Predestined to Change Los Angeles?

by D. Mark Brewer :: “We know that all things work together for good for those who love Christ. For those whom God foreknew He predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son…” Romans 8:28 What’s with this whole “predestination” thing John Calvin and Presbyterians are infamous for? Is it like the old Scotsman who fell and broke his leg and said, “I”m glad that’s over”? Are all things predetermined and we’re just living out what cannot be changed? Or is everything dependent upon us and our choices? Calvin would have said “the wrong question always gets the wrong answer.” As Calvin came to Geneva, Switzerland and tried to change the city into a place where Christ was glorified, he wrestled with the great problem of life. Why do some people respond to the Gospel and have their hearts changed and others just blow off God no matter how many times they hear? Calvin’s conclusions in his Institutes of the Christian Religion (which his first draft he completed in his mid twenties!) was that we live a mystery. Not a mystery to be solved, but a mystery to be embraced. God is both totally sovereign and we are totally free. The Creator is not dependent upon His creation to get his next cue of what to do. Because God created and holds all of time and space in His hand (something the best of the new physics agrees with five hundred years after Calvin), He is the great “cause” of this cosmos. We don’t have to do great things for God in Los Angeles. We just need to participate in what He’s already doing.

For John Calvin this meant we did not have to “talk God into” saving us. He wanted to all along. It was His idea. The comfort is found when we fall and sin, we have the same grace-filled and loving God waiting for us to return and be healed as the very first time we heard of Jesus’ love. Calvin even pointed out that we could not come to Christ if it wasn’t for His grace. So when we share today with others about Christ remember the only way we can “fail” is to not share. The rest is up to them and this loving Omnipotent God. When we fall and stumble we can get back in line for this life-changing power called God’s forgiveness and take as many “servings” as we need. Don’t worry. God knows!

Happy 500th birthday John Calvin!

by Dr. Mark Brewer :: That usually gets a big yawn – even from Presbyterians. Why is this guy’s birthday so important? Because he was instrumental in much of the change of not only the church, but of western civilization. Calvin was raised as a good Catholic boy in France. He had one of those remarkable minds that comes along every few generations. By the time he was 27, he had written the essential summary of  Protestantism called the Institutes. Calvin was exposed to the teachings of Martin Luther and was overwhelmed with the freedom in Christ Luther spoke about. If Martin Luther was the heart of the reformation, then John Calvin was its primary mind. The whole concept of a democratic church and the Priesthood of every believer was championed by Calvin. Five centuries before we at Bel Air had the vision to transform Los Angeles into the greatest city for Christ, Calvin actually did it in Geneva, Switzerland. In the coming weeks, I want to share some of the tremendous successes, and some of the failures, that Calvin had in city transformation at Geneva. We have a lot to learn from this learned and impassioned lover of Christ. Calvin knew how much God loved the city, and how great a difference a handful of churches “sold out to Christ” can make. It’s alright to party a little on his birthday – even in moderation!

Expiration Date

by Dr. Mark Brewer :: They say there is a line between faith and foolishness. The other day I had to have milk in my coffee, and just because the expiration date was a week earlier, what could go wrong? Well after enjoying my cup of coffee cottage cheese, I realized some things just have to be used. Faith is the same. Even though faith is not something we work up on our own, but is a response to what God has already done, we need to act on it. When I look at my life, it’s the times that I step out in faith that actually creates more faith. Hardly a new revelation, but one I’m always shying away from.

Why does God so like this faith thing? I think it’s because relationships have shelf lives. If friendship is made up of shared experiences, we need to keep creating fresh experiences in our relationships. It is true some friends are low maintenace and can be peacefully “out of our sight” in our daily routines and “reconnected” after months like we just talked with them. But every relationship needs to be cared for because they are living, breathing things just like the people who make them up. God is no different. Faith means that we are taking His hand and learning fresh new things with our Heavenly Father. I hope to step out this week and discover a brand new thing with God. I know I’ve learned not to push dairy expiration dates too long.

Back to the Basics

by Dr. Mark Brewer :: “You know someone’s wit by their answers. You know their wisdom by their questions.” As I’ve always said, I really do like this aging thing. (Other than looking and feeling horrible, its quite fascinating!) One of the grand joys in life is finding old prayer journals and day timers. I found one the other day from my seminary days and as an intern at Bel Air in 1978. We had just had an all-staff “brown bag” and Rev. Donn  had asked us what it meant to be God’s man or woman serving in L. A. I found I was asking how to balance going to graduate school, not married a year yet, interning at Bel Air, as well as being house “maids” in Pasadena. This all before the days of Twitter, the Internet, or even cable TV! But the question continues to ring in my heart the same. How do we slow it down enough to hear the voice of God. It’s been a long time since I’ve met someone who was “deliciously” bored. The management of my time is still the best barometer of my yieldness to the Spirit of God. This season of Pentecost I’m going back to the basics of simply letting Christ be the Lord of my time . . . and life. Keep up the strategic planning of leadership, but keeping that “ear to heaven” very attuned. Pray for me.

No Poop for You

by Rev. Keenan Barber :: My son Micah was diagnosed with Hirschsprung’s Disease on Day #2 of his life (July 22, 2008). Three things tipped the doctors off – he wasn’t holding food down, he was not pooping, and his stomach was distended. According to NIDDK Online Health Information “Normally, muscles in the intestine push stool to the anus, where stool leaves the body. Special nerve cells in the intestine, called ganglion cells, make the muscles push. A person with HD does not have these nerve cells in the last part of the large intestine” The surgery entails determining the point at which the large intestines have healthy nerve cells, cut out the bad section of bowel, and reattach the healthy tissue to the anus. All of this with a 5 day old infant.

Micah spent about 4 days in the hospital recovering from this surgery, and then came home. For a while, we still had to help him have bowel movements while the new section of bowel learned its new role – to push the poop out. If we don’t help him with this important process, the stool will back up and become infected, and he would have to take another trip to the hospital, and quite frankly, we would be happy to not see the inside of another NICU.

Why am I telling you all this right now? I think the human body is amazing. It takes in food and drink, digests what it needs to, and then gets rid of the toxic junk. Our spiritual lives are actually pretty similar. We take things in, we process them, we ingest people’s words, we have sin in our body. What some of us have forgotten is that we can’t hold all that stuff in. God wants us to expel / get rid of / jettison the bad stuff.

Easter was only a few weeks ago, and we have already forgotten the work of Redemption Christ has done for us on the Cross. I think repentance is God’s way of allowing us to expel the bad stuff. And if we don’t get rid of the toxic materials in our lives, they find a way to infiltrate our system and make us sick. Sometimes this actually manifests itself in physical ways, and others it is just a giant millstone that we carry around of guilt or regret or remorse.

Look back at Micah – what were the signs? Sign #1 – He was throwing up food – are we able to take in the good things of life and hold onto to them? Sign #2 – No poop – are we holding onto the bad stuff either consciously or unconsciously?

Jesus came to set us free from the “poop” of our lives. Sometimes we just need to take the time to sit, reflect, and repent of some of the things we have engaged in our lives, and allow God’s mercy to pour over us and “cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Do Not Be Afraid

by Dr. Mark Brewer :: “Do not be afraid.” Matthew 28:10 Another one of the first words of Christ echoes what the angels said to the women at the tomb. “Do not be afraid.” It is so comforting to know that the Lord knows our fears and comes and meets us right where we are. He doesn’t chastise us for our feelings; but rather for our thinking. Fear can come in the little things as well as the looming ominous events of life. Sometimes its just the constant “angst” of the pace of life in LA.

I find myself this particular Eastertide 2009 caught between two fabulous and stressful events. The birth of our first grandchild by my oldest daughter Vanessa in Denver, and the marriage of my youngest daughter Rachel here in Los Angeles. Both within a week! And here I sit this day in between both events. Vanessa is past her due date. . . but I know that baby will come soon. Rachel’s wedding is still a week away. . . but there’s so much to still prepare. It reminds me of this whole journey of life. I know the Lord will take care of all the”‘big things” in life, but I still try to ‘mentally control all the contigencies. The Risen Christ will return someday for all of us and the real adventure of eternity will break into our ‘casual’ little lives. Its kind of like waiting for a birth. . . or a wedding. Just do the joyful work of preparation and the Blessed event will be here before we know it.

Eastertide

by Dr. Mark Brewer :: “Woman, why are you weeping? Who is it you are looking for?” (John 20)
What were the first words we have from Christ after His resurrection? Just like the church focuses on the precious  seven “last words” (they are actually seven statements) of Christ from the cross during Lent and Holy Week, so too, the church listens to the words of Jesus after He is Risen during the season of “Eastertide.” As Mary was crying outside the garden tomb, she turned and saw the Risen Christ standing there. She thought he was the Gardener. So Jesus, I believe with a smile asked, “Why are you sad? The one you are seeking is standing right here in front of you!” It is so easy to miss the very One we are longer for and desperately seeking. The very real tears and sorrows of life blur our vision to see the Lord’s Presence in our life. The more I look back at my life, and remember the bitter tears of tough times, the more I can now see the Lord’s gentle hand and Presence taking me through the tough chapter. I really want to not go seeking after the fame, pleasure, and false security of the world’s wealth. I want like the first astonished Easter people to seek and find Christ in this crazy city we call home.

Thoughts on Easter

by Rev.Kim Dorr :: In these days of economic crisis, uncertain futures, wavering relief – in the days before Easter, I found myself meditating on Luke 9:51:

“As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.” (NIV)

I try to imagine what this must have been like for Jesus. Having just seen THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST again, the images are fresh in my mind – the beatings, the bloodshed, the torture, the anguish—How does one set out to resolutely move toward that??

My experience of human nature is that we seek to resolutely AVOID stuff like that. We want to know how to move in the opposite direction of anything like that rolling toward us. And if it’s just coming –the train wreck we know we can’t avoid – don’t we shut our eyes, duck our heads, hold our breath and kind of wait for it to hit? How does one move toward something awful?

Perhaps the answer is in the word “resolutely” – the way in which Jesus moved toward Jerusalem. To be resolute means to have a decided purpose, to be determined and from that determination to be bold, firm and steady. Jesus knew there was a magnificent purpose to what awaited him in Jerusalem. The purpose is what provided the courage and the peace. The purpose is what provided the ability to steadfastly move toward the unthinkable, to reach beyond the pain and embrace the hidden mystery of resurrection.

In these days, no matter what your circumstances are, know that God has a purpose for everything under heaven. As you look to our Lord, and reflect on His steps toward Jerusalem, may you see Him look toward you. In His eyes may you find God’s purpose more clearly revealed.

Remembering and Missing my Dad – claiming the promise this week holds

by Rev. Care Crawford :: Holy Week . . . here already, here again. I have come to Holy Week and all the promise it holds with a different or fresh perspective in the past ten or so years. My dad died over ten years ago. Now Holy Week and the promise of the cross and empty tomb remind me of the gift and invitation of heaven, of eternal life. It is in the forgiveness of our sins and that promise of “life everlasting”, as the Scripture says, that we bank on . . . Christ amazing sacrifice and love for us. As I enter Holy Week in the past many years since my dad died, and more recently since my brother David and Uncle Graham too went to be with the Lord,  I think about heaven a lot!

I miss my dad. There is rarely a day that goes by that I don’t think of him, wonder about heaven and have that “ache” of the empty place that God does not fill, but leaves empty in the relationship that was and will be one day, reunited in heaven’s embrace. I am not sure how it works in heaven; none of us can be quite sure. Scripture tells us that the Spirit prays for us, and in that Trinity, I sometimes smile thinking that my dad is praying with Jesus for me. I count on it and feel the strength that Christ’s prayers, the Spirit’s, “sighs”—deeper than words bring to me.

My dad was a minister, and a great preacher, a great “pray-er”. . .  a man of words. He had command of the language and could weave a phrase and pray a prayer which was eloquent and pierced to the places of the heart which ministered to you and brought blessing- smiles and tears at once.

I had the opportunity to experience the blessings of that eloquence and the deep place of my heart in smiles and tears the other day. I opened my mail and in a card from my mom was a typed prayer. It was one of the prayers my father had prayed at a Maundy Thursday service long ago. To my remembrance I had never heard or seen the prayer. It was a gift that brought a smile of assurance from heaven to me and a tear of missing as well as acknowledgement to the truth and hope it spoke. I share it here as it came to me through my mom’s note. May it be for you an encouragement and blessing as you listen to the Lord’s command this Maundy Thursday—coming to the table, “do this in remembrance of Me.” And in all your remembrances, might you recognize yourself in the story of His passion and follow!

A DAVID LIVINGSTONE CRAWFORD PRAYER
Help us, gracious God, with open minds and contrite hearts
to feel our way into the meaning and mystery of this table.
Quicken our imagination to the end that what went on in
that upper room may come alive for us, for we would sit at
the table with the 12 and open ourselves to the close-up
presence of Christ.
So brittle is our faith in Your providence that we
can only stand and stare when One who’s ways are perfect
shuns all complaining in His final hours and asks Thy
blessing on the meal.
O God, we do not sit in judgment on the disciples for
having hassled with one another over who was the greatest…
for pride has often marred our lives as well.
We are not surprised that one by one that night they asked
when betrayal was announced, “Is it I?” for like us,
they knew full well that under similar circumstances anyone
of them could cash their Master in.
We bow before Thee awed by the mystery of Thy suffering and love.
Forgive us that our preference runs to Bethlehem and the
Garden Tomb, to poinsettias’ and lilies and away from
Golgotha with its twisted thorns and iron nails.
Forgive us that we are far more willing to be instructed
than we are to be redeemed. Give us reachable and pliable
responses to Your grace, willing captives of the wonder that
Thy dear Son became a captive that we might become free
by letting Him be judged guilty…that we might be innocent by
letting Him suffer….that we might have joy by giving Him up
to death.
We have not deserved such mercy, not one of us. How else
should we thank Thee except by comprehending this great deed
and how can that happen unless the living Savior comes to
speak to our hearts and open us to Your love?
We offer our prayer in faith with Thanksgiving, through
Jesus Christ our dear Savior. Amen.

Miracles

by Dr. Mark Brewer :: During Holy Week Jesus performed the only miracle of destruction we have recorded . . . the cursing of the fig tree. Most of mythology and human fantasy would have a “god man” using his or her powers for their own gratification. It’s remarkable that Jesus never uses his power for his own needs; only for others. Yet here Jesus walks up to a fig tree, finds no fruit, and says “may no fruit come from you again.” The next day the tree is withered and the disciples are blown away at His power. Jesus does a quick teaching on faith, but the real lesson is that a fruitless life is one that is already dying. Christ did not do anything but put the film on fast forward. Jesus wasn’t just “venting” because he missed an afternoon snack. He was lovingly warning the nation, and us. I wonder as I look at all the “leaves and limbs” in my life where the real fruit is being born? Amidst the crazy speed of life and accomplishments and “to do” lists, am I really “abiding in the vine” and bearing fruit for the kingdom?