Hello Everyone,
First, some announcements:
1. Grey Eagle UMC is holding their annual Garage Sale this Friday and Saturday from 8 AM to 2 PM each day. There will also be a craft sale, a bake sale, and a luncheon (on Saturday, I believe).
2. Tonya Brownlow, director of Emma Norton Services in St. Paul, will be speaking during worship at Grey Eagle UMC this Sunday. We are collecting items for the women and families at Emma Norton so that we can shower her with them. Please bring to the church by this Sunday any of these items: twin fitted sheets; Standard pillows; brooms and dust pans; dish soap; deodorant; shampoo and conditioner; lotion; body sponges; socks; shower shoes; laundry detergent; and new or gently used plates and drinking glasses.
We will continue our sermon series “We Believe” with “We Believe in Salvation through Jesus Christ”. One of the hardest questions that Christian thinkers have to wrestle with is, “How exactly are we saved and how does Jesus figure in to that?” I hope to be using our Ephesians reading again this week to begin the discussion. [Note: Grey Eagle UMC may have to wait for this sermon until the following week due to Tonya Brownlow’s visit.]
Our readings are:
2 Samuel 7:1-14a – David wants to build a temple to God. The prophet Nathan says, “Go ahead!” God tells Nathan, “No.” But God also promises David, through Nathan, that a messiah will one be raised up from his descendants.
Psalm 89:20-37 – The first 2/3rd of this Psalm remembers God promise for kings of one family who will rule Israel forever. Our reading is from the second third and the psalmist repeats God’s promise for a Davidic king no matter what happens. However, the last third (vs. 38-52) cries out against God because there is no longer a king. As the commentary in my Bible says, “this section accuses God of renouncing the covenant that was supposed to last forever.”
OR Jeremiah 23:1-6 – The prophet warns the kings of Israel to be good shepherds of God’s people. He accuses the kings of driving the flock away and says that God’s will gather that flock back together and raise up a new shepherd who will rule wisely and justly.
Psalm 23 – The Lord is my shepherd, what more can I say?
Ephesians 2:11-22 – The death of Jesus Christ (his blood) breaks down the walls between Jews and non-Jews so that all people can come together in the One Church to become one body, one family, one together as citizens in God’s reign. Together we receive peace, salvation, and the Holy Spirit. God’s purpose is to bring all people together. So why do many churches put up “walls” to keep people out. Let’s try this for a change: Kindness Blog (everybody, no matter what, is welcome!).
Mark 6:30-34:53-56 – The disciples return from their mission trip and Jesus takes them to a place across the lake to get away from the crowds for a little while. When they get there the people are there (sheep without a shepherd) so Jesus ministers to them and then feeds them (not part of this reading.) Following the feeding of the 5,000 Jesus sends the disciples back across the lake and he goes off to pray. A storm arises, the disciples struggle, Jesus walks on the water, and the storm ends (again, none of this is in the reading). When they got back to the other side, the crowds were there and Jesus cared for them.
Have a great week serving God by serving your neighbor.
Peace in Christ,
Pastor Gary Taylor
Tuesday, July 14, 2015
Tuesday, July 7, 2015
Readings for July 12, 2015
Hello Everyone,
This week, I will begin doing a new summer preaching series titled “We Believe”. It will be based on retired Bishop William Willimon’s 2007 book “United Methodist Beliefs” published by Westminster John Knox Press. For those who come from the UCC tradition at Peace United Church the vast majority of basic Christian beliefs are shared in common with nearly all denominations. Sometimes the terminology is distinctly Methodist but the meanings of the words are shared. I think that only in the last week will the topic veer into unique understandings that Methodist have. I will also bring in some of my own understandings derived from the work of Rene Girard and others into the conversation of what we believe. Our topics will follow the nine chapters of Bishop Willimon’s book:
1. We Believe in the Triune God
2. We Believe in Salvation through Jesus Christ
3. We Believe in the Holy Spirit
4. We Believe in Christ’s Universal Church
5. We Believe in Practicing Theology
6. We Believe in Transforming and Perfecting Grace
7. We Believe in Faith and Good Works
8. We Believe in the Coming of God’s Realm and Reign to the World
9. Thinking like Wesleyans
During this series I hope to use at least one of the Lectionary Readings for the topic at hand, but we will see as we go.
Our readings this week are:
2 Samuel 6:1-5, 12b-19 – King David brings the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem and the party begins. The lectionary committee leaves out a very disturbing story in the skipped verses. In verse 5 there is dancing and singing as the ark comes to Jerusalem, but it never arrives for in verse 6 Uzzah, one of the men traveling with the ark, grabs the ark to steady it because the oxen shook the cart it was riding on. verse 7 says that God was angry and God killed Uzzah. David then become angry with God and refuses to have the ark brought into Jerusalem. The ark is then kept in someone’s home for three months where the family was blessed. When David finally brings the ark to Jerusalem, the singing and dancing resumes, a large sacrifice is made and all the people eat freshly cooked meat. One last little disturbing bit of information is given us: Michal, daughter of King Saul and wife to David, is made angry by David shameless display during the processional. More information is given in verses 20-23.
Psalm 24 – This is a psalm of praise for God and God’s glory. The psalmist asks “Who can be in God’s presence in the holy place?” He also provides the answer: only those with clean hands and pure hearts.
OR Amos 7:7-15 – In verses 1-9, Amos sees a vision of locusts, fire, and a plumb line. Amos pleads with God not to send the locusts or the fire and God relents. Our reading includes the vision of the plumb line and the priest at Bethel complaining to the king about Amos’ words. The priest tells Amos to go to Judah (the southern kingdom, two tribes) to prophesy there. Amos says that he is not a professional prophet but a simple shepherd whom God sent to Israel (the northern kingdom, ten tribes).
Psalm 85:8-13 – The psalmist wants to hear what God will speak knowing that God’s salvation is near. Verses 10 and 11 are especially beautiful. Please read them in context of these six verses.
Ephesians 1:3-14 – This is probably the text I will use for the first “We Believe” sermon, “We Believe in the Triune God”. Paul writes that we have been blessed in Christ by God, who is Father of Jesus, and that we have been chosen by God for adoption as God’s children through Jesus Christ. Paul brings in the Holy Spirit in verse 13 as the seal and pledge of redemption. It is a bit wordy and complicated. You may wish to read it three, four, or five times.
Mark 6:14-29 – Mark uses a “flash back” to tell us the story of the death of John the Baptizer. King Herod hears of Jesus and the work the disciples were doing when Jesus sent them out (Mark 6:12-13). Some people think that Jesus is John raised from the dead, but others think it is a prophet of old. Herod believes it is John back from the dead and Mark then tells us the circumstances surrounding his death. You have probably heard the story many times before but if not now is a good time to get acquainted with it. You may want to compare this short story with the death of Jesus in Mark 14 and 15. Also compare it to Stephan’s death in Acts 6:8 to 7:60.
Have a great week serving the Lord by serving others. Take a moment this week to tell someone of God’s love and forgiveness.
Peace in Christ,
Pastor Gary
This week, I will begin doing a new summer preaching series titled “We Believe”. It will be based on retired Bishop William Willimon’s 2007 book “United Methodist Beliefs” published by Westminster John Knox Press. For those who come from the UCC tradition at Peace United Church the vast majority of basic Christian beliefs are shared in common with nearly all denominations. Sometimes the terminology is distinctly Methodist but the meanings of the words are shared. I think that only in the last week will the topic veer into unique understandings that Methodist have. I will also bring in some of my own understandings derived from the work of Rene Girard and others into the conversation of what we believe. Our topics will follow the nine chapters of Bishop Willimon’s book:
1. We Believe in the Triune God
2. We Believe in Salvation through Jesus Christ
3. We Believe in the Holy Spirit
4. We Believe in Christ’s Universal Church
5. We Believe in Practicing Theology
6. We Believe in Transforming and Perfecting Grace
7. We Believe in Faith and Good Works
8. We Believe in the Coming of God’s Realm and Reign to the World
9. Thinking like Wesleyans
During this series I hope to use at least one of the Lectionary Readings for the topic at hand, but we will see as we go.
Our readings this week are:
2 Samuel 6:1-5, 12b-19 – King David brings the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem and the party begins. The lectionary committee leaves out a very disturbing story in the skipped verses. In verse 5 there is dancing and singing as the ark comes to Jerusalem, but it never arrives for in verse 6 Uzzah, one of the men traveling with the ark, grabs the ark to steady it because the oxen shook the cart it was riding on. verse 7 says that God was angry and God killed Uzzah. David then become angry with God and refuses to have the ark brought into Jerusalem. The ark is then kept in someone’s home for three months where the family was blessed. When David finally brings the ark to Jerusalem, the singing and dancing resumes, a large sacrifice is made and all the people eat freshly cooked meat. One last little disturbing bit of information is given us: Michal, daughter of King Saul and wife to David, is made angry by David shameless display during the processional. More information is given in verses 20-23.
Psalm 24 – This is a psalm of praise for God and God’s glory. The psalmist asks “Who can be in God’s presence in the holy place?” He also provides the answer: only those with clean hands and pure hearts.
OR Amos 7:7-15 – In verses 1-9, Amos sees a vision of locusts, fire, and a plumb line. Amos pleads with God not to send the locusts or the fire and God relents. Our reading includes the vision of the plumb line and the priest at Bethel complaining to the king about Amos’ words. The priest tells Amos to go to Judah (the southern kingdom, two tribes) to prophesy there. Amos says that he is not a professional prophet but a simple shepherd whom God sent to Israel (the northern kingdom, ten tribes).
Psalm 85:8-13 – The psalmist wants to hear what God will speak knowing that God’s salvation is near. Verses 10 and 11 are especially beautiful. Please read them in context of these six verses.
Ephesians 1:3-14 – This is probably the text I will use for the first “We Believe” sermon, “We Believe in the Triune God”. Paul writes that we have been blessed in Christ by God, who is Father of Jesus, and that we have been chosen by God for adoption as God’s children through Jesus Christ. Paul brings in the Holy Spirit in verse 13 as the seal and pledge of redemption. It is a bit wordy and complicated. You may wish to read it three, four, or five times.
Mark 6:14-29 – Mark uses a “flash back” to tell us the story of the death of John the Baptizer. King Herod hears of Jesus and the work the disciples were doing when Jesus sent them out (Mark 6:12-13). Some people think that Jesus is John raised from the dead, but others think it is a prophet of old. Herod believes it is John back from the dead and Mark then tells us the circumstances surrounding his death. You have probably heard the story many times before but if not now is a good time to get acquainted with it. You may want to compare this short story with the death of Jesus in Mark 14 and 15. Also compare it to Stephan’s death in Acts 6:8 to 7:60.
Have a great week serving the Lord by serving others. Take a moment this week to tell someone of God’s love and forgiveness.
Peace in Christ,
Pastor Gary
Monday, June 29, 2015
Readings for Sunday, July 5, 2015 with a Travelogue.
Hello Everyone,
I am now back from my three week vacation. Cheryl and I went out to Boise, Idaho, to spend some time with my mother. On a normal trip to Boise, we would go straight west through Fargo, Bismarck, Dickenson, ND, Miles City, Billings, and Bozeman, MT, then drop down to West Yellowstone, Idaho City, Pocatello, and on to Boise, ID. This time we took a different route going out by dropping down to Highway 12 and travelling through northern South Dakota cities of Aberdeen, Gettysburg, Faith, down to Spearfish and on to Gillette, WY, where we spent the night. From there it was south to Casper, further south to Rawlins, and then west to Ogden, UT, where we spent the second night. On the third day we travelled northwest through the spring lush deserts of Utah and Idaho to get to Meridian, ID, where Mom lives.
The return trip was once again not the most direct route. The first day of travel took us almost straight north through the mountains, valleys, and high plains of Idaho into Montana through Missoula and past Flathead Lake (the largest in Montana?) to Kalispell where we spent the night at a refurbished 100 year old Grand Hotel. The second day took us on the south side of Glacier National Park which we chose not to go through due to time considerations and across the northern plains of Montana to Williston, ND, where we spent the night in a new hotel. That was quite the change from the previous night. The final day took us through Minot, Jamestown, and Fargo where we had dinner with out son, Zach, and on to home.
Here is a link for the entire journey: Google Maps.
One of the more interesting side trips was when I took my daughters, Megan and Jenn, and granddaughter, Leighana, to Silver City, ID. 40 years ago, Dad, Mom, my sister, and I drove to Silver City to check it out. I wanted my children to experience that trip. From Mom’s home it is 63 miles but it takes 2 hours to drive. The last 20 miles is narrow, bumpy, curvy, on a ledge at times, switchback at times, mountain dirt road frequented by 4-wheelers and dirt bikes. The town is not a ghost town but it almost is. There is only one full time resident in town and the other residents are there only for the late spring through early fall tourist season. I must also report that nothing much changed in 40 years.
Here is a link for that trip: Google Maps. If you zoom in on the route and maybe switch to “Earth” view, you will get an idea of what that trip was like. Also, zoom in on Silver City in the Earth view to see the houses, stores, and church. Here is a link to the town’s website: Silver City, Idaho
Any way, it is good to be back and I am finished with my travelogue for today. On to the main purpose of this email: our scripture readings for the week ahead.
2 Samuel 5:1-5, 9-10 – King Saul and his son Jonathan are dead and now Israel needs a king. The elders of the tribes come to David and beg him to be their king and he assents. Remember, Samuel anointed David King in 1 Samuel 16. Also note that David was anointed King of Judah, on of the tribes, in 2 Samuel 2. Also it should be noted that David had to kill or have killed several powerful men who were loyal to Saul. Being a king is nasty business. The skipped verses are about David and his troops capturing Jerusalem and making it their capitol.
Psalm 48 – This is a psalm that praises the city of Zion, which is another name for Jerusalem. It is also called “the City of David”.
OR Ezekiel 2:1-5 – God sends the prophet Ezekiel to the rebellious people of Judah.
Psalm 123 – A short psalm asking God for mercy from the scorn of other peoples.
2 Corinthians 12: 2-10 – Paul, in defending himself against charges that he is not the real apostle that he claims to be, speaks about the “thorn in his side” that he has to put up with. He also speaks about a vision he had of the “third heaven”. He doesn’t want to boast of these things but in light of the accusations he must. He also realizes that every time he thinks he is strong, he is made low. It is only in his weakness is he made strong by God.
Mark 6:1-13 – Jesus has been working out of the lake city of Capernaum. In the first part of our reading he returns home to Nazareth. when he teaches in the synagogue on Saturday, the people of the town are aghast. “Who is this guy? Where did he learn to preach and teach?”. They were scandalized (took offense) by him and Jesus could do no work of power except for healing some sick people. After that and realizing that he could not get to every town and village, Jesus sent his disciples out in pairs to preach the good news.
Have a great Fourth of July weekend and stay safe when dealing with fireworks. That way I will see you in church on Sunday and not in the hospital on Monday.
Peace in Christ,
Pastor Gary Taylor
I am now back from my three week vacation. Cheryl and I went out to Boise, Idaho, to spend some time with my mother. On a normal trip to Boise, we would go straight west through Fargo, Bismarck, Dickenson, ND, Miles City, Billings, and Bozeman, MT, then drop down to West Yellowstone, Idaho City, Pocatello, and on to Boise, ID. This time we took a different route going out by dropping down to Highway 12 and travelling through northern South Dakota cities of Aberdeen, Gettysburg, Faith, down to Spearfish and on to Gillette, WY, where we spent the night. From there it was south to Casper, further south to Rawlins, and then west to Ogden, UT, where we spent the second night. On the third day we travelled northwest through the spring lush deserts of Utah and Idaho to get to Meridian, ID, where Mom lives.
The return trip was once again not the most direct route. The first day of travel took us almost straight north through the mountains, valleys, and high plains of Idaho into Montana through Missoula and past Flathead Lake (the largest in Montana?) to Kalispell where we spent the night at a refurbished 100 year old Grand Hotel. The second day took us on the south side of Glacier National Park which we chose not to go through due to time considerations and across the northern plains of Montana to Williston, ND, where we spent the night in a new hotel. That was quite the change from the previous night. The final day took us through Minot, Jamestown, and Fargo where we had dinner with out son, Zach, and on to home.
Here is a link for the entire journey: Google Maps.
One of the more interesting side trips was when I took my daughters, Megan and Jenn, and granddaughter, Leighana, to Silver City, ID. 40 years ago, Dad, Mom, my sister, and I drove to Silver City to check it out. I wanted my children to experience that trip. From Mom’s home it is 63 miles but it takes 2 hours to drive. The last 20 miles is narrow, bumpy, curvy, on a ledge at times, switchback at times, mountain dirt road frequented by 4-wheelers and dirt bikes. The town is not a ghost town but it almost is. There is only one full time resident in town and the other residents are there only for the late spring through early fall tourist season. I must also report that nothing much changed in 40 years.
Here is a link for that trip: Google Maps. If you zoom in on the route and maybe switch to “Earth” view, you will get an idea of what that trip was like. Also, zoom in on Silver City in the Earth view to see the houses, stores, and church. Here is a link to the town’s website: Silver City, Idaho
Any way, it is good to be back and I am finished with my travelogue for today. On to the main purpose of this email: our scripture readings for the week ahead.
2 Samuel 5:1-5, 9-10 – King Saul and his son Jonathan are dead and now Israel needs a king. The elders of the tribes come to David and beg him to be their king and he assents. Remember, Samuel anointed David King in 1 Samuel 16. Also note that David was anointed King of Judah, on of the tribes, in 2 Samuel 2. Also it should be noted that David had to kill or have killed several powerful men who were loyal to Saul. Being a king is nasty business. The skipped verses are about David and his troops capturing Jerusalem and making it their capitol.
Psalm 48 – This is a psalm that praises the city of Zion, which is another name for Jerusalem. It is also called “the City of David”.
OR Ezekiel 2:1-5 – God sends the prophet Ezekiel to the rebellious people of Judah.
Psalm 123 – A short psalm asking God for mercy from the scorn of other peoples.
2 Corinthians 12: 2-10 – Paul, in defending himself against charges that he is not the real apostle that he claims to be, speaks about the “thorn in his side” that he has to put up with. He also speaks about a vision he had of the “third heaven”. He doesn’t want to boast of these things but in light of the accusations he must. He also realizes that every time he thinks he is strong, he is made low. It is only in his weakness is he made strong by God.
Mark 6:1-13 – Jesus has been working out of the lake city of Capernaum. In the first part of our reading he returns home to Nazareth. when he teaches in the synagogue on Saturday, the people of the town are aghast. “Who is this guy? Where did he learn to preach and teach?”. They were scandalized (took offense) by him and Jesus could do no work of power except for healing some sick people. After that and realizing that he could not get to every town and village, Jesus sent his disciples out in pairs to preach the good news.
Have a great Fourth of July weekend and stay safe when dealing with fireworks. That way I will see you in church on Sunday and not in the hospital on Monday.
Peace in Christ,
Pastor Gary Taylor
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