Jesus and Me ... and the Cats

1 Peter 1:17-23 John 17:14-19 Potatoes, eggs or coffee beans? Which are Christians called to be? We're going to find out as we explore what it means to be “in the world but not of the world” in today's message, “Christians and Coffee Beans.” Put three pots of water on to boil. When the water begins to boil, put some potatoes in one, eggs in another pot, and coffee beans in the third point. Boil for 20 minutes The potatoes went into the pot hard. After boiling in the hot water, they are now soft, easily broken up and mashed. The eggs, with their fragile shells and soft centers, are also changed. They are now hard-boiled. The coffee beans are different. While they look the same as they did when they were put into the water, they have transformed the water. The water has taken on the smell, taste and color of the coffee Jesus was not of this world, yet he came into the world to redeem the world by his death and resurrection an...

1 Peter 1:3-9 Jack Williams has a song called, "Laughing in the Face of the Blues."  I like it.  It's upbeat and really is about focusing on how fortunate we are rather than on "the blues."   I think that's a great attitude of gratitude, but what about the times when it seems impossible to laugh in the face of the blues? In 1 Peter 1:3-9, Peter is writing to encourage a mixed community of gentile and Jewish Christians He reminds them of the imperishable gift of eternal life they have received through Jesus Christ. They badly need this encouragement.  Because of their faith, they are being openly rejected by their families their friends and their community.  In 1 Peter 2:11, Peter goes as far as to call them aliens and exiles. There are many trials and troubles that test our faith and make us feel like we have been exiled to a desolate place where we find ourselves in the deep, deep, deepest of blues. Death and all the lesser losses over wh...

John 20:1-18 Happy Easter!  Wait, that doesn't feel right, like "happy" doesn't even come close to the victory and joy of the meaning of Easter.  Maybe something more like, "Ya-hoooo!  Hallelujah, hosanna, joy, joy, joy Easter!"  Better.  After all, Easter is more than just "happy," and way more than just jelly beans. Speaking of jelly beans ...  In anticipation of Easter, four year-old Elena asked her mother, "Mommy, will the Easter bunny bring me purple jelly beans?" "I'm sure he will bring you jelly beans, Elena, but remember, Easter isn't about the bunny.  It's about Jesus," answered her mother. "But, Mommy, will they be purple?" "Yes, honey, I am sure there will be some purple ones in there.  Honey, the important thing about Easter isn't the bunny or purple jelly beans.  Easter is about how much Jesus loves you and me and the whole world." "Mommy, HOW MANY purpl...

Philippians 2:5-11 Luke 19:28-49 This was not the dinner salad I expected!  At home, a dinner salad was pieces of lettuce with chopped green pepper and an occasional slice of tomato covered with french dressing.  What the waiter brought to me was a huge wedge of lettuce served on a plate.  Ugh!  I refused to eat it. This story took place when I was about ten.  Today, I quite enjoy a wedge salad from time to time. Sometimes, good things are missed because we can't surrender our expectations in the face of the unexpected. In the movie, Radio Days, young Joe's favorite radio program was "The Masked Avenger."  In his mind's eye, the Masked Avenger looked like a cross between Super Man and Clark Gable.  The truth was that the actor who played the character was short and balding.  Had Joe met him on the street, Joe would have never guessed this was the voice of his hero. Perhaps, that's why there were people in Israel at the time tha...