The reason that we do good works and live the way we live is our thank you note to God for what God has done for us in Jesus Christ. Our lives–the decisions that we make, the things that we do and do not do–are not for our edification but God’s glorification. God created us in Christ Jesus, the writer of Ephesians said, so that we can do the good works that God prepared for us to do before we were even born.
We like to plan out our days and our hours and our lives. Sometimes we even like to plan the lives of others! (Bad idea, by the way.) But we also need to be open to the movement of God in our lives.
God is faithful, even when we are not. God is with us, even when we feel alone. God will never forget us, God will always be with us to the end of time and beyond.
Drawing closer to God is not about ritual or tradition. It is about living to the glory of God. It is about sharing our food with the hungry, caring for the homeless, meeting the basic human needs of the least, the last and the lost. It is not hiding ourselves from the pain of the world behind fortress walls be they a sanctuary, a tradition, a home, or a border. It is about being the light of God’s Kingdom here on earth in this world that already has too much darkness. It is about being “repairers of the breach”. It is about being, truly being, a people of God.
Sunday, February 11th, 2018 ~ Transfiguration of the Lord
We listen to Jesus because we are designed that way, even though, it’s not easy and sin has messed things up. So an answer to the question “Why listen to Jesus” is because God has made us to be in a relationship with himself and like every other relationship that means listening. So we listen to Jesus, and as we listen to Jesus peace, hope, and love flow from him to us. As we live in this world we share all that Jesus has given us: peace, hope, and love with the world. We are designed to listen to Jesus and to do so takes intention, prayer and reading the Bible.
Sunday, February 4th, 2018 ~ Communion Sunday and 5th Sunday after Epiphany
God cares for each of us equally, and invites those who take Jesus seriously to care for the least, the last and lost, too. God is present in the day to day activities of our lives. God is both Transcendent and Immanent, or within us.
