Richmond First United Methodist News and Events
Pastor’s Perspective
The Circle of the Earth, Isaiah 40:21-31
Pastor Dan Damon, Richmond 1st UMC, 2-8-15
Introduction
I have noticed at least three ways of looking at the created world. None of them can be proved. Each of these vantage points require faith:
[1] There is nothing but the dust of the earth and the test tube experiments of the scientific age. There is a modern surge of evangelistic atheism that takes this view.
[2] There is an unseen evil power. This view could include a “devil” who is all-powerful. I don’t actually know anyone who believes this, but it seems to be a possible philosophical position.
[3] There is an unseen good power. As Christians we choose to trust the third option. We say God (power, person, energy) is love. God is one [three in one]. We see God’s love expressed most clearly in the person and work of Jesus. We hear the call to follow, and we respond daily to the tasks of service set before us. We use our gifts to build the kingdom of God on earth. We care for body, mind, and spirit.
Retell the Scripture Story
Today I depart from Mark’s gospel stories of Jesus’ healing and preaching ministry to focus on the amazing writing in Isaiah 40. God is portrayed as “sitting on the circle of the earth.” This is creation poetry… cosmic imagery. We can just see our creator up there sitting on the circle of the earth, can’t we? Well, maybe some of us have a bit of trouble using our imaginations as we did when we were children. That is why it is helpful to read these stories and to reflect upon them.
The ancients saw the heavens as a great dome. We see them as billions of galaxies, stretching out into infinite space. We have a sense of awe and wonder as we look at the night sky. This wonder is the beginning and end of religion. Embrace it. Enjoy the poetry of creation. As Charles Wesley, one of the founders of Methodism, said in his hymn text, “Love Divine All Loves Excelling,” we are lost in wonder, love, and praise.” When we sing our hymns and songs in worship, do we not feel ourselves joining the communion of saints in singing the music of the spheres?
The ancient Jewish prophets called the people of their faith communities to remembrance of God’s mighty acts. Many things can threaten our memory: political and social threats, lures to ease and comfort, enticements of other competing gods. In the sixth century before Christ destruction and exile had generated despair and chaos in the people of Israel. The people had grave doubts about God’s interest in them. For the exiles, captivity in Babylon was a painful reality. They were forced from their homes, scattered as the temple was laid waste, and they became refugees from the land of promise. How could they sing the Lord’s song in a strange land? The prophet calls them to remember what God has done: Have you not known? Have you not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? [v. 21]
The magnitude of God’s power and humanity’s unqualified powerlessness is portrayed in our lesson from Isaiah today. Isaiah says, God marked off the heavens, enclosed the dust of the earth in a measure. God comes with might. When earthly realms are compared to God’s they are like a “drop in a bucket” or “fine dust on the scales” [v. 15]. “God sits on the circle of the earth, and earth’s inhabitants are like grasshoppers” [v. 22].
The amazing good news in this passage is that this great God is good and loving, and takes a personal interest in giving us the strength we need to live our lives here in our place and time. “God gives power to the faint, and strengthens the powerless. Even youths will faint and be weary, and the young will fall exhausted; but those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint” [29-31].
If there is time, read the entire chapter, Isaiah 40 (KJV):
Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, says your God. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the Lord’s hand double for all her sins. The voice of him that cries in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.
The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field: The grass withers, the flower fades: because the spirit of the Lord blows upon it: surely the people is grass.
The grass withers, the flower fads: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.
O Zion, that brings good tidings, get up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that brings good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God! Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work before him. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.
Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance? Who has directed the Spirit of the Lord, or being his counselor has taught him? With whom did he take counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and showed him the way of understanding?
Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the small dust of the balance: behold, he takes up the isles as a very little thing. And Lebanon is not sufficient to burn, nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt offering. All nations before him are as nothing; and they are counted to him less than nothing, and vanity.
To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him?
The workman melts a graven image, and the goldsmith spreads it over with gold, and casts silver chains. He that is so impoverished that he has no oblation chooses a tree that will not rot; he seeks unto him a cunning workman to prepare a graven image, that shall not be moved.
Have ye not known? Have ye not heard? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth?
It is he that sits upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretches out the heavens as a curtain, and spreads them out as a tent to dwell in: that brings the princes to nothing; he makes the judges of the earth as vanity. Yea, they shall not be planted; yea, they shall not be sown: yea, their stock shall not take root in the earth: and he shall also blow upon them, and they shall wither, and the whirlwind shall take them away as stubble.
To whom then will ye liken me, or shall I be equal? says the Holy One.
Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that brings out their host by number: he calls them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one fails. Why do you say, O Jacob, and speak, O Israel, My way is hid from the Lord, and my judgment is passed over from my God?
Have you not known? Have you not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, faints not, neither is weary? There is no searching of his understanding. He gives power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increases strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
Application
It is when we feel powerless that the power of God can fill us and heal us. It is when we are down that God can lift us up. When we have forgotten the blessings of God, we can be reminded of them in the community of faith. We can be reminded that trust in God, not in the powers of this world, will set us free to live fruitful lives. When we live with faith and hope, we may feel God’s pleasure. God is beyond us in power, but within us in person and energy, in faith, hope, and love. These three are eternal, and the greatest of these is love.
We live on by memory, spirit, and love. Mark 1:35 in the lectionary reading for today says, “In the morning, while it was still very dark, Jesus got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed.” Jesus needed this quiet time, and so do we. It is good to pray many times a day, especially in the morning and the evening. In the morning you might say, “Thank you for another day. Help me live for you today.” When you go to bed at night, try praying aloud the Lord’s Prayer. Or pray the 18th C childhood prayer: “Now I lay me down to sleep. I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.”
Remember your many blessings, the gifts of joy in days of health and strength. Trust in the good and powerful God who is with us always. Wait for God, not the one out there, but the one in here, until we rise up on wings like eagles, until we run without becoming weary, until we walk and do not faint.
Let us be in prayer.
Joys and Concerns
Happy Valentine’s Day! Give those you love a hug and be glad.
Lauren McLeod welcomes your prayers for healing.
Sandra Kokoruda (Fran Smith’s daughter) up date: Sandra thanks everyone for their prayers and concerns. Fran reports that Sandra is more animated and cheerful than she has been in months. The wound has healed, the drain is out and the infection is gone! The IV port for chemo was inserted this week and treatment will begin on Tuesday. Both Fran and Sandra ask that prayers continue.
Molly Smith is requesting prayers for her brother who has been treated for a brain tumor for several years and has recently entered the Hospice program. Prayers for his family and her brother as they go through this very difficult time.
Deby McFadyen is asking for prayers for her father, Jack McFadyen, who has lung cancer. Currently he is doing well.
Pat Dornan and Linda Pereira continue to need your prayers of support and healing. Update: Pat is home after her vacation. Unfortunately, Linda has lost the gains she made at Greenridge possibly due to changes in her medications. They are off to the doctor to see what can be done to help her. They are still open to visitors, so drop by if you can.
Robbie Robinson would appreciate your prayers.
Helen Wysham welcomes your prayers for healing as she undergoes chemotherapy.
Please keep the people of Camp Liberty in your prayers as chaos reigns in Iraq and near the camp.
News
Beginning Sunday, February 15 we will be honoring the memory of Helen Valentine with donations of your coins, checks or paper money to enable the children of the church to make a donation to the Heifer Project. We will be collecting through March 1. bring your coins, Norm Reynolds loves to roll them up for deposite in our Heifer Fund.
An article in this weeks Faith in Action (umc-gbcs.org/faith-in-action/some-pros-some-cons) called “Some Pros, Some Cons” may be of interest to those who attended the course a few months ago on the Social Principles.
David Calfee, a longtime member and supporter of our church, died February 6 at his home in Monte Vista. He was a resident of Point Richmond until his retirement and move out of the area in 1985. Although he was away, he kept in contact with people at our church and was always interested in news from the church. He continued to financially contribute to the church every year because of his love of the church community.
Soundcloud is up and running on our website! Message from Gill Stanfield who has made it happen. There are 16 songs from the recording made during “An Evening with Dan Damon”.
if you double click the SoundCloud icon on our pointrichmondmethod.org site, it will bring up the public profile of our account, https://soundcloud.com/point-richmond-methodist-church.
You can also access it directly, here:
And of course, it can be searched on SoundCloud.
There are 16 tracks and one playlist.
The World Health Organization’s World Malaria Report 2014 shows a dramatic decrease in deaths. Sub-Saharan Africa is where 90% of the cases occur and UMCOR will be giving out millions of bed nets this year from your donations to Imagine No Malaria, which is short $10 million dollars of the $75 million needed. The bed nets in Africa will go to areas where access is most limited hoping to increase the use to 90-98% of the people. WHO states we are on the right course. Won’t you help with a donation?
There is a lovely article in this week’s Cal-Nev News on the benefits of small churches. See below:
5 Things Small Churches Can Uniquely Offer…Right Now
Asbury UMC in Chestertown, MD
Church leadership has long held a bent toward the “bigger is better” mantra of capitalistic America. We franchise new church plants. We structure our institutions to favor the larger churches. The United Methodist Church itself has long been geared toward starting pastors off in smaller churches to get their feet wet in leadership only to move them to bigger (and often higher paying) churches once they prove themselves as capable leaders.
The flip side of the “bigger is always better” way of viewing our churches is the reality that the vast majority of churches in America (and even around the world) are, in fact, small. Historically this has also been the case. Go back and read Paul’s letters to various churches. They weren’t worshiping 1,000+ on Sundays in a concert hall or amphitheater — they small, tightly-knit communities worshiping in homes.
Now I’m not a hater of the larger church — I’ve actually served in two different large, vibrant, downtown churches. I know the strength of larger churches from their ability to support more diverse ministry to the beauty of worshiping with a large, corporate body. But now that I’m serving a smaller church, I want to point out the unique beauty of small churches. Sometimes we need to be reminded that small churches are, in fact, beautiful and they should spend less time dealing with an inferiority complex because they aren’t as large as other churches.
Instead of trying to mimmick what the large churches in your area are doing (only to come up short of their quality because you don’t have the money or resources to duplicate it), here are 5 things I believe small churches can uniquely offer the world right where they are:
- Inter-generational Ministry. There is a difference between inter-generational and multi-generational forms of ministry. Just because you have people of different ages gathered in the same space for worship does NOT make it an inter-generational ministry opportunity. Crossing borders between generations takes real effort. And too often larger churches segregate people based on age and stage of life. The small church, however, can’t do that because it’s too small. So instead of bemoaning the fact that you don’t have a youth ministry with 100+ kids in it, think of ways you can put the 5-10 youth you do have in contact with people from a different generation. Numerous statistical studies actually show that an important factor in youth remaining active in the church is the presence of a deep relationship with someone older than them who is not a member of their immediate family. Segregating children and youth into their own space in the life of the church runs the terrible risk of never allowing them to encounter and forge relationships with a diverse group of people. It also sends the subtle message that they are second-class members of your church when they are not primary in the corporate ministry life of the church. Small churches offer a rich and beautiful opportunity to forge these inter-generational relationships because, well, they have to. There aren’t enough people to segregate everyone into their own corners of the church. And thanks be to God for that!
- Welcome special needs persons and families with special needs children. One of the quiet struggles churches often don’t recognize is how to incorporate persons with special needs into the life of the church. Small churches offer a unique opportunity to meet this need because they are small enough to warmly welcome and offer the individual attention a family who has a special needs child might need. It’s a daunting thing to take a child with special needs to church for fear of them standing out or somehow disturbing the flow of worship. It’s also very lonely for that child to get lost in the mix of a large, overwhelming children’s program. Small churches can offer love, hospitality, and attention to make a family feel welcome. And the truth is, small churches can offer a worship experience that is vibrant but doesn’t necessarily have the overly-produced feel that worship in a larger church might have. This is actually very welcoming to a newcomer who might feel their presence would alter the flow of worship for others. In other words, special needs can be uniquely and lovingly met and welcomed in a small church.
- More people can help lead worship. Since the small church is often less concerned with production led by professional worship leaders, it can incorporate more laity in the leading of worship. Remember: nothing says the pastor is supposed to be the sole worship leader. Liturgy is the work of the people. And faithful worship incorporates the efforts of EVERYONE as together we offer ourselves to God in praise and thanksgiving. So find ways to let people pray, read scripture, serve communion, sing, and maybe even occasionally preach in the small church. One thing we’re doing this coming year in the church I’m serving is we are shifting to laity being the primary servers of communion when we celebrate the sacrament. As pastor I will preside, but we’re asking laity to serve the elements. So we’ve had a sign-up to volunteer for this duty. Again, absolutely nothing says the pastor is supposed to be the primary server of the elements. Give people a chance to lead and serve more, you might be surprised how sharing in the work of worship might begin to transform people.
- More focus on community outreach. While small churches might bemoan the loss of in-house programs as numbers decline, I say it’s a great blessing. Large churches have to expend a great deal of effort managing and sustaining programs that focus inwardly on the life of the membership. Lots of money is spent on resources of Sunday Schools, youth programs, children’s ministry, etc. It’s really a rat race — just ask any pastor or staff person at a larger church in their most honest moments. Small churches just don’t have the resources to keep up in that race. So why try? There’s a great freedom in not worrying with the inwardly focused programs. You can actually look outwardly on your community and focus time and attention there. How can you open your space to community groups? Can you invite support groups to meet in your building (especially if your small church occupies a large building)? Can you find ways to resource your local community? Can you partner with other small churches or local missional efforts? You see, small church ministry is just ripe for people to finally break out from the inward, program-focused mindset of church and direct their attention to where God is at work outside of the walls of the church more fully.
- Offer a family feel to others. Look, families aren’t all warm and fuzzy. They have their dysfunction. And so does a small church because if often operates like a big, extended family. However through all of that dysfunction, one thing is (hopefully) certain: People know they are loved. As our world becomes more global, there is a rise to locally-focused relationships in business, commerce, and relationships. The small church can offer something that might get lost in a large church where people don’t always know one another by name — you can actually be a part of a family. In our worst moments, that family feel leads us to gossip or insulation from others who aren’t a part of our family. In our best moments, it’s an expression of true love extended to anyone searching for a community who will love them enough to never let them go. Family is tough and it’s messy. But it’s also very beautiful. And so is small church ministry.
– See more at: http://mastersdust.com/2015/01/29/5-things-small-churches-can-uniquely-offer-right-now/#sthash.I4uZgf15.dpuf
Generosity
Don’t forget that donations for Imagine No Malaria are always welcome.
Our carpets are clean! A huge thank you to Bill Thompson and Heinz Lankford who cleaned the Sanctuary and Narthex carpets last week. The joy of going up to the altar and not seeing any stains was a real pleasure. Thank you so much for giving your time and energy to beautify our church.
Events
Saturday, February 14, 1-3 pm, United Methodist Women Meeting at Doreen Leighton’s home, 236 Castro St. Point Richmond. All women of the church are welcome.
Beginning Sunday, February 15 thru March 1, we will be collecting coins and other forms of money, in memory of Helen Valentine and contributing the donations to buy animals or plants chosen by the children in the church to the Heifer Project.
Ash Wednesday Service, February 18, 7 pm. Our church circuit Ash Wednesday Service is at St. Luke’s UMC, 3200 Barrett Ave., Richmond.
Wednesday, February 18, GRIP dinner. If you would like to help cook and serve a dinner for GRIP, contact Doreen Leighton at 307 5461or d3leighton@me.com.
Thursday, February 19, 6:30 pm: Prayer and Self Denial gathering in Friendship Hall. We are providing a soup made by Doreen Leighton and hosting the event. Open Door UMC will be presenting the program on Gratitude. The women of the church are welcome to attend and prepare for Lent.
Sunday, February 22, 10 am, Celebrating Fruitfulness and Faithfulness with Bishop Warner Brown. Inspirational preaching by Bishop Brown, Cal/Nev Conference Bishop as well as President of the Council of Bishops speaking about the areas of fruitfulness and faithfulness that he is most excited about. Town Hall style of Q&A time led by the Bishop. Taylor Memorial UMC, 1188 12th St, Oakland. Reception following at 2 pm at Epworth UMC, 1953 Hopkins St., Berkeley. Flyers in Friendship Hall.
Friday, February 27, 7:30 pm, PRJazz presents the Zack Brock Trio. Zack Broch, violin; Sam Borsh, keyboard and Mark Ferber, drums direct from New York City. Jazz Times has stated that Zack has audacious ingenuity and masterful command of his instrument. Zack is a composer as well as “the pre-eminent improvising violinist of his generation”. Don’t miss this cutting edge ensemble! First united Methodist church, 201 Martina St., Point Richmond. Tickets $20 at the door and $15 through prjazz.org where you can see more about the group.
Saturday, February 28, 11 am to 1 pm, Master Class and Workshop with Zack Brock. 714 Western Dr., Point Richmond. See prjazz.org and click on Workshops for more information.
Saturday, March 7, 10 am to 4 pm, All JFO Spring Retreat. Journey Farthest Out provides camping experiences for development of body, mind and spirit by giving an opportunity to explore one’s inner spirituality and find ways to go farther out in one’s relationship to God. Come for a day of meditation, singing, speaker, creative/sharing, prayer group, World Prayer Broadcast and a blessing ceremony. Light breakfast provided, bring a bag lunch. RSVP to Jean Reynolds 510 734 3942 or sweetheart05@mac.com. More information at: jfocamps.com/home.
Saturday, March 14- save the date for our annual Sweetheart Dinner, Heinz Lankford and Kathe Kiehn will be our Sweethearts. More information to come.
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