Lincoln!

 Lincoln

“But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure;

then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.

Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.”

(James 3 vs. 17, 18)

                President Lincoln presided over a war that was one of the bloodiest in the history of our country. He could not have done what he did without his extremely strong faith. His bible was often at his side in meetings and had dog eared pages from continual use. It reinforced his belief that he and the union were doing the right thing.

            It brings to my mind the old joke about disagreements in church congregations. It says that the arguments are often fierce because both sides feel that they have God on their team! Well, in church politics we are not making decisions that cause battles where 10,000 plus soldiers die, people get assassinated, brothers fight brothers and the freedom of a race are at stake. Still somehow we do the Lord’s will.

            When Lincoln felt badly, which happened after a traumatic field report, he would lean on the Biblical hope offered to him (and to all of us). Today’s verse was one he used often when he was in need of reassurance.

He would say to his cabinet and all who would listen, “Let us renew our trust in God and go forward without fear and with manly hearts.”

Happy Birthday Abe.

Thought for Today: Today is the birthday of America’s most loved president. His faith is a strong example to us. We are commanded to be happy Christians, to be the light of the world, to share and contribute through our faith. Today let us shine our light brightly.

Prayer for Today: Dear Lord and Father we give thanks today for those great men who have gone before us and contributed to our world. We pray that we are contributing in some small way to accomplishing your will and spreading a world of peace and love.

Amen

Ministers

Ministers

“You are the light of the world.
A city on a hill cannot be hidden.
Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl.
Instead they put it on its stand,
and it gives light to everyone in the house.
In the same way, let your light shine before men,
that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven."
(Matthew 5:14-16, NIV)

        My pastor says that we are all ministers in some way. Is that true? I believe that it is a fact that most of us want to keep under our hats. Perhaps the term closet minister applies to many of us. We help, we lead by example we attend services to learn more and we silently minister to those around us. Often, we do not know when we are leading.
        In any Sunday congregation there are takers and givers. Silent ministries occur in many ways. Twenty-odd years ago, a young single couple was acting in a very special way; holding hands, whispering in each other's ears and an occasional peck on the cheek. My personal thoughts were that they were inappropriate. The pastor announced their pending wedding during that service.
        After the service, a good friend of mine mentioned how neat he thought they were and that he wished he and his wife still had that level of enthusiasm for each other. My mind crossed over and today I think that couple, without intent, set an example for older couples. They were ministers.
"In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds...”.
Thought for Today: This week let us be thankful for those around us. Be at peace and demonstrate our passion and love to others.

Prayer for Today: Heavenly Father, you have blessed us with many friends. We are surrounded and cannot avoid them. At work, on the streets and at home we are blessed. Today we want to pray for them all and especially pray that they recognize the beauty of Christian friendship.

Amen

God’s Love and Grace

God’s Love and Grace

“Know therefore that the LORD your God is God;

He is the faithful God,”

 (Deuteronomy 7 v 9)

           

June and I have been blessed by being close to people of varied faiths. Through our association with each, we have come to a strong belief that we all worship the same God in different ways and we all experience God’s grace.

In the 90s we became good friends with the family of an executive from Pakistan. It was our first real close relationship with a Muslim family. We were close to them in 2001 and observed the frustration that a true Muslim felt in regard to September 11.

Recently a Jewish friend that I have known and liked for years shared with me that he does bible studies so he can learn about the Christian perspective. His strong family values, general positive personality and strong ethical standards make him someone I am glad to know.

We have spent many Sundays with my family in Unitarian Meeting Houses when we return to Massachusetts. We are learning more about my mom’s grandparents who were Unitarian ministers.

To avoid making this a 10,000 word essay, let me summarize some of our other relationships: A son in law who is a southern Baptist, a brother in law who is a Catholic priest in the UK, a Buddhist sister in law, a Mormon best friend who lost touch with his faith, a Native American friend who has involved us in some spiritual activities, and the list goes on.

In each instance mentioned, June and I have experienced good friendships and observed strong Godly values in our friends. In most instances, we have observed God working in our friends’ lives and seen God’s grace at work in many ways. Most, importantly, we have experienced God’s grace through our friends

Thought for the Day: This week let us recognize those around us that are different and try to befriend someone new. Let us seek out someone that looks at God in a different way. The Lord blesses them also.

Prayer for the Day: Dear faithful Lord and Father, the world is a great and wonderful creation. There are many peoples of all colors and beliefs. There are generation gaps, social differences, and economic separations. Often the differences get in the way of social graces. Today we pray the ability to bring unity to the world.

Amen

Good Feelings

Good Feelings

"There are different kinds of gifts,

But the same spirit.

There are different kinds of service,

but the same Lord".

(1Corinthans 12 vs. 5)

            Good feelings are great. Throughout our lives there are those special moments that burn into our memories, the warm fuzzies. They vary in many ways. Often at a funeral, family and friends recall those feelings about a loved one who has passed. They make a great celebration of life.

            As an athlete, I have experienced a lot of self-induced memories. A hole in one, championship swimming races, Triathlons with my daughter Karen, granddaughter Ashley are my favorites. This type of memory is good, but the ones that set me on fire and bring tears to my eyes are the ones I have from helping other people. The smile on the face of a nursing home patient when you visit them or seeing progress or success in another person after assisting or mentoring generates feelings that exceed personal memories.

            Service to others not only brings them joy, but a great feeling of satisfaction within the server. We all have been given gifts by the Lord. Real satisfaction in life can be accomplished through the sharing of these gifts with others.

 Thought for Today:  Today let's take some time and do some serious thought about our past service. Let us enjoy the memories, the reward given to us by God for our service. Yes, we deserve the "warm fuzzies" given to us for sharing our gifts. Enjoy the moment and today with His blessings.

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, we thank you for the many gifts that you have given us, the feelings that we have when we use these gifts in our daily lives and the opportunity to use them to serve humanity. We pray for the wisdom to discern what you want us to do and the will to do it faithfully and well.

Amen. 

MLK Day 2017!

Honoring Martin Luther King, January 15, 1929-April 8, 1968

 MLK Day

It may be true that the law cannot make a man love me,

But it can keep him from lynching me,

And I think that’s pretty important.

Martin Luther King

            There are many quotes from the great Martin Luther King and when I researched them I picked the one above because I had not heard it before. It does not make a great philosophical statement, there is not a spiritual or social justice meaning; it is a simple truth. Living and having the right to pursue freedom always needs to be protected.

            Other quotes by MLK have deeper meaning, spiritually, and are more often used. Below are the ones that seems to be in the media:

Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction.
"Strength to Love," Martin Luther King, Jr.

One that I personally like is:

Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase.

And as Christians we need to demonstrate that we have the faith, we need to take the first step.

Thought for the Day: This is the day the Lord has made and He made it for all humankind. We need to remember and promote equality, always.

Prayer for the Day: Dear Lord, today we do not pray for forgiveness of the past discrimination and separatist social acts of our forefathers. We need to accept them and move forward. Today we pray for the guidance and will to contribute to peace and acceptance through Jesus love.

Confidence

Confidence

 “For you are my hope;

O Lord God, you are my trust…

And the source of my confidence.”

(Psalm 71:5)

                Folks, we are starting a New Year and for once I did not make any New Year’s resolutions. That means I have decided to accept my faults!  In the past mine involved weight and fitness and statistically that made me average. My 70 year exercise program worked well in 2016 and neither seemed necessary for 2017!

            The Psalmist above gives us a strong message for the New Year and clearly demonstrates that through our faith we can find confidence and trust. The newspapers, the TV journalists and media all want to sell us on negativity. They are after ratings and for whatever reason they think focusing on the negative is the way to sell their time. That is not a good service to the world. Ok, we do read the news but we also need to read the good news of Jesus to balance the books. His good news can overcome all the news media’s negativity.

                This Psalmist also said:

“But as for me I will always have hope”

(Psalm 72-14)

and

“You will increase my honor

And comfort me once again”

(Psalm 71-21)

                You can see that the good news needs to be our resolution for the next year. Through the good news of Jesus Christ we will all have a better life and live in a better world.

Thought for Today: Happy New Year to all. It will be as we grow in confidence and trust in those around us. It will be when we share the good news to those around us and it will be as we grow together in our faith.

Prayer for Today:  Dear Lord and Father, we are at the beginning of a New Year and are faced with the opportunities that present themselves each January. As always we want to do better in every way. This year we pray that we can discover the spiritual maturity and growth to be better at being a disciple and worker for you. We pray that we may find a clear vision of what we can do for you.

Amen

Happy New Year 2017

Happy New Year 2017

"Not that I have already obtained all this,
or have already been made perfect,
but I press on to take hold of that
for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.
Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it.
But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize
for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. “
(Phillipiens3:12-14; NIV)

        Happy New Year. For the next few weeks the athletic clubs will be filled with "New Years resolutionists". Diet programs will come and go, self improvement books will be purchased or at least the dust will be blown from last year’s cover! Does that sound familiar? Yes, we all have had a few resolutions fall by the wayside.         I do not know if Paul wrote the above on New Year’s Eve but it is appropriate. Many of us have new goals today: weight, fitness, financial goals etc. Paul is asking us to look at our spiritual goals. "...Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize.” Hold that thought as you proceed through the New Year

.

Thought for Today: Let us look ahead rather than behind. Let us look ahead at the opportunities in our lives. This year let us practice Christian ethics and life style in all phases of our lives and by all means share our faith with others.

Prayer for Today: Heavenly Father as this New Year begins please hear our prayer for serenity:

"God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change
the courage to change the things I can,
and the wisdom to know the difference."

Hear this for all the worlds people so that your love and peace may dominate this New Year.
Amen