First Presbyterian Bend Youth

We've Moved

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 23:30:00 +0000

This will no longer be the address for the BendFP Youth Blog. We have moved over to wordpress.

Find us at http://bendfpyouth.wordpress.com

See ya soon!

Greg

Welcome to the 5:01- Volume 3

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 20:54:00 +0000

At First Pres, we just started a new worship service on Sunday nights at 5:01. The idea is for a relaxed environment that would be welcoming and a little less formal than a Sunday morning worship.

We have been using a video slideshow to be our call to worship. Here is the third one.

Enjoy

Welcome to the 5:01 from Greg Bolt on Vimeo.

Blessings,
Greg

Welcome to the 5:01- Volume 2

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 20:52:00 +0000

At First Pres, we just started a new worship service on Sunday nights at 5:01. The idea is for a relaxed environment that would be welcoming and a little less formal than a Sunday morning worship.

We have been using a video slideshow to be our call to worship. Here is the second one.

Enjoy

Welcome to the 5:01- October 18, 2009 from Greg Bolt on Vimeo.

Blessings,
Greg

Welcome to the 5:01

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 20:50:00 +0000

At First Pres, we just started a new worship service on Sunday nights at 5:01. The idea is for a relaxed environment that would be welcoming and a little less formal than a Sunday morning worship.

We have been using a video slideshow to be our call to worship. Here is the first one.

Enjoy

Welcome to the 5:01 from Greg Bolt on Vimeo.

Blessings,
Greg

Holy Mackerel! You Missed Out!

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 03:13:00 +0000

Last Friday we hosted the BendFP Back-To-School Blowout, if you weren't there you missed out!

About a 100 or so folks came to a loud, raucous, fun, concert. Not only did we have amazing talent, but we were able raise a little over $400 for Family Access Network.

Two youth and their friends got the opportunity to ride in the Dutch Bros Coffee limo, one won a five day pass to Cat6 Video Game Lounge, a Sound Pack (4 CDs including cds from all three artist, Erin Cole-Baker, New Heights, and Elliot as well a another artist Bekker), a autographed picture of Elliot, and a whole bunch of Dutch Bros sweatshirts.

Thank you so much to Paradigm Artists Group, Oxford Hotel Group, LibertyBank, Moon Woodworking, Alpine Internet Solutions, Cat6 Video Game Lounge

Stay tuned for next time!

Blessings,
Greg

Youth MiniSTARZ

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 17:31:00 +0000

My friend from seminary, Rev. Gray Marshall, texted me the other day, here was the message

"If you haven't already youtubed youth ministars you might lose your mind"

He was right! This video is awesome, both in production and accuracy of topic. Well...I don't listen to Chris Tomlin or have a goatee, but I do wear new balance and take folks out to eat. I also try to avoid the "awkward side hug" if possible, but I do train my leaders to use it. I prefer the high five!

One more thing...I also have a beautiful wife!

Let me know what you think.

Blessings,

Greg

BendFP Back-To-School Blowout

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 05:20:00 +0000

BendFP Back To School Blowout (Featuring Elliot) from Greg Bolt on Vimeo.

Oxford Hotel Group and LibertyBank presents in partnership with Alpine Internet Solutions and Moon Woodworking
TOTALLY FREE CONCERT BENEFITING THE FAMILY ACCESS NETWORK!!

Friday, September 18 @ 7:00PM, First Presbyterian Church in Bend, OR will host three artists put together to get your school year started off right!

Come hear the passionate sounds of Erin Cole-Baker ,the powerful alternative rock of New Heights!

Fill the seats to the energetic sounds and wide open guitar of Elliot

All you have to do is show up and rock out with students from all over Central Oregon!

Contact Greg Bolt (ggbolt16@gmail.com) for more info or for a stack of free tickets!

check out the website: bendfp.org

You Give Them Something To Eat: Mark 6:30-44

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 19:07:00 +0000

On Sunday, July 19 the participants in the 2009 Fold Mission Trip to West Virginia led the worship services at First Presbyterian Church in Bend, Oregon.

University of Oregon student Caitlin Jarvis gave a homily about her experience and why she chose to go on this mission trip and I then preached from Mark 6:30-44, the title was “You Give Them Something to Eat!”.

Here is the text of both messages:

Caitlin Jarvis:

Before summer vacation started I was talking with my friends in Eugene about our summer plans, when I mentioned this summers mission my friends at home asked me why I was going on a mission trip to West Virginia of all places, why I was spending one week in the heat and humidity, building houses and spending time with people I didn’t know. They weren’t criticizing me for my decision, just curious on why I would choose it for a vacation. The fact is that it wasn’t going to be a vacation, I knew that, vacation implied relaxation which I knew there would be very little of. The reason I decided to go on this mission is because I wanted to help people. I am fortunate enough to have a home, to be working on a college education; I am blessed in many ways and possess countless things that I don’t truly need. In my opinion, one week of completely selflessness, out of fifty-two weeks in the year, didn’t seem like a sacrifice.

I don’t have millions, or even thousands of dollars, and I know I won’t be the one who finds the cure for cancer, or discovers the way to feed all of the worlds hungry. I have asthma and I struggle to carry a gallon of milk from the trunk of my car to the fridge, but the idea and importance of getting off my butt and doing something, anything, was installed early in my life by my grandparents. I have always been encouraged by them to help those less fortunate than myself and they are the reason I became involved with Mission in the first place when I went to New Orleans with the church in 2007. This year, in West Virginia I learned that the largest tasks weren’t the most important. The small ones were just as meaningful, if not more so.

The third day in West Virginia at our worksite, we ran out of things to do. Jackie and I found ourselves getting in the way more than we were actually helping. After about twenty minutes of sitting on the cooler in front of the house, we gave Greg a call asking if there was anything we could do down at their site to help out. There wasn’t, so Joan, the pastor of the church in Montgomery, came and picked us up and took us back to the church to help Bryan and Alex who had stayed behind to work at the churches Tuesday Coffee Ministry. There, we found ourselves working with a lively bunch of ladies, washing dishes, filling cups with ice, making lemonade, and serving the people that came in looking for something to eat and drink. As we joked around and bonded with the women in the kitchen, I started to feel guilty.

Here I was, working inside the cool church with my best friend, having fun, getting in bubble fights with the woman I was washing dishes with and laughing with some of the funniest people I’ve ever met in my life, while there were members of our youth out sweating and working hard in the sun on a house. Once everyone had filtered out of the kitchen and we were all cleaned up, the four of us folded clothes in the churches clothing closest (which is just like a Goodwill except everything is free) and after that was done, Joan gave us another task, cleaning out a room in the church for a new intern that was coming to live there. As Joan listed all the things we could do to help she paused and said “Now let me tell you just exactly what you have already done today. I know you may feel like you aren’t doing much because you aren’t out working on the house, but what you have done today for these people is just as important.”

She then went on to tell us stories about all the ladies we had just worked with in the kitchen. It turns out that the woman I had been working with washing dishes was only working at the church because her brother convinced her it was court-ordered community service because she was caught driving without her license, he felt like she needed more human interaction and people to talk to, someone to listen to her. Another one of the women we had worked with had been addicted to drugs but has been clean for a year and the church was there for her throughout her entire recovery.

It was at that point I realized that it wasn’t just the physical things we were doing that was important, it was the little things that meant just as much, the simple things, like having a conversation

Mother Teresa said, “We ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop.” Whether it was painting a broken porch swing, replacing an old roof, installing new appliances, pouring coffee, folding clothes or having a simple conversation, every thing that we accomplished in West Virginia was just another drop in the ocean, one simple selfless step that anyone is capable of doing.

One day as I was painting the trim of Cathy’s house I overheard her telling her son how much of a blessing we were to her and how much she truly appreciated us.

I learned that while we were a blessing to Cathy, Cathy was a blessing to us as well.

During our last bible study Jackie and I passed out little cards that had a Winnie the Pooh quote on them that read, “If ever there is tomorrow when we’re not together, there is something you must always remember. You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think, but the most important thing is even if we’re apart, I’ll always be with you.” After this years mission that specific quote means more to me now than it ever has before. While that week I spent in West Virginia could have been spent thousands of other ways, like at the beach with my friends, or working and making money, I know that I made the right decision for me, by getting off my butt and doing something, not for myself, but for others. Like the quote from Winnie the Pooh, as cheesy as it sounds, the memories I made in West Virginia and all of the people I met and relationships I made will always be with me.

And the audio…What I Did This Summer

Greg Bolt:

A month ago this week I had the honor and pleasure of accompanying 15 youth and 2 other adults from First Presbyterian to West Virginia for a week long mission trip. On our trip, we had all kinds of experiences, from whitewater rafting, to roofing, to four square, to painting, to lost baggage, to cleaning, to football, to plumbing, to Tudor’s Biscuit World, to electrical work, to five hour devotions. Even something called stippling which was new to me, in short it involved putting sheet rock putty on the end of a big round wire brush and putting a texture on the ceiling. If I remember the instructions correctly, they were to be “consistent but without a pattern”, hearing those instructions reminded me of something Steven often says, “Clear as mud?”

Needless to say our week was full.

I’m from West Virginia and one of my personal joys of the week was getting to return to my home. My parents and sister still live in Charleston, where our flight landed. When we got off the plane, my sister was waiting with a sign that said “Welcome to WV” and my mom was waiting with a cooler full of homemade cookies and milk. My mom’s most obvious spiritual gift is hospitality and truly I think it is the thing that brings her the most joy even when it seems crazy to go out of her way for someone else, she always seems to be willing to help if she can.

It had been a long day when we arrived in West Virginia, we started at about 5:00 AM Pacific time in Bend and landed in Charleston at around 10:30 PM Eastern time, unfortunately most of our bags did not land with us. In fact, only 7 out of the 17 people we had traveling in our group had their bags.

If you’re like me, you’re probably thinking “shiver-me-timbers, what now?!”

Luckily, my sister and mom were already two steps ahead of me. My sister, the travel agent, rounded up all our baggage claim tickets, (which I believe was a miracle…who keeps their baggage claim check? I sure don’t make it a priority, but EVERYONE had theirs readily available) and writing down descriptions of all our bags. She then talked with the airline about where the bags were, when we could get them, and where were the toiletry packs. (Another thing I didn’t know…if the airline loses your bag they can give you a little pack with travel size toiletries in it.) As she rounded up that info, my mom and dad jumped back in their vehicle and drove home (about 15 min north of the airport) rounding up all the extra blankets, sheets, pillows, sleeping bags, and towels they could find while we drove 45 min south of the airport to Montgomery Presbyterian Church where we met my parents and Tim, our site supervisor.

I don’t know if it was a miracle, the fact that my sister just recently moved some stuff back home, or that my parents have apparently been stockpiling linens, but we had plenty of everything, with a little bit left over. We finally got calmed down and in bed around 1:00 AM Eastern time. At that was the first day.

Our scripture lesson today from the gospel of Mark is a familiar story…well it was at least familiar to the writers of the gospels. It is the ONLY miracle story that is recounted in all four gospels. In fact, the miracle of Jesus feeding the multitudes is told in six different ways…if you count the Feeding of the Four Thousand in Mark 8, and Matthew 15. The writer of Matthew was so enamored by this story that he told it twice in consecutive chapters.

Right now…I want us to focus on this particular version of the story. Just before our passage for today, Herod kills John the Baptist fulfilling a promise to Herodias’ daughter. The apostles gathered around Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught.

Because I’m a bit of a Bible nerd I beg your indulgence for one second…this is the only use of the term “apostle” in the book of Mark. An apostle describes “someone who is sent out with a special commission”. These people, presumably, were sent with the distinct purpose of telling Jesus that is cousin, John had been killed.

At this point, Jesus gathers the disciples and they withdraw to a deserted place for some much needed rest and reflection on the death of his friend. Picture this…Jesus hears of the death of his cousin, his colleague in ministry, his friend and he just wants some time alone to rest. He is crushed by this news. (As I am sure most of us would be, if we heard our close friend (who we had not heard from in a while) was killed) Jesus just wanted to be alone with those who he was closest to in order to collect his thoughts, cry, and pray. I am sure at that point he didn’t really want all the attention of the crowd, but…

People saw them and recognized them. They ran on foot ahead of Jesus and his disciples to meet them when they arrived on shore. The image that flashes in my mind is of paparazzi cutting the corner of a park so they can get the best angle when the celebrity and their entourage pass by. Instead of getting angry with them and saying, “LEAVE ME ALONE FOR JUST A SECOND!” He has compassion for them. Jesus realizes that they are lost, they are in need, and they are desperate. The disciples, ever the practical bunch, realized that they were in the middle of nowhere a “deserted place”. They suggested that Jesus sent the crowd away to get some food. I always pictured this crowd as weak, hungry, covered in rags but it seems that this was not a crowd of beggars but a crowd of people who could probably afford a night out if the need arose. But Jesus (as he is want to do) stops his disciples and says “You give them something to eat.”

“You give them something to eat.”

I’m sure the look on the disciples’ face was something like, “Are you kidding me?” and they questioned Jesus, “you want us to buy 200 denarii worth of food for these folks?’ (200 denarii was about 2/3 of a year’s wages for the common working folk…we aren’t talking chump change here). Jesus, or at least I imagine it this way, calmly responds to a question with a question. “How many loaves have you? Go and see.” All the disciples could muster was five loaves of bread and two fish, not nearly enough to feed five thousand men not even counting the women and children (you would think). Jesus then asks the disciples to organize the crowd a little, he took the loaves and fish blessed them and broke them, and gave it to the disciples to distribute.

Everyone ate and was filled; they gathered up the leftovers and filled twelve baskets. Some would say that it was an overabundance of leftovers, but when you stop and think about it having twelve baskets leftover after feeding five thousand people that is a pretty narrow margin. God had provided enough for everyone to be filled…enough. Kind of like the few towels and sheets we had left over on the mission trip. God provided enough for the thousands to eat and the few to sleep. God can provide for us, but only when we are willing to use what we have to get the job done.

“You give them something to eat.”

This story as you might have guessed has developed a lot of different interpretations over the years. Some say that is really a story about generosity. The people were so overcome with compassion when they saw how the people around them gave, they gave, and all were fed. Some say that this is a miraculous event that happened just as it says…Jesus magically multiplied the bread and fish until there was enough for everyone. Some say that this didn’t really happen at all but, was merely a symbol of how God’s act in Christ meets the needs of humans. Regardless of which of these or the thousands of other interpretations you adhere to the charge to the disciples remains the same. “You give them something to eat.” As one commentary says, “The source of the feeding is God, but the resources are human. The work of the disciples, the “bread” of human effort, is honored, used, and magnified by Jesus.”

“The source of the feeding is God, but the resources are human. The work of the disciples, “the bread” of human effort, is honored, used, and magnified by Jesus.”

This quote got me to thinking and I realized at no point does Jesus create something from nothing. He uses water and turns it into wine. He uses his spit to make mud to heal a blind man. He uses loaves and fish to feed a multitude.

What gifts, what bread, what human effort is Jesus using in you to feed the multitudes?

Sitting here in front of the sanctuary is an empty shopping cart. It is waiting to be filled. The Deacons, those charged with ministering to those in need, are focusing on those who are in need of food. They are sponsoring “Christmas in July”. Food banks here in Bend are called to feed those in need throughout the year, yet July in notorious for bringing the smallest amount of food donations. The Deacons, on behalf of the congregation of First Presbyterian Church, are attempting to restock the shelves of the St. Vincent De Paul Food Bank. They are asking that we bring in food donations this week and next week to reach this goal. There are grocery carts like this one in the narthex and in the commons that are always available for donation.

You might be saying to yourself, “how on earth do you suppose that we can restock the shelves of St. Vincent De Paul?” We do that by be willing, be willing to give what we can and only what we can. Like God has done and will continue to do. God will magnify our food, our bread, our human effort. Jesus said it very plainly to his disciples, over and over again.

“You give them something to eat.”

When Jesus says that, he is talking to you, to me individually and to us as a community of believers he is commanding us to get up off our seats and to do something. Don’t wait for Jesus to magically make something appear, listen to what God is leading you to do and as the Nike ads used to say, “Just Do It.” I almost wish it was more complicated that that. When you feel called to respond to something in your community or in the world, respond. It can be as seemingly small as greeting someone by name, talking with a friend while doing the dishes, or placing a can of food in a basket. It can be as seemingly large as traveling across the country to fix houses, leaving the country to learn about the struggles of another culture, or becoming a missionary.

The question, for me, is not IF God is calling you, but WHERE is God calling you.

Who is God calling you to feed? What is God calling you to do? Who is God calling us to feed? What is God calling us to do? I don’t have the answers to those questions, sure I have some thoughts, but once we figure out who it is we are called to feed it is incumbent on us to put in the work. Work that will be honored, used, and magnified by Jesus, work that will be enough with a little left over.

In the name God our Rock, Jesus Christ our Redeemer, and the Holy Spirit our Friend…Amen.

And the audio…You Give Them Something To Eat

Blessings,

Greg

Giver of All Good Gifts--A Prayer

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 21:23:00 +0000

This week the Fold Mission Team led both worships services. One of our seniors, Kirsten, led the time of prayer. Here is the text of the prayer she read, it is from a book called "Prayers for a Privileged People" by Walter Brueggemann

Giver of All Good Gifts

You are the God who feed and nourishes.

You are the God who assures that we have more than enough,

and we do not doubt that

you satisfy the desire of every living thing.

Even in such an assurance, however,

we scramble for more food.

After we have filled all our baskets

with manna,

we seek a surplus--

enough education to plan ahead,

enough power to protect our supply,

enough oil to assure that protection.

And in the midst of that

comes your word,

that we share bread and feed the hungry,

even to the least and so to you.

We mostly keep our bread for ourselves,

our neighbors,

and our friends.

It does not occur to us often,

to feed our enemies,

to share your bounty with

those who threaten us.

We do not often remember to break vicious cycles

of hostility

by free bread,

by free water,

by free wine,

by free milk,

Until we remember that you are the giver of all good gifts,

ours to enjoy,

ours to share.

Stir us by your spirit beyond fearful accumulation

toward outrageous generosity,

that giving bread to others

makes for peace,

that giving drink to others

makes for justice,

that giving and sharing opens the world

and assures abundance for all.

We pray this even as we ponder the gift of your Son

whom we ingest as bread and wine,

and tasting, find ourselves

forgiven and renewed.

Feed us till we want no more!

Feed us as we pray the prayer Jesus taught us...Our Father...

Blessings,

Greg

I Love Youth Ministry (3)…

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 19:08:00 +0000

This is becoming a little bit of a series, but I think it’s important to say how much I love the youth I work with (#1, #2). They are quirky, funny, creative, clever, and they let me be a part of their lives when letting people in is a scary proposition.

I went to a graduation party for one of the seniors in our group. It actually was a family BBQ that ended up being me, her boyfriend, and her extended family. That meant a lot to me, of all the people she could have invited she picked me, that’s huge. I might also mention that this particular senior, I believe, is destined for ministry (whether she likes it or not ;-)). Just a glimpse into her life plans, she wants to go to college and get a business degree so she can learn how to run a homeless shelter in a way that will be sustainable. WOW! I certainly wasn’t thinking about how I could helps others when I was 18. In fact, I think I was trying to figure out how I could make it to the majors in baseball.

But enough of that…let’s get to the reason for this post!

So (as I said) I went to a graduation party, a party where I got a gift (a shocker for me…I certainly wasn’t expecting anything and I don’t give the youth gifts anyway…but I digress) the gift was FREAKING AMAZING!

It was a diarama inspired by the Christopher Moore book Lamb.

(If you haven’t read this book you should…DISCLAIMER: It is seriously irreverent, there is some graphic images and language, all that said I think it is a great book for young adults who pose that eternal question, “What the heck was Jesus doing when he was my age?”)

Here are pictures of the diarama complete with concubines (pictures of the Disney character, Mulan);bacon band-aids; Jesus and Biff Action figures; and a Yeti, AMAZING, CREATIVE:

Blessings,

Greg

I love youth ministry (2)…

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 19:07:00 +0000

…because I came to my office and found this to do list on my desk. It was written by one of the youth.

I think it’s very accurate and especially like the idea of asking the Presbyterian Women to help with initiating Armageddon, to twitter as I take over the world, and to top it off, convert the youth group to GregBoltianism.

It’s also on a Cokesbury note pad.

I love my job!

Blessings,
Greg

West to West: 2009 Fold Mission Trip

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 20:42:00 +0000

At 5:00 AM on Saturday, June 13, fourteen youth and three adults met at First Presbyterian Church to embark on a week long mission trip to West Virginia. After prayer and encouragement from our pastor, Steven Koski, we climbed into three vehicles and headed to the Portland Airport.

It was a fairly quiet ride to the airport and the folks at the United Airlines counter were extremely helpful in getting us all checked in quickly and headed through security. We breezed through security with only one of our group getting a "random" security screening. (watch out for all those teenagers in tie-dye!) After finding our gate we split up looking for food (the adults were in desperate need of coffee). At 11:00 AM we boarded our flight bound for Chicago. The flight was uneventful, it was one of our youth's first time on a plane (you'll have to ask her yourself what she thought). We landed in Chicago, and like a herd of tie-dyed cattle we found our next gate before splitting up for another food run. (Be sure to ask Sandy about the noise at the gate :-))

Things seemed to be going great...then we landed in Charleston, WV where we were met by my parents and sister with a "Welcome to WV" sign, homemade cookies, and milk. Unfortunately, over half our bags did not meet us there. Ten of our seventeen travelers did not get their bags, apparently they were still sitting on the tarmac in Chicago. But God was on our side...my sister, with her new skills as a travel agent, got all of our baggage information and began talking to the airline tracking down our luggage and getting us toiletries (did you know that the airlines will give you toiletry packs if your bags don't show up? I didn't); my mother and father went back to their house to get all the sleeping bags, towels, blankets, and pillows they could find; and we traveled 45 minutes to Montgomery Presbyterian Church in Montgomery, WV.

After settling down and getting a little organized we finally got to bed about 1:00 AM EST.

Sunday morning we worshiped with the folks at Montgomery Presbyterian, I was able to participate a little and even got to slip in the phrase "startle us" (which I and our youth got a kick out of...want to know more? Come to Sunday morning worship at Bend FP). Sunday afternoon was spent in the Charleston Mall and exploring the streets of downtown Charleston. We also went back to the airport where we saw the most beautiful site that most of us had seen in a while...OUR BAGS MADE IT! My sister loaded her jeep with our bags and we headed back to Montgomery, Sandy's car stopped at the grocery store to pick up supplies, and we made a detour on the way to see my old house.

On Monday, we started work. Rachael took her group of five youth to work on a Habitat for Humanity house and the rest of us went to Kathy's house in Boomer, WV (about ten minutes from Montgomery). The Habitat folks got to work putting up shelves and putting the finishing touches on the house while the family worked with them side by side. We took over Kathy's house: loading up a dumpster with trash from the basement, painting the peaks of the roof, painting the living room walls, stippling (this was a new word for me) the ceiling in the living room, gushing over Alexa Marie (Kathy's granddaughter), scraping trim, and cleaning. It was a good hard day of work to get us off to a good start.

Monday night, I got a surprise...my roommate from seminary came to join us in our work.

Tuesday, two of our senior guys stayed back and helped with "Tuesday Church" (a hospitality ministry for Montgomery Presbyterian...look for another post soon about this) and the rest of us went to our respective sites. About an hour after getting to our sites, two of the girls on the Habitat site were just sitting around so they called me...Joan (Director of WVMAW) and her husband Tim (Site Supervisor) rounded them up and found work for them. That day we were spread all over, but diligently working.

Tuesday afternoon we decided to tear the roof off of Kathy's back porch. In a matter of three hours our group tore off the existing roof, replaced rotted out boards, replaced the fascia boards, put down felt paper, and haul all of the trash to the dumpster. It was pretty impressive! It was a hard day, but we knew that on Wednesday we would have a "day off".

Wednesday was our "FUN DAY"! We decided to whitewater raft the Lower New River (we went with North American River Runners...a company I would recommend to anyone). I have rafted that stretch of river about 20 times and was looking forward to sharing the fun with these youth from Oregon. The water was a little above normal, (about 4 feet) which is a great level to run the rapids. The first half of the day was kind of slow with only one "big" rapid named "Surprise". One of the boats on our trip (the only boat that we weren't in) flipped! Which sounds scary but if you're going to flip your boat that's just about the best place to do it. After a wonderful lunch along the river bank, we headed into the teeth of the river. There were definitely some scary moments (be sure to ask the youth about this), but at the end of the day everyone was happy, safe, and only a little sunburned.

We closed out our "FUN DAY" with a home cooked meal at my parent's house in Charleston. It was good to be home, and I only got a little ribbing about the embarrassing pictures of my growing up on the walls from the youth. When we returned to the church in Montgomery we were exhausted and went to bed quickly.

Thursday was the hottest and most humid day of the week (90+ with 80%+ humidity). It did not however effect our level of work. The group at Kathy's house shingled the roof, others painted trim and underneath the porches, others painted the foundation, painted the ceiling in the dining room and began work cleaning and painting the kitchen, and rotated doing "baby" duty. We sent two folks to Habitat and they put together and installed appliances, and prepared the house for its final touches.

As we left the work site on Thursday Kathy asked us if we would like some homemade pizza. We all said "sure!" and looked forward to another home cooked meal (which was much more appetizing than another day of granola bars and pb&j for lunch).

Friday was our last day of work. The Habitat folks went to their site for a couple of hours to clean, then came to help us at Kathy's. We worked hard and had THE MOST AMAZING PIZZA OF ALL TIME!!! Kathy made the dough from scratch, grated the cheese, cut the vegetables, and baked it all while we worked inside to finish up the cleaning and painting. It was quite a gift for us to be able to share in Kathy's "holiday family meal". Her daughter told us she only makes the pizza during the holidays, so for her to share that with us was one of the more gracious things I saw on our mission trip.

By the time we finished working, the Habitat House needed carpet and was ready to move in; Kathy's house got new paint on the living room walls, the ceilings of the kitchen and dining room, the trim downstairs, the front and back porch, most of the trim outside, and the foundation; scrubbed walls; new back porch roof; ceiling fan in the living room; and a new vanity in the bathroom.

Friday night we had some local cuisine, we went to Tudor's Biscuit World (ask the youth about their experience), and had our final devotion (which took 5 hours) that was a heartfelt, emotional, moving, loving, gracious experience hearing how each member of the group had effected each individual on the trip. We finally got to bed around 1:00 AM (well some of us!)

At 3:15 AM we started packing my sister's jeep (she had driven down the night before) and loaded up the vehicles. We left Montgomery Presbyterian Church at 4:00 AM EST. Our flight left the Charleston Airport at 6:00 AM EST and we landed in Chicago at 6:15 CST. After a four hour layover we took off at 10:00 AM and landed in Portland around 12:20 PM PST, ALL OR BAGS MADE IT, our three drivers met us and we loaded up our bags to head home. After a quick stop at Burgerville in Gresham the last vehicle pulled into the parking lot of First Presbyterian Church at about 5:30 PM PST (8:30 PM EST).

It was a great trip, we have an amazing group of youth who are loving, caring, role models for not only the youth, but our entire community. We are blessed to have such a wonderful piece of the body of Christ in our congregation.

One of the youth set up a photobucket account that is ever growing take a look at all that we did:

Blessings,
Greg Bolt

I love youth ministry...

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Fri, 15 May 2009 08:09:00 +0000

…because I serve a group of people who sometimes think they have it all figured out and sometimes have no idea what’s going on. A group that is learning about responsibility, faith, and what it means for *them* outside what their parents say. I also love the fact that sometimes, sometimes when a 16 year old gets their driver’s license they decide that they want to “park near the bushes”. It is in those instances that I can look out my office window and see…

…and hear a brother and his little sister laughing as they come to my office excited to share this silly moment in their lives with me and the community of youth I serve.

I love youth ministry and I love that God has seen fit to call me to this challenging, rewarding, life-giving ministry!

Blessings,

Greg

Confirmation Sunday

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Tue, 05 May 2009 22:02:00 +0000

On Sunday, May 3, 2009 First Presbyterian Church celebrated four youth (Ciara, Jonah, Padraic, and Thomas) making the decision to join our community of faith as official members. They led worship beautifully and impressed everyone with the depth and thoughtfulness of their statements of faith.

A big thank you goes out to Bill Burwell and Betty Bullis who taught the Confirmation Class this year and did a masterful job of helping the youth to think about who they are and what they believe.

Here are a few pictures from the Sunday:

Blessings,
Greg

I Wish I Had The Words

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 19:42:00 +0000

Today is the second anniversary of the tragedy at Virginia Tech. I wrote a post about my thoughts on that day. Here is the text of the sermon that I wrote, that would have been preached the following Sunday (The text is Romans 5:1-11):

I began the exegetical work on this passage of Romans several weeks ago. During that process there were many deep theological concepts that arose in my study. The concept that struck me the most, the one that I felt was most appropriate for our current situation in our church, in our community, and in our world was the concept of reconciliation. I had all these great ideas and I felt the Spirit moving and I wish that I decided to right down those thoughts. Then...Monday happened.

Monday a confused, angry, and misguided young man made a decision that changed his family, his community, and our little bubble of a world...forever. He decided for himself that his community was incapable of reconciliation, he decided that the only way people could understand him would be to lash out and cause pain and hurt. Pain and hurt that he felt and he believed should be felt by others regardless of their part in his pain and suffering. In the end 33 lives were lost, 29 people were wounded, and countless others' lives have been changed forever because of the lashing out of one angry young man.

To be honest, at this moment, right now I am having a hard time thinking about any kind of reconciliation. I am more worried about healing, shock, anger, retaliation, but reconciliation not now.

In our scripture for today we hear that we have been justified by faith, that we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Those are comforting words but, the words that come to my mind are...yeah right. How can we have peace with God when our young people are not safe in their own classrooms, when our soldiers are being sent off to war, how can we have peace with God when reports of a bombing that kills 120 people in a market are pushed to page 10? How can we have peace with God when countless other tragedies happened every day that don't invoke this kind of outrage? We don't dawn ribbons or special colors for the innocent civilians killed in Iraq, when children starve to death in Africa, when our very own children don't have adequate health care. Paul tells us to boast in our tribulations, knowing that they create endurance. If we are to listen to Paul then we are in for some serious boasting. Every day the media reports on another killing, another argument, another rift in our society. We are told to take heart our tribulations create endurance, our endurance character, our character hope. Right now hope is hard to come by.

It is easy to say that hope does not disappoint, but what does that look like on the ground. We hope that our troops will come home out of harms way, we hope that the growing and continued chasm between Israelis and Palestinians will one day be bridged, we hope that the divisions and schisms that are festering in our own denominations will be healed, we hope many things but sometimes there does not seem to be any hope to look to....

Then there is God pouring out God's Holy Spirit; God, who reached out God's love to us while we were still enemies, while we were still enemies. God who continually reaches out to us reconciling us to God, it is through the Holy Spirit given to us by God that we may one day achieve reconciliation.

Often times it is silent, it doesn't get the media attention that the chasm gets but the reconciliation that can occur through the Holy Spirit is what binds us together as a community of believers with all the faithful of every time and place with God. As we speak our leaders are trying to put together a plan to bring our troops home at the same time they are taking seriously their role in the rebuilding and stabilization of Iraq. In Israel/Palestine there are organizations working for reconciliation. ESPN.com writer and assistant professor of conflict resolution at BYU-Hawaii Chad Ford tell us of a group in Israel/Palestine that is doing that hard work. A group called Playing for Peace, a group that's goal is to bridge divides in polarized community through the game of basketball. PFP started work in Northern Ireland and South Africa in 2001, and then launched its program in Israel in 2005. Since its inception, PFP has coached 12,000 10- to 14-year-old Catholic and Protestant children in integrated settings in Northern Ireland, and taught basketball to 25,000 children in Durban, South Africa. In Northern Ireland and South Africa, basketball training is supplemented with programs that promote tolerance, ethnic sensitivity and community leadership training.

A 2005 study of the "Bridging Divides" program in South Africa, conducted by the Centre for Development Support at the University of the Free State, found that the majority of children exposed to PFP expressed fewer racial stereotypes compared to non-PFP children. A larger proportion of children who participated in PFP also were in favor of racial integration. The early conclusion is that PFP might have a winning model. But would it work in Israel?

Northern Ireland and South Africa are post-conflict societies. In Israel, things haven't been this hot in years.

You'd expect it to be like this:

Khaled, 14, is supposed to be kneeling in a mosque, praying to the East five times a day. He's from Issawiya, a gritty Palestinian neighborhood in East Jerusalem. At night, he sneaks out of the house and works by candlelight in a bombed-out factory, helping to build explosive devices for attacks on Israel or maybe the United States. His life is a palette of dust and dirt.

He prays that Allah will avenge him, will give him back the home, the life, the hope that his parents lost in 1967.

Hate is supposed to consume him. When he graduates from school, he'll have no job, no prospects. His life is over before it begins. The script has been written. Just play the part and go to Allah in a blaze of fire and smoke, where 40 virgin brides await.

You'd expect it to be like this:

Pini, 14, is supposed to be going to school, getting a good Hebrew education. He's from Bet Shemesh, an Israeli Jew from a poor suburb west of Jerusalem. He'll serve in the Israeli military for two years, then go on to college. He'll become a doctor, maybe a lawyer.

He prays at night that God will protect him, allow him to keep his home, the life, the hope his parents achieved in 1967.

Hate is supposed to consume him, too. Someday, he'll build a three-bedroom house with a safe room in it. The walls of that room will be made of cinderblock, two feet thick, and guarded by a steel door and an Uzi on the bookshelf.

You'd never expect it to be like this:

Pini dribbles the basketball through his legs in a dimly lit high school gym in Shemesh. His defender stumbles, literally faked out of his yarmulke. As Pini penetrates to the basket, the defense collapses. Pini spins and finds Khaled with a perfect pass on the baseline.

Khaled rises from the court. His shot glides off his hand and through a crooked, netless rim. His arm above his head as he falls away, he turns and smiles. As he jogs back down the court, Pini raises his hand. With a little hop, Khaled jumps up and smacks it.

Two worlds collide, but there is no blood or charred soil. Glass and body parts aren't littered throughout the scene just 50 Israelis and Palestinians cheering in the stands, playing on the court, coaching on the sidelines.

Trying to get along.[1]

It is stories like this that lead us to hope. It is this hope that leads us to communication; it is this communication that leads us to understanding, and understanding that leads us to reconciliation.

My hope is that someday that all of those that are in conflict will look to the example that God has given us in Christ, he forgave us, justified us by his blood, even though we condemned him, we persecuted him, and through him we were reconciled to God. I know that reconciliation between our neighbors is difficult but we must take heart that we have been reconciled to God.

I wish that I could pass on some words of wisdom for the Blacksburg community, I wish I had some words of wisdom for our community. My only advice would be to talk about your feelings. Talk about your feelings to your friends, to your family, to me, to God, to your neighbors, but more than just talk...you should also listen, listen to the feelings of others. It is imperative in this time of uncertainty and doubt that we interact with one another. Sometimes those conversation will be hard, sometimes they will be uncomfortable, but they can always be helpful in developing endurance which increases character, which leads to hope. With Jesus the curtain was torn from top to bottom, God is available to us all and God is listening. God has reconciled us even though we were still enemies, let us learn from that and seek to be in dialogue with those who may be seen as our enemies and let us pray that through the Holy Spirit we will be able to reconciled to one another just as we have been reconciled to God.

To God alone be the glory in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

[1] ESPN.com, "Hooping with the Enemy"; available from http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/eticket/story?page=playingforpeace; Internet; accessed 19 April 2007.

Blessings,

Greg

Hope and Tragedy Two Years Later

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 19:39:00 +0000

I was in my third year in seminary in Richmond, VA two years ago today. I was nearing the end of my seminary career, looking forward to graduation. I was working on my final exegesis paper for my New Testament class. I was studying Romans 5:1-11. It was then that I heard the news at Virginia Tech, only about an hour's drive from our campus. I was flooded with thoughts of my friends, former campers, friends of my family, the Virginia Tech community. I was scared, I wanted to help, I wanted to jump in my car and drive as fast as I could to Blacksburg to do whatever it was that I could. The only think I could do was pray, worry, wait for the phone to ring.

Eventually, I heard that one of my sister's closest high school friends was in the building where most of the tragedy took place. He got out safe. By the end of the day, I had heard that all of the people that I knew or were connected to were safe. I breathed a sigh of relief.

The next day I went to class, there was a different spirit in the air. I spirit of sadness, of guilt. I noticed many of classmates were acting as if one of their own had died. What I then noticed was that the classmates hit the hardest in our community by this tragedy where those of Korean descent. There were a lot of my friends who blamed themselves, because Cho was Korean. No one on campus had lashed out our blamed them or even asked them, and in my case I never even connected my friends, who I had studied, laughed, played, worshiped, and lived, with the actions that occurred down the road.

But they did...

It did not make any sense to me until I talked to several of my Korean friends who were able to articulate how tied together the individual members of the Korean community are. When one suffers, they all suffer, when one is guilty they all feel guilty, when one needs help, all help. I have never seen a nation, a people, a community so diverse and spread so far come together for one moment, for one event, for one purpose.

For me, through the ashes of Virginia Tech, I was given hope...hope that we could as a community put aside our differences and wrap each other in the loving arms of God.

In the coming days, a makeshift memorial was placed on the campus of Virginia Tech by the administration, that included 32 hokie stones (the material that makes up most of the buildings on campus). A group of students found another stone, a 33rd, and placed with the others. That 33rd stone was to represent Cho, the man who took the life of the other 32, he was remembered as a fallen hokie, a member of the community, a loved one.

I hope that as we remember the members of our community, even those that may hurt us, that we can remember that "neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us [and them] from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:38b-39)

Blessings,

Greg

The Flock Habitat for Humanity Kick Off Event

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 21:18:00 +0000

Last Saturday, 12 members of The Flock (Middle School Group), 1 member of The Fold (Senior High Group) and 4 adults got together early and worked at the Habitat for Humanity site on McKinley on the south-side of Bend. We worked moving top soil, rocks, planting iris bulbs and shrubs, painting, drinking hot chocolate loaded "pure cane sugar".

This was also the introduction of our new members. As of April 1, the people who are finishing 5th grade and starting 6th in the fall are members of The Flock. We had three new members. As a welcome we talked to their parents then showed up early on Saturday morning and SURPRISED them. We hope that this will be the beginning of a long...well 6 year...relationship with the youth program here at First Pres as well as the continuation of their growth in faith that will last them a life time.

Unfortunately, the battery in my camera was dead, but I was able to take some pictures with my phone. Check those out here:

Blessings,
Greg

Lenten Devotional: A Change For The Better by Carol Piersee

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 21:14:00 +0000

Over this Lenten season, the Spiritual Formation team at First Presbyterian Church in Bend put a call out to all to submit writings for a Lenten Devotional. I will do my best to post those here daily. You can also go to our website and access all of the devotions on a pdf file.

Here is the next submission:

A CHANGE FOR THE BETTER
If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. 2 Cor 5:17

Our pastor is not the only one fond of this verse. Let me explain. When I was 8 years old my parents moved to a small farm east of Vancouver, WA. There was no local church nearby. A neighbor invited my mother to bring my brother and I to a Sunday School run by the American Sunday School Union in the small two-room school I attended. This was our church.

When I was a freshman in high school I went with the young people from Sunday School to a youth camp in Turner, OR. We rode on the back of a flat bed truck sitting on our sleeping bags. There I heard this verse for the first time. I was told I would become changed, a new person. That was rather frightening to think that I would be a different person. I wondered how I would change, what would it be like. I did not know whether I wanted to ask Christ into my life or not, but I did. Obviously I am the same person I was. I still have the same physical traits and idiosyncrasies, but as I matured, I learned that the Spirit of Christ in me is the power of my Christian faith.

Over the years I have found that this Spirit of God’s Grace has enabled me to do many things I never dreamed of as a young person. Thirty years as a Navy wife, raising four children, alone a good share of that time, did much to mature me. I discovered Christ is far more willing to help me change what needs to be worked on than I am at letting Him.

“New creation” is not an instant miraculous make-over, but He has promised us help. As I do my part, first by asking and then too by acting, He enables. As part of the family of God we have certain responsibilities. J. B. Phillips expresses it this way in his translation, Letters to Young Churches, “For this very reason you must do your utmost from your side, and see that your faith carries with it real goodness of life.” 2 Peter 1:7

It was Christ’s Love and dedication to endure the cross that makes this power available to all of us, all of the time. The more we experience Christ in our lives, the more we prove what He accomplished at Calvary. A favorite verse of mine is Romans 12: 2, again in the Phillips translation. “Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mold, but let God remold your minds from within, so that you may prove in practice that the Plan of God for you is good, meets all His demands and moves toward the goal of true maturity.”

This Lenten Season, may we as a church family experience Christ’s Power of “New Creation” in our lives in a deeper way; may the words of the Apostle Paul in Ephesians become reality: I pray that out of His glorious power He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in Love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this Love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all fullness of God. Eph. 3:16-20.

--Carol Piersee

Lenten Devotional: Simon of Cyrene Modeled Unconditional Love by Greg Bolt

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 21:12:00 +0000

Simon of Cyrene Modeled Unconditional Love

Unconditional love is messy; it’s hard, and sometimes it makes us sad. Unconditional love, the kind we find in the Scriptures, the kind that our society and world hunger for is a kind of love that says, “I don’t care…I still love you!” A kind of love that is willing to help those in need when they’re encountered; a love that provides help when help is needed, but does not expect anything in return. This is unconditional love; an example of this kind of love is a man that gets relatively small mention in The Gospels. Dragged out of his everyday life, pulled out of his comfort zone, taken out of his routine to help a man condemned to death. Simon of Cyrene. We know very little about this man… we know that he was coming from the country (Luke 23:26), the father of two sons, Alexander and Rufus (Mark 15:21), and was made to (Luke) or compelled to (Matthew 27:32) help carry the cross of Jesus.

We each have a role to play in spreading the unconditional love of Jesus in the world. It may be that we contribute greatly to the financial well-being of, or give of our time and energies to, the communities we find ourselves in; it may be that we reach out and say “Hi!” to the person who looks like they need a friend sitting next to us; it may be that we stop and talk to the man and his dog holding a sign on the street corner. It may be all of these things. And it may be the one thing that changes our lives forever.

Simon was put in a situation that he, I’m sure, would have preferred not to be in, but he responded, he reached out and helped a man condemned to death that he’d never met or would never know. He showed Jesus and us a wonderful, messy example of what it means to show unconditional love, an unconditional love that helps the broken in their time of need, an unconditional love that has no expectations, an unconditional love that helped Jesus continue His work in the world. We have an impact on the lives around us everyday, just as Simon’s experience impacted his sons, the people around them, and Jesus.

My pastor in West Virginia, Rev. Dr. Dean Thompson, took me to lunch one day, sat me down and asked me, “Where do you see yourself in five years?” I said, “Good job, family, house.” (You know the usual). When I got back to work I had a confrontation with my boss about the future. If it weren’t for those two men, those two interactions, I know that my life would not have turned out the way it has. Both those interactions, one positive, one confrontational, helped me to continue my journey to the cross.

What interactions can you reflect on when you have been a stepping stone for someone’s journey to the cross? Who have been the stepping stones on your journey?

Prayer: Gracious and Merciful God, we see broken, helpless people all around us; we feel broken and helpless ourselves at times. Give us the strength to reach out to those around us who are in need of a stepping stone to You. Help us to see those around us who are laying down our stepping stones, those who are reaching out to us. Remind us that Your Love, through Jesus, is unwavering as we navigate the long road we call faith. Let us rejoice, when our Simon arrives to carry our burden, let us rejoice when we can be Simon to others. Let us rejoice in the knowledge that You are with us now and forevermore. Amen!

--Greg Bolt

Lenten Devotional: Nothing Is Outside His Love by Cyndi Wunder

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 21:10:00 +0000

Nothing Is Outside His Love

“They took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen cloths with the spices, following the Jewish burial custom. At the place where he had been crucified there was a garden, and in this garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been buried. Since it was the Jewish Day of Preparation and the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.”John 19 verses 40-42

It is a bittersweet business, the tending of the dead. Life narrows tunnel-like when grief consumes us. We look with hollow eyes and do not see the light, the love, which shines unnoticed upon us. Failure and loss arrive in many shades and hues. We like to compare or contrast, to diminish our exposure. We seek reason or alibis where none exist. We contract, resistant to exploring the contours of our pain. Closing around injuries we become immobile. Till in weariness we release and leaning into the loss we discover that we have never been alone.

Loss is a timeless event, one that echoes across the pages of our lives. It casts new pigment, a new shade, into the clay of our being. It is in these broken places, these cracks in what we would hold as the concrete certainties of our lives, that God plants new life, new hope. Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus tended to Jesus’ body. They could not have known that his death was a beginning beyond all understanding. Perhaps it is better that they did not know, because loss must be grieved. What they knew, what they tended to, was loss.

As the process of loss deepens, we learn to lean into the pain, to discover the light that shines even in our darkest moments. The reassurance that we are never really alone sounds hollow and feeble when the presence of love cannot be felt. Yet we are told that if we can trust, if we can continue to reach out, someone will take our hand. We rest on a strength that is not our own and this is our hope. God meets us in the broken places, in the darkness. When we harden our hearts and fail to see the grace that surrounds us we are twice broken. In finding that place where we can release our fearsome grip on what we wish could have been we find that God’s grace, His love, is so all encompassing that nothing is outside of it. We have only to accept what is given, to surrender into His grace, to find that we are never left comfortless.

You are my rock and my shield

In you are my comfort and my peace

You hear me when I cry out

In my distress I wrap the cloak of your comfort around.

--Cyndi Wunder

Lenten Devotional: Simon of Cyrene by Richard Richardson

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 21:08:00 +0000

Simon of Cyrene

The stranger walked into the stable that night
I could just see his face as he knelt in the light
The baby coo-cooed to his mother's delight
As the stranger lovingly held him tight

It was thirty long years till I saw him again
He was still a strong man as he'd been at yore
But worry and toil where now etched in the skin
Of the face of this man who I'd seen before

The soldiers grabbed him and forced him to bear
The burden that Jesus was carrying there
He trembled with fear under their pitiless glare
And wanted to run but he just didn't dare

When they finally released him he started to cry
The baby he'd worshiped was going to die
Where was the promise — the pie in the sky —
Proclaimed by angels long ago from on high

He watched there for hours and hoped against fear
That mighty powers would somehow appear
And rescue the young man from the fate that lay near
But one mighty shout made his hope disappear

They brought Jesus down later that day
A couple of rich men took him away
I walked with the shepherd to the room where I stayed
We ate then we went with some others to pray

About three days later he packed to return
To his wife and family and his other concerns
Our hope had been vanquished our hope had been burned
And the young man we hoped in took a wrong turn

But just as he started to head out the door
Without an idea of what was in store
A woman came running with tales galore
That Jesus was living not dead anymore

We thought she was crazy so we went on our way
I went with the shepherd we didn't delay
Another man joined us who had plenty to say
He explained scriptures to us as we walked that day

When evening drew near we stopped at an inn
We cooked some small fish and were about to begin
The man turned his face to Heaven and then
As he blessed the food we recognized Him

Simon of Cyrene copyright 1996 by Richard Richardson

Lenten Devotional: A Letter From Barabbas by Jay Dee Conrad

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 21:06:00 +0000

A Letter From Barabbas

Barabbas experienced the mystery of God’s unconditional love without understanding it. (Luke 23:13-25) He expresses it in a letter to his father…

Dear Father,

I know you’re wondering what became of me after my release from prison. Following that extraordinary liberation I left Jerusalem immediately. I was afraid, confused, tired… needed time to think. Perhaps I can come to some understanding as I write you, Father. I wonder why. Why did this man, Jesus of Nazareth, who did not deserve it, have to die? And yet I, who was scheduled to die, live? I don’t understand.

I suppose I should begin with an explanation. As you know, I was charged as an insurrectionist. Perhaps my activities are simply a result of your good teaching. You always taught that we’re the chosen people; God gave us this land. I could never understand why the Romans were allowed to stay.

I felt, as did others, that something needed to be done about the Roman occupancy of our land. We needed to throw off their yoke, even by force if necessary. It was pursuing this goal that I was arrested. If my activities and arrest have been disconcerting to you, Father, forgive me. I did not do them to embarrass you. I did them because I thought I was right.

After my arrest I was thrown in prison. I grew more and more bitter as I languished in my cell. My hatred for Rome stretched into every part of my being. Then they brought in this man Jesus. They put him on trial. As the events unfolded I became even angrier. What right did Rome have to decide his fate? I was furious.

Then Pilate asked who he should release to meet the Passover custom. And the crowd cried out my name instead of the other man, the man clearly Pilate wanted released. It seemed a miracle when I heard them yelling my name; a chance to be free!

Some in the crowd were my friends. I knew some were Zealots who had come hoping for my release. But most of the people had no feelings one way or another for me. Yet they were shouting for my release and screaming for Jesus’ death. I could not (and still cannot) figure out why.

Then, suddenly, it was over. The man was turned over for crucifixion and I was free. It seems like a dream. I should be happy and ecstatic. I thought I was going to die and now I live. I can’t help wondering, why? Why did this man who didn’t deserve it have to die? And why do I, who was scheduled to die, live? Is it just an odd quirk of fate . . . or is there more to it than that?

I can’t get that man out of my mind. We were so different. I spoke of the sword and overthrowing Rome, but he spoke only of love and accepting our enemies. I spoke of a better country and a better life, but he spoke of an inner kingdom, a spiritual life.

I can’t quit asking why. Why did he die and why am I alive? The world is turned upside down. When I saw him hanging on the cross I wondered why I wasn’t there . . . as if this man was dying in my place. It’s as if he has given me a new life, one different from the old.

I am confused, Father, full of questions. What am I to think? What am I to do? What am I to be? What am I to make of my life? Who was this man Jesus? Why did he come? What was his purpose? Why did he die and why am I alive? Pray for me, father, that I might know.

In love and respect,

BARABBAS

--Jay Dee Conrad

Lenten Devotional: Unconditional Love? by Frances Jones

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 21:02:00 +0000

UNCONDITIONAL LOVE?

Jesus died on the cross. And yes, his atoning sacrifice erases our sins backward and forward into infinity. But was that sacrificial act one of unconditional love, really?

When a lawyer asked Jesus to name the greatest commandment, Jesus gathered the prophets' exhortations and the Ten Commandments into two sentences—"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind" and "You shall love your neighbor as yourself" (Matthew 22:40). Those words are nicely said, but they are instructions on behavior. Even more alarming, Jesus said, "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect" (Matthew 5:48). Can love be unconditional if, when we accept it, we are told we must love God and our neighbor, and moreover, be perfect?

Paul says in a variety of ways that if we simply respond with faith to Christ's love we will be transformed. He writes in Colossians 3 about our being "God's chosen ones, holy and beloved" and says to "clothe ourselves with love." But Paul gets to the crux of responding to Christ's love in verse 15 when he says, "Be thankful."

My friend, Gracie, told me a story about being saved and how she felt about her savior. She lived in an Eskimo village on the Kuskokwim River. She said, “In springtime we have to be careful. Sometimes river ice thaws back from the river bank. We can’t go by the river then. It’s dangerous.”

Gracie knew. When she was nine, she had gone out to play along the river. A chunk of river’s edge gave way under her. She slid down the muddy bank and under the ice. The ice curved up and over her. The muddy river bank curved over her. She couldn't climb that slippery mud to get out.

As she heard water slipping past the ice further out, she listened for cracking and groaning that would mean moving ice. She remembered stories of men trapped as she was, eventually caught by the grinding ice and carried out to sea.

She called and cried until she was hoarse. She slipped down the muddy river bank again and again.

“I was there a long time,” she said. “I was just crying. A boy came past and heard me. He got a rope and pulled me up.”

Gracie was an adult when she told the story but she had tears in her eyes.

After a while I asked how she had thanked that boy.

She said, “He didn’t want me to do anything.” Quietly she added, “But I remember him. I’ll do anything I ever can for him.”

Her story is our key. Just as the boy asked for no reward, Jesus doesn't set conditions on what we should do after we're saved. But, like Gracie, we're thankful, so how do we express gratitude for such an unspeakable gift of love?

First, since our sins are no longer counted, God sees us perfect through Christ Jesus. No need to perfect ourselves. Paul said for us to understand ourselves as holy and beloved beings and to clothe ourselves in love.

How do we, holy and beloved persons, say "Thank you" to Christ? Why, by putting on love and loving God with all our might, and caring for our neighbor the same way we care for ourselves.

Prayer: Dear Jesus, thank you. Let my life be one of continual thanksgiving for your unspeakable gift of love and salvation. Amen.

--Frances Jones

Lenten Devotional: Holy Stripping: A Lenten Reflection by Caryl Hurtig Casbon

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 20:59:00 +0000

Holy Stripping: A Lenten Reflection

“Grief is a sacred time when we rearrange our fragments into a new definition of wholeness.”

--Stephanie Erickson

About eight years ago I left a thirteen year teaching position at Lewis & Clark College, a new home we’d just designed and built, family and friends, a city (Portland) I loved, familiar patterns, all my props, to move to Bend, where Jay, my husband, had accepted a university leadership position. I knew no one, had no work, felt a profound loss of identity and a deep disorientation. A friend said to me, “Ah, Caryl, you’re experiencing holy stripping.” I instantly understood. I was disrobed of the cloak of external identities. Holy stripping, indeed. I felt bereft and naked. Blessedly, gradually a new larger life came in, offering me a chance at my true ministry and calling, but only after a long period of waiting, grieving, soul-searching, and letting go of the old self.

This Lenten season returns us to the story of Jesus’ ending days, His holy stripping, death, and transfiguration. To me the saddest, starkest part of Jesus’ story is His time in the Garden of Gethsemane. He asked His friends to stay awake while He prayed. They dozed off, abandoning Him in His hours of agony. There He asked that this cup be taken from Him; the answer was silence. What do we do in these times?

Jesus said, “I am the way.” What is ‘the way’ in times of holy stripping? Jesus held His Divinity next to His humanity, a sacred paradox. That was His way, and our potential. When Jesus was disrobed of His physical life and ministry, He moved into a larger Presence, a transcendence He couldn’t attain in bodily form.

Holy stripping can arrive with a phone call announcing a death, a job loss, loss of fortune, a betrayal. Our busy lives numb us to the threat of loss, yet we cannot avoid the holy stripping of aging, loss, and the many assaults on our identities. Now, we all stand in collective witness as neighbors, friends, and family get stripped of their livelihoods, retirement funds, and any sense of security for the future, laid waste by corruption and greed--a deep violation of, and threat to, our very democracy.

When we find ourselves at the crossroads of loss and suffering, stripped of what defines us, what’s left? Part of the agony of these times is that we can’t see what’s being ushered in, born in the ashes of what’s destroyed, for usually when there is a holy stripping transpiring, a new life is waiting in the wings. No one invites suffering, yet paradoxically, these times can be the most meaningful of our lives, the best and the worst claiming the same territory. These are soul-making times: we’re invited into our depths, a sacred Homecoming to a deeper connection with the Divine. New life results.

When I was little I was told to give up something for Lent. I proudly gave up chocolate, my favorite food in the world. I bragged to friends about my “Christian” sacrifice. I had no idea about the meaning of this tradition (although the chocolate Easter bunnies tasted especially delicious after the long fast). Lent is a larger invitation to an intentional time of fasting from our busyness and distractions, a slowing, an opening to emptiness, entering the Garden and greeting a larger Presence. This is the ground of our True Selves, the invitation of the cross. Sadly, many of us only receive this gift of contemplation and deepening when we’re arrested by grief or loss. But we can learn to approach this Sacred Garden voluntarily, through our contemplative lives, prayer and practices. Regardless of how “holy stripping” arrives during this season, may you mine the richness of the home ground of your soul, your birthright, your invitation in this Lenten season.

-- Caryl Hurtig Casbon

Lenten Devotional: Reflections on Romans Chapter 12--A Primer on Christian Living by Lori Brizee

noreply@blogger.com (Greg Bolt) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 20:57:00 +0000

Lenten Devotional

Reflection on Romans Chapter 12—a primer on Christian Living.

This passage starts out by Paul encouraging (not “demanding”) us to give ourselves as living sacrifices to God. It goes on to give us clear guidelines on living as a part of the “body of Christ.” Paul reminds us that we are each a part of the whole—none of us has to “do it all.” In addition to our specific “job” in the body of Christ, we are all encouraged to love and support each other. No one should be conceited or put him/herself above another. Lastly, Paul instructs us to treat our enemies with love—if revenge is necessary, leave it to God.

Take a few minutes to center your mind and spirit in God. Meditate on peace; allow God to fill you, and allow the worries of your world to be put on hold.

Read through Romans Chapter 12 two or three times.

Prayerfully ask yourselves these questions:
Vs 1-2—How can I offer my body as a living sacrifice to God? How can my mind be transformed and NOT be conformed to the patterns of this world?

Vs 3-8—Pray for the wisdom to think of myself with “sober judgement.” With what gifts, talents and strengths has God endowed me? How can I use those gifts, talents and strengths to strengthen our community (“the body of Christ”)? How can I be okay with NOT having all the gifts, talents or strengths that I want or think that I should have? (I cannot fully use what God has given me if I am focusing on the things I have not been given)!

Vs 9-13—Pray for God’s love to flow through me. How can I best serve my brothers and sisters in my community? How can I keep my faith and serve God with zeal in good times and bad? How can I help brothers and sisters in need?

Vs 14-16—Pray for patience and humility. How can I best deal with conflict? How do I deal with all the different personalities and issues of the individuals around me?

Vs 17-21—Pray for the ability to truly love those who would hurt me. How can I overcome evil with good? (It is very difficult to NOT seek revenge when we or our loved ones have been wronged)!

Think about committing this passage to memory—write it out on a piece of paper and carry it with you. Read it and say it to yourself as you are out walking, when you are stopped in traffic, or when you are doing house or yard work. Having a passage such as this imprinted on your mind can be very helpful in times of stress (i.e., when you are in a tense meeting, when you, or a family member or friend is having a tough time, when you have been wronged……)

--Lori Brizee