Palm Sunday

I awoke at 5:15, without the benefit of the alarm. Audrey and I returned home at 11:00 last night from attending the funeral of our friend Linda Hurst Locke near Memphis, TN. Linda was Audrey's last roomate before we married, and a servant of Christ who worked on the staff of several United Methodist Churches in Tennessee. Her funeral was a celebration of her life, and the gathering of her family and friends in our grief. My body is now still weary, but I got a good night’s sleep and am ready for this Palm Sunday. Rochelle will lead the musical, Micki Pulleyking will preach at 9:30 and 10:40. 

Scripture – Matthew 23:29-39

Jesus laments over Jerusalem, noting that the prophets are killed in that city. The current religious leaders build memorials to them and say they would not have killed them. God says to them “behold, I am sending you prophets and wise men and scribes; some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city.”

Last night I read the daily reading from Bonhoeffer’s compendium and having just attended Linda Hurst Locke’s funeral, it was fittingly on death. He described the two deaths – one outer – from the bullet (or the gallows, or the knife or the blood clot, bacteria or who-knows-what.) The other death is the inner – dying to self every day, giving one’s life away, “losing one’s life that it may be found.”) Linda’s life was such an example, Bonhoeffer’s life was, and I desire for my life everyday to be such an example of the inner death of surrender, pouring it into the lives of others.

The prophets gave their lives away, saying hard and accurate words about God’s will and the people’s actions. There will always be a tension between what people want to hear, and how they will respond when God’s servants are obedient.

Guide me today, most holy Lord as your obedient servant, giving my life away on this day in April. 

Day 31 – Forty Days in the Word

Mission Blitz today!!!  I look forward to being present at both sites in both communities.   This is our seventh year to dedicate a Saturday in April for the Wesley UMC congregation to be out in ministry in the Springfield community. The sun is bright, though it is chilly. Six months of preparation have been focused upon today's efforts, and the follow-up which will ensue.       

Day 31 – Forty Days in the Word.

Philippians 2, especially verse 13

“For it is God who works in Bruce Baxter to will and to act according to his good pleasure.” To rewrite this verse, inserting my name as per the devotional plan for this week prescribed by Rick Warren is powerful. It is God who works in me. It is God working in me that adjusts my will – Psalmist – Lord give me the desires of my heart – ie cause my heart to desire what You desire. It is God working in my that directs my actions – “that I may do, what Thou wouldst do.” My actions today as I visit the two mission blitz sites and interact with all the people involved will be the result of God working in me.

As I consider my possible role in seminary leadership, it would be God working in me to will and act according to His good pleasure in the operations, outreach, design, implementation and funding of the work of educating and training pastors. This gives me great confidence. I am not alone. What I will and do is not self-generated. My life is hidden in Christ, filled with the Spirit of Christ and directed to the purposes of Christ. As I preach and prepare messages, it is God at work in me to speak the word of reconciliation, of love, of life with hope, joy and peace.

Thank you Lord for this scripture from the pen of Paul and from his heart. My prayer this morning is that You would more fully and powerfully be at work in Bruce Baxter to will, desire, and plan to act according to all that pleases You and extends Your kingdom on earth, even as it is in heaven. 

Day 26 – Forty Days in the Word

On this Monday morning my body is recovering from the exertion of leading the faith community called Wesley United Methodist Church through its Sunday ministries. Audrey and I will be traveling for the next couple of days and I am preparing for that trip. It is good for me at this early hour to simply open the 40 Days in the Word Workbook, turn to day 26 and begin to study the scriptures.

James 3:13

NASB – “Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom.”

Bruce’s paraphrase – If any of you has wisdom and deep understanding let it be shown in your actions – deeds of good behavior performed with gentle wisdom.

Application – wisdom is borne out in actions – a wise person is identified by what is done, not just what is thought. Of course Jesus observed that evil deeds come from sin that is in the heart, and what is done springs from what is thought.

Guide me today, most holy Lord as I move forward with developing relationships with the gentleness of wisdom.

Day 25 – Forty Days in the Word

I am looking forward to leading worship today at Wesley! We will celebrate communion, make a last appeal for Saturday’s Mission Blitz, and baptize one of our young adults. My message is about Bible study with the text being from the Gospel of John, chapter 15.

Day 25 – Forty Days in the Word

Rather than use the scripture suggested by the workbook, I will use the paraphrase method on the scripture from which I will be preaching this morning.

John 15:4 –5

Live in me, as I live in you. Just as the branch cannot produce grapes unless it draws its source from the vine, neither can you produce the life of God unless you draw your source from Me. I am the vine, the central source of life, you are the branches, living in me. Those who live in me and I in them are exceptionally fruitful, but separated from me you can do nothing. (Bruce Baxter’s Paraphrase)

Paraphrasing these verses is not easy. Working on it is a discipline that gives me greater insight into the meaning. Reading my paraphrase increases my desire and my intention to live completely in Christ, allowing His life in me to make my life exceptionally fruitful. There is an invisibility at work here. My experience is with blackberries. I pruned my four bushes in December, and cut off a few dead branches. I always feel sorry for the dead ones, and wonder what caused their death. I wince when I prune the living branches, and trust that pruning them will produce greater fruit.

God has been at work pruning me during the last several months. I look forward to the fruitfulness that will follow, as I completely live in Christ, draw my strength, my life from Him, and expect my life to be fruitful as He works in me that which I could not work in myself.

Paul wrote in Romans 8 – “I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (8:38-39)

Guide me on this precious sabbath morning, most Holy Lord as I live in you and you live in me. Speak through me, comfort through me, encourage through me, baptize through me. This is the day that You have made, I will rejoice and be glad in it.

Day 24 – Forty Days in the Word

James 1:22-25

During this week the assignment is to paraphrase the daily scripture. Here is my paraphrase –

"But be examples of those who act upon what the word says, and not merely those who study it but never implement its teaching thus fooling themselves that they are faithful. For if anyone studies the Bible but does not implement its teachings, that person is like one glancing at the face in the mirror, but moves on forgetting what was just seen. But anyone who really studies the complete Bible, the Word of grace, and adopts it into one’s life, not simply reading and forgetting what it says, but effectively putting it into practice will be blessed in the doing."

May my life daily be an example of looking intently into the perfect law, the law of liberty, abiding in it. May I never become forgetful of God’s word, but instead an effectual doer (What does the Lord require of you…) and thus experience the blessing of God in what I do.

Today is Saturday, it is 7:37 am in Springfield, 35 degrees and clear, heading for a high of 55 and sunny.

I have an unusually blank calendar on this Saturday. I will work hard on writing projects – my sermon and my presentation for Tuesday. I got a good night’s rest last night, and my goal will be to get up at 5 am tomorrow rested and ready for the day. I am feeling inspired and prepared to think, write, discern, create. Yesterday on the recommendation of Dave Conley I purchased the Kindle version of Paul Taylor’s The Next America. It has great data and his interpretation of the “looming generational showdown.”

In his preface, Paul Taylor, who turns 65 this year, contrasts the America he remembers with the current reality. He states “Our political, social, and religious institutions are weaker, our middle class smaller, our cultural norms looser, our public debate courser, our technologies faster, our immigrant-woven tapestry richer, and our racial, ethnic, religious, and gender identities more ambiguous. As a society we’ve become more polarized and more tolerant – and no matter what we’re like today, we’re going to be different tomorrow. Change is constant.”

In his chapter entitled “Empty Cradle Gray World” he discusses declining birthrates and introduces the term “sub-replacement-level fertility.” For a human society to replace itself, each woman must give birth to 2.1 children. Japan’s is currently 1.4. The Japanese government’s worst case scenario is that its current population of  127 million will fall to 47 million by the year 2100. I see the direct correlation of this principle in the church – congregations often have a “sub-replacement-level fertility”! Few spiritual new births, members who have been followers of Christ for decades, and then a gradual decline. In any particular church the leaders can decide to focus upon developing more, new disciples. And just as in the culture, this takes energy and effort, an outward focus and a readiness to give one’s life away. Currently the mainline churches have a sub-replacement-level spiritual fertility rate!

Day 16 - Forty days in the Word

Day 16  Mark 9:33-35

This passage was the text for the sermon on Sunday at Bethany’s church in Baltimore. The pastor did a very good job developing a chart, which I recorded in my small notebook. I will read it specifically with the formula prescribed by Rick Warren for this week called Spacepets, of what to look for when studying a biblical text devotionally, 

I have used a simpler formula over the years which involved: sin to confess, command to obey, promise to claim, prayer to pray. Spacepets has so many more parts, and I will utilize it this week. 

Sin of grappling for greatness.

Promise – the last shall be first

Attitude – servant (last night Colin Powell prescribed an attitude of optimism is required for leaders.)

Command – receive the least of these in Jesus’ name

Example – Jesus took a child in his arms

Prayer – Lord make me an instrument of thy peace

Error to avoid – pushing to get to the top, stepping on people in the process

Truth – serving others is God’s way, it was Jesus’ way, and it is my way.

Something to praise – Thank you Lord for this passage, reminding me of the servant role, and for the sermon I experienced on Sunday in Baltimore.

What a long and fulfilling day was yesterday! When I got home at 10 pm from the Colin Powell lecture, I sat on the couch, talked on the phone to Audrey who is visiting friends in Lynchburg, Virginia. My day began with a 7 am breakfast at the Victory Mission's Cooks' Kettle, meeting with pastors from around the York Elementary School neighborhood. I met with people all day, involving 4 different restaurants! Last night after the PPR meeting I headed to MSU to hear Colin Powell, which was a very rewarding experience.  Today my task is to write my sermon for Sunday, and to work ahead as far as possible (along with two meetings). I might even start working on my Easter Sunday sermon which will kick off a series on miracles. 

Day 14 – Forty days in the Word

Mark 7:31-37

Having healed a Syrian woman’s daughter after she convinced him that even the dogs deserved the crumbs under the table and displayed her faith and humility, Jesus heads away from Tyre and Sidon, down to the Sea of Galilee and the Decapolis. “There some people brought to him a man who was deaf and who could hardly talk, and they begged him to place his hand on the man.” (verse 32)

The reputation that Jesus was healing people spread quickly, and as he traveled people heard he was in their area and it spurred them to action. In this case “some people” (friends of the man?) brought him to Jesus. Often it takes the strong encouragement, even accompaniment of friends to move a person to a place where healing and wholeness is offered. A few weeks ago I had a friend strongly encourage me to telephone a famous pastor and he gave me the personal cell number. I had thought about calling this pastor, but my friend’s strong encouragement led me to do so, and a very helpful conversation ensued. These friends are similar to the friends of the lame man who lowered him down through the ceiling of a packed house in order to be near Jesus.

Jesus took this man aside, away from the crowds and ministered to him. Jesus used touch and even spit along with prayer and the command “be opened.” The man’s ears were opened and his tongue loosened, and he began to speak plainly. With the power of the living God, Jesus brought wholeness to this man. I can only imagine what this must have been like for the man, to have the son of God touch his ears, apply spit to his tongue and look up to heaven as he spoke the command “Ephphatha.” How long had he struggled with deafness? My mother lost most of her hearing as a young teenager, and struggled a lot. In her late 30s she underwent surgery with a new technology that restored most of her hearing. I remember how excited she was, and how it changed her life. This (unnamed) man receives this gift from the hand and the word of Jesus. If only we could track the rest of this man’s life, and see how it ended up!

“People were overwhelmed with amazement, ‘he has done everything well’ they said.” (37a) It was obvious to the people who were present that a miracle had occurred. They saw it, experienced it, spoke with the man and were amazed. In April and May I will preach a series of messages on “Miracles”, beginning with the resurrection, and continuing into Miracle May. I believe that in the presence of Jesus miracles occur, and when we can bring our friends into His presence, their lives will be changed for the good, with new possibilities and potential. During "Miracle May" we are asking people to give to Wesley from their financial resources Which will enable the church to pay down its debt in order to begin construction on new children's facilities that will make possible bringing more children to Jesus at Wesley!

Guide me Holy Lord as I walk with you during these 40 days, and experience the miracle of your presence and the gift of your Spirit leading my way. Use me as your shepherd this week.