September 24, 2013

It is good to be up and at ‘um on this Tuesday as my work week begins. I had a very good day yesterday, accomplishing many things on my checklist and ending up on the patio sitting by my fire, made with wood I cut from trees I planted in Kentucky.

Today I have much pastoral work to do, including staff prayer time, worship planning team, St. Paul/Wesley adoption conversations, a friend in distress, and my shift with the apple pie operation, operating a peeler at 4:30! I love being a pastor. These last few weeks I have experienced a level of comfort/fulfillment on Sundays and through the weeks, seemingly on a different level than in the past. I am not sure the reason or source of this new sense of being.

Judges 16
Sampson, who judged Israel for 20 years, visits a prostitute in Gaza, and pulls down the city gates at midnight, avoiding an ambush by the Philistines. He falls in love (lust) with Delilah, who is paid to discover the source of his strength. When he tells her that his hair has never been cut because of the Nazarite vow of his parents, she has his hair cut, and the Lord left him, along with his strength. He was captured, his eyes gouged out, and he was put to grinding grain in prison. The Philistines had a large festival to celebrate their god Dagon and his victory over Sampson. Sampson’s strength had returned as his hair grew out, he prayed, and God gave him victory in collapsing the building and thousands of Philistines died, along with Sampson. His family came to recover his body.

There is so much in this story to interpret. It seems the key element is that Sampson was motivated by sex above his desire to please God. This became his downfall. His strength was a rare gift from God, which was wasted in many ways. In the end he used it for God’s purposes and died along with his enemies. Guide me today, most holy Lord to use the strength and other gifts you have given me to accomplish your purposes in this generation. Guard me from anything which would be a distraction.

September 22, 2013

It feels like fall! Given that it is 45 degrees outside, I need to light the pilot for our gas fireplace. Last night I cooked steaks over a wood fire while I scrubbed the wading pool and began the process of putting it away. This morning I made a mess with the coffee pot as I did not realize the basket filter was not in it, and the grounds went everywhere as it brewed. I was disgusted with myself and wide awake by the time I had it cleaned up.

I Corinthians 3 is one of my favorite chapters in the Bible, especially my life verse 12 – building ones life with gold, silver, precious stones, or wood, hay, straw. Today I am preaching on it in the context of Identity Crisis – community forms us. What are the elements that will pass through the fire of judgment to the other side of eternity? What is in eternity? God, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, God’s word, the souls of humans. There is no evil present, there is no sin in heaven, there is peace, and all tears are wiped away.

This afternoon autumn officially begins, and I will be in a golf cart at Hidden Valley along with 50 others from Wesley in the church golf tournament organized by Betty Prouty. This year all proceeds beyond the cost go to missions, rather than door prizes. It is a great event, and I am looking forward to it on what seems to be a beautiful afternoon. I do not expect that golf is in heaven, but the joy of human fellowship, in the light of God’s love will surpass any earthly experience!

My cell phone has taken a full charge three nights in a row. I think I have figured out how to plug the charger in at an angle and get it to work. Hopefully this will continue to be effective until my Verizon contract funds most of a new phone (April 2014). The possibility of losing everything on my cell phone has been staring me in the face for weeks, and I continue to be amazed at the technology on this small device. I value it even more, given how tentative it has become.

Guide me today, most Holy Lord as I serve You in the context of Your body called Wesley United Methodist Church.

[Note - This is my first post in two months - As I left on vacation on a motorcycle I lost the rhythm of blogging, and then I lost the digital connection to this blog. I am back in sync and ready to continue the regular practice of blogging from my daily reflections.]