Christus Paradox

Sometimes sermon preparation is a lot like hunting for Easter eggs- you never know where you will find the prize! Last week's study helped me find a gift that is still "working on me." We read it as the call to worship and I referenced it in my sermon but these words by Sylvia Dunstan (1955-1993) are worth a careful encounter. Read it silently. Read it again quietly. Read it a third time worshipfully.

You, Lord, are both Lamb and Shepherd.
You, Lord, are both prince and slave.
You, peacemaker and swordbringer.
Of the way you took and gave,
You, the everlasting instant;
You whom we both scorn and crave.

Clothed in light upon the mountain,
Stripped of might upon the cross,
Shining in eternal glory,
beggar'd by a soldier's toss,
You, the everlasting instant,
You who are both gift and cost.

You, who walk each day beside us,
Sit in power at God's side.
You, who preach a way that's narrow,
have a love that reaches wide.
You, the everlasting instant;
You who are our pilgrim guide.

Worthy is our earthly Jesus!
Worthy is our cosmic Christ!
Worthy your defeat and victory.
Worthy still your peace and strife.
You, the everlasting instant;
You who are our death and life.

Alleluia!
Alleluia!
Alleluia- you who are our death and our life.

The Waiting Game

We've all prayed  something like this: "OK God, this is what's up, this is what I need. Now, what's taking so long?" We like it when God's approval of our plans comes quickly. Waiting makes us uncomfortable... and the longer we wait the more "squirmy" we become.

We are tempted to interpret a delayed answer as a "no." Sometimes this may be the case. But oftentimes our waiting is the time that God is working.

While we are waiting, God may be at work in the life of someone else. This person may be a part of the answer... or may be encouraged by our response.

While we are waiting, God may be at work in our lives. Sometimes God has work to do in us before God can work for us.

John Waller sings it beautifully:
I am waiting, I am waiting on You, Lord.
And I am thankful, I an waiting on You, Lord.
Though it is painful, but patiently, I will wait.

I am waiting, I am waiting on You, Lord.
And I am peaceful, I am waiting on You, Lord.
Though it's not easy, but faithfully, I will wait.

I will serve You while I'm waiting.
I will worship while I'm waiting.

The psalmist says, "Wait for the Lord, be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord." (Psalm 27:14)

And as you are waiting, remember: God is working!

24th Anniversary Thoughts

Last Sunday we celebrated the twenty-fourth anniversary of the first public worship service of what we would come to know as "Towne View Baptist Church." As with most anniversaries we took time to remember:

• "Hall of Fame" leaders like Monroe Swilley (pastor/baptist leader), Bob Franklin (director of missions), and Bob Eubanks (layman/baptist benefactor)
• generous, supportive churches like First Baptist Church of Marietta and First Baptist Church of Rome
• those who provided leadership and direction through successive moves from the motel to the shopping center to the school, to the trailers, to the building, and now to Lockhart
• God, who above all, has been faithful through all the twists and turns of the journey

In my sermon I sought to make the case that along the way:

• we have been a mission church- the result of another's mission
• we have been a mission-minded church- giving our money so that others could be missionaries
• we have been a mission-supporting church- encouraging and sending members to "do" missions as an expression of their Christian faith
• we now face the challenge of being a "missional church-" creating an environment where members see themselves as missionaries in their communities of work and leisure and where as a church we see all that we do as a part of God's mission for us.

Anniversaries are a time to look back (where have we been?) with gratitude and look forward (where do we go from here?) with hope.

A Moving Experience

"Where did this come from?"
"Oh, that's where that was!"
"Gosh, the kids were young then."
"I hadn't thought about them for a while."
"Why did we keep that?"
"Where are we going to put this?"
"This room looks so much bigger now!"
"Do you remember when..."

These are some of the thoughts I've heard expressed from others- and myself- over the course of our moving the last week or so. It is truly amazing what you can find when you move.  I have a friend who says everyone should move every ten years.  As I settle into my fifth office while pastor at Towne View I'm not so sure!

As book cases were removed, cabinets come down, and carpets pulled-up you can see what the church "was made of." A concrete floor, 2x4 studs, drywall, and steel reveal construction materials- but don't really show "what the church was made of."

It was in the energy of members young and old, the smiles over quick lunch, the laughter generated by well-told stories, the sweat of heavy-lifting, the wistful smiles of memories, the expressions or gratitude for God's faithfulness, the hope-filled glances to the future... this is what our church is "made of."

Parts of the Body

Committees sometimes take a bad rap in church life. You've probably heard the jokes... "a camel is a horse designed by a committee" or "God so loved the world that he didn't send a committee." Yet, committees are an essential component in the way we "do" church.

1Corinthians 12 begins with Paul discussing spiritual gifts and says "All these (gifts) are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them each one, just as he determines (v. 11). " Later, in a discussion of the church as a body the apostle says, "God has arranged the parts of the body, every one of them, just as he wanted the to be (v. 18) and "you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it (v. 27)." WOW! God has shaped us into the body of Christ, given each of us a role in the body, and has equipped each of us with the gift(s) necessary for the proper functioning of the body "for the common good (v. 7)."

As we have organized our church for ministry we have designated a Nominating Committee with the responsibility to identify members and gifts necessary for our officers and committees to effectively guide our ministries. Without quotas, the Nominating Committee strives to involve a broad variety of members in positions of leadership and service- younger and older, male and female, long-time members (as long as it gets in a church of our relative "youth") and newcomers, as well as the ethnic diversity of our little part of the kingdom. The composition of our Nominating Committee itself is representative.  Where did these folks come from? How did they get here?

John Sherman chairs the Nominating Committee this year.  He and his family became involved with Towne View at the invitation of Doug Butler, a friend from college days at SPSU.

Laurita Benjamin retired to Kennesaw from upstate New York to be closer to family (especially grandchildren).

Rick Hedger and his late wife came to Towne View at the invitation of their neighbors, Tom and Lorraine Roote.

Tanya Hall, a tried and true southern girl came to a nearby neighborhood in Kennesaw due to a job transfer.

Lou Shewmake came to our fellowship as a single Mom looking for a place where her young sons could get connected... she met Denny and the rest,as they say, is history.

Patsy Carrier and John and her mother, Mrs. Allen, came with a group of friends looking for a church where their age and experiences would be welcomed.

I'll encourage you to pray for these folks as they seek to be faithful to the task our church has sent their way. And pray for yourself- that you will be open to God's invitation to use your gifts in service "for the common good." And pray for those neighbors, co-workers, long-time friends, and new acquaintances who are looking for help and hope and a place to belong.