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It's A God Thing

1/28/2014

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It’s a God thing. And Hannibal Smith would be proud!

It is the end of the first day of the much touted winter storm, one I understand that has been named Leon. I did not know they named winter storms, but whoever “they” are, they must have been doing it a while because they are up L.

I was actually looking forward to this storm. I am about three weeks behind in some office work and have about 300 letters to write. Today was going to be a day to drink coffee and write letters from my office at home. I brought home all of the things on my cluttered desk so I could take care of them.

Just as I settled down to write I received an e-mail from Sasha, our Director of Children’s Ministry. She doesn’t usually send me something unless it is very important, so I stopped writing to check what she had to say. The e-mail was titled “It’s cold outside” and the message said simply, “Dear Pastor Mike, I know that this may be asking a lot but Rob and I were wondering if there was anyway to open the church tonight for those who have nowhere else to go. Rob is willing to stay overnight.”

That was it, but, for me, it was one of those “God speaking to Abraham” moments. A lot of things suddenly started coming together. And I was being asked to go somewhere I did not know. Let me explain.

Several weeks ago I preached on Abraham’s answer to God calling him. I asked the question in my sermon, “Would you be willing to go where you did not you you were going if God called you?” I asked the question of myself, as well as of the congregation, looking at how we usually want to know everything before we start out.

Last week Jim Hunter, a clergy friend in Mt. Pleasant posted on Facebook about how Hibben UMC (where he and his wife are pastors)had been opening their church for homeless people to stay in at night during these cold winter nights. Yesterday I called Jim and asked him about it- logistics, how they communicated to the people about the opportunity, things to watch out for, etc. He told me that they were learning this on the fly. They had only been doing it a week. But he gave me good advice. I told him that we (Highland Park UMC) might do that, but we would need to plan for a while to get it done.Maybe by next winter we could be an emergency shelter for those in need when the temperature dropped below freezing. Jim was the only person I talked with about this. I swear this is true.

Pete Halbert stopped the church a couple of days ago to give me his usual harassment while helping make sure the church buildings are in good repair. He asked me if I knew about the “Church of Whosoever” downtown. I said I did. It’s a ministry to mostly street people, housed in a small building near the railroad tracks on Baroody. Pete was on his way down there to take some clothes and help with some of their building needs. A handyman is a good person to have as a friend!

So….the e-mail comes in from Sasha. I call Sonny Powell, chair of trustees, and ask if we could house some folks, if needed, in the ATTIC. He said (as you would expect), “If there’s people in need of a warm place to stay, and we have a warm place for them, then we ought to do. It’s what the church does.” I called Hope Whaley, our director of youth ministries,  to make sure the ATTIC was okay, and she said, “This is great! Go for it!” I called Adriane Woodrum, our new chair of church council and she said, “All the bases have been covered. Looks like this is what God wants us to do.”
I called Pete and asked if he would help with transportation. He said, "The roads might be a little dicey tonight....sure, I'll help!"(I love being in a church with people like that!)

So I called Matt Davis at the Church of Whosoever, told him if he had an overflow crowd, that we would house some of them tonight. He was elated!

I sent out an e-mail to the church asking for air-mattresses, sheets, blankets, and pillows, and almost immediately my phone started buzzing. The response has been overwhelming! (Again, I love being in a church with people like that!)

I don’t know if we will have many guests, or any, tonight. But we are ready. If we do, Rob and I will stay there help make them feel warm, and give them a sandwich, and a place to stay, and a listening ear.

Regardless, “I love it when a plan comes together.” It’s not my plan. It’s God’s plan. And I think Hannibal Smith would be proud. (For you whippersnappers who are under forty and do not get the reference, Netflix an episode or two of the old TV show ‘The A Team.’)

Now, if we could somehow figure out the plan to get all those letters typed….


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Landm _ _ _

1/27/2014

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Fill in the last three letters: Landm _ _ _.

Did you make the word “landmark” or “landmine”?

(Credit where credit’s due department- Thanks to Rev. John Hipp for this idea.)

Landmarks are places that are highly visible and usually inspire you to be better. Arlington National Cemetery, the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, the Twin Towers/Ground Zero Memorial. You see them and come away wanting to be something more.



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Landmines, on the other hand, are hidden, invisible, and do great damage.

I was asked today to consider which I was. Am I a landmark…or a landmine? And which do I want to be?

Jeremiah 29:11 says – “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

There are enough landmines in the world already (too many, actually). And not enough landmarks.

Which are you? And which do you want to be?


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Thanks

1/13/2014

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“You will not get what you want until you are thankful for what you have.”

Last Fall I read John Kralik’s  A Simple Act of Gratitude,  in which he chronicles a  year in which he wrote a thank you note every day to someone for  what they had done for him. The above quote was something that came to him while he was hiking, trying to get through a very depressing time in his life. So he decided to spend a year being thankful, focusing on the blessings he had received from others, rather than on what he did not have. And it changed his life.

The Bible is filled with the command to “give thanks.” Psalms 9,  100, 106, 107, 118, 136 are filled with the admonition to give thanks. Even when we have problems, we are told to give thanks (see Philippians 4:4-7) and the peace of God will guard our hearts and minds.

Beth Behling, one of our great resident artists, has a painting “Eucharisteo” (which means “thanksgiving”) in the narthex, and people have put cards on it with things they are thankful for. We have a “Thanksgiving Board” in the hallway beside the kitchen. Each week you can write on it something for which you are thankful. It helps us to be aware of all the many blessings God has poured on us.

Every time you are in the church building, I invite you to stop by and write something on the board. There’s always something to be greatful for; “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:22-23)

So, today….what are you thankful for?


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Horse Statues

1/10/2014

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There is a myth out there that says the way that a horse is positioned in military statues tells us about the person in the statue. The myth says that if the horse has one hoof in the air, the person was wounded in battle but survived; if it has two hoofs in the air, the person died in battle, and if it has all four hoofs on the ground, the person was not wounded in battle. Although this would be a good way to understand all those military statues, it is not true. It’s a myth.

Still, I wonder what a statue of my life would be like? I don’t want to be in any war, but are there things that I am willing to give myself wholeheartedly to? Or do I just want to live to a ripe old age and go out with a sigh?

When I was younger I used to fear that I would come to the end of my life, and right in the moment before I died, right after I saw all my life in review, my last thought would be, “none of it made any difference.” I want my horse to be reared up.

One of the great scenes in The Once and Future King by T.H. White (the Broadway musical and movie Camelot was based on this book) has Arthur facing all the perils of a kingdom bent on destroying itself. He holds up his sword Excalibur and says:

By God! I shall be a king! This is the time of King Arthur, when we shall reach for the stars! This is the time of King Arthur, when violence is NOT strength, and compassion is NOT weakness! WE ARE CIVILIZED! Resolved! We shall live through this together, Excalibur! They, you, and I! And may God have mercy on us all!

As I walk through this community, I look for that kind of passion. And pray that it is in me.

One other thought…..if you see a horse whose coloring is red and all four feet are off the ground, you’re probably at an old gas station.


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Highland Park United Methodist Church / 1300 Second Loop Rd. / Florence, SC 29505 / Phone: 843.662.1233 / Fax: 843.665.5692