Series: Facing the Road Ahead... Looking for Hope

May 24, 2015                                         
Heb 12:18-29, Matt. 12:9-21

It was Pentecost Sunday. As the congregation filed into church, the ushers handed each person a bright red carnation to symbolize the festive spirit of the day.

The people listened attentively to the reading of the Pentecost story from the book of Acts: about how the disciples had heard “what sounded like a powerful wind from heaven,” about how the Holy Spirit had appeared: “like tongues of fire.” Then came the sermon.

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon us,” the preacher began. 

“Like a powerful wind from heaven!” shouted a woman sitting in the first pew. Then she threw one of the red carnations toward the altar.

The preacher began again. “The Spirit of the Lord is upon us.” The same woman’s voice rang out: “Like the tongues of fire, like the tongues of fire!” And she threw a red carnation toward the altar. 

The preacher looked straight at her and said, “Now throw your pocketbook.”

To which the woman replied with conviction: “Preacher, you just done calmed the wind and put out the fire.”
-Submitted by Wesley Taylor, Tualatin United Methodist Church, Tualatin, Oregon.

Prayer

Pentecost is is often thought of as a time when the church broke free from its Jewish roots and was gathered up by the Holy Spirit and thrown into the world. We know the story well… Peter gives a powerful sermon… People turn back to God and 3,000 are baptized… and the birth of what we know as the church is born.

Yah… Hoo… let’s celebrate!!!

The Pentecost story tells us how and why the church came about and that somehow we are to replicate this today. As I look around our church today… I do not see this kind of excitement. In fact… the many places I’ve been I don’t see much hope. So… this Pentecost… our bible story today is much more appropriate… because Pentecost should be about… Looking For Hope!

 

As we conclude our series, “Facing the Road Ahead” today. And after our 1^st Transition Event last Sunday… we need to hear about some hope. We know transitions can be difficult, challenging, and uncertain, but God is with us… in fact… God has always been with us. Over the past few weeks we’ve learned the Road Ahead will be challenging, but we should Never Give Up, nor should we be Fearful. Last week… we learned that we Need a Purpose to open us to God’s Vision & Mission. And today… our focus is Looking for Hope.

We’ve all faced difficulties & uncertainties. All of us are looking for some hope in the midst of the challenges of life. We’re all looking for something to grab hold amongst the difficulties. Theologian Peter Gomes says of hope…. “Hope does not deny the circumstances of the present and hope doesn’t help us get out of our difficulties. Hope does help us get through.”

At our event last Sunday I noticed some long faces. I sensed you were feeling lost & dismayed at what you perceive as a loss.

The loss of a beloved pastor…

The Loss of families…

A loss of what once was…

The church is in decline… we all know it… I don’t like it any more than you do. However…it does no one any good to focus on what was… My friends… I have hope… Because the church of Jesus will never go completely away.

What you’re experiencing is a normal reaction of every congregation I’ve been in after the first event. You often can’t see what tomorrow looks like. Yet… in all of this I see a renewing spirit here at Good Shepherd. And yet… there is some apprehension…

Similar to the 2 encounters Jesus has in our story today.

Jesus encounters a man with a deformed hand and Jesus encounters Pharisees… Religious Leaders. The man with the deformed hand is seeking some solace in the Jewish Meeting… i.e. the church. The man is sitting in the back minding his own business and he’s just looking for some hope and peace. Because of his deformity… he likely is ridiculed, shunned, and shamed. Likely… the religious leaders are appalled that he’s in the church in the first place.  So… the church people see a way to trap Jesus and confront him with a question… “Is it right to heal someone on the Sabbath?” There are rules about not doing anything on the Sabbath… Jesus, sensing what their really up to… responds by saying…

“If you had a sheep that fell into a ditch on the Sabbath, wouldn’t you lift it out? People are worth much more than sheep, and so it is right to do good on the Sabbath.”

Jesus says, not only is it right to heal… it’s good to heal on Sunday… and he heals the man right in front of the religious leaders. Jesus implies…. What better time to heal someone than on Sunday!! Can you imagine!!! Of course we in the church would never object to something as disruptive as this… would we? All this guy was looking for was a little bit of Hope. All he was looking for was someone to love him despite his deformity.

Reminds me of little Eric… who at the time was 4 years old and wanted to receive communion with his family. So we set up a time to have a 1^st communion class. Eric was one of 14 kids who went through the class. Half the kids received their 1^st communion on one week and the others on the following week. Eric was to receive his on the 2^nd week. After the first week it became known that there was a rule about who could receive communion. It seems a person had to be in 8^th grade as it was stated in the churches constitution. We postponed the 2^nd class… that following week after the 1^st group… Eric came up for communion with his family, with an ear to ear grin. His parents knew of the decision to wait, but as we looked at each other Eric put out his cupped hands saying with sad eyes, “I want Jesus to love me too.” Eric received his 1^st communion.

In that moment Eric experienced hope. In the moment of Jesus healing the man hope was given.

When we bow to church rules we lose sight of the spirit of hope.

When we lose sight of that spirit… we’ve held back hope.

God’s promise of hope is found in Jesus… as Jesus says when he quotes Isa… “He is my chosen servant! I love him… All people will place their hope in him.” When we love… we bring hope to some one’s life.

In our Hebrew reading the people of God are disappointed with themselves for not following God and they have lost hope. They believe they have failed God on Mt Siani and that God is going to punish them. But God doesn’t do that… instead God tells them that they’ve come to Mt Zion… it might not be Mt Siani where they first encountered God with Moses, yet God says, Vs 23… “Here you will find all of God’s children, whose names are written in heaven. And you will find God himself. Who judges everyone. Also here are the Spirits of those good people, who have been made perfect. Even Jesus is here!!!”

I was part of a small group and a person in the group knew I was struggling gave me a newspaper article titled

“Feel Incapable? Looking for Hope.” Roger Campbell says,

-        Einstein couldn’t speak until he was 4 yrs old and didn’t read until 7.

-        Beethoven’s music teacher said of him, “As a composer he’s hopeless.”

-       Thomas Edison’s teacher said he was unable to learn.

-       Walt Disney was once fired by a newspaper editor because he was thought to be without ideas.

-       Caruso was told by a music teacher: “You can’t sing. You have no voice.”

-       Dwight Moody, now considered one of the most effective evangelists, had a 5^th  grade education and once wept before an audience, saying “God forgive a man who cannot speak properly.”

-       Jesus’ disciples were without impressive credentials, being called ignorant and unlearned, but their contemporaries found it impossible to ignore them because their lives demonstrated they had found something others needed. Their dedication, courage and faith made them world changers.

God seems to enjoy using weak but willing people to do great things to the amazement of those who are thought to be better qualified. The following title of a book I noticed in a pastor’s library caught my attention and lingers in my mind… “Why God Uses Nobodies.” Though I’ve never read the book, its challenging title keeps encouraging me to attempt things I might have thought too difficult to do.

My friends… we have HOPE here… because we will Never Give Up… We will Not Fear the Future… We will discover our Purpose… because We Have Hope.

This Pentecost season God is providing HOPE through our connection with Jesus so that we will be able to Face the Road Ahead together.

Series: Facing the Road Ahead... "Finding Purpose"

May 17, 2015                                               Heb.11:29 – 12:2, Matt. 28:16-20

There is a Charlie Brown comic strip where Lucy asks, “Why do you think we’re put on earth, Charlie Brown?” Charlie replies, “To make others happy.” Lucy says, “I don’t think I’m making anyone very happy… Of course, nobody’s making me very happy either.” Then Lucy screams at the top of her lungs…  

“SOMEBODY’S NOT DOING HIS JOB!”

Prayer

We’re in the 3^rd week of our 4 week series titled; “Facing the Road Ahead” of which we are reflecting biblically on Good Shepherd Lutheran’s transition process. We’re doing this to help the congregation be engaged in understanding who and what Good Shepherd is and how she carries out her ministry… not only for today but also into the future. While the road ahead might be uncertain, it is a road we must take if we are to engage our past so that it can inform our future. We are also doing this to learn something about ourselves and about what God has called us to be.

If you recall… I asked you to keep these three things in mind as we go through this transition process…

Good Shepherd’s Past… where have you been? What have you done?

Good Shepherd’s Present… is this a reflection of the past or the future?

Good Shepherd’s Future… What are your God Size dreams for the future.

Over the past couple of weeks we've learned to never give up. If we stay connected to Jesus, then there is hope &no reason to give up. Last week we learned not to fear because the Holy Spirit empowers us to focus on the abundance of God.

And today our reflection will focus on Finding Purpose.

“Finding Purpose”

The way to over-come the road of uncertainty is to discover or perhaps to re-discover your purpose. The bishop’s message yesterday to the assembly was about this very thing as well. He used the Luke and Acts stories which tells of the ascension to make his point that we in the church need to be about sharing the story. The ascension story has the disciples looking up to heaven and two guys who magically appear asking the disciples why they’re staring. Why are you here??? Jesus of course wants his friends to go and share his story. Jesus wants us to do the same… but we’re dumb founded just like Jesus’ friends are as they stare upwards.

Please keep in mind… Jesus’ purpose is not about hopes and dreams… Hopes and dreams are the excitement of our purpose. Hopes and dreams bring enthusiasm to the purpose. Purpose is the over-arching reason we exist as a community of faith. Hopes and dreams change… purpose not so much. Do you know that you do have a Purpose? It’s in your constitution!

Statement of Purpose: “the Church is a people created by God, empowered by the Holy Spirit, and called and sent to witness God’s creative, redeeming, and sanctifying activity in the world.”

It’s too long… but there it is…  Is this your purpose? It goes on to spell out how you will carry out this purpose. Is this your purpose? I want to caution you… think about this before you answer. Virtually every ELCA congregation has this purpose statement because it’s the model constitution of the “church”. You also have one on your web site… it’s titled Vision & Mission …

Good Shepherd is a congregation that is Alive in Christ… Faithful to Christ… Welcoming to All.   Is this your purpose?

Are you living this out in any significant way? Often purpose statements tend to be elongated with good intention, but carry little meaning for us. Vision and Mission get all kinds of attention today. For the most part we come up with nice sounding statements, but often have little connection to.

Vision & Mission and Purpose & Objective are often used interchangeably… You will find P & O used in the business world and Vision & Mission in the religious world… both have the same meanings.

o    Purpose or Vision = The Why You do what You Do.

o    Objective or Mission = The How You do what You Do.

So… what is Good Shepherd's purpose?.... Before we get to far… Let’s look at what Jesus says our purpose or vision needs to be.

Essentially, I believe Jesus tells us our purpose is to “Go to all nations, Make Disciples, Baptize, and Teach.” We know this passage well, yet we tremble when we hear it or we conveniently forget it. Essentially… in shorter form says what your constitution says. But even more simply… there are really only two imperatives our church purpose needs… they are GO!!!   And    MAKE!!! Let’s look at these.

First… GO! What does this mean? The Greek word used here literally means “To Pursue”. Jesus by His authority tells us to Pursue ALL people. Go… is the purpose Jesus is calling us to… by which we… “Actively Demonstrate Love, Mercy, and Grace”. Jesus taught his friends to actively demonstrate Love, Mercy, and Grace…. These are action words…

Jesus didn’t say Go to a place, or to only Christians, or to people like us.

Jesus said to go to ALL people…. In Acts it’s Jerusalem, Samaria, Judea, and everywhere in the world. So… the first part of the churches purpose is to GO!!!

Second… MAKE!

Some of you just got really nervous…

We are Jesus followers… Right!

We are the hands & feet of Jesus… Right!

We all proclaim Jesus is Lord… Right!

What does Jesus say??? …. “To Make Disciples.” To Baptize them, and teach them to do everything I told you”.

I was sharing this with a congregation and a person came up to me and said, “I can’t do this.” I asked why? They told me, “That word disciple scares me to death because it means I must go knock on doors.” I asked who told them that… they told me former pastors over the years told them that knocking on doors evangelizing made them disciples.

Is that something you’ve heard or been taught?

I believe the bible tells me that being a disciple of Jesus means to practice these 6 elements or practices… Simply discipleship or as I like to refer to it “Followership” is about these 6 elements or practices Prayer, Worship, Learning, Serving, Relationships, Generosity. Simply… these practices demonstrate how purpose gets lived out…

Simply I believe Good Sheps purpose… the churches purpose… that is never changing are these simple two words…

GO>>>> MAKE….  This is God’s church purpose for all churches… all faith communities.

The BIG question for us is….

Is this God’s church or a social gathering of like-minded people?

A story is told of a community of people who lived on a stretch of dangerous seacoast where shipwrecks often occurred. Eventually, some of the townspeople decided to put some time and effort and money into a rescue operation. A small life-saving station was built and the devoted members of the rescue team kept an ongoing watch over the sea, ready to use their little boat to search for survivors in case of a shipwreck. As the result of this volunteer operation, the town became famous because of the many lives that were saved.

More and more people joined and became part of the team. Soon a new building was erected. It was much larger than the first little building and it was beautifully furnished and decorated. And as more and more amenities were added for the members' pleasure and comfort, the new building was slowly transformed into a kind of clubhouse. As a result, some of the members began to lose interest in the rescue operation.

But then a shipwreck occurred and many survivors were rescued and brought into the clubhouse for first aid. During the period of the operation which lasted for several days, the frenzied activity caused the attractive "clubhouse" to be considerably marred by such things as bloodstains on the lush carpeting. At the next meeting there was a split in the membership. Most members felt that the life-saving operation was a hindrance to the social life of the organization. Those who disagreed were told that they could build another little station further down the coast. And, as the years went by, history continued to repeat itself. Today, so the story goes, that seacoast has a number of exclusive clubhouses dotting the shore – but no one in the area seems to be concerned with rescue operations.

Series: Facing the Road Ahead... "NO FEAR"

Aug 11, 2013                                                         Gen 15:1-6, Luke 12:22-34

Prayer

For those of you that weren't here last week we have begun a 4 week series titled, “Facing the Road Ahead” as the kick-off to the transition process that Good Shep will journey through for the next year. And… the road head does seem daunting and uncertain for sure. But… it’s a road we must travel nonetheless.

Last week we reflected on some of those difficulties and some difficult decisions Good Shep will have to make, and it will take great faith & trust in God to preserver through… to never give up…  Also… you may remember that I encouraged you to reflect during this series on…

Good Shep’s Past… where have you been? What have you done?

Good Shep’s Present… is this a reflection of the past or the future?

Good Shep’s Future… What are your God Size dreams for the future.

So… despite the difficulties we must preserver towards the blessings God has for us today and into the future. With this in mind our reflection today will focus on “FEAR”… more precisely… having “NO FEAR”

What do you fear today?

Many people worry about a lot of things they cannot control.

We worry about our kids… even after they've grown up.

We worry about our jobs & whether or not we will keep one.

We worry about our finances… our health… our relationships.

We even worry about our church and how God will deal with us.

We even ask ourselves why we worry in the first place… because at the end of the day… our worry was all for naught. Jesus tells us in Vs 25… “Can worry make you live any longer?” Well….NO…. Yet… we still have fears and anxieties about the unknown.

Remember last week I quoted Pr. Peter Marty of St Paul Luth. Davenport Iowa, wrote in the Lutheran Magazine, “Fear keeps telling us there is not enough to go around. Not enough time, not enough resources, not enough strength, not enough grace, not enough patients, not enough God.” He continues, “Trusting Faith believes in God’s sufficiency no matter what… trusting faith simply lends us the courage to walk through those fears.”

Look at our OT lesson today in Gen 15…“The Lord spoke to Abram in a vision, Abram don’t be afraid. I will protect you & reward you greatly.” The context of this story is that Abraham & Sarah are going to have a son even at their old age. Can you imagine that folks…. I know I wouldn't be all that happy if it were happening to me. In the end… Abraham believed in the Lord, and the Lord was pleased. Like-wise… Jesus says, “My little disciples don’t be afraid! Your father in heaven wants to give you the kingdom.” Jesus really is saying, why do you worry? There is a sense of… “Do you believe”… again Jesus is saying, don’t you “Trust Me.” You’re familiar with Psalm 23… “Though you walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will not FEAR.”

What do you fear today?

Do you fear dying? Or just as easily, do you fear living?

Do you fear not having enough money, food, gas, and housing?

Do you fear a health test like a mammogram or CT scan?

Maybe you fear being ridiculed, humiliation, or maybe being a failure?

Maybe your fearing what might happen here at Good Shep… about what kind of pastor you might call…. What will the church look like…

Or maybe what might come of the transition process.

Heck… you might even fear spiders, snakes, or other critters.

Peter Marty writes, “I've met people who strangely fear they might compromise some core Christian principle by getting to know another person who has a different faith understanding than they. Their gut tells them to love, but their boundary-oriented faith warns them to keep a distance.”

How many of you feel this way?

We say we need to love others… but often times keep our distance.

We say we need to change what the church should be about.

We say we need to do things differently to connect with other groups of people.

The truth of the matter is… fear of the unknown… the fear of how to do these things often drives our fears and anxieties, and we end up responding by doing nothing. The truth is… that FEAR is the by-product of human freedom.

It looks like this…

Those who have little fear… fear about having enough.

Those who have some fear… fear there will be enough to get ahead.

Those who have more fear… fear they will lose what they have.

Because of our freedom not only in this country, but our freedom in Christ we become afraid we will lose what we have thus finding ways to protect and hold onto those things we have.

Helmut Thielicke says, Jesus did not say… Look at the ostrich, how it buries its head in the desert sand and so tries to escape the fear of danger. No, he said: Look at the birds of the air, keep your eyes open, stand up straight and look to the heights where God makes known his grace and care.
--Helmut Thielicke, Life Can Begin Again (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1963), 143.

Jesus says look at the birds, the flowers, and all of creation… doesn’t God take care of them?

Jesus says… don’t be afraid… God wants to give you the kingdom…where is your heart?

Somehow we have allowed the fear of scarcity and limitation to infiltrate and compromise the abundance we have in God.

So my friends… there is no reason to fear… in fact we should have the attitude of “NO FEAR”!!

Jesus says in John 14:27… “I give you peace, the kind of peace that I can only give. It isn’t like the peace that this world can give. Don’t be worried or afraid.”

To not worry… to have faith… to believe… better yet… trust.

Today is the opportunity in the midst of uncertainty to grow in your discipleship and an opportunity to grow in your faith.

Close with story of an 85 year old Kentucky woman named Nadine Stair on what she would do If I Had My Life to Live Over. She says, “I'd like to make more mistakes next time. I'd relax. I would limber up. I would be sillier than I've been this trip. I would take fewer things seriously. I would take more chances. I would climb more mountains and swim more rivers. I would eat more ice cream and less beans. I would perhaps have more actual troubles, but I'd have fewer imaginary ones. You see, I'm one of those people who lives sensibly and sanely hour after hour, day after day. Oh, I've had my moments, and if I had to do it over again, I'd have more of them. In fact, I'd try to have nothing else. Just moments, one after another, instead of living so many years ahead of each day. You see… I've been one of those persons who never goes anywhere without a thermometer, a hot water bottle, a raincoat and a parachute. If I had to do it again, I would travel lighter than I have.”
--As quoted in Allan E. Mallinger and Jeannette DeWyze, Too Perfect (New York: Fawcett, 1992), 10.

Please say this with me… Lord, I won’t be afraid… you are with me!

Facing the Road Ahead... "Never Give Up"

Aug 4, 2013                                                     Rm. 8:28-35, 37-39, Jn. 10:27-30

Quotes:

Success is not final, failure is not fatal: It is the courage to continue that counts. --Winston Churchill

It's not whether you get knocked down, it's whether you get up. –V. Lombardi

Following Jesus is like riding a bicycle - if you don't peddle forward, U fall off.

Saints, it is said, are the sinners who go on trying.

PRAYER

We begin the Transition Process  with a 4 week sermon series titled “Facing the Road Ahead.” And throughout the next year many of my Sunday messages will be series based. There are several reasons for this…

First, over the years I’ve developed these series intentionally to help congregations to focus biblically on what God is calling them to be about. All too often… congregations lose focus and need reminding that all of this is really about God, and what God desires us to be about... that being focused on Him.

Secondly, the transition process is an opportunity to look within and to come to a deeper understanding of who Good Shepherd Lutheran is. It’s an opportunity to rediscover meaning and purpose and to empower you into the future.

Thirdly, Good Shep has some challenging decisions to make about what the future looks like. What will be Good Shep ministry focus be? For example: Will your focus be to keeping Good Shep traditions to the membership?    Or will the focus be to being inviting to other people that are not here yet? Will it be about growing disciples or Jesus Followers? Or about keeping ministry the same as it is now? These & others will be challenging & difficult decisions.

Lastly, this series and the transitions we will engage in are meant to help engage the entire congregation into meaningful conversation about the direction and future of Good Shep Lutheran. This is about rediscovering your God Dream for this community and to discern how you are going to live out God’s dream.

So… as we begin this process I want to encourage you to be thinking & reflecting about…

  Good Shep’s Past… both the good & the bad…

             Good Shep’s Present… is this a reflection of the past or the future?...

             Good Shep’s Future… what are your God-size dreams?

So… Let’s Start Facing the Road Ahead Together…

And the Road Ahead seems daunting and uncertain. We are living in difficult and uncertain times for sure. Families continue to struggle financially, there continues to be unemployment and under employment, Our communities still see civil strife, beatings and murders, robberies, and abuse in most if not all sectors of our society. The TV talking heads seem to fan the flames of uncertainty and fear. This fear and anxiety even finds its way into the church as well.

o    For example: What will we do with no Pastor?

o    Why do we have to wait so long?

o    Why do we have to do this process & reflection?

o    It seems the road is so long and difficult.

o    These questions are based on fear and uncertainty and on our own methods to survive.

o    I believe the transition process is helpful because it’s based on hope and faith through God provision..

Pr. Peter Marty of St Paul Luth. Davenport Iowa, wrote in the Lutheran Magazine, “Fear keeps telling us there is not enough to go around. Not enough time, not enough resources, not enough strength, not enough grace, not enough patients, not enough God.” He continues, “Trusting Faith believes in God’s sufficiency no matter what… trusting faith simply lends us the courage to walk through those fears.”

Jesus tells us multiple times to NOT be afraid…. DO NOT FEAR. Jesus says in our story today, “My sheep know my voice. And I know them… they will never be lost.” Paul says, “If God is on our side, can anyone be against us.”…“Nothing can separate us from God’s love.” What this tells us is if Jesus is central to our faith the difficulties and uncertainties will be minimal and we will be able to preserver…and to do this we will… “NEVER GIVE UP”  We’ll Never Give Up despite the storm clouds… despite the seeming endless road… despite the situations and circumstances of our lives… NEVER GIVE UP!!!

I’d like to reflect on 3 reasons to Never Give Up...

#1 reason to Never Give Up… Remain Connected to Jesus…

Peter says in his sermon in Acts 3… “God sent his chosen Son to you because God wanted to bless you.” Prior to Pentecost, Peter was an emotional wreck… in fact all the disciples weren’t all that confident that God was blessing them. At Pentecost… Peter finds the new confidence in Jesus, he chastises the religious people in the temple and basically says, “All God desires is that people turn back to Him.” Do you want to reduce your propensity to give up…Turn back to God… Meta-noia… and stay connected to Jesus? Friends… all of us… need to consistently discover ways to stay connected to Jesus and it will lessen the reasons to Give Up.

#2 reason to Never Give Up is to Become an Intentional Follower of Jesus.

Jesus says in John 10:27… “My sheep know my voice, and I know them… and they follow me.”

Are you following Jesus?  Last week we asked the question… Do You Love Jesus? This question revolves around the issue of Discipleship or as I like to refer as… learning to follow Jesus. We will reflect on this more specifically at another time.

Essentially following Jesus has 6 principles or practices that we need to do consistently… they are…

o    Community Prayer… Worship… Learning… Serving

o    Relationship Building… and Generosity

When we are intentionally and consistently living these practices or principles we are following Jesus… we are staying connected to Jesus. And when we are doing this we will Never Give Up!

The 3^rd reason To Never Give Up is that God Loves You No Matter What.

Paul says in Romans 8:33-35… “If God says his chosen ones are acceptable to him, can anyone bring charges against them? Or can anyone condemn them? No indeed! Christ died and was raised to life, and now he is at God’s right side, speaking to him for us. Can anything separate us from the love of Christ? Can trouble, suffering, and hard times, or hunger and nakedness, or danger and death?” Paul continues, “Nothing can separate you from the love of God.

One gets a little nervous when you begin to run out of money. When I was going to college and seminary I can’t tell you how many times I’ve wanted to give up when things got tough. It is easy to give up when you don’t see God doing all that much on your behalf. There are glimpses of God’s work… there were times when money showed up that helped out at just the right time.

It really gets down to holding on to trusting God’s provision and perseverance… as Paul states, even through the difficulties God is present. Because as Paul sees it… “If God is with us, can anyone be against us.”

So my friends… giving up is not an option… because we remain connected to Jesus… because we intentionally follow Jesus… and because God loves us no matter what.

In Closing:

This is kind of a humorous story, but this story lends itself to what we’ve been talking about.

Chuck Evans was a parishioner in a former congregation. What’s unique about Chuck is that he has an eye disorder that is making him blind. He is currently 85% blind today. After sharing his story I could tell Chuck didn’t think all that highly about himself. He seemed lifeless and depressed and you could tell he wanted to give up. He had lost purpose because of the difficulties.

The humorous part is that Chuck works for the IRS… that’s right… the Internal Revenue Service. At some point he will no longer be able to work there, but until that time the IRS makes accommodations for him. Chuck was when he could see was an accountant, and when he was part of the congregation I was serving he was about 70% blind and I asked him to be our treasurer. After praying about he came to me with tears streaming down his face accepting the invitation and saying, “You are the first pastor who never saw my blindness as a limitation.”

Honestly, the Holy Spirit spoke to me and I just knew he could do the job and I don’t like seeing anyone give up…

The Road Ahead Continues…

Do You Love Me?

April 26, 2015                                                                                   

John 21:15-17

Story: A pastor was teaching a Sunday school class about the 23rd Psalm. He told the children about sheep, that they weren’t very smart and needed lots of guidance, and that a shepherd’s job was to stay close to the sheep, protect them from wild animals and keep them from wandering off and doing dumb things that would get them hurt or killed. 

He pointed to the little children in the room and said that they were the sheep and needed lots of guidance. Then the pastor put his hands out to the side, palms up in a dramatic gesture, and with raised eyebrows said to the children, “If you are the sheep then who is the shepherd?” 

There was an awkward silence. 

Jennie, a young second-grader, said, “Jesus: Jesus is the shepherd.” 

The pastor, obviously caught by surprise, said, “Well, then, who am I?” 

Jennie thought for a moment, then said with a shrug,

“I guess you must be the sheep dog.”
—Patrick T. Gray, theadvent.org/sermons/pg050706.htm. Retrieved October 17, 2006.

Prayer

We start the transition process in earnest as of this past Monday night when I presented the council with an outline & time line of the transition process. You can get yours today in the gathering center… needless to say… after the presentation they felt very over-whelmed. You see… my role here is to poke you… prod and challenge you to think differently about ministry. I will not change anything at Good Shepherd. Any change will come from you… and in fact… you already know what you need to do… you really do! Furthermore… none of what I will share is all that new… you’ve heard most of this before. So… in the end… I asked the your leadership this question to think about, and I offer it to you as well…

What will Good Shepherd need to do to be effective for God?

And today’s message is a clue…Do You Love Jesus?

Today is often referred to as “Good Shepherd Sunday” which refers to Jesus as the Good Shepherd. This often means we hold Jesus up as a shepherd who watches, cares, and protects over us… his sheep. Isn’t that just wonderful?... we’re sheep!

If you know anything about sheep… you know then that sheep are often pretty dumb… they’re stinky… smelly…and prone to wandering off. While the metaphor may be appropriate… it’s rather insulting… But it’s probably important for us to remember and before we think to much of ourselves none of us are nothing more than lost sheep and in need of a shepherd… ie… Jesus.

And… Jesus uses this sheep imagery in our reading today to challenge Peter not only in his faith… but also his commitment.

Jesus says, Do You Love Me?

Let’s keep in mind that Peter and all of Jesus’ friends have wandered off… Yes… this same Peter who said he would follow, defend, protect, love, and never turn away from Jesus has been called out. And now… Peter is feeling the weight of his failure. Keep in mind that Jesus hasn’t dismissed or been critical of Peter. Jesus has forgiven and still loves Peter and all his friends.

Jesus hopes Peter has learned something not only about himself, but has learned something about Jesus as well. That Jesus is about love & forgiveness & grace.

Some believe this story is the charge for pastors to be shepherds over their flocks… feed my sheep… give great sermons… bible studies…visit people… care for the sick & lonely and be the shepherd.

I suggest this story is all about Peter and not about pastor’s or congregations. This is about Peter and in turn us as a lost sheep… and after-all we have a little bit of Peter in all of us. So… Jesus wants to know… Do You Love Me? This is an intentional question from Jesus. Jesus is looking for a decision from Peter. Jesus is also looking for a decision from us as well.

Lutherans get nervous here… “Make a Decision.” Here’s the distinction… this is not a question of faith… Faith is the Free Gift of God. In baptism, God took care of that… however, we have the propensity to always abandon Jesus… all his friends did and in the end had to make the decision to follow Jesus again. This is why Luther believed in daily communion with God.

Our gospel story Peter is a broken man and in need of forgiveness and grace. Jesus is asking Peter and us to make a decision… Peter… “Do You Love Me?” When Jesus called Peter at the start Peter was a fisherman. Jesus calls him to be a disciple-maker… A fisher of People. After Jesus dies, Peter reverts back to fishing for fish. Jesus comes and challenges Peter to make a decision… Do You Love Me?

Calvin Miller in his book, “Into the Depths of God” shares a story of when he was first married… When Barb and I were first married, we moved to Kansas City, where I continued my seminary studies. She had never really seen me as a student, at least not in “her” house. Late one night I was reading Augustine when she came to me, slipped her arm around my back and said, “Do You Love Me?” “Yeah,” I said. “Sure I love you.” never missing a paragraph of Augustine.

Now… it’s hard for a woman to go from that wonderful euphoria of a honeymoon to nearly being ignored. So she leaned a little closer and said a second time, like Jesus said to Peter, “Do You Really Love Me?” And I said, “Sure I love you.”

Again I went on reading. And then she asked me a third time. “Sure I love you,” I repeated, getting a little exasperated. “Your mother loves you, the world loves you, and I love you… and I’m busy.”

It’s the only time in 40 years of marriage that I heard her swear.

When people ask you questions of love, and most certainly when Jesus asks you, the world must stop and you must answer them earnestly…. Jesus is asking… Do You Love Me?

Will You Make a Commitment?

Jesus asks Peter a 2^nd time… “Do You Love Me?” The language used here is emphatic… and Jesus’ tone has risen… Peter…. DO YOU LOVE ME? In the first Do You Love Me Jesus is looking for a decision… now Jesus is looking for a commitment. Peter responds in a wimpy tone… Yes, Lord, I love you. Often our response is the same… were more comfortable splashing on the surface. The deeper water is dangerous and unpredictable.

I remember talking with someone about participating in an event… they emphatically said, “No… I’m not going to do that.” I asked why? They responded, “You stretched me to far last time. I was way out of my comfort zone… and I didn’t like that… No!!”

Miller quotes Ian Thomas, “The tragedy of the People of Israel was 40 years in the wilderness. Every day they spent in the desert could have been spent in Canaan. For God had given them the land, but they would not believe that God who had brought them out was the God who could bring them in.”

Will You Live by the Will of Jesus?

Jesus asks Peter a 3^rd time… and even more emphatically… PETER>>> DO YOU LOVE ME?

The previous “Do You Love Me’s” were about Decision & Commitment. Now Jesus wants Peter’s and our total submission and we rarely grant this to anyone. Again Miller says, “It is hard to abandon what we want in favor of what God wants.” God wants all of us… not just the times we think it’s good for us. When we submit our will to the will of God, only then, will we experience the kind of life God has in store for us. Perhaps even the kind of faith community we dream about,

Do You Love Jesus?

Closing:

Do we want to be effective for God?

God already Loves Us… Forgives Us… Loves Us

Jesus asks us, Do You Love Me?

o    Can I decide and say earnestly… Yes Lord, I love You.

Jesus asks, Do You Love Me?

o    Yes, Lord, I commit my life to you.

Jesus asks… DO YOU LOVE ME?

o    YES… LORD, I WILL LIVE MY LIFE FOLLOWING YOU!!

See You Out on the Road!

Expanding the Soul

Lent often lends itself to deepening the soul. We often try to omit things from life believing it will somehow create a deeper sense of meaning for us. Lent often beckons the soul to searching... in our desire to find meaning we participate in those things we think will draw us closer to the creator... the source... God. We give up what we believe gets in the way of us living a truer life with meaning and hope. 

In many ways I like Lent. It offers an opportunity to gain perspective. There aren't many times during the year that lend itself to reflection and perspective making. Sure... these activities can and do happen at other times, but Lent seems to focus humanity a little more forcefully to looking at the soul. Even those who don't have any faith practices are often times influenced by those who participate in a Lenten practice as a way to deal with the mid to late winter blues. Especially those of us who live in the cold and snowy north.

So we practice Lent. We take intentional time to reflect. It's a time for introspection and learning and a time to grow closer to our self and to God. Dr. Wayne Dyer states, "human beings need to expand the soul... To develop a way to draw closer to our source... our creator... our God... as a way to experience real life." Of course... Dyer isn't necessarily talking about the Christian faith, but he is on to something I believe Lent offers those of us who are Christian. That being...the desire of God, is for humanity to come close to God. Dyer goes on to say we are created with a bit of the divine in us which he believes is the key to experiencing a greater reality of life in the here and now.

As Christians... we believe this to be true. We believe we were created and God made humanity in God's image (Gen. 1:26). In Gen. 2:7 God took some soil and made man and breathed life into the man. So... I believe it is true that within each of us lives a bit of God. A bit of the divine that seeks the divine. And each of us has this pull of the soul that yearns for something greater than ourselves. Something that provides hope, meaning, and understanding. Something that is often missing in our very full and busy lives. The reality is that the divine is not missing... we've chosen to crowd it out with other things. 

So... we experience Lent as a way to expand our souls towards the divine in hope that we will discover our true self's and live a more real life. Lent can do this... but there is a cost. For the soul to expand towards God... the fake self... the phony self... the ego of self must die... it must leave so that the soul might reach out and take God's hand. Jesus says in John 12:25... "If you give up this world, you will be given an whole new world to live." This is the expansion of the soul.

As you continue to live this Lenten season don't reflect so much of what your giving up or missing... think of it as drawing closer to the divine within your soul and reaching out to grab hold the hand of God as you begin to live a more authentic and real life.  

    

     

God is Doing a New Thing

In Isaiah… God gave the Israelite's an opportunity to go back to Jerusalem. For the most part… they were 2^nd generation Hebrews who were the kin of those who were exiled to Babylon some 70 years before. Some of them were pretty comfortable in their new surroundings… They had built a life and were not going anywhere.

However... some could see this new thing God was going to do. It was going to be a new way of life with God. You see… those that were exiled were not faithful to God… thus Jerusalem was destroyed. The people were told to forget the past mistakes of their kin and to be faithful and God would create something new.

So… some went… what about you… Do you see this new thing God is creating?

What do you see?

Isa. 43:18-19 is a favorite passage of mine. God shouts out... "Forget about the past, I'm creating something new, There it is... Do You see it?

I share this as I begin a new venture at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Royal Oak, Mi. as an Intentional Transition Pastor. The bulk of my work with congregations as I've shared previously is to help congregations may pastoral and ministry transitions. In other words... I help congregations or as I like to call them "Faith Communities" CHANGE! And we all know how we all love that word... CHANGE.

At my previous call, Cana Lutheran, Berkley, Mi. uncertainty, anxiousness, hurt, and change all played a role in what now is a new creation. We were able to work through all those things and come out with a new understanding of ministry and mission to the community. They have a clearer sense of who they are and what their mission to the community is. In fact... they have a stronger foundation from which to build off from than previously. I believe I can say with certainty... God is going to do some amazing things with Cana in the future. 

Now I begin work with another faith community at Good Shepherd. I'm excited about entering into what God will do with them. They are anxious, grieving, and generally wondering what's going to happen over the next several months. It's to be expected... their long time pastoral leader retired and now they have to look at themselves and say, "What Now" and that's why I'm there. To help them discover the "What Now" in their ministry.

It won't be easy because CHANGE is coming and many people... especially people in the church... don't like change. But it's coming whether they like it or not. I won't make them change... but they will all on their own... Why? because First... I'm not their former pastor. I am who I am... that being much different from their former pastor just because I'm me! 

Secondly... it's a new day and things have changed from yesterday. In fact... life changes everyday and so we make changes if not daily... many times a week. Change just is... 

Lastly... it's an opportunity to look at the way we've always done it and do it different'y in the future. It's also an opportunity to look at ourselves and how we can as God's people have greater impact in our community. Most importantly... it is an opportunity to strengthen our faith and make new commitments to being a disciple of Jesus.

Like the Israelite's back in Isiah's time God is giving them an opportunity to forget about the past and to do a new thing. And in the end... God will do some amazing things with them and through them.

Now it's time for a transition to take place. A time to let go of the past. A time to be open to the work of the Holy Spirit. A time to open our hearts and minds to the Word of God. And a time to create something new... 

It sort of reminds me of the song from the "Byrds" "Turn Turn..."

My new friends at Good Shepherd... 

Do YOU see it?  

Quote from the writings of Martyred Arch-bishop of El Salvador Oscar Romero which seems appropriate... 

“We water seeds already planted, knowing that they hold future promise. We lay foundations that will need further development. We provide yeast that produces far beyond our capabilities. We cannot do everything, and there is a sense of liberation in realizing that. This empowers us to do something, and to do it very well. It may be incomplete, but it is a beginning, a step along the way, an opportunity for the Lord’s grace to enter and do the rest. We may never see the end results, but that is the difference between the master builder and the worker. We are workers, not master builders; ministers, not messiahs. We are prophets of a future not our own.”