Jesus and Me ... and the Cats

Grief is the pits! If I known it was going to be this painful to lose my husband, I would have divorced him a long time ago.  (Just a joke -- a little widow's humor) I wish grief was something that could be healed, but the truth of the matter is that grief is a healing process that we must go through in order to adapt to the "new normal" we find ourselves in.  All change is grieved, even if it's for the good because we're leaving something behind for something new.  Some changes are more painful than others. The other day, after I had spent the morning crying, and announced to the universe, "Grief is the pits," I remembered the Old Testament Story of Joseph, you know the kid with the many-colored coat.  Now there was a guy who knew what life in the pits was all about. In a fit of sibling jealousy, Joseph's brothers threw him in a dried up well, a deep pit, and then faked his death.  After a long and probably frightening night, his brothers ha...

J ohn 20:19-31 One Maundy Thursday night, several years ago, two men were involved in a drunken brawl in an alley down the hill from the church where I was serving as a student pastor.  They were so intent on beating the crap out of each other, that they did not notice the group of men approaching them from the church until they heard one of the men shouted at the two brawlers.  Imagine their surprise when the two of them looked up to see Jesus and his disciples.  Granted, the group was our drama team in costume for the Maundy Thursday drama they were performing in, but that's beside the point.  The last person they expected to see was Jesus.   The same was true for Christ's disciple tradition has dubbed, "Doubting Thomas."  Seeing is believing, but can believing also be seeing? It was either the most tasteless, cruel, and inappropriate joke, ever, or his fellow disciples were suffering from a mass hallucination induced by their grief.  Ei...

After this, when Jesus knew that all was now finished, he said (in order to fulfill the scripture), “I am thirsty.”  A jar full of sour wine was standing there. So they put a sponge full of the wine on a branch of hyssop and held it to his mouth.    When Jesus had received the wine, he said, “It is finished.” Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.                                                             John 19:28-30 Have you noticed that very few people collect Dixie cups?  You won't find them in antique shops or displayed with pride along side great-grandmother's cut crystal ware.  They are disposable objects that once used, have no significance for us.  Yet, when they become part of a child's night time routine along with bed-time stories and being tucked in, that last drink of water serv...

John 11:17-37 (Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead) Matthew 27:46    "... My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Lament: to bring our suffering, our grief and our pain to God. As in “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me. (Matthew 27:46) Or Mary and Martha’s reaction to Jesus’ arrival after the fact of their brothers death. “ Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” (John 11:17, 32) And, “Where were you, God? I prayed every day to you asking you to protect my husband and keep him safe, and now he’s dead!” My God, my God, why have you forsaken us? Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted (Isaiah 53:4-6 , New King James Version) You see, on the cross, Jesus not only took on all our hate, all our selfishness and every willful act of wrong doing ever committed and will be committed by humanity, he also bore upon h...

Jeremiah 1:4-10 I think I usually have a pretty realistic idea of what I can and can’t do. For example, I know that with practice, I can make a basket, but I know I have neither the height nor the athletic talent to slam dunk a basket ball. Sometimes, however, my perception of what I can and can’t do may not be based in reality and God’s truth but rather in negative self talk, which can turn into self-condemnation, leading to self-sabotage. It’s the end of a long day. I’m finally able to sit down and have a few minutes to myself. The house is quiet, but my mind is not at peace. The voices begin to speak. “You really blew that one today! What kind of Christian are you? Look at all this clutter? You’re such a poor housekeeper. Those pants are getting a bit tight – you’re so fat!” Has that ever happened to you? Such negative thoughts can often become what we believe is true of our selves and affects what we believe we can and can’t do. Liste...

1 Corinthians 13:1-13 To resolve conflict, it's important to get to the heart of the matter.  People are encouraged to actively listen to each other and understand where each person is coming from.  But if that's to be successful, we need to understand not only the heart of the matter, but what's in our hearts. Strife and conflict.  We see it in families, in the work place, at school, in the political arena and even in churches.  It's nothing new.  As long as there have been human beings, there have been disagreements, feuds, broken relationships and war.  We even find it in the pages of the Bible. In his letters to the Corinthians, Paul is writing to the Body of Christ in conflict.  These early gentile Christians were struggling with how to live a new life as followers of Jesus.  Arguments and conflict abounded.  In the thirteenth chapter of Corinthians, Paul told them that it's not about who's right and who's wrong.  What mattere...

"...  and let us consider [thoughtfully] how we may encourage one another to love and to do good deeds...  " --  Hebrews 10:24  ( Amplified Bible) "Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing."  -- I Thessalonians 5:11 (NRSV)       To encourage means to:   give support, confidence, or hope to someone; give support and advice to someone to help them do or continue to do something; thelp stiulate development.  Encourage and building each other up go hand in hand.  Here are some ways we can encourage and build each other up which will in turn help us become healthy, thriving churches. 1.  Have high regards, great respect and favorable thoughts for each other. 2.  Be thoughtful and intentional when you speak.  Consider where someone is coming from and choose wisely your words. 3.  Be gracious.  When someone makes a mistake, be quick to forgive...

Colossians 3:12-27 For ten years, fashion consultants, Stacy London and Clinton Kelly, helped people change their lives by changing what they wore on the TLC program, “What Not to Wear.” The participants were required to bring in their clothing which the hosts of the show went through and threw out all the items of clothing that didn’t belong in their new wardrobe. Galatians 3:27 tells us that when we are baptized we put on Christ. So, the question today is, what belongs in our spiritual wardrobe and what doesn’t? MESSAGE If you went to your closet and picked out an outfit that describes who you are today, what would it be? Maybe like me, you’ve got clothing that you’ve kept too long. Maybe it doesn’t fit anymore. Perhaps you look at it and wonder, “Why did I ever buy that” or maybe you’ve held on to it for sentimental reasons or are hoping it will come back into style. Stacy and Clinton and many others would advice us to get rid of t...

Luke 3:15-1, 21-22 But now thus says the  Lord , he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.   (Isaiah 43:1) Remember your baptism and be thankful. The people of Israel had been watching and waiting for generation upon generation. When John the Baptist came preaching repentance, they watched and “questioned in their hearts” if John was the Messiah, the Savior promised by God that they had been waiting for, longing for. Our hearts long for many things:       The captive dreams of freedom,  and the broken-hearted long for comfort, The person afflicted by illness yearns for health and wholeness and those who mourn grieve for those they have lost. The stranger and the out cast hunger for community and acceptance, and the wandering soul seeks meaning and purpose. The things of this world cannot supply the unconditiona...