Jesus and Cake

A couple of weeks ago, I had the honor of doing a funeral for the four-year-olds enrolled in the Calvary Childcare program.  You see, their tadpole, Shamus,  that they had been watching to grow over the past few months, died.  When Miss Margaret asked the children what they should do, several of the children suggested that they needed a “priest” and they needed to “do a funeral.” 

So, Miss Margaret and one of the four-year-olds, came up to find a pastor.  Now, as a pastor, I’m often asked to officiate at funerals and memorial services, but this was the first time that I’d ever been asked, by an insistent four-year-old little boy, that my services as a pastor were needed for a tadpole. 

After agreeing to do it, I was trying to think of how to make this “funeral” a learning experience for the children.  So, we talked about what happens at funerals.  There is Scripture, eulogies and prayers.  After we talked about each part and went through it in a way that children would understand, one little girl raised her hand and wanted to know when we were having cake!  You've got to love the honesty of children! 

This little girl had been to a few funerals and knew that after the service we all gather together for a time of fellowship and food or as she put it, “Cake!” 

Reflecting on that experience, I got the biggest chuckle out of that one comment.  Yet, it was so profound.  Think about it for a minute – with Christ we always have an ongoing celebration.  We are given eternal life.  And, it is very fitting that we celebrate that wonderful gift and that we do indeed eat “cake!”  Cake is a good thing, but eternal life even trumps cake!  Celebrate we shall!  So, the next time you attend a funeral or memorial service, remember, Jesus died for us and because of that our sins are wiped away and we have been given life eternal.  For that reason, we celebrate!

Last night was the beginning of Lent.  And as I drove home from church after our Ash Wednesday services, the snow was gently falling and it made all the dirty messy grass areas look so beautiful.  That’s what Jesus did for us – He wiped away our sin and made us white as snow.  He made us beautiful and acceptable to God.

During this Lenten period, I pray that our hearts are truly open to receive and experience the real depth of God’s love for us.  None of us are worthy, but when we confess our sins, God forgives us.  We are white as freshly fallen snow. 

Here’s a song by Sara Groves from our Ash Wednesday services that reminds us that God touches the hearts of every generation, and that we need to pass on the blessings of God to our children and those who come after us.

To His Glory!

Pastor Carol

The Rocks Cry Out

This past weekend, Pastor Steve shared a farewell message with all of us.  He reminded us of Calvary’s mission:  To lead people into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ.  He reminded us that Calvary has and will always be a beacon of light to the community and to the world. 

As a mission-focused church, we seek to always go beyond the walls of the church, just as the early church did.  In part of his sermon, he reminded us about the many stones that had people’s names written on them and how they were placed in the form of a cross under the North Wing before the concrete was poured.  Those names on the rocks were names of people and loved ones who did not know Jesus Christ. 

I was reminded this week that several of those stones in the foundation contained names of a couple of my personal friends who I have been praying for all these years.  These friends are far from Christ.  While this was Pastor Steve’s final sermon at Calvary, his sermon pushed each of us to look forward and to continue the good fight of faith, to always remember why Calvary is special, to always seek to reach out to the hurting and disenfranchised, to always be that beacon of God’s light to a world that so desperately needs it, and to never forget the names on those stones.

While this past week was full of emotions as we said goodbye to Pastor Steve, it was also truly the end of the beginning.  When Pastor Steve came to Calvary, he encouraged us to go beyond the walls of the church and now as he retires he is still encouraging us to GO, to live out the great commission and the great commandment, not only as a church, but as individuals as well!  The mission of Calvary continues today and into the future, just as it began in 1947 when Calvary was founded as a church plant. 

Here’s a song to remind us of those rocks: "Ain’t No Rock."

To His Glory!

Pastor Carol

Look at All My Stuff! Why Rely on God?

As we studied Acts chapter 14 this week, Pastor Steve shared a story about a person from Haiti who visited houses in the States for a few weeks, staying in different homes during his trip.  Steve shared that this person was anxious to get home.  Yes, he had enjoyed staying in the big, elaborately furnished homes, but he said, "You rely on your things to sustain you.  We rely on God.” 

Gulp!  I don’t know about you, but that part of Pastor Steve’s sermon cut right to my heart.  Why?  Well, quite simply, there was an amazing amount of truth in that one sentence.  As Americans, we are richer than 99% of the world.  We have nice warm homes, beds to sleep in, tons of food and opportunities for work and education.  We are the envy of many people in the world.  Yet, amidst all of this “things” and opportunities, we have much to learn from our brothers and sisters in other countries.  They are rich in faith and they fully rely on Jesus Christ; something we in the Western world are sometimes sadly lacking. 

So many people are searching for meaning to life and trying to find joy in their lives.  Oftentimes people feel empty, so they try to “buy” things to fill the hole.  They get a bigger house, purchase more toys and cars, take expensive trips to exotic places and dream about winning the lottery.  The problem is the hole in our hearts can’t be filled with “things” or financial security because the hole is a God-shaped hole.  The only way to fill the void in our consumer-driven reality is to admit our need for God and to learn to fully rely on God rather than our “things” and our economic standing. 

Well, there is nothing wrong with having a nice home and going on vacations, but when it begins to have more importance over our relationship with Jesus Christ, then we do need to take notice of it.  How do we realign our priorities?  We pray!  We pray and pray!  Then we pray some more.  Prayer is the most important single thing we can do.  When we ask God to help us to give up our focus on “things” and to help us to put Him at the center of our lives, God will honor that prayer in ways you won’t even imagine.  Will it be painful?  Well, look at Paul and Barnabas.  The road is not always easy even when you have an all-encompassing faith like they had. 

Speaking truth in a culture that embraces the notion that there is no “real” truth will usually alienate you from friends and family, not to mention your neighbors and co-workers.  So, you might ask, is it worth it?  Is putting your relationship with Jesus Christ above everything else, including your life, worth it?  I think you know the answer!  Yes!  Is it going to be easy?  No! 

I would encourage you this week to write down the top five priorities in your life, in order of importance.  Be really honest with yourself.  As you look at those priorities, where does your relationship with Jesus Christ fall on your list?  Did He even make it on your list?  Then pray like you’ve never prayed before and ask God to help you to re-align your life to fit His perfect plan for you.  Then pray the next day and the next day. 

Friends, God will be so excited to hear your prayer and He will answer it.  Be prepared for the journey ahead!! 

Here is a great song that reminds us to F.R.O G (Fully Rely on God).

 

In His grip!

Pastor Carol

Tear Down the Walls!

A church without walls was “born” this week as we looked at Acts chapter 13.  Sometimes when we think about the “church” we think about huge architectural structures and prime real estate.  Yet, the harsh reality is that those buildings and real estate holdings have perhaps done more to keep people out then to invite people in.  In the U.S., 3,500-4,000 churches close their doors each year (Barna Group).  Scary reality.  Some of that is due to shrinking membership and a shift in our culture. 

The early Church, while it didn’t have many resources and they didn’t have buildings, was able to spread the message of Jesus Christ to “the ends of the earth” in remarkable ways.  As we look at all the new church-plants around the U.S., most of them are following the early Church model.  They meet in existing buildings, coffee shops, schools and homes.  They are finding new places and new ways to reach people with the Gospel.  They are going out into “Samaria” and to their communities in ways that are authentic and real.  And, if you think about it, the Church isn’t a building or a denomination; it’s the people.  We are the body of Christ.  The people are the Church, not the buildings. 

So, how can we be a church without walls?  How can we also be a church without walls and reach out to share the Gospel?  Well, there are many ways.  Reaching out and sharing the Gospel happens every day in places all over the community.  I think about our youth who share their faith is amazing ways at school through their words and actions with their friends.  I know I often invite people who have questions related to God and faith to meet me for lunch or at a coffee shop, not at the church.  Walking into a church and then finding your way up to my 4th floor office isn’t very inviting!  The church without walls exists, but we need to look for those opportunities to tear down the walls and remove the barriers. 

As an English major in college, I remember a poem by Robert Frost that was called "The Mending Wall."  One of the lines from that poem says, “Good walls make good neighbors.”  Walls don’t make good neighbors, as we all know. 

Think about the walls in your life?  We all put up walls that separate us from people all the time.  Why do we put up walls?  Sometimes it is intentional and other times the walls just grow over time.  Sometimes we put up walls out of fear or mistrust.  How can we knock a few more walls down in our own lives?  And, how can we each be a church without walls in our neighborhoods?  Our friends?  Our coworkers?  The reality is we can all be like Paul and Barnabas; we all have our own missionary journeys to accomplish for Christ!  Each of our missionary journeys is unique.  Embrace your journey!

Here’s a song by Hillsong called "Tear Down the Walls."  May OUR walls come a tumbling down!! 

To the Glory of God!

Pastor Carol

And Then There Was Prayer!

Pray without ceasing!  Have you ever tried praying like that? 

As we looked at Acts chapter 12 this week, Pastor Steve shared the story of Peter in prison and how God answered the prayers of the early believers to free Peter.  Every time I read that story I always chuckle a bit.  After all, Peter is sleeping and the angel has to wake him up!  Then we move to the scene at the house of John Mark and the disciples.  Rhoda tells them and they don’t believe that Peter is free.  The power of prayer was boldly seen in chapter 12.  The disciples and Christ followers were in earnest and continual prayer.  Wow!  Prayer was the first thing they did and the last thing they did!  They prayed and they prayed! 

How many times have we turned to prayer as a last resort?  As a final plea for help after all other human means have failed us?  I know I’ve been guilty of that; perhaps you have as well.  How do we become more like those disciples and the early Church, who had very little resources or influence in their society, but they had hearts for prayer and that made all the difference? 

This week, I want you to try something a bit daring, maybe even a bit uncomfortable: pray without ceasing.  Okay, I know what you are thinking.  I have to work, I have the kids to teach and take care of all day.   I can’t pray without ceasing.  Give it a try for one day.  Just one day!  Do a thank-you prayer for one day!  Every time you have a few seconds, between breaths, just offer a prayer of thanks to God.  Your day might look something like this:

Thank you for my office.  Thank you for my cube.  Thank you for my work colleagues, even the ones who drive me nuts. Thank you for this leftover food that I brought for my lunch and for the microwave that will heat it up for me.  Thank you for my car that brings me to work and brings the kids to school.  Thank you, Lord, for teachers at my children’s schools.  Thank you for the bus driver who picks my children up every day.  Thank you for grocery stores.  Thank you for the fresh fruit and the bottled water.  Thank you for my house or apartment.  Thank you for the heat that warms my house.  Thank you for my dinner.  Thank you for running water so I can take a warm shower.  Thank you for my bed.  Thank you for the gift of sleep so I can be refreshed when I wake the next morning. 

I think you get the picture!  Give it a try and let me know how your day goes when you just thank God for things you normally take for granted.  Perhaps we can pray without ceasing.  We just need to put prayer in the front of our minds for a change.  It’s definitely a paradigm shift, but what could happen if we found a way to think about God and pray throughout the whole day?  I think amazing things could happen in our lives and our family’s lives too.

Remember, pray first and pray most! 

Here’s a song by Casting Crowns about what would happen if God’s people prayed! 

To the Glory of God!

Pastor Carol

Having a Dependent Heart

It’s already closing in on the end of the first week of this New Year.  How are you doing on those resolutions?  How are your top five goals working out so far?  Slipped off your diet yet?  Stopped going to the gym at 5 a.m.?  Do you find yourself worried about the fiscal cliff?  Worried about your future?  Have you already checked the calendar to see when the next “holiday” or day off might be coming?  Want to have more relevance in your life? 

If you answered yes to any of these questions, you are not alone!  I know 2012 was a tough year for many of you.   This New Year, 2013, is still full of much hope and promise for the future.  I think that’s why we all look forward to a new year because it brings with it a clean slate and a time for a fresh start.  We get a “do-over” of sorts! 

We often focus on how we need to improve our circumstances.  We focus on improving our health, following our diets and fixing our outward situations.  We try to find ways to solve all of our problems and set goals to achieve better results in the New Year.  Notice that I used the pronoun “we?”  That’s right, each of us tries to solve the problems of our lives sometimes without even talking to God about His ideas and plans for us.   Sure, we often times ask Him to bless our plans and to help us with those plans, but we don’t always ask him if those are the plans He has for us.  Our focus is off.   Maybe we should put our focus back on the One who gives us life and see what His plans and desires are for us?

In our society, the self-help books all talk about creating an inner drive and setting goals to achieve them.  Now, I’m not saying that goal setting is bad, but what I am saying is that achieving a wonderful and joy-filled life is found only when we live with a deep dependence on our Lord and Savior, Jesus the Christ.  When our dependence rests solely on our shoulders, the load is heavy and the goals we set often times fail.  The word “dependence” has a rather negative connotation in our society.  We associate dependence with weakness and not success.  Yet, it is through our weaknesses that God can work best.  When we come before Him with an open, humble and dependent heart--with all of our weaknesses, mistakes, failures and hurts hanging out--we learn to rely on God. 

As we go into the second week of 2013, I encourage you to learn to let the Light of God’s Presence soak over you and through you.  Let His Light engulf your whole being – mind, body and spirit.  Find a quiet time to be alone with God.  Let Him direct your day.  Learn to rely on Him, not just in your desperation, but every day of your life. 

He longs to have time with you!  And time with God will strengthen your whole being.  Trust Him to reveal the goals He has for you in 2013.  Allow Him to surprise you!  The goals He sets are goals that have an eternal consequence and will bring you unbelievable rewards!  When you put God in YOUR driver’s seat, look out!  You are going to have a journey that will lead you through unexpected twists and turns that will change your life forever.  All you have to do is hang on tight and open your heart to His leading!

"A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you.  I will take away the stony heart, and I will put my spirit within you." (Ezekiel 36:26-27)

Here’s a song that talks about changing our hearts and having God’s Spirit live in each of us. 

 

As you walk into this New Year, may the blessings of God surround you and direct your path.  And may your heart be open to God’s many plans for you this year.

To the Glory of God!

Pastor Carol

He Made a Way in a Manger

We lit the third candle of Advent this past weekend:  the candle of Joy.  The Joy candle centers on the joy that Christ’s birth brings to ALL people.  As the coming of Jesus, our Savior, draws nearer, our joy builds with our anticipation of His birth.

At worship this past weekend, all of the Calvary children in Grace Place, from the two-year-olds through elementary age, performed their annual Christmas pageant during several of the services.  If you wanted to experience joy and feel the presence of God’s joy, it was on the faces and in the hearts of our children.  They sang from their hearts!  The hope, love, peace and joy of Christmas just came pouring out of them and touched each one of us in a profound way!

Certainly, our joy was muted this week by the tragedy in Newtown, Conn.  Still, it is at just such times that only the healing and peace of Christ can give us a glimpse of the joy He brings to the hearts and lives burdened with grief and loss.  I also know that many of you are also going through some tough situations in your own lives and are perhaps finding it hard to celebrate Christmas this year as well.  Yet, Christmas still comes.  No matter our circumstances or the struggles we face, Jesus still comes.  And, perhaps, it is in the valleys of life, that we need to remember that the baby in the manager, Jesus the Christ Child, came into this world for us.  His light still shines in the darkness of our valleys and in our world.   His light will always surround us no matter our circumstances and no matter how deep those valleys may be.  God’s love is deeper than all the valleys in our lives.

Last night, I was thinking about all that Christ’s coming has done for us and here are a few from my rather lengthy list. 

Christ’s coming is stronger than tragedy.

Christ’s coming overcomes even the deepest valleys in our lives.

Christ’s coming brings us strength in our weakness.

Christ’s coming heals our wounded hearts.

Christ’s coming brings hope to the hopeless.

Christ’s coming brings peace and contentment.

Christ’s coming mends the brokenhearted.

Christ’s coming heals the pain of grief, sorrow and illness.

Christ’s coming means there is victory over death.

Christ’s coming means I have a relationship with God.

Christ’s coming changed the world forever.

Christ’s coming changed my life forever.

There’s wonderful song "He Made a Way in a Manager."   In the chorus, the lyrics say, “He found a way in a manager, to find a way to the cross.”  May we always remember that the greatest gift ever given to the world was Jesus the Christ.  Because of Jesus, we are forgiven and forever connected to God.  What a gift that is to embrace!  It is a divine gift that lasts for all eternity.  

May the blessings of Christmas fill your heart with love, hope, joy and peace!  Merry Christmas!

Soli Deo Gloria! 

Pastor Carol