Which Guests are We?

Fellow Banquet Guests... Last Saturday Kendra and I spent the evening in Shelby County, raising funds for Shelby County CASA. If you do not know what CASA is google it and google Shelby County specifically. Anyway. We were there as guests of Bridget Davis, who runs the program in Shelby County, and we were thankful that this year that many more of her invited guests showed up. Last year there were only four of us that made it, because the others were too busy. Why is this relevant? Because the night meant the world to Bridget and she wanted to share this night with those closer to her, when those closest to her found other things more important, well i can tell you its akin to the first invited guests in Luke 14. I rehearse this for several reasons. When we are too busy to accept any invitation to a special engagement, one that our hosts labored hard to make perfect, we hurt, some times unintentionally, our good friend. We might really be overwhelmed with scheduling and sports and kids and so much more, but if we do not take the chance to put it all aside, just for one night, for those close to us or ever those we worship with, we really let those persons know that deep down they matter little to us. To accept an invitation, even when it comes as a sacrifice, shows the hosts, that nothing matters more to me than sharing this night, this space, this meal, or this service with you. Funny thing how a rejected invitation, whether justiable or not, can harm, but when we take the chance to put our lives aside so we can go, how that makes all the difference. If that is how we react to invitation sent out, i wonder how God reacts to the numerous, unlimited invitations He has given to His children to come, and they, all too often, find other things to do. Come watch a movie with your sisters and brothers. I can't; i have my car to wash. Come help clothe the naked in our community. I can't; my garden calls, it is close to spring, and i must get the tomatoes planted. Or come celebrate the LORD's Supper, rehearsal the greatest meal Jesus shared with His disciples; I can't; the Mentalist season finale is on, and i dont want to miss it. If we refuse to come or find other things to do; God will invite those persons we don't want, and we will go the way of the Dodo... So will we answer the invitation, put our lives on hold so we can show our Host, which is the Author of Hosts, how appreciative we are for Him, but also how much we truly love Him? Or will we care for our gardens, take our kids to daycare, mow the lawns, wash our cars, or watch football? If we do not come to the party, God will bring those in. You know the ones; the ones who will truly appreciate the invitation. And if we do come, and there is still room, which there will always be room, why not assume that God wants us to fill His house with the very people who need God: the poor, the oppressed, the sick, and the broken-hearted Jayhawk fans, then not only will our house begin to feel full, it will also, perhaps for the first time, be ready for the great party God intended. Amen. Shalom, jerry

My Country Tis of Thee...

Dear Folks,



It is a gorgeous day outside, but i realize, even as i write these words, that there is a storm a brewing, change in coming, and how quickly spring fades back into winter. Oh the crazy ride we call life. But we are safe, right? We have solid homes? We have food on our table? We, most of us, have healthy families, steady jobs, and warm clothes. However, not all know the blessedness of much.



This week we will unpack what troubles our country, whatever each of you feels, believes is wrong with our country, and there are no wrong answers. This is truly a chance for you, each of you, to bring a symbol of what ails the United States, and there are no limits to what you can bring. And be ready to leave your broken gift at the altar, for good. But more than that, be ready to lift the brokenness to our God for healing, answer to prayer, and restoration of our united soul.



I chose Isaiah 40 because the author of Isaiah talks about the sins of Israel, and they are many. But God's grace is larger than even the sins of the people, as a nation. What are the sins? We are never told. But we are told that God stands ready to release their collective guilt and shame, so that they, as one nation, can return to the embrace of their Creator. The chapter feels almost like Job in that the author has to remind his hearers that God didn't need input when God created everything. God stood alone and created alone, and all that God created was good.



So bargaining with God, trying to tell God what God should do, as a race/nation of God followers, is rather arrogant and fruitless. God will simply blow the people away like the wind strips the flowers of their petals. But God's plan is not punishment but restoration and healing, because after the winds of God's Breath overwhelms the nation, God will send a prophet, one that speaks, acts, and represents the Divine. God is sending a Messiah, and if we would choose to listen, trust, and submit to the Creator of the Cosmos, the God who took clay and created life, then we can walk and not faint, work and not grow weary, and fly like eagles.



In the folds of God's embrace, truly in God's embrace, our country can soar to new heights of Divine blessedness. But what does a Godly country resemble? That, my friends, is the question that we all must wrestle with and work through, if we are to be, truly be, that great nation, the city on the hill, and dare i say, even the new Zion. For any nation that envelopes the fullness of God's will, automatically becomes the dwelling place of the Creator, and that lamp on the stand. But what does it take to be Godly? Amen...



Shalom,

jerry

Its time...

Hey folks...

One of my favorite novels is The Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. The first time i read it; i devoured the words, and the story of the people caught in the violence came together like scenes in a movie for me. It stands as truly one of the classics, not just in my humble opinion, but by scholars and book lovers worldwide. In the book, and i dont want to ruin it, a good French nobleman stands at the edge of dying, because the poor in France rise up to overthrow an oppressive, rich, powerful, and unjust upper class, so this wealthy nobleman, who is a good man, faces death.

But a miracle happens. Someone intervenes.

And without giving it away, the greatest line, at least in my thinking, of any book, comes to the front, "It is a far, far better thing i do than has ever been done."

Jesus said that too, nearly two thousand years ago when he yelled from the cross, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do." Then Jesus breathed His last and gave His Spirit up to God. In one violent, depressing, tortuous murder, God does something beautiful and life-giving. Through Jesus' death; humanity finds reconciliation and restoration. Before Jesus took His place, on the cross, we, all of us, were/are enemies of God, as Paul writes in Romans 5. But after Jesus' obedient, self-less act, God opens a door for healing to break into our broken, painful existence. Healing comes. Restoration comes. Reconciliation comes. Because Jesus, the very Son of God, chose to do the better thing.

And for that we should all be thankful.

We should bow our heads and lives before that symbol of torture and death; we should humbly reaffirm our faith in the One who died so that we could have life and have a connection to God; we should also recognize that it is not Jesus' death that saves, but as Paul alludes to in Romans 5; Jesus' life does so much more.

Jesus' life touches us where we hurt the most, breaking open the wounds of the past, so that God's healing balm can invade our being and restore us. It is the real hands of Jesus that restores hearing. It is the real spat of Jesus that removes blindness. And it is the real love of Jesus that meets the less thans, all the time, where they are. Jesus' life, not just His death, saves us. We focus on His death, while ignoring the power of His life. Why?

I dont know. But we ignore the saving grace of Jesus' life at the cost of our ministries and missions. Yes Jesus died for our sins. Yes His death reconciles us to God. We are no longer enemies; we are God's sons and daughters. But Jesus' life heals our being, now! And if Jesus' life heals, so should we. May that be the new narrative that God writes through us at the West Milton Church of the Brethren: that we are healing in the name of Jesus, through the atoning death of Jesus, but also through the life, teachings, and ministries of Jesus. The life that comes to life through the Gospels. May it be said of us that we embody the life of Jesus so radically that people flock for miles upon miles to hear, to see, and to experience this new thing. May that be our story. Amen.



shalom,
jerry