Reflections From Sunday Evening

I continue to think about Eugene Peterson's distinction between "wish" and "hope." Wish reflects our projection of our own wants, desires and needs into the future. Perhaps we extend our "wish list" to God. On the positive side an exercise like this could morph into vision. A wish list committed to God trusts His divine wisdom regarding what happens. On the other hand we could find ourselves spending our time in wishful thinking. That is more of a day dream and time consumer. It will probably not end in great satisfaction. So we should not spend time wishing we would win the lottery and find ourselves really rich. Hope, on the other hand originates with God. Hope is what God etches on the heart of all people. Hope sustains us in difficulty. Hope encourages us daily. Hope creates confidence that God will never forget us. Hope assures us that wherever we go and whatever we encounter God will already be there to meet us. There are great implications for God initiated hope. We know God is with us day by day. We are confident that God will sustain us in and through all seasons of life. We discover an abiding faith that even our ultimate future is secure in the grace of God. Hope. It's been a good day. I HOPE you've had a good day as well. steve

Reflections From Sunday Evening

Next weekend we begin Advent. This is the season in the Christian year when we prepare for the coming of Christ. We will be taking a look at various themes such as the Second Coming of Christ, the promise of God's redemptive action through the stories of Joseph and Mary and of course the birth of our Savior. There are key words that are emphasized in Advent. We consider Hope, Peace, Joy and Love. This year our series is An Aluminum Tree Christmas. You may remember those. In the mid 1960's the "modern age" created a new version of Christmas tree. Aluminum trees with color wheels were a short-lived experiment. In the next few weeks we will build on these themes. First up will be a "Future Christmas.' Then comes a "Vintage Christmas." We then worship with our Wesleyan Choir with our annual Christmas cantata. That will be followed with a "Present Christmas." On Christmas Eve we will gather for an "Authentic Christmas." It promises to be a joyful time in the life of our church. I look forward to being with you through Advent. It's been a good day. I hope you've had a good day too. steve

Praying for Ferguson

We are anticipating the grand jury findings to be released soon. Ferguson, Mo. is being watched by people all over the world. I am certainly at a loss to fully grasp the entirety of the situation but feel a strong need to remember all the people involved in prayer. Rev. Willis Johnson is our United Methodist pastor serving Well Spring UMC in Ferguson. I would ask everyone to pray for Willis as he stands in the midst of the pain, anger and hope. This situation seems so far away and yet it is directly in our minds. Like many of you I have conflicting feelings. Being a white male living in the suburbs I have no idea what it is like to be a minority person experiencing life in Ferguson, Mo. I have always (and continue) to respect and appreciate the police. I know current and former police officers who I have the deepest respect for. My perspective has always been that they do a tremendous public service and put their lives on the line for our benefit. However there are many whose experience is much different. I realize that in the Black community father's must teach their sons and daughters how to avoid or how to respond to the police. That experience is far removed from my own and most of the members of our congregation. Let me simply say there are different perspectives regarding what must take place in Ferguson, Mo. There are some things I am confident should be done. Number one is pray for peace. No one wants a violent situation to break out. Number two is listen to the cry of any who are oppressed. There are voices that must be heard. May they ring out with clarity and contribute to peace and a better world. While we await the outcome of the grand jury I invite you to prayerfully seek the Prince of Peace. Surely the risen Lord has all the people involved inscribed on his heart. I am praying the Holy Spirit cause justice and peace to rise up. Could we set aside our personal thoughts and perspectives and ask that God's grace reach all people? Praying for hope, understanding, justice and peace. Still searching for answers and the best response. Steve

I have noticed something in my devotional reading the week. I keep being sent to scriptures that I have been praying through over the last several months. One scripture referenced a passage I have been praying with regard to our building program. It fits with the idea of buildings honoring God. I Chronicles 29 give some interesting descriptions. How might this apply to what we are in the process of doing? I was directed to the passage in Ephesians talking about God doing abundantly more than we can ask or imagine. Frankly that is a passage I have been praying for our church since I was first appointed here. In addition I pray this for our generosity. May we express generosity abundantly more than we might ask or imagine. I do not think the YouVersion Bible Ap has been listening in on my prayers. I do think God listens when we pray. I do believe God speaks to us in many ways including though the scriptures He leads us to read. I do think God intersects our prayers, hopes and dreams with His Spirit. I do think God corrects us when we need correction. I do believe God confirms us when our hearts and minds need encouragement. So this has been a good week of searching the scriptures. It has been a week of affirmation. I pray the same grace for you. Listen for God. Peer into His Word. God continues to speak today. It's been a good day. I hope you've had a good day too. steve

Reflections From Sunday Evening

We are talking about Generosity this month. In talking about generosity and how it relates to the church I am pointing out two different philosophies. The more traditional way churches seem to operate would be from a commitment to "limit increase". The conversation usually begins with how much did we get last year? How may we hold the line on expenditures? Is it possible to decrease the budget this year? What will we do to "limit the increase" if there is one? There is a place for this line of thought. Denominations and even annual conferences tend to operate in a way that year after year requires a shrinking pool of donors to contribute ever larger amounts. Obviously this cannot go on indefinitely. Thankfully our church is not in that position. We do not have a diminishing pool of generous donors. As a matter of fact we experience healthy change and growth. The other philosophy is driven by a "high expectation" culture. Frankly we Methodist folks do not gravitate toward high expectation. It is something we need to nurture and live into. In a high expectation church people are taught and encouraged to practice generosity. When it comes to budgets the first question is "what is God calling us to do?" Uninformed projections are not helpful. There is still a somewhat fine line between faith and presumption! But it is not difficult to estimate a congregations capacity. I could take our average worship attendance. This is a general figure that denotes the number of people who support the ministry. Actually average attendance is becoming almost as misleading a statistic as membership. We probably have 25% more people attend church in any given month that our averages would indicate. That is because normal attendance patterns are more like once every 4 - 6 weeks than each weekend. But that is another matter to discuss sometime. Once you get the figure that represents your participation it is time to take a look at average household or per capita income in your area. Google average household income in Platte County, Missouri and you will get your range. Multiply your participation number by the average income and you get your total assets to work with. Now figure 10% of that and you see what might be a "high expectation figure." With all this done it is time to step up and discern what God is calling His people to do. We will continue to speak of generosity. Generosity will fuel high expectations. It's been a good day. I hope you've had a good day too. steve

Reflections From Sunday Evening

Today we remembered those who have moved to the Church Triumphant. We recognize All Saints during this weekend. It is always a meaningful moment when I have the honor of reading the names of our people who have died in the year. It is very moving to watch person after person stand to honor loved ones and people who have influenced them. There are always some whose name is read and few if any stand with them. Perhaps they have outlived most of their friends. Maybe they had been unable to participate in the life of the church for several years and simply lost touch with others. There are others whose influence has been tremendous. They touched the lives of many. But there is something we all have in common. God is intimately acquainted with everyone whose name is read. God certainly hears the bell and remembers. Whether well known or known only to a few God knows and deeply loves His people. That is something to celebrate as we remember our loved ones and friends during All Saints. It's been a good day. I hope you've had a good day too. steve