Psalm 23; Matthew 6:25 – 34

For many of us we start a new year fresh and ready to go.  We’ve had a rest and holiday to recover from last year and we’ve made plans for this year which inspire and enthuse us.  This fresh outlook puts us in a very different emotional state than we were in at the end of last year.  But we know the pattern of life tells us that we won’t stay like this for the whole year.  Life will get on top of us, we’ll become stressed with work, family, friends and church.  What started out as achievable goals will turn into overwork. 

The question I want to address over the coming weeks is how do we deal with the stress that is in our life?

  One way is to use this stress reduction kit that I was issued when I worked for the Government.

Another one is found in a study that was conducted by the University of New South Wales about 5 years ago.  Eat junk food.  The study showed that mice who were fed junk food, experienced much less stress than mice who ate healthily.  Initially I thought that this would be a good way of solving our stress problems.  Instead of having church for the next 7 Sundays we’d all pop down to Macca’s and have a Big Mac and we’d reduce our stress.  However, our weight and cholesterol levels would have increased, causing us to stress about our health.  So it probably isn’t the best idea.

For many people the way to deal with stress is to have a break.  Go away for the weekend or a holiday.  Or separate themselves by time and distance from the cause of the stress.

Whilst holidays are important, we need to be careful that we’re not running from the means of our cure.  Another study that came out of NSW Uni showed that for Ministers who burnt out that in their period of recuperation they ceased their spiritual disciplines.  In doing so they cut themselves off from the practices and the one that provide nurture, life and healing.    

Jesus tells us “come to me all you who are weary and I will give you rest.”

So as we think of the things that stress and weigh us down, we look to God and the answers he provides in the 23^rd Psalm.  In here we find more substance and less cholesterol than any junk food we can have.

The first cause of stress that we look at this week is worry.  In Proverbs 12:25 we read “that anxiety weighs down the heart.”  We all have things that we worry about.  Things that at times will keep us awake at night, will distract us from enjoying life, will give us grey hair and lines on our faces. 

What are the things that you worry about? 

Jesus tells us “do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear.”  He tells us this for a very good reason.

Firstly, it distracts us from the kingdom of God.  Whilst we’re worrying and becoming pre-occupied with our lives here, we’re taking our attention away from God, the mission that he calls us to and the life he wants us to express.  When we’re worrying about ourselves, we’re distracted from our calling as disciples.

Secondly, it's unhelpful because it never accomplishes anything, it never solves anything.  It is stewing without doing.  It's like racing a car engine, it creates a lot of smoke and noise but you don't go anywhere.  Worry has never solved a problem.  You cannot change the past if you worry about it.  Worry cannot control the future.  It only makes us miserable today.  It's unhelpful, it doesn't work.  It is unreasonable.  It exaggerates your problems, makes mountains out of molehills.  It just makes problems seem bigger and bigger.  The more we review something when we’re worried about it, the bigger it gets.  To worry about something you can't change is useless.  To worry about something you can change is pointless, change it, rather than worrying about it.  It is unhealthy.  When we worry we get ulcers, backaches, headaches, insomnia.  Our bodies were not made to worry.  We’re made for better things.  When we worry we think that we concentrate our efforts on controlling the uncontrollable, of affecting that which we can’t affect, of exerting an influence that we don’t have. 

The antidote to worry is found in the first verse of Psalm 23.  “The Lord is my shepherd.  I lack nothing.”

The Psalmist had no need to worry, because he had God as his shepherd.  Living in an agricultural society the writers of the Old and New Testament made many comparisons between God and a shepherd.  What do they see as the comparison? 

A shepherd provides.  He provides food, shelter, the basic necessities for his sheep.

A shepherd protects.  He defends against enemies, harm.

A shepherd guides.  He leads sheep when they're confused and don't know which way to go.

A shepherd corrects.  Any problem that comes along, he sorts out for them.

David, the writer of the 23^rd Psalm named God as his shepherd.  The one who was able to provide for him, the one who was an antidote to the stress in David’s life.

Many years later, Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount that his followers were not to worry.  In doing so he makes two points.  The first is that our life is more than material possessions.  The second is to look at the way that God provides for birds of the air.  The conclusion that he draws in verse 33 is that the priority in our life is to be a living relationship with God, through Jesus himself. 

This relationship doesn’t mean that we stop working, sowing, reaping or meeting our earthly needs.  Nor does this relationship say that these things are unimportant.  Just that they are less important than the righteousness that comes from trusting in God and participating in his kingdom as disciples of Jesus.

So the admonition to not worry is in effect a call to trust in the provision, protection, guidance of Jesus who calls himself the good shepherd.  It is to surrender to the work of the Spirit in our lives and a sign of the kingdom of God amongst us.

Seeing Jesus as shepherd is saying that he’s in control of our lives.  And when he’s in control of our lives, worry is not an issue.  Because when we worry about something, whatever it is, the issue behind it is control.  Our worry is our desire to control and our realisation that we can’t control it. 

Worry is always an attempt to control the uncontrollable.  Worry is assuming responsibility God never meant for us to have.  Worry is a warning light.  Whenever we start to worry we should see it as a flashing beacon that says we’re trying to control too much.  When we seek to take control, we shove God out of his rightful place.

So that’s all fine and good, don’t worry, instead follow Jesus who is the shepherd of our lives who provides and guides and corrects and protects.  But how?  But I’m sure you’re waiting to hear how.  How do we do this?

The answer is through prayer.  In 1 Peter 5:7, we are told to “Cast all of your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”  Peter is telling us to unload everything that we have to worry about.  Go back to the beginning of the sermon and think again about those things I asked you what you worried about. 

Peter says take all of them, each and everyone and give them to God.  It’s not just telling him about them and then keeping them as our own problem.  Peter tells us to give them to God and not to take them back.  Why?  Because God is the good shepherd who will leave the 99 sheep and go out to look for one lost sheep.  One sheep who is lost in an unhelpful, unreasonable unhealthy wasteland of worry.  We unload on him in prayer.  Pray in the middle of the night when you’re lying awake worrying.  Pray when you’re fretting unable to concentrate on anything because you’re worrying.

If your mind is in a whirl because you’re worrying, you can easily translate those thoughts into prayers.  Just tell God what’s confusing, what you’re anxious about.  Express your total and utter inability to find anyway out.  Share with him the possibilities and why you don’t think they’ll work.  Cry about the other people who are involved and your concern for them.  Tell God that you’re looking to him to show you the answer.

And then know, know that in his way and his timing things will work out.

We discovered this for ourselves when we moved from Rockhampton over 10 years ago.  In 1996 and 97 we were experiencing a lot of things, that were very anxiety and worry inducing.  I was starting to firm up a sense of call into ministry, but still had some more questioning to do.  Wendy wanted to be back in Brisbane, but it didn’t seem there was going to be much of a way for this to happen.

Then in April 1997 I applied for and was told unofficially that I’d got a job in Brisbane.  The official notification of this job didn’t come out for over a month, so I sat on tenderhooks waiting.  Turned out that the head of the interview team, had just been slack.  We wanted this job badly.  Not knowing about it also affected my decision about applying for other jobs, both in Brisbane and Rockhampton (the department I worked for had created a number of similar positions throughout the State, which were the next logical step for me to take).  Eventually, the job came through. 

Then we had to arrange for a date to move.  This couldn’t happen until our house in Rockhampton sold.  1997 was a very bad time for house prices.  We had friends who’d bought and when they left Rockhampton couldn’t afford to sell because their property value had dropped by $20000.  We had no body look at our house for 3 months.

At the same time the office I was working in Rockhampton was understaffed and they wouldn’t let me go. 

Wendy was teaching and wanted a transfer.  The staffing officer in Rockhampton told her flat out that she wouldn’t get a transfer.

Lots of things to worry about.  But as we trusted God, listened to him and followed him, things worked out. 

We sold our house, for what we bought it for, a good result at that time.  It settled on the day that I was to finish work in Rockhampton.  So we could all leave together.

In Brisbane we were able to find a great house, that met all our criteria.  At the church that we were led to, I met an older man who mentored and grew me a lot in my Christian faith. 

Wendy got a supply job within weeks of being in Brisbane.  And at the beginning of 1998 she got a transfer and a permanent job in Brisbane. 

Everything worked out for us, as we trusted in God, waited patiently for him and listened to the sound of Jesus’ voice.

Worry is a key source of stress in our lives.  And it’s something that God wants to be rid of, so that we can live as disciples of Christ’s and live out our passion for him. 

How do we rid ourselves of worry?  We embrace the relationship with Jesus that he offers to us.  The relationship in which he says he is our shepherd who provides, protects, guides and corrects.

Ministers Desk 16th December 2012

The Church Council held its final meeting for the year on 19 November.  This meeting capped off a busy and productive year for the Council. 

 

Over recent months the Council has noted declining and erratic worship attendance figures.  We spent some time discussing possible reasons for these numbers and spent more time considering ways to address this.  Team Leaders presented reports on their activities for the previous three months.  These reports highlighted growth through our Explore Groups, that provide places for spiritual growth and pastoral care; developments in worship and personal daily bible readings; and the great time of community had at the church picnic. Team Leaders  are currently developing plans for 2013 that will bring further growth in our four focus areas Exalt (worship), Explore (small groups), Embody (service), Engage (Evangelism).

 

The Church Council discussed the sale of the old manse and purchase of a new manse.  The old manse at 253 South Pine Road sold on 23 November for $472 500 ($460 000 after commission and other expenses were deducted).  It is intended to buy a new manse for up to $520 000, with a budget of a possible further $30 000 to be spent on any needed renovations.  The congregation will need to enter into a loan for up to $90 000.  A manse search committee has been formed and are in discussion with real estate agents.  With the loss of the rental income from the manse, we are currently losing $200 per week.  Once a manse has been bought we should have an amount of $200 per week to service a loan.  This is the difference between the rent we’re currently paying for Harlee’s house and the amount of rent we were receiving for the property at 253 South Pine Road.

 

Arrangements are being discussed with an outside community group for that group to manage the bookings for the hall.  This arrangement will not affect the use of the hall by church groups.  However, it will affect the way that bookings are made.  It does not apply to other rooms in the church complex.  When the arrangements are completed it has the potential to increase the usage of the hall by outside groups, who will pay rental fees that will increase our income.  This is still being negotiated.

 

Over a number of months the Church Council has been working through procedures that relate to risk management and workplace health and safety.  As a Christian community of grace we have an obligation to ensure all people who participate in our activities are kept physically, emotionally, spiritually and sexually safe.  State Government legislation and Uniting Church policies place some very specific requirements on the congregation and certain individuals.  This means that we cannot avoid this area of life.  We have been looking at what this means and how we can comply with these requirements.  In 2013 we will be hold training and information sessions to let leaders and members of groups what their obligations are.

 

If you’d like more information about anything the Church Council has been discussing please contact myself or a member of Church Council.  Also remember that the minutes of the meetings are placed on the wall in the foyer nearest the kitchen.

 

Ministers Desk 9th December 2012

As the year winds down most of our groups and activities are coming to an end for this year.  We’ve had some great things happen this year.  Some of them have been big and have involved the whole congregation.  Others have been limited to a few people participating in a group.  Take a moment and think of some of the highlights for you this year.  For me it includes the Solomon Islands partnership and our trip, the Boys’ Brigade trip, the worship service and the abundant generosity to provide money for bibles.  I’ve also appreciated the way that the Church Council and Elders have developed as teams and the discussions and decisions we have made.  I also appreciate my Explore Group and the depth of intimacy and growth that we experience together.

 

As a congregation we have done and achieved much this year.  This couldn’t have happened without the active involvement of many people in our congregation.  Leaders and helpers, servers and workers all add up together to allow our activities to take place.  This is the way that the church should be.  Christ’s vision for the church was that we would all take an active part, each contributing our gifts and skills and serving each other. 

 

Thank you for what you have done this year.  In whatever way you have served in this congregation, please know that you have helped make this a place where disciples can be grown and the message of Jesus Christ can be shared. 

 

Although most of us don’t serve with a sense of what we get out of it, there is something about the way we are built that values the appreciation of others.  We like to be thanked and we are encouraged to do more when we know that others appreciate what we have done.  So as the year comes to an end, I encourage each of you to overflow with thanks.  Take the time in the coming week to thank people for what they have done this year.  If you’re a member of a group, of the parent of a child in a group, thank the leaders of those groups.  If you’re a leader, thank the other leaders and the members for their contributions.  Notice the contributions that people make around the church and thank people for their willingness to turn up regularly and do little and big things.  Some jobs take place regularly and in plain sight, without acknowledgment. 

 

Our thanks can be shown in a small and deliberate conversation or written in a letter or card.  Thank the person for who they are not just for what they do.  Be sincere.  Don’t put others down when you’re doing it (eg “I like the way you do this, better than [insert name]”). 

 

As we affirm each other we will build our community and encourage each other onto more acts of service.

Ministers Desk 2 December 2012

Today is the first Sunday of Advent and the beginning of the Church calendar. Typically the New Year is a time we reflect on the year past and share our hopes for the year to come. We make new years resolutions, boldly announcing that this year we will spend less time at work and more time with our family, this is the year we are finally going to start eating healthy or maybe this year we will finish that art class we have started so many times before.

There is nothing wrong with making plans and setting goals, but for the most part the kind of new years resolutions we make rise or fall on the back of our own effort, our own strength or determination. By beginning its calendar with the season of Advent, a time thick with anticipation of God’s fulfillment, the church reminds itself once again that our hope lies not in ourselves but in God.

Richard Rohr has written a book of daily meditations for the season of Advent titled Preparing for Christmas (I purchased it as an e-book from Amazon for less than $3). On the first page Rohr wonderfully captures what it means to live as an Advent people.

““Come, Lord Jesus,” the Advent mantra, means that all of Christian history has to live out a kind of deliberate emptiness, a kind of chosen non-fulfillment. Perfect fullness is always open to come, and we do not need to demand it now. This keeps the field of life wide open and especially open to grace and to a future created by God rather than ourselves. This is exactly what it means to be “awake,” as the Gospel urges us! We can also use other a words for Advent: aware, alive, attentive, alert, awake are all appropriate! Advent is, above all else, a call to full consciousness and a forewarning about the high price of consciousness.”

Richard Rohr – Preparing for Christmas: Daily meditations for Advent

This Advent may we practice living lives of ‘deliberate emptiness’ leaning into God’s great promises for us and our world.

 

Grace and Peace

Harlee.

Ministers Desk 25th November 2012

Many people believe that Winston Churchill said “You make a living by what you get; you make a life by what you give.”  Apparently he never spoke these words.  Whoever first spoke them should be applauded for encouraging us to see that a great life is lived when we live our lives for the sake of others.

 

10 October 1908 in Dundee, Scotland, Winston Churchill did say the following words:

“What is the use of living, if it be not to strive for noble causes and to make this muddled world a better place for those who will live in it after we are gone?  How else can we put ourselves in harmonious relation with the great verities and consolations of the infinite and the eternal?  And I avow my faith that we are marching towards better days.  Humanity will not be cast down.  We are going on swinging bravely forward along the grand high road and already behind the distant mountains is the promise of the sun.”

 

When we think of our Christian faith it is one that is founded in selfless giving for the sake of others.  The very fact of Jesus’ birth, life and death were all for the sake of the redemption of humanity.  Jesus did not need to put himself through any of that.  As our reading from Philippians today tells us, Jesus knew the glory of heaven and intimacy of relationship with God even before his birth in Bethlehem.  Yet, he humbled himself and offered his life for our sake so that we may know the glory of heaven and intimacy of relationship with God.  We are known as Christ’s disciples.  Disciples are people who learn from their teacher and replicate his life in theirs.

 

During November we want to celebrate the service that many members of our congregation give.  Some give their service within the life of the congregation, others give it in areas away from the congregation.  This is great, because it’s important to know that our discipleship to Christ takes place in all aspects of our life, not just when we are on the church property.

 

As the year draws to a conclusion you may want to think about the service that you can give next year.  Consider whether you are living a life lived for others and seeking to make this a better world for those people that you share it with.  To do this you may need to stretch yourself in faith to step up to service in 2013, to step into an unfamiliar area of service, or to step down from something.  As an act of discipleship and to grow you in your faith, please prayerfully give consideration to where God would have you serve in 2013 so that we can celebrate your life as it is lived for others.

Ministers Desk 18th November 2012

One of the defining characteristics of the Christian church is the love that members show for each other.  Jesus said “I give you a new commandment: Love each other.  Just as I have loved you, so you also must love each other.  This is how everyone will know that you are my disciples, when you love each other.”  As we read through the books of the New Testament we see practical ways in which the early church sought to live this out.  They came to the realisation that being known as followers of Jesus was more than acknowledging a set of beliefs; it was living a lifestyle that put their beliefs into action.  “So you see that a person is shown to be righteous through faithful actions and not through faith alone” (James 2:24).

 

One way that we seek to obey Christ’s command is through our practice of pastoral care for everyone, by everyone.  For many years we have pursued a model of care that places the onus on every member of the congregation to be aware of opportunities to express love for others through visiting, phoning, sharing words of encouragement, helping others with practical tasks and ensuring that no member of the congregation feels isolated or without a fellow Christ follower to support them.  Even though this has been our goal I know that it happens sporadically, some people receive excellent care, whilst others find it lacking.  I believe that this model more accurately reflects Christ’s desire for his church, where each person was called to be a servant to others.  In the early church they were devoted to one another (Acts 2:42) and recognised that they belonged to each other (Romans 12:5).

 

As part of the congregation the ministry team are available to offer pastoral care.  At any time, if you feel that you’d like to speak to one of us about an issue, I encourage you to contact the church office and make an appointment.  Just as you would initiate a visit to a doctor, a solicitor or other professional when you had a need to see them, please feel free to take the initiative to speak to one of us.  I have heard at various times people who have been disappointed that when they’ve wanted to speak to a minister that they have not been contacted.  Yet, that same person has done nothing to invite a contact.  We are not mind readers and many times will be unaware of what you are thinking.

 

There are two ways to request a visit.

 

1.      On the reverse side of the care cards you can tick a box that says you’d like a visit from the ministry team.  Care cards are also included with the notice sheet and extras are kept in the church foyer.  If you tick this box, you will be contacted and a time for a visit will be made.

2.      You can ring the church office (Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday 9 am to 2 pm) and make an appointment. 

You can ask to speak to someone specific and none of us will be offended if you ask to speak to someone in particular.  We will be happy to come to your house, a coffee shop or meet at the church.

Ministers Desk 11 November 2012

Minister’s Desk

One of the defining characteristics of the Christian church is the love that members show for each other.  Jesus said “I give you a new commandment: Love each other.  Just as I have loved you, so you also must love each other.  This is how everyone will know that you are my disciples, when you love each other.”  As we read through the books of the New Testament we see practical ways in which the early church sought to live this out.  They came to the realisation that being known as followers of Jesus was more than acknowledging a set of beliefs; it was living a lifestyle that put their beliefs into action.  “So you see that a person is shown to be righteous through faithful actions and not through faith alone” (James 2:24).

 

One way that we seek to obey Christ’s command is through our practice of pastoral care for everyone, by everyone.  For many years we have pursued a model of care that places the onus on every member of the congregation to be aware of opportunities to express love for others through visiting, phoning, sharing words of encouragement, helping others with practical tasks and ensuring that no member of the congregation feels isolated or without a fellow Christ follower to support them.  Even though this has been our goal I know that it happens sporadically, some people receive excellent care, whilst others find it lacking.  I believe that this model more accurately reflects Christ’s desire for his church, where each person was called to be a servant to others.  In the early church they were devoted to one another (Acts 2:42) and recognised that they belonged to each other (Romans 12:5).

 

As part of the congregation the ministry team are available to offer pastoral care.  At any time, if you feel that you’d like to speak to one of us about an issue, I encourage you to contact the church office and make an appointment.  Just as you would initiate a visit to a doctor, a solicitor or other professional when you had a need to see them, please feel free to take the initiative to speak to one of us.  I have heard at various times people who have been disappointed that when they’ve wanted to speak to a minister that they have not been contacted.  Yet, that same person has done nothing to invite a contact.  We are not mind readers and many times will be unaware of what you are thinking.

 

There are two ways to request a visit.

 

On the reverse side of the care cards you can tick a box that says you’d like a visit from the ministry team.  Care cards are also included with the notice sheet and extras are kept in the church foyer.  If you tick this box, you will be contacted and a time for a visit will be made.

You can ring the church office (Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday 9 am to 2 pm) and make an appointment.

 

You can ask to speak to someone specific and none of us will be offended if you ask to speak to someone in particular.  We will be happy to come to your house, a coffee shop or meet at the church.