Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but rather in speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity, show yourself as an example of those who believe.

-1 Timothy 4:12

Where in the world is Pastor Brian this week?  It's week two of the summer and I'm with our middle school youth at the Great Escape.  It's been an incredible week to learn and grow and have way too much food and fun and silly games.  We have had a wonderful time in worship all week, and yesterday, the band leading worship joined us for a visit to the Aquarium.  Our kids got a backstage pass to getting to know young people who have committed their lives to serving others and spreading God's love.

Each week, the Great Escape hosts hundreds of kids, many of whom are friends of our church kids or new to church and faith in some way.  Mid-week, they're encouraged to make a commitment in their home church or group to deeper faith or a profession of faith.  As Presbyterians, our process for this step is confirmation.  So on that night, we go out after worship for tacos and talk about our process, our questions and curiosities, and how they'll be able to undergo that process soon.

I hope you'll be praying this week for our amazing kids and leaders.  This time is holy.  It's fun and gross and hard, but it's also holy.  It builds memories and community, but especially faith.  Ask our young people about the trip and encourage them to keep going.  You are their family of faith.

Prayer for Today

Lord, help me give challenge and support to our young people growing in faith and to say yes when and where I'm needed to support their ministry.

Water is found in many places in scripture, including in tears. John 11:32-36 reminds us that Jesus experienced weeping, "When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved. He said, "Where have you laid him?" They said to him, "Lord, come and see." Jesus began to weep. So the Jews said, "See how he loved him!"

When you hear difficult news of a tragedy or loss I am often overcome with emotion and questions. Are there places in your life of hurt or sadness? What are the tearful places? Change? Transition? Gratitude? Loss?

I would invite you to take a moment to identify some of the parts of your life where there are tears. Listen to them and then place them before God.

"In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express." -Romans 8:26

Prayer for Today

Holy Spirit, thank you for praying for us when we can't. Thank you for praying for us deeply and meaningfully. Hear our prayer... In Jesus' name. Amen.

Water is found in many places in scripture, including in tears. John 11:32-36 reminds us that Jesus experienced weeping, "When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved. He said, "Where have you laid him?" They said to him, "Lord, come and see." Jesus began to weep. So the Jews said, "See how he loved him!"

When you hear difficult news of a tragedy or loss I am often overcome with emotion and questions. Are there places in your life of hurt or sadness? What are the tearful places? Change? Transition? Gratitude? Loss?

I would invite you to take a moment to identify some of the parts of your life where there are tears. Listen to them and then place them before God.

"In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express." -Romans 8:26

Prayer for Today

Holy Spirit, thank you for praying for us when we can't. Thank you for praying for us deeply and meaningfully. Hear our prayer... In Jesus' name. Amen.

"Don't ever miss the chance to show your babies the moon!" she said. Before our mid-week prayer service began, a group of us talked about the previous night's harvest moon. The full moon was striking, as it seemed to sit on the horizon. Mrs. Webb was the eldest voice in our conversation, a gray-haired lover of God's grand creation. She knew my wife and I had two children in our home at the time, and she wanted to help me train them in a way worth going. 

Don't ever miss the chance to show your babies the moon!

Mrs. Webb would've made a good psalmist. Her brand of attentiveness is reflected in David's description of the heavenly bodies that "have no speech . . . . Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world" (Psalm 19:3-4). Neither the psalmist nor Mrs. Webb had any intention of worshiping the moon or the stars, but rather the creative hands behind them. The heavens and skies reveal nothing less than the glory of God (v. 1).

We too can encourage those around us-from babies and teenagers to spouses and neighbors-to stop, look, and listen, for declarations and proclamations of God's glory are all around us. Drawing attention to the work of His hands in turn leads to worshiping the awesome God behind the whole show. Don't ever miss the chance.

Prayer for Today

Dear God, help us to slow down and notice the work of Your hands right now.  Help me to encourage others to do the same.  If we stop, look, and listen, we'll see creation declaring God's glory.  Amen.

"Don't ever miss the chance to show your babies the moon!" she said. Before our mid-week prayer service began, a group of us talked about the previous night's harvest moon. The full moon was striking, as it seemed to sit on the horizon. Mrs. Webb was the eldest voice in our conversation, a gray-haired lover of God's grand creation. She knew my wife and I had two children in our home at the time, and she wanted to help me train them in a way worth going. 

Don't ever miss the chance to show your babies the moon!

Mrs. Webb would've made a good psalmist. Her brand of attentiveness is reflected in David's description of the heavenly bodies that "have no speech . . . . Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world" (Psalm 19:3-4). Neither the psalmist nor Mrs. Webb had any intention of worshiping the moon or the stars, but rather the creative hands behind them. The heavens and skies reveal nothing less than the glory of God (v. 1).

We too can encourage those around us-from babies and teenagers to spouses and neighbors-to stop, look, and listen, for declarations and proclamations of God's glory are all around us. Drawing attention to the work of His hands in turn leads to worshiping the awesome God behind the whole show. Don't ever miss the chance.

Prayer for Today

Dear God, help us to slow down and notice the work of Your hands right now.  Help me to encourage others to do the same.  If we stop, look, and listen, we'll see creation declaring God's glory.  Amen.

Most of all, let love guide your life, for then the whole church will stay together in perfect harmony. Let the peace of heart that comes from Christ be always present in your hearts and lives, for this is your responsibility and privilege as members of his body. And always be thankful.

-Colossians 3:14-15

This week, I'm in Montreat, NC with our high school youth. We are in small groups, worship, recreation, and reflection times on this beautiful mountain campus, nestled in what we call a thin place, a place where we seem to experience God in very close and personal ways all week. Some groups are as large as 60 and some as small as 3, so ours of about 20 is medium, and yet mighty. 

The theme for the week is "Let Love Lead." Not only are we resoundingly enthusiastic, but we are leading. The youth who lead worship are a small group of 8-10 youth and 2 of them are ours. And last night, communion was served almost entirely by ordained youth who are elders and deacons at their home churches. And of those dozen youth, 2 were our girls, our first and now second ordained youth. And our group all went forward to be served by them. It was a first for me to be led in worship and served sacrament entirely by my youth and to participate only as a worshiper and not a pastor. 

I think that for many of us, we mark the transition from our children's childhood to adulthood (or try to ignore it) in various ways. Sometimes it's varying degrees of financial independence, perhaps when they cook the dinner for the family, or when they host us in their first home. But I think it's when we let love lead. When they take on the most important roles in our lives, leading and serving us in worship. These youth have much more to learn, but they are our love embodied, our love living and serving and leading. And when they come home to JCPC and go to our world in need, we are called to let that love lead.

Prayer for Today

Lord, give me your love and wisdom to nurture and tend to young people that they may grow in spirit and truth and then lead in love. Amen.

When he [Jesus] had led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, he lifted up his hands and blessed them. While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven. Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God.

- Luke 24:50-53, NIV

On my Presbyterian planning calendar, it noted that last Thursday (May 30) was the day to remember the "Ascension of the Lord." The Bible story above tells about that event. When we read this passage and think of Jesus going "up" as he ascended, this has caused problems for those who take it as a very literal direction or place Jesus went to. In April of 1961, Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin orbited the earth a few times. After he landed, he declared that he had disproved the existence of God. He said he had been up there and had seen no sign of God. According to one source, his actual words were, "I looked and I looked but I didn't see God."

Of course, when the world is round, where "up" is can be problematic - depending on your place on the globe. I think this is where language is inadequate to fully explain where Jesus "went." I believe Jesus went to be in the presence of God, which is "heaven" - where God's will is always being done. And as our Lord's Prayer reminds us -- God's will occurs when things are done "on earth as in heaven." The ascension was the end of the earthly, post-resurrection encounters with the risen Jesus. Jesus returns back to heaven - at least until his return at the Second Coming. The Holy Spirit, which is the spirit of the Risen Christ - was sent to fill us and empower us to do our part in God's mission here and now.

What I found most intriguing in the story from Luke's gospel is what the disciples did in response to this ascension -- they worshiped Jesus with great joy and continued that in the Temple in Jerusalem. Worship is the core of what we do. It also sustains us and propels us out into the world to do God's work - our mission! So, may God's Spirit fill you as you do your part of God's mission today!

Prayer for Today

Fill us today, Lord, with the power of your Holy Spirit - the spirit of the Risen Christ - so we might joyfully complete our mission in the world. We pray this in the strong name of the Risen Christ. Amen.

Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

-John 14:27
 

Darnell entered the physical therapist's office knowing he would experience a lot of pain. The therapist stretched and bent his arm and held it in positions it hadn't been in for months since his injury. After holding each uncomfortable position for a few seconds, she gently told him: "Okay, you can relax." He said later, "I think I heard that at least fifty times in each therapy session: 'Okay, you can relax.' "

Thinking of those words, Darnell realized they could apply to the rest of his life as well. He could relax in God's goodness and faithfulness instead of worrying.

As Jesus neared His death, He knew His disciples would need to learn this. They'd soon face a time of upheaval and persecution. To encourage them, Jesus said He would send the Holy Spirit to live with them and remind them of what He had taught (John 14:26). And so He could say, "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. . . . Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid" (v. 27).

There's plenty we could be uptight about in our everyday lives. But we can grow in our trust in God by reminding ourselves that His Spirit lives in us-and He offers us His peace. As we draw on His strength, we can hear Him in the therapist's words: "Okay, you can relax."

Prayer for Today

Teach me, Jesus, to trust Your faithfulness, to know Your presence, to experience Your peace-to relax. Amen.

While a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to Jesus from town after town, he told this parable: "A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds ate it up. Some fell on rocky ground, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown."  When he said this, he called out, "Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear." 

-Luke 8: 4-8  

I must confess that I love this parable of a farmer using out of the ordinary planting methods. After all, the Kingdom of God shows up in our midst in some ordinary ways. An element of growing seeds that doesn't get mentioned in the parable yet is essential to growth is the watering of the seeds. 

I was reminded of this when I caught Lisa Lucas in the act of watering young plants that will be grown in the new preschool garden.

The act of watering is what I call the wisdom of hope. It's one thing to fling seeds all around and hope that they will grow. I think that is more wishful thinking. The knowledge of growth; however says that it's wise to faithfully water the seeds and continue watering as they develop into mature plants.

As a gardener myself, I believe that it is wise to have a calendar of planned watering. Rain comes and it doesn't as we have all found out this spring. Hope has a consistent schedule for watering.

Speaking of schedule, I hope that you have a copy of our Quarterly Brochure which lists all the scheduled watering for the Kingdom of God. Here are a few: Soles for Souls Shoe Drive; Youth High School Trip to Montreat; Middle School Youth trip to the Great Escape and our Mission Week. To learn more read the Quarterly Brochure of Activities at JCPC and water your growing soul.  Click here for Quarterly Brochure.

Prayer for Today

Gracious God, you offer so many opportunities to grow in our faith. Move us to participate in the activities of your Kingdom offered through the programs of JCPC and by doing so may our faith increase to your glory. Amen.

I command you to be openhanded toward your fellow Israelites who are poor and needy in your land.

-Deuteronomy 15:11

On the outskirts of Paris, as in other cities around the globe, people are coming to the aid of the homeless in their communities. Clothing, covered in waterproof bags, is hung on designated fences for those living on the streets to take according to their needs. The bags are labeled, "I'm not lost; I'm for you if you're cold." The effort not only warms those without shelter, but also teaches those in the community the importance of assisting the needy among them.

The Bible highlights the importance of caring for those who are poor, instructing us to be "openhanded" toward them (Deuteronomy 15:11). We might be tempted to avert our eyes to the plight of the poor, holding tightly to our resources instead of sharing them. Yet God challenges us to recognize that we will always be surrounded by those who have needs and therefore to respond to them with generosity, not a "grudging heart" (v. 10). Jesus says that in giving to the poor we receive an enduring treasure in heaven (Luke 12:33).

Our generosity may not be recognized by anyone other than God. Yet when we give freely, we not only meet the needs of those around us but we also experience the joy God intends for us in providing for others. Help us, Lord, to have open eyes and open hands to supply the needs of those You place in our paths.

Prayer for Today

Are you holding too tightly to your resources? If yes, why? What need can you fill today?

Generosity displays confidence in God's loving and faithful provision.