^“27Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid” (John 14:27).

     We’ve been working our way through a 5 week long Season of Peace, being more intentional about looking at the need for peace in different areas of our lives as well as different ways to understand peace in a variety of circumstances outside our lives.

     This included the story of Jesus storming into the Temple and overturning the money changers tables. The money changers were running a scam that required people to buy sacrifices for Temple worship and it ripped them off in the process; the victims knew it but there wasn’t anything they could do about it. It was done with cooperation of the Temple leaders, and these leaders thought they held the monopoly on being holy. However the popularity of John the Baptist and Jesus Christ would suggest the masses did not agree .

     A Pew Research survey released last week reflects a similar sentiment, it says “nearly three-quarters of the public (72%) now thinks religion is losing influence in American life." That’s grown by about 5% over the past four years...”And most people who say religion's influence is waning see this as a bad thing."

     Certainly this is interesting by itself, but what really got my attention though came in the survey results that show “that most Americans do not agree that religion has a positive impact on society.” Much like during the time of Jesus, people are not at peace with holiness as they know it; the holiness they see does not reflect the goodness of God they desire.

     We’ve got work to do.

     As we step forward into this work, and as odd as it sounds, perhaps it’s best if our prayers seek the foolishness that St. Francis of Assisi sought rather than holiness:

“May God bless you with discomfort at easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships, so that you may live deep within your heart.

May God bless you with anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people, so that you may work for justice, freedom, and peace.                                                                   May God bless you with tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation, and war, so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and to turn their pain into joy. And may God bless you with enough foolishness to believe that you can make a difference in this world, so that you can do what others claim cannot be done.”

     Come be part of the foolishness. We meet at 10AM on Sundays.

Together We Serve,                                                                                                         Pastor Mike

A few months ago I was working on my sermon while eating lunch at a local burger place when a person approached my booth and began talking with me. They had seen my Bible on the table and used that to start conversation. Upon learning I was a pastor their comments went “gloomy.” I was really saddened by their sour tone which centered on the church needing younger families (agreed), and today’s youth are worthless (whoa!!!). It was the 2nd comment that really got me. Sadly, I hear this refrain much more than I like.

With 13 years of youth work, seven youth mission trips to Mexico, and currently as the guardian parent of a 15 year old, I did my pastoral best to keep my tongue in check. Instead I countered by sharing some of my delight-filled youth stories. (Toward the end of his semi-rant I did want to ask this person: How do you think youth might view you?)

Presbyterians Today has a great article Faith Formation Starts During High School which includes the following:
“When asked what led the survey participants to develop relationships with particular adults, several characteristics emerged as important: The adults were kind, caring, friendly, and interested in conversation and dialogue. As youth, the survey participants appreciated when they could bring questions to the adults and when adults brought questions of their own. They desired to feel as though they were not being judged, and appreciated being treated as equals. Trust was important, in two senses: trusting the adult but also feeling that the adult had trust in them.”

The 3 biggest factors cited by youth for their “home-grown” faith formation: going to church with parents (92%), eating meals regularly as a family (87%), and praying/saying grace as a family (63%).

As this guest left, I had a couple of questions dancing around my mind: what kind of  family life and church life did they experience as a teen; and where they might see themself in relation to the above survey results...or the following from Luke:
¹⁶
Jesus called them [people with babies] back. "Let these children alone. Don't get between them and me. These children are the kingdom's pride and joy” (The Message Bible).

The article is an easy read and you can find it here:

http://www.presbyterianmission.org/ministries/today/modeling-faith-0514/

Together We Serve,

Pastor Mike

 

“All goes well when God is so to speak both the author and the object of our faith, the one complementing and augmenting the other. It is like the right side of a beautiful tapestry being worked stitch by stitch on the reverse side. Neither the stitches nor the needle are visible, but, one by one, those stitches make a beautiful pattern that only becomes apparent when the work is completed and the right side exposed to the light of day; although while it is in progress there is no sign of its beauty and wonder...And yet it is with these stitches that God performs wonders.” ~ Jean-Pierre de Caussade

   Perhaps it’s a reflection of influence from our western culture, or maybe it’s simply a matter of my own particular personality, but it seems that we don’t often stop to look behind us; we (or again maybe just me) are overly forward focused on bigger things. What’s next? How much more? Is there a way to get more from this project? How can we take this task up a notch?

   These are worthwhile questions, yet, there is also a beauty in the minutiae but to see that splendor means that you got to stop. Walking into the sanctuary and being delightfully surprised by the beautiful quilt lovingly handcrafted by our Squares and Prayers quilting group brought me to this splendorous stop. It’s being raffled off to raise funds for one of our ministries. As I stopped, I went back to the office and counted – we’ve helped 32 families so far this year. And our monthly canned food collection has already provided 2085 servings which is about 600 meals.

   Yes, there is more to do...but I like to imagine that each of these meals, and each offering of aid, is one “stitch on the reverse side.” We’re a part of this bigger tapestry, working so that others will at least catch a glimpse of the beauty that God desires for all.  

Together We Serve,                                                                                                            Pastor Mike

Sense and Avoid

At What’s Brewing recently the guest speakers were talking about unmanned aircraft. These aircraft are a couple of feet in diameter with arms coming out from the center. At the end of each arm is a small motor and rotor blade. They look like a flying crab with a helicopter blade at the end of their arms.

Companies are trying to figure out how to use them for making deliveries. (I’ll admit, I think this would be an awesome way to bring communion to our church members who are homebound). The challenge for these aircraft lies with the engineering; how to keep them from crashing into other things. It’s creating a market for “sense and avoid” technology.

This “sense and avoid” lies behind Jesus’ final instructions to His disciples: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit...^20” (Matthew 28:19).

The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is also known as the Trinity; it’s a tough subject to tackle. Often the best way to understand something comes by taking it apart. Let’s begin by looking at what might happen if we baptized people only in the name of the Father. That denies the work of Jesus Christ reconciling us with God, and also the ongoing activity of the Holy Spirit. God is powerful, but it also makes God detached. With too much distance between us and God, then God is reduced to an intellectual exercise or a contemplative pursuit.

If we baptized only in the name of Jesus, then that shortchanges God as Almighty, the maker heaven and earth; that part of God that is bigger than anything we can see or understand and is beyond our logic and reason. And again, it also denies the ongoing presence of God with us today in Holy Spirit.

What if we only said “I baptize you in the name of the Holy Spirit?” Well, we miss the awesomeness and creativity of God. We also miss God-in-human-flesh in the person of Jesus. We miss that part of God who rose from the dead to make us right with God in spite of our brokenness and sin – those times we did not “sense” God’s righteousness and we crashed into things that we didn’t “avoid.”

One out of three may be good for a baseball batting average, and two out of three good for voting, but when it comes to us as disciples imitating Jesus in order to shape the character of the world it requires the fullness of God we know through the Trinity.

Imagine Jesus standing before us, and preparing to send us out with these instructions: ”Go throughout Prineville and all of Crook County. One out of 6 families lives below poverty – make sure they have enough to eat. Guarantee your 27 hundred veterans are properly provided for. And you’ve got a lot of older folks living alone which makes them vulnerable...keep an close eye on them. Then in your spare time we still need a cure for cancer and there’s climate change and affordable housing and human trafficking and...”

It’s more than a monumental task, it is impossible for us to shape the character of this area and this world using only our own resources and abilities. The work of the church can come only from God’s outlandish investment of God in Jesus the Son and the willingness of the Son to be present always to the church in the Holy Spirit.

May we – as individuals, and as a church family, and as the Christian Church – “sense” the fullness of the Trinity so we “avoid” adding to the struggles we already face.

Together We Serve,

Pastor Mike

 

The pastor nominating committee has selected Michael Wilson as our new pastor and Michael has accepted the call.

Letter from Michael Wilson

Psalm 46:10 – Be still and know that I am God.

In times of contemplative stillness several years ago I sensed that God was calling me to something…more…different…new. It led to an astonishing journey for a guy who purposefully kept God at arm’s length for many years. Through it all I’m convinced that in the very goodness of God’s creation the total is greater than the sum of its parts and we all are part of this very goodness of God. As a disciple of Jesus Christ I need to let everyone know this very goodness includes them.

John Muir is quoted: “In God's wildness lies the hope of the world.” I delight in God’s creation and make time for cycling, hiking, camping, and fishing…or simply eating outside while sharing laughter with friends and family.

Kathleen and I have been married for 27 years, and is a crucial part of this journey. She also enjoys the outdoors, plus singing and gardening and canning. Alyssa is our 14 year old. She is a freshman who likes her music, and is a very talented artist. She was one of the 7,000 teenagers taking part in Triennium (Presbyterian youth gathering) last summer and is eager to return.

We have three other girls; Kindra is Alyssa’s mom who lives in Northern California, and our twins Amy and Allison. Amy is teaching English in Bali and Allie is in her senior year at Princeton Theological Seminary.

Upon driving into Prineville we were immediately captivated by its charm, and realized this is the place we want to be. The warm and friendly welcome of both the Pastor Nominating Committee and the “town folks” sealed the deal. We look forward to getting to know you when we return on the 24^th.

Blessings,

Mike and Kathleen and Alyssa

 

Our congregation is currently searching for a new pastor after 13 years with Pastor Dr. Cheryl Bourne. She was a hard working pastor and friend to us all and will be missed.  Our current supply pastor Dr. Allan Smythe is a lively and compassionate preacher who easily mixes scripture with real life experiences.  Join us for worship at 10:00 a.m. every Sunday.  

Holy Week Schedule
Sunday, March 24th-Palm Sunday-10 am Worship
Thursday, March 28th-Maundy Thursday-7 pm Worship- Our Savior's Lutheran Church
Friday, March 29th-Good Friday-7 pm Worship-St. Andrew's Episcopal Church
Sunday, March 31st-Easter- Easter Breakfast 8:30-9:30 am- Worship 10 am-Egg Hunt 11 am
Breakfast menu: Variety of Breakfast Casseroles, Fresh Fruit, Coffee, Tea, Juice

Farewell Pastor Cheryl

 Farewell potluck lunch for Pastor Cheryl this Sunday, January 20, 2013 after worship.  Join us this Sunday for worship at 10:00 a.m. with a potluck to follow.  This is Pastor Cheryl's last Sunday with us after twelve and a half years of faithful service.  Join us as we say goodbye and wish her best wishes in her new call!  The deacons will provide the main dish, so bring a side dish or desert to share!

Christmas Eve Worship

Christmas Eve Candlelight Service on Monday, December 24th, 2012 at 7:00 p.m.
Join us as we celebrate the birth of Jesus with lots of singing and praise.