God with the Faithful

 

When I was in High School, several of the people in my home church thought I would end up being a pastor.  They knew my Dad was a pastor and the chaplain at a local hospital, and they knew I loved the church and was very active in it.  Many people were convinced I would end up serving in the local church, but I consistently said no.  

When I was in college, many of my friends said I would end up in the local church as a pastor.  Again, I said no.  I actually said, never, which made them laugh because they said we should never say never to God.  I finally ended up going to seminary and for the first year and a half I continued to say no to the local church.  I then spent some time in a wonderful church as an associate pastor and realized that God had actually made me for this.  

It took years for me to finally say yes to God’s will and God’s plan and through all of those years, God was there.  God didn’t give up on me or turn his back and walk away when I said no, God continued to be with me and led me to a place where I could fully say yes.  When I finally did say yes, it was an uncertain time as I didn’t know where I would end up or if I could really do the job, all I knew was that God was with me.   

Today we are going to look at the story of a young girl who didn’t need years to say yes to God.  In fact, even though she had doubts and fears and questions about what God was asking of her, she said yes to God’s plan quickly.  Her name was Mary.  Luke 1:26-38

In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

The Elizabeth that is mentioned here is the wife of Zechariah that we talked about last week.  Elizabeth and Mary were cousins and it was in the 6th month of Elizabeth’s unexpected and miraculous pregnancy that the angel came to tell Mary that she was highly favored by God.  While Elizabeth and Zechariah had felt forgotten for most of their life because they had never had a child, Mary was young and at the beginning of her life.  Mary was also faithful, the angel said that she was favored by God.  God saw her faithfulness and was with her.  So God is with the forgotten and God is with the faithful.  God sees Mary’s faithfulness and God is not only with her but God has a BIG plan for her life. 

Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

God has chosen Mary to be the mother of the Messiah. This is a huge blessing and honor.  Young girls at this time dreamed of being the mother of the Messiah.  Many of them prayed for this honor and blessing, but Mary is confused because as faithful as she is, she doesn’t understand how this can happen as she is a virgin and not married.  

“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

I can hear Mary saying to the angel, “While God’s plan is wonderful, it does seem that the timing is all wrong.  Maybe if God comes back next year when I’m married and things are settled down it would make more sense.  Right now just isn't the right time.  What will Joseph say?  What will the people say?  How would it even be possible?”  As faithful as she was, Mary had some doubts and questions. She has some fear about what God is asking of her.  God’s response to all this isn’t to abandon Mary, but to encourage her and offer some more information and assurance.  

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. For no word from God will ever fail.”

The angel tells Mary that this is going to happen by the power of God and before Mary has a chance to say it can’t happen, he reminds Mary that her cousin Elizabeth who everyone thought could never have a child was already in the 6th month of her own miraculous pregnancy.  What everyone said was impossible had taken place and if God could do that, then God could do this.    

Not only does pointing out Elizabeth’s situation assure Mary that this pregnancy can happen, it also lets Mary know that she will not be alone in what she will go through.  If she says yes to God’s plan, there will be someone she knows and loves who will understand her situation and can help her through it.  I love the reassuring nature of God’s call in our lives.  God never calls us to step out and say yes without giving us both the assurance that it can happen and the support we need if and when we say yes.  

And this is the point Mary is at, will she say yes?  Will she lean into her faith or give in to her fear?  Mary remains faithful and says, yes.  

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.

Mary is the picture of faithfulness.  She has doubts and fears about her future and what will happen and how God will accomplish these things in her life, but she doesn’t give in to that fear.  Mary steps out in faith.  She doesn’t know how Joseph will respond and if he will still take her as his wife, but she trusts God to be with her through the uncertainty.  She doesn’t see the path clearly in front of her, she doesn’t know how this story will unfold, but she says yes because she trusts that God will be with her.  

That’s really what being faithful is all about; saying yes to God in the face of fear and doubt and uncertainty because we know that God is with us.  Faithfulness is walking into the purpose and plan God has for us even when the road ahead is not clear and our questions go unanswered.  Saying yes to God really is a journey of faith.  It’s trusting God each step of the way as life unfolds.  

After I said yes, I had an uncertain road ahead as I started the process of being licensed as a pastor.  I had to figure out what Annual Conference I would serve in and I wasn’t sure where to go.  Step by step God led me to PA and finally to Altoona.  Even after I arrived and started serving, I was unsure, uncertain, and questioned God’s will for my life.  In fact, in 30 years of ministry I have continued to have doubts and fears and uncertainty but have trusted that God would lead me step by step as I continued to say, I am your servant God.  Let your word and your plan for me be fulfilled.  And in 30 years, God has never let me down.  

Many of us hear God’s call to do something that might seem big for us and we come to a place where we need to say yes or no.  Will we step out in faith or give in to fear?  If we know God is with us and that God loves us, then fear has no place in our hearts and lives.  The Bible says, perfect love casts out fear and that perfect love isn’t our love for God, it’s God’s love for us.  We might never get to a place of perfect love for God but if we know God loves us, that we are highly favored, and that God is calling us, then in confidence we can say yes and take that first step forward.  

I am grateful and excited for all the people here who have said yes to God and stepped out in faith to explore starting a fresh expression.  A fresh expression is one way we are seeking to be the church in the community and developing worshiping congregations for people who might never enter the church to worship with us.  As we have lifted up this vision of being the church, 26 people said they heard God calling them to think about and they have said yes and are now growing and learning together. 

Like Mary, they have questions about how this is going to work and they are uncertain about the future and what the road will look like, but I thank God they didn’t give in to fear and instead said yes and are allowing God to work in them and through them.  One woman has already invited her neighbors into her home for dessert and some discussion about the Bible and many of them accepted.  When we say yes to God, all kinds of things are possible.  

I see those who are stepping out to explore and start fresh expressions like Mary.  God is working in them to create a time and place where Jesus can be shared and lives changed.  But Mary didn’t go through this alone.  Not only was God with her but so was Elizabeth.  The very first thing we see Mary doing after saying yes to God is going to visit her cousin Elizabeth.  Luke 1:39-45

At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!”

This encounter assured Mary that what was taking place in her was from God, and it also gave her someone to encourage her and walk alongside her through the difficult and uncertain days to come.  Everyone who says yes to God needs this kind of encouragement.  Everyone needs an Elizabeth in their lives to assure them that God is working in their lives and that He will be with them through the difficult and uncertain times.  

Each of those exploring Fresh Expressions needs an Elizabeth, someone who will support them, listen to them, and walk alongside them.  Fresh Expressions as part of our church life isn’t just for those who hear God calling them to step out and lead one, it also involves those who will step out in faith with them.  If you are interested in being an Elizabeth to one of our Mary’s, a supporter of someone who is exploring starting a fresh expression, please reach out and let Pastor David know.  Don’t be afraid to say yes.  Trust God and step out in faith.  

Another ministry that needs people willing to be a support and encouragement to others is Bridge of Hope.  Bridge of Hope works with single mothers who struggle with homelessness, but they don’t just give them money for rent.  In fact, the money is the lesser of the two gifts, the real gift they give is support, acceptance, and community.  Through what are called Neighboring Volunteers, a group of faith-filled people walk with these single mothers and their children to help them get to a better place in life.  

In many ways the Neighboring Volunteers are like Elizabeth.  They offer assurance that God is doing a good work in their lives and they help these mothers face a challenging and uncertain future.  While we are financially supporting Bridge of Hope with our Christmas Offering this year, I also hope that we can support them with 6-10 people who are willing to say yes to being a Neighboring Volunteer.  Let me share with you a video of Tirzah Gibboney talking about the importance of this part of Bridge of Hope’s ministry.

Neighboring Volunteers make a difference.  They help change people’s lives.  Maybe that is the call God has for you.  Maybe it’s to support someone with a passion for starting a fresh expression, maybe there is something more or something greater or something different, but if God is calling you, don’t give in to fear.  Trust God’s perfect love for you which can cast out all fear, and say yes to God.  You are the faithful one, the favored one, and God is calling you.  If you take this step of faith, God will be there.  God is always there because His name is Emmanuel - God with us.  

Next Steps

God With Us - The Faithful

Read the story of Mary.  Luke 1:26-45

● Identify the doubt, fear, and uncertainty Mary experienced in this call of God.

● When have you felt some of these same things when God has called you to step out in faith?

● How does God give reassurance and support to Mary?

What call are you hearing from God?

What doubt, fear, and uncertainty do you feel in this call?

How can God’s perfect love cast out fear and help you step out in faith?

Mary found assurance and encouragement from Elizabeth. 

Who can you support and encourage as they step out and follow God’s call in their lives?

Fresh Expressions form when mutual interests or current needs meet hearts that are open to sharing Jesus.  

26 people from Faith Church are saying yes to God and exploring if leading a fresh expression is part of God’s call in their life.  These people need prayer and encouragement.  If you would like to support these people who have said yes and stepped out in faith, please contact Pastor David at: david.carter@bellefontefaith.com

Bridge of Hope helps provide resources for single mothers experiencing homelessness.  You can support Bridge of Hope through this year’s Christmas Offering, but you can also become a Neighboring Volunteer and support families as they seek to find God’s plan for their lives.  To learn more about Neighboring Volunteers, please contact Tirzah Gibboney at: tirzah.boh@gmail.com

God with the forgotten

 

It’s easy to look around today and think that God has forgotten us.  Not only do we see conflict in Israel and Gaza, but there is the ongoing war in Ukraine, and then there is the war no one is talking about in Sudan where during the past 6 months 9,000 people have been killed and another 5.6 million people have been forced from their homes.  In a season when angels sing about peace on earth, good will toward men, we don’t see a lot of peace or good will and we begin to wonder if God has forgotten us.  

Or maybe you are looking at your home and family and wondering if God has forgotten you.  When prayers for healing, jobs, financial stability and improved relationships don’t seem to be answered, we might wonder if God hears us or if God cares.  Has God forgotten us?  Will God ever respond to us?  Will God provide for us?  I don’t know if you have ever been in that place of unanswered prayer, or if you are there now, but many people have felt forgotten by God and it causes them to doubt God’s presence, God’s power and God’s desire to speak to us.   

This place of darkness and feeling forgotten by God is where the Christmas story begins.  The prophet Malachi, which is the last book of the Old Testament, is considered the last prophet to speak to God’s people.  Malachi served as a prophet about 440 BC, so before the birth of Jesus, there were about 400 years when God had not spoken to His people.  During these centuries, Israel had gone through a period of being ruled over by the Greeks, the Syrians, the Egyptians, and finally the Romans and during all those difficult and dark days, God was silent and the people felt forgotten.

While God hadn’t spoken through a prophet, the people remained faithful and continued to worship.  As difficult as it was for them, the people of Israel continued to worship God in the temple and offer the sacrifices and offerings God had laid out for them.  The ancestors of Aaron continued to be the ones who offered up the prayers and sacrifices for the people, and each year a group of them would go to the Temple in Jerusalem.  Each man had to go once a year and at each gathering they would draw lots to see who would get the honor of going into the Holy of Holies to pray for the people.  

Since that honor was done by lot, a man could go his entire life without ever being chosen.  No man could go more than once in his lifetime, but with so many men in each division, you could go your entire life and never be chosen to enter the holiest place in the Temple to pray.  Can you imagine if that was you?  Every year you make the journey to Jerusalem with the hope that this will be the year you get to go in and pray in the presence of God, but each year the honor goes to someone else.  Each year you pray it will be your turn, but it never happens.  You see everyone else get honored and chosen but it’s never you. You begin to feel like God has forgotten you.

That was Zechariah.  He was a descendant of Aaron who throughout his long life went every year to Jerusalem to help offer prayers and sacrifices, but he was never chosen to go into the Holy of Holies. And it is with Zechariah that the story of Jesus begins.  The story of Jesus’ birth doesn’t begin with Mary or Joseph, the story of Jesus begins with Zechariah.  Luke 1:5-7

In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly. But they were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old.  

Jesus was born during the reign of King Herod, when Israel was ruled by the Romans.  God had not delivered His people from the oppression of foreign nations  and God had not spoken to His people for  400 years about the coming of a Messiah who would set them free or when that might happen.  The people were feeling forgotten.  

And Zechariah, a very old man, had been faithful his entire life.  It says he had observed all of God’s laws and was blameless before God but he had never been chosen by God to pray in the Holy of Holies.  Each year he went with his group to pray at the Temple in Jerusalem, and each year he came home disappointed.  God looked favorably on others but had forgotten him.  

Not only does Zechariah feel forgotten by God because he had never been chosen to pray, but both he and Elizabeth felt forgotten by God because they have never had any children.  Children were a sign of God’s blessing.  If you had a child you were loved and favored by God.  If you had a child, God was looking down on you and He remembered you.  Throughout their long lives, Zechariah and Elizabeth would have both prayed fervently for a child, but God never provided.  God was silent.  God had forgotten them.  

So the story of Jesus begins with a man who feels completely forgotten by God.  God hadn’t spoken to Zechariah’s people for 400 years.  God hadn’t chosen Zechariah to be the one to pray and offer sacrifices in the Temple, and God hadn’t heard Zechariah’s personal prayers, and his wife’s prayers, for a child.  Zechariah must have felt like, three strikes and I’m out.  God has truly forgotten me.  

If that is how you are feeling today, forgotten by God, then you are in good company, and it is here that the story of Jesus can begin in your own life because this is where it all changed for Zechariah.  

Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside.  Luke 1:8-10

Finally, after a lifetime of waiting, Zechariah had been chosen to offer prayers on behalf of the people.  Zechariah was going to have his chance to go before God and pray.  He was going to pray for God’s deliverance to come.  He was going to pray for God to speak to His people, and maybe Zechariah would have the opportunity to ask God why he and Elizabeth had never had a child.  It was finally his time to pray. Zechariah entered into the Holy of Holies to pray.    

Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth,  for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born.  Luke 1:11-15

Through an angel, God was finally speaking and God spoke directly to Zechariah and assured him that he personally had not been forgotten but that after a lifetime of prayers for a son God had heard him and God was now answering him.  He and Elizabeth were not forgotten and would be blessed with a son, but the angel wasn’t done.

He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”  Luke 1:16-17

What the angel was saying is that their child was going to have the power of the prophets on him and that he would be the one to prepare God’s people for the coming of the Messiah.  God had not forgotten His people.  Not only was a prophet coming to speak God’s word, but the long-awaited Messiah was coming as well.  Into 400 years of silent darkness, a spark of hope was coming.  It’s the one candle shining in the darkness.  God had not forgotten His people, in fact, God was coming to be with His people.

At a moment when Zechariah felt the most forgotten by God because his people had not heard from God, he had never been chosen to enter God’s presence to pray, and he and his wife had never been blessed with a child, God showed up and said I am with you Zechariah, and I am with my people.  You are not forgotten.   

And YOU are not forgotten.  At those moments when we feel most forgotten by God because our prayers haven’t been answered, or our life hasn’t turned out the way we thought it would or we wanted it to, or if we are just feeling far from God, we need to remember that we are not forgotten.  One of the promises God has made to us is that He cannot forget us.  God said this through the prophet Isaiah.  “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne?  Though she may forget, I will not forget you!  See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.”   Isaiah 49:15-16a

I will not forget you.  I have you engraved on my hands.  I see your heart and life every day.  I know the hairs on your head.  Jesus said that two sparrows are sold for a penny and yet if one of them falls to the ground, God knows about it.  You are more valuable than half a penny, Jesus said, so God is fully aware of your life.  In fact, God knows the number of hairs on your head.   

God has not forgotten us and God has not forgotten His promise to be with us.  God hasn’t forgotten His promise to provide for us and care for us, and God hasn’t forgotten his promise to love us and forgive us. We might feel forgotten by God, but we are not.  Today and through this Advent Season we celebrate Emmanuel - which literally means, God with us.  While it’s easy to feel the darkness set in around us, today we remember that God’s light has come and the darkness can never overcome it.   

Not only is God with us, but God desires to speak to us.  While God used to only speak to His people through prophets, today God can speak to our very hearts through the Holy Spirit.  If we think God is silent and has forgotten us, maybe it’s because we aren’t taking the time to listen.  How can we learn to listen to God?  In this incredibly busy season, how can we slow down so we can hear God’s voice?  How can we “be still” and know that God is with us?  

I know that this is a busy season for everyone.  There are parties at work and among friends.  There are gifts to buy and wrap and mail.  There are cookies to make and trees to decorate, and even at the church there are extra jobs to do and concerts and programs to attend.  In the midst of this busy season, how can we intentionally be still and listen for the voice of God?  

One way we can do this is to set aside a few minutes in the morning or at night to read God’s word.  There are 24 chapters of Luke so starting today we can read the entire life story of Jesus as we prepare to celebrate His birth.  There are also great online devotionals that can help you prepare for Christmas.  If you open an advent calendar with your children, or if you do one yourself, take time as you open the window to read or pray or simply listen for God.  

Like Zechariah, we could also go off by ourselves and pray.  Notice that the angel didn’t speak to Zechariah until he was by himself.  Sometimes we might need to get away by ourselves to be able to hear God speak.  In this busy season, for us to hear God we might have to place ourselves in a quiet place where we can hear God’s voice.  God has not forgotten us and God does have something to say to us. 

Not only should this be a season where we listen to God, but this should also be a season where we listen to others.  Many people not only feel forgotten by God, they feel forgotten period.  David said a few weeks ago that there is an epidemic of loneliness in our country.  Studies show that the people hit the hardest are young adults, older adults, and mothers with young children.  Feeling forgotten and alone can lead to an increase in depression, anxiety, heart disease, substance abuse, and domestic abuse.  

Loneliness also leads to an increased risk of heart disease, strokes, and dementia in older adults.  The holidays are often the time many people feel forgotten and lonely so it’s important for us to not only listen to God but to take the time to listen to others.  

I want to encourage you to find one person in your life that might be struggling with feeling forgotten and take the time to listen to them.  Maybe it’s a grandparent or a grandchild.  Maybe it’s the single parent you know that needs to talk and share, or the neighbor, young or old, whose family all lives out of town.  Maybe it’s the coworker who is struggling through a difficult season and feels isolated.  If each one of us found one person to listen to during this season, there would be less loneliness, more community, and more joy.  As we take time to listen to God, let’s also take time to listen to those around us who might feel forgotten and alone.

This year, the Christmas story begins where it did over 2000 years ago, in a world and among people who at times feel forgotten and alone.  What we celebrate in Jesus is Emmanuel - God with us.  We are not forgotten.  

 

Next Steps

God with Us - The Forgotten

When have you felt forgotten by God?  

When have your prayers seemed to go unanswered?

Read the story of Zechariah.  Luke 1:5-25

Why did the people of Israel feel forgotten by God?

Why did Zechariah personally feel forgotten by God?

How did all that change?

Take time during this busy season to listen for God’s voice.

● Read the gospel of Luke.

● Read and reflect on the words of your favorite carols.

● Use a devotional or prayer app to help you listen to God every day.

Take time during this busy season to listen to those who feel forgotten by God and others.

● Reach out to a coworker or neighbor is going through a hard time.

● Send a note or card to someone who lives alone.

● Invite someone to worship on Christmas Eve.

● Invite someone who has experienced loss to the Blue Christmas Worship.

Fresh Expressions – A Call to Pray:  Pray for the 26 people who are part of our Fresh Expression Cohort as they listen to God and people who might feel forgotten.  Pray for those who will one day encounter God through one of our Fresh Expression worshiping communities.  

2023 Christmas Eve Offering: Bridge of Hope

Homeless mothers with children not only feel forgotten but overlooked. To help these women and children, our Christmas Eve Offering this year will go to support the ministry of Bridge of Hope in Centre County.  

Generosity - A Simple Invitation

 This month we have been talking about the power of generosity.  When we are generous we experience the overflow of joy in our lives.  Generosity brings a deep sense of peace and purpose to our lives and when we are generous we are drawn closer to God.  Our generosity also opens the door for God’s grace to flow through us into the lives of others.  Generosity is truly a powerful force that changes us and those around us, but we often think we can’t be generous because we don’t have a lot to give.  

Too often we think that generous gifts are only big and expensive gifts.  We think that being generous with our time means giving every extra moment we have or carving out huge chunks of time to give to others.  As long as we think generosity only takes place when we give in big ways, we might never step out to be more generous.  But generosity doesn’t have to be big gifts of time or money or energy, life changing generosity can also be expressed in small and simple things we might do for others.  

In Matthew 25, Jesus tells a story about the generosity of the righteous and faithful people who served Him.    

‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,  I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

But the people are confused because they never did any of these things for Jesus.  

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

As much as we would have loved to do those things for you Jesus, we never did.  We never saw you in need, so we never served you.  To which Jesus replies, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’  Matthew 25:34-40

We are serving Jesus when we give water to someone who is thirsty or food to someone who is hungry.  We are caring for Jesus when we help care for those in need.  And did you notice that the generosity Jesus highlights aren’t big gifts and large acts?  Generosity was expressed in small and simple acts of hospitality.  Generosity doesn’t have to be a big act that requires a lot of time, energy, and money.  Life changing generosity can be found in small and simple acts of love and service.

People’s lives are forever changed because of simple acts of generosity.  Peter, one of the lead disciples who Jesus said would be the foundation of His church, had his life changed by a simple act of generosity.  The story is found at the beginning of John’s gospel when people are just beginning to hear about Jesus and experience the power of His teaching, love, and grace.  One of the first to meet Jesus was Andrew, Peter’s brother.  John 1:40-42

Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). And he brought him to Jesus.

Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter).

The generous act of Andrew was to simply invite his brother to meet Jesus.  From that very first meeting, Jesus knew that Peter was going to be the foundation of all that was going to come, so He changed Simon's name to Cephas, or Peter, which means Rock.  Peter would never have met Jesus if it hadn’t been for Andrew.  

Andrew’s simple act of inviting his brother to meet Jesus changed the trajectory of Simon’s life.  He went from being a fisherman to being a fisher of men and women for God.  He became the leader of the Jesus movement after Jesus ascended to heaven, and Peter gave the first sermon of the church that changed the hearts and lives of 3,000 who all placed their faith and trust in Jesus.  The generosity of Andrew, inviting his brother to meet Jesus, changed Simon’s life and you might say changed our lives.  His generosity changed the world.  

Sometimes the most life changing generosity is found in simple acts of love and service.  Sometimes the most generous thing we can do is invite people to meet Jesus, welcome people when they come to worship to experience Jesus, or serve people in simple ways.  My life forever changed because of a simple invitation.

I had only been at college for a few weeks but was already miserable and wanted to return home.  I got a letter from a friend who told me I should check out a group called Inter Varsity Christian Fellowship.  Her sister had been part of it at MSU years earlier and she told me it was something like our church youth group.  I had just seen a table for IV with some students sharing information so I went back and talked to Gary and Ruth Abbott.  

Gary and Ruth were funny, they were caring, and they invited me to the first IV meeting which was that night.  It was their genuine care for me and love for God that encouraged me to attend.  A simple invitation from three people changed my life.  I went to the meeting that night and Gary and Ruth welcomed me again.  They introduced me to some students who lived in my dorm complex who helped me feel less alone and begin to form a sense of community.  

I quickly got involved in IV.  I grew in my faith in ways I had never dreamed were possible.  I gave my life to Jesus, committed myself to honoring God with my life and not working to glorify myself or make a lot of money, but to glorify God.  My life changed because of an invitation.  My life changed because of a welcome.  Sometimes the most generous thing we can do is the most simple thing.  Invite people to meet Jesus and welcome people into the family of God.  What I’d like to do is tell you some stories about simple generosity that has changed people’s lives.  These are all true stories.  

When I was a pastor in Altoona we had a group of kids that were hanging out on our front steps.  They were causing trouble and being loud and so we got complaints from the neighbors.  We called the police to see what we could do and they said, Oh yeah, that’s the second and second gang.  These were elementary school kids who were already known as a gang.  

We decided that instead of running them off, we would open the doors.  A few of us gathered with a cooler of soda and a cd player and we sat out on the front steps of the church to meet the gang.  The older kids moved to 3rd Ave and 2nd St., but the younger kids started to hang out with us.  We invited them into the church and some had never been in a church in their lives.  We walked them through the sanctuary, let them sit in the big chairs we had up front and got to know them.  That started an afterschool program called the ROCK.

A few years later, a young girl from the neighborhood who had a difficult family situation and attended the ROCK showed up in worship on Sunday.  She came in pajama pants, a sweatshirt and big pink fluffy slippers.  I wasn’t sure what was going to happen, but people welcomed her.  They reached out and invited her to sit with them.  They loved her, and she came back.  She joined the youth group.  She accepted Jesus.  She finished High School, went to college and she rose above her family situation all because of an invitation and a welcome.  

I ran into Trisha a few years ago at a wedding and she is married and active in her church.  We laughed about the pink slippers, but being welcomed that day changed her life.  A simple invitation changed everything.  

Here at Faith Church there was a young man who was invited by his Aunt and Uncle to attend worship and one Sunday he joined them.  The young man had recently gotten into some trouble and had some unresolved legal issues.  None of that mattered to the people here who welcomed him.  He returned again and again and was invited to join a Sunday School class.  Now I was a little worried because the class that invited him was one of our older adult classes.  There was probably a 50 or 60 year age difference between this man and most of the people in that class, but I shouldn’t have been worried, because that class welcomed him and loved him.  

The young man came to me later and said he wanted to be baptized and join the church which was great, but he wanted to be immersed.  I said I was willing to do it but he had to find the location.  It was one of the older members of the class who opened his property, which has a creek, for the baptism.  The entire class showed up to watch the baptism of this man’s changed life.  A simple welcome and invitation changed the trajectory of this life.  

Linda Hoffman shared with me that 46 years ago she showed up here at Faith Church for the first time with a baby in her arms, and a toddler by the hand.  She had never been in the building before, but someone who worked with her mom said she should visit.  As she walked toward the building, a woman was walking out after Sunday School.  This woman saw Linda, introduced herself, and then walked back in with her to show her the nursery.  Linda was touched by the generosity of this woman.  She recognized that Linda needed help and took the time to come back into the building and help her.  

That was 46 years ago and Linda is not only still here but she has been on staff here for most of those years and she has helped share the gospel in countless ways during that time.  Many lives have been transformed, and it all started with a simple welcome and invitation from a woman who was willing to stay and return to the building.  

Sally McCartney tells a similar story about being in worship when her children were young.  A woman started talking with her and said, your hands must be full with your family. How about I bake a cake for you this week so you can enjoy it.  This simple act of seeing someone hungry for love and care, and providing a cake, changed everything.  Sally said she now is trying to do the same thing, care for people in simple but generous ways.  She and her family have also provided the pumpkin pies for the Christmas Day dinner these past few years, so she is passing along the gift of giving dessert to others.

And speaking about our Christmas Day Dinner, several years ago a man who had not been in church for years heard about our Christmas Dinner and was invited to come and help.  He came and was amazed to find a group of people giving up part of their Christmas Day to serve people they didn’t know.  He was so touched by their generosity of time and love and service that he started to attend worship, and then he joined a small group.  A simple invitation and watching people feed those who were hungry changed a man’s life and helped him regain a foundation of faith.

One more story… Another staff person told me that they had a friend who was going through a difficult divorce and some challenging custody issues.  He didn’t think his friend would come to church, but he was encouraged to just invite him anyway.  This staff person told his friend how much the church had helped him grow in his faith and that maybe it could be a support to him.  

His friend came to worship and he brought his son.  They kept coming.  His friend then joined a Bible study so he could learn more about Jesus and share it with his son.  His friend is now scheduled to help lead that study, his first time leading any kind of Bible Study.  And do you know why he is leading, because the leader of the Bible Study invited others in the class to lead.  

A simple invitation changed this young single dad’s life, and this story is not unique.  There are a few other single dads out there (and moms) who have been invited to Faith Church and have come and found hope and community and Jesus.  

Sometimes the most generous thing we can do is simply invite someone to meet Jesus in and through the church. Sometimes the life changing act of generosity might simply be saying hi and getting to know the person sitting next to you or behind you today.  

I hope that as you have heard these stories that God has placed someone on your heart or in your mind.  Is there someone you know who needs an invitation to Jesus?  Is there someone you have been thinking about inviting to worship?  This is the best time of year to invite someone to church.  Whether it is a Sunday morning or one of our Christmas Eve Worship services, people are looking to get reconnected to God in this season.  Who can you invite?  The invitation might be the generous act that will change someone’s life.

Or maybe the invitation is to serve at our Christmas Dinner.  Serving for just an hour or two with others on Christmas Day is an amazing experience that has touched more than one person’s life and energized more than one person’s faith.  Being generous doesn’t require a lot of money or time or energy or resources, sometimes it just calls for us to invite someone to Jesus, or reach out to welcome someone in worship, or invite someone to serve with us.  

I want to invite you during these next 4 weeks to be generous in all the little ways.  Send a plate of cookies to a neighbor.  Invite a friend to join you in worship (postcards available).  Sign up to help at one of our Christmas Eve worship services so that you can welcome people in Jesus’ name (signups live).  Be generous in the little things and let God use them to transform someone’s life.  Who knows, the person you invite or welcome might become the next Peter, the next Rock and leader and foundation of God’s church.  

Next Steps

Generosity - A Simple Invitation

Read about the simple generosity of Andrew.  John 1:40-42

Read about the simple generosity of the righteous.  Matthew 25:35-40

How have you experienced generosity in simple things?

Whose invitation to you to meet Jesus helped change your life?  

Who can you invite to Jesus and help change their life?

Christmas Eve and Blue Christmas Invite Postcards are available.  

● Pray for those God wants YOU to invite to worship.

● Pray for the right time and place to share the invitation.

Volunteer to serve at one of our Christmas Eve Services.  Help welcome people to the church.  Your welcome may be the simple / generous act that changes someone’s life.

Sign-up to help serve at the Christmas Dinner.  

Invite others to join you.  Your invitation and service might be the simple / generous act that will change someone’s life.  Sign up in the lobby or online.

Information about all our Christmas worship services, Christmas Day Dinner and serving opportunities can be found at bellefontefaith.com.

Overflow - Grace

 

I hope that one of the things you have been doing this month, or will do this week, is to give thanks for all that God has given you.  As we see war in the Middle East and Ukraine, we need to give thanks for the safe community we live in.  God has given us families and friends to love us.  God has given us food to eat and this week an abundance of food to eat.  God has given us shelter and clothing and transportation.  We have access to clean water, health care, and education.  God has given us gifts, abilities, and passions to use for our own enjoyment and for the benefit of others.  God has been so generous with us, and God’s generosity is part of what moves us to be generous.  As children created in the image of God, there is a part of us that seeks to give because God has given, and there is a part of us that seeks to be generous because God has been generous.  

Who do you know that has been generous, or maybe been generous to you?  My Grandmother was the most generous person I’ve known.  She gave gifts on her birthday.  She made sure she tipped generously.  She gave generous gifts at Christmas.  One year when I was in High School, she gave me a gift that allowed me to go on a trip to Europe with the CT Ambassadors of Music.  She was generous and having been blessed by her generosity makes me want to be generous.  

When we experience the generosity of others, it makes us what to be generous, and the same is true with God.  When we experience the generosity of God, something moves in us to want to be like God and give generously.  The generosity of God can be seen in that one Bible verse we often memorized as a child.  John 3:16.  God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  

God gives because He loves us, but the generosity of God’s giving, and the generosity of God’s love is seen in what God gives.  God gives His only Son.  God gives all He has and all He is in Jesus.  God came to us in Jesus to live with us and show us the path of life, but God also came in Jesus to take on our sin and the penalty of our sin, which is death.  God came in the person of Jesus to die our death so that we might live forever.  Jesus willingly gave His life for us when He chose to not only carry a cross but then die the painful death of crucifixion on that cross.   

The reality of this choice hit me when I was standing in the Garden of Gethsemane just outside the walls of Jerusalem.  From the garden, where we think Jesus prayed and asked God for another way of salvation for us that wouldn’t require Him to die on the cross, you can see this gate of Jerusalem.  It’s called the Golden Gate and it is the gate that the Jewish people believe the Messiah would enter when He came to set up God’s kingdom.  The gate was open at the time of Jesus and as Jesus looked at this gate, He knew He had a choice.  He could enter the city to establish God’s kingdom and be hailed a king, or He could be led back into the city as a criminal condemned to die on a cross.    

When I stood and looked at the gate and how close it was, I understood more powerfully the choice Jesus had.  He could have entered into the city in glory, or He could have turned, and just over the hill from the garden was a vast wilderness that Jesus could have fled to and hid in for months if not years, or He could carry a cross.  Jesus chose not to run away.  He chose to set aside His glory so that He could carry a cross for us.  In love, Jesus chose us and what a generous love that was.  God’s love in Jesus forgives us.  It frees us from sin.  It gives everlasting life.  It is generous.  

As I stood in the garden and realized what Jesus did, I was overwhelmed by how generous God’s love was, and how unworthy I was to receive it.  I don’t deserve God’s love.  I haven’t done anything to earn God’s love.  In fact, I fall short of who God wants me to be every day.  I can never repay God for taking on my sin and dying my death, and there is nothing I can give to God in return for the gift of eternal life he gives. I am saved by grace.  God’s generosity made the way for grace and mercy and our salvation.  

God’s generosity made the way for grace.  This is true for all of us.  We don’t deserve God’s love.  We can’t earn Gods’ love.  We can’t repay God for His love.  Forgiveness, salvation, and eternal life are all gifts of God’s grace. The Bible says we are saved by grace through faith.  There is nothing we have done or can do to make it right, it is all God’s grace.  God’s generosity, God’s generous love, made the way for grace.  

The person who shows us that it is generosity that makes the way for God’s grace is the Apostle Paul.  Paul wrote much of the New Testament and he used the word grace more than anyone else.  In fact. Paul used the word grace 100 times and in the rest of the New Testament it is only used 50 times.  Paul was passionate about God’s grace and he wanted to talk about it because he had experienced it first hand and it changed everything for him.  

When we first meet Paul in the Bible he is known as Saul.  He is a Jewish religious leader who strongly opposes the new movement of Jesus.  In fact, Saul had authority from the Jewish leaders to find those who said that Jesus had died and rose again for our sin and have them killed.  Saul is first mentioned in the Bible when he authorized the stoning of Stephen.  Saul is the one who holds the garments of the men who kill him.  After Stephen died, Paul continued to hunt down the followers of Jesus.  Acts 8:2-3

Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison.  

Saul is persecuting men and women who say that they trust in Jesus as their savior.  He has the authority to beat them, put them in prison, and stone them if necessary.  Saul was proud of what he was doing and he felt like he was honoring God in it all.  The next time we hear about Saul, he was continuing his quest to stop the movement of Jesus and destroy the disciples.  Acts 9:1-4.

Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem.  As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”

It was on the road to Damascus, while Saul was searching for Christians to be put in prison, when Jesus came and asked Saul why he was persecuting Him.  Saul was struck blind in that moment and finally came to realize that not only was it Jesus who was speaking to him, but Jesus was the one who died and rose again.  Saul begins to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Anointed One, the son of God and the Savior of the world.  

Saul is taken into the city of Damascus where a man named Annanias was told by Jesus to go and pray for Saul.  Can you imagine what Annanias must have thought?  No way am I going to do that!  That man wants to kill me and all of us.  I’m not going.  But Jesus tells Annanias to go and he does. He prays for Saul and something like scales fall from Saul's eyes so that he can see.  Immediately Saul goes out to preach that Jesus is the Messiah.  Acts 9:20-22

At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. All those who heard him were astonished and asked, “Isn’t he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn’t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?” Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Messiah.

Saul was literally persecuting the followers of Jesus when Jesus came to save him.  Saul hadn’t done anything for Jesus to forgive him.  Saul hadn’t done anything to earn God’s favor or love.  There was no way Saul could repay Jesus for the persecution and death he caused.  Saul knew that Jesus only came and forgave him and put him on the right path because He chose to come to him.  It was God’s grace that turned Saul around.  That’s why Saul, later known as Paul, was so passionate about God’s grace.  It is Paul who said:

The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.  1 Timothy 1:14

All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,  and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.  Romans 3:23-24

But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions — it is by grace you have been saved.  Ephesians 2:4-5

It is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.  Ephesians 2:8-9

Paul spoke passionately about the grace of God because he had experienced it in his life.  God’s generous love and grace turned Paul’s life around.  He stopped persecuting Christ and started to preach Christ.  God’s generosity opened the door for grace in Paul’s life, but there was someone else whose generosity helped Paul become a leader in the church.    

Right after his conversion, Saul was not accepted by the original disciples.  John and Peter were not eager to welcome Saul as part of their movement because of his past; it was only after another follower of Jesus was willing to vouch for Saul, that the disciples agreed to meet with him.  That man was named Barnabas.  

When Saul came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus. So Saul stayed with them and moved about freely in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord.  Acts 9:26-28

So the generosity of Barnabas opened the door for Saul to become a leader in the church.  The generosity of Barnabas is what allowed Saul to become a leader in the church who shared with the world the message of God’s amazing grace.  But why were  Peter and John willing to listen to Barnabas?  What made Barnabas such a respected leader in the church?  Why did Barnabas have so much influence?  It’s because he was generous.

When we first hear about Barnabas, his name is Joseph.  

Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means “son of encouragement”), sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles’ feet.  Acts 4:36-37

Joseph's generosity was so powerful that it caused the disciples to change his name.  His giving was so encouraging that they started calling him Barnabas - Son of Encouragement.  Joseph gave so completely and faithfully and generously that it forever changed how people saw him.  He was no longer just an average Joe, he was the Son of Encouragement.  Joseph was influential because he was generous.  He gave all he had.  

It was the generosity of Joseph that opened the door for Saul to become a leader in the church and talk about the grace of God that has changed our lives.  Generosity makes a way for God’s grace.

The generosity of God’s love sent Jesus into the world with a grace that brings forgiveness and everlasting life.  The generosity of God’s love sent Jesus to Saul with a grace that transformed his life.  The generosity of Barnabas' friendship opened the door for Saul to become a leader in the church and share the message of God’s grace, and the only reason Barnabas had influence with the leaders of the church so he could bring Saul to them was because of his history of generosity.  

Over and over again, generosity makes a way for God’s grace to overflow into our world.  If the world needs more of God’s grace, then the world needs more people practicing generosity.  If the world needs more of God’s grace, then we need to become a Barnabas.  We need to give generously.  We  need to encourage others and we need to do all we can to share God’s grace with others.    

This week, as we give thanks for the overflow of God’s generosity and grace, let us also  find ways that God’s grace can flow through us into the world.  How can we be like Barnabas and give?  Who can we be an encouragement to others?  How can God use us to share God’s love and grace?  God’s generosity brought grace into our world, it’s now our turn to be generous so God’s grace can flow into our world.  I invite you this week to find ways to be generous.  

Next Steps

Overflow - Grace

Make a list of all the ways you have experienced God’s generous love and grace.  Thank God for all these things.

Read through the words of the hymn Amazing Grace.

● How do the words mirror your own life’s story?  

● How has God’s grace changed your life?  

Read the story of Saul’s conversion in Acts 7:54-8:3, 9:1-30.

Why was Saul (Paul) so passionate about God’s grace?

Read some of Paul’s teaching about God’s grace:

● Romans 3:23-24

● Ephesians 2:4-5

● Ephesians 2:8-9

● 1 Timothy 1:13-14 

● 2 Timothy 1:9

● Titus 2:11-12

How did the generosity of Barnabas open the door for Saul?  Read Acts 4:36-37 and Acts 9:26-28.

Generosity makes a way for God’s grace.

How can your generosity open the door for God’s grace to be experienced in someone else’s life?

How can your generosity bring God’s grace into our world?

How can you be generous in this week of Thanksgiving?

How can you be generous in the upcoming Christmas Season?  

Overflow - Peace

 It’s good to be back in person this week to continue our series on generosity, and I am very grateful for those whose generosity allowed me to share last week’s message.  Our Tech Team generously gives their time, energy, gifts and ability each and every week to help us experience the overflow of God’s blessing in worship.  We are so grateful for them and their giving and generosity is making a difference.    

I hope this past week you were more aware of stories of generosity that are all around us.  It seems like I can’t turn around now without hearing about how someone’s giving turned the life of someone else around.  I also hope that maybe you saw an opportunity to be generous and you took it.  I want to be the kind of person that gives and gives generously when God calls me to, and one reason I’m passionate about giving and giving now is because of a situation that I experienced when I was 19 years old.  

I had just finished my first semester at MSU and was traveling home to CT with a friend.  We had gotten a ride as far as NYC where we were going to pick up the train to CT.  While we were in the city, we went to some of the famous stores like FAO Schwartz toy store and Tiffanys.  As we were walking around the city on that  cold and windy December day, I remember seeing a homeless woman huddled between two buildings.  

The woman was sitting on what I assumed were all her belongings stuffed into a few bags.  What caught my eye was that she was wearing a maroon windbreaker.  It was exactly like a windbreaker I had at home.  While it may have been called a windbreaker, I knew that jacket was not protecting her against the wind or the cold.  The instant I saw her, I felt like I should do something, but what could I do?  I was a poor college student.  I didn’t have any extra money to give her.  I didn’t know anything about the city to point her to help or services.  I didn’t know what to do, so I did nothing.  I just kept going.  The image of her has not left me in 42 years.  

I thought about that woman often during the next few weeks and I kept asking myself, what could I have done?  God finally answered and said, you could have given her your jacket.  That day I had on my favorite winter jacket.  It was a fleece lined brown corduroy jacket that I loved.  I thought about it and realized that if I had given her my jacket, I would have been cold for the day, but my parents would have been able to get me a winter coat for Christmas.  I could have done something.  I could have been generous.  My giving could have made a difference in her life.  

I’m glad God reminds me of this woman often because she reminds me that I do want to be more generous and that there is always something I can do.  There is always some way and some thing that we can give.  She also reminds me that there might be times when God will say, give all you have - even the coat off your back.  In those moments, when I hear God call, I want to be the kind of person who gives.  

Last week we saw how generosity leads to joy, not the joy others might experience when we give, but the joy that is ours when we give.  The overflow of generosity in our lives brings joy, but there is more.  Generosity also brings the overflow of peace.  When we are generous and give, there is a peace we experience that passes our understanding.  I know this because the opposite is also true.  When we aren't generous and when we don’t give, there is no peace.  I had no peace that winter season 42 years ago.  I learned a lesson and I hope I have become more generous, but I had no peace.  

We see the same thing happen to a man who asked Jesus what he had to do to get eternal life.  Jesus said:

“If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.”

“Which ones?” he inquired.

Jesus replied, “‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’”

“All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?”

Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.  Matthew 19:16-22

When asked how he could experience the full blessing of a life with God, Jesus said, go be generous.  Give what you have away and don’t trust in the things of this world, trust in me.  It says the man went away sad because he was rich.  He didn’t want to part with his possessions.  He didn’t give and he didn’t experience any peace.  He went away sad and troubled by his lack of faith and maybe his lack of love and consideration for others.  He didn’t give and he wasn’t generous, and he had no peace.  

On a different occasion, Jesus was sitting in the Temple court where He could see people giving their offerings.  As He watched, He saw, and probably heard, many people putting in large sums of money.  He knew they were giving a lot because the offering boxes were metal, so the sound of a large offering could be heard by everyone.  Jesus watched rich people put in lots of money, but then saw a poor widow put in two small coins.  How did Jesus know it was two small coins, because her offering sounded different.  

It wasn’t the wealthy that Jesus recognized.  It wasn’t the rich men whose offering was lifted up as an example of giving, it was the poor woman.  She generously gave because she gave all she had to live on.  As I picture this scene, I picture all the rich men walking away hoping people noticed them and how much they gave.  Not only were they hoping that their gifts would be recognized and honored, but I also see them filled with anxiety about whether someone else would come along and give more.  No matter what they were feeling, I don’t picture them at peace.

But as the woman walked away after giving generously of all she had, I picture her at peace.  She knew she gave God all she had.  She didn’t have to ask herself if she gave too little or if God wanted her to give more because she gave all she had.  And because she trusted God to meet all her future needs, she was at peace.  She may not have known how God was going to do it, or where the resources would come from, but she trusted God to meet her needs and walked away at peace.  

I shared last week that I first started to tithe when I became a pastor.  My financial reality was that I had student debt, loans to pay off, and no savings or investments to live on, but if I was ever going to talk about tithing, I needed to practice it.   Every week for over 30 years I have written out that check.  Yes, I still write out the paper check because every week I need to remind myself that I am making the decision to give God what ultimately belongs to Him.  Through the years I have challenged myself to give more.  I started tithing on my net income but then I started tithing on the gross income.  Then I realized the benefit I have of living in a parsonage so started tithing on my gross income plus benefits.  Then I increased it from 10% to 11% and I keep pushing myself to give more.  %.  

As I look back on my 30 years as a pastor, when it comes to my finances, I have experienced peace.  I haven’t been anxious about money.  I haven’t been anxious when God has called me to give more or give now or give generously to help someone in need.  I have experienced an overflow of peace that I didn’t have before I started to give.  I had always worried about money and not having enough to live on, but tithing started giving me peace. Generosity produces an overflow of peace when we give, and I pray that this is something that you have experienced or want to experience in your own life.

If you have financial anxiety and concerns, generously giving to God is a way to find peace.  We hear this in Malachi 3:10-12.

Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.  I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not drop their fruit before it is ripe,” says the Lord Almighty.  “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land,” says the Lord Almighty.

Go ahead and test me, God says.  Give me the tithe.  Don’t hold anything back.  Be generous and watch as I bless you in ways you can’t even begin to imagine.  And God doesn’t just promise a blessing of abundance, but a blessing of peace.  What causes anxiety for a farmer?  Pests that might destroy a crop and the uncertainty of weather and disease that might keep a crop from reaching maturity.  What does God promise?  No pests and a successful harvest.  God provides peace.

Generosity brings us the overflow of peace, but there is more.  Generosity also brings the overflow of purpose and presence.  When we give to God, we know that God will use our gifts for His purpose.  When we give to the work of God in and through the church, we know that our giving is making a difference in people’s lives.  All of our giving to God is filled with purpose.  Each gift to Operation Christmas Child is filled with purpose.  The paper and pens in each box means a child can get an education.  The greatest journey means they get to hear about Jesus.  

Our giving to the church is making a difference.  Through our generous giving, children right here are learning about Jesus in a culture where no one else is going to teach them.  Our giving helps support teenagers during turbulent and difficult times in their lives.  It lets them know they are noticed, loved, and cared for.  Our giving over the next few weeks will support the Christmas Dinner that shares the love of Jesus in our community.  

Your giving has reached out to help people from Ukraine to Belize to Venezuela to Sierra Leone.  Your giving provides support and stability for single mothers, shelter for the homeless and food for the hungry in our own community.  When we give to the church, we are part of something so much bigger than ourselves because we are helping create and sustain a community of people who provide hope and healing and love and joy and faith to on another and those around us. 

People here are finding connection and community.  People here are finding forgiveness and a future.  People here are leaving behind depression and despair for the joy and love that is found in a relationship with Jesus.  Sometimes we see how our giving makes a difference, and sometimes we don’t, but when we give generously to the church, we are part of God’s work in the world and I would say that there is no greater purpose.  

There is an overflow of peace and purpose when we are generous, but we also experience God’s presence when we give.  Generosity brings us closer to God.  I shared a few weeks ago the story of your generosity seen when we gave to the church in Sierra Leone.  Together we made up the $30,000 shortfall of our annual conference so that all the UM pastors in Sierra Leone would get their full salary.  It was an amazing thing to be part of but for me personally, it made me feel so close to God.

I remember sitting at Annual Conference when I first heard about the shortfall and heard God say, you can do something about this.  I remember going through all the amounts I was willing to give.  $100, $500, and then finally $1,000, but God saying, no there is more you can do.  I remember asking all of you to give and the outpouring of generosity was so incredible that together we stood in the gap and made the difference.  God was doing something among us and I could feel it.  I could feel God at work answering prayers and meeting needs.  I could feel God move in ways that we don’t often feel God move.  The presence of God was among us.  I could feel it and I know many of you did too.  

As we give generously, we experience more of God’s presence, we feel closer to God.  Sometimes we experience more of God because we have to trust God more as we give.  Sometimes we experience more of God because we are part of what God is doing and we feel the flow of His spirit.  Sometimes we experience more of God because the overflow of joy is present and joy is a fruit of God’s Spirit.  No matter what might cause us to feel closer to God, we are drawn to God when we are generous and we experience more of God when we give.  

What we experience when we are generous is the overflow of joy, and peace, and a purpose greater than ourselves, and the presence of God.  Last week we heard about the giving of the churches in Macedonia who were very poor but gave generously.  They gave beyond what anyone thought was possible for them.  Their giving filled them with joy and they were an example the Apostle Paul used to encourage others to give.  

To the people in Corinth, Paul said, Since you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in the love we have kindled in you—see that you also excel in this grace of giving. 2 Corinthians 8:7

I would say the same thing.  Since you excel in everything, in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in the love you have kindled in you, excel in the grace of giving. Give generously and feel the overflow, the abundance, of joy, peace, power and the life changing presence of God.  

Next Steps

Overflow - Peace, Purpose and Presence

Where have you seen examples of generosity this week?

What opportunities has God given you to give?  

Generosity brings peace.

● Read Matthew 19:16-22.  How did this man’s lack of generosity impact his emotional wellbeing?  

● Read Mark 12:41-44.  How might the offering of the rich men only created anxiety while the offering of the poor widow brought peace?  

● When have you been generous and experienced the blessing of peace?  

● When has the opposite been true?  

Generosity brings purpose.

● In what ways do you see God at work in and through the church and its outreach, mission and ministry?  

● Make a list of the ways your giving to God is making a difference in the lives of others.  

Generosity brings God’s presence, a closeness to God.

● In what ways have you felt God’s presence when you have been generous?  

● How might you find the fullness of God's presence in your generosity this week? 

Pray:

Father, thank You for the generosity you show us. We’re ready for the peace, purpose, and the power of your presence that comes when we trust You with our finances. Please build our faith and trust in You, knowing that we can never outgive you. Thank You for the many ways You’re using our generosity to reach Your people. In Jesus’ name, Amen

Overflow - Joy

 I read a story not long ago about a truck driver who was eating at a fast food restaurant when he saw three teenage boys come in and walk up to the counter.  They were pooling all their money in hopes of being able to buy some kind of soda.  The man watched for a few moments then got up, went to the counter and laid down $20 and told the boys to get whatever they wanted.  The boys were thrilled and thanked the man as he left.  I love stories like this.  

I love stories of people seeing a person in uniform come into a restaurant and then buying their meal, of the police officer who somehow hears that a young man without a dad needs to know how to tie a tie for their prom so stops over and helps.  I love the stories of fast food workers and grocery store clerks paying for those who either didn’t have enough money or forgot their wallets at home.  

I love the stories of people giving their time, money, and support, to those in need without being asked or compelled to help. I love stories that show this kind of generosity and every time I hear one, I want to do the same thing.  Do those stories inspire you to be more generous?  My guess is that you have done things like this a few times.  This week I heard two stories from people here at the church who just gave generously to someone in need and as I listened, I could see the joy it brought, not to those who were helped, but to those who gave.  There is an overflow of JOY that comes when we give, which is why Jesus said it is more blessed to give than to receive. Acts 20:35.  There is a blessing that is ours when we can unexpectedly or outrageously give and that blessing is joy.  

I’ve experienced this joy before, but this week I was reminded of all the times I did experience the joy because I didn’t give.  I went into a local restaurant for lunch not long ago and saw a table of uniformed military personnel having lunch.  There were 6 of them and the first thing I thought was, I should buy their lunch.   I was seated and couldn’t see their table but thought about it all during lunch.  I said, well if they are still there when I leave, I’ll do it.  They were gone when I left.  It was a missed opportunity to be generous and experience the overflow of joy.  

One day I saw a woman in the grocery store and I knew she and her husband had taken in several foster children in the past and she had a crying baby in her cart that was another foster child they were caring for.  I ran into her several times and then again at the checkout.  I thought to myself, I should buy her groceries.  I wrestled with myself about it.  Should I?  Would it embarrass her?  How do I do it?   I ended up checking out and leaving the store.    

I put my bags in the car and walked back in and stood next to her in the checkout line and finally said, can I put this on my card.  For all that you do for children in our community, this is the least I can do, and I do mean the least I can do.  She was appreciative and I was thankful I did it, but why did it take me so long to be generous.  Unfortunately my life is filled with more missed opportunities than acts of generosity - but I want to change that.  I want to be more generous.  I want generosity to overflow from my life so that joy can flow in. 

I hope you feel the same way.  My guess is that you do.  We all want to be that person who leaves a big tip that changes someone’s life, or buys lunch for a soldier so they know they are appreciated, or soda for some teens so that they know they are loved.  So how can we become more generous?  How can we experience the overflow of joy because giving becomes the overflow of our heart and lives?  To grow in generosity we have to change our hearts because giving and generosity is not a financial issue, it is a heart issue.      

Due to a severe famine that took place throughout Israel about 10 years after Jesus’ death and resurrection, the church in Jerusalem found themselves in great need.  There was hunger and starvation all through Israel so as the Apostle Paul traveled from church to church across the Roman Empire, he asked people to give to those in need in Jerusalem.  Paul pointed out the amazing generosity of one group of people because they didn’t give out of their abundance, they gave out of their poverty.  Paul wrote to the Church in Corinth about their generosity and said,  

And now, brothers and sisters, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. In the midst of a very severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the Lord’s people. And they exceeded our expectations: They gave themselves first of all to the Lord, and then by the will of God also to us. 2 Corinthians 8:1-5

The people and churches of Macedonia were not rich.  The area had been stripped of its wealth when they were overthrown and made part of the Roman Empire, and the Christians who were giving to help those in need had been persecuted in many different ways.  They didn’t have a lot of money but giving to them wasn’t a financial matter, it was a faith matter.  They wanted to give.  They were eager to give.  They joyfully gave and they gave beyond what anyone thought was possible for them to give.  Their giving was so amazing that today it still stands as an example of true generosity.  

Giving doesn’t depend on how much money we have, it depends on how much faith and trust we have in God.  To grow in our faith and to grow in generosity, here are three mindsets that need to change.   

1. We have to stop thinking that we don’t have enough to give but that we have MORE THAN ENOUGH to give.  And let me be clear, I’m not just talking about money.  We also need to tell ourselves that we have more than enough time to get involved in helping care for others.  We have more than enough talent, skill, and ability to reach out to someone else and make a difference.  We have more than enough resources to give and give generously and yes, we have more than enough money as well.   

No matter who we are, if we trust God and believe that God will provide for all our needs, then we will begin to see that we have more than enough to give.  Whether we are living paycheck to paycheck, climbing out of debt, paying off a mortgage or student loans, we still have more than enough to give and give generously.    We all face our own financial realities and struggles, but as our faith grows we begin to see that no matter what we have, we have more than enough to be generous.  

If we think about giving God a percentage of our income, then it doesn’t matter how much money we make or have, there is always something we can give to God, the church, or those in need.  If we only make $100 a month that’s ok, maybe we give $5 or $10 of that, 5 or 10%.  If we make $1,000 a month, then maybe we give $50 or $100.  If we make a million in a year, then maybe we give $50 or $100K.  No matter what we earn or have, can we give a percentage to God?  

I’ve shared this before, but when I started at my first church, I had just graduated from seminary and had gone through all my savings.  My financial reality was that I didn’t have any reserves in my checking account, no savings account, no investments and I had to begin paying off my student loans as well as a loan from my parents.  I wasn’t making a lot of money as a first year local pastor at a struggling church in Altoona, I was at the very bottom of the pay scale, but when I found a box of offering envelopes on my desk when I arrived, I had to think about giving.  

I knew I would never be able to utter the word tithe, which is a gift of 10% to the church, if I didn’t actually do it.  So I did it.  It was the first time I ever intentionally gave to the church and I remember figuring out what that amount was and it was more than I had ever given to the church and I was telling myself I was now going to give that every week.  It was nerve wracking, but I did it.  It was a step of faith and God worked out the finances.  

In order to be generous we have to turn around the idea that we don’t have enough and tell ourselves that we have more than enough.  We have more than enough time, gifts, skills, and money to give.  It was out of their extreme poverty that the churches of Philippi, Thessalonica, and Berea gave to their brothers and sisters.  With as little as they had, they still had more than enough to give, and when they gave they were filled with joy.  They experienced the reality of what Jesus said, it is more blessed to give than to receive.  

2. We have to stop thinking that we have is ours and that it all belongs to God.  Near the end of King David’s life, he told the people that his son, Solomon, was going to build the Temple.  The Temple was going to be the finest building in the world and it was going to need an abundance of gold, silver, bronze, gemstones, and wood.  For the Temple to be built, everyone was going to have to give financially, but they were also going to have to give their time and skills and abilities to make the Temple happen.  David reminded them that they could give, and could give generously because it all belonged to God in the first place. 

After talking about all the resources that were going to be needed for the Temple, David said, Who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand.  1 Chronicles 29:14

David was asking if the people really could give what was needed for the Temple, and his answer was, of course we can because everything we have comes from God, and God gives so that we can bless others, help others, and see the greatness of God at work in the world.  If we think of ourselves as stewards instead of owners, maybe how we use our resources would change.  

This idea needs to be part of our faith and mindset.  What we have isn’t ours, its Gods.  God has given it to us and God is asking us to be good stewards of it and to use what we have, all that we have, to not only care for our families but to bless others.  If we will give as God calls us to give, with all that belongs to Him, not only will joy overflow in our lives, but so will God’s provision.  God will provide for us as we provide for others.   

3. We have to start thinking I will give NOW and not WHEN.  Too often I tell God, I’ll give when.  Just a few months ago I said, I’ll give when I leave the restaurant and if they are still there.  All too often we lose the opportunity to give if we put it off.   

Many opportunities to be generous and bless others come in a moment.  Seeing a need at the store, an opportunity in a restaurant, hearing about a situation at work, at school, or at the church; it’s often there one moment and gone the next.  We need to jump on the opportunities to give when we first feel God’s prompting us to give.  If we want the overflow of joy and blessing in our lives, then we need to make giving and generosity an ongoing part of our lives.  

I’m not saying we shouldn’t be wise in our giving and thoughtful about what God is asking of us, but take it from someone who has made excuses, waited too long and missed opportunities to give, it’s important to give now.  The other problem with saying, I’ll give when, is that there is never really a good time to give because we can always find an excuse to hold us back.

I’ll give when I am out of debt.  

I’ll given when the mortgage is paid

I’ll given when I get the next raise

I’ll give when the kids are out of diapers, out of college.

I’ll give when I have enough money in my IRA.

I’ll give when I retire and have more time.

Let’s face it, there is never a good time to give, so we can’t tell ourselves we will give when, we need to tell ourselves that we can and are going to give now.  

You can give now.  You have more than enough, it all belongs to God anyway and there are opportunities right now to give your money, your time, your gifts, your leadership, and your faith.  

Jesus said it is more blessed to give than to receive.  Joy comes in giving and your generosity can change the lives of others and it can change your life as well.  So I invite you to find a way to give now.  

Pick up a shoebox or stop at the OCC table to learn how your giving to children around the world can fill you with joy.  Find a way to give this month out of the abundance God has given you.  

Give thanks for all God has given you by giving to God and those around you.  Find a way to give in this upcoming Advent and Christmas season.  As we celebrate God giving his all to us in Jesus, find a way you can give your all to God, the church, and the world.   

God’s giving change the world.  God’s giving changed us.  Our giving can change the world and if it doesn’t change the world, it’s ok because it will change world, it will change our lives.  Give today and be blessed.  Give and experience the overflow of joy in your life.  It is more blessed to give.  

Next Steps

Overflow - Generosity

Jesus said, it is more blessed to give…  (Acts 20:35)

Read 2 Corinthians 8:1-5

The churches of Macedonia didn’t see giving as a financial matter but a faith matter.  Not only did they give out of their poverty, but they gave eagerly, joyfully, willingly and irrationally (beyond what they could do).  

What would this kind of giving look like in your life?

Three mindsets that can help us give generously.

1. We have MORE than enough to give.

● Do you believe this?  Why or why not?

● Have you ever given out of your poverty?  What happened?

● Who has been an example to you about giving generously?

● What would a tithe look like for you and your family?

2. It all belongs to God.  Read 1 Chronicles 29:1-9

● How does David inspire the people to give to the building of the Temple?  What was their response?  

● What things do you see as “yours” and what things do you see as “God’s”?  

3. Give NOW not WHEN

● When have you given spontaneously? 

● What missed giving opportunities have you experienced?

● What is one way you can give

○ Today

○ During the season of Thanksgiving

○ During Advent and Christmas

We Are The Church - Gathered and Sent

 

As we begin this morning, I want to invite you to take a deep breath in.  

Now breathe out.  

Once more… IN…. OUT.  

Clearly this is how we are to live, breathing in and out.  

Again, and again.  Day after day.  Year after year.  

Once more.  IN…. OUT…

The truth is that if we only breathe in, eventually our lungs get full, and we can’t take in any more.  Have you ever timed how long you can hold your breath?  15 seconds.  30 seconds.  1 minute.  Eventually we get that feeling of having to let our breath out so we can breathe in again.  The science behind that feeling is that we have chemoreceptors in our brain stem and lungs that monitor the levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide in our blood.  As we hold our breath, the oxygen level drops and the carbon dioxide level rises.  There comes a time when the chemoreceptors will tell the muscles of the diaphragm that you need to breathe, and our lungs will exhale so we can take in oxygen.  

I was curious what the record was for holding your breath and was stunned that it wasn’t 5 minutes or even 10 minutes.  It is 24 minutes and 37 seconds!  That’s crazy.  It was achieved by a professional breath hold diver (didn’t know there was such a thing) who train themselves to hold their breath.  He also used pure oxygen to keep the O2 levels as high as they could be during the hold.  

Most of us, however, need to breathe in and out much more often, in fact it is how God made us, to breathe in and out.  Over and over and over.  The body of Christ, the Church, was also created by God to breathe in and out.   We are in a series called We Are the Church, and we are going to look at how God created the church to breathe in and out, and what repeating that action means for us today.

One of the passages that we have turned to during this series is the story of the first church that was formed on the day of Pentecost.  After Jesus rose from the dead, He not only appeared to His disciples to prove His power over sin and death, but He told His disciples to remain in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit came to them.  

Then they gathered around him [Jesus] and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”

He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.  Acts 1:6-9

So the disciples stayed in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit came.  

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.  Acts 2:1-4  

The Holy Spirit filled the followers of Jesus.  The word “spirit” is the Greek word pneuma which means wind, spirit and BREATH.  The Holy Spirit breathed into the followers of Jesus and gave life to the church.  It was also this breath that gave the disciples courage to share the good news of Jesus.  In the story, they immediately went out onto the streets to share what God had done through Jesus.  In fact, it doesn’t even say that they left the upper room, we just find them on the streets proclaiming what God had done, and they were sharing all of this in several different languages.  

The power of the Holy Spirit didn’t just move the disciples from where they had gathered in the upper room to the streets, it moved them from Jerusalem to Judea, to Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.  Once again the church was breathing in and out.  The church had gathered in Jerusalem where they were filled by the Holy Spirit but in just a few years they would be all through the Roman world and looking toward Spain, the end of the world.  The church is at its best when it is gathered and sent. Breathing in and out.  

We see this movement over and over again in the picture of the first church we have been looking at from Acts 2.  

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles.  All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.  Acts 2:42-47

The church gathered for teaching, fellowship and prayer.  They gathered for the breaking of bread, to be nourished and fed.  All of this helped them grow in their faith and be strong.  They reminded each other about everything Jesus said and did.  This teaching allowed them to take in the word of God.  Prayer allowed them to draw in the spirit of God.  Fellowship helped them feel connected  and strong.  The breaking of bread, whether that was eating together or the sacrament of communion, gave them nourishment.  They were a church gathered and it was important for them to gather so they could be faithful and strong.  All of this is still an important part of breathing in as the church.  

Most churches today do a good job of gathering together.  We breathe in God’s spirit and power during worship, times of prayer, and the study of God’s word.  We breathe in as we fellowship together and break bread.  Like most churches, we do a good job breathing in, but healthy churches also breathe out.  The first church breathed in and out.  Let’s go back to verse 42.

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.  Acts 2:42

They breathed in, but then immediately something happened.  There were outward manifestations of what that breath of God did in them.  There is no transition here, no meeting or discussion, as soon as they breathed in, they breathed out.  

Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles.   Acts 2:43

The apostles did many signs and wonders, and it doesn’t say that everyone in the church was filled with awe, or that all those who knew them and were part of the fellowship were filled with awe, it said that everyone was filled with awe.  The followers of Jesus didn’t just gather together and enjoy the power and work of the Holy Spirit themselves; they went out and shared that power with others.   Gathered and sent.  In and out.  

Again, most churches do a good job breathing in.  We do a good job with worship, fellowship, teaching and prayer.  We love to gather, and we find comfort, peace, and encouragement in our relationship with one another, but we struggle to breathe out.  It’s not as easy to think of ourselves as being sent into the world because we think that is what someone else does.  We think being sent is for special people who are called to go overseas or work in specialized areas of ministry, but the reality is that the church, and remember we are the church, we are being sent into the world.  We are being sent by the Holy Spirit into our homes, our schools, our neighborhoods, and communities and places of work to share the good news about Jesus. We are to be gathered and sent. We are called to breathe in and out.  

We see this over and over again in the story.  Look at Acts 2:44.

All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need.  

They were gathered together, they had all things in common, but then it says, they gave to anyone who had need.  Not anyone in the church who had need, but ANYONE who had need.  Gathered together and sent into the world.  Breathe in and out.  

It goes on to say that they met in the Temple courts but then also out in people’s homes.  Acts 2:46-47

Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people.  

The church didn’t just meet in the public religious spaces like the Temple courts.  They didn’t just gather in the worship building, they also gathered in people’s homes.  They were the church in the community, in people’s homes, neighborhoods and the workplace.  They were the church in the world and because they were in the world, people noticed their faith and were interested in how they lived, and what they believed.  The church was out in the world touching the hearts and lives of the people in very powerful ways.  They enjoyed the favor of all the people.  Again, they didn’t enjoy the favor of some of the people, or the church people, but all the people, and we know some of these people were outside the church because the passage ends by saying, God added to their number daily those who were being saved.  

I find it interesting that when it says the Lord added to their number, it doesn’t tell us where that addition happened.  It doesn’t say they gathered in larger and larger numbers in the Temple courts until they had to hold two services or build a bigger building.  In fact, they were able to add people daily specifically because they didn’t see the church as just a public gathering of Jesus followers in a religious place.  Church was also what was going on in people's homes and out in the community.  

The church God created and the church God blesses is both gathered and sent.  Church doesn’t just happen when we gather together here, it also happens when we meet in people's homes and connect with others in the community to share our faith in Jesus.  The healthiest and most effective churches are those that understand we are to be both gathered AND sent.  

No church can be healthy if they only focus on just one or the other.  If a church is just gathered and only breathes in, we might grow deep in our faith and have great fellowship with one another, but we will fail to share God’s love and the transforming message of Jesus with others.  We might grow deep but we will not grow wide, and we will fail in the one clear mission Jesus gave us, to make disciples of Jesus Christ in all nations and among all people.  

If the focus of the church is just on gathering together, we also become the church we saw a few weeks ago that was gathered around Jesus.  All the people were gathered in a home and so focused on Jesus that they didn’t see 4 friends who brought a paralyzed man to Jesus for healing.  A church that just gathers together fails to see the needs of others.  We also fail to see the lost and lonely and hurting people who need the love and power of Jesus.  

If we only breathe in, we fail to be the church God created us to be, but if we only breathe out, we might help and serve a lot of people, but we will fail to nurture them and teach them and help them grow into a fully mature follower of Jesus.  A church so focused on being sent into the world can go out and do really great things, but in time forget why we are going out in the first place. Just being sent into the world runs the risk of losing sight of Jesus.  To be the church God calls us to be, we need to be gathered and sent.  Once more breathe in…. And out. 

While many churches are good at breathing in, and some churches are good at breathing out, I believe Faith Church is striving to be a church that breathes in and out well.  As Pastor David shared last week, we focus on three relationships.  We breathe in as we focus on a relationship with God and the church, and we breathe out as we focus on a relationship with the world.  Gathered and sent.  Breathing in and out.  All three relationships are needed.  

Finding ways to interact with and bless the world, and being ready to share Jesus with others need to be rhythms of our life and faith.  Next week, Pastor David is going to share more about what it might mean for us to be sent out to be the church in our community in new ways.  What fresh expressions of the church can we create in our community so that people can come to know about Jesus?  We can’t just find ways to gather more people together, we have to find ways to be the church in the community and world.  

As we consider what it means to be both gathered and sent, I want to invite you to think about whether you see yourself as more of a “gathered” person or a “sent” person?  We each experience and express our faith in different ways, and God calls us in different directions.  Are you naturally a gathered person who loves the connections and relationships in the church?  Do you thrive on being in the world and get excited thinking of different ways and times and places we can share Jesus with others?  Knowing how God created us is important because that might be where God will use us most effectively.  

But I also want to encourage us all to lean into some growing edges that might challenge us.  If you need to breathe in more, if you need to get more connected in the life of the church, join a small group or ministry team.  Focus on what it means to be a part of the gathered community.  If you need to breathe out more, find a way to serve God in the community.  Invite your neighbors or coworkers over for dinner and get to know them.  Have your small group host a dinner for friends or serve together in the community.  Breathe in and out.  

We are at our best as a church when we learn that we were created to gather to be the church and to be sent out into the world to be the church.  Gathered and sent.  Breathe in and out.  

 

Next Steps

We are the church - Gathered and Sent

Read Acts 1:6-9, 2:1-4, and 2:42-47

Identify the times the church was gathered and sent.    

What do each of these situations teach us?  

Gathered

● How would you define the gathered church?

● Why is the gathered church so important?  

● What activities of the gathered church help you the most?

● Where might you need to grow in your relationship with the church?

● Why are most churches so focused on being gathered and not sent?

Sent

● How would you define the sent church?  Is it just the church serving the physical needs of others or is it something more?  

● Why is the sent church so important?

● When have you felt like part of the church sent out into the world?  What were you doing?  

● What impact did that sent church experience make in your life and in the lives of others?

● Where might you need to grow in your relationship with the world?  

Are you a more gathered person or sent person?  

How can you tap into what feels comfortable for you?

How can you push yourself to grow in new ways?