Move Forward

Memorial Day is always a great weekend because it is the unofficial start of summer.  As a kid it was from here that we could really begin to count down the days until school was over.  We also got to cook out hamburgers and hotdogs and it was a day off of school.  While all of this is still great stuff, we always need to remember that Memorial Day needs to be a day to remember those who sacrificed for and served our nation.  It is a day to remember people like Lewis Smith and others who made the greatest sacrifice and died while serving our nation and the cause of freedom and justice around the world.

Memorial Day is also a day when we say thank you to those who have served and are still serving in our military.  So to those families who lost loved ones, to those who have served and to those we are still serving, we again say thank you.  With the dangers who see around the world, we know that military service is risky and a hardship for many families so the least we can do as a community is make sure we take every opportunity to say thank you for the service and witness that you and your families provide.

But within this holiday there needs to be something more.  We need to look at those who have served and sacrificed and learn how to make the witness of their lives – the foundation of our lives.  In addition to saying thank you, we need to take some time to readjust our lives so that service and sacrifice can be part of how we live.  After we honor and remember the lives of those who have gone before us we need to learn how to make their values and commitments the guiding force of our lives.  Memorial Day is a day to stop and look back to remember but it also needs to be a day to move forward and make the witness of what we have seen in the past part of what our lives will look like in the future.

The disciples were faced with a similar moment when several weeks after the resurrection of Jesus they stood on a hillside with him.  Luke 24:45-53.  This is the story of Jesus’ ascension into heaven.

The disciples are standing there in a moment of stunned silence and reflection looking up into heaven.  Perhaps they are giving thanks for all Jesus had done for them.  Maybe they were remembering the love and power that guided his life and through him = their lives, but it was not just a Memorial Day for the disciples, it was not just a day to reflect and remember, it was also a day to set a new course and live a new life.  It was a day to move forward.

In Acts 1, we hear that after Jesus ascended into heaven the disciples were standing around looking up and looking back.  They were looking up into heave and they were looking back to history.  They asked Jesus when he was going to restore the kingdom of Israel.  They were looking for a return of the good old days instead of looking forward to the new kingdom of God.  As they were looking up and back, two messengers suddenly appeared and asked them, why are you looking up into sky?  Jesus will return the same way he left.  If Jesus was going to return, then the question the disciples needed to wrestle with was how they were going to live until that day came.

• What will be the vision that guides them?
• What will be the values that shape them?
• What will be the power that moves them forward?

It might be interesting to ask these questions in light of Memorial Day.  Can the vision that guides us as a community and nation be one of service and sacrifice where we are willing to serve a cause greater than ourselves?  Can the values that shape us be the values of our military?  Do you know the core values the army?


Loyalty – Duty – Respect – Service – Honor – Integrity – Courage

These are great values that should shape our thoughts, words and actions.  In fact, if there was just one value here that I would love to see reinstated into our culture today it would be respect.  Respect for authority, leaders, parents, elders but also just a simple respect for one another as children of God and brothers and sisters.  If we could recapture this value as a community, nation and world then honor, courage, service and loyalty may return as well.

And as we reflect on Memorial Day, what will be the power that moves us forward?  The power that moved men and women throughout our history to sacrifice and serve was a love for country, freedom and justice.  It was the love for family and community that moved people to do more and be more than they ever thought possible.

Now what if we ask ourselves these questions in light of the ascension?

• What will be the vision that guides you?
• What will be the values that shape you?
• What will be the power that moves you forward?

The vision that was going to guide the disciples and the church was the vision of Jesus.  This vision was not just a looking back to the Jesus of history it was a vision of what it was going to mean to be the presence of Jesus in the world moving forward.  Today, when people look at us they need to see Jesus.  When they listen to us they need to hear Jesus and through us they need to experience the love and grace and power of Jesus.  Now let’s be clear, our witness to the world will be filled with pitfalls and problems.  We won’t say things the right way or at the right time, our efforts to help may be flawed and we may fall flat on our face at times, but if we are genuinely striving to be the presence of Jesus in the world – people will see Jesus in us

Look at Luke 24:46-48.  Jesus said, you are witnesses of these things.  The disciples actually did see these things but this also means they need to bear witness to them as well.  The disciples needed to move forward and share with others who Jesus was and they needed to be the presence of Jesus in the world.  The ascension tells us that we need to tell people about Jesus but more importantly, we need to be the presence of Jesus.  People need to witness Jesus in us.  This needs to be the vision that guides us.


Jesus also makes clear that one of the values that need to shape our lives is humility and grace.  Jesus said, repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached to all nations.  This means that we need to first seek repentance and forgiveness in our own lives which means humbling ourselves before God and confessing that we don’t always get it right and that, in fact, many times we get it wrong.  Humbling ourselves before God – repenting of our sins –shapes us and makes us more patient and gracious and forgiving toward others.  When we humble ourselves, God then fills us with his grace which helps us then offer God’s grace to others.

It is never enough for us to come and be forgiven – this grace needs to be preached to all nations – but we can’t preach it unless we are living it.  Have we received God’s grace and are we forgiving those who have sinned against us?  Are we forgiving those who have hurt us or intentionally or unintentionally?  Once grace shapes our lives and we are extending that grace and forgiveness to others we can then talk about.  If we aren’t forgiving others and if the value of grace is not evident in our lives then we can forget about preaching it.  It is our witness that speaks most powerfully.  The value of grace and mercy needs to shape our thoughts and actions and give light to our words as we move forward.

And then there’s the power – what is the power that moves us forward?  What is the power that motivates us and equips us and enables us to live far beyond what we thought was possible?  This power is not something we stir up in ourselves.  It is not emotion or sentimentality, it is the power of the Holy Spirit that God alone gives.  Jesus said, I am going to send you what my Father has promised: but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.  What Jesus is talking about here is the power of the Holy Spirit and once that power came upon the disciples they started moving forward to be the presence of Jesus in the world, to bear witness to all Jesus said and did and to offer the grace and love of God to all people.  They disciples did move forward and were effective because they moved forward in the power of God.

God still makes the power of His Holy Spirit available to us each and every day.  What moves us forward in life with strength and passion and conviction to live with and for God is the power of God’s spirit and the power of God’s spirit is working within us.  It is the power of God’s spirit that moved us to give generously and sacrificially to help our brothers and sisters in Sierra Leone.  It was the movement of God’s spirit that stirred up so many people to not just give, but to give in ways they have never given before.  The spirit that moved us didn’t come from within – it came from God and as God moves in us and among us we need to keep asking God to move us forward.  God is doing something among us that doesn’t end with money given to Sierra Leone – it continues as we give more of ourselves to God.

God is not done with us yet – this is just the beginning and I am not talking about money for an offering, I am talking about God’s spirit moving among us to be the witness of Jesus in our families, community and world.  God’s spirit will shape us so that our lives will reflect more of  the love, grace and power of God.  Like the disciples standing on the hillside after the resurrection, I stand here today knowing that God is calling us to move forward with the power that He is sending so that we can be the fullness of Jesus in our world.  Can we, will we move forward?



Next Steps
Move Forward

Memorial Day
1. Take some time on Monday (and through this week) to reflect on the sacrificial giving of our men and women in the military.  Thank God for their witness and service and reach out to an active duty soldier, military family or veteran and say “THANK YOU.”

2. The Core Values of the U.S. Army are:
Loyalty – Duty – Respect – Service – Honor – Integrity – Courage
Choose one of these values to focus on this week and use it to shape your (and your families) thoughts, words and actions.


The Ascension of Jesus
1. Read about the Ascension of Jesus in Luke 24:45-53 and Acts 1:1-11.

2. The vision of the risen and glorified Jesus now led the disciples into the future – what is the vision of your life?
How can Jesus become the vision of your life and the vision of what people see in your life?

3. The message of repentance was what Jesus said would be preached until he returns.  In what areas of your life is repentance needed?  How can you offer forgiveness and grace to those in your life?

4. The disciples were told to wait for the power of the Holy Spirit to come and lead them into the future.  Where do you feel the power of God’s Holy Spirit moving in you?  In what ways is the Holy Spirit leading you forward?  Take time this week to listen for God’s direction for your life and then ask for the power to move forward.

Now What? - FOLLOW

The gospel of John provides three stories that all come after the resurrection of Jesus and in their own way these stories help answer the question – Now What?  What does the resurrection mean for our lives?  Thomas tells us that the first thing we need is to have faith in the risen Jesus.  Thomas wasn’t there when Jesus first appeared to his disciples but a week later he is able to see Jesus and it is Thomas who shows us what real  FAITH looks like.  Real faith loves God so completely that we are willing to take risks and even lay down our lives for Jesus and the work of Christ in the world.  Real faith is always wanting to learn more about God and real faith let’s go of sin and doubt so that we can believe in Jesus fully and experience the life God has for us.

Last week we learned from the disciples going back to FISH that the risen Jesus calls us back to the C.O.R.E. of our faith which is to Confess our insufficiency and acknowledge how much we need God, Obey what we already know of God, Run to Jesus and Eat at the table God has set for us or take advantage of all the resources God gives to strengthen our faith.

Today John finishes the story by telling us we need to FOLLOW the Risen Jesus.  John 21:15
-19.  John ends his story with a call for Peter to follow him and in some way this is a call for all of us to follow Jesus.  But John doesn’t just tell us to follow Jesus he teaches us what it means to follow.

There are two important things to learn about following Jesus from this story of Peter and Jesus walking along the Sea of Galilee.  First, we see here that Peter is being forgiven.  When Jesus asks Peter 3 times, do you love me, Jesus is giving Peter 3 opportunities to seek forgiveness.  If we go back to the night Jesus was arrested, Peter denied that he even knew Jesus 3 times.  3 times Peter had failed to love Jesus and so here Jesus is giving Peter 3 opportunities to reaffirm his love.  Peter needs this to make amends and set things right in his own heart and live.  This time with Jesus gave Peter a chance to say, Lord you know that I love you, and it shows Peter that he is truly loved and forgiven by Jesus.

This experience of forgiveness is something we all need if we are going to follow Jesus.  Following Jesus doesn’t just mean that we affirm his teaching and try to faithfully live it out in our lives.  It doesn’t mean we follow the 10 commandments or live out the greatest commandment which is to love God and to love others.  Following Jesus means loving Jesus and part of loving Jesus means asking him to forgive us when we fail and when we turn away.  We all fail and so we all need to be forgiven.

I grew up in the church and I knew some things about God and who Jesus was and I honestly thought I was a pretty good person, but it was in college that I finally began to realize the depth of my own sin and failures.  I had to confess that I was not living in a good relationship with God and I needed God’s forgiveness.  I had to own up to my mistakes, confess my sin and begin to come to the place in my own life and heart where I was willing to put God first and really love God.  The question that Jesus asked Peter is asked of all of us.  Do we love God?  Do we love Jesus?  How would we truthfully answer that today?  Do we love God more than anyone else?  Do we love God more than ourselves?  Are we expressing that love to God in new and fresh ways every day?

So this story shows us that there is forgiveness that God offers and when we accept that – God’s love brings hope and new life, but this is just the beginning.  Once Peter has expressed his love to Jesus and been forgiven, Jesus says, feed my lambs.  Stepping into the forgiveness and love of God opened a door for Peter, a new life he was called to live.  Feeding others is now part of what it means for Peter to follow Jesus and while physically feeding those who are hungry is important, Jesus is not talking here about supplying people bread and fish, Jesus is talking about extending to people God’s love and grace.  Tending the sheep is a lifestyle marked by leading and guiding others to God so they can find for themselves the power of God’s grace and love.


By calling Peter to feed the lambs and tend the sheep, Jesus is saying that all who follow him are now the shepherds.  We are not the good shepherd, that is Jesus, but as followers of Jesus we are called to be shepherds.  The shepherd has many jobs and one of them is to seek and save the lost sheep.  When sheep wader away, the shepherded is the one who goes and looks for them and guides them back to the safety of green pastures. Part of what it means for us to follow Jesus is going out and seek and save the lost sheep.  We do this by going to those who are hurting, lost and alone and bringing them back to God.  We lift them on our shoulders; we carry them back to God so they can be forgiven, healed, restored and loved.  We bring people to God so they can find life.

This is not a new call for Peter, it is the reaffirmation of his original call.  3 years earlier, along the same shores of Galilee, Jesus called Peter to follow him.  Then Jesus told Peter to drop his nets and become a fisher of men and women.  Jesus was calling Peter to a life where he would bring people into a relationship with the living God.

For Peter, following Jesus was never just about his own personal life, it always included the lives of others.  Jesus came here to call people to follow God so anyone who follows Jesus has to be part of that same mission and purpose.  Peter was to call people to follow Jesus and here Jesus reaffirms that call.  An invitation to feed and tend the people of God means bringing people who are far from the good shepherd close to him.

To follow Jesus means that we also need to help others come close to the good shepherd, Jesus Christ.  Living out our faith is not just something we do personally and privately, it is a life and a lifestyle that invites others to come to God as well.  Jesus spent his life calling people to himself and through him to experience the fullness of God.  Jesus invited people to walk with him and experience God’s love that could change their lives.  If we are going to follow Jesus or if we are going to be a disciple then our lives have to do the same thing.  We may not be teachers and preachers and miracle workers, but our lives need to be an invitation for people to come closer to God.  Jesus was a disciple maker and so if we are going to follow Jesus we cannot just be a disciple we must also be a disciple maker.  We have to be a fisher of men and women and a shepherd of all God’s sheep.

Through the years we have made our faith such a private and personal thing that we have lost a vision of what it means for us to invite others to come to Jesus.  The old saying was that we were not to talk about religion or politics and while politics is wide open for people to share publically and passionately today, we are still  reluctant to do this with religion.  We are told to keep our faith to ourselves.  We hear about people being persecuted more and more for making their faith public whether in school or at work and we are really criticized when we encourage or invite others to check it what we believe and who we trust.

Students from elementary school through college are questioned for reading their bibles before or after classes.  We have grown leery of asking people if we can pray for them at because it might be considered a micro aggression and contribute to a hostile workplace.  We are afraid to let people know that we follow Jesus but can we be a follower of Jesus if we aren’t willing to invite others to follow him?

In many ways, this scene of Jesus and Peter walking along the shore begins to answer the question the disciples have been asking.  What Peter and the disciples are to now do is go forth and continue the work of Jesus.  They are to be the fishermen gathering people to God.  They are to be the shepherds leading people to the good shepherd and caring for the sheep.  They are to feed God’s people by giving them all that they need for a life of faith and they are to tend to the flock – the church, the people of God.

Their mission is also our mission.  The resurrection of Jesus means the same thing for us today as it did for the disciples 2000+ years ago.  We are to follow Jesus and that means being a fisher of men and women and it means being a shepherd of God’s people.  Following Jesus means we strive to a live a life that looks more and more like the life of Jesus and a life that invites the lost and alone, the broken and sinful to come and experience the grace, forgiveness and love of God.  So…  Now What?  Follow Jesus!

 
Next Steps
NOW WHAT? ~ FOLLOW

1.  Reread the three post-resurrection stories in John.
• John 20:24-29 – Thomas and FAITH
• John 21:1-14 – The Disciples and FISH
• John 21:15-19 – Peter and FOLLOW


2.  By asking Peter three times if he loved Him, Jesus was offering Peter forgiveness for his earlier failures.  What failures need to be forgiven in your life?


3.  If you were walking with Jesus along the beach and he asked you, “do you love me”, how might you respond?  In a sentence or two, write out your response to Jesus.


4.  How can you express your love to Jesus this week?


5.  Following Jesus means feeding God’s sheep and taking care of God’s lambs.  In what way is God calling you to fed and care for God’s people?  


6.  How is offering God’s love and grace to others part of this care and feeding?


7.  How can you make inviting people to experience God’s grace and love for themselves a regular part of your life?  How can sharing Jesus with others become a natural part of your life, faith and family?

8.  Take time to pray using the 7x7 prayer campaign.


7x7 Prayer Guide
As part of the 66th Annual National Day of Prayer, held this past week, we are inviting you to participate in this 7x7 personal prayer campaign.  We encourage you to pray for 7 centers of influence daily for 7 days. Simply set aside time in your car, during your coffee break, before bedtime, in you small study group, or whenever may work for you to PRAY.

Daniel 9:19 says, “HEAR US…FORGIVE US…HEAL US FOR THE GLORY OF YOUR GREAT NAME”.   We will see positive change by:

Praying for Families
Praying for the Military
Praying for the Government
Praying for Educators
Praying for the Media
Praying for Businesses
Praying for Churches
(Pray for Christian believers around the world,
the United Methodist Church and Faith Church)

As you pray, consider these words written by Dorothy Norwood and Alvin Darling in the song, “Somebody Prayed for Me.”

Somebody prayed for me,
Had me on their mind,
They took the time and prayed for me.
(Oh Yes they did, I’m so glad)
I’m so glad they prayed.

If you would like to be part of the Faith Church Prayer Chain,
please contact Darla Snyder at wegoustay@aol.com.

Now What? FISH

There is a question all of us ask in life that needs to be answered.  We ask it when we are at a crossroads like graduation or a wedding or maybe the birth of a child.  We ask it during times of tragedy like the loss of a job or the loss of a relationship or the loss of someone we love.  We also ask this when we are feeling dissatisfied in life like or when we are searching for something more and new and fresh that will bring joy or meaning or energy to our lives.  It’s a simple question but a profound one because it is the question that often leads us in a new direction – that question?  Now What?

This is the question the disciples asked themselves daily after Jesus rose from the dead.  What did the resurrection mean for their live?  What did it mean for their world?  What were the disciples supposed to do now that Jesus was alive but not leading them the way he had for the past three years?  I’ve been struck recently that while Jesus was alive, he was not with the disciples like he was before and he was not leading them the same way.  Jesus was no longer walking with the disciples – literally.  Sometimes Jesus was with them, but most of the time he was not.  Jesus was not publically teaching and preaching and he was not leading his friends the way he had in the past.  Some of the confusion or uncertainty the disciples faced during this time is found in the story we are going to look at today from the end of John’s gospel.  John 21:1-14.

Some background here… Jesus was crucified, rose from the dead and first appeared to his disciples in Jerusalem but here we find at least 7 of the disciples back in Galilee.  Galilee was 70 miles from Jerusalem and without any means of transportation besides their 2 feet; it would have taken them 6 days to get there.  So it was a big decision to return to what was home for the disciples.  The question is, why did the go there?  And why did they go back to fishing?  In Matthew and Mark’s gospel we hear that told his disciples that he would meet them again in Galilee so maybe after seeing Jesus in the upper room in Jerusalem they felt like they needed to go back home to see him again.  Maybe they just didn’t know what else to do.  Why they went back to fishing, we don’t know.

They may have needed the food or the money, or it could be that they just didn’t know what else to do so they returned to what they knew best.  The death and resurrection of Jesus literally rocked their world and so during this time of uncertainty when they didn’t know what their future held, maybe the disciples just went back to what was known and comfortable for them - fishing.  But what happened to them while they fished tells us what we need to do whenever we get to a place where we are asking God, Now What?

The first thing we see here is that on their own, the disciples are pretty helpless.  They went back to fishing but they hadn’t been able to catch anything.  On their own they weren’t getting anywhere.  On their own they were coming up empty.  Does that sound familiar?  How many times do we struggle to do things our way only to find we are getting nowhere?  We rely on our own wisdom or strength and come up empty?  When we are looking for direction or needing strength to make it to the next day or looking for healing, hope and new beginnings, the first thing we need to do is admit that we can not make it on our own.  We need to confess our own insufficiency and weakness so that we can begin learn to lean into and trust God.  God wants to be our strength but He never can be as long as we trusting in ourselves.

The apostle Paul was a man who throughout his early life trusted in his own strength and ability.  He trusted in his family history that gave him power and position.  He trusted his own education that had gotten him far in life, but now, all that he once trusted, is coming up empty and it is from this place of emptiness that Paul hears God say, My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.  God’s power can not enter our lives as long as we are trusting in our own power to see us through.  God’s wisdom can not lead us as long as we trusting in our own knowledge and insight to give us direction.  God’s presence can not lead us as long we are trusting in our own ability to make our way in life.  Paul said he would boast and delight in his weaknesses because when we are weak – God is then able to be strong in us.

It is when we can boast in our weakness or at least acknowledge how much we lack on our own that we are then able to turn to God and begin to find God’s strength and power and grace to help us move forward.  When the disciples could no longer find fish on their own – Jesus showed up and told them to fish off the other side of the boat and when they did they got everything they needed – and more.  But the disciples only got more because they were willing to follow what Jesus told them.  They only got a huge catch of fish because they listened to Jesus and did what he asked them to do.

Now let’s be clear, this miraculous catch of fish did not answer all the disciples’ questions, it wasn’t meant to.  The fish were to open their eyes so they could see the one who does have all the answers.  They didn’t know what more Jesus would be asking them to do, but they were faithful in that one step and that opened the door for more.  What this means for us is that we need to follow God one step at a time.  If we are searching for anything in life, the answers don’t usually come down from heaven in a manual with all the steps laid out, it usually comes from being willing to take one step at a time.

Look at Philippians 3:12-16.  Let us live up to what we have already attained.  Let us obey what we already know of God because when we do that – God will lead us forward.   Abraham was one of the first people called by God so in many ways he is the prototype for all of us who want to follow God and what God told Abraham was to leave his home and go to the land that I will show you.  Abraham didn’t know where that land was so all he could do was leave his home and trust that God would lead him to a new home.  In many ways the disciples are learning that they too are going to have to trust Jesus to lead them one step at a time into a new life and that only happens if we will listen and obey.

Several years ago I went hiking in Acadia National Park and the top of many of the mountains there it is all exposed rock and so the trail is marked with cairns.  If it is clear out, you can see all the cairns and your destination, but I when I got to the top there was a dense fog.  All I could do was make my way to the next cairn and then look for the next one.  When we are uncertain about our future and asking now what?, we need to stop and say, how can I be faithful and obey God today?  What do I know of God that I can follow today so God can lead me into tomorrow?  Trusting and obeying God today will lead us into the future and obedience really is the key.  We don’t have to have all the answers, we just need to obey one step at a time.

Once the disciples obey Jesus and throw their nets over the other side of the boat, they haul in a catch of fish so large that it starts to sink the boat.  As soon as this happens, Peter is convinced that it is Jesus on the shore because it was Jesus who provided a catch of fish just like this years earlier.  When Peter knows it is Jesus it says he jumps in the water and quickly makes his way to Jesus.  Peter is eager for fellowship.  Peter runs to be in the presence of Jesus and this is a powerful picture of what we need to do when we are uncertain and confused and looking for God’s direction in our lives.  We need to run to Jesus.  We need to let nothing stand in our way of being in the presence of Jesus.

We live in a culture where everything tries to keep us from the presence of Jesus.  We are distracted by 24/7 news, sports and entertainment which can be tailored to meet our specific tastes and interests.  This means there is always something somewhere that we can watch or listen to and if all else fails, we can turn to social media and see what things other people are doing.  With all this distraction and with jobs and demands that hound us all through the day and night, being in the presence of God takes some intentionality and work.  This is why worship is so important in our lives and why we seek to make it a priority.  Worship together as the church is at least one time a week where we can intentionally put ourselves in the presence of God and set aside some of life’s distractions.  Worship is important not because I am going to say something profound that will answer all of life’s questions, it is important because it is here that we might experience the God who can provide direction and give us all answers and all his love and power.

More importantly, it is in the presence of God that we are given courage and confidence to take that next step of faith and it is in the presence of God that we can receive the love and grace that can bring healing or hope or the assurance that we are loved by God and those are things that can take us to the next step in life.

Being in the presence of God is not just someplace we go once a week, however, it needs to be a place we run to every day.  Listen to how David talked about this during his life.

I run to you, GOD; I run for dear life.
You’re my cave to hide in, my cliff to climb.
Be my safe leader, be my true mountain guide.
Free me from hidden traps; I want to hide in you.
I’ve put my life in your hands.
You won’t drop me,  you’ll never let me down.
I hate all this silly religion,  but you, GOD, I trust.
I’m leaping and singing in the circle of your love;
you saw my pain,  you disarmed my tormentors,
You didn’t leave me in their clutches but gave me room to breathe.

Be kind to me, GOD— I’m in deep, deep trouble again.
I’ve cried my eyes out; I feel hollow inside.
My life leaks away, groan by groan; my years fade out in sighs.
My troubles have worn me out, turned my bones to powder.
Desperate, I throw myself on you: you are my God!
Hour by hour I place my days in your hand, 
Safe from the hands out to get me.
Warm me, your servant, with a smile; 
Save me because you love me.
What a stack of blessing you have piled up for those who worship you, ready and waiting for all who run to you
(From Psalm 31 – The Message)

Something happens when we run to God, God welcomes us and God feeds us.  When Peter and the disciples finally get to shore, Jesus feeds them.  Jesus provides for them and cares for them.
We talk a lot about ministering to others and yesterday we were out serving and that kind of love in action is vital to our faith, but before we can do that consistently with our lives we need to first allow God to feed us.  Before Jesus sent the disciples out into the world – he fed them.  Before we can go and do anything and before we can fully live into the future God has for us we need to allow God to feed us and we need figure out how to consistently eat at God’s table.  This is so important because if we do not learn how to do this, we will eventually be running on empty.  What was the first thing we talked about today?  On our own we are nothing.  We are ineffective until we can learn how to be nourished by God.  

One of the greatest truths we need to learn in life comes from a very unlikely and today somewhat unpopular place – the airlines.  During the safety instructions we are told that when the air masks drop from the ceiling we are to attach our own first and then help others.  It is important to make sure we are being fed and cared for a nurtured ourselves before we can live a life of helping others.  We need to learn how to eat first before we can feed others.  This isn’t being selfish, it is the reality of life.  We need to make sure we are getting all we can from Jesus so that we can effectively love and care for others.  While times of worship, prayer and the study of God’s word can fed us, we are also fed through times of fellowship.  When we come together to talk and eat and serve and eat, we are encouraged and spiritually and emotionally fed by God  This is when we know that we are loved and cared for which then helps us go out to love and care for others.  Fellowship feeds us and if there is food involved –even better.

There are times we all get to that place in life or in faith when we stop and ask ourselves, Now What?  While those can be frustrating and confusing moments, God shows us how to make it through and find what we need.  This needs to be the core of our faith:
• Confess our weakness
• Obey what we already know
• Run to be in the presence of God
• Eat all we can of what God provides

If this can become the core of our lives and our life of faith – step by step God will lead us into the future that he has for us.


Next Steps
Now What? – FISH

1. Where have you seen your own strength, wisdom and ability fail and let you down?  Take time at the beginning of each day this week to acknowledge your own insufficiency.

Almighty God, too often I am trusting my own strength to get me through, my own wisdom to lead the way and my own ability to provide for my needs.  Forgive me.  Show me the futility of that thinking and teach me to live depending on you alone.  For it is in the powerful name of Jesus I pray.  AMEN

2.  Obey what you already know of God.  Every day, review and/or write out what these basic teachings of God tell us and commit to following them this week.
• 10 Commandments – Exodus 20
• Greatest Commandment – Mark 12:28-34
• Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (part 1) – Matthew 5
• Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (part 2) – Matthew 6
• Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (part 3) – Matthew 7
• Great Commission – Matthew 28:16-29
• Rejoice Always – Philippians 4:4-9

3.  Spend time in the presence of God every day this week.   Set aside intentional time to pray and worship God.  Commit to being in worship next week.  Make worship a priority for you and your family this summer.

4.  Allow God to feed you and love you.
• Read John 21 and identify all the ways Jesus showed his love to the disciples
• Acknowledge every day that God loves you.
• Read a psalm every day this week.
o Psalm 8, 18, 23, 27, 42, 46, 121

Now What? FAITH

Have you ever missed out on an event that everyone else got to see and be part of?  Maybe you weren’t able to be at a family wedding or you missed some big news event and so felt completely in the dark as everyone was talking.  Or maybe you took a day off work and that was the day the boss showed up and decided to take everyone out for lunch.  We’ve all missed out on something through the years and so we can understand a little of what Thomas must have been feeling the week after Jesus rose from the dead.  For whatever reason, Thomas was not with the rest of the disciples when Jesus appeared to them.  We don’t know where he was or what he was doing but can you image how Thomas felt when he got back together with his friends and they all start telling him that Jesus was alive and that he had stood right there with them.

How disappointed Thomas must have been.  How frustrated and upset he must have been with himself and maybe even Jesus for appearing when he was away.  Maybe it was that frustration and disappointment that made Thomas defensive so defensive that he said he wouldn’t believe it until he could see it with his own eyes, or maybe Thomas really was struggling to believe something that contradicted what he knew was true – which was that Jesus had died on the cross.  For centuries Thomas has gotten a bad rap because he struggled to believe something that all the rest of the disciples got to see and because of that people have called him doubting Thomas.  The truth is that Thomas has more to teach us about faith than doubt.

All that we know about Thomas comes from the gospel of John.  We hear Thomas speak three times in the gospel, which may not sound like much, but since we never hear many of the disciples speak, that we hear from Thomas three times is significant.  If we listen to what Thomas says, we find that he is really more of a man of faith than doubt and maybe we need to model our lives and faith on him.  

We first hear Thomas speak after Jesus’ friend Lazarus has died.  Lazarus was the brother of Mary and Martha and the three of them lived in Bethany and often opened their home to Jesus and the disciples.  Word came to Jesus that Lazarus had died and so Jesus said that they were going to return to Bethany in Judea to be with the family.  At this, the disciples raised a concern with Jesus; they reminded him that the last time he was in Judea, people tried to kill him.  Did Jesus really want to go back?  Jesus said he was going and it was Thomas who replied, Let us also go, that we may die with Jesus. John 11:16

What Thomas shows us is that real faith involves taking risks.  There is no doubt in Thomas’ mind about what will happen to them if they return to Bethany, they will die – but Thomas is willing to go.  He was willing to take that risk.  This is real faith.  Real faith is bold, courageous and risk taking.  Think of the people of faith we read about in the Old Testament – they all had to take risks.  Abraham had to leave his home to go to the place God would show him.  He had no idea where they were going; he just had to take a risk and go.  Moses had to step up and speak to Pharaoh and then lead God’s people out of Egypt and through the Red Sea.  All of this was dangerous and could have led to Moses being attacked or killed.  David had to be willing to face Goliath with a slingshot, some stones and his belief in God.  The prophets had to risk their lives and reputations to speak the truth to the people of God.

Real faith always involves some risk.  The only reason we know about Jesus today is because there have been people in every generation who were willing to take some risks to share the message of Jesus with others.  The disciples took risks to tell others about Jesus.  The early church took risks to spread the gospel through the Roman Empire.  People were thrown to the lions and burned at the stake because they refused to deny their faith in Christ and their risk-taking-witness helped others believe in Jesus.

Missionaries took risks to take the message of Jesus to places like India and China and today we have brothers and sisters taking great risks throughout the Middle East to simply proclaim that they believe in Jesus.  Their witness is helping others come to faith and retain their faith in the face of death and danger.

I also think of our own mothers and fathers in the faith.  In their own way they took risks so that the church could be established and so their children and grandchildren might come to believe in Jesus.  People right here in Bellefonte sacrificed and gave so that we could be here today.  They didn’t just give so there could be a building, I think more about the faithful ministry and service of so many people who have taken risks to keep the work of Jesus alive.  Men and women gave their time and energy and gifts to make sure Sunday school continued and children were cared for.  People gave their time to sing in worship, lead in Bible Studies and serve in the community.  Ministry and service take some risks and sacrifices and we are here today because of the risk taking faith of others.

Faith in Jesus calls for taking risks and for the kind of courage we see in Thomas who was willing to die with Jesus.  Thomas’ love for Jesus was so strong he was willing to lay down his life.  Thomas is not a study in doubt but an example of faith because real faith is risky.  Will we take risks in our own faith?  Will we take risks at work and let people know that we are a follower of Jesus?  When others are making fun of the church will we take a stand and speak up for what we believe?  Will we take a risk with our finances and order our financial lives the way God calls us to?  It is risky to tithe and give sacrificially to the work of God in the world, but think of all those who have done this.  Their faith has made a difference.

Will we take some risks and step out in mission and service?  Too often we don’t think that we have anything to offer, or that our work can make a difference so we sit back, but instead we need to take a risk and step out.  Sometimes we are afraid of looking foolish when we step out to help others because we may not feel like we have the skills or ability to help, but are we willing to risk looking foolish or failing and just go.  Thomas really thought they would die by going back to Judea – he thought they would fail - but he went anyway.  Sometimes we just need to step out and go anyway.

Maybe it seems risky to volunteer for Serving our Seniors because we aren’t sure what – if anything – we can do and we don’t know who we might be working with.  Faith is signing up anyway.  It may seem risky to volunteer to work with our children because we don’t feel like we have the gifts to help in the nursery or with VBS but faith is stepping out to help anyway.  We have made a commitment today to order our lives after the example of Christ so that a child and family (which means all children and all families) can see and hear and experience the presence of God.  This means we all have to do something – we all have to be willing to risk something.

When the disciples faced the resurrection of Jesus and the uncertainty that this new reality brought to their lies, they had to be willing to overcome their fear and take some bold and courageous steps forward.  I’m sure they asked themselves, Now what?  My guess is that in time it was Thomas who answered that question by saying, we need to have faith and we need to take some risks.  Faith requires us to take risks.  What risk is God asking you to take today?

Thomas also shows us that faith means digging deeper into who Jesus is and what Jesus is all about.  The second time we hear Thomas speak is at the Last Supper when Jesus told his disciples that he was getting ready to go to his father in heaven.  John 14:1-7.  Now the truth is that none of the disciples understood what Jesus was talking about, but it was Thomas who took a risk and asked a question.  Thomas wanted to understand more about Jesus and what he was doing and where he was going.  Thomas wanted to learn more and real faith always has a hunger and thirst for more of Jesus.

While we think that faith means having all the answers, real faith is being willing to ask all the questions.  Throughout Jesus’ life and ministry the disciples asked a lot of questions, but none of those can compare to what they wanted to ask after the resurrection.  How did you rise from the dead?  Why did you rise from the dead?  What does this mean for Jesus, for us and for the world?  Now what are we supposed to do?  Now what was Jesus going to do?  These are still questions we ask today and we may not get specific answers but as someone who has asked a lot of questions during his life of faith – let me tell you that the process of asking questions leads to a deeper faith and trust in God.

It is important to ask questions because asking questions not only leads to finding answers but it leads to a deeper relationship with the one we are asking.  One of the most wonderful things and one of the most exasperating things, about children is that phase where they ask constant questions.  Why is the grass green?  Why is the sky blue?  Why does the cow go moo?  I heard a parent tell me this week that their child asked them, why did Jesus have to die?  (Always a good question.)  And of course don’t we all love it when children simply ask why – over and over again.

When children ask all these questions, there is a real desire to learn more about the world around them, but I often wonder if what they really want is simply a deeper relationship with the one they are asking.  Do all these questions just show a desire on the part of children to know their parents more?  I asked my grandmother lots of questions about my grandfather and my family because I wanted to know more but I also just loved the time with my grandmother.  

So developing a strong faith doesn’t mean we shy away from questions but that we ask them and seek to know more about Jesus and to know Jesus more.  This is why worship, Sunday School, Bible Studies and personal devotions are so important because they not only teach us about God but they open up our hearts and minds so we will ask more questions and seek more of God and the more we seek God the more we find him.  Our faith can’t get complacent.  We can’t get to the place where we feel like we have learned all we need to know because when it comes to God we will never learn all there is to know.  

Thomas shows us that real faith takes risks and asks questions, but real faith is also willing to let go of uncertainty.  After Thomas sees the risen Jesus and the wounds in his hands and side, we hear him speak for the last time and he says to Jesus, My Lord and my God.
With these words, Thomas has let go of his uncertainty, his questions have found answers and his love of Jesus has grown to the place where Thomas alone in the gospels proclaims Jesus to be God.  In many ways this is the moment that John has been leading us to.  All through his gospel, John has been telling us that Jesus is God and of all people, it is Thomas who really doesn’t doubt but has the faith to say that Jesus is God.

Thomas has now become the model of what it means to have faith in the risen Jesus.  Real faith means that we love Jesus with all our heart, soul, mind and strength and that our love moves us to take big risks to follow him.  Real faith means always being willing to learn more about Jesus and ask the questions that not only lead us to a deeper understanding but into a deeper relationship with God.  It also means being willing to let go of our fear so that with confidence we can proclaim Jesus to be God and to trust him as our Lord.

After Jesus rose from the dead, one of the biggest questions the people faced was Now What?  what do we do with this news of Christ resurrection?  What does it mean for our lives and for our world?  Thomas teaches us that what is needed now is FAITH.  We need to take some risks, dig deeper into who Jesus is and let go of our doubts and fears so that we can trust that Jesus is Lord and God.   Thomas is not the one who shows us doubt but the one who teaches us about FAITH.

 
Next Steps
Now What?  FAITH

1.  What events have you missed out on that everyone else got to see, hear and experience?  How did missing out make you feel?

2 Read about Thomas in the gospel of John.  John 11:1-16, 14:1-7, 20:21-29

3. Real faith is willing to LOVE God and take risks.
• What risks have you been willing to take for your faith?
• What risk is God asking you to take?
o At work
o With your finances
o In mission and ministry (Sign up today to serve our seniors this coming Saturday)

4. Real faith is willing to LEARN more and ask questions.
• Join a Bible Study, small group or Sunday school class to ask questions about Jesus and to learn more.
• Commit to regular worship this summer to learn more about faith.  (This Summer we will be exploring the Apostle’s Creed)

5. Real faith is willing to LET GO of uncertainty and move forward.
• What is keeping you from taking risks?
o Move beyond these doubts and fears.
• What is keeping you from being part of a group that is committed to learning more about Jesus?
o Step out and join a group this summer?