Opening Prayer

God of love, who has perfected love in the many gifts you give. We come before you hoping to grow in your light. We come before you this day hoping to shine forth with your presence within us. The scriptures tell us that as you abide in us, it shows forth in love for you and for one another. Fill us this day, O God of abundant love, and let us show that love as we worship you.

Message

“I have come that they may have life, and have it to the fullest.” He wants to give you a better life than you ever dreamed of.

Life is what we’ve been looking for since we lost paradise. Adam and Eve ate the apple from the wrong tree. So we got the Knowledge of Good and Evil but missed the Tree of Life.

Jesus does not say you want too much. Instead, He says don’t settle for too little. Jesus, who caused the blind to see, the lame to walk, the deaf to hear, and raised the dead to life, freed the prisoners from oppression, Christ Jesus wants us to live, not merely survive.

The life we long for and truly desire is new life in Christ. Christ, Himself, is the door to life.

There were two kinds of sheep-pens in Jesus’ day. There was the communal sheepfold in villages manned by a doorkeeper. Shepherds left their sheep in pens like these when home to rest.

But, there was another kind of sheepfold. It was a sheepfold built in the wilderness. There the shepherd, himself, became the door as he laid himself across the entry way to protect the sheep. So there arose a saying, “The good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep.”

Jesus offers himself as God’s doorway into the life that is truly life. Confidence in Him leads us to become Christ’s apprentices in eternal living. One door and only one, and yet its sides are two. Inside or outside: on which side are you?

Christ, Himself, is the Good Shepherd: The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul.

Jesus calls Himself the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd knows His sheep by name. He leads them. They follow. He has promised to receive us, broken and sinful though we be. He has mercy to relieve us, grace to cleanse, and power to free.

The late Andrae Crouch had recorded 15 albums, won 9 Grammy Awards, worked on musical scores for The Lion King and The Color Purple and had been nominated for an Academy Award.

But Andrae Crouch was not always on top of the world. He had no formal musical training and could not sight-read music. He had to overcome stuttering and still struggles with dyslexia. His mother, father, and brother all died in a span of two years. He tells some awful stories of Christian people walking out of his early concerts because of his skin color.

My favorite song that Andrae recorded is entitled “Through It All.”

One stanza goes like this: “I thank God for the mountains, I thank God for the valleys, I thank God for the storms He’s brought me through. For if I’d never had a problem, I wouldn’t know that God could solve them. I wouldn’t know what faith in God could do. Through it all, I’ve learned to trust in Jesus, I’ve learned to trust in God. Through it all, through it all, I’ve learned to depend on His Word.”

Brothers and Sisters, you can have new life in Christ. Why not live, and not merely survive?

New life is found in Christ and lived out in community. The word religion comes from a Latin word meaning “to bind together.” So religion binds people together to deal with life’s joys and sorrows. These ties that bind are sacred.

Christ creates this community! The Church is the body of Christ. The Church is blessed of God. The Church is God’s best hope for humanity. The Church deserves my heart, my life and my deepest devotion.

When it’s all been said and done, there’s just one thing that really matters: Did I do my best to live for Christ? Did I live my life for others? Let the living begin!

Pastoral Prayer

We gather today, in the name of the One who gives all of us the opportunity for repentance that leads to life; we gather today, in the name of the One whose command created all things; We gather today, in the name of the One who will make all things new. Make us new, Lord. Make us new.

Lord, as we reflect on eternity, our deepest hopes and longings are stirred. We’ve wept so many tears that we can’t imagine a day when they’ll be no more. We’ve known mourning and sorrow and pain for so long we can scarcely believe they’ll be wiped away.

And so we pray for faith, hope and love. Faith to believe you’ll do what you’ve said you’ll do. Hope to keep heart as we wait. And love to care well for those around us as we live out the priorities of your coming kingdom in the here and now.

God of power and might, you know that we are so often afraid. Even so, you call us to greatness and life. You call us to rise above the challenges of life and living. You even call us to believe in life after death.

Lord God, you promise to protect us, yet we do not always believe that promise; you show us the way to abundant and fulfilled living, yet we often want to go our own way.

But, Lord God, we know you love us. Your Spirit is always near, ready to guide us and fill us with confidence.

Comfort our hurting lives and remind us in new and powerful ways of the meanings and promise of eternal life. Calm us down and fill us with assurance and hope. Steady our nerves and soothe our pains.

Reconciling Savior, in a world where many feel friendless, thank you for your constant companionship. In situations of violence and hatred, thank you for your commandment to love one another. In times where many know death and destruction, thank you for this season of resurrection.

As you love us, make us faithful friends who love one another by proclaiming the good news of the resurrection to all. We ask all this in your name as we now pray the prayer you taught us to pray, saying…

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.

A Prayer For Victory Over the Pestilence

First Christian Church Timothy and National Guard Chaplain Rev. Jeff Peppers shared this prayer with me and I invite you to pray this prayer daily.

Military, civilian, and family members of the Florida National Guard are invited to unite in prayer for victory over the harmful effects of COVID-19.

Almighty and most merciful God, we come to You surrounded by fear and uncertainty. In all Your goodness, we ask You to restrain the invasion of this invisible enemy. Grant us courage, as Soldiers and Airmen, to stand before Your people against this pestilence. Listen to all who call upon You, that by Your power, we may gain victory against our foe. Give no way for this adversary to continue harming our communities by its oppressive hold on our lives. In Your comfort, may we not merely endure, but prevail, so that Your Triumph may be celebrated by all people, now and forever. Amen.