Dear Faithful Seed Sowers,

It is only a few weeks before we celebrate the birth of Christ.  Christmas!  Are you ready?  Are you ready for Christ to be born anew in your heart and home and in your holidays?

Last week, we started our Advent series. Advent means “coming” and, for sure, whether or not we are ready, Christmas is coming! There are four Sundays in Advent. Today is our second Advent message. We have two Sundays left in order for us to focus on preparing our hearts, our homes, our holidays for the celebration of Christmas! Our first Advent Sunday we heard about “Hope in Harrowing Times”. We talked about Zechariah and Elizabeth who had waited many years to have a child.  They were old, their hopes had been dashed and delayed. We learned that the Christmas story occurs after a 400-year silence from God; from Malachi to Matthew–silence! The people of Israel had been hoping and waiting for their Messiah for 400 years.  Their hope had been long delayed.  They are now being ruled in their own homeland by a Roman Emperor. Can we imagine that scenario?

Zechariah and Elizabeth, and the people of Israel, all understood having hope in harrowing times. Their story reminds me of our story today. I always ask you to put yourself into the story of the Bible. With COVID-19, I think we can all understand trying to keep our hope alive.

What about you?  Have you ever had your hope delayed? Have you ever had a day or two where you have lost hope in these harrowing times of Covid-19?  I know I have; my hope has been stretched to the limits this year with the death of mother-in-law, my brother, and my dad.  And besides all of this grief, there is just the plain grief of 2020/COVID-19. Church isn’t what it used to be. Everything had changed.  I think we are all aware of the sorrow we feel from of the loss of what we called “normal”.  I am sure we can all relate to having our hope delayed. I pray every day that we can find hope in these harrowing times. Thank God for Advent!

Thank God! We have lit the candle of HOPE—Heaven’s One Promise: Emmanuel.

Today we are going to study Joseph. We are going to see how God’s love endured for Joseph. Do you know that the definition of “endured” means “to suffer something painful or difficult patiently”?

Do you believe that God’s love will endure for you in this time of Covid-19 shutdown, lockdowns, quarantines, loss, illness and even death? Will your love endure as you suffer through this painful and difficult time?

Advent hope brings God’s enduring love; a love that will help us to suffer through this painful season, this difficult time, patiently. There is no other way. We have all been placed into this Covid-19 season and, with God’s love, we will endure. We may suffer but we will endure.

Think about Joseph for a minute!  What was going on in his mind?  He was at his father’s house preparing a place for his lovely bride.  He had been working, planning, and dreaming about his future and the life he and Mary would have together. What were his hopes and dreams? Was he thinking about how many children they would have?  Would they be boys, or would he have girls? Was he hoping to build up his father’s business so that they could have camels and lots of sheep?  Was Joseph dreaming of taking his family on yearly vacations to the Sea of Galilee?  Was he hoping and dreaming of bringing the family down to Jerusalem for the yearly festival of Passover?

Joseph was a happy man at this point in his life.  He was going to be married and his life was looking good. And then one day, it all came crashing down.  Mary was pregnant!  How could this be?  What would people think?  What would people say?  His beautiful bride-to-be was pregnant?  Mary told him about her encounter with the angel Gabriel and what the angel said: “Mary, you are highly favored.  The Lord is with you, Mary.  Do not be afraid—you are going to be with child!  Name him Jesus.  He will be called the Son of the Most High!  Nothing is impossible with God, Mary!” (Luke 1:30-32)

Does Joseph believe Mary?  No! His dreams were LOST!  His dreams are shattered!  His hopes are dashed! What happens next in this story?  Have you entered this story? Are you Joseph? Mary? The angel? Are you the parent of Joseph? Or the nosy next-door-neighbor?

The word states that Joseph was a “righteous man”; instead of making Mary’s pregnancy public and shaming her, Joseph decides “to dismiss her”.  The Greek word Matthew uses is ἀπολύω [apoluo /ap·ol·oo·o/] — “to set aside, to put away.” Joseph sets Mary aside.

Dismissing is the common word used in their culture for divorce.  Joseph did not want to disgrace Mary.  She could be stoned for being pregnant and not married.  Joseph loved Mary deeply, but he did not believe Mary’s story. He decided to set her aside, put her away, and dismiss her. And by now, he’s exhausted and goes to sleep!

Lost Dreams!  Dreams shattered.  Have you ever been there?  Are you there now?

So What?
How many of us feel like Joseph? Enter 2020. We started out our year believing that 2020 was going to be a year of perfect vision, you know—20/20! And…maybe, just maybe, 2020 is actually, in all reality, truly becoming a year of perfect vision to each one of us. I do not know about you, but I know that my focus is on my faith, my focus on God is the only thing that is helping me to patiently endure this season. Money cannot buy me out of this situation. The law cannot help me. Position or power—they cannot get me out of this, either. I have one thing that has come into perfect vision for me: my relationship with God.

Wonder if this is where Joseph found himself?

Have your dreams been lost?  Have your dreams been shattered? Maybe you have lost your dream home.  Maybe you cannot get ahead and stay ahead.  Maybe your health is an area of concern, especially right now with this pandemic. Maybe you have been dealing with depression or anxiety.  Maybe there is a relationship in your life that has been broken and you wonder if it will ever be repaired. Maybe your dream job has been eliminated and you are the one out looking for employment in a covid world.  We are living in a time when dreams are being shattered right and left—and if it is not your turn on the dream smasher/chopping block—then I bet that you know someone whose dreams are being smashed against the rocky cliffs of the storms of life as we share this devotional.

Joe does what any man would do. He decides a nap is in order.

Can you imagine what happened when Joseph woke up from his nap? Joseph had a dream. He heard from the Lord through an angel in a dream.  Did you notice what Joseph did in verse 24 of Matthew 1?

When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.  He had no union with her until she gave birth to a son…and Joseph named the baby– JESUS.

When Joseph woke up from his “pull the covers over my head and sleep the world away” dream…he got up and did EXACTLY what the angel told him to do.  He did not talk it over with his Dad, he did not ask his best friend for advice, he did not go to work and take a poll on what everyone thought he should do. He obeyed.  He went and took Mary as his wife.  Remember the home he built?  He went and got Mary and brought her new home to live with him. He did not care what others would say when they found out she was pregnant.  Joseph had been visited by an angel in a dream. “Mary, I love you. Come home with me.  Be my wife. I get it. An angel visited me, too. We’re naming our son Jesus!”   And…just like that Joseph was given a new dream and a new promise—”the baby is from the Holy Spirit and you shall name him Jesus and they shall call him EMMANUEL—God with us!”

The “so what” for us today is the exact same “so what” as it was for Joseph:

(Put your name here), it is going to be okay.  I know this is not what you had planned.  I know you do not have a clue why this is happening…but the baby’s name is Jesus — He will save you from your sins.  You shall call him EMMANUEL—GOD IS WITH YOU.  

If your dreams have been shattered or drastically altered, I want you to hear what the angel said, “EMMANUEL, GOD IS WITH YOU.  Do not be afraid—GOD IS WITH YOU.  God will reshape your shattered dreams.  Wake up and do what you know to do—because GOD IS WITH YOU.” 

GOD IS WITH US.

Say it out loud right now, “GOD IS WITH ME.  I MAY NOT FULLY UNDERSTAND WHY THIS IS HAPPENING ON THIS SIDE OF HEAVEN BUT I TRUST THAT GOD IS WITH ME.”

This coming week, as you go about your life, look with Joseph eyes.  Wear the Joseph style sandals. Joseph did not get to live his well-planned-out-dreamlife, his dreams fell silently shattered on the dirt floor of his life…but because of a baby named JESUS–God reshaped Joseph’s dreams into more than Joseph could have asked or imagined. “How can the son of man be father to the son of God?” Look up that song, “JOSEPH’S SONG”. Give a listen. Put Joseph’s sandals on. Yes, dreams have been shattered. BUT GOD…EMMANUEL…is with us.

God’s enduring love had a plan from the very beginning of time. God’s enduring love had a plan for Joseph. God’s enduring love has a plan for you.

See You Sunday!

God loves you and so do I,
Pastor Dave
www.theseedchristianfellowship.com

“But the angel said to him: ‘Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John.'” Luke 1:13

Dear Saintly Seed-Sowers,

Advent is here!  We have 4 Sundays ahead! Let’s start now and prepare our hearts and our homes for our holidays. I read a post the other day saying it’s okay to have a simple holiday; the first Christmas was simple.  Simply divine! Sometimes we can get lost in all the extra wrapping of what we’ve made Christmas out to be. This year, let’s go simple. You can still give all the gifts and presents but let’s remember the real meaning of Christmas: Christ.

Advent means coming!  Advent is all about preparation. Sometimes we forget that before God sent his Son into the world, God prepared the way for His one and only Son. Did you know that Jesus arrived on the scene after 400 years of silence from God? It’s true. The angel, Gabriel, appeared to a priest named Zechariah. And Jesus arrived after Gabriel visited numerous people. The idea was simple: preparation. God even saw fit to prepare the way for his Son by sending a baby named John to Zechariah and Elizabeth. This baby would call people to repentance. Even God is into preparation.  Do you believe that God is preparing us during this time of Covid-19? Let’s explore the church season of Advent.

Are you prepared for Christmas? I am not asking if you have your tree up, or if you have your shopping completed but are you personally prepared for the birth of the Savior?  Are you prepared for the arrival of God’s Son? One might wonder how to get prepared. Dr. Luke can help us; he tells us the story of an old Jewish priest and his wife.

I encourage you to read the birth announcements found in Luke 1 & 2 and Matthew 1 and 2 during this season of Advent.  I believe if we spend a little time sitting with God’s Word we will be prepared for the Advent of the Christ child in our hearts and homes for our holidays.

Zechariah was a priest–a faithful priest who was out performing his duties even though God had been silent for 400 years and had not answered his own lifetime of prayer to have a child.  We also read that Zechariah was fearful when the angel Gabriel appeared in the Holy of Holies.  Zechariah was also faithless when he did not believe what Gabriel was telling him–that Elizabeth would soon become pregnant and bear a son named John. We also read that Zechariah was favored. The Lord had, indeed, remembered Zechariah and had heard his prayer. Zechariah had to be at least 80 years old by now. I wonder if Zechariah had ever lost hope.

I wonder as we are going through this harrowing time of Covid-19 if many of us have lost hope.  Will this pandemic ever end?  Will we ever get back to our lives as we once knew them?  Has God forgotten us?  Why does God not hear our prayers?

The name Zechariah means “The Lord Remembers.”

The name Elizabeth means “My God Is Absolutely Faithful.”

The angel said to Zechariah, “Your prayer has been heard.”  What prayer? This passage does not mention a prayer.  The angel must have been talking about Zechariah’s prayer for a child. God had not forgotten Zechariah’s prayer. Here’s a good point: We need to remember that “GOD REMEMBERS”.

We are told by Gabriel that Elizabeth would soon became pregnant and stay in seclusion for five months. We do not know why she did this. Some scholars say she was afraid of losing the baby. Luke does not tell us the reason for the seclusion (sounds familiar) but he does tell us Elizabeth spent the time thanking and praising God. During this time, she was thinking and talking about how God had worked in her life to bless her and how God took away her disgrace. Elizabeth remembers that “God is absolutely FAITHFUL.”

Makes me think of all the opportunities we have during this Covid-19 to be in seclusion. While Elizabeth is secluded, she spend her time thanking and praising God.  Wow!  How would our lives be different if we took time every day during our seclusion and quarantine to thank and praise God? Every day I walk by Alexa and I say, “Play Christian music”, “Play Christian piano music”, “Play Christian hymns” and all day long our laundry room is filled with praise! (Our bedroom is next to the laundry!)

This priestly couple reminds us that it does not matter how long you have known God, or how well you’ve obeyed God, or how faithfully you’ve served God, you always have room for growth. God is committed to stretching and growing the faith of people; people like Zechariah and Elizabeth and God is committed to doing the same in people like you and me.

SO WHAT?
The “so what?” question for today is:  How do these words written so long ago about the Advent of the Christ-child change me and bring to me the hope I need?

Zechariah was not prepared for the Advent of Christmas because he did not believe God could step into his life and answer his long-forgotten prayers. But God.  But God did in ways old Zech had never dreamed. I wonder if some of us here today are secretly disappointed with God, but afraid to admit it. Like old Zechariah, we just do what we are supposed to do, never really believing that God is at work to bless us in ways that would totally overwhelm us and silence us. As always, put yourself into this story and don’t just put yourself into it in one character–but into as many as you can think of: Zechariah, Elizabeth, the other 17,999 priests who serve in the temple, the neighbors, the family. What can you learn this week from the first Advent candle of hope? I have a good acronym for HOPE: Heaven’s One Promise–Eternity, Emmanuel. Do you believe that? Do you believe that Jesus Christ is your one hope, your one promise? Emmanuel, God with us? I do.  I believe it with all of my heart, mind, soul.

Many of you know that this year has been hard on so many. With the quarantines, lockdowns, shut-downs and Covid-19 infecting so many of us. We have members of our church who have lost loved ones during this time.  Some have not had the opportunity to celebrate the lives of their loved ones with a memorial service because of the quarantine.  I have lost my mother-in-law, my brother and my dad this year.  My wife and I have been taking care of my 88-year-old father-in-law who has severe dementia.  We have been caring for him for 24/7 for the past 10 months.  There are times when hope seems to be elusive–even to me, an ordained pastor of 22 years and a youth pastor for another 15 years before that and 3 years of seminary where God answered my prayers almost daily with blessings through others in our community.

As I was flying home from Illinois this past week after we celebrated my dad’s life, I spent some time looking out the airplane window and reflecting and my life.  I grieve the loss of my dad and the time we had together. I am so thankful for my stepmom, mama Sue, who loved my dad into heaven. As Christians, we have a hope that will never disappoint us.  We have a hope that will sustain us through hard times, hard times exactly like Covid-19.  We have a hope that conquerors death. We have the hope and the power of the resurrection. Don’t just glance by and not see the wonder of HOPE. Yes, Christ came to earth as a helpless baby but don’t miss that Jesus Christ walked out of that tomb of death. HE IS RISEN! Talk about HOPE!

God has a way of sending signals of hope to remind us that life is stronger than death. Light is more powerful than dark. God is more powerful than Satan. Good will overcome evil. Joy is stronger than disappointment.  Hope is answered prayer—no matter how long it takes. This is the message of the first Advent candle of Christmas: just as God meticulously prepared the way for Jesus to be born, God is painstakingly at work in each of our lives—preparing our hearts, and minds, and souls for Christ’s arrival. And–not just once but Christmas comes every year. Christmas is time to marvel at the wonder of HOPE. Advent is a time to prepare. Week one of Advent:  am I prepared? Do I believe that God is at work—answering our prayers–in ways I cannot imagine?  Do I dare to trust God enough–to take away my defects, disgrace, and my disappointment? It’s been a dark year for me but hear me when I say: I HAVE HOPE!

But the angel said to (your name here), “Do not be afraid, (your name here), for your prayer has been heard.”

What prayer is it that you need to be heard? Don’t be afraid. PRAY IT! God hears you.

·     From faithful to fearful to faithless to favored.

·       Am I open to God answering my prayer in ways I have never dreamed of?

·       Am I prepared for Christmas?

This week spend some time reading the gospel story of Christ’s birth in Luke.  Tell God where you need a blessing in your life. Pray.  Maybe you need to feel forgiven.  Every night at about 7 pm, I walk my father-of-love down the hallway to his bedroom. Every night as we make that trip he says, “Thank you, David, for teaching me about forgiveness. I can forgive others because I’ve been forgiven.” Every year Christmas comes on December 25. Every year we have a STOP/GAP opportunity to STOP and take a serious look at our lives. I’m praying this is a simply divine year of Christmas for you.

Let us pray:
O God of HOPE, you come into our lives in such amazing ways.  We ask and pray that You will come again this Advent season.  Come and fill the hopeless situations in our lives with hope, touch the hurting parts of our life with Your healing presence.  Remove our disgrace.  Answer our prayers.  Bless us, O God of Hope.  Prepare in each of us, a heart with room to spare for the birth of the Christ child, the living Savior come into our world to redeem, restore, and reconcile—do this in me this Advent Season.  In the precious name of Jesus, I pray. And, just like Zechariah, let me know you hear my prayer! Amen.

See you Sunday!

God loves you and so do I,
Pastor Dave
www.theseedchristianfellowship.com

“Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.” John 4:23

Dear Faithful Seed Sowers,

We have looked at the place of worship and the place of worship. Jesus surprised the woman at the well, “You will not just worship here or at the temple in Jerusalem. The place of worship is your heart” (My translation).  We have learned the that position of worship is to bow down, to humble ourselves, to fall flat on our faces. “Proskyneo” worshipers are those who are prostrate on their faces. We have learned that the purpose of worship is to ascribe worth to someone or something. Last week we were challenged to think about where we spend our time, our money and what we think about the most. What, or who, do we idolize and worship?

This week we will look at the person of worship.  We need to be careful what our idols are and what we worship because we become like what we worship.  That is a profound thought. The place of worship — is our hearts.  The position of worship — is bowing in surrender and humility. The purpose of worship — is to ascribe worth to someone or something —where do we invest most of our time, talents, and treasures for what we idolize, we become like.

I would like to flip the statement when Jesus speaks to the surprised woman at the well written above.  I would like to talk about worshiping in truth.

When we honestly worship in truth, we worship the person of Jesus.

Stop and think about the Old Testament people who followed God for 40 years in the wilderness.  We have only been in the wilderness of this Covid-19 shutdown over eight months now–for 40 years, we’d need another 400 months of covid.  I do know that if we keep our eyes on Jesus, we are going to make it through this season. 

When I think of worshiping in the truth, I think of the Tent of Meeting that Moses set up. Do you realize that the Tent of meeting was called the tabernacle? The Tent of Meeting was a tent, it was put up and taken down every time the cloud moved. I wonder how many times in 40 years that tent was taken down and put up? (The Seed Christian Fellowship is a portable church.  We rent a city room; we have rented it for almost ten years! 51 Sundays a year, plus Holy Week and Christmas Eve, we bring our trailer and we unload and set up and then tear down and store our portable TENT of a church.  Let me tell you, after ten years, it is a real sacrifice of the heart to oversee this enormous project called CHURCH. 40 years?)  Moses and company set up and tore down their tabernacle tent for not ten, but 40, years.

What was the original tabernacle, what did it look like? Was it a beautiful edifice or a building of great beauty? Were there stained-glass windows, great arches, fancy carpet, or wood flooring complete with paintings, ornate sanctuaries, and beautiful pipe organs? Not at all, not even close—the tabernacle of the Israelites was made of wood and animal skin. Nevertheless, every part of the old tabernacle was significant. Think of it this way, the tabernacle taught the way to God. First, the tabernacle had an altar for sacrifice that contained a laver, or a bronze wash basin, where the priests cleaned their hands. The traveling tabernacle, and even the magnificent tabernacle that Solomon built, had these items in the courtyard and in the Holy Place, and in the Holy of Holies.

I think the tabernacle is a perfect illustration of how a person must approach God.

The altar, which is the first thing we come to, is the cross of Christ. The cross was given to teach us that without the shedding of blood, there is no remission (no cancellation of our debt, no penalty) of our sins. First, we need the cross in order to direct our attention to the Lamb of God who came to take away the sins of the world.

Next, we find the laver — the bronze wash basin which is a picture of cleansing. Christ provides our cleansing when we confess our sins and enter fellowship with him. Next we find the table of shewbread or manna — bread of presence, within the Holy Place. This bread speaks of Christ as the bread of life. Now we come to the altar of incense. The altar is a picture of prayer, we grow by prayer as well as by feeding on Christ, the bread of life. Behind the altar of incense was the great veil, dividing the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies. This was the veil that was torn in two at the moment of Christ’s death! It demonstrated that Christ’s death was the fulfillment of all these figures and the basis of the fullness of our ability to now approach our Almighty God directly because of what Jesus Christ did for us once and for all.

Finally, within the Holy of Holies was the ark of the covenant with its mercy seat upon which the high priest placed the blood of the lamb once a year on the Day of Atonement. And in the Holy of Holies there was symbolized–by the space above the mercy seat—the magnificent presence of God into whose presence we can now come because of the great mercy of God revealed in the death of Christ for us.

We all come to God through Christ.  The cross is the altar in which Jesus Christ became the sacrifice and it is only through this sacrifice on the cross that we can enter the Holy of Holies.  I can only imagine Christ with the wash basin.  Can you see Christ with the wash basin? Can you enter the story and see Jesus pick up the wash basin and wash the feet of His disciples?  Can you place yourself into the story? Imagine Jesus washing YOUR feet. Remember this amazing fact: Jesus washed the feet of all the disciples, even Judas’ feet–who would quickly betray Him, a pretty humbling act of worship. What a powerful illustration of worship: before Jesus shared the breaking of the bread and remembering the cup of salvation, He washed feet.

Jesus is the bread of presence, Jesus is the incense, Jesus is the prayers of the people.  It was Jesus’ death that tore the veil. The veil was torn in two so that we can come straight to the mercy seat. We can worship in spirit and truth. We can go right to God.

When Jesus stood before Pilate and was questioned, Pilate asked Jesus, “What is truth?”   I think that is the question that we are all asking now.  What is truth?

After Jesus picked up the basin and towel, He washed the disciple’s feet. Then He shared the bread of presence and He told them of His soon-coming sacrifice: Jesus must be lifted up so all who believe in Him would have eternal life. Then in John 14 Jesus shared those comforting and challenging words …

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. ² In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. ³ And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. ⁴ You know the way to the place where I am going.” ⁵ Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” ⁶ Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. ⁷ If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.” John 14:1-7

So What?
God truly has a sense of humor. With the COVID 19 upon us, some of us cannot even enter our churches! What in the world is God doing?

Could God be teaching us to learn how to worship Him in truth?

Have you ever stopped and pondered the room that Jesus has prepared for you and me? I have.  It’s been a hard year of loss for our family. My dad died two days ago as did my cousin. I’ve also lost my mother-of-love, and my older brother. My wife and I have moved her 88 year-old dad into our home. Life is very different these days.

In our church, I have brothers and sisters who have lost loved ones, too. Many have had no opportunity to grieve with their family over their losses. “God, what are you doing?” I trust that God is sovereign. I must trust that God will be with us. For me, there is no other way.

God is doing something new in our worship.  God wants our true place of worship to be in our hearts.  God wants our position of worship to be on our faces in humility and adoration.  God wants our purpose of worship to be about the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. There is no room for any other idol of our making.  God wants our worship to be about the truth, the way, and the life. No one can come to the Father unless they come through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, His humble servanthood of the wash basin, His cleansing us of our sins, and of our partaking of the bread of life—His body and of the cup of forgiveness, His shed blood.

Listen — Jesus says, “God is spirit, and his worshipers MUST worship in spirit and in truth.”

Here’s your homework for the week, so what?

What is the most magnificent church building I have ever been to?
What was so magnificent about it?
Describe that church…
Now ask yourself:
Is my heart anywhere near as beautiful a place for me to worship God?

I think of visiting the Vatican City, the Sistine Chapel, the Cathedral of St. Peter. I can see the tall, arched ceilings. I can see the statues, the magnificent pipe organ. I can see the candles and the altar. I can smell the incense. I see the Bible sitting on the altar. And I wonder, what does the chapel of my heart look like?

Have you ever seen a picture of the Pieta?  It is the picture in our opening for this SEED OF FAITH for today.  It is found in Old St. Peters Basilica in Rome. Michelangelo sculpted this beautiful work saying it was the most perfect block of marble he ever worked with.  “In her utter sadness and devastation, Mary seems resigned to what has happened, and becomes enveloped in graceful acceptance.” All these years later, I still remember standing there. There was a large crowd with me, I do not recall that at all.  What I recall is being moved by love.

This week I want you to think about the church of your heart and what it looks like.  Maybe it is time to clear out the old and bring in the new. Maybe it is time to worship in truth. Is Jesus Christ your truth? Do you believe his words to the woman at the well?

Take a long drink from the wellspring of our Lord and Savior. I am now imagining my heart’s chapel in a whole new way. Does it matter how many songs I sing? Is there even such a thing as too many times of prayer? Does it matter if I sing hymns or praise songs? Kind of thinking we humans may have this whole thing backwards a bit. Start with your heart. Start there. Worship God in truth.

I think the Old Testament Israelites had a great start: a tabernacle that moved where they moved.

My heart…moves where I move.

May this scripture be true of you and of me: …a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers MUST worship in spirit and in truth.”

See you Sunday. Stay safe out there. I will be flying alone to my dad’s funeral this week. Please cover me in prayer.  I will be wearing my mask, face guard, gloves and social distancing. I will wash my hands and spray colloidal silver spray everywhere I go. I covet your prayers. Prayers for my wife as she stays behind and does the caregiving for her dad. God is at work in us recreating the PIETA in our hearts. If you’ve stayed with me until now, I’m guessing God is at work in you, too. I’m praying for you.

God loves you and so do I,
Pastor Dave
www.theseedchristianfellowship.com

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Jesus declared, “Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.” John 4:21-24

Dear Faithful Seed-Sowers,

It is my prayer that we all come to know the deep, deep love of God and that we grow in the outrageous grace of Jesus Christ as we persevere through the pandemic and the delay of our election results. What a year 2020 has been!

We are still sitting with Jesus and with the woman at the well.  I encourage you to take some time and read the story of the woman at the well found in John 4:1-26.

Last week, I talked about how blessed I’ve been to travel the world and visit many different places of worship. I have seen idols ranging from crudely carved pieces of wood worshiped in the open air to elegant statues housed in beautiful cathedrals. One time on a church mission trip, we were in Peru. We had gone to build a church in a city in the mountains. I noticed a bull and a cross on the top of a farmhouse.  I asked our guide what that meant.  He laughed. “Oh, Pastor Dave, they are covering their bases.  They have the bull which is the pagan God for fertility for their home and crops.  They have the cross for the Christian faith.  They are covering all of their bases.”

I wonder if sometimes we are like the owners of the farmhouse in Peru.  We cover our bases. We hedge our bet.

You may think you have never made an idol other than God, neither have you worshiped one but….

Are you ready for me to step on your toes?

What exactly do you worship?

Who exactly do you worship?

Stop and think about these two questions for a moment. 

Our intelligence and intellect can become an idol as we sit in judgment upon God, His Word, and His purposes in history. We may also look down on others who are not as smart as we are.  Maybe we worship our education. (Ouch.)

Could your body be an idol? Are you are more concerned about physical appearance and health than you are about your inner, spiritual nature? Do you spend way more time working out than opening up your bible?  (Ouch.)

Could your business, or workplace, or your net worth come before God and be an idol of worship? (Ouch.)

Even another person could be your idol. Do you pattern your life after them rather than after God and His will? Do you worry more about pleasing them than pleasing God? (Ouch.)

Achieving your own goals can become your god if those goals are more important than following God’s plan for your life. Maybe popularity is your idol. Are you more interested in being accepted by other people than by God? Do you work hard to achieve the look, have the house, car, kids and family that would make you look successful? (Ouch.)

Could our phones and electronics become our idols and become what we worship?  I am sure that you get those weekly reminders from your phone that tells you your screen time was up or down 3 or 4 hours this week over last week? (Ouch.)

What is that we worship?  Why do we worship?

To worship is to ascribe worth to someone or something.  Today I want us to take an honest look at what is the thing or person that you ascribe worth to? On all of those grace retreats that I’ve served on since 1987, the first talk, no matter what kind of grace retreat it is, is  a talk about your priorities. You are asked to take a look at your life.  Look at your bank accounts—they might be a reflection of what you worship. Think about this question: What do you think about the most? Where do you spend the most time? What do you spend the most of your money on? Look, there’s no judgment here just thought-provoking questions. The answers might actually help you.

So What?
Jeremiah 33.3 says — “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” Jeremiah 33:3

After my wife and I made our first grace-based weekend in 1987, we stopped and spent time together looking at the answers to these thought-provoking questions. Before this season of grace in our lives, we gave to God what we thought we could afford but first…we paid our mortgage, bought our food, provided for our children, and had our two separate, weekly FUN-money accounts for Jac and me. It was clear to us that God was not truly number one. We had not made God our number one priority. Attending the grace-based weekend didn’t make us better people, it made us think. What or who do we worship? Where do we spend our time? Where do we spend our money? Jac and I flipped our priorities upside down after that weekend in 1987. We decided we loved God and we wanted to worship God alone. We started to pray together every day. We became better givers to our home church, the first fruits of our weekly income went to God—we didn’t make 10% tithing right away but we improved on our giving. You know what? Since we put God first in our lives, God has told us great and unsearchable things!

Jeremiah 3:33! Show us great and mighty things.

I have a friend who was on vacation with his wife. They were at a gas station and Wal Mart when my friend heard, “See that guy over there? Go give him $80.” My friend was like, “Really? $80—not $5 or $10 or hey $20??” My friend went over to share with his wife what he was hearing. She said, “Do what you think you should do.” Hey, we’ve all been on vacation. Vacation is ME TIME—the money we’ve saved we are all too happy to blow on ourselves! YOLO—you only live once! And here was God, whom my friend worships with all of his heart, pulling at my buddy’s heartstrings. My friend walked over, struck up a conversation with the man and found out he was trying to get to a sick family member miles away. My friend blessed this man with….$80! Today when he tells the story, we all laugh! $80? Really? You know what I know? My friend and his wife are blessed knowing they did what was asked of them.

Brilliance at the well this week.  The unnamed woman at the well asks Jesus, “Where should I worship? Should I worship here or there?” Jesus replies, “You should worship everywhere!” I think what Christ is saying to the woman, and to us today, “Get your priorities straight. Put God first. Worship God with a humble, surrendered heart. Love God. Love others as you love yourself.”

What Covid-19/2020 has taught me this pandemic is that worship is not somewhere I go. I don’t go to worship at my home church. I don’t go to worship in a building. The church is not a building, the church is the BODY OF CHRIST…and it’s more important to worship GOD in my heart. Period.

Your SO WHAT? Homework questions this week are not easy but they will prove to be worthwhile. Sit down and take an honest look at yourself. Look at what you worship. Look at who you worship. What would happen if you were to put GOD at the number one position of worship? How would this one decision change your life?

Two closing stories. Our amazing naturopath prints out every SEED OF FAITH and ponders it all week long.  She journals on the ideas and “so what?” questions. When I stop in to pick something up, she loves to say, “So what? Pastor Dave!” The second story just happened to my wife. After teaching preschool, and having a magnificent day with their volcano pumpkins, one of the little boys broke away from his mom and said, “I have to tell my teacher!” He ran back and said, “I have Jesus in my heart!” Can you only imagine the party that happened in heaven when that little child asked Jesus into his heart? He’s only 4. I imagine it’s kind of like when you or I decide to topple our self-made idols and put GOD back on the throne of our heart. Listen, worship God everywhere. No matter what you do, no matter where you go, no matter who you are: WORSHIP GOD.

I’m praying for you this week. November is the month when we give thanks. In all honesty, we have so very much to be thankful for:
pumpkin volcanoes, guys at gas stations, and all who put God on the throne of their heart. Have a great week.

Let’s pray:
“Jesus, you are the wellspring of my life. Only You can satisfy the deepest needs of my life. If I don’t have you as my number one priority, today I place you there and I worship—I bow down, I humble myself and I surrender to You. Give me my daily bread. I call out to You today. Show me great and mighty things. Amen.”

See you Sunday!

God loves you and so do I,
Pastor Dave
www.theseedchristianfellowship.com

Copyright © 2018 THE SEED CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP, All rights reserved. May you be blessed by God’s grace and love. You are receiving this email because you signed up for our weekly devotionals.   Our mailing address is: 6450 Emerald Street Alta Loma, California 91701   Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

“Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.” Jesus declared, “Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.” John 4:19-21

Dear Faithful Seed-Sowers,

Here we are at the end of October! Today is the 31st–one of my favorite holidays: REFORMATION DAY! Yes, on this date in 1517 Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the Wittenberg church doors in Germany! Oh, what a glorious day. God’s church should always be forming and reforming in Christ Jesus our Lord. Yet, here we are in 2020: the pandemic is still with us, it’s election season and things appear to be uncertain but I know One who is not uncertain. Let us learn more about worship in this Seed of Faith.

I love the passage in 2 Corinthians 12 when Paul asks the Lord to remove a thorn from his flesh.  The Lord answered Paul with these words, “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. ¹⁰ That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Corinthians 12:9-10

Growing in grace during Covid-19 is hard.  I think we all wish to ask to have the Covid thorn removed from our flesh and our lives. Hear what Christ says, “My grace is enough for you! My power is make perfect in weakness.”  I know that during this time of panic and pandemic, anxiety and anger, fear and frustrations, doubt, and despair, worry and wonder, we can rest assured that God’s grace will be sufficient (enough) for us. Growing in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ is what we are called to do.

Here are a few acrostics for COVID to ponder:

COVID
Christ
Overcomes
Viruses
In
Due time

COVID
Christ
Overcomes
Viruses 
Including
Diseases

Worship!  When you hear the word worship what comes to your mind?  Where do you worship?  How do you worship? When do you worship? Who do you worship?

These are the questions we wrestle with over the next few weeks.  We will look at the place of worship. The position of worship. The purpose of worship. And the PERSON of worship.

The woman at the well was surprised by Jesus.  She came looking to fill her empty water jars. Jesus came looking for her. Jesus found her hiding in the heat of the day, drawing water from a well that would never satisfy.  Jesus surprised her in her prejudices.  Jesus surprised her in sin.  Jesus surprised her in her evasiveness and avoidance.  Notice after Jesus tells her all about her life and how she has been married five times and the man she is with is not her husband, the unnamed woman changes the subject and asks Jesus about worship.  This is called distracting, avoidance, or redirecting. This woman is avoiding the subject, and changes the subject.

“Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.” Jesus declared, “Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. John 4:19-21

“Where do I worship?” is the question that the Samaritan woman counters to Jesus as He is telling her about her life. I wonder if we are so different from this woman? Jesus tries to enter our lives. He knows everything about us and…we ask a distracting question desiring to get the heat off us and onto something (or someone) else.

I do have to hand it to her, the question of where we worship is truly a hot topic, especially today in 2020. We are meeting outside per state stipulations. It’s almost November. Yes, even today the topic of where to worship is HOT, HOT, HOT.

From Abraham to Ezra, the people of God built altars as they traveled. For 1500 years, the people of God built altars and offered sacrifices to God.  Moses built a portable sanctuary that traveled with the people for 40 years as they moved with the cloud by day and fire by night.  It was not until the time of Solomon that the first temple in Jerusalem was built. In 586 B.C.E. the Babylonians conquered Jerusalem and destroyed the temple. It was seventy years before Ezra and the people came back and started rebuilding the temple and Jerusalem. Six hundred years later, the second temple was destroyed around 70 A.D. when the Romans destroyed Jerusalem, just as Jesus had predicted. It appears that the people of God have always struggled with this question: where do we worship?

“Surprised by God” is the series that we are in.  Did Jesus surprise the woman at the well with one of her evasive and elusive questions, “Where do we worship?”

In my career before becoming a pastor, I was blessed to be able to travel with Goodyear.  They sent my wife and I on amazing trips to the Netherlands, Italy, Hawaii, Japan, Hong Kong, and China. I must be honest with you, I was not always a follower of Christ.  I was like the woman at the well.  I was seeking the things of this world to fill my thirst and satisfy me. For more years than I care to remember, I made the trip every morning to the wells of the world. I was not aware yet that they would never fully satisfy my thirst.  During our trip to Italy, we went to the Vatican, St. Peter’s church and the Sistine Chapel in Rome. I was memorized by the opulence and massive size of what I saw.  Not only did we tour Roma, we also went into churches in Milan, Florence, and Venice.  We toured the places where Michelangelo placed his magnificent sculptures. While in China, we visited Buddhist and Hindu temples. Here in the USA, when Jac and I travel, we always find a church on Sunday to attend. While living in California, we have enjoyed visiting the California missions. God’s people all over the world place a high value on the beauty of their places of worship.

Today, during COVID 19, many of these magnificent edifices are now closed or are only open for a small number of masked people to attend.  Here in California our churches have been closed and opened and closed yet again. As I said before, the SEED Christian Community meets in a city community center in Rancho Cucamonga and the city buildings are closed. We have not worshiped together in our church home in Central Park since March. As we’ve prayed as a leadership board, we have decided do virtual church online together. Thank God for ONLINE CHURCH! It has helped many churches and thousands of people to stay connected and to worship together. Since the beginning of October, a pastor friend of mine has opened his church’s parking lot to us. We currently meet outside AND online!
What a great question asked by the Samaritan woman, “Where should we worship?”

So What?
A 2012 Pew study tracked the rise of a new religious group: the “nones,” or the religiously unaffiliated. One-fifth of Americans—and a full third of adults under 30—say they belong to no religion at all.  Yet, argues Casper ter Kuile, a researcher at Harvard Divinity School, this group is still looking for elements of religious experience. His 2015 study explores ways modern millennials seek out meaning, community, and ritual in the absence of organized religion. The study started by profiling organizations they deemed particularly formative in the lives of their students. One of the most striking spaces? Fitness classes. Institutions like CrossFit and SoulCycle are offering their students more than just a chance to lose weight or tone up. They function like religions.  “People come because they want to lose weight or gain muscle strength, but they stay for the community,” he said. “It’s really the relationships that keeps them coming back.” We heard people say, “CrossFit is my church,” “SoulCycle is like my cult,” in a good way. “Once that religious perspective had been opened in our eyes, so many things came out. Whether it’s the flag [on display] in every CrossFit [gym]; the way that the space is set up; or how you could follow a kind of liturgy in a SoulCycle class, especially through their use of light and sound. So, it’s really an emotional and spiritual experience as well as a physical one.”

The Samaritan woman raises an important question that is still important to this day: where do we worship during this time of Covid-19? I wonder if during this time of panic and pandemic if we as Christians have learned that the place of worship is NOT IN A BUILDING or a parking lot. The real place of worship, the place Jesus is speaking about, is IN OUR HEART.

Maybe this is one lesson we can all learn during this time of lock-down and of being shut-out of our churches. We don’t need a building. Church can be a building without walls. Church can be online. Church can be in a parking lot. Church can be in your car. Church can be on you tube.

Because of covid, my wife is teaching preschool for two little boys. They meet twice a week and she gives them the best experience she can. (She taught preschool, directed preschool from 1979 on. She retired two years ago.) She came home the other day and said that as one of the little boys was leaving preschool, he ran back. “Miss Gee, I have Jesus in my heart.” Miss Gee (aka Jac, my wife) has been teaching them a bible verse and a bible story a month. She was overjoyed to hear the good news her little preschooler shared with her. Here’s the truth, friends, if you have Jesus in your heart, you can worship GOD anywhere, any place, any time. AMEN?

Before Covid 19, if someone asked me, “Where do you worship?” I would have answered, “At Central Park in Rancho Cucamonga.” Not anymore, after months of videotaping my messages and learning a new way to preach, teach and reach, I have a new answer. “Where do you worship, Pastor Dave?” (Point to your heart.) “Right here.” I hope you have learned this wonderful insight, too. This is what the Bible means when it states that God will bring good out of the bad.

Your homework for the week: WORSHIP GOD. Anywhere. Anytime. Focus on creating within your own heart, the most beautiful place of worship you’ve ever been to. Is your heart a wooded forest? A cabin on a lake? The ocean at sunset? Is your heart extravagant like the Vatican? or the Sistine Chapel? Your heart is Christ’s home. It isn’t closed down, locked down, or shut down.

I have a great idea. Put on some Christian tunes and sing praise to God from your heart–where your Savior now lives! And let’s create the most beautiful place for worship ever known to humankind: YOUR HEART. AMEN.

See you Sunday!

God loves you and so do I,
Pastor Dave
www.theseedchristianfellowship.com

Copyright © 2018 THE SEED CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP, All rights reserved. May you be blessed by God’s grace and love. You are receiving this email because you signed up for our weekly devotionals.   Our mailing address is: 6450 Emerald Street Alta Loma, California 91701   Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:13-14

Dear Faithful and Fearless Seed-Sowers,
It is my prayer that we come to know the deep, deep love of God as we endure this pandemic.  I pray we grow in the outrageous grace of Jesus and that God uses you to go out into your world (your family, workplace, schools, neighborhood, community) sowing seeds of faith. If this world ever needed living water, it needs it today.

We are still sitting with Jesus and the woman at the well. Picture the scene. It’s high noon, it’s hot.

There is a gold mine of pearls of wisdom to glean from this story.  Read John 4:1-26 and let’s see what the Holy Spirit is speaking to us.

Last week, we spent our time looking at the woman at the well and her response to the surprise she had that a Jewish man would ask her, a Samaritan woman, for a drink.  We saw how surprised she was that Jesus knew everything about her yet still responded in love to her. Stop for a moment and ponder that probing thought.  Jesus knows everything about you and still responds with love to you! This very thought humbles me, how about you?

Listen again to Jesus’ words, “Jesus answered, ‘Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.’”

This reminds of a passage that God gives to the Old Testament prophet, Jeremiah. Listen to Jeremiah’s words found in chapter two, “My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water. Is Israel a servant, a slave by birth? Why then has he become plunder? Lions have roared; they have growled at him. They have laid waste his land; his towns are burned and deserted.” Jeremiah 2:13-15 The people have forsaken God, the spring of living water and have dug their own wells instead. Sounds familiar.

Broken Wells
Here we are at an old well, or cistern, where Jesus finds this Samaritan woman. So many of us are like this woman; we have been digging our own cistern for years and we return there daily. We have dug wells of fame and fortune, wealth and health, power and prestige, sexuality and sensuality, alcohol and drugs, sports and academia, politics and popularity. The truth we find here in this story is that the wells of this world will never fully satisfy.  The wells of this world will never be enough.  The wells of this world hold stagnant, sluggish, and muddy water.  We are like the people in Jeremiah’s time.  We have turned away from the one, true spring of living water and we have built our own wells. The world’s wells will never completely satisfy; they will always shout, “More!”

Here’s a crazy idea:  Does Jesus wants to meet you at your well? You know the well, well.  You go there often, if not every day. Take a look around. Is that Jesus sitting there? Waiting for you to offer Him a drink of your polluted spring? I ask you a second time, Does Jesus want to meet you there today? (Stop and ponder that question.)

Jesus says, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst.”   When Jesus says “everyone” the Greek word “pas” means “all, the whole, the total, anyone or anything.”  Jesus includes us all; He is not just speaking to one, outcast, Samaritan woman. Jesus is speaking to everyone, the total of all people who come to drink from the well. This means YOU and it means ME. All of us at some time in our life are drinking from a well that will never parch our thirst.

The Greek verb for “drinks” — “pino” is a present active verb which means that this action of us drinking is ongoing, unending, and continuous.  It makes great sense then that every single one of us has a well that we visit and drink from continuously. Jesus wants to give us a drink HIS well of living water. This water will quench our thirsty hearts, minds and souls. Maybe we should be thinking about it.

Everyone who drinks this water from this broken well will be thirsty — the word for “thirsty” — “depsesei” is a verb and it is in the future tense which means that we will be continually parched, thirsty, having strong desires.

What is that wakes you up with a strong desire?  What do you thirst for each day?

Jesus is telling us that if we will only ask Him for a drink, He will give us a drink of living water that will satisfy our desires. I don’t know about you but I can testify to the truth of this eternal, living water of Jesus Christ.

Bubbling Springs
“How priceless is your unfailing love! Both high and low among men find refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the abundance of your house; you give them drink from your river of delights. For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light.” Psalm 36:7-9

Have you ever seen an artisan well?  The artisan well is a well or a spring that does not require a pump to bring water to the surface. The living water is continuously pumped to the surface because there is enough pressure contained within the aquifer to force the water to the surface without any sort of assistance. The water is alive.  The water is in never-ending supply.

The so what questions of the day are:
What well are you going to drink from? 
Will you drink from the broken wells of this world? 
Will you drink from the spring of living water that bubbles up to eternal life?

So What?
Jesus offers each one of us the same drink that He offered the Samaritan woman.

You know, Jesus could have shown up at the well at 6 a.m. when all the popular kids got their water, but he did not. Jesus went to the well in the heat of the day because Jesus knew there would be an outcast who was too ashamed to be seen at the well at 6 a.m. She was a sinner—she had lived with five different men—and was not married to the one she was living with now. And everyday she made the long trip to the well. Alone. Hot. Tired.

“All you have to do is ask me and I will give you living water, a spring of water welling up, an artisan well of water…and you will never be thirsty again.”  Please notice Jesus didn’t make her state her credentials. He simply said, “All you have to do is ask.” 

The choice is ours to make. Do we want to return to the wells we have dug in the heat of the day? Or are we thirsty enough to ask Jesus for living water?

I understand that we are living in unprecedented times. No one has canvassed this season and written a book about surviving COVID-19, the world-wide pandemic. There’s hundreds of thoughts and ideas out there for us to ponder; from the far right to the far left and all in between.

Here is what I know: (Grab your Bible and hold it up) This is an artisan well. Come here daily and drink your fill. I started reading my bible in October of 1997. I have not stopped. God’s word is new to me every morning. (Lamentations 3:22)  Every day when I open this book up, I am filled with hope, peace, insight and wisdom. During my 66 years on the planet, I have been to countless other wells. They have all left me thirsty.

This week I want you to be honest with yourself. Are you drinking from the well of living water or are you drinking from a polluted well?
John Ortberg has written a most excellent book (and a bible study dvd) entitled, “Soul Keeping: Caring for the Most Important Part of You.” Check it out. He gives a great illustration of how we are to go check out our stream, our wells. Are they clear and free? Or are they stagnant, filled with the trash of our life?

This is exactly what Jesus is saying to the Samaritan woman. “I don’t care who you are.  I don’t care where you’ve been. If you will simply ask Me, I will give you LIVING WATER.”

Her response is more than amazing! I hope ours is, too.

See you Sunday!

God loves you and so do I,
Pastor Dave
www.theseedchristianfellowship.com

Copyright © 2018 THE SEED CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP, All rights reserved. May you be blessed by God’s grace and love. You are receiving this email because you signed up for our weekly devotionals.   Our mailing address is: 6450 Emerald Street Alta Loma, California 91701   Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.