January 6, 2008 Readings

Ephesians 3:1-12 (The Message)

The Secret Plan of God

1-3This is why I, Paul, am in jail for Christ, having taken up the cause of you outsiders, so-called. I take it that you're familiar with the part I was given in God's plan for including everybody. I got the inside story on this from God himself, as I just wrote you in brief.

4-6As you read over what I have written to you, you'll be able to see for yourselves into the mystery of Christ. None of our ancestors understood this. Only in our time has it been made clear by God's Spirit through his holy apostles and prophets of this new order. The mystery is that people who have never heard of God and those who have heard of him all their lives (what I've been calling outsiders and insiders) stand on the same ground before God. They get the same offer, same help, same promises in Christ Jesus. The Message is accessible and welcoming to everyone, across the board.

7-8This is my life work: helping people understand and respond to this Message. It came as a sheer gift to me, a real surprise, God handling all the details. When it came to presenting the Message to people who had no background in God's way, I was the least qualified of any of the available Christians. God saw to it that I was equipped, but you can be sure that it had nothing to do with my natural abilities.

8-10And so here I am, preaching and writing about things that are way over my head, the inexhaustible riches and generosity of Christ. My task is to bring out in the open and make plain what God, who created all this in the first place, has been doing in secret and behind the scenes all along. Through followers of Jesus like yourselves gathered in churches, this extraordinary plan of God is becoming known and talked about even among the angels!

11-13All this is proceeding along lines planned all along by God and then executed in Christ Jesus. When we trust in him, we're free to say whatever needs to be said, bold to go wherever we need to go. So don't let my present trouble on your behalf get you down. Be proud!

Matthew 2:1-12 (The Message)

Scholars from the East

1-2 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem village, Judah territory— this was during Herod's kingship—a band of scholars arrived in Jerusalem from the East. They asked around, "Where can we find and pay homage to the newborn King of the Jews? We observed a star in the eastern sky that signaled his birth. We're on pilgrimage to worship him."

3-4When word of their inquiry got to Herod, he was terrified—and not Herod alone, but most of Jerusalem as well. Herod lost no time. He gathered all the high priests and religion scholars in the city together and asked, "Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?"

5-6They told him, "Bethlehem, Judah territory. The prophet Micah wrote it plainly:

It's you, Bethlehem, in Judah's land,
no longer bringing up the rear.
From you will come the leader
who will shepherd-rule my people, my Israel."

7-8Herod then arranged a secret meeting with the scholars from the East. Pretending to be as devout as they were, he got them to tell him exactly when the birth-announcement star appeared. Then he told them the prophecy about Bethlehem, and said, "Go find this child. Leave no stone unturned. As soon as you find him, send word and I'll join you at once in your worship."

9-10Instructed by the king, they set off. Then the star appeared again, the same star they had seen in the eastern skies. It led them on until it hovered over the place of the child. They could hardly contain themselves: They were in the right place! They had arrived at the right time!

11They entered the house and saw the child in the arms of Mary, his mother. Overcome, they kneeled and worshiped him. Then they opened their luggage and presented gifts: gold, frankincense, myrrh.

12In a dream, they were warned not to report back to Herod. So they worked out another route, left the territory without being seen, and returned to their own country.

December 30, 2007 Reading

Isaiah 63:7-9
All the Things God Has Done That Need Praising

I'll make a list of God's gracious dealings,
all the things God has done that need praising,

All the generous bounties of God,
his great goodness to the family of Israel—

Compassion lavished,
love extravagant.

He said, "Without question these are my people,
children who would never betray me."

So he became their Savior.

In all their troubles,
he was troubled, too.

He didn't send someone else to help them.
He did it himself, in person.

Out of his own love and pity
he redeemed them.

He rescued them and carried them along
for a long, long time.

Matthew 2:13-23

13 After the scholars were gone, God's angel showed up again in Joseph's dream and commanded, "Get up. Take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt. Stay until further notice. Herod is on the hunt for this child, and wants to kill him."

14-15 Joseph obeyed. He got up, took the child and his mother under cover of darkness. They were out of town and well on their way by daylight. They lived in Egypt until Herod's death. This Egyptian exile fulfilled what Hosea had preached: "I called my son out of Egypt."

16-18 Herod, when he realized that the scholars had tricked him, flew into a rage. He commanded the murder of every little boy two years old and under who lived in Bethlehem and its surrounding hills. (He determined that age from information he'd gotten from the scholars.) That's when Jeremiah's sermon was fulfilled:

A sound was heard in Ramah,
weeping and much lament.
Rachel weeping for her children,
Rachel refusing all solace,
Her children gone,
dead and buried.

19-20 Later, when Herod died, God's angel appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt: "Up, take the child and his mother and return to Israel. All those out to murder the child are dead."

21-23 Joseph obeyed. He got up, took the child and his mother, and reentered Israel. When he heard, though, that Archelaus had succeeded his father, Herod, as king in Judea, he was afraid to go there. But then Joseph was directed in a dream to go to the hills of Galilee. On arrival, he settled in the village of Nazareth. This move was a fulfillment of the prophetic words, "He shall be called a Nazarene."

December 23, 2007 Message

Luke 2:1, 3-20; Matthew 1:16-25
“The Birth of Jesus”

This the season for Christmas cards…
A man sent his friend a cryptic Christmas card. It said: A B C D E F G H I J K M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z.
The recipient puzzled over it for weeks, finally gave up and wrote asking for an explanation. In July he received the explanation on a postcard: "No L."

It is the season for shopping…
A man goes to Cedar Rapids to do some Christmas shopping. His wife was watching the news on TV when she heard the announcer say, "be very careful and watch driving on 380 today, there is a motorist driving the wrong way"!
The wife immediately calls her husband on the cell phone to warn him, and he says: "Tell me about it! There are hundreds of them here going the wrong way".

And it is the season for helping others…
During the sermon, the preacher was telling the people about how the angel came to Mary to tell her about how she would help bring Jesus into the world. To help make his point, he asked what they thought the first thing Mary would have asked for after the angel left her.
Immediately a young mother, sitting about five rows back from the front, and with a little one, turned to her husband and said, "I'll bet she asked for a little help from Joseph!"

But most importantly, this is the season of “our dear Saviors birth.”
Luke 2 tells the story of the birth of Jesus. It is the story dads often read to their children and grandchildren at Christmas time. It begins by filling us in on why Mary and Joseph were in Bethlehem. “About that time Caesar Augustus ordered a census to be taken throughout the Empire. Everyone had to travel to his own ancestral hometown to be accounted for. So Joseph went from the Galilean town of Nazareth up to Bethlehem in Judah, David's town, for the census. As a descendant of David, he had to go there.”

Then the surprise comes - verse 5 says, “He went with Mary, his fiancée, who was pregnant.” That’s not really important to a four year old. So Luke’s brevity is fine. But for those of us needing to know more, well we have to go to Matthew to find out more. In the parallel text found in Matthew, Chapter 1, we find that: “Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. Before they came to the marriage bed, Joseph discovered she was pregnant. Joseph was upset and angry but he was determined to take care of things quietly so Mary would not be disgraced. While he was trying to figure a way out, he had a dream. God's angel spoke in the dream: "Joseph, son of David, don't hesitate to get married. Mary's pregnancy is Spirit-conceived. God's Holy Spirit has made her pregnant. She will bring a son to birth, and when she does, you, Joseph, will name him Jesus—(which means) 'God saves'—because he will save his people from their sins." This would fulfill Isaiah’s earlier prophecy (7:10-16) that foretells ‘a young woman will conceive and bear a son who will be called Emmanuel.’

Watch for this—a virgin will get pregnant and bear a son;
They will name him Immanuel (Hebrew for "God is with us").

So what does Joseph do? He wakes up and does exactly what God's angel has told him to do in the dream: He marries Mary. But he doesn’t consummate the marriage until she has the baby, who he names Jesus.

Imagine being Joseph… It must have been a difficult and anxious time to say the least – and for Mary as well. Mary confides in you before the marriage that she is expecting a child. You know you are not the father. You have no idea what to do. Oh, you could humiliate Mary in front of her family and their neighbors, announce the wedding is off and demand your dowry back. But that is not the kind of person you are. Instead, you help Mary go away to her cousin’s home to avoid the shame.

And after she has gone, the most amazing thing happens. In the middle of the night, when you are in a deep sleep, you have a dream in which an angel of God appears to you. This angel tells you that what had happened to Mary was all God’s doing, it was God’s plan. It’s okay. You are not to be afraid or angry or mad at Mary. Instead, the angel says, you are to take Mary as your wife, just like the both of you had planned all along. Things will be fine. Trust God. God would do something great.

Mary would have a son, and the angel tells you to name him, Jesus… or Yeshua —which means “God saves.” And just like Joshua of old, this Jesus would save his people from their sins. But then the angel added something else. His name would also be Immanuel — God with us. God with us!

This is a story of new life breaking lose in unexpected ways - and in unanticipated places. Luke 2:7 says, “She wrapped him in a blanket and laid him in a manger, because there was no room in the inn.” The baby Jesus… Yeshua (God saves)… Immanuel (God with us) was born to unlikely parents and in an unlikely place. What might be the parallels today? Through what unlikely people and in what unlikely places might God be at work during this season of hope.

This is also a story of God’s promise kept. Jesus’ birth is evidence of that. In his birth is found hope for all people, the same hope we can be a witness to today. Or can we? Are there people who are yet to hear the Christmas story and its message of hope for the first time… who are waiting for our telling?

Yesterday was an anxious day for me. As I was working on this message, I found myself anxious as to whether there would be a service this morning or not… with the snow and all. I’m sure it was nothing like how Joseph felt, but still the uncertainty of not knowing what the ‘morrow would bring’ made for an uneasy evening. Plans had been made, everything was going as planned… and then the storm blows in! Not necessarily so unexpected but still, what to do? Perhaps the same ‘anxiousness’ about Christmas overwhelms us, and what to do.

But, like Joseph, there is no reason for us to be anxious. For we too are assured that the child, whom we will celebrate in his birth this Christmas morning, is GOD WITH US, Emmanuel, and that this child, whom we celebrate in his birth, came to save us from our sins more than two thousand years ago.

We have no reason to be anxious this Christmas. If we don’t have our service, Jesus will come. If we don’t get the shopping done Jesus will still come. If we don’t get the decorating done, Jesus will still come. All we have to do is be patient, and wait, and prepare, and he will be here ... sooner than we might expect.

“Joseph, the son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.”

Do not be anxious… or concerned… for Jesus Christ is coming.

December 23, 2007 Readings

Luke 2:1, 3-20 (The Message)

The Birth of Jesus
1 About that time Caesar Augustus ordered a census to be taken throughout the Empire.
3-5 Everyone had to travel to his own ancestral hometown to be accounted for. So Joseph went from the Galilean town of Nazareth up to Bethlehem in Judah, David's town, for the census. As a descendant of David, he had to go there. He went with Mary, his fiancée, who was pregnant.
6-7 While they were there, the time came for her to give birth. She gave birth to a son, her firstborn. She wrapped him in a blanket and laid him in a manger, because there was no room in the hostel.
An Event for Everyone
8-12 There were sheepherders camping in the neighborhood. They had set night watches over their sheep. Suddenly, God's angel stood among them and God's glory blazed around them. They were terrified. The angel said, "Don't be afraid. I'm here to announce a great and joyful event that is meant for everybody, worldwide: A Savior has just been born in David's town, a Savior who is Messiah and Master. This is what you're to look for: a baby wrapped in a blanket and lying in a manger."
13-14 At once the angel was joined by a huge angelic choir singing God's praises:
Glory to God in the heavenly heights,
Peace to all men and women on earth who please him.
15-18 As the angel choir withdrew into heaven, the sheepherders talked it over. "Let's get over to Bethlehem as fast as we can and see for ourselves what God has revealed to us." They left, running, and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger. Seeing was believing. They told everyone they met what the angels had said about this child. All who heard the sheepherders were impressed.
19-20 Mary kept all these things to herself, holding them dear, deep within herself. The sheepherders returned and let loose, glorifying and praising God for everything they had heard and seen. It turned out exactly the way they'd been told!

A PARALLEL STORY
Matthew 1: 18-25

The Birth of Jesus
18-19 The birth of Jesus took place like this. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. Before they came to the marriage bed, Joseph discovered she was pregnant. (It was by the Holy Spirit, but he didn't know that.) Joseph, chagrined but noble, determined to take care of things quietly so Mary would not be disgraced.
20-23 While he was trying to figure a way out, he had a dream. God's angel spoke in the dream: "Joseph, son of David, don't hesitate to get married. Mary's pregnancy is Spirit-conceived. God's Holy Spirit has made her pregnant. She will bring a son to birth, and when she does, you, Joseph, will name him Jesus—'God saves'—because he will save his people from their sins." This would bring the prophet's embryonic sermon to full term:
Watch for this—a virgin will get pregnant and bear a son;
They will name him Immanuel (Hebrew for "God is with us").
24-25 Then Joseph woke up. He did exactly what God's angel commanded in the dream: He married Mary. But he did not consummate the marriage until she had the baby. He named the baby Jesus.

December 2, 2007 Message

Isaiah 9:2, 6; Matthew 6:9-11
“Welcome Christmas, Bring Your Light”

("How the Grinch Stole Christmas" is read for Children's Parable)

Every Who down in Who-ville liked Christmas a lot
But the Grinch, who lived just north of Who-ville, did not!
The Grinch hated Christmas! The whole Christmas season!
Now, please don't ask why. No one knows quite the reason.

When this time of year comes - the countdown to Christmas and all - do you think of yourself as living in Whoville… or as living somewhere just north of there?

In our children’s story today, that’s where the grouchy ol’ fella lives who hates Christmas and everything about Christmas – the toys, the noise, the joy, the songs, the parties – everything! He could care less about Christmas and all the things that go on during the Christmas season.
So what does he do? Remember? He decides to stop Christmas from coming. He figures if he takes all the stuff the Whos down in Whoville are expecting for Christmas, he will ruin Christmas for all of them… and make the Whos just as unhappy as him.

"Pooh-Pooh to the Whos!" he was grinchishly humming.
"They're finding out now that no Christmas is coming!
They're just waking up! I know just what they'll do!
Their mouths will hang open a minute or two.
Then the Whos down in Who-ville will all cry BOO-HOO!"
So he takes all their stuff. But instead of crying, what does he hear? Right, he hears all of them singing.
Every Who down in Who-ville, the tall and the small,
Was singing! Without any presents at all!
He hadn't stopped Christmas from coming! It came!
Somehow or other, it came just the same!

And the Grinch, with his grinch-feet ice-cold in the snow,
Stood puzzling and puzzling: "How could it be so?
"It came without ribbons! It came without tags!
"It came without packages, boxes or bags!"
And he puzzled three hours, till his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before!
"Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store.
"Maybe Christmas ... means a little bit more!"

So, there it is – the Grinch’s lesson of Christmas – maybe, just maybe, Christmas means a bit more. Is that a lesson we might need to learn as well? Do we think Christmas has to have presents and Santa and trees and snow? All those things are nice! Do we think Christmas has to come from a store? There are some awfully good things that come from stores - that’s for sure! But Christmas is not one of them. Christmas means a little bit more, doesn’t it?

Dr. Seuss and his story of the Grinch remind us of something very, very important. They remind us the Christmas we are waiting for doesn't come from a store. The Christmas we expectantly wait for this, and every Advent season, comes from God.

Christmas is Christ. It is Isaiah’s prophesy fulfilled and the prayer Jesus taught his disciples answered.

“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. For those who lived in a land of deep shadows— light! sunbursts of light! For a child has been born—for us! the gift of a son—for us!”,

“God revealed to set the world right; doing what’s best for us, providing for the nourishment, the forgiveness, and the safety we desperately need.

Christmas is the day we celebrate both of those things – God’s gift of a son FOR US, God’s self revealed TO US - in the birth of Jesus the Christ. And because of that – because of what Christmas really means - we can continue to sing!

Welcome Christmas,
fah who rah-moose
Welcome Christmas,
dah who dah-moose
Christmas day will always be
Just so long as we have we

Fah who for-aze
Dah who dor-aze
Welcome Christmas
Bring your light

December 2, 2007 Readings

Isaiah 9:2, 6
2 The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light.
For those who lived in a land of deep shadows—
light! sunbursts of light!
6 For a child has been born—for us!
the gift of a son—for us!
He'll take over
the running of the world.
His names will be: Amazing Counselor,
Strong God,
Eternal Father,
Prince of Wholeness.

Matthew 6:9-11
You can pray very simply. Like this:
Our Father in heaven,
Reveal who you are.
Set the world right;
Do what's best— as above, so below.
Keep us alive with three square meals.
Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.
Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil.
You're in charge!
You can do anything you want!
You're ablaze in beauty!
Yes. Yes. Yes.

November 25, 2007 Message

Psalm 40:1-3
“What Happens When We Pray: Does It Change Anything?”

One summer, some folks, new to boating, were having a problem. No matter how hard they tried, they couldn’t get their brand-new 22-foot motorboat to do what it was suppose to do. It wouldn’t get up to speed at all, and it was really sluggish in almost every maneuver, no matter how much power was applied.

After about an hour of trying to make it go, they putted over to a nearby marina, thinking someone there could tell them what was wrong. A thorough topside check revealed everything in perfect working order. The engine ran fine, and everything else seemed to be okay.
Then, one of the marina guys jumped in the water to check underneath. He came up choking on water, he was laughing so hard. Under the boat, still strapped securely in place, was the trailer.

What’s this to do with today’s lesson? Just wait…

The last two Sundays, we have touched on two of three questions concerning prayer, ‘Why are we to pray?’ and ‘How do we pray?’ I have concluded, “We pray because we desperately need to – even though we are not always ready to.” It is how God wants us to live, as modeled by Jesus, our Lord. We pray all the time, because God is here, right beside us, all the time - especially when it doesn’t appear God is answering our prayers. It is just that we need to listen!

Today we conclude our series on prayer by answering the question, “What Happens When We Pray: Does It Change Anything?” Perhaps we need only look to Psalm 40 for help in answering this question. Verses 1-3 read (The Message): “I waited and waited and waited for God. At last he looked; finally he listened. He lifted me out of the ditch, pulled me from deep mud. He stood me up on a solid rock to make sure I wouldn't slip. He taught me how to sing the latest God-song, a praise-song to our God. More and more people are seeing this: they enter the mystery, abandoning themselves to God.”

We wait. Then, God lifts us up, as we learn to ‘sing a new song of praise’ to our God. We “enter the mystery, abandoning ourselves to God.” And that’s exactly what happens. It is a mystery for sure, but it is as simple – or complex – as that! We wait. We “patiently” wait, having thrown up a “cry” (40:1) like a lifeline, to God, hoping God will grab it. When we do, God does.

Of course, our rescue doesn’t happen in the blink of an eye or in the time it takes to cry, “Save me!” Those who have been brought up from the pits of despair testify to a stressful journey. Yet that just increases the gratitude and praise.

God lifts us up. God is the agent of change. God initiates the lifting action. God lifts us up. God does not pull us down. Our being stuck in the mud is not because God has put us there in the first place. God lifts us out of the ditch and the deep mud, from along side the road we should be on. God lifts us from a place where forward movement, any movement, is impossible because we find ourselves “stuck in the mud.” God sets our feet on the road again. God lifts us, from the ditch and the deep mud to a solid rock (pavement). We’re safe. We can walk with confidence again.

We learn to ‘sing praise’ to our God. Psalm 40 provides another way; it is a model prayer that combines both movements of our soul — the fear of falling and grateful praise for being rescued. Life might often be described as a rhythm of falling and praising, praising and falling, then praising again. Doesn’t it sometimes seem that way? When we believe our depression will literally suck us into a dark pit and never let us go or our fears of what might happen make our feet seem as if they are stuck in deep, gooey mud. We are unable to move and our faith is wrapped tightly by our fear. Somehow a hand reaches out in the darkness. A word comes from the Lord, often spoken by another person, that lifts us… as our fears are reduced and our faith strengthened. We take the next best step, trusting God, resting in the confidence that the future belongs to the Lord and not to us alone. We are lifted from the ditch – to standing on solid ground, probably still covered in mud, but alive again, no longer afraid, but now giving thanks and praise to the God of our salvation.

All this happens when we “enter the mystery, abandoning ourselves to God” – in prayer. An important lesson of this psalm is that praise precedes petition. This joyful praise comes from the remembrance of past experiences of God’s goodness and deliverance. What has been done in the past becomes the ground of all praise and thanksgiving and the sure confidence that God will indeed continue to deliver in the future. Faithful believers can live boldly in the present by recalling the past with hope for the future.

Because we know God was with us in the past, we are more confident that God is with us now and will be with us in the future. This allows us to step out in faith, not because we are confident in ourselves, but because we know God will always be with us.
We become transformed into wholeness, living obediently in grateful praise, “delighting to do God’s will.” God enables us to understand things differently, making it possible for us to “change our tune” from a sad song to a song of praise. Our praise and thanksgiving then leads to singing a new song, telling others the glad news of deliverance, bearing witness to God’s faithfulness by word and deed. The Psalmist describes all these acts as responses to God’s saving help – and a way of saying, “Here I am Lord.”

What the psalmist helps us to understand is that our abandoning ourselves and trusting in God is a green light, a sign to God that we are ready to receive what God can give us. Remember the story of the boat earlier in the message, and the owner failure to disconnect it from the trailer?
One of the great stories of faith is the story of Ruby Bridges as related by Robert Coles, who has written so much about the development of children.

He met her when she was a 6-year-old girl. She was African-American. She attended a public school. But every day as she went to school, she had to pass through rows of adults screaming threats and insults at her. Coles and others noticed that every day as she went through the rows of screaming adults, protected by federal marshals, you could sometimes see her lips moving. Coles discovered Ruby was praying. She was praying for strength to endure the abuse, and she was praying to God to forgive the people yelling at her.

A 6-year-old girl got it. She understood how to be receptive to God. She knew if she trusted in God and sought what God could give her, God would see her trust as a green light and God would come to her and come into her life with strength and grace.

Rabbi Harold Kushner, author of “When Bad Things Happen To Good People,” has said, “Prayer is not asking. Prayer is not pleading. Prayer is not bringing our wish list to God. Prayer is simply coming into the presence of God and being changed by that… Simply being in the presence of God makes it possible for me to live in a messy world, unfair world… The purpose of praying to God when you’re in dire straits is not to make the problem go away. It’s to make it possible for you to live in a pain-filled world because God is holding your hand.”

Why do we pray? We pray because we desperately need to – even though we are not always ready to.

How do we pray? We pray all the time, because God is here, right beside us, all the time, listening to us as we should be listening to God – all the time. We enter the mystery of God’s presence in prayer, abandoning ourselves to God.

What happens when we pray? Does it change anything? Yes it does. When we pray, we are changed.

And that can be very good news indeed!

November 25, 2007 Readings

Psalm 40:1-3 (The Message)
1-3 I waited and waited and waited for God.
At last he looked; finally he listened.
He lifted me out of the ditch,
pulled me from deep mud.
He stood me up on a solid rock
to make sure I wouldn't slip.
He taught me how to sing the latest God-song,
a praise-song to our God.
More and more people are seeing this:
they enter the mystery,
abandoning themselves to God.

Luke 22:39-46 (The Message)
39-40 Leaving there, he went, as he so often did, to Mount Olives. The disciples followed him. When they arrived at the place, he said, "Pray that you don't give in to temptation."
41-44 He pulled away from them about a stone's throw, knelt down, and prayed, "Father, remove this cup from me. But please, not what I want. What do you want?" At once an angel from heaven was at his side, strengthening him. He prayed on all the harder. Sweat, wrung from him like drops of blood, poured off his face.
45-46 He got up from prayer, went back to the disciples and found them asleep, drugged by grief. He said, "What business do you have sleeping? Get up. Pray so you won't give in to temptation."

November 18, 2007 Message

1 Thessalonians 5:12-28; Matthew 17:14-23

Last Sunday, we touched on the first of our three questions concerning prayer, ‘Why are we to pray?’ It was concluded, “We pray because we desperately need to – even though we are not always ready to.” We pray also because this is how God wants us to live, as modeled by our Lord, Jesus.

Jesus was a man of prayer. The gospels tell us that He prayed often and very definitely before the major events in His life. Before beginning his public ministry, Jesus went into the desert to fast and pray for 40 days. And before going to the cross, he prayed intensely in the Garden of Gethsemane.

The apostle Paul was a man of prayer as well. In his letters, he continually focused on his need, and that of others, for prayer. “Pray all the time," he told the Thessalonians, “thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you, who belong to Christ Jesus, to live.
Followers of Christ, then, are to be people of prayer – or simply put, people who pray. But it is important that we know what prayer involves. Just what was the nature of the prayer Jesus and the apostles were talking about?

That becomes then our question for today, ‘How are we to pray?”

Joseph Cardinal Bernardin, Archbishop of Chicago from 1982-1996, and recipient of the Albert Einstein Peace Prize and the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his leadership in raising our nation's awareness of the difficult issues behind the nuclear arms race and the economic problems faced by our nation's poor, wrote this concerning prayer: “In no way should prayer insulate us from the real world. In no way should it become a crutch preventing us from facing up realistically to life.” His thought was that prayer should help to bring us into an intimate, loving union with God. It is not a tool for bringing about God’s action in one’s life – to make things better - but rather a means to better relationship with God. Prayer is about relationship.

And that type of relationship can happen when we realize these four things.

God is the same God. God is still a loving, powerful, merciful, generous, and faithful God = always was, always will be. And in the sameness of our lives, which is as much of a grind today as it has always been, or at times when the world crumbles around us – as it can do at any time - we need such a God.

Be open to what the Spirit is doing. There are times we don’t feel like praying. And yet we are always to give thanks to God in all circumstances. Paul's direction to the Thessalonians insists that every moment of life lived with the Holy Spirit is a moment filled with promise and possibility. Paul says, Be joyful! Be prayerful! Be thankful! – always, no matter what the circumstances. Understand though, they’re not things we have to do. Rather they are attitudes that describe our life because of the work of the Holy Spirit.

All circumstances are used for good. We are to depend entirely on the power of God's spirit at work in our life. God is committed to making us holy, and will not fail. God's love and presence will be made known in all situations. Paul tells us that there can be joy, love, life and laughter in every situation, at all times.

Every moment is open to God. There are so many demands on our time, so many things going on. Life can be so busy that we consider any time spent ‘not doing anything’ as time hopelessly lost. We might even think we have to pray at certain times, saying just the right words. Paul wasn’t saying the faithful needed to continually be engaged in literal prayer. What he was saying was that just as the gift of the Holy Spirit makes joy theirs at all times, they also have God's ear at all times. A Christian may turn to God at any moment of the day, under any circumstances, and be in communication with God. However, this is not a one-sided sort of thing. God is to have our ear at all times as well.

So that means we must always LISTEN. And to listen – for God to be heard - we may need to be quiet.

J. Walter Cross, in "Noises in the Night," tells of an artist who had just finished a major work and invited a famous critic to a private viewing. On the appointed day, the critic was met at the door of the studio and ushered into a darkened room where he was asked to wait. A half-hour had passed before the artist came. He apologized and explained the reason for the delay. "I was afraid that coming in directly from the bright sunlight, it might be impossible for you to see the subtle inter-workings between the colors." Sometimes the light can be too bright for us to see the true shades of life.

And sometimes the sound of our own voices or those of others is just too loud for us to hear the voice of God. It is then we need to find a silent place or be open to the moments of silence that arises during the week. Each may be a precious opportunity to listen to what God has to say.

This week sometime, try this - when driving down the highway alone, turn off the radio and 'hear' for a change God's scenery going by or when relaxing in front of the TV, turn the TV off, close your eyes and for the first time 'watch' the silence. Take advantage of all the opportunities everyday to listen to what God has to say, to offer up prayers, to be thankful for all you have. In all the silent places you find yourself in this week, open yourself to the life-altering power of possibility available through the Holy Spirit.

When you spend every waking moment attending only to the business of the day, you often ignore your spiritual needs. By putting off prayer until Sunday morning, confining thankfulness to a quick grace before meals you miss out on God in your life everyday.

Today’s text says there can be joy, love, and laughter in every situation, at all times. It speaks of a completeness and unity possible only through God's presence. The "peace" God gives is, in the Hebrew sense of "shalom," is a physical, spiritual and communal well-being. Paul prays that the Thessalonians can go beyond the holiness they enjoy as members of Christ's body and experience this “peace” or harmonious unity of "spirit and soul and body" - or sanctification – that would allow them to stand "blameless" before God, when Christ returns.

This same “holiness” or “peace” can be ours as well. That is good news, indeed!

November 18, 2007 Readings

1 Thessalonians 5:12-28 (The Message)

12-13 And now, friends, we ask you to honor those leaders who work so hard for you, who have been given the responsibility of urging and guiding you along in your obedience. Overwhelm them with appreciation and love!
13-15 Get along among yourselves, each of you doing your part. Our counsel is that you warn the freeloaders to get a move on. Gently encourage the stragglers, and reach out for the exhausted, pulling them to their feet. Be patient with each person, attentive to individual needs. And be careful that when you get on each other's nerves you don't snap at each other. Look for the best in each other, and always do your best to bring it out.
16-18 Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live.
19-22 Don't suppress the Spirit, and don't stifle those who have a word from the Master. On the other hand, don't be gullible. Check out everything, and keep only what's good. Throw out anything tainted with evil.
23-24 May God himself, the God who makes everything holy and whole, make you holy and whole, put you together—spirit, soul, and body—and keep you fit for the coming of our Master, Jesus Christ. The One who called you is completely dependable. If he said it, he'll do it!
25-27 Friends, keep up your prayers for us. Greet all the followers of Jesus there with a holy embrace. And make sure this letter gets read to all the brothers and sisters. Don't leave anyone out.
28 The amazing grace of Jesus Christ be with you!

Matthew 17:14-23 (The Message)

14-16 At the bottom of the mountain, they were met by a crowd of waiting people. As they approached, a man came out of the crowd and fell to his knees begging, "Master, have mercy on my son. He goes out of his mind and suffers terribly, falling into seizures. Frequently he is pitched into the fire, other times into the river. I brought him to your disciples, but they could do nothing for him."
17-18 Jesus said, "What a generation! No sense of God! No focus to your lives! How many times do I have to go over these things? How much longer do I have to put up with this? Bring the boy here." He ordered the afflicting demon out—and it was out, gone. From that moment on the boy was well.
19 When the disciples had Jesus off to themselves, they asked, "Why couldn't we throw it out?"
20 "Because you're not yet taking God seriously," said Jesus. "The simple truth is that if you had a mere kernel of faith, a poppy seed, say, you would tell this mountain, 'Move!' and it would move. There is nothing you wouldn't be able to tackle."
22-23 As they were regrouping in Galilee, Jesus told them, "The Son of Man is about to be betrayed to some people who want nothing to do with God. They will murder him—and three days later he will be raised alive." The disciples felt terrible.

November 11, 2007 Message

Luke 11:1-13
“Why Pray”

This week, and for the next two weeks, our scripture readings and lessons will center on prayer – not only an essential part of our worship service each Sunday, but also of our daily lives as well. Each Sunday, we will consider a different question: Why Do We Pray? How Often Do We Pray? (Pray Continually, Even When Prayers Are Unanswered), and What Happens When We Pray? (Does Prayer Change Anything?) I hope you are able to be here for all three and will invite others to be here as well. Prayer is that important.

Today our focus is on ‘Why Do We Pray?’ I don’t think we pray because it makes life easier or it gets us the things we want. There is an old African Proverb that says: “The prayer of a chicken hawk does not get him a chicken.” Prayer does not get us things. Although it does get us close to God and that is a good thing. English poet, P. J. Bailey wrote a century ago, “Prayer is the spirit speaking truth to Truth.” Perhaps that is why we pray – so that we can speak to God. Or maybe we pray because ‘everyone is doing it’ – at least in the Bible.

Prayer is biblical …and it is something Jesus did quite a bit of. There are many times in scripture we are told of Jesus praying. For him, prayer was essential. So much so that when asked, he taught his disciples how to pray ‘his prayer’ to God, the Father - the prayer from today’s gospel, known as The Lord’s Prayer. For us, it is to be the model for all prayer and perhaps the answer to our first question – why do we pray?

We pray because of our need to praise God (adoration), to admit our mistakes to God (confession), to thank God (thanksgiving), to ask God to provide something (supplication), and to ask for God to help others (intercession). The Lord’s Prayer is all of these, rolled up into one.

Our worship each week is to include our response to those needs to pray – to praise and thank God, to seek God’s help and provision, and to ask God’s forgiveness. And that is why we pray the Lord’s Prayer as well.

Note I said ‘pray’ and not ‘say’ – you’ve been there before, right? You have been told that if you slow down and listen to what you are saying in the Lord's Prayer, you will no longer be able to just "recite" it. Instead, you will be able to pray it. Maybe many of you have even practiced doing just that at sometime or another in the past. However, sooner rather than later, the Lord's Prayer became once again nothing more than a recitation - a memorized script mumbled forth on cue with no thought about its meaning or implication to life.

For a moment - imagine what it would mean if we actually prayed the words of the Lord’s Prayer and actually meant them? Chances are, most of the time, we have just mouthed the words. For many in my generation, this is so true. The scenario goes something like this: At some point in the worship service, the pastor says, "… as Jesus taught his disciples to pray," and the congregation ‘chants’ the words of the Lord's Prayer. The prayer is often a memorized recitation rather than an expression of the heart. The only point of reflection is whether to say "forgive us our debts," "forgive us our trespasses," or "forgive us our sins" - if the words are not printed in the bulletin.

Sometimes the Lord's Prayer has been examined in a Sunday School class or Bible study we have been in. It has been taken apart and analyzed phrase by phrase, if not word for word. The intimate character of the term Abba, Father is learned; as is the meaning of that strange word, "hallowed"; and the sorts of evil from which we might pray for deliverance.

Either way, whether in our recitation or in our study, we may have lost sight of the prayer itself or its significance to our own prayer life. Perhaps, when it comes to this prayer, not only have we been standing on holy ground and did not have the good sense to remove our sandals, we have not yet been ready to actually pray it.

Because to pray this prayer indicates a desire (on our part) to be set free from those ideas, those habits, those attitudes that seek to hold us captive. So the question becomes, "Are we at all certain that we want to be set free?" Are we ready to really pray as Jesus has taught us?
Many of us are comfortable with our lives and the faith associated with it. To change things could be uncomfortable, if not painful… and we don’t want that. What we do each day may not include those things that nourish the soul, yet we’re not willing to find room in our schedules for necessary spiritual disciplines. We know that we are impatient, unforgiving, sarcastic or inattentive to those we love and who love us, and we really don't like being that way. But given the choice between exerting the energy to change or continuing as we are, too often we choose the status quo. We shy away from embracing the implications of calling God "Father."

In short, we may need to be freed from whatever enslaves us, but the haunting question is whether we want to be set free. If praying the Lord's Prayer -- if calling God "Father" -- is to acknowledge God’s liberating power and to confess our desire to participate in that liberating experience, then, perhaps, the Lord's Prayer is a prayer that cannot yet be prayed.

When we ask for God’s kingdom to come, we are bound by cords of grace to all sorts of persons who profess faith in Jesus as the Christ. We are all kingdom-mates, brothers and sisters in the kingdom of God - even those whose Christian beliefs do not conform to our own. We may not be ready for that yet! Even though a kingdom - in which those differences that would divide are less important than the One whose kingdom it is – is exactly what we need to pray for.

We also need to pray for the basics of life - no more, no less – for the ‘daily bread’ and survival of all people. However, if truth be told, our satisfaction requires more than just bread. We’ve worked hard to surround ourselves with creature comforts to which we have become attached. The simple lifestyle may be okay for some folks, but most of us just not there yet. And yet, that is exactly why we need to pray.

And especially we need to pray for the ‘daily bread’ of the millions in this world who, in N.T. Wright’s words, “…didn't have bread yesterday, don't have any today, and in human terms are unlikely to have any tomorrow either." However it would be a cheap grace to pray, "give US OUR bread," knowing where MY bread is coming from, but I leave it up to God to figure out where THEY will get THEIR bread. Praying those words invites God to act through us, providing hunger relief, giving people hope, and advocating changes in policies, both locally and internationally, that keep people impoverished and hungry. This, too, is why we need to pray.

So, why do we pray? I think we pray because we desperately need to – even though we sometimes realize we are not ready to. Prayer can be a dangerous thing. Especially a prayer like the Lord’s Prayer that asks God to lead us, as Victoria Rebeck has said, “down some risky and unfamiliar paths.” St. Francis of Assisi explained that praying the Lord’s Prayer is: “praying that we might know God better and better; that we might be brought into God’s kingdom to love God perfectly; giving ourselves completely in service to God; asking for what sustains us - God’s Son, our Lord Jesus Christ; recognizing God’s mercy when it comes to forgiveness and our need to forgive others in the same way; and, lastly, concerning our time of trial –a pass would be nice.”

So, perhaps in the future, we should always begin, "Lord, make us able to pray your prayer. “Father ...."
hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
And forgive us our sins,
for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us.
And do not bring us to the time of trial.

November 11, 2007 Readings

James 4:7-10 (The Message)
7-10 So let God work his will in you. Yell a loud no to the Devil and watch him scamper. Say a quiet yes to God and he'll be there in no time. Quit dabbling in sin. Purify your inner life. Quit playing the field. Hit bottom, and cry your eyes out. The fun and games are over. Get serious, really serious. Get down on your knees before the Master; it's the only way you'll get on your feet.


Luke 11:1-10 (The Message)
1 One day he was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said, "Master, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples."
2-4 So he said, "When you pray, say,
Father,
Reveal who you are.
Set the world right.
Keep us alive with three square meals.
Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.
Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil."
5-6 Then he said, "Imagine what would happen if you went to a friend in the middle of the night and said, 'Friend, lend me three loaves of bread. An old friend traveling through just showed up, and I don't have a thing on hand.'
7 "The friend answers from his bed, 'Don't bother me. The door's locked; my children are all down for the night; I can't get up to give you anything.'
8 "But let me tell you, even if he won't get up because he's a friend, if you stand your ground, knocking and waking all the neighbors, he'll finally get up and get you whatever you need.
9 "Here's what I'm saying:
Ask and you'll get;
Seek and you'll find;
Knock and the door will open.
10 "Don't bargain with God. Be direct. Ask for what you need. This is not a cat-and-mouse, hide-and-seek game we're in.

November 4, 2007 Message

November 4, 2007
Matthew 5:1-12, Matthew 7:24-27
“When Less Is More”

Yertle the Turtle is a great story about a turtle that thought he was big stuff. He was important. Yertle was a king… of a small pond that is. Everything he could see from the rock throne in the middle of that pond was his, or so he thought. But he couldn’t see everything, could he?
“He sat on a rock and could see all the pond,
But Yertle could not see the places beyond...”

So he figured if he could see farther, he could see more things… and they would all be his. And to see farther, all he had to do was to get up a little higher.
“So, he ordered nine turtles to swim to his stone,
And using these turtles he built a new throne.”

Those turtles got up on the stone in the middle of the pond and stood one on top of the other – with Yertle right there on top of the stack. You’d think the higher he was, the happier he would be. But not Yertle! Even when he could see a mile, and declared that the cow and the mule and the house and the cat and the blueberry bush were all his, he had to get higher yet. It seemed the more he could see, the more he wanted to see… and the more he stepped on others, until…
“That plain little turtle below in the stack,
That plain little turtle whose name was just Mack,
Decided he'd taken enough. And he had.
And that plain little lad got a little bit mad.
And that plain little Mack did a plain little thing:
He burped! And his burp shook the throne of the king.”

When that happened, Yertle fell from the top of the stack pretty fast, right into the pond… and into the mud. This story of Yertle is a little like the story Jesus told of the foolish man who built his house on the sand instead of on a rock and “When a storm rolled in and the waves came up, it collapsed like a house of cards." Yertle fell from his high place because he didn’t build his throne on a solid foundation, but on the backs of other turtles with only a tiny burp between his lofty, high perch and the sticky, slimy mud of the pond below.

Not only did his high position, above everyone else, rest on a ‘not so good’ foundation, the motivation behind it wasn’t good either. Remember, Yertle’s reason for being up so high was so he could see more, so more would be his. He was selfish and greedy. He wanted to get higher and higher so that more would be his. It was all about making his kingdom bigger.
Each day we have choices as well regarding the foundations on which our lives are built and how solid we want those foundations to be. Sure we can build on values like selfishness and greed. We can ignore or not care about people around us who need help. Or we can build on the values Jesus teaches.

He tells his followers and the church today: “These words I speak to you are not incidental additions to your life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundational words, words to build a life on.” We can be like the Yertle the Turtle and the man who built his house on the sand or we can put “our house” on a rock solid foundation capable of getting us through the ‘storms and floods of life’ …and all the small burps as well.

His warning not to build our lives “on sand” is part of, what many consider, the most important sermon ever given: Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. His message that day included the Beatitudes, in which we find the very foundational elements on which we are to build our life as the people of God - the basic premise being found in Jesus’ words: “With less of you there is more of God and his rule.”

You see, when we become less concerned about thinking only of ourselves… and more concerned of others, we become meek… and more of God. The biblical understanding of meekness has more to do with humility, with seeing ourselves as we really are, no better or no worse than we are… or anyone else for that matter. That is, after all, how God sees us as well.
Once upon a time, there was a place where everybody, including the butcher, the baker, and the candlestick maker, wore a crown.

One day a traveling photographer, who made his living by taking pictures of kings and queens and their families, came to this country. He would take his camera throughout the country and take a picture of everyone wearing crowns. Then he would put them in an album and sell them to the king of the country for a lot of money.

The traveling photographer set up his camera and started tak-ing pictures in this place where everyone wore a crown. Person after person – every man, woman, and child – who walked by were all wearing crowns, so he took their pictures. He took a lot of pictures! And he began thinking. "How could so many people be part of the royal family?"

So he began asking questions. "Excuse me, Mister Butcher-with-the-Crown. What relation do you have to the king?" "I'm one of his children," the butcher replied, "so I guess I am a prince."
The photographer asked the baker, "Excuse me, ma'am. How are you related to the king?" She answered, "I'm one of his chil-dren, a princess." In fact, everyone he met was either a prince or a princess (or at least they claimed to be).

Finally, he had used up all his film (that was before you could download your pictures, erase them from memory and start over again). He printed the photos and headed to the castle with the largest album ever. He knocked at the door, only to be greeted by another man wearing a large crown. "You must be the king," the photographer said. "No, I am one of the king's aides. I'm also a prince."

"Another prince!" The photographer was amazed. "Tell me, prince, how can there be so many crowns? How can everybody be a prince or a princess? Doesn't it make the king unhappy that everyone is wearing a crown?"

"Of course not,” the king's helper told the photographer, "there is even a crown here for you, too, if you want it. The king issued a royal decree that everyone who enters this land becomes a member of his family. Everyone here wears a crown. Everyone here is a prince or princess. But there is one rule: we must remember that he is the king and that we all belong to the king's family!"

The lesson here is that to be meek is to know our identity as human beings - that God calls all of us to be his children. We are all princes and princesses in the kingdom of God. But we must always remember that God is the King. Our meekness – our humil-ity - requires our remembering that God is the head of the royal family.

With less of us there can be more of God… Perhaps the Beatitudes are not so much about ‘who is blessed in this world,’ but about ‘when we are blessed.’ And that is really quite simple – we are blessed when, in our lives, there is less of us, and more of God.
You're blessed when you're at the end of your rope…
Or you feel you've lost what is most dear to you…
Or are content with just who you are—no more, no less…
Or you've worked up a good appetite for God…
Or when you care…
Or when you get your mind and heart—put right…
Or when you can show people how to cooperate instead of compete or fight…
Or when your commitment to God becomes a nuisance…
Or when people put you down or speak lies about you to discredit me.

Then, and perhaps only then, will we begin to realize it’s not so much about us as it is about God. That’s when less becomes more – our relying less on us and more on God. That is when we are blessed. That is when we are all children of God. That is the foundation on which we are to build our life. A foundation in Jesus Christ who taught we are all children of God, heirs to a kingdom, that is as near as our becoming less and God becoming more.

November 4, 2007 Readings

Matthew 5:1-12

1-2 When Jesus saw his ministry drawing huge crowds, he climbed a hillside. Those who were apprenticed to him, the committed, climbed with him. Arriving at a quiet place, he sat down and taught his climbing companions. This is what he said:

3"You're blessed when you're at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule.

4"You're blessed when you feel you've lost what is most dear to you. Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you.

5"You're blessed when you're content with just who you are—no more, no less. That's the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can't be bought.

6"You're blessed when you've worked up a good appetite for God. He's food and drink in the best meal you'll ever eat.

7"You're blessed when you care. At the moment of being 'care-full,' you find yourselves cared for.

8"You're blessed when you get your inside world—your mind and heart—put right. Then you can see God in the outside world.

9"You're blessed when you can show people how to cooperate instead of compete or fight. That's when you discover who you really are, and your place in God's family.

10"You're blessed when your commitment to God provokes persecution. The persecution drives you even deeper into God's kingdom.

11-12"Not only that—count yourselves blessed every time people put you down or throw you out or speak lies about you to discredit me. What it means is that the truth is too close for comfort and they are uncomfortable. You can be glad when that happens—give a cheer, even!—for though they don't like it, I do! And all heaven applauds. And know that you are in good company. My prophets and witnesses have always gotten into this kind of trouble.

Matthew 7:24-27

24-25"These words I speak to you are not incidental additions to your life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundational words, words to build a life on. If you work these words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter who built his house on solid rock. Rain poured down, the river flooded, a tornado hit—but nothing moved that house. It was fixed to the rock.

26-27"But if you just use my words in Bible studies and don't work them into your life, you are like a stupid carpenter who built his house on the sandy beach. When a storm rolled in and the waves came up, it collapsed like a house of cards."

October 28, 2007 Message

October 28, 2007
1 Peter 2:9-10; Matthew 28:18-20 (The Message)
“Chosen For What?”

I’ve thought about today’s text quite a bit this week, especially the part where the writer of 1 Peter says: “…you are the ones chosen by God” and I’ve thought, ‘that’s pretty neat – to be among those chosen’ – right?

A person can’t help but feel good about that. To be chosen, to be picked, to be selected by God is a good thing, right? But chosen for what ? Well, he does go on to say we have been chosen:
“for …priestly work” – Me?
“…to be a holy people” – Us?
“…to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you…” – Yea, right!

Now, I can go to church most Sunday mornings for an hour or so. Or maybe do whatever needs to be done now and then – like bake some cookies, or clean the windows, or trim the shrubs, or whatever I have time for. I can even give ten cents on the dollar to the church. But to tell others about the difference Jesus has made in my life – I don’t think so! Who’s idea is that, anyway?

Jesus …gave his charge: "…Go out and train everyone you meet …in this way of life …instruct them in the practice of all I have commanded you.”

Things get more complicated when you consider the source. It’s Jesus who says so. It’s not just the writer of 1 James challenging me, and everyone else here, to go out and tell others about Jesus. It’s Jesus who expects that very thing of his disciples. It’s Jesus who commissions his followers to do what I can’t imagine myself ever doing. Telling others about the ‘way of life’ – his way.

Do you suppose Jesus was only talking to the apostles here… not to me. I imagine that’s it. He’s just talking to them. He chose them, not me, to do it. And besides, we know it’s already been done, right? That’s why we’re here. There’s probably nothing for us to do anyway? Wrong!

Jesus was speaking to all of us – all who call themselves Christian or who one day will. You and I have all been ‘chosen’ – despite our weaknesses. The Bible is filled with examples of God singling out one frail human after another for special things.

Jesus' unlikely choice of Peter as the "rock" seems to be a "foolish" contradiction. Genesis starts with God choosing Abraham, a dried up old man rather than a vital, young man, to become the father of a new nation. What kind of choice is that? And then later, going against cultural tradition, God seems to have a preference for choosing the youngest son for leadership and greatness - Jacob, Joseph, David. And look at the characters God chooses to be prophets – Jeremiah (son of a priest, somewhat withdrawn, perhaps an introvert, who was often overwhelmed by what he was being called to do), Amos (a common man, sent to another land to proclaim the Word to the people; a poor man, sent to speak to the wealthy) Elisha (who was busy plowing in a field when he got the call and who, at first, showed little respect for his teacher).

Even the idea of choosing Israel – such a headstrong, disobedient, and powerless group of misfits - was a decision that calls divine insight into question. Yet they remain God's chosen people.

Who among any of these would have ever considered the possibility of being chosen by God?
Yes, we have been chosen. God has chosen all humans, here and now, to express the divine will and mission. We are to "…Go out and inform everyone …about this way of life …teaching them what Jesus has said.”

We have been chosen to love God and one another and in so doing, to bear fruit in this community and in the world. We have been chosen to follow Jesus the Christ and to tell others about the difference he makes in a person’s life. We have been chosen to make a difference.

Mark Twain said the difference between a word and the right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug.

The late Dr. Paul Sherer once said, “The fundamental joy of being a Christian consists not in being good. But in standing with God against some darkness or some void and watching the light come.”

Our joy comes from our ‘standing’ with God who is a choosing God. We are not called to be a "chosen people" so much as a choosing people - choosing those whom the world has abandoned and claiming them for God. We can celebrate with others their "choosing" moments, when God chooses once again to be with them, regardless of the circumstance. The Hebrews certainly had no reason to feel very "chosen" when they were mucking about in Pharaoh's brickyard - but they were. Joseph did not appear very "chosen" when sold into slavery by his own brothers - but he was. The early Christians didn’t seem very chosen when they were being persecuted or torn apart by wild animals in the Coliseum in Rome – but they were. And undoubtedly there were times Peter didn’t feel chosen when embroiled in the midst of early church controversies and debates.

And what about today? How can you we feel chosen when your life seems to be at a standstill? Or when life seems to be passing you by? When you're 13 and your face is breaking out and your voice is cracking and your body seems to have a mind of its own - can you still be happy about your humanity, a form Christ himself shares with you? When you work hard and get passed up for that promotion or pay raise or your to do list at home keeps getting bigger and bigger and you just get more tired – do you feel you have been set apart for something special then? When you have retired from what you’ve done your whole life and suddenly life’s different, everything has changed. Do you feel chosen then? Or look forward to God's next call in your life?

However, God chooses us not just once, but over and over again throughout our lives, chooses us to help embody the life and mission of the incarnate Lord every day.

If nothing else today - remember this: God has chosen you. God is with you and in you, and God is empowering you. You see, as committed Christians we are not about doing the work of this church. We're not even about doing God's work. God is doing God's work through us!
And Jesus promises, “I'll be with you as you do this…”
Considering that, I guess it’s good after all – to be chosen! And it is very good news, good news indeed.

October 28, 2007 Readings

1 Peter 2:9-10 (The Message)
But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God's instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you—from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted.

Matthew 28:18-20 (The Message)
Jesus, undeterred, went right ahead and gave his charge: "God authorized and commanded me to commission you: Go out and train everyone you meet, far and near, in this way of life, marking them by baptism in the threefold name: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Then instruct them in the practice of all I have commanded you. I'll be with you as you do this, day after day after day, right up to the end of the age."

October 21, 2007 Readings

1 Peter 4: 10
Be generous with the different things God gave you, passing them around so all get in on it: if words, let it be God's words; if help, let it be God's hearty help.

John 14: 12-18
"If you can't believe that, believe what you see—these works. The person who trusts me will not only do what I'm doing but even greater things, because I, on my way to the Father, am giving you the same work to do that I've been doing. You can count on it. From now on, whatever you request along the lines of who I am and what I am doing, I'll do it. That's how the Father will be seen for who he is in the Son. I mean it. Whatever you request in this way, I'll do."

"If you love me, show it by doing what I've told you. I will talk to the Father, and he'll provide you another Friend so that you will always have someone with you. This Friend is the Spirit of Truth. The godless world can't take him in because it doesn't have eyes to see him, doesn't know what to look for. But you know him already because he has been staying with you, and will even be in you!"

"I will not leave you orphaned. I'm coming back."

October 14, 2007 Message

October 14, 2007
Romans 8:28, John 15:16
“Your Gifts Are More Than Money”

"You didn't choose me, remember; I chose you, and put you in the world to bear fruit, fruit that won't spoil. As fruit bearers, whatever you ask the Father in relation to me, he gives you. - John 15:16
“That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.” - Romans 8:28

This past week I’ve thought about the words of today’s text many times, especially the part when Jesus tells his followers: “you didn’t choose me, remember; I chose you,” and at first I thought, ‘well, that’s pretty simple – God has chosen people like you and I to be doing all the things we’re doing. And that’s pretty special – to be chosen – right? I hear that and I stand taller, my shoulders go back a little and my chest goes out a lot, and my expression takes on a certain smugness. To be chosen, to be picked, to be selected is good, right - but for what?

“To be put in the world to bear fruit,” Jesus says. And I think, woe! That’s not really a suggestion he’s making. He’s not hinting. It’s more of a command, when you get right down to it. And that makes it not quite so simple. In fact that could make things a little complicated, to say the least. Now there are expectations, things I should do, things I can’t imagine myself ever doing. And my only out is to think, ‘Well, maybe Jesus wasn’t talking to all of us after all.’ Maybe he was just talking to the apostles. Or maybe he’s just taking to some of us. Yea, that’s it. He’s just talking to a few of us. Wrong!

I think Jesus was speaking to all of us. We have all been ‘chosen’ and ‘placed in the world’ ‘to bear fruit.’ The problem may be we haven’t fully understood the part when he says, “As fruit bearers, whatever you ask the Father in relation to me, he gives you.” In other words, ‘If you’re on God’s team, God will provide all you need to do the work, if you ask.’ Actually I believe God has already provided all the resources this church needs to fulfill God’s plan for us today, we just haven’t realized it, yet. And so we need to ask God to point out all of those things to us and to help us realize the resources are there in the future as well.

When we think of resources, we usually think of financial resources – our money, our investments. It’s true, our money is part of our resources, but there is more. Our resources also include our time, our possessions, our contacts, our hobbies, among other things. The question we want to ask ourselves as Christians is this, “How do we best utilize the resources we’ve been given to impact God’s purposes for God’s church – here in this place and in the world?”

Jesus says in Matthew 6:19-21 not to “store up for yourselves treasures on earth, but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven.” So what’s the difference? Well, his point is that we are to invest in things that have eternal value, of which there are only two: God and people. How do we invest in these? By using our resources well, that’s how.

Remember the parable of the talents? The more that is invested, what? The more that is received! The more resources we use for God’s purpose, the more resources we will be given, so that we will have even more resources to use, and even more resources to be given… what a wonderful “catch 22, isn’t it?”

You have heard the saying, “from those to whom much is given, much will be expected,” right? This is what that parable means. The more you have been given, the more you are expected to give. And the more you give, the more you will receive. And the more you receive, the more you are expected to give… and on and on and on – that’s eternal.

Investing in things that are eternal also involves setting priorities based upon our experiencing the kingdom of God – living in the life of Christ, experiencing God’s presence and love - now. We can use these resources in so many ways to glorify God. Whether it is making school or health kits or filling them; walking from Watkins to Norway in the CROP walk or sponsoring those who do; volunteering our time at Bidwell-Riverside or helping out with the Bazaar; going on a mission trip to South or Central America or writing a check for one of the special Sunday offerings; providing music for worship or breaking up cement; cooking breakfast or drying dishes; teaching a lesson or leading a song; inviting others to church or giving them a ride; baking pies or eating them - all are important and necessary in being the church. I can’t begin to mention them all.
Our contacts (all those people in our address books) are resources, too. Maybe we can ask them to speak to a Sunday School class or other group in the church. Maybe they can help with a project or be a resource for ideas or information. What are your resources? Who are the people you know? How can you use them to serve others and glorify God?

And what about your experiences? We all have a past. Good or bad – our experiences make us who we are today. Some people give themselves credit for the good things that happen to them and blame God for the bad. The reality is that we are not responsible for all the good things, and God doesn’t cause the bad things that we experience, even though God is always at work to use those experiences – good and bad – to fulfill God’s purposes.

Some of you have experienced devastating things in your life: perhaps the death of someone very close to you, a divorce, the loss of a job, or whatever. Your life was turned upside down. But you made it through it all. Might God use you today or tomorrow to help someone going through the very same thing? You bet! In fact, God probably has plans to do just that.
Some of you may, in the past, have been involved in doing something for the church. Maybe your experience wasn’t good – not because you were doing anything wrong, but because you were doing the wrong thing. What others are to do may not be what God intends me to do. But God does expect me to do something – and has in fact already provided the resources for me to do it. I may already know what they are not, I just need to find out what they are!

When you think about it, all our experiences – family experiences, work experiences, all our relationships and circumstances – are components of who we are and what we might do. Everything in life prepares us for our ministry. In that sense our experiences, good and bad, all draw us closer to God, and as we see God use them for God’s purposes, we develop a better understanding of God’s will I our lives.

What experiences and circumstances in your life might be used for God’s purposes?

Jesus has called us to love and in so doing, to bear fruit in this community and in the world. He urges his followers to make a difference. To do that, we must use our resources, our experiences and our circumstances for God and for others. What does it mean to be a Christian?

Mark Twain said the difference between a word and the right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug. United Methodist Bishop, William Willimon has said, “Christians are those who, through baptism, have signed on, have publicly committed themselves, to obey Jesus.” The late Dr. Paul Sherer once said, “The fundamental joy of being a Christian consists not in being good. But in standing with God against some darkness or some void and watching the light come.”

If nothing else today, remember this: God has chosen you. God is with you and in you, and God is empowering you. You see, as committed Christians we are not doing our work. We're not even doing God's work. God is doing God's work through us!

That's why Jesus makes the astounding statement that the Father will give us whatever we ask in his name--not anything we want, not anything that we might try to do, but what God wants and wills to do through us.

And that is to love God’s creation.

October 14, 2007 Readings

Romans 8:28 (The Message)
28That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good.

John 15:9-17 (The Message)
9-10"I've loved you the way my Father has loved me. Make yourselves at home in my love. If you keep my commands, you'll remain intimately at home in my love. That's what I've done—kept my Father's commands and made myself at home in his love.
11-15"I've told you these things for a purpose: that my joy might be your joy, and your joy wholly mature. This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you. This is the very best way to love. Put your life on the line for your friends. You are my friends when you do the things I command you. I'm no longer calling you servants because servants don't understand what their master is thinking and planning. No, I've named you friends because I've let you in on everything I've heard from the Father.
16"You didn't choose me, remember; I chose you, and put you in the world to bear fruit, fruit that won't spoil. As fruit bearers, whatever you ask the Father in relation to me, he gives you.
17"But remember the root command: Love one another.

October 7, 2007 Message

Matthew 6:14-15; Matthew 23:11-12 (The Message)
The Gospel According To Dr. Seuss: Bartholomew and the Oobteck

Jesus tells us in Matthew 6:14-15, “In prayer there is a connection between what God does and what you do. You can't get forgiveness from God, for instance, without also forgiving others. If you refuse to do your part, you cut yourself off from God's part.” Here now, is the prayer, from the preceding verse, which Jesus was referring to (as it appears in The Message by Eugene Peterson.

Our Father in heaven,
Reveal who you are.
Set the world right;
Do what's best— as above, so below.
Keep us alive with three square meals.
Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.
Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil.
You're in charge!
You can do anything you want!
You're ablaze in beauty!
Yes. Yes. Yes.

Keep us forgiven with you - and forgiving others.
Hear us always say, “I’m sorry” – and just as often say, “It’s okay.”

(Holding up a baggie of green ‘slime,’ say to everyone:)
"King Derwin's magicians came up with Oobleck, something like this green slime."

"We see this as something fun, but imagine if it were falling from the sky like rain or snow. What would happen to us then, or to our houses, or to our cars? In the Kingdom of Didd, it messed up everything, didn’t it? No one could move. No one could cook. No one could go to work or play music. It wouldn’t be much fun, then, would it?”

"Bartholomew was just a boy, but he knew how much of a problem Oobleck could be. He thought King Derwin had made a mis-take, and he told him so. The king is not alone. Once during a children's sermon, the leader asked, "What is the Bible about?" A child respond-ed, "It's all about good people." That’s not exactly right, is it?

The Bible is full of stories of people who make mis-takes. This is what makes the Bible so real to us, because we know that in real life everyone makes mistakes. Through-out the Bible we find people who were not so good, who made mistakes and errors in judgment, people who gave in to temptation, who surrendered to the lust for power. It started way back with Adam, and included the likes of: Jacob, Moses, David, Peter and Paul. At some point, in order to move on, each and every one had to summon the humility and courage to say the magic words: "I'm sorry." Whether they were a king or not didn't matter.
Read the summary of Bartholomew and the Oobleck on pages 60-62 of The Gospel According to Dr. Seuss.

Bartholomew and the Oobleck is a story about a king who has a problem. In addition to having trouble admitting he was wrong, King Derwin of the Kingdom of Didd, has trouble being content with what he has and has become upset with, of all things, the sky.

Every year, the sky produced rain in the spring- sunshine in the summer - fog in the autumn - and, of course, snow in the win-ter. But the king was bored with them all. He wanted something new. Bartholomew tried to tell him though he couldn’t rule the sky.

But the king would not take no for an answer. He called on his magicians to work on something. Against Bartho-lomew's advice, the magicians promised the king that the next day he would have his wish. It would come in the form of a sub-stance called "oobleck."

Sure enough, the king awakens to the sight of little green drops of oobleck raining down from the sky. He is so happy he declares a holiday and orders the bell ringer to ring the bell. But the bell won't ring, because it's covered with the sticky green stuff. Then the trumpeter tries to sound an alarm, but his trumpet gets clogged up with oobleck.

Oobleck sounded like a good idea, but soon it caused more trouble than it was worth and literally gummed up the works of the entire Kingdom of Didd. Cooks couldn’t cook; fiddlers couldn’t fiddle; no one could do anything. Everyone’s stuck and it keeps coming.

The wise Bartholomew tells King Derwin he can end this whole disaster by saying two simple words: "I'm sorry." But the king can't do it. He’s too proud to admit being wrong.

Bartholomew looks him straight in the eye and says, "You may be a mighty king. But you're sitting in oobleck up to your chin. And so is everyone else in your land. And if you won't even say you're sorry, you're no sort of a king at all!"

Finally, the king acknowledges that Bartholomew is right and says the magic words. The oobleck disappears, and all is well with the kingdom again. All of a sud-den, rain, sun, fog, and snow don't seem so bad anymore.

What was the big mistake that King Derwin made?
King Derwin's had his magicians come up with something different – Oobleck.

What happened as a result?
The oobleck quite literally gummed up the works of the entire Kingdom of Didd.

]How were people hurt by what the King did?
No one could do anything. They were stuck.

Who talked the king into changing his mind?
Bartholomew

Bartholomew told the king that he only had to say two words to make the Oobleck go away.
What were they?

"That's right. The two words the king had to say were 'I'm sorry.' He didn't want to say them though, did he? He didn't want to admit that he had made a mistake.

King Derwin of Didd is fictional, but his inability to say "I'm sorry" is all too real. In fact, for many of us, those two short words can be among the hard-est words to say. Oh, they're not so hard to say when we are late for an appointment or accidentally step on someone's toe. We say, "Sorry about that," and a minute later it's forgotten. But what about the father who real-izes that many of his adult children’s problems are the result of his having been too busy to spend time with them when they needed him most? Or what about the mother who for years has emotionally abused her children? What about the long-time friend who, in a moment of weakness or bad judg-ment, betrays a trust? What about….?

Aren’t we far too often like King Derwin, not wanting to admit it when we've made a mistake. We would rather blame it on others or pretend that everything is all right. And yet, saying 'I'm sorry' to the people we have hurt and to God is the first step toward fixing the mistakes we have made. I can think of times I needed to say I’m sorry, and didn’t. I imagine you can as well.
Ours is a merciful, loving God who is always ready to forgive us when we admit that we have done something wrong and say, 'I'm sorry.' And that is good news indeed!

And just as importantly, as we learn in the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant in Matthew 18:23-35, God expects us to forgive others as well. In this way we can clean up - or get rid of - the ‘Oobleck’ that is created when we make mistakes.
Act out the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant in Matthew 18:23-35. Choose youth/adults to act out the parts of the king, the first servant, the second servant, and the other servants.

Matthew 18:23-35 (The Message)
Jesus: The kingdom of God is like a king who decided to square accounts with his servants. As he got under way, one servant was brought before him who had run up a large debt.
The king: John, you own me one hundred thousand dollars. Pay up!”
The first servant: “I can’t Sire, I don’t have that much money.”
The king: “Guards, take this man, his wife and all his children to the slave market and auction them off and bring me the money!”
Jesus: The poor servant threw himself at the king's feet and begged for mercy.
The first servant: “No Sire, not that. Give me another chance and I'll pay it all back.”
The king: “Okay, I’ll take pity on you. Your debt is forgiven. You can go.
Jesus: "The servant was no sooner out of the room when he came upon one of his fellow servants who owed him ten dollars. He seized him by the throat and demanded,
The first servant: “You own me ten dollars. Pay up. Now!”
Jesus: "The second servant threw himself down and begged,”
The second servant: “Oh, please, give me a chance and I'll pay it all back.”
The first servant: “No way. Pay me. Now! You can rot in jail unless I get my money.”
Jesus: “When the other servants saw this going on, they were outraged and brought a detailed report to the king. The king summoned the man and said,
The king: “You wicked servant! I forgave your entire debt when you begged me for mercy. You should be as forgiving to your fellow servant who asked for your mercy? Guards, torture this servant until I get what is owed me.
Jesus: “And that's exactly what my Father in heaven is going to do to each one of you who doesn't forgive unconditionally anyone who asks for forgiveness.”

It's one thing to say, "I'm sorry"; it's another to say, "I forgive you." Yet, both are critical. For without forgiveness, the connection remains broken. And just in case you’re wondering, this means forgetting as well. If we can-’t forget, how can we fully forgive and move on? Those who don’t know how to for-give others can’t possibly experience the freeing power that comes from being forgiven. It’s in forgiving, we not only free others, but we also free ourselves to live on.

Saying "I'm sorry" are freeing words indeed, as are the words "I forgive you."

May we all be free today, free indeed!

October 7, 2007 Readings

Matthew 6:14-15 (The Message)
14-15"In prayer there is a connection between what God does and what you do. You can't get forgiveness from God, for instance, without also forgiving others. If you refuse to do your part, you cut yourself off from God's part.

Matthew 23:11-12 (The Message)
11-12"Do you want to stand out? Then step down. Be a servant. If you puff yourself up, you'll get the wind knocked out of you. But if you're content to simply be yourself, your life will count for plenty.

September 30, 2007 Message

Philippians 4:1-9; Matthew 28:16-20 (The Message)

Winston Churchill once said, “Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing had happened.”

In other words, what often concerns us are things that aren’t really lasting or important in the long run. Most things that occupy our minds today won’t matter years from now.

Almost nothing in today’s news will matter in 500 years. Which raises the question: Does anything we do, really — ultimately — matter?

Imagine that it’s the year 2507 — 500 years from today — and you are browsing about in a library (if such places even exist in 2507) and you come to the ancient history section.

As you scroll through the titles, you come across “The Most Important Events of the 20th and 21st Centuries.” You open the book and there’s a list of the top 10 events that shaped the world way back then and still matter in 2507.
Here’s the question to think again: What are the top two events on that list? And what events that have occurred in your lifetime will be remembered 500 years from now?

In order for us to understand the question more fully, try this - What do you think were the two most important events that occurred in the last 500 years — or say since Columbus?

Chances are coming up with that list isn’t all that easy. What do we put on that list anyway? Wars? They seem so all-encompassing at the time, but once the veterans and contemporaries are gone, they seem less pivotal and fall into the long line of human conflicts that seem to happen in every age.

Even world wars tend to lose their impact in time. World War I, the “war to end all wars,” quickly faded in the face of World War II which is, itself, being replaced in the collective consciousness by whatever war we happen to be presently fighting.
If war doesn’t stand the test of time, what does? Scandal? Can you name the players and the problem in the Teapot Dome scandal? Can your kids tell you what Watergate was about? Will anyone remember Enron next year, let alone 500 years from now?

How about art and architecture? You could make a case for both being more lasting. There are probably only a handful of architectural and artistic works that a number of us might remember, while there are so many more that lie forgotten.

Perhaps the more enduring markers for any age are the ideas and new discoveries that advance human understanding such as Copernicus discovery that the earth is not the center of the universe, ushering in the age of modern science, and Columbus opening up of the New World to European exploration. These two in particular have changed how we view our place in the universe. The point is that ideas and discoveries last because they seem to move us into the future.

What will be remembered about us 500 years from now? Physicist James Trefil suggests two events — landing a man on the moon and cracking the genetic code — will be the most important. “Future humans,” he says, “will look back on the Apollo program the same way we look back at the early European explorers. Understanding the human genome will enable us to understand how life works and help us learn how to “get under the hood and change the system, to alter life.”

There you have the ideas of the scientist. What about the theologian?

The apostle Paul focused squarely on ideas that would last. Writing to the Philippians, Paul urges them to “stand firm in the Lord” (4:1). This is important when in the middle of conflict or at odds with someone. in the Philippian church. And to Paul this standing firm meant rejoicing in the Lord – always being near the Lord – striving every day to be like Jesus the Christ. This is the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding” (4:7) he talks about.

Marjorie Hewitt Suchocki, author and professor emeritus of theology at Claremont School of Theology in California, suggests we are intended to live “for the Glory of God – to be, in the fullness of our humanity.” She says we know the nature of God to be love. That is to be our nature as well – caring for the wellbeing of the other.

She said that the genius of John Wesley was that he actually thought we could attain this. Wesley really believed we would become perfect in love. For Wesley, perfection was a synonym for love and our “going on to perfection” is actually our becoming more loving – our living life “for the love of God.”

Wesley this provided a vision for living. This is ‘Methodism’ – a method of living, in love.
Paul’s worldview of what really lasts was bound up in his understanding of the cross and resurrection. The death and resurrection of Christ was the linchpin of history, ushering in a new age and anticipating an age to come. He understood that human history has an end point, but God’s kingdom does not. Rather than promoting great deeds or monuments to mark his place in history, Paul sees his own history as culminating in his desire to “know Christ and the power of his resurrection” (3:10) — to focus in on the timeless nature of knowing and following Christ. Everything else — accomplishments, reputation, legacy, fame, knowledge — was “rubbish” (3:8).

What really lasts, says Paul, are the ideas and actions that mirror Christ. “Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is reputable, whatever is authentic, whatever is compelling, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (4:8).

Paul knew what was timeless and what was not; he understood the difference between what was eternal and what was short-lived. He believed in the ‘unseen’ as having more value, or as being more “real” than the ‘seen,’ the ‘intangible’ as being more “real” than the ‘tangible.’

He understood that everything — everything — we see when we look around is some day going to pass away. Nothing will be left standing. Something may be built in its place, but it too will come down either because we tear it down, or because it falls under its own weight, a victim of natural processes.

But Love is something that cannot be destroyed. There is no power or force of any magnitude, dimension, range or design that can destroy it. That’s why Paul suggests that in anxious times, in our worrying moments, we should return to the Timeless, to the things that count.

Of course we should pray (4:6). But having done that, what are we to do? What do we do when, having prayed and prayed and prayed about something, the distraction and the issue and the irritation remains unresolved?
We must, the Bible says, transition to the Timeless. When we do, what emerges from our lives will have a touch, a shadow of the Timeless about it as well.

So what about our lives so far?

Few of us will be remembered individually 500 years from now, or even 50 or 100 years from now. Our lives on this earth are, by and large, pretty brief and not historically noteworthy. If we really want to increase the store of human happiness and well-being and leave our mark on the world, then, the best way to do it is to follow the way of Christ — to think on and do the things that really matter in the long view of the kingdom.

What we do for God - what we do to be like God - is what will really last!
In our readings from Philippians and Matthew today a very fundamental truth has been shared concerning how we are to live our lives. It has to do with what we are to do as followers of God revealed, Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ. So, in love – always in love:
“Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him!
"Go out and teach everyone you meet, far and near, this way of life!

I hope and pray no one hurries off after the service today as if nothing had happened.