Miami Beach Community Church

54 Guess Where You''re Going!

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 17:59:00 -0500

Audio unavailable. We apologize for the inconvenience.

"Guess Where You're Going!"

Before I tell you "Where You're Going", I want to share a story
about someone who went somewhere. Every morning when Ellen Lawson
prayed, she did so by looking at a large postcard showing Christ against a
background of rich gold leaf. She had brought the card with her from the
East to settle in the State of Washington in the West. - enjoying the dramatic
scenery there - snow-capped, Mount St. Helens. When her 19 year old
son visited they decided to hike to some hot springs on Wind River in the
Columbia River Gorge. It was no easy hike. Thirty-foot cliffs dropped
off to the rushing river blow. On their way back down from the springs,
she slipped and fell over one of the cliffs. As she was falling the air
whooshed around her. Looking below her she saw rocks and river.
"I'm going to die" she thought - "either crushed on the ground or
drowning in the cold water. I'm dead, she said.
When she landed, a beautiful golden screen took up her entire
field of vision. Behind it, filtering through, a yellow light. The light glowed,
filling her with inexpressible peace and joy - a light she wanted to be with
forever. Grudgingly, she pulled away from the light to respond to her
son's voice, calling her name. The rescue people were there. She had
landed on rocks but had no spinal injuries. She only had a crushed arm
and other minor injuries.
At home, after it was all over, she kept recalling the brilliant light
she had seen. She sketched the golden screen, and a few days later make
the connection - the gold leaf behind the Christ on the postcard she had
brought with her and which she always focused on during her devotions.
When she was near death - that is what she saw. The overwhelming
peace and joy came from the light around Jesus. She said, "I had been
somewhere at one with a heavenly light."
A Glimpse of Forever - Guideposts
Being at one with a heavenly light is precisely the reason we are
here today - for this is the Body of Christ....the members of the body are
here - we are the hands and feet of the Christ - the eyes and ears - the
heart - and the whole is equal to more than the sum of the parts - the
LIVING PRESENCE OF JESUS - THE LIGHT OF JESUS IS HERE
- in us - ordinary people - extraordinary ordinary people - because we
are strengthened for having come.
Unbeknownst to many, there are many unbeknowns here! "With
angels and archangels and all the company of heaven" we meet here
today. A woman with a very gifted young son - Travis - a dynamic little
boy who had at age 5, asked Jesus to be his personal Savior. His mother
sensed she was to prepare him for something. Instead it seemed he was
preparing her - One night when he finished his prayers, he placed his
hands on her cheeks and said, "I just love you Mommy, I just want
you to know that I love you."
A few days later she awakened before daylight and saw Travis
sitting on his bed - just sitting in the purple predawn. "What's the matter,
Babe" she asked him. "Don't you see them?" He sounded
disappointed. "See what?"
"These two angels." (She saw only the familiar room, but she felt
something extraordinary was pressing in on them.) Some days later, he
insisted on walking to school early - why early - "Because I've got to"
he said, "I've just GOT to." On his way to school the Idaho community
experienced an earthquake and he and his little girl playmate were buried
under rubble and died.
After all the arrangements had been made and everything taken
care of, back home in her living room again, Janet was lifted right out of
the room and placed by a beautiful gate. A cluster of happy people stood
within the gate. In utter amazement she recognized the youthful robust
faces of all of her family and friends who had gone before her. In the
center of all of them - the radiant, light-filled form of Jesus. As she
watched, He stretched out his hands to welcome a child - Travis - who
ran forward and grasped the hand of Jesus, looking up at Him with eager
brown eyes. Then Travis looked at her, saying that nothing could make
him as happy as being where he was. Nothing on earth could compare to
it. Janet tells us: That scene at heaven's threshold is as vivid in each
detail today as in the measureless instant when I was allowed to
see it."
A Glimpse of Forever - Guideposts
There's no need to GUESS WHERE YOU'RE GOING - you
already know. All of us are headed for the Light, but what God wants
you to know today is that the Light is all around and within you - even now
- especially now. People lived in darkness until the light came - Jesus was
the light as prophesied by the Prophet, Isaiah - as quoted in our Scripture
lesson today - Matthew 4:12-23.
There is no better way to find yourself in the Light of Jesus
than by finding and fulfilling your spiritual calling. God has
something special for you to do, otherwise you wouldn't be here.
The Methodist Bishop called a minister acquaintance of mine,
whose seminars on preaching I have enjoyed attending. The Bishop said
to him: GUESS WHERE YOU'RE GOING - telling him that he was
going to be the Dean of the Chapel at Duke University.
Moses, hiding out in Midian because he killed a man back in
Egypt, saw a bush burst into sudden flame and a voice spoke: I AM
THE LORD YOUR GOD, THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, ISAAC,
AND JACOB. I HAVE HEARD THE CRY OF MY PEOPLE. I
HAVE SEEN THEIR SUFFERING. I HAVE COME TO
DELIVER THEM. NOW, GUESS WHERE YOU'RE GOING!"
(To paraphrase a bit!)
Even though Moses had no theological or oratorical gifts or training,
even though he was scared to death of the mighty Pharaoh, he went to
lead his people out of Egypt. (Exodus 3)
Little boy Samuel, asleep in the middle of the night, hears his name
called. It was God called, but Samuel thought Eli, for whom he worked
was calling him. Three times he went to Eli to say, "You called?" Eli
explained that it was God calling, and that Samuel should say to God:
"Speak, Lord. I am your servant, and I am listening." (I Samuel 3)
If you want to be true to your calling, even if you don't know what
it is (!), you need to say those words: "Speak, Lord. I am your servant,
and I am listening."
What you need to listen for is the voice inside yourself that speaks
to you - you know - the one you would rather not listen to if you can help
it. That's the voice that when others say "who" when some good deed
needs to be done - your voice - God's voice within you says, "You!". "I
should go." The whole universe always waits for your answer.
Isaiah - to put it in modern vernacular - didn't want to go to church
one Sunday. Frankly, he didn't get anything out of the sermons, the music
was to hi-falutin - never could stand Johan Sebastian - but his mother
made him go. Scooched down in the pew, hoping to get in and get out -
after all, he could legitimately leave after two thirds of the service was
complete - there was a loud rumble, the sanctuary was cast in a smoky
kind of light and a voice said, - Who shall we send - who will go for
us.....and Isaiah, crouching still lower, said, Not me, Lord. I swear!
And I run around with a lot of people who swear too - I'm part of
perverse generation of which I am the "perversist!"
Only with a little divine intervention did he get his tongue cleansed
and his vision cleared. He said, Here am I. Send me. ( Isaiah 6)
If you start listening daily and develop a pattern of hearing the
voice and responding, you're in for a treat. Scientists have just discovered
that doing what we know to be right really makes us feel good. No
kidding!
Doing what we know within us is right and what God wants us to
do is paramount to peace within your life. Your heart will be restless and
the only way beyond the restlessness is by listening and responding to the
Voice - heading not away from but IN TO the Light. No need to guess
where you're going.
We all survive death - We couldn't get out of life dead if we tried.
Our bodies, yes, but we ourselves - no. We are spirit - We were - we
are and we will be.
The only really important thing to do in life is to connect our Spirit
with THE SPIRIT OF THE UNIVERSE - WITH THE UNIVERSAL
CHRIST - WITH GOD. And our connection is not vague and ephemeral,
but quite pragmatic and personal.
We make the God connection by really caring for and helping the
people around us. We connect with God when we stand on the shore of
the mighty ocean and marvel at its rhythm, its power - its aroma.
We "see the light" make the connection of our Spirit with God's
spirit when we seek to help the helpless - children, animals, God's creatures
of every kind - up to and including - yes - you got it - cockroaches.
(You've got to admire them - they've been around longer than anybody.)
If you go to Galilee today they will show you a boat that might
have belonged to Andrew and Peter or perhaps the Zebedee family. In
one of the most remarkable archaeological finds anywhere in the Holy
Land which is full of them, a boat was found sticking out of the mud one
summer when the level of the Sea of Galilee dropped dramatically in a
period of dry weather. With great care it was lifted clear of the sea bottom,
cleaned and preserved. Now in a special exhibit, millions of visitors can
see the sort of boat Jesus first followers used for fishing. It has been
carbon-dated to exactly the period of Jesus' life.
The boat is a vivid reminder of the day to day existence of his
followers and of what it cost them to give it all up and follow Jesus. So
why did they give up a prosperous business to follow an itinerant preacher?
Why do you give up your precious time to come here? Why do people in
the millions regularly change their priorities and begin to walk with Christ?
The answer is in Jesus himself - in the astonishing magnetism of His Presence
and Personality. We come here because here we feel Him close to us.
Here we can pray to know him better. In this place we can hear Him
calling us.
Sometimes His call comes slowly, starting like a faint murmur and
growing until we can no longer ignore it. Sometimes he calls people as
suddenly and dramatically as he called Peter and Andrew, James and
John.
Then you find yourself fishing for people just as our Scripture said
(Matthew 4:19) "Follow Me and I will make you fish for people."
Amen.

Sermon Notes(Not edited nor proofed)The Rev. Dr. Garth R. Thompson Pastor, M.B. Community ChurchA sermon is a simple truth told by someone whobelieves it to people he knows and loves (Phillips Brooks)January 27, 2008 10:30 a, m. Matthew 4:12-23

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our heartsbe acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer.

53 Breathe On Me

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 17:54:00 -0500

Musical Selection - "Breathe On Me"

52 Sermon

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 17:49:00 -0500

Sermon text unavailable. We apologize for the inconvenience.

The Rev. Dr. Garth R. Thompson Pastor, M.B. Community ChurchA sermon is a simple truth told by someone whobelieves it to people he knows and loves (Phillips Brooks)January 13th, 2008 10:30 a.m.
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our heartsbe acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer.

51 Rise Up Shepherd and Follow

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 17:43:00 -0500

Musical Selection - "Rise Up Shepherd and Follow"

50 Sermon

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 17:39:00 -0500

Sermon text unavailable. We apologize for the inconvenience.

The Rev. Dr. Garth R. Thompson Pastor, M.B. Community ChurchA sermon is a simple truth told by someone whobelieves it to people he knows and loves (Phillips Brooks)January 6th, 2008 10:30 a.m.

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our heartsbe acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer.

49 Danger! Baby On Board!

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 17:07:00 -0500

Audio unavailable. We apologize for the inconvenience.

"Danger! Baby on Board!"

The Rev. Tom Wright was preaching at a big, magnificently well
attended Christmas service. In attendance was a well known historian,
famous for his skepticism toward Christianity. Afterwards, he approached
Rev. Wright all smiles: "I've finally worked it out", he declared, "why
people like Christmas: A baby threatens no one, so the whole thing
is a happy event that means nothing at all!"
How would you respond to that supposition? I'm sure you would
like to hear how the Reverend responded: I was dumbfounded! At the
heart of the Christmas story in Matthew's Gospel is a baby who
poses such a threat to the most powerful man around that he kills a
whole village full of other babies in order to try to get rid of
him....Whatever else you say about Jesus, from his birth onward,
people certainly found him a threat. He upset their power
arrangements, and suffered the usual fate of people who do that.
In fact, the shadow of the cross falls over the story from
that moment on. Jesus is born with a price on his head. Plots are
hatched; angels have to warn Joseph; they only just escape from
Bethlehem in time. Herod the Great, who thought nothing of killing
members of his own family, including his own beloved wife, when
he suspected her of scheming against him, and who gave orders
when dying that the leading citizens of Jericho should be slaughtered
so that people would be weeping at his funeral - this Herod would
not bat an eyelid at the thought of killing lots of little babies in case
one of them should be regarded as a royal pretender. As Herod's
power had increased so had his paranoia - a familiar progression
as dictators around the world have shown from that day to this.
The Gospel of Jesus the Messiah was born in a land and at
a time of trouble, tension, violence and fear. Banish all thoughts of
peaceful Christmas scenes. Before the "prince of peace" had
learned to walk and talk, he was a homeless refugee with a price
on his head." Why? Because the world's most powerful man feared
that if he were allowed to grow to manhood, he would go about preaching.
Preachers are dangerous.
Not all that long ago, I went to Cuba. I needed to go for personal
reasons, and I was allowed to go - licensed to go - by taking medical
supplies for the handicapped which we delivered on arrival - we being
my friend Paul, a Canadian and Paul, who at that time was the head of
Social Security in our area, and his wife. Neither Paul was interrogated,
but I was as we prepared to leave - "What churches had I visited? With
what clergymen had I met?" - the same questions over and over again.
(The closest I had come, was stepping into the Cathedral) - as did my
traveling companions - but I was the dangerous one - a preacher.
The problem with preachers is they use words. Words are what
worry those in power. Speak out for what threatens those in power and
you're in trouble - your life is in danger - it may be taken, as was the life of
Prime Minister Bhutto.
Joseph and Mary, fearing for the life of their infant Son, fled to
Egypt, becoming refugees.
This ancient story is all too familiar in our world today. There are
something like 50 million refugees around our world today - crowded into
terrible conditions, fearing for their lives. In Sudan, the Sahara, in Malaysia,
in Jesus' own homeland, millions who are homeless, jobless, and hopeless.
Kind Herod could tell a threat to his power when he met one.
This little baby brought a new Kingdom, a new rule, a different sort of
sovereignty. After the arrival of the Baby, nothing is ever the same again.
After welcoming Him into our world, there is no going back to
normalcy. The arrival of ANY child makes that happen. I love to watch
the real estate shows that depict people looking for houses. More often
than not, it's to get greater space to accommodate the new arrival.
Will Willimon from whom I get illustrations for sermons told of
getting a phone call from someone he knew only casually - a distinguished
business person in the southern community who Will had met in discussions
relating to making their city schools more racially diverse. The business
man was not in favor of any such thing and let everyone know it. Now the
phone call. He wanted Will to get other Pastors and himself to support a
neighborhood center he had adopted - a center that works with mostly
minority young people. The surprise showed in Will's voice: "What
happened?" he asked. The business man said that he had had a rather
remarkable experience a couple of years before. "I met Christ. He
made me take a hard, hones look at my life and I didn't like what I
saw. I had to make a move. I'm not the same person I was just a
few years ago. I'm not living in the same place in the world. Through
the love of Jesus, I've made a move."
Since Jesus was born among us, little is the same. We can't get
back to normal. But we sure try! We have to be urged to move - to act
- to speak for the principles of the Christ Child - we should have a sign
for ourselves and our cars: DANGER! BABY ON BOARD!
It's time for all the members of the religions of our world to speak
out for the principles of peace and cooperation to which each of them
calls us. John Buchanan, editor/publisher of the Christian Century says
that "A remarkable thing happened this year in the weeks before
Christmas. A letter was written to Christian leaders by 138 Muslim
clerics and scholars representing every branch of Islam. 'A
Common Word Between Us' stated that the peace of the world
depends on peace between Muslims and Christmas, and that love
for God and neighbor is a central tenet of both religions and common
ground on which we stand. 'Our eternal souls are at stake,' the
Islamic leaders wrote.
It's so good to hear someone else say that - I've been saying it for
so long, and it is so encouraging that the same thoughts are coming from
Islamic leaders - representing all of its branches.
Yale Divinity School's Center for Faith and Culture put together a
response that was published in the New York Times on November 18,
expressing gratitude for the letter, asking forgiveness for historical Christian
hostility toward Islam and promising dialogue with Islamic and Jewish
leaders that "seeks the good of the other" and that asks how God "would
have us fulfill the requirement that we love God and one another."
Amid the tranquil scenes on our Christmas cards, we must ask
what God is calling us to do. I love getting Christmas cards. My favorite
was a new version of the 12 days of Christmas - rewritten as A Florida
Christmas:
A seagull in a Palm Tree
Two mouse ears
Three launching shuttles
Four snapping alligators,
Five golden oranges
Six Dolphins Leaping
Seven Flamingos Flocking
Eight Key Lime Pies Baking
Nine manatees munching
Ten Hurricanes blowing
Eleven Tourists Tanning
Twelve Early Birds Dining.
Yes, I love Christmas cards and thank you to all of you who sent me
one
- and I confess, I can't throw them away - there's something so sacred
and special and powerful in those tranquil scenes - and something so
touching about the letters that are enclosed, catching us up on the family's
progress through life, and we feel connected not only to them - but to the
whole human race - exactly how Jesus wants us to feel.
Then he calls us to act upon our feelings. Exercising our vote is a
major way. I don't know who will get my vote as yet. I just know that
I scan every speech I hear for the word "DIALOGUE" - I'm looking for
the leader who will choose diplomacy over destruction - cooperation over
conflict, peace over war - because that's the way of Jesus - and that is
VERY important to me.
I am so impressed with what our military forces are doing for
peace - the good that they are doing to help the people victimized by war
- particularly the children. Our member, Naval Commander Angie Keith
writes: I can't think of a better way to spend Christmas Eve than by
giving gifts to people who truly need our help. We visited the Kabul
Orthopedic Clinic which fits people with prosthetics, provides rehabilitation,
massage, and mental health treatment, free of charge, to more than 10,000
disabled patients a year. Afghanistan is one of the world's most heavily
mined countries and over 250,000 Afghans suffer from disabilities
associated with mines. Most of the patients we visited were young
amputees or children with other disabilities.
After the clinic we visited the Inderia Gandhi Children's
Hospital...We visited patients with cancer, orthopedic injuries, malnourished
children and the nursery. Between the two locations, we gave away over
200 bags of toys and candy and we put tons of smiles on the children's
faces. It is truly better to give than to receive? I felt like Santa today....We
are making a difference here, one smile at a time.
I feel, I see the Christ Child Smiling. His Gift to the world of
Love is being given - may we all be part of the delivery process. The
baby is coming......the Baby is coming.......DANGER! BABY ON
BOARD!

Sermon Notes(Not edited nor proofed)The Rev. Dr. Garth R. Thompson Pastor, M.B. Community ChurchA sermon is a simple truth told by someone whobelieves it to people he knows and loves (Phillips Brooks)December 30th, 2007 10:30 a, m. Matthew 2:13-23
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our heartsbe acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer.

48 Musical Selection: There Is No Rose

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 17:04:00 -0500

Musical Selection - "There Is No Rose"

47 Musical Selection: Handel

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 16:58:00 -0500

Musical Selection - Handel

46 We Are Here To Make A Difference

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 16:51:00 -0500

Sermon text unavailable. We apologize for the inconvenience.

The Rev. Dr. Garth R. Thompson Pastor, M.B. Community Church. A sermon is a simple truth told by someone whobelieves it to people he knows and loves (Phillips Brooks)December 23, 2007 10:30 a, m. May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our heartsbe acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer.

45 Musical Selection: Patiently

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Tue, 1 Jan 2008 18:06:00 -0500

Musical Selection - "Patiently"

44 Musical Selection: I Believe O Lord

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Tue, 1 Jan 2008 18:04:00 -0500

Musical Selection - "I Belive O Lord"

43 New Lives For Old

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Tue, 1 Jan 2008 17:54:00 -0500

"New Lives For Old"

"When it was the right time, John the Baptizer began telling
people a message from God" - so says our Scripture lesson today.
John the Baptist (as we call him) is obviously known for baptizing people.
Actually, he should be remembered for his message - he should be "John
the Preacher" not "John the Baptizer" because it was his direct,
confrontational preaching that made people remember him. It was his
preaching mouth that got him in trouble, not his baptizing hands. His
message? Repent! He told Herod, the ruler of Galilee to repent for
taking his brother's wife, Herodias, as his own. Herodius plotted with her
dancing daughter to have John's head - literally - killed as if he were an
annoying gnat flying about in the royal box.
But Jesus said, "The truth is that John the Baptizer" is greater
than anyone who has ever come into this world."...(John 11:11)
"Before John came, the law of Moses and all the prophets told
about the things that would happen. And if you believe what they
said, then John is Elijah. He is the one they said would come. You
people who hear me, listen!" (John 11:14)
It was the right time for his message of repentance. Before we
can get new lives, we have to dump a lot of junk out of the old life. That's
a two step process - being sorry for what you have done and asking God
to forgive you for all of it.
There's a time of repentance built into every communion service,
where when we confess our sin, "God is faithful and just to forgive us
of our sin and cleanse us from ALL unrighteousness."
No wonder John's message was also a welcome one - many people
wanted to hear it, and to hear it that had to expend a good deal of effort.
John planted himself in the middle of nowhere. He set up shop in the
wilderness and anyone who wanted to hear what he had to say had to go
to a lot of trouble to get there - borrowing the neighbor's donkey perhaps
or setting off on foot with enough water for the journey, and going down
lonely trails infested with bandits.
To hear John preach you had to trek way off into the blazing hot
desert, traverse relentless hills of thick sand and make you way down to
the Jordan River, far away from any city.
He was particularly hard on people in organized religion, the
Pharisees and Sadducees. They didn't go there to hear him except to
hear enough so they could find a way to do him in - after all, if he became
too popular their temples would be empty of people - worse yet their
offering plates would be empty.
"You bunch of snakes!" John said, "slithering down here to
the river. Do you think that a little water on your snake skins is
going to make any difference. It's your life that got to change, not
your skin! If your life is changed, people will be able to tell. You'll
bear fruit. And don't think you can pull rank because you are a
descendant of Abraham. Descendants of Abraham are a dime a
dozen. God can take these rocks and make them into descendants
of Abraham. What matters is your life. Is your life green? Is it
bearing fruit? Because if it is dead wood then it goes into the fire.
Repent! The Kingdom of Heaven is near!"
My advise to you is, "Live your life understanding that only
what's done for Christ will last."
What are these things? Acts of kindness, Works of charity, Visiting
the sick, comforting they who mourn, being more concerned about the
welfare of your wife or husband or significant other than your own.
Carrying about with you a spirit of good will and acceptance. Not being
judgemental, Not complaining.
At our last minister's meeting, one of the ministers came with a
band on his wrist. Each time you complain about something, you have to
move the band to the other wrist. The goal is to see how long you can go
without having to do that. How about YOU? Could you last only an
hour - a day - a week? The program's goal is to go 21 days. Are all of
your branches green - or just a few of them. (A Complaint Free World
by Will Bowen.)
I have a senna polifida tree that isn't doing well at all. I have five
of them in a row. They have exuberant, plentiful yellow blossoms. A few
weeks ago, they all began to bloom - well not all - the one at the end
looked sick - and I thought it was dying. I checked it for any pests that
might be destroying it, but nothing was to be seen. I hate to tell you this,
but I am one of those persons who believe that one species can talk to
another - should talk to each other. I spoke to the tree. I moved its
branches. I showered it with a little more water than the others. Now, it
is in bloom! - not riotously like the others, but a nice grouping of blossoms
on the branches that were not dead after all. Those that are - the
deadwood, I assume I will have to trim off.
This is then the place in the sermon where you need to decide
what deadwood you need to get rid of - repent of. Anything that keeps
you from your goal of Christlikeness has to go. Repent! "He will burn
the useless part with a fire that cannot be stopped."
God is speaking to us today - moving OUR branches, nourishing
us with His love - the God who can make our branches bloom with good
works. "He will separate the good grain from the straw, and he ill
put the good part into his barn."
All you have to do is make a conscious decision to give priority to
those things that will grow your spirit.
The Network of Spiritual Progressive is committed to fostering a
new consciousness so that we allow ourselves to know that the most
significant and rewarding part of our lives comes through:
*Acts of love and generosity
*Kindness to humans and animals
*Caring for and giving to other without expectation of reward or
a "return on the investment of our time and energy.
*Work that is fulfilling both in its process and in the sense it gives
us that we are contribution to the public good.
*Awe at the grandeur of creation
*The experience of being recognized on the deepest level of our
being and recognizing others in that way.
*Acknowledging our connection to something larger than ourselves
and seeing our lives in the context of service to the ultimate triumph of
love, goodness, justice and peace.
That's fine for us, but how are we doing as a nation, as a world?
Is it time for a call to repentance there? Is the world getting better or
worse? I always say that progress is backwards. Waiting the other day
for replies to several e-mails and needing one in particular, I had an
amazingly brilliant thought - Why not use the telephone?! That way I
would get an immediate answer, and it wouldn't be just words on a page
but hearing the vibrant, wonderful voice of the friend I was calling, and I
would be able to get a feeling of how he was doing - not just by the
words, but by the tone of voice.
And the internet - much as I love Google - I was appalled by the
cruel trick played by one teenager on another - the one, a girl, pretending
to be a handsome young man, communicating with her neighbor a few
doors down, getting her very attached to "him" then having him dump her
saying all kinds of cruel things to her. Only after she had hung herself, did
her parents learn that there was no such young man, only a girl down the
street playing tricks on an unsuspecting, sensitive soul. What is happening
in our world. Young people are getting more and more cruel to each other
and to the adults around them. The suicide incident was part of
a program depicting the growing cruelty and irresponsibility being manifested
in our young people including a college student who, driving drunk, killed
one girl and made an invalid of another. She fled back to her native Peru
where she continued to drink and drive and even wrote a song bragging
about her driving experiences. Where is John the Baptist when he's needed?
Who will call us to repentance - we all have things of which we need to
repent. Jesus will.
Jesus calls us to repentance, not to make us feel bad about
ourselves, but to free us from the darkness and deadness that drags us
down. Then he setts us on a pathway of service and fulfillment - heads us
for home - the eternal home He has prepared for us from the foundation
of the world.
One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after;
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to
behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in his temple. For in
the time of trouble he shall hid me in his pavilion: in the secret of
his tabernacle shell he hide me; he shall set me up upon a rock.
And now shall mine head be lifted up above mine enemies round
about me: therefore will I offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy;
I will sing, yea I will sing praises unto the Lord.
Change your hearts! And show by the way you live that you have
changed. A good indicator of that is your checkbook which will show
among other things how much you give to yourself and how much to God.
I hope everybody got the pledge letter from our church Treasurer,
Edwin Scharlau - how anybody could resist it I just can't figure. Since
there are more of you here who haven't pledged than have, I assume
many of you didn't get it. He referred to all the special moments the
church provides you - your wedding, your child's baptism, a
granddaughters 1st birthday, delicious food, the incomparable karaokie
singing by church members, dancing the "chicken dance at the Octoberfest,
- sitting in your pew with some of the same people around you week after
week, being greeted at the church door as you walk in, the sermons for
children, the sermons for serious Christians. He says, "I'm sure you
have your own moments you look forward to on Sunday mornings a
the Miami Beach Community Church - from the spiritual to the
simple. " Then he suggests that we all bear the fruit of good stewardship,
that the Church can go forward in strength and its message heard. Bear
fruit. "Change your hearts and show by the way your live that you
have changed!" (Mt. 3:8)
Today's message is "Repent!". May we pray. Each of us Lord,
have things for which we repent, things we have done, things we have
failed to do, things for which others cannot forgive us, things for which we
cannot forgive ourselves. Even the remembrance of them grieves us
severely. In these moments, as we repent earnestly of our sins, "Forgive
us all that is past and grant that we may evermore serve thee in
newness of life to the honor and glory of Thy Holy name. Amen.

Sermon Notes(Not edited nor proofed)The Rev. Dr. Garth R. Thompson Pastor, M.B. Community ChurchA sermon is a simple truth told by someone whobelieves it to people he knows and loves (Phillips Brooks)December 9, 2007 10:30 a, m. Matthew 3:1-122nd Sunday in Advent
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our heartsbe acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer.

42 What's New?

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Tue, 1 Jan 2008 17:48:00 -0500

"What's New?!"

Happy New Year! This is the beginning of the church year -
which begins with the season of Advent - filled with the anticipation of the
arrival of Christ into the world. He came and He comes again - whenever
we invite Him. Even the saints like to have an invitation - a welcome.
But Jesus was rejected while still in the womb - the Inn was full
you remember - and his mother delivered him in the stable - among the
friendly animals. Animals know so much more than we give them credit
for - witness the animals who went to higher ground before the gigantic
tsunami. How does my god know to go which day to go the door to wait
for the maid to come - whom she loves dearly because Elsa stays home
and keeps her company all day, whereas I run off to church. How do the
swallows find Capistrano? How do pengins know where to march to?
In this world of ours, there's a miracle around every corner -
something new to be discovered - something different to understand.
Jesus was something new - something different - we've never
quite gotten used to him. That's because He was none other than God
walking among us - God with us - Emanuel! - which is what Emanual
means - God with us! Because we as mankind never got ourselves to
God, there was only one solution - God had to come to us.
We tried to be faithful. We tried our best to follow God's laws as
we understood them, but we failed.
We poured over the sacred books seeking a better understanding
of God, but things there seemed so strange and incomprehensible.
We built a grand temple in the hope of containing God, a house
grand enough for God to reside in, but following the rituals of the temple
was a pale substitute for the living God.
We listened to the prophets and nodded in assent to their demands.
But agreeing with them was one thing: obeying them was another.
So many of our attempts to get close to God, to walk with God,
to obey God only seemed to drive us further from God. What could we
do?
The answer is that we could do nothing. Something had to be
done for us. We could not come to God, so God came to us.
Advent means, that caught in our old ways, following our
accustomed scripts, going through the motions, God came to us. God
reached out to us, despite the futility of our groping toward him, God
embraced us, stood beside us, and became one with us.
It's that closeness that Communion accomplishes for us if we have
the eye to see the miracle in the common place.
Before His physical departure from the Earth, Jesus chose elements
by which we could remember him - two things that were at every meal -
bread and wine. He gave symbolic meaning to each - a symbol of his
Presence.
Shortly after my father died, I found my mother sitting sadly in a
chair, holding my father's shoes. They weren't his dress shoes - but his
work shoes which didn't smell all that great from years of sweaty use - but
still they were the perfect symbol of the dedicated, hardworking husband
and father he was - who was up before light and finishing after dark to
support a family of nine children.
What would symbolize you? What is the essence of who you are
that could be capsulized into a symbol?
And how does that essence relate to the fierce directions given us
in the Scripture today "We should prepare ourselves to fight evil with
the weapons that belong to the light."
The weapons that belong to the light are the principles of Jesus
that are the only things powerful enough make it possible for our world to
survive - for the earth to be preserved and for wars to cease that could
cause the end of civilization. God doesn't have to bring the end of time,
we're doing a very good job of heading for it entirely on our own.
When I was a kid, we were always crying wolf - saying there was
a crisis when there was none. Once such day, my next older brother
shouted out from the old swimmin' hole that he was drowning. His cries
of "Help - Help, I'm drowning" didn't fool any of us. He went under. We
waited eagerly for him to come back up. The only problem - He didn't!
He WAS drowning - whereupon a family member dived in, found him
below the surface, and dragged him to shore - where he coughed up a lot
of water, came to and continued on in the land of the living.
But he had been through quite an experience. Thinking he was
going to meet his Maker, he said that every mean and terrible thing that
he had ever done passed through his mind in an instant. God didn't have
to judge him, he had already judged himself.
God doesn't have to bring an end to things...we're doing a fine job
of that ourselves....thinking we can war our way to piece - totally opposite
to what Jesus said - totally foreign to the way He was in the world.
As we come to the communion table today, our task is simple, to
examine ourselves to see how like the Christ we have become or need to
become - to ask how concerned we are about His Church, His Kingdom,
His reign as King of Kings - how involved are we in the things of the
Spirit.
It is likely that instead, we have fallen prey to what our culture
calls us to become. A recent church of England report puts it this way:
"Where previous generations found their identity in what they
produced, we now find our identity in what we consume. "
Never at any funeral have I said, He consumed four luxury cars,
to luxury homes and half of the Forge's wine list. Spiritually, those things
won't get us anywhere - they certainly don't stop wars or produce peace.
Jesus gives us the bread and wine to remember him by, but for the
purpose of remembering that we are his hands and feet in the world to
accomplish His tasks. He walks beside us hoping to see us doing things
that will make a difference.
The Church just sent a thousand dollars from our Benevolence
Budget to help keep the Interfaith Worker Justice organization going -
giving them money to help others who earn very little to get a living wage
- pressuring Burger King, Taco Bell and others on behalf of the tomato
pickers who earn very little - or pressuring universities and housing
communities to pay their groundskeepers a living wage. They know in
their hearts to help these people is to make a difference where it counts
most - with whom it counts most.
So what is the symbol by which you will be remembered ? -
perhaps a sweaty shirt from the latest march for worker's wages: or from
serving on the food line at the church's luncheon for the homeless, or a
parking stub from one of the many committee meetings you have attended
to further the work of your church, your service club or arts organization.
"I say this because you know that we live in an important time,
Yes, it is now time for you to wake up from your sleep. Our salvation
is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is almost
finished." (Romans 13:11.)
Into the darkness, the Christ of Light appears - again this advent.
Showing us how Life is to be done and won. - to give us anothr chance.
He came not to consume but to give - to love - to share. That's why we're
here - to learn to walk in that light, to live in that light.
The animals in the stable intuitively understood that. So must we.
In closing, I'd like to share A Dog's Purpose, from a 4 year old.
Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten year-old
Irish Wolfhound named Belker. The dog's owners, Ron, his wife, Lisa,
and their little boy, Shane, were all very attached to Belker, and they were
hoping for a miracle.
I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the
family we couldn't do anything for Belker, and offered to perform the
euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home.
As we made the arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought
it would be goof for four-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They
felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience.
The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker's
family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the
last time, that I wondered if he understood what was going on.
Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away. The little
boy seemed to accept Belker's transition without any difficulty or confusion.
We sat together for a while after Belker's death, wondering aloud
about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than human lives.
Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, "I know why."
Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned
me. I'd never heard a more comforting explanation.
He said, "People are born so that they can learn how to live
a good life - like loving everybody all the time and being nice right?"
The four year old continued, "Well, dogs already know how to do
that, so they don't have to stay as long."
LIVE SIMPLY. LOVE GENEROUSLY. CARE DEEPLY.
SPEAK KINDLY. LEAVE THE REST TO GOD. MAKE YOUR LIFE
A SYMBOL OF THE LIFE OF CHRIST. Now.....
Come, dance in delight because love has come
and the wine of celebration is being poured
Come, lift up your hearts
to receive the abundance that waits for us
for the Christ is present.
and we touch the life of God.
Come to this sacred table, not because you must, but because
you may..... .

Communion Meditation Notes(Not edited nor proofed)The Rev. Dr. Garth R. Thompson Pastor, M.B. Community ChurchA sermon (or meditation) is a simple truth told by someone whobelieves it to people he knows and loves (Phillips Brooks)December 2, 2007 10:30 a, m.
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our heartsbe acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer.

41 Musical Selection: I Will Sing New Songs

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Tue, 1 Jan 2008 17:34:00 -0500

Musical Selection - Jonathan Burton performs "I Will Sing New Songs" by Dvorak

40 King Me

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Tue, 1 Jan 2008 17:03:00 -0500

"KING ME!"

When I came to this community 33 years ago, Miami Beach was
on a downward spiral - which had a very negative effect on the church.
The congregation dwindled, the funds lessened. I realized that I would
have to be the glue to hold things together until the City itself turned around.
That came to my mind when I read this commentary on our
Scripture lesson from the first chapter of Colossians: "The historical
Jesus is here being proclaimed as that grand beginning point of a
whole new creation that will displace the old. In verse 17, the most
sweeping claim for this new king of creation is that "all things hold
together in him" Christ the King is the glue that keeps the cosmos
together."
I don't know about you, but I think we're hanging on by a thread
-as a result of the direction in which we're going ecologically and politically
- we could drown ourselves or blow ourselves up if we don't change.
The Apostle, Paul could pray the same prayer for us he prayed for the
Colossians: "This is what we pray - that you will know fully what
God wants; that with your knowledge you will also have great
wisdom and understanding in spiritual things; that this will help you live
in a way that brings honor to the Lord and pleases him in every
way, that your life will produce good works of every kind and that
you will grow in your knowledge of God, that God will strengthen
you with his own great power, and that you will be patient and not
give up when troubles come."
The basis for "understanding spiritual things" is to
understand who Jesus is.
Not everyone within the sound of my voice will agree with me as
to my understanding of who Jesus is. Despite my liberal stance on social
issues and my belief that God Is Still Speaking, thus setting aside some
things we have heard or read before - even in the Scriptures - I have a
very high Christology.
I personally believe that Jesus was present at the right hand of the
Heavenly Father when all that is was created. "Without him was not
made anything that was made" as John the gospel writer put it. I
believe what the same gospel writer proclaimed that Jesus was the
"expression of God" the "Word" of God - that He was with God and was
God or as our text today Colossians 1:15 puts it, "He is the image of
the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation." I believe that when
Jesus was here on Earth, God was here on Earth - that to know what
Jesus is like is to know what God is like - that although He had the power
to wipe out and destroy any of His enemies or those of the Jews, or those
of mankind, - he chose to demonstrate the power of loving sacrifice -
the giving of Life rather than the taking of life.
If we as Christians were doing our job, our nation would be
spending as much on peace as they are on war. At a minimum, we
should be working as aggressively to bring peace as we are to bringwar.
Our Department of Peace should receive as much in finding as our
Department of War.
Our denomination, the United Church of Christ has the right idea
- currently collecting money to provide assistance to the over four million
people who have been displaced by the Iraq War - two million internally
and two million who have fled to Syria, Jordan and Lebanon.
On a personal level, you miss a world of peace and tranquility by
not living daily in the context of Who Jesus Is - King of Kings and Lord of
Lords.
Who or what is Lord of your life? Constantine became a
"Christian" and made Christianity the official religion of the State and
Christianity has been going down hill ever since. Christianity was defined,
trimmed, smoothed and changed to fit imperial policy. It allowed
Constantine to continue to rob kill, burn, fight and execute. What is wrong
with that picture. What is wrong with our picture.
To bring "our picture" into focus and to take our first step on our
journey to "real" Christianity, we have to see that Jesus is the King of
Kings.
Knowing that Jesus is "King of Kings" means that YOU are "a
child of the King". As such you have some privileges. Because you're
"family" you are allowed into the Presence of the King of Kings. You live
in the mansion! A place in the Palace is yours!
When Jesus said, "In my Father's House are many
mansions", he wasn't talking about something that is going to be, but
already is. Once we set our foot on the discipleship trail, we are "in
eternal life." And here is precisely where we go wrong, because most
modern disciples give 99 % of their thought into the physical world and
hopefully, at least 1% on the realm of the Spirit in which they now live.
Most of us nod to God in the morning and hurry our devotions in
the evening, more to say we have done them than to get something from
them. I don't advocate giving up set times at the beginning and ending of
your day for giving attention to godly things - but additionally, I advocate
PRACTICING THE PRESENCE.
If we are indeed the King's Kid - and we do live in the palace, in
the Presence of the King - then we should bask in the Nearness of the
divinity.
For some reason we don't expect Divinity in the daily doings of
our lives - but if not there, then where? It's time for "Andy" to make his
appearance. The hymn, In the Garden took some hits because of the
words, And He walked with me, And He talked with me.....which became
paraphrased as "Andy walked with me - Andy talked with me." But
visualizing Jesus walking and talking with you is as good a way to Practice
the Presence as you can find. And Jesus is joined by others.
I'm a big believer in not going anywhere without being "in the
company of the saints." At communion, the liturgy says- "With angels
and archangels and with all the company of heaven we laud and magnify
Thy Glorious Name." Don't leave home without them.!"
Of course, you will be known by the company you keep! I
mentioned to a friend the other night that reincarnationists believe that to
develop our souls we have many sojourns on this earth - until we get it
right I would guess! AND that they believe we often interact with some of
the same people we have known in other incarnations, although the roles
often change - someone who is a good friend in one incarnation may be a
brother to you in the next. The husband may reincarnate as the wife and
the wife the husband - now THERE'S an interesting thought. Turn about
is fair play it would seem, but he thought I shouldn't mention such things as
reincarnation, lest the men in the little white coats come to get me... in
which case I'll be in good company - Jesus said that John the Baptist was
Elijah who had lived centuries before - and as you recall - they dressed
the same - and had the same mission in life - preaching - and lived on the
same foods. Coincidence? In the realm of the Spirit, there are no
coincidences!
In the realm of the Spirit, there are always interesting concepts to
discuss and consider. I DO believe that some people reincarnate. I
remember one of mine - I was a priest - and I remember only walking and
reading as I made my way around a cloister - which is an area within a
monastery or convent, a covered passage, having one side walled and the
other an open arcade often with a series of columns set at regular intervals
- a colonnade. On my vacation I saw a cloister something like the one of
my past.
Yes, I'm suspicious that so many people claim to have been
Cleopatra or Julius Caesar - or are told that they were by unscrupulous
money makers, but it cannot be dismissed out of hand - if it's good enough
for Jesus - it's good enough for me!
Another advantage in living in the Palace - in the realm of the King
of Kings is learning how God interacts with mankind. Beware, this will
cause you to put away any "Errand boy in the Sky" practice you may have
had. You can no longer have the "Gimme God Blues" - that's when God
won't gimmie what I want him to gimme - and I get the Gimmie God
Blues. ( I try not to go there!)
It is so much more fun to see what I can give because that's the
way people in God's Kingdom get turned on - by doing something for
someone else, by being of service - by being in ministry.
As Palace People we are in full time Christian service, although
the devil tries to get us to believe only paid employees of the church are in
full time Christian service - and that's the way the devil would like it - far
be it from us to please the devil - much nicer to give him a hard time by
taking our ministries seriously.
At the Thanksgiving Eve ecumenical service I told a story told by
The Rev. James Howell, pastor of the Myers Park United Methodist
Church in Charlotte, North Carolina. It was his own story of wondering
if he should even BE in the ministry: The reason I am still in the ministry
is because of the night I decided to leave the ministry. It was my
day off. The phone rang, and it was the chaplain at a nearby hospital.
Usually we would exchange pleasantries, but all she said was,
"Come to the hospital - now!" I trusted the urgency in her voice
and arrived in about ten minutes.
I found her with a young couple I knew and loved from our
church. I sensed shrieks and sobs lingering in the room, which was
eerily silent: the wife and the husband fell onto my shoulders. I
could hardly bear their weight as they gasped for words. Their
child, Caroline, whom I had baptized a couple of weeks earlier had
just been diagnosed with a malignant tumor intertwined with her
spinal cord at the base of the brain."
Another minister who knew the family materialized. His
demeanor startled me: smiling, confident, speaking many words,
assuring the parents with an utterly confident grin that "God will
save your child if you just pray."
I'm ordained, he's ordained, but I felt no kinship with him.
I oscillated between wanting to strangle him and wanting to be more
like him. Why have I never been able to be pious? When did I
become the grim pastor who expects the worst? Sure, his style of
pastoring seemed trite, absurd - and yet, what good was I doing?
About that time, the pediatric oncologist came in - calm,
intelligent, well-trained, impressive. I remember him as being very
tall. He had a plan. As he unfolded his strategy, I remember those
smart grown-ups who had advised me to go to medical school, and
I wish I had, because as a minister, I had nothing - literally nothing
to offer to these people I loved so much. Had I gone to medical
school, I could do something...."
Then her parents asked me for a favor. "We are exhausted.
Caroline won't stop crying. Could you hold her for a little while so
we can step out and take a little break?" And so I took this child
in my arms and rocked her. She cried and I cried, and then having
expended all her energy, she drifted off to sleep. I kept rocking
her until her parents came back, a little bit rested, relieved to see
her more peaceful. We placed her gently in the crib, and then I left
them, took the elevator downstairs and stepped through the door
into the night.
As I felt the chill against my face, I knew I would not quit
the ministry. It was as if my whole life had been a preparation for
this dark evening. All the wrestling with what career to pursue,
counsel from professors, the books, papers, degrees, hurdles of
ordination: I had been in training for this day, so that on this day I
could drive to Durham and give two parents a little bit of rest - and
to rock a very sick child to sleep, just to hold this little one who
seemed to have as little hope as I did.
It was around midnight that I had to answer a question:
Why did I go into the ministry? To do something grand and
impressive? Or because I thought I might love somebody, some
family, some child, in God's name. Holding Caroline, I wondered:
isn't this what Mary did with Jesus when he was sick during the
night? Didn't she embrace him when he was taken down from the
cross? Isn't this what God Almighty had been doing we me all
these years? And on one night, I was able to help. I held a child.
I fulfilled my vocation, the small impotence of it all turning out to
be the beauty."
Your ministry is simply to be doing what God does with you
- to hold the hurting, to encourage the depressed, to support those
weakened by what life can do to the weary. In fact, if you didn't do
it, God couldn't get anything done, for you're the way He gets his
mission accomplished - as we emulate and follow the King of Kings.
When I was a kid, we played checkers, and I recall that if you got
your single checker across to the other side of the Board, you could yell
out KING ME! And another checker would be added to yours, which
deferred princely powers to the unit - you could do things now, you never
good before! That's the way God does things, as our mission makes a
difference - my mission makes a difference. " KING ME!"

Sermon Notes(Not edited nor proofed)The Rev. Dr. Garth R. Thompson Pastor, M.B. Community ChurchA sermon is a simple truth told by someone whobelieves it to people he knows and loves (Phillips Brooks)November 25, 2007 10:30 a, m. Colossians 1:11-20
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our heartsbe acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer.

39 Beginnings and Endings

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Tue, 1 Jan 2008 16:24:00 -0500

Audio unavailable - We apologize for the inconvenience. Sermon text follows:

"BEGINNINGS AND ENDINGS!"

Our combined texts today speak of endings and beginnings, of
judgement and joy. Our first passage from Isaiah 65 shows a wonderful
ending for the people of God. (We hope that's us!) In the second text,
Jesus tells the disciples all of the things they will have to go through - the
destruction of Jerusalem, families turning against them, authorities calling
them to come before them - not a great future to look forward to - yet
Jesus says to them, "None of these things can really harm you! Easy
for Him to say - you say! Not really. He suffered more than anyone - the
most agonizing death imaginable - but He's alive and well and living any
where in the world He wants - including in your heart and mine. Death
could not contain him or swallow him up. He assures us that nothing can
harm us if we continue strong in our faith while we're going through the
dark times. By your endurance you will gain your souls. (Luke 21:19)
our text for the day.
Are you in a time of beginning or ending? The fact is, you are
always experiencing both BEGINNINGS AND ENDINGS.
I always get amused at myself at vacation time. I can't wait to get
away, and yet the time comes when I can't wait to get home! Both
beginnings and endings are good - we just LIKE one more than the other!
We don't like endings, yet some things must come to an end in
order that other things may start. In a very real sense we have many lifetimes
in one. Life consists of many journeys - that begin and end - and wisdom
is understanding the journey process which enables you to deal with all
that comes.
Have faith when something is in its beginning stages in your life or
the life of the world.
Have awareness when things are really going well for you,
stopping to savor the experience, and pausing - daily - to give God thanks
for this part of the journey, and to
Have strength when the going get tough - strength
that comes from knowing that all storms have BEGINNINGS AND
ENDINGS that BEGINNINGS AND ENDINGS make up the fabric
of our very existence - rise and fall, ying and yang, slow and stop, begin
and speed up; have and have not. Let us review these three "haves."
Have faith when something is in its beginning stages in your
life or the life of the world:
I'm convinced that the world is at a turning point where what it
decides to do will determine whether it will even survive or not. As a
nation, we searched and searched for weapons of mass destruction where
there were none. We should have looked at home. And everywhere
else we look, we see nations trying to weapons of mass destruction - as if
they were something wonderful to have! That's because we in the world
have been taught by everyone (but Jesus) that having them will give us
security. Domination, we are told is how we get security. But others will
want to dominate - and there will always be wars to decide who's the
most dominate! It makes no practical sense.
What makes sense is that our security depends on the well-being
of everyone on the planet, and working on that well being is what we
should, as Christians, be about. The more caring we are about others'
well being the more secure we will become! Our job is drying up the
cesspools of desperation by our acts of generosity and concern for others
- the Jesus way.
There is a new network of spiritual progressives that feel this way
- would that people in all religions were to agree and to live accordingly.
And we have to have the belief that persons of faith reaching out in concern
can make a difference. What we as Americans have done with our
domination strategy is to increase persons hatred of us, playing directly
into the hands of the terrorists who then become more terrible - because
we have fueled their cause. How's that workin' for us. It's not! But how
are things going in YOUR life?
We need to talk about the times we're halfway between the
beginning and the end - when things are going well.
Have awareness when things are really going well for you,
stopping to savor the experience - and giving God thanks.
It is said that "an unexamined life is not worth living." That's true..
But I am concerned about how we forget to stop and savor where we are
now. I am concerned with how we focus instead on where we have been
or where we're going. THE thing that God wants more from us than
anything else is THANKS, and I am glad that it is THANKSGIVING
SUNDAY when I'm saying it. We need to sip and savor. Instead we
gulp down and go by that which should be riveting our attention - the
things for which we should be expressing gratitude.
Or when things are going well, some of us seem to be waiting for
the other shoe to drop - as if somehow we don't deserve calm waters.
On my cruise I got accustomed to calm waters - except one day! The
same day the tanker split apart off the Russian coast, our ship was hit with
high winds and rough seas. I had discovered that there were lots of
accessible Kawai grands on the ship and was playing one of them - just
for the fun of it when one gigantic wave hit the ship. There was a loud
crack. Is the ship breaking in two I wondered? It was the first time I was
ever afraid on board a cruise ship. Soon there was the voice of the captain
telling us that although it was rough and some of us would not be at dinner,
there was nothing to worry about - that in a few hours we would be out of
the storm. So I found another Kawai grand piano with people around it
and played soothing music - skillfully avoiding "Amazing Grace" - the
theme song of the Titanic - what the band was playing when the ship went
down. I was concerned about the well being of my fellow passengers.
More than anything else we need everyone in the world to be
concerned about everyone else in the world - recognizing that we
are all fellow passengers on the same space ship - where we will all
survive or not survive - together.
This is how God will accomplish His dream as outlined in Isaiah:
"I am creating a new heaven and a new earth. The troubled of the
past will be forgotten. No one will remember them. My people will
be happy and rejoice forever and ever because of what I will make."
Just remember, he will make it by using us to help. He will use
those who commit themselves to a new way of thinking and being - who
believe that what we think and do can make a difference - that we cannot
establish peace with bombs and barricades, but only with generosity and
concern for our fellow travelers on the journey, opening doors of
diplomacy, building relationships, tearing down the walls between us. That
will be a tough one, but Jesus is the one who calls us to do it, not by
forcing His religion or ours on anyone, but by becoming the epitome of
love and peace in our actions. Thus will God create His dream.
Although he could have phrased it more interestingly, the theologian,
John Calvin had it right: "It were cold and lifeless to represent God
as a momentary Creator, who completed his work once and for all,
and then left it. Here, especially, we must dissent from the profane,
and maintain that the presence of the divine power is conspicuous,
not less in the perpetual condition of the world than in its first
creation...After learning that there is a Creator, it must forthwith
infer that he is also a "governor" and "preserver" and that, not
by producing a kind of general motion in the machine of the globe
as well as in each of its parts, but by a special "providence"
sustaining, cherishing, superintending, all the things which he has
made to the very minutest, even to a sparrow. (Institute of Christian
Religion)
To put it in United Church of Christ language, God is still speaking,
teaching us new truth that may conflict with teachings of old, even as Jesus
said, "It HAS been said to you - thus and so, but I say to you, and
then he would tell us something new....even as God the Father is
asking us to see the new thing He is going to do - right now on the
Thanksgiving and Stewardship Sunday - through your committment
to what God can accomplish in this place.
I know from experience that when God get's busy, so do we.
We are the means by which His Will is accomplished in the world, no
matter how difficult the task or the storm we or the world might be going
through at any given time.
Have strength when the going gets tough.
I can't say that a young student I read about had a great deal of
strength when the going got tough for him.....He had planned his whole
future around getting accepted in a particular school of architecture. When
that didn't happen, he called the Dean of the school he was then attending
to say "My life has been destroyed!" The Dean thought otherwise.
He thought it was time for him to make other plans. As it worked out, he
did not study architecture anywhere. He went into the field of industrial
design. Today, he is one of the nation's great designers, having designed
many objects that grace your home.
His life was "destroyed", but he had the strength to see that God
was simply shifting things around in his life. Consider this possibility: "God
is going to shift things around for you today so that things will
work in your favor!"
Do you have the maturity when everything shifts to look for how
God is making things happen in your favor? I hope so. I pray so.
No matter where you are in your life's journey, Have faith.
Practice awareness and most of all, give God thanks. Now Thank We
All Our God!

Sermon Notes(Not edited nor proofed)The Rev. Dr. Garth R. Thompson Pastor, M.B. Community ChurchA sermon is a simple truth told by someone whobelieves it to people he knows and loves (Phillips Brooks)November 18, 2007 10:30 a, m. Isaiah 65:17-25 Luke 21:5-19

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our heartsbe acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer.

38 Who's the Good Guy?

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Tue, 1 Jan 2008 16:21:00 -0500

"WHO'S THE GOOD GUY?!"

If I were to choose a hymn to go with the Scripture today - Luke
18:9-14. in which the hated tax collector is shown mercy and the self
righteousness religious leader is sent away without any, I would choose
Amazing Grace.
Growing up as we do in a tit for tat world, where the good should
be rewarded and the bad should be condemned, we just don't understand
the way God does things. God saves those we would damn, and sets
free those we would capture. God restores those whom we might leave
broken. While we set about to be righteous and look down upon those
who have not climbed to our heights, God is busy blessing the unrighteous,
and calling our self righteousness into question. God's Grace IS amazing
and downright disgusting - depending upon where we placed
ourselves in the Scripture. God's Mercy is unfathomable except
perhaps to those who need it most.
The wretched tax collector who collected from his fellow Jews
what taxes Rome required and a lot more that he could get away with to
keep for himself, finally had his guilt catch up with him, confessed that he
was a wretched sinner - in contrast to a former member of our church
who would not come to church if we sang Amazing Grace. "I am
NOT a wretch!" He would vehemently declare - and he wasn't, he was
a very good guy, but his name did rhyme with Warlock - which I believe is
a male witch! (I threw that in, just so you'd know how seasonally relevant
I am!) "Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a
WRETCH like me!"
God seems a little prejudiced toward the sinner if the truth be
told! In so many of the parables, the supposed "bad guy" is the good guy
and the bad guy - the good - thus the sermon title, WHO'S THE GOOD
GUY?!
Today's Scripture Lesson from the Lectionary usually results in us
looking down our noses (we Christians are VERY good at that!) - looking
down our noses at the self-righteous Pharisee which puts us in the exact
category we seek to disavow! Oh, ow!
Is it possible only to be deemed "good" by being bad? Are we
missing a real opportunity here to live it up? What IS going on with this
Scripture?
We're not the only ones to wonder. The early disciples who first
heard the words couldn't believe what they were hearing. For them, it is
utterly unseemly, almost laughable to think someone who does what the
tax collector does would even dare to PRAY for mercy. They found it
scandalous that grace is offered to such a scoundrel so easily. Where
were the works of absolution? Where were the terrible nights of anguish
that prove his remorse is not short-lived? Where were the years of going
about righting wrongs, returning the extra fees collected that made him
rich while he watched his neighbors struggle to survive?
What we have to come to is the truth that mercy is at God's
discretion, forgiveness is available to all who ask for it and righteousness
is a gift, not an accomplishment.
We are imbued with what the theologians call work righteousness.
The Apostle Paul tried to warn us to clue us in: "For by grace are we
saved though faith, not works, lest any person should boast." And,
he asks a good question, "Shall we sin that grace may abound?!"
Now THERE'S an idea! But we won't be practicing THAT any time soon.
Essentially, this parable is about judging - or rather, not judging.
Let's not cast aspersions on what God wants to do in the forgiving business.
We may need some of that blanket forgiveness ourselves at some future
date.
But in the meantime, our job as Christians is not to judge but to
join those who are recipients of God's Grace - to invite them to join us.
They don't need our judgement - they don't need to see us looking down
our noses at them - as all the "righteous" people of Jesus time looked at
the tax collector.
A few years ago, I decided to be in my office five days a week,
not six as I had done for thirty years. Still, I wanted to be of service on
that extra day I now had off - so I went to a Rotary Club - in Ft. Lauderdale,
near my home. The president was very welcoming, but I can't say the
club was. They had some get togethers, but no projects where you could
do what Rotarians do - not in the weeks that I was there. It was a pretty
ritzy club, meeting in a ritzy environment and I didn't see why I should be
excluded..I had a ritzy house and a ritzy car and I could afford the ritzy
priced breakfast. . The fact was it was not about me at all. They were
having such a good time with the people they already knew and liked, that
although I was there, I was there and not there. They didn't see me and
find me wanting, they didn't find me at all - they didn't see me at all. I was
not a member of their club. I continued to attend for several weeks
when that fact became painfully obvious.
I went to the district meeting of Rotary which members of Rotary
clubs all over the district attended. Unfortunately, no one from my Rotary
Club of Miami Beach was there so I sat down with my Rotary friends
from my "extra day" club. "Sorry," one of them said, "this area is
reserved from members of our Club." I went to another table, but I
never went back to THEIR club.
Years ago, this church made a decision not to be a Club. It decided
to be welcoming to everyone despite the fact that some of the members
wanted the leadership and membership to be essentially white, anglosaxon,
country club people. Those same members, di not want Blacks,
Latins, gays or children in the church - i.e. children not white and anglo
saxon.
The Chairman of the Board, a young man, Doug Bischoff was
adamant that the church should be open and welcoming to all. I remember
him saying, "It's o.k. for my country club to be a country club, but
it's not o.k. for my church to be a country club."
Up until that effort began, people in the community believed that
this church was for the rich only. In fact an outstandingly talented flautist
who played here with the Symphony of the Americas lived in Miami Beach
as a child, told of playing jacks on the front steps of the church, wondering
if she would "ever be rich enough to be allowed to go in."
It was a club and a clique-y one at that. The problem is, and what
we are being asked to see is that without meaning to be, we are still The
Club in our own way - we are the Pharisee judging anyone who is different
from ourselves.
Years ago I read this in the Saturday Review. It shows the danger
in insisting that everyone be just like ourselves.
In cobra country, a mongoose was born one day who didn't
want to fight cobras or anything else. The word spread from
mongoose to mongoose that there was a mongoose who didn't want
to fight cobras. If he didn't want to fight anything else, it was his
own business, but it was the duty of every mongoose to kill cobras
or be killed by cobras.
"Why?" asked the peacelike mongoose, and the word went
around that the strange new mongoose was not only pro-cobra and
anti-mongoose but intellectually curious and against the ideals and
traditions of mongooism. "He is crazy" cried the young
mongoose's father. "He is sick," said his mother. He is a coward,
"shouted his brothers. "He is a mongoosexual, whispered his
sisters.
Strangers who had never laid eyes on the peacelike
mongoose remembered that they had seen him crawling on his
stomach, or trying on cobra hoods, or plotting the violent overthrow
of Mongoosia. "I am trying to use reason and intelligence," said
the strange new mongoose. "Reason is sex-sevenths of treason,
said one of his neighbors. "Intelligence is what the enemy uses, "
said another.
Finally, the rumor spread that the mongoose had venom in
his sting, like a cobra, and he was tried, convicted by a show of
paws and condemned to banishment.
Moral, Ashes to ashes and clay to clay. If the enemy doesn't
get you your own folks may - those in "The Club" that seek to keep
everyone else out.
So here we are on a Sunday - confident in our spirituality, enjoying
the fellowship of the church - meaning enjoying all the people we already
know and love - and, unfortunately - not seeing, not welcoming the
newcomer, the stranger, the person not yet a part of that fellowship, the
person who is different from us - not like us - but hurting for a word of
welcome.
When we hear about the Pharisee, let us be totally aware of how
very much in danger we are of becoming the very thing we look down our
nose at, because of the subtleties by which we can get into that reality
before we even realize it.
It isn't that we're bad or mean, we're simply caught up in the
enjoyment of being together with people we know and love. Yet the
church exists not for the people in it, but for the people not in it yet. That's
where our focus should be on Saturday morning when we have the
opportunity to invite people to come with us on Sunday, and Sunday after
church where we can seek out the stranger and the guest.
Every member and friend of the church - every regular attender
should be what we call in church growth parlance - a new person spotter
- who then becomes a new-person welcomer - otherwise we have heard
the parable but missed the very point that Jesus wanted to make by telling
it.
We are not the important, VIP, "Country Club" people - we are
the servants of God intent upon widening the circle of God's House to
include others than ourselves.
We are not to be the Pharissee, who felt that he was better than
others, nor do we want to be. He went home not right with God. "People
who make themselves important will be made humble, but those
who make themselves humble will be made important."
"There were some people who thought they were very good
and looked down on everyone else. Jesus used this story to teach
them." Once to every man and nations comes the moment to decide, if
we will learn the lesson or not. WHO'S THE GOOD GUY?!

Sermon Notes(Not edited nor proofed)The Rev. Dr. Garth R. Thompson Pastor, M.B. Community ChurchA sermon is a simple truth told by someone whobelieves it to people he knows and loves (Phillips Brooks)October 28, 2007 10:30 a, m. Luke 18:9-14

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our heartsbe acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer.

37 The Seeking Society

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Tue, 1 Jan 2008 16:13:00 -0500

Audio unavailable - We apologize for the inconvenience. Sermon text follows:

"THE SEEKING SOCIETY"

The head of our denomination, John Thomas was arrested this
week. He delivered 64,000 signatures - some of them yours and mine to
Washington - signatures on the Pastoral Letter requesting an end to the
Iraq war. The heavy boxes of petitions were taken to and received by
the offices of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Harry
Reid, and House Minority Leader David Boehner.
The Rev. John Thomas and The Rev. Linda Jarmillo were not as
well received at the Whitehouse where they were refused a face-to-face
meeting with the public liaison office, so they stood in the "No Protest"
zone, refusing to move even though asked three times to do so by police
officers. As a result they were arrested and taken away. Later they were
released, each $100 poorer
Not everyone might agree with petitioning to end the war, but
everyone should agree their right to protest it - and that justice never rolls
down like the waters unless someone makes it roll - referring to the
passage in Amos 5:24: "But let justice roll down like waters And
righteousness like an ever-flowing stream."
The persistent widow in our parable today knew just how to keep
on pestering the judge for justice until she got it. She is our example.
But it's not easy to follow that example. A lot goes through your mind
when the police are telling you to move and the protest group you are with
is refusing to move and some are being rather strident with the officers.
Visions of just how much your life could be compromised if this ends up
with your getting a police record come into your mind! And yet it must
be done. And if you don't do it, then who?
The widow realized that there was no one other than herself to
turn to. As William F. Malambri, III describes our parable: "There was
this widow who had been treated unjustly. We might presume that
she had not received the proper support due her from her deceased
husband's estate since she could not inherit the estate outright.
Doubtless her brothers-in-law were not living up to the understood
arrangements. God, you see, had commanded that of all people,
widows, orphans and strangers were to be looked after.
So the widow puts her case before the judge, but not just
any judge. It turns out this judge does not fear God or respect
people. He's one of those judges who is more attuned to the dollar
than the divine. If you want justice from him, you had better be the
higher bidder. Or, you had better be persistent.
Having no advocate or nothing with which to bid, our widow
just keeps coming back. Like a boxer who does not know when to
throw in the towel, she continues round after round to stand up to
the judge and swing. Finally, he concedes. That's all we know - in
this one instance, for this one accuser, the judge gives in. We are
not told that he has a lasting change of heart, a new outlook on life,
some redemption story to tell his grandchildren. All we know is
that in the case of the widow versus whomever, the judge gives in
and rules justly." (William F. MalambriIII)
We're supposed to pray with the poor widow's kind of
persistence. Barbara Brown Taylor says that perhaps Jesus did not know
too many people with "the faith to stay at anything forever. Then as
now, most people prayed like they brushed their teeth - once in the
morning and once at night, as part of their spiritual hygiene
program." Barbara Brown Taylor
The Gospel writer, Luke, says that Jesus gave us this parable so
that we would understand that we should always pray and never lose
hope. We should indeed become, "THE SEEKING SOCIETY." That,
I believe should be based on the understanding that with God, all things
are possible. By that I mean that God is so great that even the smallest
details of our lives are important to Him. But like you yourself may think,
I often think that God is too great to be bothered with the little things that
I need help with.
How about you. Do you see prayer as a last resort. Is God a
First Resort or Last Resort God..
In the last issue of our newsletter, The Word, I asked: "Have
you ever rescued a damsel in distress? I tried to do that recently
when a lovely young woman who had been at church approached
me to say that her boyfriend had inadvertently left with the keys to
her car. (They had driven separately to church.) Her cell phone
was in her locked car. His was on "silent mode" in deference to
not disturbing the church service. Using my cell phone, we left
messages for him. She went to wait by her car, hoping that he
would remember to check his phone for messages. She had given
him my cellphone number as a contact. Not too much later, he
called and said he was on his way to give her the keys. I thought I
would be a nice guy and let her know that he would be there in
about 15 minutes. He had told me that her car was in the municipal
lot just down from the church. None of the parking attendants had
heard of anyone locked out of their car. I looked and looked. Not
wanting to give up, I FINALLY asked God to help me.
IMMEDIATELY, I saw her and IMMEDIATELY the thought came
into my mind as if from God's: 'Why didn't you ask ME in the first
place. Point well taken. Next time I will"
I didn't. On Tuesday I went to do the accounting for the Octoberfest
dinner. I had put the money in an envelope and put it in my mailbox in the
church office. On Tuesday mnorning, I took everything from my box -
everything that was there from Sunday and everything that came in from
Monday (I am not here on Mondays), and went through all the papers,
but there was no envelope. We looked everywhere, finally assuming that
the envelope of money had been stolen - which would have been the first
time in my 33 years here that any money had come up missing. We're
good with money, and locking doors and in securing the buildings and the
property. FINALLY, I resorted to prayer - and in one moment the lost
was found when the idea came into my mind to look under the portable
file I have on my desk. There it was. Again, I made God into a Person
of Last Resort. When will I learn? When will you learn.
I have a book from Guideposts called the Hidden Hand of God
(Remarkable Answered Prayers). They vary from the sublime to the
ridiculous and from the slime to the remarkable. Let me explain! One of
the true stories was from persons just like all the rest of us - this one from
Tina Coligan-Holt who had moved from a big city to a small town in Texas
where she decided to keep up with the neighbors by having a beautiful
garden. One of her neighbors suggested using compost so went to the
city dump where they gave it away free. When she opened the car door,
she was hit by a gust of wind that caused one of her contacts to fly out of
her eye. (Would one event WANT to find it in a pile of compost?) She
did want to, but she couldn't find it.
That night her son said, "Mama, do you believe in miracles?"
"I sure do!" she responded. "Then why don't we pray for a miracle
- to find your contact lens.: Needing his strength she said, "Will you
pray with me? So we did. He led us in a wonderful prayer straight
from a child's innocent heart. Right afterward he turned to me and
said, "Mama, did you check your purse. It was at the bottom of her
purse which had been open when she opened the door and her contact
blew away - right into her purse. How did her son know to ask that. It
was a miracle! Tine said, I was deeply touched by this very simple
event that proved to me the power of a child's faith....While we are
teaching them how to be adults, they are teaching us how to be
children. And the longer I live, the more I realize the strength of
that quality - "to become as a little child" which Jesus said is the
only way we will see the Kingdom of God.
Or consider little Rachel who moved from a school where she
had a friend, Kristin, and prayed that she would have a friend named
Kristin in her ne school. Her mother wondered, "How do I tell my
child she shouldn't be so specific with God." Then her daughter told
her something - She announced that Jesus was going to give her a new
best friend,, Kristin and she would have brown hair, just like her friend
Kristin from her former school. That's exactly the way it happened! Who
is teaching whom? Maybe we should be more specific with God - maybe
you should be more specific in your prayers! How does God know what
is important to you unless you make it known!
Whatever the collective group of us - those who live on the planet
earth - put out there into the universe is what will come back to us. How
many persons of peace are there - how many who enjoy the strife of war
and the spoils of war. How many are interested in justice for all?
We need some persistant prayers for the things that are far more
important than OUR specific wants - I think that's why we shy away from
asking a Big God for Small Favors, we cringe at suggesting that our God
is One Big Errand Boy in the sky - and well we should, but we should also
remember, as Jesus taught us that our God is a loving Heavenly Father
desirous of giving good gifts to His children.
His children, in turn should, according to our parable, pray without
ceasing - for important things - peace, justice, health, well being,
contentment. Our lives should be consistent in their sharing and their
giving, in their hoping and in their praying - never losing heart. "Will not
God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night?"
Luke 18:7
In fact, you can put your "praying without ceasing" to good use
for the church. Most of you know that in the past 11 years we have put
on our to do list all of the things we put on our list to accomplish in 25
years. And things were going really smoothly - good support from the
members of the church - over a million and a half dollars raised and put to
us in the last eleven years - some of us are still paying on our pledges. I
am.
But we have run into a challenge. The last piece of work was to
take the paint off the front of the sanctuary, patch up the facade where
necessary and repaint it. We budgeted, $40,000. Unfortunately when it
was uncovered, it was immediately obvious that major restoration work
needed to be done - to have the three dimensional columns on either side
of the main door - the pilasters - and the area in between around the
stained glass window restored to their original state to last at least for
another 100 years. The cost - perhaps as low as $400,000, or perhaps
as high as $600,000.
Not wanting to go back to people still paying on what we have
done, the trustees made a proposal to the Historic Preservation Board of
the State of Florida asking for $350,000. There were 132 applications.
We were ranked 55th. According to the letter I got yesterday, the Division
of Historical Resources is recommending that the State Legislature approve
60 of the projects - that would include us - to the tune of 16 million.
Last year, only 3 million was allocated. The year before that 11 million
and forty some projects. Needless to say, I will be writing our legislative
representatives and encouraging them to vote for the recommended sum
for the 2009 State budget. I have the names and addresses available for
others of you who would like to lobby for the same. You won't be
arrested for it. You will be blessed for it, and you can begin to pray as
persistently as the poor widow who won her case simply by keeping on
keeping on.
We are called to be prayer warriors - for what the world needs, -
healing for the sick; money for the poor, courage for the downhearted,
energy for the exhausted. We are to be THE SEEKING SOCIETY in
and for our world. - prayer soldiers, winning the war against the world's
ills. So may it be.

Sermon Notes(Not edited nor proofed)The Rev. Dr. Garth R. Thompson Pastor, M.B. Community ChurchA sermon is a simple truth told by someone whobelieves it to people he knows and loves (Phillips Brooks)October 21, 2007 10:30 a, m. Luke 18:1-8
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our heartsbe acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer.

36 Musical Selection

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 20:23:00 -0500

Musical Selection

35 For the Beauty of the Earth

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 20:14:00 -0500

Musical Selection - For the Beauty of the Earth

34 Musical Selection

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 20:11:00 -0500

Musical Selection

33 With Me, It's All Or Nothing!

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Sun, 30 Dec 2007 18:44:00 -0500

"Jesus - With Me, It's All Or Nothing!"

Climb Every Mountain! Jesus has given us a very high mountain
to climb - asking us in today's Scripture, Luke 14:25-33, to leave
everything to follow him - loving him more than you love your " father,
mother, wife, children, brothers and sisters - even more than your
own life." "If you come to me, but will not leave your family you
cannot be my follower" or to say it another way, WITH ME IT'S
ALL OR NOTHING!
I thought a little about that when finishing seminary. It wasn't like
I was going back home to Ohio - my first call was in Wisconsin, the
second in San Juan, Puerto Rico and the third in Miami Beach Florida!
My calling would keep me long distances from father, mother, brothers
sisters, nieces, nephews - all. But it was the only way I could do what I
was called to do.
Jesus did not mean that we must all leave our families. He simply
meant that we must give first priority to our spiritual task - to being a
person of Spirit. You are here on this planet to grow your Spirit and to be
a force for the development of the Spirit of Christ in the world. There will
be times when you will be tested as to the kind of person you really are.
In the way of illustration: Consider the man who was guiding two
clients to the top of Mt. Everest. When they were within 1000 feet of the
summit, they came across a climber who the day before had been left for
dead there in the death zone - but who somehow had survived the night
and, though delusional with the cold and altitude, greeted them. He needed
help - persons to take him back down to where he could me "medivacked"
out. The guide felt that was what, as human beings they were called to do.
His clients, each of whom had paid $25,000 dollars for the climb, agreed
to give up their dream of the mountaintop for this necessary humanitarian
mission.
It seems to me, in making that decision - they had reached the
mountaintop - that is, THE mountaintop, of God-like, Christ-like action.
The guide was not "a religious man" by his own understanding of that, not
affiliated with any church or synagogue - but connected to the Divine
thread that links humanity with Divinity - connected in his heart to the
Heart of the Universe.
The rescue was successful. The wife and sons of the rescued
man who had been notified of his death, but then, one of his sons, following
the event on the internet saw the latest report that his father had been
found alive and rescued. Their joy was beyond measure. Their rescued
loved one told them that he would be missing parts of some fingers and
toes. They asserted that they would love him just as much without them.
An interesting sidelight to the event was that in addition to the
three that rescued him, two others came by at the same time, and
overhearing them speaking English, indicated they did not speak English,
did not understand what was being said and kept on trekking toward the
summit. Later it was learned that they did speak English - they just didn't
speak "human being" - they didn't speak "Divinity"
The question Jesus has for you today is simple - to you speak
"Divinity" with your life. Ironically, speaking "Divinity" with you life could
me that you answer the call, not to leave your mother or father, but to care
for them, cantankerous and difficult as they may be, or hopefully upbeat
and easy.
Whatever happens in your life where a need that you can meet
presents itself, gives you the opportunity to climb the mountain - or as it
was in the climbers case - to descend the mountain! Where you express
your Divinity is entirely dependent on where you humanity finds you - and
gives you the opportunity to know who you are - if you are the Christ's or
not.
Years ago, when one of our parishioners went blind, she added
me to her bank accounts so that I could pay her bills and take care of any
needs that might arise. When she died, the way the accounts were set up,
I had every legal right to take what was in those accounts - thousands and
thousands of dollars - but that wasn't what she wanted. She wanted those
dollars to go the church and they did. I had no temptation to take them -
I knew who I was and that I was in Christ and Christ was in me. There
was no question.
Jesus wants you to lead a "No question" life. Though it's a simple
ethic, it is well worth the following - to guide your life by the life of Christ.
To follow His way of thinking and doing without question.
How well do we do that? We'd have to ask someone other than
ourselves. As a "Christian nation", we might ask someone from Islam for
example. The fact is that the Muslims who despise us, dislike us not
because we're free, or because we're so very Christian, but because, in
their eyes, we're so awfully godless.. It's because we appear to have
produced a godless, sex-saturated, violent, materialistic society.
We as Christians need to admit that, considering our lamentable
inability to practice the teachings of Jesus, that most Muslims are distinctively
unimpressed with our religion. We invoke God's name as we bomb,
occupy and dominate Islamic countries. We may say "In God We Trust"
on our money, but they suspect that oil, power and wealth are our true
heart's desire.
We're going to have to look a lot more redeemed before they believe in
our Redeemer or before they believe in our belief in our Redeemer!
And what can we think of Islam when Islamic fundamentalists
brought about the horror of 9/11? How religious can that be?
What we need is for the main body of people in each of the major
religions to follow their leaders' true values - the values of love and justice
- the values we have in common.
A young man entered Duke University. He was tall, utterly white,
utterly blonde, and utterly Southern. A few weeks later, the Dean saw him
walking on campus, hand in hand with a young woman who was utterly
short, utterly brown, utterly Muslim, and (God forbid) an Ohioan! The
Dean was on personal terms with the boy's parents and it wasn't long
before his mother called: "Have you met Thomas' girlfriend" she
said. "Talk to him! They're serious!"
So the Dean asked Thomas for a chat. "Thomas," he said,
"Tell me about Maranda." He told him that they were very much in
love, that she was a wonderful person, and that they were planning to be
married right after graduation. The Dean asked, "What brought you
together." Thomas said, "It was because we had so very much in
common!" The Dean replied, "Thomas, you're from South Carolina,
you're blonde, Baptist; She's Muslim, brown and from Ohio. What
in the would could you possibly have in common?"
Thomas said, "Well, you know me. I don't drink on
weekends, don't believe in casual sex. I'm not really into the success
at any cost thing. She was the only girl I met who had the same
values as mine!"
The Scripture today is wonderful because it gives us an opportunity
to check our discipleship quotient by checking our Christian values and
how well we're maintaining them.
The fact that you are here in God's house - that's good - for here
you are reminded of who you are and whose you are. It's good you're in
attendance as this sermon is given - at least I think it is.
In one church not too long ago a man got up in the middle of the
pastor's sermon and walked out. His wife rushed up to the Pastor after
the sermon and said, "Please don't think anything bad about my
husband walking out in the middle of your sermon. It's just that he
often walks in his sleep!"
Maybe that's why Edgar A. Guest wrote
I'd rather see a sermon than hear one any day;
I'd rather one should walk with me than merely tell the way,
The eye's a better pupil and more willing than the ear,
Fine counsel is confusing, but example's always clear
And the best of all the preachers are the men who live their creeds,
For to see good put in action is what everybody needs.
I soon can learn to do it if you'll let me see it done;
I can watch your hands in action, but your tongue too fast may
run.
And the lecture you deliver may be very wise and true;
But I'd rather get my lessons by observing what you do
For I might misunderstand you and the high advice you give,
But there's no misunderstanding how you act and how you live.
When I see a deed of kindness, I am eager to be kind.
When a weaker brother stumbles and a strong man stays behind
Just to see if he can help him, then the wish grows strong in me
To become as big and thoughtful as I know as I know that friend
to be
And all travelers can witness that the best of guides today
Is not the one who tells them, but the one who shows the way.
One good man teaches many, men believe what they behold;
One deed of kindess noticed is worth forty that are told.
Who stands with men of honor learns to hold his honor dear,
For right living speaks a language which to everyone is clear
Though an able speaker charms me with his eloquence, I say,
I'd rather see a sermon than to hear one, any day.
Lots of people who technically aren't preachers, including you
can be preachers. "A preacher is a person who finds the switches
that turn on the best inside of us."
H.Stephen Glenn points out his fifth grade teacher as one of them.
In the days before it was understood, she found ways to deal with hi
dyslexia that had kept him from progressing previously. She got him out
of the stuttering problem that his previous nervous and stressful years in
school had caused. When he went into sixth grade, Miss Hardy became
the teach of that class as well, much to his delight. He kept track of her for
many years thereafter and ultimately learned that she was terminal with
cancer. As her only "special student", he decided to travel the thousand
miles to express his appreciation. But he wasn't the only one who made
the pilgrimage to renew their association and share their appreciation of
her - there were hundreds - an interesting mix of people - 3 U.S. Senators,
12 State Legislators, and a number of CEO's os corporations and business
to name a few.
In comparing notes with them, Stephen figured that three fourths
of them "went into the fifth grade quite intimidated by the
educational process, believing we were incapable, insignificant and
at the mercy of fate or luck. We emerged from our contact with
Miss Hardy believing we were capable, significant, influential
people who had the capacity to make a difference in life if we would
try. "
One life made such a difference in so many lives - as can yours -
particularly if it is guided by the principles and teachings of Jesus and your
priorities are in order, remembering the essence of what Jesus told us in
today's Scripture "With Me, It's All or Nothing!"

Sermon Notes(Not edited nor proofed)The Rev. Dr. Garth R. Thompson Pastor, M.B. Community ChurchA sermon is a simple truth told by someone whobelieves it to people he knows and loves (Phillips Brooks)September 9 2007 10:30 a, m. Luke 14:25-33
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our heartsbe acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer.

32 Musical Selection

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Sat, 20 Oct 2007 22:50:00 -0500

Musical Selection

31 Musical Selection

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Sat, 20 Oct 2007 22:43:00 -0500

Musical Selection

30 Something There Is...

noreply@blogger.com (Miami Beach Community Church) — Sat, 20 Oct 2007 22:11:00 -0500

Audio unavailable - We apologize for the inconvenience. Sermon text follows:

"Something There Is.......!"

Please complete this sentence with me......Something there is
that.........(doesn't love a wall.) Who wrote it? Robert Frost:
"MENDING WALL"
Something there is that doesn't love a wall,
That sends the frozen-ground-swell under it
And spills the upper boulders in the sun,
And makes gaps even two can pass abreast,
The work of hunters is another thing;
I have come after them and made repair
Where they have left not one stone on a stone,
But they would have the rabbit out of hiding,
To please the yelping dogs. The gaps I mean,
No one has seen them made or heard them made,
But at spring mending-time we find them there.
I let my neighbor know beyond the hill;
And one a day we meet to walk the line
And set the wall between us once again.
We keep the wall between us as we go,
To each the boulders that have fallen to each.
And some are loaves and some so nearly balls
We have to use a spell to make them balance:
"Stay where you are until our backs are turned!!"
We wear our fingers rough with handling them.
Oh, just another kind of outdoor game,
One on a side. It comes to little more.
There where it is we do not need the wall:
He is all pine and I am apple orchard.
My apple trees will never get across
And eat the cones under his pines, I tell him.
He only says, "Good fences make good neighbors."
Spring is the mischief in me, and I wonder
If I could put a notion in his head:
Why do they make good neighbors? Isn't it
Where there are cows? But here there are no cows.
Before I built a wall I'd ask to know
What I was walling in or walling out,
And to whom I was like to give offense.
Something there is that doesn't love a wall,
That wants it down." I could say "Elves" to him,
But it's not elves exactly, and I'd rather
He said it for himself. I see him there,
Bringing a stone grasped firmly by the top
In each hand, like an old-stone savage armed.
He moves in darkness as it seems to me,
Not of woods only and the shade of trees.
He will not go behind his father's saying
And he likes having thought of it so well
He says again, "Good fences make good neighbors."
Today, God has asked us to give some thought to boundaries.
Do good fences made good neighbors? Do bad fences make bad
neighbors? I think so.
When I was a child living in our farm home, I experienced the
arrival of our neighbor to the West who was pretty riled up because the
fence between his property and ours was compromised at one point, and
he wanted my father to fix it. I took it that our cows had wandered onto
his property and eaten things he did not want them to eat. Knowing our
cows as well as I did, that would not have surprised me! The bad fence
was just about to make bad neighbors, but my father solved the problem
by agreeing to fix the fence which mending would benefit both
parties. So the atmosphere went from boiling point to cautious civility.
A good fence made a "good" neighbor - at least restored one to civility.
But everything conspires to tear down that civility - to tear down
that wall - in Robert Frosts's case: hunters, frozen ground swell, etc.
Every spring they will have to mend the wall. Quoting from what I read
on the internet from sparknotes, "The image at the heart of "Mending
Wall" is arresting: two men meeting on terms of civility and
neighborliness to build a barrier between them. They do so out of
tradition, out of habit. Yet the very earth conspires against them
and makes their task Sisyphean. Sisyphus, you may recall, is the
figure in Greek mythology condemned perpetually to push a boulder
up a hill, only to have the boulder rolled down again. These men
push boulders back on top of the wall; yet just as inevitably, whether
at the hand of hunters or sprites, or the frost and thaw of nature's
invisible hand, the boulders tumble down again. Still the neighbors
persist. The poem, thus seems to meditate conventionally on three
grand themes - barrier-building,...the doomed nature of this
enterprise, and our persistence in this activity regardless"
Jesus, we know, specialized in breaking down barriers. In today's
Gospel, He is crossed the boundary from his place of origin, Galilee, and
entered into that shadowy place known as Samaria - where lived those
Jews who had committed the unpardonable sin of intermarrying with the
Roman occupiers of the land. The rabbis taught that no self respecting
Jew would ever go there. But Jesus went there. His concern for his fellow
human beings was greater than his concern about the rules of his religion.
There he fellowships with another marginalized group - lepers.
He heals all of them despite the strict prohibition by his religion against
contact with these "unclean" persons. What "religion" said "in the name of
God, was not godly at all.
What have we done with the name, "God"? The races of men
with their religious factions have torn the word to pieces. They have killed
for it and died for it, and it bears their fingermarks and their blood.
Strange that the religions of the world would be building walls of
separation, instead of breaking down the barriers between them. Jesus,
in our Gospel story praised the Samaritan - who returned to thank Him
for His healing. To Jesus, it was more than interesting that the leper who
returned to him to thank him for the healing was a "foreigner."
The truth was, that for Jesus there were no "foreigners" only fellow
human beings - on the same planet together.
That reminds me of the dean of a college that was asked by the
parents of one of the students to talk with their son who had joined a really
"out there" religious group, forsaking his midwest religious upbringing. When
asked why he joined the new group, he said, "Well, it all started on the
first Sunday I visited them. When I walked into their church, I saw
black people, white people, people of every shade of the rainbow
and as I got to know them I realized that they were like a microcosm
of the world - rich poor, black white, gay straight, well educated
and poorly educated, and when I walked in there I could feel the
love. My church had always preached this sort of loving fellowship
to me, but I never seen it until I walked into that group. I said to
myself, 'This is the church I've always heard about but have never
seen until now.'"
Toward the goal of seeing everyone as our brothers and sisters,
we in our time have a distinct advantage - having looked back at the little
space-ship Earth from outer space. On that space ship - all are one - or
should be.
And should we be attacked from without, we would become one
in a hurry. (Let's not give anyone any ideas!).
But it is time for us to have some ideas as to how we can join
Jesus in breaking down barriers and building up fellowship with all
individuals and groups.
Jesus had broken down a barrier by mingling with the lepers.
And it's not surprising that nine didn't come back to thank him - it's surprising
that one did - after all, if you think about it, Jesus had told all ten of them
to go to the temple and show their healed selves to the priest so they
could be certified as "clean."
What I think is that the one leper, came back to give thanks to a
new "temple" named Jesus, seeing in him the way that all men - all persons
should be - letting the things that unite us outweigh the things that divide
us. Hopefully he began to model the same behavior.
Consider the incident where Jesus modeled acceptance where
others modeled condemnation. No one was condemned with any more
vehemence than were tax collectors. If the Romans had collected the
taxes themselves it might no have been so bad, but they appointed certain
Jews to collect taxes from their fellow Jews. What these tax collectors
did was to collect more taxes that Rome demanded and kept the money
themselves. Everybody knew it, but they could do nothing about it. Rome
looked the other way.
Zacchaeus was the chief tax collector - richer than anybody, shorter
than everybody. But he was curious about this Jesus - and climbed into a
tree where he could really get a look at him. Jesus saw him there, called
him down and announced he was going to Zacchaeus' house for lunch.
There we are in the crowd - overlooked by Jesus - and he reached out to
a notorious sinner whom we know to be beneath us - WAY beneath us.
How could Jesus dare to embrace the bad tax collector as much as he
has embraced us? Jesus dared because he knew that Zacchaeus was a
lost soul who could be found.
Zacchaeus was a man so far down there was no way for him to
get up by himself. He had defrauded so many, had committed such deep
sins against his own people, how on earth could he be saved? But he was
a seeker - he sought redemption. He climbed the tree looking for it, and
where the rest of us could have cheerfully hung him from the tree, Jesus
called him down saying "Let's do lunch!" And during the course of the
meal at his home, Zacchaeus puts his money where his heart now is.
Zacchaeus is transformed from a taker to a give - as it turned out a most
generous, gracious giver.
This story and the poem of the neighbors mending a wall each tell
us that we have an assignment. If we are going to stay close to Jesus,
share bread and wine at his table, fellowship with him on a regular basis,
then we'd better be willing to be close to sinners - those in the church and
those outside the church - and there are plenty to go around! If we want
to be close to him, we'll have to be willing to share him with the lost.
By such sharing, such scandalous grace, salvation comes to my
house and yours.
SOMETHING THERE IS.............THAT DOESN'T LOVE
A WALL!

Sermon Notes(Not edited nor proofed)The Rev. Dr. Garth R. Thompson Pastor, M.B. Community ChurchA sermon is a simple truth told by someone whobelieves it to people he knows and loves (Phillips Brooks)October 14, 2007 10:30 a, m. Luke 17:11-19
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, our strength and our redeemer.