Daily Thoughts:

 

A Time to Think :

Looking back, I have this to regret, that too often when I loved, I did not say so.

—David Grayson

 

To Act :

Live with the thought of being in God's care.

 

To Pray:

 Lord, teach me how to share Your kindness with everyone I meet.

Moments in Bible Study — Tuesday’s at 10:30 a.m.  Photos by Al Ari

Readings: John 1: 43-51—meditation

 

“Eliminate the Negative!”

Gladys A. Gale

 

 Too many times we are seduced by this world’s passions and pleasures even when calling ourselves Christians.    Do we make choices based upon the "good" life depicted on TV, or to what we listen to on the IPod's of our lives,  streaming their message to our ears and, possibly, hearts?

We are never perfect in following, but we can strive for that— to follow Jesus— because to do that is to connect with everything positive in life— to destroy the negatives.

 

In the first place, how do we get closer to Jesus?  We need to learn more of who Jesus really is. What can we learn about this person we call Jesus? Well, it's part of the reason we have this season of the church year called Epiphany— a time of revelation. In John’s Gospel, the spotlight shows Jesus more fully— reveals Him as he truly is.

How can we know for ourselves and help others to know with certainty that Jesus is truly the Son of God and Savior of the world? Look at the Scriptures— and see what Philip did (John 1: 43-51).  He did not go to class. He did not get himself baptized. He did not "join" a church. And he certainly did not sign any kind of commitment card.  While all of these suggest a Christian lifestyle, there was more!  What did he do?  He found his brother, Nathaniel, and told him about Jesus. In other words, he told of his positive experience — what had happened to him— to someone for whom he deeply cared.  Lately, when have we done that?

 

In the second place, what does it mean to follow Jesus? Jesus already knows us— in and out. He has full knowledge of our capabilities, of our strengths and our weaknesses.  Jesus knows what our dreams are, what our mission is, what pitfalls will cause us to fall  into negativity— what hopes will pull us up from the depths and dregs  of  life to the positives in life— to the affirmative.   Jesus knows us better than we know ourselves. He knows what makes us tick and what pushes our buttons. Jesus'’ knowledge of WHO we are is a first step in following Him because it predicts what we should do. 

There is a story that has been told of two men, seriously ill, sharing a hospital room.  One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour each afternoon to help drain the fluid from his lungs. His bed was next to the room's only window. The other man had to spend all his time flat on his back.

The men talked for hours on end. They spoke of their wives and families, their homes, their jobs, their involvement in the military service, where they had been on vacation.

Every afternoon, when the man in the bed by the window could sit up, he would pass the time by describing to his roommate all the things he could see outside the window.

The man in the other bed began to live for those one hour periods where his world would be broadened and enlivened by all the activity and color of the world outside. The window overlooked a park with a lovely lake. Ducks and swans played on the water while children sailed their model boats. Young lovers walked arm in arm amidst flowers of every color and a fine view of the city skyline could be seen in the distance.

As the man by the window described all this in exquisite details, the man on the other side of the room would close his eyes and imagine this picturesque scene.

One warm afternoon, the man by the window described a parade passing by. Although the other man could not hear the band, he could see it in his minds eye as the gentleman by the window portrayed it with descriptive words.

Days, weeks and months passed. One morning, the day nurse arrived to bring water for their baths only to find the lifeless body of the man by the window, who had died peacefully in his sleep. She was saddened and called the hospital attendants to take the body away.

As soon as it seemed appropriate, the other man asked if he could be moved next to the window. The nurse was happy to make the switch, and after making sure he was comfortable, she left him alone. Slowly, painfully, he propped himself up on one elbow to take his first look at the real world outside. He strained to slowly turn to look out the window beside the bed. It faced a blank wall.

The man asked the nurse what could have compelled his deceased roommate who had described such wonderful things outside this window. The nurse responded that the man was blind and could not even see the wall.

"Why would he do such a thing" the man asked the nurse.

"Maybe he just wanted to encourage you," she replied. “An act of love, to give you something positive to think about— instead of all the depressing things that often happen in a hospital.”

To follow Jesus, we need to reach out with love and consideration toward our neighbor— whoever that might be. If you were on trial  for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to prove it? If you could not see, nor speak, nor write— would your life show  all that, indeed, you are  a committed Christian who follows Jesus? Someone who lives a purpose driven life?

 

In the third place, what can we do to push the negatives aside and to concentrate on the affirmatives— as Jesus would have done—  in our day-to-day relationships with our family and neighbors?? I suggest an acronym— FAITH— to guide our understanding.

       F—  Fix your eyes heavenward— We like Martin Luther King, can lift our eyes heavenward, way beyond the mountaintops— and stay focused there.  Why do this?  To remind us of our Heavenly Father and the closeness that we share.

       A—Adjust your ATTITUDE and accept Christ’s passion and grace; — It’s easy to just go along with our old ways, to think and say that nothing good can come out of Nazareth— or the  Nazareth's of our personal lives—It’s so easy to find fault with this or with that, to go along with the pundits and the news mongers who are looking for cheap ways to sell what most enlightened citizens don't consider to be news. It's so easy to pick, and chew, to measure one against the other— and still we call ourselves Christians.  It’s so easy to fly off the handle, thinking that what we say doesn't really matter.

But if we acknowledge that Jesus Christ is looking for us—we need to know he has  already found us; and  it’s just a matter of allowing ourselves to be found, to accept.

       I—Isolate your mind from negative thoughts. Martin Luther, German theologian, once said,  “I can’t stop the birds from flying over my head, but I don’t need to let them build a nest there.”  Turn off the news unless it is really news!  Spend time reading the word of God.  Pray daily. John Wesley noted that we need to pray “unceasingly,” that means as we go about the daily business of our lives, moment to moment— interrupting our thoughts with prayer, and then moving on.

       T—Tell others the story— what story?  YOUR STORY!  The story of your involvement with Jesus Christ.— those times when you KNEW— really knew that God was with you,  guiding you through some of your darkest hours. And some of your brightest hours!

       H— Help  others understand the power of God’s unconditional  love and grace. Reach out, not just with your gifts, but with your service and your time.              Jesus asked Phillip, "Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these." And he said to him, "Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man."

How great is that?!   “ … You will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man."  we need to accept this life and all that it brings, recession or not,  as a positive challenge— accentuating the positive and eliminating the negative.  

One day you will stand before God, and so will I; and He will do an account of your life on earth— a kind of final exam before eternity.  Maybe there will be pearly gates, and maybe Saint Peter will be there; and maybe the great artists, brilliant writers, and maybe even a few of the pundits, the news media.  and Mr. and Mrs. Noah, and for sure, your Mom and Dad, brothers and sisters, your husband, your wife, your sons and daughters, and special friends;  but in any case, you can be sure there will be a reckoning.  And you want to pass this entrance exam.

They will know we are Christians by our love— by how we treat one another and what we do for each other.  In 2011, why not work on your relationship with our Christ?

 

                                                           Gladys Gale, Lay Leader, Terrace

 

“In as much as you have done it to the least of them, my brethren,

you have done it unto me.”

   Methodist Churches of Long Beach Island, NJ

Faith Building—  

In September— Tuesday’s at 10:30 a.m. through 12:00 noon,  in Fellowship Hall at the Terrace Church. Coffee cloche. Bring a sandwich and stay for lunch and conversation with the pastor and friends.  The coffee pot is always on. Brown bag lunch follows Bible study. 

Bible Study

WHY attend Bible Study:

· Learn more about the    peaks and valleys of Christian living;

· Become more familiar with the greatest Book ever written through the insights of Pastor Boyd;

· Grow in your faith and closer to Christ Jesus;

· Appreciate one another’s views on the Scriptures;

Price: Invaluable!

Cost?  Free.