FPC Hanford Blog

Father Damien was a priest who became famous for his willingness to serve lepers. He moved to Kalawao—a village on the island of Molokai, in Hawaii, that had been quarantined to serve as a leper colony. For 16 years, he lived in their midst. He learned to speak their language. He bandaged their wounds, embraced the bodies no one else would touch, preached to hearts that would otherwise have been left alone. He organized schools, bands, and choirs. He built homes so that the lepers could have shelter. He built 2,000 coffins by hand so that, when they died, they could be buried with dignity. Slowly, it was said, Kalawao became a place to live rather than a place to die, for Father Damien offered hope.

Unfortunately, Father Damien was not careful about keeping his distance. He did nothing to separate himself from his people. He dipped his fingers in the poi bowl along with the patients. He shared his pipe. He did not always wash his hands after bandaging open sores. He got close. For this, the people loved him.

Then one day he stood up and began his sermon with two words: “We lepers….” With these words, Father Damien had communicated to his flock that he, too, had leprosy. Now he wasn’t just helping them. Now he was one of them. From this day forward, he was no longer an outsider. Initially, he had chosen to live as they lived; now he would die as they died. Now they were in it together. Now the full measure of Father Damien’s love for his people was unmistakably on display.

In his book Humilitas, Australian pastor and author John Dixon defines humility this way, “Humility is the noble choice to forgo your status, deploy your resources or use your influence for the good of others before yourself. More simply, you could say the humble person is marked by a willingness to hold power in service of others.” Doesn’t this definition of humility describe Father Damien? Doesn’t it describe Jesus? Philippians 2:5-8 reminds us, “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross.”

May we follow the example of Father Damien and Jesus.

Keep the faith,

Pastor Tony

Over the past several years I have developed my own personal mission statement: “Honor God’s Son and Honor God’s Word.” Perhaps I am stating the obvious, but I am increasingly convinced of its importance. I firmly believe that if we honor God’s Son and his Word, he will be faithful to and honor us.

This same emphasis has in decades past been a characteristic of and high priority within the Reformed/Presbyterian tradition. Worship has traditionally been centered upon the Word of God. In worship, God’s Word is to be read, heard, preached, confessed and then proclaimed in the world. This is central to Christian worship. Why? It is because Scripture should be our sole and final authority for faith and practice. This emphasis upon honoring God’s Word is part of what originally attracted me to the Presbyterian Church – I have served three different Presbyterian churches as a youth, assistant and (now) senior pastor spanning a total of almost 23 years.

Unfortunately, the trajectory of culture and denomination has veered sharply away from the clear, unambiguous teaching of the Bible. This trajectory has attempted to deconstruct Scripture and/or given equal footing to human opinion, resulting in crisis of faith. Even so, please know that your Session and pastor will continue to submit to the authority of God’s written Word, holding high the banner that in decades past has been the hallmark of the Reformed tradition.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 reminds us that “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man [person] of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” In praying for the disciples, Jesus states, “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.” (John 17:17)

Keep the faith,

Pastor Tony

Jesus’ final words before he died were, “It is finished.”  Of course, this begs the question, “What precisely is finished?”

There was tremendous irony with Jesus’ last breath. His followers – especially the women who had been standing at the foot of the cross – no doubt believed that Jesus’ crucifixion represented ultimate defeat and failure. Hopelessness and despair seized their hearts and minds. With his crucifixion, Jesus’ adversaries – both spiritual and human – believed they had secured victory. They were savoring every ounce of pain he suffered and chortling in his demise. However, from our vantage point, we know that both groups were wrong…dead wrong. Praise God!

With his words It is finished, Jesus declared that he had fulfilled Old Testament prophecy and completed his mission on earth. With his death on the cross, forgiveness of sin and salvation had now been secured for those willing to place their faith in him. No longer would sin have a death-grip on humanity. This would not become apparent to his followers and adversaries until several days later with Jesus’ resurrection.

June 6, 1994, marked the 50th anniversary of the Allied invasion of Normandy, which began the historic World War II battle to liberate continental Europe from Nazi control. D-Day was the largest invasion force in history, as well as the largest amphibious operation ever to be undertaken. During the 50th anniversary, the major television networks ran programs that included interviews with aging veterans. One of the programs paired two contrasting interviews back to back. The first interview was with a marine who had landed on Omaha Beach. He recalled horrors that sounded like scenes from Steven Spielberg’s 1998 Academy Award-winning movie Saving Private Ryan. The aging veteran recalled looking around at the bloody casualties surrounding him and concluding, “We’re going to lose!” The next interview was with a U.S. Army Air Corps reconnaissance pilot who had flown over the entire battle scene. He viewed the carnage on the beaches and hills, but he also witnessed the successes of the marines, the work of the paratroopers behind enemy lines, and the effectiveness of the aerial bombardment. He looked at everything that was happening and concluded, “We’re going to win!”

We now have the advantage of historical perspective and hindsight. With the events of June 6, 1944, it is now clear that this was the overwhelming turning point in the war against Nazi Germany. In fact, it could be said that ultimate victory was secured by Allied Forces on D-Day, even though the war was not officially over.

Isn’t this what occurred at the cross? With Jesus’ death (and impending resurrection) victory over sin, death and the forces of evil has been secured, though the war is not officially over. This will not occur until Jesus returns. Christian author Philip Yancey has said, “Like a victorious locker room, church is a place to exult, to give thanks, to celebrate the great news that all is forgiven, that God is love, that victory is certain.” Let us live in the present with the assurance that victory has been secured in the future.

Keep the faith,

Pastor Tony

This past Sunday (March 18) I preached from John 18:27-40. This section of Scripture describes Pontius Pilate’s interrogation of Jesus prior to his crucifixion. Jesus tells Pilate, “You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”  Pilate flippantly responds, “What is truth,” indicating that relativism was alive and well 2,000 years ago.

I was particularly struck that Jesus did not offer Pilate (or any of his accusers, for that matter) a theological treatise or apologetic, defending his claim to truth. Why? He didn’t need to. His life and words were self-verifying and defense enough. He healed the sick; gave sight to the blind; and raised the dead. His words and actions co-existed in perfect unifying harmony. There was not a contradictory, hypocritical bone in his body. Of course, the exclamation point would be his resurrection.

Jesus’ life exposed what was (and is) desperately wrong with our world, while at the same providing a glimpse of what could be – a world that is put to rights, in the words of British theologian N.T. Wright. We intuitively sense its previous existence (the Garden of Eden) and its future possibility (a new heaven and a new earth), but not apart from Jesus’ power and ability to bring it to pass.

In light of this reality, every individual who encounters Jesus is pressed for a decision – to either reject or dismiss him like Pilate, or to recognize and embrace him for who he is. We cannot remain neutral. Jesus doesn’t give us this luxury. When we embrace him, we say Yes to good (no to evil); we say Yes to right (no to wrong); we say Yes to truth (no to falsehood), which is not always easy. When we take a stand for truth in a relativistic world, we invite criticism and hostility. We become targets. However, when we say Yes to what is good, right and true, we become more fully alive and human. When we say No to what is good, right and true, it only serves to make us less human – we are dehumanized. And, we dehumanize those who are impacted negatively by our bad choices.

When Jesus came into the world, he inaugurated God’s plan to make things right. Jesus represents the intersection between heaven and earth. When we respond positively to his statement, “Everyone on the side of truth listens to me,” we become participants in his redemptive process. Guided by the Word made flesh full of grace and truth and empowered by his Spirit, our lives then incrementally and positively impact the culture around us, helping to usher in a world that is put to rights.

How will each of us respond? Will we dismiss Jesus, like Pilate? Or, will we choose to be on the side of truth?

Keep the faith,

Pastor Tony

Several weeks ago, I stepped onto the scale only to discover that my weight had inched up to 20-25 pounds over the weight I was when I married Sheri. Over the years, I have increasingly come to resemble a pear (though I have been able to hide it with clothing and my height). With new resolve to not let this trend continue, I began the South Beach Diet the day after Valentine’s. If you are not familiar with this diet, it requires the dieter to abstain from all carbs and sugar (including fruit) for the first two weeks of the diet. If you know me, I love sweets and carbs; bread, pasta, rice and potatoes. Brownies, pasta, and hamburgers have all attempted to seduce me. Needless to say, it has been unbelievably difficult at points. Sheri has told me, “Good job, Honey! You are facing down your addiction.” I can’t say it was all that comforting after the fifth time she mentioned it to me (though she has been incredibly helpful and encouraging as she has cooked food that I can eat).

As I reflect on the past two weeks, I believe it might have been easier to cope if I had focused on the future benefits rather than the short term loss (of not being able to eat tasty food). I have lost 7-8 pounds and my blood pressure has responded positively as well. As I enter the second phase of the diet, I will now be able to introduce healthy carbs, such as wheat bread, whole grain pasta and brown rice. My ultimate goal is to lose another 9 pounds and then maintain that weight.

Isn’t the same dynamic at work in our spiritual lives? We are tempted to indulge ourselves with the short-term benefit of any given sin; forgetting that there is a long-term downside to capitulating, as well as a long-term benefit for abstaining. Jesus tells us, “…And anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” Jesus is right. Being truly human does not consist of living self-absorbed, indulgent lives. We become truly human when we give our lives away.

During this Lent/Easter season when we contemplate that which to sacrifice, let us consider a sacrificial life that extends beyond Easter Sunday. In so doing, we will discover true life.

Keep the faith,

Pastor Tony

With Valentine’s Day only a few short weeks away, our thoughts turn to love and romance. However, for many, Valentine’s Day holds no fascination – perhaps because of painful, past disappointment of love lost or love never found. Fortunately, the God who created us also loves us beyond our capacity to understand, but not beyond our capacity to experience.

In his book The Pleasures of God, John Piper shares why God’s love is superior to any love we will find here on earth:

“Sometimes we joke and say about marriage, The honeymoon is over. But that’s because we are finite. We can’t sustain a honeymoon level of intensity and affection. We can’t foresee the irritations that come with long-term familiarity. We can’t stay as fit and handsome as we were then. We can’t come up with enough new things to keep the relationship that fresh. But God says his joy over his people is like a bridegroom over a bride. He is talking about honeymoon intensity and honeymoon pleasures and honeymoon energy and excitement and enthusiasm and enjoyment. He is trying to get into our hearts what he means when he says he rejoices over us with all his heart.

And add to this, that with God the honeymoon never ends. He is infinite in power and wisdom and creativity and love. And so he has no trouble sustaining a honeymoon level of intensity; he can foresee all the future quirks of our personality and has decided he will keep what’s good for us and change what isn’t; he will always be as handsome as he ever was, and will see to it that we get more and more beautiful forever; and he infinitely creative to think of new things to do together so that there will be no boredom for the next trillion ages of millenniums.”

The Apostle Paul reminds us in Romans 5:5 and 8, “And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us…. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” My encouragement to each of us is to always keep God’s love for us at the forefront of our thinking. Then, share his love with others.

Keep the faith,

Pastor Tony

With 2011 behind us and the prospect of a New Year before us, our thoughts turn to resolutions. For many of us, we hope and desire that 2012 will bring happier circumstances. Author, innovation consultant, and speaker Stephen Shapiro, with the help of Opinion Corporation of Princeton, New Jersey, offers the following interesting statistics concerning New Year’s resolutions:

• Forty-five percent of Americans usually set New Year’s Resolutions; seventeen percent infrequently set resolutions; thirty-eight percent never set resolutions
• Eight percent are always successful in achieving their resolutions; nineteen percent achieve their resolutions every other year; forty-nine percent have infrequent success; twenty-four percent (one in four) never succeed and have failed on every resolution every year.
• Forty-seven percent set resolutions related to self-improvement or education
• Thirty-eight percent set resolutions related to weight
• Thirty-four percent set resolutions related to money
• Thirty-one percent set resolutions related to relationships
• The younger you are, the more likely you are to achieve your resolutions (thirty-nine percent of those in their twenties achieve their resolutions every year or every other year, while less than fifteen percent of those over fifty achieve their resolutions every year or every other year)
• The less happy you are, the more likely you are to set New Year’s resolutions (this is especially true for those who set money-related resolutions: forty-one percent are not happy; thirty-four percent are moderately happy; twenty-five percent are happy)
• There is actually no correlation between happiness and resolution setting/success (people who achieve their resolutions every year are no happier than those who do not set resolutions or who are unsuccessful in achieving them)

The last statistic particularly caught my eye. We believe changes in our external circumstances will bring happiness and contentment. The reality is that only God can do this. Only he can create true, lasting change in our lives. He does so by transforming us from the inside out: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Cor. 5:17) My encouragement to each of us this coming year is to place our hope in the Lord rather in the things of this world: “…But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”  (Isaiah 40:31) Have a blessed New Year!

Keep the faith,

Pastor Tony

Please indulge me. It is still college football season. Several weeks ago, I was at the USC/Stanford football game at the Coliseum with my 8-year-old boy. We witnessed a football game for the ages – a triple overtime epic. Unfortunately the Trojans lost. When the game ended, there was a stunned silence in the crowd. Yet, after the initial shock that the game ended, the crowd applauded both teams, particularly the Trojans. Even at that moment, dialogue began and perspective gained concerning the remarkable game we had all just witnessed. The decided underdog Men of Troy stood toe to toe with the 4th ranked Stanford Cardinal, exchanging blows and giving them more than they possibly bargained for. I have attended approximately 220 USC football games over the course of 40 seasons. For the first time, I felt like a loss was a victory…almost.

Isn’t this precisely what occurred in infinitely greater measure 2,000 years ago on the cross? Those intent on Jesus’ demise believed that they had the victory with his death. Little did they know that theirs was not a victory at all.  Out of an apparent loss handed to Jesus and his disciples, a victory would be gained. On the third day, Jesus was raised. 1 Corinthians 15:54-55 reminds us: “Death has been swallowed in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”  God has an amazing way of creating victory out of apparent loss.  Trust that he will do so in your life.

Keep the faith,

Pastor Tony

As we enter the month of November, our thoughts turn toward the Thanksgiving celebration. This is obviously the season to focus upon and be grateful for the blessings and continued faithfulness of God. I came across a quote from Catholic priest and author Henri Nouwen that helps us place this season (indeed, all of life) in proper perspective:

“To be grateful for the good things that happen in our lives is easy, but to be grateful for all of our lives—the good as well as the bad, the moments of joy as well as the moments of sorrow, the successes as well as the failures, the rewards as well as the rejections—that requires hard spiritual work. Still, we are only truly grateful people when we can say “thank you” to all that has brought us to the present moment. As long as we keep dividing our lives between events and people we would like to remember and those we would rather forget, we cannot claim the fullness of our beings as a gift of God to be grateful for. Let’s not be afraid to look at everything that has brought us to where we are now and trust that we will soon see in it the guiding hand of a loving God.”

Pastor Nouwen’s words beautifully articulate the power of gratitude to positively impact our lives. I have discovered in my own journey of faith that gratitude results in joy, despite what might be occurring in my life. I trust the same will be true for you. Psalm 95:1-2 reminds us: “Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation. Let us come before him with Thanksgiving and extol him with music and song.”

Keep the faith,

Tony

As you all may know, I am an avid USC Trojan football fan. Since and including the 1972 season (when I was a young pup), I have attended somewhere in the neighborhood of 220 games (a conservative estimate), including 16 Rose Bowl games. You may be asking yourself, “What’s wrong with this guy?”

Admittedly, I love going to the games. However, increasingly my perspective is shifting to a new paradigm. Over the past couple of years I have exclusively taken my two boys to the games. Why? It is because going to the games with either my 11 or 7-year-old is an opportunity to spend quality time with them. That is, going to a game is now an excuse to build relationship with my boys.  Once while driving home from a game I asked my son Braden what his favorite part of the day was. He answered, “Being with you, dad.” I got it.

Isn’t relationship what the gospel is all about – “For God so love the world….” God sent his Son to die on the cross in order to restore relationship with humanity that sin had corrupted. Faith in Jesus restores relationship with our Heavenly Father. We then become ambassadors of God’s redemptive plan to build, repair and restore relationships in all forms – whether horizontal or vertical in nature.

Let us view the “events” of our lives (whatever they may be) as opportunities to increase love, forgiveness and understanding. I am praying that time spent with my boys at football games will pay dividends later.

Keep the faith,

Pastor Tony