Monday, January 9, 2012
Videos for 1-8-12
Sunday, January 8, 2012
English Ministry News and Notes for 1-8-12
*Great thanks for the message brought to us today by Richard Fong, Certified Lay Speaker. Lay Speaking is another way to "step it up" in your discipleship, discover your gifts for caring, leading and communicating and become an active congregational servant leader. There are wonderful classes in various areas that can guide you on your way. Interested? Please connect with Derek Lang or Pastor Emily.
*Usher / Greeter Training is Today! You are invited to participate whether you are seasoned, brand new to the ministry, or just curious. We'll meet in the Annex conference room (upstairs) at 12:45 p.m. promptly!
* We Did It! Great thanks to all who contributed to the Food Pantry Barrel. It was overflowing at the end of last Sunday. Let's continue the generosity and be a part of ensuring our brothers and sisters are healthy and whole.
*Ready to Get Involved? Do you have a calling for children? Adventures in Faith invites you to become a part of the team. We design & facilitate monthly chapels for our Homework Club. The next AiF planning mtg is Thursday, Jan. 12th at 3:00 p.m.
*What Better Way to Celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. Than Through Service? You’re invited to sign up to work at the Lake Merritt UMC Food Pantry on the 2nd Sunday of each month. In January, this will fall during the MLK weekend, Jan. 14th. Please sign up on the sheet in the social hall. For more information, please connect with Jane.
*Human Relations Day Special Sunday - We’ll observe MLK, Jr. holiday with our own Human Relations Day Worship on Jan. 15th. The purpose of this day is to call "the Church to recognize the right of all God's children in realizing their potential as human beings in relationship with each other." Our special guest preacher will be Rev. Israel Alvaran who serves as Interfaith Organizer for Clergy & Laity United for Economic Justice of California (CLUE-CA) and the hotel & restaurant workers union UNITE HERE Local 2 in SF. We’ll also take a special offering on this day.
*Mark Your Calendars Now:Jan. 21st - Lenten Worship Planning Retreat, 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Jan. 22nd - Laity Sunday Worship Celebration
Jan. 29th - Small Group Worship Celebration and Lunar New Year Potluck. Worship will begin at 9:30 a.m.
*Usher / Greeter Training is Today! You are invited to participate whether you are seasoned, brand new to the ministry, or just curious. We'll meet in the Annex conference room (upstairs) at 12:45 p.m. promptly!
* We Did It! Great thanks to all who contributed to the Food Pantry Barrel. It was overflowing at the end of last Sunday. Let's continue the generosity and be a part of ensuring our brothers and sisters are healthy and whole.
*Ready to Get Involved? Do you have a calling for children? Adventures in Faith invites you to become a part of the team. We design & facilitate monthly chapels for our Homework Club. The next AiF planning mtg is Thursday, Jan. 12th at 3:00 p.m.
*What Better Way to Celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. Than Through Service? You’re invited to sign up to work at the Lake Merritt UMC Food Pantry on the 2nd Sunday of each month. In January, this will fall during the MLK weekend, Jan. 14th. Please sign up on the sheet in the social hall. For more information, please connect with Jane.
*Human Relations Day Special Sunday - We’ll observe MLK, Jr. holiday with our own Human Relations Day Worship on Jan. 15th. The purpose of this day is to call "the Church to recognize the right of all God's children in realizing their potential as human beings in relationship with each other." Our special guest preacher will be Rev. Israel Alvaran who serves as Interfaith Organizer for Clergy & Laity United for Economic Justice of California (CLUE-CA) and the hotel & restaurant workers union UNITE HERE Local 2 in SF. We’ll also take a special offering on this day.
*Mark Your Calendars Now:Jan. 21st - Lenten Worship Planning Retreat, 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Jan. 22nd - Laity Sunday Worship Celebration
Jan. 29th - Small Group Worship Celebration and Lunar New Year Potluck. Worship will begin at 9:30 a.m.
Holy Collision!
Rev. Sharon Blezard from www.stewardshipoflife.org
Today we are celebrating the baptism of Jesus, and we are remembering our baptism when God claimed us as sons and daughters in a lifelong covenant. If you have not been baptized, you are fully welcome here. Enjoy the ritual! Be among us in peace. Feel free not to say words that may not yet apply to you. If you would like to know more about the life of discipleship and about being part of the baptismal covenant, be sure to speak with the pastor or lay leaders.
One of the wonderful things about Mark’s gospel is that the evangelist gets right to what is important, omitting all fluff and extraneous detail. In less than a chapter we’re at the Jordan for a holy collision of water, Word, and Spirit. In just a few short verses Jesus will submit to the baptism of the cousin/evangelist “unfit to tie the thong of his sandals” and will receive the heavenly stamp of approval in a dramatic scene involving heavens rent asunder and a dive bombing bird (aka Holy Spirit). Forget the delicate hovering dove and placid savior; this is intense drama that’s going to move along faster than a Clint Eastwood blockbuster. Have you ever had a gull swoop down on you at the beach? Do you know what it is like to feel the rush of wings at your ear? During this Lectionary Year B, we are in for a roller-coaster ride. Or, as Annie Dillard writes with great clarity and truth:
“Does any-one have the foggiest idea what sort of power we so blithely invoke? Or, as I suspect, does no one believe a word of it? The churches are children playing on the floor with their chemistry sets, mixing up a batch of TNT to kill a Sunday morning. It is madness to wear ladies’ straw hats and velvet hats to church; we should all be wearing crash helmets. Ushers should issue life preservers and signal flares; they should lash us to our pews. For the sleeping god may wake some day and take offense, or the waking god may draw us out to where we can never return.” (from Teaching a Stone to Talk)
Yes, this is no “play it safe” Sunday. Today we celebrate this holy collision of water, Word, and Spirit. In celebrating the baptism of our Lord, we also remember our own baptism*, our incorporation into the family of God, and into this wonderful, countercultural, dangerous discipleship journey. By water and Word God named and claimed us and gave us the gift of the Spirit. Nothing should ever be the same again; if it is, if the world is too much with you and you are distracted by worries and concerns then trouble those waters, my friend. Stir it up and remember whose you truly are. Let the grace and the wonder and the expectation wash over you again and again.
From the waters of creation to the waters of the flood, from the Red Sea to the Jordan River, and from the water of Baptism that quenches sin for all eternity to the water that slakes human thirst each day, this elemental substance is both mighty and merciful—the power to destroy and to ensure life. Water, Word, and Spirit are powerful images for this day. See, feel, and taste that the Lord Jesus Christ is near. Yes, Jesus is wherever we gather as a worshiping community, whenever we call on his name, and in, under, and through simple gifts of bread and wine.
May you be drawn out this day from your comfort and your slumber to the center of this holy collision of Word, water, and Spirit. Touch, taste, and see God’s goodness and remember the promises of your baptism. Refreshed and renewed, go forth into the world to walk in the light and love of God. You are beloved, so be sure to live like it!Peace, blessing, and spiritual crash helmets to you and yours!
Today we are celebrating the baptism of Jesus, and we are remembering our baptism when God claimed us as sons and daughters in a lifelong covenant. If you have not been baptized, you are fully welcome here. Enjoy the ritual! Be among us in peace. Feel free not to say words that may not yet apply to you. If you would like to know more about the life of discipleship and about being part of the baptismal covenant, be sure to speak with the pastor or lay leaders.
One of the wonderful things about Mark’s gospel is that the evangelist gets right to what is important, omitting all fluff and extraneous detail. In less than a chapter we’re at the Jordan for a holy collision of water, Word, and Spirit. In just a few short verses Jesus will submit to the baptism of the cousin/evangelist “unfit to tie the thong of his sandals” and will receive the heavenly stamp of approval in a dramatic scene involving heavens rent asunder and a dive bombing bird (aka Holy Spirit). Forget the delicate hovering dove and placid savior; this is intense drama that’s going to move along faster than a Clint Eastwood blockbuster. Have you ever had a gull swoop down on you at the beach? Do you know what it is like to feel the rush of wings at your ear? During this Lectionary Year B, we are in for a roller-coaster ride. Or, as Annie Dillard writes with great clarity and truth:
“Does any-one have the foggiest idea what sort of power we so blithely invoke? Or, as I suspect, does no one believe a word of it? The churches are children playing on the floor with their chemistry sets, mixing up a batch of TNT to kill a Sunday morning. It is madness to wear ladies’ straw hats and velvet hats to church; we should all be wearing crash helmets. Ushers should issue life preservers and signal flares; they should lash us to our pews. For the sleeping god may wake some day and take offense, or the waking god may draw us out to where we can never return.” (from Teaching a Stone to Talk)
Yes, this is no “play it safe” Sunday. Today we celebrate this holy collision of water, Word, and Spirit. In celebrating the baptism of our Lord, we also remember our own baptism*, our incorporation into the family of God, and into this wonderful, countercultural, dangerous discipleship journey. By water and Word God named and claimed us and gave us the gift of the Spirit. Nothing should ever be the same again; if it is, if the world is too much with you and you are distracted by worries and concerns then trouble those waters, my friend. Stir it up and remember whose you truly are. Let the grace and the wonder and the expectation wash over you again and again.
From the waters of creation to the waters of the flood, from the Red Sea to the Jordan River, and from the water of Baptism that quenches sin for all eternity to the water that slakes human thirst each day, this elemental substance is both mighty and merciful—the power to destroy and to ensure life. Water, Word, and Spirit are powerful images for this day. See, feel, and taste that the Lord Jesus Christ is near. Yes, Jesus is wherever we gather as a worshiping community, whenever we call on his name, and in, under, and through simple gifts of bread and wine.
May you be drawn out this day from your comfort and your slumber to the center of this holy collision of Word, water, and Spirit. Touch, taste, and see God’s goodness and remember the promises of your baptism. Refreshed and renewed, go forth into the world to walk in the light and love of God. You are beloved, so be sure to live like it!Peace, blessing, and spiritual crash helmets to you and yours!
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Videos for 1-1-12
Chinese Choir
Chinese Sermon
English Sermon - "The Favor of God", Luke 2:22-40, Rev. Jeffrey Kuan
Sunday, January 1, 2012
English Ministry News and Notes for 1-1-12
*Happy, Happy New Year! The church office will be closed on Jan. 2nd to celebrate the new year.
*Celebrate the New Year...by Hiking - Please connect with Becky, Charlie or Burt to participate in this new year's tradition on Monday, Jan. 2nd at 8:00 a.m.
*Making Sense of Scriptures, a New Adult Sunday School Class begins Jan. 8th at 9:30 a.m. If you've ever struggled to open, understand, and connect with scripture, this may just be the class for you. What better way to start off the new year?! For more information, connect with Charlie or Steve.
*Do you enjoy meeting new people? Do you have a knack for welcoming others? An usher and greeter training will be held for current and new ushers and greeters on Sunday, Jan. 8th. Our time together will enable us to grow in this important area of ministry. Please RSVP to Ben, Chair of Invitation & Witness Ministry Area.
*What Better Way to Celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. Than Through Service? You're invited to sign up to work at the Lake Merritt UMC Food Pantry on the 2nd Saturday of each month. In January, this will fall during the MLK weekend, Jan. 14th. Please sign up on the sheet in the social hall. For more information, please connect with Jane.
*Human Relations Day Special Sunday - We will observe Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday with our own Human Relations Day Worship on Jan. 15th. The purpose of this day is to call "the Church to recognize the right of all God's children in realizing their potential as human beings in relationship with each other." Our special guest preacher will be the Rev. Israel Alvaran who serves as Interfaith Organizer for Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice of California (CLUE-CA) and the hotel and restaurant workers union UNITE HERE Local 2 in San Francisco, CA. We will also take a special offering on this day. Your Human Relations Day offering supports vital community ministries that teach and advocate for justice, especially among people struggling to survive in the margins of society through ministries like Youth Offender Rehabilitation, Community Developers self-improvement programs and United Methodist Voluntary Services community advocacy,
Welcoming the New Year
Derek Lang
The New Year is always a good time to think about the future. What will the future bring? One new technology, called Surface, is being introduced by Samsung and Microsoft. This technology is the next generation beyond touch screen tablets and involves devices that react to your motions. No longer will we need to press buttons, but rather this device will “see” and react to a wave of a hand or an expression on our face. Bill Buxton, a pioneer in human-computer interactions, was interviewed about future trends in Surface devices. He commented, “I want better interactions and reactions with my relation with these devices; therefore it has to know more information about me.”
Think about that for a moment. Right now, we struggle with fingers that are too big to touch an icon on the screen. Voice recognition software on phone menus direct us to the wrong department or repeated requests to voice our option over again. Now we will have computer screens that have to discern what it means if we raise a finger, wave a hand, or blink an eye. The more the computer knows about what those personal motions mean, the better it can react or respond to our requests.
His observation harkened back to a basic rule about relationships. In order to have a more effective interaction, we have to know each other more deeply. I need to know more about you, and you need to know more about me. The same is true in our relationship with God. That is why it is so important to pray, to worship, to read the Bible, and be in fellowship with other brothers and sisters in Christ. These things are not just motions we go through because we call ourselves Christian. Instead, these are ways in which we grow in our relationship with God. We learn how to listen more intently to hear what God is saying. We read more about how God acts in different situations. We see how God works through those around us. As we grow more intimately familiar with God, we can interact better with God. We learn what it means and how to respond when God moves in this direction or that direction. Our lives become more aligned with God.
I can just imagine child Jesus being presented to Simeon and Anna. He walks up to them, pulls out his iPhone, and gives it to them. He says to them, “Learn how to interact with this device and then you will just begin to learn what it means to be in relationship with me.” Fortunately, God does not treat us with such arrogance. But we do have to remember that we have a lot to learn about relationships with each other and with God.
Think about that for a moment. Right now, we struggle with fingers that are too big to touch an icon on the screen. Voice recognition software on phone menus direct us to the wrong department or repeated requests to voice our option over again. Now we will have computer screens that have to discern what it means if we raise a finger, wave a hand, or blink an eye. The more the computer knows about what those personal motions mean, the better it can react or respond to our requests.
His observation harkened back to a basic rule about relationships. In order to have a more effective interaction, we have to know each other more deeply. I need to know more about you, and you need to know more about me. The same is true in our relationship with God. That is why it is so important to pray, to worship, to read the Bible, and be in fellowship with other brothers and sisters in Christ. These things are not just motions we go through because we call ourselves Christian. Instead, these are ways in which we grow in our relationship with God. We learn how to listen more intently to hear what God is saying. We read more about how God acts in different situations. We see how God works through those around us. As we grow more intimately familiar with God, we can interact better with God. We learn what it means and how to respond when God moves in this direction or that direction. Our lives become more aligned with God.
I can just imagine child Jesus being presented to Simeon and Anna. He walks up to them, pulls out his iPhone, and gives it to them. He says to them, “Learn how to interact with this device and then you will just begin to learn what it means to be in relationship with me.” Fortunately, God does not treat us with such arrogance. But we do have to remember that we have a lot to learn about relationships with each other and with God.
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