What Keeps Us
Mar 16, 20091 John 1:5-7
This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.
If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth.
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.
Sometimes we think what keeps us from fellowship with God and with each other is our darkness. The stuff that we still do, say, and hold that we can’t seem to let go of. The words, actions and circumstances of the past that prevent us from experiencing forgiveness, cleansing and the mutual support of community.
Well, according to John, the follower and friend of Jesus who wrote the letter above, what keeps us from the light of God (i.e. in our darkness) is our unwillingness to admit the truth. Claiming what is not.
Lying to ourselves, to God, and to each other keeps us in the darkness and out of the light.
Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary defines lying as:
“to create a false or misleading impression”
Truth is, we sometimes don’t like who or what we are so we try to make it seem that we’re something we’re not. It is this very game of charades, of costumes, masks and cover, that keeps us from experiencing the beauty, the joy, the freedom that comes from walking in the light.
As Kathleen Norris says,
We want life to have meaning, and want to be fulfilled, and it is hard to accept that we find these things by starting where we are, not where we would like to be.
So…let’s start where we are.
In our mess… in our unwillingness to forgive, to let go, to move on… in our bitterness… in our pain… in our jealousy.
There we find Jesus whispers,
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
- 1 John 1:9
The promise is for all of us. The promise is for you. The promise is for me.
Come into the light.
Find freedom… forgiveness… fellowship… hope… grace… a new life walking in the light of God.
- Pastor Tara VinCross
Holy Ground
Feb 08, 2009“All of earth is crammed with heaven
And every bush aflame with God
But only those who see take off their shoes."
Elizabeth Barrett Browning
Tonight I had a simple experience with holy ground. No flashes of light or angels with swords, but connections. People gathered together… community… hope… potential through God’s infinite grace.
The first Smart Supper was held at 5:00pm and gathered over 45 people from church and surrounding community. Jennifer Schwirzer shared a fantastic lecture about change – the things that affect our brain and our ability to see change in our lives.
We had 5 delicious courses of vegan cuisine (including an amazing berry pie with vegan creme topping!).
We met new and old friends gathered around the table.
Sure, its simple, but isn’t that where God is? In the moments we would miss if we didn’t stop our running, pause and notice the people around us. To take time to realize the holy in the ordinary.
“When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush,“Moses! Moses!”
And Moses said, “Here I am.”
“Do not come any closer,” God said.
“Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.”*
May you realize today that you are standing on holy ground. May you see and experience that God is at work in our midst.
Pastor Tara VinCross
- Exodus 3:4-5
Change
Jan 25, 2009“Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.”
– Dale Carnegie
Isn’t this the truth?
We all hope to be there (wherever there is for each one of us)… to arrive. Yet, on the journey towards that goal there are unexpected stops, things that waylay us and circumstances that don’t cooperate with our plans.
To each of you who are struggling – with health issues, with job loss, with difficult relationships, with budgets that just won’t balance – remember this promise:
“being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” *
By the phrase, “Until the day of Christ Jesus” we understand that apparently God is clear on something we often forget: change takes time. Patience means, “to accept or tolerate delay.” Maybe that’s why it’s listed among the fruits of the Spirit in Galatians 5. It doesn’t come natural to us, but is something Supernatural that happens when God comes and lives in us.
Being a Christ follower means seeing redemption in every situation, in every person, in every relationship, realizing that all the way up to “the day of Christ Jesus” God is working change in us and in everyone around us.
In order to be a force for good for the Kingdom of God in the world, we must persist even when the natural temptation is to give up. We must press on, despite delay. In hope, in belief, that God is at work, even in the situation you’re facing now.
Change takes time. May you and I have the grace, the hope and the patience to press on.
- Pastor Tara VinCross
- Philippians 1:6
blog comments powered by Disqus
