Our Life With Jesus

Then Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people."                                                                                 --Luke 5:10b Together we read Luke 5:1-11; it is Luke's version of Jesus calling the first of his disciples. The account is more detailed than what we read in Mark.  We found it quite remarkable. In this version, Jesus is teaching a large crowd on the seashore.  The crowd is "presing in on him to hear the word of God."  There is a sense of urgency that is quite striking.  Looking nearby, Jesus sees two empty fishing boats.  The fishermen had gotten out of them and were cleaning their nets after a night of fishing. Jesus takes the opportunity to get into one of the boats, which belongs to Simon.  He asks Simon to put out a little way from the shore, which the fisherman does.  Sitting in the boat, Jesus teaches the crowds.  When he finishes the lesson, he turns his attention specifically to

"Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the good news of God, and saying,  'The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news."  --Mark 1:14-15 After his baptism and forty days of testing and clarification in the wilderness, Jesus returns to his home region of Galilee to begin his ministry among the people. It is an vulnerable time--  John the Baptist, who had immersed not only Jesus but countless others in the baptismal waters of the Jordan, has been arrested by King Herod for sedition. Jesus returns to familiar territory different than how he first left.  He carries new names from God:  Son; Beloved; God's Pleasure.  The forty days in the wilderness have clarified the priorities in his life, and his own deepening senses of identity and purpose. He has made a number of clear choices. Now, entering Galilee, his announcement to the people of God heralds change.  The time is ripe, Jesus say

We spent some time in the sanctuary as we thought ahead to leading worship on January 28th.  Here are some things we looked at:                                                                        The Lectern                                                                      The Pulpit Do you remember the relationship between the Lectern and the  Pulpit?                                                                          The Altar We talked about the Altar as the place we brought our offerings and dedicated them to God--not just our money offerings, but the offering of ourselves in love and service as we follow Jesus.  The cross represents the giving of Jesus' life for us and, with it,  the nonviolent  and saving love of God. It is also our Communion Table from which we commune with Christ.  We noted the candles, and the symbolism of God's light shining through all darkness. You had some really good questions.  For instance, you wanted to know wha

O God of all nations and peoples, we are grateful for the dreams of freedom, justice, and peace forever spun by your Spirit and focused by prophets in every age. We are grateful that in our time you call every man and woman to lift up and live by that dream, to embody it in our world by walking the walk, confessing our complicities, braving the work, daring the confrontation, exposing the lies, singing our faith, asking the questions, raising the Cain, making the sacrifices, organizing the community, easing the hate, expanding the compassion, enduring in humility, risking the revolution of love, and ratifying the "not for sale" sign on our souls. We especially praise you this day for the life of Martin Luther King, Jr., and for countless others down the ages whose names are known and unknown, and for those who yet lift up the dream and confirm it as yours, who quicken the conscience of this country and the human family around this globe, w

"And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor." --Luke 2:41-52 Tucked at the end of the second chapter of Luke's gospel, extending from the narrative of Jesus' birth, is the one account we have of Jesus growing from a child into an adult.  Jesus is twelve years old, the same age as several of our class members.  He is accompanying his parents and family on the yearly pilgrimage to Jerusalem for the festival of the Passover.  At the conclusion of the Passover observance, the family sets out toward home in Nazareth to the north.  Jesus remains behind.  When his parents realize he is absent, they return frantically to the capitol city, and after three days they find him in the Temple, sitting among the teachers.  He is "listening to them and asking them questions."  The storyteller adds: " And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers."  An anxious Mary and Joseph overflow with angry emotion an