Invite Someone...

It is all a bit anticlimactic really. 

In Matthew chapter 3 Jesus is baptized, and then in chapter 4 he is tested in the desert.  Chapter 4 ends with a quote from Isaiah about the bar of the oppressor being broken and captives rejoicing as at the harvest.  Isaiah says that people will no longer stumble in darkness but will walk in light, and the “chosen one of God” will accomplish all of this.  Jesus is standing in the very place Isaiah mentions, the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali.  It dawns on us that Jesus is going to make all this happen.  He is the chosen one of God

.

We can almost hear Beethoven’s 5^th building in the background as the story rushes headlong to its climax.  We might expect a flurry of miracles, some thunder and lightening, at least cheering crowds swelling behind him as he travels.  We know this is the inauguration of grand things.

So what follows this auspicious beginning?  Jesus takes a solitary walk along the Sea of Galilee and strikes up some conversations with a few fishermen who are toiling to earn a living to feed their families.  It is a bit anticlimactic. We were expecting, perhaps, something a bit more dramatic.

There is, however, something to be learned by this rather low-key initiation of the ministry of Jesus.  He simply, as the British might say, chats up a few folks and invites them to travel with him.  It is not a grandiose beginning, but it is one that bears fruit a bit later in the story.  These guys become 4 of the original 12 apostles, one of them being Peter.  All that follows begins with a simple, personal invitation.

This coming Sunday, September 15^th, is National Back-to-Church Sunday.  People all over the nation are going to invite someone to go with them to church on that Sunday.  Are you willing to do that?  Think about your family, your friends, your coworkers, and your neighbors.  Is there someone whom you could invite to go to church with you?  You could say:  “You know, I enjoy going to my church.  It helps me as I try to live my life and make good decisions.  Would you like to go with me this Sunday?  I think you might like it.” 

This is how Jesus began there by the Sea of Galilee.  There were no slick brochures, no Internet training modules, no football or movie stars spokespersons, no national film or book promotions, no funny U-tube videos of cats playing the piano, and no free gifts.  It was just one person inviting another person to journey with them to a new way of life.  Give it a try and see what happens.  Who knows what fruit that simple conversation might bear?  Let me know how it goes.

Blessings,

Jim Kelsey

Executive Minister
American Baptist Churches of New York State 

This week's message is now online...

Blessed Are Those Who Mourn - September 8, 2013

This week we’re continuing our series on the Beatitudes.  And we’re going to look at the second of those beatitudes, found in verse 4, which reads, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.”  We saw last week that to be poor in spirit was to be humble, and specifically humbled by a vision of your own sinfulness before God.  So what is it to mourn?  What attitude is Jesus specifically referring to?

Blessed are You...

On Sunday, we started a new sermon series titled, Blessed Are You.  The first message in that series shares the name.  It's been posted to the Almond Union of Churches website, and can be seen by clicking the link below...

Blessed Are You...  August 25, 2013

A Short Film on the topic of envy...

On Tuesday night, we finished our Book Study on Rick Warren's book, The Purpose Driven Life.

As I had stated when we started, the book has been re-released under the title, What On Earth Am I Here For?" and now includes two new chapters, one on envy, and one on people pleasing.  Both are excellent chapters, and we spent a lot of time discussing both of them.

That was a rather long lead in to a fairly short video that I think really drives home the point...  Notice when the boy with old, worn out shoes cries out, "It isn't fair, I wish I could be like him..."



We've all struggled with envy.  But remember that we have no idea how much the other person has sacrificed to get what they have.  Maybe we aren't willing to sacrifice that much...

Made For a Mission...

Sunday's message has been posted on line.  This was the last of Rick Warren's five purposes for our creation.  We were made for a purpose.  Check out this week's message below:

8-11 Made For a Mission

There's even an audio link if you would like to listen.

How to Attract Young Adults - Seven Charachteristics...

I found the following article from the Huntington Post:

In Herriman, Utah, single adults ages 18 to 30 form their own ward in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In Washington, a synagogue offers "Drinks and Drash" gatherings where participants in their 20s and 30s gather at a local restaurant for study sessions.

In Scotch Plains, N.J., a ministry experiment in an Assemblies of God congregation has become its own church within a church for young adults.

As fewer young people fill the pews of houses of worship, some congregations are trying innovative ways to halt the exodus of young adults from organized religion.

But it is a massive challenge. Young adults today are more likely to claim no religious affiliation, and less likely to attend worship. The average age of worshipers is 54, or 10 years older than the average American, according to the 2008-2009 U.S. Congregational Life Survey.

So what does work when it comes to attracting young adults?

A new report analyzing the 2010 Faith Communities Today study of more than 11,000 congregations provides insights into what makes congregations with significant numbers of young adults distinctive. The profile by researchers Monte Sahlin of the Cooperative Congregational Studies Partnership and David Roozen of the Hartford Institute for Religion Research explores the characteristics of the mere 16 percent of those congregations where 21 percent or more of participants are ages 18 to 34.

Here are some of the report's key findings:

Young churches, young people: Congregations organized in the past decade were three times as likely to have a significant number of young adults as congregations organized before 1976. "One of the most effective ways to reach young adults is to launch new congregations," Sahlin said.

The KISS principle: Keep it spiritual, stupid: Congregations reporting high levels of spiritual vitality were three times as likely to have significant numbers of young adults as congregations with low spiritual vitality. "What they are looking for is something that touches them," Sahlin said of young adults. "They're looking for something that connects to the divine in a palpable way."

Eat, pray, read the Bible: Congregations that reported a lot of emphasis on spiritual practices such as prayer and scripture reading were five times more likely than congregations that put no emphasis on such practices to have large numbers of young adults in the pews. "It appears that congregations that teach spiritual practices are much more attractive to young adults," Sahlin and Roozen reported.

Keeping up with new technology: Congregations that reported multiples uses of technology such as social media and websites were twice as likely to have a significant percentage of young adults as those that reported marginal use.

Electric guitars rock: Congregations that used electric guitars and overhead projectors in their worship often or always were about twice as likely as congregations who never used them to have significant young adult participation.

Gender balance: While women outnumber men in most congregations, the study found the more men there were in a congregation the more likely it was to attract young adults.

Promoting young adult ministry: Congregations that placed a lot of emphasis on young adult activities and programs were more likely to attract young women and men.

In many ways, young adults are attracted to what matters most to believers of any age: Being part of a congregation that recognizes and meets their spiritual needs.

In looking at communities that were successful in attracting young men and women, "It's pretty clear that these were congregations that were, No. 1, intentional about engaging young adults," Sahlin said.

But with the aging of many congregations, incorporating changes from adding electric guitars at worship to integrating young adults into leadership positions becomes even more imposing.

"The church has to go through a process of change," Sahlin said. "That has been difficult every step of the way."

For faith communities who may have given up hope, however, the study provides some encouragement. Fulfill the spiritual needs of believers in their 20s and 30s, and they will come.

John Wesley's motto in life...

In our readings in the Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren, he passes along John Wesley's motto in life...

Do all the good you can,
by all the means you can,
in all the ways you can,
in all the places you can,
at all the times you can,
to all the people you can,
as long as you ever can.

I'd say those are words to live by!