Jesus and Me ... and the Cats

For Lent, our church is studying  Twenty-four Hours that Changed the World  by Adam Hamilton.  We continue with torture and humiliation of the Christ. Mark 15:15-23 I gave my back to those who struck me, and my cheeks to those who pulled out the beard; I did not hid my face from insult and spitting.       Isaiah 50:6 The biblical accounts of Jesus' torture and humiliation at the hands of the Roman soldiers leave me with a sense of helplessness. There stood Jesus -- his hands bound, his body a mass of bleeding wounds clothed only in a purple robe and a crown of thorns. He said nothing as he endured the physical and emotional torture inflicted upon him while soldiers mocked him and repeatedly struck him, Where is the power in this? Certainly we can see the power of evil in this story – Judas' betrayal; the fear that drove the actions of the disciples and the Sanhedrin; the self-serving pettiness of the religious leaders; the complacency o...

For Lent, our church is studying  Twenty-four Hours that Changed the World  by Adam Hamilton.  We continue with Jesus, Barabbas and Pilate. Mark 15:1-15 Go to this link to see a dramatization of the story, “Pushups for Donuts”, done by heeminhyman for a seminary class:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOyzY5QvgaI For the complete story, "Pushups for Donuts,"  go to http://www.commongroundchristiannews.com/july2006/pushups_for_donuts.htm There was a boy by the name of Steve who was   attending a high school in Utah where seminary classes were taught during the school day.   Kicked out of his sixth hour class, he ended up in one of those classes taught by Brother Christianson.  One day, Brother Christianson asked Steve to stay   after class so he could talk with him.  After class,   Brother Christianson said to him, "You   think you're pretty tough, don't you?" Steve's answer was, "Yeah, I do." Th...

For Lent, our church is studying  Twenty-four Hours that Changed the World  by Adam Hamilton.  We continue with Christ's condemnation by the Sanhedrin. Mark 14:53-72 The night following the Last Supper was supercharged with emotions – confusion, anger, disappointment and fear. Fear motivated so many of the actions of the people that night. Fear prompted Peter to carry a sword with him that night to the Garden of Gethsemane; fear guided his hand when he sliced off another man's ear. The disciples fled for their lives when they had a chance, and Peter denied Christ out of a sense of self-preservation. The members of the Sanhedrin, the religious ruling council, were also driven by fear. Jesus threatened them and their way of life. If Jesus led a successful uprising, would they lose their power and their status? Worse yet, if he only managed to anger the Romans, would they too end their lives on crosses? When they had Jesus beaten, they had hi...

The dried palm leaves are burned – a slow process that requires that they be lit, stirred and relit and stirred again and again until they have all been reduced to ash.  The smell of the smoke permeates one’s clothing and hair.  Is this the smell of repentance?  This practice is well over a thousand years old.  In these days when life and change are in hyper drive, it seems almost ancient, primitive in fact, but none the less, sacred.  In the burning of the leaves, watching the short bursts of flame and the pin points of dying embers among the ashes, there is a connection with God.  Perhaps like a burnt sin offering?  And so the palms of last year’s Palm Sunday become the ashes of this year’s Ash Wednesday. The solemnity and themes of confession and contrition of Ash Wednesday don’t hold the same attraction for us that the joyous celebration of Easter and chocolate bunnies do. “ From dust you came and to dust you shall return,” is a...

For Lent, our church is studying Twenty-four Hours that Changed the World  by Adam Hamilton.  We begin with the Lord's Supper.  We started early because this is the weekend we celebrate Holy Communion. Exodus 12:21-28 Mark 14:  22-25 One question summarizes the four questions asked during the Passover meal. Why is this night different from all other nights?    If that’s not an invitation to tell a story, I don’t know what is.   Stories are important.  Through stories, we learn about our family and who we are.  By telling stories, life lessons, values and a sense of community are passed along from one generation to the next. Stories have the power to bring different people from different cultures together. I remember one particular episode of Star Trek , the Next Generation , shere Captain Pecard is in a life and death situation with an alien whose race who communicated through references to his people’s epic leg...

Joshua 24:14-18 I Corinthians 3:10-11, 16-23 We probably make thousands of decisions everyday:  when to get up in the morning, what to have for lunch, which way to turn at a particular intersection.  Some are so minor that they seem to be inconsequential, although every decision does affect our lives in some way.  Other decisions are so major that they impact our very futures. In Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book, the wolf pack gathers to choose which cubs will be allowed to join the Seeonee Pack.  Their leader, Akela, the gray, lone wolf, lays across the high rock over looking a clearing in the jungle and admonishes them, “Look well, O wolves.”  Look well; choose well, because their choices will determine the future of the Pack.   Along with the other cubs, Mowgli, the toddler rescued and raised by a pair of wolves, is pushed into the circle of moonlight for review.   Shere Khan, a force of evil and destruction, claims the boy...

1 Corinthians 3: 1-9 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 For each Olympic event, there are only three medals awarded, and still thousands of Olympian athletes train for years and years, making personal sacrifices just to compete in the games.  Along the way, anything could happen.  Illness or injury could end their career or despite everything they put into it, there still could be someone a few seconds faster, a bit stronger or more talented that robs them of a win.  Yet, they all work hard because they are going for the gold.  They train to win. Paul knew that the Christians in the Corinth church weren’t mature Christians.  There was plenty of evidence to support his claim: infighting, jealousy among them, and many continued to live according to the standards of their culture. Maybe their lack of spiritual growth was because they weren’t ready to let go of their dependence on what they knew.  They knew how to make sense of the world and how to live...