We are Mightier than the Waves

If we truly believe that God is with us, Jesus dwells within, and we are never without the companionship of the Holy Spirit, then we are mightier than the mighty waves of the sea. Each one of us has the power to change the world and make it better when we are in alignment with God's will for us and for the world. The Bible tells each of us to do what the Lord requires of us: "to do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with our God." (Micah 6: 8) And when we work together in unity, we create an even mightier wave that smothers the noise of oppression and greed.

How would your life change if you truly believed YOU were powerful enough to change what is wrong with the world. If you threw your energy into it - what would "it" be? Maybe you want to stop hunger in the world or stop the oppression of women and girls. Maybe your passion is to stop the pollution of our oceans or decrease gun violence. All of these desires above are in alignment with God’s intention for the world. You have the Holy Spirit working in your soul prodding you to make a difference!

When you work with others for a common social justice cause, you feel so empowered! The Holy Spirit is tangible as you seek to lift up the oppressed, mend the broken-hearted, and provide for those who hunger and thirst for their basic needs to be met. Our church's Sandy Relief trips are a great place to make a difference! If you can't go on a trip you can make snacks for the group, buy a gift card for a recovering family, and pray for the team to serve well. 

If you want to serve farther in desperately poor regions of the world, you can join a mission trip to the Dominican Republic, Haiti, or Kenya. If you can't go, you can support people in our church who want to go but don't have the funds. 

I am grateful for all I have learned from being a part of the development of the Foundation for Peace. We work together and lead mission trips to Haiti, the Dominican Republic, and Kenya to support churches who are meeting the needs of the desperately poor people in their communities. We provide free medical clinics, clean water systems, build schools and present women empowerment trainings. I am returning to Kenya June 23rd to July 5th to serve and to reunite with my little friends at the By-Grace orphanage in the Ngong Hills outside Nairobi. JOIN ME! Go to: www.foundationforpeace.org It is not too late.

There is so much to do in this world to build up the Kingdom of God! It can seem overwhelming. Yet, each cement block, each repaired shore home, each drop of clean water can make a difference and give new hope. Joseph Addison once said: "Three grand essentials to happiness are something to do, something to love, and something to hope for." This connects to the scripture that says: “…so now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is LOVE."(1 Corinthians 13: 13)

So go out and sow some LOVE! Be a mighty wave for God. Do justice, LOVE kindness, and walk humbly alongside those in need with our God. 

A Cheerful Heart is Good Medicine

 “A cheerful heart is a good medicine, but a downcast spirit dries up the bones.” (Proverbs 17:22)

Last weekend a staff member commented that it was good to hear laughter in the congregation during the service. She believes it attracts more people to our church when they hear how happy and fun we are. I agree with her! When we count our blessings here at PCM we have lots to be thankful for and show it with joyful laughter.

"The power of humor can transform heads and hearts," said Michael Farrell, author and publisher. He believes God gave us a whole system of facial muscles designed just for laughing; so we must use them! We are created to laugh! Yet, life is a mix of tragedy and comedy. Soren Kierkegaard wrote: “Wherever there is life there is contradiction and wherever there is contradiction the comical is present.”

As our church seeks to connect more people to Jesus Christ, we can do so with our facial muscles to greet visitors and old friends with smiles and laughter. People are automatically attracted to laughter when it is positively based on God’s good humor. Plus, a light-hearted look at life can give us hope and optimism in times of trouble.

God had a plan when human creation was blessed with the ability to laugh. Laughter lowers your blood pressure, improves your digestion, and increases the serotonin in your brain that enhances your mood. One of my favorite sounds is a baby’s belly laugh when playing peek-a-boo. I find it impossible to not laugh along with the baby I hear laughing. Humor is contagious! (I can't help but laugh when I look at this photo of my son, Ian, who was laughing at me when I took this picture.)

As a Psychiatric Nurse Therapist/Pastor, I must share with you more of the mental health benefits of humor. Laughter adds joy and zest to life, eases anxiety and fear, relieves stress, improves mood, and enhances resilience. A dose of laughter is important to have each day. Look up a new joke-a-day on the internet and start your day with a laugh. Share the good medicine by making one of your daily goals to make another person laugh heartily and positively.

Strive to see the funny side of tension, disagreements, disappointments, or surprising changes in plans. Marriage counselors say that one of the key qualities to a successful marriage is when one of the couple is able to step back and diffuse an argument with genuine positive laughter or lightheartedness. Not to ignore the problem, but to give a new perspective on it that changes the tone from hopeless to hopeful.

God created us to enjoy three L’s:  to laugh and love and live together. Angela Macnamara suggests it is best to seek the lighter side of life in all circumstances. She said, “There is no period of life that does not have its own silver lining.”

As we become more “silver,” over time, let us keep the gift of laughter active to enhance our faith and mental health status as we respond to the contradictions and calamities of life on earth. (For more on the health benefits of laughter see: http://www.helpguide.org/life/humor_laughter_health.htm)

Forty Days on a Life-Giving Journey

           "For forty wilderness days and nights he was tested by Satan. Wild animals were his companions, and angels took care of him." (Mark 1:13, The Message) 

     Jesus prepared for his ministry by going into the desert for forty days. Our Lenten season in the Presbyterian church is a 40 day period of preparation for Easter. Instead of "giving up" or fasting during Lent, Presbyterians typically "add" something to their normal days to enhance their faith journeys. This year we have a Lenten Devotional that adds more scripture reading and prayers. Although the daily passages and prayers are short, they are meaningful and easy to incorporate into a morning or evening prayer time. Lenten Devotional                                                                       

     My friend, Tracey, has decided to use our Lenten devotional as a daily reminder to do a "life-giving" act each day. She plans to write what she did each day in the devotional to show the completion of this act. One day it might be to simply write a "Thank You" note to a friend. The next day it might be to take some food to a homebound person, or a lonely friend out to lunch. Tracey is inviting her parents to join her so they can compare notes with one another about their life-giving journeys through Lent. 

                 

     Our church has a tradition of offering a Labyrinth prayer walk for anyone in our church and community to experience during Holy Week. The original purpose for the labyrinth was to offer a way for those who could not make a pilgrimage to the Holy Land to be able to imagine going to Jerusalem by way of the Labyrinth walk. It has become quite a popular way to pray and walk at the same time. The labyrinth is an ancient symbol that relates to wholeness.                                                                                            

     When you walk the labyrinth, you embark on a spiritual journey, allowing space for God amid the usually crammed confines of our minds. The labyrinth is not a maze, which is designed to confuse and challenge, but a circuitous path with no wrong turns or blind alleys. If you continue on the path, you inevitably come to the center where your journey has led you. Click on: Labyrinth Prayer Walk                

     I believe one of the reasons the ancient Labyrinth walks have survived thousands of years is due to the hope they embody. When you walk towards the center and walk out again, you walk with hope for wholeness in your soul. May your Lenten Season be filled with sacred hope that culminates in a blessed Holy Week and Easter. And may you find lfe-giving ways to spread hope in Christ to others. This poem by Jan Richardson gives me good hope and comfort especially needed this busy time of year! 

Hope nonetheless.
Hope despite.
Hope regardless.
Hope still.

Hope where we had ceased to hope.
Hope amid what threatens hope.
Hope with those who feed our hope.
Hope beyond what we had hoped.

Hope that draws us past our limits.
Hope that defies expectations.
Hope that questions what we have known.
Hope that makes a way where there is none.

Hope that takes us past our fear.
Hope that calls us into life.
Hope that holds us beyond death.
Hope that blesses those to come.