GO MOVE A MOUNTAIN

GO MOVE A MOUNTAIN—Matthew 17:14-20 Christ Church Quaker Farms July 29, 2012 Do you believe it? Do you believe that faith can remove mountains? Please look at the mustard seed, which is attached to your bulletin. How big is that seed? Not very big. It’s rather tiny. If it wasn’t encased in plastic, it would have gotten lost. So Jesus challenges us. “ IF YOU HAVE FAITH THE SIZE OF A MUSTARD SEED, THEN YOU COULD MOVE MOUNTAINS.” Do you think that you have faith, the size of a small mustard seed? Let’s find out. Please open up your red prayer books to page 358. AS you know, this is the statement of faith as received by the worldwide universal church. Now, I’m going to ask you a couple questions. If you wish to answer, you may do so by raising your hand: • Do you believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth? If so, please raise your hand. • Moving to the next section, Do you believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the Son of God? So, it sounds to me that there is a lot of faith in this room. It appears to me that most of us have faith that is much, much bigger than the tiny size of the mustard seed. You see, the people to whom Jesus was originally speaking these words had much less faith than you do. They didn’t know that Jesus was the Son OF God. The Holy Spirit had not yet come, so they didn’t know anything about him. But you do. You know and believe this. So your faith is much broader, much deeper, and more informed that the people who originally heard this message. You see, Jesus knew that his original audience, and those of us who would come later, actually do have faith much larger than that of a mustard seed. But we are not using the faith we have. So, Jesus challenge is better understood like this: If you use your mustard size faith, then you can move mountains. In today’s Gospel, the original disciples had at least faith that was the size of the mustard seed, but they had attitudes of doubt, and so the sick boy in the Gospel appeared to them to be a mountain, which they could not move. • At the time that the disciples prayed for the boy, Jesus was not with them. Earlier in the Gospel, the disciples had successfully prayed to heal others, but this time was gone. But now that He was temporarily absent, they let their attitude of doubt suppress their faith. Then, the boy’s illness became a mountain that they could not move. The disciples are not the only ones with doubting On our journeys of life we encounter gigantic mountains, figuratively speaking, which we feel like we just cannot move. • Some of us encounter difficulty in our relationships with family, friends, associates, church members, or neighbors. Rather than invest time and energy to work things out or to seek reconciliation, if you are like me, you may just withdraw, and let the relationship deteriorate or die. • Some of us have self indulgences and obsessions around food, alcohol, sexual temptations, television, the internet, making money, or whatever. When those obsessions hurt ourselves or hurt our relationships, we then realize that we ought to stop; but those mountains appear too hard to move. • Some of us are in situations where we really need help, but we are just too proud to ask or seek out such help, and the small problems can grow to mountain like proportions. • And of course, some of us feel like we have been buried under the mountains of cancer and other health issues; economic hardship; the loss of a loved one, and more. Now, all these mountains can seem to be overwhelming, but Jesus is telling us that through our faith in him, we can remove mountains. Suppress the doubt, and not our faith. We can nurture and grow our faith so that we can invite Christ to come and help us in the wonderful ways in which He has promised that He will. Too often I become so absorbed in the mountains of my life, that I fail to see the one power that is greater than all the mountains in the world. Indeed, you all just told me that you believe in God the Father, who created heaven and earth, and therefore all the mountains of the earth. Do you not think that He who made the mountains will not rest until He has guided and empowered you to move the mountain out of your way or off of your back? Jesus does not have all this power and love just so he can watch us suffer. He is ready to deploy it if we prayerfully discern how he wants us to move each mountain. Now his way of moving mountains may not be our way. But in Christ, we can move mountains. • Sometimes we have to pray and receive prayer. • Sometimes we need to ask for help from God, in prayer, or from trusted friends, which we will be making in our Small groups this fall. • Sometimes we have to recognize that the mountains we have encountered are actually mole hills, which we made into mountains by our own stubbornness and self indulgence. 1. So, the mountain of a broken relationship and be leveled down by honest and sincere efforts at reconciliation, understanding, forgiveness in the love of Christ. 2. The mountain of self obsession and self indulgence and be leveled off, if we receive prayer and counsel, and if we ask God to forgive us for putting our self absorbed indulgences ahead of him and head of other people. I see people doing this all the time. 3. The mountain of pride, where we refused to ask for help when we need it. Jesus can dissolve that in an instant. . Recently I have failed to complete a project at home, which in my mind has grown from a mole hill into 35,000 ft mountain. The longer I have avoided the project, the bigger the mountain has grown in my mind. It seems too hard. It going to take too much time and effort. Now, by my failure to do what I have needed to do, I have placed an unnecessary burden on my family, and I feel guilty every time I think about it. So, last night, I asked for some help from a Small Group friend of mine, named Little John. He and his wife, Little Pat, are here today. When John stands up and his head hits the chandelier, you will recognize him. Well, last night had a five minutes conversation about this with John, and now I am ready to tackle this on my day off tomorrow. Mountain moved. 4. Of course, the mountains of disease and financial; hardship and grief as much weightier than my stupid little project. They can seem impossible to get from underneath. However, even in those circumstances, I have seen Christians use their faith to move the mountains of discouragement, sorrow & hopelessness to walk tall in the knowledge that Jesus is walking with them and carrying the burden upon his back. You see, the doubters of the world tried to bury Jesus under the mountain of death. But Jesus rose from the dead, and now that he might help us move all our mountains. We just have to decide to have an attitude adjustment to minimize doubt, and to grow faith. In another place, Jesus spoke of the mustard seed in another parable. He said that your faith is like a mustard seed. • You can water that seed with prayer, which will be available today from our Healing Ministry. • You can plant your seed in the good soil of fellowship, as we will share in our Small groups. Then watch your faith grow--- together , in Christ, we will move the mountains we encounter, that we might live out our lives in the fullness and abundance offered to us through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

CORE VALUES: JESUS IS HEAD OF THE CHURCH

CORE VALUES: JESUS IS HEAD OF THE CHURCH Christ Church Quaker Farms, June 10, 2012 On this Father’s Day, I want to tell you a little bit about my son, Patrick. Although he is now primarily a student, Patrick is actually a professional trained and certified wilderness specialist. He loves to lead groups of adults and students on back packing trips deserts and mountains of California. • When leading a group into the wilderness, he must to protect his group, by making sure they stay together and don’t take any wrong paths, so they don’t get hurt or lost. While he uses all the equipment available to him, including compass, GPS, what he primarily relies upon are the trail markers’ Trail blazes on trees and small rock piles previously left by him and/or others who had originally blazed the trail. • But the key to Patrick’s success is that he knows where he is going. He has previously completed the hike, and successfully arrived at the destination at journey’s end. There is a spiritual sense that my job is very similar to Patrick’s. God and your lay leadership chose me to lead Christ Church Quaker Farms through the wilderness of modern church life. Like Patrick, I have hiked the trails of congregational leadership for many years; I have taken wrong turns, and had to back track; and I have walked the paths that lead to greater church vitality and life. In my estimation , too many local churches in the 21st century are wandering around in circles in a dangerous wilderness, because they are spiritually lost and without strong direction. Within each church, there is a functional Head of the Church. This entity or persons direct the life and ministry. The most important thing to realize is that in most churches, the functional head of the church is Human. • Sometimes the functional head of the church may be the clergy. Or, it may be the congregational governing board, which is called the “Vestry” in the Episcopal Church, we call the “Vestry.” Or, it may be the biggest donors, or the people who do the most work, or the people who have been around the longest, or whomever. • Now, sometimes this system works well; but we live in a highly polarized time, where conflicts erupt unexpectedly in marriages, homes, schools, governments, and especially in local churches. So, when mere humans are the functional head of the church, political divisions are often the result. Now, politics has its place; and I a firm and unapologetic believer in the US Constitution and the American system of government. But, that system was never intended by Jesus Christ to be the basis for our becoming, as He proclaims in today’s Gospel , QUOTE “one with one another and one with Him and the Father.” UNQUOTE. You see, that is the destination that Jesus has for us as a church. On the night before He died, Jesus prayed to the father for us, that we would reach our journey’s end. He said, “Father, I pray for my followers in the future. I pray that they would love one another, as you love me and as I love them. I pray that my followers would be united, not divinized, that they would become one, even as you and are one, that they would be one with me and with you through your Holy Spirit.” On the night prior to his crucifixion, Jesus was not thinking about himself. He was thinking about you and me. He was thinking about his desire for all his followers to be united with one another and Him through the power of LOVE—His love, working in and through the church. That is where Jesus will lead any church that cares to follow Him. And, Jesus has blazed the trail, and left trail markers for us to follow. These trail markers are called CORE VALUES. Core values are the things that we as a church, beginning with the Rector and the Vestry, use to guide the choices and decisions we make. Actually, the discernment of Christ Church’s Core values began with all of you, long before I arrived on the scene. In preparation for the calling of a new Rector, many of you filled out survey forms which were utilized not only to call your new priest, but also to look to the future. Over the past couple months, a Vestry Task Force under the leadership of Renee Knapp has been used that material, along with some of my biblical teaching to produce a draft of our Core values, which you will find on the yellow insert in your bulletin. Please take those out; Now, there are two that we are going to talk about today—which I’d like Renee to read out loud, while we silently read along with her. JESUS IS HEAD OF THE CHRIST CHURCH QUAKER FARMS We value the Lordship of Jesus Christ, His leadership as the head of our church, and we submit ourselves to His will. EMPOWERED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT We value the work of the Holy Spirit, which unites us with whole body of Christian believers, and which empowers us FOR ministry and mission. Thank you. So, let’s see how this might apply. Instead of men and women leading the church, what would a church be like , if we could see if the Holy Spirit inspired, directed, and empowered the Church? If the Holy Spirit was in charge, then everything would change: • Maybe we would have joyful worship? Maybe we would individually grow in our faith? • Maybe our fellowship be welcoming, inviting, and supportive of all people, where no one would be left out, but included ands valued? • Maybe others would come through our doors, and decide to join us on our spiritual journey. Yes, by God. All that would happen, and much, much more. First of all, this would include that we will learn to accept Jesus as the functional Head of the Church. Not the Rector or the Vestry. Not this person or that group. Just Jesus alone. • What this has meant in practice is that together we will discern that Jesus has a specific will for our church. He has a plan. “I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord, “plans to prosper you, to give you a hope and a future.” Just as Jesus has a plan that each of us should experience abundant life as individuals, so he has a plan CCQF. • Now, believing that God has a plan for this church, we must believe that we can discern that plan through the Holy Spirit. God’s word says that the Holy Spirit directs us , together, to the truth. That through the Holy Spirit, we can understand the mind of Christ. So, how can we go about discerning the will of Lord? The Holy Spirit can direct us into unity and consensus about our decisions, choices, and our interactions with each other. If we are open to the possibility, He can lead us to more intentionally listen to each other, to extend the hand of friendship to those we may have avoided, and to seek to glorify Jesus, together. God’s word says, “If we live by the love of Jesus, then we will united in our convictions and united in your love with a common purpose and a common mind.” I wanted to share all this with you this morning, because I want you to know why I believe in CCQF. Not because of the person you chose to be Rector. Not because of the Vestry, which is one of the best that I have every had the pleasure of leading. No, I believe in CCQF because God has a plan for our church—plans to not to harm us but to help us; plans to give us a hope and a future. And if we, together, follow him on this journey, then our next 200 years will even outshine the past, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. CHRIST CHURCH QUAKER FARMS is a Christ centered community church in the Episcopal tradition, dedicated to JOYFUL WORSHIP utilizing: 1. Relevant, encouraging, & positive Biblical preaching; 2. Treasured traditions of the Episcopal church, including Holy Communion and upbeat hymns 3. Spirit-filled worship (which includes appropriate informality, contemporary songs and creative enrichments to our services. 4. OUR CORE VALUES As approved by the Vestry, June 21, 2012 JESUS IS HEAD OF CHRIST CHURCH QUAKER FARMS We value the Lordship of Jesus Christ, His leadership as the head of our church, and we submit ourselves to His will. Colossians 2:9, Acts 2:36, Ephesians 1:22-And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way. UNCONTIONALLY LOVED (AGAPE) We value Jesus’ unconditional & inseparable love for us, and we strive to love one another as Jesus loves us. Colossians 2:9, Acts 2:36, Ephesians 1:22, & John 13:34-35: A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” INSPIRED BY THE WORD OF GOD We value the Word of God, Jesus Christ, who is the word made flesh (John 1:14). We value the Bible, through which God speaks to us today.2 Timothy 3:16-1: All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. EMPOWERED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT We value the work of the Holy Spirit, which unites us with whole body of Christian believers, and which empowers us for ministry and mission. 1Corinthians 12:12-13, John 17:20-21 and Matthew 5:14-16 -You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. JOYFULLY WORSHIPING We value Spirit-inspired-worship, as we express our love to God, through: weekly celebrations of the Eucharist; traditional hymns; contemporary praise music; and heartfelt prayer. John 4:2, Matthew 26:26-28 Psalm 100:1-2: Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands. Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing. AS PART OF THE “ONE, HOLY, CATHOLIC, & APOSTOLIC CHURCH” (from the Nicene Creed) We value our heritage as the successors of the original apostles, through our membership in the world wide Anglican Communion, in the Episcopal Church (USA) within the Diocese of Ct. Romans 1:5 and Ephesians 2:20: You are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets with Christ Jesus Himself the chief Cornerstone.

200 YEARS OF MARRIAGE BICENTENNIAL SERMON June 3, 2012

Today as part of our Bicentennial, we celebrate 200 years of marriage at Christ Church Quaker Farms. During that time, hundreds of women & men came together here, in the presence of God and their families, to make vows of lifelong fidelity. And some of those couples are with us today. • Would any of you who were married at CCQF, including those of you who are widowed, would you please stand up so that we can recognize you? Here is our living history of 200 years of marriage at CCQF. You are part of the rich heritage of this church, in the past, present, and future, and we honor you all. In my hand is an antique CCQF Prayer Book, which has been in this church since the year the building was completed in 1814. The first couple married here, stood before this altar and head the pastor read these words: Of course, that was a long time ago. During the past 200 years, the institution of marriage has gone through many changes. • Back in the Early 19th century, parents arranged most marriages. It was only around the turn of the 20th century that marriages were inspired by romantic love. • Back in the 19th century, women pledged to obey their husbands in the marriage liturgy. In our day and time, most couples share in decision making with one another. • Back in the 19th century, women were solely responsible for raising and managing the children. 19th century social custom dictated a formal and distant relationship between a man and his children. In our day and time, most fathers are much more involved in child rearing. • Back in the 19th century, holy matrimony was understood as a holy union made by God himself. But today, many people have dropped the word “holy” out of the title. Many , many couples now choose to have secular marriages, which are merely human arrangements, with human values and rules. • Back in the 19 century, the divorce rate in this nation was around 3%. In 2011, among new marriages, the divorce rate is between 40 to 50 % of new marriages. Roles of men and woman may have changed some, but it seems to me that God’s plan for Christian marriage has not changed: God’s word defines marriage as a sacred covenant between a man, a woman, and God himself. God’s plan for marriage is a lifelong union , characterized by mutual respect, mutual honor, mutual fidelity, mutual sacrifice, and mutual joy. However, what many non believers do not understand, is that the love needed for a successful marriage is love which only comes from God. Human beings are not capable of such love, over the long haul of a lifelong commitment. To unintentionally or intentionally exclude God from the marriage, is to deny the depth of love necessary for marriages to prosper. To be honest, we Americans have trouble with “Love,” because the word is thrown around so loosely. • I love pizza. I love my country. I love my fiancé. I love my children. I love my grandma. I love my friend. Certainly, I do not love pizza in the same manner that I love grandma, nor do I love my fiancé in the same way I love my children. Some of the confusion about love is caused by the fact that in English, we have one term, “love,” which describes a variety of different “love” experiences. However, the Greeks have actually 4 different terms: • “Eros,” which means romantic love. • The lives of their children.“Philia, “ which means brotherly love or friendship • “Storge,” which means the love of family; • And “AGAPE”--love, which is committed, self sacrificing love. Agape-love, where you choose to love someone so much, that you put his or her interests and well-being and happiness above your own. So, looking at question # 2, which type of love is the most important in marriage? (All important—but one is vital). Romantic love, or Eros, without sacrificial love, agape, will not last. Agape- love is not all about me, but directed towards you. That’s why God , in his infinite wisdom, decided to create a setting for romance to grow and to become infused with agape-love. • And within this sacred commitment, they are free to love and to trust and to depend—because they both have made a solemn vow to continue loving one another, no matter what. • And that, is real marriage….where vows mean something, and both parties choose to love one another by honoring their vows and promises. Of course, the sad reality is that not all marriages fulfill God’s plan. When agape love is missing form one or both partners, then trauma , betrayal, disappointment, and sorrow may follow. For all its brokenness, however, my guess is that each of you knows of one or more marriage which Have fulfilled the God- given promise of agape love. Today, following the sermon, there are 18 couples who are going to publicly reaffirm their marriage vows. By doing so , they gave giving honor and thanks to God and each other. On Thursday night, I met with them all and asked them to identify one way that God has blessed them through the love of their spouse. • One jokester eagerly raised his hand and shouted, “Her chicken Marcella is fantastic.” • Then, everyone spoke of the blessings of children and grandchildren, and extended families. But, then the discussion took a more intimate turn, as they said such things as • He is someone that I can always count on.” • His love of me has strengthened my love of God.” • “He’s hoped me to become a better person.” • “Always loving; always my friend.” • “He helps me to get through the hard times. By working together, we’re not just two people, we’re more like 3.” • She has helped bring balance to my life.” • And finally, “He makes me laugh.” That was a very moving conversation; and it made me think how happy I am that today, all of us can share in this celebration of Love. That, is the way that God agape-loves you and me. Lets’ look at question # 3 in your sermon notes: As designed by the creator of the universe, all relationships , romantic, family, friends, are better and more lasting when both parties practice agape-love. Agape-love is patient and kind. It is not self-seeking. It keeps no record of wrongs. Agape-love will never end, All other things in life, and all relationships without agape-love, will fade away. Church is meant to be a school to learn how to love, because God is agape-love. This love is intended for all people, whether you are married or not. Jesus agape-loved us all by laying down his life that we might be forgiven and loved by God. So on this day of love, let’s remember the Prayer of the King of Love, that the whole world would know that we are His disciples, because of the way we love one another.

"WHAT ON EARTH...... Pentecost Sunday, May 27, 2012

50 days after Jesus had risen from the dead, and ten days after He ascended to heaven, Peter and the rest of the disciples were praying together, just as Jesus had commanded. Then, the God the Holy Spirit fell upon them and within them, and they were filled with enthusiastic joy and courage. Then they ran out into the streets proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ, and then they and their successors went to the ends of the earth. For the past 4 Sundays, we have been exploring this Good News, together. So, today, we are gaping to have a pop quiz to see if you have been paying attention. If the person at the end of each pew will pass down the pens from the white baskets and everybody take out your red insert. So, let’s all work together and we can all receive an A plus Please look section A, question # 1: 1. I am here on earth because God _(created)____ me (pp 12-15), so that He could __Love_____ me (page #15) ; and so that I can __Love_______ Him back.(pp. 51-52). 2. His plan/purpose for me is to have an__abundant _______life (pp. 39-40, John 10:10), which begins when I believe and __receive__ __JESUS___ into my life (pp. 56-58). Good job. You all pass!!! Now, the next part of the Good News, as that the Bible and the Episcopal Prayer Book teach, is that we can believe and receive Christ by praying a prayer, similar to the one in section B of your sermon notes. • As ow as we have heard, God invites us to freely and voluntarily make our own faith commitments to him, to take responsibility for our own spiritual lives. Such commitments are never to be coerced or pressured, but made out of a conviction fo the heart. • Last Sunday, over 57 of us voluntarily made faith commitments or recommitments, and in doing so, we invited and received Christ into our hearts. Now, I know that some of you may be thinking that “this is no big deal,” (PAUSE)…. but a little thing can be a big deal to God. This is where your seed comes in. Please hold it in the palm of your hand, and reflect upon its profound significance: The Bible tells us that when we believe and receive Christ into our hearts, God plants the seed of the Holy Spirit into our lives. The seed of the Holy Spirit, like all seeds, has been designed to grow. Receiving the seed of God the Holy Spirit is a great honor, but to fulfill its purpose in your life, that seed must grow and mature. This happens as we each voluntarily choose to trust Jesus with more and more of our lives, by giving him greater and greater authority to guide & direct us for our great good and his great glory. To explain how this works, please look at your red sermon notes, section C. Here you see a couple diagrams, which require some explanation for the symbols. • The circles represent each person. • The black dots symbolize our personal interests, concerns, activities, emotions, problems, and all aspects of our lives. • The chair in the center of each circle is the throne of our lives, or our decision making capacity. • In the top circle, there is a big S on the throne—which represents our SELF. So, the explanation of the diagram reads, REGULAR CHRISTIAN—SELF IS ON THE THRONE: We may still primarily make decisions and take actions to satisfy our own wants and desire, like everyone else. This results in an unbalanced & conflicted life at best, and/or a life which may hurt us and/or others. The “Self” still wants and seeks money, recognition, self-serving love, and peace & happiness (based on achieving the right outward circumstances, which are unstable). Now, the cross in the circle represents Christ, in whom the regular Christian has received through prayer. However, the regular Christian has not given Christ the authority to provide the spiritual leadership each person requires us that we can live an abundant, purposeful, and meaningful life. So, now lets’ look at the second diagram. What is different about that one from the first? (Discussion) • Note—there is greater harmony and order in the Spiritually Growing Christians’ life. SPIRITUALLY GROWING -- JESUS ON THRONE: We give Jesus authority to be our Lord (manager, boss, the one in control). This results in a more harmonious & peaceful lives, as we seek his direction in making decisions and taking actions. We then see the manifestations or the “fruit” of God: the Holy Spirit: exuberance for life; agape-love; inner peace; compassion; loyalty; perseverance; clearer priorities; wisdom; generosity; and hope. (See today’s reading from Galatians 5) So, our task as Christians is to nurture the growth of the Holy Spirit within us, by learning to trust Jesus, more and more, because He invented the seed, and as the master gardener, he knows how to make it grow to the max, just like any wise farmer. Our spiritual seed grows by watering it with Word of Christ, whom the Bible calls “ THE living water.” • So, first of all, we ALL need to personally read the Bible. Now, I know that some of you think, 'Oh, the Bible is too hard. I cannot understand it.’ Well, you have to get a modern translation. Even I have a hard time understanding the 500 year old King James translation of the Bible. Get a good modern translation. Today’s reading from Galatians , which is very understandable, comes from “The Message Translation” of the Bible, which is one that I am primarily reading now. You can buy it on Amazon. Or, we have a table downstairs today where you can see my copy of the Message Bible, place an order, and we can get a copy fo you. So, first, read the Bible for yourself. I suggest that you start with the Gospel of Mark. • Secondly, come to a bible study group. This fall , CCQF will host an expanded program of Small Bible Study groups, which will be offered at different times to accommodate busy schedules. There is no better way to grow in Christ, then to participate in a small group bible study. You see, it is within such small group setting that we can grow to understand and appreciate the rich inheritance which God has planned for us. What am I on earth for? We are on earth to prepare ourselves as heirs of the Kingdom of God. When a child or older person is baptized, the sign of the cross using holy oil, will be made on the forehead of the child. In ancient times, holy oil was poured on the heads of future Kings and Queens, symbolizing their royal inheritance. This is what that oil symbolized when you were baptized. You have been chosen by God the Father, Son, & Holy Spirit to be a royal heir of Christ, because you are important to God. Amen. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- On this Pentecost Sunday, churches all across the world today are witnessing to their faith by reaffirming the universal Baptismal Covenant, which we shall do, too. Please open your red prayer books to page 415. We will begin with the questions at the bottom of the page, Dear people of God

WHAT ON EARTH AM I HERE FOR? May 20

Today we are running to 3rd base in our 4 part exploration on, “What on earth am I here for?" • First base, Week One—We heard that we are not accidents; God intentionally made us so that we could be objects of his love. • Second base, last Sunday: We explored how we seek things, outside of us, in order to find fulfillment, such as money, somebody to love, recognition, and other outward circumstances to make us happy. However, such things do not bring lasting fulfillment, because they are illusive, or disappointing, or on temporarily fulfilling. That indeed, in every person there is a God shaped hole, which only God can fill. • Today, 3rd base, I want to discuss how to fill this hole—(h-o-l-e) that we can become whole (w-h-o-l-e). As a young man, I was painfully aware of the big black hole in my life, which I experienced as loneliness. Some of you have been surprised to hear that I am a natural introvert. For most of my earlier life, I was just painfully shy. I experienced a fair amount of social anxiety, and was always tongue tied when meeting new people. • Growing up in a dysfunctional family with an alcoholic father taught me to keep quiet in order to protect myself Like everyone else, I wanted things which I imagined would fill the void: • First, I wanted friendships. While I had a couple of close friendships, they did not fill the void. • My dating relationship started with promise, but mostly went up in smoke, thereby making my void even deeper. • Then in high school and college, I thought that I could fill the void by winning the approval & recognition of others, by making straight “As’ and getting elected Student Body President. But none of that filled the void. However, in my 2nd & third year in college, I found a group of friends who seemed to fill the void. They laughed with me; I felt confident around them; we always hung out together; and it really seemed like I had found my nitch. But unfortunately, this was not a good group of friends. In order to win their approval and acceptable, I joined them in getting drunk and stoned. Getting high with them initially appeared to fill the void. However, these so-called friendships were all chemically induced—so these relationships were superficial at best, and dangerous, at the worst. My life almost ended one night when my friend, Bruce, and I were both stoned. • My judgment was impaired, so I agreed to let Bruce take me home in his little sports car. Bruce put his foot on the accelerator, and before I knew what had happened, the car sped off the road and over a cliff. The car rolled down the hill, over and over, until it was stopped by three trees, which kept the car from falling further into the creek below. The car was totaled. Miraculously, both of us walked away with a scratch. The police were amazed that we were still alive. After that close call, I was very ashamed, and filled with the conviction that somehow, God had saved us. A silly thought popped inky mind, one which I originally dismissed as mere superstition or wishful thinking. Those three trees that saved the car from rolling into the creek, I wondered if three represented the 3 persons of God: Father, Son & Holy Spirit. But that thought sounded too superstitious for me to tell anyone. However, about 10 years later, after Bruce had stopped abusing drugs, he told me that he had had the same thought. So, that night I swore off drugs, believing that God had a better purpose for my life. I grew to believe that God had better plans for me then lying dead in a creek. Shortly afterwards, I joined a bible study group, where I learned some basic principles, which helped me to see the broader picture of my life and God’s purpose. To help explain this, we are now going to see a 31/2 minute video, called “God’s Graffiti.” This remarkable film summarizes the teaching of a person who, for the last 55 years, has been in the top ten list of most admired men in the United States—the Rev. Billy Graham. ---------------------------------------------- Although the format is decidedly modern, the content of this film is the Good News proclaimed by the Hebrew prophets, by Jesus Himself, by the apostles, and by countless millions of other Christians during the past 2000 years, Like some of you, I had heard this teaching previously with my head, but after the car accident, I embraced it with my heart. That’s when I decided to invite God into my life by praying the prayer of believing and receiving. Would you please take out the yellow prayer card from your bulletin, and if you would please pass those pens down the table. Let’s look at the prayer----- Some of you personally may have previously prayed this prayer, or one like it; and others of you may have not. I really see this prayer as an expression of our love and faith in God. Since God made you to be the recipient of his boundless love, He now invites you to tell him that we love him too. By praying this prayer, you do not proclaim that you have all the answers. Rather, you ask Jesus to , quote, “COME INTO MY LIFE AND HELP ME TO LEARN TO KNOW YOU, TO TRUST YOU, AND TO LOVE YOU.” unquote. So, when I initially prayed this prayer at my bible study, I did not initially feel anything at first. But later on, as I looked back, I could see that this invitation was the beginning of my finding fulfillment. I returned to church, where I began to form new friendships with people who like me, wanted to grow to better trust, love, and follow Christ. • I still have problems, like everybody else. • I have grown in my relational skills, and learned how to better give and receive love from my friends, my wife, and my children. • I have grown to care more about the approval and recognition of Christ, and less about that from people. • My wife and I have never had a surplus of money, but I have seen how the Lord has consistently provided for the financial needs of my family and churches, I have served. And it all begins by praying the prayer of believing and receiving, so that Jesus might begin to fill your HOLE “H-o-l-e” so that you can become “W_H_O_L_E” WHOLE. Now, I have prayed this prayer, in one form or another, hundreds of times, because love always needs to be renewed. • IF I had told my wife that I loved her 25 years ago, and never did it again, she world rightfully question my initial sincerity;....and frankly both of our hearts would have grown cold, if I never reaffirmed my love to her. • Likewise, this prayer is not a onetime obligation. Rather, it is a milestone in a spiritual journey that serves as the foundation of our personal faith. So, I recommend that those of us who have previously made such a prayer commitment, also join me in praying it again, as one expression of love to the one who created us to love us. So, in A MINUTE, AFTER THE PRAYERS of THE PEOPLE, I am going to pray this prayer, and if you feel that you wish to express your love to the Lord in a similar fashion, feel free to do so, as well. But whether you pray it or not, keep an open mind and an open heart in the one who demonstrated his love for you through his death and resurrection.

What on Earth am I here for? May 6

4 week sermon series based on "What On Earth Am I Here For? by Rick Warren --The Rev. John Donnelly WONDERFUL. FANTASTIC. INCEDIBLE. That’s the way I describe our 4 week sermon series and bible study. I am not boasting about myself, because our sermon series is based on the internationally bestselling book, The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren. • Now, I believe that some of you have read this book, yes? Did you like it? • Now, just in terms of book purchases alone, this is the most significant Christian book in the past 50 years. • Well, the first 7 chapters of that book have been repackaged as the booklet that you received this morning, called “What On earth am I here For?’ This is your book and you are free to take it home today, but you will need to bring them back, because we are going to need these books during all of May. So, if you would like to leave it here, and then write your name on the back—pens can be found in white baskets in each pew. On your way out, you may leave your book in the basket by the door, and it will be waiting for you for the next time. Before we continue, we are very pleased that our 8th through 12th graders are joining us. Our bible study will be made better by you being here. So, I want to begin by this very serious biblical study, by inviting one of your young people to come up here, and to join me in a game of dice. Yes, today we are making history at CCQF—because this will be the first occasion in 200 years that any clergy person will play a game of craps right before the altar. So, you roll the dice. To win, you have to get the same score again before you get a 7, 11, or snakes eyes. Now in this crap game, we are not playing for money—rather, we are playing for IQ. In this game, we are pretending that ______, here, has as not been born yet. So, you are going to roll the dice, and see what you end up with. Now, you continue rolling the dice until that number comes up—and if you do, you win an average or above average IQ. If you lose the crap shoot, then you will receive a below average IQ. There are some big thinkers in our society, who believe that everything that happens, happens by pure chance. “All that happens is purely random—including all the creation of the universe, our planet, animal life, and even human life.” In this worldview, there is not God, or if God exists, God is entirely irrelevant. There is no benevolent presence or spirit behind the universe. Rather, we are all at the mercy of the scientific laws of nature, which operate totally dispassionately until we die and exist no more. Such a world view has been around for several hundred years, and has a strong following among our friends, family, and even without our own community. So l what do you think? Was the universe created totally by random chance? Was your DNA make up a total roll of the dice? So, let’s look at the Christian worldview. Turn to page 12 in your books, and let’s read the first 2 paragraphs. YOU ARE NOT AND ACCIDENT.YOUR BIRTH WAS NO MISTAKE OR MISHAP, AND YOUR LIFE IS NO FLUKE OF NATURE. YOUR PARENTS MAY NOT HAVE PLANNED YOU, BUT THAT DOESN’T MEAN THAT GOD DIDN’T PLAN YOU. HE WORKS EVEN THROUGH HUMAN ERROR AND FAILINGS, AND HE WAS NOT SURPRISED BY YOUR BIRTH." The dropping down to the line in bold print, “YOU ARE ALIVE BECAUSE GOD WANTED TO CREATE YOU.” Now to me, that sounds pretty heady. The Lord God king of the universe willfully created ME? Maybe he made a mistake. Why would he want to make little you and little me? You can find the answer to that question by turning to page 15, looking at the line in bold print, “God made you so that he could love you.” This is the heart of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the central power point of today’s message. • So, I want you to get this down, but I also want you to personalize it. So, please repeat after me, “GOD MADE ME----SO HE COULD LOVE ME. Now in the Bible, the Greek word for love, agape, is a verb—its and action. True love expresses itself to the beloved. • So, let’s open up the floor and hear from some of you: If YOU are an object of God’s love, how does God express this love to you? (Make a list) What a great God we have! His purpose driven life, is to love us!!!! As part of God’s love fours, He has a plan for our lives. As Jesus says in today’s Gospel, his plan is that we would have a good life, that our lives would be abundant is hope, abundant in peace, and abundant in love. Ts theme is echoed in today’s Ephesians reading. You will find part of that reading on page 9 in your booklet, the 2nd section in italic print. Let us read together the first line of that passage: IT’S IN CHRIST THAT WE FIND OUT WHO WE ARE AND WHAT WE ARE LIVING FOR.” Look at the 2nd &3rd word of that sentence “In Christ.” Now this simple phrase is totally deceptive. You see, to be, quote “In Christ,” actually means the opposite. It really means that Christ is in YOU. To be In Christ, means that He is in your heart and should, along with his peace, hope, and love. To be in Christ is sort of like the Alien movies, where the monsters were living inside people’s bodies. Well, Jesus is no monster; and He’ll only live in you, if you invite Him in. How many of us here today were baptized as small children?” How many of you remember it? Whether we remember our baptisms or not, your baptism in Christ was an objective milestone in your life. The Greek word baptism means to immerse, to saturate, like a sponge soaking up water. So that’s why we use the water –as an outward and visible sign of God’s inward and spiritual grace. So baptism is a promise...a promise from God that one day, we will be saturated in Jesus Christ. This occurs in a two stage process: When a child is baptized, he or she is adopted into God’s family. For most of us, stage 2 occurs later on, when we voluntarily, individually, invite Christ into our heats, to release His presence, His hope, His peace, and His love. This is the background that makes our scripture on page 9 so important. So, I’d like you to look at it again, but with my amplification. It is when we have been baptized into God’s family, and has invited Christ into our lives, that we find out who we are, and what we are living for. So, why on earth and I here? Because God has a purpose for your life and part of that purpose is that you will receive all the abundant love and life that he has planned for you. This is true, no matter if you are: old or young; rich or poor; smart or dumb; healthy or sick; religious or not. None of that matters, because God loves you anyway. So, I invite all of you, including those of you who are visiting today, to continue to join us in this journey of discovery, as we learn just what on earth we are here for. • We hope some of you visitors will come back and join us next Sunday. • Whether you do or not, take your booklet home and enjoy it for yourself. • Also, we have even launched an online bible study, to which you are invited. Details are in your bulletin. It is my hope that you will continue to reflect upon these matters. Simply to ask you the question, what on earth am I here for, is to enter a whole dimension of life that is sacred and holy. In Christ, you will find some wonderful answers. AMEN.

The Resurrection Community Part 1

THE RESURRECTION COMMUNITY Part 1
EASTER SUNDAY APRIL 8, 2012


Many Christians are surprised to learn that Jesus did not invent the idea of the Resurrection.
-Resurrection is an ancient term, affirming that the dead will come back to life. Zoresthanism, an ancient Persian religion, affirmed that good would triumph over evil at some date in the future; and that the dead would be brought back new life.
-Throughout the Old Testament, the Hebrew faith speaks of a time when the dead will supernaturally come back to life.

No, Jesus did not invent the idea at the Resurrection.

Of course, the Wright Brothers, they did not invent the idea of a flying machine; they were just the first to do it. Likewise, Jesus was the first to Rise from the dead and to open the door to eternal life. This is wonderful for us, because a recent Gallup pole reports that 85% of all Americans believe in heaven.
Over the next 50 days of Easter, here at CCQF we will together explore the proofs of the Resurrection and the resulting reality of eternal life. But today, I would like to explore with you one proof at the Resurrection of Jesus Christ and that is the Resurrection Community.
The first member of the Resurrection community was Mary Magdalene of whom we hear in today’s Gospel. She encounters the Risen Lord and calls him “rabboni” which means honored teacher. Contrary to the recent popular fantasy fiction, “The Da Vinci code, Mary Magdelene could not even touch Rabboni Jesus, much less sleep with Him. In today’s Gospel, she is so overcome with joy at seeing the Risen Lord that she reaches out to touch Him. Jesus replies, “No, Don’t do it.” Then Jesus spoke His word to her and taught her about the victory over death. He instructs Mary to go teach His disciples – that they might spiritually grow to understand the incredible significance of the Resurrection. Shortly after that, as we hear in today’s reading, Peter preaches God’s Word of New Life and that day the community of the resurrection grew by 5000 . It was quite a mixture of people – Jews, Greeks, Romans, the rich and poor, the young and the old, saints and sinners, skeptics and believers, longtime followers of Jesus and thousands of newcomers. This unusual diversity of people joining together is only possible, as Peter proclaims, because, quote, God shows no partiality. The community of the resurrection accepts all comers. Period. All people are important to God.
In our day and time, many people are surprised to learn that the earthly Resurrection Community is not the same thing as the institutionalized Christian church. Now some Christian churches are resurrection communities, but not all. Most frequently resurrection communities emerge from dead and dying churches. You see resurrection means coming back to life, after death. No cross and tomb, No East, No New Life.
Today, CCQF is celebrating our 200th Easter Sunday in this, our Bicentennial year. Since I arrived here in September, I have been learning the history at this church through studying and reading, and by listening to hundreds and hundreds of stories about the past life of this church. As some of you know much better than me, during the first 200 years this church has gone through cycles of life, death and resurrection; times of growth and times of decline; times of prosperity and times of scarcity; times when our church was as full as it is today and times when nobody came to church at all for long periods of time.
I believe that CCQF is now growing into a resurrection community. This becomes apparent by looking at the first resurrection community of the apostolic church after the first Easter Sunday, and comparing that with what God is doing among us now.
First, upon encountering the Risen Lord on the first Easter and during the following 50 days that ensues, the disciples and new believers were filled with joy. Mary and the other disciples were so overcome with joy at encountering the Risen Lord, and they fell down and worshipped him.
Likewise, this church is rediscovering that worship is not meant to be BORING, BULLYING OR BURDENSOME. No worship is meant to be joyful. You see, each Sunday is meant to be a mini Easter Sunday, where we encounter the Risen Lord, through hearing his encouraging word, by energetically and joyfully singing his praises, and happily receiving His real and living presence through Holy Communion. Jesus is alive!!!!!Is Jesus Alive? If you believe it say, “He’s Alive.” Okay, we can laugh, smile, sing off key, and enjoy sharing in His Resurrection presence. Joyful worship is becoming a core value of CCQF.
Secondly, another characteristic of a Resurrection community is the positive, encouraging and relevant teaching of God’s work, not as an academic study, but as a means of hearing God’s voice
Some of you may remember my first Sunday here, when during my sermon, I received a cell phone call from God. That occurs because the Risen Lord and I wanted you to know that we can grow to hear His voice, expressing His love for you. Christ Church is dedicated to nurturing everyone’s spiritual growth. For example, rarely have I ever seen a church with such a strong Sunday School as the one this church is blessed to have. I have been so looking forward to today because I have so wanted to worship with our dedicated and faithful Sunday School Teachers and Your Advisors. You see, most of the time we never see these folks during the first part of the service, because they are busy nurturing the spiritual growth of our kids so that they can grow into young women and men of character, faith and generosity. I would like all our Sunday School teachers, youth advisors, first communion teacher, acolyte director and your choir and band director to please stand up, because I have something to say to you.
We honor you. We are proud of your. We are grateful for you. You see, a church without children is a dying church. Because of your labors of love, we are alive in Christ. The Bible says that little children will lead us. Today, we comment you as Resurrection teachers, who serve the same teaching function to us as Mary Magdalene and Peter served on that first Easter. I love them, don’t you?
So, Resurrection communities are characterized by Joyful Worship, Spiritual Growth, and also, New Friendships
To paraphrase Peter in today’s reading, “All people are important to God, and therefore, all people are important to us.” CCQF is growing as a resurrection community as we welcome and make more and more new friendships. We at CCQF are so grateful for the friendships that we have, and we wish to share that with all who wish to come. If you want to come to church once or twice a year, we welcome you. But is you would like friendship, then you will find it here if you hang around for a while. Our children, especially, our new youth group, are showing us how to develop new friendships. You see members of our youth group have family and friends outside of church. But I have seen how they have developed new friendships with kids from different schools, different grades and different cliques. But the hardest barrier to overcome – they have become friends here with kids who even listen to different types of music.
I can testify that I am here today because of the friendship I received at church as a teenager.
-Family dysfunctional and emotionally abusive
-Friends all abused drugs and alcohol
Church became my real family during those troubled times and have ever since.
Now that I am all grown up. Also, church provides a place to celebrate happy times – happy times in daily life and spiritual happy times with our church friends.
God wants us to have friendships with children at the Resurrection.
So, Jesus rose from the dead bringing New Life, which we are now privileged to experience through joyful worship, spiritual growth, and new friendships. This is the Light of Christ shining through this resurrection community and into the Worlds. May all of us come to the light – where like Mary and the first disciples, we will be able to see, hear, be healed, and renewed through the Risen Jesus Christ Our Lord. Amen.


--The Rev. John Donnelly, Christ Church Quaker Farms