Dear church members and friends of St. John's,
St. John's will donate $500 for Japan to Presbyterian Disaster Assistance through the discretionary fund of our Outreach Committee. We do this because mission means sending. Since it is impractical for us to go there we send money to support those who can and will go there. We know God is present in Japan because there is so much suffering there for the people to work through. God is not the cause of the earthquake but is a solace in the suffering. The missional church goes wherever God is already working and joins God in working there.
God is comforting those who are suffering in Japan and invites us to join God in relieving their suffering. That is a theological explanation - reflecting our understanding of who God is and how God works - of why we are sending money to Japan. This explains why we do things like send money to victims of an earthquake in Japan. Other people send money as well. The difference in us is the reason we are sending the money. We send it because God is at work there and we want to support God in the work. In Missional Renaissance, Reggie McNeal writes, "Our 'thereness' is what the world needs. It needs the church to be there, addressing every brokenness caused by sin, reflecting the heart of God to the world as partners in his redemptive mission." (p 25) Point your web browser here for ways you can help, give, and stay informed about the disaster in Japan: gamc.pcusa.org/ministries/pda/faq-japan-earthquake-and-tsunami/.
God is already at work in Japan but that is not the only place where God is at work. God is also at work among the human slaves in Houston. God calls us to get outside of our comfort zone and discover ways we can help God be there for the suffering in our city and in our world. McNeal says we are to be partnering with God in daily life with the intent of blessing people and sharing the life of God with them. (p. 26) He says, "This means that missional Jesus followers are engaged in all aspects of human experience - political, social, economic, cultural, physical, psychological, and spiritual - to work for those things that enhance life and to oppose those things that steal life." (p 35) That is a broad spectrum of possibilities to which God may be calling us as individuals and as a church. Let us be in discernment about where is God is calling us now.
Such discernment of where God is leading us in mission was the theme of our Session meeting last night. Here are some highlights from last night's Session meeting:
The Session was happy to receive Dan Herron back into the fellowship of St. John's by letter of transfer from First Presbyterian Church of Palestine, Texas.
Session approved the report from the Outreach Committee that St. John's remain a partner with the American Red Cross as a possible Red Cross Shelter for minor local disasters .
Anyone interested in helping with one of the last Ike Recovery Work Week-ends should talk to Phyllis Freeman.
Session approved a request from the Worship Committee for a dedicated memorial gift fund, for the purchase of a set of banners for the sanctuary, in memory of Lois Stowell.
Some of you have asked about how to access my sermons online. The text version is online at jonbsermons.blogspot.com and the audio version is stjohnspresby.org/growing/sermons thanks to Dave Nelson who puts the audio sermons on the web.
I'd also like to thank Dave for making The Beacon available online each month. You can read the latest version of the Beacon at christophergraphics.com/stjohns/beacon.pdf. This file may take a few minutes to download before you double click it to open and read it.
Peace of Christ be with you,
Pastor Jon
--St. John's Presbyterian Church
5020 West Bellfort / Houston, TX 77035
T. 713.723.6262 / F. 713.723-4015 / Email: office.sjpc@gmail.com
Worship Service: Sunday, 10:30 am / Sunday School: 9:00 am
