Summer Thoughts

     What kind of tree would you choose to be? 
     That's the question posed by a devotional I recently read.  When polled at one church, one person said an evergreen, to be green year round.  Another said an oak, to be strong and sturdy.  One young girl suggested she'd like to be an apple tree, so she could produce fruit.
     The question appealed to me.  I liked the idea of producing fruit.   I also liked the idea of being green year round.  So I considered orange trees.  One disadvantage is that they can only live in somewhat mild climates.  But they stay green.  They produce healthy fruit that will hold for a long time.  The orange peel is useful in making cleaning products and in naturally scented items.  And they have a lovely perfume when they bloom.  Those same blooms are used traditionally for happy occasions such as weddings to celebrate the commitment of two people to love and support each other through life. 
     Then I wondered...would I be a Valencia orange or a Navel.  The Valencia ripens in the summer and its juice can be stored refrigerated or frozen.  Navels are great for eating, but when juiced it has to be drunk quickly or it turns bitter.  Yet Navels come ripe in the winter, when other fruits are more scarce. 
      I liked the idea of bearing fruit in the winter...that is, being fruitful when the environment doesn't easily support being fruitful.  I don't like the idea of bitterness if held too long before consuming. 
      No one tree holds all the qualities I admire most. 
      Perhaps we can choose what qualities we appreciate in the trees around us...and seek to emulate them in our daily lives.  We won't do it perfectly, but there's value in aiming high and striving hard.

End of the World?

     So the end of the world comes today?...or the beginning of it anyway?  Haven't heard of any mysterious disappearances so far.  That's okay.  I'm satisfied to leave all that in God's hands, far better ones than mine.  In the meantime, Lord, what do you want me to do?  How do you want me to share your love?  What service do you want me to perform?  How can I and my fellow church members be builders of the kingdom? 
    Whether it be for five minutes or many years, may we each be found faithful at our task. 

Peace

     The biblical understanding of PEACE is not just about the cessation of violence.  It is a vision of wholeness.  We need peace, not just in the world but in our souls as well.  Where are our areas of brokenness?  Have we given God all the pieces?  How can we be harbors of peace for others?  How can we be builders of peace in the world?  Let us begin with prayer that includes both words and commitment to action. 

Beautiful Flowers

     Our Choir Director posted some incredibly beautiful pictures of his garden on his Facebook account.  Some of the flowers (Foxglove, if I'm remembering the name properly), he had planted also in the church garden - seedlings last year and they are beginning to bloom again.  In seeing something beautiful, there is a wonderment in the complexity God has created.  Colors, shapes, textures, and times, not only in plants, but in people as well. 
     Pass the word - GOD IS WONDERFUL!

A Day After Mother's Day

     Someone on the radio apparently suggested yesterday that it should be called "Mother's Day," but "Significant Women's Day."  Someone else reported that they'd been told it wasn't "Mother's Day," but "Parents' Day."  Well, historically it has always been Mother's Day.  But we often and appropriately use it to celebrate significant women in our lives.  And please don't forget all parents.  In fact, now that the day is over, it may be all the more meaningful to reach out to parents and significant people in our lives to share how important they are to us. 
     Often overlooked is the fact that Mother's Day is also the Festival of the Christian Home.  For those raised with parents of faith, we know what a precious gift this is.  What can each of us do to make our own homes more Christian?  How can we reach out to others to witness to the liht that shines in the heart of a Christian home?  How can we share the light of truth, courage and faith?

Mother's Day

     Did you know that the woman who got Mother's Day started later regretted it?  As I recall, she felt it became too commercialized.  It's not surprising.  Businesses will find a way to make money.  It doesn't take away from the importance of thanking the good and loving mothers in our lives.  Some we can only remember, others we can contact in more concrete ways.  For some, a good mother was lacking in their lives and we can only hope that they met someone along the way who gave them the kind of love a mother would. 
     The bible occasionally uses images of mothering to describe God, such as a mother hen nestling her chicks and a mother eagle teaching her nestlings how to fly.  God is the loving reality that everyone can reach for and experience.  May you know and feel God's love this day and every day. 
     Blessings.

Good Friday

     It is Good Friday.  The liturgical color for the day is black.  I'm pretty sure this is the only day in the church calendar that uses black, the traditional color, at least in most western cultures, for mourning.  We mourn today for the death of Jesus.  Yes, we know what happened later, but he suffered so much and we do not take that lightly. 
     It is not easy to die on behalf of others, especially those who seem unworthy, and for those whom we do not know.  Yet he did not run away from arrest.  He did not trade blow for blow or curse for curse.  He was suffering on behalf of his persecutors as well as for us two thousand years later.  It's a gift that remains ever fresh, and still painful after so long.  For we do not deserve the blood he shed.  Yet from love he did it anyway.
     Thank you, Jesus.  Help us to be more worthy.  Help us to be willing to serve on behalf of others ourselves.  Amen

A thought for the day

A thought that was passed on to me:  "When one door of happiness closes, another opens, but often we look so long at the closd door that we do not see the one that has been opened for us."  --cited as from Helen Keller

Mid-way Through Lent

     Today the baseball season starts.  Japan is trying to put itself back together again.  It snowed last night in Maryland.  Spring is in full swing in Monterey.  A siren blares in the distance.  Life goes on far and near.  In the midst of its details and busy-ness, it might be easy to forget the daily walk with God.  For some in our world, they never think about it, though they may call themselves Christian.  To say so is not intended as a judgement about them, but a concern.  How much richer life is when life is in tune with God.  How much more joyful when welcoming Jesus as a daily companion.  In this time of Lent, pray for those who do not know God in all the joy and love and depth they could. Pray for ourselves as well, to know it ever more fully.  What a gift we have received!  How much more God will give when we open ourselves to it,

The Third Day of Lent - 2011

     Today is somber for more reasons than the fact that it is Lent.  News arrived early of a terrible earthquake in Japan, also initiating fires and tsunamis.  Recent years have brought us a number of natural disasters (they often seem to come in groups).  As people seeking to grow in Christ, it is important to fight the numbing affect that sometimes comes when we hear about problem after problem.  

     I firmly believe that God does not send disasters nor inflict such suffering.  At the same time, it is undeniable that these things can have a testing affect.  Some humans can fail, others can become tempered and useful like fine steel.  Let us pray for strength to achieve the second outcome.  

   

Ash Wednesday

     Lent begins today on Ash Wednesday.  You have probably heard much about the forty days of  Lent--if you count the days you will find it is actually forty-six days on the calendar.  This is because the Sundays aren’t counted.  Lent is a somber time for penitence and reflection on the cross.  But Sunays have always been days to celebrate Christ’s resurrection.  Thus, in the tradition passed down through the centuries, Sundays were not included in the official count.

      Many people give something up for Lent.  At its best, a sacrifice of something we enjoy can remind us on a daily basis of Christ, directing our thoughts and hearts to closer fellowship with him.  It has always seemed appropriate, though inadequate, to give up something we like during Lent when we remember the great sacrifice upon the cross. 

     How fortunate we are.  God creates us, sustains us and has sought continually to guide us onto the right path.  Not through our merit, but through God’s grace, Jesus came to teach and lead us in the way of abundant life.  He gave his life for our sake. 

     O Lord, we lift our humble gratitude for what Jesus has done for us.  May we grow more loving, forgiving and just in his name.  Amen.

Valentine's Day Approaching

     With Valentine's Day approaching, I reviewed the information I had on Saint Valentine.  There were actually two Valentine's, with the same saint's Day, February 14.  Some scholars believe that there was actually only one, but his stories got told in a way that made it sound like two men.  The original Valentine had nothing to do with love in particular (though, presumably, any Christian is related to love).  But February 14 is the day on which it was traditionally thought that birds paired up.  Thus, the coincidence of pairing and February 14 tied Valentine to love. 
     Many of us see Valentine's day not solely as a day to celebrate romantic love.  It is a time to celebrate all good and wholesome love, for as the epistle of I John reminds us, love is from God and the one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. 
     Love is more than an emotion.  Love involves a commitment to the positive welfare of others.  In fact, love can be lived even where there are no warm emotional feelings.  The commitment to others can sustain us through the times when we don't "feel" the love. 
     God bless you.

The Church Year - Telling the Story

     This began as a Closer Look article, became too long, and was offered as the morning message on January 16.  The message was recorded and is available at our Video Website at: http://www.ourchurchvideos.com/93940/montereymethodist/  By request, it is available here, also, in written form.

     We are currently in the church season of Epiphany.  That’s a word sometimes hear in non-church settings.  Generally when someone says they had an epiphany, it seems like they mean they had a dramatic realization of something.

      The word Epiphany comes from the Greek word epiphaneia, which means manifestation or appearance.  By tradition, the wise men came on the twelfth day after Christmas and this begins epiphany. 

     The magi were not Hebrew, thus epiphany has become a symbolic marker of the fact that the light of God is given to all peoples. 

     Lamin Sanneh, a remarkable Christian theologian, has expressed the same truth in terms of language.  He says that all languages are inadequate to express the whole truth of God, but all languages are also worthy to use in speaking to God and about God. 

      Epiphany ends with Ash Wednesday, which comes fairly late this year. 

       Some Christian traditions do not emphasize the seasons of the church year.   Methodism observes them though not all Methodists are aware of the meaning and purpose. 

     In churches where the altar cloths are always traditional, I’ve still had people ask me about what it means.  Some of them had been in the church their entire lives. 

     There are many ways of explaining the seasons (and many special days that are marked within them).

     The church seasons are part of how we continue telling the story of God, to ourselves and to the future generations that Psalm 22 talks about.

     The church year as a whole tells a story.

     Once upon a time, the world lived with much darkness (Advent) and this grieved God who had created everything.  The Hebrew people caught a glimpse of God’s light.  They tried to be faithful to it and God promised that through them the whole world would be blessed. 

      When the time was right, a child was born (Christmas).   This child was human and would face the same things that all people endure of joy and sorrow, pleasure and pain.  Yet this child also held as much of God as could be poured into creation. 

     His name was Jesus and he would be called the light of the world.

      Strangely enough, he wasn’t born in a palace, or even in a place especially made for him.  There simply wasn’t room for a displaced couple who had to come to their ancestor’s town to be counted. 

      This baby was born to a Jewish mother in a Jewish town and would grow up to follow all the excellent ways of his people. 

     It turns out that other people were interested in him too.  In fact, the stars proclaimed his birth to some foreigners who showed up to give him gifts and honor.   This only goes to show that God isn’t territorial.  The Magi were the first, but a long way from the last people from outside Israel to follow his light (Epiphany). 

      Jesus taught people, healed people, and called them to give up the darkness so they could turn to the light. 

     But some didn’t like this message, some preferred the darkness and some mistook their darkness for light, so they thought Jesus was their enemy and crucified him (Lent). 

      What darkness doesn’t know is that the light is stronger.  Also, when it comes to doing good, God plans on winning.  So on the third day after Jesus was crucified, he rose from death and met with his followers who began to understand what he meant about life and eternity.(Easter).  

       They were very happy about this good news and probably thought they could go on just as they had before the crucifixion, except that Jesus couldn’t be crucified again.   But Jesus had another plan.

     God apparently had remarkable trust that humans could take part in cleaning up the mess they’d made of the world.  So Jesus told his followers that he’d always be with them, but not in the same way. 

     From now on they needed to go out to love the world (friends and enemies alike) and share the good news about life and the light.  After that, the Christians mostly didn’t see him, just felt him in their hearts and in their joy. 

      Fifty days after Easter, something new happened.  Jesus had promised them a helper and it made a dramatic appearance.  They were praying together when they heard the sound of wind and saw the look of flames, and they suddenly felt the spirit of God in them and around them.  (Pentecost). 

     That spirit helped a lot in the days ahead when they had to face some of the darkness and indifference of the world.  They prayed for boldness and courage in telling the good news about Jesus and the life he promised. 

     Because they loved each other, they formed a new kind of family, one that could grow and grow. 

      And it’s a family with a plan, Jesus’ plan, to do what God calls them to do in helping transform the world into a place of light and love for all people.  

     Some Christians talk about that as building the kingdom of God (Kingdomtide.)

     The story never ends and it becomes part of every Christian’s story.  So when it’s told again through each year, they remember the darkness of the world and are sorry people couldn’t find room for Jesus. 

     We try to prepare a better and yet better place in our own hearts.  The color for the season reminds us, his followers, of at least two things during Advent. 

     Purple is a color for penitence.  But in the human world, it is also the color traditionally worn by kings.  Instead of what people deserved, God gave the world a king of love and peace, whose kingdom is without end.

     There was no place for him when he was born, yet the location where he was born became extra special simply because that’s where it happened.  Thus Christians rejoice whenever they celebrate the anniversary of his birth.  It was such a pure, light-filled love that was lain upon a manger bed, the color that befits this season of Christmas is white.

      Because he came for the sake of all people, his followers remember the human race is one family.  In their best moments, they work on justice for brothers and sisters who aren’t getting it.  And they continue to share the light.

     For reasons that as far as I know Christians don’t even understand, green became the color for Epiphany.  That’s okay. 

      Imagination can work on it.  For example, all peoples ultimately depend upon the green growth of God’s world for sustenance.   And the green growth depends upon the sun God created for light and power.  

      Universal need and loving strength poured upon everyone, just like the love of Jesus poured out for the entire world.  Feel free to use your imagination.

     Sadly, even though they’ve seen the light, Jesus’ followers don’t always live up to it.  So it’s important to us to examine ourselves and remember he died because of human darkness. 

      It’s called repentance when we are sorry for the darkness and resolve to do better.  Purple is one of the spectrum’s less vibrant shades and colors the season of Lent with the need to continually try to grow into the people Jesus called his followers to become. 

     Nothing can separate us from God’s love in Jesus, who wants people to live both forever and abundantly. 

     So the yearly springtime festival for his resurrection becomes a time for joy, hope and strength.  Easter’s color is white, like the pure unbroken light that shines from an empty tomb.

     With the help of God’s spirit and the fact that Jesus promised always to be with them, his followers remember his calling to also be lights for the world. 

      Because of the light and flames of the spirit, the color for Pentecost is red.  It takes courage to get set burning by the Pentecost fire, but watch out for those who’ve done it!

     The church continues, faulty because of the humans involved, but in each generation, still working to share the good news, to grow personally and as the body of Christ.  Perhaps for this reason, the color for Kingdomtide is green, like that of a great mustard plant grown from the tiniest of seeds. 

     Ultimately, each year the church lives out and celebrates the story of God.  We tell it to ourselves.  And there’s a world out there that’s hungering and thirsting because they haven’t heard it yet. 

     This is a great year for telling stories and planting mustard seeds!