Change is good… you go first!, with Rev. Dr. Steven Koski.

Change is good… you go first!, with Rev. Dr. Steven Koski. Series: Re-Shaped A Spacious Christianity, First Presbyterian Church of Bend, Oregon. Scripture: Exodus 3.1-14.

Join us this Sunday as we begin a new worship series called “Reshaped, Embracing Change”. Discover how to see change not as a threat, but as an opportunity to grow and thrive. Explore the story of Moses and find your own “burning bush” – the calling God has placed on your heart to make a difference in this changing world. All are welcome.

About the Series, Re-Shaped: Our brains were designed to be suspicious of change, and for good reason – homeostasis in good measure helps us thrive, protecting us from danger. But if we look closely at what the Creator set in motion, we find that change is actually the most constant part of life and necessary for animating our spirits as we find renewed purpose throughout life. Jesus advocated for changes that would keep us moving toward greater goodness!

Join us each Sunday, 10AM at bendfp.org, or 11AM KTVZ-CW Channel 612/12 in Bend.  Subscribe/Follow, and click the bell for alerts.

At First Presbyterian, you will meet people at many different places theologically and spiritually. And we love it that way. We want to be a place where our diversity brings us together and where conversation takes us all deeper in our understanding of God.

We call this kind of faith “Spacious Christianity.” We don’t ask anyone to sign creeds or statements of belief. The life of faith is about a way of being in the world and a faith that shows itself in love.

Thank you for your support of the mission of the First Presbyterian Church of Bend. Visit https://bendfp.org/giving/ for more information.

Keywords:

moses, keeping, burning bush, midian, god, change, exodus, life, burning, flock, presbyterian, hebrew slaves, place, calling, wilderness, bend, heart, reach, day, hear, presbyterian, church, online worship, bend, oregon

Featuring:

Rev. Dr. Steven Koski, Rev. Kally Elliott, Tyler McQuilkin, Becca Ellis, Brave of Heart, Guests

Transcript

Whitney Higdon: 0:00

You. Welcome to worship at First Presbyterian. We, at First Presbyterian, practice a spacious Christianity, which means no matter where you are in your faith journey, you belong, and there is space for you at the table, there is space for your doubts and questions. We believe doubts and questions are a gift that invite us into deeper conversations and a more authentic faith. We believe diversity is a strength. Every story is sacred and everybody matters. We do our best to live the spacious and radical love of Jesus so that all might have a chance to flourish in this world. We are so glad to connect with you in this way. We would also love to worship with you in person if you're ever in the neighborhood on Sunday mornings at 830 or 10am and never hesitate to reach out to us to learn more about us or how we might support You. I hope you enjoy this worship service. Welcome you.

Steven: 4:46

here's a prayer when we need a little motivation, adapted from a blessing by Kate bowler God, we are rummaging through this day in search of evidence that tomorrow could be different as. Many times as we wake up determined to bend the future with each effort and expectation, our convictions and hope evaporate by the day's end, and God help us to once again, place our shoulders on that arc, that arc that bends towards justice, compassion, kindness, and push just a little harder than we think is possible. Let us know the satisfaction of sleep exhausted by our efforts to do the work of love that is ours to do. Walk us to the edge of comfort, and then give us the courage to reach for something more, because we are all too familiar with the voice that reminds us things will never change. Quiet our anxious thoughts help us to listen for your voice rekindle a tenderness in our uncertain hearts for our own small moments of courage, and when it all feels just overwhelming, remind us that you don't expect us to do it all. You simply ask us to do the work of love that is ours to do. Amen. It's been said that the only person who likes change is a baby with a wet diaper. The problem is that change is inevitable. The only constant in life is change. Life is always changing. You know, it feels like we're living in a time of unprecedented change. You know, change has been part of life since the beginning, but it feels like we have transitioned from evolutionary change to revolutionary change. Just consider, for example, how communication has changed in our lifetime. It took radio 38 years to reach 50 million listeners. It took television 13 years to reach 50 million viewers. Facebook, which began in a college dorm room, has 2.9 billion participants every single day. ABC began broadcasting on television in 1948 the total number of viewing hours logged by ABC over the past 75 years was surpassed in viewing hours by YouTube in the last seven days. One writer said the world is changing at such a rapid and unprecedented rate that you know there used to be a generation gap between you and your parents. Now there's a generation gap between children born three years apart. You know, we may try to resist change. A better approach is to pay attention to change and respond through the lens of our faith, as God says in the book of Isaiah, behold, I'm doing a new thing. Can you see it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. We're beginning a new worship series in the month of August called reshaped, embracing change. Is it possible to see change not as a threat but as an opportunity? Is it possible to not just survive but thrive in an environment that is constantly changing? And today, I want to focus on a character in the Bible, who not only experienced profound change in his life, but embraced change, was ready to participate with God in the new thing that God was seeking to accomplish. It's the story of God's call to Moses from a burning bush to free the Hebrew slaves in Exodus. Three, I love this story. A bit of background for those who may not be familiar. We begin in Egypt. The Pharaoh is concerned the Hebrew slaves will revolt, so he orders all Hebrew male babies to be drowned in the Nile River. Now Moses should have been one of those babies. His mother hid him in a basket in the shallow water in the reeds near the bank of the river. Pharaoh's daughter, bathing in the river, finds the basket and decides to keep the baby as her own. So Moses grows up in the royal household with the privilege of wealth and power, but he feels this, this connection with the Hebrew slaves and their suffering. One day, Moses sees an Egyptian guard beating a Hebrew slave, and he intervenes, killing the Egyptian guard. Everything. It changes in an instant for Moses, as he is forced to flee for his life, he ends up in a place called Midian. Now, the word Midian literally means the middle place. You know, it's the place between where we once were and where we long to be, the middle place we live. We live most of our life in that in between place now in Midian Moses marries and he begins working for his father in law, Jethro, as a shepherd in Exodus three, we find Moses and Midian the middle place, keeping his father in law's flock while the Hebrews continue suffering in slavery in Egypt, crying out to God for deliverance. Moses was settled. You know, he was busy living this new life, just tending to what was in front of him. And it says in Exodus, 31 now Moses was keeping the flock of Jethro, his father in law, the priest of Midian. Did you notice the verb keeping? Moses was keeping his father in law's flock in the middle of Midian. Nothing flashy, nothing noteworthy, just everyday life. But think about that verb, keeping for a moment, Moses was was keeping the flock. Now that's a maintenance verb. You know, it's like getting up on an ordinary day, eating breakfast, keeping appointments, keeping to the schedule, keeping your eye on the clock, keeping a budget, keeping an eye on the kids, keeping the house clean, keeping the lawn mowed, keeping up with the stock market, keeping up with social media, keeping doctor's appointments, keeping peace with the family, keeping up with the news, keeping your head above water, keeping anxiety, fear, Maybe even depression, at bay, keeping that's what we do. We keep on, keeping on. So Moses is in the middle of Midian, the middle place, keeping the flock, keeping on, keeping on. Then there's a shift. The verb changes. Now, when the verb changes, the place changes, and suddenly we're not in the middle of Midian any longer. Exodus three, one says Moses was keeping the flock, and then he led the flock beyond the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. Now there are two shifts in that one verse that change everything and just might change everything for us. The first is a verb Moses, led the flock beyond the wilderness. No more keeping no more maintenance, no more being a sideline observer, letting life happen to you, hoping, hoping somehow that things will work out. There's intentionality. It says Moses led the flock, and then comes the second ship that changes everything. Moses led the flock beyond the wilderness. Now, why would you want to lead a flock there? This place is remote, hard to reach. It's not just wilderness, but beyond the wilderness. Now whatever wilderness means to you, it's one step beyond that. And Exodus three says, and there he came to Horeb, the mountain of God. Now, isn't it interesting that that the mountain of God, the place where God speaks, is beyond the place of maintenance, where we just keep things going, it's beyond the place that is comfortable, safe, familiar. I have a friend who, on his 70th birthday, woke up that morning and said, Mount Kilimanjaro, it's now or never. And right then, he booked a spot with an adventure company and a flight to Tanzania that morning. He said, You know, I'm in a rut. I'm on. Autopilot my my heart and my soul need to wake up and following the climb. He's volunteering to plant trees in Tanzania, as deforestation, as has become a huge problem there. You know it reminds me of Helen Keller, who said, Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all. So Moses. Moses started in Midian, and he came to Mount Horeb, the mountain of God, because he led his flock beyond where they usually went. And he was now, he was only now able to see the burning bush. Now maybe the Bush had been burning for years waiting for Moses to come. Is there a burning bush waiting for you to leave Midian Exodus 32 says there the angel of the Lord appeared to Moses in the flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the Bush was on fire, it did not burn up. It did not consume itself. Now I want to know why the angel of the Lord doesn't show up in Midian when I'm sitting on the couch watching Netflix or or scrolling, scrolling through social media, trying to escape the realities of life or, or just complaining that. Why isn't life the way I think it should be, dang it, the angel of the Lord doesn't often show up in those places where I'm simply just keeping on, keeping on. It seems I have to get off the couch to see this burning bush to hear this angel. Beyond the wilderness is the mountain of God, the place God speaks. And there's this bush, this bush that burns but doesn't consume itself. This makes me really curious. If there are things seared into your soul that just keep burning, images, people, events, words, longings. You know you do your best to keep on, keeping on in Midian, but it keeps burning. And every now and then, you find yourself in a quiet place beyond the demands of keeping things going. And there it is, burning, speaking to you. Years ago, Laurie and I were in Nankai, Thailand on the ocean border, and we were visiting an orphanage, and after a couple days, we were leaving, and there was a young boy, about eight years old, that I had spent a lot of time playing soccer with. He was sitting on the steps of the orphanage as we were leaving with one solitary tear falling silently down his cheek. He thought we'd come to take him home with us. The image of his face with that single tear is burned into my soul and keeps burning and keeps calling to me. I try to keep busy, keeping on in Midian, and then I'm shaken awake by stories of children suffering in Gaza, or children in need of foster care, or teenagers struggling with their mental health. And there it is burning in my soul, the image of this orphan in Thailand with one tear running down his cheek, and I hear crystal clear I hear God's call to use my gifts and passion to let everyone know that they belong. You know, my calling is to let everyone know, whether you're seven or 97 that you are a beloved child of God, that you are loved with a love from which you can never be separated. That's my burning bush. What's your burning bush? What's burning in your soul calling you to a life beyond just keeping on, keeping on. You know one last thing from this story of Moses, hearing God's call from a burning bush. Bush to free the Hebrew slaves in Exodus three it then says, So Moses thought, I must turn aside and look and see why the bush does not burn up. Now you could argue this one verse is our spiritual roadmap, roadmap. This, this, this one verse is our invitation to the work of love that is ours to do in this changing world. Turn aside. Look. Be curious. You don't notice a burning bush from a car speeding by at 70 miles per hour, you have to stop the car park. Get out. Turn aside. Look, really, look, I mean, turn off the news. Put down the iPhone. Stop scrolling social media. Set aside all those things that involve keeping on, keeping on quiet, all the noises that distract you. Crouch down, get close, get closer than you are comfortable. Getting turn aside. Look. Be curious. Is there a burning bush with your name on it? Listen for that voice calling to you in the midst of all that is changing in this world, what is the work of love that is yours to do? Maybe that Bush has been burning for some time, waiting for you to go beyond the wilderness, waiting for you to turn aside, to look, to be curious. You know, one of the many, many things I love about our church, I love about First Presbyterian, is that this community of faith understands Midian is not our home maintenance. Keeping on, keeping on, that is not our mission. It's not our work. Our call in the midst of this changing world is to find a path to the mountain of God, over and over and over again, and listen for God calling us. Listen for God inviting us to use our gifts and our passion to not just make a difference, but to make a different world, trusting that God, even now, is doing a new thing, and God wants us to be part of that. Nelson Mandela said, there is no passion to be found playing small in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living, playing small, settling for life in Midian doesn't serve this changing world, doesn't serve God's purposes, doesn't serve the person God created you to Be. I'm willing to bet there's a burning bush with your name on it. Go beyond keeping on, keeping on. Turn aside. Look. Be curious. What is the work of love that is yours to do? Friends, I'm willing to bet there's a burning bush with your name on it. Go beyond keeping on, keeping on. Turn aside. Look. Be curious in this changing world. What is the work of love that is yours to do? May the love and peace of Christ enfold you and uphold you, and may the love that you bring to this world bring peace to others. Amen.

Whitney Higdon: 28:52

Thank you so much for joining us, and we hope you enjoyed this worship service. If you would like to make a donation helping make these podcasts possible or support them many ways. First, Presbyterian seeks to serve our community. You can make a financial gift online at bend fp.org, every week, we hear from someone thanking us for the gift of these broadcasts and what a difference they make. Your support makes that possible. Our church is committed to reach beyond our walls, bringing hope where there is despair and love where it is needed the most. Your generous support helps us to be generous in love. Go to our website, bend fp.org, and click on the link. Give online. Your support is really appreciated and makes a difference in people's lives. Thanks again. I hope to see you next week. You.