November 18 2018 Free to Choose

November 18 2018 Free to Choose *I Samuel 1.4-20, Mark 13.1-8 Pastor Jacqueline Hines

I heard a part of a story on the wbyn - 107.5 radio station this week that can give us pause to think or smile. Two men were having lunch and one of them bowed his head down and whispered a prayer. The other man looking on with concern asked, “Do you have a headache?”

The man replied, “no”. Is your food o.k.?

The man answered, “My food looks fine.”

“Well then, why did you put your head down?”

The man explained that he was just giving thanks.

The other man said, “Oh, I never give thanks. I just dig right in.” “Oh,” noted the man who had given thanks, “That’s what my dog does. He just dives right in.”

This story reminds us that giving thanks somehow humanizes us.

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Did you notice in the scripture reading from Samuel that there is a whole lot of holiness going on? The name of the book itself – Samuel directs us to God, for the name has the “el” in it. In Hebrew “el” is the word for “God”. [slide #  1 “el” means God in Hebrew] Samuel means “God has heard”.  In the first verse, of this chapter in the book of Samuel, a husband and father named Elkanah –   meaning “God has created” makes a sacrificial offering to God. That’s what Godly men do; they make holy sacrifices and offerings to God. They are leaders in giving to God and creating an atmosphere that is generous and kind. Praise God for Godly men and women!

Elkanah’s wife, Hannah had it going on, too. “Hannah” means “grace.” [slide #  2  Hannah means…] We all appreciate God’s grace. Hannah presented herself to the Lord by the grace of God. She did not just enter the temple to worship with her friends and family. She went to God to spend some quality time. She sat in the sanctuary in order to have a private conversation and some personal one-on-one time with God. That’s what Godly women and men do; they nurture a personal relationship with God, so that their public persona will personify the purposes and plans of God, more perfectly. Godly men and women of the bible were a work in progress, just like the rest of us. [slide #  3 keep calm…]

Verse 11 tells us that Hannah was holy enough to make a vow, a pledge, taking a risk to make a promise and commit something so BIG to God that only God could make it happen. This is how we make our stewardship pledges; we make a promise so big that we could never accomplish it without the power of God. [slide #  4  Hannah promised…]

Verse 19 is also a reminder of the continual holiness that illuminates this text. Hannah rose early in the morning – not to put her makeup on, or to get breakfast ready for her family, or to get a head start on the camel traffic to go on vacation. Hannah rose early – like we do on Easter morning – to worship God, and her husband rose with her. They went to worship God together. [slide # 5  They rose early..]

It was in the sanctuary that the priest Eli saw Hannah whispering her prayers to God. He thought she was intoxicated. Most churches would find it unusual to find a drunk person in the pews, but there are always exceptions. [slide #  6  Hannah seated in prayer] When I was a student, trying to make a great impression one Sunday, in downtown New Haven, just when the service was about to begin or end…I do not recall, a man came stumbling in the front doors, disheveled and wreaking with alcohol. I was trying to show him the way out, but one of the members tucked her head underneath my arms as I was holding the door and told him where he could get food. She had her holy ears on and heard what I could not hear. She heard him ask for food.

The scripture is dotted with a lot of holy activity throughout this passage. At the same time, Elkanah was a product of his culture. He had two wives, which was not God’s plan. Hannah and Peninnah competed anxiously for the same husband. God’s people do well to pray and reflect on our religious as well as our cultural traditions and conditions. When we think about what we do and say rather than simply follow the crowd, when we promise God we will do what God guides us to do, we come out better, even when it is not easy. [slide #  7  think…]

Since the culture was set up for women to get their basic needs for food and water through men, and men could only be men if they had a lot of women, clearly the writer’s inspired purpose of this scripture is not to put a spotlight on the fact that Elkanah was torn between two lovers. It was not to tickle our ears with the drama of two women in a dog fight for one man. What our spiritual ears hear is the conversation between God and a woman who had the courage and conviction to take her burdens to the Lord and a man who held her close through the thick and the thin or life. [slide # 8  Elkanah and Hannah]

His other wife, Peninnah – whose name means “jewel” was a shrewd cookie. All that glitters is not gold. Peninnah was very noticeable for her acting like the wicked witch of the west. She was indeed, God’s diamond in the rough.

Peninnah knew the glory of every man and woman was to have a son. She knew Hannah was barren, and she teased Hannah to death, putting her down instead of lifting her up. [slide #  9  Hannah’s despair] Peninnah knew how to bring a grown woman to her knees. She had a quiver full of choice words, toxic tones, shrieking laughs, and cruel gestures that could keep you crying all night long. And Hannah did cry. It was by the grace of God that Hannah did not fall apart and run away; instead, Hannah rose and went to worship the God who could save her. And save her, God did.

God not only saved Hannah from being laughed at, embarrassed and ashamed because of the culture’s rejection of her, God did it in a surprising way. Everyone understood that she was physically unable to have children. They thought it was impossible. The scriptures encourages us to think big, and pray big [slide #  10  pray big] because with God all things are possible. It was a welcome surprise when she did get pregnant. [slide #  11 …God surprises…] And it was a boy. She named him Sam u el which means “God has heard”. Perhaps she was less stressed and worried after deciding to trust God and less stress made it easier to conceive as is often the case.

We too, do well to make the choice to present ourselves to the Lord, to let go of the stress –if only for a moment – and to think big and pray big, [slide # 12 think big…trust God] to refuse to cry when the world rubs us the wrong way. Prayer is the only way to survive in this world. Prayer opens the door to hear the wisdom of God, to receive God’s care and comfort.

Prayer is planting seeds for a spiritual harvest. There are no guarantees what that harvest will be. We may have to let go of some blessings as Hannah did when she dedicated Samuel to God as we do when we have our children baptized. We will surely gain other blessings along the way, for God’s mercies are new every  morning, but it is always a good thing to pray big  [slide # 13  pray big…listens] and expect to be surprised like Hannah and give thanks to God for every blessing that comes our way. Amen. [slide # 14  light is greater than darkness…]

November 11 2018 Free for All

November 11, 2018 Free for all Psalm 127 *Mark 12.38-44 Lou Dolente playing both services Pastor Jacqueline Hines

A father tells the story of before his son could start going on job interviews, he needed to dress the part, that, he decided, he required a $500 suit.

"What!?" I answered, gagging at the price tag. "I've bought cars for $500!"

"That's why I want the $500 suit," he said. "So I don't have to drive $500 cars."++

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Poverty is no joke. One of the prayers that has flowed through my heart every morning for the last twenty years is “Lord, deliver our children from ill health and poverty.”  [slide #  1   children] Children are more vulnerable to poverty than adults. Children depend on us to do the RIGHT thing, to take care of them, so that they can take care of themselves and eventually help to take care of those who cannot take care of themselves.

The riches of God’s kingdom are free for all creation. Still, we must seek God with all our heart, all our mind, all our strength because everything good comes from God. The spiritual life is not a free-for-all. It is not a lifestyle where anything goes, no matter how hungry we are for our needs to be satisfied or for our will to be done at all times.

The riches of God’s love and mercy are free to all who treasure them. There are times when we could not care less about being blessed, when we trash God’s treasure. Such moments come naturally for us. Still, the spirit-filled life calls us to live super-naturally. [slide # 2  super naturally]

Jesus noticed a widow who gave a small amount in the offering. She is usually pictured as feeble and unimportant because she is poor. Yet, Jesus lifts her up as an example of great importance. The widow’s great stewardship offers three keys for us to unlock the treasures of living supernaturally.

The first key to unlocking spiritual treasure is to look in the faces of poverty in the mirror [slide # 3  mirror] as well as in the world around you. There will always be a need in our lives or the lives of others around us. Oprah Winfrey once said, “You can have it all in this world. You just can’t have it all at once.” That puts all of our lives in perspective to some degree. No matter who we are or where we come from, we do not have all we want or everything we need all of the time. So, God fills in the gaps. When God is all we have, God is all we need.

When Apostle Paul asked God to take away his suffering, he said God told him: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” [slide # 4  my grace…is all you need.] Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

In this life, there is an equal opportunity for all humans to be in need or to have a deep, unfulfilled longing for something great or small. Our needs and wants are very, very personal and very subject to being judged by ourselves and the rest of the world. God knows it all.

Last week we heard Jeanne share that she thought her grandmother’s ring was so beautiful and she prayed it would be hers someday. God heard the desire of her heart. One thing led to another and she got exactly what she wanted. As Amy and Elaine were setting up the Attic Treasures for the bazaar, Mike DeMarco came in, spotted a tin canister, and lifted it up, saying I saw this being sold on EBay for $10,000. It was missing a lid so he concluded it might sell for $5,000 – maybe...but probably not….What one person barely notices or even sets aside as trash, another will long for and greatly treasure. Our needs and wants are personal.

No matter who we are and where we have come from, God treasures us. We may be carrying a load of trash, we may talk trash, we may trash a person, a place, a thing, but still deep down in God’s heart, God longs for us because God sees each one of us as deeply treasured, as valuable and worth a million.

In Monday night bible study, we discussed how God wants us to be in harmony with one another, whether rich or poor. God wants us  to be compassionate to others whether living in abundance and luxury or living in dire need; and to be humble whether you’re in charge or wishing you were in charge. We are all to be cherished, beloved, and valued. Only the power of God can make us cherish, love, and value one another when our feelings of fear, hatred, and superiority are so deeply rooted in the hearts of us Christians. I often think of how the night before the Columbine shooting, the murderous teens had spent the evening in their United Methodist Youth group. Things are not always as they seem.

Jesus noticed a poor widow. She was precious in his sight. He saw her for who she was, beloved and treasured. Such beauty can only be seen when we dare to look and see each other’s needs as well as blessings and know that the Lord is good even when life’s situations are not good.

It is not easy to see the truth about someone’s struggle when we are living in abundance and luxury. God helps us. Our eyes are open after being on a mission in a place where people are literally starving for food or freedom. So, the first key to unlocking God’s treasure is to see poverty in the mirror or in the lives of the 43 million Americans around us, nearly two-thirds of this country, and the billions around the world, including those who die in poverty or those who wish they were dead, rather than poor.

God’s treasures are revealed to those who are willing to see the truth and be set free. The treasured fruit of the Spirit is made richly available to feed hungry hearts, the gifts of God, like diamonds and gold, are unearthed, stirred up and displayed. The joy of the Lord flows like precious oil from heart to heart and mind to mind, bringing strength to the weak. There is no need to worry and fret about every need or all who suffer. Just trust God to guide you to do what you need to do.

If we want God to tell us if we are our brother or our sister’s keeper, we should at least look at him or her, and see them as the dear one as God sees them.

The second key to unlocking God’s treasure is to give to God no matter what, no matter who sees or does not see; who credits or does not credit; no matter how much or how little you have to give; no matter how the future looks, no matter how mad or afraid you are, give to God, give a tithe, or give the widow’s mite, but whatever you do, give. If you are worried about whether your giving is in vain, remember the scripture promise from Romans 6. 38 – “38 Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

You may have read Wednesday’s Upper Room where a husband says he and his wife read the Malachi scripture and began tithing though they thought they could not afford it, but when their resources increased, they were convinced it was because they had obeyed God’s word.

Growing up, I was reminded often never to come to the Lord’s house empty-handed, which is direction taken from the book of Deuteronomy. Even if it is a penny, or a smile, I need to give something. God is always worthy to receive some gift from us.

The third key to unlocking God’s treasure is to let your light shine. The widow could have stayed home and missed coming into God’s presence. She came and she was a shining light. She also received the blessed sunshine of God’s love. We need the sunshine of God’s love in order shine our own lights.

Solar lights shine at night without batteries. [slide # 5  solar lights] The more sunlight that they are exposed to during the day, the brighter they shine. The only way our lights can shine is if we have been in the presence of the SON. May you walk in the light, today and forever! Amen. [slide # 6  the light in you…]

November 4 2018 Free to Weep

November 4 Free to Weep Isaiah 25.6-9 *John 11.32-44 All Saints Day- Pastor Jacqueline Hines  

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It happens often enough. When we see or hear someone crying, it stirs up our own tears. [slide # 1 baby crying]

We are wired to care and to create a world of compassion. We are designed to sympathize! What a beautiful world God has created, and there are people throughout the world trained by the Holy Spirit, whether they know it or not, specifically to help us maintain compassion in this world.

Though our world may be marked with death and destruction, God’s plan for us is to be surrounded by compassion and beauty. God’s plan bring us relief and new life. We cannot eliminate all the bad things in this world. We can, by the grace of God, cultivate goodness.

One of the passages that I find most inspiring is Romans 12.21 that says do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. [slide # 2…overcome by evil] There is another passage that stays with me when I am on high alert because of evil in this world. In Exodus 23 verses 29 and 30 God tells Moses that he will conquer the enemy but it will not be quickly [slide # 3 …in one year] because then the land would be desolate and wild beasts, like packs of wolves, would take over. [slide #  4  wild beasts] So Moses would have to teach the people to be patient in their warfare and to conquer the land bit by bit, [slide # 5 little by little] rather than all at once.

So when Mary fell at the feet of Jesus, weeping because sickness and death had slithered into her home, Jesus started crying, too. [slide # 6  Jesus wept] He may have been weeping for the physical loss of his friend Lazarus or he may have been weeping because Lazarus, like Jesus, was about to leave the glory of eternity and return to the troubles of this world…as Mahalia Jackson sang.

Bethel, like most churches, feels free to weep when others weep. When we weep with one another, kind deeds and gestures flow freely and form pools of unending love. [slide # 7 rain / tear drops] My mother has been gone for three years, now, but I will never, ever forget the spontaneous showering of prayers, affection, kind words, and deeds that kept me from collapsing in my grief. Someone or a couple someones prepared a large arrangement of fresh flowers; I can still see a variety of dewy white petals of lilies, carnations, and roses that seemed an endless reminder of the beauty and delicate nature of life. I still have one of the plants and the card with the loving words is still attached, though the ink is fading a bit. Three years later, it is just dawning on me that in the cafe where a few family and friends who had traveled a distance from other states were gathering and someone or a couple someones had prepared refreshments for them. To this day, I do not know who took responsibility for that. I just know that I was lifted up again and again by a group of Bethel angels, unnamed, but not forgotten.

Compassion and care create an atmosphere that raises us to new life or keeps us from dying before our time. Jesus weeps with us in our sadness and sorrow. We are not alone. That is the beauty of life that heals and empowers us and gives us life. If you have not experienced this kind of divine love and attention, you may be like many of us some days. We miss the forest for trees, we see the glass half empty instead of half full.

It takes all of our spiritual might to see life, when we are surrounded by death and destruction. That is why, I suppose we say so often with ease that our troubles make us stronger because unless we keep our eye on what God is doing, our troubles and temptations will definitely distract us and debilitate us.

It is important to learn that you are surrounded with the beauty that reflects God’s compassion and care for you. Just looking up at the sky and the clouds and the shining sun, the leaves of trees blowing with a gentle breeze, and the flowers delighting our sense of sight and smell, can give us pause to think and give thanks and remind us that God is with us, will never leave us and cares ever so deeply for us. We are refreshed and rejuvenated by nature and all of God’s creation, animals, and human kindness. And when the clouds are grey and the rain is fierce, we know that there is and always will be a silver lining, a bright side somewhere, a rainbow sign to cheer us and brighten our spirits, a seed whether gently planted or brutally buried that promises a future filled with hope. [slide # 8  plant growing through macadam ]

As Christians we know things that do not show up on the surface of situations. We know things that may only be found deep within a time of prayer, study of God’s word, and while serving obediently and faithfully. We see things that are not obvious when we are blinded by worldly ways and immoral habits. We do things in response to God’s love for us. We do not do just what we want to do or need to do. We act in faith knowing that our lives are not our own.

We have been bought with a price, purchased with the blood of the lamb. [slide #  9  lamb of God…] All that we have and ever hope to be we owe it all to God. Our money is not our own, our time is not our own, our family is not our own, our friends are not our own, our ministry is not our own. Whatever we buy, we buy with God’s money. What we do, we do with the strength God give us. What we say, we say in the name of Jesus whose purpose is to encourage, comfort, and strengthen anyone, especially the hopeless, the helpless, the heedless, the leaderless, and the scattered.

A Christian sister shared a wonderful lesson she received from the Holy Spirit. A male coworker and friend would on occasion ask to borrow her car. She allowed, but she soon understood that he was using it to cheat on his wife. She turned a blind eye because she thought that was the nice thing to do and she did not want to lose a friend. She did not want to cause conflict, or mind anyone else’s business. One day she heard the still small voice of God rebuking her, asking her a question, ‘Did I bless you with a car so it could be used to do this dirt?’

At that point she was given the choice to confront her own demons and the demons of her “friend.” The deeds that the Holy Spirit urges us to do may require courage and confrontation or “carefrontation” as I learned from my social work training. If we are going to confront an issue or a person, we need to care so that we can speak the truth in love as Ephesians 4.15 tells us so that we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. Christ is the head. [slide  #  10  grow…]

If God is not the head of our home and our church, if God is not directing our words, our moods, our behavior on a day to day basis, let us not fool ourselves into thinking that we are in charge. Either God is in charge or Satan is in charge. There are only two ways about it. [slide  # 11 …in charge here]

Recently, I read an article online entitled 10 things healthy churches do well. The first on the list is that a healthy church expects to have problems. 2 They handle criticism well, 3  deal with problems promptly, 4 depend on lay leadership, 5 pastors stay in line with their divinely-given priorities, 6 the congregation chooses good and Godly leaders – not just those bearing treasured gifts, 7 the congregation supports the leaders, not hinders their work, 8 the solutions are models of Christlikeness, 9 the world is impressed with the way problems are dealt with, and 10 as a result of doing these 10 healthy things, 12 things happen: God is glorified, Jesus is pleased, the Holy Spirit is freed to do what is planned, the only one mad is the devil, the enemies are confused, the critics stop their nonsense, the church is built up and strengthened, members who are going through things are encouraged and instructed, outsiders and onlookers are impressed, the church and everyone is blessed, a reward awaits us in Heaven, and our church’s reputation goes through the roof as others are convinced that we are true Christians when they see our love for God and one another and we take responsibility for the little things before they get out of hand.

There is no perfect church, no one good but God, but since the Holy Spirit dwells within us, we are made righteous, we are acceptable to God, we are accomplishing the way and the will of God. As my colleague and civil rights worker Rev. Gil Caldwell would say, [slide # 12  Gil Caldwell and wife] We are the church in spite of ourselves.

Jesus is our source of new life. [slide #  13 Lazarus rising] He raises us to a new life, taking us beyond our temptations and trials. When Jesus told the crowd to roll away the stone, Mary said, ‘But, but, but…Lord he’s been dead too long. He stinks…’. But, praise be to the God who meets us in our stinky place!

There are moments that stink to high Heaven, but when Jesus calls us out like he called Lazarus from the dead, he has also already called faithful followers to roll away the stone that block God’s will for us to witness life. The only thing left to do is for us to listen to see if he is calling you or me to use whatever we have to unbind someone who is wrapped up and tangled up by something sinister and to get out of the way so they can move out into the light of God’s love. [slide #  14 Lazarus coming forth]

We cannot live life in this world alone. Lazarus’ hands were wrapped up and so were his feet and his face. We need each other to live. That is God’s design and plan. And, it is so beautiful! [slide #  15 God is beautiful] Amen. [slide #  16 I am beautiful…]

October 28 2018 Marriage Is Music, Knowledge Is Limited

October 28, 2018 *Mark 10.46-52, Job 42.1-6, 10-17 “Marriage is Music, Knowledge is Limited” Pastor Jacqueline Hines

Jesus and the disciples came to Jericho, [slide # 1 Jericho map] one of the oldest cities in the world. [slide #  2 ancient Jericho] It was a well-known city because, like Spring City, Pennsylvania, it was an area blessed by God to have lots of water, and we all know what a blessing it is to have lots of water. [slide #  3 aqueducts] Jericho was also known for its honey, [slide #  4 honey] roses, [slide # 5 rose bush] and Cyprus trees. [slide # 6 cypress trees] There were other cities named Jericho, but this Jericho was located between Jerusalem and the Jordan River. Like many densely populated areas, there were enough people coming and going that that there was a great incentive to sell and buy anything, good or not-so-good. [slide #  7 marketplace]

There was enough slimy and grimy stuff for any God-fearing family to be on alert and protect their children from negative influences. Joshua and his God-driven soldiers fought the battle of Jericho in order to reclaim the territory for the clean life. [slide # 8 marching around Jericho] They were marching around the walls until “the walls, the walls, the walls,” as that children’s song says, “came tumbling down.” [slide # 9 walls falling]

Now some are quick to say that Joshua should have been ashamed of himself for leading an army to conquer Jericho for no good reason. But, if you read the bible over and over enough, in whatever version, you can see that God does not ask soldiers to fight the innocent and powerless. God sends soldiers to fight in order to deliver people from evil. Joshua may have been fighting the evils of terrorism, pornography, prejudice, prostitution, kidnapping, slavery, drug cartels or pirates. The bible does not say what battle Joshua was fighting. We only know that it was in Jericho.

There was no detailed description of the evil that was going on. That is true of a few places in the bible. As Paul reminded the church in Ephesus, chapter 5.12, “It is shameful even to talk about the things that ungodly people do in secret.” God does not always share the gory and disgusting details of the world’s wickedness. Even today’s evening news journalists refuse to say certain words and show certain pictures without a warning. Some things are so slimy as to be better left unsaid.

After Joshua destroyed and dismantled Jericho, he cursed the city and warned anyone who would try to rebuild the evils that they would suffer death and destruction. It was, unfortunately rebuilt 500 years later by the wicked, unruly King Ahab with the help of his overbearing, sacrilegious, blood-thirsty Queen Jezebel. Rebuilding something wicked is no real surprise, for the default of humanity is the reproduction of greed and hatred. We work to pull up a satanic root here and find seeds being nurtured over there. We simply have to do whatever Jesus asks us to do, the rest is in God’s hands.

So, over a thousand years after Joshua fought the battle of Jericho, cursed it and dared anyone to rebuild that evil, there it was as a stench in God’s nostrils again. Jesus and his disciples were in it, and as they were leaving, according to the gospel of Mark, they heard a man calling them from the side of the road of this sin-city, “Jesus, son of David. Have mercy on me.”

Hearing someone call him must have been music to Jesus’ ears. He was the savior of the world, but not everyone wanted to be saved. He was the lover of human souls, but not everyone was looking for love in all the right places. He gave his life to seal a new covenant for the forgiveness of all of our sins, but the human inclination was for the chaos of cacophony rather than for melody and harmony.

Humans make a lot of noise here on earth, but it is music to God’s ears when we cry out earnestly and lift our hearts and hands toward heaven expecting to receive the blessings and mercies that Jesus is ready to pour out for us.

Though Jericho was about 75 miles from Nazareth where Jesus was from, the man on the side of the road knew who Jesus was. He knew he was the son of the great King David, by 28 generations. On the other hand, Mark tells us some important things about this man on the side of the road. We know he is in a situation that anyone could find themselves in at one point in life. He is side-lined in society, he is a beggar, economically disadvantaged, he is visually impaired – like probably 95% of us in this room, but Mark thought it super important that we know who his daddy was. We do not know the name of the man himself. Mark simply called him BarTimaeus. “Bar” means “son of,” so we know he was the son of Timaeus, and in the Greek, Timaeus is translated “highly prized.” [ slide #  10 Timaeus means “highly prized”]

I find it particularly interesting that there is a man in the bible whose name means “highly prized” because that is the name the Holy Spirit gave me to call my son in the faith, the only male on this earth who calls me “mom.” He is a man who served a prison term and whose value the world can easily overlook, but whom God calls a “prize.”  [slide # 11 prized possession]

What we see is not always all that God is showing us. When our spiritual eyes are impaired, we may be blind to what is most precious to God. [slide #  12 you…special] Mark tells us that BarTimaeus was blind and blindness has two meanings in scripture. One meaning is to be unable to see physically, the other is to be unable to look up. Bartimaeus was not only able to look up toward the heavens, but his looking caused him to see Jesus and he cried out so loudly that he was disturbing the peace. When they tried to shut him up, he cried out even louder. He knew he was important to Jesus, that Jesus prized him, and that the desire of Jesus’ heart was that he be blessed. [slide # 13 God delights in you]

What we see is not always all that God is showing us. In the 90’s there emerged a trend for blind auditions for orchestras. As a result of musicians playing behind a curtain, of course, conductors could not see what they looked like that is why the number of female musicians has increased in orchestras as much as 30%.

We do not know much in this world, but there is one thing we know for sure. If we can see Jesus, our eyes will be open, and our lives will be changed forever. Amen. [slide # 14 we are God’s prized…]

October 14 2018 Marriage Is A MIssion, Greed Is Ghastly

October 14 2014 Pastor Jacqueline Hines *Mark 10.17-31,  Psalm 22.1-15 “Marriage is a Mission, Greed Is Ghastly”

You have heard the expression, “Never put all your eggs in one basket.” Still in matters of the heart, we tend not to hold back. We often give our all to love, so we can receive it all. It is true that the more we give, the more we get. But, when we realize that that is not true one hundred percent of the time, some of us become desperately disappointed, denigrated, and doggedly determined to never let it happen again. No one wants to be a loser. We do understand that we cannot win them all in this life, but we persist in trying.

Perhaps a certain young man thought of himself as a real winner when he knelt in true Middle Eastern style, approaching the great rabbi Jesus. [slide # 1 man bowing before Jesus] It was all over town that Jesus was offering a way to have eternal life, everlasting life, and this young man was wise enough to seek good things for himself, even if he had not experienced eternal life or could even comprehend it, he believed in it and he was willing to take a chance that it was worth his while to invest in it.

It is wonderful to know what is good and to make every effort to get all the good we can. For the more God gives us, the more God entrusts us to be a blessing wherever and whenever God guides us to be a blessing. Our marriage to God is a mission, wherein God is constantly pouring love and everything good into our lives, and we dare not hold it too tight, lest it become like sand. The tighter we hold it, the more it spills. [slide # 2 mission/generosity] Our mission is to pour into the lives of others, as God assigns us. Greed is ghastly – despicable, disagreeable, distasteful…Greed reveals my heart not totally trusting in God, a heart afraid that if I am left with nothing but God, God will not be enough. Greed, perhaps, reveals a lack of appreciation for the blessings I have and a lack of hope that God will provide what I need, even if it is not what I want. Greed reveals my longing for some other love – the love of stuff and status – even though I have pledged my allegiance to an all-loving God. Greed is ghastly, despicable, disagreeable, distasteful…

The young man was smart enough or perhaps impressed enough to compliment Jesus. He called him good teacher, but Jesus pointed him to God. [slide # 3 player pointing to God] Perhaps Jesus was like those football players who make an amazing play and while everyone is excited and tells them how good they did, the player points toward Heaven, letting the crowd know that it’s is not about their being good, it’s about God who is good.

Jesus was known around the region as a good teacher. In every age, there are those who when we hear their names, we think of their sermons, their books, their programs that we call exceptionally good. Jesus was known as a good teacher.

Jesus gave this student a very significant and affirming piece of information. No doubt the young man did not have to take notes, he would remember for the rest of his life what Jesus was about to say.  “You know the commandments, Jesus told him.” Every serious student appreciates knowing that the teacher notices that they are smart. In fact, students remember every word their teachers and those in authority say about them. “You know the commandments,” Jesus said to him. Knowing the commandments is not something that Jesus could say about every student.

At the same time that Jesus was giving him kudos for knowing the Ten Commandments, [side # 4 good job] Jesus had some lessons for this student to learn. Jesus listed only gave him credit for six of the ten. It was the last six, the six that direct us how to relate to other people: honoring mother and father, do not murder, no infidelity, no stealing, no lying, and no fraud (which is coveting to the point of cheating). Intentionally, Jesus left out the first four commandments, those commandments that deal with how to relate to God: no other Gods, no idols images, no taking God’s name in vain, and honoring the Sabbath.

How is it that we can have good relations with our neighbors and not with God? Isn’t it one and the same? Perhaps in some ways, doing right by our neighbor reflects our right relationship with God. In another since, we do right by our neighbor because it pays off immediately. The chaos in our neighbor’s house can easily impact our own house. It is worth it to have good relations, to be nice, to share and care. If we smile at our neighbor, our neighbor smiles back then all is good. If not, we know the rules for working things out until all is good again.

God is more patient and merciful than our neighbors. If we make God our top priority, if we make things right with God first, then our priorities will be in the good order rather than upside down. It is not easy to give our all to God. It [slide # 5 God is top priority]  is not easy to surrender our loved ones, our dreams, our comfort, or our money. C.S. Lewis wrote that Christian charity is neither Christian nor charity unless our giving “cramps our style” and causes us to sacrifice some needs as well as luxuries. And that sort of giving, he added, is just the starting point of the Christian Journey, not its end.

One Christian talked said “When I get my check at the beginning of each month, the first thing I do is give a tenth to God. Then I pay my bills. If there is anything leftover, I spend it on myself.” Of course, giving to God is not always that simple for there are crises and overbearing economic restraints to take into consideration, but he has the basic idea, and we all do well to count our blessings and pray for God to guide us.

We all have different perspectives of what God has before us to do. You may have heard the story of three people looking at a tree; One may see the tree as so many boards and feet of valuable lumber worth so much money. The second sees the tree as so much firewood to be burned, to keep a family warm in the winter. A third may see the tree as a masterpiece of God’s creative art, given as an expression of God’s love and enduring strength, with a value far beyond its worth in money or firewood. We all see a vision of what God has before us and if we are willing, we can be the church united, with one purpose, one goal, one vision, to be and do whatever the father, son, and Holy Spirit  stirs us up to be and do. For, without a vision, God’s people cannot be the church, passing the baton on to our neighbors, our family, our friends, or our children.

I heard one of the men of God of Bethel say this week – “The world is in such chaos, but I am not concerned about myself. I am concerned about my grandchild.” That Bethel father’s heart is like the heart of God and if we all are just as concerned about the next generation, we will be willing to ask God to guide us to not only to see the chaos that surrounds us but to see God’s will and to be willing to follow where God leads us, to surrender our all and put our all in the hands of an almighty God – our loved ones, our dreams, our comfort, our gifts, our talents and our money. May it be so today! [ slide # 6 giving God our whole heart ]

October 7 2018 Marriage Is A Mystery, Divorce is a Duh

October 7 2018 *Mark 10.2-16, Psalm 26 “Marriage is a Mystery, Divorce is a Duh” World Communion Sunday Pastor Jacqueline Hines

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How we all love wedding ceremonies. The bride is always beautiful, there is bound to be something in the service that touches our hearts, and the food is great, especially since we do not have to cook. [slide #  1 wedding feast tables] While the ceremony can bring lots of fun and laughter, the bible says marriage is a mystery. That is to say, since God created humans and God created marriage and since God Godself cannot be fully comprehended, God’s idea of marriage is a mystery in part. [ slide # 2 marriage / mystery]

Throughout the bible, another word for marriage is “covenant.” Covenant is the old fashioned word for what we call today, agreements, contracts, or promises. Most of the time, biblical covenants had more to do with securing the future of holy assets rather than, flower girls and ring bearers, or whatever cultural trappings were in vogue. [slide #  3 covenants…I will be..]

Covenants can be conditional agreements as when we set up an email, we agree not to abuse the privilege by engaging in illegal activity on the internet. Covenants can be temporary contracts as those made with a landscaping or cleaning service. Covenants can have contingencies created just in case something does not go as planned. It offers assurance to a party that wants to make sure they are covered financially or otherwise.

Covenants require responsibilities that when not carried through, may render the covenant null and void, or incur unpleasant penalties. Some covenants are deemed worthy of renewing and refining, updating and upscaling because their worth has not diminished, but rather has proven to be of continual benefit.

God loves to make covenants, for covenants whether they originate with kissy face puppy love or a board room business deal, our covenant is always about our love for God and for the humanity that God has created. For God, the most precious jewel and delight is God’s people - walking in holiness, living a lifestyle that breeds compassion, and justice, and mercy that fosters peace and love. God loves to make covenants. God loves to unite us and remind us with symbols of our journey together, whether it be a rainbow or a ring. [slide # 4 blessing of God’s covenant]

Scholars may have different opinions about the covenants in the bible. They usually agree on a few, such as the Edenic covenant in the garden of Eden where the serpent appeared as a symbol of the mastermind of temptation, and the Adamic covenant made when God promised Adam prosperity if he could resist crossing a certain boundary and eating of the symbolic tree of the knowledge of evil that leads to a curse, as well as good, that nurtures us for right living. There is the Noahic covenant when God promised Noah God would not destroy the earth with a flood again, and God sealed the promise with a brilliant rainbow.

The Abrahamic covenant was God’s unconditional promise to make Abraham a great nation and bless all those in his family tree, including Jesus who made the whole world a part of a blessed family, who were all to be symbolically circumcised in their hearts, at the very least.

Some recognize a Palestinian covenant in the bible that promises to scatter God’s people and take away their prominent places and power and give them to the Palestinians, symbolic name for all those who could care less about the ways of God. Palestinians were chosen since God’s own people were not willing to unite and work together to fulfill God’s plan.

The Mosaic covenant left Moses with the Ten Commandments, a symbol of the choice to submit and obey or resist until ruined.

Then there is the Davidic covenant between the shepherd king and military officer David whose enemies God promised to subdue if he would only be guided by the symbolic staff and rod that God provided to comfort him in every journey and every battle.

Finally, there is the New covenant. The symbols of the bread and wine remind us of Jesus’ sacrifice and our own sacrifices to serve whom our [slide # 5 Rev. Dawn Taylor-Storm]   district superintendent Dawn Taylor Storm called during Tuesday’s Charge Conference, our Living God, [slide # 6 living God] by whom we live and breathe and have our being. The New Covenant is a renewal of God’s promise to forgive our sins and to place a steady stream of the power and truth of God’s love in our hearts as we put our faith in Jesus. [slide # 7  many covenants]

As Christians, we very much appreciate being in Covenant with God’s love that will not let us go. We want, as the songwriter says, to rest our weary souls in that love and to give back our lives that we owe to that love, so that its loving depths, as deep as the ocean would even be richer and fuller as we pour our love back toward God and God’s people. [slide # 8 Oh Love (song)]

Love is truly a mystery. How love survives in a world full of horror and hate is indeed a mystery. Though life seems more uncertain than ever, people are still falling in love, creating families and finding a way to do missions far and wide because, in spite of it all, there is an abundance of compassion in the hearts and minds of so many people. We see that as Jean Domin has gathered a dozen persons, including several teenagers, to do a mission a few miles away. Their heart is in the right place and they are sharing God’s love through missional service.

[slide # 9 war-torn Syria] A report given by a doctor in war-torn Syria noted that in spite of bombs going off and destruction looming everywhere, people were still getting married and celebrating love, rather than being consumed by despair.

Our district superintendent reminded us that the world has changed. People are getting married and having children at a later age than they did years ago. In addition, she says, we tend to focus on families with a mother, father, and 2.5 children but nowadays, there are fewer of those families and many more households with only one single person, so we do well to keep a ministry in mind that is aware of the changes in our world.

Another interesting and obvious statistic according to Pew Research, as of 2016, tells that Millennials, those between the ages of ages 18 and 35 were not the heads of households as previous generations; rather there were more living at home. More Millennials are in poverty than those of the same age in prior generations. The world is changing, the church is changing, God has a purpose and a plan that will be fulfilled. As has been said, “The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.” In spite of the weary years of human’s inhumanity to humans, we are here to capture God’s vision and work it the best of our ability and God will do the rest. Many lives depend upon great work and God will see that it gets done. [slide #   10  arc of moral…]

God’s promises to us are rich, refusing to keep our vows and remain committed to God’s goodness is a no brainer. For God’s laws are designed to fill our lives with love, health, peace and protection. Who would give that all up? Duh!  [slide # 11 Einstein  duh!]

The scriptures say that God hates divorce in Malachi 2 when the men of God married women who worshipped other Gods. God directed them to get divorced. At times, Christians have read these words and discouraged divorce even when one party in the covenant is being mistreated. But God’s hatred of divorce is not legalistic guidance to never divorce. The sin that God hates is the sin of treating God or others with hatred, violence, and violations. There is no sin in divorcing, but there is sin in not caring about God or God’s ways or God’s people. As Jesus says in verse 5 of our text, hardness of heart is the issue that breaks God’s heart and makes it easy for us to break our commitments and neglect keeping our promises. When we do not care, so many terrible things can happen, so many foul and sad situations persist. God hates that, and encourages divorce because of mistreatment! And, if God takes us to some trouble that is in the world, God will certainly take us through it.

God’s covenant, whether between a couple, a single person, a family or between a nation is a wonder and delight, as well as a mystery as to how God will make something good when we are dramatically impacted by so many bad decisions.

In this season of preparing to be the best financial stewards we can be, we will make a pledge to be consecrated, we will make a covenant with God in our hearts and some even on a written pledge card. We review God’s word that instructs us to give generously, to share tithes, as well as every other offering we are able to share. We will be careful that our offerings are inspired by the direction of the Holy Spirit working within us. [slide # 12  stewardship]

We dare not neglect to give thanks like Jesus gave thanks over the loaves and fish before they multiplied. Any blessings that are taken for granted and not received with gratitude are apt to fade away. Gratitude inspires increase. Lack of gratitude inspires decrease.

Likewise, we need to be careful to search our hearts and make sure we are right with God, so that our offerings will not be snatched by the enemy and twisted into something evil for the generation following us to sow. For God’s sake, we want to give our children a good example to follow.

So we, the church are preparing ourselves like a bride preparing for the wedding feast. [slide #  13  wedding table with God’s hands] We prepare by giving our whole hearts, our entire lives, gratitude for gifts, funds freely, and talents totally. We are the church, in covenant with God’s people around the globe. Amen. [slide #  14  happy marriage…forgivers]

September 30 2018 Perfect Love: The Children Are In His Arms

September 30^th 2018 *Mark 9. 30-37 Perfect Love: The Children Are In His Arms Pastor Jacqueline Hines

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What an image the gospel of Mark leaves us with: Jesus the son of God taking a child up in his arms. [ slide # 1 child on Jesus’ shoulder] When I was in Israel, I saw many men holding their children like Jesus must have, affirming them, nurturing them in a motherly kind of way.

Every child should be held in arms. Every child should be close to our hearts. Every child should be nurtured and welcomed and received. Every child. [slide # 2 child being hugged by Jesus]

Every child breathes the breath of God. Every child is a precious creation, beautiful inside and out, every child!

Many years ago, a woman insulted me, rejected me, and humiliated me in a way that I was not expecting. Her behavior was a surprise. She was going through tough times and perhaps I was an easier target than those she could not control and wanted to lash out at. Nevertheless, I know I needed to forgive her, even if I did not understand her.

For years, I prayed and asked God to bless her, help me to forgive her, and as part of my prayer, I envisioned her in the arms of Jesus, beloved, cherished, accepted and blessed. [slide # 3 Jesus holding the face of a little girl] Then one year I realized that the memories of the hurt had faded away.

The image of others in the arms of Jesus is a good image for us to carry in our hearts for every child of God. For God holds each one of us close to God’s heart. Each one of us is beloved, cherished, accepted. God looks at us tenderly with eyes filled with love, respect and appreciation for who God has made us to be. God speaks to us softly with words that reflect that we are beloved, cherished, accepted.

When we are broken in mind, body, or spirit God especially holds us, constantly creating and restoring us, healing us and helping us. Jesus picks us up when we are down and the Holy Spirit stirs within us, making something good happen, in spite of it all. When we are wayward or rebellious, God’s posture toward us is still the same. God is closer to us than our next breath because we are beloved, cherished accepted.

When I was a teenager, I worked in a gas station from 11 p.m. to 7 p.m. In the wee hours of the night, there were only a few people who stopped for gas. It was a perfect time to pray and meditate. Once as the sun was rising, and the streets were still, I felt the loving presence of God. I heard in my heart, a still small voice, “You are mine, all mine.” I did not realize it until I began to read and study the bible, but those words come from the prophet Isaiah chapter 43 that says, “…listen to the LORD who created you. O Israel, the one who formed you says, "Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine.”

I felt God’s spirit like a loving and gentle presence enfolding me, but for whatever reason, I did not want to be enfolded in the arms of God. I remember thinking, “No...” and I kept working as if God did not matter, as if I did not want or need God’s love. I rejected God in my heart, I was not interested in hearing about God’s love until perhaps a couple years later as I continued to pay attention to God’s lovingkindness.

Even when we are not paying any attention to God, God is still paying attention to us. As scripture says, we are the apple of God’s eye. [slide # 4  I am the apple of God’s eye]  [slide # 5 God loves you and sees you]

A family therapist reminded me recently that the most important thing we can do for our children is to “see them,” to acknowledge that they are here and that they are precious, to pay them positive attention. [slide # 6 Jesus with children and dove in hand]

So it is for all of us to pay attention to every child that God has created, no matter what their age and stage. We see them in our prayers and meditations, we see them as we serve with them, and we see them as we worship alongside them. Every child of God is also ours, all ours. [slide # 7 long line of children following Jesus]   And we are all special. Amen. [slide # 8 cool kid]

September 16 2018 Perfect Love - Don't Ask, Don't Tell

September 16, 2018  James 3.1-12, *Proverbs 1.20-33 “Perfect Love: Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” Pastor Jacqueline Hines

What was the only bus to ever cross the ocean? – Columbus

Why did the skeleton go to the movie alone? He had no body to go with.+++

Writer James Chapman is known for creating a list of the most read books in the world. The list is based on the number of copies each book sold over the last 50 years. If you guessed that the bible is still the world’s best seller, you would be absolutely right, as 3.9 billion copies were sold. [slide # 1  bible best seller] The second best seller is the Little Red Book of quotations that sold 820 million. It was written by Communist ruler Chairman Mae Tse Tung who is said to have killed more people than Stalin and Hitler combined. For 25 years, he ruled a quarter of the world’s population with an iron fist from the establishment of the Communist party in 1949 until his death in 1976.  [slide #  2 Red Book] As you can imagine, the majority of those who bought the book, were forced to do so. The third best seller, interestingly enough, is Harry Potter, with 40 million copies sold. [slide #  3 Harry Potter books]

We may not be interested in reading Chairman Mao’s book to reinforce our respect for the Communist party, and in spite of all the attention that Harry Potter has gotten, you may have been as bored as I was with the movie. But, the bible is another story. The bible is full of drama and justice and wisdom that can lead us to the blessed life.

The bible is so rich and diverse that we usually manage it like we manage golden nuggets, a precious little at a time, one verse, one chapter, one book goes a long way. [slide #  4 God’s word – gold]

Somewhat off putting are the regular rulings and judgments of fire and brimstone that we come across in our reading and studying of the bible. [slide #  5  bible on fire] The bible warns, threatens, cajoles, carries on about what we should do and should not do…typically we do not want to hear it. As humans, we simply want to do what we want to do. We receive biblical warnings like we receive other warnings that we see so often. We tend to bypass and ignore them.

In our daily lives, when things are going well, we do not concern ourselves with many warnings that surround us. We have taken all the necessary precautions, coming to a complete stop at stop signs, assigning a designated driver when needed, double checking the security latch on safety rails to protect children, following all directions on medication bottles and reading the reams of warnings that come with every refill.

We see those screens of information we are supposed to read before we click “I accept the terms and conditions.” for – whatever… we rarely actually read it…we can usually trust that there is nothing in the small print that we will regret affirming later on. [slide # 6 computer screen..accept..]

Life has warnings that we heed or do not heed. God has warnings that we heed or do not heed. At times the warnings come with harsh words. We see this in verse 25 of this morning’s reading which the wisdom of Proverbs declares. The New International Version says it this way:

“²⁵ since you disregard all my advice
    and do not accept my rebuke,
²⁶ I in turn will laugh when disaster strikes you;
    I will mock when calamity overtakes you—
²⁷ when calamity overtakes you like a storm,
    when disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind,
    when distress and trouble overwhelm you.

This is a hard saying. Who can endure it? Who can accept it? Isn’t it enough to make the more sensitive of us turn and run away from Jesus? Though we smile now at those parents who threatened to “knock us into next week” or “kill us” or who gave us that threatening look that made our insides tremble, we got the message. Language has a broad and poetic purpose and important boundaries are established with the words we speak or in some cases, refuse to speak.

Next Tuesday, our Bishop Peggy Johnson has invited the members and pastors of the over 400 of her churches for a conversation about how the United Methodist Church is going forward to vote on a way to keep God’s peace as we live together and serve together with our different understandings of same sex marriages. We trust that the words we speak at that gathering will bring peace and unity.

Currently our Book of Discipline tells us that homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teachings and we are legally forbidden to ordain or marry or host a wedding of gay persons. Some of us have felt at home with the “don’t ask, don’t tell” mantra. (Believe it or not, I had no intention of talking about sexuality issues when I wrote this sermon title several weeks ago.) Others have wanted out of the closet and are no longer accepting what feels like the silent treatment. As a church we have become restless when we talk to one another. Our Bishops are wise enough to ask us to spend more time talking with God who can help us talk to one another in ways that please God and serve as good examples for our children and the world who is watching and waiting. We are asked to pray day or night within the three minutes space from 2:23-2:26           [slide # 7  Special General Conference February 23 – 26] which is the February date that a special United Methodist General Conference will be held in Missouri. There are delegates from around the world who will be discussing and voting to arrive at our official position. There will be interpreters, songs and prayers from countless traditions. Together, they will decide whether we will keep the current position or allow each church and conference to decide what they believe God is calling them to do. I also want us to whisper a prayer daily for Bethel every day or night between 10 45 and 10 48. [slide # 8  pray for Bethel 10 45-10 48] . We too need God’s help to make us the strongest church we can be in every way, not just around issues of human sexuality.

For me the issue of sexuality is not first about whose hand someone is holding while strolling down the beach. What is higher on my spiritual priority list is whether we are as the book of Micah chapter 6 tells us - doing justice, loving mercy and walking humbly with our God. Are we speaking up when others are being bullied, knowing that I Corinthians tells us that love is not irritable or rude; are we doing the work of getting to know one another and appreciating one another regardless of race and class. Are we exercising sexual integrity, robbing God of our tithes and offerings, or living simply so that others can simply live?

The fierce warnings of the bible may shake us up or offend us, [slide # 9  lightening] but the thundering and lightening of wise warnings are always, always, always accompanied by God’s sweet promises as we see in verse 32 and 33. 32 For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them; 33 but whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm.

On Tuesday, Rabbi Kirt Schneider [slide #  10 Rabbi Schneider] who converted to Christianity as a young man, reminds us that our Jewish brothers and sisters will observe the high holy day of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. As Christians we can also connect to our Judeo-Christian heritage and observe Yom Kippur as a day to pause and reverence One who wanted so much to protect us and warn us of the dangers of sin that he risked his own life, even sacrificed his all, by reminding everyone wherever he went that he can save us from the pitfalls of sin if we would heed the warnings and follow in his footsteps. [slide # 11…loved..darkest hour] May we take God’s will seriously, may the Holy Spirit be our constant guide, may we do as God taught our founder Rev. John Wesley – do no harm, do good, and stay in love with God! [slide #  12  do no harm…] Amen. [slide # 13  bible…]