Life to the Fullest

      Not too many people would disagree that each day of our lives needs to be lived to the fullest. How this “fullness of life” is achieved is open to many opinions and interpretations. Many people take the secular path to happiness and fulfillment, while others seek the “fullness of life” along the spiritual road. There are many paths in between for those who want the most from life.

      Spring is a favorite season for many of us. The days begin to lengthen, and the sleeping earth begins to stir from its winter rest. We stir also, trying to fill the “extra” hours of sunlight with things we enjoy doing, or maybe with the things that just need to be done. Maybe using every moment of each day and filling the days with activities is one way of “living life to the fullest.”

      When Jesus talks about living life to the fullest, I believe he has something very different in mind. In the first ten verses of John 10, Jesus addresses this important topic.

He is discussing his role as the Good Shepherd and in verse 10 states his purpose on earth. “…I came so that they could have life—indeed, so that they could have life to the fullest.”

     Just what is this “abundant life, life to the fullest” that Jesus talks about? Could it be a life with plenty to eat, good health, all the money we want, and few troubles to bother us, life in lush, green pastures? Did he come to give us the kind of abundant life that is comfortable and convenient?

      We should be reminded that life is not always green pastures and quiet, peaceful scenes. Sin has caused a traumatic disruption to the life that God originally planned for us. Jesus knows all about the sin and evil of this life. He warns us that we will suffer, but he has sent the Comforter, his Holy Spirit, to help us through the darkness. When Jesus looked at the Palestinian countryside, he saw the hunger, oppression, sin, and each person’s personal rebellion against him, as well as, the peaceful sheep and the green pastures. And in the middle of all this Jesus spoke of the abundant life, a life lived to the fullest.

      What did he mean? Jesus meant that to have this “full” life, this abundant life, is to live so close to him that we become one with him. Paul speaks of this imitation of Christ in the letter to the Philippians. We need to adopt the attitude Jesus has. Empty ourselves of our selves, become slaves to Christ and servants of each other, humble and obedient. It means that we have gotten to the point where we have taken our hands completely off our lives. Not even a finger is left on any activity or thought, all is surrendered to the control of Jesus. We begin to imitate Christ in our thoughts, actions, words, and opinions of others. We realize that we don’t need more “things” in our lives, instead we make do with what we have so that we have more to share with others. Prayer and the study of scripture become top priority. This abundant life that Jesus died to give us causes us to want to share the good news with others. So we want to talk “Jesus” to those who will listen. It’s not about religion, it’s not about church, it’s not about how much scripture you read, or if you are a church member or not; it’s about grace greater than our sin, it’s about sanctified, holy living, it’s about the deep-down assurance that you belong to the Risen Savior, it’s about a desire to tell your brother and sister about this new life.

 

 

            

EASTER HOPE

      Many of us go from day to day not realizing the force within us that keeps us going. What is it that pushes us out of our beds and homes everyday, gives us the determination to face whatever is “out there,” and gives us the assurance that we are on the right path? I believe we can name that invisible force, that ever-present drive, hope.

      There is the secular hope that keeps us going back to work each day so we will have a paycheck. The hope that we will not get sick and others around us in our families and friends will stay healthy. We hope that our children and grandchildren will stay out of trouble, and what we have taught them is enough to start them on their way. We hope our jobs will be there when we get to work, and our government leaders will show integrity.

      We know people have a tendency to put their hope in things and people who can and will disappoint. Stock markets and retirement plans crash, people turn their backs on each other and walk away, and material things burn up or rust away. Hopes fade as we put our expectations in things that are temporal and earthly; things that do not last.

      Maybe we can say just a few more words about Easter as we turn the page of our calendars. Easter can be the ultimate assurance of everlasting life, of bodily resurrection, of Jesus who keeps his promises, and of victory over death and sin. Yet, Easter can also be a powerful expression of hope. A hope that we can be better that we are, that we can become new creations, and a hope that begins to change us into the person God intends for us to be. A hope that at times seems to be weak and wavering, but never completely gives up and goes away.

      A woman came late to the Little League baseball game. The game had already started so she asked a player sitting in the dugout the score. He replied, “We are behind fourteen to nothing.” The woman said, “You don’t look too discouraged.” The player answered, “Why should we be discouraged? We haven’t batted yet.”

      Hope is based on trust and confidence. Hope can be present tense, as well as point to the future. Hope is the essence of God’s presence as he is felt in our lives each moment of each day. Hope is the confidence that God is alive and touches us each day, working in ways we do not always understand.

      A little girl was taking a test in science class one day when she was asked, “What do hibernating animals live on during the winter?” She wrote down her answer, “Hibernating animals live on the hope of the coming spring.” We as followers of Christ should be living on the hope of  each new day as it brings fresh grace and mercies, that tomorrow will be a better than today. We should be living on the hope of everlasting life, which can begin now.

      For the world without Christ there is false hope, which is actually, no hope. However, for the Christian there is the hope that is found in a personal one-on-one relationship with Jesus Christ. Once we have established that relationship, it is our responsibility to share the hope of Christ to a hopeless world. We should never give up hope that we can make a difference in the life of someone by telling and living our story. If we are “Easter” people, we must be like Mary as she told the disciples early that morning, “I have seen the Lord.” We must be witnesses of Easter, witnesses with hope.

      As followers of Christ, we do not hunker down in retreat, sit down in compromise, or wring our hands in despair, no matter what is going on in the world around us. True followers of Jesus have hope-hope produced by faith and trust in a God who cares and fulfills his promises.  Rev Tim McConnell Long’s Chapel UMC April 7, 2013

EASTER IS NOT OVER UNTIL GOD SAYS SO

      Most people like to know the complete ending of a story or movie. We want to know what happened to each character. It bothers some of us if the ending is not to our liking or seems to not end at all, or maybe is continued. But if we look at the Bible story, it really has no ending. The Old Testament development of the Jewish people continued into the New Testament and is very evident today. The Old Testament prophesies point to the coming of Christ as Christ establishes his Church. The Church continues today with its unfinished story of our part in the redemption of the world and Christ’s second coming. It is impossible to put a nice big bow around the story of Jesus and present it as a complete package, because the story of Jesus and his relationship with us is eternal.    

      In our celebration and understanding of Easter, we come to what we think is the climatic ending to the wonderful story of Jesus, his birth, ministry, death, and resurrection. We come to the end of Lent and Holy Week. We ask, “What is next? Is there any more of the story?” If we are truly followers of Jesus, Easter and resurrection are not the ending of the story, only the beginning. The story of Emmanuel, “God with us,” begun at Bethlehem continues. There is a dark pause at the crucifixion as the universe holds its breath, but the Easter resurrection is the resumption of the story; the story of God’s never-ending love for his people. The story is not over until God says it is over. So, we ask our selves, “What’s next? What are you and I to do with this Easter story? How are we to take resurrection and fit it into our daily lives?” In our scripture for today, John gives us a quick look into the life of the resurrected Christ, life after Good Friday. Christ not only defeated death and triumphed over the devil, but he also returned to us. Jesus could have left without a word. Instead, he breathed his Holy Spirit upon us, and empowered us to follow him all the days of our lives. Jesus continues to return to us and strengthen us in our weakness, discouragement, and humanity. He returns day after day to cleanse us from unrighteousness, to call us, and to raise us from our deadly slavery to sin.

      In John 20:19-31, Jesus tells us that Easter is not over, it has only begun. If we are to be “Easter” people, we are not to sit comfortably behind closed, locked doors of our churches and be content that we are the Church. Jesus didn’t say, “Happy Easter.” He said, “Fear not! Embrace my peace!” Jesus didn’t say, “God bless you all. Look how nice and comfortable you all look.” He said, “I’m back, and I have much for you to do, places for you to go, and things I want you to say to the whole world. Get up and get busy!”

      What about our tomorrow? Next week? And the rest of the year? Has this Lenten season and Easter made any difference in our relationship with Christ? Has the resurrection stirred us to realize that this is not the end of Jesus’ story or the end of our story? What about our decision to become one of Jesus’ disciples? Have we let daily life take the sharp edge off our relationship with Jesus? Easter is in the “now” tense. It is about following Jesus now. It is about living as if God is victorious, unstoppable, and triumphant now. Easter is not so much, “Do you believe that Jesus was raised from the dead?” but, “Will you dare to follow Jesus now that he rules?” Easter moves us quickly from the doctrinal statement, “He is risen,” to a calling, “Go into your family, community, and the world and do something about it. You are “sent” people, so go and tell my story.”

      So in Easter, the story continues within the lives of each one for the rest of our life and beyond. God is not finished with us yet. The story is alive. Easter is not over until God says so.                           Rev Tim McConnell, Long’s Chapel UMC, March 31, 2013

THE ONE WHO WALKS WITH US

      We have walked with determination the Lenten pathway of confession and self-examination for almost forty days. Much of the way has been a struggle as we have begun to see ourselves as we really are. We have realized the need to invite more of who Christ is into our very beings; to be “in Christ.” Now, as we approach Palm Sunday, maybe we can catch our breath and perhaps even celebrate for just a short time.   

      For me, Palm Sunday is the beginning of a roller coaster ride of up and down emotions and feelings of what was going on in Jerusalem during that first Holy Week. We read the Palm Sunday story; the story of Jesus’ joyful entrance into Jerusalem with the shouts of “Hosanna,” the palm waving crowds, the taking off their coats and laying them down for Jesus to walk on, and the donkey ride. This was such a happy occasion. The crowds were ready to celebrate Jesus as their political king.

      This was the “up” side of the roller coaster ride, because the rest of the week was downhill darkness. The hymns we sing on this Palm Sunday morning are a mixture of praises, on one hand, and reflections of sorrow and suffering on the other. We sing our praises, but we also sing about the suffering and sacrifice. Only Jesus knew what the end of the week would bring as he rode into Jerusalem that joyful day.

      We modern day Christians, looking back in time, can see and experience the joy of the crowd as they proclaimed Jesus, King and Savior. Yet, we know deep in our souls that we must go with Jesus to the Cross. It is at the Cross-we find grace, forgiveness, and transformation. We realize there can be no resurrection without the dying, no Easter sunrise without the darkness of Good Friday. It was true for Jesus, and it is true for you and me.

      So, today we can wave our palms and sing our praises, but we know that Friday will bring the pain, sorrow, and death at the Cross. We must present ourselves at the Cross before we can experience Easter. Steadily we go, with sometimes shaky confidence and suppressed fear, but we go because we know Jesus has gone before us and now, he goes with us.

      It may be that the emotional and spiritual roller coaster ride of Palm Sunday and the week after can also be found in the other weeks of the year. At times, our joy seems to overflow and the spiritual blessings appear to be unending. Then the darkness closes in and uncertainty fills our thoughts. We feel alone and abandoned. It is times like these when we reach out for the one who has already walked victoriously through both the joy of Palm Sunday and the darkness of Holy Week. We find it is Jesus who will lead us to the Cross, to death to our old life, and resurrection to a new life in him.

Rev Tim McConnell Long’s Chapel UMC March 24, 2013       

Divine Pruning

      There is something satisfying about pruning and trimming away the dead limbs and branches of a bush or tree. By pruning the plant, the old unproductive limbs are removed making room for new grow and the desired shape can then be formed. When we grew Christmas trees, we would start when the tree was very young shaping and pruning the branches so that the tree would produce thick growth. The goal would be to produce a tree so thick that when it was old enough to sell, you could not see through the tree. This would not happen without pruning.

      Many of you have pruned grape vines, which need to be trimmed correctly and at the right time in order to produce grapes. Fruit trees are the same way. If left to grow on their own, shoots, sprouts, and suckers would begin growing wildly in many directions. Soon the tree or vine would be all foliage and no fruit.

      As images of scraggly and misshapen vines, trees, and bushes flooded my mind, I began to think about what Jesus was really talking about in John 15. Prior to this portion of Jesus’ farewell conversation with his disciples, we find Jesus inviting us to be “in him,” as he is “in the Father.” Now Jesus is saying if we are to stay “in him” on a daily basis, we must have our lives pruned just as the gardener prunes a vine. Maybe what Jesus is saying here has much in common with what is reflected in Lent.

      These verses bring to mind certain thoughts and words; words like “promise,” “expectations,” “relationship,” and “judgment.” Looking at this grapevine, I can hear Jesus saying, “I am the true vine. There are other vines, but I am the true one. You, my disciples, my church, the ones who call yourselves Christians, are the branches on my vine. God, my Father, is the one who looks after my vine and prunes the branches. Because you are connected to me, we are in relationship to each other. I want that relationship to be permanent, based on love. Just as the Father and I love each other, I want our relationship to be one of mutual love. If we do not stay connected, branch to vine, you will begin to die and stop bearing fruit. If that happens, my Father will prune you from my vine and throw you into the fire.”

     In one sense, the pruning that Jesus teaches here involves getting rid of the things in our lives that cause us not to be in the kind of relationship with God that he wants. We are on the vine, but if we want to stay, we must allow God to cut away and prune our habits and behaviors. If Jesus is abiding in our lives, he will tell us from time to time about those things that we do, think, feel that are not pleasing to him. God will want to “prune away” those things that are incompatible with the Christian walk.

      I believe Lenten resolutions should be all about opening our very souls to the divine gaze and the “pruning knife” of our Father who desires for us to be like his son Jesus. This often painful confession and exposure should not be confined to only forty days, but should be a part of our daily conversation with God. The stripping away of ourselves until there is nothing left, but love for God and our brothers and sisters, will produce the fruit of which Jesus speaks. We cannot forget God’s promise that he wants to abide with us, he wants to stick with us, and he wants us to produce good fruit for his kingdom. The words of Jesus also tell us that God has not given up on his church, his vine and branches, nor has be abandoned us. He has not stopped looking for people who are willing to abide in him and produce good fruit. Perhaps, that is why God keeps on pruning us, his disciples, his church; he wants good fruit. 

Rev Tim McConnell, Long’s Chapel UMC, March 17, 2013

Remember Me

      It might be important and maybe even necessary for us to look very closely during our Lenten journey at a somewhat obscure example of faith at work. Last week we talked about the gift of faith in terms of allowing us to forgive repeatedly, to be faithful in relationships with others, faithful in service, and faithful in loving God. As it is used, our faith will increase.

      So now, we find ourselves deep in Lent, opening our very souls to the divine gaze of our God, confessing who we really are, and longing to be who God intends for us to be. Perhaps while we are doing all this searching and exposing, it might be beneficial for us to take a long look at the cross. After all, the cross is in reality where our journey begins.

      As our journey takes us back to that crucifixion site, we actually see the three crosses on which hang three men suffering the agony and horror of a slow suffocating death. On that day, the cross in the middle turned from a symbol of shame and reproach to a symbol of faith because of one man. Who was the first who looked at the cross and believed? Who was the first to make the cross a symbol of faith? Was it one of the disciples? Maybe Peter or John? Or one of those hundreds of people who were healed by Jesus? Or perhaps it was one of the women standing at Jesus’ cross that afternoon.

      But it was none of these. Faith not only showed itself at the most unlikely place, the site of an execution, but it showed itself in the most unlikely person; a dying thief, a seemingly hopeless sinner, apparently about as far from God as anyone could possibly be. We are not told much about this man, but there he was hanging and suffocating in terrible pain, a wasted life with no hope. Ironically, he found himself dying next to Jesus, the way, the truth, and the life! As he died, he turned his head to Jesus, author and finisher of our faith, and said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And Jesus immediately replied, “Today you will be with me in Paradise.”

      What happened to this thief between the time he was mocking Jesus along with the crowd and the hour he defended him and prayed for forgiveness? What moved him from scorn to belief? Was it the suffering he saw in Jesus? If so, he should have been equally affected by the pain in the other thief, or even his own pain. Pity is not likely to cause someone to call another person a king. Even if he had heard testimonies about Jesus as Messiah as he hung there on the cross, and had been moved by pity, there would still have been too far a distance between his sin and forgiveness. He could not have bridged the gap on testimonies and pity. It could only have been bridged by the power called faith.

      The thief looked at someone who seemed hardly human at all and said, “Remember me when you are King.” Not if you are King, but when you are King. He knew Jesus was going to win. I am totally astonished by this scene. What a leap in the dark, what a leap of faith! Within that gift of grace comes a child-like faith that makes a leap of repentance. We recognize today that we have no less of a need for transformation than did the thief on the cross. Maybe this is the essence of our Lenten journey.

       Have we realized our need for forgiveness and change; that hope comes from outside and beyond ourselves? Do we acknowledge how much we are worth to Jesus; that he wants to take us from where we are to where he knows we can be? How do we look at Jesus? Is he our Lord, Savior, and the King of our lives? Are we willing to turn to Jesus and say, “Remember me when you come into your kingdom?”

 

Rev Tim McConnell Long’s Chapel UMC March 10, 2013

The Walls in Our Lives

    

      Walls and fences made from a variety of materials are used to keep people and animals in a defined area, or sometimes to keep intruders out. Many homeowners plant trees and bushes on the boundary lines of their property to designate what belongs to them. This may send a subtle message, “You stay over there, and I’ll stay over on this side of the wall.”

      I have always been intrigued by those stone fences, which can be found winding their way up and down hillsides and across the mountain pastures. These stone walls reflect many hours of hard, back-breaking work of picking up, hauling, and stacking each stone. By creating these stone walls, fields and pastures were cleared for use, property lines were defined, and farm animals could be kept in or out.

      Not only do people create physical walls, but also we have been known to put up invisible walls to keep other people, different ideas, and even new ways of doing things from interfering with our daily routines. Refusing to listen to others, denying compromise on the non-essentials, and displaying a selfish stubbornness can sometimes lead to “wall building” between individuals, family members, and even congregations.

      Bishop Willimon tells of visiting the moors of Scotland where Robert the Bruce fought to gain Scotland’s freedom in 1314; the same story told in the movie Brave Heart. There is a church there, which dates back to the 12^th century. Mary Queen of Scots was crowned there in 1543. Prince Henry was christened in 1594 and James VI was crowned there in the sanctuary. As he stood there in the ancient church that day, Bishop Willimon said that the guide pointed out to him a line of different colored bricks that went from the center of the floor, up the front and back walls of the church, and down the middle of the ceiling; dividing the church into two identical halves. The guide went on to say that a disagreement in 1656 within the congregation was so great that a brick wall was finally built down the middle of the church. One church became two, altars at opposite ends, and for 280 years they worshipped in a divided manner. However, in 1936 the wall came down, forgiveness was embraced, and they were reunited.

      The tragedy here is that the seeds of selfishness and conflict were first sown in the hearts of individuals. What happened in that Scottish church can, and does happen, between family members, spouses, and long-time friends. We let suspicion, jealousy, miscommunication, and sin become the materials that lead to a wall between us and others, and between us and God. We tend to pull up the draw bridge and get behind the walls of our castle, and shut out God’s love and the fellowship of others.

      But if we do not have walls to protect ourselves, from where will our protection come? After Jerusalem was destroyed and the Jews were allowed to return and rebuild, the first thing they wanted was a wall for protection. However, in Zechariah 2 God said,

“Jerusalem will be a city without walls…I will be the wall around it and the glory within it.”

      Maybe it is time that you and I tear down those walls that separate us from God’s complete will and intention for our lives. Perhaps, we fear living without walls. We are afraid of turning loose of the pretences and prejudices that we have held so tightly for so long. We may have secret sins, which need to be exposed to God’s divine gaze, and a heart cleansing by God’s sanctifying grace.  Freedom to become the disciple God intends for us to be will not be ours until we realize that we no longer need to hide behind the walls of false protection. When we answer Christ’s call to follow him, his very words become our wall of protection. As we abandon the walls we have so carefully built, we will hear God’s voice saying, “I will be your wall and I will place my glory with in you.” God’s holy presence can become the only wall we need.

Rev Tim McConnell, Long’s Chapel UMC, February 24, 2013

 The Greatest of These Is Love

     It’s that time again! It’s the time of the year when stores, television, and all forms of media begin to push the idea that for one day we should all act as if we love each other. They tell us to buy candy, valentines, flowers, gift certificates to show that we love each other for at least one day. For many people it is a day of truce, in which they put aside themselves and express loving feelings for another person. Thankfully, for many people the spirit of Valentine’s Day, the genuine expression of love, continues long after the candy has been eaten and the flowers have wilted.

      C.S. Lewis in his book, Four Loves, describes love by the use of four Greek words with which many are familiar. Lewis discusses the common faces of love referred to as philia or phileo, eros, and storge. Each is vital to grow human relationships, and flow as gifts from the hand of God who loves us. Lewis then brings us to the greatest of all loves, the agape love, which is characterized by being unconditional. Agape love is the very nature of God and flows into the hearts of true followers of Christ. It is unselfish Christian love as taught by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount. When Jesus preached that powerful sermon, he had some radical things to say about our dealings with others. Because of agape love, we love those who hate us and we do good to those who are trying to tear us down. This kind of love is summed up in the great love chapter written by the Apostle Paul, 1Corinthians 13. This chapter tells us how we will “walk our faith” if we are filled with love from the heart of God.

      Love is the glue that holds relationships together, churches together, and nations together. Biblically, love is caring more for another person than we care for ourselves. It is love that continues even when it is not reciprocated. It is sacrificial and extended even to enemies. This kind of love originates only from a God full of grace and mercy—a God who is love. This is not about going to church or “having religion.” Religion can be just as disruptive as any other force in life. This is about knowing God in an intimate way. Knowing our God who revealed himself in Jesus Christ and enabled Jesus to love in such a way that he could pray for the men who crucified him saying, “Father, forgive them.” When we turn our face toward God, we turn our face toward love.

      Let’s enjoy the candy, cards, flowers, and the special dinners, but let’s also remember that underneath all of these expressions of love, God expects much more. He wants to put that deep agape love into our lives that determines how we treat each other, and how we treat him.

       “Love is patient, love is kind, it isn't jealous, it doesn't brag, it isn't arrogant; it isn't rude, it doesn't seek its own advantage, it isn't irritable, it doesn't keep a record of complaints, it isn't happy with injustice, but it is happy with the truth. Love puts up with all things, trusts all things, hopes for all things, endures all things. Love never fails. Now faith, hope, and love remain---these three things—but the greatest of these is love.”

Rev Tim McConnell Long’s Chapel UMC February 17, 2013

Enough Faith to Be Faithful

      As we read Jesus’ words in Luke 17:1-4, we find him teaching his disciples two very important practices of discipleship. I feel sure these teachings had been discussed before, but Jesus wanted to make sure they were understood. Jesus said, “Do not be the cause of someone sinning. Even if you feel you are entitled to do a certain thing, or have the need to give your opinion, be careful, you may cause someone to become weak. You will be accountable for their compromise.” Then Jesus also said, “You are to be willing to forgive unconditionally and without limit. If you expect God to forgive you, you must forgive each other.” The disciples hear Jesus and immediately connect these two responsibilities of discipleship with the need for faith. They do a quick faith check and make an obvious request to Jesus. “Lord, increase our faith. Faith to understand you.”

      Now we all understand that faith is a deep mystery, a mysterious gift from God. In times of trouble, death, and uncertainties, we find ourselves leaning, not on our own understanding, but on the gift of faith. We lean, even when we do not understand the mysteries of life and life beyond death. The writer of Hebrews in that great faith chapter, 11:1 tells us, “Faith is the reality of what we hope for, the proof of what we do not see.”  

      The disciples realized very quickly that they did not have enough faith to fulfill these two teachings of Jesus. How in the world can they make sure that what they say and do does not cause someone to sin? Is it possible to be able to forgive even the most personal sin, and to be willing to forgive repeatedly? It is interesting that the disciples did not ask for love, wisdom, or understanding, they asked for faith. They realized that they would need faith in God to help them be sensitive to the needs of others; to lay aside the things they liked to do if it has the potential to harm others. They also realized that they would need much faith in God to forgive, as Jesus wanted them to forgive. They would need faith to make the connection between God’s forgiveness of them and their forgiveness of others. They did not think they had enough faith to do any of this. Therefore, they asked Jesus to give them more.

        While today’s lesson is about being certain that we are not “stumbling blocks” to someone’s spiritual walk, it is also about forgiveness. While it is about unlimited forgiveness, it is also about serving God by giving him all we have because we love him and are grateful. If we are going to be people who are sensitive to the spiritual needs of others, people who practice forgiveness, and people who are true servants of God, then we need to be people of faith. And Jesus says the good news is that we don’t need a huge amount of faith, just faith the size of a mustard seed.

      Maybe we have been as guilty as the disciples by asking for our faith to be increased when we haven’t been using what we have. Maybe we as God’s church have been saying, “Jesus, we need more money, more people, more this or that, “increase us” before we can do something for you. What you are asking us to do and be seems so impossible unless you “increase us!” Jesus answers very quickly, “You have enough already. You have enough faith to be faithful. You need to use what you already have.” This is “Jesus talk.” He looks at us in our weakness, our hesitancy, and fear of the unknown and says simply, “You have all you need. You have enough faith to do what I expect you to do. Put the “mustard seed” gift that I have already given you to work. You have enough faith to be faithful.” Faithful in forgiving, faithful in relationships with others, and faithful in service, and faithful in loving God. As it is used, our faith will increase.

Rev Tim McConnell Long’s Chapel UMC March 3, 2013

These four little birds crowded their nest last year until time to fly away. Recently, I saw an adult bird in the last year's nest, just checking it out I suppose. I'm hoping for another family to soon move in so I can sit at my desk and watch God's hand at work.

The Lesson of the Plumb Line

      We do not like to talk with any degree of seriousness about consequences, especially if those consequences involve personal penalty and punishment. Most of us do not like to be criticized or judged. We find it much easier to sit in judgment of others than to accept a critique of our own lives and behaviors. However, there is no escape from the reality of a God who loves, gives grace, and shows mercy, while handing out judgment. In the Old Testament relationship between God and the Jewish people, we can find no find better example of a God who is patient, forgiving, and gracious. We can also find examples of judgment.

      In the little book of Amos we find God speaking to his servant about the judgment that will soon fall on the Jewish nation. In the seventh chapter, we find God measuring the actions and intentions of the people with a “spiritual plumb line.” When a builder uses a plumb line, a weight tied to the end of a string, it is hung from a “center,” from a point that is true and straight. The wall is then measured and built by the plumb line, as it hangs straight from the true center. God tells Amos that his people had been built by God’s true standards, they had once been centered on him, but they had allowed themselves to begin leaning away from the “center,” away from God’s standards. Now, they must be judged, punished, and brought back in line with the center.

      Micah 6:8 gives us those standards, “…just what does God require of his people? To do justice, to love mercy and kindness, and to walk humbly with your God.” The people had lost their divine center by centering on other things.

      Dr. Dennis Kinlaw tells a story that fits into this vision of Amos and the plumb line. There is a castle in Scotland with a dungeon cut from solid rock. The dungeon, which serves as a prison, is shaped like a bottle or a triangle, narrow at the top with sloping circular walls. Once a person is dropped in the opening at the top, there is no escape from the total darkness. All prisoners placed there quickly go insane, except one. For several weeks, this prisoner was able to keep his right mind even in total darkness and the circular dungeon with no unchanging point of reference. When taken out, he shared his secret. In his pocket, he had six small pebbles, and when he felt mental panic, he would count his pebbles by moving them one at a time from one pocket to another. There were always six. With that unchangeable point of reference, which was found outside of himself, the man was able to keep from losing his mind. His existence depended on an external point that never changed.

      Kinlaw continues by saying “the key to one’s self is not self.” Without an external point of reference outside of our selves, we simply wander aimlessly searching for fulfillment. We need an unmoving true center, a point from which the plumb line of God’s unchanging standards will hang to measure our lives and keep us straight. That unmoving center is found in the person of Jesus Christ.

      As a church, we can have hope in the words of Jesus as he judged the church at Philadelphia in the first chapter of Revelation. “You have been true to me and kept my teachings. I have held up the plumb line of holiness and you are found to be a holy people. You have kept me as the center of your existence. I will bless you beyond measure, here on this earth and in everlasting life.” So we ask ourselves, “Are we who we say we are? Is my life consistent with God’s standards? How well does my faith walk measure up to God’s plumb line?”    

Rev Tim McConnell Long’s Chapel UMC February 10, 2013

Beyond Our Borders

      As I turned the pages of the Asheville Citizen-Times recently, a picture suddenly caught my attention. Two Alaskan Huskies were sitting in their harnesses waiting to go on a sled run in Jefferson, N.H. A second quick look told me that one of the dogs was blind. Poncho and his blind brother, Gonzo, race side by side with Gonzo getting the necessary help from time to time. Holly Ramer, who wrote the article for the Associated Press, tells us that soon after Gonzo went blind, Poncho realized that his brother would need help.

      Kennel owner Neil Beaulieu could have kept Gonzo back in a warm, safe house, but was advised by the veterinarian to let him run the trails with the others. Soon it became obvious that Poncho would become caregiver for his blind brother, Gonzo.

      It is the culture of sled dogs to keep running even if one of the dogs in the team stumbles and falls. “But one spring day Gonzo strayed to the edge of the trail and stumbled. With the team still moving forward, Poncho reached over, dug his head in the snow, and pulled his brother out by grabbing his harness with his teeth.”

      This reminds me of a similar story, not only of caring and loving, but how moving beyond comfortable boundaries is possible and even rewarding.

      Two horses shared a pasture, but one, like Gonzo in the first story, was blind. If one walked up close enough, you would be able to hear the tinkling of the bell that one of the horses wore. The belled horse stayed close to her friend, close enough so that the bell could always be heard and followed. The blind horse could have stayed in the safety of the barn every day, but this arrangement allowed him to go beyond his boundaries.

      I believe these two stories show us not only the responsibilities we have to care for one another, but how, despite our limitations, human weaknesses, and our inhibitions, we can move from our comfortable routines and explore possibilities beyond those borders.

      Just as Gonzo could have slept in a warm kennel each day, and the blind horse could have stayed in the barn, we too can sit in our pews and in houses content that we are God’s church. However, we are to be “sent” people, sent beyond our churches and homes, sent to those who may have given up on traditional church, yet have not given up on God, the unchurched and the never churched.

      Our church has embraced the “sent” mandate given to us by Jesus in John 20:21. As a result, we have embarked on making real the vision of “going beyond our borders” verbalized in the passage found in Malachi 1:5. God has given us the awesome vision of launching a new faith community within the next few months in the Asheville area. We have the assurance that we do not “go beyond our borders” alone. Our brothers and sisters go with us, and surely, there are others waiting for us to come. The God who spoke to Abraham, Moses, and the leaders of the early church is a God on the move, a God who constantly urges us to go with him. “The Lord is great beyond our borders,” so we dare not be left behind.

Rev Tim McConnell Long’s Chapel UMC February 3, 2013   

I knew that I had neglected my blog...I had even thought about just abandoning it. But just today I received an e-mail that really caught my attention. A wonderful reader of my weekly article in the Asheville Citizen Times remarked that she had found my blog and would continue to read the devotions posted there. This encouraged me to at least check up on the blog and see if it was still there. It was...and told me that I hadn't posted since Jan. I am ashamed!!!
What makes me be so neglectful of things I can do that are so important to other people? Busyness? distractions? forgetfulness? All of those things, maybe. I have had a prayer meeting about not letting that sense of neglect leak over into my spiritual life and damage my relationship with Jesus. Lord, may I allow myself to be drawn closer and closer to you. So close that I would have to be intentional about pulling away.
In the meantime I will do better with the blog. So for the ones who actually check it I will promise to update more regularly.

Montana Cemetery near where we stayed on our mission trip summer of 2012.