From the Pastor’s Desk:

This month we will be celebrating what has probably become our most forgotten

National Holiday. Squeezed between Halloween and Christmas, Thanksgiving Day,

often gets lost in the commercialism of Christmas and Halloween. Thanksgiving

the one day we set aside to say “Thank You – God” for the blessings we have

received and continue to receive here in America. “Thank You God” for the food

that fills our tables and the time we have to share with family and friends.

Thanksgiving Day has become a day for Football and Pre-Christmas Sales. What

have we done to this day of remembrance? What does that tell us about our

ungrateful nation and its people? I’m afraid that we as a nation, blessed above all

others, have come to take our blessings for granted. No longer do we celebrate

the food on our tables as gifts from God. No longer to we celebrate family, friends

and neighbors as your children. Too many times we fail to look at people of

​different ethical backgrounds as equals that are entitled to the blessings that we

enjoy. Help us O Lord, to remember your call to love one another regardless of the

obvious social and ethical differences and to see the heart in which you dwell.

Galatians 3:28 tells us: “ There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free,

nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

May this Thanksgiving Day find you surrounded by family, friends, and neighbors giving

thanks to our Creator God for the gifts of individuality? May we never forget to

give God the thanks and praise due his Holy name.

Peace

Pastor David

Psalms 62:5 tell us: “Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him.” When your days seem to be overwhelming, slow down and refocus. Rest in the presence of Christ your Lord and Savior. Give your mind a chance to refocus and stop trying to anticipate everything that will happen before it even occurs. Pray continually, asking for the Holy Spirit to take charge of the details of this day. Remember, that you are on a journey with Jesus. And when we try to look into the future and plan for things that may not even happen, we ignore our constant companion who sustains us moment by moment. As we gaze anxiously into the unknown future, we often forget who’s holding our hand and just who will get us on the other side of life’s difficult circumstances. How foolish we are to think that we are on our own when Jesus has promised never to leave nor forsake us. Remember it is our grip of the Savior’s hand that will sustain us during the challenges of life. Remember God’s promises to the Israelites recorded in Deuteronomy 12:10 – “But you will cross the Jordan and settle in the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, and he will give you rest from all your enemies around you so that you will live in safety.” May we find our much needed rest in the arms of Christ Jesus our Lord.

Peace

Pastor David

Every journey has a starting point…and it has an end. God meant for Life to filled with joy and purpose. He invites us to…take the rest of our journey with Him.

Billy Graham of LIFE

Throughout the Gospel readings Jesus teaches us to love and care for one another. In the Parable of the Good Samaritan recorded in Luke 10:25-37 for instance, Jesus calls for us to get involved in helping those in need. Then in Luke 10:38-42 we have the story of Jesus visiting Martha and Mary’s home and how Martha complained to Jesus that Mary wasn’t helping prepare the meal and that all she was doing was sitting at Jesus’ feet listening to his teachings. Then Jesus informed Martha that Mary had chosen the right thing to do. Listening to Jesus you see is what we are all called to do and the gospels stress that point. So today let us all take time away from our busy schedules and set at Jesus’ feet and listen to what he has to say to us. You can hear him if you tune into the scriptures and tune out the distractions of the world around you. This after all is what Jesus said was the better thing for us to do in Luke 10:41-42.

I know that summer can be a very busy time with vacations, day trips, yard work gardening, and entertaining visitors but nothing is more important to any of us than sitting at the feet of Christ. Who knows you might just find a new favorite place to sit? I know that as I sit on the porch swing and watch the world go by, God speaks to me in ways that inspire sermons and relationships. Who knows maybe I need to just set in my porch swing a little longer and recoup and listen for what God has to say. So if you see me sitting in the swing don’t think I’m not doing anything. It might just be that like Mary, Jesus and I are having a conversation.

May God bless you all with a seat at the feet of Christ and heart and mind to hear him speak.

Peace

Pastor David

C.S. Lewis once wrote: “God gives His grace where He finds the vessel empty enough to receive them.” St. Augustine says: “God gives where He finds empty hands.” This Lenten Season may we break free from whatever has filled our hearts so full that there is little or no room for God? In light of the recent school shootings we as a nation are forced to look within ourselves and see where our priories lie. Have we as a nation drifted so far off course that God’s hopes and dreams for our nation have drifted beyond his reach. Have we pushed God so far out of our schools, our homes, and our government that we are drifting from one golden calf to another? Have we become so consumed with material possessions and hatred that our hearts have room for nothing else? Have we as a nation and as individuals become so consumed with material possessions and violence that there is no room in our hearts for Gods’ love and grace? A love and grace that is meant to be shared with those around us. The scriptures tells us in Romans 15:13 – “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Today many are living in fear while the hope and joy offered by God is nowhere to be found. This Lenten Season may we be found on our knees seeking the face of God; admitting our shortcomings and seeking God’s forgiveness. May we as individuals and as a nation turn our hearts and minds back to God? May we get back to the point where we can proclaim as the psalmist did in Psalms 34:8 – “Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is he who takes refuge in him.” May we come to know the God of grace, hope, love and acceptance shown to us through the life, death and resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. May we as individuals, as a nation and as a community of faithful followers of Christ, empty our hearts and minds enough to receive God’s gifts of grace and love so that we can be found, proclaiming – “This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalms 118:24). May God bless and keep us all hungry for his Word. Amen.

“Lent a season for self reflection”
This Valentine’s Day will start the beginning of the 2018 Lenten Season; the time of year when we take a close look at our own relationship with God. Many people will make personal sacrifices to remind them of the sacrifice Christ made for all of us. For many people it’s giving up something they are particularly fond of: Chocolate, soda, pizza and so forth. But as a Pastor I would like to suggest that we give up something more precious than chocolate, soda or pizza; I would like to suggest that we look at giving up time. Time spent watching television, time on our phones or computers, and then fill those voids with time in scripture, prayer, or silence as we refocus on our relationship with God. Lent would be a wonderful time to get to know God and one of the ways of doing that would be to look at the “I AM” saying so Jesus Christ, God in human form. This year Zion UCC and St. John Lutheran will once again be sharing our Lenten services and the focus will be on Rob Fuguay’s book- “The God We Can Know” exploring the “I AM” sayings of Jesus. You are welcome to join us with a light dinner at 6:00 followed by worship at 7:00 alternating locations between Zion UCC and St. John Lutheran. We will begin at St. John’s on Ash Wednesday with worship at 7:00 including the Imposition of Ashes and Holy Communion. Note: There will not be a light dinner before the Ash Wednesday service. All are welcome. God Blessings to all as we journey into the Lenten Season seeking a closer walk with God. Amen.

Sometimes things happen in life that causes us to question God. When we find ourselves in those moments let us  look not to the darkness but to the light of Christ for our answers. The scriptures are full of encouraging words, that if reflected upon, will bring us from our dark place into the light of hope and promise. As a pastor I won’t always know the right words to say — but God does. His Word is sufficient for us in every situation we face, including the senseless shootings that have invaded our schools. It is during such times as these that we must look to the Lord for guidance and support. The scriptures tells us in Psalms 55:22  to “Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall.” (NIV). In those moments of fear and anxiousness we can cast our fears to the only one that can handle them and that is our Lord. When we cast our cares, our worries, and our praise to the Lord, he hears us and grants his blessings to those who claim his holy name. The Lord said, more than once, that he would never cast his eyes from his children when they call out to him. We cannot hope to change the world in which we live if we continue to ignore the one who loves us the most, our Lord and Savior, Jesus the Christ. Psalms 46:1-3 says: “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help  in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth gives way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though it’s waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.” This passage remains us that sometimes we just have to make a choice not to give into fear. It reminds us to fill our hearts and minds with the picture of God as our refuge and our strength. and say to ourselves, “I will not be afraid for God is with me.” It is when we turn to scriptures that our eyes will be opened to the light that shines even in the darkness of life. Amen.