Well, today we tried our first "Christmas in July" worship service here at church. I've been wanting to do this for a few years, but it just hasn't worked out. Since today is actually the 25th of July, I thought it would be a great start to a tradition.
As I was trying to put the service together, I search for resources. I was pretty disappointed when I googled Christmas in July and found most of the hits to be about stores selling stuff. It almost seems like Christmas in July was not a Church invention, but one where marketers try to get people to buy more stuff in a slow season. So much for trying to get away from the commercial part of Christmas.
My sermon was a meditation on what it was like for Mary to carry Jesus in her womb for nine months. We cram so much of the Christmas story into four weeks, without realizing how much time the actual story takes. The angel Gabriel comes to Mary in March to let her know what God has planned for her. This means the Christmas story starts around Lent/Easter, goes through summer and fall, and finally ends in December.
I thought I would share an audio file of the sermon. I hope it will keep you cool in these hot summer months.
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Thursday, July 15, 2010
The Fly
The other night, as I was brushing my teeth, tired from a full day, there were two flies in the bathroom driving me crazy. One fly was circling around the light overhead. I put him out of his misery with the flick of a towel. The second one boggled my mind. I followed him with my eyes, and this fly did not stop flying. Usually you wait until they land somewhere, but not this guy. He buzzed around and around, dinging himself against walls and ceilings and just going on.
I have to admit, I was amazed at this fly. Why didn't he stop? Was he just crazy? Despite my exhaustion and need for sleep, I just stayed in the bathroom, hoping for him to just land somewhere. I realized I could have just "let it go" and gone to bed, letting the fly alone. I would be asleep, without having to worry about this fly.
Believe it or not, some theological reflections came to me. Could this be my life? Our life? Flying around without ceasing, despite dinging ourselves? Perhaps this is what we look like to God, but instead of trying to kill us to put us out of our misery, he just looks on, saddened by our insane buzzing around.
The second reflection is that the fly represented the busy-ness of life: the ten thousand things that fly around, distracting me from what was really important: in this instance, getting a good night sleep. This insane fly reminded me in this summer time, when I take a break from busy-ness, to try to avoid paying attention to the flies in my life. They are just not worth it.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
The Hole in Our Gospel
Last Sunday, the lectionary came again to the Good Samaritan. I've preached before on it, and quite frankly, I wince when I see these stories coming around again: what else do you say about the Good Samaritan? Hasn't it been milked for all its worth?
Yet I have found something new to say about it, since reading Richard Stearn's book The Hole in our Gospel. A colleague of mine, who has done a lot of work for WorldVision (Stearn's is the president), a Christian missionary organization, kept suggesting the book, so I found a way to have our book club read it.
I found it absolutely moving. So much, that I sponsored six more children and decided to give a microloan per month through WorldVision. I never really felt any great passion for mission in my ministry, but somehow Stearns has moved my heart in a way that others haven't. I come from a "social justice" denomination, with a huge missionary and social gospel tradition, yet somehow what they said did not reach me.
What really impresses me about WorldVision is that their Christian focus is very clear. When you get your sponsorship package, the first thing they ask you to do is pray for them. They use theological language to express what your sponsorship means. They talk about how their work displays God's unconditional love for those in need.
The book is combines Stearns' story of his calling to be president of WorldVision, which is a tremendous story in itself, with his making a theological case for caring more for those in need.
Somehow, after reading Stearns' book, I really understood the Good Samaritan in a new way. In any case, I want to attach my sermon on the good Samaritan to this post. I hope you enjoy it.
Yet I have found something new to say about it, since reading Richard Stearn's book The Hole in our Gospel. A colleague of mine, who has done a lot of work for WorldVision (Stearn's is the president), a Christian missionary organization, kept suggesting the book, so I found a way to have our book club read it.
I found it absolutely moving. So much, that I sponsored six more children and decided to give a microloan per month through WorldVision. I never really felt any great passion for mission in my ministry, but somehow Stearns has moved my heart in a way that others haven't. I come from a "social justice" denomination, with a huge missionary and social gospel tradition, yet somehow what they said did not reach me.
What really impresses me about WorldVision is that their Christian focus is very clear. When you get your sponsorship package, the first thing they ask you to do is pray for them. They use theological language to express what your sponsorship means. They talk about how their work displays God's unconditional love for those in need.
The book is combines Stearns' story of his calling to be president of WorldVision, which is a tremendous story in itself, with his making a theological case for caring more for those in need.
Somehow, after reading Stearns' book, I really understood the Good Samaritan in a new way. In any case, I want to attach my sermon on the good Samaritan to this post. I hope you enjoy it.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Reading List
It has been a very long time since I posted something on my blog. But now, summer is here, and I'm recommitting to keeping things up. Again.
One of the best things I did last year was start a book club here at church. Pretty much like other clubs, we read a book a month, then meet and discuss it. Pretty simple. The reason I value it most is that it forced me to put reading as a priority in my ministry. I can get so bogged down with the "busy stuff" of life that reading takes a back seat. I just look at all the unread books behind me and sigh.
Over the year, I've rediscovered how a book can have a profound effect on your spiritual life. We read two books on forgiveness this past year, "Left to Tell" and "Amish Grace." Both books had their own particular way of seeing the power that forgiveness has to heal you in so many ways. It forced me to look at the people I needed to forgive in my life, how I've been holding onto grudges that have weighed down my spirit, and how the process of forgiveness has lightened my load.
Toward the end of the club, we read "The Hole in Our Gospel" by Richard Stearns, the president of WorldVision, an amazing Christian missionary organization. If you don't know about them, please visit their website: http://www.worldvision.org/. The story combines how God relentlessly called him to give up his job as president of Lenox China, and all the luxury that came with it, to take the job as president of WorldVision.
He also wakes us up about the crisis that is happening all around the world, and why concern for the poor and oppressed should be a central part of the gospel. I come from a denomination that stresses social justice and mission, yet Stearns makes the case in a way that's far more compelling than anyone I've heard or read.
As a result, we have decided to sponsor six new children who are living in the midst of the worst of conditions in this world. We have also decided to give a microloan to someone every month.
The year closed out with Anne Lamott's "Traveling Mercies" which combines her spiritual quest that miraculously led her to become a Christian, with beautiful essays reflecting her life and faith. It is real and gritty and funny all at the same time. If anyone can make a case on why a new generation should be going to church and thinking about Jesus in their life, Lamott is the person.
Right now, I am listening to "The Red Tent" on tape, in preparation for our September meeting. I think this book is very helpful for people to understand what life was like during Old Testament times. For many, there will be a lot of shocking things in here. You realize that these great Matriarchs of the Old Testament probably did worship other gods other than the Jewish and Christian God, which they cal "El." It is an eye-opener to realize that monotheism (having one God) was a strange and horrible concept early on. It took Israel a long time to understand that God was the only God and the other gods were idols. No wonder the first two commandments forbid worshiping other gods and creating idols.
Other books I have either listened to or read: "East of Eden" by Steinbeck. Watching the classic James Dean movie made me curious to read the novel. I'm so glad I did. This is a great way of understanding the first stories in the Old Testament, both the Adam and Eve story and the Cain and Abel story. I love the breadth and vision and the beautiful writing.
Right now, I'm reading "This Odd and Wondrous Calling" by Martin Copenhaver and Lillian Daniels. It's a funny and real book on what happens 'behind the scenes' in minister's lives. The two authors are successful pastors in the U.C.C. and it is nice to see such great pastors have the same struggles as the rest of us.
I'll try to keep you up to date on other books I'm reading, and I will really, really try to keep this blog going, even through the busy time of year.
One of the best things I did last year was start a book club here at church. Pretty much like other clubs, we read a book a month, then meet and discuss it. Pretty simple. The reason I value it most is that it forced me to put reading as a priority in my ministry. I can get so bogged down with the "busy stuff" of life that reading takes a back seat. I just look at all the unread books behind me and sigh.
Over the year, I've rediscovered how a book can have a profound effect on your spiritual life. We read two books on forgiveness this past year, "Left to Tell" and "Amish Grace." Both books had their own particular way of seeing the power that forgiveness has to heal you in so many ways. It forced me to look at the people I needed to forgive in my life, how I've been holding onto grudges that have weighed down my spirit, and how the process of forgiveness has lightened my load.
Toward the end of the club, we read "The Hole in Our Gospel" by Richard Stearns, the president of WorldVision, an amazing Christian missionary organization. If you don't know about them, please visit their website: http://www.worldvision.org/. The story combines how God relentlessly called him to give up his job as president of Lenox China, and all the luxury that came with it, to take the job as president of WorldVision.
He also wakes us up about the crisis that is happening all around the world, and why concern for the poor and oppressed should be a central part of the gospel. I come from a denomination that stresses social justice and mission, yet Stearns makes the case in a way that's far more compelling than anyone I've heard or read.
As a result, we have decided to sponsor six new children who are living in the midst of the worst of conditions in this world. We have also decided to give a microloan to someone every month.
The year closed out with Anne Lamott's "Traveling Mercies" which combines her spiritual quest that miraculously led her to become a Christian, with beautiful essays reflecting her life and faith. It is real and gritty and funny all at the same time. If anyone can make a case on why a new generation should be going to church and thinking about Jesus in their life, Lamott is the person.
Right now, I am listening to "The Red Tent" on tape, in preparation for our September meeting. I think this book is very helpful for people to understand what life was like during Old Testament times. For many, there will be a lot of shocking things in here. You realize that these great Matriarchs of the Old Testament probably did worship other gods other than the Jewish and Christian God, which they cal "El." It is an eye-opener to realize that monotheism (having one God) was a strange and horrible concept early on. It took Israel a long time to understand that God was the only God and the other gods were idols. No wonder the first two commandments forbid worshiping other gods and creating idols.
Other books I have either listened to or read: "East of Eden" by Steinbeck. Watching the classic James Dean movie made me curious to read the novel. I'm so glad I did. This is a great way of understanding the first stories in the Old Testament, both the Adam and Eve story and the Cain and Abel story. I love the breadth and vision and the beautiful writing.
Right now, I'm reading "This Odd and Wondrous Calling" by Martin Copenhaver and Lillian Daniels. It's a funny and real book on what happens 'behind the scenes' in minister's lives. The two authors are successful pastors in the U.C.C. and it is nice to see such great pastors have the same struggles as the rest of us.
I'll try to keep you up to date on other books I'm reading, and I will really, really try to keep this blog going, even through the busy time of year.
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