Pastor’s Corner

A Prayer a Day: Good day, Lord. Thank you for this lovely day. Thank for the blessing of good health, that allows me to walk out onto this porch to spend some time with you. Thank you for ears to hear the birds singing.Thank you for eyes that see, at least, six kinds of birds, without moving from the porch.There are numerous sparrows darting in and out of the Purple Martin house. There is a lone red headed woodpecker pecking the walnut tree trunk. There is a male and female cardinal sitting on the ground. A single hummingbird just flew by, apparently looking for the hummingbird feeded, that has not been filled and hung up yet. Finally, there is one tiny bright yellow Golden Finch sitting on the fence rail. Thank you, Lord, for the birds.There are loads of scriptures, that mention birds.This prayer will be entirely too long if I talk about the 50+ passages in the Bible, that mention birds. So, I will just say a word or two, about what I call the two greatest birds of the Bible; the eagle and the dove. Who can forget the words of Isaiah 40:31, “But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” If we wait on you, Holy God, you will renew our strength, so that we can be as strong as an eagle. Having seen a few videos of eagles in flight, and noted how agile and fast they move, I would like to fly like an eagle.The dove we find detailed in scripture is not known for strength or speed; it is known for wisdom and spiritual energy. Lord, we remember Noah sent out a dove to see if the waters of the great flood had receeded from the earth.We remember when Jesus was baptized, that when he came out of the water, a dove, as a symbol of the Holy Spirit’s empowerment descended from heaven and lit on him.So, Lord, help us remember birds are precious you. “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny and yet not one falls to the ground without your notice.” Repeatedly, in scripture we are reminded that you, Lord, value the birds of the air, but you value us even more. Holy God, help us to wait upon your strengthening and empowerment, so that in all things, we may bring you honor and glory. Come Holy Spirit and make us strong: amen.

A Prayer a Day: Good morning, Lord, my back porch is a perfect place to be quiet and talk to you. It’s a perfect place to see the beauty of your creation and to thank you for all of it. Thank you for the trees and bees,for grass, birds chirping, bunnies hopping, and flowers blooming. Looking at the trees more closely, I see some are full of open green leaves, but the two walnut trees in the backyard look bare. Closer examination of the walnut trees, reveal they have buds; the buds are just tight and unopened.These differences in growth and blooming remind me of how often people are late-bloomers. I always considered myself a late bloomer professionally. I started college at 42, that was 24 years after I graduated from high school. I was a late-bloomer educationally. But, in my personal life, in the development and productivity area, I was not a late-bloomer. At 42, I had been married for 22 years, and had given birth to four children.Our lives are more complex than nut trees, most of us are late-bloomers in some area of our lives. Lord, you know how often I talk to people about you, and that they frequently tell me, “I’m not into that religion stuff.” Sometimes, they tell me they are deeply spittual, but stay out of the churches, because of the hypocrites in the churches. As a pastor I am somewhat amused, when I hear this about avoiding churches, because there are hypocrites in the churches. Lord, how could there be churches without sinners of every stripe, including hypocrites? If I know the person well enough, who is sharing about hypocrites in the church, I mention there are hypocrites everywhere there are people. Hypocrites are in Wpalmart, Kroger, Meijer, the DMV, libraries, restaurants, movie theaters, parks, doctor and dentist offices, and car dealerships. Hypocrisy is a human characteristic, so of course, there are hypocrites in the churches. I say don’t let that keep you out; you don’t let it keep you out of the stores.Lord, help us in the churches, do a better job of reaching those people, who avoid the churches. Help us meet each person, where they are and draw them with your love into your kingdom. Help us, Lord, to love those spiritual late-bloomers into relationship with you, Holy God. Come Holy Spirit and make us winsome: amen.

A Prayer a Day: Good afternoon, God.Today I am taking a break from watching the news. It seems the more I watch it, the more my thinking and feelings are clouded by fear, anxiety, confusion, and irritation. I am not helping anyone with this immersion in negativity. I don’t want to be an ostrich, with my head in the sand; I know it’s important to know what’s going on. But, it’s hard to know for sure, what’s going on, because television stations are on 24/7 with conflicting information.Each station shares their “truth,” and each “truth,” is diametrically opposed to the other. This makes me sure I need to spend much less time filling my mind, with the world’s “truth,” and much more time filling my mind with your TRUTH, Holy God. I know whatever we think about expands in our consciousness: what we think about expands in our lives. So, we need to think constantly about what we want, and not think about what we are afraid of. If our goal in life is to be rightly connected to you, Lord, then we need to think of those things you support in scripture. If we want to reach any goal, we have to focus on the goal; we can’t look at the obstacles in our path. Colossians 3:2 reads, “Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on the earth.” This is very good advice for me, and maybe all of us. Lord, create in each of us a clean heart, and renew a right spirit within us. Lord, help us to remember, that we reap what we sow. Help us sow kindness, compassion, empathy, love, and grace wherever we go. Help us, Heavenly Father, to sow bountifully, so that we will reap bountifully. Bless us,Lord, with your Spirit, so everything we think, speak, and do, will honor you. Come Holy Spirit and make us bountiful sowers: amen.

A Prayer a Day: Hello, Lord. It’s a pretty day, perfect temperature, blue skies, puffy white clouds, light breeze, and sunny. Thank you for this pretty day. Today I was looking at Facebook, and I saw a post that read, “Your grandmother’s prayers are still protecting you.” It reminded me, that my mother, Hazel, told me more than once, that her Grandma Nelson came to live with her family, when my mom was a child. Mom told me her Grandma would get on her knees every night to pray. Mom said Grandma would pray for every living relative by name. Then she would pray for the next generation, and the next generation, and the next generation. Mom said her Grandma prayed out 3 or 4 generations every night. If you were fortunate enough to have someone praying for you many decades before your birth, you are blessed indeed.You have what’s called generational blessing. If you came from a family that loved God, you may have been born with a generational blessing. This is like being born with a “silver spoon in your mouth,” except this is way better. If you were not born in a family that loved and honored God, let the generational blessing, for future generations of your family begin with you. You can be the start of a generational blessing. When we honor you, God, that’s when the blessings flow. So, today we thank you, God, for giving us blessings of every kind. Thank you, Lord, for bringing us into existence. Thank you for loving us, just as we are. Thank you for sending your Holy Spirit to make us better than we are. Help us, Lord, start a legacy of love in our families, that will send generational blessings out to our great, great, great grandchildren. Come Holy Spirit and make us blessed: amen.

A Prayer a Day: Thank you for this day and for every day you give to us. Every new day is an opportunity to draw closer to you, Holy God, and to each other. Lord, you created us to be deeply connected to you, and to the people you give to travel through life with us. We thank you. There are a million details, that must be dealt with during one’s life, but nothing is as important as finding a connection with you, Lord. I will admit my surprise; early in my ministry, while meeting with people from inside the church and from the community, I learned that many people do not have, what I call a God lens. In other words, everybody doesn’t see you, God, in the ordinary events of their lives. I think all of us initially assume, other people see life as we do. It turns out that vast numbers of people, perhaps, even the majority of people, do not see you, God, in their experiences nor do they interpret events as your blessings or your guidance. I had this epiphany, because I noticed, while meeting with people in crisis, that quite a few people looked at me as if I had two heads.At that point I started to try to find ways to help people find or develop their God lens. A God lens allows us to see your presence, guidance, correction, encouragement, and sometimes, intervention in our lives. The really great thing about having a God lens, is that the pleasure of every good thing in life is doubled. A person with a God lens, sees beauty and appreciates it, and then knows the beauty is a gift you, God, mean to enhance the our lives. All of life is greatly enhanced, when we discover that you, God, have given each of us a God lens, and we only need to learn to look through that lens. Heavenly Father, help us see more clearly through our God lens and help us adjust our perspective to include you. Come Holy Spirit and help us see more clearly: amen.

A Prayer a Day: Good afternoon, Lord. Here we are going into our ninth week of lockdown in Ohio. Everything that has been going on reminds me of watching the Twilight Zone, on television, when I was a kid.The creator of the show was Rod Serling, a Yellow Springs, Antioch College graduate. He often began his show with a reference to the events of the show happening in a small town in Ohio. For those who are not familiar with the Twilight Zone, it was a science fiction thriller series. Well, Lord, these last two months have seemed like entering the Twilight Zone.Nothing is as it usually is, no shopping, no eating out, hugs, hand shaking, going to church, or visiting family and friends. I don’t want to complain, Lord, since I have been physically well, have a place to live, food to eat, and a job. I am extremely grateful for all my blessings. Still, life seems off kilter. No one really knows how long restrictions may last. We don’t know whether schools will open per normal this Fall, or if the current reopening of businesses will cause drastic increases of infections with Coronavirus. All this being said, although we do not know what the future holds; we know that it is you, Holy God, who holds the future. We have confidence in you regardless of our feelings. Lord, help us navigate these times of uncertainty. Help us demonstrate our faith in you, Heavenly Father, by not being fearful, anxious, or irritable. Lord, help us remember that across time, your disciples have had to consistently adjust to new challenges. Help us, Lord, to use this Twilight Zone time to reach out to people, we would never have been able to reach. Come Holy Spirit and make us calm: amen.

A Prayer a Day: Good morning,Lord. Because it’s Mother’s Day, it’s natural to think about some of the people, who have mothered me. I think first of my own mother, Hazel. My mom was not a Hallmark card type of mother. Instead, of syrupy sweet, my mom was tough and pragmatic. She was realistic, hard-working, and fatalistic.The most precious and life- shaping gift, she gave me was unconditional love. I always knew she was on my side. I always thought, if I told her I killed someone, she would say, “You must have had good reason.” She was unfailingly non-judgmental. When she heard about someone doing something bad, she would say, “Well, that’s sure bad, but most folks are doing the best they can, with what they’ve got.” When she had done the best she could with anything, from making a biscuit to a guilt, she would say, “Well, it’s as is.” That meant, do your best and then move on, don’t spend your life whining about your inadequacies. When I think if her life, and its many challenges, I remind myself her blood is flowing in my veins, and I need to grow up, stand up, and move forward. Good mothers are the salt of the earth; they love, share, sacrifice, encourage, inspire, and finally, give their children, space to be who you, God, want them to be. Everyone did not have a mother like mine. A mother like mine would not work for everyone, but she was a good fit for me. I miss her and I thank you, God, for her life and the time I had with her. Lord, on this Mother’s Day bless all those women struggling with infertility: comfort them and encourage them. For all those wonderful aunts, teachers, neighbors, and special friends, who have mothered so many, so well, Lord, we give you thanks. Holy God, today help us remember, you call each of us, regardless of our age or gender, to help and love like a good mother. Come Holy Spirit and make us nurturing :amen.

A Prayer a Day: Good morning, Lord. Have you found the Downing household entertaining this morning? I made the coffee and when I went to get a couple of cups, I noticed there was only 1/2 a pot of coffee, even though, I was sure I put in a whole pot of water. So, I put in about 2 more cups of water and went off happily to drink my coffee. Dan went to get each of us a second cup of coffee, and came back to report, there was coffee all over the counter, cabinet, stove, and floor. So, Dan pulled out the stove and cleaned it all up. Dan even declared it needed cleaned anyway. While that was happening, I started to think about the areas of our lives that never get cleaned up. When I went back to try to get that second cup of coffee, Dan was cleaning out the junk drawer. I assume everyone has a junk drawer; a junk drawer is the catch all for all kinds of little things, you don’t want to deal with in the moment, so it goes in the junk drawer. Lord, it appears cleaning a junk drawer, may be on the same schedule as a pandemic, since both are happening at the same time. I don’t think I have ever personally cleaned and organized my junk drawer, except when we moved 11 years ago.I’m sure this has a spiritual application: everything has a spiritual application to some of us. In Matthew 23:25-27, Jesus said to the Pharisees, “Clean the inside of the cup then the outside will be clean as well.” In other words, we need to consider what kind of junk, we are holding in our hearts, minds, and souls. We need to clean the junk out. In order to clean out junk, you have to empty it out, consider what’s there, put good stuff where it belongs, and throw away the junk. When we clean out the junk inside ourselves, if we find memories of offenses other people gave us years ago, toss those out! If we find guilt and shame from our own bad behavior, throw it away! Lord, help us clean all the junk out of us, that keeps us from honoring you and bringing you glory. Help us throw out our junk, so we can better enjoy your peace. Come Holy Spirit and make us clean: amen.

A Prayer a Day: Hello, Lord. Today is May 8, an important day in history. On this day, May 8, 1945, 75 years ago, WW11 ended. Today is the anniversary of VE Day; Victory in Europe. Lord, we know Jesus came into the world, not just to liberate one region of the world, but to liberate the whole world from the powers of sin and death. We thank you, Holy God, for sending your only begotten Son, Jesus, into the world. For 2000+ years, people from all over your world have found liberty in Christ. As you know, Lord, the Bible is full of passages on liberty and freedom. John 8:36 reads, “So if the Son sets you free you will be free indeed.” Freedom has two aspects. In a relationship with Jesus we are FREE FROM sin, guilt, shame, and addiction, and we are FREE TO love, forgive, help, heal, and offer hope. Lord, we see that you sent Jesus to save us from evil and to make us free to be Christ-like; good, righteous, and pure. Thank you, Holy God, on VE Day for freedom. We cherish the liberty you give us in Christ. Help us, Lord, to always be mindful of the great sacrifice made on Calvary, to secure our freedom. Help us to offer Christ and his freedom and liberty to all people. Come Holy Spirit and set us free: amen.

A Prayer a Day: Good morning, Lord. It’s a pretty day, blue sky, crisp March weather. Crisp March weather is not exactly, what we want for the end of the first week of May. But, it isn’t snowing, although, the weather reports say it may snow tomorrow. There is every sign of Spring, at least five of our small birdhouses have evidence of bird families coming and going. The crabapple tree next door is in full bloom, all the underbrush in the woods is thick and green, so you can’t see inside at all. This describing of my surroundings is an exercise in being present to myself and my environment. Why am I doing this? Frequently, we are present in body, but absent in spirit and mind. What I mean is, sometimes, we are so busy worrying about yesterday, that we miss today. Sometimes, we are so busy worrying about tomorrow, that we miss today.Lord, we remember when Moses asked you, what he should tell your people, held in Egypt, your name was you said, “Tell them, I am who I am.” You, Lord, called yourself, “I am,” first in Exodus and last in Revelations, and 300 times all together in the Bible. You, Lord, are the God of all time, yesterday, today, tomorrow, and for ever more. Although, you are the God of all time, we can only meet you in the now, in the present, when we are engaged in our present reality. So, Lord, please help us stay in the present, since that is the only place we can meet you.We want to be with you, so we can speak with you, be guided by you, and learn from you.Help us,Lord, to abide with you today and each day. Come Holy Spirit and make us fully aware and present to you and to each other:amen.