Sunday, April 20, 2014
Easter Sunday Image
During the course of Easter Sunday travels through the Texas 'hill country,' I saw flowering crosses at churches in Austin, in Llano, and this one at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church in Marble Falls ... the congregation added flowers to the bare cross during the service ... a wonderful, colorful image/reminder of the Resurrection and the Life!
From @austinseminary ... Devotional for Easter Sunday
Written by professors, graduates, and others in
the Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary community, these reflections, prayers, and spiritual practices will take you along the journey with Jesus through the cross toward resurrection.
Sunday, April 20, 2014
• Luke 24:1–12
One of my favorite pieces of art is a bronze sculpture in my office — a gift of a well-known sculptor in Dallas — which is the embodiment of this text. Two women are speechless as they behold an empty slab upon which a body, that of Jesus, had been laid out. One of them stands looking at the scene with her hand over her mouth, as if she doesn’t know what to say, or is afraid of what she may say. The other women is kneeling, as if she needs to be nearer the slab in order to take in its grim reality, and she’s looking up at her companion as she gestures helplessly and forms an unthinkable question. There are swaths of cloth scattered across the slab, and they form a pile—like a pile of dirty clothes in a laundry room—on the floor.
I love this piece because it captures, if you think about it, the obvious first reaction that the earliest disciples had to the news of resurrection. And at this very point, we stand far removed from their point of view. Two thousand plus years later, as we prepare for Easter worship in our congregations, having a number of other such services under our belts, we are expecting, after the somberness of Lent, a full-throated and joyous proclamation of the Easter news that “Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!” We will go to church in our brightest, most colorful Easter best, expecting brass and tympani and anthems and preaching that unwrap this day with confidence and high-noon certainty. The choreography of Lent and Holy Week have taken us deliberately from Ash Wednesday to Palm Sunday to Maundy Thursday and Good Friday, and we are wellrehearsed with respect to what to expect in today’s worship.
Which means that we do not readily connect with the astonishment and fear of these women there at that empty slab of stone. The news of this text from Luke, and of this day on our liturgical calendar, is first an unbelievable shock, and all the more so when it emerges from a cemetery— the last place we expect to encounter the evidence of resurrection. Only with time (for it takes time for such news to seep into our hearts) does it become the core of the Church’s message for the world. This is why Fred Craddock, a beloved biblical scholar and professor of preaching, said long ago that some truths are meant to be proclaimed with a shout; and others are meant to be proclaimed with a whisper.
“While they were perplexed about this,” writes Luke, an angel came upon that scene and triggered the faithful act of memory. “Remember how he told you,” said the angel, “while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be handed over to sinners, and be crucified, and on the third day rise again.” Christians in every age are forever needing to remember this news, in order to tell it well and faithfully. That’s exactly what these women did next: “they told all this to the eleven and to all the rest.”
When we gather today to worship the Risen Lord, look around the room you will be in. You will be surrounded by people standing at many points between that journey from fear to full-throated faith. Just remember that that very Lord, the Christ, prepares to welcome them wherever they are, and to walk with them on that long road from the whisper to the shout.
As you cause the Easter sun to rise, O God, bring the light of Christ to dawn in our souls and dispel all darkness. Give us grace to reflect Christ’s glory. And let his love show in our deeds, his peace shine in our words, and his healing felt in our touch, that all may give him praise on this day and on every day to come. Amen
– Theodore J. Wardlaw
President and Professor of Homiletics
For the glory of God and to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary is a seminary in the Presbyterian-Reformed tradition whose mission is to educate and equip individuals for the ordained Christian ministry and other forms of Christian service and leadership; to employ its resources in the service of the church; to promote and engage in critical theological thought and research; and to be a winsome and exemplary community of God's people.
From @JimDenison ... Lenten Devotional for Sunday, April 20
CLICK HERE for a free copy of Dr. Denison's 2014 Advent Devotional (in a downloadable/printable Adobe .pdf file)
Easter Sunday, April 20
Therefore, my beloved brothers, be firm, unmovable, abounding always in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. (1 Corinthians 15:58)
The day that changed history began like any other. The sun arose over the Holy City as millions were still crowded into Jerusalem from Passover. The death of Jesus of Nazareth was not an unusual event—Rome cruci ed its enemies and insurrectionists all the time. The authorities were certain that their plot had succeeded, that this upstart was dead and gone. But with that single sunrise, the crucifi ed carpenter became the resurrected Lord.
The stone rolled over his grave was but a pebble compared to the Rock of Ages inside. Battle-hardened soldiers trembled and fainted. Cowardly disciples became fearless apostles. A fledgling band of frightened followers became the mightiest movement the world has ever seen. Eleven men became more than two billion believers today. All because of Easter.
His disciples' changed lives are testimony to the reality of the resurrection. Men who denied Christ to servants now preached him to the highest authorities in the land. People don't die for a lie, but more than a million Christians died in the fi rst generations of their movement, all of them for the One they knew to be their risen Lord. I have met him for myself, and can testify that he is who he says he is: the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. On the day he returns to this planet, all will know it's true.
Does the world see the risen Christ in you?
What God's word means
The longest chapter in any of Paul's letters is devoted to the most revolutionary and foundational subject the apostle ever addressed. After defending the logic and relevance of Jesus' resurrection, Paul concludes: Therefore, dear ("beloved") brothers (a term that includes all Christians, whether men or women), be rm ("be steadfast"), unmovable ("unable to be moved by any force"), abounding ("giving yourselves fully and unconditionally") always in the work ("labor, tasks, occupation") of the Lord.
The Corinthians can make such a complete commitment to Christ as their King knowing ("having full understanding that") your labor ("trouble, diffi culty, toil") in the Lord is not in vain ("is not empty"). Why Easter matters If Jesus was not raised from the dead, there would be no Christians and no Christianity. Because he was raised from the dead, his followers soon "turned the world upside down" (Acts 17:6, KJV). Now you and I can know that our labor in the Lord is known, received, and rewarded by our living King. We can know that the cost of serving Jesus is always outweighed by its benefi ts. We cannot measure the eternal signi - cance of present faithfulness.
How to respond
Historian Philip Scha ff:
"This Jesus of Nazareth, without money and arms, conquered more millions than Alexander, Caesar, Mohammed, and Napoleon; without science and learning, He shed more light on things human and divine than all philosophers and scholars combined; without the eloquence of schools, He spoke such words of life as were never spoken before or since, and produced e ects which lie beyond the reach of orator or poet; without writing a single line, He set more pens in motion, and furnished themes for more sermons, orations, discussions, learned volumes, works of art, and songs of praise than the whole army of great men of ancient and modern times."
Peter Marshall noted: "No tabloid will ever print the startling news that the mummifi ed body of Jesus of Nazareth has been discovered in old Jerusalem. Christians have no carefully embalmed body enclosed in a glass case to worship. Thank God, we have an empty tomb. The glorious fact that the empty tomb proclaims to us is that life for us does not stop when death comes. Death is not a wall, but a door." Now you and I are invited to step through that door to the abundant life Jesus o ffers us, in this life and the next (John 10:10). We are invited to make the crucifi ed Christ the King of our lives, every moment of every day. When we consider what he did for us, the love he showed us at Calvary and at Easter, how can we do less?"
F. M. Lehman wrote these wonderfully poetic words about God's love shown at Easter:
"The love of God is greater far
Than tongue or pen can ever tell;
It goes beyond the highest star,
And reaches to the lowest hell.
The guilty pair, bowed down with care,
God gave His Son to win;
His erring child He reconciled,
And rescued from his sin."
But the best words to the hymn are the third stanza, written not by a famous poet but found on the walls of a mental asylum. Before the man who lived there died, he somehow came to know God's passionate love for him. And so he wrote,
"Could we with ink the ocean fill,
And were the skies of parchment made;
Were every stalk on earth a quill,
And every man a scribe by trade;
To write the love of God above
Would drain the ocean dry;
Nor could the scroll contain the whole,
Though stretched from sky to sky."
Philip Yancey notes: "Sociologists have a theory of the looking-glass self: you become what the most important person in your life (wife, father, boss, etc.) thinks you are. How would my life change if I truly believed the Bible's astounding words about God's love for me, if I looked in the mirror and saw what God sees?"
How would yours?
Today in the PC-USA Mission Yearbook
The Mission Yearbook for Prayer and Study is a daily devotional with 365 inspiring mission stories that come from next door and all across the globe. It inspires thousands of Presbyterians daily as they uphold the mission of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in intercessory prayer. How often have you wondered, where are the young adults in the PC(USA)? Wonder no longer. The 2014 Presbyterian Mission Yearbook for Prayer and Study is devoted to the theme of young adults in the church. Its stories, many told by young adults, lift up how Presbyterians of all ages are engaging and joining with Presbyterian young adults in reforming the church for Christ’s mission.Today in the Mission Yearbook: April 20, 2014
MINUTE FOR MISSION: RESURRECTION OF THE LORD / EASTER / ONE GREAT HOUR OF SHARING - Jesus’ resurrection is a familiar story—one of new beginnings, eternal life, and everlasting love. How do we make this amazing yet familiar story new in our lives? As represented in Matthew, the two Marys visited Jesus’ tomb. After finding that his body was no longer there, they expected the worst. What they found instead was the most glorious discovery. Jesus resurrected! Jesus appeared to them—two marginalized women—and gave them the responsibility to share the exciting news of Jesus’ eternal life. Such a discovery would surely have changed their lives forever. Jesus sharing his new beginning must have given them new life and a deeper understanding of his love.
CLICK HERE to read more.
Saturday, April 19, 2014
In the News ... "Youth group goes hungry for friends on New Mexico reservation"
 |
| MRT Photo by James Durbin |
Midland Reporter-Telegram
MIDLAND, TEXAS - Members of the Christ Church Anglican youth group are planning a hungry end to a busy Holy Week. They’ve participated in a Christ-centered traditional Passover seder, led their congregation in an interactive Stations of the Cross exhibit and today they will begin a 30-hour fast.
“Our kids are going to go without food for 30 hours and also take on a Christmas in Action project,” said Tom Talbot, youth minister. “They raise money before the event that will go to help the Zuni Christian Mission.”
• read the rest of this story
From @austinseminary ... Devotional for Holy Saturday
Written by professors, graduates, and others in
the Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary community, these reflections, prayers, and spiritual practices will take you along the journey with Jesus through the cross toward resurrection.Saturday, April 19, 2014
• Matthew 27:57–66
On the next day, which followed the Day of Preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees gathered together to Pilate, saying, “Sir, we remember, while He was still alive, how that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise.’ Therefore command that the tomb be made secure until the third day, lest His disciples come by night and steal Him away, and say to the people, ‘He has risen from the dead.’ So the last deception will be worse than the first.” Pilate said to them, “You have a guard; go your way, make it as secure as you know how.” So they went and made the tomb secure, sealing the stone and setting the guard.
As a child my Easter memories include a new dress each year, leaving the house early to “get a seat” at our church, and the beginning somber tone of the opening hymn.
“Lo, in the grave he lay, Jesus my Savior.
Waiting the coming day, Jesus, my Lord.
Vainly they watch his bed … Vainly they seal the dead…”
The first two verses of this hymn represent the totality of my childhood understanding of Holy Saturday. Our church was non-liturgical, a term I didn’t know, along with Lent and Holy Week. It was surely for the joyous chorus this hymn was chosen each year.
“Up from the grave He arose … Hallelujah, Christ arose.”
As an adult, and in large part because of my seminary professor Alan Lewis, I came to appreciate the day which stands “at the interface of cross and resurrection.” Dr. Lewis invited students to explore Holy Saturday from the perspective of the disciples, whose Lord was dead and whose body was sealed in a tomb. They experienced this day without hope and without knowledge of the astounding resurrection power of God.
In a way similar to the guards’ sealing of Christ’s tomb, our lives can become closed off to the resurrection power of God. But through the spiritual discipline of self-reflection, the “stone” that blocks our pathway, can also be “rolled away.”
In remembrance of this day between cross and resurrection, set aside time for honest self-reflection.
What promises of God have you failed to believe?
What blessings have you refused to receive?
Are there kindnesses you have withheld from others; gifts not extended that could have been freely given; those who have asked for forgiveness and have been refused?
Dr. Lewis reminded us that, “just like Christ, the church and those who live and die within it exist not for ourselves, but for the world.” Through the discipline of self-reflection, we understand how we have failed others in the world.
Through it also, we acquire the knowledge to make amends.
Gracious God, in all places we have sealed our hearts from resurrection power, open them, we pray. Make us mindful that your promises are trustworthy and your blessings are freely given. Grant us the grace to serve as Christ served, to forgive as Christ forgave, and to love as Christ loved. Amen.
– The Reverend Dr. Karen Greif (MDiv’92, DMin’06)
Co-founder, Cancer Connection, Austin, and member, Austin Seminary A ssociation Board
For the glory of God and to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary is a seminary in the Presbyterian-Reformed tradition whose mission is to educate and equip individuals for the ordained Christian ministry and other forms of Christian service and leadership; to employ its resources in the service of the church; to promote and engage in critical theological thought and research; and to be a winsome and exemplary community of God's people.
From @JimDenison ... Lenten Devotional for Saturday, April 19
CLICK HERE for a free copy of Dr. Denison's 2014 Advent Devotional (in a downloadable/printable Adobe .pdf file)
Saturday, April 19
... but thanks be to God who is giving us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ ... (1 Corinthians 15:57)
"Holy Saturday" seemed anything but holy to those who rst experienced it. Jesus had died the previous day; his crucifi ed corpse now lay in a borrowed grave. Those who suff ered through the grief of this day had no idea of the joy that awaited them in the morning.
Jesus' state on this Saturday calls to mind a common question: What happens to Christians between death and the nal resurrection? This issue is more personal for me than ever before. I recently stood at my parents' grave and thought about their status in heaven. After my wife's father died, I assured our family at his memorial service that he is with Jesus in paradise. But in what condition? If we do not receive our glorifi ed bodies until the trumpet sound at the Second Coming (1 Corinthians 15:52), what happens to us in the meantime?
What God's word means
Paul has just described our fallen human condition: "The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law" (v. 56). Then comes his shout of victory: but thanks ("gratitude, thankfulness") be to God. Here's why: he is giving us (note the present tense) the victory (over sin and death) through ("because of, by the agency of") our Lord Jesus Christ.
The apostle explained: "if, because of one man's trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Christ Jesus. . . . For as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous" (Romans 5:17, 19).
Why Easter matters
Victory over sin and death began on Easter Sunday and continues to this moment. If Christ is your Lord, you have chosen the winning side in the cosmic battle between good and evil, life and death. In World War II, the decisive victory (D-Day) against the forces of Nazi Germany came on June 6, 1944. The final victory (V-Day) did not come until May 8, 1945. Between D-Day and V-Day the battle continued, but its ultimate outcome had been decided.
For Christians, D-Day came at Easter, while V-Day comes when the risen Lord returns. You and I still battle sin and death, but their defeat is certain and victory is ours.
How to respond
Between Easter and the Second Coming, what happens to those who die in Christ? It is clear that they are with Christ. Jesus told the dying thief at his side, "Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise" (Luke 23:43). "Paradise" was a Persian word for the walled garden of the king. Not only would the thief receive eternal life—he would spend it with the King himself. In the moment we die, angels take us to God's side (Luke 16:22). We will never die (John 11:26; Philippians 1:23), for we are home with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8). Those who die in Christ are in glory, for "to die is gain" (Philippians 1:21).
But in what state? Some theologians posit a body-less existence until the Second Coming. Others think we get an "intermediate body" until our Lord's return and the nal resurrection. Still others think we receive our final body when we die, a position which must be reconciled with 1 Corinthians 15:52 ("the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable") and 1 Thessalonians 4:16 ("the Lord will descend from heaven . . . and the dead in Christ will rise first").
Here's my thought: we are asking a chronological question of a non-chronological reality. In heaven, there is no such thing as "time" (Revelation 10:6, KJV). We step out of the space-time continuum when we step from death into eternal life.
As a result, those in heaven are not waiting for the Second Coming as are those on earth. They can receive their glori ed bodies in the moment of their death, even though it may be another thousand years as we reckon time before the fi nal resurrection. For this reason, I believe that those who died in Christ are already in that glorifi ed state where "death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away" (Revelation 21:4).
Whatever your position on the "intermediate state" between death and the final resurrection, know this: those who die in Christ are alive in Christ. We already have eternal life — we are already immortal. God is giving us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
How can you best express your gratitude to him today?
Today in the PC-USA Mission Yearbook
The Mission Yearbook for Prayer and Study is a daily devotional with 365 inspiring mission stories that come from next door and all across the globe. It inspires thousands of Presbyterians daily as they uphold the mission of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in intercessory prayer. How often have you wondered, where are the young adults in the PC(USA)? Wonder no longer. The 2014 Presbyterian Mission Yearbook for Prayer and Study is devoted to the theme of young adults in the church. Its stories, many told by young adults, lift up how Presbyterians of all ages are engaging and joining with Presbyterian young adults in reforming the church for Christ’s mission.Today in the Mission Yearbook: April 19, 2014
For most of those 10 years, the Taiwanese community has partnered with Mercer Island Presbyterian Church , with whom they have shared fellowship, worship, and service. “From the first day, we were warmly welcomed by MIPC!” Wu says. “[Their] sincere acceptance and incredible hospitality [has allowed us to] freely grow in joy and appreciation. What’s the secret to a good relationship? It’s simple—they treat us as family members and we treat them as family members. We are one church in Christ.”
CLICK HERE to read more.
Friday, April 18, 2014
From @austinseminary ... Devotional for Good Friday
Written by professors, graduates, and others in
the Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary community, these reflections, prayers, and spiritual practices will take you along the journey with Jesus through the cross toward resurrection.Friday, April 18, 2014
• John 19:1–30
It is finished. His last words, as John tells it. They thought that this was exactly what they wanted … for him to stop talking, to stop preaching, to stop teaching. He says his last word and he will not speak to us anymore. What do you suppose he said that made so many want to put a stop to it?
He was always turning things upside down:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me
To preach good news to the poor,
Release to the captives,
Recovery of sight to the blind,
And liberty to those who are oppressed.
He was a teacher who could see life beyond our capacity to imagine. He spoke from a place so holy it was always hard to trust:
Go the second mile,
Turn the other cheek
Repay no one evil for evil.
Love your neighbor ... your enemy.
But now, it is finished. No one would have to listen to him anymore. That’s what crucifixion means: there will be no more words from Jesus.
He had come into the world accompanied by angel song. He had moved by the sea and in the synagogue and he taught of seeds and weeds and surprisingly good Samaritans. Through it all he painted pictures of life in the Kingdom of God. Maybe they needed to shut him up because God’s kingdom is just that—God’s kingdom and not ours.
Or maybe, it was the things he said to the broken ones. The lepers were pushed out of town; the lame and blind waited by the pools and in the gates; the widows and orphans were ignored and simply waited in silence. These were always beyond the reach of words; no one spoke to them. But Jesus spoke to them. He spoke words of welcome. More than welcome, he spoke words of transformation:
Go your way, your faith has made you whole
Rise, take up your pallet and walk
Come out of him unclean spirits.
When you speak words of transformation to the broken of any culture it’s not just the broken that are transformed; everyone is transformed.
Maybe that’s why they needed to stop his words. Or maybe it was his complete disregard for boundaries.
He prayed with sinners.
He welcomed the children.
He spoke to the women.
He loved his neighbor and his enemy.
But not anymore. This Friday his last word is, It is finished. Do you suppose in the silence they realized that he was not the only one who died that afternoon. For if there are no more words from Jesus, how can we live?
God of grace and patience, keep not your Spirit from us. And take not your word from us. For if there ever comes a time where there is a last word from Jesus, we are lost. Look on us in mercy, we pray. Amen.
– The Reverend Tom Are, Jr.
Pastor, Village Pres byterian Church (Prairie Village, Kansas ) and chair, Austin Seminary Board of Trustees
For the glory of God and to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary is a seminary in the Presbyterian-Reformed tradition whose mission is to educate and equip individuals for the ordained Christian ministry and other forms of Christian service and leadership; to employ its resources in the service of the church; to promote and engage in critical theological thought and research; and to be a winsome and exemplary community of God's people.
From @JimDenison ... Lenten Devotional for Friday, April 18
CLICK HERE for a free copy of Dr. Denison's 2014 Advent Devotional (in a downloadable/printable Adobe .pdf file)
Good Friday, April 18
Where, O death, is the victory? Where, O death, is the sting? Now the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law ... (1 Corinthians 15:55-56)
"Good Friday" should be called "Black Friday." On this day the most scandalous betrayal of justice in human history took place. But when we remember what happened on this day we'll know why we call it "Good Friday" today.
The night before, Jesus was arrested and tried illegally by the Jewish authorities. They held his trial at night, without credible witnesses, and asked Jesus to convict himself—any of these factors should have set him free. He could have fl ed before they arrived or refused to incriminate himself and Friday would never have been called "Good."
Instead, he convicted himself by claiming to be the Son of God, a statement he knew would lead to condemnation for blasphemy. Then they took him to the Romans, where they changed their charge to insurrection. He could easily show that he was innocent, but he stayed silent instead. He could rally the crowds to himself with a single demonstration of his miraculous powers, but he refused. So he was condemned to cruci fixion.
Now he is stripped and tied to a post, then scourged with a long whip in which are embedded nails, lead balls, and pieces of shell. They rip the esh from his back, torture that killed many of its victims. A crown of razor-sharp thorns is pressed onto his head, impaling his scalp and forehead. He is forced to carry a wooden cross to Calvary. There, nails are driven through his wrists and ankles into the wood and he is left to die. He could call ten thousand angels to his side, but he refuses.
Instead, he dies there for you and for me. How should we respond to such sacrifi ce?
What God's word means
In Hosea 13 the Lord says of his people,
Shall I ransom them from the power of Sheol?
Shall I redeem them from Death?
O Death, where are your plagues?
O Sheol, where is your sting? (v. 14).
These questions were originally directed to Israelites eight centuries before Christ. Now Paul is led by by the Spirit to ask them of Corinthian Christians. Death has no victory or sting ("goad, stinger") for Jesus' followers. This enemy that has defeated every adversary is itself defeated in Christ. This wasp whose venom is always fatal has lost its stinger.
It was the case that the sting of death is sin, meaning that sin causes death as a stinger transmits venom (cf. Romans 6:23, "the wages of sin is death"). The power of sin is the law, meaning that we sin when we break God's word and will. So long as we are fallen people, we are under the power of sin and the death it produces (cf. Romans 7:7-13).
But now this power is broken, this sting removed. How much threat is a wasp without a stinger?
Why Easter matters
At the cross, Jesus was "stung" by our sin: "God made him to be sin who knew no sin" (2 Corinthians 5:21a). But our sinless Sacrifi ce never broke the law and therefore broke the power of sin it produces. As a result, "in him we might become the righteousness of God" (v. 21b).
Imagine a swarm of killer bees attacking our Savior on the cross. As they sting him, each bee's stinger and its venom sac are pulled from its body, killing it instantly. As a result, the bees kill Jesus but cannot harm us.
This is a picture of what happened on Good Friday and Easter Sunday. When our Lord rose from the tortured death our sins in flicted on him, he defeated our grave and guaranteed our eternal life.
How to respond
Never again wonder if you are loved. If you had been the only sinner on the planet, Good Friday would still have happened, just for you. Someone asked Jesus, "How much do you love me?" He answered, "This much," as he spread out his arms and died. All for you. Just for you.
Have you thanked God today for Good Friday?
Today in the PC-USA Mission Yearbook
The Mission Yearbook for Prayer and Study is a daily devotional with 365 inspiring mission stories that come from next door and all across the globe. It inspires thousands of Presbyterians daily as they uphold the mission of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in intercessory prayer. How often have you wondered, where are the young adults in the PC(USA)? Wonder no longer. The 2014 Presbyterian Mission Yearbook for Prayer and Study is devoted to the theme of young adults in the church. Its stories, many told by young adults, lift up how Presbyterians of all ages are engaging and joining with Presbyterian young adults in reforming the church for Christ’s mission.Today in the Mission Yearbook: April 18, 2014
CLICK HERE to read more.
Thursday, April 17, 2014
Teichert Prayer Letter for April
The family of Karl and Jenny Teichert are serving the Lord as missionaries with OC Africa, in South Africa. They moved to Johannesburg in November, 1997 with their four children; Ann, Scott, Stephen and John. Karl serves as the Southern Africa Director of the Southern Africa Regional Team. Their vision is to see a healthy, Bible-based church established in every un-reached village and community in South Africa, Swaziland, Zimbabwe, Zambia and beyond. Their strategy is to partner with key African church leaders to research, train, and mobilize the body of Christ to complete the Great Commission. They are striving to equip local leaders in Southern Africa to reach their nations for Christ and send missionaries into other countries as well.
April Letter ...
A few months ago a local pastor approached me and asked if Barbara (my teammate) and I would train the Sunday school teachers in his church. It had been over a year since Barbara and I had held a Sunday school workshop so we re-made old puppets and added new crafts to our boxes and began to get our materials in order.
Weekends are the times when there are many funerals and weddings in the rural areas, which from past experience have left us with only a few teachers to train. Since we usually hold these workshops on Saturdays, we never know whether or not we will have a good turn out.
Barbara and I enjoyed teaching them new ideas for lesson plans, Bible memory games to reinforce the lessons, ideas for discipline in the classroom, drama and finally, we made marionette puppets together out of Styrofoam cups. They were so enthusiastic and said it was a much-needed teacher training for the over 100 children that come from around the community each Sunday.
We pray that many children will come to know and serve the Lord in this community and beyond.
Thanks for your prayers.
In His love,
Jenny, for the Teicherts
OC Africa is an interdenominational ministry committed to developing, equipping, and mobilizing church leaders to multiply healthy, Bible-based churches in every community in Southern Africa and the world. OC is a faith-based mission who depends on the Lord to provide committed, financial supporters and partners. The contributions from these individuals help generate ministry opportunities around the world, impact missionaries and their global work, and provide a means for the International Mobilization Center to function. CLICK HERE to learn how YOU can be a part of mobilizing church leaders around the world by donating to OC.
Faces of Children: Prayer Concerns for This Week
Faces of Children is an ecumenical prayer ministry under the auspices of First Presbyterian Church of Midland, Texas. Our mission is to initiate ministries of prayer for children in churches, communities, and neighborhoods. In doing so, we seek to provide an opportunity for people of God to join together, learn about children and their needs throughout the world, and celebrate Christ's love (especially as it relates to children).Prayer Concerns for the Week of 04/16/14
South Sudan, Sudan, Uganda
In July 2011, South Sudan gained independence from Sudan as a result of a 2005 peace agreement that ended Africa’s longest-running civil war. Two years later, fighting broke out between government forces loyal to the president and rebel factions loyal to his deposed deputy. The conflict has killed thousands of people and forced more than 800,000 to leave their homes. Disagreements with Sudan over vast oil reserves in South Sudan is contributing to border disputes between the two countries. There are also several other complex, on-going disputes that contribute to the volatility of South Sudan’s border regions. One involves a cattle-raiding feud between rival ethnic groups in Jonglei State where hundreds of people have been killed and an estimated 100,000 have been displaced in the past three years. The African Soul, American Heart’s (ASAH) Boarding School for Orphan Girls is located in this state.
• Please keep close in prayer the girls who fled ASAH’s boarding school when Sudanese rebels attacked and ransacked their school compound last month. Thanks be to God the villagers and the school’s students and staff had advance warning of the attack and were able to seek safety. And give God thanks the ASAH staff have been able to locate most of the students who fled the attack and transfer them to Juba, South Sudan’s capital city. Pray for the safe return of the remaining girls.
• African Soul, American Heart website
• Pray for the staff and volunteers with ASAH as they set up a new home in the Moyo District of Uganda for the orphaned girls. Pray God will provide the resources needed for the new facility as the rebels took everything they could from the compound, including mattresses and pots and pans.
• Please pray for the girls as they adjust to a new home and school in Uganda. Pray for those who’ve been traumatized by the violence in their home country.
• Pray the ASAH staff will be able to continue their work of protecting orphaned girls from forced marriage when they reach puberty; educating them in school subjects and life skills; and empowering them to be leaders and give back to their communities.
• Please keep all the children of South Sudan and Sudan close in prayer during this time of unrest and conflict. Pray they might have the opportunity to attend school and help their communities develop and sustain peace.
• Pray for peace and reconciliation between Sudan and South Sudan.
United States
One-quarter of the United States’ American Indian and Alaskan Native children live in poverty. Native American children also experience two times the rate of abuse and neglect as non-native American children. They are twice as likely as any other race in the U.S. to die before they reach the age of 24. And they are more than three times as likely as the national average to take their own lives and up to 10 times more likely on certain reservations. The root cause of the struggles of today’s Native American children is likely connected to the historical trauma experienced by their parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents. In the 1870s, the federal government began sending American Indian children to off-reservation boarding schools in an effort to control hostile Native nations. The objective was to “erase and replace” Indian culture—students in federal boarding schools were forbidden to express any facet of their culture. In many instances, boarding schools were centers of sexual, physical, and emotional abuse. The practice of transplanting Native American children continued for almost a hundred years until it was phased out.
Pray for Native American youth and children affected by the abuse inflicted upon their parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents in off-reservation boarding schools. Pray for those who suffer abuse as a result of the aftermath of this century-long attempt to assimilate Native American children.
• Pray for Native American children and youth who experience hopelessness and despair to such a degree they believe suicide is their only option. Pray for those who don’t have access to mental health care, counseling services, or family support.
• Please pray for girls who are victims of repeated sexual and domestic violence. Pray they are able to access support services for survivors. Pray for God’s healing presence in their lives.
• Pray the high incidence of youth suicides in Native American populations will be drastically reduced. Pray young people in these communities will be able to see a future for themselves and not give up hope.
Faces of Children
• Please continue to pray that more churches and individuals will join with the ministry of Faces of Children in spreading awareness about children in crisis and inviting more people to pray for children at risk.
• Please keep in prayer Faces of Children intercessor John as he recovers from recent back surgery. Pray for God’s healing touch upon this faithful prayer partner and for a complete recovery.
If you have prayer requests about children, those who care for them, those who have authority over them, or those who harm them (the really hard prayers to say sometimes), please send them to Chris Laufer, FOC Coordinator, at claufer@facesofchildren.net
In the News ... "Prayer Luncheon set for May 1 in Odessa"
• A time for those of all faiths to pray for leaders at all levels of government
Staff Report
Odessa American
ODESSA, TEXAS - Tickets are on sale now for Odessa Mayor David Turner’s second Prayer Luncheon, on the National Day of Prayer, at 11:30 a.m. May 1, 2014, at the MCM Grande Hotel, 6201 East Business Loop 20.
Pastor Nathan Lino of Northeast Houston Baptist Church will discuss "personal relationships with God through Jesus Christ and Christ centered ministries through every season of life," according to a City of Odessa release.
• read the rest of this OA report ...
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| Odessa Mayor David Turner |
Odessa American
ODESSA, TEXAS - Tickets are on sale now for Odessa Mayor David Turner’s second Prayer Luncheon, on the National Day of Prayer, at 11:30 a.m. May 1, 2014, at the MCM Grande Hotel, 6201 East Business Loop 20.
Pastor Nathan Lino of Northeast Houston Baptist Church will discuss "personal relationships with God through Jesus Christ and Christ centered ministries through every season of life," according to a City of Odessa release.
• read the rest of this OA report ...
From @austinseminary ... Devotional for Maundy Thursday
Written by professors, graduates, and others in
the Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary community, these reflections, prayers, and spiritual practices will take you along the journey with Jesus through the cross toward resurrection.Thursday, April 17, 2014
• 1 Corinthians 11:23–26
I grew up as a Roman Catholic in Bogota, Colombia. I lived in two worlds. During the week I attended the Presbyterian high school. At home and on Sundays we were “cultural Catholics” who attended weekly Mass and received communion only if we had gone to confession beforehand. The Mass itself was more an aggregate of individuals each praying privately than a community of worshipers. The years passed and I immigrated to the United States where I “rediscovered” the Presbyterian Church and became part of a loving and worshiping community in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Eucharist took on a completely different meaning. We gathered around the Table to hear the Word of the Lord and to share the Sacrament. We were not a collection of individuals, but a community connected to one another and to sister churches throughout the denomination. “Connectional Church” took on flesh and blood meaning for me.
Paul understood the centrality of the Eucharist for Christians. At the Table of the Lord we remember the Word made flesh in both Scripture and Sacrament. Then as we share the bread, we are connected to one another in our journey as “Companions” or in Spanish “Compañeros,” that is, “those who eat bread together.”
Lord, as we accompany you on your Lenten journey, we thank you for the compañeros you have given us. Keep us connected to you and to one another as we follow in your footsteps of service. Amen.
– The Reverend Consuelo Donahue (MDiv’96)
Chaplain, Goodwill Industries, San Antonio, and Aust in Seminary Trustee
For the glory of God and to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary is a seminary in the Presbyterian-Reformed tradition whose mission is to educate and equip individuals for the ordained Christian ministry and other forms of Christian service and leadership; to employ its resources in the service of the church; to promote and engage in critical theological thought and research; and to be a winsome and exemplary community of God's people.
From @JimDenison ... Lenten Devotional for Thursday, April 17
CLICK HERE for a free copy of Dr. Denison's 2014 Advent Devotional (in a downloadable/printable Adobe .pdf file)
Maundy Thursday, April 17
... When this corruptible body shall put on incorruption and this mortal shall put on immortality, then will come to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory" (1 Corinthians 15:54)
On this day, Jesus shared his Last Supper with his disciples. During their meal, Judas Iscariot left to bring the authorities who would arrest our Lord. Jesus knew what Judas was doing and had every opportunity to fl ee Jerusalem before his enemies' arrival. Instead, he went to the one place where he knew Judas could find him — a private garden outside the city walls where he often retreated for prayer. This was also so far from the city that the authorities could arrest him without fear of the crowds. And it was at night, where their illegal actions would not be known.
Imagine Jesus praying and waiting in that Garden of Gethsemane as a procession of soldiers begins from the Eastern Gate of the city. He watches their torches as they proceed down into the Kidron Valley and up the Mount of Olives. This would take at least 45 minutes, with Jesus watching them the entire time. The Mount of Olives is covered in trees — he can fl ee in any direction and not be found. Instead, he waits. When the soldiers nally arrive, his disciples try to defend him, but he refuses. They scatter and leave him to his fate.
He is taken to the Jewish high priest, who can fi nd no witnesses whose testimony can convict him. So he convicts himself, testifying that he is the Son of God and bringing their condemnation for blasphemy (Matthew 26:63-66). From there he will be led on Good Friday to Pilate and to his death.
What God's word means
Paul has assured the Corinthians that when the "last trumpet" sounds, they will exchange perishable, mortal bodies for imperishable immortality (1 Corinthians 15:52-53). Now he looks forward to that glorious moment when this corruptible body must put on incorruption and this mortal shall put on immortality.
In that moment, the prophecy of Isaiah will come to pass ("will come true, will be ful filled"). Isaiah 25:8 states that God "will swallow up death forever." The apostle paraphrases this great proclamation: Death is swallowed up ("devoured, made to disappear") in victory. Later he would rejoice in that day when "what is mortal may be swallowed up by life" (2 Corinthians 5:4).
Why Easter matters
Note the present tense: Death is defeated in victory now, today. Even though the Lord's return may delay for another decade or millennium, our victory in him is assured. Jesus' past resurrection is present proof of our future resurrection. Because God's nature does not change (Hebrews 13:8), he can do today anything he has ever done. If he could raise Jesus' body from corruption to immortality, he can do the same with ours.
Paul explained this miracle:
You, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him (Colossians 2:13-15).
Jesus' triumph at Easter is our triumph today. How should we respond to his gift?
How to respond
"Maundy Thursday" comes from the word for "mandated." Here's why it's an appropriate name for today. Before his arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus did a very strange thing. After the Last Supper, he took o his outer robe and wrapped a slave's towel around himself. He then crawled on his knees to his rst disciple. He took the man's dirty, smelly, mud-caked feet in his hands. He poured water over them and dried them with the towel wrapped around his waist. He then crawled to the next, and the next, and the next. He washed the feet of Peter, who would deny him, and Judas, who would betray him, and the other disciples who would abandon him (John 13:1-11).
Here's the "mandated" part of Maundy Thursday: Jesus told them, "If I, then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet" (v. 14). He explained that we are to follow his example: "Just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another" (v. 34). Then our Master concluded: "By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love one for another" (v. 35).
What Jesus did for us, the victory over death he won for us at Calvary, is a gift we cannot repay. But it is a gift we can share with others. When we wash their feet as he has washed away our sins, demonstrating his love in ours, we respond to Maundy Thursday grace with Maundy Thursday gratitude.
Do the people who know you best know that you are Jesus' disciple?
Today in the PC-USA Mission Yearbook
The Mission Yearbook for Prayer and Study is a daily devotional with 365 inspiring mission stories that come from next door and all across the globe. It inspires thousands of Presbyterians daily as they uphold the mission of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in intercessory prayer. How often have you wondered, where are the young adults in the PC(USA)? Wonder no longer. The 2014 Presbyterian Mission Yearbook for Prayer and Study is devoted to the theme of young adults in the church. Its stories, many told by young adults, lift up how Presbyterians of all ages are engaging and joining with Presbyterian young adults in reforming the church for Christ’s mission.Today in the Mission Yearbook: April 17, 2014
MINUTE FOR MISSION: MAUNDY THURSDAY - Shock and awe. Whenever Jesus acts and speaks, he shocks us, he awes us, as he did the disciples when he washed their feet.
Holding the grimy, sweaty feet of the disciples clashes with human thoughts of whom and what the King and Creator of the universe is supposed to be about. And yet those who heed the psalmist’s words should not be too surprised:
But you, O Lord, are enthroned forever;
your name endures to all generations.
You will rise up and have compassion on Zion.
(Psalm 102:12–13b)
CLICK HERE to read more.
Wednesday, April 16, 2014
WAW Wednesdays: Prison
Friends,
The biggest deal weighing on me right now is prison.
Unlike in the US, Belizeans are not afforded the "right to a speedy trial".
Right now there are 500 people in the "Remands" section. These are men that have not been sentenced but are awaiting trial, some of those as long as 7 years. packed like sardines in small cells with little to no light and allowed out for only an hour per day. The Kolbe Foundation has brought amazing major changes to the prison. Now this situation is the challenge on top of the list.
Many are stepping up and asking how to help. What we need right now are people who can help draw up the plan.
Electrical Contractor
Plumbing Contractor
Building Contractor
Is that you? Will you come to the prison and share your expertise and direction?
Here's some good news.
Another donation of a million meals in dehydrated food arrives.
Photos below of delivery to help the prison and their amazing ministry. This shipment also contained pallets of vitamins and baby food which will help many of our ministry partners e.g. Childrens homes, Seed of Life, YES, Hospice, and more.
Tim Tam
The Word at Work
In the News ... "Odessans march for remembrance"
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| OA File Photo |
By Jared Wilson, Reporter
Odessa American
ODESSA, TEXAS - The Holocaust, an event that took place during World War II in which millions of Jewish citizens were killed, highlighted the cruelty of the Nazi Party in Germany and the clear abuse of human rights and one organization is out to ensure that it is never forgotten.
Now one couple, Chris and Moira Randal, who recently moved to the Permian Basin, has volunteered their time to organize the 2014 March of Remembrance slated for April 27.
• read the rest of this OA report ...
From @JimDenison ... Lenten Devotional for Wednesday, April 16
CLICK HERE for a free copy of Dr. Denison's 2014 Advent Devotional (in a downloadable/printable Adobe .pdf file)
Wednesday, April 16
... For this corruptible body must put on incorruption and this mortal body must put on immortality ... (1 Corinthians 15:53)
Today is Holy Wednesday. There is not a single recorded event in the life of the Lord Jesus on this day. He likely remained in Bethany, a suburb of Jerusalem where he has been staying in the home of Mary, Martha and Lazarus. Here he spends the day with his disciples and friends in quiet and solitude, preparing for the horrifi c events soon to come.
This is not the first time our Lord stayed in the home of friends. He lived in Capernaum for three years in the home of Peter and Andrew (Mark 1:29). He also stayed in the home of Matthew, the notorious tax collector, where he ate with tax collectors, prostitutes, and other well-known sinners (Matthew 9:10). And Luke's Gospel tells us that he accepted the financial support of a group of women who helped him out of their own means (Luke 8:2-3). After leaving his own home in Nazareth, he never had a home of his own again. He went wherever he was invited and stayed anywhere he was welcome. This is the pattern of Christianity from the fi rst century to ours. The faith began in Palestine and spread across the Middle East. From there it grew into Greece and eventually to Italy and Rome. Missionaries took the gospel as far west as Spain and England, and as far east as India.
Then the center of gravity shifted across the Atlantic to the New World. For centuries North America was the most Christianized continent in the world, with the largest churches and the most missionaries. Now the faith is moving again. South Korea is one-third to one-half "born again" Christian; ve of the ten largest churches on earth are in their country. Last year, they sent more missionaries into the world than America did.
A worship movement is sweeping Australia. A tribal movement is growing across sub-Saharan Africa; in southern Nigeria, 90% of the people gather for worship each Sunday. As many as 100,000 people come to Christ every day in the People's Republic of China. More than a million people have become Christians in Cuba over the last ten years. A Pentecostal movement is sweeping Central and South America. More Muslims than ever before are coming to Christ, many after seeing visions and dreams of Jesus.
Meanwhile, the Church is dying in Western Europe where it once was headquartered. In Great Britain, four times as many Muslims go to mosque on Friday as Christians go to church on Sunday. In France, less than one percent go to church each week. In America, the number of atheists and agnostics has quadrupled over the last 20 years.
Author Philip Yancey observes: "As I travel, I have observed a pattern, a strange historical phenomenon of God 'moving' geographically from the Middle East, to Europe to North America to the developing world. My theory is this: God goes where he's wanted."36 The fact is clear: God goes where he's welcome and changes the world wherever he goes.
What God's word means
Paul has already explained that " flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable" (v. 50). Now he returns to this fact: Before we can enter God's perfect heaven, this corruptible ("destructible, perishable") body must ("it is necessary that") put on ("clothe itself with") incorruption ("that which is imperishable") and our mortal ("perishable") body with immortality.
When the "last trumpet" sounds, the battle is over (v. 52). Our battle with corruption and death will end in victory as we achieve incorruption and immortality. When we put on such victorious garments, we will say with the prophet,
I will greatly rejoice in the Lord;
my soul shall exult in my God,
for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation;
he has covered me with the robe of righteousness (Isaiah 61:10).
Why Easter matters
On Easter Sunday, Jesus rose from the dead in a body that could appear through locked doors (John 20:19) and ascend to heaven (Acts 1:9). Because he could exchange corruptible for incorruptible and mortal for immortality, we can as well.
How to respond
Now Jesus continues his Kingdom advance through his followers, the "body of Christ" (1 Corinthians 12:27). His Spirit dwells in us as his temple (1 Corinthians 3:16). As Jesus made his home in a fishing village and a tax-collector's house, then in the home of Mary, Martha and Lazarus on Holy Wednesday, he makes his home in us. In fact, he goes anywhere people will make him their King and serve to advance his Kingdom.
Would he say he is welcome as King in your home and your heart? How is your life advancing his Kingdom today?
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