James 2 – Favoritism and Faith in Action

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James 2 – Favoritism and Faith in Action

In today’s reading, James addresses what it means to reflect the personal, caring relationship God wants with every person. To offer extra grace or mercy to someone because of their higher socio-economic status implies that God’s grace and mercy are limited and only available to the highest bidders. But that’s not how the Kingdom of God is supposed to operate. Our doors should be open to ALL people, equally.

Our Christian faith proclaims that the Good News of God’s Love is for everyone so we shouldn’t get distracted by the superficial. I would love nothing more than for our town to describe us as “the church that will take anyone, it doesn’t matter who you are; if you want to love God, love yourself and love others… that’s all they seem to care about.” Let’s make that dream a reality.

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Virtue #3: Flourishing Churches Love the Local – Nehemiah 2, 4, and 6

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Virtue #3: Flourishing Churches Love the Local – Nehemiah 2, 4, and 6

Our buildings and our relationships with God, with ourselves, and with each other require regular maintenance. While the ancient Israelites needed to build walls to ensure their safety, today we need to continue the Methodist tradition of social justice work that tears down walls of prejudice and phobias that lead to fear, exclusion, and oppression.

If we look at the success of our own HOPE Food Pantry as well as how that success has led to new connections, new relationships, and new opportunities, I think you can all agree, “Only one possible conclusion can be drawn... God has been working beside us all along.” God continues miraculously working beside us as we share with others what it means to be part of the Kingdom of God, part of the family we love, the family we call our church.

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Micah 6:6-8 – Justice, Loving Kindness, Humility

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Micah 6:6-8 – Justice, Loving Kindness, Humility

What does it mean for us today to live out our faith walking hand-in-hand with a God who wants us to seek justice, show “loving-kindness,” and remain humble? Inspired by this, our daily prayer might be, “Lord, show me where and when I can nurture justice by fighting wrongs and healing wounds. Show me every opportunity to plant seeds of loving kindness, even if it’s just a smile or a few encouraging words. And help me feel you walking with me today.”

If anyone asks you, “What is God’s plan for us? What does God want me to do?” the answer is simple, personal, and open-ended: humbly walk with God while you seek justice and show “loving-kindness.” If we do this, we will find ourselves welcoming others into the place of healing and wholeness that we call the Kingdom of God.

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Luke 1:26-45 – The Advent of LOVE

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Luke 1:26-45 – The Advent of LOVE

Today’s Advent theme is love, and trust is certainly a huge part of any loving relationship. Through love, trust is able to overcome fear. Mary was too young, and Elizabeth was too old to birth new life. Yet, as an expression of their love for God, they both trusted God’s leading, miracles occurred, and their lives – and the world – were forever changed.

God called Elizabeth and Mary into co-creating the future. Of all the people alive, the Creator of the Universe said, “I want YOU, I pick YOU to help me do something new that will play a pivotal role in changing the world.” God calls out to us, today, in the same way.

During this Advent season, let us all follow Elizabeth and Mary, letting our love of God lead us into trusting God even more as we work with God and with each other to nurture what we already have while we seek new ways to birth the Kingdom of God into our community.

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John 13 – Washing Feet / Communion at a Small Country Church

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John 13 – Washing Feet / Communion at a Small Country Church

The disciple Peter plays a prominent role in today’s story. He is almost comically imperfect as he responds to Jesus’ expression of love – first by saying he wants none of this, then saying he wants it all, and later overestimates his loyalty to Jesus. It’s easy to criticize Peter’s lack of understanding and allegiance. But as someone said, “Peter is there to give the rest of us mere mortals courage.”

During this service, we celebrated Holy Communion. The next time you participate in this ancient, sacred sacrament, I urge you to pray, “Lord, what would you like to share with me through today’s bread and juice?”

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John 12 – Mary Anoints Jesus (a $40,000 pedicure?!?)

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John 12 – Mary Anoints Jesus (a $40,000 pedicure?!?)

Mary’s actions were her way of honoring God’s presence in her life. Her extra-ordinary generosity celebrated Jesus’ life of extra-ordinary service to others AND symbolically prepared Jesus for His extra-ordinary execution and resurrection.
Two questions for us today should prod us to consider how we utilize the resources we have.

  • In what ways can we sacrificially give as an act of acknowledging and worshiping God’s presence among us?

  • In what ways can we serve those in need while we confront the systems that neglect and oppress others?

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John 11:1-44 – “Lazarus, come out!”

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John 11:1-44 – “Lazarus, come out!”

“Lazarus, come out!” These may be the most powerful words in the entire Bible. In the previous chapter, Jesus described Himself as the Good Shepard who leads His sheep with His voice, a voice the sheep recognize, trust, and obey. Lazarus heard and responded. This story challenges all of us, myself included, to listen for, to trust, and to obey when God calls us to do something.

God desires to be in relationship with humanity which means including us as key participants in God’s healing, restorative, transformational work in the people and the world around us. Of what tombs and bondages do we need to come out?
Do we need to give up a vice – something that is causing harm to ourselves or others? What is holding you back from being all God created you to be?
Do we need to start doing something that is life-giving to ourselves or others?

Who can we invite to join us as we nervously step out of our tombs, lovingly unwrap each other, and joyfully begin living resurrected lives?

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John 8 – Dignity Instead of Shame

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John 8 – Dignity Instead of Shame

Without naming the crime, Jesus acknowledges the woman’s transgression and immediately offers her God’s love, grace, mercy, and compassion. When I read verses that talk about God judging us, I think about this brief exchange between Jesus and the woman. Today’s story is a powerful reminder of God’s ceaseless, tireless efforts to deliver us out of shame and into dignity, out of despair and into renewal, out of judgement and into blessing. Surely this is how the redemptive Kingdom of God operates. Surely this is the theology, the philosophy... the way of living into which God invites us.

The only question for us today is how can each of us offer the people we meet God’s love, grace, mercy, and compassion? IF each of us sincerely makes an effort to share those aspects of God’s nature with others, we will become better and better at loving God, loving ourselves, and loving others.

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John 6:14-35 – Peace in Storms

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John 6:14-35 – Peace in Storms

When we live into the Great Commandments of loving God, loving ourselves, and loving others (Matthew 22:36-40), we create space for Jesus to show up unexpectedly. Much like Jesus announced Himself and God’s presence to the disciples with “I am here,” we can announce ourselves and God’s presence – through word and deed – with “We are here for you. We are here with you in the middle of life’s storms. We’ll get through this together.”

We began this proclamation of God’s compassionate, healing presence this past Thursday when we gave hundreds of people smiles, laughs, and yes, food.

  • How will we continue our proclamation?

  • How will we share words of encouragement in checkout lines?

  • How will we show exceptional generosity to those in need?

  • How will we extend words of invitation to refugees who need to hear and know that they are welcome, wanted, and needed in the Kingdom of God?

These are not rhetorical questions; these are prayers to God. “Lord, show us how to be Your hands and feet! And give us the faith and trust to follow Your lead.”

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1 John 3:16-24 – Debbie Abbott – Love: The Act of Receiving and Giving

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1 John 3:16-24 – Debbie Abbott – Love: The Act of Receiving and Giving

We cannot bring about change in our community only by what we preach. Our actions must portray what we say and believe. Doing good, by its definition, is never complete. God’s love is a never-ending stream that we can tap every day. All of us have a role in both receiving and giving love. It’s ironic that when dealing with these positive commandments, we don’t ever come to a point when we can say, “I’m done.”

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The Advent of LOVE – John 1:1-9, 14

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The Advent of LOVE – John 1:1-9, 14

John’s story tells us that the essence of Jesus has always existed and plays an ongoing role in the creation of the universe, our planet, and every person who has ever lived.
John describes Jesus as being light in darkness. John’s words challenge us to acknowledge the darkness in our own lives and in the lives of others AND find ways to bring a helpful light into those dark places.
No matter who or where we are; no matter what we have or have not done, we fundamentally believe that the light of God’s love IS with us through it all helping us see hope in the midst of despair, helping us see faith in the midst of uncertainty.
What price are we willing to pay to be light in darkness, to bring God’s love to people who desperately need it?

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Generosity as Thanksgiving – Matthew 25:31-46

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Generosity as Thanksgiving – Matthew 25:31-46

According to this story, God’s only qualification for being “righteous” is quite simple: Did you actively try to alleviate the suffering of your neighbor? Recall the lesson from the story of the Good Samaritan, everyone is your neighbor, no exceptions.

As you give thanks to God this week for your many blessings, I encourage you to ask God to give you wisdom, direction, opportunities, and the courage to combine all of those into action. If we continually ask God for that package of blessings, we will certainly make God’s loving presence known to ourselves and to the people around us.

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Sharing God’s Presence – Matthew 26:17-30

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Sharing God’s Presence – Matthew 26:17-30

In Luke’s version of the Passover meal, the Last Supper, Rabbi Jesus says, “Do this in remembrance of me.” Do this… Do what? Last week we talked about the Great Commandments (Matthew 22:34-40) Jesus shared with His disciples: Love God, love yourself, and love others. Our answer lies in those precious instructions.

We can start “remembering Jesus” by following Jesus’ example. In response to God’s love for each of us… In response to your relationship with God, love others to the point of sacrificing your own comfort and security so that others may come to know God and enjoy a loving relationship with Him. Jesus did that repeatedly.

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The Meaning of Life – Matthew 22:34-46

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The Meaning of Life – Matthew 22:34-46

The Great Commandments Jesus quotes from Deuteronomy and Leviticus serve as perhaps the ultimate litmus test for our own lives and communities.
· How well are we loving God?
· How well are we loving ourselves?
· How well are we loving others?

These are not rhetorical questions. In fact, I often think we would do well starting and ending each day reminding ourselves of these three loves as an encouragement, a compass, and a litmus test – a way of determining where we are and what adjustments we need to make to keep everything balanced and healthy.

Here’s the Good News that Jesus proclaimed: The Lord, our God, our Creator is indeed with us and loves us more than we can imagine! God’s “plan,” the meaning of our lives, is to embrace that Divine love, share it with ourselves, and let it flow through us to others. That is how we create the Kingdom of God here on Earth.

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That’s Not Fair!… Or is it? – Matthew 20:1-16

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That’s Not Fair!… Or is it? – Matthew 20:1-16

Today’s parable lets us know that everyone, no matter when they come to embrace God’s love, is welcome in the Kingdom of Heaven. They come not by their works or how long they have believed, but by God’s Grace.
Do we rejoice or are we envious of new members? Many people we don’t expect to see in the Kingdom will be there. The criminal who repented as he was dying (Luke 23:40-43) will be there along with people who have believed and served God for many years.
We need to focus on God’s gracious blessings to us and be thankful for what we have. When we look at God’s generosity to others, we can see His love at work. We can spread the love by being His hands and feet in the world.

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Rejected but not Abandoned – Genesis 37:1-28

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Rejected but not Abandoned – Genesis 37:1-28

When you feel rejected by family or friends, know that God is still with you.
When you lose your social status or prized possessions, know that God is still with you.
When your wellbeing is threatened by others, know that God is still with you.
When your life dramatically changes from what you had expected or hoped for, know that God is still with you.

And when we begin to get a grasp of how much God loves us, of how God will never reject us, of how God’s arms are always reaching out to us, of how God is working in and through us, we may well ask, “God, why me?”

And God replies, “Because I made you; you are my child; I love you, I adore you, and I will do whatever it takes to share the journey of life with you. That’s why!”

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