Sunday, July 26, 2009

Reflections From Sunday Evening

Today Cindy and I took the day to visit another church. When I take a week off I like to worship in another place. It's good to see friends and also helpful to see what others are doing. This morning Cindy and I attended the NorthStar UMC in Liberty. This is about a 10-year-old church. They are doing some good things. We were blessed by the worship and preaching of Jim Hoffman. He had me searching for things I might be unadvisedly attached to.

It was about 10:15 when we left there, got in the car and thought about where to go next. There are a couple of great churches in the area. We thought about going to one of them and I know it would have been a joyful blessing. Then I said, "You want to go to Platte Woods?" Cindy said yes and so we came to our favorite church for the 11:00 service. And I am glad we did.

Today's service brought great joy to me. Everyone did super in putting the service together. Curtis' sermon was right on. (Made me cry!) The drama had my heart from beginning to end. The worship was great - way to go choir and Susan. Plus I got to sit by Cindy and Curtis' parents!

It is such a blessing to be part of what God is doing at PWUMC. The staff is fabulous. The leadership is second to none. You - the people of our church - are making this a place where people may come and experience the saving and perfecting grace of God in Jesus Christ.

It's been a good day. I hope you've had a good day too.

business card on your car?

Evidently someone chose our church to put business cards on everyone's car today. It sends you to a Web site. I decided to check it out and found some of the old ultra-conservative, anti-church stuff I ran across 30 years ago. If you have looked at the Web site I would encourage you not to be alarmed. A telling point deals with what translation of the Bible is appropriate. The source of this Web site insists only the King James Version is a legitimate translation. This is simply not true. Those who advocate this position fail (in my opinion) to recognize that the KJV, just like any other translation is just that - a translation. You better learn Biblical Greek and Hebrew if you are going to get a "purer" translation. Yes, even if you read Greek and Hebrew you must still translate the words. Suffice it to say that God is the author of His Word and (I believe) graciously gifts people to translate, expound and interpret the Word for our salvation and edification.

I don't think I'll point out anything else from the Web site. There was a time in my faith life that this sort of misinformation and warning would trouble me. But not today! We're not an apostate church - We are not sold to the world. We are a faithful expression of the Body of Christ.

Sunday, July 19, 2009

Reflections From Sunday Evening

The children kept coming at the 11:00 service. I'm not sure how many of our Vacation Bible School kids came to sing at church this morning but they certainly were a great hit! Isn't it amazing how much energy and excitement children bring to worship? Today was just an extension of the joy expressed all week during a super VBS.
A couple of things hit me during church this weekend. It is fun when you start seeing things while you're preaching! Whether our obstacle to grace is financial debt (which is what we focused on this week) or something else the principles seem to be the same.
1. Ask God for help. This is what the widow asked Elisha (II Kings 4:1-7) to do. The prophet is the representative of God. When faced with a struggle, an obstacle, or a barrier - ask God for help.
2. The insight we saw today dealt with financial debt -- satisfy your obligations.
3. The next insight follows directly - live within your means.
4. The essential principle to remember is that no situation is hopeless - as long as God is involved and with us! That is good news.
Today was one of those days where you got the sense that God was with us. Now recognize God's presence in your life as you move into this new week.
I am sort of on "vacation" this week. Trying to take a few days off and recharge the spirit a bit. I'll be around and see you soon. It's been a good day. I hope you've had a good day too. (Although I am tempted to modify the closing from Charles Gibson to Walter Cronkite.) That's the way it is July 19, 2009. Good night.
steve

Sunday, July 12, 2009

Reflections From Sunday Evening

Ahh summer -- nothing quite like it. People are taking trips -- going places -- doing things. It doesn't do a great deal for church attendance but it sure is a great time. Even with many people busy here and there we had a really good day at PWUMC. Ginger preached a great sermon on Freedom From Doubt. We could all find ourselves in the story somewhere! The worship was good. God was with us. It was a good day - and we did have more folks in church than last week!

There was more. This afternoon Roy is taking a group to a leadership conference at Saddleback Church in California. Rachel Zolnowski and Bob Hummel are going with 10 of our youth to this leadership conference. I took a moment to share with the group as they were preparing to leave. This can be one of the great experiences of their lives. Saddleback Church (Rick Warren is the pastor) is one of the great churches in the history of time! These 10 young men and women will have an opportunity to gain insight and learn things that will stay with them the rest of their lives. I am praying that they bring back a new spark and we soon see the fruit of their efforts.
I told the group how neat this experience is. Most of us never had an opportunity to do anything like this when we were in youth group. The big "trip" I went on was a sub-district meeting in Nevada - 30 miles from home!

Be in prayer for our youth as they travel and experience this leadership conference this week.

And while you are praying -- here is another big one. VBS -- Vacation Bible School -- starts in the morning. Ms. Anne and so many others have been putting in long hours in preparing for this significant week in the life of our church. It is a proven statistic that the majority of people who put their trust in Jesus Christ do so in childhood. There is no more significant group in our church than our children. This week we will be putting all we have toward their spiritual development. VBS is one of the great things we do here at PWUMC. At last count I heard there are 234 children registered. We'll have a few extras and a few not make it but it is going to be a bunch of kids running around church this week! On top of the children we have many, many youth and adults who will be helping (I see Cindy working on her lessons now!). We'll give it our best. Please keep our children and VBS in your prayers - May God grant us a great week and may children know the love of Christ like never before.

It's been a good day. I hope you've had a good day too.

Sunday, July 5, 2009

Reflections From Sunday Evening

The insight from this weekend could be summed up by saying "bricks from straw." It comes from the story in Exodus where Pharaoh withholds straw (an ingredient in brick making in Egypt back in that time) and forces the Hebrew slaves into oppression. Interpreted this could mean we have certain needs, resources are diminished, and demands are increased. This is a real formula for oppression.

We see it in the Exodus story. We could see it in the American Revolution. We see it throughout history. Anytime some tyrant is in power and seeks to maintain what they have by oppressing people they are resorting to "bricks without straw." One observation is that whenever this happens rather than ensuring that the oppressed people are "kept in line" the seeds of freedom are being planted.

The whole "bricks without straw" idea may also be seen in our personal lives. There are factors that line up to press us into a mold or life that God never intended. Needs persist, resources diminish, demands increase.

The good news is that Jesus Christ is our sure source - God meets us at the point of our every need - The Lord is more than sufficient to empower us to meet the demands of the day.
That was the main point from today's sermon. I hope everyone has been able to celebrate the tremendous gift of freedom we enjoy as citizens of the United States. I trust you are being renewed and ready to step back to work, worship and service. It's been a good day. I hope you've had a good day too.