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| September - October 2009 | Volume 58, Issue 5 |
From the Pastor's Desk
This is the Day
One of the most familiar passages of scripture that most people cannot find in the Bible is “This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” The passage is from Psalm 118:24, a rather long traditional Psalm of Victory. When one reads the psalm in its entirety, one is struck by the fact that while the psalm is hopeful, clearly the author is not without issues in his or her life. Thus the words “This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it,” are meant not to affirm that everything is wonderful, but rather points to the hope received in trusting in the ultimate goodness of God to persevere.
It brings to mind our own attitudes in life. On the one hand, who amongst us would not like to have an easy go of it? We would like to always have enough to meet our needs and a little more to make life easier. We want to have good relationships with family and friends. And yes, we would like to have a strong faith to sustain us in our daily walk. But on the other hand, we have to confess that things rarely are ideal. While most of us are not facing overwhelming problems in life, nevertheless it is true that our lives are far from perfect. Some face financial difficulties; some have serious health problems; some fear the loss of jobs or have already faced job loss; some have difficult family situations; some lament previous choices that have led them down the wrong path. And even if life is pretty good, all of us can easily find things that could be better.
One of the blessings of a strong faith is the ability to look beyond the problems, big or small, that we all face and instead focus on the blessings of our God. Psalm 118 starts with these words: O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his steadfast love endures forever. Think about it. In a few verses the psalmist will cry out in distress and will acknowledge the enemies that seek to destroy him, yet he begins his plea by praising God acknowledging that ultimately God is good and God will sustain him.
We can take lessons from the psalmist. How often do we forget our God when things are going good and how often to we deny our God when things are going bad? How often do we come to God with words of desperation instead of words of thanksgiving? How often do we blame others or God for difficulties that may be the result of our own bad decisions? How often do we believe that serious problems cast God's grace away as if we are cursed? In reality, we would be wise to affirm our God in the midst of good times and bad. Life is far from perfect, yet our God is perfect and our God grants to us perfect peace when we trust in him fully. This is not an assurance that we are promised a “rose garden” lifestyle. Rather it is an affirmation that despite what might seem like long odds, we trust in the steadfast love of God to be at our side and we, like the psalmist, affirm everyday, that indeed, “This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Adult Education Opportunities
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Sunday Morning Bible Study:
Ten Reasons Why Corinthians Matters
- The meaning of Jesus death is explained – it is really good news for us
- Affirms the reality of Jesus resurrection and what it means for us today
- Explains what it means to confess that we believe in the “resurrection of the body”
- Affirms the gift of grace received through faith in Jesus Christ
- Speaks to us of the need to focus our lives (body, mind and soul) on worshiping Jesus
- Offers the earliest liturgy of the Lord’s Supper (yes – it predates all the gospels)
- Defines what the church truly is
- Chapter 13- why love matters
- Addresses those who want to “secularize” the church or compromise on what the church teaches
- Wrestles with controversial ideas (YIKES!!! Does Paul really mean that all women should keep their heads covered and their mouths shut???)
Starts: September 20 at 9:00 am in the library (Class runs about 45 minutes – Choir members are welcome and encouraged to join us and leave early for practice when they need to)
Topic: 1 Corinthians
As you can see, 1 Corinthians has a great deal to offer. Why not join us? There is no need for prior Bible Study experience and if nothing else it will give you the opportunity to explore one of the great books of the Bible in its entirety.
Thursday Evening Adult Study:
Starts: September 10 at 7:00 pm in the parlor –
Classes Continue on September 17, October 1 and October 15The Life and Times of Jesus
Much research has taken place over the last few decades on what daily life was like for Jesus; what some of the things he said might mean in the context in which he spoke; how the teachings of Jesus led to the birth of the church. Join us for the wonderful study that will help you to explore the roots of our faith
The class will be led by the Reverend Dr. George Williams who has been worshiping with us for some time. George is an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ. George studied in Scotland at Edinburgh University and received a PhD from that institution with a focus on Christian Ethics.
