Baby steps” “One day at a time” “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time”
We know the clichés. We’re familiar with the understanding that much of life can only be experienced in moment-by-moment segments. We get it that we’re not privileged to know the outcomes of tomorrow until we get there.
It’s precisely that uncertainty that breeds our anxieties. It is precisely in the unknown or unknowable where our fears multiply. But what is assured in all the uncertainty and unknown of life is that we live and move and have our very existence enveloped in the presence, protection and provision of the Father. God is always with us and forever for us and he will not leave us to wander alone. So today we look at walking in the promise.
#7 in series: The Journey of Promise
World leaders have them. So do some celebritiesI Even the pope has his own. PPD or PSD - Personal protection or security detail. Bodyguards. Trained people that can be relied on to protect you and keep you safe from all danger at all costs. Their presence is meant to help a person relax and feel safe as they go about their everyday life. In our life's journey, sometimes it is easy to forget that we have our own PPD - a faithful God who never leaves us, whose might no-one or nothing can surpass, who is willing to do whatever it takes to save us. Whatever we encounter, he is a God who is mighty to save. His promise of salvation also comes with the promise of protection...from all that enslaves, from all that troubles, from all that diminishes and destroys life. It's a promise that we, as the people of God, need to remember, to remind each other of, and to claim so that we can live life to the full, whatever circumstances we encounter on our journey. So today we claim again the protection of the promise as we gather in worship together.
#6 in series: The Journey of Promise
I couldn’t have done it without you. I don't know what I would have done if you hadn’t been here. How many times have we been under the pump & someone stepped in and made all the difference...right place right time right amount of help & things changed for the better? We could all tell that story...maybe 100x over.
In the cosmic confrontation between God and all who would seek for themselves God’s place in the universe, God always enlists partners in his purpose & promise so the world would see God’s greatness, goodness & glory. You know some of the names...Noah, Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Moses & Aaron, kings, prophets, apostles and you and me...called by God to participate in his work & reveal to those around us who he is and how vast is his love for us. God invites you too to be partners in the promise as you simply do what he calls you to do in order to reveal the greatness & majesty of his name. It's time to step up.
#5 in series: Exodus: Journey of Promise
The Summit. The Amazing Race. Survivor. Rush. All of these reality shows involve a journey, and all contain a promise - financial freedom or a transformative prize for those who make it to the end. Along the way there are challenges encountered and obstacles faced. There is doubt, discouragement, and despair as people come face to face with their own limitations, with things that don't go according to plan, and more importantly, with who they are, and what drives their life. It's these very questions that are at the heart of the journey of promise we encounter in the book of Exodus. "Who is the Lord" and "who am I" are key questions that each one of us need to answer in life's journey as we come face to face with the God who makes himself known to us. They are questions that confront us when things seem to deteriorate rather than improve, when the promise seems distant rather than real. It's then that we discover that the greatest obstacles we face lie not without us but within us and it is this obstacle to the promise that we explore today. For that is when we will discover real freedom not just now but forever.
#4 in series: Exodus: Journey of Promise
It all sounds so promising. A great opportunity. Even exciting. But then reality hits and self-doubt sets in. The voices in our head make us second guess ourselves, doubt our capabilities, and overwhelm our hearts with dread and fear. It was Moses’ journey…it is also our journey. But the call of God is not about Moses. It is not about you. It’s about God. There is no way we can accomplish what God wants us to do in our own strength. But when we step out and say yes to his mission, God will equip and empower with all that is necessary to be the people he calls us to be. Sometimes all we have is the voice of promise…but that is enough… for God confidence overcomes self-doubt every time. Today you hear the voice of promise for yourself so you can be God’s voice of promise to the world.
#3 in series: Exodus: The Journey of Promise
…”I understand” “I know just how you feel” “I know what you’re going through” Many times those words leave our mouths before we’ve taken time to think…if we thought, many times we’d never say those words. We’re not the other person. We don’t really understand. We don’t really know what it’s like to be in their position. Similar, perhaps. But we are not them. And many times we aren’t able to do anything to change the situation. God, however, can and in those times of desolation, desperation and aimless wandering, he does know intimately what we are thinking, feeling, or going through. And when God knows, he is moved to act in mercy, grace and with power for those for whom he has promised to be Redeemer; the lost, wounded, broken, enslaved and suffering. So if you have ever felt no-one understands or you are experiencing that now, come and experience the God who comes to deliver and fulfil his promise in person.
#2 in Series: Exodus: The Journey of Promise
Wonder Woman is one! As is Monster's University or Puss in Boots!. In film or literary terms, they are known as prequels - “the story before the story” – the backstory – the events that lead up to what you know as the story. As we open the pages on the Exodus story, a journey out of slavery into freedom as a people of God, there is a prequel, there is a backstory. There is a Promise that shapes all the promises even to this day. It's a promise that inspires courage and compassion. A promise that gives hope even when life seems to serve up curses. So join us today as we begin the journey and look at the prequel that reveals whether the story of our journey is one of promise or curse.
#1 in series: Exodus: Journey of Promise
Weather is known to shift our emotions! Sunlight makes us feel less tired. Rain makes us more lethargic. Wind makes people feel more irritable, jittery or distressed. Ask any teacher and they will tell you when the weather is windy, students are chaotic; when they line up there will always be a problem or an issue. Ask any coach of a sporting team, and windy weather means a normally focussed and in sync team lose all structure, struggle to follow instructions and make decisions. They take less risks. They score less goals. They make more skill errors. The wind influences everything. Imagine those who witnessed the results of that first Pentecost then. The wind of the Spirit changed everything…but not like people expected. Rather than chaos, there was order. Rather than anxiousness, there was calm, rather than fear, there was boldness. Rather than despair, there was joy. Rather than indecision there was focus and purpose. The Son was shining and the Spirit was blowing and that transformed everything for the Church. It was not what the world was expecting. Filled with what the world offered, people's vision was blurred, their senses dulled, their judgment clouded and their souls poisoned. But when the Holy Spirit blows through and fills our lives, it opens our eyes to the mystery of God and the wonder and beauty of life, giving clear vision, a focussed purpose, a sharp wisdom, senses that are alive and souls that are restored. That's living by the Spirit and it will make you dizzy with love, joy and gratitude and it will definitely get people talking and asking questions.
#7 and final in series: "The New Normal"
The sun'll come outTomorrowSo ya gotta hang on'Til tomorrow come what mayTomorrow, tomorrowI love ya tomorrowYou're always, a day away
It's the classic song from the musical “Annie” – the wishful hoping that circumstances, situations, or outcomes will be different tomorrow. We hope that our luck will turn, that easier times are just around the corner. But deep down we are scared that things won’t change, or the circumstances we find ourselves in will never be different. So the only option is either to curl up in a ball, put our heads under the blanket and pretend it’s not happening, or live like there is no tomorrow because if tomorrow doesn't come, nothing matters. That's not resurrection living and it's not the new normal that God has given us in his Son Jesus. We don't have to hang on til tomorrow...it's not always a day away. The new normal is that the Son is shining today, heaven is here in our midst in the risen and ascended Lord who is with us always.
Every hard moment we live through, every trial and struggle we face, and every tear we shed moves us from where we are to where he is. And in his presence hope restores, love strengthens and grace sustains. It's a powerful reality that enables us to be a people who are 'Living into eternity.'
#6 in series: The New Normal