We are Alive! (James 2: 14-26)

Dear Family,

There is a story, one that i have shared before, and i will continue to share, that goes like this. There was a Brethren minister sitting at a bus stop when she was approached by three evangelists, who were wanting to save souls for Jesus. They saw this minister, and they recognized that she was open to a conversation so they sat down next to her and began to listen to her story.

Finally they came to the reason for their approaching the woman, and one of the evangelists asked her, "Are you saved?" The Brethren minister looked at the man and ignored his question. A little put off by her ignoring his question, he asked again, "Are you saved?" Again she ignored his question, only giving him a quizzical look. A third time, and a final time, the man asked, "Ms. We have been talking to you for a while, and we worry about your soul. Are you saved?"

The minister looked at him and quickly replied, "I dont know. You would have to ask my husband. My kids. My sisters and my brothers. And all of my friends." For her to be a person of faith, her life should illustrate that faith. She embodied the teachings of James: Faith without works is dead. She held to the power of St. Francis of Assissi's words, "Preach the Gospel to all nations, and if necessary use words."

We love building the Kingdom, and we cherish seeing new people in our community of faith, but if we do not sweat for the Kingdom, get sore muscles for the Kingdom, and earn blisters for the Kingdom all we do is in vain. But if we literally leave a bit of ourselves with each person we meet, we will be leaving bits and pieces of the Kingdom with them as well.

Besides sweating, because we are working hard, is not only honest Kingdom work, it is great exercise for our bodies. And couldn't we all use a little more exercise? Amen.

Shalom,
jerry

Farmers at Heart: Mark 4: 1-20

Dear family,

Whether we are parents, teachers, or pastors, we love it when the folks we are trying to mentor and lead and teach 'get it.' When the light bulb goes off and when he or she has that epiphany moment, we dance just like David danced, only with our clothes on.

During my M.Div at Bethany Theological Seminary, i had a professor who would shout "Ding, Ding, Ding," if any of his students got the answer right. He would become as giddy as a parent gets watching his/her child excel. Watching Dr. Bach encourage and feeling his encouragement, i realized the power of teaching and the value of planting good seeds.

In our core being, i think most of us are farmers. We love the idea of planting a seed, a small minute organism that houses the DNA for what could be a huge apple tree, and we hold to the hope that somehow, in some small way, we can aid in that journey. It is natural. It is healthy. And it is godly to be this way.

But whose job is it to care for the soil? If our job is to sow seeds, and it is, who is responsible for the soil? Are we to worry about the soil of the people we disciple? To a small degree yes, but isn't it their responsibility to prepare their soul for receiving and the care for the seed? Isn't it their job to make sure they are ready to hear, truly hear, the word/seed? Yes it is.

Just as it is our job to always be attentive to who might be sowing seeds in our soul, and we must be ready to care for the soil so we can produce fruit that lasts. God gives us the soil, but we have to till up the soil so it is nutrient rich. We have to weed the stuff that longs to snuff out the life given to us. And we must add whatever healthy pieces to the soil so that we can be ready for a healthy, vibrant, amazing plant to produce fruit through us.

The formula looks like this: we prepare the soil. Someone else plants the seed. And finally, when all is right and good and ready, God does what God does so well. God ensures the seed becomes all that it was supposed to be. When all of this works together we will get a healthy tree, from a small seed, and we will witness the power of God's Kingdom, through us.

Farmers know that they have to prepare the soil, and they know that they have to sow good seeds, and they know that they must nurture the new seed if they want a bountiful crop. And when all of this happens, with God's grace upon them, they reap an amazing harvest. Sure they expect to lose some of the seeds to birds, there are always going to be birds. And some seeds will be uprooted by rocks moving and what not. Rocks will always exist. And there are some seeds that will spring up, but through the hot July sun, and lack of water, they will wilt and die. But the farmer knows the heart of his/her harvest remains, because he or she did all they could for the majority of the seeds.

And now it is our turn to do all we can to honor the seeds given to us, but also so we can get our seeds ready to sow in the soil God brings us. We are all farmers anyway, in our heart of hearts, so why not produce a crop with eternal rewards? Amen.

Shalom,
jerry

Re-Created for What? 2 Corinthians 5: 11-21

Dear Family,

I used to obsess over these shows that tell the story of a man or a woman going through the process of an 'extreme' makeover. They would get new clothes. A new hairdo. They might have plastic surgery done. Some suffered through dental work. But all of them longed for the day when their 'new' person would be revealed to their family and friends.

And the overall reaction was amazing. We love to see the transformation people can go through, helping them create a new person. We applaud their work and their willingness to change and we long to see where this new being goes.

But are they fully new? Does a cosmetic change equate a new person? Or is there more that must occur?

God is in the business of extreme makeovers too, but i wonder how deep God's transforming power goes? Does God remain on the surface, giving us new teeth and new hair, but leaving the inner parts to some other force? Maybe God sees our need for weight loss, so God gets us on the "Biggest Loser" campaign to save our hearts and our sugar levels. But is there a deeper level yet?

I think there is. God strives to go deeper into our being to alter our whole person. It is good to have a new appearance, because it can aid in our self confidence, but it is greater to be a wholy new person, because it changes our perspective as children of God. We may lose weight to ensure we have a healthy life, but we must align ourselves with the grace of God to have an abundant life.

Being created new, by God, is not key to the gates salvation principle, it is a calling to be something different, something other, something the world will not understand. Too often i dont see any divergence between the church and the world, and i know many will claim 'sins' as evidence of the new being. But i dont think that is what Paul is arguing for.

I think Paul is inviting us, as new creatures, to join God in the work of restoring the created order to God. How do we do this? By claiming our role to be ambassadors for Christ. Last week we learned that Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to be our paraclete, i am arguing now that Paul instructs us to be God's paraclete.

To be created anew is not to be taken lightly. Sure we must honor our bodies, because God put a lot of work into us. And yes turning from 'sin' is a healthy and necessary step into becoming the persons God created and intended us to be. But being new in Christ is also a call into work, Godly work, restoring work, creative work.

We are to work to protect creation, because God sent Jesus to heal the world. We are to work to restore relationships with each other, because God sent Jesus to save the world. And we are to work for peace and justice, because Jesus chose the cross over a violent uprising, giving us the example of what it means to be made new.

Choosing the godly path, over the worldy one, will make us look insane, but as Paul alluded to, if we are insane, it is for God. And why not be a little crazy for the divine? Amen.

Shalom,

jerry

The Allure of Being Positive: John 14: 15-31

Dear Folks,

A new fad that seems to be sweeping the world, thanks to Internet and GPS, is called geocaching. The game involves teams that get longitudinal and latitudinal coordinates to a hidden 'treasure' and teams race to find these buried troves of riches. Usually the prize is not really of value, but something that one signs one's team's name and then moves on to the next. Or some times new coordinates will be on the prize, inviting the team to go into the adventure some more. It seems to be the never-ending game of discovery.

And all the people have are numbers and a guidance system that helps them find their way.

Even if they never 'finish' the game, they continue to play and discover. We believe that a game must have a conclusion and there must be a clearly defined winner, but what if that robs the game of what it means to play? What if the joy comes in the pleasure of the adventure itself, and there is never a 'conclusion' just a never ending process? I believe that is what makes geocaching so exciting. It is never-ending, and it is like life itself, it is the journey that matters, not the destination.

And like geocaching, life has a guidance system that aids in the expedition: the Holy Spirit.

Geocachers don't fear the unknown, as they often find themselves in sketchy and mysterious environments, but they trust their teammates, they trust the head of the game, and they trust their GPS, so they simply enjoy the ride. But for some reason church folks do not approach life the same way.

We want all the facts now, before we dive into the murky unknown. We defend our hesitation and suggest that we are approaching life realistically, and those persons who seem overly optimistic and idealistic have their heads in the clouds. But why is that? Why do we, and i am guilty of this, why do we accuse optimists of not being realistic, when perhaps, just perhaps, they are truly the realists, but their faith, their hope, their trust, and their being rests in their creator, their sisters and brothers, and the Holy Spirit?

What would happen if all of us, who called ourselves Christian, approached life through the lens of deep faith, deep hope, and deep trust in God? How would we deal with the hurdles in life? Might we see them as part of the journey that adds to the experience instead of road blocks? Trying times build character, if we see them as opportunities to become more faithful in our walks with God.

And God loves to build character, i think.

So the next time a hurdle appears to impede our path, let's look at it as a chance to prove our hope and our faith in Jesus by enjoying the journey over, through, or around the hurdle. And when we look at life through the lens of what is good and whole and not what is lacking or bad, we will do more than enjoy life more ourselves, we will draw in a world wanting and needing what is good. Amen.

Shalom,

jerry