Hello Everyone,
Here is a great article from the Alban Institute about the current reality of small churches. Many are stuck on mourning "the past" but the reality is small churches can and do make a difference in rural and urban settings.
Being the Church Today by Steve Willis
Please take a few moments to read the article.
Pastor Gary
Tuesday, July 9, 2013
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
Readings for July 7, 2013
Hello Everyone,
Our Readings this week are:
2 Kings 5:1-14 – Elisha heals Naaman, a commander of the army of the king of Aram. Jesus references this story in Luke 4:27. Some questions: Who initially sent Naaman to seek out Elisha? Who did Naaman first talk to? What was the letter to the King of Israel and why did the king tear his clothes? What did Elisha instruct Naaman to do? What did he think of that advice? Who set Namaan straight? Elisha and Naaman are the most important characters in the story, but who are instrumental in the healing? How is God working in someone seemingly inconsequential to bring healing to you?
Psalm 30 – The psalmist praises God for his healing. This is appropriate for the Elisha-Namaan story but could just as well have been spoken by Job. How do you praise God and proclaim God’s goodness when you have been healed and lifted up?
Isaiah 66:10-14 – This is a wonderful example of the feminine nature of God. The first “hers” refer to Jerusalem and how the people can be nursed and comforted at her breast. Verse 13 then turns the feminine image toward God. Are you ever comforted God like a child is comforted by her/his mother? The lectionary committee stops short of the verses where God will destroy those the opposition.
Psalm 66:1-9 – In this part of the longer Psalm 66, the psalmist praise God for God’s wonderful deeds in saving the people of Israel. Does God still work to save groups of people such as churches, towns, states, nations?
Galatians 6: (1-6), 7-16 – This is the last of our readings in Galatians. The optional section, 1-6, seems to be a series of instructions: gently restore one who has fallen away; bear each others’ burdens; each person should test their own work not another’s; share the teachings with others. The second section, 7-10, uses a farming metaphor of sowing seeds. What kind of seed do we sow and then what is the fruit we reap? The third section, 11-16, is Paul’s final defense of his message. What do you boast of? Do you boast of all you do or have or, like Paul, do you boast only in Jesus Christ?
Luke 10:1-11, 16-20 – Jesus sends out 70 (or 72) disciples and gives them instructions. Did you know that the fields are still ready for harvest for God’s Reign? Why do you think that Jesus wanted them to carry nothing on their journey? Why were they prevented from changing the place they were staying? What were they to do when a town rejected their message? We often think about the message of God going out to individuals but this passage speaks about town accepting or rejecting it. So, since Jesus brings up Sodom in verse 12 (another section skipped by the lectionary due to its difficulty), what if there is but one new believer in the town? (Abraham talked God down to 10 righteous people. Why didn’t he get down to 1?) What do you think Jesus meant when he said “I saw Satan fall from heaven like a flash of lightning”? One of my favorite books on human nature is “I See Satan Fall Like Lightning” by Rene Girard. To get the gist of what the book is about read the reviews at Amazon.com.
Have a great week serving God by serving you neighbors.
Peace in Christ,
Pastor Gary Taylor
Our Readings this week are:
2 Kings 5:1-14 – Elisha heals Naaman, a commander of the army of the king of Aram. Jesus references this story in Luke 4:27. Some questions: Who initially sent Naaman to seek out Elisha? Who did Naaman first talk to? What was the letter to the King of Israel and why did the king tear his clothes? What did Elisha instruct Naaman to do? What did he think of that advice? Who set Namaan straight? Elisha and Naaman are the most important characters in the story, but who are instrumental in the healing? How is God working in someone seemingly inconsequential to bring healing to you?
Psalm 30 – The psalmist praises God for his healing. This is appropriate for the Elisha-Namaan story but could just as well have been spoken by Job. How do you praise God and proclaim God’s goodness when you have been healed and lifted up?
Isaiah 66:10-14 – This is a wonderful example of the feminine nature of God. The first “hers” refer to Jerusalem and how the people can be nursed and comforted at her breast. Verse 13 then turns the feminine image toward God. Are you ever comforted God like a child is comforted by her/his mother? The lectionary committee stops short of the verses where God will destroy those the opposition.
Psalm 66:1-9 – In this part of the longer Psalm 66, the psalmist praise God for God’s wonderful deeds in saving the people of Israel. Does God still work to save groups of people such as churches, towns, states, nations?
Galatians 6: (1-6), 7-16 – This is the last of our readings in Galatians. The optional section, 1-6, seems to be a series of instructions: gently restore one who has fallen away; bear each others’ burdens; each person should test their own work not another’s; share the teachings with others. The second section, 7-10, uses a farming metaphor of sowing seeds. What kind of seed do we sow and then what is the fruit we reap? The third section, 11-16, is Paul’s final defense of his message. What do you boast of? Do you boast of all you do or have or, like Paul, do you boast only in Jesus Christ?
Luke 10:1-11, 16-20 – Jesus sends out 70 (or 72) disciples and gives them instructions. Did you know that the fields are still ready for harvest for God’s Reign? Why do you think that Jesus wanted them to carry nothing on their journey? Why were they prevented from changing the place they were staying? What were they to do when a town rejected their message? We often think about the message of God going out to individuals but this passage speaks about town accepting or rejecting it. So, since Jesus brings up Sodom in verse 12 (another section skipped by the lectionary due to its difficulty), what if there is but one new believer in the town? (Abraham talked God down to 10 righteous people. Why didn’t he get down to 1?) What do you think Jesus meant when he said “I saw Satan fall from heaven like a flash of lightning”? One of my favorite books on human nature is “I See Satan Fall Like Lightning” by Rene Girard. To get the gist of what the book is about read the reviews at Amazon.com.
Have a great week serving God by serving you neighbors.
Peace in Christ,
Pastor Gary Taylor
It Takes Two to Make a Sermon
A lady of one of my churches brought me a daily meditation article. This comes from “Daily Walk with God: Meditations for Every Day” by Herman W. Gockel (St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1982) for July 1.
---------------------------
Read Luke 8:5-15
It Takes Two to Make a Sermon
“Then pay attention to how you listen.” (Luke 8:18)
During these days our pastor is busy, preparing for next Sunday’s sermon. He is devoting many hours to prayer and study in order that he may bring us some important message from God’s Word. He devotes much time to the preparation of each sermon, because he considers this one of the most important functions of his ministry.
But has it ever occurred to us that we, too, have a share in the responsibilities of this preparation? That we can prepare ourselves to hear a sermon just as the pastor prepares himself to preach it? As someone has well said, it takes two to make a sermon – the one who preaches it and the one who hears it! Whether or not a specific sermon will accomplish its God-intended purpose will depend, at least in part, on how well the worshiper has prepared him-or-herself to hear it.
Whether or not you and I will be fruitful hearers this coming Sunday will depend very much upon our frame of mind – yes, our “frame of heart” – today, tomorrow, and throughout the week. Keeping late hours on Saturday, or engaging in family quarrels and bickerings until just before leaving the house in anger five minutes late for church, will surely not prepare our hearts for a fruitful sowing of the Word.
We shall take to church in our hearts next Sunday what we put into them today. How important, then, that already today, by prayer and meditation, we prepare the soil of our hearts so that the precious seed might enter! “Take heed therefore how ye hear!”
Well might we pray, not only each time we open this book for personal or family meditation, but also each Sunday as we enter our accustomed pew:
Lord, open my heart to hear,
and through your word to draw me near;
Let me your Word e’er pure retain,
let me your child and heir remain.
---------------------------
I paraphrased the last poem from Mr. Gockel’s original and I used the NRSV Bible for the opening quote where Mr. Gockel used the KJV.
Later today I will post the lectionary readings with some of my comments. The intent of that post is to prepare our hearts for the upcoming Sunday Worship Service. I pray that the seed planted with that email will bring God’s harvest to fruition on Sunday.
Peace in Christ,
Pastor Gary Taylor
---------------------------
Read Luke 8:5-15
It Takes Two to Make a Sermon
“Then pay attention to how you listen.” (Luke 8:18)
During these days our pastor is busy, preparing for next Sunday’s sermon. He is devoting many hours to prayer and study in order that he may bring us some important message from God’s Word. He devotes much time to the preparation of each sermon, because he considers this one of the most important functions of his ministry.
But has it ever occurred to us that we, too, have a share in the responsibilities of this preparation? That we can prepare ourselves to hear a sermon just as the pastor prepares himself to preach it? As someone has well said, it takes two to make a sermon – the one who preaches it and the one who hears it! Whether or not a specific sermon will accomplish its God-intended purpose will depend, at least in part, on how well the worshiper has prepared him-or-herself to hear it.
Whether or not you and I will be fruitful hearers this coming Sunday will depend very much upon our frame of mind – yes, our “frame of heart” – today, tomorrow, and throughout the week. Keeping late hours on Saturday, or engaging in family quarrels and bickerings until just before leaving the house in anger five minutes late for church, will surely not prepare our hearts for a fruitful sowing of the Word.
We shall take to church in our hearts next Sunday what we put into them today. How important, then, that already today, by prayer and meditation, we prepare the soil of our hearts so that the precious seed might enter! “Take heed therefore how ye hear!”
Well might we pray, not only each time we open this book for personal or family meditation, but also each Sunday as we enter our accustomed pew:
Lord, open my heart to hear,
and through your word to draw me near;
Let me your Word e’er pure retain,
let me your child and heir remain.
---------------------------
I paraphrased the last poem from Mr. Gockel’s original and I used the NRSV Bible for the opening quote where Mr. Gockel used the KJV.
Later today I will post the lectionary readings with some of my comments. The intent of that post is to prepare our hearts for the upcoming Sunday Worship Service. I pray that the seed planted with that email will bring God’s harvest to fruition on Sunday.
Peace in Christ,
Pastor Gary Taylor
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