Maya Angelou is one of my favorite writers, poets & thinkers. I actually met her once, but I will bet you dollars to doughnuts she couldn't pick me out of a police lineup :) One time, I was watching her on a national telecast where after she was interviewed by a "pro," the masses were able to ask her questions in an organized Q & A. There was an enormous number of college students who had come to listen and learn from one of their idols. During the public "open mike" time, a young woman who was in the first year of doing her master's studies at NYU rose to ask her a question. Her question went something like, "Ms. Angelou, I am an incredible fan of yours... your writings have changed me. I sense in your writings a lot of faith, a definite belief in God. I am searching spiritually myself. If it is not too much to ask, can I ask you to share what religion or faith group you ascribe to?" Maya's answer was classic: "Well, I'm trying to be a Christian! It's a lot of work, and it ain't easy, but I work at it every day. I have been working at it for over 70 years. That's why I am amazed by 18 and 19 year old students who run up to me on college campuses and say, 'Hi, Ms. Angelou, I'm a born again Christian!' I always say, "Already?!"
Our worshipping community has traveled close to four months through one of the books of the Bible, the Book of Acts, during our Sunday worship experiences. Hearing the testimonies of these first Missionary pioneers makes me realize how far I have to go to be a true "follower of the Way" (that's what Christ-followers were referred to back then... the term "Christian" was a label that did not show up for hundreds of years). The boldness and conviction in which these great ambassadors walked is something I can only aspire to... BUT, I am learning, and I am climbing! I do not think I will leave this journey through Acts, the same way as I entered it!
That is finally the goal. Acts is a case-study in "conversions." The word conversion, literally means a "reorientation." It means to turn around and move in another direction. When reading the Book of Acts, I have decided it means to be converted (to turn) and then spend the rest of your life being converted!
The next three weeks at GMUMC, we will close our study of Acts summing up what it means to "be converted." If you want to join us in the journey of spending "the rest of our lives being converted," buckle up and come on in! We worship every Sunday at 9:30 (Heritage); 10:30 (Mosaic); 11:45 (Odyssey). Be sure to introduce yourself when you come!
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Again?
The great preacher, William Willimon, tells of a man named Hubert Parris who was a member of one of the first congregations he served many years ago down South. If the service stirred him, Hubert could always be counted on to stand and recount the story of his conversion... again. He had narrated his conversion story so many times, Willimon said, that young children in the congregation became so familiar with it that they would mouth the words as Hubert shared it! I had to laugh when Willimon recounted one Sunday when Hubert was so led to share it again and a young girl in the front row mouthed in perfect unison with him, "I was sunk in sin, I was lost, lost I tell you..." Here is what Willimon writes: "The story of Hubert's Damascus Road Experience (which actually occurred on the highway headed toward Gainesville) went limp in the retelling. It was the again that got us." (William H. Willimon, Undone By Easter).
I can relate to poor Hubert! I think any preacher of the Gospel can relate. We share the timeless truths of the love of God to the point that people can finish our sentences while they kick dust out of their eyes. Sometimes, it is the "again" that gets all of us... Going to church... again; Praying for the same things... again; Hearing the same Bible verses & preacher stories... again; Singing the same songs... again. I think that one of the worst things that can happen to us as people of faith is when we get "used to" God... used to the Gospel. My prayer is that God will help me to keep my faith fresh while I am in it for the long haul. I do not ever want Jesus to appear to me as he did to John on the island of Patmos and say, "Chip, I know your works, and your service and your prayers... they are all really nice. You have stayed the course and patiently walked the walk of faith... but you know what? You have lost that love and passion that you had when you first met me" (Rev. 2:3-4).
One of the most pitiful scenes of the disciples for me is when they had made a stop on the way to Jerusalem and a woman appeared to anoint Jesus' body for burial (Mark 14:3-9). This unknown woman begins to perform a service for Jesus that only his closest of friends should perform. Yet, his "closest friends" are simply reclining in their seats nearby and grumbling about the waste of the whole thing. They had gotten so "used to" Jesus, that his teaching became ho-hum and the powerful encounter that was taking place was now "not according to schedule." Wow! No wonder Jesus said that the Gospel could never be preached unless it was done so in memory of her and what she did! She was able to wade through the "again's" and feel, sense and abandon herself to the incredible power of God.
This past Sunday was an amazing time of worship. We came to the altar to receive the Lord's Supper one more time... "again." I was particularly moved as one of our members, Connie Strong, took the solo part on songs at Heritage & Mosaic. I listened to Connie sing with great conviction words like... "Jesus is my Healer!" and "Go back to the altar and stay there until you receive the Holy Ghost power." I have heard words like this many times before, and yes, I was hearing them "again." Yet, I couldn't detach myself from the remembrance that less than a year ago last fall, Connie was life-flighted from her job at Hillcrest Hospital with a tear in her aorta that could have easily taken her life. Connie wasn't just singing these words "again"... she was living them, breathing them and inviting us to do that too!
Each Sunday, we have "been going back" with our earliest spiritual ancestors in the Book of Acts. The Gospel never grew old to them as they shared it again and again. Like Hubert, they shared their testimonies over and over hoping that all of us would learn to mouth the words! I hope you can join us each week as we worship... again & again!
I can relate to poor Hubert! I think any preacher of the Gospel can relate. We share the timeless truths of the love of God to the point that people can finish our sentences while they kick dust out of their eyes. Sometimes, it is the "again" that gets all of us... Going to church... again; Praying for the same things... again; Hearing the same Bible verses & preacher stories... again; Singing the same songs... again. I think that one of the worst things that can happen to us as people of faith is when we get "used to" God... used to the Gospel. My prayer is that God will help me to keep my faith fresh while I am in it for the long haul. I do not ever want Jesus to appear to me as he did to John on the island of Patmos and say, "Chip, I know your works, and your service and your prayers... they are all really nice. You have stayed the course and patiently walked the walk of faith... but you know what? You have lost that love and passion that you had when you first met me" (Rev. 2:3-4).
One of the most pitiful scenes of the disciples for me is when they had made a stop on the way to Jerusalem and a woman appeared to anoint Jesus' body for burial (Mark 14:3-9). This unknown woman begins to perform a service for Jesus that only his closest of friends should perform. Yet, his "closest friends" are simply reclining in their seats nearby and grumbling about the waste of the whole thing. They had gotten so "used to" Jesus, that his teaching became ho-hum and the powerful encounter that was taking place was now "not according to schedule." Wow! No wonder Jesus said that the Gospel could never be preached unless it was done so in memory of her and what she did! She was able to wade through the "again's" and feel, sense and abandon herself to the incredible power of God.
This past Sunday was an amazing time of worship. We came to the altar to receive the Lord's Supper one more time... "again." I was particularly moved as one of our members, Connie Strong, took the solo part on songs at Heritage & Mosaic. I listened to Connie sing with great conviction words like... "Jesus is my Healer!" and "Go back to the altar and stay there until you receive the Holy Ghost power." I have heard words like this many times before, and yes, I was hearing them "again." Yet, I couldn't detach myself from the remembrance that less than a year ago last fall, Connie was life-flighted from her job at Hillcrest Hospital with a tear in her aorta that could have easily taken her life. Connie wasn't just singing these words "again"... she was living them, breathing them and inviting us to do that too!
Each Sunday, we have "been going back" with our earliest spiritual ancestors in the Book of Acts. The Gospel never grew old to them as they shared it again and again. Like Hubert, they shared their testimonies over and over hoping that all of us would learn to mouth the words! I hope you can join us each week as we worship... again & again!
Saturday, March 26, 2011
We Really Need Easter!
Dear Friends,
In the Bible, nobody needed Easter more than Peter. You remember the story, when Jesus shared what was to take place that first Holy Week, Peter announced with great bluster, that even if everyone in the world left Jesus, Peter would never leave him! Jesus cautioned Peter on such bravado and told him that “before the cock crowed” (basically saying by tomorrow morning); Peter would deny he even knew who Jesus was three times. Sure enough, it happened, and Matthew tells us that when Peter heard the cock crowing, he broke down and “wept bitterly.”
Not long after that, Peter is back where he was before he met Jesus, out on a boat working in the family fishing business. The Bible tells us that oddly, he was fishing naked. Nakedness in the Bible was always an image of shame. Peter had blown it. He had been the right-hand man of the Master and he had fallen flat on his face. Peter needed another chance, a new call, a new life… and Easter came. Jesus walked out of the tomb and down the shoreline of the Sea of Galilee to call Peter again. Peter was so ecstatic, that he didn’t grab the oars of the boat and paddle to shore at the sound of Jesus’ call. He “dove in” and left his boat behind! That is the picture of a man who really needs Easter!
Peter may have left his boat behind, but he never left Easter behind. Listen to the echoes of that holy moment in one of his letters to the Church: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who are being protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, even if now for a little while you have had to suffer various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith—being more precious than gold that, though perishable, is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed” (1 Peter 1:3-7).
Yes, life is tough, Peter acknowledges, but Easter lasts longer than the tough times do. Listen to his adjectives, Easter is “imperishable, undefiled & unfading!” It brings us new life and a living hope… not some vague abstract yearning for a better future, but a hope that breaths power and life into every moment of our earthly existence. Put that way, I hope you will join Peter and shout, “I really need Easter too!”
I hope you will join our growing congregation to sing the great Alleluia on Easter Sunday, April 24th at any of our three worship experiences. I hope you will join us on Baptism Sunday, the Sunday following Easter on May 1st at either 9:30 AM or our combined 11:00 AM service. Join us at any or all of the Sundays in April – what the Early Church called “little Easters” – on our journey to the Empty Tomb. Yes, Christ is Risen! Thanks God, I really needed that!
Faithfully,
Chip Freed
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