Saturday, August 28, 2010

August 29 "Connect to Christ: prayer"

Connect to Christ: prayer
RUMC August 29, 2010

1)      A tale is told about a small town that had historically been "dry," but then a local businessman decided to build a tavern. A group of Christians from a local church were concerned and planned an all-night prayer meeting to ask God to intervene. Shortly thereafter lightning struck the bar and it burned to the ground. The owner of the bar sued the church, claiming that the prayers of the congregation were responsible, but the church hired a lawyer to argue in court that they were not responsible. The presiding judge, after his initial review of the case, stated that "no matter how this case comes out, one thing is clear. The tavern owner believes in prayer and the Christians do not."
2)      Do you believe in prayer?  
a)      Do you believe that you, a regular, humble, flesh and blood human being, limited as you are, finite as you are, sinful as you are?
b)      Do you believe that the almighty, all powerful, all knowing God hears or even cares about what you have to say? 
c)      And even more do you believe God acts on what you say to change things?

3)      There is a lot of discussion about the trouble in the church today.  There is a lot of talk about the demise of the church today.  There is a lot of talk about  burn out in the church today.  There are probably 12,000 books on how to revive the church.  There are 100 different theories and methods and systems to renew a congregation.  There are 3 easy steps, 7 easy steps and 10 easy steps to bringing life back to the church.  There are three different study committees just in the UMC about how to rescue the church from its numerical and financial decline.
Let me tell you in no uncertain words.  In my humble opinion, we do not need a study committee.  We do not need 7 easy steps.  We do not need a new program or a new gizmo, or a new version of the Bible.  We do not need better pastors.  We do not need more dedicated lay people.  We do not need fancier buildings, better bands or bigger screens.  We do not need more mailings, more denominational support, more conference staff people, and goodness knows we don’t three more denominational emphases to guide us.
Do you know what we need?  We need to be a praying people.
·         If we ever were one, we need to go back to being a people of prayer. 
·         If we never were one, we need to become a people of prayer.
I am not talking about blessings at meals and I am not talking about pastoral prayers- though those are a good start.  I am talking about living our lives punctuated throughout with prayer.  We are the body of Christ my friends and the body of Christ needs to eat, breathe, and sweat prayer.  I believe that, as Christians, prayer is the most intimate and most powerful resource at our disposal for connecting with Christ.  And I am pretty sure that every single one of us can live a more intimate, more powerful prayer life.

4)      Illustrations

a)      One of the greatest pray-ers  in all of history was Elijah.  He prayed that it would not rain and it didn’t for 3 ½ years.  Then he prayed that it would rain and it did.
Undoubtedly, my favorite Elijah prayer story is found in the 18th chapter of I Kings.
The prophets of Israel had been slaughtered.  All except Elijah.  He meets the priests of Baal on Mount Carmel and presents them with a dare. He says, “Let the people get two bulls and prepare them as an offering.  You call down fire from baal, I’ll call down fire from my God and we’ll see whose God is really stronger.
He let the priests of Baal go first.  They prayed, they shouted, they danced, they prayed some more, they cut themselves they danced and shouted some more.  After 6 hours their bull kabob was still raw.  Not even a spark or a puff of smoke from Baal.

Then Elijah went to the altar of God and repaired it.  He placed the bull on it.  He dug a trench and poured a total of 12 large jars of water on the bull, the wood, the altar, and the ground around it.   He was just setting it up so God could show off!
Then he stood back and prayed quietly and fervently- please lord show that you are turning Israel’s heart back to you again.
Without hesitation the “fire of the Lord” came flashing down and consumed the bull, the wood, the water, the stones and the dirt around it! 
Whoosh and it was gone.  And there stood the priests of baal still breathless and bleeding.

Elijah’s prayer at mount Carmel, of course, did not come out of the blue.  He lived an active intimate prayer life with God. 

b)      Psalm 63 is one of the most intimate descriptions of prayer I have ever seen.  It reads
1 God—you're my God! I can't get enough of you!
   I've worked up such hunger and thirst for God,
      traveling across dry and weary deserts.

 2-4 So here I am in the place of worship, eyes open,
      drinking in your strength and glory.
   In your generous love I am really living at last!
      My lips brim praises like fountains.
   I bless you every time I take a breath;
      My arms wave like banners of praise to you.

 5-8 I eat my fill of prime rib and gravy;
      I smack my lips. It's time to shout praises!
   If I'm sleepless at midnight,
      I spend the hours in grateful reflection.
   Because you've always stood up for me,
      I'm free to run and play.
   I hold on to you for dear life,
      and you hold me steady as a post.

Isn’t that beautiful?   It is.  And do you know how often words are mentioned??  Exactly once.   It is not the words that make prayer, it is the relationship.
5)      For Christians, prayer [Gk: "proseuche"] is "communion with God". Through prayer we actually experience relationship with God. The quality of our prayer life then determines the quality of our relationship with God. Prayer is not simply saying words. It is not repeating formulas. God is looking for heartfelt relationship.

God craves for us to get past the polite small talk of prayer.  Don’t get me wrong, thanks and intercession have an important part  in our prayer life, but too many people get hung up on the polite small talk of  “please and thank you” and never get to the most intimate, most powerful part of prayer which is deep communion with God.  Too many people are too busy listening to their own words to spend any time listening to their hearts or God’s heart. It is not that we don’t believe in the importance of prayer, But many of us short change what prayer can be and miss out on the best part the most intimate part- the most powerful part.

6)     Dr. Helen Roseveare speaks of the power of prayer.  The missionary to Zaire, says  "A mother at our mission station died after giving birth to a premature baby. We tried to improvise an incubator to keep the infant alive, but the only hot water bottle we had was beyond repair. So we asked the children to pray for the baby and for her sister. One of the girls responded. 'Dear God, please send a hot water bottle today. Tomorrow will be too late because by then the baby will be dead. And dear Lord, send a doll for the sister so she won't feel so lonely.' That afternoon a large package arrived from England. The children watched eagerly as we opened it. Much to their surprise, under some clothing was a hot water bottle! Immediately the girl who had prayed so earnestly started to dig deeper, exclaiming, 'If God sent that, I'm sure He also sent a doll!' And she was right!
The power of prayer. . .  that box had been packed 5 months earlier by a women’s group in the united States.  5 months before that baby was born God provided the hot water bottle that saved its life.  Months before she was orphaned, God provided comfort for the little girl. 
7)     I fully believe that is why LIGHT took off like it did last year.  Because we made the decision every step of the way in prayer.   What else could we do.  What else could happen if God’s people became pray-ers.
8)     What kind of power would be unleashed if every one of us was to become a praying person?  What kind of divine power would be released if each and every one of us in this church developed a more personal, more intimate prayer life and we became known as a praying church?  What if, just what if- God’s people really prayed?  ((Video))

August 22 "Connect to Christ: worship"

Connect with Christ#5: worship
Reinbeck UMC
August 22, 2010

Why do you come to worship?
Some come out of habit.  Others because parents make them.  Others to see friends.  Others to get out of the house.  Others to do the job they are assigned.  Some because they feel like they have to.  Some because they feel better when they leave.  Some even to get attention for themselves and Some for a nap.
Well I’m not sure anybody really comes for a nap, but we have all done it.  I brought this video that Robyn took of me while we were on vacation this year.
{{PLAY “med bean?” Video}}
You know it isn’t so funny when it happens to you!

Anyway we like to poke fun at church and preachers and nappers.  But worship is serious business.
Worship is a drama. That is why your bulletin looks like program for a play today.    Soren Kierkegaard clarified the roles for us in the mid 1800’s.  Worship is a drama, but I am not the actor and you are not the audience.  I do not come to perform for you.  If that were the case we would close the churches and all watch the preachers perform on TV. Those of you who watch this service on RTU know that as much as you might appreciate it, it is not the same as being here. 
In this series of sermons we have been talking about ways to connect to Christ.  We have talked about connecting through scripture and repentance and community -- we will talk about prayer and service--  those are all things we initiate.  Those are all things we choose to do. 
Worship is different because worship is our finite human response to an infinitely magnificent God.
Can anyone see the birth of a baby and not say “WOW?”
Can anyone see the power of a thunderstorm and not feel small?
Can anyone consider the vastness of the universe and not feel privileged that God even knows you exist?
Can anyone stand at the bottom of a pounding waterfall, watching the miracle of the rainbow and feeling the cool mist that has been rolling off the rocks for thousands of years and not be awed?
I don’t think so.
So how can anyone be aware of the presence of the almighty, the all powerful, the perfectly just, perfectly loving, perfection of perfection, creator of all that is, lover of even the most sinful, saver of the lost and the hopeless, God of heaven and earth and not respond in awe and worship?

Worship is the natural human response to the presence of God.  Just like crying is the response to getting onion juice in our eyes, or sneezing is the natural response to getting pepper up your nose, or running is the natural response to coming face to face with a grizzly bear.  Worship is the natural human response to an encounter with the divine.

So back to the idea of worship as drama. Who is the actor and who is the audience?
How many of you think God is the actor?  How many of you think you are the actors?
You’re all right.  God and we are all actors in this drama of worship.  .

First, God is the star and we are the guest stars.  God acts and we respond.  God acts and we praise.  God acts and we pray.  God acts and we are transformed.  God acts and sends us out to act on God’s behalf.  Before there was anything else God acted saying “let there be light.” 
Before Adam and Eve God acted saying “Let us make people in our own image”
Before you were born God said, “Let us show them our love by becoming one of them.”
Before we turn to God, God has already turned to us.
Before we come to worship God is already acting in our lives and in this place.  That is why we start our service of worship with the joyful entrance.  Because God has already given us our cue.  God is on his mark, the lights are on and the curtain is up when we walk into the sanctuary.  So we respond in praise.

God acts first, but we respond.  We are also actors.   Not just me.  Though there is a practical purpose for the raised chancel area (namely visibility), one of the main reasons I don’t use it much is my theology of worship says that I am a leader among peers, not a performer.  I am a leader brought from the midst of the congregation prompting you for your lines- helping you to notice that God has given you a cue- making sure that nothing distracts from the dramatic dialog between God and God’s people, the drama we call worship.

So here we are to worship.  And we come back to the question “Why do you worship?”
Let’s watch a video that I think says it very well.
{{Play “Why I worship” video}}

Have you worshipped today?  It didn’t ask if you have gone to church today.  It didn’t ask if you had been to worship today, but “Have you worshipped today?”

Today we celebrate one of the ultimate acts of worship.  The giving of lives to God.  In the case of infant or child baptism, the parents respond to God’s action by bringing that which is most precious to them, to be wholly given to God.  Amber does that with Noah today.  Jim and Marcia bring Belen and Sylvana to publically renew that act of worship they performed in Perry.
In the case of transfers of membership,  God acts and we respond.  Doris and Jim and Marcia are all responding because God has done magnificent things in their lives.  Because they know God’s love and they desire to offer themselves in an act of worship back to the one that Gave himself to them. It is fundamentally a renewal of their baptisms a renewal of their confirmation, a renewal of their commitment to live their whole lives as an act of worship.

Could there be a better way to celebrate the actor/responder nature of worship than for each of us to respond to God’s acting by renewing our baptism offering.  As we share in the service of baptism and membership this morning let us all renew our passion for and our offering to God.
AMEN


Saturday, August 7, 2010

Connect to Christ #4 : Christian Community

Connect to Christ: through community (#4)
Reinbeck UMC
August 8, 2010

How many of you belong to a family? You know: parents, children, siblings, cousins, aunts and uncles. I’m not asking you if you claim them, or want to be seen with any of them, just if you have one!
How many of you have been to a family reunion this summer?
A wedding?

Aren’t families strange things? They say any family tree produces some lemons, some nuts and a few bad apples. Everyone seems to think their family has more than its share of each.

As much as we might complain about families, think about this:
Who do we want during the happiest times of life? Weddings, births and graduations? FAMILY
Who do we want to see during the saddest times of life like funerals? FAMILY.
What is the greatest influence on a child as he or she grows? FAMILY.
Who takes care of us when we are young? Mom and dad, or maybe Grandma and grand pa but almost always FAMILY.
Who looks after us in our old age? Perhaps nurses and friends, but the important decisions are usually made by FAMILY.
I’d say that just about covers it. Good and bad, young and old, and all the times in between. Families may strain our patience and endurance, but they also make us who we are. They shape us mould us and sustain us through all the ups and downs of life.

Can the same be said for our church family?  Maaybee.
If we are indeed brothers and sisters in Christ and God is indeed our heavenly father, lour Abba, our papa, doesn’t that make us the family of God? Yeesss.
Then should we be connected to our church family in the same way we are connected to our biological families. And doesn’t the church family have the same responsibilities as the biological family?
This series of sermons has been about being connected to Christ.  We have talked about connecting to Christ by prayer, Scripture, and repentance. Today I want to talk about being connected to Christ by community. And I think one of the best ways we can think about connecting to the church community is to think of the church as the family of God.
Now we have to say, right off the bat, that if the church is like a family it should not be like just any family. Today we have families of all kinds, with all kinds of problems. Families with more nuts, and lemons and bad apples than you can shake a stick at. Families that abuse one another, families that use one another, families that manipulate and control and keep secrets and pit one member against another; and families that neither eat together, nor grow together, but they are defined as families because they share one mailing address.
Let me say there are churches like that but that is not what I am talking about today. There are churches out there who (If they were a TV family) might be the Simpsons, or 2 and a half men. But that is exactly what I am NOT talking about today.
Far from being like these families, I am talking about the church as the best family you can imagine. I define that as people living and working together for the mutual benefit of each member. That means appreciating and adapting, communicating and committed, nurturing and encouraging each member to be the best they can be.
Doesn’t that sound like the kind of church you’d like to attend?  It does to me and, though we can always do better, in many ways we are like that. Let me ask you two questions that might enlighten how we can be a better family.

First, how do you think you would have turned out if right after you were born your parents hugged and kissed you, doted over you and showed you off . . . then left you on the street corner to go back to their other children? Kind of like a boy or girl raised by wolves? You likely would not have had the support and nurturing, the modeling and the encouraging that you needed to become the people you are today, right?
I have noticed lately that I think we unintentionally leave some of our new members, new brothers and sisters on the street corner to make their own way in the world. I think we have come a long ways in welcoming and hospitality, but how often do you sit down in fellowship time with someone you don’t know very well? When is the last time you invited a new resident, or a new member, or a repeat visitor to join you for lunch? When was the last time you made a special effort to seriously get to know someone who has lived here or attended here for less than 5 years?
I think we could do a better job being a nurturing family to some of our own people just by noticing them. So this morning after services for the length of Jim’s postlude with is probably 2 – 3 minutes. Instead of coming to shake my hand- because you all know me. Instead of visiting with the neighbor you haven’t seen all week, but have known since you were both 5 years old. Look for someone you don’t know so well. Preferably someone who is newer to the church or community than you are and spend those first 3 minutes visiting with them while you go back to get your cookies. We aren’t bad but I think we can do better so let’s try that today.

The second question is, if you disappeared from the table during thanksgiving dinner, how would you feel if no one came to check on you? Pretty bad. And would you go back? Why would you? Friends we have brothers and sisters who have disappeared from the family table. Do you know the biggest reason people drop out of church? Because they missed a few Sundays and no one seemed to notice.
You know they don’t like to be called inactive members, but I think we have to call a spade a spade. If someone is not showing up on Sunday, or Wednesday or UMW or LIGHT or committee meetings; like it or not they are inactive. And someone has to notice and show that they care. I sometimes am asked about this person or that, so I know that you notice. But it doesn’t matter if I know. Let them know that you noticed and you miss them. They may at least make it back to the family table for desert.

Obviously I think there are a couple of ways we can be a better Christian community, but in general we do a really excellent job.
The other thing I want you to hear today is if you want to be connected to Christ- it is essential- it is vital- it is critical- that you connect with community.

First, we must connect to Christ in corporate worship.
In Matthew 18:20 we read these familiar words: "For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them." Jesus is present when the believers are gathered together.
Kent Hughes writes, "It is true that one does not have to go to church to be a Christian. He does not have to go home to be married either. But in both cases if he does not, he will have a very poor relationship." (Commentary on Hebrews)
Our times of corporate worship heighten our encounter with God. That's not hard to understand. Whatever music you enjoy, it is one thing to listen to CDs. You can hear the music clearly and the lyrics precisely. However, if you are like most people you would most like to hear the concert live and in person. Why? The sound is not studio quality, the seats are not as comfortable as your recliner, and it costs you at least $30 to go. We enjoy these concerts because of the excitement and enthusiasm that is generated by the crowd. There is clapping, singing along and maybe even a little dancing. It enhances our enjoyment to enjoy the music with others.
The same is true of our worship. Celebrating the goodness of the Lord in the company of His people makes the music richer and the teaching fuller. God is present in a unique way in the gathering of His people. And it draws us closer to Christ.

Second we need to be part of the spiritual family because the church is a great Laboratory for Christian Living.
In the book of Colossians from which we have been taking these messages, Paul writes, “As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.”
You might be able to learn about compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. By yourself (at least in theory) but you cannot learn about forgiveness and love in isolation. We need to have people around us. We need to have people who do wrong so we can practice forgiving-- you get plenty of practice with me around here. We need people who are willing to be loved so we can practice on them. I think we have that here too. In order to grow in our connectedness to Christ we need to both experience and exemplify God’s love. The church gives us a community of people on which we can practice our Christian living.

Third, The Church is where we find strength for difficult times
In Hebrews 10 the author talks about the difficulty of our spiritual walk and the necessity of persevering in our faith. He gives us practical help. He points us to the church. In verses 24 and 25 he writes: “Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”
Do you see this? The author tells us not to give up meeting together . . .Why? Because He knows we are more susceptible to falling when we are alone.
If regular worship is a part of your life, and if you have made a commitment to a local body of believers then you know what the author of Hebrews is talking about. When you miss a week at worship you find yourself weaker, diminished, zapped of strength.
We draw strength from each other. In this place we find sympathy, encouragement, accountability, wise counsel. We strengthen each other by our presence and weaken each other by our absence. In this place we understand the concept of a spiritual battle. We know we will be overwhelmed if we face the enemy alone. . so we march together. We understand that at times we stumble, so we are ready to catch each other if we fall. We celebrate the victories. We cheer each other on.

Fourth we need to be part of the spiritual family because it is in Christian community that We Find Completeness
Paul writes in Romans 12:3,4 Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ's body. We are all parts of his one body, and each of us has different work to do. And since we are all one body in Christ, we belong to each other, and each of us needs all the others. (NLT)
Paul's point is clear, we are incomplete when we are in isolation. We are whole when we are together. God designed the Christian community to be inter-dependent. No one can manage on their own. God has not given all His gifts and abilities to any one person. It is spread among a group. He wants us to need each other.

This morning we look at the importance of being a part of a spiritual family. Someone has said, "To begin our Christian life we must commit ourselves to Jesus Christ, to grow in our Christian life we must also commit ourselves to other Christians." That's what the church is: a group of people who are committed to each other because of Christ. 

The church is not a building . . . it is a people, who have been irrevocably changed by God; who have joined together to bring honor to the one they call King. May God help our family grow and may we help you to grow in your connection to Christ.