Coming to the Still Waters

  Here is looking at you just outside the main entrance of the church last week.  It looks like a mother and last year's child.  They were munching on a bush that had some green on it and maybe some fiber content.  You can see our outside cross in the background.  Moose are large and can be aggressive so keeping your distance is a good thing.  Thankful for many doors out of the church! This week is a hard one for me.  We are helping my dad (94) transition again to a more suited situation for his needs.  These situations make you look back to the man who raised you and what he could do and also look forward to see some struggles you might face.  The state of your mind seems to be so important in walking through these later years.  I know sometimes what happens up there is out of your control (like my mom) but I hope to keep being curious about the world around me. Jesus gets right in the faces of the Pharisees (brood of vipers) and thei...

  Spring is coming to the mountains.  These are some of the first flowers to appear even before the snow has receded.  These are flowers in the burn scar that were protected by their time in the earth when the fire of 2020 raged above them.  Spring is also time for the elk and moose to seek out the new greens provided by nature. Jesus knows that the religious leaders are out to destroy Him.  It is 2 years before He will hang upon a cross, the finality of their plan.  He continues on with His ministry in this section of the Scriptures and is surrounded by great multitudes who are going to give one response to His actions while the religious leaders give a totally different one. As I was studying this passage and the next I saw a trilogy appearing.  In the passage with the healing of the man with the withered hand I saw an extreme plan , the destroying of Jesus.  In this passage with the assessments of who Jesus is, I saw an extreme conclusion , He...

  Sometimes being a small congregation pastor means making sure all the lights are of the same color.  24 canister lights with 4 bulbs each.  48 times up and down the ladder not to mention the switching out of the indirect lighting on the sides.  Also, it might mean switching out the faucet at the kitchen sink in the fellowship hall that has been there for 25 years.  I always have a new appreciation for plumbers when I am partially in the kitchen sink cabinet.  It does say on the packaging that this is easier to install if the sink has yet to be installed.  Yes, I am one of those people who do read the instructions. We are back to Matthew 12 after spending two weeks on the Palm Sunday passage and then the Resurrection Sunday passage.  Jesus is now preaching what His kingdom is like and it is very different than the one we and they are living in.  He is instructing them that they need to change their way of thinking to line up with His. In day...

  See the bike in the foreground?  Pumped up the tires and have been making trips to town and back a couple times now.  The mountain in the background is locally called Mount Baldy but officially Mount Craig.  The bridge is over the canal between Shadow Mountain Lake and Grand Lake.  A lot of wedding pictures are taken here.  I am itching to get up into the mountains and see the roaring waterfalls and the beautiful springtime mountain flowers. Another Easter/Resurrection Service has come and gone.  Covering the same material each year can be a challenge at times and especially when you are in front of some of the same people.  Thankfully there are typically visitors on this special Sunday from the area and from afar.  Last year I handled the whole of Matthew 28 and focused on which story we were following.  Was it the pre-made  cover-up story fueled by a bribe from the religious leaders to the soldiers that the disciples overtook ...

  I squeezed in another snowshoe hike above 10,000 today.  Up the Red Mountain Trail and then off to climb to the Ditch Road and then down the Hells Hip Pocket ravine to the trailhead.  My snowshoes became skis a couple of times.  You can start to see the creeks emerging and also plenty of sign that elk and moose have been out and about.  You can access the Ditch Road from at least 3 different trails and it offers such views of the different mountain ranges.  It is also a break in the summer if you are heading up higher.  Howard and Cirrus above and Specimen below. I pulled out 4 points from the passage this Sunday. 1.  The requirement of the Christian to practice simple obedience to the commands of Jesus.  The 2 disciples went and did as they were told and they found it just as Jesus had said.  Simple obedience in what seems the little things of life prepare us to be obedient in the big things of life.   2.  The need of ...

  After slugging up 5 miles and 1100 elevation gain I made it to Farview Overlook Curve to get a panoramic view of the Never Summer Mountain Range.  A goal met to make it there this winter season and another to go above 10,000 ft in the snowshoes.  When I was coming back down I met a reality that this season is coming to an end.  The large snowblower was starting to clear the road I had just traversed up.  This blower is so big that there is a separate diesel motor just to run the snow throwing tines.   Jesus is at a season change in His ministry.  He has shown us the teaching Jesus with the Sermon on the Mount in chapters 5 through 7 of the Gospel of Matthew and also the discourse in chapter 10.  He has also shown us the healing Jesus with the many miracles that we find in chapters 8 and 9.  Now we venture into the preaching Jesus section.  Jesus is going to point out what is wrong directly with naming names of cities and religious...

Stephanie sent this picture to me with the heading " 2 blockheads. "  Understandable as I convinced her to go with me up the Green Mountain Trail that has a very steep ascent right out of the gate.  The trail was also very hard to negotiate at this time of the year with melting snow and post holing from those who didn't use snowshoes.  Fresh snow this week and colder temps so the snowshoes are not put away yet. We finished chapter 10 of the Gospel of Matthew last week so chapter 11 was our destination last Sunday.  Jesus spent a lot of time instructing His disciples about the pressure, push back and persecution that they might face from religious authorities, governing authorities, family and all of society.  Jesus goes from speaking of the persecutors to someone being persecuted, John the Baptist, JTB.  It is almost like " here is exhibit A." Highly regarded JTB is in prison for standing on God's Word and he sends 2 of his disciples to meet with Jesus to a...

  You meet all kinds out on the trails in the RMNP!  This one was a friendly face I saw after snowshoeing from Coyote Trailhead to the Bowen/Baker Trailhead.  This one was a good turn around point.  Thank you to whoever took the time to create this smile maker.  The trail made by me behind our little friend was filling back in already from the wind whipping down the Kawuneeche Valley. It was a great Sunday gathering to end Jesus' sermon in Matthew 10.  Here are my bullet points for the chapter. Jesus draws to Himself and names the 12 disciples. (at His feet) Jesus gives them the authority of being His apostles. (sent out ambassadors) Jesus gives them practical instructions for their mission. (where to go, who to speak to, what to say, where to stay, what to take and not take, etc.) Jesus tells them of 2 responses and what to do (receive you so stay, reject you so shake the dust from your feet and move on) Jesus spends more time on the rejection response. Je...

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OXZH-4VN2Q&t=266s The link above is for the service given last Sunday on this passage of scripture from the Gospel of Matthew.  Jesus is nearing the end of His instruction to His disciples/apostles that He will be sending out.  Here is a crude review of chapter 10 so far. Jesus names His disciples. Jesus moves them from disciples (learners) to apostles (official sent ones). Jesus gives them the ability to do what He has been doing. Jesus tells them the message to give. Jesus tells them what to take and not to take. Jesus tells them where to go and who to go to. Jesus tells them where to stay. Jesus tells them of the responses of receiving and rejecting. Jesus tells them how to respond to the responses. Jesus focuses on how to deal with rejection. Jesus tells them of the 4 areas of persecution:  religious authorities, governing authorities, family and all of society Jesus tells them not to fear them. This passage focuses on this ...

  I will get back to this picture in a little bit.  Just enough to say this was my snowshoeing guide for a new ridge one morning last week. Jesus is continuing to instruct His disciples, now apostles, on what they will find on their missionary journey.  They have went from being students and learners of Rabbi Jesus to being official representatives of His being sent out on a mission with a message.  They would speak on behalf of Rabbi Jesus with His very words.  What would they find? After telling them what region to go to; what people to speak to; what to take and not take; where to stay; and the responses they will get; Jesus zeroes in on the rejection response.  Being received would be easy, just stay and set up camp.  The rejection response to them as an official ambassador of Rabbi Jesus and also rejecting His very words was to shake the dust from your sandals and move on.  Don't come home and don't give up but rather let it be a testimony to...

  See the lone pine tree coming up from the rock island?  This is Lone Pine Lake in the RMNP and it was named after a lone pine tree on that island.  I think the original pine tree died but another came up in its place or was planted there.  A minimalist of one in a land of an abundance of pine trees.  I think minimalism is not only about having less or only what you need but also being more focused on what you have.  You tend to care for those things you have decided to keep because they are all that you have.  Life was very different when the kids were growing up and at times there were 3 or 4 cars on the property.  When you reduce to 1 you treat that vehicle very differently and maintain it more meticulously.  You zero in on one type of engine, one size of tires, and one manual. Jesus is giving His disciples, now called apostles, instructs that help them to focus on what is ahead of them.  He wants them to be prepared by following wha...

  "A table for 4 please."   These were my company this morning just outside my office window.  The warmer temperatures lately must have brought them out of hiding and cover.  The little reprieve from the cold has been nice but I am sure more is coming before we see true spring.  I'm learning a lot about avalanches in this area. After a little over 2 month break from our study in the Gospel of Matthew, we were back at it picking up in chapter 10.  Jesus picks His team.  Jesus calls them to Himself; Jesus gives them authority and ability to do what He has been doing; Jesus sends them out to a specific region; and Jesus commands or instructs them on what to take, or not take, and how they are to respond.  These commands and instructions will continue throughout the chapter.  This passage was more about the naming of His disciples who would be sent out as His apostles. Relying just upon the Scriptures, we can still have enough detail of the 12 to...

  The icicles are growing!  I am thankful this is not a walkway.  I am also thankful that the heat tapes are doing their job because I don't have a roof rake long enough to reach this pitch.  The snow is continuing to come down in Grand Lake and we are creating our own mountains of snow.  Our President's Day weekend brought in some more visitors from the Front Range to worship with us. We finished up our in-depth study of the first coming of Christ, Christmas.  Our guide was pretty much Luke 1 and 2.  We ended with the Luke only account of Jesus at the age of 12 in the temple with the teachers after being left behind after this family headed back home after the Passover.  This time through this passage I noticed a few things I hadn't recently seen. One was that they were amazed and astonished at this 12 year old answering questions as He was.  The Greek word picture is that Jesus was " out of place " as a 12 year old to be able to do this....

  I am getting a lot of time with my yellow snow shovel, red winter coat, and the white stuff behind me.  I feel I have been gone back about 40 years to our first appointment in Roscommon, Michigan.  A little church that did not have much in resources so I would shovel the parking lot when needed.  Last Saturday I did the same again 40 years later.  I am just so thankful that I am able to do it!  Over the years these manual labor tasks are never just what they seem.  It has always been a time to pray, go over my sermon, and discern over and decide on my most pressing concern.  So if it is shoveling snow, mowing the lawn, mopping or sweeping floors or setting up chairs for church, it has been a time with God in my mind while my arms and legs are in motion. We are almost through our in-depth look at the first coming of Christ, Christmas or Advent in the common language of the Church.  We were able to look at a couple more witnesses that point t...

  Stillwater at twilight from the snowshoe trail.    One of the things I have tried to do is make our meeting place more visible.  Our next door neighbor to the church building is a bar/restaurant and many times I have to describe where the church building is by saying, "We are next to..." and the response back is, "Oh, now I know where you are talking about."   Church buildings can become almost invisible to the occupants of the cars passing by them each day.  Maybe a lighted steeple next!  Hidden in plain sight and maybe that is a metaphor for Jesus in many peoples' lives.  He is there. but they don't see Him until He makes Himself known by lighting up ! The sky was lite up by God through the angels on that night that Jesus was born.  The shepherds can't help but see that this night was not like other nights.  The sheep are in the fold and all accounted for and then wham the angel appears and then a bunch of his friends.  The me...