LEAP Day!

Today is Leap Day... a day that only comes once every 4 years.   So, here is what I have been thinking... we ought to do something that we wouldn't normally do... leap... take a risk.... try something new.   

Not sure what that will be for me today, but I am pondering the thought.    What risk can I take?   How can I leap from where I am to another place? 

Taking a risk often involves moving out of a place of comfort.   What place of comfort will I move out of today?   I am open to taking a risk... moving from a place of comfort... just not sure what it will be.

What about you?

An interesting thing I read this morning on a blog that I read regularly.   The pastor was announcing that their Saturday worship gathering was no longer going to happen in a space that they have been meeting in for years (they own it too) and transitioning to a new location... all because they were out of room at the first location and had several hundred more seats at the new location.   And here is what caught my attention about what he said..."While I love the worship space and vibe of the (first location), we are out of room and if you can’t invite a friend to church because there is no place to sit, then you are defeating the purpose for which you exist."

Really Sweet!

Just got a really sweet phone call!   I don't think in my 22 years of ministry I have gotten such a call!   I have had people tell me to my face similar things, but none that I can remember taking the time to find the phone number and call.

The call was from the father of a young woman whose family is about to move away and thus leave Community of Joy.  Her father was simply calling to say thank you to Sharon and I and Community of Joy for taking his daughter and her family "under our wings" for these past 3.5 years.   He also wanted an email address so that he could send a thanks to the congregation.   VERY TOUCHING!

Nothing to mess with...

Your heart is nothing to mess with!

Today, one of my longtime walking buddy's at the mall told me that she was having chest pains yesterday.  Actually she has had them before and has seen her family doc.  But today, while walking she had sharp pains in her chest and had to stop immediately.  We were able to get her nitro spray for her and it eased the pain enough that she was going to go on to work.  I refused to let her go anywhere on her own and when we were unable to get her to go to the ER, I drove her home in Seaford so that her husband could take her to the doc.   I am praying that she gets more than just a visit to her family doc.

Your heart is nothing to mess with!  If you have pains, it is a warning sign and is best if you get it checked out while you can!    I know I am stubborn about seeing doctors, but if it had been me, you can bet your next paycheck that I would have dropped everything and gone immediately to the ER!

Again, your heart is nothing to mess with!  God made our bodies so that we experience pain when things aren't right and that pain is a warning to get checked out.  Don't hesitate!

Back To Normal

It is always a time of mixed emotions when our shelter experience comes to an end.  On one hand many of us who have given lots of our time during the two weeks are more than ready to get our lives back to some sense of normalcy (whatever that is!).   And on the other hand, we are sad to see our guests go... at least most of them!  

At Commnunity of Joy, we are delighted to be able to host these two weeks and provide our guest a respite from the dead of winter by showing them God's love and hospitality! 

One final thought on these two weeks... on Friday morning... the last morning I was there from an overnight, I overheard one of the breakfast guys say as he was dropping off the breakfast... "in my next life, I hope I am homeless."   And my heart broke... in my mind, I said to myself, you don't have a clue what you are saying!   While it may look like these guys have it made during their time with us, they don't!  

The bottom line is they don't have anyplace to go that is theirs!  They have to sleep in a room of 19 other men - the sounds and smells of that experience is enough to deter me!   They can't have a shower whenever they want.  They don't always have clean clothes to put on.   They often don't know where they will spend their day.   Many don't have regular contact with family.   Their friends will turn on them in a heartbeat, if they have something the so called "friend" needs.   They have to rely on the goodness of others for even the basics.    If they are hungry, they can't go buy a snack.   Many of them have addictions that are controling their lives.   And that is just a few of the struggles they face.  

It is always my prayer leading up to and during these two weeks that the experience of hosting the guys will bring about change in us!  That we will learn a bit more about not judging others.  That this experience will soften our hearts and show us better how to love unconditionally!      For that is the kind of love Jesus shares and it is the kind of love that he calls us to share too!

Another Night at the Shelter....

As I write this it is 4 a.m. and I have been awake all night... waiting until 7 a.m. when I can leave and head toward home to get some sleep.  Sitting here with Robbie as we are the overnight staff at our homeless men's shelter at Community of Joy Church.  This is my 4th night so far (one more to go) and it is the 2nd night I have served with Robbie.   Interesting to see how in the course of the second week, the men are slowly opening up with us and sharing more.

To operate our shelter for these two weeks, it takes MANY hands!  And some great coordination!  Thanks to Belinda White, Rob and Lachelle Rappold, Karen and Teresa Townsend for providing the lion's share of the coordination and cooking duties!   And thanks to to the men from Bethany Lutheran that get up early every morning for these two weeks to cook the men a HOT breakfast!

What a great effort of the body of Christ sharing the love of Christ with those who are in need.

AWED....

I am awed by what God is doing!

Just got word from my friend who is graciously hosting our Men's Thursday Community Small Group/Bible Study and two of the new guys who have most recently come to our small group are bringing friends this week!  WOW!

Kind of reminds me of when Peter met Jesus... he went and got his brother Andrew and brought him along to meet him as well! 

God is moving in a powerful way drawing these men to him and transforming their lives!   And I am honored to be part of it!

The quickest way to meet the devil...

Preached this yesterday and wanted to share a synopsis here.   The quickest way to meet the devil is to take a stand for God.  Yet the quickest way to defeat the devil is to stand on the promises of God!

That's what Jesus did... Check out Matthew 3 and 4.  In 3, Jesus is baptized and God declares, "This is my son, the beloved, with whom I am well pleased."   And then immediately after that Jesus is tempted by the devil 3 times.   And to refute the tempations and defeat their pull, Jesus stands on the promises of God saying "it is written..."

Interesting how God had just declared the truth that Jesus was his beloved son, and the devil pounces on that truth trying to cast doubt or confusion, even twisting it... when he says "If you are the son of God..."   That's how Satan rolls... he tries to twist, confuse, and cast doubt on the truth God speaks about us and who we are in his eyes.   But we don't have to let him do that and won't let him do that as we stand on the promises of God!

Two other things about temptation... 1. Most often we are tempted when we are in a weakened state... Jesus was in the wilderness for 40 days without food and was famished and wouldn't you know the devil's first attempt was to get him to turn stones into bread.  So, we must be regular in our connection with God through engagement with his word and his Spirit.   2.  Temptation also often comes when we are by ourselves...  Jesus was alone in the wilderness.   We must draw on the resources of community that God gives us in the body of Christ -the church.  Together we can call the devil's tricks for what they are!

The quickest way to meet the devil is to take a stand for God and the quickest way to defeat the devil is to stand on the promises of God in the community God gives us!

Another Night in the Shelter....

I am delighted to be part of a church that lives its mission!  In particular that takes seriously Jesus' command to love the least of these...that's what our shelter experience is about.  It is about welcoming our brothers who need  the warmth of a place to sleep and a meal.   And even more, it is about helping us not become caloused or hard hearted toward the needs of other humans in our community.

A HUGE shout out to all who give so generously of their time to staff our shelter!  It wouldn't happen with out the countless hours of servants who are willing to be present.  Our Coordinator takes a weeks vacation during the two week stay so that she can get it off to a good start.  Our cook gives countless hours in preparing phenominal meals.  And a host of other people give generously of their time to welcome guests as they come in, to hang out during the early evening hours and even the overnight hours.  There are folks that bake things at home, others who buy things at the store, even folks who pray for this event... it takes all of us.   We couldn't do it without each and every person making a contribution!   Awesome to see it happen!

And even more awesome in my book is that it is a cooperative effort of 4 churches working together to pull it off.  We couldn't do it without each one... we house the guys in our facility, but because we don't have a kitchen or fellowship hall, we cook and feed them at Bethany Lutheran Church (our neighboring church) and a church that meets in their facility on Saturday's - Beacon of Light- contributes as well and Greenhill Church of the Brethren also helps out!   It wouldn't be possible if we didn't have the cooperation of all!

This morning (it's now 3 a.m.) I have enjoyed being here with one of our young adults as we have been the overnight staff.  And we have enjoyed chatting with several of the guests.  It was good to hear their stories and to hear of their struggles.  I pray that this time in here might cause them to think about the love of God and draw closer to him.  I pray that this experience might get the attention of one or more of these guys and be a catalyst out of this lifestyle and into a new way of life!

STOKED!

I just got home from Small group... and I am STOKED!   I was awake all night at the shelter... having not planned to be last night ( but was planning to be tonight- turns out I forgot to confirm with a friend who was to be last night and when he didn't show, I got out of bed and went) and I didn't sleep much today due to a situation with my daughter that I had to work out during the prime time I would have wanted to sleep.   But I wouldn't have wanted to miss this gathering at all!  I so look forward to it each week.  And this week was AWESOME!

For 7 or so years, our group has been 3 of us.   A few weeks ago, it grew to 4 and then last week grew to 5 and this week to 6.   It is so obvious that God is moving in a powerful way in our lives!

So honored to be part of what God is doing and to being used by him to help others grow in their relationship with Jesus!   And neat to see my friend who nearly died around thanksgiving has taken this opportunity as a way to reach out to guys in his influence and they are responding!   There is absolutely nothing on earth more awesome than watching God work!

Vanilla Ice Cream and Spiritual Growth

From the book Move by Greg Hawkins and Cally Parkinson,..."If your local ice cream shop could sell only one flavor, it would sell vanilla.  This isn't just because vanilla ice cream is the most popular flavor, although that is true. It's because vanilla ice cream is hugley popular; in fact, it's twice as popular as the second favorite flavor, which is chocolate.  In turn, chocolate is twice as popular as any other ice cream flavor available.  So your ice cream shop would choose vanilla.  Hands down.  No contest."

"Church pastors have an equally compelling option.  If they could do only one thing to help people at all levels of sprititual maturity grow in their relationship with Christ, their choice would be equally clear.  They would inspire, encourage, and equip their people to read the Bible - specifically, to reflect on scripture for meaning in their lives.   Reflection on Scripture is the spiritual equivalent of vanilla ice cream because its influence on spiritual growth far exceeds the potential impact of other catalysts."

I have found in my own life and in the lives of many people who I have discipled over the years that this is true.  When we engage the bible by reading it regularly, reflecting on it, and applying it to our lives, transformation begins to take place unlike in any other practice we can do.

On this day when the world celebrates love...

Today is Valentine's day... a day when our world focuses on love.   Too bad we don't focus on love EVERYDAY!  If we did, it would CHANGE the world.   Jesus came to love us and that forever changed the world... but when his followers don't love like he calls us to love, that change is diminished.  

When asked what the greatest commandment was, Jesus said, "love the Lord, your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and the second is like it, love your neighbor as yourself."  And he didn't stop there... he went on to say, "and all of the law and prophets hang on these two."  In that he was saying that when we put into practice these two, we have it covered!  

If only we could get those two right!  If only we could love as Jesus does!  It would truly change the world!

Who will you love today?  And more importantly, who will you love tomorrow, and the day after?

Add a little excitement to your faith...

If you want to add a little excitment to your faith and life, I have a recommendation for you.  Find someone who is seeking to know more and begin to mentor them.   It will spark your fire again for sure!  I have been doing just that in the men's group that I meet with each week.  It has been heart warming and fun to see a 60 year old man come alive in his faith as he searches and digs deeper.  And the icing on the cake was when he invited his 31 year old son to join us!  The son is also seeking and digging deeper.  My friend and I came away from that gathering last night - flying high!  So cool!

Thank you Lord for allowing me the privelege of leading someone deeper into a relationship with you.  And help me to find others to help as well!

It's Almost That Time...

On Saturday evening we open our doors at Community of Joy to 20 homeless men from Salisbury.  We will be hosting them for 2 weeks.  Bethany Lutheran and Beacon of Light Churches ( our neighboring churches) will help us.  We couldn't do it without them!

The men come in at 5 p.m. and then we feed them a delicious meal at 6 p.m..  They sleep the night in our sanctuary on cots (an advantage of using chairs not pews!)  then the get a hot breakfast at 6 a.m. and are out the door with a bag lunch at 7 a.m.  It is a lot of work and takes many hands to pull it off!   It is one way we live out our mission at Community of Joy - "Jesus Christ calls us to actively reach out with God's love, hospitality, hope, healing, and peace."

I am thankful for all the people who step up and give so generously of their time and resources to host the men.

I have had a couple people wonder why we do it... when some of the guys we host don't appear to be doing much to get out of their situations.  My response is that this is not our concern.  Sure, we would like to see them break free of their homeless situation and all that things the keep them in that cycle.  But even Jesus said, we will always have the poor with us.  So, I think our role for some is simply to offer them a warm place to spend the cold winter nights, a few meals, God's love and hospitality, and our prayers.  

Looking forward to these next two weeks!

The way you end is all that matters!

Been thinking about this all day today...  The Giants are the first team in NFL history to have such a poor record and win the superbowl.  They got off to a very rocky start this year yet, ended up the top team of all!  Just goes to show that it doesn't matter how you start, but how you end.

Apply that to our lives and the same is true.   Jesus came to prove it!  With Jesus, it doesn't matter where we've been or what we've done as long as we turn away from that and toward him.  Consider the story that Jesus tells in Luke 15 of the wayward son, who took his share of his inheritance from his father and wasted it all... then came to his senses and decided to seek his father's forgiveness... "while he was still far off, his father saw him and went running to meet him."  And he didn't stop there, the father embraced him, put a robe on him, a ring on his finger, sandals on his feet, and threw a feast for him.    It doesn't matter how you begin, it only matters how you end.

No matter where you are or what you have done in life, you can end your life with Jesus... he is waiting to embrace you and welcome you home!  All you have to do is turn back toward him!

Always enjoy it...

One of the things I really enjoy about pastoring is working with a couple to prepare for and pull off their wedding.  Today I had the privilege of working with yet another couple as they prepare for their end of September wedding.  It is so exciting to see how they work at navigating all the challenges that can be there.  I especially love helping them put their mark on this special day - after all it is one of the biggest commitments of their life they will make this day. 

Looking forward to gathering with the couple and their family and friends on the 29th of September at a vineyard in the Eden area as they move toward that lifetime commitment of love.

Render to Ceaser What is Ceasers...

Just finished doing my part of our taxes.  Now will send them off to the accountant so she can work her magic!  Oh how I hate doing taxes, but it is a necesarry thing!   Glad to get it done earlier this year, because the next step in the process is the FAFSA forms.  Need to check and see when they are due, sure hope I haven't missed the deadline on them.

An Interesting Concept...

The discussion Tuesday and Wednesday on the street preacher's and the church's methods of sharing God's love has got a few of us thinking.  How can we actively share the love of Christ with others without pushing them away or turning them off?  How can we get past the baggage that so many carry because of past experiences with overly zealous christians who have made them a project - notch on the bible rather than a person to be loved?

I am short on answers, but I think it is all about relationships and valuing people.  I think it begins with having the same kind of non-judgemental love that Jesus has.  It also includes meeting people right where they are even in the midst of the mess.  And it includes being honest with the mess that's in our lives as well!  And it takes lots of time... and is kinda like a dance step... two steps forward, one back, three forward, etc.

Here is an interesting concept... that began with a bunch of churches going to the Mayor of their community and asking what the best way they could help serve the city.  The Mayor's response got the ball rolling on an initiative that I think is a great way to start the process of doing what Jesus tells us is the second most important thing to do... Love our Neighbors.

Here is a link to the introductory video.

What do you think?

Happy 50 years!

Wanted my first post of the day to be a shout out to my parents - John Earl and Mary Ellen Hutchison on their 50th wedding anniversary!   Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!   Hope you have a great day!  Looking forward to our family dinner in a couple weeks, when Caroline is home!

An Image of the Church?

I posted a similar picture of this woman here on my blog and on Facebook yesterday.  On Facebook, it sparked quite a lot of conversation, from folks saying she is off her meds....to folks saying she has inspired them to stand out for Jesus more.   I agree there are lots of ways to look at what she is doing.  It was an interesting conversation yesterday and today.

But I can't quite get the image of this peristent and vocal woman out of my mind.  And what I see is an image of the church.  Too often I fear, the church is like this woman, with one huge exception (and that is we prefer to stay within the confines of our walls).   I fear the church has a very urgent message to share and yet the method we choose to share it doesn't serve us well.  In other words, we are stuck using methods of gospel delivery that might have worked at one time in our history but now are more suspect than effective.   Can we speak the timeless message of love and grace found in Jesus Christ in a way that the people who need to hear it take note and respond in positive ways.  Or do we speak it in such a way that people just pass us by - ignoring the importance of responding to God's love through Christ Jesus?

There is one thing this woman does that the church ought to take note on and respond in similar ways... we need to stop expecting people to come to us.  We need to be comfortable sharing Jesus outside our walls.   We need to find ways to get out into our community to help others come to know who Jesus is and what he can offer them.  

So, for all the downside to how this woman is going about her sharing Jesus, there is a positive challenge as well.