Great Themes of the Kingdom: Peace - Walking on Water, 3/13/16

Sermon 3-13-16 great themes of the kingdom – peace- walking on water

Matthew 14:22-33 NIV

²² Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. ²³ After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, ²⁴ and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it. ²⁵ Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. ²⁶ When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear. ²⁷ But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” ²⁸ “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” ²⁹ “Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. ³⁰ But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” ³¹ Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” ³² And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. ³³ Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

Todays sermon is indebted to the ideas of john ortberg and rev. gary spencer.

When I first moved to woods chapel I led canoe camps for the conf.

5 days of floating on the beautiful Niangua river

We had some notable experiences infolving fear

·        Canoe overturned, floating in front of it, pushed agains a stump

·        Calling their parents

·        Another time we were trying to dock and someone lost a paddle……I went in after it.  It was deep.  I had my shoes on.

·        Renting the electric boat at st johns pass

Peter sinks.  He is afraid.

Loser

He is focused on what is wrong instead of what is good

We understand his predicament

It is human nature

Do you see the clouds or do you see the sky?

Do you see problems or jesus?

What do you see?? what are you looking at??

Elisha and the hills are covered with an army of angels.

2 kings 6:17

¹⁵ When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” the servant asked. ¹⁶ “Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” ¹⁷ And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. ¹⁸ As the enemy came down toward him, Elisha prayed to the Lord, “Strike this army with blindness.” So he struck them with blindness, as Elisha had asked. ¹⁹ Elisha told them, “This is not the road and this is not the city. Follow me, and I will lead you to the man you are looking for.” And he led them to Samaria.

There is something going on in this world that we cannot see something more that the tangible.

God is present god is working keep your eyes upon jesus and all is well.

Do you see problems or jesus?

The church has failed me.  Pastors have failed me.  I have failed myself.

Jesus never fails.

Lets go somewhere else………….. peter was afraid and he sunk

Fear of heights

Ladder oaks ridge back side [bob and grace lighthizer]

But he did get out of the boat

HE DID IT

Maybe not such a loser after all

He was the only one who got out of the boat

Jesus never meant for us to play it safe

We like to stay in the boat

It is safe and comfortable

#1 complaint almost always boils down to I am not comfortable…

To stay in the boat is comfortable but it is

Also costly because we miss gods will, gods purpose and the joy of it all

In fact we discover the holy spirit at the edge of our comfort zone. 

He is never in the boat.  You want to be led by the spirit, get out of the boat.

Risks that this church has taken

·         Moving to the highway

·         Taking a big gamble

·         Building the worship center

·         Buying the missions center

·         Opening campuses

·         We have removed barriers to growth

·         Opened doors for others

Great people of faith begin the journey with a first step

The great “just say yes”

Bible is collection of first step people and no step people

Do you remember - 12 spies that moses sent into the promised land?

Leaders of their tribes:

Shammua Shaphat Caleb Igal Joshua Palti Gaddiel Gaddi Ammiel Sethur Nahbi Geuel

³⁰ Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, “We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it.”

³¹ But the men who had gone up with him said, “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.” ³² And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had explored. They said, “The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size. ³³ We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.”

Walking on water and staying in the boat people

The wind is still howling when peter steps out.

Peace doesn’t mean that the water is still.  Peace means that god is with us during the storm

Cs lewis said

We are like an egg.  Some hatch, some go bad

You decide your fate, get out of the boat or wait

Most powerful words in scripture

Fear not 71 times in kjv

Fear not.

Hear god calling.

Just say yes.

Ist step that will lead to growth of your spiritual life

There is something that you can do……….. may be big or small

What is the one thing that you can do

Ships in the harbor are safe, but ships were not built to sit in the harbor, they were built for the open sea.

Transition to til the storm passes over.

Carols: Do You Hear What I Hear?, 12/6/15

Sermon 12-6-2015  peace on earth Luke 2:8-15 KJV

⁸ And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. ⁹ An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰ But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. ¹¹ Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. ¹² This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

¹³ Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

¹⁴ “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
    and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” PEACE ON EARTH, GOODWILL TO MEN

¹⁵ When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

Peace is an obscure idea……..World peace aka miss congeniality

Peace/war as relates to nations

Peace with others on the block

Peace in your heart

THEY ALL GO TOGETHER.  THE ARE INTERRELATED

Whats going on in Syria?

Russians –Iranians –hezbollah -Turks –Kurds -Shiite muslims  -Sunni muslims – Yasitis -Isis –French –Germans –British -americans

Peace on earth.  Good will to men.

 When I was a kid – cold war.  Crawl under desks.  Go to the basement.

Doug Hayes family built a bomb shelter in the front yard

Humans have a long history of hurting others perceived as enemies

PRAY FOR OUR LEADERS

Jesus was born into a time when nations slaughtered nations.  Only the strong survived.  This empire, that empire, the Greeks, the Persians, oh here come the Egyptians, THE BABYLONIANS, the hitities, the jebusites, the phillistines and finally the Romans.  Kill or be killed.  Take whatever you want.

Even the Jews are killing and taking in the conquest of Canaan.  In the New Testament, when they are talking about and praying for the restoration of the throne of David, what they are saying is this:  "We are tired of being the little guys.   We are tired of being beat down.  We want to be on top again.  We don't want to be subjugated.  We want to subjugate others."

Jesus was born into a mind set of national violence.  Winner take all.  And in the middle of this setting, the angels make a profound announcement to the shepherds.  Peace on earth, good will to men.  Not just that the wars will stop, but we are going to begin a new way of treating each other.  Good will to men.  No longer an eye for an eye.  The cycle of violence and retribution is coming to an end.

Goodwill.  Grace.  Love.  This is the work of Kingdom people.  This is what we are to be about.  No more hatred.  No more one upping.  No more who is the greatest.

Peace on Earth.  Good will to men.

Humans have a long history of hurting others perceived as enemies

James and john wanted jesus to rain fire down on the villages

Peter sliced off malchus ear

Sampson, the cycle of violent retribution

Sampson

Life story is a litany of retribution- a cycle of revenge
Title Samson’s life - Revenge. I will show them.

• disagreement over a riddle

.Is going to take a goat as an offering.
• Father gives his wife to another.
• 300 foxes – lit torches – burned up their crops
• Philistines burn girl and father to death
• Since you have acted like this…..i swear I wont stop until I get my revenge on you.
• Slaughtered many of them
• They come to take him prisoner. To do to him as he did to us.
• 3000 men of Judah go to Samson. They are rulers over us… look what you have done…We have gone from 1 goat and one father to 3000 men.
• I merely did to them, what they did to me.
• Samson is bound with 2 new ropes. And handed over.
• Spirit comes upon him. He does not use it for good, but uses the power/ gifts to hurt others
• Finds jawbone… strikes down 1000

Delilah story…..gouged out his eyes…. Put him to work

Party temple of dagon.   Receives spirit, topples the pillars, kills a bunch.

Hurting back may be the human way, but it is not Jesus way and it is not the way of peace.

We take revenge because according to our time table, justice has not been served.
Apparently there is no higher accountability, so I will take action.
When we take revenge, we are saying, god I don’t like the way that you do your job so I am going to take action. The punishment that I feel should be coming, is not coming, so I am going to do the right thing.

But revenge is rarely the right thing

1. Revenge always escalates the situation
What starts with foxes and crops to bodies. Revenge always escalates.

2. Revenge is intoxicating. The crowd will often applaud when you take revenge, but the hearts of good people know better. Your heart knows better.

3. We become shaped – owned by the things that we refuse to release

Good people excuse their bad behavior because of some past hurt. We allow that person to totally change our moral compass

4. revenge never brings about the end- you may feel that you are ahead, but you will never feel that it is over

Jesus offers a new way- the old is gone the new is here

He teaches us to change our ways……

Paul wrote….ROMANS 12:14  Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.[c] Do not be conceited.
17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19 Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”[d] says the Lord. 20 On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”[e] 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

and Jesus sets the example……….1 peter 2:23
23 When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.

When Jesus suffered, he made no threats.
He entrusted himself to God- and turns others over to god as well.
Father forgive them

Do you want to start the process of being a peacemaker?

1. Peace begins when we admit that our way, may not be God’s way.

2.  peace begins when we surrender the right to revenge- We need to stop telling the stories. Then maybe someone will stop remembering the person in that way

3. Peace begins when we  understand that something has to happen in our hearts between God and us. things change when we realize that what needs to happen is not something between me and the person, but between me and God

4. Finally peace comes when we are able to wish them well. [I agree not to be the instrument of gods wrath, but I hope that someone else gets them.]
Love your enemies, pray for those who use you
We cannot pray for someone and hate them at the same time.

I read this somewhere......"Leaders don't inflict pain, they bear it."  I would add to that:  healthy people don't inflict pain, they bear it whenever possible.

Bearing pain puts an end to the cycle of retribution.  When we decide not to hurt back, we take the high road and begin the process of forgiveness.  On the cross Jesus said this:  "Father forgive them...."  He said this after he was put on the cross...... Father forgive them...

Today instead of hurting back, absorb the pain.  Take it in.  I know it may not be fair, but it may be just what is needed to heal the breach.

Do You Hear What I Hear?':  Dec 6 Do you hear what I hear? lyrics (edited for time) Said the night wind to the little lamb Do you see what I see, way up in the sky little lamb, Do you see what I see A star a star dancing in the night with a tail as big as a kite Little lamb to the shepherd boy, do you hear what I hear Ringing thru the sky shepherd boy, A song a song high above the trees With a voice as big as the sea Said the shepherd boy to the mighty king Do you know what I know In your palace wall mighty king do you know what I know A child shivers in the cold Let us bring him silver and gold Said the king to the people everywhere Listen to what I say Pray for peace people everywhere Listen to what I say The child, the child Sleeping in the night He will bring us goodness and light In October 1962 – the Cuban Missle crisis Noel Regney a composer was asked to write a Christmas song………. During a time of national fear. “En route to my home, I saw two mothers with their babies in strollers. The little angels were looking at each other and smiling. All of a sudden, my mood was extraordinary.” A glimpse of these babies filled Noel Regney’s heart with poetry. The little ones reminded him of newborn lambs. Thus, the song begins, “Said the night wind to the little lamb....” “Do You Hear What I Hear?” carried a beautiful message close to people in all walks of life. It became a popular Christmas carol, “a song high above the tree, with a voice as big as the sea.” But the message of peace was lost on many people. “I am amazed that people can think they know the song and not know it is a prayer for peace,” Noel Regney once told an interviewer. “But we are so bombarded by sounds and our attention spans are so short.” Let us hope and pray that, when it is sung in churches worldwide during the Christmas season, this song of peace will remind us that “The Child, The Child sleeping in the night” came to “bring us goodness and light.” So you want to talk about Christmas Peace on earth/good will to men Peace for nations Peace for neighbors/relatives Peace in your heart They all go together…….. Peace on earth, goodwill to men and women.

Fruit of the Spirit: Patience, 6/14/15

² We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check.³ When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. ⁴ Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. ⁵ Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. ⁶ The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.⁷ All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, ⁸ but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.⁹ With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. ¹⁰ Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. ¹¹ Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? ¹² My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.

Gal 5:22-23  ²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Phil 4:7   ⁷ And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Last week.  Jennifer and patty.  Candidates for ministry

Need opportunities

All ministers are gone.  Great time

Annual conf a time of appointments. 

Please don’t begrudge the appointments of others - take joy!!

They are the hands and feet of jesus and an extension of woods chapel

Today the series continues – fruit of the spirit

Patience and peace.  Peace and patience. Now I will wax poetic…..

·         Patience is a virtue,

·         Possess it if you can.

·         Found seldom in a woman,

·         Never in a man.

Patience - I'm in a hurry but god is not

Lord I want patience and I want it now.

WAR

We think about peace and war – our brain defaults to armed conflict when we think of peace……

We don’t like war

Examples: Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan

Peace medals in Smithsonian                                                                  PICTURES

Last of the Mohicans

Peace is more than

The absence of war. It is a gift of daily peace that we can offer to others

Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called the children of God.

Daily Peace

Peace as a gift that we give to people every day

Peace to the other drivers, to the person at the dmv

To the attendant at the hotel.

Abraham was sitting outside his tent one evening when he saw an old man, weary from age and journey, coming toward him. Abraham rushed out, greeted him, and then invited him into his tent. There he washed the old man's feet and gave him food and drink. The old man immediately began eating without saying any prayer or blessing. So Abraham asked him, "Don't you worship God?"  The old traveler replied, "I worship fire only and reverence no other god."  When he heard this, Abraham became incensed, grabbed the old man by the shoulders, and threw him out his his tent into the cold night air. When the old man had departed, God called to his friend Abraham and asked where the stranger was. Abraham replied, "I forced him out because he did not worship you." God answered, "I have suffered him these eighty years although he dishonors me. Could you not endure him one night?"

Mouths

It is measured or controlled by what comes out of our mouths

How the use of our mouths affect peace

The hurtful things that we say

Peace in my heart

More than an absence of guilt

It is a managing of our responses to stimulus

Sun day before annual conf.  a melt down

Conflicted, broken over an old wound

How do we identify them and heal them

Desire

Patience implies that I am waiting for what I want, for what I prefer.

That implies that I am not getting what I want.

Ref - David Gilmore’s sermon at conference about all things work together for good.

Good by whose definition?

·        Illness?

·        Loneliness?

·        Trouble with a child?

I think I know what is good, but maybe god is working on a greater good

We aren’t in charge, we don’t get to define good.

Delayed gratification. – the concept

Peace comes when we stop wanting everything….

Duke University did a study on “peace of mind.” Factors found to contribute greatly to emotional and mental stability are:

1) the absence of suspicion and resentment. Nursing a grudge was a major factor in unhappiness.  1 cor 13 – love keeps no record of wrongs

2) Not living in the past. An unwholesome preoccupation with old mistakes and failures leads to depression.

3) Not wasting time and energy fighting conditions you cannot change. Cooperate with life, instead of trying to run away from it.

4) Force yourself to stay involved with the living world. Resist the temptation to withdraw and become reclusive during periods of emotional stress.

5) Refuse to indulge in self-pity when life hands you a raw deal. Accept the fact that nobody gets through life without some sorrow and misfortune.

6) Cultivate the old-fashioned virtues—love, humor, compassion and loyalty.

7) Do not expect too much of yourself. When there is too wide a gap between self-expectation and your ability to meet the goals you have set, feelings of inadequacy are inevitable.

8) Find something bigger than yourself to believe in. Self-centered egotistical people score lowest in any test for measuring happiness.

Default - patience and peace

where is our default……… something is right or something is wrong……

barak obama – George w bush……

Hc parking……. They shouldn’t be in there.  Its ok, jeff

And we spend the next 20 minutes being angry……..

These are not the droids that you are looking for            PICTURE

Watch-observe  how you respond to things…..

Ask yourself, What is your default.

Let it go - pillow

When we take to ourselves we are selfish.

When we demand that things go our way, it is the flesh.

Fighting with a pillow….. illustrate letting God have it.

When we let it go and give it to god, we release it

After we release it, then god has the opportunity to give it back to us if he so chooses.

And we receive a thing as a gift from god instead of taking it unto ourselves.

We don’t have to be afraid of the suffering of not getting our own way.

Things are not going to go your way

Richard rohr-  said of st francis, that he had an inner authority – he let go of all fear of suffering; all need for power, prestige and possessions; any need for the small self to be important; and came to know something essential--who he really was in God and thus who he really was. his house was then built on "bedrock," as Jesus says (Matthew 7]

To st francis,  some form of suffering was absolutely necessary to teach us how to live beyond the illusion of control and to give that control back to God. Then and ony then do we become usable instruments in his hands,

Such a counterintuitive insight

Conclusion

"Patience serves as a protection against wrongs and hurts just as clothes do against the cold. For if you put on more clothes as the cold increases it will have no power to hurt you. So in like manner you must grow in patience when you meet with great wrongs, and they will then be powerless to vex your mind."   Leonardo da Vinci.

Picture of peace….Long ago a man sought the perfect picture of peace. Not finding one that satisfied, he announced a contest to produce this masterpiece. The challenge stirred the imagination of artists everywhere, and paintings arrived from far and wide. Finally the great day of revelation arrived. The judges uncovered one peaceful scene after another, while the viewers clapped and cheered.  The tensions grew. Only two pictures remained veiled.

As a judge pulled the cover from one, a hush fell over the crowd.

A mirror-smooth lake reflected lacy, green birches under the soft blush of the evening sky. Along the grassy shore, a flock of sheep grazed undisturbed. Surely this was the winner. The man who ordered the contest uncovered the second painting himself, and the crowd gasped in surprise. Could this be peace?  A tumultuous waterfall cascaded down a rocky cliff face; the crowd could almost feel its cold, penetrating spray. Stormy-gray clouds threatened to explode with lightning, wind and rain. In the midst of the thundering noises and bitter chill, a spindly tree clung to the rocks at the edge of the falls. One of its branches reached out in front of the torrential waters as if foolishly seeking to defy its power.                                                                      PICTURE

A little bird had built a nest in the elbow of that branch. Content and undisturbed in her stormy surroundings, she rested on her eggs. With her eyes closed and her wings ready to cover her little ones, she manifested peace that transcends all earthly turmoil. 

Peace that Jesus gives is not the absence of trouble, but is rather the confidence that He is there with you always.

The Gifts of Christmas: The Gift of Peace, 12/21/14

Sermon 12-21-14 The gifts of Christmas -  peace  Luke 2:8-14 KJV

⁸ And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹ And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. ¹⁰ And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. ¹¹ For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. ¹² And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. ¹³ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, ¹⁴ Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

Series- the gifts of Christmas

The welcome – Love – Joy - Peace

The progression of love joy and peace

Christmas Card - Peas on earth, gouda wheel, two men                    PICTURE

We are busy people.  Somewhere along the way, we will find time to sit down by the Christmas tree and take a deep breath. There is a peace that comes to our souls. 

²⁸ “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  Mt 11:29

Do we enjoy peace?  There are so many activities. 

my kids requested a new kind of Christmas this year.  Smaller

the  joy we have found in helping strangers

Like to talk today about personal peace and world peace..lets start w world

As a race we are not very good at peace

in the entire recorded history, dating back 2000 years before Christ; that would be something over 4000 years, there has only been about 292 years of peace in the world.   They estimate that there have been more than 14,000 wars and as many as 3.6 billion people killed. 

Trip to Washington DC- I was impressed

Peace medals – treaties broken                                          PICTURE

There is much fighting in the world 

We are fighting the Taliban - The Russians are fighting the Ukrainians

The Palestinians and the Israelis are fighting - The Sudanese are fighting each other - Isis is fighting everyone

Why?  We want your land. We don’t like u.  We want a world with u gone.

You won’t do it our way.

There is something that we want bad enough to kill you

Regarding world peace there is a thought that I take comfort in about jesus

An interesting thing that I believe about Jesus

He is not just ours.  not just a Methodist, Presbyt or an American Jesus

We think of Jesus as being ours, or belonging to our denomination.  Methodist Jesus.  American Jesus.

Jesus is global.  Universal.

When he comes back, it is peace to all

All nations will come to the holy mountain Isaiah 2:2 Micah 4:2

2 This is what Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem:² In the last days the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established as the highest of the mountains; it will be exalted above the hills and all nations will stream to it. ³ Many peoples will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,     to the temple of the God of Jacob.  He will teach us his ways,    so that we may walk in his paths.”  The law will go out from Zion,     the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
⁴ He will judge between the nations     and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares    and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation,  nor will they train for war anymore.

War, striving and stress come from wanting things

And wanting things to go our way

Do you want to find peace, let go of the thing

Story of the two monks that never fought
There were two monks who lived together for forty years and never argued. Not even once.
On day, one said to the other
Don't you think it's time we had an argument, at least once?
The other monk said, fine, let's start. What shall we argue about?
How about this piece of bread, said the first monk.
Okay, fine. Let's argue about the bread. How will we do it? Said the second.
The first said, this bread is mine. It belongs to me.
The second said, well, if it is, then take it.

our lives are fast paced, heart pounding, go go go go

The postcard that I found in the dickens book vs an email today

in our lives the adrenalin is flowing and the ears are ringing with the jarring sounds of home and work.

It is hard to contemplate the Cross of Christ

we need to Stop the unrelenting schedules in our brain
Stop it. Cut back on activities. Get some air into your life, your soul.
Reduce the external forces - make room for the internal forces

NFM ropes……..all tied up- worried about it

I want to be sure of employment

I want things to run smoothly at church

I want to fix that relationship

I don’t want my great grandma to die

I don’t want to die

          Did I think that I was going to live for ever?

We have to learn to let go and trust God

Healthy people tell others and themselves

relax… everything is ok

It is the work of the Holy Spirit

All is well

We can’t think about two things at the same time

We can be consumed with worry or we can let go of whatever & trust God

We can hold on to one, but not both

Interesting how we try to force god to fix things the way that we want them.

Serenity prayer – long version

God, give me grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed, Courage to change the things which should be changed, and the Wisdom to distinguish the one from the other. Living one day at a time, Enjoying one moment at a time, Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace, Taking, as Jesus did, This sinful world as it is, Not as I would have it, Trusting that You will make all things right, If I surrender to Your will, So that I may be reasonably happy in this life, And supremely happy with You forever in the next.  Amen.

An Interesting scripture   isaiah 26:3 NKJV

You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on u, Because he trusts in u

Jesus life begins and ends with a message of peace

Peace on earth, goodwill to men and women

After his resurrection Jesus in jn 20- breathes on them. 

peace be unto you

¹⁹ On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” ²⁰ After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.  ²¹ Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” ²² And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.

Jesus is still breathing a message of peace to all who would hear

To all who would draw near

You want the peace?

Let go of the worries, let go of the stuff and seize upon the heart of our God

Merry Christmas

Blessed Are The Peacemakers Matthew 5:9 03/06/11

Sermon 3-6-11 blessed are the peacemakers mt. 5:9 kkk

Blessed are the Peacemakers for they shall be called the children of God

Sometimes there can’t be peace
Peace? No peace –
Eccl 3 – a time for war, a time for peace

Should be a whole lot more peace than there is

World
Much work to do.
Never joy in the witness of war
Micah - Beating swords into plowshares

At work
Are you in conflict?
Do you create conflict?
pr 16:7
When a man's ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.

At home
Are we listening?
Do we have common goals?
Looking for win –win
Be willing to lose an argument
People are more valuable than ideas
We must learn to talk without hurting one another
Col 4:6 6 Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone
Is it really that important?
Video- these aren’t the droids you are looking for

Most fights, we don’t even remember 2 wks later what they were about

Peace in yr heart – hard to make peace if you don’t have it in your heart

When we don’t have it, we tend to point the finger at others

One of the lessons of the beatitudes is that God is with the broken.
Once you understand that god meets others at their least, their worst,
Then you tend to be a little more gracious to others.
You can never see them the same.

Us and them- it doesn’t need to be us and them
We can have opinions, but we can’t treat each other poorly
Radio personalities- not their opinions but how they treat each other
Politicians same- we can’t follow their example.

Demonizing others
We are good they are evil
We get it, they don’t

Too much of this and you start to understand that they are hiding something…..
A brokenness of their own
a- I am not right with the world

The world hands us two options

When the gospel takes root, this doesn’t work anymore. The labels don’t work. We have met them and they are loved by god too.

In fact, when we really read the scriptures we find not just that there is no us and them, but that the evidence of faith is found in how we treat the them.

As your fears are met by god, we can rest in him and accept people right where they are... why ….because god embraced us right where we are.

Blessed are the Peacemakers for they shall be called the childrn of God
Peacemaking and children of god

Love your enemies…..move towards them mt 5

Trying to get people on one team or the other
Or understanding that everyone is on God’s team
There is no more taking sides.


Joshua 5:13

13 Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?”
14 “Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the LORD I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord[e] have for his servant?”
15 The commander of the LORD’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.
Man w a sword- for us or for our enemies?
That church that theological system that country, that people
Neither…
I am the commander of the lord’s army
U are on holy ground… get off your high horse

If you show them what god’s love is like, everything changes
Jesus love is all encompassing

To find peace in your heart so that you can be a peacemaker
Trust in god
Receive forgiveness and grace
Give it away
Keep working on it
Turn your life from its about my ideas, my feelings, my stuff,
to I am loving others in the name of Christ
We are all in this together
So lets celebrate this gift of life that God has given
And lets live together in our homes in our church, in peace

Blessed are the Peacemakers for they shall be called the children of God

Pondering Christmas Luke 2:11-19 12-26-10

Sermon 12-26-2010 luke 2: 11-19 ppppppp
11For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. 12And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. 13And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, 14Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. 15And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. 16And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. 17And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. 18And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. 19But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.
Mary pondered all these things in her heart

Pondering
To weigh in the mind, to consider, to appraise, to reflect on, to weigh
Its not exactly clear, this takes a little more thought

There are joys and concerns
The wonderful and the scarry
The frightening and the amazing

In life, god often joins the amazing with the problematic

And we choose whether we will be lost in the fear
Broken and paralyzed by the problem

Or filled with joy at the chance to be alive, to participate

Lavonne
Wow, if people had any idea what you have had to live through
No, I would love to tell people about the things that I have had the joy of living through

This was not easy-
Was mary complaiing? Were the wise men>?
Will mary look back and complain
Will the wise men look back and complain

Sometimes we react to things without considering the value of the moment-
We are cut off by a bad driver –
Someone is late for a lunch appointment – thankful for the quiet?

Angry that our parent dies, as if parents don’t die if we just get mad enough
Angry instead of savoring

there is value even in the difficult moments
In them, god is still working
He tends to have our attention
I suggest to you today that there is a richness in the challenging times, a value, a joy.

James 1:
2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,[a] whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

Joy is not based on circumstances
Happiness is
I am so happy because I…………….
Joy transcends circumstances
Joy is found by those who ponder. Consider. Weigh the moment


Joy is found by those who find something deeper to trust. Something that transcends how its going

The shepherds saw the baby and went back to their old life……
glorifying and praising God
the wise men saw the baby and started their long journey back - rejoicing with exceeding great joy
The fruit of the spiritual life as outlined in Gal 5
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control.

spirituality is not measured by whether or not we get our way.
Love, joy, peace, patience
Did mary like this………you are gonna have a baby…..
As you have said, let it be done to me……….

Joy is much talked about…..
Few people actually have it
Turn up the heat and you will see who is grounded in faith and who is depending on the circumstances of life

joy is found in may places

joy of receiving
joy of giving - fulfills you more when you give to others – water, Katrina, adopt a child
joy of doing the right thing
joy of savoring a moment

Appreciating your life

[demello] the paralyzed man – the man in the body cast

Joy is contagious…..funny hat, someone starts to laugh
It takes over everyone else
christmas eve story of picket and grant – joy is contagious
We like being around people that are joyful

It simply starts with taking the time to consider your life. Ponder the situation. Don’t get stuck on the delivery, enjoy the baby. Don’t invest your unhappiness in others, show them your joy.

Joy leaves behind a kernel of the eternal
Terency Elwyn Johnson, of Margate Community Church (New Jersey), tells the story of Bonnee Hoy, a gifted composer, who died in the prime of life. At her memorial service, a friend told of how a mockingbird used to sing regularly outside Bonnee's window on summer nights. "Bonnee would stand at her bedroom window, peering into the darkness, listening intently, marveling at the beautiful songs the mockingbird sang. Then, musician that she was, Bonnee decided to sing back. So she whistled the first four notes of Beethoven's 'Fifth Symphony.' With amazing quickness the mockingbird learned these four notes and sang them back to Bonnee. 'And in perfect pitch,' Bonnee marveled. Then, for a time the bird disappeared. But one night, toward the very end of her life, when Bonnee was so terribly sick, the bird returned and, in the midst of other songs, several times sang those first four notes of Beethoven's 'Fifth.'" At that memorial service, her beloved friend, with a smile on her lips and tears in her eyes, said, "I like to think of that now. Somewhere out there (in a big, big world) is a mockingbird who sings Beethoven because of Bonnee."

possibly the greatest source of joy in live is to be accepted and loved by that person that is most significant to you
if you are a child and you are in trouble, to be welcomed by mom or dad
if you have had a hard day at work and you go home and your wife loves you.
Nothing better than that.
At Christmas, the most significant one, tells us that we are loved, for he has sent his son into the world to love us, forgive us and die for us….

It is the day after Christmas, we are open for business.
We have a message for anyone that is listening.
See it, think about it, ponder it, it is good.

Tell your friends.
Spread the joy.
Let us pray.