Going Home

June 1st, was a sunny day as Boyd and I traveled down Rt. 81 from New York State towards Scranton, PA. The past weekend had been cold and rainy. We had basic cabin camped for 4 days and I had learned within a couple of the first hours that basic cabin camping was not for me. Thank goodness we were welcomed into the homes of family during the days but were confined in a tiny cabin evenings and early mornings. It never got out of the 40’s and the rain never stopped. It was a relief to pack up and head home. As we left the campground, the sun came out and the skies began to clear. Puffs of white clouds decorated the baby blue skies. My mind was a blur after the events of the past two weeks. First my brother-in-law Walter had died from a heart attack on Saturday the 15th and we had spent a week with my sister Judy until after the memorial service on Friday. Less than a week later, we traveled to NY for the celebration of the life of my brother Paul in a graveside service. (Yes, it was in the 40’s and raining at the gravesite as my Rev. Brother Bill and I officiated for our sibling.) It had been 4 months since Paul had died from Covid. The scene was all too familiar to me because some of us here have celebrated similar services together right here at home. The events of the past year and a half have left scars on all our hearts and minds. We are “burned out” but not down and out because we have the help of the Holy Spirit and faith in God that leads us forward to hope which reminds us that we are all in this together. We are all headed in the same direction! We are on a spiritual journey headed to a place called home and eternal life… Yes, we are all going to what some of us will call our forever home.

We find Jesus today in a similar situation in our reading today.  His life had been a whirlwind of activity and perhaps he is also suffering from burnout. After all, just look at what Mark records in in his gospel up to this point… In chapters 1 - 3 alone Jesus has casted out an unclean spirit (Mark 1:23–28). Which demonstrated his power over the forces of evil. The people of Capernaum were amazed and asked, “What new doctrine is this?”

Jesus had healed Peter’s mother-in- law (Mark 1:29–34).  Thus demonstrating His power over sickness which resulted in people coming in droves bringing their sick and demon-possessed friends and family to Him to be healed.

There’s more, Jesus healed a paralyzed man (Mark 2:1–12). displaying His power over sickness and His authority to forgive. Trouble was beginning to brew because the Pharisees were beginning to question Jesus’ authority to perform miracles. To make matters worse, the people were beginning to glorify God because of the miracles He performed.

Jesus had one more miracle to perform at this point and that was to heal a man with a withered hand (Mark 3:1–6). This was the last straw for the Pharisees because it not only showed Jesus’ power over sickness but His authority to do good on the Sabbath. The Pharisees accused Jesus of breaking the Sabbath and began to plot against Him. After all of this, Jesus simply went home… Showing all of us that there comes a time when we need to simply go home for rest and to regroup if possible. Going home to be with family and friends…

As I read today’s gospel, one word jumped out at me… HOME … Jesus went home. After the whirlwind of activity I just told you about, Jesus went home. His reputation of preaching and healing made it impossible for him to be left alone. Perhaps he was hoping for a time to rest and renewal with family and friends, but like many of us, that did not happen. The crowd pressed in on him and He was surrounded by people who needed his help. That was good news but there were others in the crowd who doubted him and his authority to perform miracles It was a difficult time… Even some members of his family began to doubt him and others accused him of being in league with the devil himself.

Even with all of this, Jesus never gave up on teaching and 21 centuries we are still hearing the story and remembering how Jesus did not give up when he faced difficult situations. Being accused of being insane by your family and being in league with the devil is about as bad as it can get but Jesus turned that situation into a learning experience. Jesus never lost sight that he was sent to do the will of God. The phrase, “When the going gets tough, the tough get going” has been accredited to many different people, but Jesus demonstrates it for us in today’s lesson. He doesn’t give up but goes straight back to work.

Yes, we have faced and are still facing difficult times. Life goes on and Jesus goes before us and invites us to join him on the journey Home. Through good times and bad we are to keep our eye on the goal which is eternal life with him in the place he has gone to prepare for us. This is not “pie in the sky” religion, it is the real deal. You are not insane if you believe it is true and people may not understand what it means to be a part of the family of God… But we do!

An unexpectd kind of miracle happened as Boyd and I crossed the New York State border into Pennsylvania. I realized that I didn’t know when I will return for a visit. The farm has changed… the barn and house have been burned by an arsonist and the pastures where the cows grazed and fields that grew corn and wheat are being reclaimed by forest. There are only 2 from the family of 6 left who worked, played and grew up on the farm and friends are growing older and have either moved away or have already moved into eternal life.  I do not know when I will return in person but I will return as I tell Little Carol Stories and the life lessons I learned there. Plymouth, NY is different now but I am better having my early years there…

Capernaum is much different today than it was when Jesus returned home there 2100 years ago. I saw with my own eyes the shell of the synagogue that is still standing. I sat on the stone benches and imagined Jesus setting to teach. My heart stirred as I gazed at the foundation of Peter’s house and imagined the miracle of healing that happened there. Fishermen like Peter and Andrew still fish and the waves from the Sea of Galilee still lap upon the shore and we are still telling the stories of Jesus.

Life is a miracle and memory is a miracle. We have faith stories of our lives to share, we have memories of miracles to share. Mine are called “Little Carol” stories, your stories have a name too but the important thing is that you share your story.  

Miracles happen on good days and they happen on bad days! God is at work through it all everyday!

God Bless you on your journey!

The grass withers and the flower fades but the Word of God stands forever!

Changing Our Focus

Changing Focus

Are you finding yourself worrying about things you can’t do anything about? Have the negative things in your life and the life of your loved ones started to take over your mind? I know I’m struggling with that myself. There doesn’t seem to be that much good in the world today. The media reminds us just how sinful we have become as we struggle in the battle to overcome the cursed pandemic. We find that many of our leaders have “feet of clay” in their actions and even worse we find that members of our family, friends, neighbors and ourselves have the same problem. The Apostle Paul reminds us in Romans 7 that he doesn’t understand why he does the things he shouldn’t do and doesn’t do the things he should. It’s a universal problem but it can be solved. As Easter people, we know that there is hope for all of us in spite of ourselves. Our faith in Jesus helps us stand strong in whatever we are facing. Focusing on our blessings instead of worrying about the “what ifs” gives us hope for a better today and tomorrow. Keeping our eye on the goal of living and loving like Jesus is what Easter People do together. Do you agree? I’m going to try a little harder to live by Matthew 6:34, “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” God is blessing us every day. Let’s focus on that and be positive because;

Christ has Died! Christ is Risen! Christ is Coming Again!

God Bless You!

Rev. Carol      

Jesus, Our Light and Hope in Darkness

Hello Everyone!   I wrote this message from The Kernel with John 1:1-14 (NIV) in mind. I have included this passage from the Bible at the end of the blog. First, let’s talk about Jesus, our hope and light in the darkness we are facing.

Jesus the Light on Dark Pathways.

The other day I went into my music room and sat down at the piano and began to play for the first time in months. I began at the beginning of the book and went song to song. Until I turned the page and found that it was time to play Emma Lazarus’’ poem “The New Colossus” set to music by Irving Berlin in 1949. The title of the song is “Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor”.  I was struck at how the words speak to the American today. You all know the poem because it is inscribed on the plaque at the feet of Lady Liberty as a message of hope to all who pass by into the New Harbor. American citizens and immigrants alike see and hear the same message.” You are welcome here and this is a safe place full of opportunity.” That was the intended original message Or at least that is the message we hope is broadcast,

Listen to the words as Lady Liberty raises her right hand holding a lighted torch and sings…

Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore,

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed, to me:

I lift my lamp beside the golden door.

I am emotional as I hear these words because we are all suffering from virus fatigue and the results of it’s claim on our lives at home and around the world. We have become the tired, the poor and the huddled masses yearning to breathe free. Indeed, the world seems to be huddled in darkness because of the pandemic, social and political situations.  This poem contains wonderful words of hope but we need more.

The message the world need’s most comes alive during the season of Advent as we prepare to celebrate God’s personal message to each one of us. In the Gospel according to Saint John, John the Baptist, that larger than life last of the OT prophets,  proclaimed in our gospel lesson this morning that God has taken charge of our hopelessness and sent His Son to live among us to show us that without a doubt, we have received grace upon grace. Jesus was born into a world of darkness to light our way to God’s message of love, salvation and hope for eternal life.        

Jesus was not a lifeless statue but the living breathing Son of God who became human to live among us and to demonstrate that there is hope during our suffering. Jesus is the  Christ Child who brought hope into the world. Our call is to proclaim that Jesus is the Christ Child who was born in a manger. He is the Christ Child who performed miracles while suffering human pain, carried a cross, died, and rose from the dead for all of us. He is the Christ Child who brought light into a dark world. And He is the reason we have Apostolic Hope as we proclaim and live by;

Christ has died

Christ is risen

Christ will come again

The Word Became Flesh

 John 1:1-14 (NIV)

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome[a] it.

6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.

9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.

14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Everything is going to be okay. I promise.

Image used with permission.

A Tribute to Veterans in Bronze

I was emotional and did not know what to expect as I drove into Grandview Cemetery on Memorial Day, May 18th, 2009. I had been invited to take part in a dedication service honoring veterans and the unveiling of a bronze statue in a place called “Veteran’s Circle”. My heart skipped a beat when the statue came into view. Standing tall and draped in black under a bright sunny sky, it stood silently waiting to be revealed. I had no idea what to expect but I felt like I was six years old again and it was Christmas morning. I couldn’t wait to see what was inside the 12-foot-high package. The time came and the cover was released. There they were, in uniform, arms reaching upward toward heaven beyond troubles and war.

Image by Paula Slater Bronze statue by Paula Salter

We stood in awe as we honored them for serving our nation while surrounded by their love.  All seven of these heroes are buried in the Grandview Cemetery and represent a long line of service which includes The Revolutionary War, the Civil War, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and the Iraq War. Slater was supplied with photographs of five veterans from five of the wars: The Revolutionary War soldier, The WWI Red Cross Nurse, the WWII Pilot, the Vietnam War Sailor and the Iraq War Soldier and was able to personalize five of the people. One of those people was my dear friend Anna Eardley, a WWI Red Cross Nurse. There was a hush, tears and finally cheers for the testimony that the statue brought on that sunny day eleven years ago. It stands today as a witness to all those who have served, are serving or will serve in our military. Visitors to  Grandview Cemetery are blessed with their presence.

My friend Anna

 Each one of us who stood there on that day have taken away our own memories. For me, the statue represents a thread of freedom woven into the fabric of our great nation and her citizens.  Not only that, but it represents neighbors, at home and around the world, who are suffering as we continue to fight for freedom during a pandemic, political unrest and how all of us are doing the best we can to survive and help one another.

 I searched the scriptures for a word of hope and found Psalm 133. It is King David’s song about the blessedness of unity. From Peterson’s Message:

133 1-3 How wonderful, how beautiful,
    when brothers and sisters get along!
It’s like costly anointing oil
    flowing down head and beard,
Flowing down Aaron’s beard,
    flowing down the collar of his priestly robes.
It’s like the dew on Mount Hermon
    flowing down the slopes of Zion.
Yes, that’s where God commands the blessing,
    ordains eternal life.

We all see the world from where we stand and our experiences. We often do not agree. It is hard to understand how Christians and People of God can see things so differently. It is time that we set aside our differences and live by the example of those pictured on “The Ascent of Heroism”. We are different but alike because we are all children of God. We are the threads of freedom making up the fabric of our hometowns, nation and world.

One final word from the scriptures comes from Hosea 12:6 (NIV) “But as for you, return to your God, hold fast to love and justice, and wait continually for your God.”

God bless you on your journey of faith and “Never give up”.   

Blessings,

Your Sister in Christ,

Rev. Carol

 Thank you Paula Slater for giving me permission to use information and photos from your website. https://paulaslater.com

God Helps Us Find Hope During Crisis

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Crisis Thank you Upsplash Image

God Helps Us Find Hope During Crisis

It has been difficult to write Faith Breaks during the pandemic. Mostly because there has been so much written about Covid-19 with updates and media reports everywhere especially on Facebook and social media. Everyone has their say and opinion about what is the right thing to do. There are a lot of amateur scientists out there who seem to know more about research and viruses than the professionals. Some people post that the virus is nothing but a hoax. Four of my friends from Florida, Washington DC and Pittsburg have died from the virus that they are calling a hoax plus over 100,000 more just in the USA alone. I wonder what God is thinking about His beloved humans that He created and their response to this crisis. I wonder if God Himself is getting weary. Wait, there is more as the TV salespeople say. Serious troubles in our nation and the world have reared their ugly heads at this time adding to the dilemma. The devil looks at us and searches for our weak spots while planning his attack. “If I can just get them to divide and argue instead of standing together, I have a chance.” God on the other hand tells us to be united for the sake of the world and each other. Both God and the devil whisper in our ears and we have to decide once and for all who we are going to listen to and choose for ourselves life or death.

The Old Testament collection of Psalms found about in the middle of the Bible contains laments (prayers for help) songs of thanksgiving, hymns, royal psalms plus a few other types used for instruction, etc. We believe that King David wrote many of the psalms including the 23rd Psalm which is familiar to many people. It took a long time to put the book of Psalms together that witness to the troubles and joys of the people of Israel. Psalm 6 is a prayer for recovery from grave Illness. We can identify with that can’t we. Psalms 12 is a plea for help in evil times and Psalm 16 is a song of trust and security in God. During this time of spiritual unrest, the Psalms are God’s word of hope and can even bring us joy as we read, sing and pray them together. God is near and promised to never leave us.

Isaiah 41:13 reminds us that God said,

“…I am the Lord your God
    who takes hold of your right hand
and says to you, Do not fear;
    I will help you.”   

I am including the 23rd Psalm in the King James Version (Old English) that many of us grew up learning and praying with family. Hold on to your faith and never give up hope.

God Bless You

Rev. Carol

Psalm 23

A Psalm of David.

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever. (KJV)

Who said it first? "Red skies at night, sailor's delight, red skies in the morning, sailors take warning"?.

I rise early in the morning, make a cup of coffee and head to my study to watch the world wake up from my office window. The sky began to peek over the mountain this morning showing off a display of God’s glory right before my eyes. Imagine me in my pajamas with camera in hand hurrying out into the yard to take this picture.  I wanted to remember the display of God’s creative beauty for the rest of the day.  I also hoped the neighbors were still in bed! 

It is the small things in life such as watching a sunrise that help us enjoy life and courage us and give us hope as we meet the challenges in today’s world. According to Genesis 1:3, God created sunrises and sunsets on the first day and they have continued to cause joy for billions of years.

The sky held a hint of red this morning and I remembered the old saying, “Red skies at night, sailor’s delight, red skies in the morning, sailors take warning.”. As a child I thought those words of wisdom came straight from dad’s mouths. Imagine my surprise when I found out it was Jesus who said them first. Check out Matthew 16:1-4 NRSV  (New Revised Standard Version)

The Pharisees and Sadducees came up, and testing Jesus, they asked Him to show them a sign from heaven. 2But He replied to them, "When it is evening, you say, 'It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.' "And in the morning, 'There will be a storm today, for the sky is red and threatening.' Do you know how to discern the appearance of the sky, but cannot discern the signs of the times?…

It’s amazing what you can find in the Bible isn’t it? I am often taken by surprise. Life is an adventure and the Bible is our travel guide. Don’t be afraid to use it!

Have a happy day… God Bless You!

Rev. Carol 

Jesus said, "Let everyone with ears listen" (Luke 4:8) Are you listening?

Saint Luke tells us that Jesus liked to teach people by telling stories. One of those stories takes place in the Gospel according to Saint Luke, Chapter 8 beginning with verse 4. Jesus talks about a sower who went out to plant his seeds by scattering them by hand (broadcasting).  Some seeds fell where they had plenty of good soil and could take root while others fell on shallow ground and could not take root and grow.  Then there were those that landed in such crowded places that there was no room to grow at all. Faith Break messages are like throwing seeds of hope out into the world. I am amazed from the stories you tell me how these little reminders of Jesus’ love have encouraged and reminded you that we have an awesome God. Thank you for telling me your stories. You remind me of Jesus’ love and you encourage me too! It’s a circle!    

Faith Break has been broadcasting seeds of hope for twenty one years. We entered  year  twenty two  in October,  2018. I remember the early years when we taped using cassettes.  Every time I made a mistake we had to start recording from the beginning. Can you imagine how long it could take with constant… “Wait a minute, let’s try that again” interruptions? I had to plan a half a day to record eight sixty second spots. The patience of Pat and Adam was amazing. Some people said we would never make it past that first month but the next month came and the next until we began counting years. My heart is great big when I stop and give God thanks for all he has accomplished for all of us. Faith Break continues to broadcast on three stations, Classic Rock, Mix and Oldies but Goodies twice a day five days a week Monday through Friday. We are computerized now.  Pat and I enter the studio to record… fifteen or twenty minutes later, we are finished (sometimes leaving us with time for lunch) leaving  Doug to polish everything up and makes me sound good  going on the air. It takes a team and I am grateful for everyone on that team. We all consider it a ministry.

Jesus called out after teaching this story about the sower broadcasting his seeds with , “Let anyone with ears to hear listen!”  

Thanks for listening!

Blessings,

Rev. Carol