“So, if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on the things that are above, not on the things that are on earth.” Colossians 3:1-2
Dear Friends,
We are entering a season of renewal. With spring comes the new growth seen in the flowers, bushes, and trees all around us. These are things that happen without our direct involvement. The grass will grow, the leaves will emerge, the flowers will bloom. The first sign of this growth has been for me, the emergence of the crocuses, sometimes appearing even while the snow is on the ground.
This is the work of creation, that continual cycle of life that God so aptly brought into existence out of the void. Regardless of how much we want things to stay the same, the natural world is always creating and recreating itself and becomes adaptive to the changing external environment.
Human beings are not good at adapting. We want things to remain the same and if things do change, we want to go back to the way things were. Usually though that is impossible. We can hope that the clock will run backwards but unless we have a time machine, which is not going to happen. I can easily say the same things about the church. There is always the desire to recreate the good old days of the church, waiting breathlessly for the church to one day be overflowing with people. That can happen, it just might not happen in the same way. If there are those hungering to know God, new life is possible.
In the book, “Shift 2.0”, Phil Maynard, reminds us of the question found in Ezekiel 37, “Can these bones’ live?” This reminds us of the only constant in our life, which is a God that remains the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. God has the power to bring renewal, restoration in the driest of places. Paul Maynard asks the question, “Look around you. Where are you seeing the fresh wind of God’s Spirit breathe new life into dry, brittle bones?”
Even though there are new things happening through the natural world, there are ways that we can encourage new growth by our own activities. As a recent survey revealed, there is a great need that only a faith in Jesus can satisfy.
Sixty-four percent of the people in a survey of 15,000 people, identify as Christian. Only 23% consider themselves practicing Christians, and 41% consider themselves nominal Christians. The nominals seldom go to church and do not believe that faith is significant to their lives.
Something that practicing Christians, understand is that strong faith helps to forgo negative emotions such as, anxiety, depression. Loneliness, isolation, insecurity, and fear. When we seek the “higher thing,” we can enjoy our lives even in the face of illness, disabilities, loss, and negative emotions.
For us, it might mean making a shift toward those things that can bring us together in new ways. With Easter fast approaching, we could seize the good news of the empty tomb and use this time to ignite a new flame within us.
To begin, we may be asking you to fill out a survey to help us understand where we are in terms of our mission and ministry, which will point us towards the things we need to do better to meet the needs of those on the margins.
May we this Easter, turn our eyes toward the things that are above as consider how we can be a” force multiplier” (more on this to come) for the glory of God.
I thank God for you,
Pastor Kathy Nealand
Sermon series beginning this Easter season:
“Catch Fire in 50 Days”
Catch Fire in 50 Days is an opportunity for us to pray and prepare for that new day when we as a Church become a movement again. Let us turn toward God’s vision and God’s world and the call of Christ to get about God’s mission. Let us catch fire as we open ourselves to God through these daily Scripture readings. Let us pray that God would make us a movement again.
After witnessing the resurrected Christ, the apostles were sent to be his witnesses to the ends of the earth. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, the first disciples of Jesus became a movement that transformed the world. The beginning of their story is told in the Book of Acts. It continues through Jesus’ followers today
- Sunday, April 20 – “Raised with Christ.” - Easter
- Sunday, May 4 – “Catch Fire”
- Sunday, May 11 – “Keep it Burning.”
- Sunday, May 18 – “Shine Brightly”
- Sunday, May 25 – Fan the Flame”
- Sunday, June 1 – “Spread Wildly”
- Sunday, June 7 – “Start More Fires” (Confirmation Sunday/Pentecost)
“I lift up my eyes to the hills— from where will my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” Psalm 121:1-2
“Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the scriptures: ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is amazing in our eyes’?” Matthew 21:42
"Walk by the Spirit . . . led by the Spirit . . . live by the Spirit . . . keep in step with the Spirit." Galatians 5:16, 25
“[Paul Gives Thanks to God] I always thank my God for you and for the gracious gifts he has given you, now that you belong to Christ Jesus. Through him, God has enriched your church in every way—with all of your eloquent words and all of your knowledge.” -1 Corinthians 1:4-5
“Honor the Lord with your substance and with the first fruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine.” Proverbs 3:9-10
As we begin a new season in the church, it is good and right to think about what we mean when we pray “give us this day, our daily bread.” It is all about God’s provision. If we see God as a parent, we know that if we have a need, God will provide exactly what we need. The scripture verse above proves the case. Ask and it will be given to you. Knock and the door will be opened.
All children are precious to God. Psalm 139 speaks to God knowing us before we were born. At our conception we are “children of God.” We belong to God by way of grace. However, it is by the power of the Holy Spirit that we know that we are children of God (John 1:12). To acknowledge that we are children of God is a sign that our rebirth from above has begun to take place in our lives. It says that we accept the fact that regardless of our age, we need and want to be parented by our heavenly Father.
“But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead, he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:8-9, NIV)
You have found a Bible that you want to read. But where do you start? There are many programs out there that helps a person to read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation in one year. I would not recommend this approach without understanding how the Bible is laid out. In both the Old and New Testament, the books are broken down by category. In addition, there are various sources that have influenced the content of these books. Even though we believe that the Bible is inspired by God, there are different voices that tell God’s story from their perspective. Scholars believe there are four sources of material that makes up the Old Testament. (Yahwist, Elohist, Deuteronomist, and Priestly). For the beginner, what is most important to keep in mind, is that if you see a story repeat, or you sense a change in the language, the differences may be because you are hearing the different voices. For instance, there are two creation stories. The first one is believed to come from the oral tradition of the Elohist and the second comes from the Yahwist. In Genesis 1, God is seen as a distant figure, while in Genesis 2, God is personally involved in what is happening in the Garden of Eden. Read them for yourself while thinking about the differences and similarities are between them. Listen for the different voices. The first five books are considered the Torah or The Law books. They begin with the creation of this world and continue with the story of the early people including when God gave Moses the laws for the people to live by. They are: Genesis Exodus Leviticus Numbers Deuteronomy The next books are the History books of the Old Testament. Joshua Judges Ruth 1 Samuel 2 Samuel 1 Kings 2 Kings 1 Chronicles 2 chronicles Ezra Nehemiah Esther The next category are the Wisdom books: Job Psalms Proverbs Ecclesiastes Song of Solomon The last section are the books of the Major and Minor Prophets. Hint: The minor prophets are not minor in their importance, only in their length. Isaiah Jeremiah Lamentations Ezekiel Daniel Hosea Joel Amos Obadiah Jonah Micah Nahem Habakkuk Zephaniah Haggai Zachariah Malachi This website gives a brief description of each of these books. https://www.biblestudytools.com/books-of-the-bible/ Now that you have an idea of the categories, you might want to start with Genesis, Exodus and the history book. Inspirational readings can be found in the Wisdom books, in particular the Psalms. Whatever direction you choose to go in, you should read the introduction section for each book, so that you have a better idea of content, context, and purpose. Have fun! Next week I will cover the New Testament.
The oldest and most purchased book is the Bible. It is filled with wonderful stories of our ancestors that include family drama, conflict, wars, poetry, songs, prayers, mysteries, and miracles. Interwoven throughout is the story of God’s faithfulness, love, patience, wisdom, grace, judgment, and forgiveness. For anyone wishing to take a deep dive into these sacred stories, the first step is choosing a translation that best helps the reader to understand and interpret the message. Since the invention of the printing press, there have been a plethora of different translations written that are based on the original source documents and put into the language of the people. Each generation and each faith community have their favorite go-to version. The list below shows the most common or popular versions that a reader may want to consider when choosing what version they will use to begin their study. We recommend that a reader use Biblegateway.com to check out each version before purchasing a Bible. BibleGateway gives more options to consider, but this is a good beginning. The Top 10 Best Selling Protestant Bibles 1. New International Version (NIV 2. King James Version (KJV) 3. New Living Translation (NLT) 4. English Standard Version (ESV) 5. New King James Version (NKJV) 6. Christian Standard Bible (CSB) 7. Reina Valera (RV Spanish) 8. New International Reader's Version (NIRV) 9. The Message 10. Nueva Verson International (NVI Spanish) You can find descriptions about these and other Bibles at Bible Versions and Translations Online (biblestudytools.com) . One of our favorites is the Voice Bible (2012). Here is a description: The Voice™ is a faithful dynamic equivalent translation that reads like a story with all the truth and wisdom of God's Word. Through compelling narratives, poetry, and teaching, The Voice invites readers to enter the whole story of God, enabling them to hear God speaking and to experience His presence in their lives. It is written for the new reader and combines historical and study notes. Have fun selecting a version that works best for you. It can also be helpful to have a couple of different versions that can add to your understanding. We at First Presbyterian have the New Revised Standard Version in the pews but often read from other versions during worship and Bible studies. Our next blog will give the reader next steps in reading the Bible.
