There is a lot on the Horizon… For Now I can tell you about:

Auditions for Godspell are January 29th 6 PM at New Hope UMC.

Information on the Audition and upcoming 3 Shows and 3 locations can be found at River of Life Theater.

If you want more information on Johnston River of Life church check out Johnston River of Life.  There will be some big news coming very soon.

Simply put, this should be and event to talk about!  Often we travel at Christmas, we are busy, hustling from place to place.  Take time this year to celebrate with your friends and Johnston neighbors.  Pass this information on to anyone who you think might be interested.

Most people today know the roots of Christmas go deeper than the 4^th century St. Nick.  They understand that an infant named Jesus was born, a star shown, and angels sang to the shepherds.  That said, the focus of our society is obviously focused on gift giving.  (just take a walk through the mall this time of year)

Where does this passion for giving presents come from?  Is it based upon St. Nick and his charitable giving, or does it go even further back to the visitation of the Wise Men who made the long journey to Bethlehem to see the prophesied messiah?  I guess I tend to think that St. Nick expressed his faith in Jesus by his acts of charity.  So it was the first act of giving gifts to Jesus that began what we call Christmas.  (And after all it is the day we celebrate his B-day)

Now let’s unwrap this holiday story.  I would guess there are things that most of us are unaware of in regards to the three Wise Men / Kings.  First, what do we know? (Read Matthew 2:1-12)

We know that they came from the East following the star.  We know they stopped and asked for directions from King Herod.  We know they found Jesus in a house, not a stable.  We know that these Wise men knelt down to worship Jesus and gave him gifts of Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh.  We know as a result of their visit Herod determined Jesus to be 2 years old or younger.

Immediately a couple this jump out; that the wise men didn’t show up the same night that the Shepherds did, that it could have been years later, and that the Wise Men worshiped a toddler.  (How many of your two year olds would like a bar of Gold?)  But something I think we miss all together is the significance of the gifts.  These gifts had symbolic importance for Jesus.  Gold we know represents a King, his power, authority, and wealth.  Frankincense might be a little more difficult.  It is a resin which is used as incense in the temple.  It was symbolic of the role of a priest, one who served God on behalf of the people.  Myrrh seems like an odd choice because it was a used primarily in Egyptian embalming, and later used in the Orthodox Church for final unction.  Myrrh was offered to Jesus while he was hanging on the Cross.  So the gifts Jesus received represented that he was King, Priest, and Sacrifice for the world. (Pretty exciting gifts for a two year old)

And I guess St. Nick did a pretty good job sticking to the theme of giving meaningful gifts when he provided dowries for three sisters, and many other tales of his giving.  Maybe this might give us something to ponder as we search for meaningful gifts this year instead of gift cards.  Let me “Wrap Up” by asking two questions.

1. If you were to receive 3 gifts symbolic to you life, what would they be?
2. What gifts can you give this year that will have spiritual significance?

Challenging you to Be Christ in Community,

Craig Ferguson

VOTE HERE

As you may know, The Johnston Partnership has a wonderful ministry to the community.  They provide a food pantry, clothing closet, and JUMP the Johnston Youth Mentoring Program.  They are at a critical stage in development; looking for a permanent location, better facility, so they can have more hours of availability for the community.

You may not be familiar with all the wonderful things that they do, so I would encourage you to check out our web page where you can find information on programs and service hours, ways to get involved and donate.  Also take a moment to LIKE our facebook page.

But most important is a contest we are currently in:

We have received a $1,000 grant from EMC Insurance’s 100 Ways of Giving program!!!  We are now in the running for the opportunity at an additional $25,000!  We need your help though! each nonprofit’s profile will be posted on their website for a 100-day voting period. During that time, you can view the profiles and learn more about the nonprofits and how they would put $25,000 to use. Then, cast your vote for your favorite each day.  This will go on for 100 days!  As of today there are 45 days left to vote.

If you could take the time once per day to vote for the Johnston Partnership.  We would be greatly blessed to use these funds to serve the needs in our community.  Click on the link below to go to the EMC Voting Page.  Then click on the purple tab that says vote for this organization.

VOTE HERE

I had a great email question this morning, I edited some details to keep it anonymous, but let me share:

Craig,

What are your thoughts regarding a church leader promoting a politician?  Don’t worry…this is not a test but just a personal quandary.  I  am fairly certain that Methodists avoid the political arena…like many challenging social issues.

[I know some people who] are a little turned off when the church allows a politician to address the congregation which replaces a worship service.

Again, I was just wondering your thoughts and certainly not trying make any waves for you.

Isn’t that a great question?  and what position should a church and leader take???  Well below is my response, including details of why I supported a recent Johnston referendum.  Read through it then vote your opinion.

Wow, yea, the political arena is a big NO,NO.  Even people of like faith can have a solidly different view on a candidate or social issues and their standings.  The Church and UM pastors do our best to stay away from politics in general.  Pastors are not allowed to put signs on church or parsonage lawns and having political speakers in church literally runs the risk of the government withdrawing their tax exempt/charitable status.

If you noticed, I did promote the Johnston Referendum, but I did so personally and not in any pastoral capacity, (expect to inform the pastors group about and encourage them to be involved).  I also felt ok with it because it was not supporting a person or a political party, instead an issue and need in the community that benefits the people and servants of the community.  Plus being the Chaplain of the Police and Fire, I felt a measure of responsibility to speak on behalf of them.

(We have also invite the Chaplain at Camp Dodge to share the message on 9-11, but again I don’t think that crosses the political boundary.  I think these things show we are supportive of our public servants and our military, but does not put us in the compromising position of telling people who to vote for, or what position to take on a particular social issue.)

Also in regard to social issues, in our adult Christian Education classes last spring or some of the new life groups when we addressed issues of prayer in school, separation of church and state, abortion, homosexuality, euthanasia, is hell real, and a host of others.  The pulpit and worship is a difficult area to bring up these challenging issues because it represents one persons views being pressed upon the many as dogma in the absence of conversation and opportunities for questions.  However, the United Methodist Church has one of the most broad groups theologically, and in small group settings I think one of our biggest blessings is our willingness to live in the questions, wrestle with scripture, and apply it to modern culture.  I always remind people that we don’t condemn each other for our differences, but listen to each other and wrestle with our own faith much as Jacob did with God.

Johnston Residents, make sure you are paying attention.  There is a vote coming that will make a difference in our public safety.  I encourage you to be an informed voter and to help inform your neighbors and friends.  This is a vital step for our community.  Here are some links you will want to check out:

http://safejohnston.com/

Safe Johnston on Facebook

When I started pulling up articles I about gave up because the web is already inundated with as wide of variety of voices as you can imagine.  This whole Judgement day prediction was birthed by Harold Camping an apocalyptic fanatic who has already been wrong in 1994, so I was amazed to see how it has spread all over the globe.  There is even a local group out of Boone Iowa who has grabbed a hold of this claim.  Boone Bible Ministry.

Maybe a good place to start is by providing some links for any of you who have done your best to ignore it like me.  Lets have a top ten list

1. COUNTDOWN CLOCK
2. NPR
3. Focus on the Family
4. 5 Facts about Harold Camping (hint – he got it wrong once already) 
5. Top ten End of the World Prophecies (Time Magazine)
6. Family Radio -The Web Site of Harold Camping
1. Good luck getting there – Site had a bad rating and was moving very slow!
7. $140,000 Retirement spent on May 21, publicity
8. Real Truth – This web page uses Biblical sitings to disprove Camping
9. Understanding Campings Prophecy
10. Parents and Kids disagree

There is a lot of information out there.  but basically Campings belief is based on the date of Noah’s flood and calculating that May 21 is exactly 7,000 years after that date. (4990 + 2011 -1 = 7000 years. ([-1] is in the equation because there is no zero year between B.C.E. and A.D.).

While I am one who is enthusiastic about seeing Christ come in glory and having an eternity of time with the Heavenly Father, I must admit that I fall back on the scripture that no one know the day or the hour.  (Mark 13:32) and while yes I believe we are to be ready for His return any time, I also believe that living like there is no tomorrow is not Biblically responsible either.  Instead we are called to store up treasures in heaven, (I believe these things are the way we love God and love our neighbor)

Furthermore, my greatest fear is for all those who place their faith, hope, and life (financially, spiritually, or emotionally) on this prediction?  What about those who have quit jobs, sold homes, withdrawn retirements?  And the component so few are talking about, what about the non-christian culture who look at this as another proof that our Jesus, our God, our faith is not relevant to their modern world; that we use apocalyptic scare tactics to attract adherents.  I can just imagine the next person I invite to church asking, why, haven’t all the real believers already been raptured? Ok, I’ll stop being cynical now – something I have to work on.

Is it possible for the world to end tomorrow?  Sure, If we believe God is sovereign we must admit it is possible.  And to live with anticipation of the kingdom of God is good.  However, wow, and there are so many however’s I could start on.  (yea, I’m not gonna start down that road… unless you come to small group tonight)

Let me close with this thought.  If you are worried about what tomorrow will bring, if you even fully believe it will bring disaster, know that I have a sermon prepared for Sunday.  Know that we are planning a fun day at Beaver Creek Elementary next Wednesday.  Know that we have VBS scheduled for July, and activities planned through the end of the year.

I believe we are called to live every day like it is the day I will see Jesus, and yet somehow I believe we can also live with a plan for the days that this world may still hold for us.  It is the tension of what is with what will be.  I hope you will be able to rest tonight and trust that whatever tomorrow brings, placing your faith in Christ is what we are called to do every day, and that is enough to give us peace and assurance in our own rapture and eternal destiny with Jesus.

If you are unaware and live in Johnston, you might want to take note that the community is talking about the need for a new public safety building.  The Referendum is tentatively set for August 2nd.  However if you would like to hear more first hand information there are two public meetings.

You are invited to attend a public meeting to learn more.

May 18, 6:00 p.m., Johnston City Hall, 6221 Merle Hay Road

May 19, 6:00 p.m., Summit Middle School, 9500 Windsor Parkway

Or if you want to look at the detailed plans, letters from experts explaining the need, maps of fire coverage, or even a video tour of the police department click here to go to the Johnston Proposed Public Safety Building web page.

As the Chaplain for both the Police and Fire departments, I hope you will take an interest in this need, and make yourself and your neighbors aware of how we can support our community.

May 25th 6-8 PM at Beaver Creek Elementary

(8701 Lyndhurst Dr. Johnston, IA)

This event is specifically planned in the Johnston community as a way for neighbors and the community to get to know each other.  Everyone is invited to the New Hope United Methodist Church’s first activity in Johnston.  There will be food and drinks (hotdogs and snow cones for the kids)  (Adults are encouraged to bring a dish to share).  We will have yard games and a big playground.  There will be time to laugh, and play as a family, and time to meet a new friend or neighbor.  We will also have a time of fun and relaxed worship, and a time where we share the dream for the Johnston River of Life.

Why?

You may ask why a new church, why here, why now?

It is our believe that God is calling us to an active presence in the Johnston community and to actively reach out to people who don’t have a church home.  We believe church and faith looks different in our post-modern world.  As the lead pastor in this new endeavor, it is my goal to be focused on community involvement, small groups, discipleship, and service.  We hope that you will join us to find out more about the Johnston River of Life.

I just purchased the book, Love Wins, by Rob Bell. Here is a little video introduction you might enjoy.

This book has caused more than its share of turmoil in the Christian community.  Not only because of the position that it posits, but also because of the huge following that Bell has at his church Mars Hill in Grandville, Michigan, and his national following through his video series Nooma which now has 24 short, thought provoking DVD’s.  Robb has also written several well received books, Drops like Stars,Jesus wants to save Christians, Sex God, and Velvet Elvis.

As I have not finished reading the book yet I cannot share my personal thoughts.  And in fact I am not sure I should.  There has been at least one pastor fired for supporting Rob.  The truth is that as I mature I realize I have less answers and more questions.  I also acknowledge that both the Orthodox and more universalist/liberal traditions of understanding eternity and salvation have been handed down from the earliest religious communities.  As such my goal is not to stir the waters any more, but rather to ask, who is bold enough to say they have all the answers this side of seeing Jesus face to face?

Below is a couple opinions about Love Wins and the theology presented in Rob’s book.  The first (Support of Love Wins) is from Richard Mouw, the President of Fuller Theological Seminary who says, “I knew that the book was being widely criticized for having crossed the theological bridge from evangelical orthodoxy into universalism. Not true, I told the reporter. Rob Bell is calling us away from a stingy orthodoxy to a generous orthodoxy.”

Here is a (strong critic of Love Wins) written by Kevin DeYoung, Senior Pastor, University Reformed Church of East Lansing, Michigan, who says, “there are dozens of problems with Love Wins. The theology is heterodox. The history is inaccurate. The impact on souls is devastating.”

For me the question is not who is right and who is wrong;  it is not if grace or judgment is greater, it is not whether heaven and hell are “already but not yet”, it is not if love wins or looses.  For me the question is when will humanity stop arguing about things we cannot know for sure and start acting on the things we do.

(Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, strength, mind, and love your neighbor as yourself!)

For then we can say,

“thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”