Do good, be safe and enjoy yourself!

This is a Saturday morning quick blog as I reflect on our October newsletter.  Our students just began another school year and Logos will be back shortly.  Tomorrow (September 25th) is the first Sunday of regular Sunday School.  As soon as I am able, I'll pick up the Church Leadership reflection and post those blogs.

The Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu said, “I have just three things to teach; simplicity, patience and compassion.  These are your greatest Treasures.”

Through many years of parenting three boys I developed a simplified set of instructions that covers everything for each unique personality; “Do Good, Be safe and enjoy yourself.”  One son needed to hear, “Be Good.”  Another needed to hear “enjoy yourself.”  And the other needed to hear “Be Safe.”  No doubt God designs personal messages for each of us as well. 

The speeches of Peter and Paul in the book of Acts are great.  In one of those speeches, Peter described Jesus by saying, "You know about his ministry, how he went about doing good and healing many."  "He went about doing good."   This is how Peter described Jesus' life.  This is also what being a Christian came to mean; you go around doing good. 

Agonizing over his impending death, Jesus paused in a little town to notice the needs of one sick outcast man.  Years later, his actions inspired people to say, “He went about doing good.”  How often are we distracted by our own issues?  We say things like, "I can't do that for you right now, I'm in the middle of something else."  Scripture says that Jesus answered, “What do you want me to do for you?”

Even though we don't think about it this way, religion at its most basic level is an attempt to get God to pay attention to us.  Ancient religious rituals were designed to perform some dramatic action, to get God’s attention.  Are you wearing God out with your prayers as Jesus suggested?  What are you doing that God will notice? 

"Solomon dedicated the Temple saying, "O Lord God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth beneath, keeping covenant and steadfast love for your servants who walk before you with all their heart."-1 Kings 8:23

The eighth chapter of 1 Kings is the story about Solomon offering a prayer of dedication for the Temple.  The building of the Temple was the focus of the hopes and dreams of people of faith for a new world of peace and justice.  Some of you at Trinity may have attended the re-dedication ceremony of our current sanctuary in 1994.  I hope you can join us on  Sunday October 2^nd for World Communion Sunday and our Neighbor’s in Need offering.  It is a fitting Sunday to also dedicate our recently renovated Sanctuary Chancel area and rededicate our mission to “go around doing good.”