6-4-2016

Good Morning All!! 

           Romans 8:1-2; “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.  For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.”

    It is fascinating how we have to go about some things in order to accomplish our goals in life.  For example, if you have ever tried to walk a straight line; you will find that the task is easier if you pick out a point or object in the distance and then focus your eyes on it.  It is easier this way than it is to look down at your feet and watch each step.  Even though our goal is to walk a straight line; we accomplish it by looking far away, not close by.

    The same is true in baseball.  For the batter, his goal is to get to first base.  For the defender, his goal is to get the batter out.  Yet the batter does not focus his eyes on first base and the defender does not stare at the batter.  In both cases, the player watches the baseball.  The batter watches it in order to time his swing to hit the ball.  The defender needs to see the ball as well.  Neither player will accomplish their particular goal by focusing exclusively on the goal.  They have to focus and pay attention somewhere else.

    This becomes true in our faith life as well.  We want to live righteous lives according to God’s will.  We do this, not by focusing on the law but by focusing on God’s Spirit which lives in us.  It is true that God’s Law points out righteousness but we get there by being responsive to the Spirit that lives in us.  We keep our hearts focused on the love that Jesus gives us and in doing so we see and experience his righteousness and live in his pure love.

    So how do we do this?  God actually gives us a simple way to follow his command.  Rather than try and keep the law to appease God we work to aid the well-being of our neighbor.  This really is the Christian’s goal for obtaining the goal.  We follow the law of the Spirit by loving our neighbor, by caring for our neighbor.  Our goal is accomplished by focusing on the needs of our neighbor.  When we wonder what we can do to praise God, the best thing to do is to look around.  Do you have a neighbor who is lonely or needs help with something?  Can you mentor a child or a young adult?  Can you read a book to someone who cannot read?  Can you plant one more tomato plant or vegetable in your garden to help someone down the street? 

    These are simple actions yet all are focused on serving our neighbor and all fulfil the commandment of Jesus, “Love one another.”  This is the simplest and most God-pleasing action we can take.  We need to serve our neighbor in his needs.  This is how we live righteous lives according to God’s will; love one another.

Father, move my heart to see that serving my neighbor is serving you.  Move me to bring your incredible love to those around me.  Lead me to care for the needs of my neighbor.  Lead me to have compassion as you have compassion on me.  Protect us from all evil.  In the precious name of Jesus we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret 

6-3-2016

Good Morning All!! 

           Psalm 33:13; “The Lord looks down from heaven; he sees all the children of man;”

    The other day, I asked my wife if she knew where my battery charger was.  I looked in the shop, I looked in the garage, I looked in the basement; I couldn’t find it anywhere.  I did this three times and couldn’t find it anywhere.  I thought back to last using it.  We used it trying to get our lawn mower running but it wasn’t in the shop.  I let one of the member’s use it when their car wouldn’t start after church but it wasn’t in the garage and that was before the lawn mower so that didn’t matter.  Maybe one of my sons borrowed it.  That was a possibility but I couldn’t recall either of the likely suspects having asked.  I was stumped.

    The next day, my wife came in to my office mumbling something about “man eyes.”  “It was right where it was supposed to be, you just put the chainsaw on it.”  “You must have walked by it five times.”  “Man eyes?” what on earth are those?  Whenever I do those eye tests on Facebook I can see the hidden elephant and I can pick out which square is a different color; so what are “man eyes”? 

    Apparently my wife, and other wives, seems to believe that men can look right at something and not see it.  I can’t say that I necessarily do this.  I do think that my wife moves things and hides them and puts them back in an effort to confuse me but “man eyes” well, I just don’t see it that way.  Like I said, I see just fine; usually.  There are times when I am distracted or I am thinking one way and looking another but “man eyes” will never happen.

    The truth is we humans miss seeing many things.  We often fail to see the beauty in life and we see the shallowness and think that it is true.  We look to plastic features and put on smiles.  We look to the world and think this is how we should be.  We fail to see the truth and blindly follow whichever view feels good.

    Fortunately, we have God who looks out for us at all times.  We have God who sees us at all times.  We are never missed or lost from God’s sight.  God never has “man eyes”.  God sees us with a loving heart that causes a watchful eye that seeks to give us his blessing and favor.  God sees our pain, sees our despair and sent Jesus to remove our pain and to take on our despair.  Through the cross we have God’s perfect promise fulfilled.  Through the cross God looks at us as his children.  Through the cross God looks at us with love and compassion.  God always sees us and is ever present to offer us hope and comfort.  Under God’s watchful eye, we have peace.

Loving Father, you watch us with your loving eyes.  You see our pain and our sorrow and you give us hope.  Protect us from all of the devil’s attacks.  Defend us with your mercy.  Keep us in your loving gaze.  Be with those who are especially hurting or in pain.  Give them your Spirit of comfort and peace.  In the precious name of Jesus we pray, amen,

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret   

6-2-2016

Good Morning All!! 

              Revelation 3:20; “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.”

      Perhaps you have tried to have a conversation with someone who really does not want to have one.  Maybe they sit there and are focused on their phone or their computer.  Maybe they don’t acknowledge that you are even there trying to talk to them.  Perhaps you have even been part of the conversation where a door is shut between you and the other person.  Now you can’t even see them.  Now you can’t even see what reaction, if any, there is to what you are saying.  Conversation with someone who does not want to listen or respond to what you are saying is very difficult; trying this when you are in two different rooms is almost impossible especially if one does not even try or is actively hostile to talking.

    In many ways, this is what sin does to us.  It shuts the door between God and man.  It closes communication.  Before sin entered the world, communication between God and man was wide open.  The heart of man was entirely open to God and to listening to God.  This is part of the walking in the cool of the morning experience.  It is a time that is in perfect communication and communion with God.  But sin shuts the door.  Sin causes us to avoid conversations with God.  Sin causes us to fear conversations with God and sin clouds our heart, soul and mind in order that we forget how to communicate with God.  We sit in self-enforced silence.  We do all we can do to avoid listening to God.

    Yet God continually calls to us, comes to us, speaks to us, inviting us into this holy conversation with him.  He invites us to listen to his words of comfort, of love and hope.  He invites us in to hear of his great mercy.  He invites us to speak to him of our fears and our dreams and to offer our thanksgiving for the wonders of the mercies that God has given to us. 

    Yet we continually slam the door; we continually walk in our sinful ways.  This is where our verse can give us comfort.  Jesus doesn’t give up on the conversation.  Jesus doesn’t turn and walk away.  Jesus doesn’t throw up his hands and say, “I quit” Jesus never quits, even to our last breath Jesus is knocking on the door of our heart seeking to bring us comfort and hope.  When we stop slamming the door and start to listen to God’s perfect grace, we find peace in this life.  When we start to listen to God’s perfect love, we find comfort.  When we start listening to God’s perfect mercy, we find life eternal.  Jesus is standing at your life seeking you. Jesus desires you so that you might be saved.  Jesus seeks you so that he may talk to you and to tell you that he loves you dearly and seeks your salvation so that you may live with him in peace eternally.

Gracious Father, in you we have peace.  In your wondrous love we find comfort and joy.  Lead me to open my heart and mind to you.  Lead me to open my soul to the wonders of your love.  Guide me with your Spirit.  Be with those who have yet to open their heart and lives to you.  Bring them into your holy family.  Speak that all may hear.  In the precious name of Jesus we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret     

6-1-2016

 Good Morning All!! 

        Psalm 4:1; “Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness!  You have given me relief when I was in distress. Be gracious to me and hear my prayer!”

    "If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?"  We have asked this question before.  From its earliest form in the 1710 work by George Berkeley down through the years to its modern form, it has been a standard in philosophical discussion and debate.  It comes down to one of two thoughts.  The first is that sound is defined by the one who hears.  In order for there to be sound there has to be an ear to hear it.  The other thought is that sound is produced by the compression of air waves which emanate from a source.  Since sound is a mechanical action which involves air, as long as there is air there is sound.  And the debate goes on and on.

    If you sound a lament, cry out in pain or suffering and there is no one there to hear it, are you still in pain?  Of course you are pain exists because you experience it.  Yet there may be many times when you think no one hears.  I remember vividly a conversation that I had with an individual who was dying of cancer.  He commented on how he would awake early in the morning, around 3:30 am.  There was just total silence except for maybe a creaking board or the noise of the furnace running.  He said in the silence, it felt like all sound was stifled.  He would try to go back to sleep but couldn’t so he would try to pray but in the silence, he felt as if the sound of the prayer was swallowed by the thickness of the silence.

     Perhaps you have been there.  Trying to sleep in a hospital and trying to recover from some illness.  Perhaps your malady doesn’t appear to have a cure; “old age” the doctor says “you’ll have to live with it.”  Maybe late at night, when you reach over to touch the spouse who was there for over fifty years is no longer there, you silently cry out.  The person in an abusive situation, the Christian who faces persecution, torture and death cry out but are they heard or does the thickness of silence, the apathy of the world, destroy the sound?

     While the devil wants you to think you are unheard, God hears every cry.  The cry of a broken and contrite heart roars through heaven; God hears and God responds.  Just as a parent comforts a child who has fallen down and skinned their knee; so God holds us.  God holds us tenderly to his heart, enfolding his loving arms around us.  God hears and whispers back in a soft but strong voice, “be silent and know that I am God.”  Rest in the comfort of the knowledge that God, who created everything and redeemed you through Jesus is the one who is holding you and comforting you and will never let you go.

    So cry out to the Lord.  There is no silence so thick that God’s love and mercy cannot penetrate.  God hears and God heals.  Thanks be to God!

Father in heaven, you hear my cry and you comfort me.  You hear my sorrow and you console me.  Strengthen me so that I will always trust in your mercy.  In the precious name of Jesus we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret