Give Thanks in All Circumstances
As you celebrate Thanksgiving this week, remember these words of the Apostle Paul in his first letter to the Thessalonians, "Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus." (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). Think of the rejoicing of those pilgrims in 1621 after their first successful harvest. Remember the long difficult journey they made across the ocean to Plymouth and through their first winter on these new lands. Think of their courage and their hope. But also remember their scarcity of food, meagerness of shelter, and loss of life (half of their colony). These experiences served as the seeds of humility that bloomed into gratitude during that 3-day festival in November 1621. Paul also tells us in Romans 12:15-16 to "Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another." Rejoice with Those who Rejoice So, remember the help those pilgrims received from the people of the local Wampanoag and Pawtuxet Tribes who taught the Pilgrims, weakened by malnutrition and illness, how to cultivate corn, extract sap from maple trees, catch fish in the rivers and avoid poisonous plants. It was because of their help that the Pilgrims not only celebrated this "first Thanksgiving" but also invited their Native American allies to join in the rejoicing with them. But also remember how drastically the relationship between the new colonists and the indigenous people of this land changed. Remember how quickly hearts changed for evil with many atrocities to follow. Mourn With Those who Mourn Remember that while Abraham Lincoln declared Thanksgiving to be a national holiday during the Civil War in 1863, the United American Indians of New England declared this same day to be a National Day of Mourning in 1970. Written on a monument established in Plymouth, MA, is the following: "Thanksgiving day is a reminder of the genocide of millions of Native people, the theft of Native lands, and the relentless assault on Native culture. Participants in National Day of Mourning honor Native ancestors and the struggles of Native peoples to survive today. It is a day of remembrance and spiritual connection as well as a protest of the racism and oppression which Native Americans continue to experience." Some Native Americans understandably reject the Thanksgiving holiday entirely. For them, it represents pain and horror. Others like to embrace positive messages of the day and put aside thoughts about its complex history. For them, the idea of giving thanks, which is central to Native heritage and culture, is worthy of celebrating. Live in Harmony with One another As we give thanks this week for our own provisions and blessings, we rejoice with those who rejoice and mourn with those who mourn. For Paul's command to "live in harmony with one another" requires enough humility in our own hearts to acknowledge both the joy and the pain that others experience in life. When Steven Peters, a former spokesman for the Wampanoag Tribe (the tribe that originally helped those first pilgrims), was asked about his feelings regarding what Thanksgiving Day and the National Day of Mourning mean to Native Americans, he had this to say: "I think it's great. My ancestors had four harvest festivals throughout the year. Gathering with family, enjoying our company, sharing our blessings, and giving thanks for all that we have is a good thing. I say have more thanksgiving events throughout the year. I also ask that you take a moment in that day to remember what happened to my people and the history as it was recorded and not the narrative that we had been given in the history books." So let us rejoice, mourn, pray, give thanks, and live in harmony, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
0 Comments
Bringing People to Jesus and Heaven to Earth Sundays September 8, 15, and 22 This month, as we kickoff off the new school year, with all our programs and groups starting back up, we will be exploring an expression of our God-given mission as "bringing people to Jesus and heaven to earth." "Bringing people to Jesus and heaven to earth" is a statement that captures our evangelistic and missional heart. The first half captures the essence of John 1:41–42 where Andrew tells Simon, "We have found the Messiah!" and he brought him to Jesus. The second half captures the heart of the Lord's prayer from Matthew 6 where Jesus teaches us to pray "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven". We want all people to know that Jesus is our only hope. Trusting in him brings healing to our hurting lives and hope to all of humanity. By trusting Jesus, keeping his commands, and following his example, we can find freedom, healing, peace, and unity in the kingdom of God. This is the meaning of God’s “will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” There IS hope for humanity, but it only comes through Jesus. When we come to Jesus, heaven comes to earth. This is our mission. Bringing people to Jesus requires that we actively share the gospel with those who don’t have faith in Jesus. This includes publicly sharing the gospel during our Sunday services and messages and giving people an opportunity to respond. It also includes each of us personally sharing the gospel with others in our own lives—whether they be family, friends, neighbors, coworkers, etc. Bringing heaven to earth requires intentional discipleship of those who have put their faith in Jesus on what it means to be a follower of Jesus in the kingdom of God so that His will would be done “on earth as it is in heaven.” It includes living in community with one another and actively serving each other with love and compassion through missional ministries and partnerships both inside and outside our church. And, it reflects the beauty of heaven when we gather together to worship God. I'll be preaching about this statement over three Sundays, September 8, 15, and 22. As I do, I encourage you to explore the following resources. VIDEOS
HEAVEN AND EARTH PODCAST SERIES This podcast series from the Bible Project does a great job of explaining further what this means. SERMONS BOOKS Here are a few books you could read for more consideration of our mission as the church. Each of these are available for Kindle but we'll also have some paperback copies available at church.
"The King Jesus Gospel" by Scot McNight "Surprised by Hope," by N.T. Wright "The Divine Conspiracy," by Dallas Willard "Bringing Heaven to Earth," by Josh Ross and Jonathan Storment (an entry-level, easy to read book, capturing the heart of this statement for the average person) Note: Every book we read, video we watch, or podcast we listen to will likely contain various statements that are either confusing or with which you or I might disagree. Biblical study always requires personal, Spirit-led discernment, careful analysis and discussion, as well as humility to learn and the granting of charity for different perspectives. RIVER CITY DAYS PARADE SUNDAY, AUGUST 4, 1:00PM It's been a while since our church entered a float in a Red Wing parade, so it's exciting to see us enter one this year! Several people have been involved with planning, constructing, and decorating a float that represents the joy and hope of the people of First Covenant Church.
Embellished with the colors of our church's logo (gold, purple, green, and orange), this float is a symbol of new life that can be found in Christ, the diversity of the kingdom of God and it's unity around Christ, and the brightness of its light in a darkened world because of Christ. Standing on the float will be a team of talented musicians from the church band singing and playing their hearts out for the glory of God. They'll be singing "let me tell you about My Jesus." They'll be proclaiming that "The Church is Alive!" And, they'll be calling all Christians to be "a little more like Jesus and Less Like Me." Walking alongside the float will be a few of us wearing t-shirts saying "GOD LOVED FIRST LOVE GOD." We want people to know the great love with which God has first loved us, then call them to first love God in their lives. Only when we discover the joy of loving God first will our souls be restored with hope. As we toss candy to the families watching the parade, we want people to know that we see them, care about them, and invite them to taste and see that the Lord is good—even better than the sweet taste of the treats we're sharing. Those of you who will be along the parade route, watching the floats go by will also be representing, not only First Covenant Church but, Jesus Christ himself. Some of you will be wearing the same shirt as those who are in the parade. But all of you are called to "clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 13:14), to let the "message of Christ dwell among you richly" (Colossians 3:16), and bearing the Spirit's fruit of "love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:23). We participate in this parade for three reasons. First, we want to proclaim the good news of the kingdom that comes in Jesus Christ. Second, we want to invite the people of Red Wing into our church community. And third, we just want to participate with our neighbors in our neighborhood activities to show our love for our neighbors. Though we are not of this world, we are still in this world and we choose to walk alongside the people of this world, sharing the hope of Jesus with all as we go. Please be praying for all those involved with the float and that the Holy Spirit would work through our presence in the River City Days Parade. AS I AM
As we walk through this summer series titled "As I Am" we are being called by God to "be holy as I am holy." Each week of this series we're exploring a different character trait of God's and how he is developing that same character trait in us. As we do, I invite you to do three things.
STAGE LIGHTING The Full Council is exploring the possibility of upgrading our stage lighting for both the center (preaching) stage and the side (music) stage. This isn't really a matter of "needing to upgrade again" after what we did in 2019. This is more of an area of remodeling that wasn't really done in the first place. Those of you who attend onsite might not notice the need very easily. That's likely because you've gotten accustomed to the way the lighting is in the room and it's a soft home-like experience. And it works. But those of you who watch online can tell the need for this because our video appears blurry and dark and washed out. That's not a problem with the cameras. It's the lighting. In lighting terms the minimum amount of "lux" needed (think brightness) for video is 1000 with 1500-2000 being better. Our current stage lighting is only 200-300 lux (which is probably about the same as your kitchen) using standard led floodlight type fixtures. We need more professional lighting to achieve the brightness that other churches have who do well with their service livestreams. When this upgrade takes place, you'll notice a significant improvement to the quality of the online video and a much brighter experience onsite. Please note, we're not talking about flashing laser lights and smoke and all that. This is just white lighting to brighten up the faces. Giving has been strong this year so we'll likely be able to cover the expenses but if you'd like to financially support that project, your gifts will help us ensure it gets done well. MORE NEW PEOPLE Last week Deanna and I enjoyed hosting half a dozen young couples (with no kids or with one baby) who are new to the church within the last 10 months. We had a great time getting to know each other and making connections. Sarah tells me that she's added 16 new families to our database within the last 8-10 months. Please, make connections with these new people by introducing yourselves and getting to know them. STAY CONNECTED TO YOUR CHURCH
As we all move into the summer with so many opportunities to get out do stuff we couldn't all winter, I'm inviting you to consider making it a priority to stay connected to your church. If you're away, watch the service online. You can always find them on our Livestream page or our YouTube Channel. If you're nearby, try to make it a priority to join us for worship! Summer is also a time when giving tends to go down. Many people only give when they're present. Would you be willing to come up with a way to continue your giving even if you're not here? Your consistent contributions to the mission of this church will help us continue to grow our staff, ministry programs, and missional impact on the Red Wing community. AS I AM Our next preaching series, June through August, is called, "AS I AM: How the Character of God Defines the People of God." In the scriptures, God commands us to "be holy as I am holy." Each week we'll explore a particular character trait of God's and how it blesses us. Then we'll explore how we can develop that character trait in ourselves, with the help of the Holy Spirit, and bless others, as well. If you happen to be away, try to catch us online on our Livestream page or our YouTube Channel. REFLECTIONS ON OUR 150TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION President Rev. Tammy Swanson-Draheim This last Sunday, May 26 2024, we had the honor of hosting Rev. Tammy Swanson-Draheim, President of the Evangelical Covenant Church (our denomination). Pastor Tammy's presence and message were so inspiring to all who were here! She honored First Covenant so well by acknowledging so many important parts of our church's history and the people who were part of it all. I'm so glad so many of you got to hear her message and even meet her. You were all so gracious and encouraging. I'm so thankful for such a great weekend. If you didn't get to see her message, you can watch it on YouTube or on our 150th Anniversary webpage. Superintendent Rev. Kara Stromberg We also had the honor of hosting Rev. Kara Stromberg, Superintendent of the Northwest Conference of Covenant churches on May 05 2024. I've know Pastor Kara for many years and watched her grow from being a children's pastor, to joining the conference staff as the Director of Children and Family to becoming the Associate Superintendent and now as the Superintendent. Kara and I serve on the NWC Ministerial Association's Executive Board together and I truly appreciate her leadership and pastoral heart. Pastor Kara, too, honored our church's 150th Anniversary well and she is such an encouraging person. I'm so thankful that you all have had the opportunity to hear and meet her. If you weren't in church the Sunday she was here, you can watch the service on YouTube or on our 150th Anniversary webpage. |
Pastor JimThese articles are monthly posts from pastor Jim Archives
November 2024
Categories |