Lent represents the 40 days that Jesus fasted in the desert before he began his ministry.  Jesus used this time to focus on what God was calling him to do and then he turned his face toward Jerusalem and the cross.  I invite you to walk to Jerusalem this Lenten season.  It is 94 miles from the Sea of Galilee to Jerusalem and Lent just happens to be 47 days from Ash Wednesday to Palm Sunday.  If you walk two miles a day you can walk the 94 miles.  I hope this activity will accomplish several things for you.  First, it is traditional to sacrifice something or try to dedicate your life in a new way to Christ during lent.  This would be a perfect opportunity to participate in an activity that is a fast of your time and spend it in prayer for you community.  Second, our theme for Lent is Walk Where Jesus Walked-so you will literally be able replicate his travel because he walked everywhere he went.  If you embark on this journey focusing on Christ and praying for your neighborhood as you walk you will enrich your life and your walk with Christ.  Will you respond to Jesus’ call to “Follow me?” Pastor David McMinn

Sorry that I haven’t blogged in a while! I was truly inspired by this video from the Presidential Prayer Breakfast featuring Eric Mataxes.

I hope you watch it and reflect on prayer, William Wilberforce, Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Christian unity.

I recently read an article about how retailers being open on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day keep people from their families (Read article here if you are interested). Our desire for a ‘deal’ or for convenience is forcing others, usually those who work from pay check to pay check, away from their families.  There used to be a thing called ‘Blue Laws’ which stated that no one could work on Sundays and special days like Christmas.  It was seen as morally wrong to buy or sell or do anything but go to church on those days. Today the only business that still respects the Blue Laws is the liquor stores.  And my brother who works at Speck’s Liquor loves the fact that he gets  Sundays off.

I recommend a return to those laws but for a different reason.  It is not about offending God by doing ‘work’ on the sabbath and these special days.  It is about respecting the time of others who are forced to work because of our desire for a 99 cent McDonald’s cheeseburger, a cheap flat screen and the ability to run to the store on Christmas day.  Christmas is about God becoming flesh, “to proclaim good news to the poor.  He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (Luke 4:18-19). It seems small but perhaps we are not living up to this message by our simple actions of when we choose to shop.  Perhaps we can choose not to shop on Sundays, not to shop at stores who make people work on thanksgiving (yes I know those in the healthcare business have to work those days too, but that is different) and avoid places open on Christmas day.  Chick-fil-a has shown us that we can resist our need for something for a day or two.

David

The theme for advent this week is family. Each one of our families are very different, at least if my wife’s family and mine are any indication.

But I also have a very special family that you may not know about.  I was adopted at the age of five and I have five biological brothers and sisters.  Some how God has insured that we all grew up knowing each other.  What an incredible gift! This sunday my biological siblings and I will be gathering in Fort Worth to celebrate Christmas and give gifts to the 8 nieces and nephews (number nine is one the way, my sister is having another child!).  I am truly blessed to have this wonderful and yet different family.  Not everyone is able to understand our relationship.

I tell you this to reflect on a very important aspect of the Christmas story.  Our spiritual family are our neighbors, the peole we worship with, the people we pass on the street.  God sent angels to appear to a different part of the family than we would probably choose: the shepherds.  Shepherds were stinky, ‘unclean’ and disliked.  And yet these are the only ones who had angels announce to them that the savior was born! Those we overlook are often the ones that God chooses to spread the message.

So as you prepare to celebrate the birth of our Lord this Christmas with your family, think about those around you to whom angels would appear.  How can you reach out to them and provide them hope and love?  Isn’t that what Christmas is truly about? Similar to outsiders not understanding my family, many people cannot understand why Christians love the ‘shepherds’ but that is ok.  We will love our family anyway.

David McMinn

Can you guess which one is me?

Every year we tend to focus on the story of Mary or Jesus.  Or if we are getting adventurous, then perhaps we focus on God’s powerful action through the angel’s that he sent as messengers.  Poor Joseph often gets left out of the manger.  In many ways God’s movement through Joseph is the most powerful of all.  Imagine this: you are young, about to be married to a woman you barely know.  You find out that she is pregnant and you are supposed to believe that it was ‘divine intervention.’  My response would be- yeah right.

But not Joseph.  He ACCEPTS his pregnant wife and the story continues.  This week of advent is about acceptance.  Who are those that you have trouble accepting?  What might the world be like if we were like Joseph and accept those whom others ignore or reject?  Are there times when we need to reject someone or something?

As you reflect on the Christmas Story listen to this song by Dave Matthew’s Band.

A few weeks ago I received a stole in church from Chaplain Van Vanderlan:

Here is what Chaplain Vanderlan said about the gift,”This stole was with the first Army Chaplain’s Kit I received in 1964.  It was the old, heavy metal kit and it once fell out of a helicopter flying back from a hospital ship stationed in the waters outside of Viet Nam.  I had the stole on, so it was not in the kit.  It had 20+ years of service an was retired in 1984 with me.

This stole was used for services held at such places as the DMZ, Rock Pile, Hamburger Hill, The A Shau valley and Khe Sahn.  It was used to deliver Holy Communion along the highway from the Rock Pile to Quan Tri, where armored vehicles were situated about every 100 yards, protecting the highway.  Numerous memorial services were held with this stole in RVN (Republic of Vietnam). About 25 to 30 services for men of all branches of our military were held for victims of RVN while I was stationed near Pittsburgh, PA.  The service were conducted in western PA, eastern WV, and southwestern NY State.  One service was held in GA while I was stationed at Fort Jackson.  These were just a few of many services this stole was a part of.

It was also used to cover the Marines near the DMZ as they were leaving and for weekly service for the Naval detachment on the bay.

One baptism was conducted with this stole in RVN at the bay near Phan Rang.  I pray that it will continue to serve the men and women of the US Army as your career as a Army Chaplain progresses.  God bless you as you begin a great journey as an ordained elder in the UMC and the CHurch of Jesus Christ.

Chaplain (LTC) E.C. Vanderlan ret.  Or, as I was known, Chaplain Van.”