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Ash Wednesday and 40 Days

My journey “living the liturgical year” continues with our arrival on Ash Wednesday and the beginning of the season of Lent. This will be my second full immersion into this tradition of the church; last year was my first time to fully embrace this season of reflection, remembrance, fasting, prayer, and drawing nearer to the heart and purpose of our God. With utmost sincerity I can say it was a season that ushered in considerable change and spiritual growth in my life. I expect that this year’s observation and engagement will be no less gratifying (James 4:8)

My blogging has been somewhat sporadic over the past few weeks; living, observing, and reflecting during the season of Epiphany. I have spent this time preparing for and looking forward to this next season of the great traditions of the Church. My intentions are to offer meditations, reflective thoughts, and my own experience through these next 40 + days as we journey together to Resurrection Sunday. Beginning today, I will post some of these devotional thoughts. Additionally, I will include links to resources and other helpful sites that I am being inspired, encouraged, and challenged by. I hope you will join me and interact here on the blog.

If you’d like to receive daily updates through your email, you can sign-up for the notifications in the window to your left where it says “subscribe” and asks for your email address.

God’s grace and peace be yours as you draw near to Him. Amen.

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Installment #7 was my assignment for this weekend’s worship services. My title for this message was “Preventative Maintenance: Creating and Maintaining a Healthy Biblical Community.” As is my custom, I have included the manuscript, sermon outline, and small group discussion questions along with the audio file. I am always interested in constructive critique and feedback.

download manuscript (.pdf file)

download outline and sm.grp. discussion (.pdf file)

2010FEB14 ChristianJourney 7jb by valleychapel

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Installment #4 was my assignment for this weekend’s worship services. My title for this message was “Rules of the Road: God’s Way of Loving Ourselves and Loving Others.” As is my custom, I have included the manuscript, sermon outline, and small group discussion questions along with the audio file. I am always interested in constructive critique and feedback.

download manuscript (.pdf file)

download outline and sm.grp. discussion (.pdf file)

2010JAN24 ChristianJourney 4jb by valleychapel

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Today was a significant day. It marked the beginning of the next season in our Christian journey as a family. At the close of our morning worship services in our church today we announced that we would be following the direction of God as He calls us out in this next chapter of ministry…continuing the purpose and advancement of His Kingdom.

Saying “yes” in any capacity means that you must say “no” to something else, and it is with this bittersweet truth that sadness and joy co-mingle in the air of our announcement. There will always be people who do not understand the nature of our decision, but we must be true to what we are “hearing” the Spirit direct. We trust Him, even though we do not know the location or community that He is calling us to. Our experience has proven God’s faithfulness time and time again with every aspect of our lives; we are sure He will prove Himself in this season as well.

With that affirmation, we publicly announce our availability for ministry. My ministry profile, resume, and vision for ministry are all available through links on this website. My contact information is also open through this website should anyone desire to discuss our future. I believe we should live as open and authentic as possible…this post continues support of that belief.

The following letter is the announcement shared with our church family today:

I’ve been giving time and reflection to the past two and a half years of ministry at Valley Chapel and wanted to say how blessed my family has been to be a part of this family. During our time here we have seen people come to learn of God and we have seen lives change. We have had the blessed privilege of partnering with God and people who love Him to reach out to people who did not know Jesus…and we have seen fruit born of these efforts.

We have laughed together and cried together. We have celebrated life and we have grieved over the loss of it. We have prayed for loved ones in their trials and struggles and we have rejoiced together when God has lovingly answered prayers. It is without doubt or reservation that we have enjoyed the gift of community and spirit of kindred heart with our church family.

On a personal level, while serving at Valley Chapel, my faith has grown and I have learned more about myself and the relationship I share with my God. I have been honored to serve alongside a number of gifted people and I have learned many things from them. I have grown as a leader from the things I have learned from my leader and pastor, Pastor Ron. Truly, our time in ministry and our time as a family have been profitable while serving and sharing at Valley Chapel Church.

The teacher and writer of Ecclesiastes tells us there is a time and a season for everything. It is with heavy, but joyful heart, I share with you that our season of ministry at Valley Chapel is nearing conclusion. We have been in extended prayer to discern God’s leading for this next season of spiritual growth and have determined along with leadership that God is “sending” us. To be a church that reaches, teaches, mends, and sends implies the bittersweet joy of sending falls upon our community from time to time. Let us celebrate with joy together, this next season that God has in store for Valley Chapel and for the Borden family.

I am sure that God has given me a personal vision for ministry that is leading us into this next chapter in our spiritual journey. I am currently in discussions with the Conference leadership and will be working with them to determine how God is guiding to put this vision in action for the purpose of advancing His kingdom. We are under appointment to Valley Chapel through the conference year and anticipate continuing in our present roles until early June. We covet your continued prayers as we seek God’s direction and say again, our church family has changed our life for the good and for that we thank you and praise Him.

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A Final Christmastide Reflection: Clearly – Appeared and Revealed…

Epiphaneia

2 Timothy 1:8-11

“He has made all of this plain to us by the appearing of Christ Jesus, our Savior. He broke the power of death and illuminated the way to life and immortality through the Good News.”

Today marks the day of Epiphany and the conclusion of the church Christmas season (Jan.5^th). Today, and for the next season in the cycle of the church calendar, we celebrate and reflect upon the revelation of God made man in the person of Jesus Christ…the appearing of the Incarnation. This Epiphany is extremely significant in what it represents. Not only does it recognize the coming (appearance) of the Christ, but also his manifestation to the gentiles (the Eastern wise men aka Magi) and his manifestation as Son of God to the world at his baptism in the Jordan River. His first miracle, turning water into wine at the marriage feast in Cana, (another manifestation and affirmation of his deity) is commemorated during this season of reflection and wonder as well.

Isaiah 60:1-22

¹ Arise, Shine; For your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. ¹⁶ You shall know that I. the LORD, am your Savior and Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob. ¹⁸ …You shall call your walls Salvation, and your gates Praise. ¹⁹ …The LORD will be your everlasting light, and your GOD will be your glory. ²² I am the LORD; in its time I will accomplish it quickly.

What happens when we realize the truth and gravity of what has happened among us? How does this affect and change us? What does it really mean to us when the “glory of the LORD has risen upon you”? I am reminded of the words from Thomas Merton who writes the following:

“We who have seen the light of Christ are obliged by the greatness of the grace that has been given us to make known the presence of the Savior to the ends of the earth…not only by teaching the glad tidings of His coming; but above all by revealing Him in our lives… Every day of our mortal lives must be His manifestation, His divine Epiphany, in the world which He has created and redeemed.”

Epiphaneia: to cause to appear or to bring to light…

“Come and See…” “Go and Tell…” (Mark 3:14)

A great and marvelous light has come into the world. Jesus is that light and it amazes me that He desires to make his abode in the likes of me, but the writings of Paul to Timothy tell me this was the plan of God before creation and time…  “So never be ashamed to tell others about our Lord. And don’t be ashamed of me, either, even though I’m in prison for him. With the strength God gives you, be ready to suffer with me for the sake of the Good News. For God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from before the beginning of time—to show us his grace through Christ Jesus. And now he has made all of this plain to us by the appearing of Christ Jesus, our Savior. He broke the power of death and illuminated the way to life and immortality through the Good News. And God chose me to be a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of this Good News.” (2 Ti. 1:8-11). I want this to be the only thing I live for; my consuming desire…to bring Glory to Him, My God, Savior-Redeemer, Jesus.

I have been praying a prayer that I found from Columbanus for the last couple of days; I will continue to pray this prayer daily for at least the remainder of the week. It follows:

Lord, I pray that You may be a lamp for me in the darkness. Touch my soul and kindle a fire within it, that it may burn brightly and give light to my life. Thus my body may truly become your temple, lit by your perpetual flame burning on the altar of my heart. And may the light within me shine on  my brethren that it might drive away the darkness of ignorance and sin from them also. Thus let us be lights to the world manifesting the bright beauty of Your gospel to all around us. Amen. –Columbanus

“May all kings fall down before Him, all nations give Him service…” (Psalm 72:11)

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It’s always a joy to share God’s Word…

It was my privilege to “kick off” the first message in our new series The Christian Journey this past Sunday. My message topic was to share the goal of the Christian Journey and to set the stage for the remaining eight weeks of this study. My manuscript can be downloaded here and I’ve included a link to the small group discussion and sermon outline here. As is my practice, I am including the audio file here for streaming or for download.

2010JAN03 ChristianJourney 1jb by valleychapel

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Christmastide Reflections: The Passionate Commitment…

Isaiah 9:2-7

⁴ You will break the yoke of their slavery and lift the heavy burden from their shoulders… ⁶ For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace… ⁷ His government and its peace will never end. He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David for all eternity. The *passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will make this happen.

*Passionate Commitment is a translation for the New Living Translation. In other versions it is translated as “zeal.” Looking up the definition of zeal in several online dictionaries was enlightening to me. The following reflects the sum of my findings:

Zeal: Fervor for a person, cause, or object; eager desire or endeavor; enthusiastic diligence; ardor

Synonyms: intensity, passion

I love that… passionate commitment; zeal; enthusiastic diligence, intensity…passion. This is the description of our God, the Creator-Savior-Redeemer, Jesus. The Rescuer who has come to save, reconcile, and restore us. He does this with passionate commitment. He determined that HE WOULD MAKE THIS HAPPEN with enthusiastic diligence and ardor (intense devotion, eagerness, and/or enthusiasm; burning heat). I love this!!! He would see (and did see) that the burden of sin, the yoke of slavery to the broken flesh, would be lifted! His peace and our reconciliation would never end! Our redeemed and restored relationship would extend ETERNALLY! Why? Because HE WAS-IS Passionately Committed to His creation and His children. Thank God! Immanuel. God is with us!

“Each day proclaim the good news that He saves…” (Psalm 96:2b)

At His birth the world changed. The pregnancy of Hope and the conviction of divine possibility were joined. God is with us…Immanuel. The physical birth of Jesus is exponentially larger than a baby in a manger. Christmas marks the coming of a whole new world. As modern day Christians we know that Christmas is the precursor of the cross. Christmas and the cross are truly a single event. With the fulfillment of God’s promise for deliverance come in Jesus, humanity was invited to coexist with deity for eternity… Immanuel… God with us, God among us, and God in us: Redemption, Reconciliation, and ultimate Restoration. Hallelujah! He Has Come. Immanuel.

“God makes the first move, one of sheer grace; the next move is theirs (ours)…” –Bobby Gross

“Christmas is meant to take us to the level of spiritual maturity where we are capable of seeing in a manger the meaning of an empty tomb.” –Joan Chittister

Isaiah’s prophecy describes the character, conscience, and countenance of Jesus…”The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace…” This is the Image by which we were created (Genesis 1:27) and it is the Image to which we are being transformed (Romans 8:29). Christ himself, has prayed (John 17:22-23) that we (the sons and daughters of God) would be instruments and reflections of His Glory. The image we should radiate and reflect is the same description as depicted by the prophet Isaiah; wisdom, power, love (agape), peace (shalom). As I reflect upon these truths and meditate upon all that it holds for us as “awakened” children of God, I am stricken with a somber dose of reality… I think about the quote from Bobby Gross (above) speaking about the lowly shepherds to whom God announced through His angels the arrival of Messiah Jesus. God did make the first move and the shepherds responded with joyful obedience. I wonder about those who do not respond to God’s move… Ironically, the arrival of Jesus in the flesh of humanity not only signaled life-eternal, but brought with it death as well (Matthew 2:13-18). So, to this end, I ponder… the fulfillment of Promise and Life sealed darkness and death for many. Sadly, I think it does still for those who decide to ignore “God’s first move.” I am reminded of an observation made by the ancient church father, Jerome; “The Lord is born on earth, and he does not have even a cell in which to be born, for there was no room for him in the inn. The entire human race had a place, and the Lord about to be born on earth had none. He found no room among people…” O, Dear God, please…please may this not be the case about Your people today. My prayer today is for us who know you and for those who do not…

Almighty and everlasting God, you have revealed the incarnation of your Son by the bright shining of a star, which the wise men saw, and offered costly gifts in adoration; let the star of your justice always shine in our hearts, that we may give as our treasure all that we are and all that we posses, to your service; through Jesus Christ our Lord.

From before time was, Your plan was to manifest Your image in all you create and now You have provided us the way and the means to this completion through rebirth and re-creation. May we be as the shepherds and respond boldly to Your move; Your invitation to grace and shalom. I pray, O Lord, for the blindness and arrogance of my brothers and sisters…that their hearts might not be hardened, but they would be melted to joyful submission and receive this great gift of salvation from Immanuel… You, who are, God With Us. It is your passionate commitment and merciful magnificence that brings men to repentance… I pray that darkness is dispelled and death destroyed for the sake of those who still do not know or refuse you… may they greet you with adoration and joy, responding to Your “first move” and passionate commitment.

Christ is born: glorify Him. Christ comes from heaven: go out to meet Him. Christ descends to earth: let us be raised on high.

– prayer written from my own words, the words of Gregory of Nazianzus and the Gelasian Sacramentary

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I continue to spend time meditating on this Advent season; more words are stimulating my thoughts. Additionally, the books I am reading to stimulate my thoughts have really been helpful with this Advent journey.  Words that are presently stimulating my thoughts follow:

• Parousia – (literally divine presence) refers also to the second coming of Christ or the second Advent
• Repent/Repentance
• Live
• Lament
• Exile
• Coming
• Rescue
• Hope

“Prepare the way of the Lord. What is the meaning of ‘Prepare the way of the Lord?’ It means, make ready for the reception of whatever Christ may wish to do.” Cyril of Alexandria

“It is not simply a matter of waiting and rejoicing in what Advent promises us. It is about learning to live while we wait.” The Liturgical Year; Joan Chittister (p.68)

“The life of Jesus, if it is meaningful to us, is meant to reveal the nature of God” The Sacred Meal; Nora Gallagher (p.135)

A Lament:

As I consider thoughts of Advent and the words that are “bouncing” around inside my head/heart, I am also being influenced by another book, The Sacred Meal by Nora Gallagher (see quote above). Something that struck me last night is that Jesus came to teach us how to live; He should know about life, considering He is the Creator of Life and the Giver of Life (we could learn a thing or two from Him). As Jesus, the Incarnation, He modeled this living-style for us. For some reason, we do not want to believe the Christ-life can be fully lived by us while in our temporal bodies. I think this smacks of heresy and in a backhanded way, pronounces Jesus a liar. I am concerned; if we do not learn to live as Christians now…we may never “Live” as Christians.

Hope and Rescue:

Jesus said…

“I am the way the truth and the life” (John 14:6)

“Abide (remain) in me…” (John 15:4)

“I have come that you may have life and life abundant” (John 10:10)

“My sheep follow me…” (John 10:27)

“Whoever serves me must follow me… (John 12:26)

Repent and Prepare:

Jesus came to teach us how to live. If we don’t learn how to live here and now, we may never truly live. The promise is that we can…live, today, as Christ did when He walked the earth in the flesh of man. We cannot excuse ourselves from learning to live while we wait.

Parousia ~ Advent ~ Maranatha:

“…The Kingdom of God is within you.” (Luke 17:20-21)

“I will come back… we will make our home with him…” (John 14:1-3 John 14:23)

“This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back…” (Acts 1:11)

Live:

“For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.” (Romans 8:29)

“Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.” (1 John 2:6)

If we don’t learn how to live here and now, we may never truly live.

“The voice of Advent in our ears is loud and clear year after year. Its three year cycle of Scripture winds over and around us, reminding us, assuring us, prodding us to bear Christ in our own lives.” The Liturgical Year; Joan Chittister (p.67)

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Deep Church: A Third Way Beyond Emerging and Traditional by Jim Belcher

I couple or more weeks ago I completed the book Deep Church by Jim Belcher. There have been a number of very detailed and thoughtful reviews for this book, so I don’t feel compelled to echo what has already been shared (Google Deep Church or check the amazon.com site for more in depth reviews). One thing I can say about this book is I connected with it in a big way…although I may have missed the point; maybe.

The book is about, in several ways, the history of the emergent-emerging church movement in North America; it is also about something more, and that something more is what appealed to me so much. The subtitle of the book is “A Third Way Beyond Emerging and Traditional,” and many reviewers and much more knowledgeable people than myself have agreed that Belcher’s proposal in Deep Church is a “third way” (opposed to the traditional church and the emerging church). I, on the other hand, do not think of it as much as a third way as much as the way. Let me share my thoughts on why.

First, my thoughts and conversation may seem somewhat out of context to talk about without some knowledge of the book, so let me say that a working knowledge of the emerging-emergent movement as well as the orthodox evangelical movement is needed if you plan to track with my thinking.

Moving on…

Jim Belcher has done a wonderful job on the research end of this proposal. Much of the opening dialogue of the book shares Belcher’s personal testimony and “insider’s look” at the formation of the emerging movement. Not only does he share experiential insight, but Belcher is well-read and well-informed outside his personal experience. I find his (seemingly) unbiased and educated insight very helpful in filling in some gaps in my own understanding. The book is extremely well documented and the endnotes are a treasure trove of resource references.

More to my personal connection with Deep Church was the heart with which Belcher conducted his study. It seems, if I am not mistaken, that he has a deeply passionate love for the Church, the Living Bride of Christ. I do not know Jim, although I traded emails with him, but I get the impression his motivation is sincere and God-pleasing…with a desire to help grow the church into becoming the glorious spotless bride the Bible ultimately proclaims that She will be. Read the rest of this entry »

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Was honored to share the third message in our (my local church) latest sermon series on the Beatitudes. My lesson was on the third beatitude; “Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth.” I have included the audio file, outline with discussion questions, and my manuscript. Blessings!

Outline and discussion questions here |||||  Manuscript here

2009OCT04 WGWUTB humble by valleychapel

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