Vol 2 No 31 - The Final Word?

Given that over the next two days (Thursday and Friday) we will be celebrating the lives of two beloved ones who have gone to their eternal reward with the Lord, I have been thinking a great deal about life and how we are to live, and what is it about certain people who touch us in special ways due to how they lived their lives. There is nothing in the ministry of the church that is more of an honor than being with one another in times of grief, loss, and sorrow. To see the people of the community of faith rise up in such supportive ways as we support families and friends who gather near and far is something that I never take for granted as your pastor. This is one of the ways that we help define who we are and how we live - in our response to brothers and sisters in Christ who are going through the pain of losing a loved one.

One of the things that gets me thinking at times like these is to hear the stories of the friends and families who gather to celebrate these lives. Hearing again, or for the first time, family stories, inside jokes, and all the other wonderful things that are shared between loved ones is so richly rewarding. That is why I want to ask you as you read this to consider a question that I hope you have thought of before: When your friends and families gather to celebrate your life, what will your story be? I want to challenge you to do everything you can to make sure that your life's story is a life of faith, a life lived solely for the glory of God.

I know you may read this and think that you know this already and this may seem like a 'yeah, I know that' message, and I want to encourage you if this is your reaction to pause for a moment and realize that we cannot take this life we have been given for granted. We cannot allow ourselves to just assume that we live a life of faith because of what we do - we must be vigilant about making sure that we live a life of faith because of who we are: new creations in Christ Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit to the glory of God.

See you Sunday!
Lamar

Vol 2 No 30 - Congregational Prayer

Further down in this message, you will see a new section added to the weekly e-mail. You will be given two or three areas within the life of the congregation to lift up on a regular bases in this section called Prayer Emphases. So often, it is easy for us to start taking this community that God has given us for granted. We can allow ourselves to become detached (physically, spiritually, or emotionally) from our true home in the family of God. It is my hope and prayer that by getting now twice-weekly prayer reminders (once in the bulletin and now in this e-mail) you will be encouraged to pray not only for those individuals and situations that we mention, but also for the Pharr Chapel family.

God is doing amazing things in the life of this congregation. As I mentioned during worship last week, looking back over my first year as your pastor it is absolutely humbling and awe-inspiring to see where divine grace has brought us in this short time we have had together. I do not believe in prayer as a tool to manipulate God or as an ATM machine to get what we want, but as a discipline given to us by God to allow us to see more fully God's will for us. Through this emphasis on praying specifically for the ministries of the congregation, it is my hope and prayer that we will come to realize more of what God's intention is for us in these areas.

As we go along in this exercise, please e-mail me with suggestions for ministries to be lifted up that I may have missed. I will do my best to hit all the areas of our congregation, but know that with all that God is doing in our midst it may be hard for me to keep track of everything.

See you Sunday!
Lamar

Vol 2 No 29 - Hard Words

By now, you all should be aware of the Favorite Scriptures of Pharr Chapel sermon series that I will be starting this Sunday. This week's requested scripture is Ezekiel 36:26, and in order to put it in it's proper context, the passage we will be looking at is Ezekiel 36:22-32. It is my experience that whenever you study the prophets of the Old Testament, you can't help but be touched by the fact that these guys were put in a seemingly impossible position. Here they were, in many cases minding their own business, when God reaches down and says that you will be the messenger for the Divine, and you will get to deliver a message that they are going to be driven out of their land, endure crushing hardships, be mocked and ridiculed by the world. Oh, and anything good that comes of it comes not because of your actions or attitude, but because of what God says and does. Let me ask you, how fast would you sign up for this job?

Speaking of difficult messages to deliver to the world, the youth of Klein UMC did a FANTASTIC job during their presentation last night. A musical drama, their message spoke to all of us who are a part of the church. It helped put in perspective the lives of youth in today's world, and reminded us of all the challenges that they face every day - challenges that people in school even 15 years ago never dreamed of. These youth reminded us, much as our youth do on a regular basis, that our kids face so much pressure, from so many avenues, that what we can do most for them is to pray for them, and to be there for them. Instead of spending so much time worrying about what is wrong with the world and the perceived wrongs of the next generation, we should be people who step out with a hand to help them through the difficulties they face. Rather than give them pithy sayings or 'back in the day' stories, we need to be actively involved in their world, and get to know them on their terms. The young man who delivered the closing monologue and prayer spoke to so many - I want to thank those of you from Pharr Chapel who showed up to support the 60+ kids and 14 adults who accompanied them. I can safely say that each of us who were honored to be there will not soon forget the enthusiasm and energy, but most importantly the message, that was conveyed to us on this special occasion.

The prophets of the Old Testament & the young prophets of today's church - both delivering messages that not everyone wants to hear. The prophets of the Old Testament & the young prophets of today's church - both having the courage to step up and speak hard truths that we don't necessarily want to think about. The prophets of the Old Testament & the young prophets of today's church - both realizing that what it takes to deliver a hard message is nothing more and nothing less than supreme confidence that God is with them.

What keeps you from delivering the hard truths (in love, of course) of life to the church and the world? Join us Sunday to explore this more.

See you Sunday!
Lamar

Vol 2 No 28 - Connectionalism

I have been out of the office most of this week attending the 2007 session of the Louisiana Conference of The United Methodist Church. Over three-and-a-half days in Baton Rouge, almost 1000 clergy and laity from around the state gathered to hear reports about the ministries of the people called Methodist in Louisiana. Most important to me was not the business sessions, but the time spent in Christian conferencing and worship. The memorial service on Sunday night was truly memorable - it was nice to see Bishop Dan Solomon back in Louisiana again as he was the preacher for this service. As usual, Bishop Hutchinson brought his "A" game on Monday night during the ordination service; his was a notable message about having our hands up instead of out in relation to God. Another benefit of gathering with the larger church is the chance to catch up with old friends, colleagues, and parishoners, as well as meet new friends and colleagues. I want to commend your delegate, Dana Blanco, for her enthusiasm and attentiveness in attending her first conference. Look for Dana to give us all a brief report before worship on Sunday morning.

Speaking of connectionalism, we will be fortunate at Pharr Chapel this week to experience this uniquely Methodist tradition not once, but twice. As was announced in our newsletter and in worship last week, we will be observing Missions Day this Sunday. Rev. Larry Norman, Director of the Volunteers in Mission program for our conference, will be our guest preacher. I look forward to worshiping with Rev. Norman as he brings us the message. Prior to worship, Larry will be visiting with my Sunday School class. All of you are invited to join us at 9:00 AM to hear more about ways we can fulfill that which we say is important to us, fulfilling the great commission. Larry has been a friend of Pharr Chapel for many years and I cannot wait to join you in welcoming him to our family.

The other opportunity we have to celebrate our connectional nature as United Methodists will come on Tuesday night. We have the privilege and honor of hosting the youth choir from Klein United Methodist Church in Spring, Texas. Around 60 youth and 14 adults will be spending the week at First United Methodist Church in Franklin, LA, putting on their Vacation Bible School program in the mornings. To help raise funds for their ministry, their youth choir performs at area churches during the evening. Please make every effort to join us on Tuesday night at 7:00 PM to host these servants of God as they perform a wonderful dramatic interpretation of Scripture for us. Also be sure to invite friends and family from other churches and the community.

Look at these two events as not only special times on our church's calendar, but also an opportunity to realize once again that for those of us who are in the Christian faith, church goes far beyond the borders and rolls of the local congregation and into the entire world. What a great time to testify to the fact that we are a part of something much bigger than ourselves.

See you Sunday!
Lamar