09/10/2019
I am still celebrating a wonderful outdoor worship experience on Sunday. The music was outstanding...a little jazz, a little contemporary Christian and bluegrass all in one day. The food and fellowship were what we had hoped to have. Then of course, all praise to our God who answered many prayers lifted asking that the clouds be parted to take the rain away from Carmel...at least for that time!!
A beautiful tent was arranged to the south of the main church building for the worship experience last Sunday. The beautiful white tent is a perfect metaphor for God’s church. What a perfect visual as we launch the upcoming sermon series “Won’t you be My Neighbor”. The church worshiped under a tent that had no walls.
-No sides to keep us inside to simply care for ourselves to the neglect of others.
-No sides to keep others out.
-No sides to prevent those of us from under the tent to go outside of the tent.
That is probably the very best metaphor God desires for His church. God desires of his church to love and care for its members. God desires for His church to grow in discipleship. But most of all, God desires all of that to serve as preparation for His church to go out into the world. God desires for us to make the world one large neighborhood. Yes, God wants us to ask the question of everyone…”Won’t you be My Neighbor?”
Yes, a wall-less tent is a good metaphor for God’s church.
Blessings, Rev. Patti Napier
Archived Posts
What just missed the cut for Sunday’s Sermon
Naaman’s servants may actually become one of the hidden gems of the sermon. They say, essentially: “If the prophet had told you to do something difficult, you would have done it.”
One of the Longest Benedictions I Ran Out of Time to Share
Maybe you know the story of how Joseph and Mary accidentally left Jesus at the gas station on their way home from Jerusalem. Well, not the gas station bathroom in Jesus’ case. Joe and Mary are far down the road before they realize Jesus isn’t with them...
So many quips and quotes...
So little time to preach
I wonder what Mary and Martha’s phones might look like:
* Martha = the open browser with 27 tabs
* Mary = the single window that matters
* Psalm 46 = God saying, “Close the tabs.”
Quotable Outtakes That Didn’t Make the Sermon This Week
“When you try to control everything, you don’t just exhaust yourself—you quietly replace trust in God with trust in you.” & more
There is a challenge when it comes to preaching the Word of God.
Preachers are called to open up and interpret the word—inspired and written down thousands of years ago—and make it relevant to a very different world. On top of that there’s a degree of persuasion that goes along with the process.
What Jessica Really Meant to Say in Her Sermon…
When Jessica or Rick or a guest preacher takes the pulpit it’s hard for me to write a One More Thing Blog. I can’t share with you what didn’t make it into the sermon because I have no idea, not having written or delivered it.
Jesus Keeps On Ruining Funerals!
I didn’t have anything this last week that didn’t end up in the sermon. No catchy illustrations that didn’t make the cut. No theological insights that slowed down the main point. No one can ruin a funeral like Jesus. Told as I saw it and that was it. So I did some quick research and I thought I’d share just a reminder of what Easter is all about.