ps from ps: On an important day in our country’s history and as we remember those we lost on the first 9/11, can we follow the footsteps of Jesus and all work a little harder on being less divisive and remind ourselves how lucky we are to live in the US of A?
It will require some basic components of Jesus’ teaching: 1. More acceptance, less judgement. 2. More listening, less speaking. 3. More compromise, less digging in. 4. More grace, less condemnation. 5. More seeing another’s perspective, less narrow viewpoints. 6. More love. And more love.
As our firematic fire responders continue to run into burning buildings and dangerous MVAs scenes, they never ask party affiliation, sexual preference or religious background. They just use their gifts and training and do their work.
23 years after our worst national tragedy, it’s now up to every one of us to use our gifts and training from Jesus (see 1 thru 6 for details) and do our work.
Lord, stand with all who are hurting today. Help us to use our gifts, remember your training and do our work. Amen
ps from ps: Are you humble and hungry, like Coach asks us to be?
Coach McDermott asks this question of his Bills team….and WNY in general. Jesus asks his disciples the same thing. Except he adds one more piece….are you humble, hungry and hopeful.
In Mark’s gospel, Jesus busted the disciples arguing about who is the greatest. So he paused the crew, told them that the “last will be first, and first will be last” and grabbed a little tyke and said: stay focused on these guys! But before he did any of that, he had already told them his plan: head to the cross, give his life, beat death itself and rise again to return to his father so that all humanity would have eternal life.
He was teaching the disciples: that’s staying humble in how you follow, hungry in who you reach and hopeful for the promise that God’s gave to us.
You humble today? Are you keeping yourself in check? Are you remembering that it’s not about what we amass, it’s about how we love the masses?
You hungry today? Are you looking to see how you can change and affect the world? When your feet hit the ground in the morning, are you saying: “Thanks God for giving me another day! Now let’s get after it together!!”
You are staying hopeful today? Are you hanging onto the promise? Are you sharing that promise with those who are struggling? Are you letting that hope be your motivation to love your family? Your neighbors? To work through the grudges and hurts together? To know if you worry and grieve that the promise is there no matter what?
We/They as disciples sometimes argue about the wrong thing. We forget/forgot to deeply listen and focus on Jesus.
Guess what? Tomorrow…the next game…is another chance to let God’s love motivate us to be – Humble. Hungry. Hopeful.
Lord, help me to stop arguing about the wrong things and instead, be humble, hungry and hopeful. Amen
Jesus’ TSA requirements from Mark’s gospel – “He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics.” Makes it much easier loading and unloading the Temple area with so much less luggage I guess.
Travel light is an understatement here from Jesus as he instructs on what to take and then sends out the disciples. Long story short – he’s trying to get them to trust in God, relying less on themselves and more on God’s guidance and provision. In other words, God’s Light. So maybe Jesus’ instructions are exactly that – Travel Light.
They are being sent into the world to take God’s Light – light of love, light of grace, light of compassion, light of forgiveness. And in the times and places that the Light isn’t accepted or the timing isn’t right, they are invited to kick off the dust from their sandals and move on. Some other person is maybe better in that space. Some other timing might be better. More time for God’s Light to work its way into the nooks and crannies of the situation.
And when they Traveled Light, a couple verses later, we find out what happened: “They cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.”
Not bad!
What does Traveling Light look like for you this summer? No doubt, most of us are traveling from Point A to Point B for vacations, rest and maybe a family gathering or two. But what about Traveling Light in our normal daily routine? Could we travel lighter and Travel Lighter?
1. Can we travel light? What would it look like for each of us to depend on ourselves a little less and God’s provision and guidance a little more? Could we carry less literal baggage as we move through the day? The stuff we have. The damage we’ve had happen to us? The grudges we haven’t let go? The extra and more that we sometimes amass?
2. Can we Travel Lighter? Where is God calling us to go in our dailiness and as our Point B? Are there people dealing with “demons” that we can go to and be part of their healing process? Are there locked doors we are trying to push open that we need to walk away from and let God manage?
I don’t know about you, but as I envision this for myself, my chest feels less tights, I breathe easier and it feels like less weight on my shoulders.
Maybe Traveling Lighter is a gift we can give to ourselves, God and the world around us this summer.
Lord, thanks for the invite to Travel Light. Amen
Still in One Peace, ps ******* This will be the last “ps from ps” until September. In place of the weekly email, our leaders at St. Paul’s have compiled some of their favorite Bible verses to share with you. You will be able to find them on our YouTube page each week by clicking HERE. Enjoy summer, Travel Light and stay God’s course. ps
I could list out 126 things that you could potentially start your day with and probably still not hit all the possibilities.
I’m starting my sermon out this weekend with a song. You can listen to it HERE. Maybe you start your day off with this exact song?!
Whatever you do….however you start…today and everyday…do it with God’s purpose and intention in mind.
A friend of mine, Pat Hilkey, the pastor at Evangel Church in Clarence, is biking across the country this summer. This is his second go around. I’ve noticed in his updates on FB that he continues to encourage people following him to: Stay God’s Course. Notice he doesn’t say Stay The Course. But instead, intentionally, he says God’s Course. That’s a very different type of Course.
On his ride so far this summer, it hasn’t always been easy. There have been unexpected road surfaces, bike issues and extreme heat and weather challenges. But it every instance, he Stays God’s Course and has been able to see more clearly the Holy Spirit mixed in and among all the ups and downs of the ride.
But this only works because he’s set his intention. He started the ride, and each day of it, setting his focus on God’s hope and promise.
Where are you riding today? How are you…can you…start or re-start this day and set your intentions on Staying God’s Course. When you do that, just like Pastor Pat, you will see the Holy Spirit a bit more easily in and amoung the entire ride.
ps from ps “Across the South, we’ve had a deep appreciation of history. We just haven’t had a deep appreciation of one another’s history.” – Rev. Clementa Pinckney, pastor of Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, SC.
On June 17th, 2015, Rev. Pinckney and eight others were gunned down by Dylan Roof at church, after they welcomed Dylan into their Wednesday Bible study..
President Obama quoted Rev. Pinckney in his eulogy at the church a few days after. He was encouraging those who were in attendance, and those who were listening, to work harder at listening to those unlike us and sharing God’s amazing grace with them.
I think we could still use the reminder today.
As we move through the anniversary of the Emanuel Nine in Charleston yesterday and Juneteenth tomorrow, it’s abundantly important that we don’t just honor and respect our own history or the parts of history we like, but most importantly, we honor the history of others. And it takes grace to do that.
This amazing grace could be lived out in many ways this week.
Maybe we do like Jesus did and stand with someone on the margins of life?
Maybe we learn more about the Emanuel Nine (the 2019 movie on Amazon is VERY good) and remember that Dylan Roof grew up in a Lutheran Church!?
Maybe we stop by Freedom Park in Buffalo or the Underground Railroad Museum there or in Niagara Falls and reflect on the journey that so many made to search from freedom…and yet still had to cross the raging Niagara River?
Maybe we just pray for healing in ourselves and for an open heart?
How can you have a deeper understanding of someone else’s history and journey?
How can we live out that amazing grace? .
Lord, help me to listen to others’ stories and share your grace Amen
Often when we ask this question, we’re wanting an answer from ourselves or someone else. And we’re wanting it quickly! Generally, we like answers asap.
This week, we were shooting some worship services for Church Unleashed at Lake Chautauqua Lutheran Center. We decided to do the endings of some of our services around a campfire, much like we do during an actual camp programming day.
So Pastor Roger left to head to the Council Ring to get the fire started while we finished up some other parts of the services. When the pastors and crew arrived, the fire was staged and ready to go. “Ok,” Roger said, “Here we go.” And he put match to wood…on one of the strangest shaped fires we’d all ever seen.
And we waited. And we waited.
And we waited.
After many minutes and several jokes, one of our crew grabbed some extra paper and placing it in the fire, ignited a beautiful blazing campfire.
What are you waiting for? And can you wait patiently just a little longer so that the extra help and ignition might come along?
Jesus tells a parallel about a sower that went out to sow and he threw the seed extravagantly everywhere he walked. Some fell on good soil and some fell on rocks and road. Some ignited with growth and some just smoldered.
However, even the seeds that fell on the best places needed some help. And they needed some time. And space. And air. And water. And sunlight. And God’s nurturing creation to do its thing!
Maybe we need that time too. And that space. And the nurturing. And the extra paper. And God’s process of faithful waiting to yield a beautiful crop.
What are you waiting for?
As you wait today, can you give it a little more time? Can you allow for more space that God could come along with a little “extra” to fuel the ignition? Can you hold out and not rush God’s nurturing?
That sower is throwing seed extravagantly for you today. May we give God time.
Lord, please help me be patient and assist with lighting the fire. Amen
Recent Comments