christianity Archives ⋆ Page 2 of 3 ⋆ East Hills Moravian Church

Lent as an expression of counter-culture

Posted on February 26, 2014 by Pastor Derek French

Given our hedonistic culture it’s no surprise Mardi Gras, that pre-eminent celebration of personal indulgence, has found broad acceptance while the season of Lent has not. Themes of penitence, preparation, and reconciliation do not resonate with our society’s consumerist or narcissistic proclivities.

lent_ash_wednesday

Pop culture and marketers urge us to gratify our desire for pleasure and convenience whatever the cost and tell us that we each deserve such things. Lent suggests we forgo certain pleasures for the sake of spiritual discipline in order to grow in our faith. Culture celebrates the ego-self and places each person at the center of his or her own virtual world with every perceived need and whim being catered to. Christ calls us to self-sacrifice, saying: “Whoever does not take up the cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Those who find their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.” (Matthew 10:38-39)

The conflict between the values of secular society and those commanded by Christ make Lent the most profoundly counter-cultural season of the church year. Followers of Christ can expect no support from the culture around them as they try to deepen their relationship with God or grow spiritually. For this reason, it is important that the church help its members keep a holy Lent. One way your church supports your growth as a disciple of Christ is by scheduling dinners and programs each Wednesday in Lent.

Ash Wednesday Worship (imposition of ashes if desired) Sanctuary, March 5 at 7:00 PM

Wednesday Lenten Dinners & Programming March 12, 19, 26 and April 2, 9
(To be held in Fellowship Hall)

Dinner at 6:00 PM followed by prayers and song at 6:50 PM

Half hour programs for adults and children on Christian discipleship 7:00 to 7:30 PM

Children will be learning the good news about Jesus as they add one reminder bead each week to a bracelet in a program entitled, “The Good News Beads.”

The adult program is entitled “Jesus Still Lead On” and is a study of Christian discipleship based on the Moravian Covenant for Christian Living and The Foundation of Our Faith by The Rev. Kevin Frack of the Moravian Church in America, Southern Province.

Holy Week Reading Services April 14-16, at 7:00 PM

Maundy Thursday Holy Communion April 17th at 7:00 PM

Good Friday Tenebrae Service April 18th at 7:00 PM

– Pastor Derek

Pastor Derek French’s Lent message appears in The Star, March 2014

Everyone Can Find True Love

Posted on January 26, 2014 by Pastor Derek French

Whether you go to the grocery for milk or to the pharmacy for a prescription, you won’t be able to avoid Valentine’s Day merchandise in the form of balloons, candy hearts, and cards. Ah, yes, a holiday devoted to idealized romantic love. What could be more heartwarming?

Yet, as wonderful as romantic love may be it is only one form of love – and an often fragile and volatile one at that. To be fully realized, romantic love depends on the one we love loving us in return. If that doesn’t happen, you may find yourself tolerating or enduring Valentine’s Day rather than celebrating it.

The unconditional love of God spoken of in the Bible is something quite different. God’s love is the most stable of loves. We cannot earn it, buy it, or lose it. God loves everyone. Those who are humble and honest enough with themselves to accept their need for God’s love can experience it in the core of their being as they come to know the presence of God/Christ/Holy Spirit within them. Before he died Jesus prayed:

… The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

(John 17: 20-23)

Once we have encountered God and accepted (really accept in our hearts, as well as our heads) the truth that God loves us unconditionally, we are free to accept and love ourselves in the same way. Such love also propels us beyond ourselves and compels us to love others without conditions.

Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Beloved, since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another. (1 John 4: 8-10)

The experience of God’s unconditional love and sharing of that love is the essence of Moravian Bishop Zinzendorf’s “Religion of the Heart.” This vibrant, powerful, life-giving faith fueled the explosive growth of the 18th century Moravian Church and is reflected in the lyrics of the church’s traditional hymns.

Long before the time of the Renewed Moravian Church, such love motivated a priest to give his life for the sake of his sisters and brothers in Christ. His “crime” was officiating at Christian marriages, celebrating Holy Communion and otherwise serving his congregation.

According to tradition, St. Valentine was killed by Roman authorities on February 14th. Certainly, as he went to his death he would have recalled Christ’s words “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

Lord of the harvest

Posted on October 31, 2013 by Pastor Derek French

harvest In an age before supermarkets and seed catalogs the harvest season could be an anxious time of year. The quantity and quality of the harvest often determined the fate not only of individuals, but also of entire communities. A succession of failed harvests brought famine and death while good harvests provided adequate food to sustain the community over the winter and quality seed for planting the following Spring’s crop. Jesus’ hearers would have been acutely aware of all this as they listened to his parable.

“The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. So the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. And the slaves of the householder came and said to him, “Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?’ He answered, “An enemy has done this.’ The slaves said to him, “Then do you want us to go and gather them?’ But he replied, “No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.” (Matthew 13: 26-30)

The weeds in question are most probably darnel – a toxic plant which resembles wheat. Mixing darnel in with the wheat crop was an act of indiscriminate agricultural terrorism. Having toxins mixed in one’s flour was bad enough. Having toxic seed mixed with good seed for next season’s sowing was a disaster in the making for the whole community. Sensible farmers purified both land and crop with fire whenever they detected darnel.

Jesus’ parable suggests that God cares for the Kingdom of Heaven in much the same way that a farmer cares for his crops and fields. That which is unholy and evil cannot be permitted to destroy that which is righteous, holy, and good. For imperfect sinners such as ourselves the good news is that God will not render judgment until the harvest is gathered in. There is still time for each person living to choose whether to cultivate weeds or wheat in his or her life. We cannot earn salvation, yet our life choices do matter. In part, we each self-select a destiny as chaff for the fire or wheat for the barn.

“and all were judged according to what they had done. … and anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:13-15)

Happy Thanksgiving,

Pastor Derek

On The Job Training And Continuing Christian Education For Adults

Posted on August 22, 2013 by Pastor Derek French

christian_education Following the “Great Recession” of 2008-2009 many gained new appreciation for the role continuing education plays in making oneself employable. In today’s marketplace, no one can afford to be a “one trick pony.” The value of on the job training and continuing education has long been acknowledged. What’s new in this job market is that what once was required to thrive, is now required just to survive.

Given these developments it is surprising how few realize that a healthy and growing faith also needs to be nourished through continuous learning. Many adults haven’t engaged in serious Bible study since attending Sunday School as a child. Fewer still have had spiritual formation training or the benefit of a Spiritual Director. On the job faith training is readily available through East Hills’ many programs of ministry, and yet, our Board of Christian Education, Emergency Shelter program, choirs and many other church groups are always looking for volunteers.

There may be nothing new under the sun, but there are ways to look at life through the lens of Scripture which, if not completely new, might at least be new to you. You wouldn’t want to negotiate adult life with only the experience and job skills you had at age thirteen would you? Why then, would you expect an adolescent faith to sustain you as you struggle to balance family and career, raise children, care for your aging parents, or deal with the challenges of aging yourself? Worship is a great place to start your continuing education as a disciple of Jesus Christ, but it should not be your only source of spiritual growth. Start a program of home Bible study – or better – attend an adult Sunday School class or evening Bible study or discussion group.

You may feel hesitant to attend if you have not done so in the past, but take heart. Unlike the job market, where only qualified applicants need apply, God accepts all persons regardless of previous experience or training. As has often been said, “God doesn’t call the equipped; God equips those he calls.” Rest assured there is a place for your gifts, experience, and energy in the ministry of East Hills Moravian Church. Take the initiative and let us know what God is calling you to do!

This fall we invite you to gather at East Hills Moravian Church for worship and adult Sunday School. Learn how to live a life transformed, renewed and blessed by God. Connect with fellow believers in worship and join together in following Christ as we serve others and glorify God through the sharing of our time, talents and financial resources.
See you in church

Creating Sacred Community

Posted on May 28, 2013 by Pastor Derek French

Since its beginning, God has called and challenged the Church to create sacred community in the midst of diversity. As Christians, we find the source of our unity in a common commitment to the Person and teaching of Jesus Christ. Yet, as we know from our secular lives, sharing a common friend and some ideas by no means guarantees lack of conflict. We need practical guidance for living in community such as that the Apostle Paul provided to the church in Rome.

Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are. Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all. If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. (Romans 12: 9-18)

In many ways, Paul’s advice is a practical explanation of how to live out Christ’s commandment to “love your neighbor as yourself.” It is a “play book” for creating sacred community on a day to day basis. I commend these words to you for personal study and meditation as we prepare to celebrate the 56th anniversary of this congregation.

Today, more than in the recent past, our society needs the alternative vision of community which the church can provide when it is faithful to Jesus and follows Paul’s concrete advice on how to live out our faith. In many ways, as we left the 20th century behind and moved into the 21st century, our society is becoming more and more like that of Paul’s day. We too live in a pluralistic, increasingly urban, and multi-lingual society. Like Christians of Paul’s day, we live among persons fascinated by materialism and the promise of getting rich quickly.

Our society, like that of ancient Rome, is mesmerized by public spectacle and scandal and divided by competing political and philosophical perspectives. There’s much which might divide us from fellow believers yet Christ calls us to unity. As Christians, we must live in this society, but we need not adopt all its values and behaviors.

We can choose to know Christ and make him known through the example of our life together here at East Hills Moravian Church.

See you in church,
Pastor Derek French

Patience: An Advent Virtue

Posted on November 28, 2012 by Pastor Derek French

“… the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience…”

Though St. Paul lists patience as the fourth of God’s spiritual gifts, it is a virtue seldom sought or cultivated by most 21st century Americans. Rather, under the influence of a consumer culture, we have come to expect instant gratification in all aspects of life.

While shopping, we look to see if our line is shortest or whether the line one aisle over is moving a bit more quickly than the one we are in. A day or two now seems too long to wait
for a DVD. Perhaps that’s why Netflix and other movie services are switching to streaming
video over the internet rather than mailing out DVD’s or Blu-ray Discs. A person can choose
his or her movie and watch it instantly.

Quick service is nice, but the most important and fulfilling aspects of life still require varying degrees of patience on our part. Neither best friends nor babies come “guaranteed overnight delivery.” A relationship with either requires patience and the investment of time on our part. Most resistant to haste is the cultivation of the spiritual life and one’s relationship with God.

God’s time frame is not ours. The Psalmist says that for God a thousand years pass as quickly as an evening. Instant gratification exists neither in nature nor in God’s dealings with humanity as they are recorded in the Bible. Grain takes a season to grow from seed to harvest. Many generations were born and died between God’s promise of a Messiah in Isaiah’s day until the time of Christ’s birth. The Jewish kingdom itself, as well as its Babylonian and Persian conquerors, was history long before then. Patience was then, and still is required to maintain faith and hope, let alone joy and peace.

Patience does not mean resignation or inaction. Both of the latter crush hope, and that is certainly not what God desires when blessing us with the gift of patience. The spiritual gift of
patience empowers persons to work actively towards fulfilling the vision of God’s Kingdom
come to earth, even when realization of that vision is delayed. Patience allows us to see
personal trials and loss as temporary afflictions through which we must pass on the way to full
realization of God’s vision for us when we join God in eternal life.

During Advent, our worship services are crafted to help members cultivate the spiritual gift
of patience. Those attending will hear traditional prophecies regarding the birth of a Savior,
light candles marking the passing of time, and sing hymns of longing such as “O Come, O
Come, Immanuel.”

Come Christmas, worship will remind us once again that good things come to those who wait.

Have A Blessed Christmas,
Pastor Derek

Keep the Sabbath Day

Posted on August 15, 2012 by admin

Hebrews 10:24-25

Let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Matthew 18:20

“For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them.”

As a child growing up in the American South it was fairly easy for my family and I to keep the Sabbath. So called “blue laws” were in effect which prevented the opening of most stores. Going to church, socializing with friends, and possibly eating lunch with them afterwards were the most appealing options for Sunday morning and afternoon activities. Since everyone else was in the same boat we had no real sense of sacrifice or special piety that set us apart from the rest of society. How things have changed.

Now many stores are open 24/7/365 – or 366 if it happens to be a leap year like 2012. We are confronted with many choices and opportunities as we consider how to spend our Sunday mornings and afternoons. There are youth sports, golfing, shopping and dining to consider. For many around us Sunday is merely another day of the week. It is arguably harder to keep the Sabbath today than in the past, and doing so sets us apart from the secular society around us.

We know that the ancient Hebrews believed that the concept of Sabbath was important to God. In fact keeping the Sabbath was among the Ten Commandments God gave to Moses atop Mt. Sinai. What many persons are less aware of is the rationale behind the commandment to remember the Sabbath and keep it holy.

When persons hear the word “commandment” many associate it with an arbitrary rule. While there are persons of deep faith who obey God simply because God has commanded them to do so, others struggle with such obedience. Such persons often find it helpful to understand the rationale behind God’s commandments.

Basically God wants what is best for us, God’s children. God’s commandments guide us towards full, mutually interdependent and joyous life. Imagine a society in which none of the Ten Commandments were observed – a morally rudderless society without a common core of values, in which children no longer respected their parents and persons commit adultery, stole, bear false witness, and murder as they pleased. Perhaps this doesn’t take much imagination for you. Maybe the society in which you live is already moving in this direction. Either way, I think that is is easy to see that it is difficult for everyone to live a full, mutually interdependent and joyous life without such a set of commonly accepted values. Certainly, there may be fulfilled and happy individuals in such a culture but the society as a whole is less functional, less healthy than one united by shared principle. Without ethical norms the weak and less fortunate suffer.

Like God’s other commandments the commandment to keep the Sabbath is not an arbitrary rule; it is intended for our well-being and for the good of society. When we keep the Sabbath and set aside a day of our week on which we do no work we find time for those things which give meaning and depth to our lives – things like worship, fellowship and quality family time. These same things strengthen society as a whole.

It is both an article of faith and a finding of psychology that persons do better when they are not alone and isolated. Yet modern society is plagued by loneliness and isolation. According to a joint study by sociologists from Duke University and the University of Arizona nearly a quarter of respondents lacked a close confidant. Another survey found that in 2008 families in the United States spend an average of just 18 hours per month together as opposed to nearly 26 hours per month in the first decade of the 21^st Century. Yet government funded studies have revealed that quality time spent with family – especially around the dinner table – is strongly associated with lower risk among children for alcohol and drug abuse, early sexual activity, better academic performance, and a lower incidence of suicide. Keeping the Sabbath may not fix all societies ills, but having a day set aside for worship, family time and fellowship certainly can’t hurt either.

For the sake of yourself and your neighbor, for the well-being your children or your grandchildren, to enrich your life and the life of your friends and family, remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy. Gather together with other persons of faith to encounter the Risen Christ, to give and receive encouragement, and to consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds. Remember God gave the commandment for our own good. As Jesus said, ”The sabbath was made for humankind, not humankind for the sabbath …”

Sign Your Children Up Now For A Shepherd’s Journey

Posted on December 7, 2011 by admin

The annual A Shepherd’s Journey at East Hills Moravian is one of the most inspiring events of the Christmas season. This year’s Shepherd’s Journey is Sunday, December 18 at 6:30 PM.

Children are taken on an exciting journey back in time to the streets of Bethlehem on the night that Christ was born. They will meet townspeople, bakers, moneychangers, and even a certain couple turned away at the Inn, as they wander the “streets”, searching for the newborn Jesus.

A registration form can be downloaded here or you can speak with Linda Adams by email: jlgbadams@aol.com