The apostle Paul encourages Christians to work at whatever we do with all of our heart, “as working for the Lord, not for human masters” (Colossians 3:23 NIV). Work is not just a way to get things done or earn an income, it is a way to bless others and glorify God. We are commanded to love and serve the Lord with all of our heart (Deuteronomy 10:12). Loving and serving God involves the use of our time, talents, and treasures. Are you managing your time in a way that shows that you are serving the Lord? The creation account in Genesis 1 reveals that God worked for six days, but then he rested on the seventh day. How about you? Is rest part of the way you manage the time God has given you?

 

Are you using your God-given talents in a way that blesses others and shows that you are serving the Lord? If not, what are you going to do to begin using them in that way?

 

Are you managing your financial and material resources as a responsible steward of what God has given you? Do your monthly bank statements and budget reveal your desire to fulfill God’s will? If not, what needs to change?

During the past few weeks we have been focused on the time when judges led the Israelites. We’ve walked through the story within The Book of Ruth. The story reveals a woman named Naomi who lost her husband and adult sons when they died. The overwhelming loss caused Naomi to become bitter and to feel emptied. Yet Naomi’s daughter-in-law was extremely loyal and remained faithfully by her side. As poor widows, Ruth and her mother-in-law were the most vulnerable people in their society. God protected them and led them to a very kind and righteous man in Bethlehem. Boaz provided food for the poor widows and eventually learned that Ruth wanted to marry him. Boaz told Ruth, “I will do for you all that your request” (Ruth 3:11b NKJV). As we conclude The Book of Ruth message series, we are now turning our attention to Boaz, the Kinsman-Redeemer. Another righteous man, Jesus Christ, shared a similar message to what Boaz told Ruth, “whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son” (John 14:13 NKJV).

 

What do you see in the life of Boaz that reminds you of Jesus?

 

How should we follow the examples of Boaz and Jesus to live righteously?

 

If your children and grandchildren, or children that know you well, follow your example, what does that mean in regards to their lives and the legacy you’ll leave behind?

During the time when judges ruled the Israelites, a woman named Naomi went from being abundantly blessed to being emptied because of losing her husband and both of her adult sons when they died. Yet her daughter-in-law who was “better to” her “than seven sons” remained faithfully by her side (Ruth 4:15 NKJV). Ruth exemplified extreme loyalty. When Naomi tried to convince Ruth to go back to her own people in Moab, she replied to her mother-in-law by saying, “Where you go, I will go…your people shall be my people, and your God my God” (Ruth 1:15-16 NRSV).

 

Who are the people in your life that are extremely loyal?

 

Do you have family members or friends who consider you to be loyal?

 

What about your loyalty to God through Christ? Are you willing to go where the Spirit leads and directs you? Are you willing to live in such a way that Jesus’ people are your people? Do others know the God you believe in?

 

Two indicators of your devotion and priorities are your calendar, including your daily planner, and monthly bank statements. Consider your commitments and how you live out your loyalty towards Christ and others, then pray for God to help you to prioritize according to His will.

For hundreds of years between the time in history when Joshua led the Israelites into the Promised Land and various kings ruled the kingdom(s) of Israel, “The LORD raised up judges” to lead his people (Judges 2:16 NIV). During the next few weeks we are turning our attention to the time “when the judges ruled” to focus on the story of Naomi, Ruth, and Boaz (Ruth 1:1 NIV). At the beginning of the book, Naomi’s full and blessed life quickly begins crumbling. She and her family endure a famine, move to a foreign land, her husband dies, then she loses her two married sons. After her season of heartache and devastating losses, Naomi returns to Bethlehem. Upon her arrival, she instructs those who knew her before she moved to “Call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter. I went away full, but the LORD has brought me back empty” (Ruth 1:20-21 NIV). Thankfully, the season of emptiness wasn’t the end of Naomi’s story. Eventually her bitterness turned into redemption, and Naomi’s brokenness was replaced by blessings.

 

What kind of season are you in right now? Is your life being emptied or filled? Are you becoming bitter or better?

This week we are concluding the ONE: Unity in Christ series. During the previous five sessions, we’ve been studying and discussing the following:

1. We are meant to be “Completely One” as the church by being united in heart and mind through the Spirit of God, seeking the Lord’s will together (John 17).

 

2. As we follow Jesus on “The Path of Discipleship,” we are formed into the likeness of Christ individually and collectively through the work of the Holy Spirit and our faith practices, which are also known as holy habits (Philippians 2).

 

3. Our gifts, talents, and abilities are given to us by God “For the Common Good” of those within the church, our community, and world (1 Corinthians 12). We should seek the good of others as an expression of loving our neighbors, knowing that some may be saved because of experiencing God’s goodness through us.

 

4. It is time for us to “Reclaim Our Identity” as new creations in Christ, reconciled with God through Jesus. We have been given the ministry of reconciliation as ambassadors of Christ and the Kingdom of God (2 Corinthians 5:16-21).

 

5. With all that is happening in our world, nation, community, congregation, and families, it can be overwhelming and an ongoing source of anxiety. Thankfully, scripture reveals multiple ways for us to know “How to Cope,” including sharing our concerns, sorrows, and needs with God in real and raw ways through prayer (1 Peter 5:7 & Psalms). Max Lucado’s acrostic based on Philippians 4:4-8 is also helpful:

Celebrate God’s Goodness

Ask for Help

Leave Your Concerns with God

Meditate on Good Things

 

Now we are turning our attention beyond today and this season. This week, we are wrestling with the question “What is Our Legacy?” In episode #6 of the Woodlawn: ONE small group video series, Dr. Tony Evans compares our legacy as Christians with runners in a relay race. We need to be intentional about handing off our faith in Christ to the next generation. Another way to think about our legacy is “discipleship.” During the AUMC Disciple’s Path series in the fall of 2019, we shared the following statement:

Discipleship is a lifelong journey of walking with Christ towards maturity and unity for the sake of others.

 

Consider prayerfully wrestling with the following questions:

How are you walking with Christ in your thoughts, words, and actions?

 

Do you see and experience evidence that you are growing more like Jesus?

 

How are you helping others to grow more mature as disciples?

 

How are you personally seeking to be one in heart and mind with sisters and brothers in faith who are part of our church family? What about the Jesus followers who don’t agree with you?

 

What are you doing now to prepare the next generation within your family and our church so that the baton of leadership and discipleship can be handed to them one day?

This week we are continuing with the second half of the ONE: Unity in Christ series as we turn our attention towards “How to Cope.” From the beginning of human existence people have suffered. Genesis 3 reveals that Adam and Eve sinned, so they were forced to leave the Garden of Eden. When their two sons grew old enough to work, Cain killed his brother Abel out of jealousy and anger. Hardships and heartache are part of our lives as human beings. Jesus said, “Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows” (John 16:33 NLT). Unfortunately, following Jesus doesn’t provide an immunity from pain, suffering, and loss here on earth. As we experience trials and sorrows, we must learn how to cope effectively. Learning to effectively cope is especially important during this season as we continue through the pandemic, working to eliminate systemic racism, being confronted by division within our nation and Methodist denomination, managing finances in an ongoing economic downturn, and enduring the pain of broken families along with the loss of loved ones.

 

Use the link below to read the CDC’s (Center for Disease Control and Prevention) list of Healthy Ways to Cope with Stress:

 

The CDC’s suggestions are applicable to anyone and everyone. But what about those of us who are people of faith? How should we cope allowing our faith in Christ to guide us through the troubles of life? In the small group study based on his book Anxious for Nothing, pastor and best-selling author, Max Lucado shares an acrostic inspired by Philippians 4:4-8 to help us learn to cope as people of faith and stay CALM:

Celebrate God’s Goodness

Ask for Help

Leave Your Concerns with God

Meditate on Good Things

 

If you’re interested in further study beyond the sermon and this Your Faith Journey devotional, consider reading Max Lucado’s book Anxious for Nothing: Finding Calm in a Chaotic World or his book Fearless.

This week we’re jumping back into the second half of the ONE: Unity in Christ series. During the first three sessions we’ve been studying and discussing the following:

1. We are meant to be “Completely One” as the church by being united in heart and mind through the Spirit of God, seeking the Lord’s will together (John 17).

 

2. As we follow Jesus on “The Path of Discipleship,” we are formed into the likeness of Christ individually and collectively through the work of the Holy Spirit and our faith practices, which are also known as holy habits (Philippians 2).

 

3. Our gifts, talents, and abilities are given to us by God “For the Common Good” of those within the church, our community, and world (1 Corinthians 12). We should seek the good of others as an expression of loving our neighbors knowing that some may be saved because of experiencing God’s goodness through us.

 

Now we are turning our attention to “Reclaiming Our Identity” as new creations in Christ. We have been reconciled with God through faith in Jesus, so our sins are no longer counted against us. As new creations, reconciled with God, “we are ambassadors for Christ,” and “God is making his appeal through us” (2 Corinthians 5:20 NRSV). We have an eternally significant message to share with the world, the message of God’s Great News, the Gospel of Jesus Christ. How humbling that the One who gave his only son to save the people of the world from the punishment we deserve is working in us and through us as ambassadors with a message of reconciliation!

 

Do you need to experience being made into a new person in Christ? If so, let God know. Consider talking to a family member, friend, or pastor after you pray for God to make you into a new person by placing your trust in Jesus.

 

How does being reconciled with God impact how you see yourself?

 

What does it mean about how you live your life knowing you are an ambassador for Christ?

 

Who needs to hear the message of reconciliation with God through faith in Jesus this week? Ask the Lord to give you the opportunity, words, and grace to speak the truth in love, as well as the courage to share when the door opens for a faith conversation.

We are taking a one week break from the ONE: Unity in Christ series to turn our attention upon the defining story for the Israelites, the Passover and Exodus from Egypt. We will return to the ONE series on September 13th. In regards to the Israelites, they were a chosen people that began as a family. The family grew over a period of generations until they eventually became so large that they were known as the twelve tribes of Israel. During a season of a famine, the families moved to Egypt. “Eventually, a new king came to power in Egypt” who decided to enslave the Israelites, who were also known as the “Hebrews” (Exodus 1:8 NLT). After suffering for generations under the ruthless demands of the Egyptians and their pharaoh’s, the prayers of the Hebrew people were answered by God when he chose Moses to lead his chosen people out of slavery in Egypt to freedom in the Promised Land.

 

When the day of Passover had arrived, death came upon the first born sons throughout Egypt including the Pharaoh’s son and livestock, but the Israelites were unharmed because of the blood of their Passover lambs that were upon the doorposts of their homes. The Lord told Moses to let the Israelites know that “the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live: when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague shall destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt” (Exodus 12:13 NRSV).

 

All the Israelites did just as the Lord had commanded. On the day of Passover, the Lord freed the Israelites from the Egyptians. During that time, God revealed through Moses, “This annual ‘Celebration with Unleavened Bread’ will cause you always to remember today as the day when I brought you out of the land of Egypt…you must celebrate this day annually, generation after generation” (Exodus 12:17 Living Bible).

 

For more than a thousand years before Jesus was born, the Israelites passed along the celebration of the Passover meal from one generation to the next. And for nearly 2,000 years since Jesus’ ascension, the Jewish people have continued to celebrate the Passover. The annual celebration helps them to “remember” what God did so that their identity as a people claimed by God and set free from slavery continues to be part of who they are and how they know God and themselves. Perhaps that is one of the reasons why Jesus told his disciples to eat the bread and drink the cup of wine in remembrance of him on the night of the Last Supper when they shared in the Celebration of Unleavened Bread. As we receive Holy Communion, we remember Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. Whenever we partake of the Lord’s Supper, we remember who we are as the children of God united in the ONE body of Jesus known as the Church. Christ’s story, the story of the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, is our defining story as Christians (John 1:29).

As we continue the ONE: Unity in Christ series, we turn our attention to the first century Christians in the city of Corinth who were struggling with a lack of unity as the body of Christ. The apostle Paul told them, “No one should seek their own good, but the good of others” (1 Corinthians 10:24 NIV). Paul went on to explain, “I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved. Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ” (1 Corinthians 10:33b-11:1 NIV).

 

Who’s example are you following?

Who is following your example?

Are you seeking what is good for others? Why?

 

Paul was seeking the common good so that many would be blessed, and ultimately saved, through faith in Christ. Are you willing to seek the common good of the people of AUMC and our community so that many may be saved?

The apostle Paul encourages believers to, “be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:2-5 NRSV). The mind and attitude of Christ was revealed in Jesus’ actions and words, “I have come down from heaven to do the will of God who sent me, not to do my own will” (John 6:38 NLT).

 

Are you willing to surrender your will to fulfill God’s will?

 

Are you allowing the Holy Spirit to guide your thoughts, words, and actions?

 

Are you looking to see and do what is in the best interest of others within God’s family, the church of Jesus Christ?

 

Are you regarding other Christians as better or more important than you?

 

Are you united with sisters and brothers in Christ by living in harmony as a faith family with one mind?

 

Is the love of God flowing in you and through you to Jesus’ disciples here and now?