Top Ten Reasons Not to Attend Worship on Sundays . . .

and here they are . . .
1. The _______________ (insert 'music' and/or 'preaching' and/or 'prayers' and/or 'offering') "just doesn't do it for me".
2. I can worship in other ways.
3. Sunday School class is enough for me.
4. My friends don't go.
5. Sunday is the only time I have to sleep in.
6. My schedule is too busy to make the time.
7. I get bored.
8. It is a waste of my time?
9. My Dallas Cowboys are playing.
And my all-time favorite . . . here it comes . . . are you ready . . . . here goes . . . ............
10. God is not the center of the universe. I am.

Nobody ever says that, of course, they say they other nine -- and other excuses that are equally as self focused, which is the point.
Do you see that the common denominator in all those reasons is "I", "me", or "my"?

Now, granted, there are good reasons for not attending worship on Sundays. But they usually have little to do with "I," "me," or "my" and more to do with care for others: jobs through which we provide for our family; illness; care of sick friends, relatives, doing/caring for others in general, of course.
What we really need to face is our own 'why' -- squarely, and honestly.
So, I ask you --
Think about it.
Just think about it.
Where are you in/on this top ten list, if you are even on it?
Is the last reason really the first reason not to make time for what we are called to do FIRST AND FOREMOST, what we were CREATED TO DO?????
. . . And that is worship the Living God who saves us and makes us healed and whole.

Talk amongst yourselves on this one . . . and I'll see you in worship this Sunday.
a.

Forget Ten Percent, what's a tithe -- REALLY?????

This is what we commonly call 'Stewardship Emphasis' time in the life of our church. Really, every Sunday is 'Stewardship Emphasis' time because each time we worship, we are called to respond to the goodness of God by pledging our entire selves, body, mind and spirit, to God. But, once during the year we make a special emphasis on sharing of resources so that the mission and ministry of Jesus Christ though this church might not only continue, but be expanded. This year, we decided to name the thing most Protestants don't want to name: Tithing. In our Judeo-Christian history, a tithe meant offering ten percent of the first fruits, the best we have, to God. It is all over the Hebrew Scriptures and spoken of in the New Testament as well. But, ten percent is an arbitrary designation when it comes to the best we have, and a tithe really is an emotional commitment to far more than that. On the first week of our Emphasis time, September 11th, we spoke of King David, who, during a war with the Philistines (wasn't he ALWAYS at war with the Philistines????) longed for water from a well near Bethlehem, which they occupied. Three of his mighty warriors stole through enemy lines to bring him a drink, which he promptly poured out as a sacrifice to God.
So, a tithe is a sacrifice, first and foremost. The question we are called to ask is: Is God worth our sacrifice? Certainly, God thought we were worth God's sacrifice -- see Jesus Christ, cross, death, etc. for reference.
The second week, we spoke of the Prophet Jeremiah, who, in the middle of a war -- again, (weren't the ancient Hebrews always at war with someone?????) and while imprisoned himself, buys a field, a plot of land as an investment in the future. Even though the war was sure to be lost, and the people were sure to suffer.
So, a tithe is like a field. The question we are called to ask is: What's our field? And is our field worth stepping out in trust of God?
This week, Pastor Grant Palma will be preaching (his first sermon here, YAY!) on the passage in St. Matthew's gospel where Jesus calls his first disciples.
So, a tithe is calling. And the question we are called to ask is: Who is calling us, and to what? And, is that calling worth sacrifice, trust and investing in a future we cannot even know or see.
Come and share worship this Sunday, hear Pastor Grant, and let the Holy Spirit of God work on your heart and in your life.
Come and share your 'tithe' -- a.

Blessed are the Peacemakers . . . right!

Matthew 18:15-20 is a text about conflict resolution. In fact, Jesus could be considered an expert mediator in that text. In it, he gives clear directives as to how those whose business is peacemaking are required to operate: directly naming the issue that is the source of the conflict TO the people who are involved. Try to work things out one on one, he says. That is ALWAYS better than going to a third party, or harboring resentment and anger internally and saying nothing. If that doesn't work, bring in the experts (in this case the faith community) -- first the priest/pastor, then the leaders/elders. Try to work things out. If THAT doesn't work -- separate, but remain connected to one another, in love and with grace. When Jesus says "treat them as tax collectors and Gentiles" we all need to remember how he treated tax collectors and Gentiles: as valued friends, despite differences, despite what his culture said about them.
He loved them.
I really love this text because I have developed a life's passion for peacemaking, and to me it says it all: the how, the why, and the who. In fact, in this text, Jesus calls us TO conflict when it arises, not to duck and run from it as we usually do. There is a role for the church to play in all this -- especially in its witness of modeling this kind of peacemaking in the world today.
Man, we really need peacemakers here and now. Not only on personal and local levels -- church, school, families, extended families, among friends. We need real peacemakers on a national, global level as well. We just experienced a long, hot summer where leaders in our nation couldn't even make the first directive: talk face to face without assuming the other is 1. wrong; and 2. intractable. What we got: deadlock all round, and lots of others, innocents, hurt in the process. So, we need to take Christ seriously when he says, "blessed are the peacemakers" and BE peacemakers. We can do this by addressing perceived ills in our own lives directly, with truth in love. And, together as His Church, we can take it from there.
Let me know what you think -- talk amongst yourselves. And, come Sunday to learn more about how we can do this, and each in our own way, transform the world in the name of Jesus Christ.
a.