Barnabus turned out to be a much more emotional topic for me than I expected.
The story of Barnabus the encourager, the patron saint of second chances, can be found in Acts Chapters 4-15.
We first hear of him by his Jewish name, Joseph, when he sells his land and donates all the money to the disciples for the good of the Christian community and mission.
His life and ministry of generosity and faith touched me deeply. He appeared to dedicate his life to spreading the good news of Christ's love and mercy to people that others found unworthy. And he did it not for the personal glory or satisfaction but because he understood how much people needed both encouragement and second chances.
I have been fortunate in my life to have generous, loving people to encourage and support me. Since being in ministry, I have found that God always sends me a balance of encouraging and "wait a minute don't get too big headed!" moments. When I am feeling pretty satisfied with myself, something happens that reminds me that I don't do this alone. Without God, I would be incapable of pastoral care much less preaching. By the same grace, when I am feeling so down on myself, that I think I should go work in a book store, someone comes and reminds me that God has indeed touched someone through my words or actions.
Because I have had such wonderful mentors and friends, I try and pass on the gift to others. I have mentored seminary students, college students, and youth. Currently, I am acting as a mentor for people just starting the ordination process. I also try and encourage other staff members to grow and to take advantage of new opportunities.
One of the issues you face in being a mentor is that sometimes your "mentee" out grows you and moves on to greater ministries than you know you will ever achieve, just as Paul out grew Barnabus. From a human point of view that can be difficult. I remember once a long time ago, a young woman that I worked with at the bank thanking me for mentoring her because she had found other women in business treated her as a rival instead of someone who needed to be encouraged.
However, when we remember that the goal is not our own careers but bringing the kingdom of God to earth, we rejoice with every accomplishment of those around us.
When have you been mentored? Look around you. Who could benefit from your wisdom and experience?
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Monday, August 9, 2010
King Saul
Saul's story can be found in 1 Samuel 9 - 31.
Saul's story is difficult. It is full of violence, jealousy, and betrayal.
But as John told us yesterday, at the heart of the story is a very human person - Saul.
Saul is anointed by God for a job (King of Israel) which he neither sought nor was prepared to execute.
He started out with good intentions. He wanted the best for his people and wanted to please God. But along the way, fear and jealousy, pride and ambition get in the way leading to a tragic end.
Perhaps none of us would like to admit to being like Saul but if we are honest we can all find a connection to our own story.
I feel like I constantly walk a line between having enough confidence in myself to go out and do what God has called me to do and yet not beginning to think too highly of my own skills. Luckily, God seems to help me out with this. Just about the time I start thinking - "wow, I really have this ministry stuff down," I make some stupid mistake. Then about the time I am so down on myself that I think "I have no right to be doing this," someone tells me how something that I have done has made a difference in their life and I think "God has not deserted me" and I keep trying.
When had God called you to do something you felt unprepared to do? How did it turn out?
Saul's story is difficult. It is full of violence, jealousy, and betrayal.
But as John told us yesterday, at the heart of the story is a very human person - Saul.
Saul is anointed by God for a job (King of Israel) which he neither sought nor was prepared to execute.
He started out with good intentions. He wanted the best for his people and wanted to please God. But along the way, fear and jealousy, pride and ambition get in the way leading to a tragic end.
Perhaps none of us would like to admit to being like Saul but if we are honest we can all find a connection to our own story.
I feel like I constantly walk a line between having enough confidence in myself to go out and do what God has called me to do and yet not beginning to think too highly of my own skills. Luckily, God seems to help me out with this. Just about the time I start thinking - "wow, I really have this ministry stuff down," I make some stupid mistake. Then about the time I am so down on myself that I think "I have no right to be doing this," someone tells me how something that I have done has made a difference in their life and I think "God has not deserted me" and I keep trying.
When had God called you to do something you felt unprepared to do? How did it turn out?
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Esther
Meaning in the book of Esther is multilayered.
On the surface it is a comic historical novella. Perhaps created to give a religious meaning to the Jewish festival of Purim. Perhaps to remind the Jews in the diaspora (scattered throughout the Near East) that they are still a community with a covenant relationship to God. Perhaps as a counter balance to the exclusive message of Nehemiah and Daniel.
For centuries, church leaders both Jewish and Christian have tried to either remove Esther from the Bible or to add passages to it to make the book more overtly religious and Esther a more pious Jewish woman. Martin Luther wanted it removed because he said it contained "heathen naughties."
Beneath the comedy of the prose there is a dark side - young girls taken into the king's harem with little choice in the matter, women treated as if they were property, the persecuted minority using the violence of the majority to kill 75,000 people.
Inbetween the comedy and the darkness, there are lessons for us all.
Lessons like the truth that God uses ordinary people to work for the good of the community or that we experience God's grace through each other or that God sees beyond the obvious to who we really are and who we can become in God's love.
When have you experienced an unexpected gift of grace from an unlikely source?
When have you felt that God worked through you to bring a gift of grace to someone else?
On the surface it is a comic historical novella. Perhaps created to give a religious meaning to the Jewish festival of Purim. Perhaps to remind the Jews in the diaspora (scattered throughout the Near East) that they are still a community with a covenant relationship to God. Perhaps as a counter balance to the exclusive message of Nehemiah and Daniel.
For centuries, church leaders both Jewish and Christian have tried to either remove Esther from the Bible or to add passages to it to make the book more overtly religious and Esther a more pious Jewish woman. Martin Luther wanted it removed because he said it contained "heathen naughties."
Beneath the comedy of the prose there is a dark side - young girls taken into the king's harem with little choice in the matter, women treated as if they were property, the persecuted minority using the violence of the majority to kill 75,000 people.
Inbetween the comedy and the darkness, there are lessons for us all.
Lessons like the truth that God uses ordinary people to work for the good of the community or that we experience God's grace through each other or that God sees beyond the obvious to who we really are and who we can become in God's love.
When have you experienced an unexpected gift of grace from an unlikely source?
When have you felt that God worked through you to bring a gift of grace to someone else?
Friday, July 30, 2010
"Nice Christians"
Bible study in the park was interesting last night. A neighbor who saw my King Ave yard sign came over and asked me about the church. She hadn't been to church since she was a young child and wanted to explore Christianity. I invited her to come with me to our Thursday evening Bible Study in the park and she did.
Then during the class a beautiful yellow lab came over and sat right beside me. Her owner, a young woman from the neighborhood stopped to get her. However the dog wasn't going to budge. She seemed determined to join the group! Maybe it was the brownies that she smelled, I don't know, but I would like to believe that God works in many ways including through our pets.
After several minutes of coaxing, it became evident that the dog was not moving. Her owner thanked us for being so nice to her dog and asked what kind of group we were. We told her we were a bible study group, to which she responded, "Wow, nice Christians! I don't know many of those."
That simple statement broke my heart. She went on to say that she had left her childhood church and left Christianity because she found Christians to be judgmental and even sometimes cruel. She had many gay and lesbian friends and said she couldn't go to a church that would not include them.
Immediately, the group responded with invitations to the Blessing of the Animals and to Morning Blend on Sunday. One member of the group told her that she was a lesbian and hadn't been to church in 20 years until she found King Ave. Everyone assured her that both she and her friends would be welcome.
She responded by saying that it was funny to run into us because she had been thinking a lot about her spiritual journey lately and had just begun to pray again after years of abstaining.
Now here is the really amazing part. Once she promised to come to the Blessing of the Animals and maybe to come Sunday, her dog got up, ready to go home!
I went home last night in awe of God's goodness, thinking about the lesson of humble patience.
The yard sign had been up in my yard since Easter. This is our second summer in the park. I was about to give up on both and to be honest was feeling a little sorry for myself because my projects seem to never attract more than 6-8 people - a failure in church growth circles.
Then we had the opportunity to touch two people looking for God and a faith they can believe in. Maybe neither of them will ever become church members at King Ave but I believe that both of them will remember that they met Christians who welcomed the stranger with the love of Christ.
Where have you had the opportunity to plant seeds of Christ's love and hope?
Then during the class a beautiful yellow lab came over and sat right beside me. Her owner, a young woman from the neighborhood stopped to get her. However the dog wasn't going to budge. She seemed determined to join the group! Maybe it was the brownies that she smelled, I don't know, but I would like to believe that God works in many ways including through our pets.
After several minutes of coaxing, it became evident that the dog was not moving. Her owner thanked us for being so nice to her dog and asked what kind of group we were. We told her we were a bible study group, to which she responded, "Wow, nice Christians! I don't know many of those."
That simple statement broke my heart. She went on to say that she had left her childhood church and left Christianity because she found Christians to be judgmental and even sometimes cruel. She had many gay and lesbian friends and said she couldn't go to a church that would not include them.
Immediately, the group responded with invitations to the Blessing of the Animals and to Morning Blend on Sunday. One member of the group told her that she was a lesbian and hadn't been to church in 20 years until she found King Ave. Everyone assured her that both she and her friends would be welcome.
She responded by saying that it was funny to run into us because she had been thinking a lot about her spiritual journey lately and had just begun to pray again after years of abstaining.
Now here is the really amazing part. Once she promised to come to the Blessing of the Animals and maybe to come Sunday, her dog got up, ready to go home!
I went home last night in awe of God's goodness, thinking about the lesson of humble patience.
The yard sign had been up in my yard since Easter. This is our second summer in the park. I was about to give up on both and to be honest was feeling a little sorry for myself because my projects seem to never attract more than 6-8 people - a failure in church growth circles.
Then we had the opportunity to touch two people looking for God and a faith they can believe in. Maybe neither of them will ever become church members at King Ave but I believe that both of them will remember that they met Christians who welcomed the stranger with the love of Christ.
Where have you had the opportunity to plant seeds of Christ's love and hope?
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Shiphrah and Puah
Shiphrah and Puah were the Hebrew midwives who defied Pharaoh to let the baby boys live. Because of their courage, Moses was able to grow up and lead the Hebrews out of slavery. Their story can be found in Exodus 1:8-22.
In his sermon on Shiphrah and Puah on Sunday, John stated, "God won't without us and we can't without God."
I really liked that. We can't sit back and expect God to fix all the problems of the world without any effort on our part and we can't set out to save the world or even ourselves without God.
I think about this every time I say to someone, I will pray for you. It's not that I don't believe in the power of prayer but what if God means for me to be part of the answer also? What if God wants me to do more than pray for the homeless but to actively work on their behalf? What if God wants me to do more than pray for someone in pain but to also be there with them letting them know that they are not forgotten?
What about you? What do you think God needs you to do? What do you feel called to do but know you cannot do alone?
In his sermon on Shiphrah and Puah on Sunday, John stated, "God won't without us and we can't without God."
I really liked that. We can't sit back and expect God to fix all the problems of the world without any effort on our part and we can't set out to save the world or even ourselves without God.
I think about this every time I say to someone, I will pray for you. It's not that I don't believe in the power of prayer but what if God means for me to be part of the answer also? What if God wants me to do more than pray for the homeless but to actively work on their behalf? What if God wants me to do more than pray for someone in pain but to also be there with them letting them know that they are not forgotten?
What about you? What do you think God needs you to do? What do you feel called to do but know you cannot do alone?
Monday, July 19, 2010
The Creation Story
On Sunday, John gave us a wonderful explanation of the creation story in Genesis 2 - 3. He described how Adam (literal meaning "the earth creature" or "creature of the earth") represents humanity. He was created by God as we all are created - in God's image, with the potential to be connected in deep and sacred ways with other humans, with non-human creation, and most of all with God.
But we mess things up and we find ourselves unconnected at the same time that we long for connectedness and wholeness.
Questions to ponder for this week:
* In what ways are you disconnected to God, to others and/or to nature?
* What are you doing to restore those connections?
* In what ways do you feel connected?
But we mess things up and we find ourselves unconnected at the same time that we long for connectedness and wholeness.
Questions to ponder for this week:
* In what ways are you disconnected to God, to others and/or to nature?
* What are you doing to restore those connections?
* In what ways do you feel connected?
Saturday, July 10, 2010
The Story of Ruth and Naomi
The story of Ruth and Naomi reminds us of 2 of God's eternal truths:
* We need each other - especially across generational lines. Ruth needed Naomi's wisdom and maturity. Naomi needed Ruth's courage, determination, and flexibility.
* Throughout the Bible, God uses "the outsider" as part of God's plan to save humanity. We should expect the unexpected because God is full of surprises.
So two sets of questions for this week.
1. Remember a person who was older than you that made a difference in your life. How did she or he help you to broaden your horizons or turn a "no" into a "yes"? How are you passing on that blessing to the next generation?
2. When have you felt like an "outsider"? When have you experienced grace through an "outsider"?
* We need each other - especially across generational lines. Ruth needed Naomi's wisdom and maturity. Naomi needed Ruth's courage, determination, and flexibility.
* Throughout the Bible, God uses "the outsider" as part of God's plan to save humanity. We should expect the unexpected because God is full of surprises.
So two sets of questions for this week.
1. Remember a person who was older than you that made a difference in your life. How did she or he help you to broaden your horizons or turn a "no" into a "yes"? How are you passing on that blessing to the next generation?
2. When have you felt like an "outsider"? When have you experienced grace through an "outsider"?
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