Tim's Tidings 10-02-16

Tim’s Tidings

Last Tuesday the College of Elders met to hear the report of “Vital Signs” of Eastminster Presbyterian Church as expressed in the congregational assessment tool many of you completed.  The results are astounding!  I can’t wait for you to hear them and to discuss them!  My expectation is that each worshipper will take 90 minutes this October to meet in an area Home Group to listen to the results and to prayerfully interact with them.  Your “stewardship of time” by attending a Home Group and sharing your insights will be a great service to Eastminster.

Today following worship you will have the opportunity to sign up to attend a Home Group to be held in mid-October through early November.  Please do so!

At the Home Groups you will hear about the level of satisfaction and energy the church has, the growth of worship, the top priorities listed according to the survey, and where the church stands theologically and in flexibility to meet the challenges of the future.  You will be given a “performance dashboard” that shows where we stand in relationship to 1100 churches in terms of hospitality, morale, conflict management, spiritual vitality and readiness for ministry.  You will hear about how the congregation as a whole discerns a call to grow and to meet the needs of children and families, outreach to the community, education, spiritual growth and mission. 

Most importantly, your voice will be heard as we put these factors into a solid plan for the future considering the financial state of Eastminster.

We have turned some important corners from challenge and uncertainty to opportunity and hope in the last three years.  Eastminster’s story is termed by our consultant, David York, as “miraculous.”  Sign up for a Home Group today and hear what the members of Eastminster, collectively, sense God has done and desires to do through Eastminster … and be a part of the continuing conversations!

Love,

Tim

September 25

On behalf of the Strategic Planning Team, thank you to the 135 people who completed congregational surveys as part of the Vision 2025 planning effort.  These surveys are now being analyzed and the results will be reported as follows:

1.       This Tuesday September 29 at 6 p.m. all ordained elders will meet as a “College of Elders” with David York of Holy Cow Consulting and the Strategic Planning Team to hear a detailed report of the results.  These congregational leaders will interact with the results prayerfully and thoughtfully.

2.       Between mid October and early November there will be “Home Groups” where the results will be presented to Eastminster worshippers for prayer and discernment by the Strategic Planning Team.  I hope that every worshipper will commit to attending one of the Home Groups to share in the discernment process and lend wisdom to the shaping of our future together.

3.       The results of the surveys and the wisdom coming from the Home Group meetings will guide our planning efforts in the year 2017 and beyond.

Although I don’t know the specifics of the survey results, I did receive a text from the consultant that simply states:  “GREAT report.  This will be fun!”  It appears as if we are moving into the wonderful position of addressing more opportunities than challenges.  Praise God!  Pray that we will be good stewards that seek to “bear fruit” for God’s kingdom.

One of the ways we “bear fruit” is by investing our time, talent and treasure in service to the Lord.  A very talented group of ladies have been doing just that by knitting prayer shawls to be given to those who would benefit from a tangible reminder of God’s presence and love to envelop them in times of need.  This group is enjoying getting together for prayer, fellowship and ministry on Wednesday afternoons.  You will see the fruit of their labors during Sunday worship as we add our prayers to theirs, seeking God’s blessings for the persons that will receive these gifts of love from our congregation.

Finally, thanks to the Congregational Care and Outreach Committees for hosting the Back to Church Weekend.  What a wonderful day of worship and fellowship over a great meal!  Reaching out and welcoming the community “bears fruit” in many ways.  One of those ways is incorporating others in the life of Eastminster.  Today we welcome seven new members who will certainly enrich life together as we continue to grow in God’s love.  Welcome  to God’s church here at Eastminster!

It is a joy to worship and serve together.  May God bless you and use us all as blessings this week.

Love,

Tim

September 18, 2016

On behalf of Eastminster, welcome to all who are visiting today as part of Back to Church Sunday!

I hope you experience friendliness and God’s presence here.  I hope you relax and enjoy worshipping, eating and relating here today.  Eastminster is a place where you are allowed to be yourself and to grow as God leads.

Just what is Eastminster like?  When asked to describe Eastminster here are some things people say:

·         Diverse—a kaleidoscope of people and programs seeking to grow in Christ and to show God’s love

·         Comfortable, with interesting thoughtful members

·         God centered and loving; filled with the Spirit

·         Full of talent, love and outreach

·         Inclusive, open--minded, living the ministry of Jesus

·         A welcoming community

·         I love this church and the direction it is taking

·         The worship is powerful; there is a spirit of cooperation; the congregation practices a theology of love and grace.

·         God-centered and caring, a beacon of light in the area

·         I am inspired and refreshed for the week ahead.

Eastminster is a growing church which seeks to be relevant to the needs and opportunities of the community. Your experience counts! I am interested in what you experience today.  Please take time to speak with me at the door or at the Back to Church Luncheon following the service. 

You are guests at the luncheon and the magic show for all ages.  Please relax, worship, stay for lunch and enjoy.  Welcome to Eastminster Church!

Blessings,

Tim

 

 

 

 

Welcome Robert McBride! Director of Music Ministry/Organist

This summer has been full of activity in worship, missions, children, youth and adult spiritual growth about which many know from direct participation.  Our administrative teams have also been active in staffing Eastminster with the best personnel available.  Today Eastminster announces Robert McBride as Director of Music Ministry/Organist

 Robert McBride is a native of Melbourne, Florida.  At an early age he began piano studies with Joseph Kreines.  He received his Bachelor and Master's degrees from Louisiana State University.  His organ teachers have included Hilton Jones and Herndon Spillman.

Mr. McBride is a church musician with 35 years of experience (he started young!).  He has directed and accompanied in Protestant and Catholic churches as well as in community organizations such as the Indialantic Chamber Singers.  His choirs led worship in many of the great cathedrals in Italy, including the Duomo Cathedral in Florence, the Milan Cathedral, the Basilica of St. Francis in Assisi, St. Mark's in Venice, and St. Ignatius and St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, and have had the opportunity to sing for both Pope John Paul II and Benedict the XVI at their Wednesday audiences.  Robert has also organized tours through Portugal, Spain and France.

Robert comes here to oversee our entire worship and arts ministry, engaging in five principle functions.  He will direct choirs for our traditional worship services, accompany on organ and keyboard, direct Eastminster’s bell choirs, serve as keyboardist for contemporary worship, and lead our music ministry to youth.  A leader of classic music for years, Robert is also an energetic proponent of contemporary Christian music and committed to the development of the musical abilities of young musicians.  He recently formed the youth musical group, Earthen Vessels, which has performed several concerts in our area.

In addition to the functions called for in Eastminster’s portfolio, Robert is also an orchestral bassoonist. He studied bassoon with William Ludwig and has held principal bassoon positions with the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra, the Louisiana Sinfonietta, the Brevard Symphony Orchestra and the Atlantic Classical Orchestra.

Robert comes as the unanimous selection of the Director of Music Ministry/Organist Search Team, which evaluated over 20 highly qualified applicants and interviewed four candidates.  Members of the Search Team include Mike Drushal (chair), Claire Gibbs (secretary), Anne Adams (co-secretary), Gloria Baur, David Dunn, Teresa Fleenor and Bonnie Griffith.  Ron Marshall served as the liaison from the Personnel and Administration Committee, which also unanimously endorsed Robert McBride’s candidacy.

Robert’s first weekend in worship at Eastminster will be August 27-28.  Come prepared to welcome Robert and to be blessed by the ministry of Eastminster’s various choirs, praise teams and instrumentalists. What a joy it is to serve the Lord with such a talented staff and faithful congregation.  Welcome Robert!

See you in Church,

Tim

 

July 10

Today we start a new sermon series, “Great Speeches of the Bible.”  These speeches, from Old and New Testament characters, get to the heart of timeless issues.

Today’s speech from Joshua is a reaffirmation of God as center and guide of the life of a people.  One of the distinctives of the Bible is that people were much more communally oriented.  A leader would affirm the intent for all the people in matters of spiritual direction.  Joshua 24:15, claims, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

This is a statement of belonging and identity as well as “service.”  In our world belonging and identity are grey areas to many.  Anxiety, loss, aimlessness, and emptiness result from a lack of grounding in a “tribe.”

On the 4^th of July we had over 800 people on our grounds, about 500 of which were able to get into our sanctuary to see the excellent Festival Choir and Melbourne Municipal Band concert.  As the crowd was filtering in and a buzz was in the air, I met a person in grief who I had been praying for.  She shared some about her day and said, “You are my people.”

What a blessing and what a responsibility, to be “my people” for one another!

As a church, we have chosen to follow Jesus Christ.  In the coming months we will explore what that means and sharpen our vision and recommit to God our future.  As we do so, my prayer is that we deepen relationships among the body, that we lovingly meet the needs of all who enter here, and that we glimpse the future God would have us travel and do it well… together.

I am glad to say with the person I met on the 4^th of July, “You are my people!”  I trust you, identify with you, and belong with you in the bond of the Spirit.

Blessings,

Tim

 

 

 

 

July 3

Today we celebrate the liberty to follow God that Scripture speaks of in James and that our country was designed to protect.  Even though it is a paradox, there are laws and truths that set us free.

The book of James in the New Testament states:
If any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are life those who look at themselves in a mirror; for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like.  But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act—they will be blessed in their doing. James 1:22-25

When I place God first in my life, I am free to order all other things in accordance to God’s will and direction.  The things I do and don’t do relate to the love and grace God gives to set me free.  The hardships I face, I can face knowing that God surrounds me with love.  The life I live, I can give to others because I know who I am and whose I am.  I am free to show love.  I am set free by God to have the liberty to “do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”  I am set free to practice hospitality, love, and peace and to bring people closer to God because of Christ’s love that shines through me.  So are you!  When we practice the law of liberty in Christ, people experience the reflection of God in us.

We will celebrate the Independence Day of our country on the Fourth of July with a celebration at Eastminster which features the Melbourne Municipal Band and Festival Singers at 7:30 p.m. in the sanctuary  which will lead up to the opportunity to watch fireworks over the river at 9:00 p.m.  Fellowship time over ice cream will be provided before and after the concert.  This is a perfect time to welcome the community to Eastminster and let the “law of liberty,” the law of reaching out to others with the love of Christ to shine through.

Our country was founded on premises that we serve together, unite together, and reach out together as “one nation under God.”  This is a continuation of the ethic set forward by Jesus and the New Testament Church.  May our love of God in Christ Jesus set us free to be Christians and citizens that reflect the perfect law of “liberty and justice for all.”

We are blessed to be claimed by Christ and citizens of America.  May our actions reflect and pass on that blessing this holiday weekend and beyond.

Blessings,

Tim

 

 

June 26

Today Julie and I are at a family reunion with 43 of our favorite relatives.  It should be delightful chaos.  All three of our boys will be there, so this is really exciting for us!    We will return Monday.  Thanks to Rev. Juliann Whipple for closing out the Jonah series!

As I think about the book of Jonah, it reminds me that life has rhythms just like the ocean has tides.  The book opens with Jonah being called into a new season of life.  He is on dry land, then a boat, then a stormy time, then down to the depths of the sea, back to dry land, and in today’s reading, sitting on a hill reflecting, still learning and growing and needing God to lead him deeper in life.  The constant in all the rhythms is that God is there and God is providing.
The leaders of our church recognize that we have rhythms in life here as a community as well.  As we head into July, we suggest a month of communal worship and intentional spiritual renewal.  The business of programs and committees will cease for this month.  We will take a Sabbath from “busyness” but not a Sabbath from God and others.
Here is a gentle challenge:  During July, set aside one day per week to make a date with a person or small group of people you don’t know well and want to know better.  Invite them to your home if possible.  Or go out to eat, walk, play.  Weave new or deeper relationships into your life.

Attend worship every week, here or as traveling.  Nourish your soul in worship and in daily scripture reading.  Here is a link to a variety of devotions if you want to try some:  www.biblegateway.com/devotionals/. 

Write a “letter to God” telling God where you are now in your walk and what you see ahead.  Write a prayer asking for God’s guidance and direction as you go forward.  Place the prayer in your Bible and refer to it over the coming days.  Share it with me or another trusted Christian friend and pray together.

Finally, one of the most important Scriptures for many is “Be still and know that I am God.”  Try it regularly this month.  Just be… in God’s presence.  Ask nothing but to know God and to be willing to follow God’s path.  Enjoy as God’s Spirit cleanses, renews, and brings life to the parched places in your soul.

See you next week,

May 22, 2016

Today is Volunteer Ministry Appreciation Sunday!  It is a day in which we are grateful to God for the gifts God has given in you, the worshippers and followers of Jesus here at Eastminster! 

The church is the body of Christ (I Corinthians 12, Romans 12, Ephesians 4).  God anoints Christ to be the head of the body. God gives spiritual gifts and talents to all of us in varying form and fashion.  We are together the “parts” of the body of Christ.    We are called to serve and to grow and to enrich the world together.

I Corinthians 12:7, 12-24 says:

 

Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many. Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!”On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 

 

For all who so generously give of your time and talents as well as your treasure here, thank you!  Being part of God’s family at Eastminster is a meaningful and powerful experience because of the competency and cooperation, the faithfulness and openness to the Spirit that is so evident at Eastminster.  May what we do be in response to what God has done for us in Jesus.  May our acts of service in and beyond the church be as acts of worship in response to the love of God!

 

Blessings,

Tim

 

 

 

 

 

May 1, 2016

The Book of Acts is incredible!  The more I read it, the more I see how God is in charge of the spread of the Gospel.  Over and over God’s people seem to hit barriers.  Over and over God’s Spirit overcomes them.  The Book of Acts shows how God overcomes barriers of culture, economics, politics, and religion to bring healing and hope.

In Acts Chapter 1 God uses the faith of Jesus followers and prayer to prepare a people to spread the Good News.  Ordinary men and women, people we might even think are “beneath us” are used to form a community of life change (Acts 2) and healing (Acts 3).  These ordinary people proclaim the good news to leaders (Acts 4), care for the underprivileged (Acts 6), and share how the God of creation works through history, even to the risen Christ and outpouring of God’s Spirit (Acts 7).  We see how God makes enemies friends (Acts 9) and breaks cultural boundaries (Acts 11) and leads us out into new territory (Acts 13).  And this is just the first half of Acts!

As you consider what God would have you do with your life and what mission God leads Eastminster to embrace, take a minute to read Acts and reflect on the great things that God does through prayerful, faithful people open to the Holy Spirit.  As we humble ourselves before God in prayer and worship, God will lift us up and guide us.  God will strengthen us send us out in service.  God will use ordinary acts done in Jesus’ name to heal, to encourage and to change lives.

The early believers faced barriers like we do.  They suffer like we do.  They endure hardships like we do.  Yet as they are faithful God, is glorified.  As they are faithful, that is intended for evil is used for good.

Sounds real to me.  Looks like Good News.  And it begins in prayer.

We have several occasions to join in prayer together this month.  Today as we take communion pray that God makes us one in the Spirit.  This Thursday pray for our country at one of the National Day of Prayer sights.  After church sign up to be part of the Prayer Vigil here May 12-15.

God does extraordinary things through ordinary people … who gather in faith and … prayer!

Blessings,

Pastor Tim

April 17, 2016

Today we continue the series “Breaking Barriers through the Power of the Holy Spirit.”  This series is based on the book of Acts.  Acts is the book of the New Testament that immediately follows the four gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.  It is written in excellent Greek by the Gospel writer, Luke.  Acts is the history of the early church and shows how the Holy Spirit gave life and direction to the Christian Church and how it expanded from a small group of believers to about 2 billion believers today.

One of the most important verses of the bible is Acts 2:42.  It reads:  “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. “  We will look at this verse in depth on May 22.  Until then, I recommend that you read the book of Acts and prayerfully ask that same Spirit to enliven our lives and lead us forward.  We can do amazing things through the power of God’s Spirit!

There are many ways to devote ourselves “to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. “  The announcements today list many such opportunities.  There are new Bible studies going on many days of the week, habitat Builds where we reach out in fellowship and concrete assistance of others, choir practices where scripture is sung and the teachings of the church ring true, fellowship meals such as the Pot Luck this Wednesday at 5:30 to gather in fellowship, and soon there will be a three day prayer vigil (May 12-15) which leads to Pentecost, the day we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit.  I hope each of us engages in at least two activities of choice outside of worship for personal enrichment.  As we grow, the life of our church body will be much richer as well.

Today, we will receive new members at the conclusion of our services of worship.  I look forward to getting to know those God sends to Eastminster!  This is a very exciting place to be as God calls others to worship, grow and serve here.  Welcome!

Next week the children will present their musical, “Legends of Camp Garner Creek.”  They are having excellent practices under the direction of Mrs. June Leech and have a real message to share.  Pray for them as they add “life to our body” as well.

One of the roles of a pastor is to pray for and counsel members.  Know that I am up for a visit and a cup of coffee as any have desire.  May God work with and through us to “Break Barriers by the Power of the Holy Spirit.”

 Blessings,

Tim

 

April 10, 2016

Names are powerful.  In Biblical times it was widely believed that if you knew a person’s name, you had some control over that person or power.

Names also identify.  Many times in the Bible God is identified as “the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.”  The quality, conduct and histories of these men and their families said a lot about the God they worshipped and served.

In the account of Moses being told by God to liberate the Israelites from Egypt, Moses says to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you.’ And they ask me what is his name?  Then what do I tell them?”  God replies to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.”  In this God is expressing that God is the Name above all Names, the ultimate Power.  Importantly, God makes a promise then and through all the generations, even now, In Exodus 3:12 God says, “I will be with you.” 

“I will be with you.”  This is the very character of God and promise to us now.  God is and will be with us.  We can bank on that.  We can draw comfort and support and strength from that.  God is with us!

Jesus fleshed out the nature of “I AM” through seven statements in the Gospel of John.  He says I AM:  The Bread of Life (John 6), The Light of the World (John 8), The Gate (John 10), The Good Shepherd (John 10), The Resurrection and the Life (John 11), The Way, The Truth and The Life (John 14), and The Vine (John 15).  Jesus is present for us now.  He says, “Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me will do the works I have been doing, and they will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father.  And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.”

The way I read this is that when we prayerfully request that which is accordance to who Jesus is and when we align our wills with God’s, powerful things happen.  In our scripture for this morning in Acts 3 Peter and John heal a crippled beggar.  Peter says, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.”  We will see the result in this passage in worship.

The takeaway for us today is that God’s name, God’s being, is powerful and present.  As we journey forward together, the best we can do is to seek to align our wills with the will of God revealed in Christ, asking boldly in prayer and proclamation.  As we do that, Amazing things are possible!

Blessings,

Tim

 

 

March 27, 2016

Welcome to worship with Eastminster on Easter morning!  A special welcome goes out to those who are visiting for the first time or returning to worship after an absence.  May you find joy, hospitality, faith and love as you encounter the risen Lord and relate with God’s community here.

Eastminster exists to glorify God, to know God more deeply and to serve God in the world.  Our mission statement is “Led by the Holy Spirit, Eastminster exists to invite into Fellowship, Equip for Service, Reach out in Support and Serve our World for Jesus Christ.”  It is our expectation that the web of caring relationships will continue to grow as new visitors, friends and members bring life to this community and to the world.  Let me know how Eastminster might enrich life with you.  Welcome again!

Easter is the most important day of the year.  It is a day when life conquers death, love overcomes fear, and faith grows from doubt.  The event of Jesus’ resurrection opens the pathway to God now and forever.  That event, two thousand years ago, is still being worked out in history.

The early visitors to Jesus’ tomb and his disciples were fearful and doubtful.  Many of us have been or are the same way.  We are in good company.  God’s love flows to us in different times and seasons.  That’s why community is important.  When we gather together, we remember together and we grow together… all in God’s design.

Amidst doubt and fear the question, “What if what they say is true?” arose.  It is a legitimate question.  If Jesus is God’s Son and the resurrection a validation of his divinity, what does that mean for my life?  Your life? Our lives together?

There are a lot of barriers to coming to Jesus Christ and a lot of power unleashed when the barriers are broken.  The women encountered a physical barrier that first Easter morning.  Mark 16:3 says “They asked each other, ‘Who will roll the stone away from the entrance to the tomb?’”  As we look at life, there are large “stones” ahead of us too.  Stones of health issues, job/financial security, social inequality, safety, mental stability, relationships, meaning and purpose in life.  We see that a Power much greater than the women rolled the stone away on Easter.  In the coming weeks, your pastors will be preaching on “Overcoming Barriers by the Power of the Holy Spirit.”  We will observe how God is a “stone mover,” a barrier breaker, a leader into New Life.  I hope everyone here today comes back next week, perhaps with a friend or family member facing a barrier who needs some hope, courage, inspiration, and a supportive community as it is faced and overcome.

He is Risen.  He is Risen Indeed!  Because He lives, we claim life, love and the faith that it all works out in the end.  That’s the Truth!

Blessings,

 Tim

March 20

Sunday is Palm Sunday.  It is a day we celebrate Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem and begin what is commonly referred to as “Holy Week,” which extends from today through Easter.  During this week we will receive new members, continue our Wednesday Lenten Music, Meditation and Lunch Series, commemorate Good Friday, hold a Saturday “Eggstravaganza” where the Good News of Jesus will be proclaimed, participate in a Saturday evening “Easter at EPiC” Worship Event, and Celebrate Easter beginning at Sunrise.   In one week the Good News of Jesus will be proclaimed meaningfully in many ways.  It is a week that shapes our identity and community together.  Check the announcements for details and service times.

As Jesus rode into Jerusalem Palm Sunday, people sold him short.  They thought he would be an earthly leader of a revolt that would throw off the yoke of Roman domination.  Little did anyone know that Jesus came to overthrow sin and death and bring us close to the loving reign of God Almighty.  It was just too huge for even his disciples to grasp!  It’s huge for us today!  Today and through this week we will learn from the Gospel of Mark.  I urge you to read Mark 11-16 as part of your Holy Week devotions.  One chapter a day will prepare you for Easter.

Many thanks are in order for those who have prepared for this time.  Thanks to Nancy Marshall, Sharon Bowman and the many volunteers who prepared, served and cleaned up Lenten Lunches,  thanks to Nancy Fowler and the Worship Committee for the beautiful decorations throughout this season, thanks to Stuart Ballantyne for bringing his animals for the petting zoo and the Palm Sunday Parade, thanks to Mary Warnick for handcrafting gifts for all children who attend on Easter,  thanks to the Facilities Committee and their volunteers for sprucing up our grounds,  thanks to the choirs for preparing special music that will bring us closer to God, thanks the Children, Youth and Family Ministries Team for planning this Saturday’s Eggstravaganza among many other activities, thanks to the Mission Team for allowing us to participate in the habitat build and other projects during this season, thanks to the Outreach committee for advertising the many activities.

We are ready to celebrate a great week!  I encourage you to invite friends, neighbors and acquaintances to celebrate Holy Week at Eastminster.  Of special interest to adults is the 7 p.m. Good Friday presentation of the “Seven Last Words of Christ.”  There will be orchestration and full choirs bringing the musical message as well as communion and candlelighting to physically draw us to remembrance of Christ and loved ones.  For inviting young families I suggest the Saturday Easter Eggstravaganza which meets in the sanctuary at 10 a.m.  Invite all to Easter!  Sunrise service will be outdoors overlooking the Indian River Lagoon at 6:45 a.m.  Classic Easter worship will be at 8:45 and 10:30 a.m.  If both times are good for you and your friends, may I suggest coming at 8:45 to help balance parking and attendance?

May All have a Blessed Holy Week!

Tim

March 13

Today we continue our series on the Gospel of Mark with the account of the “widow’s offering” which takes place in the Jerusalem Temple in the area of the treasury.  Jesus uses this account to contrast the rich who give out of their wealth and the widow, who is literally “all in” giving everything out of her “poverty.”

The concept of giving out of our “poverty” is especially important in the season of Lent.  It is a season when we realize, along with centuries of those chosen by God, that God desires we offer all we have and are including:

·         Our sins and shortcomings,

·         Our feelings of anxiety and unworthiness,

·         Our hurts as well as our hopes.

The reason, as we will see in the next several weeks, is that God gives “wealth” at our areas of need:

·         Forgiveness and completeness,

·         Peace and worth,

·         Healing and a future.

Eastminster is indeed a generous church when we offer up to God not only our time, talent and treasure, but also the poverty of our souls which only Christ can make whole.

It’s two weeks until Easter.  Take time to pray daily, offering God all you have… good, bad and ugly.  Be silent in listening prayer.  Read the Gospel of Mark one more time before Easter preparing for all of God’s good gifts to you.  The account of Holy Week begins in Mark 11 with Palm Sunday, which we celebrate next week with a processional. 

May this be a time of renewal and transformation… in the places of our lives and church where we need it the most!

See you in Church,
Tim

 

February 21, 2016

Who is Jesus … To You?

Over many years of life, one question has remained central:  “Who is Jesus?”

There is not a time I remember when I did not know of Jesus or of God’s love for me.  I was raised in a Christian home.  My father was a pastor and my mother the daughter of a pastor.  Both my parents were very thoughtful Christians.  They taught our family and their congregations to consider who Jesus is prayerfully, from the witness of Scripture, from the witness of the Holy Spirit working in our lives and in the life of the communities in which we worshipped and served.

My answer to the question, “Who is Jesus?” has changed over time.  I always felt comfortable having the “Sunday School” Jesus, graphically pictured as the Good Shepherd, looking over me.  I accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior when I was 11 years old after a powerful experience of God’s Spirit conferred during a youth musical.  The Jesus I understood at this age was rather moralistic.  Jesus would not want me to cheat or argue while playing “Foursqare” at recess, so I didn’t.  By the time I was fourteen, I hid from this Jesus as I knew my life could never live up to God’s perfect standards.  Guilt drove me further and further away from Christian practice, but like Jonah, I could not escape the presence of God.  At about 17, I got in some trouble early in the morning on a Sunday.  I ran home, hid under my covers, and prayed, “God, I know I haven’t followed you, but if you can help me out of this jam…”  I got in trouble still but there was a distinct presence of Christ during the ordeal and I knew that God answered my prayer, even when I didn’t deserve it.  In other words, I experienced God’s grace, God unconditional love.  This didn’t instantaneously “convert” me to right living, but it was powerful and unforgettable.  Jesus was and is a present help in times of trouble.

During college my life tanked for awhile.  I became depressed and quit going to work and school. I stayed in my dorm and wrote poetry and felt sorry for myself.  I become angry and I even envisioned myself kicking and hitting the foot of a being that represented Christ.  I wanted Jesus to leave me alone.  What I felt flowing down from a face I could not fully see was love.  Everlasting Love.  I surrendered to that love that I knew would never go away.  Again, I wish I could say my life changed immediately, but the reality is that I am still surrendering … and taking my life back… and surrendering again.  Yet the Jesus I understand today is rich, satisfying, complex.  To me, Jesus is a Shepherd, Healer, and Comforter.  He is Lord of my life, my Savior, who has moral claims on my behavior, yet is gracious and accepting. Jesus frees me from the ultimate consequences of sin and desires my growth, as I surrender and we take steps together on the journey of life.

Who is Jesus … to You?  I can’t wait to hear your story … and perhaps tell you more of mine!

Blessings,

Tim

 

 

 

 

January 10

Happy New Year! 

For many the start of a new year gives pause.  We look back at the events of the past with longing and/or relief.  We look ahead at the fresh canvas of days hoped for, events to be lived, and challenges to be embraced.

As I think of transitioning from one year to the next, the image of the “three kings” that visited Jesus gives me pause.  These men journeyed a long way because they were led by conviction, hope, and faith.  They offered gifts to a babe born to peasants, and they “departed by another way.”

I wonder … how were these men changed by this encounter with God, this journey of faith, this meeting with Jesus?  When they “departed by another way” does this signal more than a direction taken back home? 

Today in worship we transition from a study of the promise of a Savior found in Isaiah which was so artfully presented in Word, song, dance, and even painting in Advent, to the reality of Jesus Christ as found in the Gospel of Mark.

We will encounter Jesus fully grown, calling disciples, teaching, preaching, healing, performing miracles and calling all to experience God with freshness.  I hope that as we worship in this New Year each of us opens our hearts and lives to the best that God desires.  For some it will necessitate laying old ideas, fears, doubts, and hurts at the feet of Jesus even as the “three kings” laid gifts of their former lives at Jesus’ feet.  For others encountering God anew will necessitate journeying in new directions as God leads this year … embracing new habits, believing with renewed hope, seeing through eyes of faith, serving God and God’s people in the power of the Spirit.

My prayer is that you will read the Gospel of Mark and other Scripture daily this year and devote time to daily prayer… talking prayer and listening prayer.  My prayer is that God heals your hurts and fills your souls with goodness, mercy, grace and love that overflow like a mighty river and you journey on a step at a time in faith! 

Like the “three kings” God has us on a journey.  The only difference is we don’t worship at a cradle alone … we worship and serve the risen Lord!  Like the “three kings” may we look above to find direction and travel together into a future God eagerly desires for us to embrace!

Blessings,
Tim