SNAP...stop, notice, ask, pivot

Sunday Worship 11am, April 25, 2021 In the Sanctuary, Online at Zoom & https://www.facebook.com/centrechurchpa/ Photo by Don Hackett 83 New Park Road, New Park, PA 17352 https://centrechurchpa.org 1 Fourth Sunday of Easter Welcome April 25, 2021 Pastor Don Hackett Worship Hosts – Schneider Family Announcements Elder Paul McPherson Prelude Call to Worship Who among you is seeking the wisdom of God? We long to hear God’s Word spoken to our hearts. Who among you is seeking God’s bright and holy truth? We long to learn the ways of wisdom and love. Who among you is seeking a Spirit-filled life? We long to live lives of in step with God’s Spirit. God grants God’s wisdom generously to all who ask. Come near, people of God! Let us worship in wisdom and truth. Hymn #165 Rejoice, the Lord is King https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipRM9AelP6w Prayer of Confession & the Lord’s Prayer James chapter 5 encourages us to: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results. We come, O Lord, hear are silent prayers of confession. (silence) Hear us as we pray the prayer your risen Son taught us: Our Father, who art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen. Sharing of Prayer Requests Prayers of the People The Offering (online donations at https://centrechurchpa.org/) 2 Offertory Prayers of Dedication and Illumination Scripture Text - James 3:13-18 Do you want to be counted wise, to build a reputation for wisdom? Here’s what you do: Live well, live wisely, live humbly. It’s the way you live, not the way you talk, that counts. Mean-spirited ambition isn’t wisdom. Boasting that you are wise isn’t wisdom. Twisting the truth to make yourselves sound wise isn’t wisdom. It’s the furthest thing from wisdom—it’s animal cunning, devilish plotting. Whenever you’re trying to look better than others or get the better of others, things fall apart and everyone ends up at the others’ throats. Real wisdom, God’s wisdom, begins with a holy life and is characterized by getting along with others. It is gentle and reasonable, overflowing with mercy and blessings, not hot one day and cold the next, not two-faced. You can develop a healthy, robust community that lives right with God and enjoy its results only if you do the hard work of getting along with each other, treating each other with dignity and honor. The Word of Our Lord. Thanks be to God! 3 Sermon “Stop. Notice. Ask. Pivot. Go.” Rev. Dr. Don Hackett Our words The words we say…can help, can harm, can bless, can curse. Welcome to the world of our mouths, and especially, our tongues. We cannot wait for our little ones to learn how to talk. Right?! We talk to them and they babble back to us…until their little minds start making sense of it all. Then the words come. Some insist that the first word was “Mama.” I am sure I heard “Dada” come out first. Whatever the words, we humans have a great capacity to learn more and more words. Soon we are speaking sentences and on a roll. Last week Rev. Gross spoke about mirrors. Imagine if we had no mirrors! That was a scary thought. Imagine if we had no words. Communication would be difficult! Life would be hard. Thank God we have words to express what is on our hearts and minds. Words from God like, “l love you. You are very precious to me. I will never leave you.” are so important for us. Thank you, God, for speaking those words to us. Like God, we can use our words to bless. Power of words As you and I know our words can get us into trouble. We say things that hurt others. We put others down. We can crush the spirit of another just by our words. I remember being made fun of because I had so many freckles. My wife remembers being teased because she was Chinese. Do you remember harsh words that were said to you growing up? Maybe even lately? The words children and adults use can be so damaging. God forgive us. James In the book of James, this half-brother of Jesus is trying to help new followers of Christ become careful with their words. He knows the power of words. Many think that James did not follow Jesus until after Christ rose from the dead. I can imagine that James may have said some things about his brother Jesus that he later regretted. In Mark 3:20-21 we read that after Jesus chose his disciples, that he became so popular that crowds followed him everywhere. The disciples did not even have time to eat. The family of Jesus was concerned. It says, Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered, so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat. When his family heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.” 4 When we do not understand what is happening, we can say things we later regret. James eventually saw the light and followed the Lord as a wiser, more humble man. Are you in a situation you where are having a hard time understanding what is going on? Ask God to give you the patience to hold your words, refrain from judgement, and wait for clarity. When we read this third chapter in James, he is speaking to us. Be careful. The tongue is so powerful. It may be little, but it can be deadly. Listen to his warning: It only takes a spark, remember, to set off a forest fire. A careless or wrongly placed word out of your mouth can do that. By our speech we can ruin the world, turn harmony to chaos, throw mud on a reputation, send the whole world up in smoke and go up in smoke with it, smoke right from the pit of hell. Young communities of faith Let’s step back for moment. Why is James so concerned about our words? Remember to whom James is writing this letter? Young churches. Fresh communities of faith. They are new followers of Jesus the Risen Christ learning a new way of being together. The words, life, and resurrection of Christ formed these fellowships. Now words could also tear apart and destroy them. False teachings, envy, gossip, complaining, false witness have torn many churches apart. James knows the dangers and is warning us. Mouth, Head, and Heart check What do we do?! Whatever we do, we know it has involve our mouths, our heads, and our hearts. This is a whole person issue. The way we treat one another is not just a matter of making a few tweaks here and there. It is a transformation of our entire human being. I heard Ian Cron, a popular priest and counselor, say he encourages people to practice SNAP: Stop, Notice, Ask, and Pivot. Let’s see how that approach might help us. Stop Let’s begin with the mouth. James gives us this advice in chapter one: My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. 5 Be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry. Slow to speak. I would add, “Stop. Hold your tongue. Do not say anything. Let it sink in.” There are only a few times in life we need to speak quickly. When someone is in real danger, please speak! “Stop! Wait! Look out!” are word that can save us from certain danger and harm. Please use those words when necessary. Most other times, our words can wait. Yes? In most cases we need to stop and not saying anything. Notice Notice what you are feeling. Fear, anger, frustration, or embarrassment? Is your heart racing? Are you in danger? Notice and take a breath. Slow everything down. We know from research that when our emotions are highly charged, our brains shutdown the most complex thinking areas and go primal. In most cases that will not be helpful. That is the fight or flight mode. Instead, become more and more self-aware. Pay attention to what is happening in our bodies. When you and I sense we are becoming defensive, it is time to stop, step back, notice what is going on, and intentionally slow ourselves down. The truth is there is a small gap of time between when something happens and when we react. In the that sliver of a moment, we can make a choice. Stopping and noticing what is going on inside of us can prevent us from saying the wrong thing. Ask Stop. Notice. Now ask yourself some questions. • What is happening here? • Am I in danger? Being threatened? • What is unfolding here? How can I be helpful? • God, how do I respond in love? It is fascinating how when we: 1) stop, 2) notice what in churning inside of us, and 3) ask these key questions, God will guide us. The Holy Spirit is in your life and mine to equip us with the wisdom and power we need in each situation. I found myself in a difficult conversation with a friend a few weeks ago. He got up and left the table upset. I sat wondering what to do. I felt upset as well. I started to quietly pray. My mind was racing and my pulse elevated. Sitting there I began to cool down. He came back and said he needed to go in a way I knew we would work this out eventually. Thank you, Lord, you give us second, third, and even fourth opportunities to work things out. 6 Pivot Once we have stopped, noticed, and asked the important questions, we then pivot. With God’s help, our tongues, our minds, and our hearts can reflect the love and grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Let us pray… Lord, we bring you our words today. Forgive us for the times we have said things that hurt others. We are truly sorry. Help to wait for your words as we respond to others. May holy words of encouragement, comfort, truth, and even challenge flow from us in Christ. Amen. Confession of Faith [from Apostles’ Creed, 390 AD] I believe in God, the Father Almighty, The Creator of heaven and earth; And in Jesus Christ His only Son, our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried. He descended into Hell. The third day He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from whence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic* church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen. *that is, the true Christian church of all times and all places Hymn #319 Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hGFHhoykILg Benediction Finally, sisters and brothers, rejoice. Aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. Let the majesty of the Father be the light by which we walk, the compassion of the Son be the love by which we live, the presence of the Spirit be the power by which we serve. Amen. Postlude 7