Be In Prayer With Me

Dear friends and church family,

This last Sunday I preached about overcoming conflict.  In my message I spoke of the Ferguson MS community, the shooting and death of Michael Brown, and the conflict the community is in.  Since that shooting on August 9th, there have been riots, looting, more shootings, tear gas and curfews, and the National Guard called in.  There is a nationwide awareness with people watching in bated-breath, wondering what happens next.

Earlier today I was at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary meeting with Dr. Gennifer Brooks, who is African-American and originally from Trinidad.  We spoke about what’s happening in Ferguson and in her perspective she spoke of a deeper issue of poverty, racism, lack of quality education and opportunities for minorities to ‘get ahead’ in their lives.  I know there are many issues to be considered with the Michael Brown shooting and death.  I know this is tinder for the fire in many communities and we may see continued rioting and additional shootings.

So, I ask you to be in prayer with me – not only for the Brown family, the Ferguson community and police force; but, for our nation as a whole.  We obviously have much to fix, especially in regards to racism, mis-treating and exploitation of minorities, abuse of power and authority.  There is no easy answer to all of this.  I recognize this.  But again, I ask you to be in prayer with me.

In Sunday morning’s message I said, “I think about what’s going on in Ferguson and I believe the churches of the community need to be involved in helping to restore peace.  I believe the churches have a greater possibility of doing this – than the police, the mayor or the governor.  The families and community and police need to be helped through their grief and find a place of mercy and forgiveness.”

Part of the answer to all of this is deeper than mercy and forgiveness.  Justice, reconciliation and equality must play a part of the solution.  But I believe this begins with mercy and forgiveness.  Church, please join with me in prayer for the healing and reconciliation of a broken community.  May we find ways to work together, shedding our bias and prejudices, and seeking equality in all people.    

Christ’s peace with you,

Patrick

OVERCOME - Finding Purpose In Life

It's not surprising to me that one of the areas we struggle to overcome has to do with our purpose in life.  Why are we here?  What is it we are supposed to be doing?  

The prophet Micah would tell us we are here to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with God.

The psalmist would tell us we are here to praise the Lord – to praise with dancing and melody and to take pleasure in God’s glory.

Jesus would say we are to feed the hungry, to give drink to the thirsty, to clothe the naked, and help heal the sick and care for the imprisoned.

I would suggest these are all reasons of why we are here and what we are to be doing.  But, I would also suggest our question of purpose goes deeper than this.

I think one of the questions of purpose we are asking is ‘Do I matter? Do I make a difference?’ Who among us wants to look back upon decades of living and say to ourselves, I've made no difference at all.

Paul helps us to think through this question of purpose in his letter to the Philippians when he writes, "If then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy…  Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves.  Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others."

It is not easy, in all humility, to regard others as better than yourselves.  It is not easy to set aside your own interests for the interests of others.  There is something innately born within us that calls us to be self-centered and to place ourselves first.  Part of this begins as a survival instinct.

As a baby we cry to have our needs met with feeding and changing and burping and warmth on cold nights.  As we grow older we cry and laugh, and pose and pout to get the attention we want and privileges we feel we deserve.

As adults our employers, and sports, television shows, even our education systems inform us we need to be number one.  Be the best.  Be the smartest and most popular and prettiest and better than everyone else.

We celebrate and reward the best and the first, while the last and the least are thought of as… well, as last and least.  What begins as a survival instinct quickly becomes an expression of fallen human nature.

But consider this.  We have been made in the image of God.  Not just some people, and not just believers – we've all been made in the image of God.  The most compelling earthly image we have of God is Jesus Christ.

So when we ask ourselves the question of purpose, we inevitably ask, are we doing all we can to be more Christ-like – to be faithful in the image of God.

John Widtsoe once wrote, “There is a purpose in life – to be nearer to the likeness of God.” 

If our purpose in life is to be nearer the likeness of God it matters not if we are school teachers, factory workers, stay at home moms, retired or just starting in school, whether we are musicians or police officers or clergy. 

In all that we do, in anything we do, we do it for the glory of God – to be nearer to God, striving to be more like Christ. 

God has created us uniquely and with great intent and wondrous love.  It’s not so much of what we do, but how we do.  Paul says, “Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus.”

Does what you do reflect the character of Jesus Christ – or the mind of Jesus Christ?