Running…
Read I Corinthians 9:19-27
“Run so that you may obtain the prize.”    I Corinthians 9:24

The Christian life is often referred to as a journey, but in his letter to the Corinthians, Paul refers to it as a race.  It was an image the Corinthians would understand and it is one we can as well.  He says very clearly, that when we run, we are to run so that we may obtain the prize.  Does that mean that we are to run hard?  Are we to run fast?  How do we run to “obtain” the prize? 

Though not a big advocate of running, I understand that someone who runs must have a purpose.  Either they love to run, are trying to stay in shape, or are training for a race of some sort.  They must know why they are running.  For Christians, we run because we know that there is nothing more valuable for us, than to be running with Christ.  We run with purpose, to get to know more intimately the one who knows us intimately.   

But we must also run with a plan.  People who run in races have to train.  When they train, it is good for them to have a plan in place.  They don’t just determine that they will run a marathon.  They run five miles one day.  They may run seven on another day.  One day they may rest.  They have a plan.  We, too, have to have a plan for our Christian running.  We find that plan best laid out for us in the words of Holy Scripture.  It is there that we find out how we are to run.  This plan includes reading God’s word, worshipping together, sharing in fellowship, praying.  We must not forget the importance of prayer to a healthy run.  The plan also calls for us to give ourselves away to others.  That isn’t so easy.  I knew running was going to be hard.

Finally, we must run with perseverance.  This is where we have some real assistance from the Holy Spirit, who comes along side to help us stay the course, even lifting us up and carrying us when the run becomes too hard, or we seem to have lost our way. 

The Christian journey isn’t easy.  It takes some real dedication to keep running when we are tired, or beaten down.  Yet to obtain the prize, we do just that.  So we have purpose, a plan, and we run with perseverance.  And in doing so, we are guaranteed the prize of eternal life.  Time to put on our running shoes!

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It All Goes Back to Love

Read Romans 12:9-21
“Love one another with brotherly affection.  Outdo one another in showing honor.”
Romans 12:10 

As Paul writes to the Church in Rome, he makes clear in chapter twelve what he believes to be the true marks of the believer.  In other words, how they should act on a day-to-day basis.  If you wanted to know what is required of the Christian when it comes to our relationships with others, then the last section of chapter twelve makes it abundantly clear.  Paul’s words would have been a challenge to those new followers.  For many of my young adult years, the pastor of my home church would recite these verses from memory as his final benediction each Sunday.  They remain a challenge for the church of our day. 

When you read back over these few verses, a number of things become clear.  The first is that this is quite a list of responsibilities and actions.  Second, I don’t know if I can do this.  Third, what a world it would be if those who followed Christ lived in this very manner.  In essence, if every believer lived in the manner of Christ himself.  That is the challenge Paul presents the church.  And as with most challenges, again it isn’t easy. 

If we were to attempt this, then it seems important to try to find the common denominator.  When we do that, it seems that everything goes back to love.  That, of course, should come as no surprise to us.  If we are to live as Christ-bearers, then love will have to be the motive for everything that we do.  Which is why Paul can write, “let love be genuine,” or, “love one another with brotherly love.”  Those who love have no problem with the rest of the list; “living in harmony,” “blessing those who persecute us,” or “giving food or drink to our enemies.”  Jesus showed us how to do all of those things, only because his life was rooted in love.  If our lives are rooted in God’s love, then the list, while difficult still, will become at least, doable. 

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The Look of Love
Read Psalm 67
“May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us… ” 
       Psalm 67:1

Do you remember what it was like when you were growing up and you did something wonderful or something momentous?  Your mom and/or dad probably beamed with great pride and with great affection.   So excited for you and your accomplishment, their faces could have lit up a dark room.  You may even remember it being slightly embarrassing.  Of course, for those of us who now have children, what we realize is that these “looks of love” are natural responses.  They really can’t be controlled.  

The Psalmist tells us that the same is true with our heavenly father.  The love and pride that he has for us comes welling up from his heart.  It is the natural response.  When he looks upon us, his face shines with great satisfaction as he sees what he has created and remembers what he has created us for.  It is the look of love that signifies his unending and gracious love and care for his children.

These holy looks are to be cherished.  Especially when you contrast them to the not-so-good looks that you occasionally get from your boss, or from the person honking at you in traffic, or even your children (or parents).  In those times, it is good to remember that the God of the universe looks down upon you with great love and offers his blessings to you.  And as a blessed people, we are to lift up our faces and lead a life of worship and praise so that the world might see him in us.
 

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Created to Worship

Read Psalm 117
“Praise the Lord, all nations!”  Psalm 117:1
     
The psalmist reminds us of our calling to worship.  The church is challenged in all times to offer her praise to the Lord.  We are encouraged to join with other brothers and sisters and to pay tribute to the one who has created us.  We are invited to bow down while lifting up holy hands. 
Within the life of the church we have heard this enough to know that it is true.  We get this.  Scripture is clear about the purpose of our lives; we have been created to worship.   

What is interesting is the manner and method by which people choose to worship.  As you are aware, worship happens in many ways.  There are those who prefer to worship with the great traditional hymns of years gone by, led by full choirs and a booming organ.  Others prefer to worship with bands and songs that are more modern.  Some like to worship in a setting where the minister is dressed in full liturgical vestments as she or he proclaims the mysteries of scripture.  Others worship more easily if the pastor is dressed less formally.  As the old saying goes: “To each his own.” 

As you can see, the psalmist doesn’t tell us exactly “how” we are to worship.  The psalmist just makes it clear, in a very concise way that we ARE to worship.  It is as simple as that.  Regardless of the manner or the method, we are to worship our loving God. 

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Good For The Soul

Read Psalm 51

“For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.”
       Psalm 51:3

There is an old adage that says, “Confession is good for the soul.”  It would seem as if there is a great deal of truth to that.  While I am not sure who coined this term, I am convinced that it must have been a Presbyterian.  Our theology and tradition, rooted as it is in Holy Scripture, teach us that we are engaged in a daily struggle against the powers of the evil one who tempts us to sin.  It is a struggle that we win on good days, and that we lose on our not-so-good days.  And it is on those not-so-good days that we really can do some pretty awful things. 

That is what we read in Psalm 51.  David acknowledges before God the sinfulness of his desires and actions towards Bathsheba.  That wasn’t all.  We remember that David, who was considered a man after God’s own heart, also had Uriah the Hittite killed so that he could be with Bathsheba.  I believe that breaks at least two of the Ten Commandments rather convincingly.  But before David can confess the multitude of his sins, he needs someone to point out his misgivings.  Nathan does that for David, helping him realize the transgressions he has committed.   

It is a dark part of David’s history; a real low point.  We can relate.  When David realizes the gravity of the sin that he has committed, he can do nothing but stand before God in a moment of utter confession.  You have been there.  So have I.  It is not a pretty place to be.  But remember, confession is good for the soul.  It is in our time of confession, when we name all the wrongs we have committed, and all the times we have failed to live as God would have us, that we find the font of forgiveness, and are reminded, as David, of the unfailing love of God—a love that is poured out for us in and through the life of Jesus Christ, reminding us that we are a forgiven people.

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A Word of Extreme Caution

Read I Peter 5:1-11

“Be sober-minded; be watchful.  Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”    I Peter 5:8
     
In the past few weeks the Southeast has been hit by a number of major weather events.  From the  deadly outbreak of tornados in Alabama, Mississippi, and Georgia, to the current flooding taking place along the Mississippi River, the toll of these is still to be determined.  Needless to say, the impact will be great.  While far too many lives were lost or affected, a great many lives were spared due in large part to the issuing of weather alerts and sirens.  These warnings urged those in the affected areas to take extreme caution and to be prepared for whatever dire weather may be headed our way.  Thankfully, many took shelter or sought high ground. 

Likewise, we are fortunate in Greenwood to have sirens that alert us to bad weather.  When the sirens go off, our family knows what to do immediately.  We take shelter and protect ourselves from that which may or may not come.

In the same way, the writer of I Peter shares a word of extreme caution to those believers who would read his letter.  He sounds a siren, and issues an alert over and over again, warning the church to be on high alert.  The adversary prowls around like a lion seeking to take our lives.   So we are told to be sober-minded and watchful.  The only question is, will we heed Peter’s warning?  Or will we take it lightly?  We are to be alert, for our spiritual lives are threatened by the devil, whose only desire is our downfall. 

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A Word of Extreme Caution

Read I Peter 5:1-11

“Be sober-minded; be watchful.  Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”    I Peter 5:8

In the past few weeks the Southeast has been hit by a number of major weather events.  From the  deadly outbreak of tornados in Alabama, Mississippi, and Georgia, to the current flooding taking place along the Mississippi River, the toll of these is still to be determined.  Needless to say, the impact will be great.  While far too many lives were lost or affected, a great many lives were spared due in large part to the issuing of weather alerts and sirens.  These warnings urged those in the affected areas to take extreme caution and to be prepared for whatever dire weather may be headed our way.  Thankfully, many took shelter or sought high ground. 

Likewise, we are fortunate in Greenwood to have sirens that alert us to bad weather.  When the sirens go off, our family knows what to do immediately.  We take shelter and protect ourselves from that which may or may not come.

In the same way, the writer of I Peter shares a word of extreme caution to those believers who would read his letter.  He sounds a siren, and issues an alert over and over again, warning the church to be on high alert.  The adversary prowls around like a lion seeking to take our lives.   So we are told to be sober-minded and watchful.  The only question is, will we heed Peter’s warning?  Or will we take it lightly.  We are to be alert, for our spiritual lives are threatened by the devil, whose only desire is our downfall. 

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Unity for a Purpose

Read John 17:20-26

“I do not pray for these only, but also for those who believe in me through their word, that they may all be one…”

                                                                                    John 17:20, 21          

Throughout the history of the Christian Church there have been schisms and times when believers need to part ways.  We can trace this back to the account in Acts of the time when the Apostle Paul and his dear friend, Barnabus, determined that they must part ways after a “severe disagreement” concerning John Mark.  When we think of our own faith tradition, as Presbyterians, we remember that our foundation is in the Protestant Reformation, and our separation from the Roman Church.  This parting of ways was not what the Reformers had hoped for, but it was the outcome.  The congregation I served before coming to Greenwood was the Second Presbyterian Church.  It is important to point out that it was not a daughter church to the First Presbyterian Church in the same town.  Instead, Second Church was begun by a break- away group of folks, who were in severe disagreement over the institution of slavery.  Even recently, we have seen in our town, brothers and sisters leave the Episcopal Church to form an Anglican Fellowship.  And we have watched throughout our own denomination, as a number of churches have left over issues that they hold as central to the faith. 

Severe disagreements over theology, polity, or even personality have done much to cause us, as Christians, to become many different groups.  But what seems most important is to think of the prayer of our Savior, just before going to the cross.  He prayed that all who believed in him would be one.  This doesn’t mean we all have to live under the same proverbial house.  We don’t all have to govern ourselves in the same way.  We don’t even have to worship in the same exact way.  But what we must do, is graciously lay aside those things that separate us, and focus on the one thing that keeps us all together.  And that is Christ.

And in this Christian unity, agreeing graciously and in love to disagree, as we may do from time to time, we are able to show the world the true mark of Christ’s impact upon our lives.

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Running…

Read I Corinthians 9:19-27

“Run so that you may obtain the prize.” 

                                                                                    I Corinthians 9:24

The Christian life is often referred to as a journey, but in his letter to the Corinthians, Paul refers to it as a race.  It was an image the Corinthians would understand and it is one we can as well.  He says very clearly, that when we run, we are to run so that we may obtain the prize.  Does that mean that we are to run hard?  Are we to run fast?  How do we run to “obtain” the prize? 

Though not a big advocate of running, I understand that someone who runs must have a purpose.  Either they love to run, are trying to stay in shape, or are training for a race of some sort.  They must know why they are running.  For Christians, we run because we know that there is nothing more valuable for us, than to be running with Christ.  We run with purpose, to get to know more intimately the one who knows us intimately.    

But we must also run with a plan.  People who run in races have to train.  When they train, it is good for them to have a plan in place.  They don’t just determine that they will run a marathon.  They run five miles one day.  They may run seven on another day.  One day they may rest.  They have a plan.  We, too, have to have a plan for our Christian running.  We find that plan best laid out for us, in the words of Holy Scripture.  It is there that we find out how we are to run.  This plan includes reading God’s word, worshipping together, sharing in fellowship, praying.  We must not forget the importance of prayer to a healthy run.  The plan also calls for us to give ourselves away to others.  That isn’t so easy.  I knew running was going to be hard.

Finally, we must run with perseverance.  This is where we have some real assistance from the Holy Spirit, who comes along side to help us stay the course, even lifting us up and carrying us when the run becomes too hard, or we seem to have lost our way. 

The Christian journey isn’t easy.  It takes some real dedication to keep running when we are tired, or beaten down.  Yet to obtain the prize, we do just that.  So we have a purpose, a plan, and we run with perseverance.  And in doing so, we are guaranteed the prize of eternal life.  Time to put on our running shoes!

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Coming to Worship

Read Psalm 15

“O Lord, who may abide in your tent?  Who may dwell on your holy hill? ”

                                                                                    Psalm 15:1

Psalm fifteen has often been described as a “liturgy for entrance into the sanctuary.”  The question of how we are to enter into worship is asked by the Psalmist, and then answered with a long list of qualifications and requirements.  These include walking blamelessly, doing what is right, speaking the truth, and honoring those who fear the Lord.  The list continues, as the Psalmist makes clear the right way in which we should worship the Creator of the universe. 

Of course, what we know is that often that is not how we enter the sanctuary.  There are days when we come into the sanctuary stained and stressed by a long week of bad decisions, unthinkable thoughts, unspeakable actions towards our loved ones or worse towards those we do not love.  There are weeks when we have not walked blamelessly, or spoken the truth.  Not only that, there are times when we come to worship looking for what we can get out of it, instead of opening ourselves up to give the redeemer God our best.     

The Psalmist makes clear how the people of God are to worship.  But it is the Savior that we come to worship, who makes it possible for us, when we aren’t as we should be, to be transformed and renewed through worship to become new beings.  And this transformation that takes place is an amazing thing.  That is what happens when we worship.  We are transformed. 

This means that you can come just as you are: broken, selfish, and with an agenda for how the service should run and what you should get out of it.  But if you ever get here, and decide to open yourself up to what the Savior is doing in the midst of the sanctuary, then you will most certainly not leave the same.

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