Brown's Daily Word 3-9-11

Good morning,
In the Church calendar today is Ash Wednesday the beginning of the season of Lent. The word “Lent” means “long spring days.” It commemorates the forty days
Jesus spent in the desert where he was led (or “driven” as some translations
put it) shortly after his baptism. In the desert, he was “tempted by Satan.”
One of the readings for today is taken from Joel 2, where the prophet warns, “Rend your heart and not your garments” (vs 13). Repentance was often demonstrated in Bible days by loud weeping, wailing, by covering one’s head with ashes and by tearing one’s clothes. It looked impressive, but it was often an outward, insincere show. Joel is saying, “Let your broken heart show your sorrow; tearing your clothes is not enough.” God knows whether we are truly sorry or just pretending. It’s okay to mourn over sin, as long as we’re sincere. Joel condemns insincere repentance.
The prophet Joel issued a trumpet call to repent (2:1). 2:13 provides a vivid description of the word repentance: “rend your hearts...return to the Lord” In this we have the 2 elements of repentance—-sorrow and a change of direction. We repent when our hearts are broken by our sin, when we realize that it is our wrongdoing, our offenses, that led Christ to the cross. When we see the enormity of our iniquity, we turn-—we begin to walk in a new direction, with new goals. We surrender to the Lordship of Christ. We who lived for self can begin to live for God, and for His glory. In sorrow, we turn from sin and self to Christ. If we reject salvation, we turn our backs on eternal life…but God is waiting to forgive. Like the father of the Prodigal Son, He waits for us to return with open arms and a heart filled with compassion.
Though repentance initially leads us to God, repentance is also an attitude and action that continues throughout our lives. Whenever we fail, whenever we sin, we are called upon to repent as the Holy Spirit convicts us of our transgressions. True repentance is admitting that what God says is true, and because it is true we change our minds about our sins and about the Savior. Unbelievers call evil good and good evil. Holiness is seeing life through the eyes and mind of Christ.
Joel began with a prophecy about the destruction of the land and concluded with a prophecy about its restoration. He began by urging repentance and ended with the promise of forgiveness that repentance brings. A wonderful promise is held out to us in verses 28-32, the promise of the Holy Spirit and the assurance that all who call on the Name of the Lord will be saved.
We will begin our new Bible study today, Ash Wednesday, March 9, and continue throughout Lent. The study is called, "Gospel in Life - Grace Changes Everything".
It is an intensive eight-session course on the Gospel and how it is lived out in all of life, first in your heart, then in your community, and then out into the world.
In each session, Timothy Keller presents a ten-minute teaching segment on the Gospel. Session 1 opens the course with the theme of the city: your home now, the world that is. Session 8 closed with the theme of the eternal city: your heavenly home, the world that is to come. In between you will look at how the Gospel changes your heart, changes your community, and changes how you live in the world.
Week #1: City - The World That Is
#2: Heart - Three Ways To Live
#3: Idolatry - The Sin Beneath The Sin
#4: Community - The Context For Change
#5: Witness - An Alternate City
#6: Work - Cultivating The Garden
#7: Justice - A People For Others
#8: Eternity - The World That Is To Come
In Christ,
,Brown

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pao2KgVe1KA

Saturday evening worship service.
Location: First United Methodist Church
53 McKinley Avenue
Endicott
Sponsored by the Union Center United Methodist Church, 128, Maple Drive, Endicott

Saturday, March 12, 2011
6 PM Coffee Fellowship

6:30 PM Worship Service
Worship Music: Laureen Naik
Speaker: Rev. Bill Turner