pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

Tag Archives: action


by Leave a comment

Hearers and Doers

We communicate in many ways, often without words.  People can easily pick up on our mood just by watching our facial expressions.  The things that matter most in our lives are revealed by the priorities we use to allocate what we do with the free time we have.  We can express ourselves with words as well, but James makes the case that our actions speak louder than our words.

As an individual and as a community of faith, we should have an active faith that shows our beliefs by how we live out our lives.  Simply by observing how we treat others, how we offer ourselves to those in need, and how we handle the adversity that life brings should reveal our faith.  It is often through these observations that we gain the social capital necessary to share the good news of Jesus Christ with another.

Many will gather today in worship.  If a person were to observe your worship today without being able to hear any of the words or the music, would they see joy and praise in you?  Would they see one who is happy to be in the presence of God and one who is lifted by the experience?

As we gather together today for worship, we have much to offer each other.  Today we will have the opportunity to hear the words of life.  It is a choice to listen to and to engage these words so that one can grow in their faith and holiness.  It is a choice to allow the word of God to take root and to continue to ponder how it affects our life as we go through the week ahead.  May we receive what God has to offer today so that we become doers of the word defined by the Word and led by the Holy Spirit.

Scripture reference: James 1: 17-27


by Leave a comment

Still Seeking Us

God does not expect perfection.  I just don’t think He ever expects us to get there in this lifetime.  Our God is a God of mystery – absolute and unconditional love for creatures who seem bent on sin and who must constantly be reminded of who we are in Him.  God will always love each of us with this amazing love.

Because of this love, God comes to meet us in all the ugliness of life.  He comes to us in our brokenness, in our failures, in our rebellion.  God does not seek out just the holiest of saints, but He seeks out each and every one of us.  That a God who is perfect in every way would seek to be in relationship with you and me is hard to comprehend.

Yet God meets us just right where we are.  His Spirit enters into our hearts and dwells within us.  In the constant battle with our inclination to temptation and sin, the Spirit never gives up, never tires of reminding us of God’s ways.  God sticks with us and continues to offer this divine presence, almost in spite of us.

It does require almost constant effort to keep us on track and on the path that God desires for our lives.  At times we take a great detour.  But it matters not – God is always there, waiting for an audience with us.  His patience must be almost as big as His love.  Each of us is capable of mirroring a glimpse of this great love and, like all good parents, God eagerly awaits those moments when His heart swells with pride and the angels cheer.  Soon enough though, we return to being just ourselves – human in all ways, imperfect in many.  Yet God still loves us.  God is still right there.  It is not about us in any way.  It is simply because of His great love.  For this, thanks be to God.

Scripture reference: 1 Kings 2:10-12 and 3: 3-14


by Leave a comment

Words and Witness

The alpha and omega, the beginning and the end.  Our God is eternal.  Before the first particles started to come together to form the earth, God was long present.  We believe that Christ died to give us everlasting life.  This connects each of us to the eternal nature of God.

Today’s psalm reminds us of our connection both to God and to all of our fellow believers.  Although our physical time here on earth is limited, we are connected to a God that is limitless.  We are also connected to all who have come before who called on the name of Jesus.   It is the ‘great cloud of witness’ or the ‘communion of saints’ that form the first segment of believers.  The psalm also reminds us there are also future generations of believers yet to come.  One day each of us will be a part of heaven and unknown generations will follow in our footsteps.

There are both older people in our churches and many examples in the Bible of people who give us a witness to what it means to live a life of faith.  These people teach us both by word and deed.  Their faithful witness in times past and in our current time helps us in our journeys of faith.

We are also a part of this educational process.  We too are examples of faith to those just beginning their relationship with Christ.  Our witness to them is important.  Just as the nurturing, teaching, and love poured into us helped us to grow in the faith, we too are called to do the same.  Our witness also calls us outside our immediate circles of faith and into the world.  Our words and deeds also call out to the unbeliever, inviting them into our communities of faith and into relationship with Jesus Christ.  Shine your light for all to see.

Scripture reference: Psalm 22: 25-31


by Leave a comment

Are We Willing?

If you set your calendars by the stores, Easter is over.  But the season of Easter lasts 50 days.  We are in the space between resurrection and ascension.  It is a season of life, surprise, delight.  Nature participates too.  I do not think it is coincidence that flowers are blooming and trees are starting to leaf out.

Instead of savoring this season, we allow ourselves to return to everyday life.  We too easily write off encounters with God’s grace and mercy and the Spirit’s activity in the world as odd occurences or coincidences instead of the faith moments they are.  If we are not tuned to the small and quiet workings of God, perhaps we miss them all together.

In Acts 3 the apostles perform an act in God that others cannot miss of ignore.  They heal a man who had been lame for as long as anyone around could remember.  Certainly the man healed was excited.  The religious leaders were confused.  Peter let them know that the man was healed in the power of and in the name of Jesus, the one they killed but God resurrected.  But the apostles deflected all the glory to God – they were just ordinary people serving a risen Christ. An event like this today would draw our attention as well.

Evidences of God’s grace, mercy, and love still abound today.  In our community a high school senior recently lost his life.  Both the faith community and the family of the boy killed gathered around the driver of the car and his family and prayed over them and offered them forgiveness.  It was and is a tremendous example of God being alive and well in our world today.  For us, we need to remember that they are just ordinary people living out the faith that He gives.  We too are ordinary people through whom God wants to do a mighty work.  Our question is: are we willing?

Scripture reference: Acts 3: 12-19


by Leave a comment

To Wait or not to Wait… That is the Question!

In the story in Exodus 24 there is lots of waiting.  The expression “Hurry up and wait” comes to mind!!  Moses tells the people to wait here, Joshua waits part way up the mountain,  Moses waits for 6 days in the cloud, and then the people wait for 40 more days.  If I were there I’d have been expecting a quick up and back down the mountain trip.  I’m sure Joshua didn’t think he’d be there waiting for almost 7 weeks!  But they waited.  Often times we wait too.

Often times we will pray and then wait for an answer.  And we wait.  Despite our waiting, sometimes we miss the answer.  Maybe it is not the answer we were looking for so we don’t see that God has answered.  Maybe it is an answer we do not want so we fail to see the answer.  But God is faithful and He always answers our prayers.

At other times we are willing to wait.  Sometimes we wait well.  Songs like “Waiting Here For You” speak of the anticipation we have as we await the presence of our Lord.  In our prayer time we can enter into a period of silence and expectantly wait for God.  As we go through Advent we look forward to the coming of the Christ child much like a young child anticipates opening that big box under the Christmas tree.  At times we wait well.

Other times we choose to wait when we shouldn’t.  And in some cases we are patient.  Very patient.  We can see something that needs done, but we are willing to wait for someone else to do it.  We can see it needs done, but…  In other situations we can feel a nudge to do something, but we hold back.  In these cases we must challenge our fears, our lack of faith, our whatever to step into whatever God is calling us to do.  Whether it is someone hungry standing before us or a task that need done at work, at home, or at church, we are being called to be servants.  We are told in scriptures not to wish someone to be well-fed… when we have food… to spare.

May we be willing to wait when seeking the Lord as we grow in or faith.  And may we also be willing not to wait when God has placed before us a situation where He is calling us to take action and live as His hands and feet in our worlds.  In either case, we rest upon the fact that God is faithful.

 

 


by Leave a comment

Go and Do Likewise

Today I am reminded of the song “Better Is One Day.” It begins with the words ‘How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord almighty’ and sings out in the chorus: “Better is one day in your courts, better is one day in your house… than thousands elsewhere.’ How true this is!!

Then I thought, ‘you know, we are all God’s temple’. Christ dwells in all of us. The question is: do we allow Jesus Christ to be the master of this body we inhabit?

Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 3 that our foundation rests only upon Jesus Christ. He is the sure foundation of our faith. Paul was just one of many who build up their (and our) faith, but he is not the foundation. Just as today we may hear a great message in church or may read a great book about faith, we must also remember that Christ is our sure foundation. That sermon, that preacher, that book, that author – nothing can do what Christ does. Nothing can be what Christ is.

The things of this world will not last. Yet we can chase after them like they do! We can exert a lot pursuing money, power, prestige, things, position… But in the end they all stay here. None of these things really matter to God or to our neighbor. The person in need doesn’t really care how big our house is or what our title at work is. All they want is something to eat or a place for shelter or someone to listen. Really – they wouldn’t even care how big our house is if we were to offer true Christian hospitality and invite them in out of the cold. They really don’t care how much money we have as long as we have enough to buy them a little food.

We all stand upon the one who loves all of us unconditionally, who forgives us all without cost, and who always provides for us. And this firm foundation calls out to us: “Go and do likewise!”


by Leave a comment

Outside the Walls

God calls us not only to faith but to action as well. To just believe in God and the words in the Bible simply are not enough. We are also called to be in the world so that our faith bears fruit.

In Isaiah 58 God calls out the Israelites to loosen the chains of injustice, to break the yoke of oppression, to share food with the hungry, to clothe the naked, to house the poor wanderer. He urges them NOT to turn their backs on their own flesh and blood. These words of Isaiah are echoed several times in the New Testament as Jesus teaches His disciples how to live. These words of Isaiah, and later Jesus, are also a cry to action for us and the church today.

In each and every community these needs exist to some degree or another. We can still stand up for people who are suffering injustice and we can intervene when we see that oppression is occurring. Sometimes these are hard to see but these issues are there. The other needs are easier to see and easier to address. Whether through directly giving to individuals or agencies that help the needy in our community or through donating money to the agencies, we too can share in alleviating the burden many face. In our community there are people in need of food, clothing, and adequate housing. Our faith should call us to care for our brothers and sisters in whatever way we can and as well as we can. As the body of Christ, all are our flesh and blood.

God calls on Israel, and on us, to live out our faith. He expects us to be outside the walls of our churches making a difference in our worlds. In Isaiah 58 He goes on to say why. God promises that our light will shine out before us and our light will rise in the darkness. He also says that healing will come. (And by healing He means spiritual healing, not physical!) God promises that our call will be heard and that He will answer. Our faithfulness to Him and to the care of all of our brothers and sisters will build our relationship with Him. Is this not our call? Is this not your call? Step out in faith and into the world out there. God will be there. We will meet him in those we serve and care for and they will meet Him in us.


by Leave a comment

Justice and Mercy – Room to Grow!

The lectionary readings for this week are centered around the idea of living a life that reflects what is important to God and not centered on what the world says is important or powerful or to be sought after. Living in God’s economy may be the way to look at it – investing ourselves into the people we encounter seeking ways to make their lives better when we can.

In Micah 5 the people of Israel are accused of the various economic injustices that exist. They have transitioned from oppressed to oppressor. It is a hard line to cross and not be vengeful or abusive of the newfound power. Micah 6: 2b reads: “For the Lord has a case against his people; he is lodging a charge against Israel.” In the days of Micah, Israel was the Jewish people. In our times, we are Israel.

In a corporate sense, God can still make a pretty compelling case against His people. If the question were to be: “Do we do ALL we can to help the poor and oppressed living in various places around the world?” then my answer would be a loud ‘No’. As I pondered this I thought about the clothes I wear that were made by barely-paid people working in unsafe conditions. I thought about all the food I eat that came from the hands of over-worked and under-paid people. Part of me knows that slowly things are improving for people, but part of me wonders what else I could do.

If the question got more personal and became: “Do I do ALL I can to help the poor and oppressed in the community in which I live?” then I would have a hard time defending my case or my position. True, my calling is not to just work with this segment of our society, but at times I do have an opportunity to be justice and mercy for someone. And do I always extend these when I can? Mostly, but not always. So in the week ahead, it will be on my heart and mind to seek ways to better answer these questions. It is my hope and prayer that you will join me as well!