August 16th Pray - for Bread

August 16, 2015  Psalm 111, *John 6.51-58 “Pray - for Bread” Pastor Jacqueline Hines

This week was full of the excitement of Vacation Bible School. From the Shick Shack to the sanctuary we were surrounded by the most beautiful pictures and biblical words that remind us that God is creator, provider, protector, savior, and king! [slide # 1 VBS ]The week was intense and afterwards everyone needed a rest. [ slide #2 rest ]

In this morning’s lesson from the gospel of John, Jesus invites us along with the disciples to abide in him or to be with him in intense ways. We are invited to times of Vacation Bible School or spiritual retreats or Sunday worship or daily devotions that fills us to the brim with God’s presence and God’s goodness and whatever else God has for us.

He invites us to be full, [ slide #3 Jesus knocking] to eat of his flesh and drink of his blood, what we know as communion. We are invited to fully and intensely embrace the flesh and blood of Jesus. The crowd that gathered hearing these words of Jesus wondered what Jesus meant by eating his flesh and blood. They were thinking concretely. They were thinking of the flesh, the soft system of muscles and veins that cover our bones. They were thinking of the blood that comes out of our pores when our flesh is injured and damaged.

Jesus was not speaking concretely. He was speaking figuratively and spiritually. Jesus was inviting them to ingest his divine nature, to crave his righteousness, to feast on his words, to enjoy his directions, and to devour his love.  John 6. 57 ”Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, [ slide #4 abide in me] and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me.”

We often remember what a wonderful thing it is to have Jesus in our hearts. But, this verse reminds us that we are also in the heart of Jesus, too.  “Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me…or as the CEB version says: remains in me or is one with me as the CEV version says.

Our God carries us in his heart. We are close to the heart of God. It is common to see babies wrapped and strapped close to the body of a parent. [ slide # 5 baby wrapped] They are so close as to feel each other’s hearts beat. They are so close as to hear the pulse and the impulse of one another. Our God carries us in his heart. We are close to the heart of God. John 6. 57 ”Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. [slide #6 Resting on Jesus’ shoulder]

That is why when we complain to God about another child of God, we are offensive to God. That is why when we refuse to forgive and love another child of God, we are not forgiven; we are still indebted to God and one another. If we owe a debt of love, we ought to pay that debt. And, if we abide in him and he abides in us, we will have the strength and the insight to move in the direction of forgiveness and love. [ slide #7 if we really want to love….]

The older I get, the more complicated this world seems to be. Just when we think we have it all figured out, we see the devil has new tricks up his sleeve that shock and confound us. You may have seen in this week’s news that this young Mississippi couple, Jaelyn Young and Muhammed Dakhlalla.  [ slide #8 photos of couple] described by one judge as “sheltered” got married and planned to have their honeymoon in Syria and join Isis.  The news reminds us that every family needs the light of Jesus, because dark clouds can arrive at any time.

We cannot escape the dark of this world. Dark clouds are to be expected every now and then. The only way to be secure in the dark is to stay close to the one who is the light of the world, the one who shows us the way, who reveals to us the truth, and who defeats death with life. He is the bread of life!

Let this be the day that you remember you are close to the heart of God and there is love and light enough to see your way through the deepest darkness. Let this be the day you remember to turn to God no matter what. [ slide #9 u  turn ] Amen.

August 2nd Pray - for Deliverance

August 2   2 Samuel 11.26-12.13a, *Ephesians 4.1-16 “Pray – for Deliverance” Pastor Jacqueline Hines

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Our text this morning finds the Apostle Paul in verse 1, begging God’s people to live a life worthy of the calling to which they have been called. Paul was begging them, as he suffered in his prison cell. He begged them to listen to God with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love. He was begging them to make every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

Paul was like God. Throughout scriptures God begs us worshippers to examine our lives, to be humble, gentle, patient in ways that create a loving and peaceful and united atmosphere.

That is a tall order for any of us. The good news is that according to verse 7, all of us whether small or great have a measure of grace. That is, we all have something in our hands and in our hearts that helps us create an atmosphere that is loving and peaceful, that is filled with humility, gentleness, unity and peace. We have it and God is blessed when we use it.

This week I have been reflecting on the idea that God designed us with a sense of urgency in mind. Paul is begging God’s people because the needs are urgent. So much of what God has created is created in urgency. The urgency in our lives reminds us that we depend on God. We depend on God for our every breath, our every heartbeat, our every drink of water, every meal, every kind word, and every gentle gesture.

Our needs are urgent because if we go a day or two without our basic needs being met, then we move quickly into a crisis mode, a mode of deprivation and even suffering.

We have all been in a crisis mode. We all know what it feels like to lack and be deprived of something or someone. We have all suffered in one way or another.

Our needs are constant. That is how God created us, and God is always with us in our crisis, our need, and our suffering. So, in trusting God we remember that God is everywhere and has something for us to bless us in our time of need. Our need is great and so is our God.

For God is above us and below us, the one who as verse 9 reminds us, ascends and descends. We do not have to look far to see that we are surrounded by the majestic and the mysterious. Our God is an awesome God! So when Paul begs us to speak the truth in love, in verse 15, we know we have access to Divine power that enables us to speak the truth in love.

Our words have power. Just as God created with a word, according to John that says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all humankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it… 14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.

Our words have power. Every word we speak creates. Every move we make creates something. Every word we speak creates something. There are times we want to be silent and God wants us to speak. There are times we want to speak and God wants us to be silent. God, has a purpose and a plan. For God’s sake, we need to speak when it is time to speak and be silent when it is time to be silent.

What happens when we pray before we speak? When we pray before we speak, the spiritual fruit of self-control becomes stronger and stronger, and that is a good thing.

We have power to speak. We have power to speak the truth. Truth can be very elusive and complicated like an onion with many layers. We know that the truth is the light and that Jesus is the way the truth and the life.

At times the truth is stranger than fiction. At times the truth is hard to swallow and hard to believe, nevertheless, the truth does set us free when it is spoken in loving ways.

A woman shared the story that she was not as close to her father as she longed to be. When he was well into his senior years, she dared to share with him gently some of her most sacred truths. At the end of one loving, truth-telling conversation she suddenly burst into tears, hugged her father with all her might, and felt relieved of a burden that had shackled her and her family for decades.

We can speak by the power of God. We can speak the truth and we can speak the truth in love. The truth is so powerful that we do well to speak carefully and prayerfully.

Speaking the truth can lead to a war of words, a war of the heart, according to Pastor Paul Tripp. When we have something hard to say, those words should be spoken for God’s sake more than our sake and our selfish will.

As we are motivated by love we speak without calling names, without put downs, and without threats. Truth stays pure because it is not bent and twisted by motivations such as fear, envy, greed, selfishness, or anger.

Pastor Tripp tells the story of his 16 year old son Justin who was very easy to parent. He was easier since Tripp believes a parent’s job is to stir up our children’s gifts and build in them a sense of their need to change for God’s sake.

Justin was going to spend a weekend with friends, but he asked a friend to lie for him because he was planning to go somewhere else.

By Saturday night, his friend felt so guilty for lying for Justin that he told his mom and his mom called the Tripp home. Pastor Tripp answered the phone. When he got off the phone he says he was livid. He walked upstairs to his wife Luella and said, “Guess where our son is…” and he told her he was not where he said he would be. She could hear the sarcasm is his voice; looking at his face, she said, “I think you should pray.” He said, “I don’t think I can even pray for my son, now.” Luella said, “No. You should pray for you!”

After prayer, he calmed down enough to realize God was clearly working in the details of this family situation. The friend felt guilty enough for lying for Justin. His mom was responsible enough to call his parents and his wife heard God’s call to pray in the nick of time.

When Justin came home, instead of getting up in his son’s face, he waited a few hours, went to his room, asked him to turn the stereo down so they could talk. He calmly began by asking, “Justin, did you ever think about on your average weekend how much God loves you? One thing led to another and Justin said, “Who told you, Dad…?”

He went on to tell his son that he had made some good choices and was living a good life. “You have been living in the light, but tonight you took a step toward darkness. You manipulated your friends, told stories that were not true…why do you want to choose that?” After speaking calmly, he turned to leave hoping his son would reflect seriously on his life.

When he reached the door, he heard his son say, “Dad, don’t leave.” Tears were streaming down his face as he said, “I want to live in the light but it is so hard. Can you help me?” That son was reconciled to God and to his family. Something was created and it was very good!

This father was glad that he did not speak to his wayward son with inflammatory words while the veins were bulging on the side of his neck, or with darts of rage flashing like lightening in his mind. He was glad.

A certain mother was separated from her husband for four years. They had a son in college who had been lying about going to class. When she found out, she gave her son the option to go to school, get a job or get out. So, he moved in with his dad and he became very distant to his mom.

She was in great anguish and feared losing her son, and wondered if she should remain distant or pursue her son. Wise counselors advised her to pursue – send an occasional text and greeting card and wait for him to grow up and come back to the mother who had invested many years of love into his life, which he would eventually appreciate.

The counselors gave her hope that she could one day have a conversation where she would be able to ask him what she did to hurt him and he would be able to tell her clearly and they would be reconciled as mother and son once again. Speaking the truth in love is not easy, it may even take time, but it always creates something good. Amen.