Devotion: Patiently Waiting

"Therefore, beloved, while you are waiting for these things, strive to be found by him at peace, without spot or blemish;  15 and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation." 2 Peter 3:14-15 

While in high school, I took alot of photography art classes.  Using an old Canon camera, I remember painstakingly lining up each shot I wanted to take--checking the angle, the light, the lens speed before clicking the button.  As a cheap child, I only had 26 shots on a roll of film to capture before I would have to go purchase another roll.  It then took one class period to develop the film, with the high potential of light exposure ruining the film.  Then it took another couple of days in a dark room trying to perfect a single picture.  This form of photography took discipline; it took money, time, effort and patience.  And it was actually a fulfilling to go through all those steps.

But a few years ago, I purchased a digital Canon SLR.  Now I can rapidly click off 500 pictures, scroll through the photos and delete them in a fraction of a second.  I don't have to wait for the perfect scene to develop, but blindly push the button hoping that one of the photos will get Ellie and three boys all smiling at the same time.  And after the initial purchase, I haven't had to buy more film. This form of photography is quick, easy, and cheap.

In our digital age, convenience has outpaced patience, and in doing so we have lost the spiritual discipline of waiting.  We shoot first, analyze later.  But there is something to be said that our spiritual journey is not a quick fix, but a long journey that takes discipline--and money, time, effort and patience.  Now that is a counter-cultural way to live.  It desires time consuming effort, rather than rapid solutions.  Peter addresses this issue when he tells people to strive (work) as they wait upon Christ's return.  

What are you waiting on the Lord for right now?  Are you pouring out your money, time, effort and patience on behalf of God?  

Sermon: Getting in the Way

Wednesday Worship

Luke 5

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devotion: giving hearts

"Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change."  James 1:17

Augustine has said that the "root of all sin is pride."  It is when we think excessively of ourselves.  This seems to be the hallmark of our contemporary culture, however.  We are told that we have to constantly fight for ourselves, because who would do it for us?  Every product is specially targeted and marketed to us.

One thing that struck me in Haiti, was when we climbed to the top of a mountain after a 3 hour hike.  At the top, everyone sat down to eat the energy bars they had purchased in america, packed to Haiti, carried 3 hours in the sun.  Knowing of the hunger of the children who had joined our hike, people broke off parts of their energy bars to give a child.  In response the child divided this already small morsel even further so that he could give some to each of his friends who came along the journey.  This type of story plays out through-out impoverished third world countries.  It is actually in cultures of abundance where we so desperately hold onto the things we have "earned" out of fear of loosing them.

As people of faith, who believe that every good gift comes from God; why is it so hard to let go and let God?  What things do we hoard?  Feel entitled to?  What would it take to create a spirit of genorsity and sacrifice in your heart?

They'll let anyone in the pulpit these days...

Devotion: Believing

Is it possible that we are too smart for our own good? Paul's letter
to the Romans--one of the denses book of the Bible seems to suggest
this. Paul writes, "For although they knew God, they neither
glorified him as God or gave thanks to him, but their thinking became
futile and their foolish hearts darkened." Paul likes to contrast
knowledge with faith. Even though people "knew" God, that does not
necessarily mean that they believed in Him.
In our wikipedia age, access to information is easy; but believing in
things is far more difficult. By believing in something it means that
we are also willing to commit ourselves to it. Like the great scene
in White Man Can't Jump, which explains the difference between Hearing
and Listening, believing is a deeper far more personal and intimate
form of knowledge.
Paul opens his theological rich letter to the Romans specifically for
this purpose...He does not just want the Romans to know the belief
systems of early Christianity, he wanted them believe that "God
demonstrated his own love for us in this; while we were still sinners,
Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)

How do you make that leap from knowing to believing? What is hard
about "belief"? What beliefs are you willing to commit your life to?