Scripture Readings Leading to
Sunday February 18, 2007
Galatians 5 The Nature of Freedom in Christ
Most people can’t close the deal. I am not sure if we can’t, won’t or just plain don’t. Anyway you cut it the same thing happens; that great project we started with such promise and enthusiasm ends up on the shelf two months later. There it will stay for a long, long time until we finally clean out and pitch it all together. Guilt and shame are human by products of our failed attempts at change.
To finish strong is always a good goal. I always look to see if the runner breaks through the tape at the finish line with energy. Sometimes to simply finish is the goal. Other times it is heroic enough to begin the journey of change. However even then there is always a hint of, what if I can finish? And better yet, what if I finish strong and refreshed? The other night at youth group when the conversation turned to whether the glass was half full or half empty, one bright lad responded, “Hey both glasses have water in them, get over it already.” He was able to move beyond the discussion of possibility to the facts of the reality. We should do the same. To whine and pine about what might be possible is to waste precious energy needed to finish fresh.
God offers freedom to finish, energy to run the tape, and wisdom to close the deal. God offers the glass that has water. It may be half-full or half-empty. But the point is that God offers what is needed to accomplish the task at hand. Simply put, “There is water in your glass.” When we believe this with such conviction that we can offer those who appear lost a drink from our glass, we will have born fruit of the Spirit which lives in us. We are free to love our neighbor as ourselves. We are free to become salves to one another. At that point the deal is closed and the victory won. Every fresh start become a finish line crossed. And every step on our journey toward wholeness in Christ is a fresh start moving us just a little closer to home. See you Sunday!
Blessings, Dave Weesner
Sunday Worship
Scripture: Galatians 5:1, 13-14
Sermon Title: “Finishing Fresh”
Thursday, February 01, 2007
Thoughts for February 11, 2007
Scripture Readings Leading to
Sunday February 11, 2007
1 Corinthians 6:12-20 A Warning
Everybody’s got a body. We come in all shapes and sizes. We can not order a replacement body from the factory, artificial joints and enhancement surgeries do not count. Some have genetic history which helps, some have genetics which hurt. I like to blame my genetics. I like to blame genetics a lot. Blaming my genetics keeps me from having to be responsible for much of anything which goes wrong with my body. Hair getting thin; blame my mother’s dad. High blood pressure, blame my father’s mother’s family. Bad teeth, skinny legs, poor eyesight, two left feet, hearing loss, flat feet, whiney voice, sore back, no matching gloves; the list goes on as I can blame just about anything on my genetics.
The truth is that we all get one body. We all get one shot at this thing. We all get what we get and there is no changing it. This is a bad news/good news kind of statement. This is bad because we all want the body the other guy ended up with. We want the other guys body just like we wanted to be the kid who got the T-Bird in high school. Then we remember that he wrapped the thing around a telephone poll two weeks later. The good news is that we get this body, our body, for a lifetime. We get to know how this body works and what looks good with it. We also learn what to keep far away from the thing. The good news is we do not have to break in a new model every few years.
God has a purpose for this body. It seems that your body, my body, is the place where the Holy Spirit resides. God the Holy Spirit lives in our bodies. This physical shell is provided as a temple for holding the presence of God. As this Spiritual fact sinks into our lives, we want to keep and maintain the temple as clean and up to date as possible. We want to make sure all systems are up and running and all broken stuff repaired. We want to maintain the temple with the least amount of clutter so that the main focus, God’s grace and love, can be offered at anytime, day or night. And when we begin to move in that sense of purpose for our physical bodies we also find we are just a little closer to home.
Blessings, Dave Weesner
Sunday Worship
Scripture: 1 Corinthians 6:12-20
Sermon Title: “Healthy Fresh Start”
Sunday February 11, 2007
1 Corinthians 6:12-20 A Warning
Everybody’s got a body. We come in all shapes and sizes. We can not order a replacement body from the factory, artificial joints and enhancement surgeries do not count. Some have genetic history which helps, some have genetics which hurt. I like to blame my genetics. I like to blame genetics a lot. Blaming my genetics keeps me from having to be responsible for much of anything which goes wrong with my body. Hair getting thin; blame my mother’s dad. High blood pressure, blame my father’s mother’s family. Bad teeth, skinny legs, poor eyesight, two left feet, hearing loss, flat feet, whiney voice, sore back, no matching gloves; the list goes on as I can blame just about anything on my genetics.
The truth is that we all get one body. We all get one shot at this thing. We all get what we get and there is no changing it. This is a bad news/good news kind of statement. This is bad because we all want the body the other guy ended up with. We want the other guys body just like we wanted to be the kid who got the T-Bird in high school. Then we remember that he wrapped the thing around a telephone poll two weeks later. The good news is that we get this body, our body, for a lifetime. We get to know how this body works and what looks good with it. We also learn what to keep far away from the thing. The good news is we do not have to break in a new model every few years.
God has a purpose for this body. It seems that your body, my body, is the place where the Holy Spirit resides. God the Holy Spirit lives in our bodies. This physical shell is provided as a temple for holding the presence of God. As this Spiritual fact sinks into our lives, we want to keep and maintain the temple as clean and up to date as possible. We want to make sure all systems are up and running and all broken stuff repaired. We want to maintain the temple with the least amount of clutter so that the main focus, God’s grace and love, can be offered at anytime, day or night. And when we begin to move in that sense of purpose for our physical bodies we also find we are just a little closer to home.
Blessings, Dave Weesner
Sunday Worship
Scripture: 1 Corinthians 6:12-20
Sermon Title: “Healthy Fresh Start”
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