Want to know more about the "Green flash?"   

Yesterday I talked a bit about attitude.  Did you know that people who have faith live longer than those who don’t?  Faith not only makes us live longer, but gives us a better quality of life.  Stress on the other hand does damage to our immune systems, makes cells deteriorate faster, and makes us age more quickly. 

Our prayer class (Thursday at 1pm) has found a way to reduce daily stress and practice daily prayer is to log onto http://sacredspace.ie/  This is a website run by Irish Jesuits that takes you through a ten minute meditation and prayer daily-- right here on your computer.  Try it in the mornings before the day gets hectic.   It’s a discipline that will indeed adjust your attitude and give you peace for the day ahead. 

This is God’s desire for us.  To live in close relationship with God.   Long life for its own sake is useless.   I have encountered bitter, angry, self centered people who have lived long lives and are relatively healthy.  I have also had the privilege to be instructed in the art of growing old gracefully by people, some of whom have had hard lives, with bodies battered from disease, arthritis, loss of hearing and sight. Because of their faith, their love and concern for others, and their attitude, they are a delight to be around.

Hebrews 12:11

While cruising, this passage played out true.  Every day, whether at sea or at anchor, we had a discipline of checking all lines for fraying and all equipment for wear and tear.  When we first started out, this was a long process, one none of us enjoyed.  Nowhere in our dreams of a tropical cruise did it include crawling into the engine room to check the oil and water in the batteries daily.  Lines seemed to rub and fray overnight and need to be replaced.   Shackles and winches seemed to need constant attention.   But as time went on, this all became routine.  And the knowledge that the boat was ready to perform no matter the weather gave us peace to sleep at night.

So spiritual disciplines of reading scripture, prayer, and worship prepare us for the rough times in our lives.   I can only believe that being physically healthy will enable us to be at our peak as well.  So off I go to walk today as well. 

Parish Nursing services are designed to build on and strengthen abilities of individuals, families and the congregation to understand and care for one another which flows out of their relationship to God, faith traditions and the broader society. The practice holds that all persons are sacred and should be treated with respect and dignity.” (http://www.yorkminsterpark.com/about_us/parish_nurse.php)

This is usually a full time job. As a retired Registered Nurse, Pastor Fay asked me if I would be a “part-time” parish nurse. Basically, this means “pro bono” when needed. Recently, I was asked by the congregation about a medical equipment purchase. I consulted with the patient, made sure that the appropriate medical documentation was available and I was able to locate a suitable model at a good price. If you have a medical question, please give me a call. You can reach me by calling the church and leaving a message (301) 45 1010. I am licensed in the state of Maryland. All professional privacy matters are strictly observed. Be aware that some medical matters require their reporting such as child or senior abuse or abuse of the mentally-ill.

We were bought with a price: the life and death of Jesus on the cross.  He owns us and our bodies.  It is not up to you or me what we put into it.  We are to honor God with our bodies.  Why?  Because God has plans for us, and things God wants us to be able to do to serve him.  We are the only hands and feet that Jesus has on this planet.  It benefits God to have us around for a long time, as healthy as we can possibly be. 

Christians tend to think of Salvation as something that comes at the end of life on this Earth. But the word salvation comes from the Latin word salveo, which means to be healed.  God desires us to be whole and as healthy.

Paul describes Euodia and Syntyche as "women who contended at my side in the cause of the gospel" (4:3). These women were church leaders, perhaps deacons. Paul obviously valued their leadership.  He also realized that contention between members of the church, especially church leaders, can spread and disrupt the entire congregation.   So what does he advise?  He addresses both women.  He doesn't get involved in who is right or who was wronged.  Instead he tells them to "agree with each other "in the Lord" (4:2).

They are to solve their disagreement in their own way, but in and through Christ. He urges others within the church leadership, their coworkers to help them mend their differences.  And he gives any of us who disagree within the church some  advice: "If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose" (Philippians 2:1-2). We are to follow Christ's example.  Jesus forgave those who wronged him, even those who condemned him to death on the cross.  Are the wrongs that we have experienced any more grievous? I know it is hard to forgive, but when we feel unable to love, we are to rely on Christ's love for us. Then his Spirit will empower us to show tenderness and compassion. When we see unity more important than whatever might separate us, it becomes easier to take the steps to reconciliation. 

So did  Euodia and Syntyche resolve their disagreement? There is some indirect historical evidence that, perhaps, they did. Early in the second century,  the church leader Polycarp writes to the church in Philippi.  Polycarp commends the congregation in Philippi, writing that they "have followed the example of true love and have helped on their way, as opportunity offered, those who were bound in chains."

Then he adds, "I rejoice also that your firmly rooted faith, renowned since early days, endures to the present and produces fruit for our Lord Jesus Christ." He could only have written this if the church in Philippi was a church united in Christ's love.  We can infer from this that Euodia and Syntyche did indeed mend their differences, or at the very least learn to work together in Christ.   In the future, we can wonder how someone writing about our church will describe us. 

The ruins of the boat are not that impressive, until you think that they are the remains of a 2000 year old boat.  It was built between 200 BC and 100 AD.  The boats mentioned in Luke 5:1-11 were probably similar.  It was about 25 ½  feet long and seven and a half feet wide.  About the size of my first boat.  It was used for fishing and transportation.   I've added a picture of the full size replica.

Luke tells us that Jesus sees a couple of these boats at the water’s edge and decides to borrow one of them.  Did he appreciate the craftsmanship of the small wooden boat? Jesus was a carpenter. It was made of cedar planks joined together by pegged mortise-and-tenon joints and nails.  Other types of wood were used to repair and strengthen it.  It was flat on the bottom, made for fishing in the shallows.

Now two things strike me about this passage in Luke.  

One is that Jesus tells the fishermen, who had come from a rotten day of poor fishing, “Let’s put out I to the deep water and catch some fish.”   Going out into the deep water implies taking risks, leaving the shore.  Following Jesus means letting go of the dock lines and heading out into uncharted waters.  It means taking risks. As Capt. Ron says, "If it's going to happen, it's going to happen out there."

But when the disciples obeyed Jesus and cast their nets into the deep water, the catch was so large it tore their nets and almost sunk their boat!  This became the pattern for the rest of their lives as disciples.  Obeying Jesus carried them into deeper and riskier waters and reaped results beyond their wildest expectations.  Those fishing boats may have been made for the shallows, but Jesus knew they could handle crossing the lake as well.

The second thought is that, after this miraculous catch of fish, Jesus tells the fishermen to forget fishing for fish and come with him. "I will make you fishers of men."  They left their boats and followed him. 

Archeologists tell us that the boat found in Galilee was probably repaired and used for about 100 years.  It was probably handed down from  father to son to son.  Can you imagine leaving such a family treasure?  But the disciples left their nets and their boats and followed Jesus. Imagine leaving your job, your investments, your livelihood, to follow who knows where? Where is Jesus leading?  Deeper water indeed.