“I See Christmas”

   Walking through the wide corridors of the mall, the little girl, with mother in tow, screams out, “Mommy, I see Christmas.” I looked up to see to what she was referring. I saw lights, garland, ornaments, a tree, and even reindeer. For a girl her age, this was certainly Christmas. 
   Of course, it was only November 14th, but why wait? Retailers don’t wait. Advertising, decorating, and discounting begins in October. Radio stations have been “all in” for Christmas for five weeks, already. This year, some large retailers started Black Friday sales on Thanksgiving day in an effort to gain early access to the wallets and purses of Americans. No one is waiting these days. 
   The truth is that most of the time I don’t mind any of that. But the church has a different way of marking time. Listen to my friend, Mark Westmoreland, a United Methodist pastor in Fayetteville;

As the whole world screams “Christmas”, the church speaks, in a calm, even prayerful, voice, “Advent.” As the world shouts “It’s here!” we say, “We await him.” Advent is a time to consider our need for Christmas and the salvation that comes with the one who is “God with us.” Advent is a time of waiting in the promises of God. But waiting isn’t easy. So, in our impatience, we are tempted to skip Advent…. This year, let’s try to trust the great story.

   This Sunday, let us also be those asking for the whole story of Christmas. Let us be reminded about how important it is to wait, to prepare, to be ready. That is the message of 
Advent: four weeks of preparation for the coming of a Savior. So when our children finally exclaim, “I see Christmas,” we’ll all know the true meaning has nothing to do with what’s found under a tree. This is exactly what we are going to deliver on in the sermon series, The Thrill of Hope. We mailed out postcards to our neighbors and gave them to you to invite people to hear the Good News at a time when news that is really good is in short supply. The Christmas message is amazing and wonderful. It is even worth waiting for....
   Grace and Peace to you, Scott

It is Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving, Norman Rockwell

   It is the Lord's Supper. It is breaking bread. It is the divine liturgy, or mass, or the service of table. It is the sacrament of holy communion. It is known by all these names but none is more ancient than the name Eucharist. It is a Greek word that literally means thanksgiving. This sacrament, passed down directly from Jesus Christ to his followers and referenced throughout the Gospels as the center of worship for Christians, was named early on for the central prayer of thanksgiving, or eucharistia. The Eucharist is and means thanksgiving.
   Beyond a variety of names this sign-act commanded by Jesus had nearly as many metaphors to describe it in the early church. They wanted to explain what the experience of breaking bread together meant to them. The New Testament contains at least six of their attempts: communion fellowship, remembering the historical act, sacrifice, mystery, the work of the Holy Spirit, and thanksgiving. James White, noted United Methodist professor of worship, places thanksgiving at the top of the list. He writes, "It is hard to imagine thanksgiving as absent from the joyful action that bubbled over as the Jerusalem church broke bread with glad and generous hearts" (in Acts 2:46). In fact, Jesus lived out this thanksgiving with every meal he shared with his friends and followers. Thanksgiving is at the center of the Gospel.

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   Which brings us to this week. What we do this week, many of us separated by miles but all still gathered around tables, is the very stuff of the Gospel. Thanksgiving is the good news. We sit and are thankful. We are nourished by what, for the most part, others have gathered and prepared. We suspend rivalries and enmity and celebrate. We slow down long enough to appreciate what we have and from where we have come. All of this is Thanksgiving and all of this is the life of faith. This is what it means to do life together as Christians. 
   You are in my prayers this week. Wherever you are, you are loved. You are forgiven. You are blessed and you are called to be a blessing. May these days find thanksgiving at their center. 
   Grace and Peace, Scott

Prayer and Issues

I asked a friend recently about how she understands intercessory prayer. Specifically, how to not feel burdened by the long list of persons who need our prayers and, instead, stay joy-filled while praying, even in the midst of many of the serious concerns related to each name and situation. She shared an article with me and I pass it on to you as a pearl of great treasure:

   "Why has the world become such a heavy burden? We simply can't blame the media. I suspect that while we become more informed about the world, we become less transformed by the living Christ.  The strategy of the power of evil is to make us think of life as a huge stack of very complicated issues, too many to respond, too complex to understand, and too frustrating to deal with.  The more entangled we become in issues the harder it is to recognize Jesus as the saving Lord of history.
   As long as issues dominate our lives, whether they are Third World issues, hunger issues, nuclear issues, or women's issues, we cannot pray. Prayer is not directed to issues; it is not meant to unravel complexities or solve problems.  Prayer is directed to a personal God who loves us and hears us: it is a cry from heart to heart, from spirit to spirit.
   Issues easily imprison; a person can set free.  Issues easily divide us; a person can unite. Issues easily exhaust; a person can give us rest. Issues easily destroy; a person can offer new life.  Despair is caused by orientation toward issues, but hope emerges when we direct ourselves with heart and mind to the person of a saving God.  That is prayer.
   Jesus leaves little doubt about the meaning of prayer when he says: 'I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, then you will produce much fruit. Without me, you can't do anything.' (John 15:5).  Dwelling in Jesus is what prayer is all about.
   Life becomes an unbearable burden whenever we lose touch with the presence of a loving Savior and see only hunger to be alleviated, injustice to be addressed, violence to be overcome, wars to be stopped, and loneliness to be removed.  All these are critical issues and Christians must try to solve them; however, when our concern no longer flows from our personal encounter with the living Christ, we feel an oppressive weight."

Henri J. M. Nouwen, a selection from Prayer Embraces the World

Pass Onto You What I Received

   Last week I was reading from a book that I have had for years. As I went to return the bookmark I was using to mark my spot I slowed down long enough to notice that it was a folded scrap of paper that had typewriter ink on it. When I looked closer I realized it was a clipping from an old church bulletin. Then I saw a note in my grandfather's handwriting scribbled across the bottom. I flipped to the front of the book and saw this was once his copy of Mack Stokes' Major United Methodist Beliefs. As I held both the book and the little note in my hands, I paused to appreciate what a gift it is to be connected. What a precious thing to receive gifts from others.
   The Apostle Paul knew where he stood. He was not first in line, and he was not last. He, like us, stood somewhere in between. Therefore, he was intentional to pass on what he, himself, had received from others who came before him. These legacy gifts can be found in his writings. 

"I passed on to you as most important what I also received:
Christ died for our sins in line with the scriptures." 1 Corinthians 15:3

"I received a tradition from the Lord, which I also handed on to you: on the night on which he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took bread. 24 After giving thanks, he broke it and said, "This is my body, which is for you; do this to remember me." 1 Corinthians 11:23-24

   
   Like Paul, I stand in a long line of those relying on grace as we journey through life and ministry. Like Paul, I cherish the traditions I have received. I wish so very much my grandfather, Rev. Carlton Carruth, were here to meet you and you him. He would love knowing the people of Epworth. I have a hunch that he would walk our hallways and study the history found here. He would tell me personal stories and remembrances of the pastors who have served here that he counted as friends. He would ask about the names of the men and women that adorn plaques and items of significance throughout our building. He loved history. He knew he was not first in line or last, but lived in the middle of amazing generations of faithful persons who are living out what it means to be faithful.

   Continuing our church's tradition of connecting people across generations, I am looking forward to welcoming Sister Chris, a Catholic Sister from the Blessed Trinity Shrine Retreat in Fort Mitchell, to worship with us this coming Sunday. I want you to be here, too. I am proud to be a United Methodist, and especially proud to be a part of Epworth. 
   Grace and Peace, Scott