Freedom in the Spirit-- this past Sunday's sermon

I have gotten behind in posting sermons.  Not that I post all of them, but I do try for the most part to post the transcripts, the recordings, the bulletins, some of the songs, etc.  That is, when I have time and energy.  I haven't posted sermons in the past three weeks.  Things have been busy in life.

I will start with yesterday's sermon and hopefully catch up with the other two as well.

In addition to the recorded sermon, I'm including the special music this time because I recorded it.  I don't always record the special music, but I did yesterday.

I included a song in the sermon.  You might can hear it in the recording, but I will also add it to the sermon script.

In the sermon, I mention something and include the link in the transcript.  I will post it too.

I wore my butterfly stole yesterday that I bought to wear for my niece's wedding.  I thought it was appropriate for Transfiguration Sunday, as I shared about transformation for all of us.

I don't know who reads or listens or if this meets anyone where they are, these sermons.  But, I share, in the off chance that the Holy Spirit, who is always teaching, may use it somehow, someway, for someone.

Peace,

Debra

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“Freedom in the Spirit”

2 Corinthians 3:12-4:2 (CEB)

March 3, 2019 (Transfiguration Sunday/Communion Sunday)

Fort Oglethorpe UMC

2 Corinthians 3:12-4:2 (CEB)

¹² So, since we have such a hope, we act with great confidence. ¹³ We aren’t like Moses, who used to put a veil over his face so that the Israelites couldn’t watch the end of what was fading away. ¹⁴ But their minds were closed. Right up to the present day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. The veil is not removed because it is taken away by Christ. ¹⁵ Even today, whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their hearts. ¹⁶ But whenever someone turns back to the Lord, the veil is removed. ¹⁷ The Lord is the Spirit, and where the Lord’s Spirit is, there is freedom. ¹⁸ All of us are looking with unveiled faces at the glory of the Lord as if we were looking in a mirror. We are being transformed into that same image from one degree of glory to the next degree of glory. This comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

4 This is why we don’t get discouraged, given that we received this ministry in the same way that we received God’s mercy. ² Instead, we reject secrecy and shameful actions. We don’t use deception, and we don’t tamper with God’s word. Instead, we commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God by the public announcement of the truth.

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THIS IS THE WORD OF GOD FOR THE PEOPLE OF GOD.

THANKS BE TO GOD.                      

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Today is Transfiguration Sunday.  From the UMC discipleship.org page, today “we celebrate the revelation of Christ’s glory “before the passion” so that we may “be strengthened to bear our cross and be changed into his likeness.”  The focus of the Lenten season is renewed discipline in walking in the way of the cross and rediscovery of the baptismal renunciation of evil and sin and our daily adherence to Christ.”  

This prayer from The Book of Common Prayer helps us put today in perspective: “O God, who before the passion of your only-begotten Son revealed his glory upon the holy mountain: Grant to us that we, beholding by faith the light of his countenance, may be strengthened to bear our cross, and be changed into his likeness from glory to glory through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.  Amen. https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/transfiguration-sunday-why-do-we-celebrate-it-before-lent

As we dig into today’s passage, keep in mind that we are to become more and more like Christ, as we celebrate the revelation of Christ’s glory.

The title for today comes from verse 3:17—“The Lord is the Spirit, and where the Lord’s Spirit is, there is freedom.”

There is freedom in the Spirit.  Amen?!  Do you believe that?  Have you experienced the freedom that comes in, with, through, and by the Spirit?  Once you have, there’s no turning back.  When you’ve been set free, you don’t go back into bondage.  You cannot un-see what you have seen. 

Before today’s key verse, 17, there are key words in other verses that might have stood out to you—hope, confidence.  In verse 17, freedom.  After verse 17, transformed.

4:1 tells us to not be discouraged.  Others versions say, do not lose heart.

Today’s passage is one that calls us from bondage and blindness into freedom, hope, and boldness, all because of an encounter with the Spirit and being transformed into the image of God (verses 17-18) [Feasting on the Word, Donald Musser, 446]

A quote from this week’s reading: “Hardened hearts are softened and blind eyes become sighted as the glory of God is revealed and lives are transformed (3:18) into God’s image.” (Feasting on the Word, Donald Musser, 446)

The life changing experience that Jesus had on the mountain, his transfiguration, is available for every one of us.  We can all be transformed.  An encounter with God will not leave us the way we were, if we are open to the life giving freedom of the Spirit.

Let’s think for a moment about what things might cause us to experience bondage or blindness. [PAUSE]

What if we were to fill in the blank for this sentence: “He/She/They was/were blinded by ______________.” What would you say?  [Now, if you’re thinking ‘she blinded me by science, then you are familiar with the 1982 song by Thomas Dolby, but that isn’t where I was going, though it did come to mind. 

Things that come to my mind that often cause us to be blinded or in bondage are: fear, hate, ignorance.  There are many other things that cause blindness and bondage. 

The good news is that there is freedom in the Spirit.

We can be transformed.  We can change.  We aren’t stuck in the environment in which we grew up, our thoughts, our habits, etc.  Because of the life-giving power of the Holy Spirit, we are transformed into the likeness of Christ, as we grow as disciples of Christ. 

In my preparation this week, I came across a recommended video.  I had never heard of it before, so I looked it up.  In a few minutes we will show this video.  Before we do that, I ask that we pray this prayer from Psalm 139:23-24 (NLT)--

²³Search me, O God, and know my heart;
    test me and know my anxious thoughts.
²⁴ Point out anything in me that offends you,
    and lead me along the path of everlasting life.

This video is a song by Montgomery and Gentry, “Some People Change”.  Listen and watch.

[VIDEO]

[Read the closing words again from the screen:]

“Here’s to the strong

Thanks to the brave

Don’t give up hope

Some people change

Against all odds

Against the grain

Love finds a way

Some people change

Thank God for those who make it

Let them be the light”

As we prepare our hearts for Holy Communion today, may we remember that there is freedom in the Spirit.  May we recognize the gospel of love, hope, and deliverance in Jesus Christ.  On this Transfiguration Sunday, the transforming power and love of God is for all of us.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

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Recorded sermon

Special Music

The Power of Words-- sermon from September 16-- James 3:1-12

Last week's sermon was "The Power of Words".

Below you will find the church sign, the bulletin cover, the songs from the service, the sermon message and the recorded sermon.

I hope that there is something that speaks to you.

Blessings on your journey,

Debra

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CHURCH SIGN:

BULLETIN COVER:

“The Power of Words”

James 3:1-12 (MSG)

September 16, 2018 (17^th Sunday after Pentecost)

Flintstone UMC

James 3:1-12 (MSG)

^1-2 Don’t be in any rush to become a teacher, my friends. Teaching is highly responsible work. Teachers are held to the strictest standards. And none of us is perfectly qualified. We get it wrong nearly every time we open our mouths. If you could find someone whose speech was perfectly true, you’d have a perfect person, in perfect control of life.

^3-5 A bit in the mouth of a horse controls the whole horse. A small rudder on a huge ship in the hands of a skilled captain sets a course in the face of the strongest winds. A word out of your mouth may seem of no account, but it can accomplish nearly anything—or destroy it!

^5-6 It only takes a spark, remember, to set off a forest fire. A careless or wrongly placed word out of your mouth can do that. By our speech we can ruin the world, turn harmony to chaos, throw mud on a reputation, send the whole world up in smoke and go up in smoke with it, smoke right from the pit of hell.

^7-10 This is scary: You can tame a tiger, but you can’t tame a tongue—it’s never been done. The tongue runs wild, a wanton killer. With our tongues we bless God our Father; with the same tongues we curse the very men and women he made in his image. Curses and blessings out of the same mouth!

^10-12 My friends, this can’t go on. A spring doesn’t gush fresh water one day and brackish the next, does it? Apple trees don’t bear strawberries, do they? Raspberry bushes don’t bear apples, do they? You’re not going to dip into a polluted mud hole and get a cup of clear, cool water, are you?

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THIS IS THE WORD OF GOD FOR THE PEOPLE OF GOD.

THANKS BE TO GOD.

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I chose The Message again for today’s reading as I did for last week because it helps us to hear and read the Scriptures in a version different than the one we read daily.  The Message is the Bible in Contemporary Language and was created by Eugene H. Peterson and published in segments from 1993 to 2002. It is an idiomatic translation of the original languages of the Bible.

In today’s passage we see several examples of how a small thing can control a bigger one: a bit in the mouth of a horse, a rudder on a ship, a small spark can become a large fire, etc.  James uses everyday examples to get our attention.  And we can even still relate to these examples today.  He uses them to help us understand the power of words.  Words can build up or tear down.

As we heard and sang in the song by Hawk Nelson this morning:

“Words can build you up
Words can break you down
Start a fire in your heart or
Put it out

Let my words be life  
Let my words be truth
I don't wanna say a word
Unless it points the world back to You”

Notice how the passage warns us to not be in a rush to become a teacher because we are held more accountable for our words.  So, if you don’t have the official title of teacher, you’re off the hook, right?!  Not so fast.  We’re all teachers in some way.  If you’re a parent, if you’ve been a leader in any group, if you have ever been a babysitter, if you’ve ever taught someone how to do anything (tie a shoe, drive a car, etc.), then you have taught someone.  In teaching, as in all parts of life, it’s the words we choose and use that will build up or tear down.

Tearing down happens.  In my days of teaching, I didn’t think twice of using some sarcasm in the classroom for the longest time.  I had seen it modeled and it seemed to be okay.  Yet, I noticed at times that it would cause hurt feelings.  I started watching what I said and what I did.  When I went to Middlebury College for some graduate French work one summer, the deal was sealed for me.  One of my professors there mocked me and other students in the classroom.  I don’t know about the others, but she mocked me outside of class too.  That helped me get rid of any remaining sarcasm that was left in my teaching.

Sometimes we aren’t aware of how we might be hurting others by our actions or our words.  That’s why we need one another and the Holy Spirit.  In community, we can hold one another accountable.  And the Holy Spirit can help us see things that we don’t see clearly.

A good prayer to pray is from Psalm 139:23-24 (NLT)—

Search me, O God, and know my heart;
    test me and know my anxious thoughts.
²⁴ Point out anything in me that offends you,
    and lead me along the path of everlasting life.

Once we are made aware or recognize these things, we ask forgiveness and we take action to live differently.  When we’ve hurt someone by our action or non-action, we ask for God’s forgiveness and where appropriate, we apologize and seek their forgiveness.  Isn’t that the way it’s done?

Matthew 5:23-24 (MSG)

^23-24 “This is how I want you to conduct yourself in these matters. If you enter your place of worship and, about to make an offering, you suddenly remember a grudge a friend has against you, abandon your offering, leave immediately, go to this friend and make things right. Then and only then, come back and work things out with God.”

If your friend was hurt by something you had said or done and you went to your friend and, instead of making it right, only said to them that they had hurt you by saying they were hurt, what healing has taken place?  What good in God’s kingdom has been done? 

Praying those verses in Psalm 139 and allowing God through the Holy Spirit to lead us along the path of everlasting life will help us go a long way in learning to watch our words.

In Toby Mac’s “Speak Life”, he points out the power of words. 

Here are a few of those lyrics:

“Well, it’s crazy to imagine
Words from my lips as the arms of compassion
Mountains crumble with every syllable
Hope can live or die

So speak life, speak life
To the deadest darkest night
Speak life, speak life
When the sun won’t shine and you don’t know why
Look into the eyes of the broken hearted
Watch them come alive as soon as you speak hope
You speak love, you speak…
You speak life”

We have the power to speak life, to speak love, to speak hope into people’s lives.

That is a great blessing and responsibility.  In order for us to be able to speak love, life, and hope into other people’s lives, we have to continually be filled with love, life, and hope.

The power of words goes beyond simply speaking life, love, and hope into other’s lives.  How many of you have heard of people choosing a word for the year?  They choose a word to live into for the year, such as “joy”, “hope”, “forgiveness”, etc.

There are websites with information on this.  Many people have gone from New Year’s Resolutions to choosing a word so that they can focus on one thing and be intentional.  One website, myoneword.org, notes this:

“Let me let you in on a seldom recognized truth: Change is possible, but focus is required.

You don’t need a gym membership or more will power, a new organizational system or a financial planner to make the changes you desire this year as much as you need clarity and sustained focus over time.

That is why our goal is to help you choose just one word to be your focus for the next twelve months, and to help you keep your attention fixed on your word.”

That ties in with the philosophy behind “Intentional Living” in that they are always talking about choosing one thing to focus on, to be intentional about—and do it.

As we focus today on the power of words, listen again to these last verses in today’s passage:

^10-12 “My friends, this can’t go on. A spring doesn’t gush fresh water one day and brackish the next, does it? Apple trees don’t bear strawberries, do they? Raspberry bushes don’t bear apples, do they? You’re not going to dip into a polluted mud hole and get a cup of clear, cool water, are you?”

What imagery! What is inside us WILL come out. We must be faithful in filling up with the Living Water that Christ offers us through spiritual practices of prayer, study, Scripture, silence, solitude, time apart, communion, worship, fasting, etc.

Richard Rohr notes: “We must be aware—almost hour by hour—of what our reservoir is holding, or we will never feel the need to fill it with a new kind of positive flow—or recognize the brackish and even poisonous waters from which we are drawing.” (Just This, 14)

Luke 6:45 (NLT)—“A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart.”

Let’s take a moment, as we close this morning, to allow God to examine our hearts.  Will you pray with me?

God, we come together this morning, recognizing the power of words.  We have the power to build up or tear down.  We can offer hope or destroy it.  We desire to speak life, love, and hope.  We want to be the arms of compassion for others.  We pray those verses 23-24 from Psalm 139: ‘Search us, O God, and know our hearts; test us and know our anxious thoughts. ²⁴ Point out anything in us that offends you, and lead us along the path of everlasting life.’  Show us how we use the power of words for the good of others and the glory of your kingdom.  Amen.

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Songs from worship:

"Words" by Hawk Nelson

"The Power of Words" by Andrea Gardner [This is not a song, but it merits watching.] ["Change Your Words,  Change Your World."]

"You Say" by Lauren Daigle

"Speak Life" by Toby Mac (mentioned in sermon)

If you'd like to listen to the sermon, click here. (.wav)

Are You My Mother?

What do you think of when you read that title?  You may be thinking that I'm off my calendar because Mother's Day isn't until May.  Well, what got me thinking was actually the P.D. Eastman book, Are You My Mother?  Do you know it?  Maybe you remember it from grade school or from reading it to your kids?  I have a bilingual (Spanish/English) copy that I used in teaching. 

I loved the book when I was growing up.  First, the little bird is adorable.  Also, I found it interesting that the little bird was so adventurous.  I don't know if I would have stepped out of the comforts of my nest to go look for my mother, had I been that little bird.  But, it did.  Of course, being a little bird, it thought it would be able to fly.  It got a shock as it fell down to earth that first step.  Instead of thinking too hard and long about not being able to fly, the little bird realized it could walk and set out to find its mother. 

Since the little bird didn't know what his mother looked liked, he walked past her once.  Throughout the book, the little bird asks one character after another "are you my mother?"  At first, he is fairly calm through the process, but then he begins to panic when he cannot find her.  He even follows an airplane, thinking that might be his mother.  In desperation, he gets up on a "big thing" that he thinks is his mother.  Then it "snorts" and begins to move.  Here is when the little bird really panics and realizes he needs to get out of there.  But, he cannot fly and the machine has lifted him off the ground.   The machine deposited the baby bird back into its nest.  Soon after, the mother returned to the nest with food and asked the baby bird if it knew who she was.  By that point, the baby bird knew, without a doubt, who she was.  He went through the list of who she wasn't and then declared, "You are a bird, and you are my mother."

What a great book!!  If you haven't read it, I encourage you to read it!  Sorry for the ending spoiler.  Hopefully it won't really ruin it for you.  If the book is too juvenile for you, find a child to whom you can read it.

Why in the world did this book come to mind the other day?  First of all, random things tend to pop in my mind.  Sidenote--Several years ago, a friend, who is now in camel land, got me into the world of random thoughts.  Random thoughts are often not as random as they seem. 

As I was thinking about this book and the little bird, I was thinking about the adventure this bird experienced.  As I have just now re-read the book, I see all sorts of life analogies.

Sometimes we think we can do things that we're not quite prepared to do.  Like the little bird who knew it should be able to fly, we step out of the nest only to fall to the ground.  Our reaction is important.  Will we, like the bird, realize that we can walk and get up and go?  Or will we sit there and cry and focus on the fact that we cannot fly?

The little bird had no idea what his mother looked like, but he knew he had a mother.  He knew he was created.  So, he goes around asking everyone and everything "are you my mother?"  The little bird is tenacious and doesn't give up easily.  He is bold and courageous.   I realize that he didn't run into the big, bad wolf-- but that's another story.  He was kept from serious harm in this story.  I think of Psalm 139 and how we are created and woven together by God.  I think of how we spend time in our life searching for our creator.

The little bird starts to panic when he cannot find his mother.  He knows she exists somewhere, but cannot find her.  He knows who his mother is when she comes because he has already learned that the others are not his mother.  The little bird went through a thorough search to find his mother and was able to declare with certainty that he knew this was his mother. 

What about you?  Are you still searching?  Or have you found your Creator? Genesis 1:27 tells us that "God created mankind in his own image".   We were created for fellowship.  Fellowship with God, fellowship with one another.  Prayer is a way for us to grow our relationship with God.  Spending time with one another in community in a variety of ways helps us grow our relationships with one another.

One way to grow both relationships is table fellowship.  Gathering around a table and sharing a meal.  Whether it's for a holiday, for a family get together, or just because, table fellowship allows us to not only gather, but to talk and to share.  As we share a meal, we share our hearts and our lives. 

Maybe you're gathering with family and/or friends this week.  If you're in the United States of America (to distinguish from the United States of Mexico or Canada), you might be celebrating Thanksgiving.  As you gather and share food and fellowship, may your relationships be strengthened, with your Creator and with one another.

I am gathering with family this week.  Not only is it going to be a Thanksgiving celebration, but my Mom celebrates one of those "big" birthdays that end in a zero.  For me, it is a time to celebrate my thankfulness for many things in life, including my mom's life.  (I wouldn't be here without her.  Plus, she's walked with me through some tough times in my adult life.)

As you think about the little bird (not the turkey) and about table fellowship opportunities, what things have come to mind?  Any challenges?  Any affirmations?  Any action steps needed?  Share these things with someone who is on the journey with you.  Share them in a comment here.

Blessings on your journey! 

May you travel like the little bird, knowing that your Creator is out there, waiting for you to return home!

~Debra

Blind Spots.

Blind Spots.

If you drive a vehicle, you know what a blind spot is.  It is that area in which you cannot see anything.

Here's a driving scenario:

You checked your rear-view mirror and both your side mirrors.  There was nothing behind you nor beside you.  You start to move over into the left lane and HOOONNNNNNKKKKKK!   Oops!!! You jerk your steering wheel back to the right, barely having missed that other vehicle.  What just happened?  Most likely, that vehicle had been there the entire time, but it was in your blind spot.

Does that scenario sound familiar?  Has it ever happened to you?  It has happened to me.  I try to turn my head around and look beyond the blind spot in my car, but that doesn't always work.  Especially now with two herniated discs in my neck and some stiffness.  We need to be careful of blind spots when we are driving.

What about in life?  Do we experience "blind spots" in our lives?  Yes.  This morning during neck traction time, I was reading Radical by David Platt and these words on blind spots struck me:

"We all have blind spots--areas of our lives that need to be uncovered so we can see correctly and adjust our lives accordingly.  But they are hard to identify.  Others can often see them in us, and we rely on friends to point them out.  But the reality is, even then we have a hard time recognizing them.  We don't want to admit they exist...often until it's too late.  We discover them in hindsight, but we struggle to see them in the present." (107)

That's a powerful paragraph.  It is packed with truth.  I'd like to take a few moments and unpack it.

First, "we all have blind spots".  That's easy for him to say.   Can you agree with that statement?  I hope so.  If not, why not?

Next, "they are hard to identify."  Is that true?  YES.  And, that's why community is so important, as Platt points out.  Our friends, those closest to us, can help us see what we cannot.  Think about the car situation for a moment.  If you have other people in the car with you, they can help you look out for other cars and you are less likely to get caught by your blind spot.  It's the same in life.

Even with friends helping us, Platt says "we don't want to admit they exist".  That is also true.  It takes humility and integrity to be willing to look into our blind spots, admit their existence, and then to take steps to correct them, change them.

Who are the people on your journey with you that can help you see the blind spots in your life?  Do you have an open relationship with them in which they can speak truth into your life and you into theirs?

May you and I begin to see more clearly those things that hinder us from walking well on the journey.  May we not only see, but take steps to make the necessary changes so that those areas will no longer hinder our journey.

Psalm 139:23-24 (NIV)
Search me, God, and know my heart;
   test me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in me,
   and lead me in the way everlasting.

~Debra