Sacred Space

"So Jacob rose early in the morning and he took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it." (Genesis 28:18)

Have you ever had an experience that was so powerful, so meaningful, that you knew you'd never forget what happened there?  Often in the Bible when characters have such experiences, they build an altar or some other sort of monument to mark out that place as special, or sacred.  If the moment was really important, they might even rename the place lining the name up with the event that occurred there.  So for example, the passage referenced above finds Jacob having a dream about angels going up and down heavenly stairs to the very throne of God.  Therefore, not only does Jacob build an altar, but he also renames the place "Bethel" (home of God).

While we don't often stop and build altars today, our minds do "bookmark" special and sacred events.  Ask any person older than 10-12 years old where they were on 9/11 and they will be able to instantly recall most if not every detail of that day!  Our brains key in on momentous events and create a space around those memories that will last our entire lifetime.  I can still remember nearly every detail of the birth of all three of my children, as if it were yesterday and can recall many details including minor conversations shared between my wife and I leading up to and during the actual labor.

I wonder what events your mind has build a "sacred space" around?  How many of these events involve your faith and your relationship with God?  

Grace & Peace,
Pastor John

Alone or Lonely

Have you ever been lonely?  Have you ever been alone?

On first glance, it would seem these two questions are asking the same thing...but are they?  To be "alone" is to have no one around.  To be "lonely" means to feel as though no one is there for you, or that no one can understand you.  It is possible to be lonely in the midst of a crowded coffee shop, bus, or church.  Likewise it is possible to be completely isolated from all human contact (ie alone) but NOT feel lonely.

How can this be?  Jesus often would go off by himself to be alone, but it was not to be lonely, but rather to be with God.  Through a real, living relationship with God we will never truly be lonely.  It is through that same relationship that we can find someone who understands, and who is ever-present with us.

My thoughts have centered around these things quite a bit lately.  My family and I are only days removed from moving to Lake Placid, NY and we definitely are feeling lonely.  We are blessed to have many who have reached out to us, and yet there are times that we have felt very lonely and even afraid.  It's times like these that our faith in God has been essential for us.  As I said above, if we have a relationship with God then we are never truly alone, and never need to feel lonely!

If you don't know God, if you're not sure about that relationship, you're not alone!  All people have moments of doubt, but that is one of the primary reasons that those who call themselves Christians, and those who are trying to "figure it out" gather together and share with one another.  If you don't have a group of people I would invite you to join our group Adirondack Community Church or one like it in your area.  I think you'll find that Christians don't have all the answers, and they're not nearly as perfect as some think, but they are honest, sincere, and kind people traveling along the same journey of life as you.

Peace,
Pastor John

Holy Week Ramblings

Why do we call it "Good Friday" anyway?  Have you ever wondered what's so good about the day?  And while we're at it, what does "Maundy"* even mean?!?

If you have plans to walk closer with Christ this week, and maybe are even considering attending one or more of the services planned in just about every church, then it might be helpful to know what these things are all about.

Maundy (or Holy) Thursday is the day we remember Jesus' last meal with his disciples.  This is the meal famously portrayed by Leonardo da Vinci (right).  It is also when Christian's remember Jesus' betrayal by one of his own disciples (Judas).  One final aspect of a Maundy Thursday service is the remembrance of Jesus' act of washing his own disciples' feet, thus showing them how they were to treat one another.

Now Good Friday is another one of those days, that is often practiced/observed but not often understood.  The day itself comes before Easter Sunday and after Maundy/Holy Thursday and is the commemoration of Jesus' crucifixion and death.  The word "good" here does not necessarily mean good as in happy or excellent, but rather good as in holy.  Therefore it might be less confusing if we just called it "Holy Friday".  Of course it could be argued that from a Christian perspective, Good Friday is in fact "good" because it commemorates forgiveness and salvation being made open to all humanity.  No matter what, this service is marked with a somber tone with little or no frills, decorations and/or special music.  It is a service to realize that it was our sin that put Christ on that cross, and because of our sins that he had to die.  It is not meant to be a happy or joyful day.

Hopefully this brief rambling has given you a better understanding of the day(s) that we have begun to enter and why they are what they are.

Grace & Peace,
Pastor John

*In case you were curious, "Maundy" means "command" or "ceremony" and in Christian usage specifically refers to Jesus' act of washing his disciples feet.

Sermon Musings (3/20/11) - Go Where?

Too often when we read our Bibles, we are only given the reader's digest version of the story.  Take the call of Abram and Sarai to move to a new land (Genesis 12:1-9).  God calls, and Abram faithfully responds in the affirmative.  That's all we're told!  You would think there was some conversation, right?  I mean, how many of us would just pack up and move without even asking a few questions?  Moving, especially to an unknown destination, is scary!

What kind of questions would you ask God?  My first question would definitely be "where?" and it would be followed by a litany of other questions like "when?" "how far?" "who's there that I know?" etc. etc. etc.  But the Bible is not concerned with giving us a blow by blow description complete with every little detail.  The story is remembered and told precisely because Abram and Sarai were faithful and did pack up and move!  So the next question to ask is where is God calling you to move?

You may be reading this and thinking that God is not calling you to move anywhere.  You may have just made your final mortgage payment, or maybe you just recently moved to where you are now.  What we must always remember when reading our Bibles is that as the living word, it has the ability to speak to us on multiple levels, and while the story of Abram and Sarai is indeed speaking about a literal call to a change of location for them, it is also a story about faithfulness in relationship with God.

In other words, we are all on a spiritual journey.  Each one of us is growing and maturing in our faith and relationship with God.  So God may not be calling you to move to a new community, but may be calling you to move to a new level of commitment in your relationship with Him.  So I will pose the question once again...where is God calling you?

Grace & Peace,
Pastor John

Sermon Musings (2/13/11) Maturity

Have you ever watched a child eat?  Not a baby who only eats milk, and not a toddler who eats solid foods like a pro, but a child who's in that in between stage, where they're trying to learn to eat "real" food, but haven't quite gotten it figured out yet.  It's at this stage of development that the Apostle Paul is suggesting the Corinthians are stuck in (1 Corinthians 3:1-2).  Paul points out that they think they've got it all figured out, but in reality they are just babies eating only milk!  The same is true for Christians today.

Christianity is not just about believing in Jesus.  That is the beginning of a Christian life, but it is definitely not the end of the journey.  Maturity in Christ implies a relationship with the Living God that is daily maintained and continually worked on.  A good rule of thumb is if you're still alive, then you can still grow in your spiritual maturity.  Furthermore, unlike physical maturation which happens without any effort or work on the person's part, Christian maturity is only attained through effort and intentional action.

As a young boy, learning to ride a bicycle was the key to my freedom.  Once I learned to ride my bike, I was allowed to leave the confines of our yard!  My mother still kept a pretty close eye on me, but I was allowed to go from one corner of my block to the other (a distance of 150 yards).  When I first reached this milestone, I thought I was soooo cool, and such a big boy.  That is until my friends told me their parents let them go all the way around the block!  I quickly realized I wasn't actually all that mature or all that liberated.  I brought this to my parent's attention and they said that such a privilege needed to be earned.  EARNED!?!  What did that even mean?  I thought since others were allowed to do it, that I too should be able to take advantage of the limitless opportunities for mischief provided by being out of sight of mom and dad.  My parents thought I needed to earn it.  Earning it included seemingly completely unrelated things like washing the dishes and keeping my room clean.  I eventually was allowed to go all the way around the block, and my parents said it was because I had demonstrated I was mature enough to handle such freedom.

While Christian maturity is not necessarily earned, it does take work and effort on our part.  So how are we to embark upon this journey?  It would seem that the keys are prayer, study (of The Bible and other Christian literature), and action.  A good start to all of this may begin with involvement in Christian community (ie a church, a bible study, etc).  Finally, just like I needed to wash dishes and keep my bedroom clean, in order to ride my bike around the block, likewise becoming mature in Christ may also include seemingly unrelated things.  For example, while getting up earlier than usual may not seem connected to your faith journey, it may provide you with the time to pray and study.  Or as another example, refraining from yelling at your children or spouse may seem like a whole other ball of wax, but such intentional action may teach you the patience and understanding required to better wait for God's Holy Spirit.

The Christian life is a journey.  It is a lifelong journey.  It should not be a journey that ends with being introduced to Jesus, but rather one that beckons us to follow him.

Sermon Musings (2/5/11) Lights and Buildings

Isaiah 58:1-9a
Matthew 5:13-17

A flashlight when the power has gone out is a life saver indeed...unless said flashlight is being covered by a heavy blanket.  What's the point of a flashlight, if you're just going to cover it up?  That's Jesus' point in the above passage from Matthew.  As followers of Christ, we have been given a message of life, light and hope!  We have been tasked with the privilege of sharing that message, that good news with the rest of the world.  The key is not simply sharing that message, but doing so in a way that others will understand and receive that life, light and hope in their lives.

When reading the above texts, especially the passage from Isaiah criticizing the people for only going through the motions of fasting (without the essential heart change that is to accompany it), I can't help but think about the church.  Not necessarily your church or my church, but rather the whole church universal.  Of course my thoughts do move to the more specific reality of individual congregations and faith communities that do make up this Body of Christ.  I find myself specifically wondering, why do we have church buildings?  What's your answer?  Is it so we can have Sunday services?  So we can have Tuesday and Friday Bible Studies?  Is it for suppers once a month?  Why does nearly every Christian community have it's own building?  Is this the way it was in the Bible (the answer is no, not really)?

The point of these questions (I think) is that God has blessed us with Grace, and Spiritual Gifts, and the Holy Spirit for a purpose.  Yet for some reason many of us have built buildings, and become stuck within them.  We do a great job of sharing that message of life, light and hope within our buildings, but very rarely outside of them.  We have gotten stuck in a mindset of bringing people in to our buildings, when maybe we should be striving to get the people who are already in, out!  Get those people out into the world so that the lights we have been given aren't hidden behind closed doors, walls, and yes even stained glass windows.

How will you live out that call that you've been given?  How will you let your light shine?  Will your building be a part of the solution, or simply an obstacle and barrier to your light being seen?