You're Running the Wrong Way!

In John 21 Peter who was ashamed that he had denied Jesus three times decided that instead of continuing the journey he went back to his old way of life. Peter left the pulpit to pick up the fishing net in order to start a life where maybe he could once again be successful and whole. 

As a rule of thumb we are prone to want to give as much as we receive. Yet, in God’s world that is impossible because no one can wholly live up to being Holy (Perfect)! This is why remembering that in our weakness we can have God’s strength. The burning question before us today is which way are we running? Is God’s perfection too much? Instead of going toward the light we are sprinting into the darkness at break neck speed. If you feel in the pit of your stomach this feeling of longing, urgency, and loneliness maybe its time to stop, catch your breath, and look at the compass your of life. Just like Peter when he tried to run away from who God had made him to be, or when he placed value and worth into things other than God namely his trade as a fisherman all he got was a night with no sleep, and zero fish. Yet, when Jesus appeared and told Peter to throw the net on the other side of the boat his nets were overflowing. As soon as Peter realized this strange man was Jesus he jumped off the boat and swam fearlessly toward Him. 

Do you feel lack of purpose and value in your life, work, and family? Do days pass by mindlessly and your thoughts run wild about having a different wife, kids, job, and to live in a different place, or country? The problem might just be that in our daily lives we have been chasing after money, popularity, and comfort for so long only to realize we missed the greatest goal to chase after our Heavenly Father with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength! (Matthew 22:37) The goal of this life shall either be the safety and comfort of this lifetime, or to live for something bigger than only one lifetime. What would our current state of affairs look like if Peter would have stayed on that boat? After all the first sermon about Jesus was preached by Peter in Acts chapter 2. Peter chose in a moment to leap from the security of what he had always done and ran back to Jesus despite feeling as if he was a failure. This is what we must do as well. Instead of looking at life with mundane glasses we start to see what God can and will do with us if we allow him space, and we chase after a real relationship with Him. 

The Challenge this week should you choose to accept it. Take 15 minutes each day in a quiet place praying to God to show you forgiveness for your faults. (He Will!) Then ask God to show you an adventure this week and to live for something bigger than your one lifetime. 

This is a small feat, but can you see if you did this for weeks? Months? Or even Years? As the clock ticks by you will be so busy in God’s adventure you will not have time to see the world through mundane glasses!

Strive on my Friends! Strive On!

Pastor Richard Hiltibran!

focusonthecross.org

Alive and Well

“Jesus responded, "You are wrong because you don't know either the scriptures or God's power. At the resurrection people won't marry nor will they be given in marriage. Instead, they will be like angels from God. As for the resurrection of the dead, haven't you read what God told you, I'm the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? He isn't the God of the dead but of the living." Now when the crowd heard this, they were astonished at his teaching.

When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had left the Sadducees speechless, they met together. One of them, a legal expert, tested him. "Teacher, what is the greatest commandment in the Law?"

He replied, "You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being, and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: You must love your neighbor as you love yourself. All the Law and the Prophets depend on these two commands.”

Matthew 22:29-30 CEB

When was the last time you took the time to think back to yesteryear? Was it happy? Was it horrifying? There is nothing you could trade me to go back to a former time. I was the awkward fat kid in High School. The cocky college kid. The out of place mechanic. Today I was both reminded of my father who passed away in 2001, and my best friend in high school. What it reminded me of is that God has brought me through so much in the short life I have already lived. But more so, I can attest to a living God. Because a dead God would never have the grace to drag me through all the tests this world brings. All the tears, and scars of life. To look back at what God started with this broken pot and to see His hands molding my life gently one day at a time. What kind of God would take time with us? We the broken creatures in an equally broken creation? A God who is racing ahead. A God who still looks at this spinning globe and sees hope for it. Today, I challenge you to look back and see how the hand of the Father has been molding you. What has God done? What have you done to help or hurt the process? Can you see that the love of Jesus hasn't stopped for you, and that no matter what you do Jesus will not give up on you. That is what the Cross symbolizes right? God's unwillingness to leave this creation a mess, and His unearnable gift to all mankind. I challenge you to write your story down, play with it, dare to see Jesus in your life. After all your story is not just for you but the testament to God's mighty love and grace in the 21st century. You are a part of God's Word, matters of fact your story is the most recent book. In 1 Timothy 4:16 it says to watch your life and doctrine closely so that it will save both you and anyone who hears it! At Lewisburg UMC our mission is: To Connect Our Neighbors to Jesus One Person at a Time!  The most important thing we can do to change the world is to help people see Jesus as the Savior of the world. That connection may start with scripture, it may start with a simple talk, but it hits home when it hits you! Why after 10 years of being in God's house, and being in His presence do I still tear up? Because I know God has not given up on this porn addict. I Know God is not done with this pervert. I know God is not done with this stubborn mule. I have seen it in my work first hand within my own life. Your story is the home run to loving your Neighbor, because when we worship a living God and can tell His story in our lives it is a reminder to the 21st century that God is not Dead! He is not done! Please share your story. Tell it with passion and know it well it is after all the most current volume of His Word. It's His power Alive and Well today. 

Strive on My Friends Strive on!

Richard Hiltibran-Pastor

focusonthecross.org

Light Em Up!

"Set yourself on fire with enthusiasm and people will come from miles around just to watch you burn." John Wesley

Have you ever had a story so funny, awkward, and almost unbelievable that you just had to be there?

This Christmas Eve God gave Lewisburg UMC the gift of laughter in an almost unbelievable sequence of events. We had a total of three services 6:00-7:30-10:30. It was a powerful time of learning about God coming down in the middle of chaos to show the world His love. Before the sermon section of our service we had a customary lighting of the Christ candle which is part of the advent wreath. An advent wreath for those who don't know (I just learned this year!) is a 5 candle wreath and week by week candles are lit  then you light the final candle on Christmas eve as a symbol of Christ being the light of the world. At the 6:00 and 10:30 services this ceremony went off without a hitch and there was no minor malfunctions, but the 7:30 service I learned what could be one of the most important lessons of my life. If you are going to do an advent wreath make sure to either use battery power candles, or use a fresh set of candles at the start of each service. Needless to say this ends with the advent wreath catching on fire at the end of the sermon, and everyone looking in awe as two brave folks wrangled the fire and the grand finale was one gentlemen punching the fire out with a manila envelope that he had. It was one of the coolest/funny/awkward things I can put down on my resume. All I could do was to think back on the fire, what it looked like, how it glowed, and most of all how when the fire happened all the attention was focused right on it!

We are in the start of a brand new year and like most I am thinking on the minute ways that I can change my life to do things better. But for some reason my mind won't get away from the idea of fire. This quote from John Wesley fits so well with the attitude and lifestyle of a practicing Christian. In 2014 the thing that has challenged me most is "Am I on fire?" Does my relationship with Jesus matter to me? Would it matter to anyone else? I have been thinking and milling the question over and over what are Christ Followers here to do? I believe what God wants for all of us is to do exactly what good ole' John Wesley is suggesting in his quote, which is to be so passionate about our relationship with God that its an adventure. I have been wrestling with how the 21st century Western church wants to make everything black and white. Sinners go to Hell. We know who the sinners are, and we know who the saved are. This fault is acceptable, while this fault will lead to to condemnation. I am not supposing there is no sin (missing the mark or not being perfect like God), but more so that why do we focus on it? I know I am jacked up in more ways than I care to share, and could possibly make the same guess about anyone reading this blog. But, if life is a journey and we are being called to walk it with our Lord Jesus Christ how come most church services look at the past mistakes not the future adventure? I want 2014 to be the year that I am filled by the Holy Spirit and my faith makes my daily life an adventure. I want a prayer life that feels real not stale and robotic because pastors are supposed to pray good. I want to look at scripture with the awe and passion that a child looks at it, not strictly to fulfill my pulpit duties, win theological arguments, and not read scripture solely like a text book (most pastors wrestle with this). All the latter uses of Scripture are important in there times but not before we get to the "good stuff" which is knowing that I have a Heavenly Dad who tells me daily that "I am worth a damn in this world." I don't want a highly educated sophisticated relationship with God. I don't want to picture God and I having tea together at a Golf Club exchanging lofty ideals while hiding from the rest of the world. I want to be God's little boy first. I want the God that lets me in the tree house. The God who takes me on adventure. The same God who split the Red Sea for Moses, and this Jesus who scared the crap out of the disciples by rising from the dead and appearing to them in the upper room. Maybe, if the church takes of its nice suits and put on its muddy clothes and followed God into an adventurous faith more people would want to follow. The point this year is not to bash the theological heady knowledge that I and so many have been blessed to gain in this life, but to make sure that knowledge is not the only part of me that believes in God. I am asking what about my heart? Is my heart on fire for Jesus? Am I on fire for Jesus? Because I have seen that when something is lit on fire everyone can't help but stare. We all joked that I might burn down the church but the truth is I do want to set it on fire! Because I want everyone to come from miles around and know that Jesus is the greatest adventure they can ever take in this lifetime. What about you? What is your 2014 to hold this year? I pray you are ready for God to use you in a way you never thought possible!

Strive on my friends, Strive on!

In Him,
Richard Hiltibran
Lead Pastor-Lewisburg United Methodist Church
www.lewisburgumc.org

Other Worldly

“Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” Colossians 3:2-4 NIV

This Sunday we walked about how the Bible reveals to us that there is another world. Sometimes we get stuck living in the world we are in, and forget that there are bigger fish to fry. I am talking about living as if we are have access to something bigger than we are. In this Colossians verse Paul instructs us to have our minds set on things above. To think through the lens of Heaven and act as if being a Christian gives us access to some sort of other worldly power. Crazy right? I mean if some dark stranger walked up to you in an alley and said “Hey you have access to a higher power” and lurked away in the darkness, you would not think different of yourself, instead you would think different of them. They are crazy, nuts, and out of their mind to think that there is other worldly power. Maybe, just maybe that is what is wrong with the church today! Think about the arguments sprung forth from the church and you will hear mainly about the color of the chairs, and the types of songs they play. That is this worldly a bit. Not saying that the church is not allowed to worry about those surface things. But, what if the church had to ask itself “Where is the Holy Spirit here?” Now, what if each believer would also ask this question? The idea behind our faith is, that there is something behind our faith! This mysterious idea that if we allow God (The Creator of Heaven and Earth) into our sports, school, career, and technology filled lives that He will come. Christians call this phenomenon “The Holy Spirit.” God coming into our being and living within us. That is why no matter the faith tradition baptism is a big deal because it is the celebration and the request for God to inhabit us. I am a huge comic book junkie. I think about the X-men-mutants who look like normal people until you push them a little then BAM all of a sudden they reveal that they have special power. Guess what! So doesn’t the Christian! Now there are no lasers or claws, but their is something that no one can explain. A people group that devotes themselves to love and simplicity. A people group that has no enemies because they refuse to put anyone into that category. This strange group of people who speak to and feel the divine daily in prayer, and weekly in worship. Who strive in self control, and are open to loving even the hardest of people. At bare minimum step by step and day by day these people look forward to achieving this goal. At first glance there is no power. These are all things a rational good person does or at least try to do, right? Wrong! The laws of nature prescribe us to push and shove our way up the food chain, because we might not survive otherwise. We are fed the diet that material goods and this life are all we have, and all we should worry about. Day in, and day out humans push, pull, bite, spit, and fight to go ahead of each other and in the process throw the world into chaos. After the Government shutdown I know a lot of people who now see this to be true. Yet, wedged right in the middle of this chaotic order are the Christ followers. A freakish group who do not run forward like a wild pack of Zombies. They stare upward. They move where they hear His voice, this strange God of grace. They offer open arms to all the beaten and bruised in society. They kick back against the flurry of greed. Sometimes the ones who bear the most power are the ones who look like they may have non at all. What is your next step. To hear God’s voice? To let Him in? To listen to His instructions? Now is your moment to accept your freakish nature, to know that you, yes YOU! have an other wordily power, and purpose in this crazy life! A Paul says “Set your mind on it!” It’s there be open to it. The ancient God of life and grace has made you a mutant in your own world now go be powerful in a way that the world cannot understand. If the church commits to this life then we will change the world by His mighty power.

Strive on my Friends, Strive on!

Richard Hiltibran-Lead Pastor

Lewisburg United Methodist Church

www.lewisburgumc.org 

The Fruit of the Spirit Must be a Watermelon

One unique gift with my new position is that I am able to go home for lunch. Before I was 30 min. away so it was packed lunches everyday. Now, I can swing into my home and do some simple chores before heading back into the office. We were blessed to have some friends coming over to the house and one of my tasks was prepping for dinner. After cleaning the dishes I looked up only to realize that there was one more chore to be done. Cutting up that stupid watermelon. No one I know likes to cut watermelons, because they are big, clumsy, and always makes a mess. Maybe, I do not like to view watermelon is because they often times remind me of myself. :) As I proceed to cut the melon the I do the same thing I have always done. I cut it way off center. Then the juice starts going everywhere. So frustrated, and swimming in a pond of sugar water I am not enjoying the task at all. To make matters worse the puppies are now at my feet enjoying their nectar at my feet. Can you see why cutting a melon is no longer a joy? Minute after minute goes by and it seems like Jesus himself is causing this thing to multiply. Are we trying to feed the 5,000? There is piece after piece and just when you think that you are done, BOOM there is still one quarter left. ARGH!  Then fighting off every urge to throw that last stupid quarter away and lie to my wife when she asks "Are you sure this is all of it? It looked a lot bigger than this." I cut up the final quarter of this giant melon of doom. Once I finished there is no time to relax because now I have to clean up this pacific ocean of juice and chunks of rhine. Finally, looking around making sure the kitchen is up to par with my wife's standards, and monitoring the dogs now that they have had their fill of rocket fuel. Putting the dogs in their cages and just before leaving to go back to the office I must sample this laborious melon from the depths of hades. BAM! Best thing I have eaten ever, I MEAN EVER! That moment when you forget all the work that went into the prep, the moment of sheer bliss. Why is it whenever you bite into a watermelon the same silly grin comes over your face, the same smirk like when you were a child. Then the juice runs down your chin and you don't even notice. After sneaking a few of the biggest pieces out of the bowl (Hey I cut it all up remember!) I closed the bowl up and headed back to the office.

When you think about the passion narrative, the moment when Jesus gave His life up for you, do you still cry? I do! When you think about the grace of God to overlook all of your shortcomings don't you get that same stupid grin, you know that funny little smirk that you do every time you go back to that moment. When we follow the prompting of the Holy Spirit the prep work can seem like an eternity. Trying to nail down love, peace, patience, kindness, and the whole nine yards is less than easy and is more like work. After all, this is not the short and wide road, it the long narrow trip uphill. But, there is no question that after all the work it takes to silence the inner sins, the outer temptations, and all the noise of the world. When you hear the voice of the Father, when He whispers to your soul all the work slips away and you are near your Daddy! You may not like the prep work some days but trust me nothing takes the place of aligning yourself with the Lord. When you walk into His presence and He gives you grace, Yeah there is nothing that can touch that kind of love here in this world. So, roll up your sleeves, commit to knowing its labors are hard, but the rewards of Christ are incomparable to any labor we have to endure.

Strive on my friends, Strive on,

Richard Hiltibran
Lead Pastor-Lewisburg UMC
www.lewisburgumc.org

From Gavel to Embrace

"For God has not given you a spirit of fear, but of power love and a sound mind" 2 Timothy 1:7NIV

The whole point of this scripture is moving God from his traditional view as judge to becoming a Father. Now, this gets very complicated I know. See because part of God's very nature is justice, God has the right to judgement at any given moment. Think of it in the same way your mom, or dad gets the "Because I said so rule." He is all wise, and all knowing, and therefore must surely be able to see farther out than we can. That can be a terrifying thought because that means God can judge sin. God is allowed to be angry with us when we fall short, when we fail, when we hurt others, or when we point blank stand against Him. None of us can be mad at that thought if in fact you believe that God is in deed the maker and creator of the world. As a matter of fact there is a principle in scripture floating around called "The fear of the Lord."

Which bring me to the point how can scripture both say God has not given us fear, yet we should fear He himself? If we have no Messiah this whole thing is a wash right? But, Jesus Christ took the Father's judgement on Himself. In essence the Holy mystery is this, God punished God's self in place of our judgment. I am not going to dig deep into this one because mystery means something we do not understand, or know. Let's just settle with God has forgone His own judgment on Himself through the person of Jesus of that you and I could be imputed into the fold of God. In other words we are allowed to walk into Heaven as equals with no interaction on our part. God's plan for salvation begins and ends with Jesus Christ, our role and responsibly is to accept that "Yes" God can love his creation that much to save it racially. What this verse is trying to peak out show us is that God's grace is radical. Its more than a gift, more than a favor, the heart of the divine is so passionate toward each and everyone of us that God being rightful judge slammed the gavel of guilt onto Jesus (The perfect Son) in order to set us free from the crimes we have committed against us (sin). Timothy is making a moving point here with us that if we understand the doctrine of Grace, if we know that Jesus has come in our place we are a part of the Heavenly family. God then becomes a Father figure to us. With that thought in mind we can play the "our dad is bigger than you dad" card. Christians were called, and still are called to have spiritual power, love, and a sound mind. Because God is on your side, because He moves in front of you, because your Heavenly Father clears the road for you and I we are able to look at life with a sense of recklessness for the mission of Christ. After all, how can you be afraid to fail the God who is on your side? How can you not feel the power given to you by God in the form of the Holy Spirit (God inside of us)?

Are you living today as if God is going to punish you, hurt you, judge you? Maybe you need to reconsider that if you believe in the sacrifice of the Cross of Christ, God is not your judge any longer, He alone is your Heavenly Father, and will make a way for you to fulfill the mission of Jesus Christ everywhere you walk. His grace goes before you! Live as if Heaven is today, love wildly, give grace to everyone. EVERYONE! Hate nothing, and no one. Most of all share this great news that Jesus is your savior, and Heaven is your home. God is not evil judge but the radically loving God who wants all creation to accept His gift to them.

Strive on my Friends, Strive On.
Richard Hiltibran-Lead Pastor
focusonthecross.org

Supreme

Colossians 1:17-18 NIV
"He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy."

Now we look at the word supreme with very little pose. Think about what we relate supreme with? Surfer lingo, and a pizza filled with toppings. When was the last time you let your mind wander on this word? Or, how about the word King? Even Lord? Being a Lead Pastor most people often associate you as the head of the Church. Not many of these people do this in negative fashion or disrespect to Christ. The reality is though that no Lead or Senior pastor is the head of the church, no Bishop, and not even the Pope gets that title. It belongs to only one that is Jesus. Supreme is a word that means "incomparable" nothing can stack up against it, and nothing can overcome it. That is Jesus Christ and His role in the church. Often times we look at Jesus though the eyes of Savior, or friend. Both are good references to Christ and both are found in the Bible. However, we can quickly loose sight of His Lordship, and Kingly position if we only focus on our friendship to Him. Think about all of the churches you pass on your way to work, school, anywhere for that matter. Think about your own church, or a church you grew up in. Jesus is in change of all if them even if the people in the building don't think so! That is so crazy to understand Jesus is the lead pastor of every church. As a matter of fact the churches sole purpose in existence is to teach about Him, and further His mission. Now, to make it personal. When was the last time you looked out your window and said King Jesus I will go wherever you want me to. I will obey your teachings and I will be a loyal servant in your Kingdom. I often times wonder what the church could do if every single one of us (myself included) would stand and say "King Jesus lead us on your mission!" It would be a sight to see when an army of grace and hope flooded the streets. Nothing could stand against it, nothing could overwhelm it. Nothing could overcome it. Until that day when Christ returns to teach us this truth face to face we have to move forward day by day. It may not be a wave a people, but you and I we can serve our King one loving gesture at a time.

Strive on my Friends, Strive on,

Richard Hiltibran
focusonthecross.org