Preparing for Sunday August 3rd

This week’s scripture finds Jesus at a difficult time in his life. His cousin and mentor, John, has been executed by King Herod. He takes a boat and slips away for some quiet time away from the crowds. However, before he can even get to his hide-away, the crowds find him. The result of this encounter with Jesus is the only miracle described in all four gospels: The Feeding of the 5000.

13When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns. 14When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick.
15As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, "This is a remote place, and it's already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food."
16Jesus replied, "They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat."
17"We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish," they answered.
18"Bring them here to me," he said. 19And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. 20They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 21The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.

• Why do you think this event was so important and memorable that it was the only miracle story shared by all four gospel writers?
• How would you have felt if you slipped away to grive the death (murder actually!) of a loved one only to be followed by crowds wanting something from you?
• The gospel writers all tell the story a bit differently. We often think of this story as the story of the boy with two fish and five loaves, but Matthew doesn’t mention the boy instead he focuses on the disciples.
o Why were the disciples concerned about the lack of food?
o What was their suggestion to fix the problem?
o What was Jesus’ response?
o What does this mean for Jesus’ disciples today?
• Meals are very important in the life of Jesus. There are several important contrasts between this meal and others mentioned in Matthew.
o Compare this event with Jesus’ temptation in the desert (Matthew 4:1-4)
o Compare this meal with the Herod’s Banquet (Matthew 14:1-12)
o Compare this meal with Jesus’ last supper with his disciples (Matthew 26:26-30)
• As we prepare to celebrate Holy Communion this Sunday, what does this passage say to us about eating with Jesus?
Just some questions to help us prepare for worship this Sunday.

Picture thanks to Hugo

Weekly Review

What do you think? Were the Beatles a Christian band?

Check out these life lessons from Batman. My favorite: "Be prepared ... for anything.
You never know when you're going to be dangling from a helicopter as a shark bites your leg. Do you really want to be the one to tell the Dark Knight that you left the Anti-Shark Batspray at home? A utility belt: Learn it, live it, love it."

And for something completely different, check out Nelson Mandela's 8 Leadership Lessons. My favorite: Nothing is Black and White

Then, of course, there is the example of Jesus for pastor's looking for a role model. I love these reflections on the role of the pastor to interpret the lives of people as well as they interpret the Scripture.

The internet monk reflects on his surprising journey of faith.

Scary church news! And an Australian reflection on it.

And for those not interested in guns in the church, there are those calling for more sex!

Then there are the manly churches.

And if none of those appeals to you, perhaps you would prefer a virtual church.

Reflections on torture from a pro-life mom.

Globalization at its best?
What more can I say?

Over at Collide, a wonderful reflection on church mottoes and the verbs we use.

Demonstrate, don’t demand.
Reveal, don’t distract.
Engage, don’t entertain.
Proclaim, don’t produce.
Invite, don’t invade.
Lead, don’t lag.
Teach, don’t tell.

Are we cheapening the faith with our Christian products?

One view on why Christians should care for the environment.

Questioning God.

New Life is one of the churches beta testing our new weekly benchmark reporting system for the Conference. Each week, we provide information on attendance, new members, professions of faith, and baptisms. As we hear more calls for accountability of churches and pastors, some are wondering what defines an effective church.

Do the words we use in worship matter?

And Larry Lowe shares his experience with public transportation -- not to be confused with an alternative lifestyle!

Another exploration of the theology found in The Shack.

Until next week!

Farewell to one great "Tigger"

Please keep the family of Dr. Randy Pausch in your prayers. Some may say he lost his battle with cancer, but anyone who can touch as many lives because of his illness can't be said to have lost! If you've never heard his "last lecture" today is a good day to take a few moments and hear what he has to share.

Community Fest

Come and join us on August 1st!

Preparing for Sunday July 27th

This week, we come to the end of our exploration of what it means to be disciples of the Kingdom. Our scripture this week is a series of parables of the kingdom from the 13th chapter of Matthew:

31He put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; 32it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.”
33He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.”
44“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
45“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; 46on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.
47“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind; 48when it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down, and put the good into baskets but threw out the bad. 49So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous 50and throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
51“Have you understood all this?” They answered, “Yes.” 52And he said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old

• What surprised you as you heard these parables? What do these parables have in common and how are they different?

• Matthew uses the phrase “kingdom of heaven” in place of the phrase “kingdom of God.” Neither phrase refers to heaven or to life after death but instead refer to the reign of God. What do these parables tell us about the nature of God’s kingdom?

• Jesus shared these particular parables with his disciples rather than the crowds. What do these parables say to those who are disciples of Christ? And how are we to bring out both new and old treasure as we reach out and share the gospel?

Vacation Bible School

My Blog in a Glance

Thanks to Wordle (Now if I can only figure out how to get it to display bigger!)

McDonnell Chapel

McDonnell Chapel was my first appointment and it is a very special congregation in a greatly changed neighborhood. So I was so happy to see this article on the conference website: McDonnell Chapel UMC celebrates blessing of multicultural VBS. his is a church that was actually closed by the conference in the 1970s and has struggled for years and now they have proven that small congregations can make a difference! Wow!

Preparing for Sunday July 20

This week we take a detour from the lectionary as we continue to explore what it means to be a disciple of God’s Kingdom. Our Vacation Bible School is off to a great and exciting start. Yesterday, we had over 80 children celebrating the power that God gives us. On Sunday, we are going to enjoy hearing from the children as well as explore what it means to be a power bearing disciple of the Kingdom!

Our scripture this week comes from the 2nd chapter of Acts:

37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?” 38 Peter said to them, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him.” 40 And he testified with many other arguments and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” 41 So those who welcomed his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand persons were added.
42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. 43 Awe came upon everyone, because many wonders and signs were being done by the apostles. 44 All who believed were together and had all things in common; 45 they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46 Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple, they broke bread at home and ate their food with glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and having the goodwill of all the people. And day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.

1. How does a congregation empowered by the Holy Spirit act? In what ways is your congregation like the early church? In what ways is it different?

2. When asked what these new Christians should do, Peter told them to repent and be baptized. What does it mean to repent?

3. What kinds of things should Holy Spirit powered disciples be doing?

4. What does your congregation need to be doing if we want the Lord to add daily to our “number those who are being saved”?

Love to hear your thoughts!

"Send Forth" by David J. Helton

Weekly Review

Do United Methodists have a hymn tradition? We should, but I side with those who say we don't any more. And what is really sad is our lack of knowledge of the Wesley hymns! But still, just so we don't take ourselves and our silly arguments over worship and music styles too seriously, check out this wonderful ode to a new organ from 1901.

Speaking of arguments in the church, the Church of England has endorsed women bishops but some object.

Over at Collide, a young worship leader shares what he believes are contemporary worship faux pas. His first five include guitar solos (!) and one of my "favorites" (But tell me how we get around this problem!) announcements in the middle of worship. The second five include worship leader "sermons" and performance/solo pieces! What do you think?

Relevant magazine continues to explore burning issues for the church, this week concluding with injustice

"Pet Owners Prefer McCain"?! Do pollsters not have enough to do?

Speaking of animals, Steve West reflects on the important lesson he learned from raccoons!

Shouldn't church mottos be at least as compelling as business mottos? (Although many seem to think the church motto is "have it your way!")

What if Noah had blogged?

Christianity Today gives some suggestions on how to read The Shack. (And if you haven't, I highly recommend it. It will make you think!)

Should we treat Generation Y differently? Some business recruiters say "Yes!" and others emphatically say, "No!" And David Barnhart continues his reflections on the younger generation.

If you are reading this because you are bored and don't want to follow all my links check out 101 Things To Do When You are Bored or better yet The Bubble Wrap Calendar!

Bearers of Seed

This week at New Life, we are continuing our exploration of what it means to be a disciple of the Kingdom of God. This week, we continue following the lectionary which is taking us through the teachings of Jesus.

One of the distinctive features of Jesus’ teaching was his use of parables. Parables were stories that used everyday events and items to explain deeper truths. Unfortunately for us, many of his illustrations are not part of our everyday life so we miss the surprises that are hidden in these seemingly innocent stories. But Jesus’ parables also had a surprise ending for his original hearers—the enemy is the neighbor, a small mustard seed produces a great plant, weeds are allowed to grow along with the wheat.

Jesus is speaking to a large crowd from a boat on the Sea of Galilee. Jesus has been called Beelzebub by a group of Pharisees and, soon after this sermon, he will be rejected by the people of his hometown.

Try to read this scripture with fresh eyes and look for the surprises that are hidden in it.

13That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. 2Such great crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the whole crowd stood on the beach. 3And he told them many things in parables, saying: “Listen! A sower went out to sow. 4And as he sowed, some seeds fell on the path, and the birds came and ate them up. 5Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and they sprang up quickly, since they had no depth of soil. 6But when the sun rose, they were scorched; and since they had no root, they withered away. 7Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. 8Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9Let anyone with ears listen!”
18“Hear then the parable of the sower. 19When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in the heart; this is what was sown on the path. 20As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21yet such a person has no root, but endures only for a while, and when trouble or persecution arises on account of the word, that person immediately falls away. 22As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke the word, and it yields nothing. 23But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty. Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23 NRSV”

• What is the most surprising moment in this parable for you?
• What does this parable tell us about the nature of God?
• What is Jesus trying to say to the crowds?
• If the seed is the “word of the Kingdom” what does this say to those of us who are his disciples?

Weekly Review

Oh vacations are wonderful! But I confess I did keep up with my internet reading, so here are some of the highlights of what I’ve read over the last couple of weeks.

Check out this wonderful story about the Berlin Airlift and one man who took a chance and made a difference in the lives of hundreds of children.

While it is probably debatable which is the bigger news the ways Obama and McCain are drawing on their faith as they run for office or the Pew Research Poll on American faith values, but I think the Pew Poll definitely forces the church to look within itself and ask some important questions. But who would have imagined that the Wall Street Journal would pick up on some of the serious questions that pastors and churches are having to ask themselves? Plus check out their review of a book on original sin.

Gas prices got you down--try hypermiling. (Thanks Tony for the link!)

Are we too comfortable with the gospel?

Okay, I confess, the idea of the Wiki Bible Project scares me just a bit? Give us a computer and internet connection and now we can all be our own biblical scholar. (Do you suppose they'll let us edit out the parts we don't like?)

Bishop Willimon calls on us to recognize that tax reform is a faith issue.

Dave Barnhart reflects on the missing generation.

Carol Howard Merritt reflects on why people leave church.

A pastor reflects on why he is turning off Christian radio and in the process forces us to evaluate whether our worship services are relevant to people's daily lives.

Relevant magazine continues exploring the tough issues: such as consumerism and war.

And check out this wonderful prayer for freedom.

More to come later, but I hope you all had a wonderful holiday and may you have a blessed week.

Happy 4th of July!

On this Independence Day, what about living in the U.S. makes you most thankful? Eugene Cho asked this question on his blog and it got me thinking because it seems like we tend to either take this question for granted and answer it flippantly or we are too cynical and lists the problems, or we believe patriotism means we can't both acknowledge the problems and celebrate the wonders of our country and her form of government. So what are you thankful for?

Today, I find myself celebrating the fact that we live in a country where we can disagree but still find value in working together to create the best situation possible for the most people. I'm proud to live in a country where we do have a commitment to the poor, the tired, the brokenhearted, and those yearning to be free even if we don't always live out that commitment perfectly.

Democracy is messy, hard business. If we wanted something simple and straight forward and that always worked the same way, then we'd want some sort of autocracy. But I'm thankful for the messiness of people coming together in community and working together for the common good.

And I'm thankful for a country where we have the freedom to laugh.

Happy 4th of July!

Thoughts on Matthew 11:25-30

25At that time Jesus said, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants; 26yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. 27All things have been handed over to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 28“Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 29Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Matthew 11:25-30”

This Sunday at New Life, we will continue our focus on what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. What does it mean when Jesus says that his truth has been revealed not to the wise and intelligent but to infants? What does that say about us?

Like the Statue of Liberty, Jesus calls the weary and burdened to come to him. He promises rest but then he immediately tells us to take his yoke upon us and there we will find rest. At this time of year when we celebrate liberty, what does it mean to choose to yoke ourselves to Christ?

At many of our churches, we will celebrate Holy Communion this Sunday. In the sacrament, Christ is revealed to us in the breaking of the bread and the drinking of the wine. What does Jesus' remarks about revealing himself to infants rather than to the wise say to us about who can come to the communion table?

Vacation!

Well, here I sit on a beautiful Southern porch within sight of the beach at Tybee Island. I wonder if it is possible to have too long of a vacation? It always seems to me that I have just relaxed when our week here is over. And it is hard to believe it is already half over now!

So while I have lots of reading to share with you, I thought I'd share a few fun and reflective items for now.

Remember the joy of catching fireflies at dusk with your friends?! (Thanks to Marty Bibee for sending me this beautiful little remembrance!)

I have officially joined the Tybee Island Bomb Squad and have the t-shirt to prove it!

What if some of today's leading religious voices wrote the old theological classics? (Insert my usual Wittenberg Door caution)

This cartoon is almost too real!

I'm sharing this device a bit too late for Father's Day but Christmas is coming!

Check out Bizarre Wedding Laws!

Tonight we go on our annual ghost tour. So in honor of all the "ghosts" we will encounter check out these videos. (I'd say not for the faint hearted but really they aren't very spooky or realistic)

More than 7 words on George Carlin

Now back to the beach!