The Lord's Beauty

I ask only one thing from the Lord.  This is what I want: Let me live in the Lord's house all my life.  Let me see the Lord's beauty and look with my own eyes at his Temple. – Psalm 27:4 (NCV)

 

Is this what you want?  What does it mean to live in the Lord’s house?  If someone asked you about the Lord’s beauty what would you say of it?  Do you want to see the beauty of God?  Where do you think you would find such a wonderful thing?

 

The following story found: http://www.inspirationpeak.com/cgi-bin/stories.cgi?record=34

A small boy once approached his slightly older sister with a question about God. "Susie, can anybody ever really see God?" he asked. 

Busy with other things, Susie curtly replied: "No, of course not silly.  God is so far up in heaven that nobody can see him." 



Time passed, but his question still lingered so he approached his mom: "Mom, can anybody ever really see God?" "No, not really," she gently said. "God is a spirit and he dwells in our hearts, but we can never really see Him." 

Somewhat satisfied but still wondering, the youngster went on his way.

Not long afterwards, his saintly old grandfather took the little boy on a fishing trip.

They were having a great time together.  The sun was beginning to set with unusual splendor and the grandfather stared silently at the exquisite beauty unfolding before them. 

On seeing the face of his grandfather reflecting such deep peace and contentment, the little boy thought for a moment and finally spoke hesitatingly: "Granddad, I--I-- wasn't going to ask anybody else, but I wonder if you can tell me the answer to something I've been wondering about a long time. Can anybody - can anybody ever really see God?”



The old man did not even turn his head.  A long moment slipped by before he finally answered. "Son," he quietly said. "It's getting so I can't see anything else."

 

The Lord’s beauty surrounds us!  If we want to see God all we have to do is look around.  In the beauty of a flower, in the smile of a baby, in the majesty of a sunset, in the glory of an ocean, in the spender of the moon, in joy of our friends, and the kind eyes of a stranger there God’s beauty can be seen.  Open your eyes and you will see that you live in the Lord’s house with God’s beauty everywhere!

With hope and joy,

Garrett

Proper Clothing

God has chosen you and made you his holy people. He loves you. So you should always clothe yourselves with mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. – Colossians 3:12 (NCV)

 

What does it mean to you that God has chosen you?  Do you feel so chosen?  What does it mean to be holy?  How do you clothe yourself with mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience?  In what ways do you need to work to become holy?  What will you do today so that others know you are God’s chosen?

 

The following story is from: http://www.rogerknapp.com/inspire/tip.htm

In the days when an ice cream sundae cost much less, a 10-year-old boy entered a hotel coffee shop and sat at a table. A waitress put a glass of water in front of him. "How much is an ice cream sundae?" "Fifty cents," replied the waitress. The little boy pulled his hand out of his pocket and studied a number of coins in it. "How much is a dish of plain ice cream?" he inquired. Some people were now waiting for a table and the waitress was a bit impatient. "Thirty-five cents," she said brusquely. The little boy again counted the coins. "I'll have the plain ice cream," he said. The waitress brought the ice cream, put the bill on the table and walked away. The boy finished the ice cream, paid the cashier and departed. When the waitress came back, she began wiping down the table and then swallowed hard at what she saw. There, placed neatly beside the empty dish, were two nickels and five pennies - her tip.

 

The thing about clothing ourselves with mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, is that someone else might learn about the love of God because of us!  When we act as God’s chosen people, those who will know God increase.  When those who know God increase, the world gets better.  When the world gets better… well let us just get there!

With hope and joy,

Garrett

True Love

But Ruth said, “Don't beg me to leave you or to stop following you. Where you go, I will go. Where you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God.  And where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. I ask the Lord to punish me terribly if I do not keep this promise: Not even death will separate us.” – Ruth 1: 16-17 (NCV)

 

What kind of love do you see in the verse above?  Have you ever felt so strongly about someone other than yourself?  Have you ever considered that this might be how God feels about you?  How does having such love for a person make your life worth the living?

 

The following story was e-mailed to me:

It was a busy morning, about 8:30, when an elderly gentleman in his

80's arrived to have stitches removed from his thumb. He said he was in a hurry as he had an appointment at 9:00 am.

I took his vital signs and had him take a seat, knowing it would be over an hour before someone would to able to see him. I saw him looking at his watch and decided, since I was not busy with another patient, I would evaluate his wound. On exam, it was well healed, so I talked to one of the doctors, got the needed supplies to remove his sutures and redress his wound.

While taking care of his wound, I asked him if he had another doctor's appointment this morning, as he was in such a hurry.

The gentleman told me no, that he needed to go to the nursing home to eat breakfast with his wife. I inquired as to her health.  He told me that she had been there for a while and that she was a victim of Alzheimer's Disease.

As we talked, I asked if she would be upset if he was a bit late.  He replied that she no longer knew who he was, that she had not recognized him in five years now.

I was surprised, and asked him, “And you still go every morning, even though she doesn't know who you are?”

He smiled as he patted my hand and said, “She doesn't know me, but I still know who she is.”

 

Nothing can stop true love!  That means nothing can stop God from loving you.  Our lives become all the more worth living when true love is a part of them.  Not the true love of romance novels, but the true love that accepts all that is and loves anyway.  Pray today that you are blessed enough to give such love.

With hope and joy,

Garrett

Pursuing Peace

Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it. – Psalm 34:14 (NRSV)

 

What does it mean to depart from evil?  Do you actually do good?  What does your good do for the world?  Why is it important not only to seek peace but to also pursue it?  Where have you found peace?

 

The following story is at http://www.inspirationpeak.com/shortstories/realpeace.html

There once was a king who offered a prize to the artist who would paint the best picture of peace. Many artists tried.  The king looked at all the pictures. But there were only two he really liked, and he had to choose between them.

One picture was of a calm lake. The lake was a 
perfect mirror for peaceful towering mountains all around it. Overhead was a blue sky with fluffy white clouds. 
All who saw this picture thought that it was a perfect 
picture of peace.

The other picture had mountains, too. But these were rugged 
and bare. Above was an angry sky, from which rain fell and in which lightning played. Down the side of the mountain tumbled a foaming waterfall. This did not look peaceful at all.

But when the king looked closely, he saw behind the waterfall a tiny bush growing in a crack in the rock. In the bush a mother bird had built her nest. There, in the midst of the rush of angry water, sat the mother bird on her nest - in perfect peace.

Which picture do you think won the prize? The king chose the second picture. Do you know why?

"Because," explained the king, "peace does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble, or hard work. Peace means to be in the midst of all those things and still be calm in your heart. That is the real meaning of peace."

 

Doing good for others is to be an anchor of peace in the midst of stress and trouble!  Evil will always surround us, but by seeking peace and pursuing it, we will always provide people who are looking for hope the ability to have it by holding onto ours.  Let us do good by pursuing peace today!

With hope and joy,

Garrett

January Newsletter

Greetings my brothers and sister in Christ.  I have just finished walking the sacred grounds of our church, and I do not recognize the place of my memories I saw one year ago.  Our sanctuary has been made new inside and out physically, our services are Spirit filled, our leadership is growing, our discipleship is becoming apparent, and we have declared that by the power of Jesus we shall become God’s hope and joy!

What a year 2008 was for First Presbyterian Church, but no longer do I wish to dwell on the past for 2009 presents new opportunities for glorifying God.  You as members and friends of this church need to know what will be going on this year so that you can figure out how God is calling you to action.  As many of you already know the session has been reorganized to better meet the needs of our church and our community, and the deacon board has been established to ensure that in our church there is none in need.  If you have not already filled out the time and talent sheet please do so that we can work the work of Jesus the Christ together.

We have many goals for this next year.  To begin with your session will work to come up with a mission statement for our church.  Our mission statement shall proclaim to all what our church does and is to ensure that we are becoming God’s hope and joy!

Many people are asking me how to join our church and what it means to be a Presbyterian.  To meet the needs to these people we will begin a 5 week course entitled, “First Connections” that will help people figure out what we are all about.  The first class will be held in February and continue on every week thereafter.  We will then have it again sometime in the summer.  If you are interested in membership, are already a member but want to know more, or just want to know more, please be on the look out for First Connections!

Our goal for membership in 2009 is to have 140 active members by the end of the year!  Some say this cannot be done, but I believe in a God who declares, “For me nothing is impossible!”  When we reach this mark we will have grown by 200% in two years time!  Therefore become ambassadors to those who need to know Christ by inviting them to our church, because the more we grow the more we can do for the glory of God.

In 2009 we will be studying how to begin children’s ministries, we will work with other churches to ensure that a hot meal is served for the needy every day of the week in downtown Albany, we will set a date for international mission work where members from this church spread God’s hope and joy across the world, we will open the doors of our church to other people and groups so that people know First Presbyterian Church is where community happens, we will grow the choir so that the loft is full, we will complete our website so that people throughout the world can connect with us, and we will continue our journey on becoming God’s hope and joy!

This is just a snap shot at what we will be doing in the coming year.  To quote a recent sermon, “Can you feel it yet?”  Can you feel the Spirit which will keep us moving forward to become a light to the community and then to the world!  I can and so can many others.  I recently received a letter from a pastor in the Philippines who has heard about our church.  In it he thanks God that there is a place so devoted to doing the work of God, and he speaks of the work his church is doing wondering if we can work together.  God is at work here in such a way that a church in the Philippines has heard of the work God is doing in Albany and wants to work with us!!!  Can you feel it yet?!

I know that by this time next year I shall consider what this church looks like now, and thank God that we have come so far.  Join with me in becoming God’s hope and joy for 2009.

Riding the wave of the Holy Spirit,

Garrett