8/17/11 Usually I will talk about the word, "pray." But in Psalm 124:6, the word is "prey." My breath prayer for the day is "Blessed be the LORD, who has not given us as prey to their teeth." I don't like to consider myself as prey, as one is hunted by a predator out to eat me. I don't like to think of myself as on the run, scared, always looking over my shoulder. Thank God that the Psalmist sees the LORD as the one who rescues us out of this dynamic. We are snatched away from our enemies. We are not prey.
Love,
Lynn
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
eating for a good cause
8/16/11 I have figured out that the congregation that I get to serve as pastor likes to have a good time. Last night, our Endowment Committee had a deal with Mimi's restaurant, that any person or group with a coupon from our church would get 15% of their bill directed to the Fund. Cathy and I got there first. It was her first day back at work, coming from a day of teacher in-service. I was hoping that we could have a good meal and that she wouldn't have to cook. The meal was excellent. More than that, the atmosphere was exciting. Our church came out in great numbers. By the time we left at 6:20, I had already counted 45 people with the coupons. There was laughter. There were smiles. I got to meet new people who came as guests of our church. A young family who has been visiting our congregation shared a prayer concern with me. We paused and prayed right there in the restaurant. A family of 5 with 3 children came out. Another couple brought the mom in her 80's. We raised some money for the Endowment Fund. We raised some awareness about the Endowment Fund. More than that, we had fun, eating for a good cause.
Love,
Lynn
Love,
Lynn
Monday, August 15, 2011
the message
From my sermon on 8/14/11 from Romans 10:5-15
When I was growing up and going to worship, there was a time when the pastor stood up and gave a speech. We called it ….the sermon. In fact, for most of my years of preaching this Sunday speech has been called …the sermon. In the last few years though, it has come to be called by a different name…..the Message. How did that happen? I think that it may have something to do with our desire to connect with people, to make the Word of God come near where people live.
I have doing this for more than 33 years now, and I have always tried to make this speech relevant. You may wonder where I get these speeches each week. I know I wonder! One of the things I have learned to do is to pray as I prepare. Yes, I do the work of translating the passage of scripture, I read the commentaries, I interpret what is going on in the culture, but the most important thing I do is to pray, “God, what do you want your people hear today?”
So here’s the message that most often comes to me from God: Tell the people that I love them. That’s what the cross and resurrection of Christ are about. I have come near my people in Jesus. I know what they are going through. Jesus is broken for them and with them. I have raised Jesus from the dead to offer hope.
There is a new translation of the Bible, called the Message, really a paraphrase by Eugene Peterson. Part of this Romans passage he interprets this way:
It's the word of faith that welcomes God to go to work and set things right for us. This is the core of our preaching. Say the welcoming word to God—"Jesus is my Master"—embracing, body and soul, God's work of doing in us what he did in raising Jesus from the dead. That's it. You're not "doing" anything; you're simply calling out to God, trusting him to do it for you. That's salvation. With your whole being you embrace God setting things right, and then you say it, right out loud: "God has set everything right between him and me!"
I am going to ask you to do an in class assignment that will continue as a homework assignment. I want you to write down the message God has for you. What is the good news you have to share? Who is Jesus to you and the world? Writing this down is a teaching tool: it is a way to reinforce this lesson.
I know you may be intimidated by doing this. But consider this true story. One of the world’s greatest theologians was Karl Barth. He wrote a 13 volume series called Church Dogmatics, one of the most thorough explanations of the Christian faith. He was Swiss, but wrote a confession of faith that was used by the confessing church in Germany to stand against Hitler. He made only one trip the USA in 1962. After one of his lectures, he was asked, “Dr. Barth, can you summarize what you believe?” He answered, “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so.” You don’t have to write 13 volumes. All I am asking you to do is to take this sticky note and write what you believe about Jesus. What is the message?
You may want to hang it on one of the bright ribbons in the narthex. You may want to put it on your refrigerator door or your bathroom mirror. Most importantly, you may want to share with God’s people out in the world.
Still I know you are hesitant and insecure about doing this. You want to quote St. Francis of Assisi to me, “Preach the gospel at all times; if necessary, use words.” I want to praise you as a congregation. You are terrific at proclaiming the gospel through your actions. Your witness is clear through your good works. Two weeks ago, 11 of you went out on a Sunday Morning to the Church Under the Bridge. Earlier in the summer, we had taken a collection of clothing for our neighbors who live on the streets. Two weeks ago, we gave away more than 180 pairs of shoes, 5 tables full of pants and shirts and socks and women’s underwear, the very things our brothers and sisters had asked for. What a message!
But sometimes we need words. Yesterday, I went to the Austin District United Methodist Men’s breakfast. About 24 guys were there. When I first came in, I was greeted with the question, “Lynn, what’s with your Aggies going to the SEC?” You are not going to believe this, but nobody consulted me. The president didn’t call, and the AD didn’t ask my opinion. Here’s the thing about words: sometimes you have to start with small talk before you get to the big talk. Sometimes with guys you need to talk about football before you talk about his affair. Sometimes you need to talk about the horrible heat outside before you talk about heaven and hell. Our little talk can lead to the big talk.
As part of the program the United Methodist Men talked about the clothes closet they run for homeless men that is downtown and part of the ARCH, the community outreach to the homeless. I didn’t even know they did this ministry. After the program, I was visiting with one of the men who works in this clothing ministry 3 Mondays a month. He said, “We try to form relationships with these men. We call them by name. We look them in the eye. We shake their hands. Last Monday, I shook the guy’s hand. I was trying to let go, but he continued to hold onto my hand. He said, ‘Pray for me.’ So I took him out of the way. I kept holding his hand. I put my other hand on his shoulder. Then I listened…to God…to what was going on in this man. All I felt about him was anger. I prayed, ‘Dear God, you know your child, you know how angry he is, you know what is behind this…’ The guy was crying. I prayed for his healing. At the end of the prayer, I took him to the pastor because I knew he needed even more talk and healing.
We establish relationship. We listen…to God and to the person. We pray. We take the message out of this 2 dimensions into the God dimension. People need to hear a word from God. We have that good news.
Sometimes, people have gotten an MRI or an EKG, but they want to hear from JC. Sometimes, people measure themselves by the size of their stock portfolio. This past week they went up and down like a yo-yo. They need to hear the message of their worth as a child of God.
Who needs to hear the message that God has placed upon your heart? Who is in your sphere of influence? Is there a co-worker, a neighbor, a family member who need needs good news? You might write their name on that sticky note. You have a message and an address now.
Paul certainly did this. He met people where they were with the message of God’s love in Jesus Christ. In chapters 9-11 here in Romans, he is arguing that this love is for everyone. He did by going to synagogues and to marketplaces. He would witness when he was brought to trial in the courtroom. He walked and took boats to take the gospel to new places. He wrote letters to encourage the spread of the good news.
In this passage are so many words about the message: lips, proclaim, preach, confess, good news. Now it is our turn to share the message. That is the good news I have to share with you today.
When I was growing up and going to worship, there was a time when the pastor stood up and gave a speech. We called it ….the sermon. In fact, for most of my years of preaching this Sunday speech has been called …the sermon. In the last few years though, it has come to be called by a different name…..the Message. How did that happen? I think that it may have something to do with our desire to connect with people, to make the Word of God come near where people live.
I have doing this for more than 33 years now, and I have always tried to make this speech relevant. You may wonder where I get these speeches each week. I know I wonder! One of the things I have learned to do is to pray as I prepare. Yes, I do the work of translating the passage of scripture, I read the commentaries, I interpret what is going on in the culture, but the most important thing I do is to pray, “God, what do you want your people hear today?”
So here’s the message that most often comes to me from God: Tell the people that I love them. That’s what the cross and resurrection of Christ are about. I have come near my people in Jesus. I know what they are going through. Jesus is broken for them and with them. I have raised Jesus from the dead to offer hope.
There is a new translation of the Bible, called the Message, really a paraphrase by Eugene Peterson. Part of this Romans passage he interprets this way:
It's the word of faith that welcomes God to go to work and set things right for us. This is the core of our preaching. Say the welcoming word to God—"Jesus is my Master"—embracing, body and soul, God's work of doing in us what he did in raising Jesus from the dead. That's it. You're not "doing" anything; you're simply calling out to God, trusting him to do it for you. That's salvation. With your whole being you embrace God setting things right, and then you say it, right out loud: "God has set everything right between him and me!"
I am going to ask you to do an in class assignment that will continue as a homework assignment. I want you to write down the message God has for you. What is the good news you have to share? Who is Jesus to you and the world? Writing this down is a teaching tool: it is a way to reinforce this lesson.
I know you may be intimidated by doing this. But consider this true story. One of the world’s greatest theologians was Karl Barth. He wrote a 13 volume series called Church Dogmatics, one of the most thorough explanations of the Christian faith. He was Swiss, but wrote a confession of faith that was used by the confessing church in Germany to stand against Hitler. He made only one trip the USA in 1962. After one of his lectures, he was asked, “Dr. Barth, can you summarize what you believe?” He answered, “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so.” You don’t have to write 13 volumes. All I am asking you to do is to take this sticky note and write what you believe about Jesus. What is the message?
You may want to hang it on one of the bright ribbons in the narthex. You may want to put it on your refrigerator door or your bathroom mirror. Most importantly, you may want to share with God’s people out in the world.
Still I know you are hesitant and insecure about doing this. You want to quote St. Francis of Assisi to me, “Preach the gospel at all times; if necessary, use words.” I want to praise you as a congregation. You are terrific at proclaiming the gospel through your actions. Your witness is clear through your good works. Two weeks ago, 11 of you went out on a Sunday Morning to the Church Under the Bridge. Earlier in the summer, we had taken a collection of clothing for our neighbors who live on the streets. Two weeks ago, we gave away more than 180 pairs of shoes, 5 tables full of pants and shirts and socks and women’s underwear, the very things our brothers and sisters had asked for. What a message!
But sometimes we need words. Yesterday, I went to the Austin District United Methodist Men’s breakfast. About 24 guys were there. When I first came in, I was greeted with the question, “Lynn, what’s with your Aggies going to the SEC?” You are not going to believe this, but nobody consulted me. The president didn’t call, and the AD didn’t ask my opinion. Here’s the thing about words: sometimes you have to start with small talk before you get to the big talk. Sometimes with guys you need to talk about football before you talk about his affair. Sometimes you need to talk about the horrible heat outside before you talk about heaven and hell. Our little talk can lead to the big talk.
As part of the program the United Methodist Men talked about the clothes closet they run for homeless men that is downtown and part of the ARCH, the community outreach to the homeless. I didn’t even know they did this ministry. After the program, I was visiting with one of the men who works in this clothing ministry 3 Mondays a month. He said, “We try to form relationships with these men. We call them by name. We look them in the eye. We shake their hands. Last Monday, I shook the guy’s hand. I was trying to let go, but he continued to hold onto my hand. He said, ‘Pray for me.’ So I took him out of the way. I kept holding his hand. I put my other hand on his shoulder. Then I listened…to God…to what was going on in this man. All I felt about him was anger. I prayed, ‘Dear God, you know your child, you know how angry he is, you know what is behind this…’ The guy was crying. I prayed for his healing. At the end of the prayer, I took him to the pastor because I knew he needed even more talk and healing.
We establish relationship. We listen…to God and to the person. We pray. We take the message out of this 2 dimensions into the God dimension. People need to hear a word from God. We have that good news.
Sometimes, people have gotten an MRI or an EKG, but they want to hear from JC. Sometimes, people measure themselves by the size of their stock portfolio. This past week they went up and down like a yo-yo. They need to hear the message of their worth as a child of God.
Who needs to hear the message that God has placed upon your heart? Who is in your sphere of influence? Is there a co-worker, a neighbor, a family member who need needs good news? You might write their name on that sticky note. You have a message and an address now.
Paul certainly did this. He met people where they were with the message of God’s love in Jesus Christ. In chapters 9-11 here in Romans, he is arguing that this love is for everyone. He did by going to synagogues and to marketplaces. He would witness when he was brought to trial in the courtroom. He walked and took boats to take the gospel to new places. He wrote letters to encourage the spread of the good news.
In this passage are so many words about the message: lips, proclaim, preach, confess, good news. Now it is our turn to share the message. That is the good news I have to share with you today.
Thursday, August 11, 2011
a crumby God
8/11/11 My breath prayer today comes Matthew 15:27, :She said, 'Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table.'" Jesus is outside the boundaries of Israel in the region of Tyre and Sidon. A woman from way outside the boundaries of the Jewish faith, a Canaanite woman, approaches Jesus. She begs, and pleads, and intercedes on behalf of her daughter who is demon-possessed. Jesus is reluctant to act...until the woman pulls the punch line of even dogs get to eat the crumbs from their masters' tables. Even a little bit from Jesus is more than enough. I would rather have a crumb from God's table than all of the riches of this world. Just a little bit of bread and juice at the communion table become the mystery of the presence of Christ. Just a little bit of fellowship and prayer with some other believers is more than enough to sustain me for the journey. All I need is a crumby God.
Love,
Lynn
Love,
Lynn
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
collage
8/10/11 Yesterday, we had our annual staff retreat. We try to spend some time away from our usual routines to look back at what went well and what could have gone better. We look ahead and put some programs and ministries on the calendar. We address some problem areas and anticipate conflicts in launching new programs.
Every year, I try to have some surprise or enrichment to get us to look at things differently. In other years, we have had a drum circle or instruction in Xi Gong. Yesterday we met at Eye of the Dog Art Studio. Beverly was our resource person. She also happens to be the sister of Hilary our children's minister.
Beverly had us do a collage. We could choose a canvas mounted on a box. We could paint it, add pictures or words to it. Beverly had a huge collection of ephemera (fancy word for left-overs, like magazines, wrapping paper, sheet music, coins, buttons, etc.). We were to create a piece of art, using both sides of our brains. I was very task-oriented and finished before anyone else. I saw where the staff members were crowded around one area, so I would go to another area and let whatever I found there speak to me.
My collage was on the smallest canvas. I wanted to take the pressure off myself of trying to fill a large space. I painted the background a navy blue, my favorite color. I put the word "faith" in the center. I had butterflies as symbols of the resurrection. I have a piece of sheet music to illustrate my love of music. I had the word "Yes" in raised wooden letters (tiles from scrabble). I had a phrase, "it is ok to be assertive," as that is something I am integrating more into my life now. I had another phrase, "seeing thing differently" upside down. I had a key to show openness to God. I had a coin to show concerns over retirement. I had a dice to show that our choices matter, but I had the number 3 showing face up on it to illustrate that God, the Triune God, is Sovereign.
This is not an exercise that I would have chosen for myself, which is exactly why I wanted to do it. Our staff all shared their collages with the whole group. They seemed to have gotten a new insight into themselves and into one another.
Love,
Lynn
Every year, I try to have some surprise or enrichment to get us to look at things differently. In other years, we have had a drum circle or instruction in Xi Gong. Yesterday we met at Eye of the Dog Art Studio. Beverly was our resource person. She also happens to be the sister of Hilary our children's minister.
Beverly had us do a collage. We could choose a canvas mounted on a box. We could paint it, add pictures or words to it. Beverly had a huge collection of ephemera (fancy word for left-overs, like magazines, wrapping paper, sheet music, coins, buttons, etc.). We were to create a piece of art, using both sides of our brains. I was very task-oriented and finished before anyone else. I saw where the staff members were crowded around one area, so I would go to another area and let whatever I found there speak to me.
My collage was on the smallest canvas. I wanted to take the pressure off myself of trying to fill a large space. I painted the background a navy blue, my favorite color. I put the word "faith" in the center. I had butterflies as symbols of the resurrection. I have a piece of sheet music to illustrate my love of music. I had the word "Yes" in raised wooden letters (tiles from scrabble). I had a phrase, "it is ok to be assertive," as that is something I am integrating more into my life now. I had another phrase, "seeing thing differently" upside down. I had a key to show openness to God. I had a coin to show concerns over retirement. I had a dice to show that our choices matter, but I had the number 3 showing face up on it to illustrate that God, the Triune God, is Sovereign.
This is not an exercise that I would have chosen for myself, which is exactly why I wanted to do it. Our staff all shared their collages with the whole group. They seemed to have gotten a new insight into themselves and into one another.
Love,
Lynn
Monday, August 8, 2011
nothing can separate us from the love of God
from my sermon on 8/7/11 from Romans 8:31-39
We often read this passage at funerals. At funerals we may be asking the question, "Can death separate us from the love of God?" I don't want to make light of death. Grief can hurt. Wen we lose someone, there can be shock, numbness, denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and just pure exhaustion. We wonder if we have been left all alone.
We who believe in the God revealed in Jesus Christ have a particular answer to the question, can death separate from the love of God. In Jesus, we have a God, who has lived our life with all of its thoughts and feelings, who has died our death, and lives again so that we might live also. We follow Christ in life, in death, in life beyond death. So can death separate us from the love of God? We say, "No!" Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Paul is so sure that of this that he lists some 17 things that could threaten to cut us off from God's love: tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril, sword, angels, rulers, powers...
What's on your list? My suspicion is that you have a list of things that you think might keep God's love from you. Maybe it's who's on your list? What person threatens you.
Your list might contain the loss of your job. We have many euphemisms: laid off, made redundant, reduction in force, etc. It may be that you have retired. I know of us males it is particularly hard. So much of our identity is tied up in what we do. Can the loss of your job separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus? No.
Maybe it's cancer, such a dread disease. Yesterday, a longtime friend of ours was buried. Kelli was a teacher, a worker at NASA, a wife, a mother. She was a seeker. When we first came to know her, she was not a believer. We invited her to Bible study. She came with her questions. When she got cancer, her questions got clarified. I don't mean that God caused her cancer. I mean that Kelli started asking about the meaning of her life. She came to believe in Jesus Christ and to testify to his goodness. Can cancer separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus? No.
Can the start of school? It won't be long now, but the answer is still no. Can this awful Texas heat?...well, the answer is still no.
How about something you did a long time ago, something you still hold against yourself. You know right where the evidence is kept. You keep it carefully filed away. No. Paul says, nothing in all creation. We are God's creatures. Not even ourselves, our worst enemies, can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Our greatest fear is the fear of being alone. Paul affirms that nothing can separate us from the love of God. We are never alone.
There is one part of the passage I would like to omit, the part of being sheep being led to the slaughter. I don't like that imagery. I went back and read Psalm 44 from whence the quote comes. It is an affirmation of faith in the Lord God who has worked our salvation all down through the ages. It says though that faithfulness to God does not equal success and big rewards. In fact, sometimes faithfulness to God engenders persecution and hardship. Still, we remain loyal to God, in spite of the outward circumstances.
That leads me to my closing, a film clip, which I rarely do. It comes from Places in the Heart, a movie set in Waxahachie, Texas, during the dust bowl, during the Depression. In the opening scene, a young black man accidentally shoots the sheriff and kills him. A lynching follows. The widow, played by Sally Fields, who wins an Oscar by the way, is struggling with 2 small children. The bank officer places a blind relative as a boarder with her. She gets a black man to help her farm. They must produce a crop to keep the bank from foreclosing on the farm. There is a drought, a tornado, and all kinds of trials. They make it through. In this final scene, they are in a church service. The critics pan this scene, but I think it is so powerful. See them pass the elements of the sacrament of communion along the pews--the bread and the tray with the little cups. There are ordinary citizens in the town. Now watch closely, the black man who helped them farm is sitting in the pews with the racist white folks. He serves the blind man boarder next to him. He serves the 2 little children. They serve their mom. She serves her dead husband, who serves the young black man who shot him. The young black man says ever so softly, "Peace of God."
That is what is happening today in this sacrament of communion. As we gather at the table, we claim that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
We often read this passage at funerals. At funerals we may be asking the question, "Can death separate us from the love of God?" I don't want to make light of death. Grief can hurt. Wen we lose someone, there can be shock, numbness, denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and just pure exhaustion. We wonder if we have been left all alone.
We who believe in the God revealed in Jesus Christ have a particular answer to the question, can death separate from the love of God. In Jesus, we have a God, who has lived our life with all of its thoughts and feelings, who has died our death, and lives again so that we might live also. We follow Christ in life, in death, in life beyond death. So can death separate us from the love of God? We say, "No!" Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Paul is so sure that of this that he lists some 17 things that could threaten to cut us off from God's love: tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril, sword, angels, rulers, powers...
What's on your list? My suspicion is that you have a list of things that you think might keep God's love from you. Maybe it's who's on your list? What person threatens you.
Your list might contain the loss of your job. We have many euphemisms: laid off, made redundant, reduction in force, etc. It may be that you have retired. I know of us males it is particularly hard. So much of our identity is tied up in what we do. Can the loss of your job separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus? No.
Maybe it's cancer, such a dread disease. Yesterday, a longtime friend of ours was buried. Kelli was a teacher, a worker at NASA, a wife, a mother. She was a seeker. When we first came to know her, she was not a believer. We invited her to Bible study. She came with her questions. When she got cancer, her questions got clarified. I don't mean that God caused her cancer. I mean that Kelli started asking about the meaning of her life. She came to believe in Jesus Christ and to testify to his goodness. Can cancer separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus? No.
Can the start of school? It won't be long now, but the answer is still no. Can this awful Texas heat?...well, the answer is still no.
How about something you did a long time ago, something you still hold against yourself. You know right where the evidence is kept. You keep it carefully filed away. No. Paul says, nothing in all creation. We are God's creatures. Not even ourselves, our worst enemies, can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Our greatest fear is the fear of being alone. Paul affirms that nothing can separate us from the love of God. We are never alone.
There is one part of the passage I would like to omit, the part of being sheep being led to the slaughter. I don't like that imagery. I went back and read Psalm 44 from whence the quote comes. It is an affirmation of faith in the Lord God who has worked our salvation all down through the ages. It says though that faithfulness to God does not equal success and big rewards. In fact, sometimes faithfulness to God engenders persecution and hardship. Still, we remain loyal to God, in spite of the outward circumstances.
That leads me to my closing, a film clip, which I rarely do. It comes from Places in the Heart, a movie set in Waxahachie, Texas, during the dust bowl, during the Depression. In the opening scene, a young black man accidentally shoots the sheriff and kills him. A lynching follows. The widow, played by Sally Fields, who wins an Oscar by the way, is struggling with 2 small children. The bank officer places a blind relative as a boarder with her. She gets a black man to help her farm. They must produce a crop to keep the bank from foreclosing on the farm. There is a drought, a tornado, and all kinds of trials. They make it through. In this final scene, they are in a church service. The critics pan this scene, but I think it is so powerful. See them pass the elements of the sacrament of communion along the pews--the bread and the tray with the little cups. There are ordinary citizens in the town. Now watch closely, the black man who helped them farm is sitting in the pews with the racist white folks. He serves the blind man boarder next to him. He serves the 2 little children. They serve their mom. She serves her dead husband, who serves the young black man who shot him. The young black man says ever so softly, "Peace of God."
That is what is happening today in this sacrament of communion. As we gather at the table, we claim that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Thursday, August 4, 2011
what are you seeking
8/4/11 My breath prayer for the day comes from Genesis 37:14b-15, "He came to Shechem, and a man found him wandering in the fields; the man asked him, 'What are you seeking?'" I wonder if you ever feel like this, wandering in the fields. You are not outstanding in your field; you are out standing in your field, not knowing where to go, what to do. The question the man asked is a good one: What are you seeking?
In the church we have "seeker services." We believe that it is not simply "what" but "whom" are you seeking.
St. Augustine said it well long ago, "our hearts are restless, till they find their rest in thee."
What are you seeking?
Love,
Lynn
In the church we have "seeker services." We believe that it is not simply "what" but "whom" are you seeking.
St. Augustine said it well long ago, "our hearts are restless, till they find their rest in thee."
What are you seeking?
Love,
Lynn
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