11-14-2019

      Good Morning All,

                Romans 8: 26; “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.”

       I was watching the news the other day.  One of the stories was of a set of parents whose teen aged daughter had gone to school and did not come home.  They were anguished with the details.  They were pretty sure that she had run away.  They thought that she was in trouble somehow and had fled.  She may have been in the company of a man twice her age.  The pain in their eyes, in their voice and even in their posture as the stood and talked to the news reporter was evident.  They leaned on each other, wondering and suffering.

    There are times when we see this.  It often occurs when something happens that we simply cannot comprehend.  I hear it in the voice of those whose loved ones are suffering and the doctor’s prognosis is not good.  I hear it in the voice of those whose loved ones have laid suffering for years and yet are not called home.  I hear it in the voice of the person whose spouse just walked away without even a good-bye or an explanation.  I hear it in the voice of children who feel unloved.  We see the pain, the suffering and the confusion.

    How do we approach this?  How do we offer comfort?  How do we receive comfort?  Many question this.  Where is our comfort?  We know that our comfort, our only comfort and hope is Jesus.  We know that Jesus is our hope far more than just offering it or providing it; Jesus is our hope.  He is our only hope but when we suffer, how do we access that hope?

    Scriptures tells us to “stay in the Word.”  We do this by prayer and by the reading/hearing God’s Word.  Yet, if we are like the parents looking for their daughter, what do we ask?  Probably the best thing to ask for is God’s peace.  We may not know where to turn but we know that we are in turmoil and what we need is for that turmoil to end.  It ends where God’s peace begins.  It begins when we see that, as God’s children, we remain his beloved family.

    The God who loves you like that will never close His ear or turn His head.  He mourns alongside you and laughs with your joy.   He seeks to enfold you and those whom you love, even when you have wandered away.  He loves you in a way beyond what we will never understand, and He will answer your cries. Even as we cry, maybe without even knowing what or how to cry, God hears our spirit and our heart.  He hears your sorrow and sends you his peace.  It may be painful; but it will not last forever; only God’s love lasts forever.

Father, there are so many times when I do not know what or how to pray; yet you hear me.  You send your Spirit to comfort me.  You send your Spirit to bring me peace.  It is your peace that I need and it is your peace that I desire.  Be with those who are especially troubled in their heart and in their life.  Send them your Spirit we pray.  Give to them and to all your healing.  In the precious name of Jesus we pray, amen

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret   

11-13-2019

Good Morning All,

       Psalm 119:165; “Great peace have those who love your law; nothing can make them stumble.”

    In 1993, Junior Brown sang a song called “Highway Patrol”.  It was a song that talked about being a highway patrol officer.  Part of one of the verses goes like this:

So watch out what you're doin' when you're drivin' my way
If you break the law, you'll hear from me, I know
I'm a-workin' for the state I'm The Highway Patrol.

This simple somewhat silly song reflects how mist people view the law.  It is a list of rules that are designed for the “gotcha” principle; you break the law and now I’ve “gotcha”.  For many, trying to get around the law is part of life; we see what we can get away with.  How much over the speed limit can you go before they “gotcha”?  How much overweight can you be before the scales “gotcha?”  How much can you lie on your income tax before the IRS will audit and then “gotcha”?  Laws, it seems, are about limits and then our attempt to circumvent, avoid, distort or twist to our own designs. 

    This view of the law is why so many Christians struggle with the idea of “God’s Law”.  To many, it is simply a list of do’s and don’t’s that we are supposed to obey and when we don’t then God can grab us, shake us and say, “gotcha!” and nothing can be further from the truth.

    In the Bible, especially in the Hebrew of the Old Testament; the word “law” is actually “Torah” and this is better translated as directions or instructions or teachings.  It might be better if we viewed the Torah as our owners’ manual.  It is God telling us how we, as the human creatures that we are, are designed to operate.  Remember sin has wiped away from us all knowledge of God’s will and design for us; kind of like a magnet on an electronic tape.  So we have no way of knowing what our true purpose is and what occurs for us to function at our greatest capacity and ability.

    So God gave his Law, His Torah, to us so that we can learn how we humans were designed to live and to function properly.  Man was originally designed to care for the creation.  Sin clouded that to the point that sinful man exploits and abuses all of creation (of which humans are part).  God reveals to us the right and proper way to live.  Some call this righteousness, some call it holiness; either way, it is God speaking to us and explaining how we are to live.

    Thus God instructs and teaches.  When we fall short, when we sin; it harms our relationship with God, with creation and with ourselves.  It makes the darkness greater and our ability to see God less and less.  It separates us from God.  So God forgives and then invites us to see his Law and to be what we were meant to be; his loving children.

Father, guide me to see your Law as my journey in faith.  Lead me to trust in your mercy and to follow your Law.  Guide us to see that it is the love for us that moves you to give us your Law. Guide us as we travel with you.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.   

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret 

11-12-2019

Good Morning All,

       Philippians 3:13; “Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,”

    Are we there yet?  Almost every parent who has driven their children from point “A” to point “B” has heard this.  “Are we there yet”; really is a very interesting statement.  Even though most of us have dealt with it with clenched jaws and frayed nerves and an annoyed response; it is a fascinating idea.  It assumes arrival.  The question, “are we there yet?’ has the very fundamental premise that we will get there.  Perhaps not as quickly as the rider who asks the question may want; but arrival is a given fact in the question.  The question recognizes that the ride might be long but arrival at the appointed destination is a given; a forgone conclusion.

    This is a tremendous truth within our faith; we will arrive.     One view of this is called the “now but not yet” view.  In this view, we are currently saved by the grace of Jesus but we haven’t received the fullness of what that means.  We will get it; we are just not there yet.  It is really amazing how much that little three letter word can instill confidence.  “Yet” always confers eventuality.  “Yet” assumes a further ending; and this is an ending that the world does not know.

    To the world, there is only then and now.  I used to be there but now I am here; but that is the end.  I used to be strong and athletic but not now.  I used to have great health but not now.  I used to have my whole life ahead of me but not now.  No wonder the world seeks answers in all the wrong places.  It is difficult to see any hope in a place where I am ending up.  The natural degradation of the human body, even the various parts of creation, leads us to a depressing idea.  This is the best it will be; yesterday was better and tomorrow will be worse because this is it.

    However, because of Jesus, those who are washed in the blood of Jesus get to end each phrase for each phase of life with the word “yet”.  We know that what we are right now is only a shadow of what we are to be.  We look forward to life with Jesus, eternal life in his eternal kingdom enjoying each day with the perfected body. 

   It always puts me in awe when I deal with many of our older believers.  Very few fear death; most look expectantly towards it because they see beyond death; they see the final destination; they hear the answer, “We are here!  We have arrived!”  We all know the joy of arriving at our planned destination; the excitement of who we are meeting and who is present.  It might be family members we rarely see or friends from far away or a new experience that we have desired for many years.  Jesus lets us always know that every situation has a “yet” to it.  “Are we there, yet?”  Soon, very soon, in a twinkling of an eye, there will be here and we will know his peace.

Father of all mercies; you give us hope.  You give us the right to say “yet” for we know that in You all the “yesses” of your promises are fulfilled.  Keep us focused on your wondrous light of hope that we may never despair but always hope in you.  In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret

11-11-2019

Good Morning All,

       Psalm 146; 3&5; “Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation…Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is on the Lord his God.”

    On Veteran’s Day we hear a lot about the “11^th hour of the 11^th day of the 11^th month.”  This was the time that the armistice which brought a cessation of hostilities and an end to the First World War.  This was supposed to be the war to end all wars; well maybe the next one will.  Yet even as we honor, even hallow, that phrase and what it means; it holds a darker meaning.

    The final details of the armistice were hammered out and agreed to at 5:00 am on Nov. 11^th.  For whatever reason, the armistice would not take effect until 11:00am.  It may have been for the symmetry, it may have been logistical, it may simply have been thought that it would take that long for the news to travel the frontlines, we may never know with absolute certainty but what we do know is that in those six hours between the agreement being made and the agreement going into effect; over 6000 men lost their lives in continued fighting.  The generals and the commanders knew the armistice was signed but they continued to fight the war.

    There are reasons for this.  It is hard to trust your enemy to all of a sudden stop fighting.  Some thought it was only a rumor, yet some sought out one last chance to gain a little ground, a little glory and a little prestige to take home.  So the war raged on, some saying it even intensified during the last couple of hours.  It was almost like the combatants decided to fire the ammunition rather than take it home and men died fighting a war that was ended hours earlier.

    This should in no way stop us from honoring the men and now women who place their lives on the line every day to keep us safe.  Most soldiers and most veterans offer a simple answer, “I go where they send me.”  There is only honor in that willingness to serve a nation and a people in this way.  Yet we are, once again, seeming to look to men for the right answers instead of God.  We are listening to the princes of this world, to their thoughts, opinions, ideas and edicts as the answer to life’s problems and these princes will let us down time and time again.  For these princes of the world truly only seek vain glory, selfish acknowledgement and sinful, delusions of greatness.

    Our hope, our only hope, is in Jesus.  He is our only true hope of salvation.  It is only through the blood of Jesus which was shed on the cross that we have forgiveness.  This is our only hope.  There is no hope found anywhere else in all of creation.  So we preach Jesus, we confess Jesus, we cling to Jesus in all trials and we look only to Jesus to bring us into the eternal glory of his everlasting kingdom. Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is on the Lord his God.

Father of all mercies; guide us by your Spirit that we may only look to you for all our truth.  Keep us from trusting in men of this age and princes of this world who only seek their desires.  Set our eyes on you that we may hold fast to your beloved truth, comfort and hope.  In the precious name of Jesus we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret

11=10=2019

Good Morning All,

       Matthew 6:9; “Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name”

   As someone who is an observer, it is fascinating to see how some people are “literalists” and some are “creative-ists”.  We all start as literalists; children are literalists to the extreme.  When my wife was still the librarian in the elementary school, the rule was they had to wear coats if the temperature was below 50 degrees.  Let it hit 50 or especially 51 and all the coats were off.  It might have been raining and a stiff, cold wind but at 51 degrees nobody wore a coat.  Yet as we grow, some become a little more “adventurous” and willing to stretch our wings.

    Our verse points to this observation.  How do you pray the Lord’s Prayer?  Do you say it just as you memorized it in Sunday School with no deviation because any deviation means you are saying it wrong?  Do you try to get it done in one breath?  Do you spend a lot of time wondering why the way you learned it is not in the Bible exactly as you learned it?  If you do, you might be missing a great part of this prayer.

    When Jesus taught this prayer to his disciples, it was about how to pray not necessarily what exactly to say.  “Pray like this.”  It is a learning tool as in; here is a way to do this.  Jesus was teaching his disciples what real prayer is.  It is not the vain repetition of the heathen nor is it the public spectacle of the Pharisees.  Prayer is about a relationship with God.  Prayer is about opening our hearts to God actually exposing our faults, fears, and failures to Him.  That is prayer.

    Now, you may be a word for word, never alter it, dyed in the wool literalist.  I am ecstatic that you pray.  But you might try to be a little flexible one time.  The Lord’s Prayer has a rhythmic pattern that allows for breaks and rests and suspension of speaking.  Take advantage of these breaks to add your personal petitions.  So, if you get to “give us this day our daily bread” and you are worried because your hours have been cut, the insurance costs are up and a tight budget got tighter; insert your concerns here.  If you are struggling with forgiving a brother, add this after “as we forgive others”.  If you are dealing with a hard temptation add it after “lead us not into temptation.”

    The Lord’s Prayer is a great pattern, short and to the point yet it does lend itself to a little personalization.  This personalization can, and should, increase the value of this prayer to us.  Rather than be a rote memorized set of words; it becomes a personal plea to God.  When you don’t know what to pray, start here and add your elements and these petitions can be added wherever and whenever you need.  God gives us prayer so we can speak our hearts.  Open your heart to him.

Father of all mercies, you give us prayer to speak our hearts to you.  Keep us from becoming so focused on saying the right words that we do not express our true self.  Guard our hearts that we always come to you with joyful expectations of your wonderful mercy.  In the precious name of Jesus we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret

11-9-2019

Good Morning All,

Matthew 6:12; “and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors."

    It is what truly defines Christianity yet is probably the most difficult thing for a Christian to do: forgive as we are forgiven.  One of the examples Jesus used to teach this point was the story of the man who was forgiven an astronomical amount of money and yet went out and punished another for owing him a few dollars.  The point being that we have been forgiven so much (everything we do as sinful man is an affront to God and is a sin!) yet the few things our neighbor does to need our forgiveness are so few (sometimes we exaggerate the harm we have received) that there should be no doubt in our mind to forgive our neighbor.  Yet we struggle mightily to forgive; why?

    Sometimes the slights are not so slight.  Painful events during adulthood--death, divorce, marital difficulties, personal illness or injury, job stress or termination, financial difficulties, among other challenges-–are all experiences that can contribute to feelings of bitterness and pain.  This can be especially true when the slights are repeated, maybe daily or more; and we endure the pain, the humiliation and the dismissal of who we are.  Yet even in these situations forgiveness is our best, really our only, option.

   When God tells us to forgive, it can be for the one who forgives as much as the one being forgiven.  When we fail to forgive, bitterness tends to be the fruit of our life and it is a bitterness that we swallow.  It has been said that to withhold forgiveness from someone is like drinking poison and hoping the other guy gets sick.  The truth is that only we get sick emotionally and spiritually; sometimes literally physically sick.  God knows his children so he tells us to forgive so that relationships can heal; the relationship we have with God, the relationship we have with our neighbor and the relationship that sometimes occurs within us as we try to make our sainted part outweigh our sinful part.

    The thing about forgiveness is that it is rarely a “one and done” deal.  We may have to forgive every time we see someone who has hurt us.  It is not uncommon to have to remind ourselves, “I have forgiven him” whenever we meet someone.  It helps if you can identify the signs your body gives you.  For me, I need to pay attention to the fact that I will clench my teeth and soon the back of my jaw aches; then the Spirit will nudge and say, “he has been forgiven; move on.”  Perhaps you know yours or you should find it out.  Forgiveness can be a lifetime in coming and a daily need.

   We struggle to forgive but God gives us so many reasons to forgive our brothers.  We can heal hurts and even heal our own bodies from the bitterness and bile we experience when we refuse.  Forgiveness is healing for everyone!   

Gracious Father, lead us into your holy truth.  Move us by your Spirit to have a heart that forgives. Bring healing to the brokenness we face and give us your holy peace.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret   

11-8-2019

Good Morning All,

        Psalm 9:1; “I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds.”

    With Thanksgiving only a few weeks away, the planning begins.  I planted pumpkins this year which are for making pie with.  My middle son is going to make a pumpkin pie with them; I will as well and the contest is on.  He will probably make a deep fried turkey with a great seasoning on it but I will counter with some slow cooked, slow smoked turkey breast to feast on.  He doesn’t even try to make stuffing; he can’t begin to match mine.  I just worry that he will bring cheesecake or pull out some other little treat that I am not ready for.

    This sounds a lot like a war story and not a Thanksgiving story.  We do have a good natured competition; one that I usually come in second on but the food is worth it.  Even though I lose, I don’t eat crow.  Yet this situation is all too common around our tables.  We are approaching the time of the year when most people declare it to be the most stressful 5-6 weeks of the year.  They spend time with relatives they would rather ignore, they eat meals which they do not enjoy and feel like they are watched, judged and sentenced by their “loved ones.”  Add to that, travel time, weather events and heaven help you if politics make an appearance at the table or right afterwards.

    Many have lost sight of Thanksgiving.  Even though every food magazine in the country has the perfect turkey or the perfect pie or the perfect side dish on its cover; it should not be all about the meal.  All this preparation takes a lot of time and energy and it detracts from the point of the holiday.  Stop, reflect on what God has done for you and give thanks for His abundant mercy.  Add to this that His perfect track record points clearly to a future of continued promise.  This is why the Bible so frequently tells us to give thanks.  Giving thanks reminds us of what God has done and is doing for us.  He is truly active in our lives and blesses his people.

    Even if it feels like this year has not been so wonderful; give thanks.  It will help you to remember who the God we have is and what wonderful blessing he does have for us.  One writer put it this way: If you are blessed then be thankful; if you are troubled then be hopeful.  We can be hopeful because God has promised to deliver us from the suffering of this world.  We have his promise of eternal life and the promise of comfort here is in this life.  We are not alone, we have a purpose, we have a hope and we have a promise that never fails.  Give thanks and remember all that God has done!

Gracious Father, we give you thanks for your bounty and joy.  Keep us ever looking to you for our hope and salvation.  Be with those who struggle this time of year; those who struggle with relationships, with their health and with their finances.  Give them your Spirit that they may look up to your glory and rest in your loving arms giving them the peace and the hope that they need.  In the precious name of Jesus we pray, amen.

  God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret