What Gets in the Way

Last week during a devotional, a group of us were asked to write down things we love.  There was time to consider on how much we loved these 'things' and then were asked about our love for God.  Was there anything on our lists that we loved more than God?  Did anything on that list get in the way of loving God?

I have been thinking about how this could be done in a lesson form to discuss idolatry.
So let's do a little trial run with this idea....
  List 10 of your favorite things. 

 To make it easier fill in the 10 slots: 
     my favorite
            food    __________     place to go  __________    
           hobby   __________    clothing      __________     accessory    __________
           object   __________     feeling        __________     experience __________
           other    __________     anything     __________
 
So what did you put down? 

Coffee or pizza?     Grandma's house or the beach?     Biking or crafts?

  A blue dress or a silk tie?     A gold watch or pearl earrings?     Your laptop or comfy recliner?

  Joy when a puppy wags its tail or the good tired feeling after a hard day's work?


  The first time you tried something new or the fun of riding on a roller coaster?

  Or anything else that may go into a favorite category.....how much do you love these things?


Now consider the question.....do any of these things get in the way of your relationship with God?


Our electronic 24/7 world does not easily give us time to pause.  Our worship times may be rushed as to get on to the next event.  We schedule in the important events of life, yet can be unwilling to schedule in time for fellowship with others of faith and with God. 


Life is hard and busy and that time for pausing, praying, and worshiping gets swept aside.


We are at the beginning of Holy Week, the final week of Lent, as we prepare for the resurrection morning at Easter.  There should be time taken to wander through this week, on our journey of faith.


It is not a time to rush through a Maundy Thursday service to get back in time for the next life event.


It is a time to pray, to praise, to remember what God has done for us, the sacrifice Jesus has made for us, the glory that shines through the Holy Spirit which reaches into each of our lives.


Pause this week, put things aside this week, pray this week, and travel on the journey to a hope filled Easter morning!

Beauty in the Journey through Lent

Sermon given March 8, 2015 at Forest Hills Presbyterian Church, Richmond Va.
     Psalm 19     3rd Sunday of Lent


Beauty in the Journey Through Lent
We have so many names for God: 
            I Am, Yahweh, Lord, Redeemer, Rock, Protector, Father,  
                  and my favorite Creator.
 For me, I have always found God in creation, in nature;  
I am amazed by the world around me!
Think of the wonders you and I see around us each day: 
            -an amazing sunrise or beautiful sunset
            -the first flowers of spring (usually the daffodils) peeking up through snow
            -the bluest of blue skies or the brilliant colors of fall leaves
            -a thunderstorm which bring rain to wash the earth.
I love the Psalms;  
I love how they can speak to us about the world around us, the beauty of creation.

Creation manifests the glory of its creator.  
Psalm 19 is one of those psalms.
However, it is not only about the beauty that can be found in creation (those first 6 verses),
 but also the beauty found in God’s law (verses 7 through 10).
This psalm has a balance between creation
     The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
   and law.
      The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul.
That 'refreshing the soul' is why we heard part of the Ten Commandments today;
 the verses that talk about Sabbath, about rest.
One of my professors at seminary when talking about the Sabbath, explains that God’s hope was not for the Sabbath to be only a once a week occurrence, but that it could be a way of living our lives.
That original day of rest was supposed to be the way of our lives,
     in communion with God,
     and living in a meaningful relationship with God.
But with human disobedience, it was not to be.
So the psalmist is seeking God’s pardon and restoration.
The psalmist sees a connection in taking time to be in God’s creation, to rest and finding delight in God’s law, the torah.
Through the torah the Lord revives, enhances, and guides human life.
Life depends on the torah as much as it depends on the daily rising of the sun.
God’s sovereignty is proclaimed by cosmic voices and the words of God are given to humankind in God's law.
God gives us a world to live in and laws that guide us in our life. 

But most importantly, this psalm affirms God's love.  
Love motivated God to create humankind and bear the burden of human disobedience.
God’s love is manifested in the story of Israel, in the life of the psalmist, and
        in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.  

And of course, Easter morning is where our journey through Lent is leading us.
Leading us to that sunrise, that empty tomb, that renewal, that salvation. 

On this journey through Lent, beauty can be embraced.
As part of God’s creation, we are full of possibilities. 
How do you and I see God's creation? 
In her writings, the 12th century abbess and prophetess Hildegard of Bingen says we observe creation through our senses:

In seeing, we recognize the world, 

In hearing, we understand, 

In smelling, we discern. 

When you and I stop to take in the world around us,  

the beauty of our surroundings, 

we are given the gift of time: 

to take a breath, to pause, to thank our Creator. 

In this is the season of Lent, a season of preparation,  
we are on a journey to Easter morning.
To take a journey is to make a trip toward a place.
Although the final destination is not always clear to us, we know when we finally do arrive. 
Life is full of possibilities of the path we choose to get there. 
So how do you and I journey through this season of preparation?
Are we seeking God’s pardon and restoration?
Some give something up for Lent, some take on something new. 
Lent can be a time for meditation, study, and prayer; a learning experience,
  when you and I may learn a new way 
            to connect with God, 
            to listen to God, 
            to discern our path, our ongoing journey of faith. 
There may be the discovery of hidden beauty,
 where God shines light into the dark spaces and 
thus brings out the hidden beauty found in everyday life and circumstances.
And there are dark spaces on the road to Easter morning;
  to get to that morning, we must go through the betrayal by Judas, the horror of the cross, and the sadness of death.
How can we prepare ourselves for the glory of Easter morning?
One may suggest by embracing the world around us and by 
  examining how God’s laws influence and guide our daily lives. 

The bigger question may be
  how might you and I prepare for the coming day when all will be resurrected?
Our ultimate journey, 
          to be in communion with God, 
          to have that meaningful and deep relationship,
          to finally have Sabbath.
I ask the question, but I do not have an answer.
Each individual discovers their own path,
  we do it with help from others and as we help others,
   it is done within a community of faith and fellowship,
    and with guidance from the Lord above, 
          through the love of God, 
          the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and 
         the power of the Holy Spirit.
There is beauty on our journey through Lent.
You and I will arrive at Easter morning because we are being guided by the brightly shining, coming light of God's love and glory from that resurrection morning.

 

Our Own Diverse Community

Our Own Diverse Community

There have been a lot of events lately that seem to separate people from one another.  Labels are being used, usually to categorize people and claim differences among us.  Even phrases that are used to call attention to social injustice can be taken as words of division.

 I am hoping there is a phrase that will connect us all, despite our differences in race, gender, nationality, age, denomination, background, or life’s circumstances.

 Let us do a quick roll call of who we are, making sure to respond with the words “Child of God”.

African American        “Child of God”

White                           “Child of God”

Korean                         “Child of God”

African                        “Child of God”

Man                             “Child of God”

Woman                        “Child of God”

Gay                              “Child of God”

Straight                        “Child of God”

Married                        “Child of God”

Divorced                      “Child of God”

Single                           “Child of God”

Engaged                       “Child of God”

20-something               “Child of God”

30-something               “Child of God”

40-something                “Child of God”

50 plus                         “Child of God”

Presbyterian                 “Child of God”

Baptist                          “Child of God”

Lutheran                       “Child of God”

Methodist                     “Child of God”

Episcopalian                 “Child of God”

Just out of college        “Child of God”

2^nd career                      “Child of God”

Retired                         “Child of God”

Path to ordination         “Child of God”

Discerning a call           “Child of God”

These are a few of the diverse images I see on my seminary campus, my little corner of the world.  There is diversity here as there is in any community.  May we not separate ourselves with labels and words that divide, but come together in the grace of God’s light to see each other as brothers and sisters.