10W for August 5th, P10, I am the bread of life.

The following is a 10 minute worship for August 5th, P10, I am the bread of life.  You can either listen on the flash player below or download it to your favorite music program to sync with your mp3 player by clicking on "DOWNLOAD" or play it on your smartphone's music player by clicking PLAY. You now also have the option of receiving these notices each week and on festival days by signing up for the 10W constant contact email list on the 10W blog or on your phone by texting 10W to 22828. The song for the day is,"Up Above My Head" by Ruthie Foster from the CD "The Phenomenal Ruthie Foster" which can be purchased HERE

 

Opening Litany based on Psalm 78:23-29

Pastor: As the wandering children of complained of no food, God commanded the skies above and opened the doors of heaven and it rained down on them manna, the grain of heaven to eat,

   
Congregation: Because of the grace of God mortals ate of the bread of angels in abundance.

Pastor: God caused the east wind to blow in the heavens and through the power of the Almighty there rained down flesh upon the people of God like dust, winged birds like the sand of the seas fell within their camp.
   
Congregation: All the people ate and were well filled for the Lord  gave them what they craved.

poem for 10th Sunday after Pentecost John 6:24-35

Our bellies are full

We are refreshed

Our minds are no longer dulled

By that gnawing ache of hunger

And yet

We long

There was more that took place on that day

Than just the loaves

------------and fishes

what happened was good

--in the way creation was pronounced good

and yet

--we hunger for more

not just the food

that eased our hunger

but there was power in the words that were spoken

power that opened our minds

power that challenged us

and made us see

--a hunger

 we had not known

--(Jesus Said)

a hunger from deep within

which now that it has become loosed

will not be bound again

until it is feed

--(I am)

and nourished

as only God

--(the Bread)

as the Creator of all

--(of life)

can do

If we stopped playing around with toys and war machines

 Sunday August 5^th, Psalm 78: He split the Sea and they walked right through it; he piled the waters to the right and the left. He led them by day with a cloud, led them all the night long with a fiery torch. He split rocks in the wilderness, gave them all they could drink from underground springs; He made creeks flow out from sheer rock, and water pour out like a river. All they did was sin even more, rebel in the desert against the High God.  Children will be children as the saying goes, and the children of God are no exception.  As an occasional empty nester (they do keep coming back from time to time) I find that it’s nice when the children get older and they begin to take care of themselves.  Mark Twain marveled, tongue in cheek, at how smart his father had become as he got older.  I’m still waiting on some of my children to reach that stage of maturity, but someday maybe.  God had that same trouble with the children of God during the Exodus, when are we going to get there, I’m hungry, Johnny looked at me, can I smite him? Reading about the exodus you can almost get this image of an old station wagon going cross country with Chevy Chase at the wheel and the kids in the back moaning and groaning the whole way.  God had trouble with the kids back then and God still has that same trouble with us today.  You can hear the whining; them gays love different than us, we can’t provide healthcare for my brother, he is lazy and hasn’t made as much money in the market as I have, when can I start a war and smite someone?  Most of us want a bit more out of life and most of the time it is because we feel a bit empty inside.  God has not only given us more than we can imagine, but also through Christ, something to fill that emptiness in our soul.  If we stopped playing around with toys and war machines we might even notice how smart God has gotten over the years.  

some half-baked idea who to thank

Monday August 6^th, Psalm 78: It was clear they didn't believe God, had no intention of trusting in his help.  But God helped them anyway, commanded the clouds and gave orders that opened the gates of heaven. He rained down showers of manna to eat, he gave them the Bread of Heaven.  The blessings of God continue on today, though all have sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God, Jesus came into the world to save the world and bring salvation to all.  Now it is our turn to share the gracious gifts we have been given and in the process, participate in the graciousness of God in this world.  It is in giving that we receive.  But way back during the exodus we learned that it is in hording we find a smell in the depth of our souls. It is all that manna, down there hidden in the cracks, vaults and off shore accounts that is rotting and causing the stink.  God rains down blessings on us all and a Christian is no better than anyone else, no more or less loved than anyone else, a Christian is simply someone who once in a while has some half-baked idea who to thank.  

I have to go to the bathroom

Tuesday August 7^th, Exodus 16: 2 In the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. 3 The Israelites said to them, "If only we had died by the LORD's hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death."  Have you ever take a trip with young children?  Remember the continued questions and complaints, “When will we be there?”  “How much longer?” “I have to go to the bathroom?” “S/He touched/looked at me” and on and on and on?  Things haven’t changed much have they?  We are all quite capable of being bought off by the comforts of life to the point where we resist and resent a spiritual journey.  When was the last time you went to a Bible Study or Worship, even if you didn’t feel like it that day?  In spite of it all, God loved them.  In spite of it all, God loves us. We are all in this life together, the butcher the baker and from half way around the world, the candlestick maker.  Forget the bottom line and all your justified ways of using your brother to make a profit and enjoy the journey together.  

Mine? or Thanks?

Wednesday August 8^th, Exodus 16:  4 Then the LORD said to Moses, "I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions. 5 On the sixth day they are to prepare what they bring in, and that is to be twice as much as they gather on the other days."  God provides for everyone’s need, not everyone’s greed.  What the people found out was that if they gathered more than a day’s worth, it rotted, it stank.  On the sixth day they could get enough for two days so they could rest on the Sabbath.  When we horde, it also rots, and rotting still stinks.  It rots away in our garages and houses and off-shore accounts, true, but mostly it rots away in our hearts and souls, and that is where the stink comes from.  I can’t come to church this Sunday, I have a boat; I have to go fishing again, I have a cabin, I Must spend time there.  And just who do you think gave you the ability to get that boat or cabin in the first place?  A little thank you would be nice.  Do we live in a world of “Mine” or a world of “thanks?”  Mine leaves an empty feeling in your gut, thanks leaves singing in your soul. 

the fear thing

Thursday August 9^th, John 6: 24 Once the crowd realized that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and went to Capernaum in search of Jesus.  25 When they found him on the other side of the lake, they asked him, "Rabbi, when did you get here?"  26 Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, you are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. 27 Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you.  If you give someone who is starving a lecture on how Jesus loves them and how salvation is theirs, complete with the gift of eternal life, they will not hear a word, they are hungry and first they need food.  Here is a lesson for all world leaders, when people are hungry food draws people in, bombs, guns and prison drive them away.  Once they are in, you can work on the Jesus and justice thing.  All too often we work on the fear and Jesus thing, which is Jesus only in name, not in essence.  Jesus worked on the food and justice thing first, and the message.  It is in that doing that the people of Jesus’ day, and you and I, find God.  

wow! Thanks!

Friday August 10^th, John 6:  28 Then they asked him, "What must we do to do the works God requires?"  29 Jesus answered, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent." People are funny, even in the midst of their searching; they want to be in charge.  It’s the old Garden of Eden thing all over again.  When I get something for what I am doing then ultimately I, not the giver am the one in charge.  Jesus has done it, your job is to say “Wow, thanks!!!” and then live like you mean it.  The religious buzz phrases like Born again, Personal lord and savior, holy prayer warrior, are all ways of telling Christ to buzz off, I will take the prize….. on my terms because I earned it.  Living a life of wow, thanks, is a way of saying God is in charge, and Christ has shown you the way to live. 

hunger goes away

Saturday August 11^th, John 6: 33 For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." 34 "Sir," they said, "from now on give us this bread." 35 Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.  Gluttony is raiding the refrigerator because of a case of spiritual hunger.  That which makes life worth living comes from God, and no blue plate special can ever truly fill that hunger.  Until you fill that hunger, all the hording, holding and hounding only brings more hunger.  God has given you more than enough good things in this life.  What the followers of Christ learned on that mountain, and what we still have trouble hearing today, is that in sharing there is life.  Life that comes from God, life that flows through us, life given to others, and once we tap into that life, the hunger goes away, and so does our problem with gluttony.  

10W for July 29th, the 9th Sunday after Pentecost, You Feed Them

The following is a 10 minute worship for July 29th, the 9th Sunday after Pentecost, You Feed Them. You can either listen on the flash player below or download it to your favorite music program to sync with your mp3 player by clicking on "DOWNLOAD" or play it on your smartphone's music player by clicking PLAY. You now also have the option of receiving these notices each week and on festival days by signing up for the 10W constant contact email list on the 10W blog or on your phone by texting 10W to 22828. The song for the day is,"One Bread, One Body" by John Michael Talbot from the CD "Table of Plenty" which can be purchased HERE

 

Poem based on John 6:1-21

9^th Sunday after Pentecost

John 6:1-21

It seems like so little to go around

With the people of this world

Starving

Mothers holding children in their arms

Gifts of life from God

Only to be taken from them

By priorities

Not their own

Priorities

That must be set by someone

I scream

As I watch the swollen bellies of starvation

Eat away at yet another

Someone else’s child

There must be someone

Who is doing this to these children of God

These sisters and brothers of mine

in the family of God

these to whom I claim my oneness

through Christ

as I take the bread and wine

but “who” is the cry that keeps the bowls empty

and the water filled

with yet another messenger of death

(so they gathered up)

“Who” is a finger pointed out there

aimed at some

unnamed

and unchangeable

villain

out there

as the children continue to die

(twelve baskets)

I turn off the TV

Turn down the thermostat

And turned off the lights

To get a good nights sleep in the comfort

And security

Of this home I have made for myself

And hope I do not have to hear

The pleas

For the children

On the car radio as I drive

To work

Tomorrow

(with fragments)

I can’t stand to hear

Of the pain

Until

That one is found

(from the five loaves)

who is responsible

and that one

out there

is made to correct this injustice

(left by those)

that is bringing starvation

to those

(who had eaten)

sisters and brothers of mine

Opening Litany based on Psalm 145

Psalm 145:8-21

Pastor: The LORD is gracious and compassionate; slow to anger and rich in love.

Congregation: The LORD is good to all and has compassion on all creation and creatures.

Pastor: All of creation Praises You O Lord and the people of faith extol you and tell of your glory day in and day out in what they say and in what they do so that all will know the wonders of the Lord.   

Congregation: Your love and your kingdom is forever and ever, your loving rule for all generations.

Pastor: Who can you trust but the Lord who upholds all who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down?

Congregation: The eyes of all look to the Lord and the Lord supplies enough and desires for all to have enough food at the proper time, for the Lord’s open hand desires that every living thing have enough to live and flourish. 

Pastor: The Lord is righteous and faithful, near to all who truthfully call upon the name of the Lord

Congregation: The Lord works to fulfill the desires of all the children of God.  The Lord hears the cries of the despised and saves them from all who would destroy them.

Pastor: My mouth will speak in praise of the LORD.

Congregation: Let every creature praise the holy name of the Lord forever and ever. Amen!

discerning the Body

Sunday July 29^th, Psalm 145: The LORD helps the fallen and lifts up those bent beneath their loads.  All eyes look to you for help; you give them their food as they need it. The Lord does indeed give food as it is needed, the trouble is that we humans have managed to disrupt the distribution system.  I love Coffin’s saying, It is one thing to call with the prophets of old to let Justice roll down like an ever flowing stream, it is quite another to design the irrigation system.  Often in the design of the irrigation system, there are those who wish to siphon off more than they need without regard for those downstream.  We now have a multi-billion dollar industry in producing diet foods and diet plans in some parts of the world and children starving to death in other parts of the world.  Perhaps if we were to love justice and show mercy (Micah 6:7-8) we could see to it to spend one tenth of our military budget on mercy and justice.  That would be enough to provide adequate food, housing, clothing, and medical care for everyone in the world that does not currently have such.  At the same time, it would reduce the need for such an obscene military budget and save money in the long run. We can cry to let justice roll down like an ever flowing stream, what we need to work on is the irrigation system that distributes to all the children of God.  When Paul talked about not discerning the Body is eating and drinking damnation onto ourselves, he was saying more or less the same thing.  

hoarding stinks

Monday July 30^th, Psalm 145: All eyes look to you for help; you give them their food as they need it.  When you open your hand, you satisfy the hunger and thirst of every living thing.  God created the world and looked upon it and called it good.  In God’s eyes there is no us and them, for all are the children of God created in the image of God and called good.  That which you do, or fail to do, onto the least of these, you do or fail to do onto God.  Society is judged not on how it creates wealth for the few, but on how it cares for the least, lost and lonely.  God has given the gift, we are only asked to share.  Health care for all or high profits for a few, the fight continues, and in the midst of it God calls us to adhere to Kindergarten rules, clean up after yourself, share, be kind and remember there is enough for everyone’s need, but not enough for everyone’s greed.  God had provided for all, the fact that some are walking with Golden parachutes while others are struggling to survive is an example of what happens when we don’t discern the body and eat and drink damnation to ourselves.  The hoarding tends to bring rot not only to our piles of stuff, but also to our lives, the smell of rot comes from within.  

man on the moon

Tuesday July 31^st, 2 Kings 4:  42 A man came from Baal Shalishah, bringing the man of God twenty loaves of barley bread baked from the first ripe grain, along with some heads of new grain. "Give it to the people to eat," Elisha said.  43 "How can I set this before a hundred men?" his servant asked.  But Elisha answered, "Give it to the people to eat. For this is what the LORD says: 'They will eat and have some left over.' " 44 Then he set it before them, and they ate and had some left over, according to the word of the LORD.  Forty three years ago we put a man on the moon.  When the idea was proposed by Kennedy, the response from the scientific community was disbelief, and cries that it couldn’t be done.  Once the idea was accepted that it could be done and the focus was put on how it could be done, things began to happen.  What if we applied the same drive to eliminate hunger in the world.  We are still focused on whether it can be done, not on how it can be done.  We have however found lots of money to build an impressive military machine, which many feel we need given our wars of choice. When all people eat and have some left over, terrorism can gain no foothold.  It is far less expensive to feed, clothe, educate and provide healthcare than it is to protect, kill and defend our status quo. We should be throwing our nation’s wealth behind fighting terrorism in a way that works rather than just testing weapons systems that don’t.

death of both

Wednesday August 1^st, Ephesians 3:  14-19 My response is to get down on my knees before the Father, this magnificent Father who parcels out all heaven and earth. I ask him to strengthen you by his Spirit—not a brute strength but a glorious inner strength—that Christ will live in you as you open the door and invite him in.  Jesus summed up all the law and prophets as follows; love God, love others.  In loving God, we are strengthened from within by the Holy Spirit, in loving others that strength is nurtured and encouraged to grow.  To love God only as our personal Lord and Savior is to choose to be an empty vessel, the kind Jesus pointed to and noted the shiny outside and the mold on the inside.  To work for the betterment of others in the world, though noble, leads more often to agendas and egos and blind activism which without the God connection can easily be seduced into pressure tactics and manipulation. Of this the world already has too much.   When we follow Jesus’ command to love God and love others, in word and deed, we find that the doing informs the reflection which informs the doing, round and round, ever closer to God’s calling.  To do one without the other often results in the death of both.  

make room

Thursday August 2^nd, Ephesians 3: 19 And I ask him that with both feet planted firmly on love, you'll be able to take in with all followers of Jesus the extravagant dimensions of Christ's love. Reach out and experience the breadth! Test its length! Plumb the depths! Rise to the heights! Live full lives, full in the fullness of God.  Learning to share with others from the abundance of our blessing does not lessen our blessing, it increases and enhances our blessings.  One trouble humanity seems to have is that we often see our blessings in material terms only, and yes, materially speaking, more for others who do not have enough, may, at times, mean less for us. In the long run however, more for others will mean more for everyone.  We live in a world that does not trust God and God’s plan.  In not trusting God’s plan and the abundance of God’s blessings, we hoard.    We have trouble trusting the fact that the more we give, the more we receive.  We keep thinking in terms of a glass of water, pour some off for others and there is less in the glass.  In God’s world, it is only when we pour off for others that the glass begins to fill with God’s blessings.  Sometimes we have to make room in our lives to receive.   When we are full of ourselves there is less room for God. 

generous heart

Friday August 3^rd, John 6:  10 Jesus said, "Have the people sit down." There was plenty of grass in that place, and the men sat down, about five thousand of them. 11 Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish. Part of the miracle that day was Christ blessing the provisions that were provided, the thankful blessing for what has been given.  All we have, everything, is a gift from God for which we should forever be thankful.   Additionally, part of the blessing we receive is the ability to share with one another, for what we are about to receive and the ability to share from this bounty, we thank you O Lord.  If we focus only on the receiving, we still remain famished; our bellies full maybe, but famished none the less.  When we look at everything we have as a blessing from God and receive it in true thankfulness for the gift, for that is what it is, and in that thankfulness, share, we find that we are not only full, but satiated.  A generous heart is the gift of putting your faith in God. 

abundance and blessing

Saturday August 4^th, John 6: 12 When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, "Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted." 13 So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten.  The second part of the miracle is the blessing of the hearts that takes place as those sitting on the ground reach into their own private hidden stash, and share.  It is then that the abundance of the blessing is manifest in the physical world as well as in the spiritual world.  When we reach into our own private, hoarded, protected stash that in reality is a gift from God all along, we too begin to see the true blessings in our lives.  Our calling is not a “God and me” thing, where I am blessed because I have decided to follow Jesus in the right way and in the right church.  It is a “God and us” thing, where we are blessed as we gather together, brothers and sisters in Christ, around the body broken, and in the process, heal some of the broken pieces of our lives as we help one another.  

Poem for festival of St. James, Apostle, Mark 10:35-45

With each crashing wave along the shore

The water swirls

Around the outcropping of rock

Slowly eating away at its structure

Until

It consist only of the sand

Moving

And reshaping itself again

With the help of the waves

Along the beach

Smooth and gentle to walk on

Each grain

Once a part of a great structure

Now toppled by time

So too with the great structures

Of this world

Once powerful protectors of separation

Supported on the fears

Of those it is intended to serve

Only to end up

In time

A pinnacle

Surrounded by the sands

Until it too topples by its own weight.

In Christ there are no pinnacles

No outcroppings that stand above all others

Only the sands

Washing upon the shore

Supporting one another. 

Poem for John 20:1-2, 11-18 St. Mary Magdalene

Why are you crying?

The morning air seemed crisp and sharp

but all was a blur

the hope

the love

buried and taken

Why are your crying?

at the empty tomb

fresh in the morning light

with the stench of death

gone

go tell

Mary

beloved of Jesus

tell the others

what you do not see

and what is there

the tomb empty

and the Son of God

free from the bounds that held him

Go and tell

as the first to announce to the world

life

death conquered

and the gift

life

given

10W for July 25th, the festival of James, Apostle.

The following is a 10 minute worship for July 25th, the festival of James, Apostle. You can either listen on the flash player below or download it to your favorite music program to sync with your mp3 player by clicking on "DOWNLOAD" or play it on your smartphone's music player by clicking PLAY. You now also have the option of receiving these notices each week and on festival days by signing up for the 10W constant contact email list on the 10W blog or on your phone by texting 10W to 22828. The song for the day is,"The Sacrifice Acceptable" by the Jay Beech Band from the CD "Everyone who is thirsty, come"  which can be purchased HERE

 

10W for July 22nd, the festival of Mary Magdalene

The following is a 10 minute worship for July 22nd, the festival of Mary Magdalene. You can either listen on the flash player below or download it to your favorite music program to sync with your mp3 player by clicking on "DOWNLOAD" or play it on your smartphone's music player by clicking PLAY. You now also have the option of receiving these notices each week and on festival days by signing up for the 10W constant contact email list on the 10W blog or on your phone by texting 10W to 22828. The song for the day is,"There Shall Be Showers of Blessing" by Willie Nelson from the CD, Gospel Favorites which can be purchased HERE

 

10W for July 22nd, the 8th Sunday after Pentecost, Sheep & Saints.

The following is a 10 minute worship for July 22nd, the 8th Sunday after Pentecost, Sheep & Saints.  You can either listen on the flash player below or download it to your favorite music program to sync with your mp3 player by clicking on "DOWNLOAD" or play it on your smartphone's music player by clicking PLAY. You now also have the option of receiving these notices each week and on festival days by signing up for the 10W constant contact email list on the 10W blog or on your phone by texting 10W to 22828. The song for the day is,"The Lord is my Shepherd" by Keith Green from the CD "The Ministry Years, Vol. 2"  which can be purchased HERE

 

8th Sunday after Pentecost Mark 6

I hunger Lord

For the words that come from you

Words

That bring life

In the hearts of all

Words

That bring change

In a world so often

Caught

In a track that serves only a few

I hunger Lord

(words)

and cannot rest in the things I have made

I cannot rest knowing you are there

And not seeking you out

(words)

knowing that without you

I am lost

Caught

In a track that serves only a few

Perhaps I am one

Perhaps not

But it matters little

Without

Your word

(love)

fear control

Sunday July 22^nd, Psalm 23: He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me, your rod; your staff, they comfort me.  There are many divisions in our hearts and in the world.  If we look deep enough there is some person or some group that falls into our spectrum of somewhere between dislike to greatly fear.  Dislike we can usually deal with most of the time.  But it is fear that can and often does turn into hostility such as we are just extricating ourselves from after years and years in the Mideast.  Even at home we have an upcoming political race in which the rhetoric is largely driven by fear, because fear is a great motivator as well as a great cover-up.  Look over there at the voter fraud as we make it harder to vote knocking hundreds of thousands off the voter rolls.  In Florida alone less than 10 possible voter fraud cases has been blown into the case to drop over 180,000 off the voter rolls.  Look at the poor people living off the state as we change the tax code so the wealthiest and largest corporations can pay the lowest taxes in history and benefit the most from government programs.  When someone says, look over there, it is usually a call to look at what they are doing.   Before any war, there is a heightened sense of fear, it is what allows basically good people to justify killing of others.  Before any election there is often a heightened sense of fear that compels basically good people to justify voting for really bad ideas.  Into this mess we have created we hear the words that even though I go through the darkest deepest places in life, I will fear no evil for God is with me.  God did not come to bring fear, but peace.  Don’t give into the fear mongers who are only out for control and remember that as God’s presence came into the world, Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, the world, heard the words, fear not, for behold I bring you Good New of Great Joy.  Fear Not. 

God has moved the bar

Monday July 23^rd, Psalm 23: You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.  You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.  The best way to avoid conflict is fervent prayer for your enemies.  I don’t mean praying that they will fall and break their neck, but truly praying that the fear that is driving them and the fear that is driving you will cease.  It is truly praying for their well-being and happiness as well as your own.  When you begin to pray for them, you find that you also begin to get into their world; you begin to see things from their perspective.  In this way, two miracles can happen, not only can their heart begin to soften, but your heart can begin to understand and also soften.  Praying for your enemy does not mean that you will become best of friends; it does mean that you can once again start to see one another as brothers or sisters in Christ.  The peace that comes is a gift to both parties.  What if through prayer, your heart softens and they are still in the land of hatred and fear?  It means that God has moved the bar a little bit and needs more prayer on your part, perhaps a lifetimes worth.

my wall is bigger

Tuesday July 24^th, Ephesians 2: 14-15The Messiah has made things up between us so that we're now together on this, both non-Jewish outsiders and Jewish insiders. He tore down the wall we used to keep each other at a distance.  In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth and said it was good.  After creating men and women in God’s image, we humans from the humus, or earthlings from the earth set about wanting to build things.  Once we found ourselves out of the garden we found that what we wanted mostly to build were walls.  Cain and Able were the first ones and we have been at it ever sense.  My wall is bigger than your wall, my tower is bigger than your tower, my weapon is bigger than your weapon.  What Christ came to do is tear down the walls we have created.  We still see the walls, we still believe they are there, but they are just in our imagination.  God called creation good; Christ brought forgiveness, all the distrust is simply humanities fantasy trip.  We are all one in Christ Jesus….. deal with it!!

fresh start

Wednesday July 25^th, Ephesians 2: 15 Then he started over. Instead of continuing with two groups of people separated by centuries of animosity and suspicion, he created a new kind of human being, a fresh start for everybody.  What takes effort is living in that fresh start community.  Christ came to bring peace to our souls and to our communities through forgiveness.  Forgiveness gives us all a fresh start each day and allows us the opportunity to live as a child of God among others who have also received a fresh start and are called to live among us as the children of God. It is not a matter of starting conflicts and claiming that God is on your side, it is a matter of recognizing that Christ brought peace and forgiveness and that there are no sides.  

Your fear is a façade

 Thursday July 26^th, Ephesians 2:  16-18Christ brought us together through his death on the cross. The Cross got us to embrace, and that was the end of the hostility. Christ came and preached peace to you outsiders and peace to us insiders. He treated us as equals, and so made us equals. Through him we both share the same Spirit and have equal access to the Father. Christ brought the end of hostility and brought peace to the insiders and the outsiders by letting them know there was no such thing as insiders and outsiders.  Your fear is a façade put there as a crutch because you do not trust Christ, or put there by others because they want the power to control you, which is a manifestation of their façade.  Christ brought peace not facades.  You are called to live in that peace and make new friends along the way.  In that way, this new creation, like the original one, can be look upon by God and called good.  

kindergarten stuff

Friday July 27^th, Mark 6: 34 When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.  What did Jesus teach them?  I imagine it was simple things mainly, Kindergarten stuff; be nice to one another, everyone help one another, the ones at the bottom need a little extra help, there is more than enough for everyone’s need but not for everyone’s greed so you need to share, you are loved and so is the other person and the one over there also, clean up you mess when you are done, God created you in love and still loves you, God created that other person in love and still loves them, when this life is over you get to spend timelessness with God so live like you were with God now because you are and will be, stuff like that.  Kindergarten stuff. 

deep things

Saturday July 28^th, Mark 6: 55 They ran throughout that whole region and carried the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. 56 And wherever he went—into villages, towns or countryside—they placed the sick in the marketplaces. They begged him to let them touch even the edge of his cloak, and all who touched him were healed. What were they healed from?  Deep things mainly, meaningful stuff; hatred, self-obsession, greed, selfishness, separation, all those things that help us build walls.  The real power of God is tearing down the walls we build with our hearts, not our hands.