Worthy of Gods Call

August 4, 2024 Ephesians 4:1-16 Year B Worthy of God’s Call Prelude Call to Worship Come, let us serve the Lord with gladness! In Christ we are united as beloved members of the family of God. We are called to serve in larger ways for God than one alone can do. We are also united with all the saints of history. Let us celebrate how nothing across the ages can stop the church. Blessed be the name of the Lord! Invocation Feed us, O God, in this time we spend together, with bread that is eternal. Unite us in a faithful response to your saving activity through Jesus Christ. Open us now to hear and experience, deep within, the word you intend for each one of us. Amen. Song the Churches One Foundation UMH 546 Children’s Sermon Bible Lesson: A Worthy Walk Ephesians has taught us that believers are blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ (Eph.3). (For our class I created a visual with the following statements and put a blank for the words that are underlined.) Reviewing what we have learned, help me complete the following statements: • Believers have been chosen before the foundation of the world. • Believers have redemption through Jesus’ blood, the forgiveness of sins. • Believers have been sealed with the Holy Spirit. • Believers are God’s workmanship created to do good works which God prepared in advance. • Believers can do God’s work through the power of the Holy Spirit. If you and I are believers these statements should affect the way we live our lives. Let’s turn in our Bibles to Ephesians 4 and read verse 1. Paul urges believers to live a life worthy of the calling they have received. What does worthy mean? (Dictionary.com “deserving of, fit for”) Paul is urging believers to live a life that is fit for the high calling of being a believer in Christ. Believers have been bought with a high price with the death and shed blood of Jesus. (1 Cor. 6:19) The five statements we just reviewed should affect what we believe and how we walk or live in our private and public life. Ephesians 4 tells us what a worthy walk of a believer looks like. To help us visualize a worthy walk we have the two paths of life, the righteous life and the wicked. We said that a believer is righteous because of their faith in Jesus. However, when a person becomes a follower of Jesus they still have two natures, the Spirit-filled righteous nature and the sinful wicked nature. Remind me again what a believer needs to do to live a Spirit-filled life and not live a sinful life? (Walk daily with the Lord Jesus having a personal quiet time, reading His Word, praying and obeying what He teaches.) On the two paths we will put the brown footprints on the path of the wicked/sinful and the red footprints on the righteous Spirit-filled path. When we complete our study of Ephesians 4 we will clearly see steps of what a worthy walk that pleases God looks like. Choose volunteers to read verses 2-6. What does Paul say are attitudes that a worthy walk includes? (Humble, gentle, patient, enduring love, pursues unity) Paul tells us what unifies all believers in verses 4-6. What are the seven things that Paul says all believers should be unified or in agreement with? (One body, one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all) Let’s read verse 8. What did Jesus give to men (believers)? (Gifts) When you arrived we worked on a spiritual gifts survey to help you identify the areas that God has gifted you to serve. Let’s read verses 11-14. Why does Paul tell us these spiritual gifts were given? 1-to prepare God’s people for works of service 2-for the Body of Christ may be built up until everyone reaches spiritual maturity If you discovered what your spiritual gifts are who are you to use them for? They are to be used for God’s service not for your own desire for fame. Read 15-16. How are believers to speak truth? (In love) A worthy walk for believers includes speaking the truth with love. Ephesians 4:17-32 gives us the picture of how a worthy walk for a believer includes putting away things that are from the wicked path of life and putting on attitudes and actions that please God. Read 17-24. What does Paul tell us we need to put off? (Old self) Why? (It is being corrupted by its deceitful desires) What are believers to put on? (New self) Why should believers have a different attitude? (We were created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness) A worthy walk for believers includes a renewed mind with Christ-like attitudes. How do you think a believer is able to have a mind that is renewed with the right attitudes that please God? (Spending time daily in His Word and prayer) Responsive Reading Psalm 51:1-12 UMH 785 Scripture Ephesian 4:1-16 Sermon Worthy of God’s Call If you went to Wall Street and asked the question: "What is the secret of greatness?" Wall Street would say: "Money, and lots of it." If you were to go to Washington and ask: "What is the secret of greatness?" They would say, "Political clout." If you were to go to Hollywood and ask: "What is the secret of greatness?" Hollywood would say: "Fame." But the greatest man who ever lived, Jesus Christ, had a different answer. He said, "Whoever wants to become great must be a servant to others." (Mt. 20:26 GWT) Success and greatness in the kingdom of God is far different than what it is on planet earth. In the kingdom of God there is no easy way; there is no easy elevator to the top. To get to the top in God's eyes you've got to take the stairs of service. Jesus said again, "For even I didn't come to be served, but to serve others and give My life as a ransom for many." (Mark 10:45 NLT) The secret to greatness in the kingdom of God is not how many servants you have, but what kind of a servant you are. You remember the story in John chapter 13 when Jesus approached the disciples in the Upper Room where they were going to have the Last Supper? To their surprise He was wearing a towel around His waist and carrying a bowl of water. Peter said, "What's going on?" Jesus said, "It's time to wash feet." Peter sneered and said, "I'm not washing feet, not even yours." Jesus said, "I know, I'm washing yours." Recently I was flying into Washington, DC, and as always I immediately saw the Washington Monument which towers above the entire city. It is 555 ft. 5 1/8 in. high. From the lobby to the observation level it is 50 stories. To get to the top you could either take the elevator, which is the easy way up, or you can take the stairs, 896 of them in all, which is the harder way to the top. As I was gazing at that monument I remembered my good friend Zig Ziglar telling the story of going to Washington, DC and visiting the Washington Monument. He said as he approached the Monument there was a line that seemed like it was a mile long. He walked up to the front to hear what the guide was saying, and the guide announced that there would be a two hour wait to ride the elevator to the top of the Monument. Then with a smile on his face, the guide said, "There's no one waiting to go to the top if you're willing to take the stairs." Sometimes being a Christian can be a challenge, when you are listening to the world. But when we listen to God, it defintitely has its rewards. God also intentionally gives us tools to make the journey easier. We are given the church as a place of support and growing, we have the bible to read how others did it, it also teaches us how to live in a spiritually healthy way. We have teachers and guides, most importantly, God sent Jesus into the world to show us the pathway to getting closer to God. I have been visiting fairs for the last few weeks. One of my favorite things to do is to browse the exhibits. There has always been a few churches within the exhibits. And maybe I just look like a bad person, or maybe the church assumes that all people who attend the fair are bad. One asked me if I died tomorrow if I was sure that I was going to heaven, and I said I certainly hope so since I am a pastor. Another saw me walking by and immediately asked me if I knew the gospel. I told him yes, I think so, I am a pastor. He looked at me still doubting my character and then said, but do you know the gospel of Jesus Christ. I asked him if there was any other kind of gospel out there. The only person who wants to tell the good news to the people is Jesus. The conversation got a little better once I convinced him that I was a United Methodist Pastor. And he was okay once he realized that I indeed did know the bible, and what it teaches about eternal life. That is the message of our scripture today. Even in the midst of all of our differences, even within the church, There is only one Jesus Christ. Epesians says that there is only one Lord, One faith, one baptism, one God who is over all, through all, and in all. Today’s verses are a continuation of last week’s lesson of what God expects of us. Today, Paul gives us words of encouragement to keep the faith, to nurture and take care of one another, to bring others into the fold, and to always be willing to grow in God. I heard about a pastor who gathered his congregation in a circle and told them to picture God at the center of the circle. Then he instructed them to move forward to God. The group complied but at one point they came shoulder to shoulder with each other and stopped. This pastor then said, “You can’t get closer to God without at the same time getting closer to one another.” (5) Maybe we ought to do that exercise some time to emphasize that we are a unit, we are the body of Jesus Christ. You cannot split a body asunder, and have that body carry out its task. We are called to be Jesus in earthly flesh to the world, and it is important that we work together and love one another. So St. Paul says that our unity is critical. Ephesians gives us a list of 7 things that give us strength and support in growing in God. Conduct yourself with humility, gentleness, patience, accept the spirit of peace within you, preserve the unity, have hope,builf up yhr body of Christ, the church. The church grows when you grow. Today we sing a song, One Lord, One faith, one baptism – it is believed that these words are part of a baptism ritual. We all become one with Christ and with the purpose of the gospel when we are baptized. The Episcopal ritual captures this purpose beautifully. It ask - will you strive for justice and peace amongst all people and respect the dignity of every human being? The response is with God’s help I will. In the Methodist tradition we are asked to renounce the forces of wickedness, to remember our faith, to support the church with our prayers, presence, gifts, service and witness. When we are baptized, we become a part of the faith – and we live the gospel in everything that we do. I think I just told this story, but it fits perfectly here. There were a group of kindergarteners, who were doing a painting assignment. There were allowed to paint anything that they wanted. Usually when I would get those assignments, I would draw a story and then just pain over it and cover the whole page, One little girl was drawing a picture like that, she was very intent on her masterpiece, so the teacher asked her what she was painting. She said a picture of God. The teachers said but no one has ever seen God, they don’t know what God looks like. She reported weel they wiil when I am finish. Our lives are the maspterpiece that reveals God for the rest of the world. Bishop Prince Taylor is one of my favorite people. I always look forward to seeing him at our meeting of the Executive Committee of the World Methodist Council. Though retired as a bishop, and also, as chairman of the Council, he is always present at our meetings. Recently he told me one of his marvelous stories. He was visiting a tribe deep in the interior of Liberia where he served for a period of time as a bishop. When he arrived after a long, hard journey, the old chief welcomed him formally. Then he said, “Bishop, we believe in God. But sometimes He seems so far away. You be God for us today.” People everywhere are asking that of us. They may not speak it verbally, but their lives cry out for it. We are to be living reminders of the Kingdom, by being living reminders of Christ’s spirit - the fruits of the Holy Spirit - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness, goodness, self- control, - he fruits of the spirit, expressed in ministry to others. Gifts are given for that purpose - to minister and then Paul adds the second purpose for our gifts - he edifying of the body of Christ.” That’s the reason this last truth must be sounded boldly: Four pastors were discussing their favorite Bible translations. One liked the King James because of its beautiful language. Another liked the New Revised Standard version. A third liked the contemporary version The Message. The 4th minister said, "My favorite translation was my Mother's." The other preachers said they didn't know his mother had translated the Bible. "Yes, she did," he replied. "Every day she translated the Bible into life and it was the most convincing translation I ever witnessed!" (3) Our actions tell God’s story for the world. WE are God’s team. When we work together, we not only build up one another, but we also build the kingdom of God. Anglican Bishop James Cruckshank was once asked by a student, “What is the first thing we should do when we start with a new church?” Bishop Cruckshank immediately replied. “Once you arrive, go to your office, sit down and remain there until you realize that what your church is doing is the most important mission in the community. And then give thanks that Christ has called you to be part of it.” (2) The “most important mission in the community” I ask again: how important is church to you? Do you believe that God has a plan for our church? Do you believe that what we are doing, preparing this world for the coming of the Kingdom of God by proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ, is the most important work any group of people can do? Do you believe that or do you look at the church as just another organization that you belong to because it is good for the children or, perhaps, good for business? What makes out church so special, what makes our mission so special? It has you and me in it. When we work together, it changes the the world. Unity laced with love, grace, justice, holiness, prayer and peace, can work miracles and transform the world. Let us pray….. Song In Christ there is not East or West UMH 548 PASTORAL PRAYER It is easy for us to go through the motions of spirituality. We want to say the "right" prayers, and think that we have found the magical key to make holiness appear in our lives. But we are empty, Lord. We hunger and thirst for something that will sustain us through all the times of our lives. We chase after things that will disappoint and hurt, and look past the very thing that will heal and cleanse our lives. Christ is your Bread of Life, the Manna from Heaven, which was and is sent to feed and sustain us in all the wildernesses through which we travel. Help us to stop running after the glitz and glitter, the easy wealth; help us to look truly for the one who will quench our thirst and nourish our souls. As we have lifted up names of people and situations which lay heavy on our hearts today that need your healing touch, help us to remember that we stand continually in need of your healing mercy. Bring us to you, with open and repentant hearts, for your loving care. As we receive the wondrous gift of bread and wine, may we truly be reminded that Christ nurtures and feeds u s with his own life. When we have been nourished, may we go from this place in renewed commitment to serve you, O God, with our very lives. AMEN. (United Methodist Ministry Matters, Nancy Townley) Lord’s Prayer Offertory Invitation (do not print) As we have been fed, we are sent to feed others. Whatever their need, we now the source of food to nourish them. God supplies the resources we have to give. Let us participate in God’s redeeming activity through our offering of self and substance. Offertory Prayer May our gifts be a worthy response to your call, and our service be a faithful reply to the love we have known in Christ. May these offerings and our lives be poured out in all lowliness, meekness, and patience to communicate your love and your peace. Amen Communion Announcements Closing Prayer for Facebook Hunger. Thirst. Death. They have nothing do with us! For we have tasted the bread of life! Feed on this true bread from heaven today, tomorrow and forever, and you will learn the meaning of eternity. Amen. Community Time – Joys and Concerns Benediction The Bread of Life has called and fed you. Now go forth into God’s world to nourish others, bring God’s love, hope and peace. AMEN. ( United Methodist Ministry Matters, Nancy Townley) Additional Illustrations The pace of living in our society is causing everyone to become less patient, more demanding. The Behavioral Medicine Research Center at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, discovered that those people scoring high in hostility or cynicism have a higher mortality rate. Cynical, hostile people are constantly on the lookout for trouble, so they are more likely to find it. Some of these people will never change. There isn't a lot the church can do to help the irrational, ignorant, hostile person who is always looking for the worst in others. Today, you may not be the husband, the wife, the son, or the daughter you ought to be, but it's never too late to be the person you can be tomorrow. We have received a calling. That's just what it is, because it recognizes that this may not be who you are today. It is calling you to become someone different: completely humble and gentle, patient, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. Amen. CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Sermons for Sundays after Pentecost (Middle Third): Sleeping in on Sunday, by Thomas Lentz The body is not confined to any one denomination. A Lutheran once visited the First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas, and walked up to Dr. W. A. Criswell after the service, and said, "Dr. Criswell, you are so narrow-minded, I bet you think only Baptists are going to heaven." Dr. Criswell said, "I'm more narrow minded than that." The man said, "You are?" Dr. Criswell said, "Yes, I don't even believe all Lutherans are going to heaven." The only people that are going to heaven are born again believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. There is one body. There is one Spirit. (v.4) This one Spirit, of course, is the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit that creates the body. It is the Holy Spirit that coordinates the body. It is the Holy Spirit that consecrates the body, both corporately and individually. That one Spirit indwells every believer, whether Baptist, Methodist, Pentecostal, or Charismatic. That indwelling of the Spirit is the basis of our spiritual unity. There is an old parable I read years ago of some Tools that were having a meeting. Brother Hammer was presiding, but the Tools had decided they no longer wanted Brother Hammer to lead. As a matter of fact, they wanted him kicked out of the Tool Chest because he was rough and always made a lot of noise. Brother Hammer heatedly responded: "Well, if I have to go, Brother Screw will have to go too, because he is so lazy you have to turn him over and over to get him to do anything." Brother Screw jumped up and said, "Well, if I have to go, Brother Plane has to go. All the work he ever does is just on the surface. He never gets down to where the deep hard work is." Brother Plane stood up and replied, "Well, if I have to go so does Mr. Saw." He has so many rough edges that he's always doing things that are very cutting." Brother Saw jumped to his feet and said, "Well, if I have to go Mrs. Sandpaper has to go. She's so rough and she's always rubbing people the wrong way." The Tools were at one another's throat bickering and arguing until the Carpenter from Nazareth took them all to his work bench, using each Tool. He made a pulpit from which to preach the Word of God. Then the Tools discovered that when they were yielded to the hands of the Master Carpenter, they could be used working together to build something no one Tool could build alone. Mr. Hammer addressed the Tools again, and said, "It seems to me that when we work together, each doing what we were made to do, the Master can use us." Then all the Tools cried out, "Mr. Hammer, you hit the nail right on the head!" We all need to learn one lesson since we are a part of the same body, and members of that body: It does not matter who gets the credit as long as the job gets done, and God gets the glory. Where love is the proof of maturity in the body, likeness is the purpose of maturity in the body. The ultimate test of my ministry is not how many people we have in Sunday School, not how much money we take up on a given Sunday, not how many buildings we build, not how many parking spaces we pave, not how many acres of land we own. The ultimate test of my ministry is how much you are becoming like the Lord Jesus Christ. When you become like Jesus you want to live for Jesus, and you want to live for Jesus because you fall more deeply in love with Jesus. Back during World War II the Nazis incessantly bombed London, and in the process destroyed a beautiful cathedral. In front of that cathedral was a statue of the Lord Jesus Christ that was badly damaged. Some students got together after the bombing stopped to rebuild this cathedral. After they finished rebuilding the cathedral they decided to rebuild the statue of Christ. They put the entire statue back together except his arms and his hands, which were so badly damaged and destroyed they could not be replaced. Then they came up with a brilliant idea. The inscription at the bottom of the statue read originally "Come unto Me." But they simply changed that inscription to read, "Christ has no hands but our hands." Jesus is the invisible part of the visible Christian, and we are to be the visible part of the invisible Christ. We are to be His eyes that see a lost and dying world; His ears that hear the cries of the hurting and the hopeless; His hands to help the poor and the weary; His feet to go to the ends of the earth, and His mouth to share the gospel of eternal life. When we do that, motivated by love for the Savior, a love for the saint, and a love for the sinner, that is body building at its best. There is one body. (v.4) This means there is one true church made up of all believers of all the ages who have trusted Christ alone for salvation, been washed from their sins by His blood, and have been born again. This body is not denominational, geographical, ecclesiastical, or racial. The body is not confined to any one denomination. A Lutheran once visited the First Baptist Church of Dallas, Texas, and walked up to Dr. W. A. Criswell after the service, and said, "Dr. Criswell, you are so narrow-minded, I bet you think only Baptists are going to heaven." Dr. Criswell said, "I'm more narrow minded than that." The man said, "You are?" Dr. Criswell said, "Yes, I don't even believe all Lutherans are going to heaven." The only people that are going to heaven are born again believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. There is one body. There is one Spirit. (v.4) This one Spirit, of course, is the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit that creates the body. It is the Holy Spirit that coordinates the body. It is the Holy Spirit that consecrates the body, both corporately and individually. That one Spirit indwells every believer, whether Baptist, Methodist, Pentecostal, or Charismatic. That indwelling of the Spirit is the basis of our spiritual unity. When that one Spirit fills every believer, you will then have practical unity. You see, the Holy Spirit has one desire to glorify the Son of God. The Holy Spirit leads in one direction to identify the will of God. The Holy Spirit has one design to magnify the Word of God. The Holy Spirit has one determination to edify the church of God. To the extent that every believer is filled with the Holy Spirit, there will be Spirit-filled unity. There is one hope. (v. 4) This one hope is the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Titus said we should be "looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ." (Titus 2:13) We may disagree on the facets of the second coming, but not the fact of the second coming. Everybody has an opinion about the exact details of the second coming of Jesus. You have people who are amillennial; they don't believe in a millennial reign. Then you have people who are pre-millennial; they think Jesus is coming back before the millennial reign. You have people who are post-millennial; they believe Jesus is coming back after the millennial reign. Then you have pan-millennialists; they just believe it is all going to pan out. Then you have pro-millennialists; they're for it. But regardless of where you may fall, the one thing to remember is, none of us are on the program committee, but we all can be on the welcoming committee. The thing we must rally around is the fact of the second coming of Jesus Christ. There is one Lord. (v.5) That refers to none other than the Lord Jesus Christ. As we look back in time, and up to the present, there have been a lot of religious leaders who have come and gone. The hallways of history have been littered with so-call prophets, messiahs, soothsayers, and oracles. But there has only been one Lord who has ever walked down the hallways of human history, and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. We may belong to different denominations, we may differ on certain areas of worship, work, and witness, but there is only one confession of the true church Jesus Christ is Lord. As Paul said in I Cor. 8:6, "Yet for us there is only one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we for Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and through whom we live." There is one faith. (v.5) Now faith here is not describing the act of believing in the Lord Jesus. It is talking about the body of truth as revealed in the Bible. There is one faith. Jude said that we are to "contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints." (v.3) The Bible is our source of truth, doctrine, and conviction. There is one baptism. (v.5) There is only one physical baptism. That is, baptism by emersion. At the time this was written, the idea of infant by sprinkling had not even been invented. There was only one baptism the early church knew, and that was believer's baptism, after salvation, by emersion. That is the only true baptism. But there is also only one spiritual baptism the baptism of the Holy Spirit into the body of Christ. You can join the visible church by any type of baptism. But only the Holy Spirit can place you into the invisible church. For to be a part of that church you must be baptized into that body by the Holy Spirit. There is one God and Father of all. (v.6) There is only one God, and that is the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ. That Father is your Father if Jesus Christ is your Lord. If He is our Father, then we are brothers and sisters. If we are brothers and sisters then we are family. We are family because we have one Father and one God. I agree with that song that says, "I'm so glad I'm a part of the family of God!" GATHER, NURTURE AND EQUIP • That's the mission we exist for. (Oops!—the mission for which we exist.) • To gather men and women, children and youth into the Body of Christ • To nurture individuals to become living, growing disciples of Jesus Christ • Then to equip the body for ministry and mission in the world …so that, through the life of this congregation, lives would be changed and we would model what it means to be a 21st century New Testament church. Mid-course, he shifts to the image of a household built on the foundation of Christ Jesus, and he encourages them to "maintain the unity of the Body in the bond of peace." One spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of us all, who is above all and in all and through all. Then he says that within that household, we have all been given various gifts—apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers. And I would expand the list to include: I am sure you are familiar with the amazing story of the migration of the monarch butterfly, a lovely little creature who blesses our gardens and forests in the summer. Every autumn, millions of monarchs from all over the eastern United States and Canada migrate thousands of miles to a small handful of sites in Mexico where they rest for the winter. Then in the spring, they begin their return trip to the north. The amazing thing is that no individual monarch ever makes the trip to Mexico and back. A butterfly that leaves the Adirondack Mountains in New York will fly all the way to Mexico and spend the winter. In March, it begins the trip northward, but after laying eggs in the milkweed of Texas and Florida, it will die. Those butterflies will continue northward, laying eggs along the way until some of them, maybe three or four generations removed from the original, make it back to mountains of New York. But when August comes, they will head south, aiming for the exact place their great grandparents visited, a place they have never been. Sue Haplern says: "The monarchs always migrate in community and depend on each other. Although a single monarch may make it from New York to Mexico, it is the next generation who completes the journey." Now here is the word for the church. She says: "No one completes the journey solo. It is only as a community that we discover the fullness of God's plan for us." [1] Let me give you another example from the animal world. In Compass, we have been talking about the difference between "sponge evangelism" and "octopus evangelism." For the most part, we are pretty good about sponge evangelism—soaking up folks who come by, get close, walk in the door. But octopus evangelism is something else. It means reaching, stretching, finding, touching, drawing in those who are in need of the love and forgiveness of Jesus Christ and may not have even realized it yet. Are we actively reaching, actively inviting, and actively gathering all into the body of Christ? An old story tells about a man who called the church office one day and asked to speak to the "head hog at the trough." The secretary was a little taken aback by this guys attitude and told him that was no way to talk about their pastor. He in turn replied, "Well if that's the way you feel, then I guess I won't give this check for $10,000 I was going to give." To which the secretary replied, "No, no. Wait. I'll see if the big pig is in his office." Have you ever noticed that for some reason, pigs and money seem to go together. We save money in a piggy-bank. We work to "bring home the bacon" so we can "live high on the hog." We don't ever "buy a pig in a poke" because we don't know what we're getting. When we spend a lot of money on frivolous things we've gone "hog wild." When someone puts us down for having too much money they call us a "Capitalist pig." Even in the life of the church, pork meets penny. The term STEWARD traces back to the medieval English title "STY-WARDEN" Or "STY-WARD." Yep, a pig-keeper. Jesus talked a lot about stewards and stewardship. Fortunately, the Hebrew word for steward had nothing to do with pig farming (which, after all, just isn't kosher). Never the less, stewardship of money was a very important topic to Jesus. The only subject he talked about more is the Kingdom of God. (6) A. To do our work, we need a set of tools. Any time you build anything, you need tools, don't you? At minimum a carpenter needs a hammer, a saw, a tape measure, a level and a square. A mechanic needs a set of metric and standard wrenches. A seamstress needs needles, thread, scissors, straight pins, a sewing machine and cloth. An Ice Cream man, needs ice cream, a freezer and a scoop. Paul tells us in this passage that as Christians, part of our job is to be builders. We're called to build up the body of Christ by equipping the saints for the work of ministry. All tools in our tool box have one purpose: "to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ" B. Let's briefly look at some of those tools. 1. Bible: Of course the first tool in our tool box is the Bible. Scripture paints the background for and tells the reason and purpose behind everything we do. It's the Foundation of the Building we call Faith. It tells us Who WE are and Whose we are. It reminds us from the very beginning words that all we have and all we are comes from God. Four pastors were discussing their favorite Bible translations. One liked the King James because of its beautiful language. Another liked the New Revised Standard version. A third liked the contemporary version The Message. The 4th minister said, "My favorite translation was my Mother's." The other preachers said they didn't know his mother had translated the Bible. "Yes, she did," he replied. "Every day she translated the Bible into life and it was the most convincing translation I ever witnessed!" (3) The Bible is an important Tool because it shapes and molds us into the people God would have us be. And when we are the people God would have us be, we make a difference in the world. 2. Vision: The second tool in the tool box is Vision. You can't build anything unless you've got an idea or a vision about what should be built. Remember the Vision notebooks that Rick Heidman put out at the very beginning of our Building Program. Before we ever started raising money; before we ever started drawing plans, we had to have a Vision of what this building would look like. We had to have a Vision of what we felt God was calling us to do. Someone asked Helen Keller, "What would be worse than being born blind?" She replied, "To have sight with no vision." When we give to God's work, whether it's to support the ministries of the Church or to the Building Fund, we are saying that we have a Vision for what God can do with that money and what God can do with us because we've given that money. (4) 3. Hope: the third tool is Hope. When there is Vision there is Hope because Vision engenders Hope. That Hope comes through Christ Jesus. We have obtained access to the Grace of God through Jesus. He is the only letter of recommendation we need. We don't need any other references but his. His Signature, his Word, his nail-scarred Hands are all we need. He is our letter of introduction, our entrance fee, our resume, and letter of recommendation. He is all we need. His very presence fleshes out the Vision and gives us Hope. 4. Faith: And when we have Hope, then we can have Faith. Which is the next tool in the toolbox. I got a phone call from IRS the other day. They called and wanted to know if I would help them. Not wanting to get in trouble myself, I told them I would, if I could. First the man asked if Woody Mathews was a member of our congregation and I said, "Yes he is." Then the man proceeded to tell me that for the last three years Woody Mathews has claimed that he has donated $20,000 to the church. Then the IRS agent asked: "Did he really write those checks?" And I answered the only way I could. I said: "He will." (5) That's called Faith. You see I have faith that if that really happened, A.J. / Woody would write those checks. The point I'm really trying to make is: Going to church and giving to the church doesn't make you a Christian any more than going to McDonald's makes you a hamburger. Or jumping into a swimming pool will make you an Olympic Swimmer. You need Faith, faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God as your Savior. He's the one who offers chances and the one who changes everything, so we can live that second chance. Our job is to bring people to the Master. But when we bring people to the Master, our job is not finished, it is just beginning. Because then we are to bring them to maturity and also to ministry. That job description comes right out of the word of God. Ephesians 4 tells us that our job is not just to help sinners become saints, but to lead saints to become servants. From the moment a person becomes a Christian, it becomes our responsibility to help that Christian finish what he starts, and to finish well. This passage tells us how that is to happen. I think I know why most Christians are not growing. They are like a man that walked into a doctor's office with a cucumber up his nose, a carrot in his left ear, and a banana in his right ear. He said, "Doc, what's wrong with me?" The doctor said, "Simple, you're not eating right." But the question still remains: where do we grow from here? So, another truth emerges. We must discover our gifts. Look at the scripture again. Put verse 7 with verses 11 and 12 and listen: Each is gifted, that’s one facet of the truth Paul is sharing. Another facet is that there is a variety of gifts. Did you hear the story of the art teacher who was introducing second graders to the world of creativity? She wanted them to draw and paint as they saw and imagined things. So, as an exercise one day, she “turned them lose” and urged them to paint anything they wished. As she moved around, she was baffled by the efforts of one little girl. The teacher asked her what she was painting. Without hesitation, the girl answered, “God.” “How can you do that?” the teacher asked. “No one has ever seen God. No one knows what God looks like.” “They will when I finish”, was the confident reply. I like that. The confidence of being gifted. Pay attention to Paul: “And (Christ) gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers...” The message is clear: a variety of gifts is given, needed gifts befitting every believer, enabling Christian to make his or her own contribution. A seminary professor of another generation retired early because of his health, and died at the age of 58. The last ten years of his life were spent in and out of hospitals. Toward the end of his life this teacher traced the steps and stages of his ministry. He said: “When I began I thought of myself as standing upon the bank of the stream of life, shouting instructions to the swimmers who were down below. I was the expert. The second stage of my ministry, I thought of myself as the rescuer. If I saw someone going down for the third time, I would plunge into the water, rescue them, get them started in the right direction again, then I would return to the bank. But the last ten years of my life, I was in the water, and we were fellow-strugglers with arms around each other, trying to help one another make it to the shore.” I submit to you that that’s what Christ is calling for – from you and me, from this church, to put our arms around each other in the waters of life and swim together to make the Kingdom of the world the Kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ. There is one body and one Spirit, ... one Lord, one faith, one baptism ... (Ephesians 4:4) A man named Stephen was walking alone one night, out by the bridge which crosses the river on the outskirts of town. As he came up to the bridge, though, he saw a man standing on it as if he were ready to jump off. It was a long way down to the river - jumping would mean certain death. Stephen decided he would try to stop this suicide. He figured that if they started talking and found something they had in common, perhaps the other man would decide he wanted to live. "Tell me something," said Stephen, "are you a religious man?" "Yes, I am," the man said. "Good," said Stephen, "so am I." "Are you of the Christian religion, or the Jewish religion, or perhaps some other?" asked Stephen. "I am of the Christian religion," the man said. "Good," said Stephen, "so am I." "Are you a Protestant Christian or a Catholic Christian?" The man answered, "I am a Protestant Christian." "Good," said Stephen, "so am I." "Do you belong to the Methodist wing of the Protestant Christian church, or the Baptist wing, or some other?" "I belong to the Baptist wing of the Protestant Christian church," replied the man on the bridge. "Good," said Stephen, "so am I." "Are you Northern Baptist or Southern Baptist?" "I'm a Northern Baptist," the man said. "Good," said Stephen, "so am I." "Are you an independent Northern Baptist or a denominational Northern Baptist?" "I am a denominational Northern Baptist," the man said. "Good," said Stephen, "so am I." "Are you a fundamentalist denominational Northern Baptist or a liberal denominational Northern Baptist?" The man said, "I am a liberal denominational Northern Baptist." "Good," said Stephen, "so am I." "As a liberal denominational Northern Baptist, which creed do you subscribe to - the New Hampshire Confession of 1833 or the Abstract of Principles of 1859?" "Why, I subscribe to the New Hampshire Confession of 1833." "Die, you heretic!" cried Stephen, and he pushed the man off the bridge. It's fun to laugh at the silly ways Christians divide themselves from one another, but upon deeper reflection the disunity of the church is no laughing matter. John's gospel says quite plainly that Jesus died in order "to gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad" (11:52). My friends, if Jesus suffered and died on Calvary's cross to make all believers one (John 17:20-21), how do you think He feels today as He looks upon the fractured and fractious church which bears His name? One of my favorite poets, Archibald Rutledge, wrote a poem entitled “Final Proof.” If you want to score a great hit on Valentine’s Day, just get a copy of my sermon and write these words on the back of your Valentine card. “I do not need some tremendous miracle to give me faith in God: A violet would do, or a spire of goldenrod, or a daisy or two. But if I had to have a magic and a wonder, to rend my doubts asunder, To prove God true -it would be you!” Friends, that’s what I mean by sending a good message! • “Therefore” pushes us to review last week. Paul is making a statement here based on what came before. o V. 20-21 “Glory to God, who is able to do far beyond all we could ask or imagine by his power and work within us; glory to him in teh church and in Christ Jesus for all generations, forever and always. Amen.” • Now, after the therefore, is the action: o “Our actions are to be godly and that we are to ‘walk worthy of the calling’. To walk worthy defines the type of life we are to live so as to please and honor God for we are chosen to do good works. That is God’s calling, and our calling is to uphold god’s laws. God desires faithfulness and obedience.” ( Abingdon Preaching Annual, 2018 , 2018, p. 103) • ng within God’s victory means something. This begins the “So what?” section of Paul’s letter. • V. 1-10 Live as a people worthy of the call… o Live right - gentleness, humility, and patience o Accept each other • o  th is the goal of Christian faith.  God wants us to mature - to move somewhere, to grow. This is not about ecstatic conversion and enthusiastic experience. This is about a life of moving toward God - sanctifying grace over time. o An integral part of ‘building up’ the church, of course, is bringing about and maintaining its unity.  Unity over Justice?  Unity over holiness?  Any disunity is evidence that the church is immature.  Careful though, because it is easy to see others as causing the disunity, and they are immature.

You Can't Have Two Women in the Same Kitchen

July 17, 2022 Luke 10:38-42 You Can’t Have Two Women in the Same Kitchen 5th Sunday After Pentecost Year C Opening Song Welcome Call to Worship L: How are you this morning? P: It would be easy for us to say “fine, thank you”, but the truth is that there are lots of things going on in your lives, lots of time crunches and pressures. L: You have come to the right place. Rest for a minute. Take a deep breath and let it out slowly. Just relax and let your heart be open to God’s word for you. P: That sounds good to us. L: Feel the healing, soothing power of God’s love for you. P: Lord, we rest our minds, spirits, and hearts in your compassionate love. AMEN. (Nancy Townley for United Methodist Ministry Matters) Invocation Divine Gardener, we need your care and nurture. Fertilize our soil and our souls. Plant seeds of wisdom, inspiration, and discernment. Prune us today for more abundance tomorrow. Refresh us with living water. Revive us again. Amen. (Faith INFO Team for United Church of Christ Worship Ways) Song Be Thou My Vision UMH 451 Scripture Luke 10:38-42 Sermon – You Can’t Have Two Women in the Same Kitchen Every kitchen has one, whether it is in at home, or at a business or in the church. Some people say that she is the kitchen witch, some say the kitchen nazi, I prefer the title kitchen queen or king. Every kitchen has someone who is considered the boss, in control of everything that happens in that kitchen. And Martha was the appropriate person to be in charge. The name Martha means the lady of the house. Luke does not tell us a lot about who Martha was – but it does say the it was her household. She must have invited Jesus and the disciples to come to the house for dinner, or for rest on the way to Jerusalem. And as they were coming, she had to make sure that everything was perfect for their stay. That would be what the head of the household did. She didn’t have to actually do the work, but she would have been the manager to make sure everything got done. Apparently the only staff that she had to help was her little sister Mary. If Martha was the head of the household, then it was her little sister’s job to take instructions and do whatever her older sister told her to. That was in the household rule book. But you know what they say about two women in the same kitchen. It doesn’t always work out. So I think Mary just got tired of being told what to do, and decided to stay out of the kitchen and to let Martha do all of the work. As a matter of fact, the name Martha means lady of the house, Mary means rebel.- or beloved one who doesn’t have to do anything. If Martha was the host and Jesus was the guest, why else would she ask Jesus to make her sister come back in the kitchen to help? One of the first places that we visited on our trip to Israel was Bethel. I remember it being like a small space, with very small houses very close together. Each house was probably about the size of my living room and kitchen. It was a very cramped space. There is no way Jesus and 72 of his disciples was going to get into one house, I can’t even see it being enough room for 12 guest to be comfortable. And I certainly remember the kitchen, definitely not enough room for 2 people to be comfortable cooking. The two lessons that I remember from visiting that space. First, like many sites on Israel, they were not certain that this was the real site of Bethel, it was just a guestimate. This would have been an example of the scene of this story. Secondly, our guides pointed out – Mary and Martha would have been very popular names. So are Mary and Martha in Luke, the same as the Mary, Martha and Lazurus of the book of John? We will never know. The point of the story is that Mary and Martha could have been anyone in their society. The story of Mary and Martha is the story of any two women who couldn’t cook together in the same kitchen. Luke’s details about the story are vague enough for each of us to see ourself in the story. Would we be the Martha of the house- working hard to make sure that everything was perfect for our guest, or would we be Mary – wanting to be present with our guest, listening to every thing going on? Of course, in the story, when Martha asks Jesus to correct Mary, it seems as if Jesus takes Mary’s side when he says that life is about choices, and Mary has made the better choice. If Martha had made the decision to sit and listen to the teachings, then no one would have had dinner that day. This scripture can stir up a lot of emotions, about the work of the household and even the church. IT seems that the person who is doing all of the work, is not being acknowledged for that work. When we hear this story, we too think that we have to make a choice and pick who is right and who is wrong. Are we a Martha is our work for God, or are we a Mary? At times I have been both. We also have to remember, that this is not the first time that Jesus has been asked to make a choice between two siblings. And every time, Jesus responds that is not his place. This is not a story about who is right, it is a story about hospitality, and ultimately discipleship. We are still in chapter 10 of Luke, where Jesus is traveling to Jersalem. And the lesson he has been teaching is on hospitality. We have been in chapter 10 for 3 weeks now. First Jesus commissions the 72 people to go out and depend on the hospitality of the community, next Jesus uses the Samaritan to ask us who is our neighbor, and today Mary and Martha remind is that discipleship is a matter of both/and hospitality and presence. This story is not called Mary or Martha, it is called Mary and Martha. We Need Martha and Mary Max Lucado is right on target when he writes: "Every church needs a Martha. Change that. Every church needs a hundred Marthas. Sleeves rolled up and ready, they keep the pace for the church. Because of Marthas the church budgets get balanced church buildings get repaired and cleaned babies get bounced on loving knees in the nursery. You don't appreciate Marthas until a Martha is missing and all the Marys of the church start scrambling to find the keys to lock doors, turn off the lights and turn off the fans. Yes, the Marthas are the Energizer Bunnies of the church. They keep going and going and going." Martha was a live wire to be sure. However, even live wires need a time out for recharging. Work without worship will soon burn you out. Even in church we can lose our sense of perspective. Max Lucado, A Gentle Thunder, Word Publishing, 1995, page 127. I think the challenge for many of us is to find the balance between hard work and resting in Jesus. Our lesson, is that hospitality is an important part of discipleship. In chapter 10 Jesus teaches that all of us here have a purpose and Jesus commissions us to go forth, that serving God can leave us vulnerable and sometimes full of questions, and it is important for us to do the work, but also to be present to those we are helping. In allowing Mary to sit at Jesus’ feet, Jesus takes over the job of being the host. Jesus becomes the servant and shows us what hospitality for all of the world looks like. Jesus tells us the in hospitality and discipleship only one thing is necessary – In the classic Billy Crystal movie “City Slickers,” three longtime friends face middle age. In their middle-age crisis they find themselves losing their focus and in danger of losing their families. To reignite the fire in their lives the guys sign up as “cowboys,” helping a dude ranch move its herd of cattle from high in the hills down to the lower valley. “Curly,” the grizzled old cowboy who leads them, seems to be the toughest, canniest, wisest person they have ever met. Billy Crystal asks the usually tight-lipped cowpoke what his secret is. What makes his life so strong and centered and sure. Curly smiles, raises his grubby, gloved index finger and proclaims, “It is just one thing,” then he rides away. Billy’s character spends the rest of the movie frantically trying to figure out what Curly meant. What IS that “just one thing?” Psychologists, marriage counselors, relationship gurus of all stripes, warn us not to expect one person to provide for all our emotional, intellectual, and relational needs. We need a variety of relationships, a network of spouses, friends, colleagues from work, basketball buddies, quilting club comrades, children, elders, and peers, to meet all our relational needs. But what might be true for our human connections does not hold true for our spiritual needs. Our soul needs only “one thing.” No matter what your denomination. No matter if your spiritual temperament is exuberant, reserved, flamboyant, or meditative. Whether your soul craves cathedrals, or soars under the blue dome, it is all the same as long as we have that “one thing.” That “one thing” is Jesus. The point of our hospitality is always to be disciples of Christ. Amen. Song What a Friend we have in Jesus UMH 526 Prayer of the Day Eternal God, you draw near to us in Christ, and you make yourself our guest. Amid the cares of our lives, make us attentive to your presence, that we may treasure your word above all else, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord (Evangelical Lutheran Church of America worship resources) Pastoral Prayer Lord’s Prayer UMH 894 Children’s Sermon Kristin Schmidt Hello! So, how are you guys doing today? What have you been up to this weekend? (Take a few answers, but cut students off before they get too detailed, explaining that you don’t have much time) Okay okay, we need to keep going…let’s move on, we need to learn about Jesus and we are actually taking a very quick quiz about Bible stories. What is your favorite Bible story or Bible character? Come on, quickly now, we don’t have all day; favorite Bible character- go! (Rush children through answers…) Well, here are some Bible stories I have (Hold up illustrated Bible or pictures of stories): what’s in this picture? Who is this one? Hurry, hurry, I hope you know these? What’s this one? (After flipping through several stories, slow down somewhat) Well, it might have felt a little rushed and stressful to have all of those questions thrown at you so quickly, huh? I have another question…how do we get to Heaven? How do we get God’s love? (Take a few answers) Do you think we have to do special things to be better Christians? Well, sometimes we think that we have to do certain things or know certain things in order to be a “just right” Christian or have God love us more. We get caught up in hurrying through life and thing we look better if we go to church a lot or do a lot of important things. But you know what? There is nothing we can do to earn God’s love. And there’s nothing we need to do to earn His love! He already loves us, and all we have to do is accept His love and know that Jesus died for us. He did all the work. And He wants us to just be ourselves and enjoy His presence. There is a story in the Bible about two sisters who had Jesus over for dinner. One of them was named Martha. Martha was very busy, and she was rushing around preparing for Jesus. She was cooking and cleaning and working, and she got upset because her sister, Mary, was just hanging out with Jesus. She wasn’t helping do the work but just sat listening to Jesus talk. Martha got upset and asked Jesus to yell at her about it. But He told her Mary was the one doing the right thing. It was not as important to do things for Jesus as it was to spend time with Him. Jesus didn’t want a dusted floor or fresh loaf of bread. He wanted people. And that is how He feels about us, too! What’s important is not just what we know or say or do…it’s how we love God. We can breathe and pause and rest in His presence. He is always there for us! (Hold up small toy) Look at this…what does it do? Does it sing or cook or dance in circles? No. But we can enjoy it just for what it is. That’s sort of how God feels about us. He made us, and He doesn’t require any special activities. He loves us just because we are His children! So remember, there’s nothing wrong with doing things for God. But that is not the most important thing. We can rest in Him and know we are part of His family, no matter what else we do. Isn’t that great news? Let’s thank God for that… Prayer: (Have kids repeat each line, if desired) Dear God, Thank you for the words of the Bible Thank you for making us part of your family Help us to slow down and breathe And rest in your presence Thank you for your love We love you, God! Thank you for Jesus In His name, Amen! Stewardship Moment Invitation to Generosity Colossians 1:18 reminds us that Jesus is the head of the church and first in all things. May we place Christ first as we share the gifts we have been given. Prayer of Dedication and Thanksgiving Alpha and Omega, may these gifts meet the needs before us, the community around us, and the call within us. Amen. (Faith INFO Ministry Team for United Church of Christ Worship Ways) Announcements Closing Prayer for Facebook God calls. Christ walks with us. The Holy Spirit guide us. As we enter this new week may we go with the grace and blessings of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen. (Terri McDowell Ott for Presbyterian Outlook) Community Time Benediction As you go, make known the wonders of God, share the hope of God, and spread the love of God. The grace of God will sustain and guide you. The glory of God will propel you. Amen. (Faith INFO Ministry Team for United Church of Christ Worship Ways) Additional illustrations Don’t Forget the Best There is an ancient Scottish legend that tells the story of a shepherd boy tending a few straggling sheep on the side of a mountain. One day as he cared for his sheep he saw at his feet a beautiful flower -- one that was more beautiful than any he had ever seen in his life. He knelt down upon his knees and scooped the flower in his hands and held it close to his eyes, drinking in its beauty. As he held the flower close to his face, suddenly he heard a noise and looked up before him. There he saw a great stone mountain opening up right before his eyes. And as the sun began to shine on the inside of the mountain, he saw the sprinkling of the beautiful gems and precious metals that it contained. With the flower in his hands, he walked inside. Laying the flower down, he began to gather all the gold and silver and precious gems in his arms. Finally with all that his arms could carry, he turned and began to walk out of that great cavern, and suddenly a voice said to him, "Don't forget the best." Thinking that perhaps he had overlooked some choice piece of treasure, he turned around again and picked up additional pieces of priceless treasure. And with his arms literally overflowing with wealth, he turned to walk back out of the great mountainous vault. And again the voice said, "Don't forget the best." But by this time his arms were filled and he walked on outside, and all of a sudden, the precious metals and stones turned to dust. And he looked around in time to see the great stone mountain closing its doors again. A third time he heard the voice, and this time the voice said, "You forgot the best. For the beautiful flower is the key to the vault of the mountain." In our Scripture passage we have someone who also forgot the best. Her name was Martha. Adrian Dieleman, Hosts and Guests _____________________________________________ Responding with Humor By the way, don't you think Luke also included this incident in his gospel account because he found it irresistible, or perhaps more accurately, because he found a touch of humor in it? There is humor here, isn't there? We smile at the story because we see ourselves in it, or we detect someone we know who is similar to Martha. Sometimes our priorities, or frustrations, are so far off the beam that they are laughable. And along with this was Martha's own lack of humor, which might have finally saved her. "The Lord's coming to my house? You mean he did accept my reckless invitation?" Martha might have asked. "Well, then, he's going to have to settle for potluck!" Such an attitude could have made Martha a relaxed, delightful hostess. A friend of mine likes to tell stories about how his teenage children would call him at home on the telephone on Friday nights after the high school basketball games. It was usually about 10 o'clock and they wanted to know whether they could bring a few friends over for a little get together. When the parents asked how many friends were coming, they were usually told, "Oh, about seventeen." Instead of slamming down the phone, the guy said he always smiled at his wife, and the two of them hightailed it over to the supermarket to get enough supplies to feed and water down the two dozen teenagers who showed up. The slight ridiculousness of the situation and the parents' humorous response to it preserved a loving relationship between them and their children. Richard W. Patt, All Stirred Up, CSS Publishing Company, Inc. The Highest Priority Have you ever been in a hurry and buttoned up a long overcoat with lots of buttons and when you were done, found out that the coat was uneven? What went wrong? I'll tell you what went wrong. When you don't get the first button in the right hole, all the rest are out of sequence too, right?! That's a parable about life. Jesus said it this way in the Sermon on the Mount: "Seek first God's kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things shall be yours as well." (Matthew 6:33) If the Lord is not the high priority in your life, then, like the overcoat, so many other things in life will be out of whack as well. Arthur E. Dean Windhorn Tell Me About The Spitfires! During World War II the Royal Air Force flew Danny's favorite plane of all time: the Spitfire. Watching those things fly all over the RKO newsreels the young boy came to believe they were dauntless. If a pilot flew a Spitfire, Danny thought, he would always hit his target, and he would always return home. One day the British Consul from Minneapolis came to Danny's town to visit. Danny's dad was chairman of the County War Bond drive so that gave him the honor of entertaining the British Consul in his home. His mother, Suzanne, went crazy with preparations. She brought in all her friends; she hired a German woman to clean the house; she went downtown to buy a new dress. The day the Consul arrived 40 people crammed into three rooms to welcome this man. Each one of those people couldn't wait to tell this tall, thin diplomat from England about the town, about how patriotic it was, about how he or she had a great-aunt in London, about how well the war was going. They all had plenty to say. Suzanne was running around fractiously trying to serve everybody and greet everybody, and make sure everybody had a place to sit, and did they want more of this -- in general, were they having a good time. Finally the British Consul sat down. For a split second he was actually by himself. The hostess had left to get him a drink; all the other guests momentarily turned away. Danny saw his chance. He ran to him. Even though the Consul was sitting, the boy still had to stand to whisper into his ear: "Tell me about Spitfires!" The tall man looked at the eight-year-old. He smiled, he relaxed, and he said, "Spitfires? I'll tell you a story about Spitfires. I flew one early in the war. It was splendid. I shot down a Messerschmidt and I came home alive. The next time I wasn't so lucky. That's why I'm not flying anymore. What is your name? I'll send you some pictures of Spitfires." About a month later a letter came from Minneapolis. Inside was a folder about Spitfires and a note from the Consul: "Dear Danny. I enjoyed talking with you. Good luck." He signed his name. Danny was the only person who didn't barrage the Consul's ears with information about the town and American patriotism. This small boy was the only one who said, "Tell me about Spitfires." He was the only one who actually listened to him -- even if it was just for a few minutes! In today's gospel lesson Jesus needs somebody to listen. He has just begun his journey to Jerusalem where he knows he will travel the bitter road of the cross and he will experience the loneliness of being denied, abandoned, and betrayed by his disciples. Martha may think her tasks have a high level of importance and at another time she would be right but not now. Now, it is time to sit and listen. John G. Lynch, Troubled Journey, The Better Part, CSS Publishing Company. _________________________________________ Sermon Opener – Mary, Martha, and the Martha Stewart Church – Luke 10:38-42 In today’s gospel text Martha, the mistress of the house, rushes around trying to make sure everything is perfect. Martha is like some first century Martha Stewart. She is focused on the food, the house, the drink. Martha seems to be doing for others. At first reading Martha is just being a conscientious hostess. But a deeper reading of the story reveals Martha is really only concerned with herself. How does HER house look? How does HER food taste? How are HER wines being served? Martha is so busy “serving” she completely forgets whom she truly serves… ___________________ Humor: When to Worry Now, I'm your pastor and I am going to give you permission to worry. But, you can only worry if one of these 7 things happens to you: Your birthday cake collapses from the weight of the candles. You turn on the news and they're showing emergency routes out of the city. Your twin sister forgot your birthday. Your car horn goes off accidentally and remains stuck as you follow a group of Hell's Angels on the freeway. The bird singing outside your window is a buzzard. Your income tax check bounces. Your wife says, "Good morning, Bill", and your name is George. Other than that you don't have anything to worry about. Unknown Lord of All Pots and Pans I have only the initials (M.K.H., quoted in the Salvation Army magazine) of the person who wrote this verse, but I suspect that a lot of other initials could be added to it in spirit: Lord of all pots and pans, since I’ve no time to be A saint by doing lovely things, or watching late with Thee Or dreaming in dawnlight, or storming heaven's gates Make me a saint by getting meals and washing up the plates. Carveth Mitchell, The Sign in the Subway, CSS Publishing Company. My Back Yard True happiness is not achieved it is received as in the case of two brothers Rich and Mike, who are complete opposites. Mike is a successful businessman. Rich, on the other hand, takes seasonal jobs at dude ranches, parks and resorts. Mike is always concerned for Rich’s welfare and tries to entice him with the "good life." He sends Rich photos labeled with messages like "My new sound system" or "My new car." But one day the campaign ended when Mike received a poster from his brother showing a breathtaking view of Wyoming’s Grand Teton National Park. On the back was a message from Rich: "My back yard." Unknown The Dangerous Attitude of Narrowness Some years ago in another church a party was given to recognize a married couple for their outstanding work in the church’s youth program. Let me tell you about this couple. I will call them Betty and Bill. They had very different personalities. Betty was vivacious, out-going, gregarious, affectionate... a hugger. If you gave her a “bow ribbon,” she would jump up and down and squeal with delight and then run around and hug and kiss everybody in the room. Bill, on the other hand, was the opposite. He was quiet, reserved, shy, stable, balanced. If you gave him a Mercedes and a trip to Hawaii, all he could do is say a quiet and sincere “Thank you.” Now, on this particular night Betty and Bill were given a surprise party. The young people jumped out from their hiding places, shouted “Surprise!” and then gave Betty and Bill a present. It was a beautiful plaque. Do you know what Betty did? She read the plaque out loud. She squealed with delight. She cried. She jumped up and down and then ran around the room hugging and kissing everybody in sight. Meanwhile, Bill waited… and when she was through he said quietly: “I want to thank you also!” But that is not the end of the story. Betty turned on Bill. She got mad at him… and she made a scene: “Look at you Bill. You don’t appreciate anything. If you did, you would act like it. You would do like I do!” But, you see Bill can’t act that way. He just isn’t made that way. He is not wired up like Betty is. He can’t act like her, can’t respond that way. If he did, it would be fake, artificial, embarrassing. You want to say: “Betty, Betty, leave him alone. Don’t force your way on him. Let him do it his way. Let him be Bill!” Now, I have to tell you hugs and kisses are great, but I also know that Bill’s quiet “thank you” is just as real, just as genuine, just as valid. In this episode with Mary and Martha, Jesus is saying, beware of the dangerous attitude of narrowness. It can devastate your soul. James W. Moore, Encounters with Christ

Spreading God's Word

July 7, 2019 Luke 10:1-20 We are Sent 4th Sunday After Pentecost Year C Children’s Sermon Object: A pair of shoes, salt and pepper, knife and fork. Have you ever noticed how certain things go together, boys and girls? For instance, what goes together with boys? Girls! Almost every Sunday morning I say, "Good morning, boys and girls." When I see boys and girls together on Sunday morning, I know that we are going to have a worship service. The other night I saw two bright lights coming down the road and I knew then what was coming. A car, that's right. Now, let's see what else I have here with me that you might know about. [Hold up knife and fork.] What do you call these two things? When you see a knife and fork what does that mean is going to happen? [Wait for answer.] You are going to eat! And [hold up salt and pepper] what about these? When you see these two friends together what do they mean to you? You put salt and pepper on potatoes, meat, green beans and tomatoes. When you see them you know what is coming, don't you? One more try. [Hold up basketball shoes.] What do you call this pair of shoes? Gym shoes, that's right, and when someone wears this kind of shoes you know that he is playing some kind of game. All these pairs, the knife and fork, the salt and pepper and the gym shoes, tell us something else besides what they are. They tell us what to expect. The reason for this story is that Jesus once had some pairs of people whom he used in a special way. He chose people to go out together in pairs and tell everyone in the towns that they visited that Jesus was coming. When the people saw the pair of messengers coming, they knew that Jesus was soon coming. Maybe you have a friend who would like to go with you to tell others about Jesus just as the pairs did a long time ago. When you see two things that belong together like salt and pepper, you will remember that once Jesus sent out two people together to tell others about God's love. Luke 10:1-20 Common English Bible (CEB) Seventy-two sent out 10 After these things, the Lord commissioned seventy-two others and sent them on ahead in pairs to every city and place he was about to go.2 He said to them, “The harvest is bigger than you can imagine, but there are few workers. Therefore, plead with the Lord of the harvest to send out workers for his harvest. 3 Go! Be warned, though, that I’m sending you out as lambs among wolves. 4 Carry no wallet, no bag, and no sandals. Don’t even greet anyone along the way. 5 Whenever you enter a house, first say, ‘May peace be on this house.’ 6 If anyone there shares God’s peace, then your peace will rest on that person. If not, your blessing will return to you. 7 Remain in this house, eating and drinking whatever they set before you, for workers deserve their pay. Don’t move from house to house. 8 Whenever you enter a city and its people welcome you, eat what they set before you. 9 Heal the sick who are there, and say to them, ‘God’s kingdom has come upon you.’10 Whenever you enter a city and the people don’t welcome you, go out into the streets and say, 11 ‘As a complaint against you, we brush off the dust of your city that has collected on our feet. But know this: God’s kingdom has come to you.’ 12 I assure you that Sodom will be better off on Judgment Day than that city. Judgment against cities that reject Jesus 13 “How terrible it will be for you, Chorazin. How terrible it will be for you, Bethsaida. If the miracles done among you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have changed their hearts and lives long ago. They would have sat around in funeral clothes and ashes. 14 But Tyre and Sidon will be better off at the judgment than you. 15 And you, Capernaum, will you be honored by being raised up to heaven? No, you will be cast down to the place of the dead. 16 Whoever listens to you listens to me. Whoever rejects you rejects me. Whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.” The seventy-two return 17 The seventy-two returned joyously, saying, “Lord, even the demons submit themselves to us in your name.” 18 Jesus replied, “I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightning. 19 Look, I have given you authority to crush snakes and scorpions underfoot. I have given you authority over all the power of the enemy. Nothing will harm you. 20 Nevertheless, don’t rejoice because the spirits submit to you. Rejoice instead that your names are written in heaven.” Common English Bible (CEB) Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible Recently, it seems that there has beena resurgence of super hero movies. Spiderman is in theaters this week. But it seems that we live in a world, where the issues have gotten so large, that once again we enjoy watching someone with superhuman strength doing wonderful deeds to make life easier for all of us. What Super Power Would You Choose? - Luke 10:1-11, 16-20 When you were a kid what superpower did you want to have? Flying like Superman? Scaling tall buildings like Spiderman? What superpower did you want to have and how did you want to use it? I thought about that recently when I saw a question which was posted on the website forum Reddit. The question was, “If you could have a uselesssuperpower, what would it be?” Did you catch that--a useless superpower? Here’s one response that came in to that question: “The ability to win at rock- paper-scissors every single time.” Well, I guess that certainly is a useless superpower. Here are some other responses: “Whenever I pick up a sock, the sock next to it would become the matching one.” O. K. One guy responded: “The power to be able to slam a revolving door.” Another said, “When I catch a cold, the ability to know exactly where and when I got it.” I guess that would be for the purpose of retribution. And finally, “Always knowing when to use a semicolon.” That must be for an English major. What about you? What useless superpower would you wish for? It’s a fun question to consider because we all want to believe that we have untapped powers within us, and that we would have the courage to use those untapped powers if a need ever arises. In our Bible passage today, Jesus sent out seventy-two of his followers as an advance team to prepare the people for his ministry. And he gave them power—super power, really—to heal diseases and cast out demons. He also gave them authority to preach about the kingdom of God. And when the disciples got back, they felt like superheroes! But their super powers were not useless. Far from it…. What power does the world need today that would make a difference in everyone’s life? I am still thinking about that one, but peace man – who can stop an argument and create peace in all situations? Or someone with the power of taking away pain instantly. My sermon will be short today – I have not preached on this text very often. Usually I would choose Galatians and the true definition of freedom. I have preached once on Elisha healing naaman. Or perhaps this was the first Sunday of an appointment, I did not use the lectionary at all. But today I thought this was an important message for us – as we begin our congregational conversations this week. What is our mission in this community? How is God using us to spread the good news to Wilmington and beyond? Who is God calling us to be as a church. This text is a hidden gem in the gospel. Luke is the only person who tells this story – of Jesus calling out 72 disciples and sending them out 2 by 2. We hear a lot of Jesus training of the 12. But we don’t always think about the fact that Jesus had a whole group of disciples that followed him. Just like Elijah who thought that he was the only one who cared about God – and God said but there are others. It can be easy to think that we are the last generation that cares about the church. No one is out there, no one cares, no one wants to take over our ministry when we are gone. This text gives us the message that there is always those who will do the work of God – but how do we find them. The number 70 is important for many reasons, there were probably more than that. But 70 is a good round number, the bible says that moses has 70 elders to help with his ministry. It also says that there are 70 nations that are open to the message of God. Interestingly enough – there are usually about 70 people gathered in this sanctuary to worship together. So my point is that the 70 that Jesus is teaching and appointing and sending out are the 70 present here today. Jesus is sending us out into the community. The scripture says that the work will not be easy. Not everyone will be accepting – but that we should still show love and compassion. The command that Jesus gives us is to get going, to travel light, to bring peace wherever we go, to stay rooted and not move around, to cure the sick, stay focused, return in joy and to know that God is with you. God list some towns who were not accepting of his servants. Some of the towns were Jewish towns, some were gentile. Some did some pretty bad things. But God says that they will ultimately be judged on their hospitality. How receiving were they of the good news of God’s love. Did they listen? Did they respond? Did they help you? Did they take care of you? When we think of hospitality, we usually think of giving. But Jesus says to put yourself in a position to receive. That we should speak about God, but we should also listen. We should give to others, take care of others, reach out. But also be open. For instance at the Sharefest, when we give food and clothes to others, we can also allow them to give what they have to be given out at another event. We should invite others into the church, but also meet them at their level to see what appeals to them. Sometimes it is hard for us to receive hospitality, to be in need. It is even harder for us to be vulnerable, and open and people to still be unkind and unwilling. That is why Jesus says that he sends us out as sheep among wolves. But Jesus also reminds us that each of us have been given superhuman strength to overcome the world. We have been given superpowers to heal, to cure to who love. When we are out in the community, it is the power of God that works through us. It is interesting that we can identify with spiderman and superman and batman easier than we can trust in the power of the holy spirit. It is easier for us to relate to the story of how superman saves Wilmington, than it is for us to get excited about God planting a United Methodist Church in Wilmington and empowering the people in the church to transform the community. One of those stories is real, and one is not. God is calling us to go out into this community and do miracles. But it all starts with trust and hospitality. Preach the gospel in all that you do, and if necessary use words. Salvation is one person telling another where the power is. The Kingdom of God Is Here The main message of these 72 workers is the simple declaration “The kingdom of God is near.” Dallas Willard once said that when he was a young boy, rural electrification was taking place throughout the United States. For the first time ever, tall poles popped up across the landscape of the countryside with huge electric wires strung from pole to pole to pole. But initially at least, not everyone trusted electricity and so not a few rural families opted (for a time) to not hook up. They heard the messages of the electric company of how much easier life would be with electric washing machines replacing hand-cranked wringers and electric vacuum cleaners bringing to an end the old practice of hauling heavy carpets outside to have the dirt beaten out of them. They heard these promises but did not trust or believe them. So in a sense, Willard wrote, you could have said to those folks, “My friends, electricity is at hand!” But if they opted to not tap into that power that was running right over their heads, then the nearness of the power would do them no good. Maybe the message of the kingdom’s nearness was like that. With Jesus in the world, the kingdom of God was near, at hand. All the goodness and glory and power of that kingdom was right there, but if they kept it at arm’s length, it would do them no good. Their lack of participation did not weaken the power of the kingdom. But it did land them in an unhappy (and unnecessary) spiritual situation of staying in the dark when the light of the world was right there. Scott Hoezee, Comments and Observations In the coming months, may all of us have an opportunity to be moved by God’s hospitality. Let us pray…. Additional illustrations…… Relationship Evangelism There is an old story told about a man by the name of Ali Facid. He had a small farm and a family. One day, the story goes, a Buddhist priest came by and said to Ali Facid: You know, there are valuable stones called diamonds, and if you get one of these you could be a wealthy man." Ali Facid went to bed that night, but the words of the old priest haunted him. He was so obsessed that he felt that he must find him one of these diamonds so that he could become a ruler. He sold his farm, put his family out to neighbors and went out to find his acres of diamonds. Months passed. He was broken in body and spirit. His funds were gone. And at the Bay of Barcelona, he threw himself into the water, never to walk this earth again. Meanwhile, the man who bought his farm bent over one day and picked up a little stone. He laid on the mantle that night not knowing what it was. A few days later the old Buddhist priest came by and saw it and exclaimed: Ali Facid must be back from his search. No, came the response. Then where did that diamond come from? The farmer replied: I was out plowing in the garden and found it there. And friends, did you know that from that very garden, for this is not a legend but a true story, came the jewels and diamonds that today adorn the crown heads of Europe and Russia. In Ali Facid's own back yard there were acres of diamonds and he knew it not. My friends, I know that the [your church's neighborhood] is not like [name two neighborhoods in your area that are experiencing growth] in terms of extensive growth. But, I also know that there are acres of diamonds right here in our own back yard. There are people right here in our area that do not have church families, who are not committed to Christ, and who are waiting to be asked. We don't have to look to other areas of the city. All we have to do is pick up the diamonds that are right beneath us. Staff, www.Sermons.com ________________________________________ A young man approached the foreman of a logging crew and asked for a job. "That depends," replied the fore¬man. "Let's see you fell this tree." The young man stepped forward, and skillfully felled a great tree. Im¬pressed, the foreman exclaimed, "You can start Monday." Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday rolled by — and Thursday afternoon the foreman approached the young man and said, "You can pick up your paycheck on the way out today." Startled, the young man replied, "I thought you paid on Friday." "Normally we do," said the foreman. "But we're letting you go today because you've fallen behind. Our daily felling charts show that you've dropped from first place on Monday to last place today." "But I'm a hard worker," the young man objected. "I arrive first, leave last, and even have worked through my coffee breaks!" The foreman, sensing the young man's integrity, thought for a minute and then asked, ‘"Have you been sharpening your ax?" The young man replied, "No, sir. I've been work¬ing too hard to take time for that!"5 When Disney World opened in 1971, Walt Disney was not present to witness the grand opening of his greatest dream come true — he had died five years earlier. Dur¬ing the spectacular opening ceremonies, the host of the festivities introduced Walt's widow, Lillian Disney, who would say a few words on stage for the occasion. "Mrs. Disney," the host beamed with reverence, "I wish Walt could have seen this." Lillian stood up, walked over to the podium, adjusted the microphone, and said, "He did." And then she sat down. That simple statement said it all.2 The young salesman was disappointed about losing a big sale, and as he talked with his sales manager he lamented, "I guess it just proves you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink." The manager replied, "Son, take my advice: your job is not to make him drink. Your job is to make him thirsty." So it is with evangelism. Our lives should be so filled with Christ that they create a thirst for the Gospel. Preaching, November-December 1985

The Prodigal Mother

March 31, 2019 – repreach of 3/11/13 – 3/17/07 The Prodigal Mother Fourth Sunday of Lent Year B Luke 15:1-3, 11-32 Children’s Sermon "For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found." And they began to make merry. Objects: Some horns, drums, and other party items. Good morning, boys and girls. How many of you like a good party? (Let them answer.) Do you remember the last party that you went to? (Let them answer.) I brought along some things that I thought might help us think about a party. (Pass out the party toys.) If we were planning a really special party, we might even call in some clowns. Wouldn't that be an exciting way to have a party? When do we have parties? (Let them answer.) That's right, birthdays and other times when we want to celebrate something that is really happy or important. Jesus told a story about a father who had two sons. The older son was always good to his father and worked hard on their farm. But the younger son did not like to work and asked for his share of the family's money, then ran away to have a good time. It wasn't too long until he had spent all of the money, and he was broke. He got a job taking care of some pigs, but he also had to live with the pigs. Finally, one day, he made up his mind to go back and ask his father to forgive him. So he went back, but before he could say anything to his father about how sorry he was, his father ran out to greet him and tell him how much he had missed him. Finally, the father had a big party to celebrate his son's happy return. Jesus told this story to show us how glad God is when we change our minds, and come back to tell him how sorry we are for our sins. God is so happy to have us back that it is almost like a party in heaven. God loves us a lot, and he misses us when we leave him to go off in another direction. But God is so happy when we come back, that it is like a very happy and wonderful party. It isn't easy to come back to God. Sometimes we are afraid, or we think that God doesn't want us when we have been bad, but this isn't true. God always loves us and is really pleased when we change our minds and come back to him. Remember, going back to God is like being a part of a party in heaven. We don't know whether there will be any clowns, but we do know we will have a wonderful time there! C.S.S. Publishing Co., CALL IN THE CLOWNS!, by Wesley T. Runk Luke 15:1-3 Common English Bible (CEB) Occasions for celebration 15 All the tax collectors and sinners were gathering around Jesus to listen to him. 2 The Pharisees and legal experts were grumbling, saying, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” 3 Jesus told them this parable: Luke 15:11-32 Common English Bible (CEB) 11 Jesus said, “A certain man had two sons. 12 The younger son said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the inheritance.’ Then the father divided his estate between them. 13 Soon afterward, the younger son gathered everything together and took a trip to a land far away. There, he wasted his wealth through extravagant living. 14 “When he had used up his resources, a severe food shortage arose in that country and he began to be in need. 15 He hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into his fields to feed pigs.16 He longed to eat his fill from what the pigs ate, but no one gave him anything. 17 When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired hands have more than enough food, but I’m starving to death! 18 I will get up and go to my father, and say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. 19 I no longer deserve to be called your son. Take me on as one of your hired hands.” ’ 20 So he got up and went to his father. “While he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was moved with compassion. His father ran to him, hugged him, and kissed him.21 Then his son said, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I no longer deserve to be called your son.’ 22 But the father said to his servants, ‘Quickly, bring out the best robe and put it on him! Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet! 23 Fetch the fattened calf and slaughter it. We must celebrate with feasting 24 because this son of mine was dead and has come back to life! He was lost and is found!’ And they began to celebrate. 25 “Now his older son was in the field. Coming in from the field, he approached the house and heard music and dancing. 26 He called one of the servants and asked what was going on. 27 The servant replied, ‘Your brother has arrived, and your father has slaughtered the fattened calf because he received his son back safe and sound.’ 28 Then the older son was furious and didn’t want to enter in, but his father came out and begged him. 29 He answered his father, ‘Look, I’ve served you all these years, and I never disobeyed your instruction. Yet you’ve never given me as much as a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours returned, after gobbling up your estate on prostitutes, you slaughtered the fattened calf for him.’ 31 Then his father said, ‘Son, you are always with me, and everything I have is yours.32 But we had to celebrate and be glad because this brother of yours was dead and is alive. He was lost and is found.’” Common English Bible (CEB) Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible You don’t hear of me that story that was just read to you did you? I am Lydia, the mother of those two boys. Those two very different boys. Nathaniel, my oldest, and then there is Zachariah, he will always be my baby. And of course I am Simon’s wife. I am beginning to think that the whole world knows my story – some people seem to think that our last name must be prodigal. They refer to the prodigal son, the prodigal father, the prodigal sons. But I never get mentioned as the prodigal mother. Prodigal means either extremely wasteful, or extremely abundant. The funny thing is, I don’t think of my family as extreme at all. We are very normal, just like any other family. And the story told is not about the behavior of any one of us – it is about all of us, together as a family. It is a story of our families struggles with faith – faith in ourselves, faith in one another- faith in a God who goes out of the way to love us. But anyway, let me tell you a little more about my family. Do any of you have children? So you know that no matter how much you try to raise them the same- they come out so different. Each with their own personalities and their own stories. Take for instance, my baby, Zachariah. He was always so active and always asking questions. When he has younger, it was easy to keep up with him, and to keep up with his questions. Mommy, why did God make the sky blue? Why is it that we don’t eat the meat of pigs, like the people who live in the camp down the way? Why can’t I go play with the kids that I see in that camp – they seem to be having so much more fun. As he got older, his question got a little harder – why do I have to work in the fields with daddy- I would rather have time to dance and to learn to play my music. And then it just seemed that his questions got to hard for us to answer as parents- why do I have to stay here? Why do you want to find a wife, I am don’t want to settle down here. And then one day I think that Zach’s questions got to big, even for himself to answer. My gosh, I will never forget that day – the day that he asked my husband for his inheritance. My husband said that he felt like a knife had been struck through his heart. And it had, after all asking for his inheritance was the same as saying I wish you were dead- so that I could go on with my life. My hsband, simon, swallowed his pride, put aside his hurt. He did it – he gave Zach his inheritance and let him go- out into the world that he has always seemed to look to. We had to let him go- let him go to find what he was looking for. But I was greatful on that day that I have two sons- two very different sons. My oldest son Nathaniel never asked any of those questions. As a matter of fact, he never gave me any trouble at all. Whatever we told him – he accepted it, whatever we taught him he did it. He never wondered what was going on out there- he was always there to help his dad. We knew, from the moment that he was born that Nathaniel would be the one to take over the family business. And he has never not for one moment in his life, given us any reason to doubt that decision. Now that he and his new wife are expecting, we are looking forward to passing the business on to the next generation. And passing on our faith, which our family has held onto for many generations before. But of course, my mind always goes back to Zach, my baby. It’s like he needed to go on a journey to find himself. Those questions had to be answered. He is not a bad boy- and I know that I raised him to do the right thing. I don’t think that he will get too out of hand, when he goes onto town. And the faith that I taught him- he hasn’t come to temple with us in a very long time. But I know that God is in his heart- and God will take care of him. And Zach will return to the faith that we taught him in time. I just need to give him some time. God promised that anything that is lost will always been found. Anything that is lost will eventually be found- even family members that you don’t understand. Have you ever lost something? My family has a history of being lost, and being found. Lost to God and found by God. For years we wondered in the desert, trying to escape the oppression of Egypt. But I think the oppression of being lost in our own wilderness, is far worse than anything that someone else can do to you. To be lost somewhere between who you are and who God calls you to be – can be a horrible feeling. To be stuck between a past that you know doesn’t work – and a future that you don’t know or understand- that can be a hard thing. A friend of mine-her name was Virginia Daily, talks about a personal wilderness this way – she says that we look back with dismay upon our wrong decisions, poor choices, we dwell endlessly on our past mistakes until we make ourselves miserable and physically or emotionally ill, we are haunted by those the past, we keep dragging it out- continually rehashing of previous mistakes can cause us to lead gloomy lives. We don’t become free of that past, until we stop rehashing it in our spirits, and we are willing to give it up to God. There is a time to hold on to things, and there is a time to let go. There is a time to be lost, there is a time to be found. My family knows that well, being lost and being found. They wandered around in the desert for 40 years- trying to erase their past. It took a young man by the name of Joshua to lead the out of the wilderness, to the land that God had promised. They crossed the Jordan river, over into Gilgal – the place of a circle, the entryway into a new life that God had always promised them. A land of abundance, a land of freedom, a land of new ways, a land full of promise. And at that moment, you know a funny thing happened. In the wilderness, where they had no sense of direction, and no understanding of God’s promise. God provided a miracle for them. They ate that stuff there, on the tree. (see photo on the screen). Manna – a gift of sustenance from God. That was the miracle food that got them through the tough times. When the tough times were over, the miracle disappeared. But you know that funny thing is- that they didn’t need it anymore. Because the land that they entered-the promisedland- was full of food and many opportunities to create new ways of providing a new living. It is those times of transition in all of our lives, where we can realize that God has supported us, in ways that we couldn’t support ourselves. just as we realize that support as a gift of God- before we can become thankful enough to depend upon it- it disappears. And we are stuck in that moment of transition – when we ask ourselves the question – what do we do now. I bet you are in that transitional time right now- you are probably asking yourself what to do next? We all need resources to live- we’ve all experienced those times when those resources dry up and disappear. It’s funny, there is nothing in this world that last forever. Things that we think our very life depends upon can be taken away at a moments notice. I thank God for my faith during those times of transition. That story about Joshua helps me to realize that God had taken care of my in my past, and I may not know how, and I may not know why- but God will provide. In new and exciting ways- if I am open minded enough to listen and to learn. Everything that I need is growing right now, somewhere in the future that God has led me to. I just have to put aside old ways of thinking, leave old questions- and let God reveal a future that has always been promised to me. That happened to my family when they were finally willing to let the Egypt of the past go, and they entered into Canaan. I don’t know about your family- when good things happen my family celebrates with a feast. They had a Passover that people have been talking about for years. Anything that is lost will always be found. That is because God is always working – working to find us when we are lost, working to bring us back to the table, working to prepare us for the celebration. The celebration of life, the celebration of new life. I wouldn’t say even that God is a prodigal. God is not extravagant, or wasteful, or ridiculous. God know what god is doing. Bit I would say that God has a prodigal love for God’s family. An extravagant, ridiculous, abundant love for each and every one of us. God will do anything that I takes to find each and every one of us. God will go as far as sacrificing God’s own son for each of us. We are all gods children – and you know what- in those times when we are lost in our own personal wilderness- we can never find our true identity outside of God’s love for us. Speaking of personal wilderness, of searching for one’s true identity, asking questions that can’t be answered. He came home today! My baby Zach came home. I have never seen my husband run so fast for anything. But he welcomed him home. We are preparing for the feast now- to celebrate his being found. To celebrate being family. To celebrate God’s ridiculous, abundant love for our son, our all of us no matter who we are. I have two sons, one that had to leave to find himself, and one who has been here all of the time and just didn’t know. Maybe you can see yourself in their story. Maybe you can see your story somewhere in the story of my family? We are celebrating together, because God found all of us in the wilderness of our lives and bought us together to the promiseland. As you stand in the entryway of a life, what is is that you have to celebrate finding? Now that the manna has dried up, what are the new fruits of the land being offered to you? What preparations are you doing for the celebration? What have you found in the presence of God that you thought you had lost? And most importantly who is it that sits at the family table with you? And who in your family are you still praying for to come in from the wilderness and join the family meal?