"Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown" and "Hide the Kids, It's Christmas"

Two sermons for the price of one blog! Welcome to the Christmas Eve and Jan 4 sermon blog.  :)

Luke 2:1-20, John 1:1-14, Isaiah 11:1-3, 6,  Matthew 2:7-18


Christmas is about joy and happiness. It is about pretty decorations and lots of light.  Right?  That's not the way Charlie Brown feels, though, not at all. He feels the opposite, in fact. His dog Snoopy's decorations are ruining Charlie Brown's Christmas. And the commercially-infused happiness that the Christmas play is generating is... less than happy for Charlie Brown.  That's because Charlie Brown can see beneath and behind and around and through the sugarplum-coated Christmas we all dream about.  He knows that THAT celebration is surface only, and that there must be something more to this whole Christmas thing.

Maybe Charlie Brown senses that you can't have light without darkness. You can't know joy without sorrow. You can't birth a savior into a world that doesn't need saving.  So even Linus with his dear and sweet rendition of Luke 2 on the Christmas play stage under the lights only actually hints at what Christmas is all about.  Christmas is certainly, definitely, about the babe in the manger. Christmas is certainly, definitely about the mother in the barn, allowing God to work through her to produce this miracle of life that will one day save us all.  Christmas is certainly, definitely about the angels ushering the good news of great joy to the shepherds who then rush to see this baby they have heard about.  But that is only a part of what Christmas means when you come full circle.

Christmas is a dark time.  Herod is seeking to rid the world of infants who might be the coming Messiah. Terrorism in the form of infanticide is the rule of the day.  Joseph and Mary are forced to flee, to hide, to protect the baby Jesus from the hands of Herod's kill machine.  This is the Christmas that is not about parading children around with shiny new clothes and toys, but about hovering over and protecting children from the darkness and gloom that is out to get them.

The Wise Men became believers when they saw the infant. They bowed down to worship the Christ Child when they became aware of his glory and purpose.  But they started off quite differently. As spies for Herod, checking out where this baby who was born "King of the Jews" was located. Herod has asked them to let him know where the child might be.  He wants to rid the world of this potential threat to his own power.  Fortunately, they were overcome by Jesus and amazed and transformed and so 'went home by another way,' but it could have been different.

On Christmas Eve, we will gather around our lovely sanctuary once more and sing Silent Night and light our Christmas candles, showing that the Child of Light has indeed come once again to save us. He always comes to us. Even in the darkest darkness, you can't make Jesus not arrive.  Babies are born in their own way, in their own time, and it is almost never pretty or calm or serene. But yet, their arrival is ultimately perfect.  Jesus arrives and the stars shout for joy.  The angels sing and even gruff old shepherds melt and soften at his appearance.  That is what we celebrate on Christmas Eve. The saving power of the baby in our arms. The potential to make Heaven on Earth come to us this year. The salvation that we have handed to us in a newborn package each Christmas.

But as the story rolls along, don't forget the darkness surrounding this light-filled birth. Don't forget the pain and the misery, the children who lost their lives, the corrupt power structure that destroyed families and wreaked havoc.  Remember the light can only be seen in the darkness. In fact, when we find ourselves at our darkest, that is when we can best the light of Christ shine in our own lives. By speaking up for those who can't, by offering ourselves to a world in need, by reaching out when it feels uncomfortable and bridging the gaps we have created in our humanity.

How do you connect light to your own Christmas celebrations? Do you hang them on your houses? Your trees? Do you prefer clear or multi color?  How do you move through the festive season of light when your soul feels dark?  Do you reach to Jesus to save you?  How do you reach out to others surrounded by darkness and shine a little light into their lives? What miracles can you be part of?
How does the baby in the manger affect your life? Does it make a difference for you in the way you celebrate the season to think of Jesus coming anew each year?  Email me or comment below.

"Impossible Possibilities"

Luke 1:26-49
Isaiah 40:1-11

A voice cries out in the wilderness. "Every valley shall be lifted up. Every mountain and hill made low. Uneven ground shall become level."

"How will this be?  Since I am a virgin?" Mary asked the angel.
The angel Gabriel answered, "Even Elizabeth is going to have a child in her old age. For no word from God will ever fail."

Impossible circumstances. Impossible situations.  And yet, with God's love all things are possible. Babies can be born to barren women.  Mountains can be made low. Justice can reign even when all hope is lost.  Peace can once again be restored.

In A Charlie Brown Christmas,  no one likes the fact that Charlie Brown is ruining all their fun by trying to actually do his job and direct a play.  So they send him on a mission. Find a spectacularly commercial, shiny Christmas tree and bring it back.  He instead follows his heart and picks the most unlikely of all trees, a small scruffy pine that won't even hold an ornament.

Ugh. The tree seems to be a complete failure. Charlie Brown cries out to the group asking if there is anyone who knows what Christmas is all about. Linus then recites Luke 2 and Charlie Brown goes into the night air, tiny tree in hand, and remembers the words of the gospel. His tree, however, is still a disaster. In fact, Charlie thinks his decorations have killed the tree.

But of course, when LOVE enters the picture, and PEACE, and HOPE... well, then impossible things become possible.  The intersection of love and hope in this story create a peace and joy that Charlie Brown never knew existed.

The intersection of love, peace, hope, and joy also come to Elizabeth and her cousin Mary as they (a generation apart in age) carry their babies who are born to be prophets unlike any the world has ever seen.  Mary sings that her soul magnifies the Lord and Elizabeth feels the baby John leap inside her womb.  All things are possible with God. And with love, and peace, and hope, and joy.

When have you experienced the impossible becoming possible?  What is your dream for the impossible becoming possible here and now? What gives you hope that it can indeed come to fruition? Email me or comment below.

"Wishing Things Were Different"

Monday evening I was catching up on the news from Ferguson and thinking to myself that I would need to alter my sermon idea for Sunday. How could I not mention this civil war of sorts that continues to tear our country apart? What should I do?  I then remembered an advent passage I preached on a few years back from Isaiah 64. It begins, "O God, tear open the heavens and come down."  That's the scripture I should be using, I thought. That's it.  I remembered my theme from Charlie Brown Christmas where Lucy tells Charlie Brown what he really needs is involvement. I thought this seemed trite. What to do?

Then I looked up my scripture I had already chosen for this Sunday's message, weeks ago. Oh wow. Isaiah 64. The lectionary has circled back around to it again. And then I looked at my sermon title written about six weeks ago and my heart leapt and my mouth fell to the floor. "Wishing Things Were Different."  Who would know how perfectly that title would fit this moment in time? Who would know?  The Spirit knows; she always does.

The prophet Isaiah is crying out for a world in despair. He is asking God to please, please come and be with the people in their time of need. Please come, O God, tear open the heavens and get here now.  The mothers of people of color everywhere last night were likely crying a similar prayer.  I remember thinking last night how different I would feel about Jake living in NYC last night if we were a black family instead of a white one. As it was, I had the luxury of being pretty confident my own kid was safe and secure, though some of his friends' mothers could not have had the same thought.

I chose my December sermon series "Charlie Brown Christmas" because this is such a wonderful holiday classic everyone loves.  The forlorn Charlie Brown looking for an answer to what Christmas is really about. The overbearing Lucy telling him he needs involvement (which he does, actually). And then the prophetic voice of Linus who calls out from the darkness, bringing light... "Fear not, for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a savior who is Christ the Lord."

We start this advent season as we always do. Waiting. Waiting for Christ to come and save us. This year, we start by wishing things were different.  We start by finding a way to be involved and work to tame the chaos that is surrounding us with the message from the Prince of Peace who brings good tidings of great joy.

It is hard to hear the cry of the needy when all we do is sing Deck the Halls and Jingle Bells. Perhaps we start by saying every day of Advent the words of the prophet Isaiah "O God, tear open the heavens and come down."  That serves to us as a reminder that we are not yet in the Promised Land. That serves to remind us that we are struggling to create a new way of being in this world. We are searching for a prophet to tell us what to do, but we need search no further than the yearnings of our own heart to follow the Way of Christ. Serving the lost, the least, the marginalized, the oppressed.  Not pretending that isms like racism are behind us, but recognizing that they are more alive, perhaps, than ever before.

Advent is a time of waiting for the arrival of peace.  Boy, do we ever need peace.  Advent is also a time of rising up to hear the call of the needy and offering to be the prophetic voice that tells the world we are capable of more.  We need involvement. The world needs us to step up and get involved. Perhaps there is no more critical moment to change the world than now.  When we find ourselves wishing things were different, time to hit the spotlight and cry out "Fear not..." and step forward.

Comments? Email me or comment below.

"Destination: Kingsland"

Matthew 25:31-46

This is Christ the King Sunday. The last Sunday of the church year. Next year is a new church year. This is like New Year's Eve in a way. A time to remember what we have gone through and Who we have been with as we have journeyed.  Jesus, our Christ, is today lauded as our King.

Perhaps you do not like the term King. Perhaps that becomes baggage for you. Perhaps you do not like to think of Jesus as a royal king with a scepter and a crown as some hymns portray him on this Sunday.  Perhaps you do not want to journey to our destination this week, which I am calling Kingsland.

And yet, this scripture reminds us so clearly of what it means to be a KING in Jesus terms.
Then the king will say to those at his right hand, 'Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,  I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.'


The world, the KINGdom, that Jesus ushers in is a kingdom where the hungry are fed, the thirsty are refreshed, the strangers are welcomed, the naked are clothed, the sick are cared for and the imprisoned are visited. That is the KINGdom that Jesus brings. Not a world where the rich get richer and the poor get poorer, but a world where everyone is loved and appreciated.

Our statement of welcome posted on the church website and on our community bulletin board reads:
Niwot United Methodist Church welcomes and honors everyone without regard to sexual orientation, race, nationality, gender, family structure, ethnic background, economic circumstances, difference in ability, culture or age. You are actively invited to visit, fully participate in, and join our Christian community.

Knowing this about ourselves, we should actively participate in living into these words, which are echoed also in Matthew's words to us this week in Chapter 25.  We are, of course, not supposed to sit on the sidelines and wait for Jesus to create the Kingdom of God. We are not supposed to sit on the sidelines and wait for the church staff to create, along with Jesus, the Kingdom of God. We are, as people who call ourselves Christians, supposed to be ushering in the Kingdom of God along with Jesus here and now... just as we claim to do in our website welcome.

You see, Christ the King Sunday is a day to honor the radical nature of being Christ the King. A king who washes the feet of his friends, a king who touches the unclean, a king who welcomes and embraces those the world does not.

This Sunday, let us remember that radical leadership and radical embracing and welcoming that Jesus teaches us. And may we move into the next year fully ready to be just that radical in our sharing of God's love.   That is how we reach our Destination: Kingsland.  That is how we move into the neighborhood of God. Kingsland is on our doorstep.  Let us fling wide the doors and find it.

We will glorify the King of Kings, we will glorify the Lamb; we will glorify the Lord of Lords who is the great I AM. Hallelujah to the King of Kings, hallelujah to the Lamb; hallelujah to the Lord of Lords, who is the great I AM. 

He has made me glad, he has made me glad. I will rejoice for He has made me glad.

Questions? Comments? Email me or comment below.

"Checkpoint: Chief Niwot's Legacy"

This Sunday we are privileged and honored to welcome author Margaret Coel to our service. Last year we encouraged the congregation to read Chief Left Hand, Margaret Coel's account of the life of Chief Niwot (Left Hand), including his death at Sand Creek.  I encourage you to be here this Sunday as we commemorate this tragic history and remember and honor our namesake, Chief Niwot.  Take a look at the link to learn more about Margaret Coel.

We will also have offering envelopes in the bulletin for Native American Ministries Sunday. The proceeds from that offering go to fund scholarships for Native American students and also 75 percent of the funding stays within our conference to fund Native American Awareness projects here at home.


Stay warm and see you Sunday.

Baggage Claim: Sand Creek

The second installment in this November series of Baggage and Checkpoints is "Baggage Claim: Sand Creek."  When you're on a trip and you deplane and head to wait at the baggage claim, of course, your strongest desire is that you see your bags come across the conveyer belt and head your way. And when they don't, your heart just sinks. It's happened to some of us and you know that sinking feeling.

But, when it comes to the baggage that we carry around with us, either personally or communally, we sometimes would rather we didn't see or feel or think about our baggage at all. And yet, it does come around on the conveyer belt called 'life' or 'history' or 'repentance' or whatever you want to call it... and we are forced to see it on the conveyer in front of us seeking to be claimed and owned. And it is in the claiming and owning of the baggage of our collective past we can find the freedom that Jesus walks the path of and Paul expounds on that is called justification by faith... right living... the path toward God rather than away from God, even when it's hard.  So,  today, we re-examine a topic I first preached about a year and a half ago on Native American Awareness Sunday.  The Methodist ties to the Sand Creek Massacre.

Click HERE for that blogpost that will once again be the sermon preached this Sunday.

Thoughts? Comments? Email me or comment below.

"Remember when you could greet someone at the gate?"

Psalm 107:1-7
Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress; he led them by a straight way, until they reached an inhabited town. Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love, for his wonderful works to humankind.

This month we begin a sermon series on Baggage and Checkpoints. The baggage we carry around as we travel on the journey.  And the checkpoints we are forced to endure along the way. We will also spend some time at checkpoints we know we should stop at and deal with... our historical past and how it affects us even now. More of a gut check perhaps than a check point.

On Tuesday, Todd and I flew back from a six-day stay in NYC.  It was a great trip and so wonderful to spend a few days with Jake.  The travel days, however, are never that much fun.  LaGuardia Airport yesterday was pretty crowded and overwhelming as we sat waiting for our flight at Gate B4.

It made me think,though, about those good old days when you could actually have potentially had even MORE people waiting at this gate. Because remember when you could greet someone at the gate? You didn't have to have a plane ticket and an ID to go to a gate and see someone just as soon as they got off the plane. Anyone younger than 20, of course, probably does not remember this world, but many of us do.  

There was something so appealing about being able to be right at the gate as someone arrived home. And, in theological terms, that moment of welcoming someone at the gate would be a heaven. And heaven is a return to the embrace of the one who loves you. Heaven is your return to a place you feel most welcome.

This week's Psalm 107 speaks of God leading those who are distressed out of their time of trial and into the warmth of an inhabited town.  What ways do we do the same in our deep and abiding relationships with family and with friends?  How do we create Heaven on Earth, the reign of God here and now in the ways we choose to include and embrace those who have been away from love, from home, from a sense of wholeness?

This is All Saints' Sunday. A time when we remember those who have gone before us. We will pause to spend some time lifting up the names of the cloud of witnesses, the saints, who have gone before us and who have led the way to the Gate we will all one day walk through.  Come prepared to say aloud the names of those you would like to honor this All Saints' Sunday.

Thoughts? Comments? Email me or comment below.

"... your work produced by faith."

We always give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in our prayers, constantly remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.


Last week we shared in the absolute joy of having our children guide and lead us in worship. It was wonderful to see the Spirit come alive in their beautiful faces. Thank you so much to the children and youth for leading us. 

This week we will have one of our Rocky Mountain Conference district superintendents preaching in our worship service. Rev. Deb Olenyik, supeintendent of the the Wyoming district, will be our honored guest preacher.

Rev. Olenyik will be preaching from the text in 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10 in which Paul is writing to the people of Thessolonica and reminding them of the importance of their work done THROUGh FAITH.  We will be in prayer for her this week as she prepares to be in the midst of our NUMC family and share the Word of God with us.

Maybe praying in community for the Spirit to move among us would be a good way to prepare for this Sunday.  I spent this morning  adapting into a prayer the words of Psalm 99 as written in The Message.  Let us pray this communally this week as we remember the work of faith in this congregation and the labor of love and the steadfastness of hope we all share in the global church community.

O God, you are our ruler. We take notice of you as you reign from on high, as you tower in splendor over every living thing.  We praise your greatness. You are holy, yes holy.

O God, lover of justice, you laid things out fair and square, you set down the foundations of justice and righteousness. We worship you. You are holy, yes holy.

O God, your priests who have come before us, Moses and Aaron and Samuel… they all prayed to you and you answered them. You spoke to them from the pillar of cloud and they kept your law.  We lift you high, O God, we still worship at your mountain. You are holy, yes holy.  Amen.

"Life Stories" (Children and Youth Worship)

This week we will go an adventure that will be filled with smiles and fun as our children and youth lead worship. They have already helped to write the prayers and one of the songs that we will use this week. Their words are poignant, fun and true.

Also, three of our teenagers have written snapshots of their lives right now.  We will be happy to hear their words which are also poignant, fun and true.

The scriptures are Exodus 14:13-22 and Luke 10:25-37. It will be fun to see how they are expressed this week.

I feel sure you will be as blessed by this service as I have been in helping to prepare for it.


Matthew 19 says "Let the little children come to me and do not stop them, for it is to such as these that the Kingdom of Heaven belongs."  Indeed. And thanks be to God.

See you Sunday.

“Leaning Forward” (World Communion Sunday)

Philippians 3:4b-14

I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.

In 2010, Sheryl Sandberg wrote a book called Lean In that addresses the ways in which women hold themselves back from being successful simply because they are women and have come to believe the rhetoric that there are some things women can't do.  The book encourages women to change their attitudes, change the dialogue and "lean in" and do the unexpected, making it expected instead.

In this letter to the Philippians, Paul is following a similar line of thought, in a way. He is saying that the people of Philippi need not have humanly limitations forced upon themselves, but as people who believe in Christ Jesus, they are able to press on toward a heavenly goal.  He is encouraging them to lean forward toward what is (or can be) ahead for them as Christians. He is suggesting that any failures or limitations of the past are gone. That resurrection from the dead will come for them through a whole new way of leaning forward to the goal of following Christ.

What Paul is suggesting here is that our faith in Christ is the beginning of our resurrection story. That whatever we have fallen into that has separated us from Christ in the past can be a part of the dust of our past. And whatever we have to face in front of us will be worth the effort because we are now living as people clothed in new garments. As people who follow the Way of Jesus, who see the message of love and goodness he offers.

The wonderful thing about reading the words "Forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal   . . ." this week is that it falls on World Communion Sunday. A Sunday in which we recognize the entire Christian community is gathered around the Table of Grace. That we are sharing the breaking of the bread and the pouring of the cup with our sisters and brothers around the globe. That we are actually, yes, all in this together. That there is nothing we can't handle if we give it to God and share it with one another.

So come to the Communion Table this week and lean forward. Lean into the love and grace of the Way of Christ.  And then lean forward into the world around you and share your story, your passion, your love of God with the world.

Comments? Email me or comment below.

"The fruits of the Spirit are joy, gentleness and goodness."

Galatians 5:22-23
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Philippians 2:1-13

Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

We are so fortunate for so many reasons. Many of us have health, most of us have financial resources that give us all we need, and more. And even those of us who struggle have the support of one another in our church family and our extended connections to keep us going and keep our heads above water.  So, it is often hard, in the midst of such blessed good fortune, to feel the pain of persecution and hardship.  

The early Christian church struggled to stay alive in the midst of persecution. Paul himself had been a strong persecutor of Christian people. He knew from both sides of the fence what that persecution meant and could mean. So, when Paul is speaking to the Philippians  in this week's text, his words take on a special import.  Being united with Christ wasn't an easy thing to do, but he encourages them to be of the same love, same spirit and mind as Christ.  He says it will make his joy complete.  The joy Paul has receive in uniting his heart with Christ has literally changed his worldview.

How could we model the behavior Paul suggests, "do nothing out of self ambition... rather in humility value others above yourselves"; how can we be humble, caring, compassionate people... people who share a sense of gentleness and goodness?  Can that transform the world? I think it can.

You see, we often think that we must be out there loud and vocal, flashy and shiny, to transform things. But Paul suggests here that our desire to exhibit humility like Christ will change lives. And the three Fruits of the Spirit this week are "gentleness, goodness and joy."  Imagine how much better the world would be if we were always exhibiting gentleness and goodness, not only to each other but also to ourselves, After all, the commandment "love your neighbor as yourself" requires no less than that. Treat yourself gently and with goodness.  Feel good about what you can do for the world. Talk softly and be kind.  In the midst of gentleness and goodness.... there we find joy.  Unspeakable joy.

I'm jumping ahead a bit, but let's consider the nativity story.  In the midst of the chaos and harshness of having no place to stay and being tossed in among the animals, Jesus is born. In all the trials and labors and pain of a birth that happens in an unpredictable place among unpredictable witnesses, you'd think this story would be troubling. But what we choose to notice in this story is the mother "pondering things in her heart," the lowly shepherds bowing in awe and wonder, and a baby gently offering goodness and joy, even now.

Gentleness. Goodness. Joy. How are these present in your life? How have they been offered to you?  Email me or comment below. 

"The fruits of the Spirit are self-control and faithfulness"

Galatians 5:22-23

Exodus 16:2-15

This week's fruits of the Spirit are self-control and faithfulness. In what ways do we exercise self-control and in what ways do we lack self-control? How do we exhibit faithfulness in our lives and how do we lack faithfulness?

The Israelites roaming around in the desert were tired and hungry and seeking some type of relief. They were ready for something good to happen. They were yelling loud and clear  "Are we THERE YET?" No matter how many times they were told that God would provide, they failed to believe that God would actually be faithful to them.

It is such a common story, isn't it?  We say we believe that God cares for us. We believe in the idea of faithfulness and try to live in ways that show we are capable and faithful people. But the minute things do not go our way, we cry out for something, anything, to make us feel better.  The manna we seek may not even be possible, but we want it anyway.

I see an interesting intersection between faithfulness and self-control.  Don't you?  In some circumstances, we develop a lack of self control and an unwillingness to see that following a steady and faithful path, though not glamorous, may lead to great reward.    The virtue of faithfulness, the steady day-in-and-day-out faithfulness of trusting God and ourselves, believing in God and ourselves might actually get us somewhere. Being faithful to God, to our inner pull to live our dreams, could help us develop a level of self-control and assurance that we have never known before.  It could lead us to amazing peace and contentment.

I like reading and hearing stories about people who have overcome difficult odds and unpredictable circumstances. It is inspiring to read tales or to hear stories about people whose steadfast faithfulness to a path has led them to achieve great things.

I imagine those were qualities also very present in Jesus as he walked the proverbial "lonesome journey" to the cross.  His faithfulness to follow God, to be a faithful servant, to live a life of self-control and careful, reasoned speech is part of what makes Jesus, the man, such an admired historical figure.  And those same qualities are what led Jesus, the man, to become a Savior for his people. Christ is alive today in our lives because of the steadfast faithfulness and self-control of his journey.

Thoughts?  Email me or comment below.

The fruits of the Spirit are kindness and patience

Galatians 5:22-23  the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, and self-control. 

Matthew 18:21-35

This week we are worshiping outside following our Saturday night campout at the church.  Join us for the whole slate of Sat evening and Sun morning activities, even if you don't plan to sleep overnight at the church.

Here's the scoop on the weekend activities:
All church campout Sept 13 – 14, 2014. Festivities start at 4 pm. 
Saturday night: 
                   4pm – Campout activities, 
                   5pm - Potato Bar potluck, games, scavenger hunt, skits, fire, songs, s’mores. Sunday: 
                   8am – Breakfast, 
                   9am- Sunday School, 
                  10:20am – Worship service outside. 
Please come for all or part of the fun and activities. If you any questions, please contact Barb or Rachelle Bridgestock or Dixie Piland. Looking forward to seeing everyone!


As a part of our campout worship service on Sunday morning, we will have a couple of voices from the congregation speaking to us about faith journeys in their lives. We will also pause to remember the flood annniversary. One year since our area was torn in half and devastated by a raging flood that we are still working to rebuild from. Many of us were lucky, but we've witnessed firsthand the struggles of our community and our friends.

So, Sunday is a lot of different things. It is a time to pause for remembering the flood anniversary. And a time for considering the way kindness and patience have worked hand-in-hand to create goodwill and relief for those who were devastated. It is about reminding ourselves to let the kindness of friends and of strangers be a part of our journeys to health and healing.  Reminding ourselves of the way we can be kind and patient with each other, with nature, with the world. Reminding ourselves of the redemption we can find in forgiveness and extending unconditional love to one another.  This is where we find ourselves resting this week as we join together for worship in the great outdoors.

WE hope to see you there.  Peace be with you.

Thoughts? Email me or comment below.

The fruit of the Spirit is love and peace.

... the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Galatians 5:22-23

Romans 13:8-14

Owe no one anything, except to love one another.
Love your neighbor as yourself.
Love does not wrong to a  neighbor.
Let us live honorably as in the day.
All of the above are lines from Romans 13:8-14.

And of course, from love comes the peace which passes all understanding. When Paul is writing to the Galatians in Chapter 5 about the fruit of the Spirit, he is contrasting it with what the fruit is not.  Being dishonest and self-absorbed and the like, he says, are not fruit from the Spirit.  And we all KNOW this already. I mean in some ways, its a DUH statement, this list of the fruits of the Spirit.

And yet, we do not actually do very well at living into this list.  We see it printed on bumper stickers or on nice calligraphy prints framed and hanging on walls. We read it. We know what we are supposed to do.. we know what the fruit is, but we fail to be God's people.

How do we love and show signs of peace to one another? How do we begin to live into all the fruit of the Spirit?  September will be a month to consider that. All month long we will look at different 'fruits' mentioned in Galatians 5:22-23 and expanded in other scriptural texts.  What does it mean to work daily on being a living example of the Fruit of the Spirit.   Take some time to really think about that in the days ahead.

 How have you shown love or peace to someone today?  Could you share it here?  How has love or peace been shown to you?  Let me know by emailing me or commenting below.

Peace be with you.

Some other words to ponder (9/3/14):
2 Corinthians 13:11
Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you.

"What would not every lover of God and his neighbour do, what would he not suffer, to remedy this sore evil, to remover contention from the children of God, to restore or preserve peace among them? What but a good concience would he think too dear to part with, in order to promote this valuable end? And suppose we cannot "make wars to cease in all the world," suppose we cannot reconcile all the children of God to each other, however let us do what we can, let us contribute, if it be but two mites."  --John Wesley

Game of Thrones

Exodus 3:1-15

But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?"
He said, "I will be with you; and this shall be the sign for you that it is I who sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God on this mountain."



Moses grew up in the Pharaoh's palace. He was one of 'them' even though born a Hebrew, not an Egyptian.
In Exodus 2, though, he sees an Egyptian beating one of the Hebrew people and Moses is so troubled that he kills the Egyptian.  After that, he has shown his true colors and the Pharaoh is out to kill him, this traitor who was raised by the Egyptians.

Moses moves to a new place and eventually marries a woman, Zipporah, and tends flocks for her father. It is here in this place in life that he receives a call from God from a burning bush.

And now, the call to obey God and take the Hebrew people out of the bondage of the Egyptians and lead them away from slavery, is upon Moses. Given his past, he is probably an emotional wreck. In a sense he has to go 'home' again and cause a lot of havoc and chaos and lead a dangerous uprising of slave labor against the master. It's risky and threatening. Why wouldn't he say he isn't qualified? Who wouldn't rather stay in the field with the flocks?

Moses faces his own Game of Thrones. He is forced to take his lineage, his Hebrew people, away from the people who raised him, the Egyptians. He is  in the middle of the 'throne' of his heritage and God calling him to become their 'leader' and the 'throne' he has already walked away from, but must return to... his Egyptian 'family' who raised him.

What do we do when faced with corruption and 'evil' in our families? In our Church? In our world and community?  When we have already walked away, do we just stay away or do we sometimes take a deep breath and throw ourselves headlong into the fire again?  The burning bush may be a metaphor here for the fire that faces us when we accept God's calling to return to our roots and weed out corruption.  The fire that hits us when we are called to lead ourselves and others into a promised land that we cannot see ahead of us just yet.

Thoughts? Email me or comment below.

Moses' Girls

Here is an excerpt from last Sunday's sermon "Moses' Girls."

One of the most miraculous things about this story of the baby Moses is honestly the fact that this story gets told with so many women players involved.  The fact that the Jewish faith has preserved this story of the beginning of life of their most revered Moses with a great emphasis on the role that women played in making sure he survived and grew into someone who could be a risk-taker himself and step outside of his own comfort zone and lead his people.  Would he have been able to take that journey if he hadn’t had this lineage of strong women jumping through all sorts of hoops to see to it that he got a chance to live and prosper?

Are we risk-takers like the midwives? Are we willing to put our own lives on the line to protect our children? Are we sacrificial protectors like the mother, willing to give up our own self- interests to seek a new way for the next generation? Are we like Miriam, active watchers and listeners, jumping in from the sidelines when necessary to offer help to all who need a boost?            Are we like the princess, safe and secure, enjoying the good things in life, and yet willing to look into the eyes of a needy and desperate foreigner, a stranger, an immigrant and see only love and humanity?   Some of you are.  Anne has done amazing missions in Peru. Karen Pearson has been a vocal advocate and mover and shaker for social change. Ginger went South and marched for civil rights. Many of you have walked the walk. Thank you.

The bible is filled with women and men they nourished who step outside of their comfort zones and let God lead their lives in amazing ways. It’s the building blocks of our faith journeys, we people of the Abrahamic traditions.  The amazing part of all these stories is the vision the people seem to have. The way they can go forward into the unknown and because of their insight, save the world.

Hannah praying for God to grant her a son, promising she will give him to God if her prayers are answered. She is blessed with Samuel and she does allow the priests in the temple to raise him. 

When a poor, young peasant girl named Mary was told in a visit from an angel that she would become pregnant and have a son she was to call Emmanuel, God with us, she had to be terrified.  Was this all a dream? Is she out of her mind? She can’t possibly imagine she will one day hold her son’s lifeless body in her hands. But, Mary would have heard THESE stories. The story of the midwives, and Miriam and her mother and the princess. She would know that women have created saviors because they first offered salvation at great risk to themselves.

And because she has heard the stories of these women in the life of Moses, because she has their example to look toward, she knows that being a faithful woman of God means making tough choices and taking big risks and surviving harsh and unexpected circumstances, and that stepping outside of yourself means saving the world. And so she says, “Let it be.” 

May we be a people who take great risks to show the love of God in the world. May we be a people who see the long-range vision of what Christ calls us to be and do. May we offer salvation that happens here and now in our individual and collective actions and yet also ripples into salvation and transformation of the world tomorrow.  

"Joseph's Band of Brothers"

Genesis 45:1-15

Joseph has a choice to make. He can still be angry with his brothers for that debacle years ago when they threw him in a pit and sold him into slavery or he can offer his brotherly love to them.  The final verse of this passage says   And he kissed all his brothers and wept upon them; and after that his brothers talked with him.

They have come seeking help during a famine, not knowing that Joseph, their brother, is still alive and is the very one who can offer them help. They are sure he will turn them away, why wouldn't he? But he doesn't.. He offers them food and a place to feel at home. He kisses them and cries and welcomes them.

He understood not only the power of forgiveness, but also the power of offering the best sense of humanity to someone in their time of need. He didn't let his past make him bitter or consume him. He held it as a productive life experience, one that he fashioned into a calling from God.

And the brothers are noticeably surprised, and probably a little scared, but since their lives were spared, they are likely exceedingly grateful. And so the story has this interesting twist. All is not forgotten or resolved, but lives are saved and relationship is restored.

In the HBO mini-series Band of Brothers, the Easy Company is chronicled throughout their experiences in World War II, from their days in training all the way through the surrender in Japan.  The story is based on real interviews and true events, but is fictionalized and dramatized for the screen. This group of men who were at first strangers became like brothers because of their experiences in a time of war.  They had to watch out for each other in the worst of times. They have a bond like nothing anyone else can ever experience. Even in the darkest of times, their sense of duty to one another makes them really live into the word 'brothers.'

What does it mean to offer 'brotherly' love to those who have wronged us? What does it mean to be in connection with a world in conflict?  How do we take dark times (times of 'famine' in our lives) and make them times of blossoming growth of character for ourselves and others?

Thoughts? Email me or comment below.

"Joseph Ends Up Six Feet Under"

Genesis 37:1-4, 12-28

Joseph is the favored son. Wearing a beautifully embroidered coat as a token of his father's love.  And the brothers are jealous. The brothers mock him. The brothers decide to toss him into a pit and tell their father that he was consumed by wild animals. But then, a brother suggests that they not leave him for dead but sell him instead.

This passage is about jealousy. It is about privilege. It is about ridding yourself of something that challenges you or bothers you or threatens you. And lying about what happened. And selling out. And profiting on the back of another.

My goodness. Does it get any more dramatic? Does it get any more in-your-face 'real' than this?  I'm tempted to lead us down the road of wondering what Joseph was thinking about when he's six feet under, so to speak... sitting in a pit wondering if he will live or die. Wondering why his brothers so easily tossed his life away?

But this story isn't really about how Joseph feels in the pit. This story is about the brothers.  The brothers who are so willing to get rid of someone (their own flesh and blood, mind you!) that they feel threatened by.  They are jealous of Joseph's favor with their father. They are threatened by his 'star' in their dad's eyes.  They somehow easily throw him into this pit and initially leave him to die.

This story is about the brothers easily discarding their own kin. And then deciding instead not to let him die, but not because they feel any empathy or sorrow for him, but to gain a profit.  

I am reminded of times and situations in my own life when I have perhaps too easily walked away from my own identity.  Moving to a new place, starting a new life, and deciding to not cling to the old. There is great power in new beginnings, but there is great power in remembering where you're from, as well.

I have recently begun to research the cooking that is native to my homeland, Appalachia.  I walked away from a lot of things southern when we moved West over thirteen years ago, but I have realized that I cannot NOT be southern. I was born and raised southern and I grew up eating southern food and living southern life.  What did I toss in the pit when I moved here and why? What did I sell out to? Why was that so important? What did I lose or gain in that process?

In the American institution we call church, we have made much of what we do a commodity that can be bought and sold. We have sometimes thrown into the pit and sold to the highest bidder so much of what the original church was supposed to be. We have sometimes let commerce take over even the spiritual aspects of our lives and insist on programs and activities and consumable goods as a part of our church experience.  We have sold out our faith as a commodity. We plan events that do a public good, perhaps, like taking up donations for a worthwhile cause or feeding hungry people and the like... but we put it into a slick packaging that makes it a marketable value.  Like it's somehow more palatable to love one another when we get something consumer-oriented from it ourselves.  I don't know why we require goods and services in exchange for every single thing we do in life, but that has become the American way... in every facet of life.

In the highly-acclaimed HBO series Six Feet Under, a family-run funeral home hangs onto being family run with the threat of corporate takeover looming over them, enticing them, luring them to become corporate or else. It is an undercurrent that ran throughout the show. The integrity to fight the good fight or the lure of reward if you give in.

How have we thrown our religious values six feet under? Tossed them aside for a new and cool version of Jesus and what it means to follow him?  How have we sold out the Christ we are called to follow in favor of a newer, sleeker savior?

There are no easy ways to look at this story if we are the brothers tossing our own away. But it is a very real concern. Our tendency to let our petty jealousies and our desire to be the 'star in the beautiful coat' affects the way we see and love our neighbor. Or don't.

Thoughts? Email me or comment below.

Jacob Goes ‘Boxing After Dark’”

Genesis 32:22-31 (Jacob wrestles)

All this month we are looking at the dramas of the Old Testament. Stories filled with harrowing accounts and death-defying drama that was passed down from person to person long before HBO became a prized premium subscription network on our televisions.  The way we stand around now and talk about the latest episode of our favorite TV shows is likely the same in the enthusiasm for the drama that existed when these stories were told over and over again throughout the ages.  Stories of brother against brother and women of little means taking big risks to defy the king.... so much drama and so many life lessons along the way.  And in HBO's "Boxing After Dark," the subscription channel highlights not a fictional drama, but real-life boxing matches, often between less well-known fighters with something to prove.  A fight for recognition and prominence.

This week's HBO (Harrowing Biblical Occurrence) is the story of Jacob wrestling all night with the strange man.  Jacob goes boxing after dark.

Jacob was left alone; and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he struck him on the hip socket; and Jacob's hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him.
Then he said, "Let me go, for the day is breaking." But Jacob said, "I will not let you go, unless you bless me. So he said to him, "What is your name?" And he said, "Jacob." Then the man said, "You shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with humans, and have prevailed." Then Jacob asked him, "Please tell me your name." But he said, "Why is it that you ask my name?" And there he blessed him. 

What on earth is going on in this passage? What could be the strange man/angel/ghostly figure that Jacob wrestles with?  Is Jacob imagining this wrestling or is it actually happening?  What does it mean to wrestle with some unknown entity all night until daybreak? To the point of actually being hurt by the wrestling?

Jacob refuses to stop the wrestling, even after being hurt, until he receives a blessing from this 'man.'  He continues to struggle until the blessing occurs.  He chooses the fighting and chaos over the moment of crying 'uncle' in the midst of intense battle.  Why?  Why is the blessing (the recognition, the prominence??) so important to Jacob at this moment.

In this time of intense fighting in the Middle East, between Hamas and Israel's army ("Israel" is the name Jacob receives after this wrestling, because, as the fellow wrestler said, "you wrestle with God and man."), many theological conversations could be had about the continued wrestling, even to the point of injury, without giving in, until a blessing (peace treaty?) is reached. Those issues are very complex and difficult to tease out and much more intense than a mild comparison made by a lifelong Methodist, so I'll just leave that idea to sit there.  Wrestling to the point of injury so that a blessing can be received.

We read in the gospels that Jesus does his own boxing in the dark, so to speak, at the Garden of Gethsemane, doesn't he? He wrestles with this path he feels compelled to be on, even to the point of sweating actual blood droplets.  Jesus is not going to the cross without intense, blood-sweating, struggles in his soul about the choices (yes, choices) he is making.

What makes us wrestle within ourselves?  Why do you continue to go 'boxing after dark?' What struggles do we continue to take part in, even to the point of injury to ourselves? What makes us hang on to a struggle no matter what... what is 'the blessing' we are seeking from the struggle?  Email me or comment below.

"Mustard Seed Magic"

Matthew 13:31-33, 44-52

Ok, so the sermon title is a reading book from elementary school, for those who were in school in the 1970s. The sermon is not about learning  to read though.  I must admit, however, that the game of comparison begins in earnest from the very beginning of our educational lives.

It has been said that the real original sin is comparison.  Looking at what you don't have that someone else does and comparing your 'have not' with their 'have.' Which makes me wonder if perhaps the act of comparison itself is the root of all other sins. Whether we like it or not, perception plays a BIG role in how we see or don't see each other, how we love or don't love each other, and how we think we measure up or don't measure up to everyone else.  That is partly the context of all these parable messages we've looked at for the last few weeks... How we act as a good seed surrounded by bad soil. How we interact or not with weeds and those who consider us to be weeds... a million different perceptions, all accurate and all grossly inaccurate at the same time.

Life is full of perceptions.  A friend told me she went to see a baseball game the other night because a youth she knows asked her to come watch him play. She didn't know anything about his baseball playing and had no preconceived notions at all about what he might be doing... playing, sitting the bench, whatever. Turns out he was the pitcher. She said she was immediately impressed... I mean, he's the team leader after all.  His mom had a totally different perception because she was stressed that he was leading a losing effort.  My friend saw this young man as a rock star. Others there saw him as a struggling player.  Preconceived ideas.  Comparisons.  The world views change constantly.

So, we have, in this parable a mustard seed. An insignificant mustard seed. Small, so small... so very small that you almost can't see it.  I have a mustard seed necklace that I got as a kid and the seed is in a glass ball which kind of magnifies it so you can see it.  Anyway, in the parable, there is this mustard seed... and the story goes that it grows into the 'greatest of shrubs' and becomes a tree and the birds nest in its branches.  This tiny seed becomes a big tree.  There are other pieces to this scripture.. about a woman with yeast and flour and a man finding a pearl in a big field and buying the field.... the point is pretty obvious... you can have little things that make a big, big difference in your life.  Like a pebble in your shoe, as another kind of example.

So what do we make of this lesson? Of the mustard seed analogy? Do we need to grow into big trees that birds nest in?  And who perceives us as a big tree or not? Or is there some intrinsic value to just being a small seed?  Or a small tree? And what role does comparison (compari-'sin') play in our determining whether large or small is best and of more value?

What if my friend had gone to watch the game and her young friend playing ball had played two innings in right field and sat the bench the rest of the game?  Would she feel differently about him than she did after her surprise that he was the team leader, the pitcher? Is he a bigger tree because of his role, or is it perception and comparison that makes it so? And how or why is one greater than the other?

We have a choice of following our ego or thanksgiving. Following ego leads to comparison, guilt, separation from God, etc.  If we choose instead thanksgiving, we are, in a sense, tossing the ego away.  Beginning each moment with a thanksgiving to the Divine for all of it... the good and the bad and everything in between. Being truly thankful instead of being truly desperate and envious for something more.

So, then, the mustard seed need not struggle to see if it can grow into the 'greatest of bushes,' rather the mustard seed is thankful for the natural growth process of being a seed.  The choice not to try to control an outcome by comparison, but to let the outcome unfold on its own.

Maybe, then, the 'tree' that gets created from the mustard seed is not large to all who see it. For the birds who nest in it, though, it is a sanctuary.

How do perceptions, comparisons, etc. affect the way we respond as Christians?  How have these vices prevented us from being Christ in the world?  Email me or comment below.