What a Difference the Sun Makes

Tuesday was a day of spectacular beauty. As I drove to the meetings I had that day, I had a new awareness of God’s hand in our world. The ice on the trees glimmered in the sunshine and it looked like millions of Christmas tree lights were sparkling over the countryside.

Monday is a rest day with my family and I had spent the day at home. I had a different experience with the ice storm. The sun was hidden by the clouds and the day looked dark and bleak. I wondered if the roads were icy and causing accidents. I knew that many people lost power to their homes and businesses. Tree limbs were down and in some places blocked the roadways.

These were two different days with two different perspectives but the same set of circumstances. What a difference the sun makes.

In Luke 10, the disciples went out to tell people that “the Kingdom of God is near you.” Some will receive the kingdom and some will choose to ignore it. In Matthew 11, John the Baptists disciples asked how they would know that Jesus is the one. Jesus responded, “The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.”

We know Jesus is present when the sparkling light of the Kingdom of God becomes realized around us. We live in a world that traps and confines us, resulting in a preoccupation with what we want and don’t have. We believe we are working toward economic freedom, but the reality is simply that our growing debt, frantic work, and collection of stuff simply become a dead weight around our necks.

The good news is that the Kingdom of the Son, Jesus Christ, is already near, offering freedom, peace, and hope. This is not a promise that we will get rich and have the car we always dreamed of having, but rather that we will find hope and joy in living generously and celebrating the simple and practical things of life.

Our vision as a church is that God calls us to be follower of Christ, and, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to grow as communities of grace, joy and peace so that God’s healing and hope flow through us to the world. Embracing Jesus starts with turning away from the rat race of our world, and embracing a new way of living with others who are on the same journey.

What a difference the Son makes.

Heal our land

We are richly blessed and live in a wonderful place here in southwest Michigan. Yet as I read the Sturgis Journal and other sources, I am troubled by a darker side in this area. Many who read the Journal already know that we have the highest rates per capita for teenage pregnancies and alcohol purchases. In looking online I found that in 2004, Sturgis had 5 times more rapes per capita than the United States as a whole and twice as many as Detroit (http://sturgis.areaconnect.com/crime1.htm). Putting all of these statistics together, it tells the story of a community that is deeply in need of healing.

Scripture speaks to the people of God as being instrumental in prompting healing for the community around them. In 2 Chronicles 7:14 it says, "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." We are called to be humble, to pray, to seek God's face, and turn away from our own sin. I believe that when a community shows evidence of such deep brokenness, it is a cause for deep grief in the hearts of all of God's people because we have somehow strayed from seeking God's face.

How will we join together and ask God to intervene in our brokenness? Too often the church is part of the cause instead of the solution. I don't have a lot of answers, but here are some ideas for us to think about.

Certainly the place to start is with the invitation from scripture. Are we humble people, are we ourselves turning away from the sin in our lives? Are we truly centering our lives around God or is Christianity a lifestyle choice that simply fits alongside many other loyalties?

How are we ourselves experiencing the Good News of Jesus Christ? We are given the promise of eternity in heaven, but do we also bring God's healing and hope to the people around us? Following God is not about doing a lot of things I don't enjoy to get a "get-out-of-hell card". Following God is about discovering his healing and hope for this life also, to experience wholeness that flows through our lives to the community around us. As I read Jesus' promises, it is those who follow him who will experience life that is full and blessed. Lives which use and abuse others to meet our own needs are not lives of freedom. They always will end up being lives of bondage and despair. Every part of following Jesus is built around unrestrained love for God and truly loving our neighbor as ourselves. Out of such a life comes true grace, joy and peace.

At a fundamental level, many of actions that result in a crime are simply a lack of respect for others. I believe that at the heart of the troubling statistics about rape and teenage pregnancy is a lack of respect for women and young girls. How do we talk about our spouse and our children to other people? Do we cultivate respect as a basic part of how we expect others to interact with us and how we treat others? As men, do we see women as fully human and partners with us on this earth?

Attitudes toward alcohol also greatly affect how we treat each other, especially among minors. I've met many young women who greatly regret their lack of discretion in drinking alcohol, and the role it played in becoming intimate with someone before they were ready.

These are mostly questions, not from someone who's got it figured out. Too many times in my own life I've been one whose actions contributed to great pain for others. Yet the good news is that no matter who we are or what we've done, God's grace is rich enough to heal us and give us newfound joy. I pray that as we seek God, we will see his hand move powerfully in our community.

If you are looking healing and hope in your life, find a faith community that will walk with you and help you discover what God is doing. I know that we at Locust Grove would love to see you, as would many other churches in the Sturgis area.

This is a two-part article that asks us to think about how we define "success" as a church. The challenge is for us to think about "deployment thinking" versus "attendance thinking". Ernie Hinojosa is pastor of a a church in San Antonio and talks about their experience of taking the church to the people versus bringing people to the church.

Transforming Church | Resources | How Do We Measure Success? Part 1

Transforming Church | Resources | How Do We Measure Success? Part 2

Does Ministry Fuel Addictive Behavior? - LeadershipJournal.net

This is an article by Sally Morganthaler that every pastor and perhaps church member should read. She does really well at drawing connections between the initial, seemingly innocent, stages and the recognizable later stages that destroy others.

A new version of The Message that includes verse numbers with each paragraph. This one is the leatherbound edition.



Audio version of The Message that is read by a number of contemporary Christian music artists. This is unabridged and is a CD set.

An excellent challenge to live with passion and to see the results in one's life. Written by Erwin McManus, pastor of Mosaic in Los Angeles. McManus highlights the metaphor of washing another's feet as a core aspect of leadership.