"You're Muted"
In almost every virtual meeting I’ve been in lately, someone is told “you’re muted.” Then it was my turn. There I was, talking away in a virtual meeting until I saw Pastor Scott Smith cup his hand to his ear. Whoops! My mic was still muted, and no one had heard anything I was saying.
Do you ever feel like this while praying? You’re pouring out your heart to God, but it’s as if your mic is off and he can’t hear you. I remember feeling like that as a young mom struggling with my child’s school frustrations. I’d share my prayer requests at Bible study, and was often given suggestions and recommendations. I knew they heard me, but did God? I craved the great exchange offered in Philippians 4:6-7, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.” I not only wanted to be heard, but to experience that peace.
Soon, God answered the cry of my heart. Most mornings, I’d walk my first-grade son to school and stay after the bell rang to chat with the crossing guard. We’d stand at the edge of campus and pray for our kids, the school staff and safety at that busy crosswalk. Then one day she suggested we start a Moms in Prayer group. Boy, I didn’t know what I was missing!
We invited other moms and my older sister led us through the hour of prayer. (Yes, we actually pray the entire hour!) Each week we start by praising God for a characteristic or attribute, then we silently confess before God, followed by a time of thanksgiving and praying a scripture for our kids. We do all that before we ever pray a single request. Remembering who God is and what he has done has been huge in preparing my heart to pray the big requests, with my prayer partners coming alongside and praying for things I hadn’t even thought of. At last, I was experiencing that peace that God promises when I hand him my worries.
My kids are now young adults, and I continue to pray for them in a Moms in Prayer group at EFCC. The amazing answers to prayer could fill a book or two (and have!). Now I rarely feel like my prayers are muted before God. But when that does happen, I know I have prayer partners that will come alongside me and pray with me for those big, seemingly immovable mountains. Then we watch and see God do “more than all we ask or imagine” (Ephesians 3:20).
(To find out more about Moms in Prayer, email Cyndie at cdeneve@efcc.org or visit www.momsinprayer.org.)
By Cyndie de Neve
Senior Creative Director
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People Who Need People …
Matthew 26:36-38
While Jesus would not agree with the song’s theology, he would agree with its proclamation. Long before anyone sat down and put pen to paper, he modeled the importance of being surrounded by people, of not going through tough things alone, and of admitting a very human need for others.
What strikes me from Matthew 26:36-38 is how Jesus brought people along when he went to pray. Why would he do that? Because he was human, that’s why! We should not gloss over this truth. Jesus, the most human human ever, and yet also the perfect Son of God, needed people in his life as he faced his toughest challenge.
For some, this observation — that Jesus needed people — is an encouragement; for others, a challenge; and for still others, a pipe dream. Over the years I have encountered believers who understand and embrace their deep, God-given, need for a few close friends with whom they can share life’s experiences — both the joyful and the tearful. Their lives are rich and full and they receive God’s comfort and strength in full measure when they need it most (assuming their believing friends step up and respond in Christ-like ways!).
Unfortunately, I have also encountered believers who don’t think they need people, and have chosen to make the lonely decision to “go it alone.” Some think they are strong enough to make it by themselves, while others aren’t willing to risk opening up. Unfortunately, and in ways they’ll never understand or experience, they are choosing to reject some (but not all) of the ministry God wants to pour into their lives (there are, of course, certain exceptions to this rule, but the great majority of us do not meet the qualifications needed to merit such an exemption!).
Being a follower of Jesus means we seek to live our lives the way Jesus would live them, if he were us. There is no doubt, if he were you, that he would surround himself with a handful of people with whom he could live life, and with whom he could be honest and share his heart.
Practice
Is it time to join a Life Group (www.efcc.org/life-groups)? What a great way to start inviting others into your journey! Or maybe you’re already in a group, or have surrounded yourself with people, and it’s time to start letting them know more of what’s going on? In any case, what’s next for you to live as a person who understands that we are all just “people who need people.”
By Scott Smith
Pastor of Discipleship Ministries
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Encountering the Suffering Servant
- A Spiritual Exercise -
The Bible teaches that Christ sympathizes with us; He is touched deeply by our pain, and feels it with us. Whatever reality you are experiencing today, be encouraged that the Lord is experiencing it with you. The following exercise is designed to help you encounter the Lord’s abiding presence in the here and now, in the middle of any weakness or suffering you might be encountering today:
(1) Find a place and time free from interruption. Be still for a few moments.
(2) Read Mark 14:10-15:47. As you read, list all of the ways Christ suffered. Within a short span of time, Jesus experienced every form of suffering and victimization we could ever imagine or encounter: slander, betrayal, and abuse — just to name a few. Christ drained the cup of suffering.
(3) Read the following, and notice how Christ ministers to us: Hebrews 4:14&15; 5:2; 7:25; Romans 8:26-27. Christ not only feels our suffering, but He identifies with it. The Holy Spirit — the Spirit of Christ (Romans 8:9; Phil, 1:19) stands before the Father, interceding on our behalf with deep cries and groaning beyond all human means and understanding. Jesus doesn’t leave us to our hurt and sadness, nor does he remove it. Rather, He steps into the suffering. He sits and weeps with us. He is for you and with you now.
(4) Identify significant points of hurt, weakness and suffering you are encountering right now. No matter the level of pain, name each thought, feeling, and moment that comes to mind — no matter the degree or form of grief, anguish, hurt and doubt produced. Pay attention to how you feel as you think about these things.
(5) Now, invite Jesus into your moment — to come share with you through His abiding presence. I have tasted God’s grace and encountered His presence most profoundly during times of crisis, exhaustion and loss. Suffering has often become the threshold I pass through to deeper communion with Him.
(6) To close, here is a short litany, taken from Fran Pratt’s “Litany for God’s Presence in Suffering:”
We take comfort in Christ, who is a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief; and we are consoled by His having walked the road of suffering ahead of us.
You are with us.
We believe anew in the resurrection of Christ from the dead.
You are with us.
It is because of Christ that hope still stirs within us.
You are with us.
And it is by His example that we turn to You in the midst of our suffering.
You are with us.
May our dry bones be enlivened; our stone hearts be made flesh; and our sickness be not unto death.
You are with us.
Hallelujah. Amen.[1]
[1] The full version can be found at: https://www.franpratt.com/litanies/2015/12/28/litany-for-gods-presence-in-suffering
By Dave Hook
Pastor of Worship Arts
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Honest to God
The Lord Jesus is always direct and honest. This was demonstrated during the most stressful time of his earthly life, in the garden of Gethsemane. He desired three of his disciples to be with him in this crucial hour, but they fell asleep. Besides being stressed to the point of shedding drops of blood, (Luke 22:44) he was also disappointed by the lack of faithfulness and fortitude of men he had trained for over three years. They fell asleep when Jesus needed them most.
Jesus was experiencing intense grief, stress, sorrow and extreme sadness. He knew what was contained in the “cup” he was about to drink: great torture, suffering and separation. He asked his Father to let the cup pass from him, but resolved not once or twice, but three times, “Nevertheless, let Your will be done instead of mine.” This was the real battle; the enemy would have loved to stop Jesus from going to the cross for our sins. But Jesus was resolute in his mission. He would endure the torture and suffering on our behalf, and he was honest about his feelings in this battle.
Unlike Jesus, who is the last Adam, the first Adam in the Garden of Eden was not honest. Having disobeyed the command not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, Adam, rather than telling the truth and taking the blame, pointed a finger at God, and another at Eve (Genesis 3:12) “The woman You gave me, she gave me the fruit from the tree and I ate it.”
Jesus, though tempted beyond anything we could imagine, tells the truth, “I am sorrowful and stressed to the point of death.” He bravely faced his torture and death and did it all for us. He was honest to God. We can be honest as well. Jesus shows the way.
How honest do you feel you can be with God about anything you have done, or thought currently or in your past? The Lord knows it all, anyway. You can afford to be totally honest with Him at all times.
By Chip Whitman
Pastor of Care & Counseling
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Emotions and Image Bearers
When one of my sons was very young I began to notice that he was wired to experience life with a very tender heart. He felt things deeply, whether great delight or great disappointment and sadness. Over the years, we had countless conversations about the place of emotions in our lives.
He sometimes wondered where God was in the midst of all he felt and wrestled with inside. I loved learning alongside him as we explored God’s character and how to navigate the realm of emotions with the Holy Spirit as our comforter, helper and guide.
Sadly, in the evangelical church, we have often been left with the impression that emotion is weakness, that somehow, being unemotional is a sign of being more spiritual. However, our ability to feel the full range of emotions that we experience in our lives comes from our being made in the image of God.
The writer of the book of Hebrews describes Jesus as our great high priest “who has been tempted in every way, just as we are, yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15). Throughout the gospels we see Jesus expressing a complete range of emotions- joy, anger, sadness, delight and anguish. In him, we are given a living human example of what it is to feel the full weight of every emotion, and then to offer it in full submission to God.
When Jesus went to the cross, he went in all the fullness of his humanity, and in the fullness of his deity. In the garden of Gethsemane, he cried out to the Father out of his omniscience. He knew the pain that he would suffer, not only in his physical body, but also in the anguish of his soul in bearing the weight of our sin. Still, the depth of his love for us, compelled him to walk in obedience to what he knew, that in his dying he would save us and bring us life.
So while in his soul he was deeply grieved, he took that grief, and crying out to God, he submitted himself to the will of the Father.
With yet another week of sheltering in place, do you find yourself struggling with deep emotions, feelings of fear, doubt or frustration? Are you worried about how things will work out, or how they could even possibly turn out “for your good”? Find encouragement today in knowing that you can take every emotion, every feeling straight to our heavenly Father, without needing to hide from him in shame. Then trust in his perfect care for you, and dwell in knowing that he delights in having his children run to him for help and strength.
By Nicole Jiles
Director of Children's Ministries
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Freedom
The retirement of a professional athlete is a very mixed scene. On one hand, it’s a beautiful moment for the athlete to hang up his jersey with a deserved sense of accomplishment. Because of his achievements, his place among the other legends is secured. But on the other hand, it’s a great tragedy: never again will he enjoy his youthful strength and ability. His days are done. And the glory that was his on the court, the field, and the diamond will never return to him. Instead, the best the pro can do is put up his jersey for nostalgia’s sake, commemorating the glitz and glam of glory days gone by.
From now on he’s relegated to sit on commentator panels, commercials, product placements, and cameo movie appearances. He becomes a meme. The height of his life has proven to be fleeting for a maximum of about fifteen to twenty years; then it’s a long decline of glory to the (often) ugly ways he passes away.
How funny then, that so many of us yearn to have that same spotlight in the glory! Young boys and girls yearn to be like Kobe, Trout, and Brady and have their moment in the spotlight, only to have that moment prove to be very temporary - and a haunting memory of what they once had.
What our Savior offers is something more humble, at first glance.
Unlike Martha, understandably concerned about her honor as a hostess, we are invited to be like Mary, content to be at the feet of her teacher. What Jesus says is striking: “She has chosen what is better -- and it will never be taken away from her.”
Instead, her standing as a daughter of God will never fade. It will only become greater!
Sure, it’s not what we originally wanted - or at least on the surface. Instead of being the glorious, muscular, gorgeous people we yearn to become -- we’re instead invited to become a dependent, beloved, and cared-for child.
We’re found at the feet of a teacher, a friend, a lord, an older brother who cares for us with the same care that our now mutual Father loves us. Oddly enough, it becomes clear that this is what we actually wanted. Deep down inside our hearts betray us when we hear that still distant voice address us: my child.
The honor of other titles, accomplishments, and jerseys will eventually fade away, unravel, die. But we’ve been grandfathered into a once-in-history opportunity for an inheritance that never fades (1 Peter 1:4)!
“Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward.” (Genesis 15:1)
Are you willing to accept this better offer? It will require you to give up your own schemes for honor and glory. But don’t worry -- those things fade away in the end anyway.
By Ryan Lunde
Young Adults Pastor
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Troubled and Troubling
As humans, we have an awful tendency to compare ourselves to others. Growing up, we compare ourselves to those that are better than we are at sports, school, etc. As adults, our comparisons don’t end. It’s comparing houses, cars, what colleges our kids got into. Comparison never ends. President Theodore Roosevelt is famously quoted as having said, “Comparison is the thief of joy.” The story of Mary and Martha in Luke 10 is a prime example of comparison troubling Martha and her inner trouble spills out onto those around her.
We can all picture the scene, maybe you feel like you live through it every day! Mary is sitting in the middle of the living room, soaking up time with Jesus, listening to his words and sitting at his feet. Martha is buzzing about like a woman on a mission to show her guests great hospitality. Can’t you imagine Martha buzzing by the living room and seeing her sister sitting at Jesus’ feet and just thinking to herself, “This isn’t fair! Why does she get to sit at his feet while I slave away in the kitchen? This is where the trouble begins. Mary starts to feel deep within her soul this sense that what is happening is not right or fair! And in a lot of ways, she’s right! So she runs to the problem-solver-in-chief, Jesus.
Jesus, please, correct her. This isn’t fair. Jesus responds to Martha by saying, “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things.” The word for upset in the Greek is thorubeo, the picture here is almost one of Martha trying to start a riot to overthrow her offender, Mary (In Acts 17:5, the same word root is used to talk about an actual riot!). However, Jesus comes with gentle correction to Martha. This got me to thinking, how many of us are trying to “incite riots” with those around us when we’re troubled? In the COVID-19 era, you may be subject to more time than we’re used to with people who we dearly love but are maybe not “pulling their weight” when it comes to chores and other responsibilities. Maybe it’s playing the comparison game as our work starts to pile up and coworkers aren’t up to task.
As we start to play the comparison game, how could we avoid starting riots? Well, I think Martha’s first inclination is actually the correct one. Run to Jesus! Sometimes we’re tempted to share our problems first with social media, prayer chains, mom, anyone we can find. Intrinsically, these aren’t bad things! But Martha does the best thing. She goes to Jesus! If you’re facing “trouble” deep within your soul, run to the source of peace, love and comfort found in Jesus’ gentle embrace.
By Seth Redden
High School Pastor
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Tell Her!
Can you imagine walking up to Jesus, the son of God, and saying “Hey, don’t you care that I’m doing all the work while Mary is just sitting at your feet hanging on every word you say?” At first, I thought to myself I would never do that! I would never tell Him what to do either, but at the same time I could most definitely relate to Martha. How many times have I invited guests to my home and almost killed myself prior to their arrival to make everything “perfect?” How many times have I charged ahead with plans and projects without asking for God’s help and then wondered why I was so tired and stressed at the end of the day? I have to admit, too many times to count.
To put this scene in Luke into context, Martha knew Jesus, but she didn’t yet know that he was going to be the resurrected Savior of the world. She did know that Mary was way out of bounds sitting in that room with men when more appropriately she should be helping prepare meals and serving, which was the cultural norm. Wait, what if Jesus didn’t care if the meal was a banquet fit for a king, served perfectly and the house was clean? In fact, Jesus doesn’t seem to care at all what Mary “should” be doing at that moment. Jesus gently but clearly tells Martha that Mary is exactly where she should be, with HIM, no matter what the cultural norm was. That doesn’t mean that he didn’t value Martha or her servant heart, just the opposite. He loved her and wanted her to learn when spending time with Him became her first priority, everything else would fall into place. Nothing else was more important.
Often in the past I’ve let the “should” word rob me of the joy of fully experiencing His presence. I’ve let my focus be on all the tasks on my list, and did things in my own strength without first asking for His help or guidance. He gently says, to me and us, you are stressed because you’re busy doing so many things that aren’t nearly as important as listening to my voice and enjoying our time together.
Are you feeling overwhelmed with life right now? Have recent circumstances and changes caused you to want to run to Jesus and lay your burdens at his feet? He’s waiting with arms wide open and longs to spend time with you.
By Deb Hill
Executive Administrative Assistant
to Pastor Ryan Paulson
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Target Practice
Focus: it’s a concept that some people inherently understand. Athletes get it, surgeons get it, performers get it. I’ve been involved in a lot of stage productions, and when I read Luke 10:38-41, I study it as a scene in a script and analyze the characters involved. At first, I felt for Martha. History would remember her as distracted, anxious, and troubled. But, she seemed focused, and on target to me. Then I realized that I am just like Martha; more concerned about the “what-when-where-how” of life and distracted from Who really matters and Why.
If we were guests that day, we might have identified with Martha’s situation. Perhaps we’d think, “Mary is a sweet girl, but wow, talk about irresponsible and lazy. She’s sitting there; always somewhere else. Her sister is always on. Martha is truly a servant!” Or maybe we’d say, “Martha, learn to delegate and get organized. You probably should’ve thought ahead and planned. Learn to multi-task more efficiently.”
At first glance, I thought Mary was the one with an attention deficit, but Martha is the one who is distracted. The difference? She was taking responsibility for things, yet Mary was responding toSomeone (v. 39). Perhaps Martha was on the edge of a breakdown, but Jesus would get her attention and turn it into a breakthrough (v. 41-42).
We live in a “responsible for” age, but Jesus gives us permission to tune out the world and all its distractions — to freely and joyfully respond to His voice. Stop, look and listen.
If Martha were an archer, you might say she’d been hitting the bulls eye with precision and form, but aiming at the wrong target altogether, because she was trying to be everything to everyone but Jesus. I think she might have fought burnout, insecurity and sleeplessness and would often lose the battle-succumbing to cynicism, comparison, exhaustion and resentment. I can identify, can you? Jesus got her attention — he knew what she needed to do. We aren’t made to multi-task and we certainly can’t hear and respond to many voices at one time. Can you hear Jesus saying, “stop, look at me, pay attention; be with me, listen to me, follow me?”
True servanthood springs out of heart-to-heart communion with Jesus. But too often, I’m distracted by voices and expectations welling up within me and around me. Living as Christ’s follower is more a matter of stripping away and removing distractions than taking on and doing more. Be with Jesus right now; push all the “where-what-how-when” of life aside, and refocus upon Who and Why — this is the target. Seek first the kingdom …(Matthew 6:33).
“I live before the audience of One-before others I have nothing to gain, nothing to lose, nothing to prove.” - Os Guinness, in The Call
By Dave Hook
Pastor of Worship Arts
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Called His Disciple
Can you imagine the excitement? Jesus was coming to Bethany; friend, teacher, Messiah. Martha welcomed Jesus into her home and then busied herself with meal preparations, which was the common, and expected role of a woman in this day. This was not the case though with her sister Mary. As a woman, Mary defied social norms, assumed the role of disciple and sat at Jesus’ feet; confident of how Jesus saw her, and eager to learn. To sit at one's feet was to engage as a learner; not only for self-knowledge, but also for the purpose of sharing this knowledge with others. Jesus did not delineate between male and female roles. If ever Jesus had the opportunity to set the matter straight, it was here, and yet he made it clear; Mary had chosen the better portion.
During this time, women were regarded as second class citizens. N.T. Wright says that, “Mary was sitting at Jesus’ feet within the male part of the house rather than being kept in the back rooms with the other women … Mary had cut clean across one of the most basic social conventions.” According to scholar Judith Hauptman, Rabbinic Law stated that “if a woman were to fulfill time-bound commandments, this, would lessen her husband’s dominance over her because she would have to cease temporarily from serving him, and instead serve God.” Jesus shattered this kind of thinking and freely offered his love, compassion and teaching to anyone who would listen. Mary’s choice to sit at Jesus’ feet was a heart issue; a longing to know Jesus and be his disciple.
There are many examples in the gospels of Jesus having direct conversations with women and in fact inviting them to be his disciples. There was no question about how Jesus felt about women … or men, Jew or Greek, slave or free. Jesus came such that ALL could have life, and have it abundantly. Abundant life comes from knowing the depths of Jesus’ love, and a longing to sit at his feet.
If you have experienced the sweetness of sitting at Jesus’ feet; of learning from him, of being still and knowing he is God, then there is no going back. Once you know your identity as his son or daughter, there is nothing more precious than being in his presence, listening to his voice, and offering yourself to his truth and his way of living. Mary got this. Mary was a disciple of Jesus. Mary was a child of the King!
Jesus, thank you for forgiving me, for declaring my name, for calling me your disciple, and for inviting me to sit at your feet. I’m overwhelmed by your deep love and long to know you more. Thank you for offering a life of abundance in you. I love you my Lord. Amen.
By Lynette Fuson
Director of Women's Ministries
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