Powerful

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This post first appeared in July of 2013 as a devotional in Barclay Press.

One of my favorite hikes is to a unique waterfall found in Southern Utah. Most waterfalls are found as a stream or river approaches a cliff, but Cascade Falls emerges from a cave. From an underground stream Cascade Falls bursts out of the side of a mountain to a valley floor where it becomes an amazing river: The Virgin River.

When driving on Highway 15 between Nevada and Arizona one is literally in the gorge carved by the Virgin River. Zion Canyon was formed through years of erosion through the carving force of the Virgin River. Another amazing hike in Zion Canyon is called “the Narrows” where you walk in the Virgin River as the walls of the canyon rise beside you hundreds of feet high and in sections less than 100 feet across.

It is amazing that a relatively small waterfall can be the source of a powerful river strong enough to carve and create canyons and gorges out of solid rock.

The Gospels are small books with the capacity to be very powerful. Like a river there is a destructive and dangerous nature of the Gospels, but there is a creative and beautiful aspect to the Gospels. The Virgin River, Zion Canyon, and Cascade Falls are beautiful to anyone willing to take the time to explore them.

Challenge: When was the last time you explored the Gospels, with the expectation that you would discover something beautiful and possibly new?

Bible Reading: Romans 15:18-21

-Pastor Rick Ellis
Pastor at Friends Community Church

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Happy in Your Hope?

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“Be happy in your hope. Do not give up when trouble comes. Do not let anything stop you from praying”
— Romans 12:12 (NLT)

It is now the penultimate week of Lent. Our time of fasting and remembering Christ’s suffering is almost complete, and soon we will celebrate his defeat over death.

That said, no matter what day of the Church Calendar it is, it can often feel like the suffering is never ending. The 24-hour news cycles, social media, and surrounding circumstances all tend to remind us how awful things can be. And for whatever reason, it always feels like the bad stuff in these outlets is 10 times louder than the good stuff.

Apparently, there is a name for the exhaustion with constant bad news: ”Global Compassion Fatigue.“ And apparently, we’re all feeling it right now.

So if we are all prone to this exhaustion, how are we supposed to “be happy in our hope”? How are we, mere humans, supposed to “not give up when trouble comes”? We can start by taking tips from a few pages of Jesus’ playbook.

Sometimes we forget that Jesus was fully human as well as fully God, meaning that he experienced suffering and trauma in a very real way when he was on Earth. So what did he do when he experienced suffering? According to John 11:35, “Jesus wept.”

That’s it. That’s the whole verse.

When his good friend, Lazarus, died, Jesus did exactly what any of us would do in similar situations: he felt and expressed grief. He did not internalize or intellectualize his pain. He did not brush off the grief as an avoidable waste of time. He acknowledged the truth of the situation, and it was only after doing so that he was able to perform the miracle of raising his friend from the dead.

So if you are just bone-tired of the news, if you are feeling a lot of emotions because of the suffering surrounding you, know that you are in good and holy company. But also, let’s take comfort in knowing that Jesus overcame the suffering! So let’s try doing what Jesus did in times of suffering: allow ourselves to grieve (John 11:35), step away to be in God’s presence (Mark 1:35), and rest (Mark 14:13). In doing so, we can experience that hope that Jesus had; that hope in the God who caused Jesus to raise Lazarus from the dead!

For more about the Christian response to Global Compassion Fatigue, click here.

-Travis Morrill
Communications and Facilities Administrator at Friends Community Church

CONTEST: Galatians 5:22-23a

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Galatians 5:22-23a lets us know the natural consequences in our life and outlook when we receive the Holy Spirit.

During this weekend’s online message, Pastor Rick gave us a challenge: memorize Galatians 5:22-23a, take a video of you and/or your family reciting it from memory, and upload it to Facebook or Instagram tagging @fccbrea in the video. If you do not have Facebook or Instagram, you are also welcome to email the video to Pastor Rick directly at rick@fccbrea.org. Please make sure you include your name or family’s name in the body of the email or social media post.

Videos need to be submitted by Wednesday, APR 01, at 12 PM noon. Everyone who submits a video will be entered into the contest. One individual submission and one family submission will be picked to win prizes during this Wednesday’s 7 PM online family service, so be sure to tune in on Wednesday night!

The Importance of Prayer

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One of the first things I do after getting out of bed is pour a cup of coffee and sit in the living room in silence. I find this silence to be one of my favorite parts of my day. I spend this time communicating with my Lord. I give him my day and all that it is going to entail. I give him my family. I share blessings, hardships, desires, and love for others with him. But if I am completely honest, much of that time is truly just sitting in silence, where I am able to rest and listen to him. This is my prayer time.

What is Prayer? The Bible Dictionary defines prayer as the act or practice of making spoken or unspoken communication with God. It is an act, a conscious effort, to communicate with God. Prayer is vital to our relationship with Christ. It draws us closer to him.

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In chapter 6 of Matthew, Jesus taught us how to pray by using the Lord’s prayer as an example. Praise, thanksgiving, requests, forgiveness, and releasing our control is all communicated with God through this prayer. In Mark 14, we read Jesus’ agonizing prayer in the garden as he prepares himself for the cross. Prayer allows us not only to communicate with the Creator of the universe but provides space for vulnerability and honesty with our Heavenly Father.

We are called to love the Lord with all our heart, soul, and mind (Matthew 22:37). Prayer is a beautiful tool designed by God which allows our whole selves to connect with him. We must pray; whether early in the morning in your front room with a cup of coffee or during your commute to work, or as you garden or in the quiet of the evening. We must set time aside to fix our lives with our Savior. What better way to love our Lord by communicating with him?

-Pastor Darcy Webster
Associate Pastor of Operations and Pastoral Care