Putting Feet on Your Faith

Sometimes, I think the hardest part about being faithful, living into our baptism, answering the call of Christ, is just getting started. At Annual Conference, Bishop Ken Carder (former pastor of Church Street UMC) exhorted the folks who were about to be ordained and commissioned (and the rest of us, too) to remember that our call all started with baptism. When we were baptized, we were called God's and given the power of the Holy Spirit to do what God calls us to do. Those of us who may have gone through a process to become pastors don't derive our call from anything other than that same Spirit--ordination is a remembering of that power, not some kind of new and special outpouring that isn't available to laypeople. Bishop Carder reminded us that we are empowered by God to live into the vows of our baptism, to become the children God is calling us to be. But sometimes, it's just so difficult to get started doing that! (I think so, at least!) Putting feet on our faith can be very scary. It's easier just to say we believe and not do anything about it.

If you come to church this Sunday, though, you'll hear the story of Naaman, a general in Syria's army during the time of the prophet Elisha. Naaman has what it takes to be a great man, and he eventually converts to Judaism, by the end of the story in 2 Kings 5. Starting out on the road to obedience to God was what was difficult for Naaman, though. He took the advice of a slave girl and traveled into enemy territory to find this prophet of the LORD, so he took that first step. But when Elisha's instructions for healing Naaman's leprosy (or whatever skin disease he had--we never quite know that "leprosy" means in the Bible) were to go bathe in the River Jordan seven times, Naaman couldn't quite believe it. Those instructions were so simple, and Elisha himself hadn't even come out to greet Naaman and give the instructions, anyway, that Naaman thought there was no way getting healed could be that easy. Surely, there needed to be some kind of great ceremony to heal him of this disease--maybe he could take a swim in the rivers of Damascus, that were so much "better" than the Jordan. Could it really be that easy to fix this problem? Could this LORD of all the earth really heal Naaman by such a simple sign? Putting feet on his faith didn't come easily to Naaman--he thought he was much too important to do what Elisha said. When he finally was convinced by his servants to go and do it,though, Naaman was healed, and he converted to a believer in the God of Israel.

So, I guess I'm not the only one who has trouble getting started once God gives me some instructions. Whether they sound easy or difficult to carry out, putting instructions from God into action always brings us plenty of challenges. That's why we remember our baptism, though--it's not our power that can get any of these things done. Putting feet on our faith doesn't mean acknowledging how much we can do on our own. Putting feet on our faith means letting God in, letting the Spirit do the Spirit's work through us. Putting feet on our faith means letting go of who we thought we might be, in order to make room for who God wants us to be. Sometimes it starts with small steps and sometimes it takes a huge leap of faith. Whatever God is calling us to do to put feet on our faith, we know one thing for sure--we go in the strength of our baptism, in the power of the Holy Spirit. Naaman may not have known anything about the ancient custom of baptism when he dipped in the River Jordan 7 times. He probably had no clue that years later, another man would be dipped in the river, and that man's life would forever change the way we think of baptism, of being cleansed by God, of being healed by the power of the Spirit. If we have been baptized, though, we go forth in the strength of that same Spirit, empowered by that same great God, and with the promise that that other man who got dipped in the river--Christ Jesus--is with us, even to the end. Now, that should be enough help to get us started in the right direction!

Annual Conference and other things

Dear friends, here we are in June! Annual Conference begins this Sunday, and I look forward to seeing some friends from around the Conference and worshiping with clergy colleagues and lay members from all over east Tennessee, southwest Virginia, and north Georgia. We'll also do the business of the Conference, so I'm sure there will be interesting news to report soon. Here are the upcoming events on the Circuit. I hope you can join us for some of them, especially Homecoming at French Broad Church this Sunday and the Cookout and Game Night at Bethel in a few weeks.

Wed., June 9: Bible Study, 7:00 p.m. @ Bethel Fellowship Hall
Sun., June 13: 3rd Sunday After Pentecost
Sunday School at both churches, 10:00 a.m.
Homecoming Worship Service, 11:00 a.m. @ French Broad Church
Picnic Lunch following worship
Sun., June 13-Wed., June 16: Holston Annual Conference, Lake Junaluska, North Carolina
Tues., June 15: Bethel N.O.W. meeting, 7:00 p.m. @ Bethel Fellowship Hall
Wed., June 16: NO Bible Study @ Bethel Fellowship Hall (due to Annual Conference)
Sat., June 19: Plant and Rummage Sale (again!), 8:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. @ Huckleberry Springs Chapel
Sun., June 20: 4th Sunday After Pentecost
Mon., June 21: Planning meeting for “Praise in the Park” celebration, 6:30 p.m. @ Lyon’s Creek Baptist Church—everyone is welcome to come help plan details and fundraising for this community-wide outreach and witness event that will happen in September
Tues., June 22: Bethel N.O.W. Meeting, 7:00 p.m. @ Bethel Fellowship Hall
Wed., June 23: Bible Study, 7:00 p.m. @ Bethel Fellowship Hall
Sat., June 26: Cookout and Game Night, 4:00-8:00 p.m. @ Bethel Fellowship Hall
Sun., June 27: 5th Sunday After Pentecost
Wed., June 30: Bible Study, 7:00 p.m. @ Bethel Fellowship Hall

Coming up Soon!

We have a busy few weeks coming up on the Circuit, and as I'm not doing such a good job of updating our events on each church's website (the ones you can link to through the pictures on the right sidebar of this page), here's what we're up to these days. I hope you'll come and check out some of these exciting events--and join us for worship any Sunday, too!

Sunday, May 9: 6th Sunday of Easter
"The Prayers of Jesus" Bible Study, 6:00 p.m. @ St. Paul East UMC
Tuesday, May 11: Bethel N.O.W. Meeting @ Bethel Fellowship Hall
Wednesday, May 12: Bible Study, 7:00 p.m. @ Bethel Fellowship Hall
Saturday, May 15: “I Love East Knox County” Festival, 10:00 a.m.—3:00 p.m. @ Food City on Asheville Highway
Sunday, May 16: Ascension Sunday/7th Sunday of Easter
Special Offering for the Sudan taken at worship services
“The Prayers of Jesus” Bible Study, 6:00 p.m. @ St. Paul East UMC
Wednesday, May 19: Bible Study, 7:00 p.m. @ Bethel Fellowship Hall
Saturday, May 22: Annual Plant and Rummage Sale at Huckleberry Springs Chapel and Administrative Center, 8:00 a.m. -??
Sunday, May 23: PENTECOST! Celebrate the birthday of the Church!
“The Prayers of Jesus” Bible Study, 6:00 p.m. @ St. Paul East UMC
Tuesday, May 25: Bethel N.O.W. Meeting, 7:00 p.m. @ Bethel Fellowship Hall
Wednesday, May 26: Bible Study, 7:00 p.m. @ Bethel Fellowship Hall
Thursday, May 27: Wells for Sudan Golf Tournament in Kingsport, TN.
Sunday, May 30: Trinity Sunday
Peace with Justice Special Sunday Offering
Fifth Sunday Holston Home for Children Offering
Monday, May 31: Church Office Closed
Wednesday, June 2: Bible Study, 7:00 p.m. @ Bethel Fellowship Hall

Ahhhh, Spring...

Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! Alleluia! Happy Easter!

What? Easter has come and gone, you say? Not so, my friend! In the church, we celebrate Easter as a SEASON--for 50 whole days! So, if you've put up your little bunny and chick figurines, and if you thought the egg hunts were over, get 'em all back out--you have five more weeks to have your Easter fun!

But seriously, it does seem pretty easy to forget all about the ways the church does things, when the stores have all moved past Easter and are looking forward to...well...whatever holiday they can think of that comes next, I guess. We are called to be Easter people every day, though--always proclaiming the good news of Jesus' death and resurrection, living without fear of what may happen to us in this life. Sound good? Well, I know it's not that easy. Sometimes, I think I spend a lot of time caught up in details of the church, and I'm completely missing out on the joy of knowing Jesus, of getting to know God better day by day, of living like it matters to me that God made me and everything else, and that God wants us all to experience shalom. How do I keep in mind that I'm supposed to be focusing on loving God and my neighbor, when I have so much "stuff" to do? Being faithful is such a chore, sometimes!

As people who are supposed to know the risen Christ, though, I think there's one sure-fire way to keep our heads in the game: make taking time for God a priority every day. You don't get to know more about friends by just thinking about them--you have to take time to talk to them, to read what they write to you (if they write letters or emails), to make yourself comfortable with who they really are. So, in these 50 days of Easter--a good part of which has already passed us by--are you getting to know God more? Are you taking time for studying scripture? For prayer? For seeking God in other people and places--in the world around you?

It's always a challenge to grow in our faith. Just when we get comfortable, it seems we learn something about God that makes us a little bit uncomfortable. It just hardly seems fair! But the God whose story is revealed by the Bible is still in the process of revealing God's self to us, in new ways, every day. And we can't know how that is unless we keep trying to catch whatever glimpse of that God we are privileged to see that day. We may only see God's backside--like Moses did--but still, it's something. And it's part of the story we have to share, as Easter people. God interrupts us. God does what we don't expect. God doesn't let death win. It's amazing. It seems too good to be true. And it's the story we have to share. How will you tell that story today, in word or in deed?

The Prodigal What?

Sometimes I think it's hard to be glad that spring is finally on its way, in the midst of Lent. Maybe I take the season too seriously, or perhaps I don't quite get what it's about, but I feel like enjoying the warm weather and reveling in the abundance of sunshine is somehow out of place right now. Maybe it's just because it's been so much colder this year that enjoying the weather seems like a guilty pleasure! Well, whatever it is, I've found myself recently thinking that I should be a little more sober during this season of Lent. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm always able to tell you the places where I need to improve--sometimes to such an extent that I wouldn't be able to tell you what I'm even doing well, but that's another matter, entirely. It seems like in the last several days, though, I've had reason to think about some things I find myself repenting for, time and again. I guess you could say I've gotten good at keeping God out of just a few areas of my life. And if I manage everything else, shouldn't it be good enough to keep it down to one or two vices? I mean, we all have to have our faults because we're all human, right?

But no, the season of Lent reminds me, more than usual, that God isn't really interested in my excuses for why I've not gotten myself right in one area or another. Last Sunday’s gospel lesson, Luke 13:1-9, reminded us that our time here is short and it's a gift from God. And Jesus admonished his hearers that they were in need of repenting just as much as the people they judged to be worse sinners than themselves. In my sermon, I mentioned that Jesus was effectively saying, "Don't worry about what those other folks are doing wrong. Worry about your own selves first." And whew--that's a message I need to hear myself, too. How much time do I spend trying to justify what I'm doing by judging someone else and finding myself better than that person? What a waste of time! I thank God that I've gotten the gift of another day today, to try to get it right! Gotta keep working on getting my own self right, so I can shine God’s light to others…

Still, as I approach this Sunday's lections, I am faced with the story that we usually call "The Prodigal Son," and I can't help but wonder why this lection made it into the Lenten season. Why do we read about God's gift of life last week and God's abundant mercy and love this week, at this season of the church year? And what's in that story about a man with two sons that matters much to me?

Well, the answer to that question may remain to be seen, in some respects, but what has struck me, since I heard this passage preached at a retreat recently, is that I need to rethink who is the prodigal in this story. I've spent much of my life clucking my tongue at that wayward son, thinking that I will never be like him. I've worried for the older son, wishing he would just be happy for his brother and his dad. I've wanted to write my own ending to this story--make it a happy story for everyone involved, erase the greed and selfishness of the younger son, the bitterness and indignation of the older son. But what have I thought of the father here? He was always a stock character to me--a man who loved his sons, a quaint and reassuring portrait of a forgiving God. That’s all.

But when I heard this parable preached recently, the preacher pointed out that it's not really all about the sons--it's about the father, too. The father is the one who's prodigal here! This father is willing to waste almost all he has, to disgrace himself in front of his community, to risk ridicule and look foolish, just because he loves his son so much. He not only willingly hands over half of his stuff to this selfish son, who heads off into the sunset, basically forsaking the family name, but the father then spends lavishly on this same son when that son returns home. What kind of father is this? Do I know any father like this? Have I come across a love so lavish, so extravagant, so wasteful, even, that all of those sins I'm spending so much time scrutinizing right now are completely laid aside by the one who loves me? Is that kind of love even possible?!

But here it is—here’s the answer I’ve been looking for: YES, it is possible. No matter how often I try to earn some grace, to get my ticket punched for heaven by my own good works, during Lent I have to take a long look at myself and admit that I’ve failed. I’m human. But during Lent I have to admit that it isn’t about me, anyway. Whether I’m the wayward son or the reliable son, whether I’ve just wasted the gift of this day or I’ve used it wisely, God wants to love me and welcome me home, just the same. And when I can get myself turned around and headed back home—whether just from out in the fields, or from a far away place of famine—there’s the fatted calf on the spit, the best robe waiting for me, the signet ring—the mark that says I’m the father’s child—once again. I’m welcome. That father is there, waiting for me to make it back home, waiting for me to receive that love he so wants to give me, even on my worst, most miserably brokenly human days. Thank you, God, for wasting your love on me. Help me to learn how to waste it on others, too, with every moment of every day that you’ve given me. Amen.

Lent is right around the corner...

Some thoughts, as Ash Wednesday draws near...
Well, it's almost here--that time of year that seems to strike suddenly and without warning, surprising us when we were just going along, minding our own business--LENT. It begins this Wednesday, when we observe Ash Wednesday. We'll have two services on the Circuit--one at Bethel at 6:00 p.m. and one at French Broad at 8:00 p.m. Both services will include the imposition of ashes, along with the call to repentance and self-examination that characterizes the liturgical season of Lent.

So, raid your cupboards; eat up all your fatty foods. (Tomorrow is, after all, Fat Tuesday--Mardi Gras.) Prepare yourself to experience God's glory again this year, glory as you've never seen before, perhaps, or glory in your everyday existence. What will you do in preparation? What will you learn about yourself and your God during this time of self-examination? What will you turn from, in order to turn back to God? It may not be a big change. It may even be something you've done before. You might try to find time to add something new to your daily routine. And you may just fail at whatever you try to do to observe this Lenten season. The point of all of it, though--whether we give up something as monumental as the internet, or whether we try to add just 2 minutes of prayer to our day--is to get back to God, or closer to God, if we don't feel too far away from God right now. What would it be like to be that disciple God wants you to be? You may not get there between now and April 4th, but the point of Lent is at least trying. Nothing we do--during Lent, or any other time--earns us God's love. The purpose of what we do during Lent--and every day, if we're really trying to live out our faith--is to be faithful to the love we've experienced, to share it with the world, to listen to God's word, to see God in and around us, and to honor that word, to be transformed by it. Will you work on that this Lent?

Some Upcoming Events
Wednesday, Feb. 17:
6:00 p.m.--Ash Wednesday Service at Bethel Church
7:00 p.m.--Bible Study at Bethel Fellowship Hall
8:00 p.m.--Ash Wednesday Service at French Broad Church

Thursday, Feb. 18:
11:30 a.m.--Bible Study at Huckleberry Springs Center

Sunday, Feb. 21: First Sunday of Lent
--The Bethel Church Council meeting originally scheduled for today has been changed to the 28th, due to the IMPACTING MINISTRY 2010 event at Middlebrook Pike UMC, which has been rescheduled for today.

Monday, Feb. 22:
7:00 p.m.--"Getting God's Attention" Lenten Study on Joel at the parsonage

Schedule changes and other miscellany

Breaking news: The IMPACTING MINISTRY lay leadership event, scheduled for this Sunday, has been postponed until Sunday, February 21st, due to impending bad weather.

Other news: I will be out of the office this weekend for Divine Rhythm in Pigeon Forge and also for Holston Annual Conference Pastors' Convocation at Lake Junaluska next Tuesday through Friday. If you have any needs while I am gone, please contact me by cell phone at 865-332-1626. If you need to speak with a person who is nearby, please contact Betty Newman at 865-933-1345.

Have a safe and blessed week,
Pastor Betzy