Forgiveness ~ As far as the east is from the west...

This week we begin a series on forgiveness and while I’m not sure I ever thought about it before, forgiveness is essential to life.  We cannot survive in a marriage if we aren’t willing to forgive.  We cannot have close lifelong friends if we aren’t willing to forgive.  We might have a friend for a while but once we are hurt or offended in any way if we can’t forgive we will just move on to a new friend.  We won’t succeed at work if we can’t forgive others and learn how to work alongside those we may disagree with and no society will be able to stand and be strong if we can’t find ways to reconcile our differences and forgive those who have intentionally or unintentionally hurt us. 

Forgiveness is essential for any kind of healthy and whole life, so we are going to take the next 4 weeks and look at the two dimensions of forgiveness, our ability to ask for and receive the forgiveness of others and our ability to extended forgiveness to those who have hurt us.  We will look at forgiveness in the context of our most personal and lifelong relationships.  We will look at what it means to forgive others like our neighbors, coworkers and even our enemies, and we will explore forgiveness in the midst of our families; both forgiveness with our parents and our children. 

One of the things that we are going to learn is that there are 6 words that are essential to a life of forgiveness and if we know these six words and can say them from the heart day after day, then we will have a better chance of experiencing the life God wants for us.  The first 3 words are I Am Sorry.  If we can’t say these words and truly mean then, then our lives are going to be more difficult than they need to be and our relationships will be strained and superficial.  The last 3 words are I Forgive You.  If we can’t say these words then our lives are going to be filled with bitterness and anger because we won’t be able to let go of the words and actions that have hurt us.  If we can’t say these words we will be the ones feeling miserable.  Now the truth is that we all have a hard time saying these words so let’s practice them together.  (I am sorry.  I forgive you.)  I encourage you to say these words often.  God will shows us the people we need to say them to, we just have to have the courage and faith to say them. 

For us to understand forgiveness we first need to understand sin.  When we hear the word sin we usually begin to think about a list of things we shouldn’t do but we do, or things we know we should do but don’t, but the word for sin in both the Hebrew OT and the Greek NT really means straying from the path or missing the mark.  What this first implies is that there is a way we are meant to live our lives.  This isn’t primarily a list of do’s and don’ts it is a life that is characterized by love, justice and caring for others.  The path God has set for us is a life which speaks the truth in love, places the needs of others before our own and loves people the way God has loved us. 

I think we can all agree that this is the path most of us want to take in life and when we do we not only feel close to God but we feel close to others as well, and I think most of us would agree that when we live this way we just feel good.  But the reality is that we stray from this path – often.  We miss the mark and we find ourselves saying and doing things we know hurt ourselves and others.   As we move farther away from God we also move farther away from others we begin to ask ourselves, how can I be reconciled to God and how can I come back into good relationships with those I love?  And how can the burden of guilt and shame I that I feel because of my sin be lifted?  These are the questions the psalmist struggled with in Psalm 32.

In Psalm 32 we hear the voice of one who was wrestling with his own sin.  Because he had wandered from the path, he felt far from God.  The hand of God was heavy upon him and his strength was dried up.  This is how we feel when we miss the mark.  We begin to wonder if God is there for us or if God is even there.  There are several psalms which talk about this and they are called the penitential psalms and another one is Psalm 38. 

Let’s look at Psalm 38:3-4.  This is another great expression of how we feel when we are confronted with the reality of our sin.  We feel weighed down by the guilt and shame that sin often brings.  In fact, let me give an illustration of what this is like.  (Put on a backpack and begin to fill with different size rocks.)

As we go through life, if we don’t confess and repent of our sin then all of our words, attitudes and actions begin to add up and as the psalmist said, they begin to weigh us down.  There are small sins we commit every day, like that insult or jab at a coworker that just comes out.  There is losing our temper with our spouse and children.  There is the attitude that we know is unkind when we see people that we just don’t agree with.  Then there are larger sins like those intentionally hurtful words we say to people over and over again that weaken relationships.  There’s the gossip about our friends and neighbors and the less than honest words we say about ourselves and others.  And then there are those larger sins, those things that if people found out about them it would destroy us.  Maybe it’s the actions at work that if the boss finds out about we would lose our job.  It’s the lying and cheating that if our spouse finds about would destroy our marriage and tear apart our family.  It’s the secret actions that break the law and break our relationship with God and others.   

When we don’t seek any kind of forgiveness from God and others the burden of our sin because great and we end up carry it around with us day after day, year after year feeling it’s weight.  We hope people don’t see it.  We carry it around trying to live life as normal but the truth is that it slows us down and sucks the energy, passion and joy from every relationship and every experience we have.  I think this is what the psalmist means when he says, my sin is a burden too heavy for me to carry.  Day and night your hand is on me and my strength is dried up. 

Too many of us live our lives this way, and yet God doesn’t want us to.  God desires to heal us and take this burden from us and the way God wants to do this is through forgiveness.  Forgiveness is God’s answer to how we can let go of this burden of sin and how we can be reconciled or come back into relationship with God and all the people in our lives.  Forgiveness really is what God is all about.  In the Old Testament God established a system where people could come to Him and ask for forgiveness and atone for their sins.  Through the sacrifices that God established, the people could not only see the serious consequences of their sin and how they bring death to relationships, but they could experienced the profound truth that God forgives them and sets them free. 

In the New Testament, the life of Jesus is all about extending forgiveness.  In fact, this is what God said Jesus would before he was born.  In Matthew 1:20-21 the angel says to Joseph that the whole mission of Jesus was going to be to forgive people of their sin.  And this is what Jesus did.  He forgave the most notorious and pubic sinners of his day: prostitutes and tax collectors.  He forgave anyone and everyone who reached out to him for mercy, even with his last bit strength and spirit.  Jesus not only forgave but he called his followers to forgive.  His message was to forgive others and he taught us this by teaching us to pray, Forgive us our sin as we forgive those who sin against us.  (Which really is just those 6 words, I am sorry, I forgive you.). 

And then at the table with his disciples where Jesus gathered for his final meal he lifted up the cup he said, this is my blood which is poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sin.  And then on the cross some of Jesus final words were about forgiveness.  He said, Father forgive them.  After his resurrection Jesus not only forgave his disciples for failing him, but he told them to go and forgive others, look at John 20:23.  The ministry of Jesus’ followers was to be the ministry of offering forgiveness and grace.  More than any other religion, Christianity is based on accepting God’s grace for ourselves and extending grace, mercy and forgiveness to others.  When we do this we begin to experience the power of life that comes with forgiveness. 

So mercy and grace is the nature and character of God.  God is all about forgiveness and we aren’t talking about a forgiveness that is temporary or ineffective, we are talking about a forgiveness that is complete and eternal.  We are talking about God lifting the burden of our sin completely from us, look at Psalm 103:8-13.  Isn’t this what we want?  As far as the east is form the west, so far God removes our sin from us.  We want to experience the power of this kind of forgiveness and the freedom that comes in knowing that our sin is truly taken from us.  While we can accept that this kind of forgiveness is out there and available to others, we struggle to accept it for ourselves.  I struggle with this. 

As a pastor I have talked with so many people who struggle to accept God’s forgiveness.  They will share with me things they have done and I can easily look at them and say, “look – God forgives you.  Completely and eternally you are forgiven because God loves you.”  I believe it for them.  I see it for them and accept it for them and feel the power of that freedom and new life that is available for them, but have a much harder time when I look in the mirror.  My guess is that this might be true for you too.  We can understand how God loves others and how God can forgive others but we don’t see how God can love us enough to really forgive us.  We struggle to accept God’s forgiveness.  We want it and need it desperately because we are so tired of carrying around the burden of it all, but we struggle to accept it and experience God’s freedom.

When we don’t accept God’s forgiveness we are not only failing to accept that God’s very nature is to forgive, but in some strange way we are looking at ourselves as someone special.  While it isn’t in a positive way, it is still our ego that makes us think that God can’t forgive us and it’s time we stopped thinking about ourselves – even how sinful we are – are started looking at God’s nature, God’s character, God’s desire and the work that God has already gone through to forgive us.  That is what the psalmist does; look again at Psalm 103:9-13.  What does the passage focus on?  It doesn’t focus on how sinful we are it focuses on how forgiving God is.  Over and over it reminds us that God is merciful, compassionate, loving and forgiving.  God is trying to tell us that he wants us to stop carrying around this burden and let him take it so we can return to the path and be reconciled to God and others. 

What helps us to be able to really experience this kind of forgiveness is a process we call repentance.  To repent simply means to turn.  It means turning from the path we are on that is taking us away from God and turning back toward God and this all beings by first acknowledging that we have strayed from the path in the first place.  When we confess to God that we have stepped off the path in little ways and big ways and that we want to move closer to the life God has for us – God’s grace flows.  When we make this turn, God is right there to forgive.  In fact, God has already forgiven which means that in God’s embrace God begins to lift the burden of our sin.  In that embrace God removes our guilt and shame.  In that embrace God sets us free.  (remove backpack)

This is what God wants for us, to experience the forgiveness of sin and the freedom from the weight of guilt and shame and brokenness that our sin creates.  This is what God wants for us, to feel free in order to return to the path of life and love God intends for us. 

Now God’s forgiveness doesn’t mean that we will never stray from the path again.  We will miss the mark again and there will be times we will pick up the same pack and carry it for a while but every time we turn back to God, God is there to forgive us and remove the weight of our sin once again.  We often ask ourselves, how many times will God forgive us?  They asked Jesus that and he said not 7 times or 70 times but 70 times 70 which means an infinite number of times.  So every time we turn back to God, God will forgive us and work to restore His relationship with us.   

Now let me be clear and say that while this works in our relationship with God, this kind of forgiveness doesn’t always work in our relationships with one another.  We’ll explore this in the weeks to come, but the hard truth is that there are consequences to our sin in human relationships that can’t always be reconciled, but with God it is always possible, not because of us, but because of God.  God always choose to forgive.  It is God’s nature to forgive.  God doesn’t forget our sin, but he does choose to remember them no more.  That is what God said through the prophet Jeremiah 31:31-34.  I will remember you sins no more.  

So today, the choice is ours.  We can continue to carry the burden of our sin or can we accept the forgiveness God has already extended to us and allow God to set us free. 

Next Steps

Forgiveness ~ As far as the East is from the West

1.  There are 7 psalms (Penitential Psalms) that have been used to remind God’s people of our need to seek God’s forgiveness. Psalm 32 was read today, take time each day this week to read one of the other others and write down what truth you find there. 

·         Monday – Psalm 2                                                          

·         Tuesday – Psalm 28                                                       

·         Wednesday – Psalm 51                                                 

·         Thursday – Psalm 102                                                   

·         Friday – Psalm 130                                                         

·         Saturday – Psalm 143                                                    

2.  What sins came to your mind during this sermon?  

·         Small                                                                                  

·         Medium                                                                             

·         Large                                                                                  

Instead of carrying them around, confess them to God and allow him to lift the burden. 

3.  Practice saying these six words:  I am sorry.  I forgive you.

Ask God to show you the people you need to say them to. 

4.  God has already chosen to not remember your sins, so commit this verse to memory and trust its truth.

As far as the east is from the west,

so far has God removed our sin from us.

Are You Ready?

Last year I ran in my first half marathon.  It was the Marine Corp Historic Half Marathon in Fredricksburg, VA and here is a picture of all the people who were waiting in front of me at the start, 

and here are all the people waiting behind me.  

I was anxious but I was ready, but being ready didn’t just mean waking up early that morning and riding the bus to the start.  Begin ready started five years earlier when got up from my couch one afternoon because I realized I needed to get moving.  Only being active 2 weeks out of the year when I was on vacation was not going to keep me healthy so I got up, went outside and tried to run 1 mile.  It wasn’t pretty – but it was a start. 

My first goal was a 5k (which is 3.2 miles), which I did about 3 months later, and then over the course of the next few years I begin to think about doing a 10K and then thought maybe I could do a half marathon which is 13.1 miles.  I could see myself doing it and so I kept the vision alive.  I kept telling myself, I could do this, I could run that far.  While the right attitude got me off the couch and I had a vision of running a half marathon, nothing would have happened if at some point I didn’t get out the door and actually run.  There had to be some action.  That morning in Fredricksburg I was ready to run, but the reason I was ready was because of an attitude that motivated me, a vision that kept me focused and action that pulled it all together.  To be ready for anything in life, marriage, a job, starting school or walking in faith we need the right attitude, the right vision and the right actions. 

Now let’s turn to the Bible.  If there is one thing that Jesus makes clear it is that some day He is going to return.  The day and hour are not known, it has already been over 2000 years and who knows it could be 2000 more, but the Bible is clear that Christ is going to return and when he does we will have to give an account of how we chose to live our lives.  On that day, we will all stand before God and he is going to ask us if we were faithful.  Are we ready to answer that question?  If we want to be ready to say, Yes God, we were faithful, then what Jesus tells us is that we need the right attitude, the right vision and the right actions. 

It all starts with having the right attitude and what I mean by that is it all starts by building our lives on the absolute truth that God loves us.  The right attitude, Jesus tells us, is knowing that God loves us and that God wants to give us all that he has.  Look at Luke 12:32.  The attitude that needs to drive us in life should be the knowledge that God loves us and that God wants to give us the fullness of his kingdom.  Think about that for a moment.  God wants to give us everything he has and all that he is.  God wants to give us love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control.  God wants to give us deep and lasting relationships of love and trust.  God wants to gives us laughter and freedom.  God wants to gives us the power of transformation and forgiveness.  God wants to give us everything he has – his kingdom, and knowing God wants us to have all this needs to be the attitude that gives shape and form to everything in our lives. 

Being ready for the return of Jesus isn’t about doing all the right things, it is first and foremost about trusting in God’s love for us.  Our faith and all the faithful actions God calls for don’t flow from a list God has for us to do, it flows from the heart God has for us, it flows from God’s love for us.  The right attitude comes when we accept God’s love for us.  It’s knowing and trusting that God is for us and God’s deep desire, his good pleasure, is to give us the fullness of his life which is his kingdom. 

This attitude starts the process, but to be ready for Christ also requires the right vision and Jesus tells us that vision comes when we keep our eyes on the things of God.  Look at Luke 12:33-34.  Jesus is not only calling us to look beyond the things of this world, he is also calling us to look beyond our own needs.  When we make a purse for ourselves we are not only storing up treasure on earth but most of the time we are storing it up treasure for ourselves and this is not God’s vision.  God’s vision is always thinking about the other person first, it is always giving to meet the needs of the other person first.  Think about John 3:16, for God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son so that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life.  God wasn’t thinking about himself, he gave himself away for us and this selfless vision needs to be part of our vision.

Last week the Bishop of Sierra Leone was visiting and he stayed with me at the parsonage.  On Saturday night we drove into the garage and he said to me, I love your garage.  I wasn’t really sure what he meant by that, but then he said what he liked was that it wasn’t full of stuff.  People here accumulate too much stuff, he said.  He then went on to say that he only has two pairs of shoes.   I don’t need any more than 2, he said, and when I get a new pair I give my old pair to one of my pastors who is so happy to get a new pair of shoes.  Suddenly I began to see things a little differently.  My vision changed.  First of all, I realized just how much stuff I really do have and how blessed I am that as a pastor I have more than one pair of shoes and clothes to wear and a home to live in and a car to drive.  The reality is that many of my colleagues around the world don’t have any of those things. 

Suddenly what became important to me, my vision, wasn’t trying to get more for me here and now, it wasn’t about filing a purse to help me feel safe and secure, it was how I could start sharing what I had with others.  I think this is what Jesus means when he says make purses that do not wear out.  We shouldn’t try to gather up stuff here – we should find ways to love and care for others because those acts of kindness and grace are the true gifts and treasures and they aren’t just treasures to those who receive them, they are treasure in heaven to us and they are the things that will last.

So how do we cultivate this kind of vision?  I’m not sure this vision of caring for others first and not finding security and pleasure in things here comes natural to us, so how do we keep our focus on the things of God?  I’ll be honest, I don’t know because this is something I struggle with as well, but I have 2 thoughts.  The first is that if we want to keep our eyes on the things of God we need to keep our eyes on God.  Anything that helps us think about and see God will help us focus on the kingdom of God.  This is why worship, prayer and Bible study are so important.  These things all help us keep the right perspective.  So if our treasure is going to be in heaven we have to look to heaven and keep our eyes fixed on Jesus.

The second thing that can help us keep the right vision is to stop looking at ourselves and start looking at others.  Let me say that again, we have to stop looking at ourselves and start looking at the needs and lives of others.  This is what Bishop Yamabsu helped me to do.  When he mentioned giving shoes to his pastors I suddenly stopped thinking about what I might want or need and I began to see a brother or sister who would be excited just to get a new pair of shoes.  At the Global Leadership Summit this week we heard about children being sold into slavery, children being mutilated as part of witch doctor’s rituals.  We heard about pastor’s risking their lives to preach the gospel and people struggling just to survive.  Seeing someone else’s situation can change our vision.  We spend way too much time thinking about ourselves.  We spend way too much time thinking about what we deserve, what we need, what we want and how we should have all those things everyone else has and how unfair it is that we don’t.  As long as our eyes are fixed on us in any way shape or form - we can’t see God.  But when we stop looking at ourselves and start looking at others we actually start seeing God.  Isn’t that what Jesus said?

Jesus said that when we see someone who is hungry and needs food, we see Jesus.  He said when we see someone naked and needing clothes, we see Jesus.  Jesus said when we see someone thirsty and we give them water, we see Jesus.  Anytime we see the needs in someone else, whether those needs or physical, emotional or spiritual, we are seeing Jesus and that helps keep our eyes on the things of God and this is the right vision.  To keep moving forward in our faith and to be ready means having the right vision and this vision is seeing the things of God and the kingdom of God.   

So attitude get’s us started and vision keeps us going but the thing that brings it all together is action.  In fact, let me say it this way, attitude and vision without action is dead.  That’s what James said, faith without works is dead.  We need action and Jesus says this too, look at Luke 12:35-37.  In Jesus day one of the greatest celebrations any community could have was a wedding and a wedding banquet could go on for days.  So the picture Jesus gives us here is of the household servants who want to be ready when the master returns from a wedding banquet but they don’t know when that might be.  It could be today.  It could be tomorrow or days away.  And the master could return early morning or in the middle of the night.  The servants had no idea when the master would return so they had to be ready all the time and being ready required some actions.  They had to be dressed and ready to serve and they had to have their lamps lit.

So what kind of actions do we need to engage in if we want to be ready?  For the servants in Jesus illustration, being dressed and ready to serve and having lamps lit was just part of their jobs.  It was a normal every day activity which tells us that the actions we need to focus on aren’t things that are unique and special, they are the everyday ordinary actions of our life and faith.  Here at Faith Church we have tried to define these actions in our core values of connect, serve and grow.

To be faithful disciples of Jesus Christ means that we connect with God through worship, prayer and Bible study, but it also means that we connect with the people God has placed in our lives.  We learned last week that in order to stand strong we need to stand together which means we need to connect with the people of God.  If you are feeling disconnected these days then do something about it.  Don’t wait for someone else to act – act yourself.  Step up and get connected to a small group or ministry team.  Step up and reach out to others who might also feel disconnected – form a small group or ministry team.  Sign up today to help with the blessing of the backpacks.

Following Jesus also means that we serve and we serve God by working for the things God desires and God tells us what he desires, look at James 1:27 and Micah 6:8.  Want to know how to serve God?  How about meeting the needs of widows and orphans?  What about working for justice in our community or around the world?  There are all kinds of causes we can join if we want to – from animal cruelty to child slavery, we just have to step up to the plate and act.  There is no right way to serve because God lays different passions on each of our hearts, but we have to be willing to listen to our hearts and stop looking at what we need and start looking at what others need.   

To be disciples of Jesus also means that we need to grow deeper in our faith and this doesn’t just happen – it happens when we give ourselves radically to God.  The times I have grown most in my faith were when I stepped out and did things I never thought I could do.  It was when I got on bus and headed to Yellowstone National Park for a summer to work and serve God.  It happened when I gave up my job and went to seminary.  It happened when I finally agreed to serve a local church and showed up at my first appointment in Altoona. 

We grow most when we push ourselves beyond what is comfortable for us and step out to do those things we don’t think we can do.  It’s when we step out in faith and commit to tithing the full 10% of our income to God.  It’s when we show up at that first small group meeting when we have never studied the Bible in our lives or walk into a room full of strangers in a new Sunday School class.  It’s showing up at the Faith Centre to help hand out food or agreeing to serve on a mission team or even go on a mission trip.  We grow the most when we stretch ourselves beyond what is comfortable and simply say YES to God.

The only way I was able to run 13.1 miles last May was because I pushed myself beyond what I thought I could do.  It happened the first day I got off the couch and tried to run a mile, and then continued the next day when I went out to run again.  It happened when I came back after injuries and when I ran on those days I didn’t feel like running.  Being ready for that race didn’t require me to do anything spectacular, I just had to keep putting one foot in front of the other.  And that’s what it means for us to be ready in our faith.  It means we stay faithful in worship and continue on in prayer.  It means we give and serve in ways we never thought possible for us.  It means reaching out to love others because we have experienced the power of God’s love for us.  When we do this, we are ready and when the day comes and we stand before Jesus, he will delight in giving us his kingdom. 

Next Steps

Are you ready?

Attitude

Many times Jesus said, “Do not be afraid.”

·         What things cause you to be afraid and anxious? 

·         How can God’s love for you help ease those fears?

·         How can God’s love bring your strength & courage?

Recall the ways God has provided for you in the past and use this list to remind you of the ways God will be there for you in the future.

Vision

Keeping our eyes on the kingdom of God requires us to look at Jesus and others. 

·         Take time this week to look to Jesus.  Devote time to prayer and read the parables Jesus told about the Kingdom of God:  Matthew 13,18:23-35, 20:1-16, 22:2-14, 25:1-30.

·         Take time to look at the needs of the people around you?  What practical steps can you take to meet those needs?

Action

Being a disciple of Jesus means connecting to God and one another, serving Christ and growing deeper in our faith.  What specific actions can you take this month to

·         Connect__________________________________

·         Serve ____________________________________

·         Grow_____________________________________

Standing Stand Together

We are honored and blessed to have with us in worship this morning, Bishop John Yambasu, the resident Bishop of Sierra Leone and Rev. Lori Steffensen, the State College District Superintendent of the UMC.  Bishop Yambasu is here to work with Faith Church on a partnership with a UMC in Pa Loko, Sierra Leone.  

For the last 2 weeks we have been talking about the need to stand strong in our faith because our children and youth will never be able to stand strong in their faith until we are standing strong in our own.  We learned from Paul that to stand strong we need the full armor of God and we need to pray in the spirit with all kinds of prayers.  Today I want us to end our look at standing strong by looking at the very end of Paul’s letter - Ephesians 6:21-22.

In 20 years I am sure I have never taught from this verse and I know I have never preached on it, but what we find here is an important lesson about how to stand strong in our faith.  First let’s remember that Paul is writing this letter to the followers of Jesus in Ephesus.  They are a young body of believers who are learning how to stay faithful to Jesus in the midst of a culture that was working hard to pull them away from Christ.  While Paul told them to stand strong in God’s word and to trust in Jesus and to call upon God in times of prayer – Paul also understood that they were human beings who needed some human contact, love and support.  This church, these people, needed to be encouraged.  They needed to know they were loved and cared for and that Paul and the other leaders had their back. 

Don’t we all need this?  Whether it’s in Bellefonte or across Pennsylvania or across the Atlantic Ocean to Sierra Leone, don’t we all need encouragement?  There are times we all get weary from trying to stand strong.  We get tired in our battle to stand strong at work or at home and my guess is there have been times when you have wondered if there was anyone who had your back.  Standing strong in our faith can get lonely, so if we are going to stand strong and stay strong for the long haul, we can’t stand alone.  We need the love and support and encouragement of one another. 

Nature gives us the perfect example of this principle in the giant redwoods. 

The giant redwoods in California are very tall and strong trees, but you won’t find them standing alone.  Because the root system of the redwoods is so shallow,  if they stand alone they will blow over in a strong wind, but when they stand together the root system intertwines with other trees which gives them all strength.

  One thing I found really interesting is that the roots of redwood trees will only intertwine with the roots of other redwoods – in other words they need each other if they are going to stand. 

This is how we need to our lives.  As followers of Jesus we need to live in close connection with one another so that we can support each other not just when the storms blow, but at all times.  When we put down the roots of our faith we need to make sure they touch and connect with the faith of others so that we can grow stronger together, this is how God created us.  None of us was meant to go through life alone.  God created us for human contact, touch and relationship.  We are created to be part of a family.  We were created to bond with parents and siblings and grandparents.  We were also created to be part of a church.  God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit all worked to build a family of faith and community committed to one another.  This all means we need to encourage one another and understand that power comes when we reach out to love and support each another.  Paul knew this which is why he sent Tychicus to the people of Ephesus. 

Tychicus was a partner with Paul in ministry.  In Ephesians it says he is a beloved brother and faithful minister.  Paul sent his friend to the people of Ephesus because he knew they needed help and support and he knew they needed something more than the words of a letter or the promise of a prayer.  The people needed human contact, but what is interesting is that as we read about Tychicus, we see that Paul also needed this human touch. 

In Paul’s letter to Titus he says, when I send Tychicus to you, do your best to come to me.  And when Paul sent Tychicus to Ephesus it gave Timothy, who Paul placed in charge of that church, the opportunity to return and visit Paul.  So what Tychicus shows us is that Paul is not only concerned about encouraging the churches but that Paul needed some personal encouragement as well. 

What this little known person in the Bible with the funny name teaches us is that we all need encouragement.  From a Bishop to a DS to a pastor to a person, we all need encouragement and the kind of encouragement we need comes from the people God places in our lives.  Friends on facebook are fine.  Skype, face time and google hangout are OK – but they are no substitute for real personal face to face connections.

We need to encourage one another here in the local church, but we also need to find ways to encourage people around the world.  There is power in building friendships and personal relationships with our brothers and sisters around the world and we need to step out in faith and do it.  In his book Love Does, Bob Goff tells the most amazing story about his family in the days after 9/11.  Bob asked his children what they thought they could do to help bring the world closer together and they suggested inviting the world leaders to their home and asking them what their hopes and dreams were.  After some discussion, what they ended up doing was writing every single world leader and asking if they could interview them and ask what they hoped for so they could share those hopes and dreams with other leaders. 

The Goff children sent out the letters and as you might guess, the majority didn’t get returned or they got a form letter saying, “thanks – but no thanks”.  But then one day they got an invitation to visit Bulgaria, then Switzerland, then Israel and then several other countries.  The children answered every invitation and each time they visited a world leader they  would present them with a key to the Goff family home and told them they were welcome anytime because that’s what friends do. 

Somehow these children knew the key to world transformation, its friendship.  When we get to know people and count them as our friends and brothers and sisters – things change – our lives change and we all grow stronger.  The most amazing part of that story is one day the Goff children got an email from a world leader who said, “we miss you, can we please use our key and come for a sleep over?”  And they did. 

There is power in friendship but stepping out to develop these relationships isn’t easy.  Encouraging people isn’t always easy.  It takes a certain amount of risk.  The Goff children sent out hundreds of letters and the majority of them said no.  Sometimes reaching out to others is met with closed doors and closed hearts and that hurts – but we can’t let that hurt keep us from reaching out again.  Maybe we are the ones who are struggling to accept the help and love of others.  If that’s the case then we need to step out in faith and allow others to care for us.  (Optional)

The encouragement we need as a church doesn’t just come from those who sit here with us, we need the encouragement of others and we need to work to encourage people beyond our walls.  Bishop Yambasu and Rev. Steffensen remind us today that we are part of a much larger church and we need to reach out to encourage our brothers and sisters and we need to be encouraged by them.  This happens when we invite people into our homes and into our lives.  It happens when we partner in ministry and give what we have to our brothers and sisters and then learn from what they have to offer us.  We are part of a body and the more we lean on each other and learn from each other the stronger we become.    

One of the most significant ways we develop friendships and connections is by eating together and my hope today is that by joining at the Lord’s Table with our DS and the Bishop we will form lasting relationships with our brothers and sisters across PA and across the ocean.  We need them.  We need their prayers, love, support and friendship.  And they need us.  They need our prayers, love, support and friendship.  We need each others, so let’s make this happen.  Let’s stand strong in faith not alone and not just with those here at Faith Church, but let’s stand strong together with God’s people around the world. 

Next Steps

Standing Strong Together

1.  Identify one person in the life of Faith Church you would like to get to know better.  Find a way to reach out and build a stronger friendship with them.  Invite them to your home for dinner or take them out to breakfast or lunch.  It’s a risk worth taking. 

2.  Consider being part of a Sunday School class, Bible Study, small group or ministry team.  Use these small group settings to build deeper relationships with God’s people here at Faith Church.  Stop at the Connection Table to learn of opportunities for deeper connection with God’s people. 

3.  Ask God to show you who at work or in your neighborhood needs some encouragement and the look for opportunities to love, care and support them.   

4.  If you are sensing God leading to develop a relationship with people in churches across Pennsylvania or across the world, talk to Pastor Andy or Paul Neff about opportunities and available ministries. 

Pray for Bishop John Yambasu and the churches of Sierra Leone.

Pray for Rev. Lori Steffensen and the churches of the Susquehanna Annual Conference of the UMC.