tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27905085195916178672024-03-14T07:05:15.897-07:00Junior GroupJunior group is for kids on Sundays 3-5pm at Tanner Valley United Methodist Church. We play, learn about God, and work on projects together. Find Lessons and a resources for after group here. Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.comBlogger54125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-82750834320166598282019-05-20T06:56:00.000-07:002019-05-20T06:56:00.007-07:00Francis Asbury and Harry Hosier<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
During the Revolutionary War all the preachers of the Church
of England went back to England for safety. Methodists preachers were part of
that group. Only one stuck it out, a man names Francis Asbury. He often had to
hide during the war, so he wouldn’t get hurt. It was after the war was won that
John Wesley realized if Methodism was going to continue in the USA, it would
have to be separate from the Church of England. So it became the Methodist
Church for the first time. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Francis was a leader and one of the first bishops in the
Methodist Church in the United States. He oversaw the ministry of circuit
riders. Circuit riders would be over a number of different churches, including
an area that had no church in which they planted a church. Harry Hosier was a
great preacher that rode alongside Asbury on many journeys. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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The circuit riders would ride from church to church. Some
churches were just a small group meeting in someone’s home. But when a circuit
rider came to town to preach that small group would share the news and invite
the whole community to come here their preaching. Circuit riders had to ride a
horse from church to church and trust that someone would take them in at night.
Sometimes they had to sleep out in the wild. They often were very young men and
women. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Because the circuit rider wasn’t always there, a local
leader would lead the church in their absence. That is why lay leaders are
still an important part of our church. Also, some preachers decided to settle
in one place. Now, these preachers are called Local Licensed Pastors. Our
current-day circuit riders are called Elders. While many of them don’t serve a
whole circuit, they still commit to being willing to move around to wherever
they are needed. Just like Asbury did, bishops still appoint pastors (local licensed
and Elders) to a church, rather than the church “calling” a pastor. Sometimes
that is hard, like when the bishop decides a pastor we really like is needed
elsewhere. However, it has benefits too like the local church doesn’t have to
go through a long process to find a pastor. Many churches with a “calling”
system will be without a church for years before they find the right person.
Because it takes so long, often times they will stick with someone who is a bad
match because they don’t want to do the process over again. In our appointment
system, we often are only without a pastor for a couple weeks. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Compare our system today with that of Asbury’s
day. What are the pros and cons of the differences?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->The Circuit Riders made for a perfect event to
invite friends to church for. What events do you think are the best ones to
invite friends to?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->If you were going around to churches every week
like Francis Asbury, who would you want to be your Harry Hosier? <o:p></o:p></div>
<br />Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-23003748700904236072019-05-01T11:04:00.000-07:002019-05-01T11:04:09.536-07:00Robert Strawbridge and Barbara Heck<br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast; mso-font-kerning: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-themecolor: text1;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast; mso-font-kerning: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-themecolor: text1;">In the 1760, lots of
people were moving from England to the colonies in North America. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast; mso-font-kerning: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-themecolor: text1;">Robert Strawbridge
was one of them. Robert was from Ireland and came to the colonies in 1760 to be
a farmer in Maryland. He had been a leader of a Methodist class back in
Ireland, and so he decided to start one here in America, too. He didn</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast; mso-font-kerning: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-themecolor: text1;">’</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast; mso-font-kerning: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-themecolor: text1;">t actually tell John Wesley what he was up to, he just did it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast; mso-font-kerning: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-themecolor: text1;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast; mso-font-kerning: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-themecolor: text1;">Barbara Heck moved to
the colonies around the same time. She had attended a Methodist group before
she moved. She traveled to the colonies with Philip Embury, who John Wesley had
licensed to preach. She encouraged him to start a group, and rounded up five
friends to be a part of it. Later, as the group grew to a church, she would help design John Street Chapel in NYC.</span></div>
<br />
<br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast; mso-font-kerning: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-themecolor: text1;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast; mso-font-kerning: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-themecolor: text1;">The Methodist
movement grew because of people like Robert and Barbara, who were willing to
take risks and begin new groups even if they might fail. They knew they needed
to meet with other Christians. And as the colonies grew, and the frontier grew,
Methodists groups grew. When a Methodist moved, they started a new group. Many
of those groups grew into churches. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast; mso-font-kerning: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-themecolor: text1;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast; mso-font-kerning: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-themecolor: text1;"><br /></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast; mso-font-kerning: 12.0pt; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-themecolor: text1;">Questions:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: black; font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-themecolor: text1;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Are
there jobs in the church that only the pastor can do?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: black; font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-themecolor: text1;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What
do people do at our church when they see a need?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: black; font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-themecolor: text1;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Do
we try new things, even if they might fail?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="color: black; font-family: "Cambria","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Cambria; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-themecolor: text1;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If
you started a small group, who are the 5 people you would start it with?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-54881099682607006352019-04-24T11:20:00.001-07:002019-04-24T11:20:03.652-07:00Susanna Wesley<br />
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When John was starting small
groups, the Church of England didn’t allow women to preach or lead. They were
not allowed to be pastors, but they had a big part in Methodism from the start.
A large part of that is because of John and Charles mom, Susanna. Susanna had a
lot of kids, and she taught them all that day to day things made a big difference
in their faith. She had her own small group that met at her house. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
It is said, that one time John was
frustrated because a woman had the nerve to preach at her class meeting. He
complained to his mom about it. Susanna told him he better list to the woman
preach before he decided she shouldn’t. John did just that, and realized women
were as good at preaching as men. God seemed to be calling them to leadership
and using them to reach new people with the gospel. Many women would feel God’s
call to be leaders and follow those calls, even though it would take until 1956
until women could be fully ordained in Methodist Church. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Other remarkable women in the early Methodist movement
(pulled from <a href="http://www.umc.org/who-we-are/timeline-of-women-in-methodism">http://www.umc.org/who-we-are/timeline-of-women-in-methodism</a>
) :<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<strong><span style="background: white; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; color: #555555; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;">1768 </span></strong><span style="color: #555555; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
<span style="background: white;">Barbara Heck, known as the mother of American
Methodism, urges Philip Embury to start preaching in New York and designs John
Street Chapel in New York City.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<strong><span style="background: white; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; color: #555555; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;">c. 1770 </span></strong><span style="color: #555555; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
<span style="background: white;">Mary Evans Thorne is appointed class leader by
Joseph Pilmore in Philadelphia; she is probably the first woman in America so
appointed.<strong><span style="border: none windowtext 1.0pt; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"><o:p></o:p></span></strong></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<strong><span style="background: white; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; color: #555555; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;">1787 </span></strong><span style="color: #555555; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
<span style="background: white;">Despite objections of some male preachers, John
Wesley authorizes <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Sarah Mallet</b> to
preach as long as “she proclaimed the doctrines and adhered to the disciplines
that all Methodist preachers were expected to accept.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<strong><span style="background: white; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; color: #555555; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;">1827</span></strong><span style="color: #555555; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
<span style="background: white;">Isabella Bomefree, a slave who later changes her
name to Sojourner Truth, is emancipated when slavery is abolished in New York
State. That same year, she co-founds Kingston Methodist Church. In 1843, she
feels "called in the spirit" and begins to travel and preach. She
becomes involved in the abolitionist movement, and her public speaking combines
her religious faith with her experiences as a slave.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<strong><span style="background: white; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; color: #555555; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;">1866 </span></strong><span style="color: #555555; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
<span style="background: white;">Helenor M. Davisson is ordained deacon by the
North Indiana Conference of the Methodist Protestant Church, making her
the </span></span><a href="http://www.umc.org/departments/a-timeline-of-firsts-women-in-ministry"><b><span style="background: white; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; color: #e4002b; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 115%; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;">first ordained woman</span></b></a><span style="background: white; color: #555555; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 115%;"> in the Methodist tradition.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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Questions:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Why do you think women were willing to break church
rules?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Do you think there are church rules today that need to
be broken?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->How do you decide if a rule should be broken or kept?<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-38252007384270243152019-04-15T11:38:00.000-07:002019-04-15T11:38:48.827-07:00Charles Wesley<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Charles Wesley was John Wesley’s little brother. He was a
pastor in the Church of England too. While John was really good at organizing
people into groups, Charles had a different gift. He was a poet and song
writer. He could take the stories from the Bible and theology (beliefs about
God) and turn them into beautiful songs. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Charles published 4,500 songs and wrote at least 3,000 more.
As Methodism grew, leaders relied heavily on his hymnal and the Bible, because
they couldn’t take a lot of books on horseback. Charles wrote songs for lots of
people who didn’t know church music…so he would take popular songs and change
the words so people didn’t have to worry about knowing the melody. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We still sing a lot of his songs today! <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
Activities<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Look up Charles Wesley’s songs in the hymnal. Do you
know any?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Read John Wesley’s Directions for Singing in the
hymnal. What would be your 7 rules for singing in church?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span><!--[endif]-->Pick a favorite pop song. Using that tune, write words
to make it into a church song. You can use Bible stories for inspiration or a
theological idea.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-47582388335692561912019-04-04T08:17:00.000-07:002019-04-04T08:17:00.762-07:00UMC History: John Wesley<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
John Wesley is considered the founder
of the United Methodist Church. John was a pastor in the Church of
England.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>John, like many other pastors
of his time, didn’t have a crowded congregation to preach to on Sundays. So,
like other pastors, he decided to go where the people were, and preach to them
there. He would go out to the mines in the English countryside and preach about
God’s love and how God wanted us to live. He wasn’t known for being an exciting
preacher, but lots of people listened to him and decided to turn their life to
Jesus. The only problem was that they kept all the same company and habits and
by the time John came back the next week to preach, they needed to turn their
life around again. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>John
was worried about this. He wanted people to grow in their faith. He didn’t want
them to feel like failures. So he tried something that had worked to help him
grow when he was in college. He started having these people meet together in
small groups each week. These groups were called classes and bands. A class
would start with everyone answering the question: How is it with your soul?
They would share how they saw God working in their lives. They would help each
other to grow closer to God, so they wouldn’t need to turn their life around
each week. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The
groups worked! People would invite their friends to come with them. They would
pool money together to help the poor. People would get used to talking about
God in front of people. God would even call some people to become pastors from
the groups. Most importantly, people would grow in their faith together. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Questions<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->How is our Junior Group like those first small
groups?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->How could we be more like those groups?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><!--[endif]-->Why do you think it was easier for people to
join a small group than come to Sunday worship?<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-90695002247155418452019-03-07T08:20:00.003-08:002019-03-07T08:20:53.526-08:00The Talents<br />
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">The Parable of the Talents<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Scripture:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Matthew 25:14-28<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Quick Summary:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Jesus tells a story of a man trusting his
servants with different amounts of talents (bags of gold). To one, he leaves 5,
one gets 2, and one get 1. He comes back to find the one with 5 doubled it to
10, the one with 2 doubled it to 4. But the one with 1 buried it, and returned
only what he had. The boss was mad that he didn’t even get interest and fired
him. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">The Point:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">God trusts us to take what he has given us
and to use it to make the world better.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Questions for Family Time:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">1.Tell me the story you heard today.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a. (see above)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">2. What are some things God has trusted you with?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a.
(this is a personal answer.)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">3.How can you use them to make the world better?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a. (similar answer to above)
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Deeper:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">There is definitely a sense in this parable about the physical
things God entrusts to us. It is after all followed by the parable in which we
are told to feed the hungry, clothe the needy, care for the sick and
imprisoned. There is definitely a sense of sharing what God has given us to
make the whole world better. This idea is what we call stewardship. It is the
idea that all we have his really God’s and we have a responsibility to use if
for God’s purposes. We are stewards, managers if you would, of God’s stuff. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">But, I think this parable goes beyond calling us to give material
goods to God’s causes. I think our talents might actually refuse the giftedness
and uniqueness that God has put in each of us. Perhaps it is because talents
has changed in language from meaning money to mean abilities and gifts. God
doesn’t just hold us to account for our money or material goods. He expects us
to use who he made us to be for his kingdom.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">This second understanding is what we are going to focus on during
Junior Group. Each one of these kids is unique with unique gifts and talents
that can use for God’s kingdom. I am going to be inviting them to think about
who they are, and what natural “talents” they have and how they might use them
to make God’s world better. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">I also want to encourage you to reflect on your talents and how
you are a steward of them. Also, I want to encourage you to think out of the
box. God often views our weaknesses as talents. I think about Nick and one
story time when I asked the kids to help him focus because he had ADHD and a
young boy excitedly shared he did too, and sat down beside him. Nick was able
to use what we often think of as a deficit to help a child experience God’s
love. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">There is a line from the old Spiderman movies that really is at
the heart of our lesson this week: with great power comes great responsibility.
We may not be able to climb walls or save the world from evil super villains,
but God has entrusted with each of us power. And he calls us to use that power
for his kingdom. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Personal Reflection:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">What are your talents? How do you use them for God’s kingdom?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-41425185232177282942019-02-05T08:59:00.001-08:002019-02-05T08:59:46.510-08:00The Sower<br />
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Scripture:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Mark 4:3-8<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Quick Summary:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">A farmer
plants seeds on different soils with different results.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">The Point:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">When we share
God with others, we will not always get the results we want...but we should
still share with everyone. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Questions for
Family Time:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">1. Why did the farmer waste seed
on all those places?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a. Because,
maybe there was some good soil there. Maybe a plant would grow. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">2. Who does the farmer represent?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a. Me! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">3. What does planting the seed
represent?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a. Sharing God’s
word with others, that they could grow into a disciple of Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">4. What do the </span><span style="font-size: 18px;">different</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> soils represent?</span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> a. The path is like people who don't even really listen. The rocky place are those who accept it for a minute and then go after the next thing. The thorns are like those who let the troubles of the world steal their hope. The good soil are those who accept God's word and live it, who grow to share God's word themselves. </span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, serif;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Deeper:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I love the garden
metaphor in this story…but not because I am a good gardener. Here is how I
garden: Every winter, I start getting excited about what I will plant. I keep
adding to my list until spring finally breaks, and I have listed way more than
I can care for. I go to the store and get plants and seeds, trying hard to not
pick more than I really can manage, always trying a couple new things I know
nothing about but the kids like from the grocery store. One year I experimented
with beets. One year it was kale. I plant my garden, and hope some things will
take. Sure enough, with a little time, sprouts appear. Sometimes, things sprout
I didn’t even mean to sprout, what my mom always called volunteers. These guys
were from last year’s garden or seeds in the compost that somehow germinated. One
year, I was so excited about some volunteer pumpkins; I let them take over the
garden. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: Times, serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Times, serif;">The thing that I
often seem to struggle with the most in getting things to grow is the balance of
waiting and care. Too much attention and the plants die from being over-watered.
Too little attention and they end up choked out by weeds. There is a balance
between waiting and not forgetting that I often don’t strike just right. The
other thing I have learned is that different plants like different soil. What
made my beets grow in abundance may have very well been the reason my other
plants refused to sprout. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Jesus tells us
this story about gardening right after sending out his disciples to share the
word of God. I imagine they came back with mixed results. Jesus shared with
them that people are like seeds in the garden. Their environment and experience
makes a big difference in whether they are ready to do something with God’s
word. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"></span> You would think
that at this point, it would be clear. He would tell his disciples to seek out
those who have the best environment, the “good soil” and only plant there. Why
waste the work in planting seeds among paths, rocks, and weeds? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif";">But Jesus, he never tells a
story like we are expecting. Instead, he tells us to plant everywhere. There
will be people who we share God with that won’t even be listening. There will
be people who will be excited, until the next thing strikes their fancy. There
will be people who let the influence of others around them pull them away from
God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But there will also be people that
hear the word of God, and are changed forever. These people will go on to plant
more seeds than we did. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>We often make the
mistake of thinking that we are the plant in this story, and somehow it is our
job to make sure we are in good soil. But we are not the plant. We are the
farmer, the gardener. We are the ones who are throwing God’s word into the
word, sharing the love of Jesus with everyone. Even in places that seem like
bad soil. Sometimes we have disappointing results. Sometimes we have great
results. Whatever the results, we keep on planting. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I think Jesus
told this to his disciples to remind them that those moments when they felt
they had failed, when their effort seemed fruitless, it’s not always the farmer’s
fault. It’s not the seed. There are other things that we have no control over
that keep people from God. Our job is to do the best we can on scattering the
seed, and trust God to work on growing it. Just like I am learning with my
garden, we are always balancing waiting with care. Jesus reminds us to not be
so distracted with the ones who don’t allow God’s word to change them, that we
forget to see those who do, who go on to plant their own seeds. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Personal
Reflection:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">How do you spread the seed of God’s
word? Where do you spread it? How do you balance waiting and care?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-58674858054320091052019-01-29T10:53:00.000-08:002019-01-29T10:53:25.737-08:00The Workers in the Vineyard<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 18px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Scripture:</b></span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 19px;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 18px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;">Matthew 20:1-15</span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 19px; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 18px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Quick Summary:</b></span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 19px;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 18px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;">Jesus tells this story: A man hired workers through out the day; some, first thing in the morning, some just an hour before work was done. Then he paid them all a full day’s wages. The first men were upset because they thought that wasn’t fair, but the man pointed out they were given a fair wage for their work. </span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 19px; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>The Point:</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">Jesus says the point is that the last will be first and the first will be last. Jesus gives us all plenty, and doesn’t want us to compare and compete for God’s love with each other.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Questions for Family Time:</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">1.Tell me the story you heard today.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"> a. (see above)</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">2. Why were the men hired first upset?</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"> a. Because the guys who only worked for an hour were given the same amount of pay.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">3. That does seem unfair. Why is it fair?</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"> a. That was a fair wage for a day’s work AND the men agreed to work for it. He wasn’t being stingy with the first men hired, he was being generous to the last men hired.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">4. How did you practice being generous?</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"> a. Last week we helped people who have worked hard for God’s kingdom through the church. This week we are helping babies who haven’t even been to our church. We are going to be generous and help them just as we helped members last week.</span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Deeper:</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>I am going to start by admitting that of Jesus’ parables, this one is one of the hardest for me to practice. Mostly because I would fall in the category of the workers hired in the morning. I have been serving others through the church really my whole life. I began to follow a call into pastoral ministry when I was in Jr. High and have never run from serving God and others. That call has led me into some hardships. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>One of those times was when I was in seminary. I had to take a part-time pay church with no benefits while my kids were in daycare. We had to move to a tiny town where it was hard for my husband to find consistent work. We had to rely on government assistance to help us care for our kids. At the same time, I was going to seminary with a lot of people going into ministry as a second career. They had experienced financial security. I heard people in the church talk about how amazing those people were because they had sacrificed that big paycheck to go into ministry. And it was hard to not go to God and question whether this was fair, like the workers in our story. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>God gave me an answer like the man in the story. He reminded me that I knew what I was getting into by following his call. He reminded me that he would be more than generous to me because of my faithfulness. He also reminded me that I would do better to not compare my life with others. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Maybe, like me, you have been working for God for a long time. You see people just starting to work for God and how God blesses them. And it is hard to not feel jaded. But it is in those moments that we need to remember that God is generous. He gives us all enough. We should not confuse his generosity with unfairness. And we would do well to love others with generosity no matter how long they have been working. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>It seems fitting that last week in our project we served those who have been working for God a long time: some of the oldest members of our congregation. And that this week we will be serving babies in families that aren’t even regulars at our services. This week we will be making baby blankets for the local crisis pregnancy center. Because, like Jesus, we can be generous to both, love both, and serve both. </span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Personal Reflection:</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;">How has God been generous to you? How has he rewarded you for your work for his kingdom?</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><br /></span></div>
Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-25458831067141199302019-01-17T11:48:00.000-08:002019-01-29T10:54:22.597-08:00The Sheep and the Goats<br />
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<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Scripture:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
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<o:p></o:p><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Matthew 25:31-46<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Quick Summary:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
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<o:p></o:p><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Jesus separates people into two groups
like a farmer separates sheep and goats. He welcomes into heaven those who: fed
the hungry, gave drink to the thirsty, invited in strangers, clothed the needy,
visited the sick and imprisoned. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">The Point:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
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<o:p></o:p><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Jesus says when we help others, it is as
if we were helping Jesus himself.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Questions for Family Time:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
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<o:p></o:p><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">1.Tell me the story you heard today.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
<br />
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a. (see above)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">2. Who does Jesus call sheep?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a. the people who
help others. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
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<o:p></o:p><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">3.How did you help others like Jesus said
to?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a. We fed the hungry, (and visited)
the elderly <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
<br />
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">4. How does our church do these things? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">a. Feed the
hungry and <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>give drink to the thirsty -
help at the food pantry, Feed my Sheep <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>c. invite the
stranger- welcome people into our church; Heart House shelters the homeless,
YES home provides housing for teens<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>d. clothe the needy-
help at the food pantry, make blankets for babies<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>e. visit the sick and
imprisoned- visit those in the hospital; Bible Study at the jail<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<o:p></o:p><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">4. How can you help others?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a. Come up with
some creative ways you can do each one of these: feed the hungry, give drink to
the thirsty, invite in strangers, clothe the needy, visit the sick and imprisoned.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Deeper:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">This is one of
those stories Jesus tells that is pretty </span><span style="font-size: 18px;">foundational</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> for how we understand who
we are and what our responsibilities are as followers of Jesus. This passage
says that if we are to call ourselves Christians, our lives are to be filled
with acts of compassion. Jesus’ disciples are to treat every person they meet
as if that person was Jesus himself.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">We
are to help those in need, whatever that need is. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt; text-indent: 0.5in;"> </span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">I think Jesus was intentional to make a
list of needs that we can easily look past. It is easy to avoid people
struggling with these needs. It is easy to say that it is someone else’s
responsibility. But Jesus says his followers go out seeking these people, stuck
in their home because of their </span><span style="font-size: 18px;">health</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">, or even tucked away in jail out of the
view of the community. He tells us to find ignored people, people struggling
with the daily necessities of life, and to help them. He tells us that we are
to be proactive with our compassion.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Jesus is such a
strange king because rather than bowing at his feet, or demanding our praise,
he instead says he is The Poor. The God of the Universe says he is the person
who can’t afford their next meal. He is the child who walks miles each morning
to find clean drinking water. He is the kid who grows too fast for his parents’
income to manage. He is the refugee running for their lives with only what they
can carry. He is the sick patient. He is the inmate. How we treat the poor is
how we treat Jesus. If we choose to demonize them and blame them for their
struggles, we do it to Jesus. If we choose to come alongside them, empower them
and treat them as wholly human, we do it to Jesus. When we love them like
neighbors, we love Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>It’s easy to lose sight of these people in our busy lives,
to say we have too much on our plate already. I get it. But, it’s important for
us to teach our children compassion now. It’s important for us to notice Jesus
in our midst, dressed in rags instead of robes. So I want to encourage you to
start seeing the invisible people in the world. Let us teach our children that
we have a responsibility not just to help those closest to us, but to all
humankind. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Personal Reflection:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
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<o:p></o:p><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Answer #4 for yourself and your family.
When have you specifically done each one? How can you show compassion in a new
way in the next month?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-51914302198562838162019-01-08T08:28:00.000-08:002019-02-13T12:05:36.731-08:00The Good Samaritan<br />
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<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Scripture:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
<br />
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Luke 10:30-35<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Quick Summary:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
<br />
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<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Jesus told a story about a man beaten by
the side of the road. Two honorable men pass him by, but then a third man
stopped to help. The third man was a Samaritan, which Jews didn’t like. Even
though he came from the wrong family and community, he still stopped and helped
the hurt man. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">The Point:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
<br />
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">No matter who is hurt or even what they
think of us, Jesus wants us to help them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Questions for Family Time:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">1.Tell me the story you heard today.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a. (see above)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">2. Who would be hard to stop and help for you? Why<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a.
(this is a personal answer. The why should by along the line of “we don’t get a
long.”) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">3.Who would you be surprised if they helped you?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a. (similar answer to above) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">4. What does it mean to “love your neighbor”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a. To help people when
you see they need help, even if they are not people you like. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Deeper:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">We throw around the term “Good Samaritan” a lot. It has become
short hand in the news for a stranger helping a stranger. But Jesus did not call
the Samaritan a stranger. He called him a Samaritan. He also didn’t call him good.
For the first hearers of this story, Samaritans were neither strangers nor
good. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Samaritans were Jews who had intermarried and chosen to worship
God on holy places that were not considered holy to those in Jerusalem. They
were living reminders of the sin that Jews felt had caused their national
downfall in the Old Testament. Also, in times of national crises, they were
unreliable allies. Good Jews often chose to cross the Jordan River into Gentile
territory and then cross it again to avoid Samaria. That’s right. The pagans
Gentiles with NO belief in God were better to travel by than the Samaritans. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">That means our society’s “Good Samaritans” were not like what the
readers imagined this Samaritan to be like at all. They would be the ones our
society looks down upon. They are the people we expect just by the
label we have given them to be unreliable. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">And yet, Jesus takes this “Samaritan” and makes him the one who fulfills
God’s law. It is this Samaritan who chooses to stop rather than the most
respected men of the community. Which makes this parable hard for us to
swallow. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">First of all, because it makes us confront the fact that even when
we try to treat everyone equal, we have biases about people that our society
has labeled. It makes us call the person we would rather protect our children
from the hero of the story. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Second, it makes us redefine our neighbor. Dearborn County
residents are very good at dividing by honor. There are desirable neighborhoods
and undesirable neighborhoods. We place ourselves among people like us, just
like the Jews did, and avoid neighborhoods that have reputations like Samaria. Like
the man who asked Jesus who his neighbor is, we find it easy to love people in
our geographical neighborhood because, for the most part, they are like us. But
then Jesus comes and says, your neighbor is the person in need, not the person
next door. Jesus tells us we aren’t allowed to ignore the needs of others just
because it isn’t happening outside of our front door. He says we are to love
people in other neighborhoods. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Third, if we are really being asked to love our neighbor like the Samaritan,
it means we have to be willing to help those who look down their noses at us.
It means we have to love the naysayers and snobs who have torn us down and told
us we are not worthy. When our hearts are cheering, “they finally got what they
deserved!” Jesus bids us to show them kindness and help them get back up. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">It would be easier if the Good Samaritan was just about a nice stranger.
Loving your neighbor like Jesus calls us to is much harder. Not complicated.
Just Hard. Thankfully, God is there to help us do the hard things he calls us
to do. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Personal Reflection:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<o:p></o:p>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Who are the Samaritans that you avoid? Who are the people who
treat you like a Samaritan? How is God calling you to love those neighbors? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-92023082513454880212019-01-05T14:35:00.000-08:002019-01-05T14:35:28.869-08:00The Parable of Mustard Seeds and Yeast<br />
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Scripture:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Matthew 13:31-35<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Quick Summary:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard
seed that is planted and then grows to a large plant. It is also like yeast
that is small when added, but then works through the whole dough and makes it
large. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">The Point:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">God can take our little work, and make a
big transformation. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Questions for Family Time:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">1.What is the kingdom of heaven like?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a. mustard seed.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">2. How?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a.
When you plant a mustard seed it so tiny, but then with time it grows all by
itself into a really big plant. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">3.What is the kingdom of heaven like? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a. yeast. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">4. How?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>a. Yeast is also
small, but it is worked into the other ingredients and then over time it makes
the whole bread rise.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">5. How are those attributes like the kingdom of heaven?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">a. We may do something that seems small
for God’s kingdom, but God can take it and do something big, something
transformative. All he needs is a little time.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Deeper:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">The problems of our
world today are vast and enormous. So big, that one person cannot make much of
a dent in them. Violence, Suffering, Poverty. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">But Jesus
encourages us that actually we can make a difference. No matter how small we
are, God can take the little we offer and do something transformative with it.
There is a popular story of a man picking up starfish off a beach completely
covered with them. He is asked why he bothers when he cannot save most of their
lives. He picks one up and says, “True, but I can save this one’s life.” This
story reminds us that even little things can have a big impact on another
person. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">But Jesus stretches
this concept even further with his parable. He says that God can take a small
act and when we leave it alone, He makes it into something greater. Even when
we have walked away from the garden, or left the bread on the counter, God is
doing something with it that we cannot. Something more than what we can do. God
does not stop when we stop. He keeps on working. He keeps on healing the
brokenness. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">This is why when we
invite someone to Junior group and they don’t come, we haven’t failed. It’s why
when we put on community activity and no one new comes to church that next week
we haven’t failed. It’s why when we try to start a transformative program in
our community we may not see results for months or years. Sometimes our work
for God’s kingdom takes time. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">In 2014, my kids
experienced their first group of learning God’s word with others. That first
year, 12 kids gathered in the church basement. Faithful adults worked hard to
share God’s love with these kids. In 2017, that group had expanded through
invitation and excitement of those 12 kids to a record number of 49 kids. Through
this program 10 people, ages spanning from infant to 60s, began attending
church regularly and joined the church. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"></span>In 2013, a small
country church started raising funds for megachurch pastors in Sierra Leone to
get seminary degrees so that they could begin a seminary in Sierra Leone. In
2018, those men graduated with the help of Indiana Conference and other local
churches. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">We often feel too
small to do something truly powerful in the world. We often feel like a failure
when we see the same 12 kids for a year. In those moments, it is always good to
remember that we serve a living God and long after we have given up or finished
our job, he is at work growing something much bigger than we could have
imagined. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Personal Reflection:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">When have you seen God transform your
small deed into something big?</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-88311502317894922152018-11-12T06:42:00.002-08:002018-11-12T06:42:10.400-08:00Samuel the Boy<br />
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black;">Scripture:</span></b><span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black;">1<sup> </sup>Samuel 3:1-21<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black;">Quick Summary:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Right at bedtime, God called out
to Samuel, but Samuel thought it was the priest Eli. After three times, Eli
finally realized it was God who was calling Samuel. The next time God called,
Samuel said, “Here I am, Lord!” God wanted Samuel to do something very hard.
God wanted him to tell Eli that his family would no longer be priests because
they didn’t follow God. Samuel did it, and he kept telling people hard things
for God for the rest of his life. </span><span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black;">The Point:</span></b><span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black;">God calls us, even when we are young. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black;">Questions for Family Time:</span></b><span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;">1.
Who was the person you learned about? What made him special?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;">
a. Samuel was really young, but God called him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;">2.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did Samuel recognize God’s voice?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>a. No! God had to call him 4 times
before he knew it was God. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;">3.
What was Samuel called to do?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;">
a. He was called to tell the priest Eli hard things. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;">4.
What is God calling you to do?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black;">Deeper:</span></b><span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;">
Samuel is the last of our series of Judges.
He is not actually recognized as a judge, though he falls in that time period.
He is considered a prophet. In the Old Testament, prophets are people who take
God’s word to the people. Priests are people who take people’s words to God. In
the New Testament, first Jesus and now the Holy Spirit act as both prophet and
priest. Through Jesus, we have full communication with God. We can be prophetic
by speaking God’s truth into the world. We are also part of the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">priesthood of all believers</i>, which means
any of us can act as priests for each other by praying and helping them see
God’s presence. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Samuel has an amazing call story.
God called him and he didn’t recognize God’s voice. It wasn’t until Eli told
him, that he realized it was God talking to him. I think many of us have this
experience. We may feel God calling us to do something…in our neighborhood, for
someone else, or even change jobs. How do we know if that is really God or just
a whim we are having? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is something
most of us struggle with as we sort out what God wants us to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It even happens to us who are called to be
pastors. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Just like with Samuel, most of us
need someone like Eli who helps us discern God’s call. In the UMC, laity and
clergy must confirm someone’s call to pastoral ministry throughout their
candidacy process, which last from their call all the way through their
education and three years of full time pastoral leadership. Pastors review
their work and theology and then finally agree with God that this person is
called and gifted to serve as a pastor. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>While not all calls are such a long
process, every day God calls people in the church for specific jobs to bring
his kingdom to earth. Whether it is a specific day job, or a job within the
church, God calls all of us to use our abilities, personalities, knowledge, and
passions to bring his glory. This week, our project leader is a member of our
church that God called. She never thought she would end up in jail, but God
called her to lead a bible study there. The church helped her follow that call
by recognizing how she would be good at leading, and helping her with supplies.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>God is calling all of us. I hope we
have the courage to follow those calls. Just as important, I hope God is using
us in each other’s lives to confirm those calls. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black;">Personal Reflection:</span></b><span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">What is God calling you to? Who else’s call can you
confirm?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-8713076864912909692018-11-05T11:20:00.000-08:002018-11-05T11:20:08.664-08:00Hannah the Troubled<br />
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<b><span style="color: black;">Scripture:</span></b><span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;">1<sup> </sup>Samuel 1<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><span style="color: black;">Quick Summary:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Hannah couldn’t have a son. She
went to the temple and cried and prayed so hard, the priest thought she was
drunk. God heard her prayer and she had a son! Just as she told God she would,
she gave him back to God at the temple. Then she sang God’s praises. Her son
would be the last of the judges, Samuel. </span><span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black;">The Point:</span></b><span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black;">It is important for us to pray from our heart, even if
others think we look silly. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black;">Questions for Family Time:</span></b><span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;">1.
Who was the person you learned about? What made her special?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;">
a. Hannah prayed so hard, the priest thought she was
drunk. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;">2.
What did she pray for?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;">
a. to have a son. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;">3. What happened?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;">
a. She had a son named Samuel. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;">3.
What did she do next?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;">
a. She gave him to God and he grew up in the temple. Then
she sang God’s praises. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black;">Deeper:</span></b><span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;">
Hannah is a very important woman in the Old
Testament. She is considered a model for a faithful woman by New Testament
writers. Mary’s song found after she discovers her miraculous pregnancy is
considered to be modeled after Hannah’s song for her miraculous pregnancy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After Jesus birth, a woman very similar to
Hannah, named Anna meets Jesus in the temple. Anna was widowed young and
chooses to not remarry. That means she will never bear a child. We discover her
as a woman of prayer in the temple, like Hannah. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>As important as she is to New
Testament writers, Hannah should be an important model for our faith as well.
She had nothing but faith. In her worship, she poured out a broken heart so
earnestly, the priest told her she should be embarrassed of herself. She comes
to the Lord with her anguish and grief. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Despite the priests’ disgust, God
hears her cries and blesses her. She keeps her vows made to God. Can you
imagine? She had waited so long and tried so hard to have that baby, and she
gives him back to God. We know she never stops loving her child. We discover as
he grows us, she brings him a new robe every year. Her faithfulness is in stark
contrast to the priest’s own sons who seem to be forgotten. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Hannah teaches us so much about
worship. Worship is not just joy, thanksgiving, and praise. It isn’t just
saying how great God is. It isn’t just celebrating. True worship is when we
come to God honestly. When, with raw disappointment, we pray and plead. True
worship is not looking like everyone else on Sunday morning. It is not being
silently reverent or singing loud. It is not standing or sitting at the right
times. Rather, it is being who we are in our brokenness and our joy regardless
of who else is in the room. It is meeting God and talking to him about the
state of our hearts. It is giving up pretenses and forgetting about what others
think to speak with God. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Hannah’s story is about redemption.
Her prayer that was ridiculed found its way to God’s heart. And when God
blessed her, she came to God singing his praises. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black;">Personal Reflection:</span></b><span style="color: black;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">How do you pray? Have you ever been embarrassed when
praying in front of others? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Prayers
to Practice:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">ACTS:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Adoration
– “God you are…”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Confession
“God I am not…”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Thankgiving
“God thank you for…”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Supplication
“God, please help…with…” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">5-Finger
Prayer<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Thumb:
Pray for those who are closest to us<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Pointer:
Pray for those who point to God <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Middle:
Pray for Government leaders<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ring:
Pray for the weakest (sick, grieving)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">5.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Pinky:
Pray for self<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Breath
prayer:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>(breathe in) Jesus Son of God<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>(breath out)Have mercy on me, a
sinner<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-87550751838353499592018-10-30T12:21:00.002-07:002018-10-30T12:21:49.749-07:00Samson the Strong<br />
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<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Scripture:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Judges 13
& 16</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Quick
Summary:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Samson had everything going for him. God promised his mom that he would
begin to defeat the Philistines for Israel before he was even born. He came
from a great family, he was strong and popular. But Samson chose to date a girl
who was friends with the Philistines. She talked Samson into telling her the
secret of his strength. Then while he slept, she helped the Philistines cut off
his hair, and the spirit of God left him. He was imprisoned and tortured. He
was brought out for entertainment. He grabbed the pillars and when the building
collapsed he killed over 3,000 Philistines, dying with them. </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">The Point:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">Samson wasted his potential by allowing
himself to be influenced by the enemy. Like Samson, we chose who we allow to
influence us. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Questions
for Family Time:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">1.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 7.0pt;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Who was the
judge? What made him special?</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a. Samson
was strong and promised to begin defeating the Philistines.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">2.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 7.0pt;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">What did
Samson do wrong?</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a. He chose to hang out with people
who didn’t want what was best for him, like Delilah. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">3. What did Delilah do?</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 7.0pt;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Delilah got
Samson to tell her the secret to his strength (his hair) and then told the
Samson’s enemies the secret for money. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span> </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">3.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 7.0pt;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Who
influences you?</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 7.0pt;">
</span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">(Our project should have them thinking about influences in their
life. </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Deeper:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/v_YozYt8l-g/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/v_YozYt8l-g?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">
Every time I hear the story of Samson, I imagine that scene in Star Wars
when Darth Vader joins the dark side. His teacher, Obiwan Kenobi, yells at him,
“You were the Chosen One! It was said that you would destroy the Sith, not join
them…bring balance to the Force, not leave it in darkness.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Samson
was kind of the Darth Vader of the Judges. He had everything going for him. Promised
to greatness before his birth, his parents did everything right. He is the
only judge we read about who is not described or known chiefly for their
faults. Instead, he is known for his strength, for the spirit of God that rested on him. He is perfect. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>But
just like Darth Vader, he disappoints us. He chooses to ignore the influence of
his parents and his Israelite community, and instead chooses to associate with the
enemy. Delilah wasn’t his first girl outside of Israel, but she would be his
last. She would “wear him down” until finally he gave his secrets to her…and to
his enemies. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Samson
would suffer the consequences of his choices. Imprisoned. Tortured. Displayed.
Only in his death would he fulfill the promise from his birth. I guess he has
that in common with Darth Vader too. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Our
kids will be talking about who we allow to influence us this week. I encourage
my kids to be friends to all kinds of kids from all kinds of backgrounds. With
some of those friendships, I remind them that they are the ones who should be
influencing. They should be leading the group to do what is right.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>As
a parent, though, I look at Samson a little differently. Samson reminds me that
even though I may do everything right, my kid is going to grow up to make their
own decisions. A parent can do everything right, and their child may still fall
short of what we hoped for them. That actually brings me a lot of peace. We
have been entrusted with these lives, and it can be overwhelming. Samson’s
story reminds me that I do not hold their fate. God reminds me that while I can
try to make them perfect, that may not be what God really wants. And it may not
be what I want, not really. God reminds me that the imperfect, the humble, the
incomplete are often his choice for leaders. God reminds me that he holds them
even when they fall short. He reminds me that he can use them even if I give
them to him broken. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Personal
Reflection:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">How have you tried to make your kid
perfect? How has God stopped you? How has God shown you how amazing your
imperfect kid is?</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-74824166634581981092018-10-22T06:36:00.003-07:002018-10-22T06:36:39.207-07:00All Saints Day Party<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">Junior Group<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">All Saints Day Party<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;">October 28, 2018, 3-5<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We have been diligently been planning costumes for Halloween
in our house. I am sure you are too. What often gets missed in our
trick-or-treating or fall parties is that Halloween is not the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">actual </i>holiday coming up. “Halloween”
comes from “Hallow’s Eve.” You may recognize the word <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">hallow</i> from the Lord’s Prayer when we say “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">hallowed</i> be thy name.” It’s a word that means holy, or sacred.
Holiday, likewise is “holy day” shortened. Hallow’s Eve is the night <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">before</i> the holy day…the night before <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">All Saints Day.</b> During the middle ages,
it was believed that All Saints Day was the one day in the year when heaven and
earth were the closest…when all heaven breaks loose. (The night before became
known as the night all hell breaks loose, which you still see in the scary
parts of Halloween.) You can see the Mexican Day of the Dead which arose from
All Saints Day depicted in the recent movie Coco. All Saints Day is a time for
us to remember that those who have died are alive in Christ. The saints are
still connected to us through Christ. We will be celebrating this holy day in
Worship on November 4<sup>th</sup>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> In Junior
Group on October 28<sup>th</sup>, we are going to have our own All Saints Day
Celebration to remember those who have died in our lives. I think this is
really important to do as a church. Our culture does not deal well with grief, especially
where children are involved, so it is important for us to do this well in the
church. In the church, we have a day every year to celebrate the life to come,
to remember those we have loved, and to pass down our memories. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> For our
celebration, I am going to need some help preparing the kids. I would like them
to come with one or two people in mind, such as grandparents, family friends, etc.
They are invited to bring a favorite food of that person for us to share as a
snack. For example, my grandpa bought us a giant box of oranges every year
growing up, so I might bring oranges to share. If you bring something sweet,
please bring a small size. Then we are going to put together luminaries of
those who have died to decorate the sanctuary with. These luminaries will be in
worship on Nov 4<sup>th</sup>, and then your child can take them home. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> I am excited
to give our kids this opportunity to remember those who have died and to honor
them. As always, parents are welcome to stick around. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-62426453570708354032018-10-15T12:34:00.001-07:002018-10-15T12:34:28.176-07:00Gideon's Tiny Army<br />
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Scripture:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Judges
7:1-24</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Quick
Summary:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Gideon</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> calls out an
army to fight the Midianites, but God says it is too big. He doesn’t want the
army to think they can win on their own. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Gideon sends home 22,000 men with only 10,000 remaining.
God says that is still too many, so he sends home all but 300 men. The 300 men
attack at night. God confuses the Midianites and they start attacking each
other. God uses a measly 300 men to take down an army of 120,000.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">The Point:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;">God can use us when we are few.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Questions
for Family Time:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">1.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 7.0pt;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Who was the
judge? What made him special?</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a.
Gideon was the smallest son in the smallest tribe.</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">2.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 7.0pt;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">What job did
God give him?</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a. To take out the Midian army<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">3. What was strange about how God
wanted him to take them out?</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 7.0pt;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">God wanted
Gideon to do it with a tiny army. Each man would have to defeat 400 soldiers!
</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">3.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 7.0pt;"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Did it work?</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"> a.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 7.0pt;">
</span><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Yes, God turned the Midianites against each other so the
Israelites won. </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Deeper:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">
Gideon started building an army for this job God gave him. He started
small with just about 1 man to every 3 or 4 men in Midian’s army. Then God told
him it wasn’t small enough. God didn’t want to win a war Israel could win
without him. So Gideon had to decrease his army. He sent home those who were
scared. Now each man would have to defeat 12 men. That is a tall order even for
the bravest Israel had to offer. But God still thought bragging rights would go
to the men. God wanted it to be clear. So one more time, he asked Gideon to
thin out the ranks. Now Gideon’s army was a measly 300 men against 120,000.
Each man would have to defeat 400 men. That was impossible. 400 trained
soldiers to each man!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Gideon
was scared. How could his army possibly win? God knew his courage was faltering.
God needed him to trust and hope in this wild plan. So God sent him into the
edge of the enemy’s camp where he heard a dream. A Midian shared that a loaf of
bread…Gideon…would roll into camp and knock down every tent. Gideon knew God
was with his tiny army, and would help them against their enemy. That night, Gideon
took his tiny army and encircled the enemies camp. They crashed pots and blew
trumpets. The enemies woke up, and in the dark of night could not recognized
friend from foe. God used the Midian army to take out the Midian army. God used
the few to take down the many.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s the God we follow. And just as he took
that little group of men and conquered a massive army, he likes to take our
little groups and conquer big problems. He takes little groups like Junior
Group and uses us to make a big difference in our world. Will he use us to
invite new people into discipleship? Will he use us to ignite the faith of the
adults around us? Will he use us to stand up to injustice or help those in
need? I don’t know what he might do with us, but this I do know: we are not too
few for God to use in a big way. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Just
as God spoke and led Gideon and his army, God speaks to us today. What is he
calling us to do? What is too big for us to do? Sometimes the answers to those
two questions are the same. That is the sweet spot of faith.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">Personal
Reflection:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""serif"","serif"; font-size: 13.5pt;">
What is God calling us to do? What is too big for us to
do? </span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-24183718094521059072018-10-04T10:51:00.000-07:002018-10-04T10:51:11.234-07:00Gideon, The Wimp<br />
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Scripture:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-top: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Judges 6:1-16<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-top: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><br /></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Quick Summary:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Midian has taken the Israelites’ homes and keeps stealing all
their food. Gideon is the smallest son in the smallest tribe, but God says he
will help him defeat Midian. His first job is to take down the idols in town.
The town people are mad, but Gideon tells them to let the gods of the idols
kill him for what he has done. Because they aren’t real like God, he doesn’t
get hurt at all! God has helped him through the first job God gave him!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Point:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span style="color: black;">God can use us even when we are the smallest and even if we
are scared.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Questions for Family Time:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">1.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 7.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Who was the judge? What made
him special?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
a. Gideon was the smallest son in the smallest tribe.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">2.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 7.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">What job did God give him?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Times, serif;">
a. To slay Midian…but first to get rid of the idols the Israelites were worshiping.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: ""times"","serif";">3. How did he get rid of the idols?</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
a.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 7.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">He was
scared, so he did it at night. He cut them down and used them for firewood to
burn God an offering. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">3.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 7.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Weren’t the people mad?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
a.</span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 7.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> </span><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Yes, but Gideon told them to let the idol’s gods kill him…and they
didn’t because they aren’t real. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Deeper:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
“I can’t do it. I am not enough,” is said over and over again in
the Bible. God calls someone, and we respond like God doesn’t know us. We
remind him of our weakness and inadequacy. We remind him of our sin. We remind
him of our fear and past failures. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Like
he doesn’t know all that stuff about us. Like he didn’t know Gideon was a wimp?
Like he didn’t know how small his family was or where Gideon fell in the
pecking order? Gideon, like so many of us after him, told God he must have the
wrong person. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>“I will be with you,” is said over and over again in the
Bible. It’s God’s go-to when he sees we are filled with fear. With each judge,
prophet, disciple who says they can’t do it, God reminds them they don’t do it
alone. God doesn’t argue with their shortcomings. He just tells them those
shortcomings are irrelevant with God at their side. When God is with us, our
weakness is bolstered by his strength. Our fear his bolstered by his all-knowing.
Our inadequacy is bolstered by his completeness. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>There is a popular saying, “God does not give us more
than we can handle.” Gideon proves that is a big fat lie. God know we are
wimps. Yet he sends us to do things we cannot do. At least not on our own. God
gives us more than we can handle…but never more than <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">he</i> can handle. When we go before God saying, “God I can’t handle
this,” he whispers back, “I am with you.” We can’t handle it, but God can. He
can carry that weight that would crush us. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Being called by God to do something isn’t nearly as
glamorous now is it? It means that God may have called me because I am nothing,
so his power can shine brighter. My excuses don’t work anymore either. It doesn’t
matter that I am a wimp, because God will make up the difference. But it sure
makes things easier knowing God’s got my back. He may call me to more than I
can handle, but He doesn’t call me to go anywhere that he is not beside me
making up the difference. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Personal Reflection:</span></b><span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0in;">
<span style="color: black; font-family: "Times","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
What has God called you to that you couldn’t handle
on your own? How did you experience God with you in that moment?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-48250419078805087672018-09-17T13:12:00.001-07:002018-09-17T13:12:41.919-07:00Judge Deborah<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 19px;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Scripture:</b></span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;">Judges 4:1-23</span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 19px; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Quick Summary:</b></span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;">Israel ends up under the control of the Canaanite king. Israel’s Judge Deborah calls Commander Barak to fight him. Barak says not without her. She says, “Only if you are ok with sharing the victory with a woman.” Sure enough, a woman named Jael ends up killing the enemy commander with a tent peg through his temple.</span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 19px; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>The Point:</b></span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;">Barak gave up his honor and asked for help. It’s hard to ask for help, but God’s mission is more important than our pride.</span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 19px; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Questions for Family Time:</b></span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;">1.</span><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-size: 9.3px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="font-kerning: none;">Who was the judge? What did she do?</span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;"> a. Judge Deborah told Commander Barak to fight the evil king and free Israel.</span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;">2.</span><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-size: 9.3px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="font-kerning: none;">What did Barak do?</span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;"> a. He said ok, if you come with me. He asked for her help.</span></div>
<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px;">3. Why was that a big deal?</span><br /><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"> a.</span><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-size: 9.3px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="font-kerning: none;">Because that meant a woman would get the honor/credit and he wouldn’t. </span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;">3.</span><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-size: 9.3px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="font-kerning: none;">Did a woman get the credit?</span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"> a.</span><span style="-webkit-font-kerning: none; font-size: 9.3px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="font-kerning: none;">Yes, but not Deborah. It was Jael who killed the enemy commander with a tent peg through his temple. </span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 19px;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Deeper:</b></span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"> Deborah is one of the first women in the Bible that God used in leadership in a world thick with patriarchy. In fact, even today with equal employment for men and women in just about every profession, the government and military still are heavily led by men and a macho-culture. It doesn’t take us much imagination to see how far out on a limb Barak was going. First, he receives his marching orders from a woman. Than he requests her presence as a leader during the battle. Deborah herself seems a little taken aback by this request. </span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"> She seems to say, “Are you sure you are going to be okay if I get credit for the win?” </span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;"> Barak doesn’t back down. He knows who the leader should be. He knows he can’t do it on his own, even if he loses face. He needs help. Not just any help. He needs Deborah the Judge.</span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;"> </span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>In a wild turn, Deborah ends up right but not by the means everyone expected. It wasn’t the great leader Barak. It wasn’t the great leader Deborah. Victory would come from a quite woman without a sword or even a knife at her disposal. The only thing she had handy to slay the enemy was the very peg keeping her tent up. Jael would topple the great Commander Sisera while he slept sure he was safe in her care. </span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>This story, with all of its twists and turns, reminds us how important it is to receive help, even from the most unlikely of places. It doesn’t matter how grand our title, whether Commander or Judge or Housewife (Tent-wife?). God calls us to help each other and to welcome help, even when it may hurt our pride to do so. </span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span>God wants us to use our gifts in leadership like Deborah. He wants us to ask for help like Barak. He wants us to fight his battles no matter how small we may think we are like Jael. </span></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 19px;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"></span><br /></div>
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"><b>Personal Reflection:</b></span></div>
<br />
<div style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-kerning: none;"> Where in your life is pride keeping you from asking for help? Where is your humility getting in the way of you doing your part in God’s kingdom?</span></div>
Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-38343799924992420522018-09-13T07:25:00.002-07:002018-09-13T07:25:33.006-07:00Ehud, the Left-handed<br />
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Scripture:</b> <o:p></o:p></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: ""serif"","serif";">Judges
3:12-31<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: ""serif"","serif";"><br /></span></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Quick Summary:</b> <o:p></o:p></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
Israel is under the rule of the Moab
king Eglon. Along comes Ehud, the Judge, who is left-handed and had a
reputation of being tricky. He used those tricky skills to kill the king and
free Israel from Moab. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>The Point:</b><o:p></o:p></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
No matter what others think about us,
God can use us to do his work. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Questions for Family Time:</b><o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
1.<span style="font-size: 7.0pt;">
</span>Why did people think badly about Ehud?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
a.<span style="font-size: 7.0pt;">
</span>He was left handed, and everyone thought if you were left handed you
must be bad.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
2.<span style="font-size: 7.0pt;">
</span>How did Ehud use his left handedness for God?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
a.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
king didn’t think he was grabbing his sword until it was too late. He killed
the evil king.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
What did Ehud do?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
a.<span style="font-size: 7.0pt;"> </span>He
plunged the sword into the kings belly, and the king’s guts fell out, and the
sword got stuck in his fat. (Gross!) <o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
3.<span style="font-size: 7.0pt;">
</span>What did you learn?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
a.<span style="font-size: 7.0pt;">
</span>No matter what people say is “wrong” with me, God can use it for good! <o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Deeper:</b><o:p></o:p></div>
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>The stories of the judges
are not sweet stories. They are pretty violent and pretty gross. They are some
of the most exciting and vivid stories of the Bible. Even though they can be
gory, at the heart, they tell us amazing truths about God and his love for his
people. That’s why I am excited to tell these crazy stories to the kids. Our
story for today will definitely not disappoint. Stabbing a king and watching
his guts pour out. His fat wrapping around the sword. Gross. <o:p></o:p><br />
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>But the real story of God’s
love comes before all that craziness when God chooses Ehud. The only thing we
are told about Ehud is that he was left handed. For us, this seems a
non-descriptor all together. Who cares if he is left-handed? It just means he
needs a different set of scissors, right? <o:p></o:p><br />
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>For the Israelites, and the
first readers of this text, left-handed meant a lot more. It meant this man was
known for being a trickster. He was known for being sneaky and untrustworthy.
Those left-handed people were not to be trusted. You never knew what they were up
to. Being left-handed came with a bad reputation. Ehud came with a bad
reputation.<o:p></o:p><br />
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Yet, God chooses him, over
all the “good boys” in Israel to free God’s people. In fact, God chooses him <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">not</i> despite his flaws, but it appears <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">for </i>his flaws. Ehud does what everyone
would expect of him…he tricks the king into trusting him. The wild part of this
story is that God takes this flaw, and uses it for his kingdom. He doesn’t ask
Ehud to change who he is. He asks Ehud to use his flaws for God’s work. <o:p></o:p><br />
<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>We often talk about giving
God our gifts, but Ehud reminds us that God wants all of us, flaws included. He
wants those parts of us that we are not proud of. The parts that we are made
fun of for or looked down on for. He says those bits of us…the divorce, our
imperfect bodies, our history of drug use, and our imperfect parenting…those
things of ill repute are his tools for changing the world. And he says this for
our kids too. Not good at school? God can use it. Not great at sports? God can
use it. Not cool? God needs you. Can’t sit still to save your life? God wants
us, flaws and all. God sees potential where we only see brokenness. <o:p></o:p><br />
<br />
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Personal Reflection:</b><o:p></o:p></div>
What do you see as your flaws? How could God use those flaws to make the world
a better place?<o:p></o:p><br />
<br />Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-69876989817298837892018-08-22T10:14:00.003-07:002018-08-22T10:15:20.034-07:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-25170234654649734692018-04-09T12:30:00.000-07:002018-04-09T12:30:17.777-07:00Good News is Proclaimed to the Poor<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Scripture:</b> </div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
Luke 6:17-23</div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
</div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<span class="woj"></span></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Quick Summary:</b> </div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Jesus blesses
the people who thought they were cursed.</span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center; text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>The Point:</b></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
No matter what is going wrong in your
life, God still love you and is with you!</div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Questions for Family Time:</b></div>
<div style="margin-left: .75in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span>Why did people think they were cursed by God?</div>
<div style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="mso-list: Ignore;">a.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span>Bad stuff was happening to them.</div>
<div style="margin-left: .75in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span>Like what bad stuff?</div>
<div style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="mso-list: Ignore;">a.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span>They were poor and hungry. People they loved kept
dying. </div>
<div style="margin-left: .75in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What was the
good news Jesus proclaimed?</div>
<div style="margin-left: 1.25in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="mso-list: Ignore;">a.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span> When we go through hard stuff, it’s not
because we are cursed by God.</div>
<br />
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Deeper:</b></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In the Old Testament,
when the Hebrews came into the Promised Land, they were told to stop in a
valley. On one side was Mount Gerizim, on the other side Mount Ebal. There in
the valley, the whole Law was read to them. Every rule, every commandment was
said in front of all the people. Then half of the Hebrews went and stood on one
mountain the other half on the other mountain. The ones on Mount Gerizim
shouted out what would happen if they followed God’s Law. They shouted The
Blessings. Then, those on Mount Ebal shouted out what would happen if the law
was disobeyed…the curses. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Right at the birth
of the nation, the people learn that if they do right by God, they will be
blessed. If they do wrong by God, they will be cursed. For thousands of years
later, they held this belief that if your life appears to be cursed, like you
live in poverty, or are disabled, or keep losing people you love, you must have
broken God’s law to receive such a curse. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This is the
world that Jesus comes into. In this world, to these people who seem to be
cursed by God, Jesus comes down the mountains to the people. He proclaims good
news by blessing the cursed people:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“Blessed are you who are poor, for
yours is the kingdom of God.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">21 </span></sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Blessed are you who hunger now, for
you will be satisfied.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Blessed are you who weep now, for
you will laugh.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">22 </span></sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Blessed are you when people hate
you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as
evil, because of the Son of Man.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.0in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">23 </span></sup><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“Rejoice in that day and leap for
joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their ancestors
treated the prophets.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Jesus takes the cursed and rejected and he tells them that
God has not cursed them. </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Instead God has blessed them.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">God has given his kingdom to the
poor.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">He will feed the hungry.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">He will bring joy to those with
sorrow.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">He will bless the lonely and
rejected.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">God
has an eternal home for these people. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Jesus lifts the curse that these people were carrying. When
everyone around them are accusing them of sin, and telling them they must have
deserved their misfortune, Jesus shows up. </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">s there really any news that could have been better for
them?</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: .25in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This is the good
news He proclaims for us: No matter what circumstance you find yourself in, God
loves you. Our blessings are not how well it rains, or how well the stock
market does. Our blessings are not even if we are popular and well liked. Our
blessings are this:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.75in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.75in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Ours
is the kingdom of God!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.75in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We
will be satisfied.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.75in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We
will experience joy again.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.75in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">God
does not reject or desert us!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: 1.75in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">We
have an eternity with him waiting for us.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This is the Good
News! Even when the world tells us we are cursed, We know that God is for us!</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Personal Reflection:</b></div>
When have you been surprisingly blessed in moments of hardship? What hardships
are you facing right now? How do you see God blessing you in the midst of them?<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-22369154210471566922018-03-27T11:33:00.000-07:002018-03-27T11:33:15.645-07:00The Easter Story<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
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<b>Scripture:</b> </div>
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<span class="woj">Matthew 28:1-10</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Quick Summary:</b> </div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Jesus
dies on the cross for our sins. Then, on Sunday morning, a few women go to the
tomb to honor him. There is an earthquake, an angel appears and the soldiers
faint they are so scared. But the women or filled with so much joy that the
grave couldn’t hold Jesus, that they run to tell everyone the good news. Jesus
is victorious over death!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>The Point:</b></div>
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Jesus dies for our sins and rises to
new life.</div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Questions for Family Time:</b></div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
1. Why did Jesus die?</div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
a. He died so our
sins and mistakes. </div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
2. Why did he rise from
death?</div>
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a.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He rose
to show he had the power of God in him. Because he rose, all of us can have
life forever! </div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
3. What did everyone feel
at first?</div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
a. scared still </div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
4. What did the women feel next?</div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
a. MEGA Joy! </div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
5. What did the women do because of their joy? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
a. Ran to tell others about Jesus. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Deeper:</b></div>
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Jesus has died on the
cross and been laid in the tomb. This morning, the women are going to pay their
respects at the tomb. Then something crazy happens. An earthquake announces the
arrival of an angel who pushes the stone away from the entrance. This event is
so wild, that the trained soldiers guarding the tomb faint. Actually the Bible
says they “become like dead men” because of their fear. That inability to move
is everyone’s reaction in Matthew to this kind of fear. The Greek word is
actually <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">phobos</i> as in phobia. It is a
fear that paralyzes people. It stops them in their tracks. It is a crippling
shock that makes us, as we say “a deer in the headlights.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: .5in;">
The soldiers’ reaction is
completely predictable, but the women’s response is completely not predictable.
Rather than being stuck, we find them running. In fact, we find them sprinting
as though they were racing, running to tell the disciples that Jesus is not
dead…Jesus is ALIVE.</div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpMiddle" style="text-indent: .5in;">
How did the women, who
should have responded with paralysis, RUN with the good news? The answer is
right there in our text. They were still afraid, but they also were filled with
JOY. This is the same joy that Jesus talks about over and over in his parables…the
joy we experience when God’s kingdom breaks through the darkness of our world.</div>
<div class="MsoNormalCxSpLast" style="text-indent: .5in;">
These women had much to
fear but their joy in God’s work on earth was greater than their fear. Because
of joy, they would run into a dark and broken world. Because of joy they would
be the first to worship the risen Lord. Because of joy they would be the first
preachers of the Resurrection. Because of joy that God will not let darkness
overtake his kingdom. God has broken into the world to save it, and no one can
stop him. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Personal Reflection:</b></div>
When has fear stopped you? When has the joy of Jesus moved you forward?<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-70213427088415494362018-03-13T07:01:00.000-07:002018-03-13T07:01:39.135-07:00Jesus Healing: Dead are Raised<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Scripture:</b> </div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<span class="woj">Luke 7:1-17</span></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Quick Summary:</b> </div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Jesus
brings the centurion’s servant back to life. Then, on the way to the cemetery,
he brings the widow’s son back to life. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-align: center; text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>The Point:</b></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
Jesus can restore our lives, no
matter who we are or how we are different. </div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Questions for Family Time:</b></div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
1. What was the miracle
today?</div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
a. Jesus raised the
dead.</div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
2. Who was dead?</div>
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a.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
centurion’s servant and the widow’s son. </div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
3. How were they different?</div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
a. The centurion
was a really good guy who was a VIP. The widow was really poor and not
important in her community at all. She was going to have to be a beggar or
slave if Jesus didn’t do it. </div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
4. How were they the same?</div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
a. They both needed Jesus help. </div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
5. Do you think Jesus would help you? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
a. YES! Jesus would help anyone, no matter how
they are different. </div>
<br />
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Deeper:</b></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">When
Jesus heard about the centurion, he came highly recommended. The chief
religious leaders saw him, though he was a foreigner, as worthy of a miracle. By
all measures, the widow who lost her son was in more need of a miracle that
day. She lost more than a servant who could be replaced. She lost her only son.
As the only male left in her immediate family all of <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">her</i> assets were in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">his</i>
name: her land, her house, and her livestock. None of them would be left in her
name. Her livelihood relied on her son’s life. With him gone, she was now a
ward of the state, a beggar with no resources of her own. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Yet, unlike the
Centurion, even though she was Jewish, no one spoke up on her behalf. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While the Centurion may have had merit, she
had need. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As I thought about how
that is true for our society, I couldn’t help but think of scholarships. I have
spent a lot of years filling out scholarship forms, and they basically fall in these
two categories. There are scholarships based on merit: how high your grades,
how many activities you are in, who you know, and how high you tested. Then
there are the need based scholarships: how many resources do you have? The
belief is that scholarships will give a person a better future. They aren’t
like loans, which you have to pay back, but a free gift. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This man and woman were
hoping for a gift too, something they knew they couldn’t pay back. The
synagogue leaders put in the centurion’s name on merit. The man knew though,
that based on merit, he wouldn’t make the cut. He received something he didn’t
deserve, even with his glowing recommendations. And who could have been more in
need than the widow? The widow was given something that she needed desperately.
</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Now my scholarship metaphor
breaks down here because the truth about scholarships is that they are an
either/or deal. There are limited numbers of scholarships and everyone competes
over those scholarships. We make our merits look better, and our poverty look
worse because each scholarship is a competition with losers. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But Jesus doesn’t
choose the Centurion OR the widow. He doesn’t choose according to a reference
letter or a bank account. He chooses BOTH of them. </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">He chooses to help the
faithful Gentile. And he chooses to help the poor Jew. In two stories, Jesus
chooses every demographic in his world. He proves what Paul will say when he
write to the Galatians: There is neither Jew nor Gentile, there is neither
slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ
Jesus.</span></div>
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<br />
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"> Jesus
brings life wherever he goes. He brings it regardless of our merit. He brings
it regardless of our poverty. There are no limits put on his gift. We call that
gift <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">grace</i></b>.
So whatever you think disqualifies you from the life he offers, you are sorely
mistaken. All you have to do is accept the gift. </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Personal Reflection:</b></div>
What difference have you thought keep you come from Jesus? How does this
passage challenge that?Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-52380925826833386912018-02-26T09:52:00.002-08:002018-02-26T09:52:28.785-08:00Jesus Heals: Deaf to Hear<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
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<b>Scripture:</b> </div>
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<span class="woj">Mark 7:31-37</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Quick Summary:</b> </div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">Jesus
goes to pagan territory, and heals a deaf man who cannot speak. He is careful
to do it a whole different ways than the magicians who just do it for show. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>The Point:</b></div>
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Jesus is no magician! He doesn’t play
tricks, but changes lives!</div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Questions for Family Time:</b></div>
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<span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span>Who did Jesus heal this week?</div>
<div style="margin-left: .75in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="mso-list: Ignore;">a.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span>The deaf man who could not speak</div>
<div style="margin-left: .25in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span>Who else did healings in the man’s neighborhood?</div>
<div style="margin-left: .75in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="mso-list: Ignore;">a.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span>Magicians would pretend to heal people, but it wasn’t
real. It was always a trick.</div>
<div style="margin-left: .25in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span>What did Jesus diferent than the magicians?</div>
<div style="margin-left: .75in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="mso-list: Ignore;">a.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span>He did it in secret, without a crowd. He told the man
exactly what was happening as he did it, making sure the man knew it was a
healing from God. Then, he told the man not to tell anyone…a magician would
NEVER do that!</div>
<div style="margin-left: .25in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span>Did the man keep it a secret like Jesus wanted?</div>
<div style="margin-left: .75in; mso-list: l0 level2 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="mso-list: Ignore;">a.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span>No, he was too excited. </div>
<br />
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Deeper:</b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Zeke
and I were watching Arthur the other day. The episode was all about when D.W. heard
a secret. It seemed like everyone else in her family had secrets, so she was
really excited when she got her first secret. She had gone to the nurse to get
a band aid, and one of the little boys in her class had split his pants in the
back. She knew that telling his secret would most likely hurt him. But it was
so juicy. She had nightmares about telling it she wanted to so bad. She had to
let it out.</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Have you ever had a
secret like that? Even though you knew you shouldn’t let it out, it just kind
of pressed on your insides. Every conversation you have seems to connect with
this little bit of information. In fact, when someone says “I have a secret”
our natural instinct is not to turn away, but to lean in. </span>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This story is all about
hearing. But not just hearing. It’s a story about hearing the secret of Jesus. In
this story, Jesus is far from home when some of these people bring a deaf man
to Jesus, and they beg for Jesus to heal him. Jesus knows these people. He
knows about how these same people crowd around magicians who put on a show for
the people as they provide “cures.” How the audience loves a good show! </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">He looks at the deaf
man and he sees not a man waiting for a performance, but a man wanting to hear.
So he takes the man away from the crowd and he starts to communicate to the
man. Now this was before American Sign Language, but Jesus signs to the man
what is happening. He puts his fingers in the man’s ears, he spit and puts the
spit on his tongue. Then to make sure the man knows where the healing is coming
from, he looks up to heaven. The man hears, for the first time, at Jesus’
words, “Be opened!” </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But then Jesus tells
them: Keep it a secret. The scripture tells us, they couldn’t do it. The more
sternly he told them to be quiet, the more people they had to tell. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Why does Jesus ask them
to keep this secret? It seems like a pretty unlikely request right from the
start. After all, what does he expect when he heals a mute man but that he
would start talking? If he really wanted the man to be quiet, don’t fix his
ability to speak! </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This request to keep a
secret is a pattern all the way through Mark. The word “commanded” in Greek is
used more in Mark than anywhere else in the NT combined. All but once it is
used as Jesus tells people not to tell. It doesn’t seem to fit. After all, we
are always trying to share the Good News of Jesus. So why here does it seem
that Jesus is encouraging the opposite? </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I have a few guesses. Jesus
did the healing in secret- just the man and him. So perhaps he was trying to
separate his ministry from the magic of the day. But perhaps, there was more
than that…</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">After all Jesus had to
know what his popularity meant…He had to know that as the crowds increased, the
established leaders grew more jealous of him. He had to know how indignant they
must have been at the idea of him teaching in Gentile territory. He had to know
it wasn’t just the Jewish Pharisees, Sadducees, and Synagogue Leaders. He had
to know the pagan priests and magicians weren’t too happy about his presence
either. He had to know that he was taking a risk. He had to know that with
every leader he enraged, he stepped closer to his own death. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">So why? Why would he
not just avoid the secret all together? Why not just leave the man deaf and
mute? Why bother? </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .25in;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Perhaps Jesus’
sacrifice didn’t start on the cross. Perhaps, Jesus sacrificed each time he
healed someone. His sacrifice in this story, isn’t just for those gathered in
the synagogue or the temple or those filling the established church. His
sacrifice in this story is on the other side of the river. It is with those who
believe in magic incantations. Who worship false gods. This sacrifice is for the
outsiders, too. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Maybe
that is you. You believe in God, but you are not what I have heard called a “churchie.”
You aren’t one of those people who gather together. You are an outsider who
feels more comfortable in the magician’s crowd than in Jewish territory. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Jesus
sacrificed for you. His followers are those of us who have been rejected by “The
Joneses.” We don’t fit in. But then, Jesus calls us together. And because of
his sacrificial love, we find meaning. We find each other. We find life. And we
can’t keep it to ourselves. If that is what you are looking for, I want you to
find that kind of love and belonging with us. We meet after KICK in the
sanctuary from 5:15-5:45 and then share a meal together. Usually we are done
around 6:30, so there is still plenty of evening left to get homework and baths
done before bedtime. Join Us. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 1.25in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Personal Reflection:</b></div>
How
is Jesus different than a magician? How has the secret of Jesus sneaked out of
you?<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2790508519591617867.post-2090222481219941052018-02-12T08:24:00.003-08:002018-02-12T08:25:29.641-08:00Jesus Healing: Lepers are Cleansed<div style="text-align: center;">
<b>Scripture:</b> </div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
Luke 5:12-16</div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Quick Summary:</b> </div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt;">A
man with a skin disease came to Jesus all alone and said, </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt;">“Lord, if you will, you can make
me clean.” Jesus said, “I will, be clean.” The man was cleansed from his
disease.</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;"></span></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>The Point:</b></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
Jesus healed the leper, even when he was
all alone. </div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Questions for Family Time:</b></div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
1. Who was healed this
week? </div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
a. The leper</div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
2. What is a leper?</div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
a.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is
someone with a contagious skin disease (called leprosy)</div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
3. Did his friends bring him to
Jesus like the lame man’s friends did last time? </div>
<div style="text-indent: -.25in;">
a. No, he came all
alone. Jesus loves us even when we are all by ourselves. </div>
<br />
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Deeper:</b></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This time, the healing
is just between Jesus and the leper. That is fitting with what we know about
leprosy. It was a disease that according to Old Testament Law required complete
separation from society. Even knowing that, this man is eerily alone because in
other places in scripture we find groups of lepers. Not this man. He is by
himself when he comes to Jesus.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Even though most of us
don’t suffer from something that requires this kind of isolation, we understand
what it means to be alone in our illness. Even when we are surrounded by
support, there is a loneliness in suffering. There is the reality that <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I</i></b>
have to tough it out, <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I</i></b> have to deal with the pain, and <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I</i></b>
am the one facing the uncertainty of mortality. There is a loneliness of suffering.
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And this man, in his
aloneness, finds his way to Jesus. He falls on his face and begs Jesus. And
what he says is so profound: “Lord, If you will, you can make me clean.” There
is no question here of Jesus’ power to heal. There is no question of what Jesus
is <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ABLE
</i></b>to do. Jesus <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">CAN</i></b> make him clean. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">There is just
recognition that though he can, he may not. This is the tricky thing about
faith, isn’t it? We may come to Jesus begging for healing and we have faith
that he can do anything. Yet, he may choose not to heal us. Recognizing that is
not a lack of faith. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> There is another text in scripture where these words
are almost exactly the same. In this other story in Luke, a man says, “If you
are willing, remove this cup from me.” The second was Jesus in the Garden of
Gethsemane hours before he suffered and died on the cross. In the story of the
Leper, God was willing and healed the man. In the second, God did not will for
the cup to be taken away, and Jesus ultimately died. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">And that is true in
healing today. God still heals. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He hears
our prayers, sees our faith, even when we come alone, even in our isolation,
and immediately we are healed. Immediately our leprosy leaves us. But
sometimes, even though we come with prayers and faith knelt before God, our
pain doesn’t leave. Sometimes, we remain by Jesus in the garden, sweating
blood. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">But even though God did
not remove his cup, God did answer Jesus prayer. The scripture says, right
after that prayer, “There appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening
him.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , "serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">This is the promise God
gives us: even when we are utterly alone, God can heal us. And even when he
chooses not to, he doesn’t leave us to suffer alone. He sends his angels to
strengthen us. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" style="text-align: center;">
<b>Personal Reflection:</b></div>
When have you felt alone in your suffering? How did God heal
you? How did he “send his angels to strengthen you? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Crystal Jacobsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14649475770734593069noreply@blogger.com0