Testing a plugin for John 3:16 [+/-]John 3:16 [16]"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (ESV)
, Psalm 23 [+/-]Psalm 23 [23:1]The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. [2]He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. [3]He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. [4]Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. [5]You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. [6]Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
, Isaiah 50:10 [+/-]Isaiah 50:10 [10]Who among you fears the LORD and obeys the voice of his servant? Let him who walks in darkness and has no light trust in the name of the LORD and rely on his God.
, Psalm 116:1-4 [+/-]Psalm 116:1-4 [116:1]I love the LORD, because he has heard my voice and my pleas for mercy. [2]Because he inclined his ear to me, therefore I will call on him as long as I live. [3]The snares of death encompassed me; the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me; I suffered distress and anguish. [4]Then I called on the name of the LORD: "O LORD, I pray, deliver my soul!"
and similar kinds of references

Our church is known for its prayer ministry. People sometimes will call just to get a name on the prayer list, because it is well known that we take prayer seriously, not being unrealistic but asking in faith, and, often, seeing miraculous results.  But there’s a curious thing about human nature: it’s easy to just move on to the next need, the next urgent problem, and lose track of the victories we have seen along the way.  So as a way of reminding one another of God’s goodness, some of our leaders got together and constructed an “answers to prayer” tree.  It was set up in the narthex on New Years Day 2008, and will remain there until the turn of the next new year. Here’s how it works.

In the basket to the left of the “tree” is a supply of paper “leaves” and some mini-clothespins.  Whenever a significant answer to prayer has been received, members are encouraged to take a “leaf,” then write, if they choose, the nature of the answer on the back of the leaf, and using one of the mini-clothespins, attach that leaf to the tree.  Each week a few more leaves appear on the tree.  We’ll let that process go forward and see how “fruitful” our tree is by the end of the year.  

Over the last several months, some members of the congregation have committed themselves to a ministry designed to help bring hope for some of our neighbors. As a result, the Alpha Room (our name for the small building which was the original structure for the church’s meetings beginning back in 1912) has been converted from a Sunday School room to a clothing bank, the Closet of Hope.

Closet of Hope

This ministry was officially launched August 3 of 2007. Members have collected new or “nearly-new” clothing to be made available to those who may need good clothes for school or work. Open the first and third Friday of every month, other hours by appointment. For information or to donate clothing, contact Jennie at 301-753-5877 or DeLoris at 301-753-5192.

Many friends and supporters of the church’s ministry have brought new or “good as new” clothes to be sorted and displayed by our hardworking volunteers for the benefit of those who may be in need. This is not a thrift shop; the clothing is not sold, but is made available for free. Already some families have been able to benefit, including at least one whose home had been lost to a fire.

In connection with this ministry a fledgling food pantry ministry is also being established. Foodstuffs are brought by church members on the third Sunday of each month, and presented in a processional as part of our offertory. Our goal and prayer is to become a resource for the community, a place where the love of God is not just talked about (though we love to talk about it!) but also demonstrated in multiple ways.

a litany

I am deeply connected with all of humanity, and with every person in particular.

So long as anyone remains unloved, I am lonely.
So long as anyone remains hungry, I am not satisfied.
So long as anyone remains in need, I am poor.
So long as anyone remains imprisoned, I am not free.
So long as anyone remains in danger, I am not safe.
So long as anyone suffers from illness, I am not well.

But when my heart aches for the unloved, Christ is with me.
And whoever spends themselves on behalf of the hungry, Christ is with them.
And for those who dare to see the needs of others, Christ is their light.
And for the prisoner, Christ is the open door.
And for the fearless warrior for peace, Christ is the shield.
And to those who attend to the wounds and sickness of this world,
Christ, the Great Physician, lends his skill, his care and compassion.

Bob Buehler, December 2006

Edge: A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE By Steven Pinker

An excerpt:

The decline of violence is a fractal phenomenon, visible at the scale of millennia, centuries, decades, and years. It applies over several orders of magnitude of violence, from genocide to war to rioting to homicide to the treatment of children and animals. And it appears to be a worldwide trend, though not a homogeneous one.

Friday evening I was driving through the rain.  

It was a beautiful drive, in a way; thick fog, bursts of heavy rain, down a country road where I was late for a homegrown arts program in a little part of the world that nobody goes to unless that’s where they’re going.   As I drove through the rain, late for my meeting, I thought of those nearby who have no car to drive.  I remembered the warm bed and the dry clothes waiting for me at home, and I thought of those nearby whose roofs would leak this very night, who would wake up to a day of cleaning as best they could the damp and the mildew that can’t be separated from their lives.  What good does it do, I asked myself, to sing of a God of love, without letting that love somehow get past me and to someone else?  Of course, the benefits I enjoy, plenty of food (too much!), a warm place to sleep, a means to go from here to there, and people nearby who care about me:  these are the things that are characteristic, are they not, of the kingdom of God.  ”Give us this day our daily bread” we are taught to pray; indicating that the wise man who taught that prayer thought it appropriate for everyone who prays it to have enough to eat.  ”If we have food and covering, we shall therewith be content” says the apostle who carried that wise man’s message to the nations.  But oh, how far from content we are!

It’s hard enough even to be content with food and covering for oneself, since it seems to be built into the modern mind to want so much more:  not just clothes but fashion, not just good solid food but the best we can find to satisfy a discriminating palate, not just a warm place to sleep but a house with many mansions, prepared for us right here on earth.  We want to own, to have enough and to spare; not to spare for someone else, of course, but to spare for our own rainy days, for that rainbow’s end of retirement, for the days when we can use our savings in toys and travel; maybe even for our children, if we’re nobly responsible; but not for someone else’s children, not for someone outside of our circle.  

But ancient wisdom speaks and says, Woe to those who add house to house and field to field (Isaiah 5:8 [+/-]Isaiah 5:8 [8]Woe to those who join house to house, who add field to field, until there is no more room, and you are made to dwell alone in the midst of the land.
)!   And I’m not content with my covering nor with my food if someone is cold and hungry.  

I could tell stories. I know what it’s like to be on the street, without a warm place to sleep.  I’ve slept in fields and under picnic tables by the side of the highway, drowsed in cars and in doorways, pulled an all-nighter in a bus station, crashed in a chair in someone else’s apartment, lived out of a suitcase, lost the suitcase, set out on the road with the clothes on my back and a borrowed pair of shoes, walked all day for days on end.  In a pinch, no doubt I have the skills to live such a life again; but Providence has allowed me to echo the words of Jacob in Genesis 32:10 [+/-]Genesis 32:10 [10]I am not worthy of the least of all the deeds of steadfast love and all the faithfulness that you have shown to your servant, for with only my staff I crossed this Jordan, and now I have become two camps. (ESV)
:  ”With my staff I crossed over this Jordan, but now I have become two bands.”  

With such blessing comes responsibility.  On this comfortable Sunday afternoon, comfortable in a house I can call my own (based on a debt to match) with my family nearby, food in the cupboard and cars in the driveway, I think of those within my reach who need to know that the simple blessings of a warm place to sleep and enough food for the day are not out of their reach.  Lacking great financial resources, what can I do?  I can speak, write, show up as an advocate and say that as a Christian I know God pronounces blessings on the poor, and as an American I hold dear the ideal of equality, and as a human being I have to remind all my neighbors that we are in this together, and none of us can be comfortable while some of us are cold and hungry.  So I try to help anyone I can find who is making an effort to ensure that food, housing, health care, transportation, sanitation, the basic decent comforts of life, are not denied to anyone because of the discontent of others like me who already have more than enough. 

The Marbury Church of God held its annual Costume Party on Saturday October 27 at 6:00 -8:00 PM in the church fellowship hall.  

Thanks to all who came! We had 51 persons in all, children and adults.  Thanks to Lisa Abell for doing the pony rides, and a special thanks to Cathi Tanner for all the planning and the games, and to all the workers and helpers who put together the food, decorations, games, prizes and activities for the evening; and thanks to God who smiled on us and gave us the first dry day after several days of (much-needed!) rain!  

Saturday, October 27, 6:00 - 8:00 PM: Costume Party for all ages, sponsored by the Board of Christian Education. Come in costume, or just come. Fun, games, food, prizes and a hayride.

ANNOUNCEMENT:

The Marbury Church of God will hold its annual Costume Party this Saturday at 6:00 -8:00 PM in the church fellowship hall. There will be

• hotdogs,
• chips,
• goodies,
• games,
• a pony ride,
• a hayride,
• a surprise or two,
• and a pinata,

and a great time of fun and fellowship for children, youth and adults. We always enjoy the creative costumes that appear on the scene. This annual event is sponsored by the Board of Christian Education. SEE YOU THERE

Summary of a sermon preached on September 23, 2007 at the Marbury Church of God. The text was

16:1 He also said to the disciples, “There was a rich man who had a steward, and charges were brought to him that this man was wasting his goods. 16:2 And he called him and said to him, ‘What is this that I hear about you? Turn in the account of your stewardship, for you can no longer be steward.’ 16:3 And the steward said to himself, ‘What shall I do, since my master is taking the stewardship away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg. 16:4 I have decided what to do, so that people may receive me into their houses when I am put out of the stewardship.’ 16:5 So, summoning his master’s debtors one by one, he said to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ 16:6 He said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ And he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ 16:7 Then he said to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ He said, ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ He said to him, ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’ 16:8 The master commended the dishonest steward for his shrewdness; for the sons of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the sons of light. 16:9 And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous mammon, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal habitations. 16:10 “He who is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and he who is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much. 16:11 If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will entrust to you the true riches? 16:12 And if you have not been faithful in that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own? 16:13 No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” Luke 16:1-13 [+/-]Luke 16:1-13 [16:1]He also said to the disciples, "There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was wasting his possessions. [2]And he called him and said to him, 'What is this that I hear about you? Turn in the account of your management, for you can no longer be manager.' [3]And the manager said to himself, 'What shall I do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg. [4]I have decided what to do, so that when I am removed from management, people may receive me into their houses.' [5]So, summoning his master's debtors one by one, he said to the first, 'How much do you owe my master?' [6]He said, 'A hundred measures of oil.' He said to him, 'Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.' [7]Then he said to another, 'And how much do you owe?' He said, 'A hundred measures of wheat.' He said to him, 'Take your bill, and write eighty.' [8]The master commended the dishonest manager for his shrewdness. For the sons of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the sons of light. [9]And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings. [10]"One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. [11]If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? [12]And if you have not been faithful in that which is another's, who will give you that which is your own? [13]No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money." (ESV)
RSV

Let me start by confessing that although I have made it my business for many years to come to some kind of understanding of the parables of Jesus, this one, for the longest time, stumped me. I was truly befuddled at how Jesus could possibly, even by proxy with the business-owner in the story, commend what can only be described as dishonest acts of a habitually dishonest man. The guy was at the very least something of a sleaze.

My glimmer of understanding came at the point where I made a singular realization, which I think is really the whole point of this story. This story will never look like anything other than a story of wrongdoing, for as long as we hold to the absolute value of money.

“The Church’s Privilege”

Notes for a sermon preached on May 27, 2007 at the Marbury Church of God
The text:
Romans 8:14-17 [+/-]Romans 8:14-17 [14]For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. [15]For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!" [16]The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, [17]and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. (ESV)

14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

[more to be added]