Thursday, August 30, 2012

Coming Up Sunday, September 2

This Labor Day weekend, I will begin the first sermon series of the fall, "If We Are the Body..." which explores the great description of Paul for the church -- the body of Christ.  I hope to explore this image in several ways over the next few weeks, first by focusing on Paul's fullest description of it from 1 Corinthians 12 and then moving to other important New Testament passages.

This Sunday, we'll focus on the beginning of the passage, which speaks of one Spirit and one baptism.  Where does our unity as Christians come from?  What does it mean to become part of "the body of Christ"?

While some people may use the long holiday weekend to travel, I hope that many of us will gather for worship at Eastgate.


Tuesday, August 28, 2012

August 26 Worship: "What I Did on My Summer Vacation"

We had an emotional worship service on Sunday -- one that affected me powerfully and made me find some quiet space to reflect that afternoon.  It is always moving to have someone share their struggles and their hope in the face of challenge.  It also is moving to have another choose to join our congregation as we travel along this pilgrim's way.  And we had both on Sunday.

As might be obvious from my sermon title, I had limited expectations for worship, feeling like it is part of our "winding down" of summer before we "wind up" and begin activities in the fall.  Then again, maybe it was a living out of my reflections on Sabbath -- that given time to reflect and be, God still teaches us, usually giving unexpected lessons.  My extended testimony given on Sunday, which was what the sermon was, were inspired by the description of the Sabbath year for the land proscribed by God for the Hebrews.

If you missed the sermon on Sunday, if you'd like to listen to it again, or if you'd like to share it with others, you can find an audio recording here.

Saturday, August 25, 2012

Prayer for Mission in Hong Kong

This week we pray for Judy Chan and Bruce Van Voorhis, our missionaries in Hong Kong.  Judy works with communications for the Hong Kong Christian Council, while Bruce is the Coordinator of Interfaith Programs for the regional YMCA.

You can read more about the mission to Hong Kong here, including some details about the general work of the Hong Kong Christian Council.

There are Christian missionaries serving around the world on our behalf in 70 countries.  Each week, Global Missions highlights one of these missions and asks the church to pray for its continued vitality in spreading the Gospel.

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Stewardship Beyond Our Lifetimes

Churches, and church folk, are notoriously tight-lipped about money matters.  This makes the annual attempt to solicit pledges for the upcoming year, in order to plan a congregational budget, an exercise that most people try to avoid.  Most pastors grudgingly give one sermon a year about money, usually apologetically, and then avoid all mentions of money the rest of the year.

Personally, I am trying to learn how to talk about money in a more helpful way in the church, though I know that I have a long way to go because I usually would like to avoid the subject too.  However, our collective reluctance to talk about money means that we do not always think about money in a religious way.

This is most obvious in how many of us choose to prepare for the distribution of our assets and property after our deaths.  Many people avoid thinking about this at all, and never prepare any sort of will, leaving their close family members to deal with it (or even the government).  But a small bit of preparation can see to it that we can give gifts to those people and organizations we value after our death.

Our very own area representative to the Christian Church Foundation, Kirby Gould, has recorded a couple of short videos that can help church members think about how they might give an estate gift to their congregation or other ministry.  If you have never thought about planning, or if you've never thought about your faith when you've made such estate plans, I encourage you to watch these videos.

Given retirement accounts and the value of real estate, most people have a larger estate than they realize, even when they are young.  It is never too early to take a little bit of time and expense to have an attorney draw up a basic will.  And, when you do, don't forget to include those organizations that you have supported with your time and gifts during your life, including the church.

Saturday, August 11, 2012

Prayer for Mission in Guatemala

This week, we pray for the ongoing mission to Guatemala.  Our previous missionary is currently in the United States, but shares some details about the mission effort here.

There are Christian missionaries serving around the world on our behalf in 70 countries.  Each week, Global Missions highlights one of these missions and asks the church to pray for its continued vitality in spreading the gospel.

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Church as Safe Space

Sometime in the coming months, I am planning a sermon series around community building in churches.  Right now, certain ideas and images are rattling around my mind; eventually I will try to put them together in some sort of coherent and (hopefully) helpful way.  But I imagine that will be sometime next spring.

In the meantime, I've come across an article that touches on one important piece of building a loving and supportive Christian community -- creating a safe place for people to ask hard questions and share real doubts, including doubts about God.  While this article focuses on trying to reach out to young adults (and what congregation doesn't want to do that!), I think that it is generally applicable to all ages.

In particular, I love the professor's answer to the real question of whether the church does more harm than good in the world.  What if we looked beyond Sunday morning congregations to the outreach organizations -- hospitals, schools, service groups -- that Christians have organized and continue to support?  Where would our world be without those?

But if we're to share such answers to tough questions with people who have serious doubts or anxieties about the church, we must create a space where such questions can safely be asked and where such answers can truly be heard.

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

August 5 Worship: "The Dark Knight Rises"

I don't know if it was the slightly cooler weather, but a large number of us gathered on Sunday -- about 120 people -- which is quite something for the first Sunday in August.  And our collective praise and worship seemed powerful, at least to me and to many who mentioned it to me after the service.  I'm sure that was in no small part to how many of us gathered together in God's presence.

In the sermon, I finished off this year's "Summer Blockbuster Sermon Series" with "The Dark Knight Rises," which was certainly the summer movie I was most excited to see.  The final installment of director Christopher Nolan's take on the Batman story was not only a great movie, but, surprisingly, it managed to offer a different Batman than I think has ever been shown on the screen -- either movie or television.  The emotional and psychological turmoil faced by Bruce Wayne in the movie reminded me of that faced by the Apostle Paul at the end of his career, which he eloquently expressed in his letter from prison to the Philippian church.

I think that this challenge -- how to keep claiming our identity as Christians as our body (and spirit?) seem to break down -- is present in our lives of faith as we continue our pilgrim journeys.  And while Batman is a troubling role model in some respects, in the way that Bruce Wayne faces this dilemma of how to claim his identity as Batman as he gets older and poorer, we can see another example of how we might face the doubts and challenges that are a part of maturing faith.

If you missed the sermon, if you'd like to listen to it again, or if you'd like to share it with other people, you can find an audio recording here.

Saturday, August 4, 2012

Prayer for Mission in Indonesia

This week we pray for John Campbell-Nelson, our missionary to Indonesia.  John serves the Evangelical Christian Church of West Timor as a resource for clergy education and training.

You can read more about the mission to Indonesia here, including the story of a woman who struggled to reconcile her Christian beliefs with her ancestral religion, which is a challenge faced frequently by many of our missionaries.

There are Christian missionaries serving around the world on our behalf in 70 countries.  Each week, Global Missions highlights one of these missions and asks the church to pray for its continued vitality in spreading the gospel.

Friday, August 3, 2012

Coming Up Sunday, August 5

This Sunday, we wrap up our "Summer Blockbuster Sermon Series" with a sermon based on "The Dark Knight Rises."  This film, which concludes director Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy, tells the story of an aging Bruce Wayne again donning the Batman suit and saving Gotham from the threat of complete destruction.

Here is one of the trailers:



Due to the shooting in Aurora, Colorado, the movie has been at the center of tragedy.  While the movie is has quite a bit of violence, which is expected given the genre, it doesn't promote violence.  In fact, the film is about lots of people -- not just Batman -- standing up against bullying and violence.

In fact, the character of Batman/Bruce Wayne in "The Dark Knight Rises," broken-down and perhaps a shell of his younger self -- reminds me of the Apostle Paul during his last years, especially when he was imprisoned.  Later in life, Paul came to appreciate the opportunity for a transformed life in Christ while on earth, which motivated him even during the challenging times.  I think that Bruce Wayne's years in this movie -- minus the combat scenes -- touch on a similar theme: What are we supposed to live for as Christians?  What is the meaning of the "past our prime" years?

Thursday, August 2, 2012

July 29 Worship: "The Amazing Spider-Man"

We had a packed house on Sunday morning, with many visitors joining us, which was a pleasant surprise for the last Sunday in July.  Certainly there was a rich spirit among us, creating a warm worship experience.

The sermon, the fourth in the "Summer Blockbuster Sermon Series," featured the latest version of "The Amazing Spider-Man."  This reboot of the Spider-Man franchise again tells the origin story of how high school student Peter Parker became the well-known superhero.  We compared this to the origin story of Jesus Christ found in John, focusing on the miracle at the wedding feast in Cana.  One interesting parallel of both stories is that Peter Parker and Jesus must work their wonders within a specific community that has always known them; Spider-Man goes home after fighting crime at night to live with his Aunt, while Jesus is God Incarnate and yet tries to live according to his mother's wishes.

This is not to confuse the comic book character with the Son of God, but there are interesting ways that the stories overlap -- which means that the story of Spider-Man can help us better understand the revelation of God in Jesus Christ.

If you missed Sunday's sermon, if you'd like to listen to it again, or if you'd like to share it with others, you can find an audio recording here.