Top of the morning from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, located in the heart of Vinita, Oklahoma.
A good friend, the Rev. W. LeRoy Beckes, is pastor of First Presbyterian Church, Bradford, Pennsylvania. The monthly newsletter from that Church is always interesting and informative. Among his many gifts, Lee Beckes is a poet and a man of prayer. His "Labor Day Prayer" is excellent for all seasons, and I share it with you today.
Labor Day...a prayer
Lord Jesus, one day you shook the sawdust from your hair and left to take up other work. Did the blind man feel the callouses when you touched his eyelids? Did Simon Peter, slipping beneath the waves, feel the strength of your arms as you pulled him to safety? You knew splinters and sweat, you have felt the weight of heavy beam. Be with those whose labor and worth is measured in pieces and pounds; who must wrestle with fire and storm; who cross lonely miles while other sleep; who clean and carry what we leave behind; whose work goes unnoticed unless undone; who tend to those so often forgotten. May we find ourselves at your side, working for a world where wages are fair and all labor is respected. Then, when our work is done, may we hear you say, "Well done, good and faithful servant, enter into your Master's joy."
Genuine friendships are to be cherished!
Best wishes and in friendship,
Richard
Monday, October 19, 2009
Sunday, October 11, 2009
2009.10.12 Monday Morning!
Greetings and best wishes from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, located in the heart of Vinita, Oklahoma, in beautiful green country! Yes, we've had a lot of rain! Lawns and pastures are lush-looking. Our Church lawn is as lovely as I've ever seen it, thanks to the rain and the excellent service of Todd Mariner, one of our new members.
At the beginning of summer I suggested that you read the story of Peter going to meet Cornelius (found in Acts, chapter 10). Cornelius was a Roman - a Gentile - and Jews were to avoid contact with Gentiles. Before going to the home of this Roman military leader, Peter was staying at the seashore home of a tanner. The law forbade Jews from touching the bodies of dead animals, and a strict Jew would hardly accept hospitality from such a home.
All this is noteworthy in that Peter had to unlearn rigid religious teaching. That isn't easy, but it is essential if we are to grow and develop our concept of the greatness of God!
And Peter said, "I have come to understand that God has no favorites."
How big is your God?
Fond regards,
Richard
At the beginning of summer I suggested that you read the story of Peter going to meet Cornelius (found in Acts, chapter 10). Cornelius was a Roman - a Gentile - and Jews were to avoid contact with Gentiles. Before going to the home of this Roman military leader, Peter was staying at the seashore home of a tanner. The law forbade Jews from touching the bodies of dead animals, and a strict Jew would hardly accept hospitality from such a home.
All this is noteworthy in that Peter had to unlearn rigid religious teaching. That isn't easy, but it is essential if we are to grow and develop our concept of the greatness of God!
And Peter said, "I have come to understand that God has no favorites."
How big is your God?
Fond regards,
Richard
Sunday, October 4, 2009
2009.10.05 Monday Morning!
Top of the morning from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, located in the heart of Vinita, Oklahoma.
These Monday Morning messages which began in September 2007, now find their way across the country and around the globe! I am surprised by and glad for the welcome they have received.
My intention is to reach out beyond our sanctuary with a pastoral concern. Our Christian faith, drawn from the rich source of the Bible, is profoundly inward and at the same time it is outreaching, with a will to action.
Faith is the activity of the whole life of every follower of Jesus!
Christ put a strong emphasis upon "wholeness of life". "Do you want to be made whole?" was a fundamental question he asked, and it is the message of the gospel to everyone.
The health of the body and spirit are integral to wholeness in life, and that is a reason daily quiet time is needed. At the start of summer I encouraged you to read, at your own pace, two books by Luke - the Gospel and the Book of Acts. Later I suggested you add the Gospel of Mark to your devotional reading list.
Today, I suggest some of my favorite readings from Psalms.
Psalm 1, 2, 8, 16:5-6, 19, 23, 24, 25:4-5, 34, 42:1-5, 8-11 and 43, 46, 67.
Good reading provides good company! Our Pearl of Value for this week comes from the Apostle Paul: 1 Corinthians 15:33 - "Bad company corrupts good character."
Good reading! Fond regards,
Richard
These Monday Morning messages which began in September 2007, now find their way across the country and around the globe! I am surprised by and glad for the welcome they have received.
My intention is to reach out beyond our sanctuary with a pastoral concern. Our Christian faith, drawn from the rich source of the Bible, is profoundly inward and at the same time it is outreaching, with a will to action.
Faith is the activity of the whole life of every follower of Jesus!
Christ put a strong emphasis upon "wholeness of life". "Do you want to be made whole?" was a fundamental question he asked, and it is the message of the gospel to everyone.
The health of the body and spirit are integral to wholeness in life, and that is a reason daily quiet time is needed. At the start of summer I encouraged you to read, at your own pace, two books by Luke - the Gospel and the Book of Acts. Later I suggested you add the Gospel of Mark to your devotional reading list.
Today, I suggest some of my favorite readings from Psalms.
Psalm 1, 2, 8, 16:5-6, 19, 23, 24, 25:4-5, 34, 42:1-5, 8-11 and 43, 46, 67.
Good reading provides good company! Our Pearl of Value for this week comes from the Apostle Paul: 1 Corinthians 15:33 - "Bad company corrupts good character."
Good reading! Fond regards,
Richard
Sunday, September 27, 2009
2009.09.28 Monday Morning!
Top of the morning from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, located in the heart of Vinita, Oklahoma.
Our Pearl of Value this week comes from Shakespeare:
"There is no time for all things."
Precisely for that reason we need a sense of discrimination!
"Discrimination?!" That's a fighting word, a dirty word, in today's world. Of course, it can be a dangerous social disease, yet we need a sense of discrimination if we are going to invest our time and thoughts and activities wisely..
The capacity to discriminate, to distinguish, is a precious gift. We have to discriminate in our choices or we'll clutter our lives with prejudice, jealousy, greed and hatred.
Take great care in cultivating your fine art of discrimination.
All the best,
Richard
Our Pearl of Value this week comes from Shakespeare:
"There is no time for all things."
Precisely for that reason we need a sense of discrimination!
"Discrimination?!" That's a fighting word, a dirty word, in today's world. Of course, it can be a dangerous social disease, yet we need a sense of discrimination if we are going to invest our time and thoughts and activities wisely..
The capacity to discriminate, to distinguish, is a precious gift. We have to discriminate in our choices or we'll clutter our lives with prejudice, jealousy, greed and hatred.
Take great care in cultivating your fine art of discrimination.
All the best,
Richard
Monday, September 21, 2009
2009.09.21 Monday Morning!
Greetings and best wishes from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, still going strong at the corner of Thompson and Illinois, in the heart of Vinita, Oklahoma. Our Sunday worship service begins at 10 a.m. You'll be welcome if you can attend. If you can't be with us, please say a little prayer for us. We do remember you, our MONDAY MORNING FAMILY in our thoughts and prayers.
If you want to add the name and email address of a friend or family member to our growing family, please send the information to Donna, our friendly, able editor of these messages. You have our Church office email address.
Our PEARL OF VALUE this week comes from one of our church members:
"Knowledge is not likely to enter the head when the mouth is open!"
God endowed us with two ears but only one mouth. Yet, for most of us the ears are in semi-retirement while the mouth is overworked. There is a great deal of talking, even shouting, but very little listening.
Listening is not easy. Listening with the whole person requires discipline, patience and caring.
When God appeared to King Solomon in a vision, and offered him any gift he wished, Solomon asked for a "listening heart." Listening is not done alone with ears, it is also done with the heart!
Fond regards,
Richard
If you want to add the name and email address of a friend or family member to our growing family, please send the information to Donna, our friendly, able editor of these messages. You have our Church office email address.
Our PEARL OF VALUE this week comes from one of our church members:
"Knowledge is not likely to enter the head when the mouth is open!"
God endowed us with two ears but only one mouth. Yet, for most of us the ears are in semi-retirement while the mouth is overworked. There is a great deal of talking, even shouting, but very little listening.
Listening is not easy. Listening with the whole person requires discipline, patience and caring.
When God appeared to King Solomon in a vision, and offered him any gift he wished, Solomon asked for a "listening heart." Listening is not done alone with ears, it is also done with the heart!
Fond regards,
Richard
Monday, September 14, 2009
2009.09.14 Monday Morning!
Greetings from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church in Vinita, Oklahoma.
As you begin your work week, I ask that you remember that the Church is a fellowship in which we belong to each other by authentic Christ-like living...
What disturbs me more than the increasing loss of Church membership is the increase of people who say they are Christians but who admit they take little or no time to pray. Many are unable to speak confidently of the worth and power of prayer.
This is a serious condition to be in. "To forget God is more fatal than to deny God" (Maude Petre). Not to pray is to live as if God did not exist.
Our faith is as real or unreal, as strong or weak as our praying is.
Commitment to prayer is a part of our commitment to God.
"Take Ten" daily in your own "upper room" for conversation with God. You'll find that
god will infuse you with new energy!
With blessings and all good wishes,
Richard
As you begin your work week, I ask that you remember that the Church is a fellowship in which we belong to each other by authentic Christ-like living...
What disturbs me more than the increasing loss of Church membership is the increase of people who say they are Christians but who admit they take little or no time to pray. Many are unable to speak confidently of the worth and power of prayer.
This is a serious condition to be in. "To forget God is more fatal than to deny God" (Maude Petre). Not to pray is to live as if God did not exist.
Our faith is as real or unreal, as strong or weak as our praying is.
Commitment to prayer is a part of our commitment to God.
"Take Ten" daily in your own "upper room" for conversation with God. You'll find that
god will infuse you with new energy!
With blessings and all good wishes,
Richard
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
2009.09.08 Monday Morning!
Top of the morning, on this Labor Day and best wishes from Pilgrim Presbyterian Church, still going strong in the heart of Vinita, Oklahoma. I hope you have enjoyed your summer and that you made time for some "R & R". All work and no play makes John/Jane a dull person.
On this Labor Day my question is not "What is your work?", but "How do you do it?" Whatever our task, God needs it and God needs us. The point of life is not the work, but how the work is done.
The world needs, God needs, people who do ordinary things extraordinarily well. Everyone has certain gifts, and the duty of life is to use those gifts to make this world a better place.
Take pride in what you do!
Jesus said: "You have been faithful over a few things, I will make you master over many." (Matthew 25:21, 23)
Love, peace,
Richard
On this Labor Day my question is not "What is your work?", but "How do you do it?" Whatever our task, God needs it and God needs us. The point of life is not the work, but how the work is done.
The world needs, God needs, people who do ordinary things extraordinarily well. Everyone has certain gifts, and the duty of life is to use those gifts to make this world a better place.
Take pride in what you do!
Jesus said: "You have been faithful over a few things, I will make you master over many." (Matthew 25:21, 23)
Love, peace,
Richard
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)