Prayers for Sunday

Grace and peace on this Saturday! I’m glad to finish out this week with you in the Pastor’s Workshop. 

Our Saturday summary looks like this:

This week in our “Prepare with Prayer” series we looked into one of the most famous prayers in all the Scripture, the Lord’s Prayer.  We worked with Luke’s version of the prayer, Luke 11:1-13 (Matthew also has a version in Matthew 6).  We focused on the “core phrase”, “Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done”. We discovered how one of our “privileges in prayer” is to give our voice to praying this prayer of Jesus’ heart for our lives and for our world. 

As you know, Saturday is a Sabbath in the workshop.  It’s a day in which we take our work of the week and lift it to God in prayer.  We ask God to bless all we’ve done. We pray God will take our work and use it in God’s Kingdom work.  We ask that “the words of our mouths and meditations of our hearts” would be acceptable in God’s sight.  And more than acceptable, that they would be used by God in ways that we can be “used by God” to be more effective witnesses for God’s Kingdom. 

So what are your prayers on this Saturday?  What are you asking for, with your “ask” being guided by this Scripture and God’s Spirit?

Here are a few of my requests:

• I pray that I may see the Lord’s Prayer as the great gift of God’s grace that it is.  

• I pray that I may be saved from “Saying” the Lord’s Prayer, and that I would be conscious of “Praying” the Lord’s Prayer.

• I pray that I might always pause on the phrase, “Thy Kingdom Come and Thy Will be done on earth as it is in Heaven”.  I ask that I would think and pray about what that phrase means in my life: in my home and marriage, with my family and friends, in my job and leisure, in our community and country.

• I pray that I always believe God loves to answer this prayer, the Lord’s Prayer.  I ask that I am ready to discover and live into God’s answer each day.  

• I pray that when I say the final “Amen” on the Lord’s Prayer I know that the Prayer is not over, but the answer is just beginning in the day ahead.

These are some of my prayers.  What are yours?  Again and always, write them down in your notebook.  

As you record your prayers, you can look back on them later.  You can see how your prayers reflect your journey of faith.  You can see how God answered Your prayers.  You can see how you have grown in your “walk with Jesus”, your “life in Christ”. 

Since it’s Saturday, I hope you can have some Sabbath time today. I hope today will hold a “change of pace” from your regular week.  I hope there will be some rest and relaxation at some point.  

And I hope that this time of prayer will help prepare you for worship tomorrow.  I hope Saturday’s R and R (Rest and Relaxation) will lead into Sunday’s R and R (Renewal and Restoration).  If you have a weekend like that you’ll be ready for what’s ahead in the coming week!

In that blessing, I pray you have a “productive” prayer time today and I look forward to worshipping with you tomorrow!

Prayer:  Gracious God, thank You for the week past.  Thank You for Sunday and for worship tomorrow.  Thank You for how you would fill each day with Your love and grace in Jesus.  Thank You for how prayer awakens us to that possibility and strengthens us to live into that potential. Lord, let Your Kingdom come and Your Will be done in our living.  Let our praying Your prayer bring us into that blessing.  This we pray in the name of the One who taught us to pray the Prayer, Jesus our Lord.  Amen

God wants to answer prayers.

Greetings on this Thursday!  I’m glad to be with you as we come to a highlight of our week in the Pastor’s Workshop. 

Our current series is “Prepare with Prayer”.  This week we’ve been focused on one of the most famous prayers in all the Scripture.  It’s the prayer Jesus taught his disciples to pray.  It’s the Lord’s Prayer.

Not only have we looked at the prayer, but also the surrounding verses – the prelude and postscript.  They provide an important context, informing our practice (our praying) of the Lord’s Prayer. 

Thursday is a “creative climax” of our week.  Today we review our work.  We “put all the pieces” together.  We craft and draft a message that we pray “gives voice” to a “Word” we have heard from the Scripture by the Spirit.

As I gather my notes and collect my thoughts here are talking points for my message this week. 

I believe God loves to answer prayers.  More importantly, I believe Jesus believed God loves to answer prayers.

How else can you explain the two teachings at the end of our text today? “Ask and you shall receive. Seek and you shall find.  Knock and it shall be opened to you.” Then there is also Jesus’ second lesson: “Who among you, if their child asks for a fish will give them a snake or asks for an egg will give them a scorpion?  If you know how to give good things to your children, how much more will the Heavenly Father give good…”  These teachings are invitations to prayer and assurances of answers.

There are those who have taken these two teachings and stretched them beyond their bounds. The “Prosperity Gospel” has encouraged a preaching and praying of these verses where they have become a pandering to our wants rather than prayer for God’s will.  When people have come up empty in their prayer, they wonder, “What’s up?”

Here’s what I think is “up”.  God does love to answer prayers, and particularly prayers that are in harmony with Jesus’ prayer, “Our Father, Thy Kingdom come and Thy Will be done.”

Prayer is the expression of what’s on our soul.  Prayer gives voice to the hurts and hopes of our lives.  I believe that God, in God’s love, hears and answers these cries of our hearts. 

I believe that Jesus, as our Lord of love, has a heart for us and our world.  Jesus, as our Lord of love, has desires and hopes for us and our world.  One of the greatest privileges we have in prayer is to offer our human voice to lift up Jesus’ desires and hopes for us and our world.  One of the greatest gifts of prayer God gives is to pray our Lord’s Prayer.  I believe God loves to answer that prayer. 

We see how God loved to answer our Lord’s Prayer in the life and ministry of Jesus.  It is clear from the Scriptures that Jesus loved to pray.  In fact in the text today, Jesus was just finishing up his prayer time.  As he did this, his disciples began to make a connection: Jesus prays and then goes into the day and performs mighty works, teaches inspiring truth, exudes a love for people that draws them in droves.  The disciples saw the connection between prayer and practice.  So they made the request, “Lord, teach us how to pray”.  Teach us how to pray so we can have similar results and make that same powerful connection with God. 

Incredibly, Jesus honored their ask. In just six short phrases he summed up essentials of what was on his heart for his disciples to lift up. Jesus gave his disciples “his prayer” to pray.  

He gives his prayer to us as well… To Pray! Notice I said, “Pray” not “Say”.  Have you heard the expression, “Say the Lord’s Prayer”?  Saying the Lord’s Prayer can be a mindless repetition of phrases we know by heart. With thoughtless recitation this powerful prayer becomes a pile of empty words.   To “Pray” the Lord’s prayer asks us to: Pause and Focus on the Prayer as a gift of Jesus to us; Put our heart, soul, and mind into the Prayer; and to Personalize the Prayer by asking not simply God’s Kingdom come and Will be done on “earth”, but more specifically God’s Kingdom come and Will be done in our homes, with our families and friends, our schools and jobs, our community and nation.

As we pray the Lord’s Prayer God will bring God’s answers through our lives and our witness.  I’ve included a favorite story of how God honored and answered the Lord’s Prayer through the life of a good friend of mine.

Lastly, God does want to answer Jesus’ prayer, the “Lord’s Prayer”, “Thy Kingdom come and Thy Will be done”, in and through your life as well. The three postscripts to the Prayer: The Friend at Midnight, “Ask, Seek, and Knock”, and the “How Much More of Goodness” encourage us in that assurance. 

So pray the Lord’s Prayer.  And know that when you say,”Amen” the prayer is not over.  The answer is just beginning!

That’s a brief overview of what will be expanded on for Sunday.  These are my thoughts and reflections.  Make sure you also take time to review your notes and to summarize your meditations.  They are “the message” God has been giving you through the Scripture by the Spirit this week.  Your “sermon” is important to record.

I hope you’ll tune in to worship, not only to hear more about the “Lord’s Prayer”, but also to be blessed by some great music and encouraged through time of prayer. 

In that prayer I look forward to being with you on Saturday for some final preparation and then on Sunday for some uplifting worship.   I think that’s all part of God’s Will being done as we share in Christ’s life together at Spring Valley. 

Prayer:  Gracious God, thank you for the blessing of a beautiful day.  Thank you for how we can follow Jesus’s example and begin the day with prayer.  Thank you for providing a prayer we can use to start this and every day – Jesus’ prayer. Thank you for how you love to answer our Lord’s prayer.  Help us to be open and participating in Your answer by the working of your Holy Spirit in and through us.  We lift this prayer in the name of the One who shows the power of answered prayer, Jesus our Lord. Amen. 

The Lord's Prayer

Welcome to Wednesday!  Hope you’re ready for a good day in God’s grace.

As you remember our message for this week is entitled “Game On”.  It comes from Luke 11:1-13.

Yesterday we examined this text.  We saw how an understanding of this Scripture can be organized around the guiding thought, “Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will be done on earth as it is in heaven”. This principle can be used to unify the entire passage in ways that each verse advances us in praying Jesus’ prayer.

Today we look at the context of the text.  We seek to find out more about the world in which the word was first spoken.  We expand our understanding of a Scripture by considering it’s historical and Biblical settings so we know more of its power in our present day. 

Dr. David Clark has commented that in first century Palestine, the historical setting for the Scripture, “many Jews were looking for a more personal encounter with their God.  They believed that the glory of the Lord was not confined to the Temple in Jerusalem, and that in the ‘temples’ of their homes and synagogues they would be like priests.  They would offer sacrifices, not of animals, but of prayer.”  With this understanding, Jesus’ teaching of the Lord’s Prayer became a source of great empowerment for people of faith.  

The Lord’s Prayer is found in both the Gospel of Matthew and the Gospel of Luke.  In Matthew Jesus teaches the crowds his Prayer early on in his ministry.  The setting for the Prayer is the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 6).  This teaching is surrounded by a great many other truths on a variety of topics.  In this setting the Lord’s Prayer is contrasted with the hypocrites’ prayer. The hypocrites pray to be glorified by others.  The Lord instructs that we should pray to glorify God.  The hypocrites pray in public to be noticed.  Jesus says we should pray in privacy, as an act of intimate fellowship with God.  The hypocrites pray by piling up holy phrases. The Lord prays in a way that gets to the point.  You can see the tension sighted by Dr. Clark in Matthew’s contrast of the hypocrites and the Lord.

In Luke Jesus teaches the prayer to his disciples in the midst of his ministry.  He has already done many miracles, taught many Kingdom truths, drawn many crowds, commissioned and sent his followers to proclaim the Kingdom. The disciples have seen how prayer is a cornerstone to his ministry.  They have witnessed prayer’s results in power and effective practice and so they request, “Teach us to pray even as John taught his disciples to pray.”

As we join these two settings of the Lord’s Prayer, they bring an important word of caution.  Too often we “say the Lord’s Prayer” rather than “pray the Lord’s Prayer”.  Since we know it so well and say it so regularly it becomes easy to repeat it by rote.  It can quickly become a matter of piling up phrases.  When we pray the Lord’s Prayer we take time to see it as an intimate moment with “Our Father”.  We pray that through this time of prayer we participate in how God’s Kingdom comes and the Lord’s will of love is done in our world as it is in Heaven. We pray for those things that make this possible for us (daily provision, daily forgiveness from God and for others, daily deliverance from temptation and evil).   As we “Prepare with Prayer” we discover, as those first disciples did, that “praying” the Lord’s Prayer brings power to our prayer life and vitality to the daily practice of our faith.  

In that blessing I give thanks for this teaching of our Lord.  And I look forward to being with you again tomorrow In the Pastor’s Workshop. 

Prayer:  Gracious God, thank you for the blessing of this day.  We praise you for the gift of your prayer, the Lord’s Prayer.  Help us to learn how to use it more fully and pray it more faithfully.  Save us from “rote repetition” of your Prayer or any prayer we lift to you.  Let our time of prayer be a joining of hearts, our heart with your eternal heart, in ways that You minister healing and hope to our lives.  Let our moments of prayer lead us into moments of serving others with joy.  This we ask and pray in the name of the One who taught us to pray “Our Father”, even Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

Teach Us to Pray

Glad to be with you on this Tuesday.  It’s a blessing to be together in God’s word! 

This week we’re continuing our series, “Prepare with Prayer”.  The Scripture for this week is Luke 11:1-13.  Our message is entitled, “Game On”.  

On Tuesday we look closely at the text.  We seek to identify individual ideas within a passage.  We also try to discern, “Is there an underlying theme that guides this Scripture?  Is there a core thought the text is developing? How does this main idea condition other supporting verses?”

Luke 11 begins with Jesus wrapping up his morning prayer time. The disciples notice how important prayer is to him and to his ministry. The pattern is: Jesus prays in the morning and then goes into the day to teach inspired truth, perform miracles bringing healing or deliverance, or love on folks in ways he draws them into his good news in droves.  

As the disciples witness this pattern and power they ask Jesus, “Teach us to pray”.  Teach us to pray so we can have results like that.  Teach us to pray so we can rise from prayer and go into the world and participate in how God’s Kingdom is coming into the world with truth, power and love.  Teach us to pray. 

And so, Jesus does.  He teaches them (and us) the most famous of all prayers, the prayer we pray every time we worship, “The Lord’s Prayer”.  

As you look at the Lord’s Prayer, you can see it as six separate thoughts.  God, You are our Father.  Let Your Kingdom come and Your Will be done.  Give us the provision we need for today.  Forgive us our sin and help us forgive others.  Deliver us from temptation and evil.  God, Yours is the forever Kingdom. Amen. 

Another way to look at the Lord’s Prayer, and the perspective of our message this week, is to organize the Lord’s Prayer around the main idea, “Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.” Our sermon this week assumes this desire is at the “heart” of Jesus’ prayer.

If you organize the Lord’s Prayer around this core thought, the prayer unfolds like this: God, You are our great and mighty, loving and holy Father.  God, we want your Will and Way of Love, being done in Heaven, to be done right here on earth in our lives today.  Provide what we need to participate in Your Kingdom coming and Your Will being done.  Reconcile and restore us to Yourself and to others (forgive us our sins and strengthen us to forgive others), because we know the coming of your Kingdom doesn’t happen by ourselves.  Coming into harmony with one another is part of Your Kingdom coming. And deliver us from self-absorption, lesser loves, petty prayers, and anything else that draws us away from Your kingdom coming and Your will being done today.  And as You’re doing that God, save us from any deeper evil that lies beneath our temptations.   We desire Your Kingdom and Will today because Yours is the true and forever kingdom, the power and the glory, today and forever.  Let’s get on with it! Amen! Game On!

It’s a different take on the Lord’s Prayer for sure! 

And then the three following teachings: “The Friend at Midnight (a lesson on perseverance)”, “Ask, Seek and Knock (a lesson on assertiveness)”, and a “Parent’s Goodness  (a lesson on God’s generosity in answering this prayer)” are not three random teachings.  They are supportive teachings on the main theme, “Lord, let Your Kingdom come and your Will be done.”  

These three teachings connect like this:  When you aren’t sure what God’s Kingdom will is or how it is to be done today in your living, don’t let that stop you from praying the prayer – persevere!  Continue to “Ask” and “Seek” and “Knock”. You will come to know and find. The ways of God’s Kingdom working will be opened to you. God in goodness and generosity will answer and provide, just as a parent provides good things for their child.  God will be at work with the Holy Spirit to enable and empower the Kingdom to come and God’s Will to be done in and through you.  

As you see, when you connect the entire passage with the core thought, “Thy Kingdom come and Thy Will be done”, that desire conditions how you read each of the verses.  This normative thought shapes how the passage unfolds and the meaning it holds. 

This is just one approach to this Scripture.  There are many others.  And you have your own.  As you meditate on this Scripture make sure you write down your reflections.  They are how God is leading you into deeper faith through this text and the truth it holds.

This passage includes lots of thoughts. So I’ll let you get to work! And I look forward to being with you tomorrow in the Pastor’s Workshop. 

Prayer: Gracious God, thank You for this Scripture.  Thank You for Your love for Your world, as Your love is revealed in Jesus.  Thank you for how Jesus teaches us to pray Your Love for our lives and for our world – Your Kingdom come and Your Will be done. Lead us forward in this prayer today as we seek to live into this truth.  This we ask in the name of the One who taught and lived this prayer, Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen

Game On

Good Monday morning!  Hope you had a wonderful fourth. Glad we can start the week together in the Pastor's Workshop.

This week we'll continue with our series, "Prepare with Prayer".  Our hope is that prayer would become a more powerful tool you can use more effectively to integrate your faith more fully into your daily living.

The Scripture this week comes from the Gospel of Luke, Luke 11:1-13. Of all the Gospels, Luke is the book that emphasizes the power of prayer and the working of the Holy Spirit.

1 One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples."

2 He said to them, "When you pray, say: "'Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come.

3 Give us each day our daily bread.

4 Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.'"

5 Then Jesus said to them, "Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, 'Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; 6 a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.'  7 And suppose the one inside answers, 'Don't bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can't get up and give you anything.' 8 I tell you, even though he will not get up and give you the bread because of friendship, yet because of your shameless audacity he will surely get up and give you as much as you need.

9 "So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

11 "Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? 12 Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 

13 If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"

As you see, this Scripture covers "a lot of ground."  It begins with the disciples asking Jesus to teach them to pray, the Lord's Prayer, and then three of Jesus' teachings on prayer. What we'll be doing in this week's message is seeing how all these elements fit together in an overarching truth.  The title for our message is "Game On."

As always on Monday we immerse ourselves in the text of the week.  So read and re-read, copy and re-copy, listen carefully.  What are  the ideas and images that "speak" to you?  Make sure you jot these down in your notebook.

Tomorrow we'll look more closely at each of the sections of the Scripture.  We'll identify key elements. We'll see how they interact to advance our core message.

So, I'll let you get to work.  And I look forward to being with you tomorrow!

Prayer:  Gracious God, thank you for this day and this new week. Thank you for the gift of prayer. Thank you for the ways prayer gives expression to the hope of our hearts. Thank you for the hope You have for us and the ways Jesus leads us to pray into that hope. In that blessing, we lift our prayers in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

In Christ,

Paul

Prayers for Sunday

Happy July 4th.  Here’s to having a great Independence Day!  

I’m grateful we can celebrate in a free nation.  I’m thankful we have a Lord whose love frees us to live fully.  As Jesus said, “If the Son makes you free, you are free indeed!”

As we come to Saturday, you know it’s a Sabbath time in the Pastor’s Workshop.  It’s a day when we take all we have prepared and hold it up to the Lord in prayer.  We ask God to bless and use our work, helping us grow in grace in Christ Jesus. 

So as we come to this time of prayer today, what are you lifting up?  Particularly as you think about Ephesians 6:10-18 and being “Battle Ready”, how would you pray?

Here are some of my prayers.

We do fight “spiritual” battles.  There is spiritual warfare that happens in our hearts.  I pray as we experience those struggles we know we can find our “strength in the Lord and the power of his might.”

I pray the Prayer Guide of “Putting on the full armor of God” would be useful and helpful for us.  To picture our prayer as seeking God’s truth, desiring God’s righteousness, walking in God’s peace, relying on God’s faithfulness, giving God the glory and following God’s word is a powerful way to pray and live. 

I pray we would be alert for those opportunities to grow in and give out God’s grace, present with us each day.

I pray we would always pray for one another.  I ask that as we stay in “supplication for all the saints” God would draw us closer together and build up our fellowship in Christ.

These are some of my prayers inspired by this Scripture.  What are you praying for?  Particularly as you pray this Scripture, how is God guiding you in your time of prayer?

Again, I’m glad we have this Sabbath time together today. I hope you have a very happy and healthy fourth.  I pray you know the freedom Christ gives to love, and the power the Spirit provides to live into that possibility. 

In that blessing, I look forward to being with you tomorrow – not in the Pastor’s workshop, but in the Master’s workshop as we join in worship!

 Prayer:  Gracious God, we praise you for the blessing of our nation and the gift of our freedom. We thank you for the grace that is ours in Jesus Christ.  We pray that we might use our freedom wisely and live in this grace fully.  Let our lives may be a witness to Your goodness and Your glory.  This we pray through Jesus Christ our Lord. 

Strong in the Lord

Glad to be with you on this Thursday.  As we head towards the fourth I’m grateful we can be together in God’s grace!

Our message this week is called “Battle Ready”.  Our Scripture is Ephesians 6:10-18.

As you know Thursday is when we read and review all our work from the week.  We look for how our ideas fit together.  We listen for a message for Sunday. 

Here’s what I’ve “heard” and what’s coming forward for me:

Since this is July 4 weekend, I thought it fitting to open with an illustration from the Declaration of Independence.  In a sense, the Declaration of Independence was a declaration of war.  When the signers penned their names they knew the King of England, George III, would not be pleased.   They knew they better be battle ready. 

This scenario of how conflict commences is very often the case.  When you have a desire, make a decision, and state a declaration that you want to move forward in any area of life there are forces in play that want to maintain control and uphold the status quo.  They are willing to fight for it.  They are battle ready.

The Apostle Paul says this even applies to our faith.  Faith is a moving forward in life in Christ’s love.  When we want to become our best selves in God’s grace, bless others with God’s goodness, and advance God’s kingdom in our world we will face opposing forces.  There will be a struggle.  And it is a spiritual struggle.

We experience this struggle in many ways. We know these opposing forces by many names.  The undertow of temptation is always pulling at us. The bottom line is, there is “spiritual warfare” and we need to be battle ready. 

Not only does this Scripture speak of spiritual warfare, even our Baptismal Vows use this language.  The opening question of the vows sets the tone, “Do you renounce the spiritual forces of wickedness, reject the evil powers of this world and repent of your sin?”

As we enter into this struggle we need to be strong.  Since this is a spiritual struggle we need to be strong in the Lord.   This is the opening encouragement of our passage today.

The symbol of strength held up by this Scripture was the Roman centurion.  He was the fiercest, most feared, formidable fighting man of his time.  His armor was the epitome of his power. 

When the Apostle said, “Put on the full armor” he was holding up this illustration of a centurion putting on his armor, piece by piece, as a prayer guide.

So how do we prepare with prayer for spiritual warfare? According to the Apostle it’s done through a “Wardrobe Check”.   

“Praying in the Spirit” is a suiting up in spiritual strength. As the Apostle details the centurion’s outfit we find ourselves outfitted with what we need.  The belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of peace, the shield of faithfulness, the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Word are all put on, piece by piece, in prayer. 

Being battle ready, we would always “keep alert”.  Not only do we want to avoid an ambush.  We want to see and seize the opportunities for love and life in Christ as they come. “Carpe Diem” for God’s Kingdom!

Even as we pray we want to support our fellow “soldiering saints”.  The Apostle says for us to persevere in prayer and continue in supplication for all the saints. 

This prayer support is particularly critical in these days.  As Covid has made its rebound, many have felt more embattled than ever.  Maybe you have too.  Forces of disappointment and despair rise up and would pull us down.  Yet we are battle ready.  We know how stay strong in the Lord.  We put on the full armor of God.  We prepare with prayer. 

 In that strength which God supplies and the progress in faith it makes possible, we not only survive our struggles we rise to victory in the love and life of Jesus Christ. 

These are talking points for Sunday.  Of course the message will be fuller as illustration and commentary are added.  

Besides the message, there will be some great music (as always), a short video celebrating VBS, and the observance of the sacrament of communion.  It will be a beautiful time of worship.  

In that faith which stays strong in the Lord as we prepare with prayer, I look forward to see you then! 

Prayer:  Gracious God, thank You always for the blessing of worship.  Thank you for the ways worship strengthens us spiritually, so that we might be “strong in the Lord, in the strength of your power”.  Thank You for how that strength fortifies our faith, especially in the spiritual struggles of our lives.  For this gift of your grace and the ways we receive it with prayer, we give you our thanks and praise in Jesus’ holy name.  Amen

Spiritual Warfare Then and Now

Welcome to Wednesday.  It’s a blessing to be with you on this first day of July in the Pastor’s Workshop.

As we “Prepare with Prayer” for Sunday we’re getting “Battle Ready”.  The sermon comes from Ephesians 6:10-18.

On Wednesday we look at the context of the text.  What was the world like into which this word was first spoken?  How does this knowledge expand our understanding of what is being said in the passage?

We live in a “scientific” world.  Thinking about the cosmos was much different in the Roman world. When this Scripture was written the notion of the “spiritual” was much more pervasive.  It was also much more invasive.  The thought of gods actively and hostilely intruding into human life was widely accepted.

This text was penned in a “warring world”. Roman military campaigns were a regular occurrence.  Kings battling for turf was common.  Kingdoms in conflict were an accepted norm. The concept of “spiritual warfare” expanded on this experience.  

Dueling deities, where one god was warring with another, was typical in Roman mythology.  A primal battle of good and evil, personified in God and the devil, was conceivable to many. So when the Apostle wrote you are fighting “not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers” the listener would have a greater sense of “spiritual warfare” than we do today. 

In this warring world the Roman centurion was the symbol of military strength.  He was the most formidable of all fighters.  His armor was elite equipment.  If you were going into combat equipped like a centurion you were ready for battle.  As the Apostle details putting on the “full armor”, with belt, breastplate and leggings, shield, helmet and sword the hearer would have a graphic vision of  impressive empowerment which happened in suiting up.

“Praying in the Spirit” envisions “putting on the full armor of God” for “spiritual warfare.  “Praying in the Spirit” was how the believer became battle ready.  “Praying the Spirit” was how they became “strong In the Lord and the strength of his might.”  This is the strength they would need to survive the struggle and win the victory. 

At times it’s difficult for us in the modern world to understand what our ancestors of the faith might have been thinking as we read a text.  More than that, to have a visceral sense of their struggle and empowerment is hard to imagine.  And yet I think it’s important for us to try as we seek to discern God’s truth for our day.

What does “spiritual warfare”, “being strong in the Lord”, “putting on the full armor of God”, and “praying in the spirit” mean for you?

I look forward to continuing our work with this passage.  As we come to tomorrow we’ll see how it all fits together and how this Scripture speaks a word for us today.   In that blessing I’ll join you tomorrow in the Pastor’s Workshop.

Prayer:  Gracious God, thank you for the faith of our ancestors.  Thank you for their witness to the depths of struggle in life and the heights of strength they found in You.  Thank you for their guidance on the gift of prayer.  Help us to learn more fully from their words of yesterday that we might live more faithfully in our world today.  This we pray in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.  

The Armor of God

Glad to be together on this Tuesday!  It’s good to continue in our preparation in the Pastor’s Workshop.

Our current series is “Prepare with Prayer”.  The Scripture for this week is Ephesians 6:10-18.  Our title for Sunday is “Battle Ready”.

On Monday we immersed ourselves in the text.  Today we step back and look for a logic that ‘weaves’ through the Scripture.  How does the writer invite us into the subject and advance the thought?  How does the overall idea open up and draw us into deeper insight?

This Scripture begins with force – “Be strong in the Lord and the strength of God’s might!”

It progresses to “How” to be strong, “Put on the whole armor of God” and “Why” this strength is needed, to withstand the “wiles of the devil”.

It names the struggle being faced as a spiritual wrestling.  “Our struggle is not against enemies of flesh and blood, but against rulers, against authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness…”  In that arena only the strength of the Lord will suffice. We need to “take up the full armor of God…so we can stand firm.”

The Apostle paints a picture of what it means to “Put on the full armor.” The illustration is of a Roman centurion, the most formidable fighter of the day, getting suited up.  After robing with his undergarments he: cinches up his belt, straps on his breastplate, buckles up his shoes, grabs his shield, dons his helmet and picks up his sword.   He is now “battle ready”.

The Apostle makes the spiritual analogy.  We are to cinch up the belt of truth, strap on the breastplate of righteousness, cover our feet with what makes for peace, grab the shield of faith, glory in the helmet of salvation and pick up the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 

We can envision how this armor equips us for our lives of faith.  We want to be guided by God’ truth, do what is right in God’s sight, walk in the ways of God’s peace, have our faith sustained by God’s faithfulness, glory in God’s salvation and have God’s word enable God’s will and way. 

Verse 18 sums up this “suiting up”.  “Pray in the Spirit at all times, in every prayer and supplication”.  We get “battle ready” by preparing with prayer.  Preparing with prayer “keeps us alert” to the possibilities of living in God’s grace.  

Not only do we pray for ourselves, we also pray for each other.  The Apostle says “persevere in supplication for all the saints.”  We all are involved in the same struggle and are preparing in the same way.  As we stand together in getting battle ready we will prevail.

This is how I discern the connections in this passage and trace the logic of the text.  What elements do you see?  How do they connect for you?  How do they lead you into a deeper walk with Jesus?

Tuesday is always an important day.  To sense the “flow” of the Scripture strengthens our own story of faithfulness.  I’m grateful for that gift of grace.

In that blessing I’ll let you get to work.  I look forward to being with you tomorrow in the Pastor’s Workshop. 

Prayer:  Gracious God, thank you for Your Word.  Thank you for the truth of life it reveals and the way of life it unveils.  Open our eyes and our minds more fully through our faith.  In the midst of our struggles help us to see that You would make us strong by the strength of Your might.  Make us ready for all that this day holds as we prepare with prayer.  Let it all be to Your glory, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

Congregational Letter

Dear Friends at Spring Valley, 

Grace and peace as we come to the end of June.  I hope this letter finds you safe and well. 

As you know, it has been three and a half months since we last gathered at church.  That’s a long time.  Many of us feel the loss of personal fellowship.  I look forward to when we can be together again. 

Two questions regularly arise, “When will we reopen?” and “What will that look like?”  Here is an update on those questions.

As you remember, in March the Bishop decided to close the churches of the North Texas Conference because of the threat of the COVID virus.  His priority was the safety and security of all.  He made it clear at that time he was monitoring the COVID caseload as a determining criterion of when we would reopen. 

Unfortunately, the COVID caseload continues to go up in Dallas County.  Compared to other areas of the state we are considered a relative “hot zone”.  Because of this rise in numbers and the increased risk, the Bishop has decided to postpone reopening the churches in the Metro District (Dallas County). Currently, this closure will remain in effect through the end of July.  The Bishop will be visiting with the pastors towards the end of that month for an update.  

I know this is disappointing news.  Yet it is understandable. 

I do want to remind us of ministries currently available and alert us to opportunities ahead.

• Sunday worship is available online at svumc.org beginning at 6:00 a.m. every Sunday.

• Many adult Sunday School classes are meeting regularly by Zoom or conference calls.

• A daily blog is posted on svumc.org and is also being emailed.  This pastor’s blog is a devotional guide that will enrich your Sunday worship.

• Children’s Sunday School lessons are being emailed each week.

• Youth are meeting via Zoom every Sunday at 6:00 p.m.

• Vacation Bible School was held via Zoom last week.  We celebrate this “first of a kind” VBS.

Additionally, two significant ministries are coming.

• Later in July Bert and John are planning an online concert.  I know it will be glorious.  You will want to watch the Behold and the website for details. 

• Youth ministry will have some special summer opportunities.  Our Youth families will be receiving more information about the upcoming ministry.

Lastly, even though our reopening is delayed, preparations for that step are ongoing.  A Reopening Task Force has been working hard, preparing an extensive plan for our reopening called, “A Reopening Covenant”.  They have completed their work and will be forwarding it to the Trustees and the Church Council for their review and approval. This Covenant couples the best practices of mutual safety and health with high-quality ministry needs and desires.  I am grateful for the efforts of our Task Force, Trustees, and Church Council as they continue to prepare us for our eventual reopening.

I know this has been a lengthy communication. I appreciate your patience in reading through it.  If you have any particular questions or concerns please feel free to contact me at pgould@svumc.org.  

I also appreciate your continued mutual ministry with one another as a church family.  None of us have ever experienced anything like what we are going through.  In the midst of these difficult days, I have heard wonderful stories of how you have kept in contact and cared for one another.  This mutual support has sustained our church.  It is an expression of the Holy Spirit working in our midst.  I praise God for this blessing.

As I said in my opening, I know how much we miss being with one another.  The gift of fellowship is something we will never again take for granted.  And I can’t wait until we reopen our doors and are together. 

With this hope and with faith in our gracious God, who leads us in these difficult days, I am grateful to continue forward in Christ’s ministry now and always with you at Spring Valley.

Blessings,

Pastor 

Battle Ready

Good morning on this fine Monday! I’m glad to begin the week with you in the Pastor’s Workshop. 

This week we’ll continue our series on prayer.  As you remember our title is “Prepare with Prayer”.   My hope is that prayer would become a more powerful tool for you, one you could use more effectively to integrate your faith more fully into your daily living.  

Yesterday we started with a message called “Save the Day!”  We explored how prayer helps us live into this possibility, “This is a day the Lord is making!”  (Psalm 118:24)  You can view the message (as well as the rest of worship at svumc.org).

This week we’ll continue with a message entitled “Battle Ready”.  Our text is from Ephesians 6:10-18

 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For our struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. 14 Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate of righteousness. 15 As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. 16 With all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.  18 Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints.

As we read through this text we realize that to be our best, live lives of love, bless others with grace, and follow Jesus faithfully is not an easy path. Every day there are distractions, delays, and detours.  There are obstacles we need to overcome.  We need to “keep alert” and stay focused on our goal.  To live with “truth” and do “right”, to “proclaim peace” and choose “faithfulness”, to rejoice in God’s “salvation” and be wise in “God’s word”, to stay “strong in the Lord” and live in the “strength of his power”, we need to “Pray… at all times”.

Monday is a day of “immersion”.  Read and re-read, write and re-write.  Use several translations. Listen carefully and see what ideas and images capture your attention. Paraphrase the Biblical word in your own words.  Start to make this text your own, so its truth can make you its own. 

I know it’s a busy week ahead. So I’ll let you get to work.  

As you do, don’t forget to start with prayer. Ask God’s guidance as you move into the task before you.  Know that being in God’s word is pleasing to God.  It’s key to working God’s will today.

In that blessing let’s get to it and I’ll see you tomorrow in the Pastor’s Workshop.

Prayer:  Gracious God, thank you for the blessing of this day.  It’s a day You are making.  Let us not get distracted and delayed in the following You.  Keep us alert to Your loving purposes.  Let us be people of prayer so we might be “strong” in You and live in the “strength” of Your love.  This we pray in the name of Jesus Christ, our strong Savior and loving Lord.  Amen. 

Sunday School Lessons at Home

Join us for Sunday School Classes at Home Online. We will continue to send out weekly e-mails with the materials needed for at- home Sunday School. There will also be an overview/ introduction video of the Sunday School lessons posted weekly on the church’s website and social media. This is a great way to stay connected with one another and keep the learning going at home.

Link for Videos:

Children’s: https://www.svumc.org/children

Club 26 and Youth: https://www.svumc.org/youth

Contact Shea Harrington if you are not getting these emails and would like to be added to our list!

Preparing for Sunday with Prayer

Prepare with Prayer – June 27

Grace and Peace on this Saturday.  I’m glad we can finish the week together in the Workshop. 

As you know, this week we started a new series called “Prepare with Prayer”.  And on Saturday that’s exactly what we do – we prepare with prayer for Sunday morning!  What we’re celebrating with this message is that “prepare with prayer” is not only a good mantra for Saturday and Sunday, it also works Monday through Friday too!

Preparation is the key to doing anything competently and confidently.  Prayer opens us to God’s working in whatever we do.  So when you “prepare with prayer” you get a “double dose” of readiness.  

So how will you prepare with prayer for Sunday?  What hopes will you be lifting up?  Particularly in light of Psalm 118:19-24, what will your prayers be?

Here are a few of mine:

• I pray “Prayer” would become a powerful tool we can use more effectively to integrate our faith more fully into our daily lives. 

• I pray we would develop a habit of prayer.  I ask we would enter every day through this “gate of righteousness” (Psalm 118:19).

• I pray we use our time in prayer to present our day to God.  I hope we will ask God’s guidance in becoming more loving witnesses for Jesus Christ, our cornerstone (Psalm 118:21-23).

• I pray we would discover each day holds the potential to be “a day the Lord has made” (Psalm 118:24).

That’s what I’m asking of God.  What are your prayers?  Make sure you record them.  As we go through the series, you’ll be able to look back on what you have prayed and see how God has answered your prayers and grown you in faith. 

I’m glad we have started this journey in prayer together.  I hope it will be a wonderful blessing for you and for all our readers.  

In this hope I look forward to being with you in worship on Sunday morning!

Prayer: Gracious God, thank you for this week.  Thank you for this opportunity to learn more about prayer and grow in this grace.  Thank you for how you hear and answer our prayers in your love for us in Jesus Christ.  Thank you for how he is the cornerstone upon which we pray.  We lift up this prayer and all our prayers in his precious and holy name. Amen.

Save the Day with Prayer

Glad to be with you on this good morning!  It’s Thursday which means we’re in the midst of making it through this week of writing.

On Thursdays we put all our thoughts, reflections, and prayers together.  Everything we’ve been working on gets reviewed.  We listen and seek to discern a message taking shape in all we’ve done.  Thursday is a creative and critical day. 

As you remember we began a new series this week.  It’s called “Prepare with Prayer”.  Our Scripture for this first Sunday in the series is Psalms 118:19-24.  Our focus verse for the message is verse 24, “This is the day the Lord has made.  Let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Our title for this message is “Save the Day”.

As I was reflecting on this Scripture here’s what came forward for me. 

I have different kinds of days. 

Some of my days are “Got To” days.  These are days driven by what I’ve got to do.  They are days with full schedules, high pressures, and heavy demands.  These days are tiring and stressful days. 

Other days are “Ground Hog” days.  These are days where what happened yesterday, today and tomorrow all seems to run together.  These are days that get long and dull.

And then I have “Get To” days.  These are days inspired not by what I’ve “Got To” do, but what I “Get To” do.  These are days lived with a sense of promise, potential and possibility. They are days where I am engaged and energized, alert and more fully alive.  They are great days where I “Get To” experience God’s grace is some wonderful ways. 

And the funny thing is “Got To” days, “Ground Hog” days, and “Get To” days are in many ways all the same day.  In each of these days I have the same family, same friends, same sets of circumstances, same challenges … so much is the same.  

And yet each of these days is distinctively, decisively different. What makes the difference between a “Got To” day, “Ground Hog” day, and “Get To” day is a decision you and I make to “Save the Day!” 

We save the day by preparing for the day with prayer.

When you and I make the choice to prepare for the day with prayer this Scripture from Psalm 118:19-24 becomes a great guide.

It begins the day at the “Starting Gate”.  “Open the gates of righteousness and I will enter through them.” (vs. 19).  As you begin the day come to that place and space of prayer each morning.  This is “Starting Gate” for you to enter into the presence of God. 

As you move forward in prayer, take time to praise God.  Verse 20 says, “I will praise You, for You have answered me and become my salvation.”  

Once you have praised God and entered into God’s presence, then present your day to God.  Dive into the details.  List it all before the Lord.  Then lift it all to the Lord.  If you’re going to “Save the Day!” you’re going to have to give it to the Savior.  Again from verse 20 – “You have … become my salvation”.

 Once you have started in prayer, entered God’s presence and presented your day to God, then visualize what it means to build your day on Christ as your cornerstone.  Jesus Christ is God’s love alive in your daily life.  To build on Christ as your cornerstone is to review your schedule and picture what it would mean to love others with Jesus’ love in these daily moments.  That love can take on lots of different looks.  The more you practice picturing your day with Christ as cornerstone, the better you will become at it.

Finally as you finish preparing for your day with prayer, celebrate all God will be doing.  Even as you have done your part, God will also be doing God’s part.  God will be working because this is a day that the Lord is making, so we can rejoice and be glad in it. 

How long does this prayer time take: Entering through the starting gate, Praising God for God’s presence, presenting your day, building your picture, and giving thanks for God’s work?  I’d say with a little practice it can be done in 3-5 minutes.  That’s the best investment of 3-5 minutes you’ll make all day.  It will save your day!  I’ll also tell you that after a while you won’t be asking, “How long will this prayer time take?”  You’ll be asking, “Why can’t I take longer in this time of prayer?”  Prayer time will become precious time to you.

A wise person said, we no longer have yesterday.  It’s gone.  Nor do we have tomorrow. It’s not here yet.  What we do have is today.  It’s a day worth saving.  It’s a day worth preparing for with prayer. 

These are the talking points for Sunday.  As usual they will be expanded and enriched in the preaching of the message. 

These are my thoughts.  What are yours?  What message comes forward for you from Psalm 118:19-24?  What you hear is what God is speaking to you.  It’s worth writing down in your notebook. 

Now we let this message “percolate” for a couple of days.  That always helps.  

Then we prepare with prayer on Saturday for our worship time on Sunday. I look forward to being with you then!

Prayer:  Gracious God, thank you for the privilege of prayer.  Thank you for how you work in the midst of prayer to save this day.  Today is a day You would be making in your love.  Today is a day where You would be growing us in your grace.  By your Spirit call us always to prepare for today and every day with prayer.  As we do, we will give You the glory, through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen. 

Prepare with Prayer

Welcome to Wednesday!  Great to be with you as we continue to develop our message and our series on Prayer. 

Prayer is a spiritual practice like no other.  It invites and enables us to enter and engage each day with the grace of God.  It strengthens us to live our lives in and with the love of Jesus Christ. 

The title for our new series is “Prepare with Prayer”.  Our title for this particular message is “Save the Day!” The Scripture for Sunday is Psalm 118:19-24.

As you recall, on Tuesday we switched our series. So today we “catch-up” in our creative process.  We’ll look at both the context of the text and the structure of the Scripture.

As I envision this Scripture, I picture a worshipper about to enter the Temple in Jerusalem.  He or she is standing outside, looking at the massive doors of the Temple. They are getting ready to go in and worship God. A thought starts to run through their mind, or maybe a word forms on their lips, “Open to me the gates of righteousness, I will go through them, and I will praise the Lord.  This is the gate of the Lord through which the righteous shall enter.” (vs. 19-20).

As they cross over the threshold and enter into the courtyards, they have a deeper sense of the presence of God.  They are preparing to praise and pray to the Lord. “I will praise You, For You have answered me, And have become my salvation.”  (vs.21)

In praise and prayer they find an anchor and assurance. They can build their lives on God.  Even though others may have turned away, God is their rock and their cornerstone.  “The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.  This was the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes.” (vs. 22-23).

And lastly, there comes a celebration.  These are words of joy, rejoicing in blessing of this time in the Temple, “This is the day which the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” (vs.24)

As we follow the worshipper through their experience we see the sequence of thought and logic in the text.  There is the Entrance, the Praise and Prayer, the Assurance of Building and the Rejoicing.   The physical movement reflects a spiritual progression occurring in the heart of the worshipper. 

You and I don’t live in Jerusalem.  Your daily prayer is your “Time in the Temple”.   Prayer is when you move into the presence of God. As we get ready for Sunday I’ll be incorporating this movement into my message: Enter, Build, Rejoice!

Even as we envision a worshipper entering the Temple, I miss entering the sanctuary and worshipping with you.  There is a joy in joining together in the presence of our God.  I’m comforted though by this faith, I believe as we pray we spiritually come into the presence of God and of one another.   There is a unity, a communion of the saints, God makes possible as we spend time in prayer. 

In the blessing of prayer and the possibility it holds to live each day to the fullest in the presence of God, I give thanks for this time with you today.  

And I look forward to joining with you again tomorrow when we’ll see how the message all comes together in the Pastor’s Workshop. 

Prayer:  Gracious God, thank you for this day. It is a day You are making.  Through prayer You invite us to enter into Your presence and build our lives on You as our cornerstone.  For that great grace which is ours in Jesus Christ and for the ways we can live it out in faith, we give you thanks today and everyday through Jesus Christ, our Cornerstone and Lord.  Amen

Shifting Gears...

Good morning!  I’m glad to be together on this Tuesday in the Pastor’s Workshop. 

Flexibility is key to our faith. Sometimes when things don’t go the way you thought, you have to be open to the possibility God had something else in mind.  That’s where I am today.  

Yesterday I introduced a new July series on Reopening, thinking this step was in our immediate future.  But for good reasons (the rise of the cases of Covid virus in Dallas county), that’s not to be the decision for now.  I’ll be sending you and all our congregation a letter in the next few days going into more detail.  Suffice it to say, we’ll shift that series until later and we’ll shift “gears” into something else. 

As an alternative we’ll spend some time on the subject of Prayer.  Prayer is very personal topic.  It can be preached from many perspectives.  We’ll be taking an “active approach” in this series.  The question we’ll be exploring, “How can you get on board with what God would doing in your life through prayer?”  The title of the series is ”Prepare with Prayer”.

This Sunday we start the series with a great Scripture from the Book of Psalms, which is sometimes called the “Prayer book of the Bible”.  Our text is Psalm 118:19-24. 

“Open to me the gates of righteousness, that I may enter through them and give thanks to the Lord. 20 This is the gate of the Lord; the righteous shall enter through it. 21 I thank you that you have answered me and have become my salvation. 22 The stone that the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone. 23 This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. 24 This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it!”

Since this is the first day of our creative process with this Scripture, we’ll begin with our usual practice.  Immerse yourself in the text.  As you read and re-read, write and re-write you’ll begin to see this passage holds lots of possibilities.  What is God “opening” to you today?  What are you “entering into”?  What are you “giving thanks” for?  What are you “building on”?  What is God “making” in the midst of all that’s happening with you today?  How will you “rejoice and be glad in it?” 

Prayer time can be moments in your day when you ponder those questions. Prayer is powerful when you open your eyes and your mind to faith choices you make and God’s answers that come.  This is a day the Lord is making!

I look forward to exploring this text with you.  I’m excited for the blessings this Scripture and this series will hold for you. 

In that hope, I’ll let you get to work.  And I’ll see you again tomorrow in the Pastor’s Workshop.

Prayer:  Gracious God, thank You for the gift of today.  Thank You for the blessing of prayer.  Thank You for how the day and prayer come together in ways You would go to work in our lives.  By Your Spirit let this be a day You are making.  We will rejoice and be glad in it!  In the name of our “chief cornerstone”, Jesus Christ, we pray.   Amen.

Ready to Reopen

Good morning and Good Monday!  I’m glad to begin this week with you in the Pastor’s Workshop.

As a pastor you plan your message series hoping to address issues the church family is facing.  The intent is to focus on matters relevant to the challenges we’re going through.  The prayer is even as we “go through” whatever the day or season of life holds, we will also “grow through” these experiences as we go through them with faith in Christ. 

Such is the hope for new series we’re about to launch called “Ready to Reopen”.  

Reopening is not as easy as flinging wide the doors and saying, “Come on in!  It’s business as usual.”  After months of being shut-down, separated and stressed, a weariness and leeriness has set in.  We sense that in some ways our world has profoundly changed.  Like after 9-11, things will be different. There’s part of us that wonders, “Is it safe?” and “What will this new normal be like?”  More than that, “What do I need to do to get ready?”  That’s the question we’ll address in the series. 

There’s also a caveat to beginning this series.  

It’s all predicated on the Bishop giving a “green light” to reopening within the next six weeks. If so, we’ll be a position of returning and the series will be relevant. If not, we’ll save the series until we receive the go ahead.  

This is my way of saying that even as we do our work today it may not be what gets preached this Sunday.  Welcome to the world of a pastor!  You’ve got to be flexible.

With all that said, the Scripture for our series “Ready to Return” is from Judges 6 and 7.  It’s the story of Gideon.  As we look into his story we’ll see lots of parallels with our own story in these days of Reopening.  How does his story inform and empower us to live our story with our gracious God?  This is the “journey” we’ll take together.  

Assuming all goes well, our particular text for this week is Judges 6:1-10.  This Scripture sets the stage for the story of Gideon.  Even as this mighty man of valor leads his people forward, our hope is God will lead us.

As always on Monday we “immerse” ourselves in the Scripture.  You know the process, read and re-read the text, silently and aloud.  Listen to the words and phrases.  What images capture your attention?  What ideas “pop up” for you? What feelings do you experience? Rephrase the story in your own words.  Make sure to write it all down in your notebook!

In many ways the pandemic has “impoverished” (verse 6) us.   The more we get in touch with what has been threatened and lost, the more we will hear the power of the words, “I am the Lord, your God.

I look forward to working through this series with you.  I pray it will be a blessing during this time of transition.  I am confident as and whenever we reopen the Lord will lead us into new places of fresh and deeper faith. 

In that faith I’ll see you again tomorrow in the Pastor’s Workshop. 

Prayer:  Gracious God, thank you for the gift of this Monday.  As our country, community and church reopen guide us in Your ways.  Help us all to be safe.  But more, help us all to be committed to keeping others safe.  Through our faith help us to be flexible.  As we go forward strengthen us to grow in faith.  As we live these days, let us walk in Your light, through Jesus Christ our Lord in whose name we pray.  Amen.

Be Still in Prayer

Blessings on this Saturday morning!  It’s wonderful to be with you this weekend.  I’m glad we can get ready for worship together.

Saturday is our day to prepare with prayer.  We take all we’ve done and put it into God’s hands.  We ask the Lord to bless our work so it might accomplish Christ’s work. 

Sunday is Father’s Day.  As part of our worship we’ll remember and honor the significant men in our lives – fathers, grandfathers, uncles, brothers, cousins.  Or maybe those men were teachers or coaches, mentors or friends.  They shaped us by sharing their lives with us.  Today we celebrate and give thanks for them. This gratitude is part of our prayer time. 

Even as we remember and honor them, on this Father’s Day we also reclaim and rejoice in our relationship with God as our “Heavenly Father”.  The intimacy implied in this understanding of God, the grace and peace provided, the healing and forgiveness found, the provision and protection offered, the justice and truth promised – all are present and active In this covenant connection we have with God as our Heavenly Father.  Surely, this is a point of prayer today. 

And then as we pray, we think about our message and its main emphasis, “Blessing”.  We pray that the “idea” of blessing, as an experience of unconditional love from our Heavenly Father, would become real for us.  As we bow in prayer we ask God to lead us into that depth of love already “with us” and “for us” even now in Jesus Christ our Lord.

And finally I pray, from this awareness of blessing we hear the call and find the strength to bless others.  Through our relationship with God as Heavenly Father we can follow in the footsteps of the significant men (and women) in our lives.  We can give of ourselves in ways that we live Christ’s love by what we do and say.  We too can be channels of grace.  We also have a blessing to give.  Part of my prayer today is that we know this truth and we give that blessing!

There are lots of good reasons to pray today.  So invite you to shut down your computer or iphone and open up your heart and mind.  Take time to “Be Still” and know the Lord is God.  Rest and trust in God as your Heavenly Father.  Let our Heavenly Father’s grace in Jesus Christ “fill your heart and satisfy your soul”.  Then lift to God what’s on your mind and in your heart.  Let our Heavenly Father go to work and lead you into the blessing of love God has for you to live and give today. 

In that blessing of prayer I’m grateful for the creative moments we shared this week.  I rejoice in the ways God will work tomorrow as we join in worship!  In that grace I’ll see you then. 

Prayer:  Gracious God, thank you for the gift of prayer. Thank you for the privilege of centering ourselves in your mercy and opening our lives to your truth.  By your Holy Spirit lead us deeper into the relationship we share with you as our Heavenly Father.  Let that covenant connection strengthen us so we might be the Kingdom blessing for others you would have us to be today.  In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen

Our Heavenly Father desires to bless us.

Greetings on this great day!  God’s grace makes every day great.  It’s good to be with you on this Thursday in the Pastor’s Workshop. 

If you’ve been with us a while you know what happens on Thursday.  Today is the culmination of our creative process.  It’s time to take all our thoughts, notes, musings, reflections --- everything we’ve written down this week --- and look for the overall connection, the underlying theme, the Sunday message “emerging”. 

This week our focus is on Father’s Day.  Our text is Genesis 27:1-10, 30-38 (but you can read verse 1-40 if you want to get the full picture).  Our emphasis is on our human need for “blessing” and God’s gracious giving of blessing as our “Heavenly Father”.

Here are the talking points of Sunday’s sermon that come forward for me:

Experiencing a “blessing” is always good!

On this Father’s Day we give thanks for the significant men in our lives: our fathers, grandfathers, perhaps uncles or older brothers; or maybe family not by blood but by bonds of care and commitment, teachers, coaches, mentors or friends.  We’re grateful for how they shared their lives with us, all the many moments.  We’re thankful for how they shaped our lives with their love.  They have been blessings for us. They have given us a blessing we need.

The Scripture story of Isaac, Rebekah, Esau and Jacob reflects our human need for blessing and what people will do to get one.   The cry of Esau in verse 38, “Have you only one blessing, father? Bless me, me also, father!”  gives voice to that deep longing. 

When we long for “blessing” what are we needing?  What is a blessing?  From a spiritual perspective, blessing is experiencing a benediction in our being.  Blessing is unconditional love settling on our soul.   Blessing is given by someone greater than ourselves.  Blessing is known when someone’s heart is with us and favor is for us.

In this Old Testament story blessing was a formal act.  It was done by father with the eldest son as the father bequeathed the family inheritance to him. In our day, blessing is not so formal, but it is no less powerful.  Our blessing is receiving our “family inheritance” of unconditional love from our Heavenly Father given, not to the Son, but through the Son, Jesus Christ, to all of us as God’s children.

On this Father’s Day we rejoice that we have a God who delights in bestowing blessing as our Heavenly Father.  It is Jesus who introduces us to God as “Heavenly Father”.  As he says in John 14:7, “If you have known me, you have known my father also.”  As Jesus goes to the Cross for us in love and rises from the grave for us in life, we know this is the heart of our Heavenly Father.  We have a Heavenly Father who goes all the way in love and rises up to bring us into greater life.  The Biblical story of the Prodigal Son pictures our Heavenly Father so well.

As we live life in our Heavenly Father’s blessing (of unconditional love in Christ) it enables three blessings for us.  First, we can more deeply appreciate our earthly fathers as witnesses of our Heavenly Father’s love.  We get a greater sense of the sacredness of the relationships we have shared.  Secondly, when our earthly fathers fall short in being and bestowing blessing, our relationship with our Heavenly Father helps us to find healing for our hurt and freedom to forgive. Thirdly, in our relationship with our Heavenly Father as a giver of blessing, we discover God has also given us “a blessing to give”.  We bless others through: Attention and Acceptance, Example and Instruction, and Encouragement and Delight. 

This Bible story of blessing leads to a blessed end!  Jacob, who in the beginning felt it necessary to steal a blessing from his earthly father, is continually blessed by his Heavenly Father.  God did not rescind the blessing.  Even though Jacob did not deserve it, God as Heavenly Father desired it.   Over time this unconditional blessing changed Jacob.  It changed him to the point that God changed his name from Jacob to Israel.  The last act Israel did was to bless his sons, all twelve of them.  Our Heavenly Father, in his continual blessing of Jacob, laid a foundation of faithfulness for the life of the people that was to carry forward for generations as the twelve tribes of Israel. 

Our story of blessing also leads to a blessed end.  Our Heavenly Father is continually faithful, constantly bestowing unconditional love on us in Jesus Christ.  It’s not a matter of whether we deserve it. It’s a matter that our Heavenly Father desires it.  Over time God’s blessing of unconditional love changes us for the better.  It leads us into being faithful people who live in the faithfulness of the Heavenly Father.  There’s no better blessing for us this Father’s Day!

Those are the talking points.  As you see the sermon covers a lot of ground.  On Sunday it will be “enriched” with a few illustrations, clarifying main ideas.  

These are my musings.  What are yours?  What is the message God is speaking to your mind and heart through this Scripture?  As you take time to write out your own talking points, you will be blessed!

So much for writing this week.  Today and tomorrow you’ll have opportunity to put it all on paper and work and re-work your message. Then Saturday we put it all to prayer and prepare for Sunday.  

I’m grateful to celebrate this Father’s Day with you.  I rejoice in the blessing of knowing God as our Heavenly Father together.  In that grace I look forward to seeing you Sunday in worship!

Prayer:  Gracious God, thank you for your Holy Word and the ways it inspires a word of faith in us.  Thank you for how this Scripture draws us deeply into your holy will to bless and your faithfulness in doing that as our Heavenly Father.  Open us to your unconditional love so we might live more fully in faith and be the blessing you would have us to be for others.  In the name of Jesus Christ we pray. Amen

A heritage from our Heavenly Father.

Welcome to Wednesday! We’re well on the way to a wonderful Father’s Day message in the Pastor’s Workshop!

As you know from Monday and Tuesday, our focus this Father’s Day is on “Blessing”.  Our Scripture is Genesis 27:1-10, 30-38.  But if you want to get the “full story” read verses 1-40.  We’re keying in on the cry of Esau, “Have you only one blessing, father? Bless me, me also, father!” 

On Wednesdays, we look at the background of the Scripture.  We consider the context of the text. As we know more about the days in which the story was originally told it deepens our understanding and our appreciation of the drama unfolding in the text.  It also helps in our application for living today. 

The bestowal of the blessing we are witnessing in this Scripture was a very formal and formidable event in the lives of ancient Hebrews.  The blessing was like the reading of a will or the bequest of inheritance, except it was bestowed while the giver was still alive.  

In this patriarchal society, the giver would have always been the father.  The father was the oldest living male and was responsible for the provision and protection of the immediate family.  But more than that, he was responsible for the well-being of the extended family, the entire clan.  The blessing, as the passing on of the family fortune, was to provide for the continued care of the entire family. 

Also, in a patriarchal society, the blessing would have been given to the oldest son, in this case, Esau.  He was the one who would take the father’s place when the father passed.  The mantle of responsibility fell to him.  This societal tradition of succession provided for a smooth transition of power and ongoing care for the family.  

The blessing was an earthly inheritance, but it was more.  It was the “passing on” of not only the family fortune but also the favor of God. Verse 7 expresses this depth of the blessing, “… I may bless you, before the Lord, before I die.” 

The blessing was often given in a ceremony accompanied by a meal. Thus there was the preparation of “savory food, such as I like, and bring it to me to eat, so that I may bless you…” (verse 4).

The contrast to the “blessing” was the “curse”.  With a will for “good” and “favor”, there was also a will for “bad” and “evil”.    We read in verse 29, “Cursed be everyone who curses you, and blessed be everyone who blesses you!” The “blessing” and the “curse” were matters of “provision” and “protection”.

To steal the “blessing”, as Jacob did in this Scripture, would have been a shocking crime. It would have violated all the norms of the day.   No wonder Esau plotted to kill Jacob (verse 41). 

It was a shocking crime, by a patriarch of the faith. And yet the Scripture tells the story.  It invites the listeners to know this as part of their heritage.  And as people of faith, it is part of our heritage as well. 

Part of what we learn as this story continues forward is that God honored the blessing given by Isaac. God’s favor and faithfulness did rest upon Jacob.  Grace was there not because Jacob deserved it.  Clearly he did not.  Grace was there because God, our Heavenly Father, was faithful to the covenant care of His family.  

What happens along the way is that this blessing of God changes Jacob.  The change is reflected in the change of his name to Israel.  And the last act Israel does in his life is to bless his twelve sons, the twelve tribes of Israel.  The covenant care goes on.

The gospel good news is that we have this same Heavenly Father.  Our Heavenly Father extends this same covenant care to us in Jesus Christ.  It’s never a matter of us deserving it.  It’s always a matter of God desiring it for us and with us. Our privilege is to live into that covenant care in ways that we not only know that blessing but additionally pass it on to others. 

I invite you to reflect on what it means for you to call God your “Heavenly Father”.  Jot down your thoughts.  

In that blessing we share together as the family of God, I look forward to tomorrow and “putting it all together” for Sunday’s message.  In that joy, I’ll see you then!

Prayer: Gracious God, thank you for the stories of our faith. These stories show our earthly fathers may not have been perfect people, but this did not stop you as our Heavenly Father from embracing them and us with your amazing grace. By your Spirit strengthen us in that faith and help us to live as the blessing you would have us to be, so that others will know through us the blessing you would pour on them in Jesus Christ, our Lord. This we pray in Jesus’ holy name.  Amen