From:
Date: February 27, 2020
Subject: It's February 27; Good Morning Union


“The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me…”             Isaiah 61: 1-2 and Luke 4:18

When Jesus was asked to do the scripture reading at church one Sabbath He picked this verse! It was prophetically about Him, but I believe it also might just have been a prophetic challenge to me as I claim to be a follower of God. When I stake my claim to be a child of God and a follower of Him He does two things to me, according to my verse for today:

  1. He anoints me- in the Bible this is a special ceremony of commitment, much like ordination or baptism
  2. He gives me His Spirit- that’s sort of like the gift of His presence SO THAT I can live with and for Him.

And then He explains why He sets me apart through anointing and gifts me with His Spirit—SO THAT I can:

  1. Preach good news- to the poor
  2. Bind up the broken hearted
  3. Proclaim freedom for the captives
  4. Release for the prisoners
  5. Proclaim the year of God’s favor
  6. Comfort all who mourn

The anointing and the filling from God is given to me not so I can feel comfortable and safe but SO THAT I can make a difference in the lives of hurting people. This does not appear to be a call to comfort but a challenge to change; to change God’s world for Him. It’s not all about me; it’s all about making a difference in the lives of God’s children who, for various reasons which are NOT mine to evaluate and judge, are not currently experiencing the peace of love of God. It’s not about me; it’s about others, and not just “others” but others who need to experience God’s love, through me.

I start by finding my healing, my forgiveness, my peace and my purpose in Christ, and then that personal inner focus turns outward and my continued growth and development in Jesus appears to be correlated to my willingness to take what I have found and give it away!

Sometimes I can focus so much on my problems and my past that I forget what I see this morning as Jesus’ priorities. The story of Mary at the tomb comes to mind as I am writing this. When she realized she was talking to her Master and not the gardener and that everything He has said was true- He WAS her Savior, she fell at His feet in joy and amazement. All that she had hoped for was in fact true. And when she found this joy and comfort the first words of Jesus were, “Go, tell My brothers.” What you have received, give away! Hold it and hoard it and hurt yourself in the long run. Savor it, then share it and the whole world celebrates.

Have a great day discovering the purpose of your calling, your anointing, and your filling,

Pastor Rich

 

Quote for the day:      “Those who follow Jesus should attract the same people Jesus attracted and frustrate the same people Jesus did.”   Shane Claiborne

 

PS        uGather- 10:35 in the church. Nestor Orsario, our new AD will share with us his love for Jesus and how he is making that the center of his ministry here at Union.

 

PPS      Good time to go into your uGroups and record your uWorship activities!

 

PP..S    Just a heads up. Family Worship will be in Woods Auditorium tomorrow evening for the premier showing of a new movie called “Burden.” More on that tomorrow.