You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; Psalm 23:5

Throughout scripture there are many references to events happening around a table.

Jesus drove the money changers out of the temple while turning  the tables over.  He went to the home of a Pharisee to have lunch and found himself in the company of those who might be considered the least in society.  Another time he was reclining at the table when a women came to Him with an alabaster vial of very costly perfume and poured it on His head.  And finally, Jesus called the disciples together on the night He was betrayed to have a final meal around a table in the upper room.  Approximately 76 references to tables can be found throughout the bible. 

Many lessons can be learned  at the table as they were in the days of Jesus. Conversations at the table can lead to better understanding.   Perhaps  it is time to get back to basics. There are two basic principles  that can be found throughout the great spiritual writings of history. The first, “Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them:  for this is the law and the prophets.” The second, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart with all your soul and with all your mind.  This is the great and first commandment.  And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”  You can’t get anymore basic than these laws and commandments.  I pray that every parent and grandparent will take the time to have a conversation around these life sustaining principles. Our society is filled with so much vitriol, prejudice, racism and hatred. The time has come to turn it around, just as Jesus did when he turned the tables over on thE thieves and robbers. The time has come for us to turn the tables on violence, racism and hate. We can do it!!!!!!!!!!

You may ask yourself, what is the blessing in this writing?  Well, the blessing is that you and I have another chance to be the hands and feet of  the God of the universe, who exalts valleys, brings mountains and hills to a low place, makes the crooked straight, and the rough places plain.   It’s not too late, yet.  Thanks be to the God of second, third, fourth, ………….. chances.

Dr. James Calhoun

As We Gather At Your Table (FWS 2268) (Carl P. Daw, Jr.)

As we gather at your table, as we listen to your word,
help us know, O God, your presence;  let our hearts
and minds be stirred. Nourish us with sacred story till
we claim it as our own; teach us through this holy
banquet how to make Love’s victory known.
Turn our worship into witness in the sacrament of life; 
send us forth to love and serve you, bringing peace
where there is strife. Give us, Christ, your great compassion
to forgive as you forgave;  may we still behold your
image in the world you died to save.

Gracious Spirit, help us summon other guests to share
that feast where triumphant Love will welcome those
who had been last and least.  There no more will envy
blind us nor will pride our peace destroy, as we join with
saints and angels to repeat the sounding joy.

Amen

                                                                                                           

Answer me when I call, O God of my right!
   You gave me room when I was in distress.
   Be gracious to me, and hear my prayer. 

How long, you people, shall my honor suffer shame?
   How long will you love vain words, and seek after lies?
But know that the Lord has set apart the faithful for himself;
   the Lord hears when I call to him. 

–Psalm 4:1-3 NRSV

Speaking truth is vital for our spiritual health.
Hearing truth is required for our spiritual development.
Both are essential to building community.

When we think about our communication with God, whether individually or in a congregation, we often think of expressing our love and praise for God and expressing our desires of God. We are less comfortable with confession to God, but we know that it is necessary, in order for us to be relived of the burden of guilt and shame, and in order that right relationships might be restored. This is a matter of “speaking the truth.” Indeed, these are also required for the maintenance of any relationship.

All three of these are found again and again in the Psalms, which is the primary worship book of the Judeo-Christian tradition. But something else is found in the Psalms; something which is absolutely essential for this moment in time. It is this: speaking the truth of our experience. It is crying out in our pain. It is calling out injustice done to us or another. And it is knowing that our truth is heard.

Look at that first line of Psalm 4: “You gave me room…”

God gives us the space and the time to tell our story. Without judgement. Without correction. Without minimizing. Without gaslighting. And usually without “should-ing” on us (telling us what we should do). God gives us room to be in distress and pain. And God calls us to hear others together in the same way.

Then the miracle happens. Again and again in the Psalms, expressing our experience, and knowing we are heard, we feel validated and empowered to move through the experience. We are able to remember who we are, and the ability we have to allow God’s work of justice and restoration to happen in and through us.

Collective confession is difficult, so we often share unison prayers of general confession. Corporate expressions of hurt can and do happen, but it is similarly difficult for each person to tell their own story in a large worship setting. This is why small groups and caregiving settings are so important. But even more important is for each one of us, as individuals in the body of Christ, to be good listeners in all of our relationships.

God gives you space. God hears you.

Let’s give each other attention and space. Let us listen to each other.

Loving God, here is where I am hurting today…
help me to be like Jesus: to listen and love. Amen.  

This Sunday is UMW Sunday. Be sure to join us in worship online or in-person at 8, 9:30 and 11 AM

Blessings, Pastor George  

Taste and see how good the Lord is! The one who takes refuge in him is truly happy! Psalm 34:8

A few days ago I was lucky enough to spend a couple of days in Palm Springs with my aunt and uncle, who live in Michigan, and my cousin and his wife and their two young children. They rented a home with a beautiful backyard and a pool. We were able to come together because all of us are fully vaccinated. A blessing in itself.  My uncle’s health is failing and I knew that this trip might be one of the last times we will be together. I felt blessed they invited me to join them. 

I had recently been doing some work with the youth’s confirmation curriculum. It talks about how to really know God we most often have to experience God. While in Palm Springs I really became intentional on this idea of experiencing God. I was able to experience God’s presence in many different ways. I heard God’s presence in the laughter while playing games and swimming in the pool. God’s presence was heard in the birds singing in the morning. I saw God’s presence in the beautiful trees with their green trunks and bright yellow blossoms and every time the hummingbirds quickly darted around I could see God. I felt God’s touch when our conversations offered support to each other and through the physical hugs that were exchanged. This weekend with my family God’s presence was abundant and I feel blessed to be able to have had the time together with them as well as to be fully aware of God’s presence. 

God is always with us. We sometimes fail to take the time to take in the sights, sounds, tastes, and smells so that we can fully experience God working in our lives. But when we do we are able to truly see how good God is….all the time!

Blessings, Marty Drake

God,

You are a constant in our lives, you never stray away from us. Forgive us for those times when we stray from you. We give thanks for our senses that help us to experience You in a multitude of ways. Thank you for times we get to spend with those we love. 

Amen 

John 15:11
I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will over flow!

Today on my Google feed popped up pictures from 3 years ago today. I don’t always click on those pop ups, but today I did. What a joy it brought to my heart. There were pictures from our Holy Humor Sunday 3 years ago. I saw pictures of our youth blowing bubbles in the service and selling refreshments in the sanctuary like the vendors at ball games. Marty teaching our children about bubble prayers and balloons around the alter. A smile came to my face as I remembered that celebration. Then there were pictures from 15 years ago when my family went to Walt Disney World and joy and gratitude overflowed in my heart. I looked at the pictures of my sons who were then in High School and grade school at the time. The memories rolled over me like a wave. It is good to remember the joyous times and it is important to live with joy. We need to remember those joyous moments as a church family too. This past Easter will be one of those joyous moments that I will remember. It was such a joy to celebrate with our church family here on the church campus, in the sanctuary, and online during worship. To celebrate the joy of our risen Lord!

As we start to open up from our lockdown, we will have many joyous moments. While we are moving forward, we are all a little uncertain how things will go. What we can be certain about is that we can live into the hope and promises of God. That we can live in joy and gratitude for the little things that we have missed (and the big things too). We can live out our lives as resurrection people filled with joy and hope because of what our Lord has done for us. We can be a cup overflowing with love and joy.

Blessings, 

Suzanne Morgan

Gracious and Loving God, create in us a heart that hears your laughter and your joy. Help us tosee what delights you and help us to delight in what warms your heart. Help us to accept thegrace and mercy that you have given to us and to share that grace and mercy with others. Helpus to live truly as people of hope and joy, because we know that you have conquered death andthat you have given us new life and hope. Amen

Our questions for this Sunday:

• How do you live into the joy of your faith?
• Where do you find joy and laughter in your life?
• How will you help our church move forward into this new world with joy?

Early on a Sunday morning in March of 1990 I was preparing for worship when one of the pillars of the church showed up at the office in her bathrobe. Out of breath and at the verge of tears she held in her hand a stack of flyers. “I found one of these on my doorstep. It’s not from us, right? I took as many as I could find in my neighborhood and brought them here? What should we do!?”

On the flyer was a series of slurs against Jewish people. On one side was a depiction of Jesus and the words “The Last Commandment of Christ: ‘Kill Every Jew.” On the other side, down at the bottom, were the words “Distributed by the Methodist Fellowship.”

I had been ordained only 21 months earlier and was serving as Associate Pastor at the Yorba Linda UMC. I had no idea what to do. So I turned and handed the flyer to my Senior Pastor and mentor, the Rev. M. Kenneth Criswell. He took a look, then looked at me and pointed to the computer in the front office. “Start typing.”

As more members and neighbors streamed to the church that morning, we handed them stacks of our own letter. Ken asked people not to remove the original flyer, but put ours next to it. He wanted us all to be aware of the hatred that was out there, but also to know of our position of truth and love.

Why us? Why that place and time? A Jewish Chabad center had just moved in across the street. Clearly, one person felt that they could stir up trouble between us or even cause latent Anti-Semitism to rise to the surface. Perhaps they felt there were others with the same hate who were just waiting for the occasion to act.

While clearly rejecting this hate speech, Ken didn’t respond with words of hate or violence. What he did was so very kind and wise. For the next few days and weeks, whenever someone from the news media would call for an interview, he would make himself available – across the street at the Chabad Center, standing next to the Rabbi. He knew the power of the image. He made certain that the message was not going to be hatred and division, but love, unity, and respect

Someone has been putting out flyers again; at homes in Newport Beach and online. Perhaps there is an organized group of KKK and other white supremacist organizations planning a rally in Huntington Beach. I imagine that there are persons in our area who hold these abhorrent and un-Christian views. I think it is more likely that this is a person or a small group who are “trolling.” They might think that if they announce a rally, like-minded people might actually show up. (“If you build it, they will come.”) More importantly, they might get people to counter-demonstrate. This might be an attempt to reignite some of the demonstrations from last Summer.  In their fever dreams they might even imagine starting a race war. Then the white supremacists could play the victim.

Caught in the middle of this will be the people of the Huntington Beach Police department.  Right now former Officer Derek Chauvin is on trial for the killing of George Floyd. Black folks across the country and around the world are reliving the horror of those 9 minutes and 29 seconds, and all of the other ways in which they have been brutalized. At the same time law enforcement officers are feeling that they are under attack and that all are being held to account for the actions of some.  Calling for a rally and inviting the appropriate and inevitable counter-demonstration will, these workers of evil might imagine, force the police to take the side of the racists.

What can we do?
1. Be proactive, not reactive.  Don’t feed the trolls. Don’t take the bait. Don’t fall for the lies. “We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ” — Ephesians 4:14-15   Make it clear to all who will listen that any white supremacist rallies do not represent you, do not represent this area, and do not represent Christianity. Show what we ARE about!

2. Stay true to your values. Make love clear with your words and deeds. “Do not repay evil for evil or abuse for abuse; but, on the contrary, repay with a blessing. It is for this that you were called—that you might inherit a blessing.” – 1 Peter 3:9   Reach out to those who have and are being rejected, harmed, and threatened.

3. Educate yourself, and act in your personal, religious, and political life to bring justice and equity for those who have been and continue to be the victims of violence, hatred, and systemic injustice.

4. Pray.
– Pray for those who have been harmed and those who live with this constant unease.
– Pray for the police officers who must stand in the gap, even as they may feel unjustly stereotyped.
– Pray for those who are so broken and consumed by evil that they lash out in hate and lies, or seek to bring chaos for the sake of entertainment. Pray for healing. Pray that they may be freed of the demons which posses them.
– Pray for your own wisdom and gentle strength.
– When your power and privilege feel threatened, remember that these are the things of this world. Empty yourself of these and pray that God will replace them with humility, grace, and the character to do justice, love kindness, and walk with God.

Below is a statement we are currently adopting. It is adapted from one made by our Greater Huntington Beach Interfaith Council.  Let us stand together for the good of all.

George Hooper

April 5, 2021

Statement regarding acts of violence and extremist hate groups gathering in Huntington Beach.

Community United Methodist Church of Huntington Beach is saddened by the recent acts of violence in our country, and we are concerned about the persistence of extremist hate groups gathering in our beloved city. We strongly condemn any and all acts of hate and violent extremist ideologies that have led to the loss of lives, the destruction of families, and damage to society. Hate has no place in the world, and hate is particularly not welcome in our Huntington Beach home.

We believe that every human life has infinite value and that each of us deserves respect, love, and support. Let us come together across our city, and across this country, in the spirit of unity, to support dialogues of understanding to eradicate racism, extremism, and hate. Let us open and strengthen the lines of communication between our diverse communities with those who might have a different perspective than we do. We support efforts to learn not only about our neighbors, but about ourselves as well. We encourage all the Houses of Worship, locally, statewide, and nationally, to be gathering places for our larger community.

The members of Community United Methodist Church of Hunting Beach resolve to build upon and strengthen our efforts to:

● Work with each other and with community groups to support spiritual, social, and economic opportunities for those who live in our city.

● Foster a diverse community of spiritual and secular leadership.

● Celebrate the diverse communities and individuals living within our city.

● Through our words and actions, lovingly and actively strive to cross barriers that may separate us.

● Support our Interfaith Community in actively sharing the Spirit of Love, Compassion, and Justice.

We pray that the bodies, spirits, and minds of those injured by hate crimes and acts of violence be healed. We pray for the grieving families to be comforted, and for the hearts of all humanity to come together to share this world in harmony with each other.

Community United Methodist Church

Huntington Beach