Monday, October 29, 2018

Peculiar

1 Peter 2:9 says "but you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people: that ye should shew forth the praises of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light (KJV)."  There is a lot said in those few verses.  But the word I will hang on today is "peculiar."

When we use this word I think it has a negative connotation.  If I am 'peculiar' there is something not quite right with me.  If I have 'peculiar' mannerisms you might look at me sideways or avoid me altogether.  So ... why does God seem to like this designation?  "you are a ... peculiar people." 

Maybe the answer to the above question is simple.  This passage is reflective on many descriptions of God's people in the Old Testament.  God reminds the people they are not called to conform to society ... they are called to be different from their neighbors.  Because of 'peculiar' dietary laws followed by the Hebrews, they lived longer and more healthy lives than their pagan neighbors.  The neighbors thought this was odd but they probably longed for what they saw as the blessing of long life.  In fact, this was exactly what God said would happen when they obeyed Him, stating "if you love and obey the Lord you will live long in the land (Deuteronomy 30:20)."  But even more vital God tells the Hebrew people that their peculiarity will not just bless them but it will spread out to bless the whole world.  So ... our peculiar nature is so we can become a blessing to the world ... a high calling indeed!

But this passage describes another calling.  It is a calling of gratitude.  It is a calling of enlightened realization.  It is a calling of greatest blessing.  It is a command to realize who and what we are by worshiping the God who is worthy of all praises!  The NRSV (1 Peter 2:9) says it this way ... we are all these things "in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of Him who has called you out of darkness into His glorious light!"  We are peculiar because we have changed addresses.  We no longer have to live in the dark.  We no longer function in what Anthony Evans calls "the economy of the world."  We are not slaves ... and we are not in bondage to the whims of the world.  We live in the light of God's grace and truth!  Psalm 27 said ... "The Lord is my light and salvation ... what shall I fear?"  Fearless people filled with light are strange, weird and peculiar.  I want to be one of those people!  Randy

Monday, October 22, 2018

Starting

John Ortberg's book The Life You've Always Wanted is a great start to something we all need ... resetting, rethinking, reexamining and renewing.  These are things that God's Word draws us to magnetically.  Every mistake is a teaching moment.  Every victory is a lesson in seeing God's hand in the triumph.  Ortberg rightfully points out that spiritual disciplines are paths to the vast universe of good things God is doing and will do in our lives.  These 'rules of life' allow us to become the living trees that bear the fruit of the spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control).  So ... how do we start?

I believe we start by a means of sorting the things that are worthwhile and the things that should be a lesser priority in our lives.  I like the way The Message states Mark 8:35-36.  "Self-help is no help at all.  Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to saving yourself ... your true self.  What good would it do to get everything you want and lose you ... the real you?  What could you ever trade your soul for?"  That passage is a great starting point for sorting out the things in life that are healthy and unhealthy.  I think on this passage often, especially when I am confused by my reactions, my intentions and my inclinations.  It is a resetting, rethinking, reexamining and renewing passage because it gets me off my stuff and onto God's stuff (always a healthy thing).  It starts my day in a good direction.

There is a theme in this passage.  It is the theme of asking yourself what God wants.  It is all about trusting God's purpose of leading you a life that would bring out your true self and your true design.  In the song So Will I  one of the lines says "If creation still obeys You, so will I."  I sing the lyrics and forget that obedience.  Because obeying God is beginning a new life of following His order, not mine.  Obeying God's plan means learning to see and follow Him.  Obeying God's plan means seeing past discomfort and my feelings so I can see His greater and more perfect purpose.  Obeying God's plan means I see the snare and trap described in Mark 8:35-36.  That snare is 'want' ... a little word among other words.  Some versions say 'gain the whole world.'  But it means the same thing ... that I can't begin living the life I always wanted until I allow God's 'wants' to trump 'my wants.'  Because direction is important.  There is a huge tree down across the back yard of the parsonage.  It is exactly parallel to the house.  The tree fell in a SSE direction.  If the tree had fallen directly south it would have fallen on the back of the house where Lee was sleeping (or trying to sleep) during Michael's pass through Abbeville.  Direction made a huge difference for us, but that difference is magnified in life.  Every time I read Mark 8 I am reminded that the beautiful fruit of life ... the good things God plans for me ... are bound up in words that Jesus used often ... "Follow me!"  Not tradition.  Not what makes me feel good.  Not what gets me excited and riled-up.  Not eloquent speeches.  Not my political party.  To start my journey with Jesus I must examine my own motives, alter my errant direction, follow my Savior and put aside my wants in favor of God's wants.  It will be a great place to start.  Randy

Monday, October 15, 2018

Six Things About Storms

I hope this blog finds all of you in a time of getting things sorted out after the storm called Michael.  Michael was a tangible, touchable and evident storm that is now embedded in our memory and in our history.  People will talk about Michael and where they were, what they were doing and how they coped.  For some it will be about the near miss.  For some it will be about how they survived.  For some it will be about the hard work in the aftermath.  Almost all of us will quickly place Michael in our past and move forward.  It is clear Michael has passed and we are all glad!

Isaiah has a great passage about the storms of life.  It is verses 43:1-3a.  Here is what it says.  "listen to the Lord who created you!  O Israel, the one who formed you says, "Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you.  I have called you by name and you are mine.  When you go through deep waters I will be with you.  When you go through the rivers of difficulty you will not drown.  When you walk through the fire of oppression you will not be burned up ... the flames will not consume you.  For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior."  WOW ... lots said!

Now ... six things about storms:

1. God says ... don't be afraid.  And He tells us why.  We are ransomed, purchased ... the Bible would say 'redeemed.'  We are a possession named by God Himself.  And God cares about His treasured possession, the people who are His!

2. We will go through deep water.  The verse says 'when you go.'  This and several following passages remind us that the condition of life includes those floods that come our way.

3. We will have difficulty.  I hope you know and realize this.  God promises the ability for us to have peace in all circumstances but He does not promise peaceful circumstances.

4. We will experience the fire of oppression.  Again, 'when' is used.  We cannot expect a life without oppression and if we follow Jesus.  John 15:20 says, "Since they persecuted me, naturally they will persecute you."

5.  God is our God.  In Leviticus 26:12 God says "I will walk among you.  I will be your God and you will be My people."  The Hebrew word used for 'walk' only refers to human perambulation.  God is saying that He will walk among us as a person.  Jesus did just that!

6. God is our Savior.  God is the only thing/person/entity that will be our salvation when the storms come.  Paul said it perfectly in Romans 8:38-39.  "I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love.  No power int he sky above or in the earth below, indeed nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love if God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord."

An that's the truth!  Randy

Monday, October 8, 2018

Ob Portu

Since all of our thoughts this week are on the Gulf, storms, tides, wind, etc. I thought it would be appropriate to talk about a water/ocean-related topic in my blog.  The words that come to mind are "Ob Portu" which is a derivative of the Latin phrase "ob portum veniens" which means "coming toward a port."  In the old days ships didn't have powerful motors that would plow through the tides and the overwhelming weight of moving water.  So they had to wait outside the harbor until the tide was favorable to move the ship to port.  So the phrase Ob Portu comes to mind.

You might notice the words Ob Portu have a resemblance to another word we use all the time.  That word, opportunity, actually comes from this old phrase.  And it makes perfect sense.  The ship waits for what Webster's Dictionary calls "a favorable juncture of circumstances" to move into the port and do whatever business is at hand.  We (people) do that too!

Sunday I shared from Isaiah 43.  God's Word said, "For I am about to do something new!"  See ... I have already begun!  Do you not see it? (Isaiah 43:19)"  Yes!!! Opportunity!

We grasp opportunity when we are watching the tide and being aware that it is moving toward the harbor.  We grasp opportunity when we 1) see what God has begun, 2) participate (jump into) in God's good work and 3) realize that when God is moving it is time for us to move.

The book of Hebrews has a warning for our propensity to procrastinate.  The writer says, "TODAY when you hear His voice, don't harden your hearts as Israel did when they rebelled! (Hebrews 3:7)"  That is good advice.  Because Ob Portu is the tide of God bringing us into port.  The writer of Hebrews correctly calls those times when we miss the opportunity to follow God rebellion ... a hardening of our heart.

Seven weeks of testimony about serving God through missions has been laid out before us.  My friend John Riley talks about a "Jesus Movement" that is our chance to jump into God's work and catch that ship into the port God has planned for us.  These are opportunities to catch the tide that God, through the prophet Isaiah, said is a new thing God is doing!  Do you not see?  It has begun and I am hoping to come into port with all of the flock here at Abbeville UMC fully-engaged and fully on-board.  It is our Ob Portu!  Randy 

Ob Portu

Since all of our thoughts this week are on the Gulf, storms, tides, wind, etc. I thought it would be appropriate to talk about a water/ocean-related topic in my blog.  The words that come to mind are "Ob Portu" which is a derivative of the Latin phrase "ob portum veniens" which means "coming toward a port."  In the old days ships didn't have powerful motors that would plow through the tides and the overwhelming weight of moving water.  So they had to wait outside the harbor until the tide was favorable to move the ship to port.  So the phrase Ob Portu comes to mind.

You might notice the words Ob Portu have a resemblance to another word we use all the time.  That word, opportunity, actually comes from this old phrase.  And it makes perfect sense.  The ship waits for what Webster's Dictionary calls "a favorable juncture of circumstances" to move into the port and do whatever business is at hand.  We (people) do that too!

Sunday I shared from Isaiah 43.  God's Word said, "For I am about to do something new!"  See ... I have already begun!  Do you not see it? (Isaiah 43:19)"  Yes!!! Opportunity!

We grasp opportunity when we are watching the tide and being aware that it is moving toward the harbor.  We grasp opportunity when we 1) see what God has begun, 2) participate (jump into) in God's good work and 3) realize that when God is moving it is time for us to move.

The book of Hebrews has a warning for our propensity to procrastinate.  The writer says, "TODAY when you hear His voice, don't harden your hearts as Israel did when they rebelled! (Hebrews 3:7)"  That is good advice.  Because Ob Portu is the tide of God bringing us into port.  The writer of Hebrews correctly calls those times when we miss the opportunity to follow God rebellion ... a hardening of our heart.

Seven weeks of testimony about serving God through missions has been laid out before us.  My friend John Riley talks about a "Jesus Movement" that is our chance to jump into God's work and catch that ship into the port God has planned for us.  These are opportunities to catch the tide that God, through the prophet Isaiah, said is a new thing God is doing!  Do you not see?  It has begun and I am hoping to come into port with all of the flock here at Abbeville UMC fully-engaged and fully on-board.  It is our Ob Portu!  Randy 

Monday, October 1, 2018

Proud

That is how I feel today!  Proud to be part of this little church in Abbeville, Alabama that shares God's message to diverse people in diverse ways using diverse gifts.  Yes ... proud!

I am proud of you because you have embraced this "Missions Month" with passion and purpose.  Proverbs 19:17 talks about how we become blessed by God when we are willing to look outward to help others.  "Mercy to the needy is a loan to God and God pays back those loans in full."  While I hope none of us does what we do because we "get" from God, it is comforting to know that helping the poor is something important to God ... and that should be enough to motivate us.

Sunday was a blessing to me for several reasons.  First, it was a reminder that in the midst of many moving parts we can focus on the real moving that is important ... the moving of God's Spirit.  From a profession of faith in Jesus to Skip and David kneeling at the altar I could barely hold it together.  God's Spirit was moving in a mighty way.  The Praise Team sang, "O Come to the Altar" and God led many there.   We came "leaving behind regrets and mistakes" to claim the salvation, substance and purpose of God.  I was blown away!

I was also blessed as 20 of us attended the Bishop's Town Hall meeting.  While we did not get the total assurance we would have liked about what the future holds, we did get a reminder of what was expressed on Sunday morning.  In ministry God sends us out to express His healing, His love, His truth and His grace to a world that is filled with hurt, hate, lies and injustice.  The Church is a way we bring Jesus into that world.  We do it by expressing the truth of the Gospel.  We do it by standing with our brothers and sisters who face illness and infirmity.  We do it when we bring love in the face of hate.  We do it when we oppose injustice.  We tell sinners that they are not made to be slaves of their sins and sinfulness and that they are made to be children of a God who wants every one of them to know Him and His salvation.  We have a message and a mission.  And that message and mission is expressed loudly when we say yes to God in missions that invite others to know Jesus.

I am proud to serve a church that "gets" it!  It is not about our feelings or us.  It is about what God is doing.  This Sunday we will highlight the last of the 7 missions we are showcasing during Missions Month.  We will share the cup and the bread as we share the Eucharist with people all around the world.  We will do what "Eucharist" means ... give thanks.  And I will give thanks for you!  Randy