by Rebecca Alfred

My name is Rebecca and I don’t tithe. Well, I mean, that’s not exactly true. Anymore. As of December, we do. I just wanted to get that off my chest and then–

Do you want a round of applause? Pat on the back?

Not really.

Good. Is that all? 

Well, I wondered if I could speak to the crowd?

I sense a defense coming. Can you speak quickly? 

Very.

Go ahead.

Our entire marriage has been characterized by financial pressure and it has felt scary to give money away–

That sounds rough.

You don’t seem sympathetic.

I have a good poker face. 

So we didn’t.

Give it away?

Right.

I imagine you were pretty careful with your money then? No extras…dinners out, fancy grocery items?

Well, you can’t always be disciplined.

Can’t you?

I am only human and I’m an actor and sometimes I get depressed and I like to shop. And clothes are nice.

I see.

And I’m a little bit miserly…sometimes.

Now, you’re talking plainly. I like plain.

Excuse me, when your entire married life has been characterized by financial pressure—

You said that already.

Oh sorry, I just wanted to make it clear that—

You felt entitled to being miserly?

Yes.

Hm…how did that go for you?

Are you being sarcastic? ‘Cause that’s confusing.

Sorry.

I’m not sure that’s a good way to live either.

You’re right. I retract my sarcasm. 

But. But.

But. But.

But I did learn something this morning.

Do tell.

Our giving will not come back void.

I’m glad you were listening. 

Sometimes I listen.

What else did you learn?

The measure you give will be the measure you get back.

Standard practice. But how do you give when you feel poor?

You just do. ‘Cause it’s important.

‘Cause greed breeds greed. 

And fear.

And generosity breeds freedom.

Yes, I agree.

Good.

Good.

Session over. 

Did I tell you about the direct deposit?

by Laura Bolender

Today I was encouraged.  Not only by one of the most well articulated sermons on generosity and giving, but also by a healthy and productive annual meeting that reflected some of the ideas shared in the sermon.

I wish to summarize just a few points for this reflection that I hope to meditate on throughout the week and invite you to as well:

• Goodness and generosity are a part of our calling.  They are not just ideas but actions.  If we understand and receive God’s love and goodness for us, how can we, but serve with generosity?
• Our motivation in giving should come from a place of gratitude, cultivating a generous heart.  Again, God continues to bless and out of His blessings our hearts and actions can reflect thanks
• Lastly, and the point I found the most striking concerning financial giving, is that if we do not give our money away, it becomes a power over us.  This can turn into a very dark reality.   By surrendering our money, we allow God the power within us, resulting in our freedom! How incredible is this Kingdom God desires for us here on earth? His Kingdom economics.  Will we let God be the power in our lives and trust his provisions for us?

I pray today that as a church we would continue to trust God’s provisions for us.  As well as act based on the understanding of His Kingdom economics.  We are indeed a piece in the puzzle and must be active, starting with our hearts choosing gratitude and reflecting that through our generosity because of God’s great love for us.

By Steve Lucas

di·as·po·ra [dahy-as-per-uh, dee-]

Any group that has been dispersed outside its traditional homeland, especially involuntarily, as Africans during the trans-Atlantic slave trade.

I am six generations Canadian, my wife is nine generations Canadian.  Of the two of us which do you think is asked all the time where they are from?  Oh wait, did I forget to mention that my wife is a Black Canadian?  Now in that context, which do you think is asked that question the most?

Reverend Gillard graced us on Sunday with an excellent sermon on Psalm 137.  She talked about the feelings and the anger of the people of Israel as they are kept by their tormentors the Babylonians.  How they lamented, how they felt and dreamed of being free remembering Jerusalem. Now come to modern times and we talk about the perils and tribulations of the Diaspora.  Not the one that dispersed the twelve tribes of Israel but the one that took whole families and placed them in slavery to be used as seen fit by men and women even if they called themselves Christian at the time.

Reverend Gillard reminded us why we should embrace and celebrate our collective diversity as children of God by sharing the redemption songs she learned.

Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery
None but ourselves can free our mind

She asked us do we dare ourselves as the church of Jesus Christ to listen, to respond and to be moved by these redemption songs.  As she asked the question to go back and remember the anger and the pain, I can’t.  It didn’t happen to me, it didn’t happen to my ancestors.  There is no collective memory that I can call on to understand the pain and humiliation of what occurred.  But when I listen to my wife, when I hear the words and stories of my friends and extended family I can glimpse briefly the pain and humiliation that has happened.

So let us remember Zion, the people who have been dispersed and share with them the pain that they remember.

by Tamara Irons

Colossians 3:12-17 isn’t new to us.  It’s probably one of the most familiar, most palatable sections of the Bible.  It’s even reached pop-culture status! (Referenced by Vince Vaughn in the movie Wedding Crashers.)  It’s simple.  A few qualities… Compassion. Kindness. Humility. Gentleness. Patience. Some commandments: Love. Teach. Bear with… Forgive.

Not so hard, right?

____________________________________________________________

I spent Friday night in Kingston Ontario.  The taxi driver who took me from the train station to my hotel was very nice.  Of course, like they do in small town taxis, he tried to make small talk.

“Where you from?” He asked.

“Toronto!” I replied cheerfully.

“Where were you born?”

“Toronto,” I replied again—though with a little less cheer.

“Yeah, but what’s your background?”

I never know how to answer that question.  “Jamaican,” I said.

When I arrived at my hotel the man at the desk was also very nice.  Of course, like they do in small town hotels, he tried to make small talk.  “Where you from?” he asked.

“Toronto.”

“Yeah, but where were you born?”

Oh… Here we go again…

These conversations actually got me thinking about what comes before the famous words of today’s scripture reading.

“Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.”

Where is “here”? I wondered… (Because it certainly wasn’t Kingston, Ontario.)

And what does it mean to be a citizen of this place?

Then, of course, I went to church this morning and, as it happens, found my answer.

_________________________________________________________

In the NIV, our scripture begins with “Therefore,” which means that what comes next is a consequence of something that came before.

And here it is: “Since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator…”

Therefore…

We have been chosen, and have, ourselves, made the choice to be a part of the whole body of Christ.  Despite our faults and brokenness we are chosen, holy and loved. Moreover, cleansed, of our sins, when we ask…

Pastor Davey highlighted a fact of which I am certainly aware but very rarely think about: Church is a disparate community.

We all come…

(…from different areas of the city, from different morning routines, cultures, nationalities, likes and dislikes…with different motivations, inspirations, desires, gifts…)

…to Weston Park once a week on Sunday mornings to join in worship.

In community.

We smile and shake hands.  We enjoy a cup of coffee or tea together.  We exchange cards at Christmastime.  But to truly be “in community” we must engage with the tough stuff as well.  We won’t always agree on the running of the church or even on how we each choose to live our individual lives.  However, we are called to live in community… And, as Paul writes, we must do so clothed in the virtues as we are commanded.  But, we can’t just wear these ‘clothes’ to church… “Christ is all, and is in all.” Thus, we should strive to be like Jesus in thought and deed every single day.  That is what it means to be a citizen of this place… United by our love of Jesus Christ.

“It’s not a dream state. It’s actually how we must live; and it is hard work!”

This week, when you need to feel renewed, click on the link below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXiK1-84RHs&feature=fvwrel

__________________________________________________________

The taxi driver who took me from my hotel to the train station was very nice.  And, since I’m a quick learner, I made small talk.  “Where you from” I asked.  “Toronto,” he replied. “These people need God! Kingston is evil!”

We both laughed from our bellies.

The Fruits of the Spirit – Galatians 5:22-26

Written by Elizabeth Davey

Coming in the side door of the church this morning, preoccupied with my aching foot and sundry annoyances and inconveniences of the morning, I passed Millicent walking in the hall and quietly singing with the rehearsing praise team the words of “Abba, Father.” When I caught the familiar phrase, “You saturate our lives with love and mercy,” my heart was strangely warmed.  Later, browsing through Galatians I spotted Paul’s reminder, “God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” (Gal. 4.6).  Being in church was a good thing.

The familiar passage outlining the fruit of the Spirit often causes me anxiety. “Love … joy … peace … patience … kindness … generosity … faithfulness … gentleness … self-control.” I am bound to stumble over any one in the list and become preoccupied with my failure in love or peace or self-control. Similarly, when we wonder what we would do on a sinking cruise ship, would we have the courage and discipline to exercise the spirit of generosity and love to seek to save others and not ourselves? There is that nagging doubt that self might prevail.

It is instructive that the fruit of the Spirit is not what we conjure up but what is present in our lives when God’s Spirit is present.  On the one hand, we are assured that God is present when these characteristics are evident; on the other, when we open ourselves up to his activity, these traits will emerge.  Musing on the possibility of  being more and more saturated with his love and mercy makes me truly hopeful and energized.

There is a lovely poem by the American poet Jessica Powers that expresses some of my feelings from today’s reflections:

                               The Mercy of God

 

I am copying down in a book from my heart’s archives

the day that I ceased to fear God with a shadowy fear.

Would you name it the day that I measured my column o virtue

and sighted through windows of merit a crown that was near?

Ah, no, it was rather the day I began to see truly

that I came forth from nothing and ever toward nothingness tend,

that the works of my hands are a foolishness wrought in the presence

of the worthiest king in a kingdom that never shall end.

I rose up from the acres of self that I tended with passion

and defended with flurries of pride;

I walked out of myself and went into the woods of God’s mercy,

and here I abide.

There is greenness and calmness and coolness, a soft leafy covering

from the judgment of sun overhead,

and the hush of His peace, and the moss of His mercy to tread.

I have naught but my will seeking God; even love burning in me

is a fragment of infinite loving and never my own.

And I fear God no more; I go forward to wander forever

in a wilderness made of His infinite mercy alone.

 

I am not quite there, I’m afraid, but the poet has provided a picture of this great possibility of enjoying life “by the Spirit, “led by the Spirit.” It’s worth pursuing – with all of our hearts!

By Bob Gernon

This was the best of all possible sermons to ask for my ‘Afterthoughts’.  I’m delighted to share the following three specific examples of things for which I am grateful:

1.  Paul.  I am so grateful that Paul wrote these words and that they have been passed to me over all these years:  ”Don’t be conformed but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”  This has been one of my ‘life-verses’ throughout my adult life.

I really was (and probably still am) insane.  I suppose we all are as long as we live without Jesus at the center of our lives.  Without Christ helping to straighten out my thinking and my decision making, who knows where I would be today.  I am so grateful, so thankful and so humbled that the God of the universe would care enough to be willing to walk with me, talk with me, counsel me, coach me, guide and direct me….love me.

2.  Alan.  As a young man I felt a strong ‘call’ to the ministry but I could never say ‘yes’.  I felt inadequate, ashamed, unworthy.  Anything but ‘holy’.  Over the period of the last 20 years I have been blessed by Alan’s teaching and leadership and in particular by his consistent and persistent message that I am worthy, I am Holy, God loves me and is for me.  I am so grateful to Alan for his persistence with this message.  Each week, month and year it soaks in a little more that God truly loves me and will tenderly help me through every situation in life.  He will never forget me or forsake me.  Please, Alan, please don’t get tired of preaching this message.  Keep at it.  Slowly it is warming me, unfreezing me and releasing me.

3.  Weston Park Baptist Church.  Thank you kind friends for allowing me to volunteer and serve you in everything from being a Deacon to a janitor.  I wish I could do more because I know that the more I give to you in service, the more I am transformed, healed and renewed.  It truly is in the giving that we receive.  What a strange topsy-turvy, upside-down kind of economic system this is.  And yet…it’s true.

So I am very, very grateful.  To any who are wavering and a bit unsure, I stretch out my hand, I invite you to step on this amazing roller-coaster ride of transformation and love.  Come join, come pray and choose to give of yourself and in so doing you will position yourself to receive.

I trust this is helpful.

by Peter Brown

Alan’s sermon title and his story about being in a relay race in middle school got me thinking about the word race.  In the sense that Paul uses it, it brings back to my mind, as well, the thrill of seeing a track meet. East York stadium on Cosburn Avenue was nearby and often host to various district and regional track meets.  If you knew your way around, entry was not difficult.

Later, though the word race often came in the context of “rat race”.  Work pressure and deadlines meant effort beyond pleasant and often seemingly endless. It was sometimes hard to stay positive and “enjoy” the race. Not so thrilling!

The Philippians passage urges us to see our Christian journey as thrilling. Alan noted that our bedrock position is knowing Christ has claimed us as his own (verse 12b). What mercy; what grace. This is fixed and unchanging, no matter what else happens in the race.  Late in the passage, verse 21, Alan spoke of the promise of being transformed by Christ’s power.  He said we are being called to another level.  There is tremendous hope for us in this verse, which speaks of divine power.

Our constant distraction in the race is our focus on earthly things (vs 19).  During advent, I was moved by a Henri Nouwen quote:

I have found it very important to try to let go of my wishes and instead to live in hope. When I choose to let go of my wishes and trust that my life is precious and meaningful in the eyes of God, something really new, something beyond my own expectations begins to happen for me.  To wait with openness and trust is an enormously radical attitude to life. It is choosing to hope that something is happening for us that is far beyond our own imaginings. It is giving up control over our future and letting God define our life.

Some days, I get a glimpse.  And it’s thrilling!

Written By Rebecca Davey

I think the veil lifted for me for a moment during Sunday’s sermon. I felt very powerfully that all of the drama I write should have an inkling, a nudging, a sprinkling of my faith journey—that talking about my journey of faith is perhaps the only important thing in my journey as an artist. So there. That’s what I felt. That’s what was breathed on me on January 1, 2012 sitting in the pew at Weston Park Baptist Church so very tired after staying up ‘til 2 AM.

One day later I can already feel myself a little flatter. I am so easily swayed by other ideas, other things—the ‘Herod’ rising up in me keeping me distracted, impatient and discontent. So I have to write it down: THE VEIL LIFTED FOR ME. Shouting it is also useful…whatever it takes really to stay connected to that little moment, to that millisecond gift of revelation in which something larger was understood.

Oh yeah, and if God meets us at the point of our desire, then surely I need to cultivate my desire…for Him. I need to cultivate my taste buds for the Scriptures, for prayer, for silence. If I can learn to like turnip (and I have, suddenly I love it), I can learn to love the disciplines that will lead me to a deeper, richer faith.

The banner of the Lord is over me in 2012. THE BANNER OF THE LORD IS OVER ME IN 2012. And it’s over you too…push back the veil or wait patiently for it to be lifted.

Written by Steve Lucas

¹⁰But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: ¹¹to you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord.

We have all wondered when or how we are going to hear a message from God.  Some of us are more content and see the calling of the Lord in the everyday things that go on around us.  Some of us need a more substantial noise to let us know that he is trying to tell us something even though the type of noise is sometimes questioned afterwards.  Alan mentioned that last Sunday even though he was not one those who needed a sign.  Going to school being in a crowded room he heard someone call his name, over and over again.  Was it a loud blasting of trumpets or the coming of Angels as shepherds saw, no.  Did it get his attention?  Yes and because of that he started down a path that brings him to us each Sunday.

Even though the shepherds were visited and given this wonderful gift why were they the ones chosen to attend the birth of our Lord?  Alan mentioned this but for me this is so important.  There, at that time, were more important and greater followers of God.  Every one of them would have probably given their eye teeth to be personally invited to visit the birth of Jesus.  Would they have attended?  Come out in the middle of the night?  Go to a lowly barn, filled with the smells and cast offs of numerous animals?  Maybe.  Would they have spread the word as they would have been asked?  Probably not with the joy as the shepherds did.  This is one of the most beautiful messages that God told us through his actions.  By sending the message to the lowest, the outcast or the unclean as they were thought of, the shepherds represented the most common of us.  For again they were willing to hear the message, they took up the message and passed it on.

I have heard my personal message from above and it came at an important time in my life.  I have searched and been willing for another message to come but for now I am content to hear the small messages.  For the word was given and I am thankful for the gift he gave us with the birth of His Son.

By Steve Rowley

Fight or flight? That is the physiological response to fear. I once had a philosophy professor say that “Fear is the emotion experienced when running like hell from the enemy.”  In the macho world I work in nearly all would choose fight over flight. Somehow when facing an enemy it seems the only course of action is to stand up and fight. Yet Alan challenged that notion on Sunday when he encouraged us to consider the responses of Ahaz and Joseph to signs offered by God.

I think it’s fair to say Ahaz chose to fight in the classical sense…..figure out a way to take control, negotiate alliances, create the perception of standing up to the opposition to garner support of the people as opposed to having faith that the sign would pan out.

Joseph, it could be said chose the flight response (I will elaborate on this in a bit), he ceded control and “did what the Lord commanded.” He chose not to fight in the way that Ahaz did.

I don’t know about you but fear is a daily reality for me. I am a certain casualty of what is known as Imposter Syndrome. A few months ago a group of top Canadian CEO’s was asked what their greatest fear was. A CEO of a leading financial institution said that her greatest fear was that one day she would be discovered as a fraud. What did she mean? She explained that she did not view her skills and abilities to be commensurate with her position. Hence, she felt like an imposter and therefore fearful that one day she would be exposed. This resonated with me!

So when we are fearful how do we respond? Fight or flight? Are there observable signs that we can be sensitive to, that show whether we are in fight or flight mode? I believe there are. When I am in fight mode I feel and exhibit signs of anxiety, stress, anger, impatience, I am prone to judge and I am overly critical.

When I am in flight I am at peace. I am calm; less prone to judge, and certainly more gracious. I believe this is because our flight, as Alan so eloquently declared, is to an Abba who promises simply and graciously to be Immanuel with us, no matter what the fear, no matter the time of day or night, God With Us!