"Wisdom and Belief"

Matthew 2:1-12

The visitors from the East are referred to in a couple of different ways.  Some call them the Wise Men from the East, some call them Three Kings.  What we know about them is that they were likely astrologers who were interested in the patterns of light and stars in the sky. The were perhaps an early form of scientists, trying to explain and make sense of the universe.

This Sunday we celebrate the arrival of the Wise Men, the Kings, at the house of the child Jesus. We call this day Epiphany Sunday. The actual day of the Epiphany is January 6, known in many countries as Three Kings Day and a day of celebration and eating of King's Cake. A celebration that will go on leading right up to Carnavale, or Mardi Gras, which this year is February 9.

Perhaps as we celebrate the arrival of the three Wise Men or Kings or astrologers, we should take one last look at the theme of belief we focused on during Advent.  What does it mean to truly submit to God's love in your life and believe?  And, this week, let's add to that the role that wisdom, true wisdom, plays in belief.  How do belief and wisdom go hand in hand? Do you believe that wisdom and belief do intersect one another, and if not, what ways do they seem to be opposites to one another?

In today's post-christendom world, we have a lot of cynicism and disbelief. We also have a lot of folks talking a lot about, and writing and reading a lot about, inner wisdom. How you have to rely on your own inner wisdom to get you through life.  I am interested in the way our 'inner wisdom' might just be the voice of God and very closely related to our ability to believe.

In the Wise Men's story, they were told by King Herod to report back to him the Christ' child's location, yet when they saw the Child, they were overcome with joy (belief) and decided to 'go home by another way,' rather than reporting back to Herod.  They relied on a gut reaction, an inner wisdom, to send them a different direction.  They saw the child and believed and then found the inner wisdom to respond appropriately to what they now believed.

Interesting stuff... this intersection between belief and wisdom.  What are your thoughts?  Email me at peverhart@niwotumc,org or comment below.

Christmas Week Notes

TONIGHT December 14 at 7 pm. is the Blue Christmas Service. Reflective, meditative service focusing on the darkness we often feel during the midst of holly jolly holidays.  Music by Pat Koh will be soulful, mournful and reflective, yet hopeful.  Readings and prayers will be led by Rev. Pam Everhart. Join us.


Scripture for Dec 20: Psalm 98

December 20 at 10:20 sharp is our choir cantata "The Winter Rose," directed by Dave Marvin. We look forward to the joyous message of Christ's birth in song. Following the service, there will be a farewell reception for Dave. We are grateful for his time here as our music director, and will miss his talent and his energy.

Scriptures for Dec 24: Isaiah 9:2, 6-7, Isaiah 11:1-6, Luke 2:1-20, John 1:1-14

Thursday, December 24 at 7 pm is our Christmas Candlelighting Service.  The sermon is entitled "The bell still rings for me as it does for all who truly believe" and is based upon Luke 2 and The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg. Here are some notes:

Once the little boy receives 'the first gift of Christmas,' the bell from Santa's sleigh, he promptly loses it, but then gets it back again through the magic of Santa.  The message that is driven home for him is how important it is to believe. Things may not always go your way, but believing is key.

Just like Mary... who must have had to use every ounce of belief  in God's plan for her to think that birthing a baby away from the comforts of home...
Just like Joseph... who must have found it hard to believe Mary... and later the voice of God through the angel... in telling him that he was called to raise "Emmanuel. God with us."
Just like the shepherds... who probably were a bit dazed and confused by the lights and voices in the sky above leading them to a stable... and to a King.
Just like the Wise Men... following Herod's advice and the star, but trusting in the angel who tells them to go home by a different way.

How could this story have ever happened (no matter how it all actually happened) without the convictions of the principal players?  Without their trust and belief in the God who sent his Son to be our King.

Scriptures for Dec 27: Isaiah 52:7-10; Hebrews 1:1-6

December 27 at 10:20 is Christmas Sunday.... and a Christmas Carol Sing-a-long that you don't want to miss!

Come be part of his joyful season.  We will all explore together the message once again of the Birth of Christ and consider how life can be transformed if we only believe.

"The First Gift of Christmas"

Luke 1:68-69, 76-79 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

⁶⁸ “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
    for he has looked favorably on his people and redeemed them.

⁶⁹ He has raised up a mighty savior for us
    in the house of his servant David,

⁷⁶ And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
    for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
⁷⁷ to give knowledge of salvation to his people
    by the forgiveness of their sins.
⁷⁸ By the tender mercy of our God,
    the dawn from on high will break upon us,
⁷⁹ to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
    to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

This week we celebrate the birth of Christ in our annual Impromptu Christmas Pageant. We don't rehearse. We don't know yet who will play what part... well, except for Baby Jesus... we DO have a special precious baby to play Baby Jesus. But the rest of the parts in the nativity story are up for grabs.  What part do you want to play this year?

Join us, all ages, at 10:20 this week as we have a festive and also holy and sacred time remembering the story from Luke and Matthew.  The story of God coming down to us...  arriving in the form of a baby.

A baby who will be called "mighty savior," a baby who will be the "prophet of the Most High," a baby who will "give light to those who sit in darkness" and who will "guide our feet into the way of peace."

We could not need this baby more in this year of unrest. Come, thou Long Expected Jesus.

Do you have a favorite memory from a nativity pageant from your childhood? Or your children or grandchildren's nativity pageants?  Share it with me by email at peverhart@niwotumc.org or comment below.

“Who receives the first gift of Christmas? He will choose one of you.”

Malachi 3:1-4, Luke 3:1-6

Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the LORD as in the days of old and as in former years.   Malachi 3:4

 As we continue our story of The Polar Express, the little boy and the other children aboard the train have finally reached the North Pole.  The conductor tells them that the elves are gathering in the center of the city and that is where Santa will give the first gift of Christmas.  

"Who receives the first gift?" we all asked.

The conductor answered, "He will choose one of you."

What an exciting time! What a rush of joy! The kids are hurried off the train to meet the elves and see Santa for themselves.  The little boy can hardly believe it's true.  And then in a magical moment he is the one chosen to receive the first gift of Christmas.  But he doesn't just receive any gift. Santa says to him, "Now what would you like for Christmas?"  He is asked specifically by Santa himself what gift he would like.

It is an interesting moment of agency. This little boy who had been struggling with the desecration of his worldview by a cynical friend is faced headlong with the Truth. With a Santa who is living and breathing and real.  And now this Santa wants to know what gift he would like. What would be the 'best' gift of Christmas? 

The scriptures this week point to a messenger who comes to prepare a way.  In Malachi, the prophet speaks of one coming who will be a messenger of peace.  In fact, when the people are face-to-face with this messenger it will be beyond their wildest imagination, not unlike the boy meeting Santa. The prophet writes, " But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears?  
 Interestingly, the world Malachi means "my messenger."  Malachi himself is the messenger and he is looking forward to a messenger who will come to the people, as well.  Much like Santa and the little boy in the story. He is in awe and amazement of the real Santa, but the little boy has his own message to share. And he shares it by the choice of gift he makes. He doesn't choose the latest Xbox or iPhone. He doesn't choose the latest Star Wars toy. He chooses a bell from Santa's sleigh. A bell that rings a sound unlike any he has ever heard.

Which brings us to our second scripture of the week, from Luke.  John the Baptist, another messenger who is sent to prepare the way.  An unlikely appearing prophet, dressed in animal skins and living off the grid, so to speak.  And yet, his message sounds out to those who will hear:

Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.

Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low,

and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways made smooth;

and all flesh shall see the salvation of God (Luke 3:4-6, NRSV).

Not changing things around you, per se, but changing the mountains and valleys within your own worldview, your own mind.  John is begging the people to look within. To see what they can do to make their hearts pure. To see how they can take away the crooked and replace it with clarity and good purpose. He demanded repentance and forgiveness of sins.

What soul searching must go on within our own hearts this season so we can choose like the little boy chooses.  The boy really 'gets' the reason for Santa when he hears the bell.  He 'gets' the reason for love and giving and goodness.  But that is only because he had really believed and really focused on what Santa means to us all.  Why did Santa choose him to receive the first gift of Christmas? We will never know for sure, but we do know that his choice of gift proves that Santa chose wisely.

How can we prepare the way of the Lord this season in a way that is different than any other season we have prepared before?  How can we make this Advent the one where we really 'get it'?  How can we choose the gifts of hope, and peace, and joy, and love in the middle of the madness that the world offers us?

Email me at peverhart@niwotumc.org or comment below if you have thoughts about preparing for the Christ Child, or choosing wise gifts, or how to 'really believe' or anything else you'd like to dialogue about.

"All aboard... are you coming?"

Jeremiah 33:14-16

Luke 21:25-28 (The Message)

In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. --Jeremiah 33:15

All aboard... are you coming?  This Advent season we look at the scriptures through the lens of The Polar Express, a wonderful children's book by Chris Van Allsburg.  It tells the story of a little boy struggling to believe in Santa when a friend has told him Santa isn't real. And he takes a magical trip aboard the Polar Express to meet the real Santa. His journey proves to him that all you have to do is believe and the magic of Christmas and the sweet sounds of the Christmas bells will never leave.

So today, we are at the beginning of the boy's journey. And, according the gospel of Luke, we are nearing the end of ours.  And yet both require the same sort of faith and belief.  Luke tells us of our end times in The Message translation, like this:

It will seem like all hell has broken loose—sun, moon, stars, earth, sea, in an uproar and everyone all over the world in a panic, the wind knocked out of them by the threat of doom, the powers-that-be quaking.  “And then—then!—they’ll see the Son of Man welcomed in grand style—a glorious welcome! When all this starts to happen, up on your feet. Stand tall with your heads high. Help is on the way!”

What chaos can we expect at the end of our own lives?  It could be very tumultuous. We've all been through that with loved ones who have died.  It does sometimes feel like all hell is breaking loose at the end of life. So much chaos!

And in the world, when DOESN'T this scripture fit? It seems like every single Advent season we can find some world or national disaster or upheaval that fits in this box of 'everyone in a panic, knocked out by the threat of doom,' and so on.

And yet, the prophet Jeremiah tells us of a righteous branch that will rise up and show us the way to justice and peace. A righteous branch that will remind us that God is faithful, even when humans are not. A righteous branch that will save us and allow us to live with security and peace and joy even when times become difficult and it feels like our world is crumbling.

In the Polar Express, this little boy's world is crumbling. How can this friend think there's no Santa? Everything he believes to be true has come into question.  And yet... he is invited to take a journey to a land of joy and peace, the land of the real Santa, and, as the story continues we will see that he is the one with the message to share all along. That he is the one who really understands what it means to believe.

So, in this time of year when it is easy to get lost in madness, from bickering within the family to outright warfare in the world, Jeremiah and Luke invite us to stop and realize that what we come here to do each Sunday isn't about any of that... those distractions in the world... it is about coming to worship the God who is getting ready to come down and be among us.. It is about throwing our hands up in the air and thanking God. No program, no person, no song, nothing in this building means anything if our first and most natural impulse isn't to worship God. To believe in God. To trust in the joy of God's kingdom come.

So it is important to spend this time of Advent preparing ourselves. Examining our own lives. Repenting for those things that have caused us to turn away from our walk with Christ.  Choosing to live in the ways Jesus taught us to live.  Participating in the healing of the world in any way we can.  Offering hope, peace, joy, love because that's what Jesus came to us to share. 

And probably most of all, we need to believe. Believing in the miracle of Christmas is so important.

Why is it hard to believe sometimes? Why do we let problems and worldly cares overtake our abilty to just trust and believe?  What do we want the 'rest of our days' to be about?  How can we work on that most effectively?  Email me at peverhart@niwotumc.org or comment below.

Happy Reflective Advent!

Village King

John 18:33-37


 Pilate asked him, "So you are a king?" Jesus answered, "You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice."

I've mentioned before, but it bears repeating, that Christ the King Sunday was added to the liturgical year of the Catholic and Protestant churches during an era when churches were losing a level of respect they had enjoyed before and dominant dictators were taking control of nation states and everything in them, including churches. This was the era of Hitler and Stalin.  Pope Pius XI during this time declared that the Roman Catholic Church would have a holiday to celebrate that Christ is our one and only King... not some dictator with a hate-filled agenda, but instead the Prince of Peace.

So, in this time of unrest and stress and heartache in our global village, perhaps it is important for us as Christians to celebrate with all our hearts and souls and might Christ the King Day this year.  Time for us, as Christians, to declare that Christ is the King of all we say and do and believe... not hate, not war, not terror, but Christ, the Prince of Peace.  And it's a good time to reflect on the idea that our Prince of Peace was an inclusive leader, a man who reached out to those who didn't believe as he did, who didn't pray as he did, who didn't look or act or speak like him.  That was who Jesus ministered to as much as he did to those who were his disciples and followers.  An important thing to be grateful for on Christ the King Day.

In the scripture for this week, we read Pilate asking Jesus if he is King of the Jews. And Jesus declaring that the kingdom to which he belongs is not a worldly kingdom. He is called to lead us to a kingdom of truth and he will testify to that truth, even unto death.

So Jesus doesn't fit neatly into the categories the world designs for him. He's not a fundamentalist or a liberal. He's not a capitalist. He's not an American. He's not a rock star or a Hollywood idol. He is simply and always a path to the way of God, a teller of God's ultimate truth.  If he were here for some other reason, then maybe he would fit in some of the categories we try to shove him into, but since he's only here to show us the truth, the way to God, we mostly scratch our heads and try to figure out who he is and where we should 'put' him in our own lives.

IAll the Sundays that come after this one, the ones in Advent that lead us up to Christmas Day, are specifically set aside to highlight the many different paths we can take to follow Jesus, our King, in his message of truth.  And isn't that  precisely what we need in this peaceable village kingdom we are trying to build? A person, a King, who shares a message of truth through love and peace and hope and joy.  

What do you think are Jesus' greatest attributes?  Why do you call yourself a Christian?  Email me at peverhart@niwotumc.org or comment below.

"Building Materials"

Mark 13:1-8

This scripture points out to us that we only have ourselves to offer to God as a temple, a sanctuary. That the actual buildings we designate as our altars are nothing close to the offering God requires. That it is simply impossible for our earthly creations to reflect the image of God the way we humans can if we truly follow God’s path.

Jesus cries out to his disciples that buildings are not lasting offerings to God, that they will be reduced to rubble in the end, when he says, “Do you see these great buildings? Not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.” His apocalyptic warning to the disciples is this stark reality: nothing that man builds that will last. Think of, for example, the amazing finds of ancient buildings that archaeologists or even excavators run across that are long disappeared from our line of sight, buried under dirt and rubble of centuries racing by.

He is trying to get us to see that we are the temple. Our lives are the temple.  Not any building, but rather the bones and flesh of the congregation, which we call the Body of Christ.

We. are. an. offering. Our lives build the 'church' and keep it strong.

But we fail to deliver that offering. We fear the commitment of fully laying our lives on the line to be used for God's purposes.   It's much easier to hide  or ignore than to throw ourselves in front of the cross and say, "God, I am yours. Use me as you will."

What are the building materials we are asked to provide for the village? Adding new carpet and projection and attractive hardwood altar areas is nice, but remember Jesus' words when he says it will all be torn down in the end.  So, with that in mind, what building materials are needed for this village?  How can we, ourselves, be the building materials God needs? Do we have what it takes to build Christ's kingdom in this place?

Thoughts? I always appreciate your insights. Email at peverhart@niwotumc.org or comment below.