Happy are those who mourn...

Last week we talked about the attitudes of happiness that Jesus teaches in the Sermon on the Mount (or the Beatitudes). Eight positive statements about choosing God's way to live life. In this second attitude adjustment Jesus reminds us first of all that life is difficult and the to mourn is a part of life. He doesn't try to explain suffering but he tells us how to deal with it.

First, know that God is with us. (Psalm 34:18). God is aware, God cares, and God will help (Job 13:27, Nahum 1:7, Hebrews 4:16).

Second, let go of hurt (Isaiah 43:18). So often we repress hurt, rehearse it, and resent it. Jesus invites us to release it (Psalm 10:14).

Third, Jesus invites us to rely on God's resources. What happens many times is that humans turn to alternative hurt relievers: drinking, drugs, entertainment, thrills, and many other escapes. What God tells us is to try His way: a. Take time during your day to listen for His voice; b. Spend time in the Word and let it comfort you; c. be with God's people - healing nutritious helpful people; and d. receive the indwelling of the Holy Spirit (Romans 15:13).

What can you do today to help? Three things will help deal with grief, sorrow, and pain.
1. Invite the Spirit of the Living Christ to dwell in your life now.
2. Connect with/or connect more deeply with the church family.
3. Give yourself away in service to others - stuff, things, material goods will ultimately mean nothing but people matter to God and will ultimately bless you and heal your hurt.

Be Attitudes

You've often heard that we are human beings and not human doings. The reality of life is that we all too often let external things affect our happiness. Over the next several weeks I will be exploring the Be Attitudes - you know, Matthew Chapter five, Sermon on the Mount? Blessed are...Jesus says over and over again in his most famous sermon. He wants us to have new perspective on happiness. That is what blessed means - happy.

Jesus wants us to realize that it is not circumstances, or the accumulation of things, or greater status that will make us happy. In the Beatitudes he gives us eight positive things to change our focus as Christ Followers. Poor in Spirit (the first one) is not about self loathing, or putting yourself down, or pretending you are just a poor slob. Think of the first Beatitude this way, "Happy are those who know they don't have it all together and know they need God, they are happy and humble."

Humility and happiness are soul mates. Humility brings three gifts from God that we will look at in this week's message: 1. humility reduces stress; 2. humility improves our relationships; 3. humility releases God's power in our life. Read over Matthew 5; James 4:6; John 15:15; and John 13:17. Our attitude is either the lock on or the key to our happiness.

Focus with me over the next few weeks on the Beatitudes and what they offer us for living happier lives. Listen to the podcast and check my blog weekly for updates and previews.

Be Well - Serve Faithfully

Kingdom, Power, Glory, Forever, Amen

In this final message on the Lord's Prayer we once again look at the prayer of fulfillment - the prayer that God will break into this life, this world, and bring eternity into the reality of the present. We pray for the Kingdom to come. A Kingdom not marked by one who rules over us with heavy handed demands but as one who calls us to obedience by teaching us what servanthood really means. Jesus says to us, "Seek first the Kingdom of God..." How do we do that?

One way of looking at this is by putting some first things first in our life: [F.I.R.S.T.] F = financially making God's Kingdom first as we share our resources. I = interests. As we place first what God has shown us through Jesus interests Him the most: the poor, the homeless, the widow, the orphan, the marginalized, the sick, and things like justice and peace. R = relationships. We need to realize that people are important to God and living in community with other believers is like building up a family for God. It is a place of welcome to others who are seeking. S = schedule. We need to set aside not the last of our day but valuable time during our day for time with God and for serving our neighbor as God directs us. Finally, T = troubles. When troubles and challenges come our way take them to God first. We tend to try and do it ourselves - go it alone - be the lone ranger - but God says this is not putting me first.

Another way of praying for fulfillment is to live by God's power through prayer, risks of obedience, and by never giving up on faith - remembering that humanly speaking things may seem impossible but for God nothing is impossible.

Finally, we are called to live for God's glory. We can show love towards everyone, use our gifts and talents to serve everyone, and share the good news with everyone. Joining together as a church family is how we do this. We can do so much more together than we can do alone. See you Sunday as we Confirm several young people at BLC and renew our own Baptismal Covenant.

Blessings - Pastor D.

The Lord's Prayer: For thine is the Kingdom

Oh the sheer joy of running down the lane on a warm summer day... contentment - fun - laughter - exuberance - the Kingdom of God is like this I believe. The Kingdom is God's, The Power is God's, The Glory is God's. Your history is His-Story played out in your life, for in Him we live and move and have our being. God abides in you.

Think about this: you were not JUST made by God, you were made FOR God. You were made to begin an eternal journey in this life and continue it with God beyond the grave. When we know this relationship we run down the path of life from birth to death knowing that it does not stop but is fulfilled, completed, and extended with a perfection that we can never fully know in this life. God has a plan for you. Read Luke 10, Matthew 10, and Mark 9 sometime. Jesus sent his disciples out with a plan. A plan that we have been trying to live out with Christmas 365 - that is to share Good News of Great Joy which is for all people.

The Kingdom of God is not far off in some distant future time. It is now and it is in us. Some people will only see the Kingdom when they experience your love, your energy, your good work, your love, your generosity, your forgiveness, your help - all enabled by the Holy Spirit fulfilling God's plan. Jesus once said, (John 10:10) "I have come that you might have life [he doesn't say religion] and have it more abundantly."

Bono of the group U2 wrote in a song once, "You should live in a way that proves you belong to the God who calls you into His Kingdom and glory." There is so much that God wants to accomplish through you. What are some steps to really live like we belong?

1. Remember we be belong to a new Kingdom now
2. Live by the power that the Spirit gives us
3. Live so your life glorifies your creator
4. Live in Community as God intended for us from the beginning

We will be exploring this for the next couple of weeks as we finish up our study of the Lord's Prayer. You can download previous podcasts of this series by clicking on the podcast button at our website: www.bethanylaporte.org

Blessings on the Journey,

Pastor D

Deliverance

We've been going through the Lord's Prayer which is prayers within a prayer. "lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil." Matthew 6:13 This is not to say that God leads us into situations of temptation. Another translation of this puts it a different way, "save us from the time of trial..." What we are talking about is "deliverance". When Jesus went to the Mount of Olives the night he was arrested he asked the disciples to "watch and pray." He knew it would be tempting for them to desert Jesus in his hour of need.

As we think about asking for deliverance from temptations - those things that could break our relationship with God or each other we must first identify what makes us vulnerable. Asking simple questions like: 1) When am I most tempted? 2) Where am I most tempted? 3) Who is with me when I am most tempted? 4) What is the benefit do I think I am receiving from the temptation? 5) How does the temptation make me feel?

Next, we need to ask God to help us avoid the situations that lead to temptation. Recognize your human vulnerability. We are not people of steel. Read over Proverbs 4:26-27.

Third we need to ask the Spirit to guard our heart. We need to remember that temptation begins inside of us. The trigger may be outside of us but the natural inclination of temptation resides in us.

Consider some of the things that can add to our weakness and vulnerability: physical exhaustion, discouragement and pessimism, spiritually disconnected, alone or distant from others, insecure, deep hurt, anger, bitterness, and failure to name a few.

Fourth, we need to pray for deliverance. God's help can not be minimized. Psalm 50:15 reminds us to "Call upon me in your day of trouble. I will deliver you and you will honor me." It's like sending out a Mayday to God. God responds.

Fifth, ask God to help you redirect your attention. Sometimes our temptations require someone to help us stay on track. A friend, a prayer partner, a pastor, a counselor, or an adviser or coach. When we work on our relationship with Christ we are less vulnerable. We have a mentor a friend and a savior who knows every temptation without sinning. He cheers us on toward victory over the temptations. He is the one who formed a small group to help deal with these issues (we call them the disciples.) There was even a small group within the small group. Peter, James, and John formed a kind of close partnership and accountability group.

When we fall or when we fail and we succumb to temptation God wants us to admit it right away and begin to move on but resist the sin and temptation in the future. And get help if it is a serious addiction.

Cleaning Up Our Act: Forgive Us Our Debts

This mikveh in the above picture (baptism of purification) was located to the south of the Temple in Jerusalem close to the Huldah gate. It dates to the time of the Temple during the life-time of Jesus and the Apostles. It was covered up by dirt for centuries until it was discovered and excavated.

"Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us." Is the focus for next week. In Hebrews 12 it says, "Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles us. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." What are these hindrances? Our sins, our debts, our transgressions are the hindrances for our relationship and connection with God and each other. Forgive us as we forgive others is what Jesus is commanding us - to forgive as we have been forgiven. How do we prepare for this step of forgiveness?

1. Search. We can begin by searching ourselves carefully (Psalm 139:23-24). Take the time to regularly search your life and behavior.
2. Surrender. We give up hiding our sin and repent of it before God.
This was the meaning of baptism. A dying to sin - or drowning of the sin in pools like the one in the picture.
3. Seek to make amends. Whenever possible we need to make amends with those we have hurt or harmed. If we do not our repentance is hollow. God knows we need to try to take the step of healing in our lives.
4. Share in the forgiveness that God offers in Christ.
5. Start over again. We need to repeat these steps often.

For some further reading look up these passages: Luke 19:8-9; Hebrews 4:16; Romans5:1; James 5:16; Hebrews 10:22-25. If you were baptized as a youth it is always good to renew that covenant and commitment. If you have not now is a good time to take that step of commitment. We are all in need to a daily renewal of the promise of baptism by the cleansing power of Christ's sacrifice for us. Blessings on the journey.

What is "Daily Bread?"

Daily bread, most of us don't think much about it in the United States. Yet, pockets of extreme poverty exist in our country and weekly we have a stream of people who come by BLC for the necessities of life. Their stories can break your heart. God has given us ability to address this in the Lord's Prayer.

Jesus tells us to pray,"Give us this day our daily bread." As he tells us this he is saying so much more. First, bread represents the necessities of life and not frivolous luxuries. Second, it represents the Word of God - Jesus said, "We do not live by bread alone. but every Word that proceeds from the mouth of God." The third thing it represents is our fellowship as the body - called the church. Fourth, it represents saving grace show to us by God in His Son. Each phrase of the Lord's Prayer is packed with meaning and depth. Christianity is not about ritual and rules - it is about real people seeking a relationship with the eternal and learning to care for our neighbors as we do ourselves. Asking for daily bread means so much when we seek not only our bread (with all its meaning) but seeking bread for those around us who have great need.

As we consider the unemployed, the uninsured, the homebound, and the homeless we have so much that we can share. This week asks the question, "What is our daily bread?"

Blessings on the journey,

Pastor Dennis

PS - For those of you in deepening your discipleship let me remind you about the Spiritual Coaching/Direction I am offering this fall. Email me or call me if you are interested. also check out http://www.rbc.org/odb/odb.shtml