15 February 2008 by Mandy Sayers.

My 6-year-old son is a budding theologian.  Just between us, he’s going to be my secret weapon when I take Systematic Theology. Last year around this time when his kindergarten class studied Martin Luther King, Jr. he marched out of school talking about him a mile a minute, so I say,”He was a good man who stood for justice and peace.”   And my son looks at me with his serious face on and says, “Mommy, justice is a ‘God-word,’ just like love.”  I so hate it when he’s smarter than I am.

As we prepare for Valentine’s Day, I can’t help but think about love.  I know Valentine’s Day is supposed to be based on a saint and everything, but it strikes me in practice as a “Hallmark holiday” somebody stuck a robe on and started calling “Reverend.” When I see all that red cellophane and all those stuffed bears clogging up the CVS aisle, it actually makes me a little sad.  Will a little sucrose heart-shaped vitamin with “Be Mine” stamped on it really be the cure for what ails us in the love department?  Can a Whitman’s sampler really get us through a long dark night of the soul? (“Yes, yes it can!” I hear the chocoholics shout).

Maybe our task as pastors and preachers is to point folks away from the temporary sugar high of the Valentine’s Day culture to a God who wants to say to every yearning heart, “Be Mine.”  Maybe we can use this Hallmark holiday to acknowledge the valentines from God that have been tucked into the corners of our lives: all those good gifts of God that go  unnoticed over time. God’s valentines often come in human packages, in our families and friends, in our pastors and teachers, in our congregations and even in our enemies. Maybe we can explore more deeply the kind of love with which God so loved the world and what that kind of love means for us  and our life together.  This deep love sits with those who suffer and reaches out to people who are lost, lonely, and in despair and refuses to abandon them even when they prove difficult to love.

By all means, we should express our love and appreciation to people in our lives this Valentine’s Day.  We don’t do that nearly enough.  But we also need to remember that love is washing feet and sitting with and praying through.  Love is not cute or heart-shaped.  Love is a God made flesh that was killed on a cross and was raised from the dead.  It is a lenten journey and an Easter proclamation.  It is serious life-claiming, life-changing, business.  Love is, first and foremost, a “God-word.”

And that’s why we exist as a church, to love the world like that. A real valentine, a real hope, a real dose of God’s death-defying life-giving love.

Posted in General Nourishment | No Comments »

8 February 2008 by Mandy Sayers.

The service was Wednesday night and I thought it was awesome in every way.  I loved having Pastor Ruth up there imposing ashes with Andy.  She’s a gift and a treasure.

When I consider the commitment we’ve made to pray and work together leading up to the opening of the new building, I’m so excited about what will come of it.

I wanted to share an email I got from Bonnie Smith this morning.
They Should Have Used Tape

The Ash Wednesday Service certainly did put me in the right frame of mind for the season of Lent.  A story comes to mind at this season that I would like to share.

When my first grandchild, Callie, was about 3 ½ years old I was talking to her, asking her what she learned in Sunday School that day.  She looked up at me (of course she had the sweetest expression on her face) and said:  “Nana, did you know that they put stickers on Jesus’ head and pushed it down real hard so that it would stay on?  It made him bleed!  They should have used TAPE.”  At first I commiserated with her and gave her the biggest hug!  Out of the mouths of babes!  I have never forgotten her statement, “They should have used tape.”  She was too young to understand the whole meaning of the Easter story but saw the way He was hurting and thought her idea of using “tape” would at least stop the bleeding.  I might add that Callie was a tape fanatic! Ha! Ha!

When I think of this story I realize that I/We can “stop the bleeding” by being a faithful servant of our Lord Jesus Christ:  by feeding the hungry, clothing the needy, sharing our faith with someone that is hopeless and in despair, praying for the sick and for those who mourn.  We can use our talents to glorify God in our homes, place of worship, schools, workplace and the community.  Sometimes this seems like a tall order.  But, just think if each of us did our part, there might be more peace and love to go around for everyone!  He shed his blood for us, this is the least we can do for Him!

Blessings,
Bonnie

I like the portrait of a church designed to “stop the bleeding” by sharing the love of Christ and making a difference in the world!  As we journey on in Lent, I am so excited to hear what folks discover in the course of their time of prayer.  Post comments and reflections in the 100 Days of Prayer category if you want to!

Posted in Worship, 100 Days of Prayer, General Nourishment | No Comments »