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Saints in my Life

10/30/2020

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"A friend is always loyal, and a brother/sister is born to help in time of need." Proverbs 17:17 



LISTEN:  Blake Shelton,  "God Gave Me You"  
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCf2PoTuh4Q





This Sunday, Nov.1, All Saints Day, marks an ancient feast day in the Christian community.  For some, the saints are those people who have gone ahead, "the church triumphant  those who have fought the "good fight, finished the race, kept the faith" (2 Tim. 4:7).  There are traditions that lift up some lives of select individuals as exemplary, models for us to follow.  Others understand the saints both living and dead, the entire body of Christ, made holy through the life and sacrifice of Jesus. Saints are referred to in the New Testament (1 Cor. 1:2; Eph. 1:1; Acts 9:13, 32; 26:9-10; Rom. 1:7; 1 Tim. 6:10; Heb. 13:24;Rev. 16:6 among others). So we celebrate the extraordinary acts of faith done by ordinary people, people long forgotten, known only in the memory of God.  We remember the dead, but it is also a day to remember the living, striving saints around us. We thank God for saints in our lives.


What is clear in the story of saints is their impact on others. Saints inspire us and support us to live the best life we can.  Our calling as Christian is to be a "saint," a holy one. We become a saint by following Jesus and with the guidance and care of other saints.  The spiritual life we are called to cannot be perfected alone.  We need each other.  We need family, we need community. Who else can love us, guide us, correct us, give us reinforcement and example, pray with us?  Even Jesus sent his disciples out in twos in ministry (Mark 6:7) -- the life of faith requires encouragement and support.  However it is even more than this.  The image of our Triune God reveals that Love can only be fully expressed in community.  What we bear witness to is not just a message, what a way of living, which can only be modeled by interaction. 


So on Nov. 1, remember the saints -- the "larger than life" saints, and the ordinary saints who shaped you, gave you values, brought you to faith in Christ.  Give thanks for those saints who sit in the pews next to you, who pray for you, sing in the choir, count the tithes/offerings, who make sure coffee hour is ready, who run the ministries that keep the church vibrant and alive. 


I give thanks for you, saints of Christ, as we walk this journey together, to unleash the holy that will make us shine.


PRAY:  "God makes us into the saints that can minister in today's world.  Thank you for the saints that have brought me this far."
"A friend is always loyal, and a brother/sister is born to help in time of need." Proverbs 17:17 



LISTEN:  Blake Shelton,  "God Gave Me You"  
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCf2PoTuh4Q





This Sunday, Nov.1, All Saints Day, marks an ancient feast day in the Christian community.  For some, the saints are those people who have gone ahead, "the church triumphant  those who have fought the "good fight, finished the race, kept the faith" (2 Tim. 4:7).  There are traditions that lift up some lives of select individuals as exemplary, models for us to follow.  Others understand the saints both living and dead, the entire body of Christ, made holy through the life and sacrifice of Jesus. Saints are referred to in the New Testament (1 Cor. 1:2; Eph. 1:1; Acts 9:13, 32; 26:9-10; Rom. 1:7; 1 Tim. 6:10; Heb. 13:24;Rev. 16:6 among others). So we celebrate the extraordinary acts of faith done by ordinary people, people long forgotten, known only in the memory of God.  We remember the dead, but it is also a day to remember the living, striving saints around us. We thank God for saints in our lives.


What is clear in the story of saints is their impact on others. Saints inspire us and support us to live the best life we can.  Our calling as Christian is to be a "saint," a holy one. We become a saint by following Jesus and with the guidance and care of other saints.  The spiritual life we are called to cannot be perfected alone.  We need each other.  We need family, we need community. Who else can love us, guide us, correct us, give us reinforcement and example, pray with us?  Even Jesus sent his disciples out in twos in ministry (Mark 6:7) -- the life of faith requires encouragement and support.  However it is even more than this.  The image of our Triune God reveals that Love can only be fully expressed in community.  What we bear witness to is not just a message, what a way of living, which can only be modeled by interaction. 


So on Nov. 1, remember the saints -- the "larger than life" saints, and the ordinary saints who shaped you, gave you values, brought you to faith in Christ.  Give thanks for those saints who sit in the pews next to you, who pray for you, sing in the choir, count the tithes/offerings, who make sure coffee hour is ready, who run the ministries that keep the church vibrant and alive. 


I give thanks for you, saints of Christ, as we walk this journey together, to unleash the holy that will make us shine.


PRAY:  "God makes us into the saints that can minister in today's world.  Thank you for the saints that have brought me this far."



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Spiritually Yoked!

10/30/2020

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 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  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.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”  Matthew 11:28-30

 Listen to:  Troy Sneed, "Lay It Down"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziAjNlk4P8A&list=RDziAjNlk4P8A&start_radio=1


 A young ox, being trained to the yoke, is placed with an older more experienced animal. The older one carries the brunt of the load. Most of the weight is put upon him. The younger one must learn to pace itself, not too fast, and not too slow. It learns when to start and stop. It learns from it's partner how to be in "relationship". 

So it is with Jesus.  When we give our lives to God, we are spiritually yoked to the Lord. We learn what spiritual relationships mean. As we go through life, we carry heavy burdens. We encounter obstacles that we must overcome.  We grow weary.  Currently we have been carrying the heavy burden of Coronavirus for months. We have traveled the trials of protests and a divided nation with no relief in sight.


 Jesus calls those who are burdened to come to him.  Twice in these two verses he promises rest.  Rest is part of God's creation. We are meant to rest -- rest gives us restoration of strength and spirit.   Allowing ourselves to be yoked to Jesus gives us balance -- work and rest.  If we are workaholics we are taught to let go, to lay down the burden and rest. 


As we walk along side Jesus, we learn the task of plowing through life's soil and becoming more like him. Jesus assures us that he is "gentle and humble in heart." He leads us securely, patiently, so we too can develop a heart that is gentle and humble. Imagine: gentleness carrying the burden of our lives. Humbleness soothing our weariness? Such is the way of the Lord.


God has also spiritually yoked us as brothers and sisters in faith.  We help carry each other's heavy burdens in our sharing and caring. We help each other  to turn it over to God. We build in opportunities to rest, relax and fellowship. And together we learn to be gentle and humble with each other ...following the footsteps of our Savior.



PRAY: "Lord, I am tired. I am weary. My burden's are heavy, as are so many. Teach us to lean on you and find rest."

























 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  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.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”  Matthew 11:28-30





 Listen to:  Troy Sneed, "Lay It Down"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziAjNlk4P8A&list=RDziAjNlk4P8A&start_radio=1



 A young ox, being trained to the yoke, is placed with an older more experienced animal. The older one carries the brunt of the load. Most of the weight is put upon him. The younger one must learn to pace itself, not too fast, and not too slow. It learns when to start and stop. It learns from it's partner how to be in "relationship". 



So it is with Jesus.  When we give our lives to God, we are spiritually yoked to the Lord. We learn what spiritual relationships mean. As we go through life, we carry heavy burdens. We encounter obstacles that we must overcome.  We grow weary.  Currently we have been carrying the heavy burden of Coronavirus for months. We have traveled the trials of protests and a divided nation with no relief in sight.


 Jesus calls those who are burdened to come to him.  Twice in these two verses he promises rest.  Rest is part of God's creation. We are meant to rest -- rest gives us restoration of strength and spirit.   Allowing ourselves to be yoked to Jesus gives us balance -- work and rest.  If we are workaholics we are taught to let go, to lay down the burden and rest. 


As we walk along side Jesus, we learn the task of plowing through life's soil and becoming more like him. Jesus assures us that he is "gentle and humble in heart." He leads us securely, patiently, so we too can develop a heart that is gentle and humble. Imagine: gentleness carrying the burden of our lives. Humbleness soothing our weariness? Such is the way of the Lord.


God has also spiritually yoked us as brothers and sisters in faith.  We help carry each other's heavy burdens in our sharing and caring. We help each other  to turn it over to God. We build in opportunities to rest, relax and fellowship. And together we learn to be gentle and humble with each other ...following the footsteps of our Savior.



PRAY: "Lord, I am tired. I am weary. My burden's are heavy, as are so many. Teach us to lean on you and find rest."




























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"Conformed to the Gospel"

10/2/2020

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Picture
TobyMac "Me Without You"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJbKXR4CEME



Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.  Proverbs 3: 5-6


In 1755,  Robert Robinson, was a gang leader, focused on dissolute living. In a drunken stupor he heard the famous preacher, George Whitefield speak.  Whitefield’s message tormented his conscience for three years until he found rest in Jesus Christ.  He penned the powerful hymn, "Come Thou, Fount of Every Blessing" to capture the struggles of his life.  Robinson struggled to be faithful.  He struggled to live as Jesus taught us. 
Why is it that we need to preach the gospel to ourselves?  That we need to teach what we most desperately need to learn?   Why is it that we earnestly  need to live the gospel anew on a daily basis?  It is because of this reality Robinson knew so well “prone to wander Lord, I feel it; prone to leave the God I love.” Augustine and Martin Luther both spoke of the state of living incurvatus in se which is Latin for the human person living bent in on himself.  Through the gospel, that bent is changed from oneself to God.  It is like a bone being set, everyday.  The Holy Spirit leads us every single day to conform our lives to the gospel. In how we talk to each other. Help each other. How we surrender our will to God, day by day, often hour by hour, minute by minute.  In surrendering our will, we slowly learn what it means to trust.
May our spirits acquire  a" Godward" bent through the transforming power of the gospel for  so we can spontaneously see the glory of Jesus -- in the face of our neighbor.





PRAY:  "Come Thou Font of Every Blessing"
O to grace how great a debtor Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter, Bind my wandering heart to Thee
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it, Seal it for Thy courts above.

  


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    Moirajo is a minister, social worker, wife, mother, writer and animal lover. That's just for starters. Join the story, there's so much we can share together! 

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