Sow the Seed

Today's Reading: Mark 4:1-20

If you heard Jeff's sermon on Sunday, you heard about the two important elements for telling a story. You have to have someone willing to tell the story and you have to have a hearer. We spent some time thinking about who we could tell God's story to and then praying over those people in our sphere of influence.

When we tell the story of Jesus, we are often concerned about the results, or what people will do with it once they hear it. Jesus' parable here in Mark 4 says the story is like the seed a farmer sows. Some of it falls on the path and the Enemy steals it away. Some is sown on rocky ground and so goes away quickly because there is no root developed. Some is sown among thorns and while it takes root, the cares of the world quickly choke it to death.Finally, there is the story that falls onto the good soil and produces an abundant crop.

What I love about this parable is that we are not held responsible for the results. We are simply told to go and spread the word - tell The Story - and see what is produced in the hearer. Yes, we can pray for them. We can answer their questions. We can encourage them. But the results are not really up to us.

Our only responsibility is to tell the story. Who was on your Tic Tac Go card that you will share The Story with?

- Holly Barrett

The Old, Old Story

Today's Reading: Matthew 13:10-17

Don't we all just love a good story? You know, a great romance, a stirring hero story, or an amazing survival story. We all love a good story.

I have loved to read since the day I learned, I guess. And reading the book was always better than seeing the movie. I could imagine the characters just as I wanted to and could really see them interacting in my mind's eye. Reading was my favorite activity and I often lost a great deal of sleep because I just couldn't put the book down.

My kids loved for me to tell them stories. Especially stories about themselves...the day they were born, some trip we had taken, or some special event they wanted to remember. They would ask me to tell the stories over and over again.

Stories have a way of resonating with us like nothing else. Maybe it is the way the storyteller tells the story. Maybe it's the connection we feel with the storyteller or with the subject matter. Maybe it's just that we are hearing a time-honored truth in a new way that strikes us differently than it has before.

The disciples asked Jesus one day why He told stories. He tells them that they have been given special insight into God's kingdom and know how it all works. But many other people don't have that insight. Jesus is trying to help them open up their minds and their hearts to receive what God has for them. He said, "That's why I tell stories: to create readiness, to nudge the people toward receptive insight (The Message)."

As Christians we probably know a lot about Jesus. We may have even studied and debated some of the finer points of doctrine for many years. But folks out there who don't know Jesus just need to hear a story. They need to hear how much God loves them and how much Jesus has done for them. Then maybe they will become ready to hear the weightier points of God's word.

For now, let's just tell them the old, old story. You know, the one about Jesus!

- Holly Barrett

Just say the word...

Today's Reading: Matthew 8:5-13

Do you ever wish you had a magic word? You know some word that you could say that would make everything in your world alright? I don't know what word it would be but there are times when I think I might like to have such a word. It'd be pretty handy, I think.

In this story, Jesus meets up with a centurion whose servant is sick. He asks Jesus to heal the servant and Jesus is all set to go to the centurion's home and heal the man. But the centurion says no, Jesus doesn't need to come but rather needs to "just say the word" and the servant will be healed.

Jesus is astonished at the man's faith and does exactly what He is asked. And the centurion's servant is healed at that very hour.

I wish "the word" had been recorded, don't you? I wonder if it was a special word associated with healing or it was a prayer Jesus prayed. Maybe he didn't even say it out loud. Maybe it was just Jesus' acknowledgement of the centurion's faith that did it.

In fact, perhaps it was the words of the centurion that really brought the healing around. When he confessed that Jesus had the power to heal and that he believed it would happen. Maybe that was the word that actually caused the healing.

Where do you need healing today? And are you asking for healing through your faith in Jesus?

- Holly Barrett

Birthing Stories

Today's Reading: Matthew 1:18-25

I don't know if you have ever noticed this phenomenon or not, but almost every time women meet other women they don't know, it doesn't take long to get down to the birthing stories! There is something about those stories that seem to bond us together and help us get to know one another better. Guys don't get it. But we do.

Today's reading is pretty much Mary's birthing story. I'm not sure how often she told it for fear of being labeled crazy but it is her story nonetheless. It's also interesting to me because from this story of Jesus' birth, He goes on to become a great storyteller. We'll be looking at some of His stories over the next few weeks on the blog as we go through The Storyteller preaching series on Sunday mornings.

But today's story is the beginning....when Mary conceives, Joseph disbelieves, the angel relieves, and Jesus comes on the scene to receive. A baby is a grand thing but is probably a reasonably inauspicious beginning to the greatest story ever told. But there He is...Jesus...sent to earth as one of us to save us from our sins.

That is a pretty awesome birthing story!

- Holly Barrett

Me! Me! Pick me!

Today's Reading: Luke 22:7-30

Sometimes on Wednesdays during preschool chapel, Rachel will ask for a volunteer to come help illustrate that day's Bible story. As soon as she asks for volunteers, the hands fly up and you can hear little voices saying, "Me! Me! Pick me!"

Luke's rendering of the Passover celebration is followed by his recounting a dispute that arises among the disciples. They wanted to know which of them was going to be considered the greatest.

Picture it...Jesus has just celebrated Passover with them. He has instituted the supper to remember Him by. He has predicted that one of them will betray Him. And they've got a petty argument going on about which of them will be the greatest! I can almost hear them, "Me! Me! Pick me!"

As usual though, Jesus turns their notions upside down and tells them that whoever wants to be the greatest must be the servant. He came to serve and He expects them to do the same. I envision the volunteering to be the greatest may have subsided a little at this point! I guess it is just human nature. We all want to be noticed. We want to be recognized. We want to feel important.

And Jesus tells us how to do that. Serve. It's that simple. Where do you hear Him calling you to serve today?

- Holly Barrett

Surely not I?

Today's Reading: Mark 14:12-26

Today's scripture reading takes us from the preparation for Passover to the meal itself. During the meal, Jesus has the opportunity to tell the apostles that one of them will betray Him. I'm intrigued by their response as recorded by Mark, "They were saddened, and one by one they said to him, 'Surely not I?'"

Was it false humility that made them ask? As in, "Surely I am so dedicated to you that I would never betray you."

Was it a lack of self-awareness that made them ask? As in, "I don't think I would be the one to betray you, right?"

Was it fear that made them ask? As in, "I'm so afraid about what is going to happen next that maybe I will be the one to betray you."

Whatever their motivation, Mark says they all asked the question. Imagine the sadness of Jesus' heart as it was Judas' turn to ask. He sold his betrayal for 30 pieces of silver and it cost him his life.

But before we come down too hard on the apostles, let's also imagine the sadness of His heart today as we all have betrayed Him in some way somewhere along the line. I don't know about you but I've betrayed Jesus for pride, for rebellion, for fear, and more...all far less than 30 pieces of silver.

Thankfully Jesus allows me to bring those things to Him and receive forgiveness. Every time. No questions asked. No guilt induced. I think the next time I'm tempted to ask, "Surely not I?", I'll just ask for and receive the sweet forgiveness that Jesus has for me.

- Holly Barrett

Making Preparations

Today's Reading: Matthew 26:17-20

Last December I directed my niece's wedding. For several months I watched her mother make phone calls, purchase supplies, visit with vendors, and make all manner of decisions for the big day. We talked endlessly about the plans, the wedding party, who would sit where, what my dad (the minister) would say, and all the details that Ashlee and Reid wanted to be perfect. When the appointed weekend arrived, we loaded all our cars with food, supplies, clothes, and decorations and proceeded to the venue in the mountains of NC. On the big day, we spent the morning decorating and rehearsing...and keeping the bride and groom from seeing one another! It was a long day but with the help of wonderful friends and family, everything went off without a hitch. This is one of my favorite pictures from that day...my brother and his little girl. It is a memory that will last our family a lifetime.

This reading in Matthew is also about making preparations. Jesus sends His disciples into Jerusalem to make preparations for the Passover feast that He will celebrate with them. I wonder what they thought as they hurried to the designated place to make the preparations. I wonder how much they had to do to make everything perfect. Although they didn't know this would be their last meal together, I bet that something whispered to them to make sure that everything was just so. And I bet they remembered that night for the rest of their lives.

This Passover celebration would institute the communion service that we practice today. Through it we commemorate Jesus' sacrifice on the cross. I wonder how much we think about communion before its designated time on Sunday morning. Are we anxious to be prepared and to have the meal go just so? Will we remember the time together at the table as sacred? Are we anticipating how God will speak to us at that moment?

Are the preparations made?

- Holly Barrett

When the cat's away...

Today's Reading: Nehemiah 13

My daughter recently told me that one day my sweet little grandson was playing nicely in the kitchen. She thought he was being so good because he was quiet and entertaining himself. And then she walked into the kitchen. He was entertaining himself all right…with a bottle of syrup that was now spread all over her kitchen floor. It was a big ol’ sticky mess!

You know that old axiom, right? When the cat’s away, the mice will play! It just seems to be part of human nature.

Nehemiah 13 wraps up our story as Nehemiah institutes some final reforms and enforces God’s law. We find out that Nehemiah has evidently been back in Babylon for some period of time. When he returns to Jerusalem, he finds that the “mice” have been playing! The first thing he finds out is that a storeroom in the Temple has been turned over to Tobiah. Remember Tobiah? He was one of the chief opposition leaders against Nehemiah as the wall was being rebuilt.

Wait, what? One of the opposition leaders is now using a storeroom in the Temple? And he is an Ammonite? What is he doing in the Temple?

Nehemiah’s response is swift and effective as he throws Tobiah and all of his goods out of the Temple. You know, swift and decisive action is often required when dealing with sin. Our only hope of protection from sin is to cut it off quickly. We can’t wallow in it. We can’t consider it. We can’t wait to see what happens. We have to cut it off as soon as it is found.

Nehemiah then learns that the people were conducting business on the Sabbath. They were allowing merchants to come in and sell their food and merchandise. And the Jews were purchasing from them.

Wait again! The Jews are disrespecting God’s holy day? How did they let that happen?

Again, Nehemiah takes swift action as he orders the gates of the city shut at sundown before the Sabbath and he put guards at the gates. Nehemiah even went so far as to tell the merchants who were camping outside the gates to not come again or he “would lay hands on them.” He wanted the Jews to remember this day and to keep it holy as the Lord had commanded.

You know, sometimes we just need to shut the gates. When the enemy is relentless in pursuing us, even in our rest, we may just have to shut the gates. Pull back into our own houses and our own hearts and spend some time with God. We can’t be afraid to shove the enemy out. He will give us lots of reasons why we can’t do it…or why we shouldn’t do it. But we must shove him out or run the risk of being disobedient.

I don’t know about you but I think I’d prefer to stay out of the sticky messes!!

- Holly Barrett 

Celebrate good times, come on!

Today's Reading: Nehemiah 12

Have you ever come to the end of a long project and just wanted to throw a big party? After taking a l-o-n-g break from college, I returned to school in the fall of 1999. It had been over 15 years since I had been in a college classroom and I was terrified! But I plowed through four semesters and graduated with my bachelor’s degree in 2001. I was also a single mom with two kids who were in middle and high school at that time. They were very active in youth group and sports and dance and all kinds of other activities. It was a very busy time and I look back at it now and can’t imagine how all three of us survived it! 

As I read Nehemiah 12:1-27, I am again overwhelmed by the list of details. As the priests and Levites began their work in the Temple, God provided many resources and helpers for their tasks. That was my experience while in college as an adult. There were many times that God stretched my already too-thin budget to cover the things we needed. There were many times that He provided extra bodies to pick up kids from activities or to deliver them where they needed to go. There were many times He stretched my time too so that all the work got done on time! How gracious of God to know the exact needs we have and to time His response perfectly. 

In the last half of the chapter, the wall is finally dedicated. Imagine their excitement as they filled Jerusalem on that day. Verse 43a tells us, “And on that day they offered great sacrifices, rejoicing because God had given them great joy.” I also remember my excitement on leaving that last class…and the sense of accomplishment I felt as I walked into graduation. I was done and it was time to party! My parents and some friends graciously threw me a graduation reception complete with food and folks who had loved and supported me through the journey. Some of them even brought presents! It was a great celebration! How gracious of God again to know that when our work is done, our bodies need rest and our souls need to rejoice. 

What long-term project have you got going on? You know, the one you think will never end. You can take comfort from Nehemiah 12 and know that God will see you through to the end. And then He will help you celebrate!

- Holly Barrett

Coming Home Again

Today's Reading: Nehemiah 11

Chapter 11 of Nehemiah is another one of those chapters that lists a bunch of people with names that are hard to pronounce settling in a bunch of towns that we aren't really familiar with. Kinda hard to draw a lesson out of such a list.

But when I studied this chapter last summer, it really resonated with me. Prior to Nehemiah's return to Jerusalem, the Jews were living in captivity. Now God has raised up a leader, given him favor with the foreign king, and blessed his efforts to rebuild the wall and the city. Now people are moving back into their hometowns and resuming the lives they lived prior to captivity.

It's such a great reminder that God's will can not be thwarted. He has a plan and He will see it through to the end, regardless of the detours along the way. So when I get down and wonder if the plan has gone awry or if God is still working, I just go back and look at Nehemiah 11...the culmination of God's plan to bring His people out of captivity...and I begin again to wait expectantly for all that God's plan will ultimately reveal in my life.

- Holly Barrett

We Will Not Neglect the House of Our God

Today's Reading: Nehemiah 10

We left off in chapter 9 with the people of Jerusalem putting a binding agreement in writing. And chapter 10 opens with a list of leaders who are sealing the agreement. After that, the rest of the people join the nobles and bind themselves to the agreement as well.

They agreed to not intermarry, to respect the Sabbath day and Sabbath year, to bring the offerings in to the Temple, including the firstfruits and firstborn sons. And the chapter ends with the declaration, "We will not neglect the house of our God."

I love that phrase. It kinda reminds me of what we are doing this year at PR. We take good care of our property and try to use our physical assets and blessings responsibly. But there comes a time when things just need to be torn down and rebuilt...cleaned up and refreshed...new energy poured into them.

It's a lot of work. Nowadays, we usually pay people to do those jobs for us. And certainly that is what we are doing with the professional work that needs to be done in our renovation. But there is still lots of other work that we can do!

Mark the date, August 5, on your calendars for our very own Curb Appeal Day. We will be working to clean, organize, paint, and just generally give a good facelift to the areas of our building that are not affected by the construction. You are invited to bring a sack lunch and then join the work right after second service. There are jobs to do on the grounds, in the parking lots, on the playgrounds, and in the classrooms and hallways. There are tables, kitchens and bathrooms to be cleaned too.

We will also have a crew headed over to Lansdowne to attend to some areas of their campus that need some love and care.

You can view all of the volunteer opportunities and sign up by clicking HERE. And more information will be given out on July 8 during Sunday services.

Let us also proclaim, "We will not neglect the house of our God."

- Holly Barrett

In view of all this...

Today's Reading: Nehemiah 9

When we left off with the Israelites yesterday, they had heard the reading of God's law and had celebrated the Feast of the Tabernacles. Chapter 9 opens up in the same month but about two weeks later. This time, they gather together for another reading standing "where they were and read from the Book of the Law of the Lord their God for a quarter of the day, and spent another quarter in confession and in worshiping the Lord their God."

They spent an entire quarter of the day in confession. Not that all of us couldn't do the same, but that is a long time! But as I read over their confession and thought about all that is recorded, I was struck by several points.

First, confession recognizes who God is. The Israelites praise God for who He is and all that He has done (verse 5b-6). God alone is worthy of our praise and recognition of this is a good place to start our confession.

Confession also remembers God's mighty works. Nineteen verses in this chapter extol the wonders of God's ability. He pursued the people, provided for them, sustained them, instructed them, clothed them, made them as numerous as the stars, and made them victorious over their enemies. God kept His promises to them.

Confession then leads to repentance. All of God's children have been stiff-necked and rebellious at times, the Jews themselves were famous for it. But God is never through waiting for us to repent and return to Him.

And finally, confession helps us realize our current state. In verses 36-37, the Israelites realize they have been living in the promised land but have still been enslaved. And God wants so much more for us than that!

The Israelites have come to a place of decision and say in verse 38, "In view of all this, we are making a binding agreement, putting it in writing, and our leaders, our Levites and our priests are affixing their seals to it." They were deciding to turn back to God and stand in agreement with Him. And we can do the same thing.

Where is God calling you to confession today? Do you allow the remembrance of His works for you lead you to repentance? Then realizing your current state, and in view of all this...all of God's promises, all of His provisions, all of His care for you...are you willing to stand in agreement with Him?

- Holly Barrett

Do you love the word of the Lord?

Today's Reading: Nehemiah 8

What is your favorite book? The one you will read over and over again? I love books and read A LOT. Sometimes when I've run out of new things to read, I'll go to the bookshelf and pull down a favorite and re-read it just because it is such a good book. And even though I've read it before, I'm always drawn back into the story just like the first time I read the book.

That's what happens to the Jews in Nehemiah 8. They have been in captivity and have been unable to read or hear God's word. And so Ezra has a platform built. It is located near the Water Gate, rather than near the Temple. And the repeated wording about "all the people" in chapter 8 indicates that Ezra is bringing the Word of God to the lay people. Not just to the learned men or the religious men. But to all the people. It is clear that Ezra had a desire to put God's word into the hands of everyone.

The people's response was very interesting too. They listened attentively, all morning long, while they were standing up, and they responded with great reverence and expectation. Finally in verse 9, they began to weep.

And right here I am convicted with these questions swirling around my head,

Who do I know that needs to hear God's word?
Am I sharing God's word in community with others?
Do I start out each day with God's word? And do I listen intently and reverently?
Does God's word stir up emotion in me?

What about you? Do you react to God's word with this same emotion? Do you love the word of the Lord?

More importantly, is it the book you will go back to read over and over again?

- Holly Barrett