  Did you know this wasn’t the funeral, but a public celebration and testimony of this remarkable man’s work?

I’ve learned to ask these questions, because of my own experience rushing to judgment, and falling on my face as I realized I didn’t know the entire story.  I am not immune to such rushes to judgment, yet I can stop myself a little more often.  Those I asked – came back defensively, as if there was no valid reason to question their public questioning and condemnation of this action.  The irony is slightly amusing, but far more, it grieves me. Especially among those who know God, who understand His mercy, who know His commandments to love, to build up each other,these comments were made, and so I grieve.

I am afraid we’ve lost our way, that we’ve become so polarized in our comfort, that we don’t lift up leaders, that we don’t remember that they, like us, are human.  We don’t take on the big issues, but we look for what we perceive to be charachter flaws, signs of betrayal, and we latch onto those things. What kind of example are we setting, what kind of love are we showing people that God has for them?  If theyknow the scriptures, how could they see us as obedient to God, as treasuring the kind of life that He commissioned us to live?

If we claim to live in GOd’s presence, if we claim to know the Holy Spirit dwells in us, how can we continue to be so ready to believe and pass on every criticism about someone, whether we know the details or not.  How will this behavior reflect on the God who appointed us as His ambassadors?   Will this pattern of behavior, far more self centered than “selfies”, become part of our church relationships?  Our family life?

At what point will we lay down our idolatry, our  self appointed judgeships, and will we pray for our leaders?  When will we look to encourage them and respect them rather than tear them down?

Will will confess these sins, and hear those incredible words  – your sins are forgiven you – go and sin no more!

For God is faithful – and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness!

Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 3150-3154). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.

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A Celtic Advent: Looking at God’s Expectations about Jesus Birth

A Celtic Advent: Looking at God’s Expectations about Jesus Birth

Dec 3

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Devotional Thought of the Day…

 6  I chose you to bring justice, and I am here at your side. I selected and sent you to bring light and my promise of hope to the nations. 7  You will give sight to the blind; you will set prisoners free from dark dungeons.  Isaiah 42:6-7 (CEV)

Tommorow night at Concordia Lutheran Church, we take up again our tradition of mid-week worship services and a meal of fellowship. All are invited as they are every Wednesday Night until Christmas!

We’ve taken a different approach this year, rather than our usual look at how Israel was looking forward to the Messiah.  For that is what Advent is, taking lessings from Israel’s preparation (and lack of preparation) for the arrival of the promised Deliverer, the One chosen by God our Father to free us from the things of life which crush and smother us.  The hope is, learning those lessons, our celebration of Christmas, our understanding of how God the Father kept His promises, will help us prepare for the joyous Day when Christ returns, to bring us into the Father’s presence.

Like I said, this year we are going to look at it a little differently, as we take a Celtic approach to it, and look at the Birth of Christ from God’s view, from what He expected, from what He planned.

To see His joy, as He patiently waited for the right time, as the Father sent messengers to give us inklings of what to expect, as the Son looked through the manger and the muck and crud He would be born to, to the Cross where everything would be cleansed.  As the Holy Spirit would come and breathe life into a spiritually dead people, and bring them to life and make them aware that they walk with God, that they are His people.

In the process, we will see why the angels sang at the birth of this baby, why the lowest of the low went and were the first of the New Testament evangelists, sharing the incredible news that God is with us. We begin to understand why the wisest of the wise would journey, to lay gifts at His feet.  We begin to understand why we sing Joy to the World, and Hark the Herald Angels Sing…

For God so loved the world….

Come join us!

6:30 at Concordia Lutheran Church, 13633 183rd Street, Cerritos, Ca

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