Reflections On The Wonder of Music

Dearest Father Above,

I thank You for music-for in it I get lost in your peace and your grace.  I thank you also for your creation of ears to hear, hands to play, eyes to see, vocal chords to verbalize and to produce melodic tones and for the creation of sounds that loft from instruments conceived from minds that you filled with brains and nerves and feelings.

Lord, your plans are like an ecosystem.  Each note that is produced in praise to you rises to you and comes back to the giver and to all those around them in a sweet, cohesive and connective way.   Music is a love that all can comprehend on some level of their being and it is interpreted by each in their own unique way.   Within this, you also connect your kingdom; for music is a connection TO you and equally a connection BETWEEN all those who love you.

Songs of praise throughout the ages with each word penned had a meaning to he who penned it, and as those songs are passed from generation to generation there is a connective tissue formed that truly connects us to believers long departed from this earthly home.  We feel in each lifting or falling of the notes a rising of souls to reach toward You in a way that words or lyrics alone cannot express.

If we make a joyful noise toward you, no man alive can judge it; for it is not intended for them.   When we lose ourselves in music, we can see the glory of your kingdom above this earthly realm…as if the Angels are joining us and we can also hear them. Each generation from the days of Genesis has created musical praise to You, and within all of those generations of music there is a theme; not unlike the Bible.   In fact, much of the music written to praise You has a direct inspiration from your ACTUAL words written to guide us.  Music is a mighty force that can be used for good or for evil, but as believers choose to use it for good it becomes a torch that lights hearts on fire for you.

I thank you, Lord for my fellow believers; those with gifts of musical talent which you have provided them and those who dedicate themselves to sharing that gift with others.  Lord, I thank you for each of my fellow believers who choose to make a joyful noise with reckless abandon and for their gifts or lack of gifts in the musical realm.  For when I hear praises in song lifted above I hear a harmony of hearts and minds united for you.  Your plans for music were for our good and we love you for giving us the chance to connect with you and your kingdom on this level.

In Jesus' name we pray, Amen.

~LouAn Williams

A God With Skin

In time gone by, God showed Himself

but people ran and cried

too scared to know He really cared

no matter how He tried.

Through prophets, teachers, leaders all

He tried to show His love;

but humans only learn by fear

and strike what they can’t trust.

Though close to them He wished to be

and awesome though He was

He couldn’t get quite close enough

He’d only scare us off.

He devised a plan to get in close,

a man, He would become;

Jesus He sent, to show the world

the Father’s only Son.

He lived with us, loved with us

He finally came to see

what made us just the way we were

the fears, the hopes the dreams.

Those things that drove us to be good,

those things that made us bad,

He knew we need to know God’s love

that piece He knew He had.

He was the sacrifice for us-

to God, He made the way

so we could come before Him now

and not be scared away.

This love exchanged, God to man

that man could come to God

through Jesus, He the way prepared

it was all done out of love.

~Fiona Monaghan

The High Value of Wisdom

For wisdom is far more valuable than rubies. Nothing you desire can compare with it. Proverbs 8:11

Think about those words written by Solomon thousands of years ago. Really let yourself sit with this proverb.

“Nothing you desire can compare with it...”

What are some things we desire that some how end up having higher value, than wisdom? Money? Job title? Success of our kids? Educational degrees?

It’s easy to go through our week and not intentionally think about our need for wisdom. Maybe the reasons why is we tend to lean on our experience or smarts. Both play a role yet, neither are enough by themselves. Wisdom is the meshing of our intelligence, experience and connection with God all wrapped in one.

The two most common questions I’ve heard regarding wisdom are:

1. Isn’t wisdom just doing what the Bible says?

2. How does one attain wisdom?

The first answer is no. No, because not all circumstances we face in life are specifically dealt with in the Bible. Wisdom must go beyond knowing and doing the Word of God (although this is always the starting point). God’s wisdom also includes a sensitive and mature judgement where and how a situation needs to be worked out when the Bible isn’t clear on what we are to do.

The second is simple. ASK!  Scripture tells us that if anyone lacks wisdom, they should ask God and he will give it generously (James 1:5). This is a promise, friends!

Placing a high value on wisdom isn’t easy, but how much richer, happier and healthier our lives are when we seek wisdom and apply it. Let’s all give it a try this week. I doubt any of us will regret it!

Grace and Peace,

Pastor Rex

Who's Got Your Back?

My child, never forget the things I have taught you.  Store my commands in your heart.  If you do this, you will live many years.  And our life will be satisfying.  Never let go of loyalty and kindness!  Tie them around your neck as a reminder. Write them deep within your heart.  Then you will find favor with both God and people.  Proverbs 3:1-4

Have you noticed how music sticks with you in an unexplainable way?  Great music sets the mood for everyone who is listening while giving them unique thoughts, emotions and memories.  I was praying for healing this morning for a person that I dearly love.  I dared in the name of Jesus to ask that his digestive system would begin to work again after surgery.  The Christian nurse listening in commented that my prayer reminded her of a song by Danny Goekey Tell your heart to start.  It came from a true story of a lady named Mrs. Johnson who had open-heart surgery and when they took her heart off the heart and lung machine her heart would not start.  The surgeon, who was a Christian, kneeled down at the bed-side of the lady.  He prayed, “Mrs.  Johnson we have repaired your heart. There is nothing wrong with it so please tell your heart to beat again”.  Her heart began to beat. 

This drama became a great song because it resonates with so many of us.  We have suffered injury but now that chapter is over and we need to have faith in Jesus Christ that He is greater than our fears and we need to tell our hearts to beat again. 

This is just a sample of the wisdom that God provides for us.  It doesn’t mean much unless we remember it and lean not on our own understanding trusting Jesus to lead and guide us to choose the right paths.  If you would like to listen to the You tube you can find it at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azYK8I2uoog

I hope you find encouragement in this wisdom

Your friend for the rest of my life,

Pastor Tim

Be Ready

It is our job to make the adjustments necessary in our daily walk so we are prepared for any assignment. We don’t know what will be required in days to come, but the prepping, the studying to be ready for it, starts now. This happens in the quiet, thoughtful places. We won’t have time to pull it all together at the time of crisis. Have the “tanks filled”, all preparations made and the communication lines established, then be readyand on the alert.

This was addressed in a sermon I heard on the disciple, Peter. At the time of his denial in the courtyard, Peter had been given the opportunity to “tank up”. Peter was with Jesus in the garden and three times Jesus came to the disciples and admonished them to pray. Luke 22:46. 

In essence, things were going to get messy, they needed to “stoke the fires and get strength from the Father.” Jesus did. He was human and God but still needed that time of prayer. How much more do we, being fully human, need to pray?

“The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak” Mark 14:38   We will be tested and it’s through difficulty that we know what lies in our hearts and what needs to be sifted out. “The chain of command is clear. Satan can do nothing outside of God’s domain and God uses satan to advance the cause of His kingdom.” Our assignment is to be ready and primed for anything. It is not at the time of battle to get our equipment in working order, but to have it at the ready all the time.

We make it our aim… to be well pleasing to Him. 1 Corinthians 5:9

Time Well Spent

A lovely evening spent with my daughter when we met for dinner. A couple of hours talking and laughing, oblivious to what was going on around us. We enjoyed each other’s company.

When you come looking for me you’ll find me. Yes, when you get serious about finding me, and want it more than anything else, I’ll make sure you won’t be disappointed.” Jeremiah 29:12-14 (The Message Bible)

It occurred to me when I read this verse, that we have no problem seeking the time to spend with people we love, and when they make time for us we are blessed and happy. How much more does the Father feel my love when I make time to spend with Him.

There is a difference between spending time and making time. I find that I can spend time with someone out of necessity and when it fits in with the schedule -- those can be blessed times too. But, isn’t there a subtle difference when it is ‘sought’ time spent with someone? We do that when dating.  We want to be with our loved one, so we seek out time to be with them.  Even at times, adjusting the schedule of our lives to accommodate.

Just think how pleased Our Father is when we extend that consideration to Him? He is always ready and waiting for us to make our move toward Him; to have a quiet one-on-one time of devotion or reading His Word with undivided attention -- no distractions. I have found time with my Father to be the best time of my day. I come away with blessings and promises to get me through my day… until the next time.

Fiona

Surprise Visits

What hinders me from hearing is that I am taking up with other things. It is not that I will not hear God, but I am not devoted in the right place. Oswald Chambers

Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually!  1 Chronicles 16:11

Setting my heart on what He wants, thinking His thoughts… it is at those times that He will appear and make himself known to me.

How does He do this? I would like to think it is at those times when reading something in the Bible that just jumps out at me and an ‘ah ha’ thing happens. Or when a compliment or comment is made regarding something I have been praying about and it is confirmation that I am on the right track. A sermon or lesson that really zeroes in to a specific area of my life. The opportunity presented to step up and help someone without prompting, just knowing it is what He would have me do - just because…Being at a place of peace and contentment no matter what the circumstances and knowing that they are all under God’s control and not mine to manipulate. I am finding that ‘sweet spot’ more and more in my life. That place where things are good, not because of the surrounding circumstances but in the place I am standing, next to Christ and trusting in Him with childlike trust and expectation.

Father, thank you for your promise that, when I seek You, You will draw near to me; for the desire to grow more like your Son in attitude and thinking so that my mind is looking farther ahead than to the immediate. “Trusting that all things will be made right as I surrender to your will”. Trusting you for my family because I have put them into your hands…

Fiona~

The End, Or New Beginning?

To come to the end of oneself and to realize that there is nothing left to hang onto.The ‘willfulness’ that got me this far, has run out. Circumstances have pushed me to a place up against a wall; the very place of miracle and rebirth. To know that all my running and planning is at an end. To turn my heart, mind and will over to the care of my Father who has been waiting patiently for me to reach the end of myself.

We saw it in the lives of Peter and Paul and others who finally ‘got it’ no more running or working off one’s own agenda. To be truly God’s person you have to come to the end of yourself.

Oswald Chambers addressed it so well…

“All our promises and resolutions end in denial because we have no power to accomplish them. When we come to the end of ourselves, not just mentally but completely, we are able to receive the Holy Spirit. The idea is that of invasion…”

There is now only one who directs the course of my life. Now that I am finally in that place I never want to leave it. My direction, purpose and will are centered outside of myself and upon Jesus and what He would have me do.

When I look back to the places of worry, fear, angst, planning and coercion that I lived in, I marvel at how He has brought me out of it and to this place of acceptance. Not an easy road to be sure, but one that step by step and doing the next right thing brought me to this place.

I thank You my Father for the miracle of coming to the end of myself and finding You there waiting to hear those words that only I can say “whatever it takes.” You put me on a better path from that moment on. You are dependable, trustworthy and true to all that You have promised. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Be with all those I love and use their circumstances to bring them to the end of themselves and to the place where they will find You there waiting. That is the greatest miracle in anyone’s life that we could ask for. Be with us all in this year with its changes, pain, problems, angst and also joy. Help us to share with each other Your faithfulness in all our circumstances so that others come to the place of relinquishment and total trust in You.  Amen.

Fiona-

How To Pray In Times Of Stress

This is me with a few of the kids from our church’s Cathedral Kid ministry getting ready to worship and pray at camp.

This Prayer technique developed for me during the season of pregnancy, labor, and lack-of-home-ness. In the past 3 years we’ve had 2 kids. We’ve had roofs over our heads, but not a home of our own for the last year. In other words, this has been a season where prayer has been essential. I thought I’d share how I like to pray and how I teach the kids in my ministry to pray too.

Think of this practice as a chiastic structure, where each step is essential.

Part 1: “The second commandment is equally important, love your neighbor as your love yourself”

1. Listen to yourself

a. Set a timer for 60 seconds. Take one full minute to sit still in silence. Try to breathe.

2. Understand yourself

a. Write down on a piece of paper the main thoughts that occupied your mind during that time of silence. What worried you? What felt out of your control? What feelings were alive in you?

3. Respond to yourself

a. Take a moment to care for your body. Stretch, breathe deeply, reflect on what you’ve eaten, how you’ve slept, and if you can, take a short walk outside.

Don’t stop here. Step one only prepares yourself to listen.

Part 2: “Love the lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength…”

1. Say thank you.

a. Write down as long a list as you can of what you are thankful for.

b. Now go deeper, write a paragraph on why you are so grateful for one of the things from your list.

2. Remember who you are talking to.

a. Listen to the noises in the room, how it smells, how your seat feels under you. Think of where you are located in your building, then your street, then your city, then your state, then the country, then the continent, then the world then the universe. You are in the presence of the creator of the universe.

b. Picture Jesus with you. How is he sitting or standing? What expression is on his face?

3. Turn from Sin. Turn to God.

a. In light of the greatness of God and His intentions for humanity, is there anything in your life, in your heart, in your relationships, in your workplace, the way you vote, the wat you’re spending your money, where your thoughts have been that are out of line with God’s best intended life for you?

b. Ask God’s forgiveness. Trust that God is powerful enough to forgive you. Set your heart back on Jesus.

4. Trust God; Ask for help.

a. Based on the worries that most occupied you in part 1, ask God for help, knowing that he loves you, he wants to help you, and he is capable of helping you.

5. Listen.

a. Set aside time just to listen to God. Listen in the way that is most helpful for you. Listen while walking, listen while playing a worship song, listen with a pen in hand and blank sheet of paper in front of you.

Don’t stop here. Step two only prepares yourself to obey, change, and grow.

Part 3: “Love your neighbor as you love yourself”

1. Act on what God has told you to do

2. Keep Listening and involve your community- you are not alone!

a. The 10 commandments are not a suggestion, be involved in your church community, honoring the Sabbath day so you have the support you need to follow God.

-Pastor Becca

When The Illusion Is Gone

Disillusionment, it happens to us all. It is that place from which one could build a stronger belief system by examining what it is we truly want to depend upon when things get tough.

This could be viewed as a ‘crisis of faith’ and could have been a slippery slope heading to disbelief.  I chose to see it as a place to re evaluate, dig in, hold on, and do some checking into what I believed truly. Or find out if it was a belief system belonging to someone else that I had acquired.

It was there that I truly found out who God was, who Jesus was and what job the Holy Spirit had to do in my life.

I read books from authors who had dealt with similar situations. People who had questioned what they were being told when it didn’t conform to their expectations, and who had also gone on a faith search.

Philip Yancey was a man raised in the 70’s in southern Baptist churches who had a head on collision with the thinking of the black and white issue. C.S. Lewis came from an atheist background and found his way to faith. I was in good company. 

My dilemma had to do with what the ‘church’s view was toward people in crisis: People in addiction - people of divorce. I had been raised in a church and a way of thinking that if you prayed hard enough, hung in there long enough, you could overcome all manner of things. But what if the person in the marriage kept up the abuse knowing the partner wouldn’t leave?  What I saw instead were families torn by abuse, pain, and violence that was being tolerated because to divorce was ‘unchristian’. It put me at odds with my church family because that was me. I knew in my heart that God was more forgiving and tolerant than the ideas I was hearing. I pulled away from church, but kept my faith in God. For 10 years I lived alienated from a body of believers, until the day when I found out about Washington Cathedral.

Many changes had occurred in my life in those 10 years. I now had a grand-daughter from a teenage daughter which has been one of the best things that could have happened to our family. Through that, my daughter found her path, embraced motherhood and raised a fantastic daughter. I had remarried and found a loving man but one who came with some brokenness of his own. Washington Cathedral was a body of believers who had a big, collective heart. They accepted people who came broken, hurting, questioning and loved us. I have never regretted the day we walked into the sanctuary, looked at the waterfall and felt “at home” and in the resulting 12 years it continues.

This series we just finished on ‘Disillusionment’ has caused me to look back over my journey and see just how healthy it is to ask these questions and have the discussion. We each have a journey to take, it is so much easier to know we are on it with fellow travelers who can appreciate what we are going through without criticism, but with the understanding that life gets messy and that when it gets really tough, God is there loving us and waiting for us to ask for help. It also helps to have people to talk to who give good counsel from personal experience. I believe that makes for a healthy church. One that recognizes our human frailties offers the solutions and supports that one while time is taken to get to that place of acceptance. 

-Fiona