“Live Your Worship Out Loud!”

July 28, 2013

Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church

“Cruising Sacred Waters with Jesus”

Sermon 4 of Summer Series

Ephesians 1:3-14 (The Message Bible)

Acts 2:38-47 (New Revised Standard Version)

Let us pray… (Pray for the Holy Spirit’s wisdom and insight…)

Have you ever been so happy about something that you couldn’t hold it in…you found something that you were so happy with that you want to share your joy with everyone around you? Since we have moved here I have found something that I never knew existed…it’s called “Gonzo”. It takes stains out of anything. It works on clothing and carpets. I am so excited about having it and how well it works I have been telling people about it. I want them to have the same ease in their cleaning adventures… It is something that I never want to be without anymore. Since I have found it…it is indispensable.

In the same way…years ago I found something that I just want to share with everyone that I encounter. It is why I stand before you today. It is something that I just can’t hold in…something that I want to articulate to those around me. That one thing that is even more precious to me than the “Gonzo” cleaner is the love that I have found in Christ Jesus. It is the joy that fills my heart every time I think of God’s goodness and mercy. It is the peace that I have knowing that I am deeply loved and forgiven. I don’t…OK I can’t…keep it in. I want to live my worship of God in Christ Jesus out Loud for the entire world to see.

We are getting ready, as a church family, to embark on a cruise this summer. We will be “Cruising Sacred Waters with Jesus”. But before we set sail, we are taking some time to learn about our Captain, our Lord Jesus. We have decided that He is our Risen Lord and King…that Jesus can be trusted to be there helping us in the “stormy season” of our faith journey. As we have been looking at the “resume” of our Captain, we have come to realize that we never walk alone. I have even challenged you to look within your heart and to decide how much Jesus really means to you…that Jesus is worth more than gold itself and that we are a precious pearl to our God. He sold everything He had…put His Son, Jesus on the line…for humanity to have a right relationship with Him… We have even talked about the new eye sight we receive from our Captain that sees all, knows all and tells all to us, His faithful disciples.

But, how do we honor our Captain? Do we only enjoy His Company just once a week or is there more to the life in which we are called? How are we…as Jesus’ disciples…called to live our lives? What are we to do with the message of hope…the message of forgiveness…the message of redemption and joy? Do we lock it up in a box and put it on a shelf for us to use when we are in times of trouble or do we share it with those who don’t know about this gift that our God has lavished upon us? What should we do?

In the Ephesians Scripture this morning we hear Paul telling the people of Ephesus all about what God has done through Christ Jesus. Paul gives us an idea of how he lived his life…an idea of what he did with the message that he received. Can you here the excitement in his voice as he tells the people of Ephesus about what God has done? Paul even tells them…as well as us…what type of life God gives us…a praising and glorious life. We are given a chance for a life as people who are free…abundantly free…because of God’s love for us…for humanity. It is through and in Christ that we find out who we are…beloved sons and daughters. And not only that…even before we heard and believed in the gospel of grace God had his eye on us…God had a glorious plan for our lives. God focused His love on you and on me…wanting to makes us holy in His sight…wanting to adopt us… With all this being said…how can we not want to live our worship out loud for the world to see…how can we not want to share it with everyone we come in contact with?

But…what does that look like. We can say that we want to live out worship out loud but what does it really look like? I think we can get a glimpse of what it looks like from the words of Peter found in Acts 2:38-47 and how people reacted to Peter’s words. Listen to Peter’s words and see if you can see a glimpse of that wonderful way of living…

Acts 2:38-47 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

38 Peter said to them, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him.” 40 And he testified with many other arguments and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” 41 So those who welcomed his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand persons were added. 42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.

Life among the Believers

43 Awe came upon everyone, because many wonders and signs were being done by the apostles. 44 All who believed were together and had all things in common; 45 they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46 Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple, they broke bread at home and ate their food with glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and having the goodwill of all the people. And day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.

Did you hear how these believers lived? Did you hear what happened after they believed? They lived their worship and faith out loud for all to see and because of it…their numbers increased. They shared everything they had with those who were in need. They trusted that God would supply their needs individually so they were free to share what they had. Peter was bold when he spoke out against how these people were living. Peter was spirited when he told them what they had to do to live the life that God promised. Peter held nothing back and because of that, three thousand people gave their life to Christ. What a change we can make when we live our worship out loud for everyone to see.

The people responded by living their own worship out loud. They took care of each other. They were glad and lived a generous life with each other. They praised God not only with their mouths but with their lives. And day by day the Lord added to their numbers! We need to live our worship out loud so that others may learn about the joy within us. We need to live our worship out loud so that others can be free. We need to live our worship out loud so others can be saved…

Beloved brothers and sisters in Christ, it’s time. It’s time we changed the tide of our world. It is time we changed the way we live our lives. It is time we renewed the joy within us. And within that renewing of our minds, we too can affect a change in the lives of those around us. We can be hope for the hopeless, light for those who live in darkness, be that city on a hill for all to see…

My question for you is this, are you living your worship of God out loud? Is there someone who needs to not only hear about but see Christ living and breathing in you? Are you feeling the joy of your salvation or has it grown cold with time and through despair? Maybe…just maybe…if we spend time in worship and joy…if we spend time pondering on the goodness of our God…we can rekindle that fire. Maybe…just maybe…we will be blessed in the blessing of others. Perhaps…just perhaps…if we begin to live our lives in thanksgiving and worship we can change the tide in which we live. It is time we decide to be bold in our faith. It is time that we, like Peter, begin to encourage others to take that step to a new and happier life. The time is here…the time is now. Our God still increases the numbers of believers each day. But we need to live that life of worship…we need to be in collaboration with the work that God is doing in the world around us. Then maybe…just maybe…we can turn the tide and win the victory for Jesus. Maybe…just maybe…

Amen…

“Seeing More Clearly…”

July 21, 2013

Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church

“Cruising Sacred Waters with Jesus”

Sermon 3 of Summer Series

1 Corinthians 13:9-12 GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

Mark 6:1-6 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

The Lord be with you…

And also with you…

Let us pray… (Pray for the Holy Spirit’s wisdom and insight…)

Good Morning…I don’t know how many of you have raised children or have had the opportunity to teach them but it never baffles my mind that when you tell them not to do something…they just have to test the theory sometimes.  You are just trying to help them not get hurt or do something that might hurt someone else and it is as if they don’t believe you and they have to check to see if you are right or not…sometimes I think that they just want to prove their parents wrong, that they know more than their parents do.

For instance…you tell them “Don’t throw the ball in the house, you my break something!” Well…they decide they are going to do it anyway. What do you think happens? Yup…the lamp get broken or something else. You then ask them…were you throwing the ball in the house? They say “yes I was.” And when you tell them that you knew something was going to happen if they did it…that’s why you told them not to, they look at you like you are psychic or something…OK when they are little they do but as they get older they just think “she was right again…figures…”  The problem is they can’t see the whole picture like their parent does. All they see is what they are doing in the moment and are not thinking of what could happen in the future. I think God must think that way about humanity sometimes. We are doing what we want and don’t see the whole picture as He does…

We are getting ready, as a church family, to embark on a cruise this summer. We will be “Cruising Sacred Waters with Jesus”. But before we set sail, we are taking some time to learn about our Captain, our Lord Jesus. We have decided that He is our Risen Lord and King…that Jesus can be trusted to be there helping us in the “stormy season” of our faith journey. We have come to realize that as we walk through our storms…through the rough places in our lives…we never walk alone. Jesus is right there with us…our rock our solid ground on which we build our faith. Last week I challenged you to look within your heart and to decide how much Jesus really means to you. I pray that we have all decided that Jesus is worth more than gold itself and realized that we are a precious pearl to our God and that He sold everything He had…put His Son, Jesus on the line…for humanity to have a right relationship with Him…

So…can our Captain see even through the foggiest night? Can our Captain see the end of our journey as we continue our journey of faith? Can our Captain traverse the rough, dark waters we may encounter on our life’s journey with Him? Can Jesus see more clearly than we can?

The 1^st Corinthians scripture from this morning tells us exactly what type of vision we have. Our “vision” is temporal…we see only what is right in front of us…but…with God, through our Risen Lord Jesus, the whole picture can be seen. God knows everything we will do before we do it. Our lives were written in the “Book of Life” before we even took our first breath. One day we will see clearly but for now we can only see in part. But as we live our lives…as we live out our faith journey with Jesus at the helm…we begin to see life differently. We begin to see life through the eyes of Jesus as we become more and more like Him each day. It’s like going for an eye exam. The eye doctor puts these weird, funky glasses on you and asks you what you can see. Well at first you may not be able to see anything but as the doctor changes the lenses that you are looking through, you begin to see more clearly the chart in front of you. As we live out our faith journey and focus our sights on our Captain, Jesus Christ, our vision becomes clearer and we can see the “charted waters” before us. Waters charted for us before we ever began this journey of life. We are given a new set of eyes so we can see more clearly the eternal and less of the temporal. I love Jimmy Cliffs song “I can see clearly now”…

I can see clearly now the rain is gone.

I can see all obstacles in my way.

Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind.

It's gonna be a bright (bright) bright (bright) sunshinin' day.

But…there are times when we refuse to see what stands before us or we discount it as just a “figment of our imagination…” There are times when humanity…yes even we “Christians”…just aren’t wearing our glasses that we need to traverse the rough waters of this world…kind of like being near sighted and driving without your glasses on…Jesus had to deal with people like that when He went from town to town teaching the people a new way of life…even in His own town. Listen to this encounter He had and tell me if this doesn’t sound familiar…It is found in Mark chapter six, verses 1-6…

Mark 6:1-6 The Message (MSG)

Just a Carpenter

“He left there and returned to his hometown. His disciples came along. On the Sabbath, he gave a lecture in the meeting place. He made a real hit, impressing everyone. “We had no idea he was this good!” they said. “How did he get so wise all of a sudden, get such ability?” But in the next breath they were cutting him down: “He’s just a carpenter—Mary’s boy. We’ve known him since he was a kid. We know his brothers, James, Justus, Jude, and Simon, and his sisters. Who does he think he is?” They tripped over what little they knew about him and fell, sprawling. And they never got any further. Jesus told them, “A prophet has little honor in his hometown, among his relatives, on the streets he played in as a child.” Jesus wasn’t able to do much of anything there—he laid hands on a few sick people and healed them, that’s all. He couldn’t get over their stubbornness. He left and made a circuit of the other villages, teaching.”

Oh yes, I can make it now the pain is gone.

All of the bad feelings have disappeared.

Here is the rainbow I've been praying for.

It's gonna be a bright (bright) bright (bright) sunshinin' day.

How many times has humanity done this to something they did not understand? How many times have we as Christians done this to people or cultures we didn’t understand? Because of their short sightedness…because of their “fear” of the unknown…they missed out on blessings…they missed out on healings…they let fear and uncertainty blind them. They had it right but then lost their vision of the sublime and traded it in for the vision of prudent. And yet…Jesus did stay and healed some of them…maybe the few who never lost their vision of God’s mercy and grace…

Look all around, there's nothing but blue skies.

Look straight ahead, there's nothing but blue skies. (Ies)

We…as humanity sometimes do act like children…we seem to want to test the theory or think our “short sightedness” can get us through…we think we can see better than the One who created time and space…what blessings we miss out on…we actually “stunt our growth” spiritually because we refuse to take off our wrong prescriptive glasses and put on the ones that help us see more clearly.

We, as humanity…as Christians…need to decide that we really don’t know it all and trust in the One who does. We live in a world that tells us that we can do whatever we want because we don’t know what the future holds…We need to live in this world doing what the Creator of it wants us to do and by doing so we are living out His perfect vision for what He created…what His intent was in creating.

I can see clearly now the rain is gone.

I can see all obstacles in my way.

Here's the rainbow I've been praying for.

It's gonna be a bright (bright) bright (bright) sunshinin' day.

In order to navigate the waters of this world…the chaos that the world is in…we need to believe in what we see with the view that God has given us…the eternal eyes and not the temporal eyes. We to trust the Captain of our cruise…our Lord, Jesus…and the Navigator…the Spirit…knows where the cruises destination is. We need to trust that the Captain has received His orders from the Owner of the Cruise Line…our God and King. Then and only then will we see more clearly. Then and only then will the scales from our eyes begin to fall and our vision begins to be restored.

How is your vision these days? Is it all fogged up from the steam of the world or is it getting clearer each day? Are you ready to trade in your shades from the world for eternal ones? It’s time to see the ultimate Optometrist and get a new prescription.

It's gonna be a bright (bright) bright (bright) sunshinin' day.

Real, real, real, real bright (bright) bright (bright) sunshinin' day.

Amen…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jsw_r0hILQ

“How much does Jesus really matter?”

July 14, 2013

Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church

“Cruising Sacred Waters with Jesus”

Sermon 2 of Summer Series

Mark 5:21-34 GOD’S WORD Translation

Luke 7:36-47 The Message (MSG)

The Lord be with you…

And also with you…

Let us pray… (Pray for the Holy Spirit’s wisdom and insight…)

Good Morning…Have you ever been shopping and found something you just had to have? I mean this is just what you have been looking for and you just have to have it. Then…you look at the price tag. The price is a little steep. You really have to think about buying it. Is it really something that you need or is it just something that you want to have? This is one reason why I go to the clearance section first…at least I can say “But honey…it was on clearance…) When you get home…what is your spouse going to say if you spend that much money on the item? After you think about it…you decide it is worth the price that you are going to pay and you gladly take it to the checkout counter and buy it…happy with your purchase. Isn’t that kind of what God did…through Christ Jesus for you and me…for all of humanity…

This summer, we have agreed we would go on a trip together…a cruise…where we will “Cruise the Sacred Water with Jesus”. We even got invitations that we could share with others…if you weren’t here last week see me after church. I want everyone to be invited on this cruise… But before we embark on our journey, we are trying to figure out if our Captain is one that is worthy…one we can trust. What will our Captain do in those rough waters of our journey?

Last week…we talked about who our Captain is. We heard the story about how Jesus went into the temple and read the Isaiah and that He is the fulfillment of the scripture he read about a Savoir. He was…and is…that Savoir. We also heard the story from scripture about when Jesus quieted the storm…with just a few words. We decided that the questions was not who Jesus is but who Jesus is to you…and to me.

So…this Jesus is going to be our Captain on our cruise. We decided last week that he is our Risen Lord and King…that Jesus can be trusted to be there helping us in the “stormy season” of our faith journey. We realized that as we walk through our storms…through the rough places in our lives…we never walk alone. Jesus is right there with us…our rock on the solid ground of faith.

But my question I present to you is this…I told you I would be challenging you each week…what does Jesus mean to you …what is His worth to you…how much does Jesus really matter in your life…? Is the price to great to pay? Have you bought a cheap imitation that doesn’t really fit right? I am reminded of a couple of parable found in Matthew 13:44-46 one is about a man who found a treasure in a field. Well…he buried that treasure…went home and sold everything he had to buy that field. And the one about a merchant who was looking for fine pearls…once he found one he sold everything he had and bought it. How much does Jesus really matter…what does mean to you and me?

The woman in the Mark scripture she was willing to pay the price just to touch the hem of Jesus’ robe. Now this woman was called “unclean” because of her “medical condition” …she had no business being around other people because of this. Now she had this condition for twelve years…she probably had no contact with others…she probably could have been even stoned for touching someone where as she was unclean. But she knew…she knew that if she could just touch that robe…just the edge…she would be healed and it was worth it to her even though the encounter could have gone really bad for her. How much does Jesus really matter…what does mean to you and me…is Jesus worth the price?

The story found in the Book of Luke about Jesus’ feet being anointed really makes me stop and think…how far would I go for Jesus? It is found in Chapter 7 verses 36-46. I will read it from the Message Bible this morning. Listen to the story and ask yourselves…how much does Jesus really matter in my life?

Anointing His Feet

“One of the Pharisees asked him over for a meal. He went to the Pharisee’s house and sat down at the dinner table. Just then a woman of the village, the town harlot, having learned that Jesus was a guest in the home of the Pharisee, came with a bottle of very expensive perfume and stood at his feet, weeping, raining tears on his feet. Letting down her hair, she dried his feet, kissed them, and anointed them with the perfume. When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man was the prophet I thought he was, he would have known what kind of woman this is who is falling all over him.”

Jesus said to him, “Simon, I have something to tell you.” “Oh? Tell me.”

“Two men were in debt to a banker. One owed five hundred silver pieces, the other fifty. Neither of them could pay up, and so the banker canceled both debts. Which of the two would be more grateful?”

Simon answered, “I suppose the one who was forgiven the most.”

“That’s right,” said Jesus. Then turning to the woman, but speaking to Simon, he said, “Do you see this woman? I came to your home; you provided no water for my feet, but she rained tears on my feet and dried them with her hair. You gave me no greeting, but from the time I arrived she hasn’t quit kissing my feet. You provided nothing for freshening up, but she has soothed my feet with perfume. Impressive, isn’t it?”

The town “harlot” knew who Jesus was but those in a “high religious” place knew nothing about Him at all… Now this “woman of ill repute” really took a chance. She had no business being there in the Pharisees home. She was an uninvited guest to the party…she sort of “crash the dinner party” because she knew that Jesus was there. She let down her hair for Him to wipe his feet. You see…Jewish women were required to wear their hair bound up. A woman unbinding her hair in public was seen as tempting a man to sin…it was seen almost as nudity.  This woman laid herself bare before Jesus and didn’t care who was watching.  Not only did she let her hair down but washed His feet with her tears and used her hair as  a towel…then…to make matters worse…she actually used a bottle of perfume…Spikenard…to anoint Jesus’ feet. It was all she had…she could have sold it for money to live on but she counted Jesus more important than anything else that she had or could have. How much does Jesus really matter…what does mean to you and me…is Jesus worth the price?

I love Jesus’ answer to the Pharisee…this religious leader had not even done what others usually do for a visitor for Jesus…it was a common ritual. But this woman had more respect for Jesus than that of this home owner. She was considered from the “wrong side of the tracks” but she showed Jesus a radical hospitality that not only put the homeowner to shame but showed that she was repentant and was forgiven of her sins. How many times in life have we been like this land owner…thinking that others were “below” us just because of where they come from and what their life’s journey has been? How many times have we stopped Jesus at the door because of our rituals that we follow instead of showing radical hospitality?  How much does Jesus really matter? Does He mean enough for us to leave ourselves behind and follow Him?

Brothers and sisters in Christ…beloved children of the Most High God…what does Jesus mean to you? How much does Jesus matter in your life? Are we willing to sell all and follow Jesus? Sell all our prejudices…our misconceptions…our own will…our preconceived notions… The two parables that I referenced this morning…reminds me of God and what He did through Jesus. Let me rephrase one of the parables for you and you tell me if you feel the same…

And the one about a merchant who was looking for fine pearls…once he found one he sold everything he had and bought it.

God was looking for fine pearls…remember; in Genesis God called the creation of human’s not just good but very good…we are the fine pearls that God is looking for to bring home with Him.

Well…God found one…many…God found you and me…

Well...God went home and sold everything He had…His most precious thing…His Son Lord Jesus Christ…God gave everything He had through His Jesus dying on Calvary’s Cross for you and for me…for all of humanity.

And God bought these pearls…humanity...

But there is one catch to this deal…humanity needs to accept this gift of love…just as Jesus accepted the gift of the woman with the Spikenard. Humanity needs to want to be part of God’s string of precious pearls in order to be free.

The question is this…how much does Jesus mean to you? Are you willing to make Him the captain of your ship of faith? Are you willing to give your all for Him…that includes giving up your own will for His will in and for your life?  We are more precious than jewels in the eyes of our Captain. How precious is our Captain to you and to me?

AMEN…

“Who Is This Captain?”

July 7, 2013

Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church

“Cruising Sacred Waters with Jesus”

Sermon 1 of Summer Series

Mark 4:35-41 the Message Bible

Luke 4: 16-21 Common English Bible

Good Morning…let us be in the Spirit of prayer with one another…

I love spending time having fun in the sun with my family. It is a time of relaxation and renewal. I like to take day trips with the girls and Ray. I think they really make the summer almost endless…taking time out with each other and visiting places that we don’t get a chance to during the rest of the year.

But the one thing I have always wanted to do is to take a cruise somewhere. I think a nice tropical cruise would be fun, just laying on the deck with people waiting on me for a change…eating delicious gourmet meals…what a life…OK…back to reality. Well I guess there is more than one way to take a cruise. People cruise the boulevard in their cars. Some people cruise the airways trying to find a song they like. But when I think of a cruise I think of water. You know that beautiful, life giving water that renew and revives you, gives you strength for each new day.  Sort of like the living water we are given from our Lord Jesus Christ. I’ve got a great idea…let’s take a cruise together this summer. Let’s cruise the sacred water’s of our faith with Jesus.

Ok…I would like to ask my lovely assistants Shyanne and Shanequa to come up and help me. I just so happen to have these invitations that I would like to share. Now…to be sure we have a trusted guide, we are going to be taking a look at our captain for this cruise…our Risen Lord, Jesus Christ…for a couple of weeks and then as we embark on the waters of our faith we will visit a few other ships that He is also captain of. Now…have you all got your invitations? You know…those invitations are special ones. You can bring along a friend on your invitation if you want. As a matter of fact, I would encourage you to share your invitation with a friend. It promises to be an exciting cruise…

First of all, who is this Jesus who is the Captain of our ship? Is He a captain that can be trusted? Does He know the waters well enough for us to be safe as He navigates us through the waters of our faith? What will He do if the waters get rough?  Can just anyone be a part of this journey or is there only a select few that can go?

In the scripture from Luke this morning, Jesus tells them exactly who He was. They just didn’t get it. The scripture that Jesus read was from the prophet Isaiah…even back in the Old Testament, God promised a savior to come. Jesus is the one who sets the captives free from their places of captivity…we are not just talking about a person in prison. Jesus came to set free humanity even from the prisons we make for our lives through addiction, self hatred, greed, envy…the list goes on. Jesus came and continues to come to set humanity free. Jesus gives sight to the blind…amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me…I once was lost but now am found was blind but now I see…(we see)…we see with new eyes of love, hope, joy and peace when we are given our sight through the precious blood of Jesus. There is good news in the Gospel of Christ…good news for those who are poor not only monetarily but in spirit…those who need hope in their lives…those who need a Savior as well as good news for you and me…all who have that true Savior in our lives.

There is another scripture that reminds me of who Jesus is…it is found in the gospel of Mark, chapter 4, verses 35-41. Listen to the story and hear how awesome our Risen Lord is…

I will be reading from the message bible this morning…I love the title for this story “The Wind Ran Out of Breath”

Late that day he said to them, “Let’s go across to the other side.” They took him in the boat as he was. Other boats came along. A huge storm came up. Waves poured into the boat, threatening to sink it. And Jesus was in the stern, head on a pillow, sleeping! They roused him, saying, “Teacher, is it nothing to you that we’re going down?” Awake now, he told the wind to pipe down and said to the sea, “Quiet! Settle down!” The wind ran out of breath; the sea became smooth as glass. Jesus reprimanded the disciples: “Why are you such cowards? Don’t you have any faith at all?” They were in absolute awe, staggered. “Who is this, anyway?” they asked. “Wind and sea at his beck and call!”

Jesus had and has the power to calm the storm. Even the disciples, who were with Him every day, were amazed by this miracle…even the waves and wind obeyed Jesus. When the waters got rough and their seemed to be an eminent doom Jesus, by only a few words, was able to smooth out the waters and bring about restored peace. Jesus continues to do that today. Jesus calms storms of our lives. We too are amazed at times when we face the storms of life and feel there is no way out just how Jesus calms that storm as we cry out in the rough waters as we feel we are sinking. But Jesus also stills asks “why are you afraid…have you no faith?” Maybe…just maybe we need to refocus ourselves…our vision back to the One who by a word can calm the storm. Maybe just maybe we need to recalibrate our sight so that we may see the target more clearly. Perhaps by repositioning ourselves to get the best view our focus object we will see the glory of God.  

This also reminds me of another story that took place on the water. It reminds me of the time when Peter…the Rock…stepped out in faith to walk to Jesus on the water. But Peter…as well as we today…took His eyes off of Jesus and looked at the chaos of the waves around him and he began to sink. As soon as Peter called out for help Jesus reached out His hand and pulled Peter up out of what would have been a watery grave. Jesus continues to do that today when we too are sinking. He pulls us out of the watery grave of addiction, of hopelessness, of despair. But we too need to refocus our eyes on Jesus, the One who pulls us up and sets on firm ground. By the way…Peter walked twice on the water…once to Jesus and a second time with Jesus back to the boat…back to solid ground…

So…who is this Captain that we are cruising sacred waters with? Well…Jesus is the Captain of this boat that we will be sailing on this summer. But…I think that the question is not so much “Who is Jesus”, but “Who is Jesus to you?” Jesus wants you and He wants me to embark on a journey of faith that may lead us to uncharted waters but He will be our guide.

•          Jesus wants to take all of us to the other side ®He doesn’t want to leave us where we are but wants to transform us into who we should be. He wants to be the Captain of our “Charter Cruise” of faith.

•          Following Jesus means leaving the crowd behind ® going with the crowd usually will take us away from the navigation of Christ in our lives.

•          It also means that we will have our share of Life’s storms ®Jesus never promises to “skirt us around the storms of life.” Jesus does promise to be with us always and with the sound of His voice, gives us peace even in the roughest storm.

•          He cares about you and He cares about me ® on the sea of faith, we can always count on the captain of the ship to know the way.

•          He calms the storms ® we have all had our share of storms but rest assured…we will make it through by His guiding beacon in the darkness of our storm.

•          When we are afraid He asks us “Why” ® even the first disciples were afraid. Fear freezes us at times and it is our captain who comes in and drives away the fear leaving a peace that is priceless to you and to me.

So…who is this Jesus? For me, He is the Son of God and Savior of the world. He is the Head of the Church. He is my strength in times of trouble. He is my Rock and our Redeemer. He is my Mighty Tower and Refuge. He is my Lord and my Savior. The question is this…who is Jesus to you? Is He Lord and King, the Captain of your life journey or just the “first mate”?

Beloved, are you struggling in your life and feel that you are sinking? Are you looking for someone who can help you on your journey? Are you going down for the second time and need to be pulled back to the top? Is there a storm in your life that just seems too hard to endure? Reach out you hand…as Peter did…and be lifted up by the One who can pull you back to the top and set you on solid ground. Maybe, just maybe, by doing so, you will find that peace …that eye of the storm…to find rest even for just a moment. We were never promised there would be no storms in our lives…but we were promised that we will never walk alone. Let us cruise on the sacred waters with Jesus this summer together, resting assured that we have a captain that can even calm a storm with His voice. How awesome is that?

Let us pray…

AMEN