Happy Easter!

Jesus is risen. Christ is risen indeed!

Spend an Evening with People You Love

Spend this Holy Saturday with people you love. Share stories, share a meal, share life. And, get ready for Sunday.

Good Friday: Meditate for 10 minutes in silence thinking about Jesus' gift.

I don't often enough take significant time to simply quiet my heart. I invited you to take time today whether in the car, or on a walk, or as you fold clothes to remember how much God loves you. Maybe this poem by George MacLeod could remind us how immense God's love and sacrifice is.

Thanks to JR Woodward for sharing this poem at jrwoodward.net  


From the introduction to a book of prayers by George published by Iona: "George Fielden MacLeod is perhaps best known as a prophetic figure. His passionate calls for political and social justice, his tireless campaigning for nuclear disarmament and his action for the rebuilding of community – sym- bolised by the prophetic sign of the rebuilding of Iona Abbey – deservedly made him one of the most noted churchmen of the twentieth century."

Maundy Thursday: Putting others first will help our world a lot. Try it.

I remain grateful for the gift of grace given me by one of my professors in seminary who gave me his valuable time.  In his busy schedule he had time to talk, show an interest in my work and who I was. 

I admire the mentors who take the time to put others first.  I think of the big brothers and big sisters who put a young boy or girl on their calendars and in their hearts every week.  I think of the teachers who stay late to put a few minutes into the life of student.  I remember an older man who employed a young man, showed him how to cut stone, lay brick, seed a lawn, and build a retaining wall.  The young man now has his own business.  There are untold numbers of wives, mothers, husbands, fathers, siblings, who put others first.  The good in this world, for a large part, owes its genesis to such people. 

I think of a man in his thirties who told his friends that the greatest gift a person can give another is to give one’s life for his friends.  And he did.  Jesus put us first. 

Who can you put first today, not in a trade off of time or for any good you receive, but for the good of the other?  It is a gift.  Great than you know or can calculate.  It’s what makes the world work.  It’s God’s way.  Yes, you will receive.  In ways you probably can’t conceive.  The joy of seeing someone else thrive because of the life you gave them is immense.  Yes, mentoring, putting others first, is a way God works through you to bless his world.  Your savior knows that joy.  You were one of those he put first.  You have received the gift he died to create for you. 

Plant something to replant outside when it get's warmer

This is the last week in Lent. In a few more days we will celebrate Resurrection. But today it is still Lent. A time of reflection, anticipation and sobriety. A time when, in our climate, there begins to be a re-birth. Spring begins to awaken from the slumber of winter. White and brown and gray give way to blue and green. The color of many flowers begin to appear.

So in this last week of Lent, maybe it would be good to plant something to celebrate. Flowers, vegetables, herbs.
These plants can help us mark what we confess on Easter. That there is new life! There is new Creation. God is still working in this world!
What can we plant to celebrate?

Walk somewhere instead of driving.

I suppose this could say "take the bus..." or "carpool..." or "take your bike..." Have you heard of people choosing to fast from carbon during Lent? A bit out of the ordinary, but reminds me of Ann Arbor singer/songwriter Dick Siegel's lyrics from Mother's Plaint (Mother Planet Rap):

WELL YOU BETTER WALK SOFTER …

SO THE EARTH DOESN’T HATE YA .. . .

AND REMEMBER, MIND YOUR MANNERS

AND BE KIND TO MOTHER NATURE

YOU BETTER WALK A LITTLE SOFTER

JUST A LITTLE BIT SOFTER

JUST A LITTLE BIT SOFTER

Copyright 1994, Dick Siegel, Brother Al Music.

God gave us a marvelously complex world to inhabit, sent his son Jesus to redeem the world, and sent the Spirit to remain with us. What amazing love!

How are we reflecting God's gifts back as we "walk" our path here? We have been gifted with so much. Do we need to "walk a little softer"?

A large city can be turned around with a few words from God. Ask Jonah.

We know words are powerful.  Gandhi turned a whole nation onto a path of non-violent resistance against powerful empire.  Martin Luther King spoke of a dream and ignited the imaginations of many. Words count.  It’s for good reason we have the proverb, “The pen is mightier than the sword.” 

“Why” can be a very strategic word.  We just have to know when to use it.  The Bible’s book of Proverbs encourages us to know what to ask when and how.  A friendship can be saved with the right word spoken at a timely moment.  Read a story to a young child and a whole new world opens up, never to be lost.  

Jonah spoke five Hebrew words and a whole city turned away from evil and toward the God whose mercy was showered over them.  Jesus spoke beatitudes that still find their way deed inside the souls of those who need to hear them. 

Find a word or two of Jesus today.  The Gospels are full of them.  Let them resonant in you.  Then sometime this week speak them.  You will know when and to whom.

Read Jonah 1-4 and then spend at least one hour doing something you enjoy.

Have a blessed Palm Sunday Sabbath and a blessed Holy Week.

You are invited to Holy Week devotions and worship:
Morning devotions - 6:30 am in the sanctuary Monday through Friday, followed by a simple breakfast in the Fellowship Hall.  
Maundy Thursday Worship - 7:30 pm communion
Good Friday Worship - 7:30 pm Tenebrae Worship
Easter Worship Celebration - 8:45 and 11:15 am (no evening worship on Easter).

God's Kingdom is Larger than we Can Imagine--Explore!

I am always amazed by the rebirth of spring. Everyday it seems that there are more buds, new flowers, greener grass and more bird songs in the air. And, even as the rain falls on this Saturday morning in South East Michigan, it is a reminder of God's continued governing of creation. The rain will nourish and work with the sun to give us the color and warmth that comes with the season.

This spring let us take the time to find something new. Take a walk in a park that you never have been before. Take in a new scene that your eyes have never beheld. Explore God's Kingdom and let us be renewed with awe for our wonderful creator.

Go for a walk in your neighborhood & pick up the trash you see.

During Lent this year I've been fasting from negative habits and working towards positive actions. I like this challenge:

FAST from lethargy; Feast on enthusiasm.

So, how can I leave lethargy behind? I can find positive ways to be the change I want to see in my world. The snow is finally gone, and yard work calls. Why not take a moment to do a small task in your neighborhood? Pick up trash.  Move some branches. Fix a sign. Help out an elderly neighbor with cleanup. (My neighborhood has plenty of trash that needs collecting as you can see below!) Why not say a prayer for your neighbors as you go?

Thinking and acting for good helps us live into God's expansive love for us and for the world.

Remember God loves you! Live in that love.

“I love you Dad”, these words, spoken by our son years ago, still resonate with me.  When they were spoken by him a few weeks ago they filled me again.  Here our son, now a father himself, spoke of his love for me.  I was filled with an emotion and a knowledge that was deep and beautiful.  When the love of others for us is expressed in word and deed our lives are filled to the brim and overflow.  We live in that love.

The Creator of all that is speaks of his love for us throughout the Bible.  We are told that the deepest expression of this love is shown to us in Jesus, God in the flesh.  As followers of Jesus we affirm without a doubt that God is love.  We affirm this because this is what the Bible teaches in 1 John 4:16.  There we also read that all those who live in love live in God, and God lives them. (New Living Translation).  

Each day in Lent we draw closer to the day when we remember Jesus' death for us.  A person who dies for another gives the deepest expression of his or her love for us.  A person who loves gives expression to that love in concrete action. Jesus walk to the cross is his walk of love for us.

Today, live in God’s love for you.  There you and I will discover quantities of love that will fill our lives to the  brim and they will overflow.  Those we live with will know.  God will rejoice.  Be blessed. 

Today, be the person God thinks you are.

The other day I was on my commute to church from my parent's house north of Detroit to Ann Arbor. I was on westbound 696 right by the Detroit Zoo water tower that is painted to look like an African Savannah at sunset. I was attempting to change lanes to avoid the semi in my lane when a horn blared on the driver's side of my car. I was startled because the car that was two lanes over was now right next to me. We had both attempted to merge into the same lane, at the same time. As our eyes met I will never forget the name that he shot me though his car window. I didn't need sound, I heard him. And the letters the put together created an identity for me in his mind. For the rest of that day he would have thought of me, and thought of that name.

Now that traffic encounter did not end up to be serious and it was probably my fault, but as I walked though my day I could not shake the name he called me. I moved slowly through my tasks, every so often thinking back to that name. I spent my whole day thinking of myself the way that other driver did.

We all know what that's like. We have all been called names or been the one who calls the names. Fat, Lazy, Stupid, worthless, and worse than these.

All of them create an identity for us that is someone's perspective. Yet, it hurts. Sometimes we even begin to behave like those identities are true. It's like the class clown that everyone thinks is funny so he tries harder and harder until it's not funny anymore, and that just makes him try even harder because he believe that he is the class clown and he is "supposed" to be funny.

With all the perceptions within ourselves and outside of ourselves it can be hard to get a clear vision of who we really are. It can be even harder to think that God might have something to say about who you are.

That's right, God has an opinion on the matter.

Check this out:

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ. In him we were also chosen,having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory."

Those were the opening lines of Paul's letter to the church in Ephesus. forgiven, adopted, blessed, included, loved, sealed with the Holy Spirit, lavished with grace. And Paul is just getting warmed up. He goes on to say we are the fullness of him who fills everything in every way, raised to life in Christ, the "artwork" of God.

What would happen if we started to replace what the "other drivers" in our lives say and think of us with what God thinks of us?

May you know what God thinks of you today and live your life accordingly. May you know that you are God's Artwork.

Pray today for the children of our city, especially those in the hospital.

In Jonah 4:11 we read as God says to Jonah "And should I not have concern for the great city of Nineveh, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left—and also many animals?”

We read of God's care for the vulnerable over and over again in the Bible. Nineveh is only one example.

Pray for the children in your neighborhood and city today. God loves them. Remember those in the hospital and those who care for them. Lift up thanks that Rachel is celebrating the 1st year anniversary of her heart surgery! Are you praying for a young person in our congregation this year or have children on your prayer list? And don't forget those children closest to you: children, grandchildren, friends .....

It’s Lent. Are you hopeful? For what?

A grandfather is welding in his work shop.  His granddaughter is outside looking in.  She watches him take a piece of steel and fasten it with hot iron to the frame of the bike.  She is filled with hope.  Maybe this is the fix that will allow her to ride again.  She had ridden the bike down a path that suddenly dropped off and she lost control going down the steep incline.  She had to push the bike home.  Her Dad placed the bike in the back of his pickup truck and drove her and it to granddad’s place.  "Leave it with me", he said.  He invited her to stay and watch.  She had to be careful of the glare of the hot welder spurting sparks all over. 

The sparks gave her hope.  They spoke of something happening.  Something she knew nothing about.  Something that promised a new bike.  It promised more rides.  It promised fun

In Lent we see Jesus headed toward a cross.  We know the story.  We know.  We have heard about the resurrection.  It was that place where sparks flew.  Where something was happening that we don’t really understand.  But we know it happened.  We know because Jesus was involved.  God was involved.  The Spirit was involved.  We know because like grandfather fixing the bike, we trust the hands and mind and heart and love of the God whom Jesus trusts to make all things new.  We know that with God and Jesus we always get more than we hope for. 

As you watch Jesus moving toward the final days of his life, as the shadow of cross looms larger and larger, as the sparks fly up and outward, what are you hoping for? 

I’m hoping for a larger heart, filled with what I struggle to contain at the moment.  I’m hoping for a love beyond what I can imagine to live in me and in all people.  I’m hoping for peace, joy, wonder, awe, grace, and mercy to break out. 

I’m hoping.  And I’m sure.  It’s coming.  Like the granddaughter who heard the words, "Leave it with me.  It will be alright." We have heard the same words spoken over creation.  I've heard.  I believe.  Believe it with me.   

Read Jonah 4 & Matthew 6:9-15 and then spend at least one hour doing something you enjoy.

Have a blessed Sabbath, knowing that God's grace goes with you.

Spend Time with Someone Under Five or Over Seventy

This may seem like an odd thing to do for lent. Why would we ask that someone spends time from a different generation than them for a time of reflection? Why would we be so specific about it? The idea is that sometimes when we spend time with those of different ages, it calls to mind different perspectives on God.

I love to tell bible stories to my daughter Aspen. She listens so intently because it is all so new to her. When she learns prayers, when she sings songs, she does so with a freshness that is good for me to experience.

Likewise, I remember when I first began to learn how to play the guitar. My first guitar was my grandfather's. So when I began to play I would bring the guitar over and hew would play these old hymns and belt out baritone notes praise to his God. He taught me a lot in those songs. They were songs of faithfulness, songs of perseverance, songs of a love that had grown through his years.

May we experience newness and hope; faithfulness and steadfastness today. May we spend time with those who can help us learn timeless lessons through their freshness and experience.

Notice the change in seasons and discuss how change is renewing.

I love watching the seasons change: textures, colors, smells, plants, animals, birds, insects. A whole new palette of colors emerges to freshly paint everyday things ... a sign of hope to me.

Like the cranes returning and spring flowers sprouting, God's kingdom of love continues to emerge here on earth.

Eugene Peterson makes this come alive in his translation of Revelations 21:3-5. 'I heard a voice thunder from the Throne: "Look! Look! God has moved into the neighborhood, making his home with men and women! They're his people, he's their God. He'll wipe every tear from their eyes. Death is gone for good—tears gone, crying gone, pain gone—all the first order of things gone." The Enthroned continued, "Look! I'm making everything new. Write it all down—each word dependable and accurate."'

We aren't there yet. But, living in the hope brought through Jesus' resurrection, we are to be agents of this renewal here on earth. What is becoming new for you today? How are you changing and emerging into the beloved person and love-filled community that God is calling you to?

We are free to love. Everything else is secondary - a far second at that..

Free to LOVE.  What a thought!  Free to love!  The God who created us in love, who created us to love, loves us.  The love we show is love that is rooted in God.  The responsibility is awesome.  God loves through us.

But why, in a world of anger, hatred, evil, are we showered with love and enabled to love?

Because there is nothing else in this world that can combat, negate, or remove them.  God is love. The divine trinity is love.  Love is the essential characteristic of God. When we love we are simply being and doing who we were created to be and do. Love conquers evil.  We see this happen on the cross of Christ.

Some of us have seen love in action.  A wife forgives a husband for betraying the love they committed to each other.  A victim of abuse forgives his abuser.  A man on a cross asks God to forgive his tormentors and murderers. Love so amazing is divine.

Jesus' teaching guides us in our lives.  Jesus' death frees us to love.  Truly, everything else is secondary to the love we extend to our families, friends and beyond.  It all points to the God Jonah said abounded in love, even to the point of loving the sworn enemies of his people.  This love has touched even a person like myself.  And you.  It is ours to show to others today.  God bless and empower us to do so.

Pray for the Homeless in our Community

Praying for the Homeless in our community is a great thing. It is a needed thing. Taking a minute to remember those who do not have and, trying to put the love of God into life changing action is part of what it means to follow Jesus. This is why Jesus said about the homeless and hungry, "what you have done for the least of these you have done for me."
If you are like me though, sometimes the words are hard to come by. Sometimes the words are hard to form because, "i just don't know what to say." It is an overwhelming task to call to mind words that properly express our outrage at the injustice of homelessness. Therefore, today I would ask that you join me in saying a short prayer from the CRC's office of social justice.


Pray with me...

Christ our Lord,
your light shines into the shadows,
and shows us
where the obstacles to change lie.
We know that often
they are in our own hearts,
in the way we live,
and in our daily choices and actions.

We pray that we may accept
the light of your love
as a challenge to change
ourselves and our world.

We pray that, each day,
we make the choices and
take the actions
that will bring an end to poverty and hunger,
and lead us all
towards a fairer world.

Be with us, Lord,
as we face your challenge
and learn how to live
our lives in love.

Amen

© Linda Jones

Forgive? Who? You know.

"Forgiving does not mean forgetting. When we forgive a person, the memory of the wound might stay with us for a long time, even throughout our lives. Sometimes we carry the memory in our bodies as a visible sign. But forgiveness changes the way we remember. It converts the curse into a blessing. When we forgive our parents for their divorce, our children for their lack of attention, our friends for their unfaithfulness in crisis, our doctors for their ill advice, we no longer have to experience ourselves as the victims of events we had no control over.

Forgiveness allows us to claim our own power and not let these events destroy us; it enables them to become events that deepen the wisdom of our hearts. Forgiveness indeed heals memories."

(Henri J.M. Nowen, in "Bread for the Journey")

Jonah found that forgiveness was hard work ... in fact, as I read Jonah, my sense is that he is still working on forgiveness at the end of the story. When someone has wronged you, forgiveness takes immense amounts of grace along with being able to acknowledge the hurt.

Who do you need to forgive? You know.

My prayer for you today is that God's Spirit will fill you and open your heart to move into a healing place of forgiveness.

Tell someone they impress you – enjoy the smile.

We tend to remember the people who encouraged us, supported us, urged us to keep doing what we are doing, and even attempt new things they believed we were capable of.  I know I do.  I have an uncle who has been a constant encouraging presence in my life.  I smile when I see him.  We were able to be together for a few minutes at his brother’s (my other uncle's) funeral in January.  I thanked him for what he means in my life.  I had worked for both of these men for a number of years and cherish the experience. They encouraged. I learned the value of collaboration from them. 

God’s kingdom needs citizens who are impressed with what God is doing through others.  There is much happening around us in this kingdom that is impressive.  Sometimes those doing the impressive work, i.e. helping others, listening to others, giving time to sit with the lonely, preparing Sunday School lessons, etc., need us to say we are impressed.  Their smile of response usually means they intend to keep on doing what they’re doing.  Jesus is pleased. 

Live Well Today. Help Someone

The other day I was in the Walgreen's parking lot, getting ready to drive back to the church when I noticed a woman having difficulty with her cart. It was a cold, blustery day and the wind seemed to be against her. I got out of my car and helped her pull her cart to her car. She thanked me, although she insisted that she could have done it herself, and then drove away. I drove away too--I was feeling rather good. Why is this?

I don't think it is an accident that when we help people we feel good ourselves. I don't believe that it comes from the pride of helping and thinking that we are great. I believe it is deeper than that.
When we help others we are doing what we were created to do. When we serve we are bringing an act of resurrection into our current world. We were created to participate in God's good work of creation. That is why we pair the idea of living well and helping someone. This can be big or small, a service project or part of your day, it can be anything. Just live well and try it today.

Place notes with encouraging messages for your family to find.

God loves us. Knowing we are loved, we can spill out the love to those around us, starting with our family. A small thing, but big things come from small seeds.

Who will you encourage today?