"Being a Peacemaker" Part 2

One of the objections that I have heard from people about taking the initiative to be a peacemaker is that sometimes other people are not interested in reconciliation. "I don't want to put my hand out there if it is going to get slapped." In the parable of the loving father, Jesus does not tell us how the story ends. We don't know if the older son was reconciled to his father and brother, or not. Do you know why? Because it was not important to Jesus. What was important was that we, Jesus' followers, behave as peacemakers. And simply by doing what we can, we experience the peace of God's spirit. But, there are also things that we can do whether the other person is interested in reconciling, or not. First, we can truly examine the nature of our invitation to reconciliation. Does it resemble the love and grace of the father in the parable, or does it come with strings attached. Second, we can pray for them. I don't mean that we pray that "they will come around." Simply pray for their well-being. Third, we can be reconciled in our heart with someone, forgiving them and letting go of our resentment. This way, even though the relationship is not repaired, we do not bear the burden of resentment. Again, this is the way of the loving father. This is the way of God. It is not only the right thing to do, but it is also the best way to manage the stress in our lives.

"Being a Peacemaker"

Yesterday, we concluded our sermon series entitled "Managing Stress". During this series, we talked about three principles for managing stress in our lives. The first is to "establish righteous priorities." The second is to "learn to let go." Yesterday, we talked about the third principle, "being a peacemaker." We used the example of the loving father from the parable of the loving father (also known as the parable of the prodigal son). Yesterday, we were talking about the reponse of the older brother in Luke 15:25-32. I mentioned that too often we make the mistake of thinking that it is more "emotionally economical" to not be a peacemaker. Nothing could be farther from the truth. There is a great phrase, "what you don't deal with, deals with you." Just because we choose to ignore a situation or relationship that has become fractured does not mean that we do not carry stress from that relationship. In fact, we absolutely do. Being a peacemaker - living the way of the loving father - not only reflects the values that God calls us to live by, it also helps us to manage stress in our lives.

The Greatest?

I always hate to start something off with the words, "when I was a boy," because it makes me sound like the codgers that I used to make fun of "when I was a boy." However, if the (comfortable) shoe fits...The truth is, I am a codger (a cool one, I hope), and so, here goes. When I was a boy, surfers were the wet-haired, flip-flop wearing, strange talking lads that hung out by the snack bar at school. They were looked down upon. I had more social cache from being a member of the wrestling team than I did being a surfer. No one wanted their daughters to date surfers. They wanted them to date football players or baseball players. That is why I read with joy this article about long-time surf champion Kelly Slater. While other sports (are you listening football, baseball) have become just as famous for the police blotter sheet as much as the stat sheet, surfing still enjoys the luxury of having characters (that are not necessarily convicts). In a culture obsessed with the spotlight, it fills my heart with joy to see anyone do something that gives them such joy, even if if doesn't land them on the front page of the sports page. John Q. Public may not know Kelly Slater's name, but the multitudes of young people that seek the joy of surfing know it, and they also know how talented he truly is.

Call Your Senator

The world can seem overwhelming at times. We can't solve all of the world's problems, but we can do what we can. And doing what we can is a source of empowerment and strength. You can help fight slavery and human trafficking in the world. The Child Protection Compact has passed through the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and may be voted on in the full senate by as early as next week. Follow this link to International Justice Mission for more details. You can contact your senator and encourage them to support this legislation. It won't end human trafficking, but it will help the fight.

"Learning to Let Go"

We have been talking for the past couple of weeks about managing stress in our lives. One of the blessings of this sermon series is that it has highlighted for me the amount of stress that we all carry. As I mentioned yesterday, some stress is good and necessary in our lives. But, stress that lasts too long or is extreme can have a seriously negative impact on our lives. I mentioned three personal goals yesterday. The third goal was that, when I meet Jesus face to face, I get to hear him say those blessed words, "well done, my good and faithful servant." Again, I do not mean to imply that I can earn God's grace or favor. What I do mean, however, is that I believe is that I get a taste of the life to come when I live into God's calling for my life here and now. Or, to quote Maximus from the film Gladiator, "What we do in life echoes in eternity." What does any of this have to do with stress? That is a good question. The answer is...perspective. Living for something beyond this life helps us to put our struggles in this life into perspective. Let me be clear. I do not mean that we simply endure the stress that we experience in this life until we arrive at Jesus' feet. What I am suggesting is that we live this life as if it is a prelude to something else, something much better. This life is a dress rehearsal, of sorts. Consider the meaning of these words of Jesus from Matthew 18:18, "Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." Seeing this life through the lens of eternity changes the way that we view this life, and the way that we live this life. And changing how we view life and live life will have a dramatic impact on how we manage stress. If all of this is too esoteric, remember the basic steps that we have been talking about. Managing stress involves...

1. Establishing righteous priorities (what "stones" do we need to let go of?)
2. Learning to let go (recognizing that we are not really in charge, turning our lives and our will over to God, alone will alleviate much of our stress)
3. That's the topic for next week's sermon.
Consider this. In 1 John 4:13-18, if you were to change one of the words from "perfect love casts out fear," to say "perfect loves casts out stress," what would that mean to you?

Rolling Stones

Yesterday, we began our new sermon series entitled "Managing Stress." I opened the sermon by telling a fable that Joanna Weaver shared in her book Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World. The fable was about a man that had been asked by God to carry some stones up a mountain in a wagon. He was delighted to serve God. On the way up the mountain, he kept running into people that asked him to carry their stones as well. Soon, the man's wagon was too heavy. After worship, several people came up to me and told me that it felt like I was describing their lives as I talked about different stressors that we all experience. They were wondering what stones they should remove from their wagon. That is a good place to start the discussion. Another point that I wanted to share about Mary and Martha was that the "better part" that Mary chose was not about not working, not serving, or not helping out. It was about sitting at the feet of Jesus when she got the opportunity. It was about recognizing which stones she should keep in her wagon, and which ones she should get rid of. Having said that, it is important t also mention that one of the core beliefs that I have espoused since coming to Light of the Canyon UMC is that ministry in the church should ultimately be a life-giving experience. That does not mean that it will always be easy, or that there are not challenges. But, when you decide to give your time and talents to serve others through the church, it should be an experience that strengthens you and lifts you up. It should not be an experience that simply makes you weary. If it does, than we are either doing it incorrectly or we have got you involved in a ministry that is not in line with your spiritual gifts. Service to and through the church should feel like those three original stones that the man carried up the mountain. It should not feel like the other stones that became a burden. The important thing to remember is that we identify ourselves by the stones that we choose to carry. So, the question we have to ask ourselves is, do the stones that I carry reflect the love and grace of God?

The Fine Art of Walking

I have no other reason to share this video than that it is very, very clever. These students have turned walking into an art form. Check it out.

Really!?!

First, let me say that Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior. I believe that Jesus was God's only son, the second part of the Holy Trinity. I believe that the bible is the inspired (literally "God-breathed") account of how God's love and grace have been knit into the fabric of creation, of how God chose a people to be His covenant people, and of how God became flesh and dwelt among us, inaugurating a new age where all are called to be God's people. I believe that Jesus' death on the cross redeemed our sins and that his resurrection signified his ultimate victory. I am proud to declare such things, and I say them without reservation. But, here's the thing. I say them because what I am going to say next might appear to be anti-Christian. It would, however, only appear that way to someone that has a theology of fear rather than a theology of love. Unfortunately, in the times we are living in, I see people ruled more by fear than by anything else. But, I believe that "perfect love casts out fear," (1 John 4:18), so here goes. It is the height of hubris for someone to burn the holy book of another person's religion. Florida minister Terry Jones wants to have a Koran burning day on September 11. While it pains me to talk about this person because I think that publicity is what he is truly seeking, I also think it is important that people that claim Jesus is Lord should stand up when other Christians behave in such an un-Christlike manner. Jesus never evangelized anyone by provoking them (in fact, the only people that he actually provoked were religious hypocrites). He met people where they were at with grace and love. If Terry Jones wants to help people know Jesus Christ, than he should work on sharing the love of Christ with them, rather than alienating anyone and everyone that disagrees with his narrow world view. His is not the faith of the cross, but instead is the faith of the crusades, or the Inquisition. It is not my faith. Koran-burning pastors and their fear-based followers do not practice the Christianity that I believe in.

The Social Network

I have truly enjoyed this sermon series, "OMG! Being a Christian in a Media Age." This is definitely a timely topic. There are several things that I want to say about the social network. First, to recap, the social network as I am describing it is "personal connections that are made possible and influenced by electronic media." Second, the social network is not the panacea to all that ails the contemporary church. It is not a matter of utilizing the technology and all will be well. Yesterday, I was trying to fix a shower leak in our home. I replaced the fixtures, but the leak continued. I could ascertain the source of the leak, but was absolutely clueless as to how to make the repair. I went on-line several times, and got some help, but not the answer that I needed. I finally took a picture with my cell phone, drove down to Home Depot, and showed them the picture. The employee gave me the replacement part and a special tool that I needed to make the repair, and off I went. When I got home, I was able to complete the repair. The leak is gone.

I honestly thought that the social network provided by the world wide web would be able to explain everything. But, because there is so much information to sift through, I was unable to find the exact information that I needed. It wasn't until I had a face-to-face conversation with a living, breathing person (a conversation, I admit, aided by technology) that I was able to get the information I needed. All of this is to say that technology is a tool, but it is not the answer to all of our problems. In my sermon today, I was encouraging us to use the tools at our disposal to further God's kingdom. But, that does not mean that the social network can replace true Christian fellowship.

The last thing that I want to say about the social network is that there is a movie of that name coming out in October. From what I gather, it is about the people that started Facebook. It should be interesting.