Wednesday, September 30, 2015

9-30-2015



Good Morning All!!
     Romans 8:37; “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.” 
     Some of you who are a little too young may not know this, so you may have to ask your parents.  We are going to talk a little about a man named Vinko Bogatja.  He was very famous; he was on television every week.  Realistically, nobody knows his name but we used to watch him, every week.
     Do you remember the show “ABC’s Wide World of Sports”?  The show started with this intro:
        Spanning the globe to bring you the constant variety of sport! The thrill of victory...and the agony of defeat! The human drama of athletic competition! This is ABC's Wide World of Sports!
Vinko Bogatja was the skier who went tumbling down the jump when they spoke of “the agony of defeat.” The neat thing about that show was that it took the lesser sports and featured them.  You saw ski jumping and skating and bobsledding and track and field sports.  Through it all we got to see wins and losses, victory and defeat.
    We celebrate the sweet taste of victory.  We savor it some in different ways from others.  Some just sit back and take it all in, some run and jump and shout for joy.  However, for both the sense of joy and euphoria is great.  The sense of accomplishment, of self-fulfillment, of satisfaction for a reward for all the hard work gives us a sense of total joy.
      The people of Paul’s time knew what it was to watch the conquerors march into a city.  They saw the satisfaction on the faces of the soldiers, the centurions and the generals as they came through town.  They saw it and knew how it felt.  The people may have even had times when they were victorious in their life either through business success.  They knew what it was to see conquerors claim their prize to be on top of the world.
    Despite all the greatness of conquering, Paul tells us we are more than that, we are more than conquerors.  We are more through Jesus.  Jesus has secured our victory and won the battle and given us the prize.  We have eternal life because of Jesus’ atoning gift. 
     The man in our story, Vinko Bogatja, never ski jumped again after the tumble that he took.  Fortunately for us, whenever we take a tumble, Jesus is there to pick us up, dust us off and place us back in the conqueror’s parade.  Despite all of our failures and frailties, we are more than conquerors because of the saving grace of Jesus Christ.  We do not need to experience the agony of defeat for in all things God provides for us the needed items for our body and soul.  We truly know the thrill of victory for we are more than conquerors.
Gracious Lord, through you we are truly more than conquerors, for we are saved by your grace and favor.  We give you thanks for our victory over sin, death and the devil and the certainty of life eternal with you.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen
God’s Peace,
Pastor Bret

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

9-29-2015



Good Morning All!!
          Job 11:18; “And you will feel secure, because there is hope; you will look around and take your rest in security.” 
    What difference does it make?  I had a young lady ask me about believing in Jesus.  She said, “I get that when I die I will go to heaven but I’m dead; what difference does it make now?”  At first blush, this sounds like a somewhat selfish subject but deep down she wondered if it was all about death.  What is it that faith in Jesus as your Savior means to your life today?  We can see as we look at a couple of stories in the Bible.
    Both of our stories are in John.  One is in John chapter 4 and one is in John chapter 8.  In each story we read about a woman.  In the first, we read of a woman who had been married a few times and now was just living with a man.  This woman didn’t even feel worthy enough to get married.  She didn’t feel she was valuable enough to marry.  In the second story we read of a woman caught in adultery.  She was drug out into the street as the Scribes and the Pharisees were looking to stone her.  In both cases Jesus spoke to the women and in each case he gave them hope.  He gave them the forgiveness which gave them hope.  In giving them this hope, he gave them a future that they were secure in.  They were given hope and that changed their life.
    Hope still changes lives.  Hope still gives people a secure feeling.  Hope gives life.  Jesus calls upon you and me, as his Church, to give hope.  And just like Jesus gave hope, we are to give hope.  This means that we look beyond the circumstances and to the person.  Jesus didn’t look at these women and tell them to clean up your act then come and talk to me.  He didn’t tell them to fix their lives and mend the trouble; Jesus was the mending; Jesus provided them with hope.  It does not matter why the person is in pain or suffering; what matters is the existence of pain and suffering in someone’s life.  There should be no test or pre-qualification, there should only be the preaching of Jesus Christ as the crucified and risen Lord who gives hope.
   Hope can take different forms.  It might be as a baby sitter.  It might be as a mentor. It might be something as simple as a t-ball coach who spends time with a child whose home life is not so good.  Hope is the active expression of God’s mercy that exists in our life manifesting itself in the living of our lives. Hope gives us peace.  We have peace with God so in our hope we are secure because we know that we are his children.  We are the King’s heirs.  We are empowered by his Spirit to go out to the broken and the wounded of this world and to give them hope.  Don’t let fear or complacency hold you back.  Jesus gives you hope; share that same hope with someone else who needs it so desperately.
Lord Jesus, in you I have hope.  In you my future is secure in your eternal kingdom.  In you I have no fears or worries that I cannot defeat.  Lead me to the broken that I might give hope.  Lead me to the wounded that I might give comfort.  Lead me to the sorrowing that I might give consolation. You, O Lord, are our only hope.  Keep us safe in your loving arms.  In your precious name we pray, amen.
God’s Peace,
Pastor Bret          

Monday, September 28, 2015

9-28-2015



        Good Morning All!!
        Mark 13:32; “But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”
    You are reading this so the blood moon thing was a bust.  There were those who felt that four different blood moons in the past two years heralded the return of Jesus.  It caused some excitement; it sold a few books for some but other than something rare to see; it was a non-event.
    Many Christians get excited or anxious about events that point toward, or are supposed to point toward, the return of Christ.  They wring their hands and speak of it as a woe filled event.  They continually look for signs that point it out.  I don’t know why they want to plan and anticipate it; no one avoids it.  Sort of like those people who have safe homes hidden deep in the mountains so they can hide from it; think about that, they want to hide from God.  Adam couldn’t do it, Jonah couldn’t do it, and we won’t be able to either.
    Yet a close reading of Scriptures should give us comfort; perhaps, it can even give us joy as we look forward to the return of Jesus as Lord over everything.  Jesus tells us no one knows the day or hour.  That should pretty much end it.  No amount of searching or studying will reveal when God has determined to bring about the return of Jesus.  It will happen when it happens and we, as God’s children, should be looking forward to it.  We pray that it will occur.  Remember “thy kingdom come”?  We earnestly ask God to send Jesus as the triumphant king.  We pray this because when Christ returns all suffering ends.  All of the persecution, all of the pain and sorrow, all death ends.  We are reunited with the saints who have gone on to glory and with all believers to live in the renewed creation in perfect existence.  That will be the time when the victory is truly celebrated.  Jesus compares it to a wedding feast which we week long celebrations with fine food, fine wine and great fellowship.
    Until that day, we continue to try and bring hope and help to the broken and hurting in this world.  That is our purpose.  It is not to sit and look at the moon and the stars and wonder when.  Our purpose is to preach Christ crucified to the lost and condemned world.  Our purpose is to expand the kingdom of God.  Our purpose is to continue what Jesus started, to heal the sick and comfort the hurting and to offer hope to the hopeless.  The times will take care of themselves.  Our hope, our future is secure.  We wait, anxiously, for the return of Jesus.  As we wait, we offer comfort and hope.
Father of all mercies, we hear the rumble of falsehoods that can divert us from our task while we sojourn here on earth.  Lead us to remember that we are citizens of heaven while we serve you here.  Keep us focused on your wonderful Word.  Keep us focused on Jesus.  Guide us to bring healing to the broken world.  In the precious name of Jesus we pray, amen.
God’s Peace,
Pastor Bret 

Sunday, September 27, 2015

9-27-2015



Good Morning All!!
          Job 6:8; “Oh that I might have my request, and that God would fulfill my hope,”
         The Beatles sang about how “all you need is love.”  It’s easy or so they sang.  Sometimes, in our life, love isn’t all we need.  Sometimes when you face another day of pain from some heal issue that doesn’t seem to heal or you face concern about a loved one, who seems to be slipping away, or you face a crying baby one more day; love might not be enough.  You need a little hope.
    Hope is something that is often in short supply.  When sin entered the world, hope went away and despair appeared.  For many people, they might feel love but they feel that there is no future or any chance that tomorrow will be better.  That is exactly what the devil wants you to think.  The devil wants you to think you will never feel better or the loved one is already gone or the baby will always cry.  Usually, the devil adds insult to injury by trying to convince you it is your fault.  A life in this type of turmoil, in this type of despair often experiences incredible despair.  It causes thought of being worthless and of no value.
    Into this hopelessness, Jesus came to give us hope.  We have hope, that promise from God that we are his children and that tomorrow will be better.  We have God’s hope that we have eternal life and that our sins are forgiven.  This hope is certain.  There is nothing in our life or experience that can ever take this hope from us.  God’s love and mercy are always available to us.
    Jesus also instructs us to bring that hope that we experience to those around us who are in despair.  This might be visiting and praying with a sick friend and offering them encouragement but also actual time with them.  It might be offering that young mother an afternoon of babysitting so she can have a break.  It might be taking dinner over to that neighbor.  It doesn’t take a lot but one little act of sharing God’s love can give that person hope.  Hope that can lift the veil of despair.  Hope that can breathe life into a dark and dismal existence.  Hope is what is needed and it is what God desires us to give to those around us.
    So try to offer someone you know some hope.  Offer a prayer and time together.  Offer to aid where you can.  Offer a shoulder when you can.  Give them hope.  Give them what God has given to you.  Pray for them, pray with them and give them the hope that the world so desperately needs.
Father of all mercy, you give us hope through Jesus.  Guide us to be the agents of hope in this dark and broken world.  Lead us to the broken and the hurt that we may share your love, that we might share your mercy, that we might give them hope.  Through your Spirit all things may be accomplished.  Move us by your Spirit to reach out to the hurting.  In the precious name of Jesus we pray, amen.
God’s Peace,
Pastor Bret