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The Citizen, 2019-08-22, Page 16PAGE 16. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, AUGUST 22, 2019. By Pastor Brian Hymers Knox United Church, Belgrave The following message was delivered at one of our outdoor services during the summer season. It was held at a private cabin and retreat of one of our members of Trinity United Church in Ashfield- Colborne-Wawanosh. I hope it inspires you to find Christ in nature or at your place of work or while resting or reading the newspaper following dinner. Good morning and welcome to this special place, It is always so special to worship outdoors and witness the beauty and the mystery of the world in which we live. We give special thanks to Jim and Nancy for sharing their oasis with us; a place of calm and peace and a place of regeneration and absolute special beauty; a place to come to, a place to get away to, a place to run to and a place to walk to, and a place to walk slowly and softly while you are here in this special place. It is a place where one can feel and touch God as the breezes flow by, the sun warms and the rain purifies and renews the plants and life around us. It is a place that could be called almost heavenly. While looking for suitable scriptures I came across the Genesis 18: 1-10 message and could not help but connect the dots in the message for Moses so long ago. Three men appear at the tent of Abraham and Sarah; these three figures to me are members from the congregations of Belgrave, Trinity, Dungannon, for which I serve. They have journeyed and travelled afar and have come to this place, this cabin, and in today’s version, Jim and Nancy have opened their home to us, set the wheels in motion for a meal and provided shade and shelter from the heat of the day. The fat calf is slaughtered, the preparations are made and the bread has been formed and raised for a meal and friendship. Last year the rains fell and caused the venue to be moved, then one of the men noticed that Sarah (Nancy) is missing, and then made a bold statement. I shall return in one year (weather permitting) and you will have a son (a special gift). The wife laughs (Sarah), Nancy would likely faint and the men go on their way. One year later, the event that we were so looking forward to last year (postponed due to rain and some felt we had missed our opportunity to enjoy the hospitality and the viewing of this great property) is going. We have come back a year later just as promised and we are thrilled and we are filled with joy with this birthing of a great service a year later. Not a son, but pretty close. Verse 13-15. “Then the Lord said to Abraham, ‘Why did Sarah laugh? Why did she say, ‘Can an old woman like me have a baby? Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return about this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.’ Sarah was afraid, so she denied it, saying, ‘I didn’t laugh’. But the Lord said, “No, you did laugh.’ ” Watch what you wish for is the message. The Lord does work in mysterious ways and can bring about the most wonderful gifts and surprises. “Is anything too hard for the Lord?” No. We are all so blessed that Jim and Nancy would again take on again the undertaking of inviting us here. God has allowed for us to again gather in the great outdoors and join together to worship and praise him about a year later, as promised in scripture so long ago. The main message today is from the book of Luke 10 verses 38-42, the story of Martha and Mary, the sisters of Lazarus, a very close friend of Jesus. The story is one of great importance to our lives as church members and to society in general. We live in a time of misunderstanding as to our role as Christians and it is difficult balancing our lives in this ever- changing, ever-running world and life we humans have created. We are all pressured to do the work of many because of loss in membership, the financial strain and the growth of our farms and the economy. The global needs are far outweighing the need to stop, relax, hear what God has to say, and, most importantly, relax. Yet, the scriptures show us how through Mary for she does in these four verses. It’s incredible that this entire story is told in four verses, yet it is a story we all know so well. The contrast between Martha the worker and Mary resting at the feet of Jesus listening to the teachings spurs conflict. We automatically have a dislike for Martha, the bossy older sister, barking out the orders making demands even of Jesus, “Lord doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me!” This line of scripture could also be a battle cry for the feminist movement. Replace Mary with men, “why do we do all the work while you men all sit around listening to stories? It could be like children to parents, “Why do I have to clean all the calf pens while you drink your morning coffee?” This line is a very common argument for modern society; why am I doing all the work while others sit and relax. We all feel like we are hard done by in one aspect or another. Yet we, like the Martha character in this story, are great people. We all, in our own right, have many strengths and accomplishments to our credit, like Martha, the great housekeeper and cook, I am sure. Martha was known for her hospitable homemaking. She believed in Jesus with a growing faith and she had a strong desire to do everything exactly right. How many of us fall into this category of person? Lots of us do. She has a few weaknesses, but we all do; we are human. We sometimes expect others to agree with her priorities. We have been overly concerned with details, tended to feel sorry for ourselves when our efforts were not recognized and, sadly, limited Jesus’ power to this life. We learn about this fault later in John 11: 21 when Lazarus dies and she scolds Jesus for not being there “Martha said to Jesus, “Lord if only you had been here, my brother would not have died.” Things we can learn from Martha, or a person of Martha’s character, of which I think we all are guilty of from time to time, is that getting caught up in details can make us forget the main reasons for the actions. I have worked with many different kinds of people: those who ram their way through and those who think and work peacefully – no pressure, no anger, no throwing of wrenches and cursing and scrapping of knuckles, and those who work so cleanly and peacefully, that the end task is always completed and the results are usually the same, but the effort and the energy exhausted for some is painful to watch. I used to work with a couple of fellows let’s call them Jack and Gary, both of whom could tarp a load of lumber in a suit and go to church right afterwards. I, on the other hand, looked like I had wrestled with a mean mother bear and would end up filthy from head to toe. I admired them for their work ethic and learned to be just as efficient, just as fast and just as neat, until one day a new fellow was hired, Jim was his name and he asked me how I became so good at tarping that load and staying so clean. I told him I watched others do the task, and then did it their way. Just like in life, there is a proper time to listen to Jesus and a proper time to work for him as well. Martha is not the villain in this story, she is truly you and me. Mary is not the hero in this story either, she has just found the time to recognize the importance of Christ From the Minister’s Study Hymers explores Genesis to connect the dots huronchapel.com huronchapelkids.com huronchapelyouth.com 519-526-1131 ~ 119 John’s Ave., Auburn Evangelical Missionary Church Every Wednesday Evening Prayer Group 6:30 pm Saturday, September 7, 7:30 am Men’s Breakfast 10:30 a.m. Worship Pastor Phil Delsaut - “Serving Jesus: Being an Elder” (1 Timothy 3:1-13) Sunday, August 25 OFFICE: 519-523-4224 Office Hours: Thursday ~ 9:30 am - 2:00 pm blythunited@tcc.on.ca Guest Speaker: David Kai Accessible Sunday, August 25 Worship Service at 9:30 am Blyth United Church Facebook: Blyth and Brussels United Churches Youre Invited to come worship with us Sunday, August 25 at 10:30 a.m. 650 Alexander St. (former Brussels Public School) Sunday School for children 4 to 12 years of age at 9:30 a.m. Childcare provided for infants and preschoolers during the sermon. Coffee & cookies after the morning service. Summer evening service 6:00 p.m. at various homes. For additional details please contact Steve Klumpenhower 519.292.0965 Rick Packer 519.527.0173 MELVILLE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH BRUSSELS SUNDAY, AUGUST 25 Nursery care available 519-887-6687 Fridays 11:30 am - 1:00 pm ~ Soup & More 2 - a free community meal held in Melville’s basement, and made possible by the Brussels churches working together. Worship & Sunday School - 9:30 am Coffee & Snacks following the service We invite you to join our church family in: Hwy. 4, Blyth www.blythcrc.ca 519-523-4743 Minister: Pastor Gary van Leeuwen BLYTH CHRISTIAN REFORMED CHURCH SUNDAYS Morning Service 10:00 am Evening Service 7:30 pm You’re Invited To Join Us In Worship BRUSSELS United Church Sunday, August 25 Worship Service 11:00 am Worship Leader David Kai All are Welcome The Regional Ministry of Hope BLYTH BRUSSELS Trinity St. John’s 9:15 am 11:15 am COME WORSHIP WITH US! Rev. JoAnn Todd, Rector 519-357-7781 email: revjoann@hurontel.on.ca The‐Regional‐Ministry‐of‐ Hope St. Paul’s Trinity WINGHAM 11:15 am These Anglican Churches Welcome You Continued on page 17