Most of us manage to keep our homes looking neat on a day to day basis.  Sometimes during stress filled times we let it slide a bit.  However, when word arrives that company is coming, the clean genie goes into overdrive.  Vacuuming, dusting, tidying, scrubbing, etc., etc., all must be done immediately.  After all, we want to make a good impression, more so for guests than we would always do for family.  This is normal.  I remember Mom going into overdrive when church events were to be held at our house, when my sister and I had graduation open houses, or when she hosted family holiday gatherings.  Denise and I pitched in, whenever we couldn’t find a better place to hide or to be.

As a church family, we are seriously looking at a major investment in time and resources to remodel and update our fellowship hall building.  We are also looking to do the work and pay for it by taking out a loan, something this congregation has rarely done.  Why go to this length?  Why not just make do?  Why not do what we can as we can?

If this were our family home, I would agree that we do what we can as we can.  However, this is God’s home and we are its stewards.  This place is for us, but it is also for many others to enter and find God’s presence in a variety of ways.  We are to be the hosts for God’s guests.  We have to make an extra effort.

We have all seen the rotten soffits, the leaks from the roof, the spots on the carpet from glue leaking through.  We have seen how crowded it can get in the main fellowship hall as well as in the kitchen when we host events.  Remember how tight it was during the 50th anniversary of the congregation?  We also know that we lose a lot of money on energy expenses because of the older, thinner windows.

Pretend that you are new to our church; now look at the condition of the fellowship hall.  Does it truly represent the people of our church?  Does it show how we really feel about our God?  Does it look like a place for on going ministries?  Honestly answer these questions.

We already host three different outside groups in that building.  We just served a Boy Scout group who were bumped from another church and they filled the place.  We already do a lot of ministry in this space.  Let’s make it a better space for strangers to enter and become a part of the family.

Some have suggested that we wait until the economy is better.  This is reasonable.  However, we are a people who act from faith.  Yes, we weigh all the factors so we don’t make the mistakes of the poor planners in the Gospels, but we also look with the eyes of faith at what this congregation can do when we choose to do so.  We have helped with disaster relief through our gifts.  We have sent volunteers to work Miracle Days in Dublin and at Camp Christian.  We have even exceeded our pace in Outreach giving to date over 2009.  We are the people of God in this place, and we can do great things if we will exercise our faith.  We can do this!

We are NOT redoing the fellowship hall for our present congregation.  Yes, we will benefit from it, but we do this for the future ministry it can provide.  As I said before, three groups already use the fellowship hall.  From these groups we have a potential to reach out to these groups in ministry.  We can also open the doors to other groups, such as the Scouts who were here in August.  We can also serve the greater community.  In the 10 years I have been here, Georgia has been fortunate enough to not have a hurricane come ashore.  We are at the end of the emergency escape route for people along the GA coast.  We can become better suited as an emergency shelter for brothers and sisters escaping nature’s threats.  Our women, men, and youth ministries can also be enhanced with a better space to host district and regional events.

We do not approach this work with an idea of what we can do with the fellowship hall today, but rather how God can put it to use tomorrow.  Pray about this, talk about this, listen to the leading of God about this.  Then, we can step forward in faith to minister as God’s stewards.

Shalom,  Darrell

Have you seen the emails that circulate over and over again about things like cell phone companies releasing all of our numbers to telemarketers or Congress passing legislation that would stop all religious broadcasting or passing a tax on all emails?  These are all false and have been shown to be false over and over again; yet every few years they resurface with great vigor and are passed by well meaning and concerned people.  Sometimes these people are so convinced of the truth of these tales that they fight and resist any attempt to point out the fallacy of the information.

We also get defensive about many issues to the point of escalating anger and discord among former friends and associates.  We have forgotten how to converse and discuss without passing judgment upon the person taking a different understanding of whatever issue is being discussed.

In the June 1, 2010 issue of The Christian Century, page 45, Rodney Clapp’s  column ”American Soundings” discusses the history of the jeremiad (a lament or tale of woe) as a way of calling people back to their senses during times of great division.  He quotes Abraham Lincoln’s second Inaugural Address of March 4, 1865.

“Both read the same Bible to the same God, and each invokes His aid against the other.  It may seem strange that any men should dare to ask a just God’s assistance in wringing the bread from the sweat of other men’s faces, but let us judge not, that we be not judged.  The prayers of both could not be answered.  That of  neither has been answered fully.  The almighty has His own purposes.”

Both sides in the Civil War committed terrible crimes against innocents as well as against soldiers.  As Christians, to demand that God be on our side in all matters trends toward childishness.  We are instructed over and over in the Bible to love one another and to seek justice and do kindness to each other.  Yet we still insist that we know exactly what God wants of us on every topic and that God’s wrath should be poured out upon those who disagree.  In fact, the idea that they disagree with us shows how ungodly they truly have become.  The North prayed for a defeat of the South and the South prayed for the defeat of the North.  Although history declares that the North won, looking at the cost to lives in the entire nation and the ongoing struggle for real freedom and justice for everyone throughout the whole nation, I venture that the victory declared by the Union was bittersweet and still incomplete.

In Lincoln’s words, we find the pattern for discourse among Christians as well as US citizen’s over issues that divide us.  Pray to God and ask for guidance while accepting that God’s answer will not always be exactly what we have asked of God.  Pray that God’s answer will challenge each side to strive for deeper understanding while still demanding that we love each other as God first loved each of us.  Listen to the Grace of God and not the vitriol of the media that we might all be seen as Christians by our love.

Shalom,  Darrell

In Junior High School I did not look forward to history classes.  I will confess to an interest in the Ohio history class we had to take in junior high, but that was the only class I can say I enjoyed.  All the others were requirements to remember who, where, and  when.  While this information has its place, I would have been more interested in the whys of the events and the personalities behind the events.

During my senior year, I was given an opportunity to escape my civics class to take a test on Ohio history.  This may be more a reflection on my personality than a statement regarding the civics class; I avoided class to take a test?  It was a chance to get out of a stuffy classroom!  I forgot all about the test until a month or so later when I was called into the office to be informed that I had the highest score in the school.  This was followed by the 99 percentile score in history on the ACT (does this college entrance exam still exist?).

Since leaving school I have found many hours of pleasure in reading history.  As a matter of fact, when Marsha was finishing her degree, I read her American history book for fun and was disappointed when she didn’t have to take the second part and thus I missed out on reading the second volume of the two volume textbook.  Yes, I am completely comfortable with my strange quirks.

The first Sunday of July we will celebrate the Fourth of July for the 234th time.  Do we truly remember the significance of this day, or is it merely an opportunity to have cook-outs and watch fireworks displays?  We need to see the connection in history in order to fully understand many events occurring in the present.  This is true not only of American history, but also applies to the history of all nations, peoples, and faiths.

Much of the conflict in our country revolves around the expectation that all decisions should reflect the will of the majority.  Let’s look at this concept from one historic source.

James Madison wrote this in a letter to James Monroe on Oct. 5, 1786, during the Presidency of George Washington.  This is taken from William J. Bennett’s book Our Sacred Honor, pages 335-336.

“…There is no maxim in my opinion which is more liable to be misapplied, and which therefore needs elucidation than the current one that the interest of the majority is the political standard of right and wrong.  Taking the word ‘interest’ as synonymous with ‘Ultimate happiness,’ in which sense it is qualified with every necessary mortal ingredient, the proposition is no doubt true.  But taking it in the popular sense, as referring to immediate augmentation of property and wealth, nothing can be more false.  In the latter sense it would be the interest of the majority in every community to despoil and enslave the minority of the individuals; and in a federal community to make a similar sacrifice of the minority component States.  In fact, it is only reestablishing under another name and a more specious form, force as a measure of right….”

From a Christian standpoint, we must always weigh our desires and the desires of the majority against what we understand of the Will of God as demonstrated in the Bible.  When we demand authority based on majority rule that neglects what is best for those in the minority or those without a voice, we fall into the trap that Madison refers to as “force as a measure of right.”  In the church, we need to not force issues, but rather work toward consensus and understanding of actions needed to be taken.  As Christians, we should also encourage this attitude in political discussions and avoid the forceful and damaging rhetoric of attack that seems to be everywhere today.  Once upon a time, we all heard the lesson about if you are unable to say something nice, do not say anything at all.  While we must always allow people to express their opinions, we should always strive to express our opinion in ways that clarify and educate without insult or attack of anyone else.  We exist as a nation because people put aside their differing opinions for a greater good; the creation of the United States of America.  As Christians, let us be as willing to set aside personal differences to help form a greater good in the world; the Kingdom of God.

Shalom,  Darrell

Oil spill in the Gulf, financial crisis, housing crisis, economic problems, etc, etc—who shall we blame.  We have to find out whose fault all this is.  There are plenty of big corporations and big time money people from whom to choose.  Let’s go get them.  This feels like a 21st Century version of the end of the first chapter and beginning of the second chapter of Romans.

Paul lists off a series of problems sure to get the blood boiling in righteous indignation.  Those hearing the letter read would be ready to go after all the people responsible for the problems.  Then the beginning of what we in modern times designate as the second chapter---"Don’t judge!"

Seeking parties to bear the blame for any problem does not always lead to the solving of the problem.  All that occurs is the waste of vast amounts of energy being spent getting angry, self-righteous, and deluded into thinking that we have achieved a solution.  Please understand that I believe that justice must always be pursued, but not at the expense of solving problems and conflicts.

While we did not cause the spill of oil in the Gulf or single handedly collapse the global economic systems, we are dared to participate in the cleanup and restoration of what has happened.  We are, as Christians, stewards of Creation and brothers and sisters in faith with those affected.  Sitting back and waiting for some miracle will not bring about restoration.  Joining with others to work for solutions will.

When a child makes a mess at home, spending all the time assessing blame does not clean the mess.  With a young child, the way to teach responsibility is to get down on the floor and help that child with the cleanup.  We do not sit above the child and say you are guilty and have been judged as responsible for all that has happened and must do all the work.

Judgment does not belong to humanity, it belongs to God.  We are to be the presence of the Divine through the works of our God given hands and God given minds.  We are to come together as a community to seek solutions for the needs of the greater community.  We are to avoid the temptation of seeking personal advantages, but rather to discover the blessing in working in cooperation with others to help all.  As a nation we have been at our best when we work for the greater good of all.  We are truly following the will of God when we work to help those most in need without thought of personal gain or status.

Let’s pray, put our heads together, and roll up our sleeves and get to work with God’s guidance and blessing.

Shalom,  Darrell

Have you been craving a night out with fine Italian cuisine in a romantic location?  So are we, but until then, come to Café Amore at First Christian Church on May 2nd from 5:30-8:00, and let us serve you homemade marinara sauce over spaghetti with salad, garlic bread, beverage and dessert for only $5 per person ($2.50 for children under 8 years of age).  Support the Chi Rho/CYF as they raise funds for the Youth-a-Palooza this coming January.  Our youth will welcome and serve you a nice dinner among family and friends.  See you Sunday night in the Café Amore.

There are, among many others, three events on my calendar this month:  National Day of Prayer, Mother’s Day and Pentecost.  These are listed in the order they occur, not in the order of importance.  If we begin with the most important, I would start with the birthday of the church, Pentecost.

On the National Day of Prayer, people of all faiths are encouraged to offer prayers for guidance and blessing upon all servants of the political community from the local level to the national and international levels.  Prayers are the conversations we hold with God and share our deepest desires and concerns.  Since as Christians, we are encouraged to pray for everyone, especially those for whom we have the least reason to lift up in prayer, every person in government, regardless of party or positions, needs our prayers.

May 9th we will honor the people in our lives who fulfilled the role of mother.  These include more than merely the biological connection of mother and child, but all relationships where a woman has offered love, guidance, protection, and compassion in our lives.  Remember the times they made a difference for you and thank them.  Honor their memory by carrying on the best traits they demonstrated to you.  Reach out to those who may need a mother figure and become that person for someone.  My children have one mother, but innumerable special aunts and grandmothers through the generosity of church families throughout my years of ministry.  Thanks to all those special women and a prayer of blessing to all the generations of women stepping forward to continue the name of  “Mother”.

Of the Church holidays (holy days) Christmas gets the most attention.  Easter comes in a distant second.  Pentecost gets lost amidst the ending of the school year, graduations, and the beginning of summer with Memorial Day.  Yet, without Pentecost, would we even know to celebrate the other two holy days?  Up until Pentecost, the remaining disciples were in hiding.  They contemplated returning to their former lives and homes.  Some event triggered their release from the fear that had gripped them for the preceding 50 days.  On Pentecost, fishermen, tax collectors, and others became ministers and witnesses and preachers.  They had not spent the previous days taking seminary classes, or attending small group seminars.  Suddenly they knew they were able to share the wonder they had discovered in following a Nazarene carpenter and the intimate God he worshiped.  They found a voice and a calling.  They founded what we call church.

Thousands of years later we are still following the same format and seeking the Spirit of God’s guidance as we each offer our gifts to the service of the Church.  We do this not for notoriety, but rather to help each other walk and live as did the original teacher (rabbi) Jesus.  Easter should be a most important holy day, followed by Pentecost.  These events mark the power of the presence of God in the world and in our lives.

Shalom, Darrell

I realize that I am not the first to become a grandfather among all who will read this article.  However, this is the first time for me.

Participating in the birth of a child and holding that child is an amazing experience and I will always treasure that moment.  Touching that new life and watching it explore a new world reminds us of the wonder of life and how each of us is part of that great chain of life.

With a grandchild, an entirely different level of wonder begins.  At the birth of your own child, there is the presence of responsibility to assure that this new life is cared for and nurtured.  A parent is responsible for the future development and care for this new life.  A grandparent may feel some of the same concerns, but the greater weight rests upon the parents.  Grandparents get to play, entertain, and enjoy this new life without the pressure to parent.

I was blown away the first time I held Abigail.  This life is the next generation of my family.  The Vandervort family tree has a new branch.  What fruit might this branch produce.  As a father, I am thrilled that all my children have reached adulthood with responsibility and found people with whom they can share love and their futures.  Now there is again a child in the family.

Having a granddaughter means I can go through the toy departments of stores, not to remember when or see how many of the “new” toys are the same ones with which my children played, but rather to seek new toys for Abigail.  (As a grandfather I can contemplate buying the noisy toys that will stay in Memphis.  Don’t tell Thomas and Andrea).

The biggest surprise came when it was time to leave for home.  I enjoy getting away, but after a time I grow anxious to get back home.  This time the larger desire was to stay longer.  I do not expect that to change.  The one thing that grandparents know with absolute certainty is that new baby smell is infinitely better than new car smell.

Shalom,  Darrell

Why did the earthquakes in Haiti and Chile occur?  Why did so many die?  What is the cause of all the violence in the world?  Why are people homeless, why are they hungry, why are they suffering from diseases?  Why, Why, Why, Why!

There is no answer that will satisfy our desire to know the root causes.  All that we can say is that these problems exist.  So often we cry out to God and ask “why” and implied in that question is a demand to fix the problem.  But the problems continue.  Do not see this as a sign of God’s abandonment of humanity.  Do not see it as a sign that there is no God or that God is not capable of doing anything about anything.  Rather, let us look at it from the other end of our usual lenses.

We turn to the Bible for wisdom about how to live our lives and deal with all that occurs.  Evil enters the beauty of Creation from the choices of human beings.  God gives us guidance to lead us back into lives of justice and righteousness over and over again.  Find a good Concordance of all the words in the Bible and see how many times the word justice is used, count the number of times righteousness is used.  “Seek justice, love kindness and walk humbly with your God” (Micah) and “Let justice roll down like water and righteousness like an ever flowing stream” (Amos) to remind you of a couple of times that the word justice is used.  Look at the life of Jesus and his words.  Especially read the words from Isaiah he read as he began his ministry regarding sight to the blind, food to the hungry, and release to those held captive and also the words in Matthew about the separation of the sheep and the goats.  The sheep did the will of God and cared for the most rejected and downtrodden people in the community and in doing so, cared for Jesus.

Why should we care about justice for strangers; because the Bible reminds us that once we were strangers.  Why feed the hungry and care for the poor; because doing so demonstrates the love we have been shown in Jesus.  Why risk our personal comfort zones for people who seek to do us ill; because we are challenged to do good to our enemies and to pray for them and not curse them.  Our faith is NOT a faith concerned solely with achieving our eternal life in Heaven.  God has already done the work.  Jesus told us that we are to proclaim the acceptable year of God in the way we live and interact with all the other people who share this Creation with us.

Recently, talking heads in the media have pointed to Social Justice messages in the church as code words for anti-democratic desires.  There may indeed be some people who use the words and concepts in the Bible for personal gain and power.  It would not be the first time, and unfortunately, it will probably not be the last.  However, as Christians, we are called to a life that seeks to heal the hearts, minds, bodies, and spirits of those all around us; a life that places God and the wisdom shared by Jesus to love ahead of any drive to divide God’s children.

No one of us can bring change to the entire world.  God does not expect us to change all of Creation.  We are to love and serve the people we can reach.  Live each day with the daring to weigh each choice for justice and righteousness, for love and compassion, for forgiveness and grace.  Then you will hear Jesus say, “When you did it for one of them, you did it for me”.

Shalom,  Darrell

I am writing this article on Ash Wednesday evening.  By the time you read this, we will be well into the season of Lent.  Lent is the time of preparation for Christians to examine themselves and be better prepared to celebrate the wonder of Easter morning.  How are you doing so far in whatever act of self-discipline you have chosen?  Have you let it slide a little?  Is it time to get it back on track?

At the end of March we begin Holy Week.  March 28th will be Palm Sunday.  On April 1st we will celebrate Maundy Thursday.  Easter will be April 4th.  I look forward to seeing you there.

This past week, the world’s attention was brought to a young man from the country of Georgia who lost his life on the day the Winter Olympics opened.  We watched as athletes from around the world stood as the Georgian athletes entered the opening ceremonies.  We also are kept apprised as to the status of other Olympians who have been injured in competition, such as the women competing in the downhill skiing.

We may not be able to recall the names of which country they represent, but we express caring.  We rejoice in the way the athletes set aside their competitiveness to embrace and support one another without any concern of politics.  Yes, there are rivalries and harsh words exchanged but there is a greater sense of community than there is of division.  It is a terrible shame that this happens only every other year in the winter and summer.

This is an example for all of us to follow.  These athletes connect sometimes in spite of the home countries disagreements.  They see each other not as foreign competitors but as fellow athletes, members of the same community.

So much needs to be done in the world and we seem to keep waiting for governments to figure it all out.  We wait for world leaders to sit down and solve the  problems.  We expect elected officials to set aside their personal agendas and serve the greatest good.  It is not up to them.  Just as in the Olympic Village, we in the Global Village must step up and set the tone.

As Christians we are called to live in community and to love and serve that community whether we like each other or not.  We are called to care about what happens to our neighbors and how what we do has an impact upon their lives.  We are called to be good stewards of God’s creation.  We are challenged to love one another and not judge or we will be judged in the same matter.

We do not need the governments of the world to solve the issue of Global Climate Change.  You and I as Christians need to be more deliberate in how we use and abuse the bounty of God’s earth.  We need to leave less of an imprint on creation and do a better job of using only that which we truly need and to recycle everything that can be recycled.

Why wait for the government to solve the health care crisis?  In small ways we can work together to help those who have no insurance.  In Warner Robins, the hospital offers a clinic for workers without healthcare.  We can support it.  We can volunteer to help meet the needs.  We can encourage medical people we know to work to improve the system.  The best way for the change to occur will be from the inside out.

Homelessness, hunger, abuse, suicide, etc., etc. can be dealt with by people of compassion and dedication striving to make a difference in their own communities.  The early church did not overcome the persecution of the Roman Empire by force of arms or resources; they succeeded by acts of love for everyone regardless of their social status.  They cared for everyone they could reach and thus set an example for others to follow, and they did.  As Christians, our greatest weakness is when we believe ourselves to be in power.  God is in charge, not us, not any government.  God dares us to follow the example of his son and welcome the outcast and rejected; to heal the sick and give sight to the blind; to release those who are bound and enslaved; to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.  Join the Way!

Shalom,  Darrell

A major disaster kills hundreds and hundreds of people, leaves thousands and thousands without the basics of shelter, food, water, and medical care.  Normally all people would bend over backwards to assist them.  Instead we have media celebrities suggesting that they be left to their own devices or they use it as a political commentary.  This should seriously demonstrate that the concept that this is a Christian nation is nothing more than political fodder.

Matthew tells us that Jesus used the parable of the sheep and the goats to teach us, as followers of Christ, how to respond to people in need.  The way we respond to those who suffer is in fact the way we respond to the love of God visible in Jesus.  The Gospels all draw out the understanding that we must forgive and love others so that we may truly be forgiven and loved.

Think of it this way; could you play a musical instrument the very first time that you tried to play?  I couldn’t.  I learned to play the violin, the clarinet and the tenor saxophone.  Everyone took time and regular practice to be able to play (and I freely admit that I was not great on any of them, but I could hold my own).  We can succeed in love and forgiveness by practicing these wonderful gifts.

One of the largest obstacles we face in sharing love and forgiveness and caring for others is our own fear of losing something we need.  I cannot do this task, I cannot help that person, I cannot do anything about that, because I don’t have the time, the resources, the abilities, the responsibility, etc.  It is true that we cannot stop the earthquakes that hit Haiti, the mudslides in California, the starvation of Darfur, the wars, the hatred, the murders; however, we are not expected to deal with everything happening everywhere.

Search your heart for the problem that truly calls out to you.  Let God guide you.  Then explore how your gifts and talents and resources can be put to use in solving that problem.  Say, for example, that you want to help in Haiti.  You can send money through the Week of Compassion, you can prepare health kits and infant kits and send them through Week of Compassion.  You can get together friends and family to put the kits together.  Put out a change jar for the work that will take years to accomplish.  Make contact with the mission representatives of our church serving in the area to learn what the real problems are and what could be done to provide help.  This method can work for major disasters like Haiti as well as local issues such as literacy, hunger, or homelessness.

This is how we start to love and forgive and discover that we are really loved and forgiven ourselves.  Take a step, give it a try.  It is a remarkable experience.

Shalom,  Darrell

Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukah, Joyous Kwanza.  There is much debate this year about holiday greetings.  I find it fascinating that we can get all worked up about the words shared in a store as we buy, buy, buy in the name of Jesus.  Christmas is not preserved and Christ is not kept in Christmas by the words we use as we bury ourselves in debt to buy things for other people to add to the stuff that already possesses them.  Here is a plan to keep Christ in Christmas no matter what words you use.

Do not leave worship out of your holiday plans!  After all, Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus.  Why not go to church and thank God for this special child.  Also have moments of worship at home.  You do not have to peach (if you have children, they will tell you that you already preach enough), but you should spend time in prayer and study.  If you have children, include them in special story times, light a family advent wreath, pray together.  The church library and most bookstores have resources readily available for this.

Jesus preached that the Sabbath was made for man, therefore, it also translates that Christmas is made for us as well and not the other way around.  Do not let the holidays take over your life.  Say “no” to some of the demands that will wear you out physically, emotionally and spiritually.  Remember the scene of a quiet stable, with shepherds gathered around, all is calm, all is peaceful.  Create space during this season for calm and peace in your home.  It will be a gift long treasured and may even become shared all year long.

Share the value of gift giving, not by spending more and more, but by sharing special gifts that will have meaning.  Children are capable of understanding the importance of sharing with others at an early age.  Make the holiday about giving gifts to others rather than merely about what they want Santa to bring to them.  Take the child to pick out a toy to give away to Toys For Tots, or pick an angel from a tree and fill the need for someone else.  Try to select someone about the same age as your child, someone who probably shares the same likes and dislikes.  Help them select something to give away.  That can become a tradition that the child will treasure all of their lives.

As for other gifts, make them more personal.  Focus on the reason we share gifts this time of year.  We give gifts because we have been given a very special gift.  If we take the time to really give from our hearts to each other, we may find it more satisfying than buying huge piles of stuff that will be set aside before the next year ends.  If you feel the person would understand and appreciate the gift, try giving a gift in their name to their favorite charity, or try a variety of other choices such as Habitat for Humanity, Project Heifer, Bread of the World or even Week of Compassion.

Do not buy into the war of words over the proper greeting for this time of year.  The purpose of the season is to share love, hope, and peace for all peoples.  This is best done, not with words, but with actions.  A wise early Christian told his flock that they should preach the Gospel at all times, and that only when necessary should they use words.  The love of God in Christ will be far more visible when a small number act out of love and charity than if all the nation shouted  “Merry Christmas” at the same time.  Let your actions express the joy of the season and the right words will follow.

Shalom and Merry Christmas to all,    Darrell