Walk
to Emmaus #53
May
2011
Script
for Talk #15
Fourth
Day (edited 7/18/19)
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Slide 1 (Walk to Emmaus slide)
From early in my childhood, we were really active in the church.
I even gave the Children’s Sunday Sermon – on the Warm Fuzzies and Cold
Pricklies, when I was in 6th grade.
But when I went to College in 1978, I left the Church. And, I
wouldn’t come back for 25 years.
In 2003, at the end of a very unhealthy relationship, I started
going to church because I saw the love Wesley UMC gave to a lady they didn’t know
when her husband died. I was beside her in his room in the nursing home when he
died.
She had told me she thought they were married in a Methodist
Church. There was no record of her being a Methodist as far as they could tell;
but they still loved her anyway, in the name of Christ. I thank God for that
divine appointment.
In 2004 – I joined Church (Jan), graduated law school (May), and
sat for Bar (July). Later that summer I knew God was calling me to study his Word,
for the 1st time in my life. I started attending Disciple I bible
study that fall.
I
have been blessed with a gift of poetry from God. I really started to write
from my faith when I opened God’s Word in 2004.
At the time of my Walk in October 2007, I was up to 1,700 poems (50,850, as of 7/18/19).
On the Walk, I was convicted that I needed to do more
-
To Set my priority
-
To Make a plan for my life
-
To Growth through Study
-
To Work to change my piece of the world
-
AND
-
to Use the gifts I had been given in Christian Action
I promised God I was going to let God use me to share his
message through this gift of poetry.
Since then, God has given me 9,600 new poems, including about
5,000 in the last year (50,850, as of 7/18/19). They have been used in worship, in teaching, all around
the world.
But I’ve really been challenged since October 2009, when I gave
the Laity Sunday sermon on the parable of the rich man, as to exactly what God
is calling me to do with my gifts and talents.
It
is found in Mark 10:17-31
The
rich man ran up to Christ and asked him what to do to inherit eternal life. Christ
referenced the commandments. The man said he did those things. But then…
21
Jesus, looking at him, loved him and
said, ‘You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the
poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.’ 22 When he
heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.
And
Jesus often talked about what it means to follow him, what we must be prepared
to give up. Those first disciples gave up everything. They did drop their nets,
left their families. They stopped serving one master and chose to serve
another. They took up their cross and followed Jesus.
We
need to always be testing our lives against the example of Christ and his
teachings, to the words of our faith, and to Jesus’ challenges to the rich man,
to all of us.
God
is challenging us to trust in Him, that He will provide if we are faithful
servants. That is in our work and in our sharing of our gifts on our Fourth
Days.
It is a journey we are
ever on, determining our priority, our call, our faith, our trust. It will
happen in God’s time, not our own.
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Slide
#2
My
Name is Ray Foss
and
the name is this Talk is Fourth Day
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Slide #3
There is A Lot to Do in the World
to Change the World, and it certainly needs changing.
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Slide #4
A Lot to Do Closer to Home
To start locally and move out from there. These are pictures
from a mission trip to Machias, ME from 2007, building bunks, repairing a roof,
building a ramp, and repainting a house. Neighbors Helping Neighbors.
The weekend is almost over. We have spent three days in holy
conversations, sharing so much around these tables, in this room, in quiet
times, like on Thursday night, in dying moments, in candlelight, in worship, in
communion, and around the tables sharing meals together.
We have been blessed by gifts of Agape and prayers around the
world and around the clock.
But we are here today, right now, because we are able to leave,
to separate, to be sown light wondrous seeds to the world, to continue this
journey until we are joined with Christ in glory.
We are about to enter our Fourth Day, our life after, a
succession of Fourth Days. It won’t be easy, it won’t be smooth sailing. God
didn’t promise that.
In our Fourth Day, we must continue our commitment to be Christ
in the world for others.
This weekend has been about what comes next.
If this is all there is, we have all failed. The fellowship, the
sharing, all of it is to prepare you for your Fourth Day, your Fourth Days, all
the rest of your lives on the journey of your faith, joyfully serving others,
as Christ did.
We
have met God anew here but we are to go forth now, back into our lives, into
our communities, into our churches, energized for the work.
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Slide
#5
Meeting God
Afresh
Seeing
God, feeling Him with me
meeting
God afresh, in fellowship
In
those moments, precious
sensing
love, familial, agape
Walking,
journeying with God
in
a daily covenant
Touched
by Pentecost fire, filled by his grace
being
a witness, yoked to Christ
With
God as our master
great
things we can do
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Slide
#6
You
have a mission to
•
Strengthen
the Christian Community
–
to
share freely
–
because
the benefits are far reaching
•
Develop
Christian Disciples
–
to
inspire
–
to
equip
–
to
show them your new eyes, after these days set apart
•
It
is like the story of Moses
–
not
telling about the bush,
•
about
leading, the people of Israel from slavery into the promised land of
relationship with God
•
It
is like the story of Jonah
–
It
is not about the fish, where he was for three days
–
It
is where we hear Jonah’s prayer, from within the fish.
–
And
the story of Jonah is about going as God commands, and his 4th Day,
the day he said Yes to God, even if reluctantly.
•
That
was how I was on my walk, staring at my life, my history in the pit, knowing
that God had reclaimed me, for a purpose
•
And
it is not about these 3 days per se
–
Though
each was time set apart
–
Sort
of like after the cross
–
when
Christ was transformed from a dead human to a new body, getting ready to ascend
to heaven, free from the earth
–
These
days set apart are transforming us in ways we can’t imagine
–
just
as it changed Jonah
•
And
it is about us
–
When
we act
–
We
all have a role to play, as part of God’s revelation of the kingdom
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Slide
#7
Life Grace is a
Journey
-
not
a destination
It
is a process, moving from grace to grace to grace, moving on to perfection
-
prevenient
grace – a cloud of God’s grace around you
-
justifying
grace – at that moment we open God’s free gift
-
sanctifying
grace – every one of our Fourth Days
But
it is what we do with it,,,
-
The
burning bush wasn’t for Moses, it was for the people of Israel
-
Jonah
was saved to save Nineveh
-
AND
we’ve changed, by being here
o but no one else
has been
o and this weekend
is about them, not us
§ We are just to
be authentic and joyful
-
It
is about what we do from here on, during our Fourth Day.
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Slide
#8
Two
Great Dangers after today
•
Danger #1:
–
Believing
you are someone special
–
That’s
my head on the body of Robert the Bruce… my wife was joking she needed a knight
in shining armor, so I did this…
–
Don’t
be overconfident
–
you
aren’t special or indispensible
–
Lots
of people find God, Christ, feel the Holy Spirit
–
Emmaus
is only one way
•
Danger #2:
–
Believing
you are nobody, like an empty chair
–
It
took God 80 years until Moses got going
–
We
have a part to play; don’t give up, keep working
–
God
isn’t looking for those who are able; God is looking for those who are
available, open to his call
–
Frustration
isn’t in charge; God is
In 1 Corinthians 15:9, the Apostle Paul said,
“For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to
be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.”
Could you imagine what the church would be like today if Paul
had really believed that?
We
all have received gifts, as he says in 1 Corinthians 12, and we are all to use
them.
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Slide #9
How
to be Yeast, Salt, Light
We
have a key role to play, to be leaven in the dough, salt of the earth, and the
light in the darkness (Matthew 13:33, and 5:13-16).
But
How do we do that…
•
WE
Stay in touch with Christ
–
read
the word, dive in, like with Growth through Study
–
This
is fresh oil for your lamp, so you can shine
•
WE
Stay in touch with friends who share
your priority
–
Like
the reunion groups, like our Men’s group at church
–
They
help you be accountable, real, be salt
•
WE
Stay in touch with people whom God has given you to influence
•
Share
the grace you have been given
•
For
me that is my poetry, especially when a student approaches me.
•
Or
some of the homeless who come to our weekly dinner, Our Family’s Table, at the
church
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Slide
#10
All Saints Day
This
is a picture of our church’s altar on All Saints Day. Anyone who wanted to came
forward with the name of someone who had gone before us. One of the pastors
read the name and the other one lit a small candle, which the organist rang a
chime. It was so powerful, because we were naming the saints we know, who led
us to our faith.
That
is part of what this weekend is about, being that kind of person for someone
else downstream from us, no matter how chipped or flawed we are, we just have
to be a willing vessel; God will do the rest.
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Slide
#11
Through a
Willing Vessel
Your
grace oh Lord,
poured
out, a libation for the world
shared
through a willing vessel
no
matter that it is worn, chipped,
damaged
and patched,
worthy
for the father’s purposes
for
the continuing ministry of faith
through
a willing vessel
gifts
beyond measure
can
pour
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Slide
#12
Equipment for
the Journey
•
A
clear concept of your priority
Right
from the beginning of the weekend, from the first talk, we have been talking
about our priorities
I
hope you’re getting the idea that the world is selling us bad goods.
Christ
should be our priority.
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Slide
#13
Equipment for
the Journey
•
We
need a clear concept of the task
•
The
world needs change
•
Through
the Holy Spirit we can be used
•
When
we meet resistance, we meet it with love and perseverance
•
Some
don’t like Emmaus
•
Some
don’t like pushy Christians
•
Some
don’t like Christians
•
Some
think they have it all figured out.
•
We
are just to remain faithful.
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Slide
#14
Equipment for
the Journey
•
We
need a clear concept of people
•
God’s
gifts of Grace are different in each person
•
But
that’s a good thing
•
We
are all gifted for the work of the kingdom.
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Slide
#15
Equipment for
the Journey
And Lastly,
•
We
need a Clear concept of holiness
•
It
expands life to the fullest
•
When
we use all our talents
•
When
we stay grounded in grace and our true destiny in Christ
•
and
when we put our trust in God
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Slide
#16
Her Knight in
Shining Armor
Oh,
and that lady who I helped back in 2003, which led me back to my faith. Well
God wasn’t done with that nudge to stay faithful, to stay on the journey of my
Fourth Days.
For
you see in 2010, I looked through an old photo album from one of the retired
pastors of our church. That was during a rough patch last year when I was
really struggling with what my call was. Sure enough, there was a wedding
picture of that nice lady and HER knight in shining armor.
It
is a reminder to remain faithful and act in Christian love, even when we
struggle.
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Slide
#17
Walking on this
Journey
Walking
on this journey
because
I know my feet
stumbling,
leading me
away
from the path of life
wanting
to be near God
yet
walking far from Him
guiding
me ever wayward
when
I want to be like Him
Walking
on this journey
knowing
it is a struggle
wanting
to submit to Him
but
my weakness is within
Standing
on this path
His
hand to guide me
walking
with my Savior
striving
ever
to
heed the shepherd’s call
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Slide
#18
Conclusion
May God be with you on your Fourth Day
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Slide
#19
De Colores
All of my poems, photographs, and videos are copyrighted
by Raymond A. Foss, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008,
2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019. All
rights are reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss (raymondafoss@gmail.com)
for usage. See all 50,850+ of my poems
at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com Poetry Where You Live.
