Today's sermon was from Colossians 3:18-4:1. Instead of dissecting each verse and focusing on cultural controversy, Jay wisely guided us to three main principle's found in the passage.
#1 Down Home Holiness
Holiness is like rain. If it doesn't come down, it's just fog. Holiness is just something for super-spiritual people like nuns or monks. Holy lives are to be lived out in normal surroundings - in our family, personal and work relationships.
#2 Reciprocal but not Symmetrical
God designed human relationships to be reciprocal but not symmetrical. Responsibility and blessing go both ways, but fundemental inequalities have been built in by God to relationships between men & women, parents & children, and employers and employees. The real question is, what are you going to do with your strengths and gifts?
#3 90ยบ to Jesus
The fastest way to Jesus' heart is through other people. What we do for others, we do for Jesus. Who can I bless today to show my love for Jesus?
How about you? What did you learn today?
(These are my sermon notes from today. Pastor Jay Hull, Covenant Presbyterian Church)
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
I love being a Superhero
I am a superhero. I have super hearing that allows me to hear a crying child several rooms away, over the noise the house fan and a movie at full volume. I can heal owies with a single kiss, and calm a frightened child by simply holding him in my lap. And now, I'm off to attack a rather large pile of laundry that is slowly trying to take over our house!
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
The Best Hug of My Life
It happened at gate C-11 in the Dallas Fort Worth airport. It was last Thursday afternoon, March 12. My grandpa had died that Monday. My grandma, his wife of nearly 68 years, was about to begin a second battle with cancer. I had spent much of the previous 3 days working on a video to celebrate his life, and I was exhausted physically and emotionally.
Thanks to a dear friend I was able to fly as a "non-revenue" passenger. For those unfamiliar with this term, as the official guest of an airline employee I was paying next to nothing...but was flying stand-by with no priority over paying customers. My flight out of Reno was great - plenty of seats...mine was even in first class. But the Dallas airport was FULL. It was the official beginning of spring break and lots of people were flying to or through St. Louis. Too many. I was number 27 on the stand-by list. The problem? None of the next three flights were looking any better and the visitation was already underway. The service was at 10am the next morning. And the video was in my purse.
As I waited hopelessly for my name to move up the list, I had an idea. What if my brother Kevin happened to be flying through Dallas too? I called and his phone was turned off. I called Scott to check his schedule and sure enough, Kevin was going to be on the next flight out of Dallas! I waited a few more minutes and called him again.
This time he answered. "Why are you calling me? I'm on an airplane!"
"I thought you just landed," came my reply.
"Are you at C-11?"
My heart skipped a beat. He was heading my way...
What was probably about 5 minutes - the time it took him to take the tram over from the other terminal - seemed like an eternity. I paced impatiently in front of the screen that listed the stand-by passengers and frequently glanced down the corridor toward the tram.
When our eyes met from across the airport our steps quickened. And then it happened...the best hug of my life. I wasn't alone. My brother was with me and everything was going to be okay.
We walked back to c-11 where my name ended at #5. Closer, but not enough to get on that plane. We had 2 hours until Kevin's plane was leaving so we went to get some lunch. Scott called while were eating to check my status. At one point I passed the phone to Kevin and all he said was, "I got her." He smiled, and hung up.
We decided to save the salad for later and went to check on the flight. I identified myself as a non-revenue passenger and inquired as to my chances for getting on this flight. "None" was the harsh reply. I had a shot at getting on the 9:30pm flight, of course missing the whole visitation. I gave Kevin 2 copies of the video so he could take them for me. Somehow I would still make it before the service, even if I had to rent a car and drive all night. Admittedly, not a great plan B.
A little while later Kevin got up to use the restroom. When he came back, he handed me a boarding pass and said, "We won't get to sit together." What??? How did he get a boarding pass? Why did it say "First Class" on it? As I started to put the pieces together he just looked at me and said, "This was the only way to get you on that plane and I wasn't going to leave this airport without you."
We cried, and hugged, and cried some more. Then we sat together in the back of the plane and shared our salad while some random stranger enjoyed a first class flight to St. Louis. I guess he thought he was lucky. But I'm the one with the first class brother.
Thanks to a dear friend I was able to fly as a "non-revenue" passenger. For those unfamiliar with this term, as the official guest of an airline employee I was paying next to nothing...but was flying stand-by with no priority over paying customers. My flight out of Reno was great - plenty of seats...mine was even in first class. But the Dallas airport was FULL. It was the official beginning of spring break and lots of people were flying to or through St. Louis. Too many. I was number 27 on the stand-by list. The problem? None of the next three flights were looking any better and the visitation was already underway. The service was at 10am the next morning. And the video was in my purse.
As I waited hopelessly for my name to move up the list, I had an idea. What if my brother Kevin happened to be flying through Dallas too? I called and his phone was turned off. I called Scott to check his schedule and sure enough, Kevin was going to be on the next flight out of Dallas! I waited a few more minutes and called him again.
This time he answered. "Why are you calling me? I'm on an airplane!"
"I thought you just landed," came my reply.
"Are you at C-11?"
My heart skipped a beat. He was heading my way...
What was probably about 5 minutes - the time it took him to take the tram over from the other terminal - seemed like an eternity. I paced impatiently in front of the screen that listed the stand-by passengers and frequently glanced down the corridor toward the tram.
When our eyes met from across the airport our steps quickened. And then it happened...the best hug of my life. I wasn't alone. My brother was with me and everything was going to be okay.
We walked back to c-11 where my name ended at #5. Closer, but not enough to get on that plane. We had 2 hours until Kevin's plane was leaving so we went to get some lunch. Scott called while were eating to check my status. At one point I passed the phone to Kevin and all he said was, "I got her." He smiled, and hung up.
We decided to save the salad for later and went to check on the flight. I identified myself as a non-revenue passenger and inquired as to my chances for getting on this flight. "None" was the harsh reply. I had a shot at getting on the 9:30pm flight, of course missing the whole visitation. I gave Kevin 2 copies of the video so he could take them for me. Somehow I would still make it before the service, even if I had to rent a car and drive all night. Admittedly, not a great plan B.
A little while later Kevin got up to use the restroom. When he came back, he handed me a boarding pass and said, "We won't get to sit together." What??? How did he get a boarding pass? Why did it say "First Class" on it? As I started to put the pieces together he just looked at me and said, "This was the only way to get you on that plane and I wasn't going to leave this airport without you."
We cried, and hugged, and cried some more. Then we sat together in the back of the plane and shared our salad while some random stranger enjoyed a first class flight to St. Louis. I guess he thought he was lucky. But I'm the one with the first class brother.
Friday, February 20, 2009
What Time Is It?
Over the years I have often found encouragement in the verses from Ecclesiastes 3. "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven...a time to plant and a time to uproot...a time to weep and a time to laugh." These words have brought me comfort during hard times, as well as many smiles. Usually when I read this poetic section of Scripture I focus on all of the different specifics that are mentioned. It is so easy to find real-life applications for "a time to keep and a time to throw away." If you have a garage like mine you know what I'm talking about!
Recently I was reading these verses and one particular word caught my eye. One little, tiny word changed the way I read these verses. Which word, you ask? The indefinite article "a" that appears in each phrase has captured my attention.
"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven." Read it carefully with me. /There is A time for everything. /It does not say, "there is time for everything." As a mom, I am sure you feel the time pressure daily. How can you find the time to cook, clean, do laundry, feed, bathe and dress children, have quality time with each child and your spouse, shuttle kids to and from play dates or preschool, keep up with friends...some days I can hardly find time to go to the bathroom!
There is a time for everything. But the time I have right now, I will never have again. What am I supposed to do with this time? I have learned that I don't HAVE to do everything right now. I need to simply focus on what I am supposed to do right now. I don't have to tear down, build, mourn, dance, scatter stones, gather them, tear and mend all at once. Mothering young children is a wonderful and challenge season. Some things may have to wait for a different "time" in our lives.
All I really need to do is start each day by saying, "What time is it today, Lord?"
Recently I was reading these verses and one particular word caught my eye. One little, tiny word changed the way I read these verses. Which word, you ask? The indefinite article "a" that appears in each phrase has captured my attention.
"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven." Read it carefully with me. /There is A time for everything. /It does not say, "there is time for everything." As a mom, I am sure you feel the time pressure daily. How can you find the time to cook, clean, do laundry, feed, bathe and dress children, have quality time with each child and your spouse, shuttle kids to and from play dates or preschool, keep up with friends...some days I can hardly find time to go to the bathroom!
There is a time for everything. But the time I have right now, I will never have again. What am I supposed to do with this time? I have learned that I don't HAVE to do everything right now. I need to simply focus on what I am supposed to do right now. I don't have to tear down, build, mourn, dance, scatter stones, gather them, tear and mend all at once. Mothering young children is a wonderful and challenge season. Some things may have to wait for a different "time" in our lives.
All I really need to do is start each day by saying, "What time is it today, Lord?"
Friday, January 2, 2009
Growing Like Jesus in 2009
I have a favorite Bible verse for this time of year: Luke 2:52. And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and men. At Christmas we talk a lot about when Jesus was born. Pretty soon it will be Easter and we'll be talking about when Jesus died and rose again. In between we may read about his miracles or his teachings or stories about his disciples. But aside from the story about him teaching in the temple as a young teenager (Great story to read when you're having a bad mommy day...if Mary and Joseph could lose the son of God for a couple days some of my problems start to seem a little smaller!) we don't read much about his childhood. But I love this verse that summarizes his growing up. I love it because it points out four different areas where we can grow too.
Look carefully and think about ways that you - and your children - can grow like Jesus in 2009. The four areas in the verse are intellectual (wisdom), physical (stature), spiritual (favor with God) and social (favor with men). Think of one goal for each of these four areas for yourself and your kids.
Maybe you'd like to take a class, start learning a foreign language or just read a book that doesn't have pictures in it! For your children, an age-appropriate goal might be to learn colors, shapes or the alphabet.
Choose a physical goal that is actually attainable - literally growing in stature doesn't work; believe me - I've tried. A physical goal could be in regard to eating healthier, adding more activity into your lifestyle, or learning a new sport, and similar goals could be made for things you want to work on with your kids.
A spiritual goal could have to do with reading the Bible more often, memorizing certain verses or praying FIRST instead of as a last resort. For our children it may mean taking them to Sunday School, starting them in AWANA, or teaching them to pray out loud by repeating after you.
Social goals for our kids may involve making new friends, practicing sharing or learning manners. For us adults, it may mean being more intentional about practicing hospitality or not gossiping.
Will you take the Luke 2:52 Challenge with me? Pick one goal for each area. Write it down. Tell someone and ask them to check in with you periodically throughout the year. Whether we like it or not, we will get older this year and so will our children. So let's be intentional in our growth for 2009.
Look carefully and think about ways that you - and your children - can grow like Jesus in 2009. The four areas in the verse are intellectual (wisdom), physical (stature), spiritual (favor with God) and social (favor with men). Think of one goal for each of these four areas for yourself and your kids.
Maybe you'd like to take a class, start learning a foreign language or just read a book that doesn't have pictures in it! For your children, an age-appropriate goal might be to learn colors, shapes or the alphabet.
Choose a physical goal that is actually attainable - literally growing in stature doesn't work; believe me - I've tried. A physical goal could be in regard to eating healthier, adding more activity into your lifestyle, or learning a new sport, and similar goals could be made for things you want to work on with your kids.
A spiritual goal could have to do with reading the Bible more often, memorizing certain verses or praying FIRST instead of as a last resort. For our children it may mean taking them to Sunday School, starting them in AWANA, or teaching them to pray out loud by repeating after you.
Social goals for our kids may involve making new friends, practicing sharing or learning manners. For us adults, it may mean being more intentional about practicing hospitality or not gossiping.
Will you take the Luke 2:52 Challenge with me? Pick one goal for each area. Write it down. Tell someone and ask them to check in with you periodically throughout the year. Whether we like it or not, we will get older this year and so will our children. So let's be intentional in our growth for 2009.
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