I believe there is hope.
I believe we are better together than alone.
I believe our tomorrow will be great.
I believe we can change.
I believe love conquers all.
I believe in you.
I believe in me.
I believe in second chances.
I believe in grace.
I believe in God.
I believe together we can spread the hope and love that we’ve been given by God’s amazing grace and see our world, our city, our families change and be everything they were meant to be.
Do you believe?
This weekend at Epic Church was breath-taking. It was one of those times, as a pastor, when you feel the church step up and BE the Church that God has called us to be. It was amazing.
We have taken part in a Advent teaching series called The Advent Conspiracy (adventconspiracy.org). The four weeks leading up to Christmas the topics we spoke about were Worship Fully, Spend Less, Give Presence & Love All.
This weekend Epic chose to live out this call to Love All by adopting families of those in recovery homes this Christmas. As the parents have dedicated months to rebuilding their lives and recovering from what substance abuse had done to them, we realized their children and families were left home without them this holiday season. So we partnered with a few recovery homes throughout Baltimore and adopted the families, almost 70 children, that were without a recovering parent or grandparent.
This Sunday morning at our 11am Gathering those from the recovery homes joined us for worship and teaching as well as our annual Christmas party. Then directly after our party we began helping them wrap their families gifts for Christmas. It was a beautiful thing to see. Even though they were unable to contribute financially to their families’ presents, they all wrapped the gifts, giving each of them a part in Christmas this year.
It was beautiful to see them retain some dignity and be appreciative of people helping and giving them a chance to help too. It was great to see Epic step up and give beyond measure. But most importantly it was breath-taking to see most of our guests from recovery raise their hands to receive the gift of Jesus in their hearts this year!
A great big ‘thank you’ to all who gave. Thanks to everyone who shopped and made someone else’s Christmas memorable for almost 70 children! Thanks for expressing grace, unearned favor and blessing to those you don’t know and may never meet. Believe me, it blessed them. And a special ‘thanks’ to Lori Lockemy and Kate Fahey for putting in countless hours to organize and coordinate this year’s adoption. It was awesome.
Merry Christmas!
So, its 3:30am and I still can’t sleep. My mind is racing, I’ve watched Avatar 1.25 times and I can’t take it anymore. So I grab a legal pad and start jotting random thoughts.
I realize as im writing that every moment counts. Every breath should be used meaningfully. Even if its an exhale make it matter.
Carpe Diem -seize the day- seems too large of a task in our society. In a day’s time the stock market will rise and fall a half-dozen times, economies can collapse and if enough are strung together a Khardashian can get married and divorced.
Im coming to find that seize the moment -Carpe Articulum – seems a bit more accurate for us.
Life is made up of moments. Good moments. Bad moments. Tough ones. Joyous ones. Make them count. Make them worthwhile.
Whether they are sitting in traffic, behind a desk or in the middle of the night with sleep-filled eyes, make them matter. Days are made up of moments.
Carpe Articulum!
I find myself somehow delightfully encouraged today. The sun has a new golden hue. The breeze has a sharp crisp to it. Music has lifted my spirits all day. Scripture has reminded me of God’s greatness and Christ’s sacrifice. What an amazing life that we get to experience.
Through the ups and downs, ins and outs, we get to experience the ebb and flow of grace and humanity. The tension of the divine chosen to reside in frailty. What a treasure!
He is ours and we are His. What a great day to be alive. Be encouraged.
If you find yourself in the valley or in the ebb rather than the flow, be reminded that Jesus calls you in those moments when you find yourself weary and burdened. Today is your day. Now is your moment. Be encouraged.
““Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” -Jesus (Matthew 11.28-30)
With Summer quickly finding its way into our rear-view, I was just taking inventory today of some things that I learned (some I relearned). Here are a few I thought worthy to share…
I came up to sit down to a bowl of Frosted Flakes, with some Strawberries to sweeten it up (as if it wasn’t sweet enough), and heard an old familiar song, Grace Flows Down off the Passion One Day Live album. Tears rushed to my eyes as I immediately remembered the importance of this day. As Good Friday is upon us, I am so overwhelmed with emotion.
The sacrifice.
The debt paid.
The pain inflicted.
The life given.
Today is the day we remember the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross for you and for me. An undeserved gift of pardon for us. Even in the story of Jesus’ trial the people there wanted to set a murderer free and sentence Jesus to death. We are that murderer, glutton, thief, liar, undeserving prisoner set free in place of Jesus the innocent.
Below is a short story from an amazing story-teller Jeff Pratt. Take a look as we reflect on Jesus’ heroic actions that we might go free today.
“I should of looked more carefully before I stepped off that sidewalk curb there in Manila, the Philippines. A Jeepney came barreling around the corner as my Samoan friend, Paulo, in an effort to protect me, through himself between me and that overstuffed means of public transport. His body was immediately thrown into a crowd of people across the street. I ran to his side and looked down on his half smiling face, and a couple of deep, bloody gashes across his chest, as he stammered in his oh so familiar accent, ” It’s no problem Jeff, a couple cuts on the belly, it’ll all be fine in a moment . . . how are you?” Then he was carried to a nearby clinic where he received much need medical care.
Imprinted forever in my memory is those moments that I would see him walk by me the next couple of days, with his shoulders hunched over a bit, so he wouldn’t rip opened the new stitches. Every time I saw him I was reminded of his sacrifice. In the moment of crisis on that street corner he hadn’t thought of himself, he thought of me. He had saved me the pain I deserved for my carelessness.
Months later Paulo returned to his homeland and I to the States, and we didn’t see each other again till there was a special Youth With A Mission gathering in Kona, Hawaii. My heart leapt with joy when I heard his voice behind me say, “Is that you Jeff?” After a crushing embrace, and a quick catch up, we scampered down to the beach like old times to body surf once again. I’ll never forget, before racing down to the ocean’s edge, the moment I glanced over to Paulo, to signal our run together. His shirt had just been taken off and my eyes fell upon the scars upon his chest. Suddenly the memory of what he had done and given, a couple years before, became fresh, new and real to me again.
Paulo I don’t know where you are in the world today. Sadly we have lost each other. However I will never forget your sacrificial love for me. Thank you my dear friend.”
Jeff Pratt
P. S. My prayer for us this Easter weekend is that we may know the present riseness of Jesus, and that the love song that echoes from an empty tomb two thousand years ago may echo within our hearts today. May we hear again the inner music of our belovedness to God, as C. S. Lewis said; “It’s a music that resembles an earlier music that men are born remembering.”
