AdventCandles

Kerry’s Outdoor Advent Candle display

Materials:
- 1” x 8” – 6 or eight foot boards (two)
- fence planks – (five) six-foot planks
- plywood – ¼ inch thick, two feet by four feet
- eyes and hooks (five each, small)
- paint (one quart each: purple, green, white;  sample size: pink, yellow, orange)
     (optional: black spraypaint)
- wood glue
- (16) wood screws, 2 inches

Tools:
- power drill with ¼” bit, also 1/8” bit
- chopsaw
- jigsaw
- paintbrush (2” angle is what I used)
- screwdriver

 

Candle stand:
Cut the two 1x8s to four feet (4’) in length.
Using the 1x8 scraps, cut eight pieces 1½ inches in length. These are your spacers.

Find the center (two feet) of the 1x8 planks, and measure 1¼” to the right and left.
Cut out a (two-and-a-half inches by three-and-five-eighth inches) rectangle from each plank.

Glue a spacer at each end of two of the planks, and a second spacer about six inches in – leaving enough room to slide a fenceplank candle between them, with ¼” wiggle room.
Glue the other two planks to the top so you have two plank sandwiches, each one with four spacers.

Drive two screws through each spacer (don’t forget to make pilot holes) for added stability.

Paint green.

These two plank sandwiches fit into each other in an X, providing candle slots at each end, plus one in the center.

Candles:
Cut four of the fence planks to five feet (5’) in length.
Cut the fifth fence plank to five foot three inches (5’3”).
At the top of each fence plank, draw a teardrop about 9½” tip to bottom.
   The tip should be about 1½” thick, and the widest part should leave half an inch of wood on each side.

Paint three planks purple, one pink, and the tallest one white.
I painted the edges white to make them stand out a little bit,
and I painted the area around the flames green to make that part disappear a little bit.

Attach a hook inside the top of each teardrop.

Cut a notch out of the bottom of the white candle, 2¾” wide and 3¾” high.
This will allow the white candle to straddle the joint.

Flames:
The flames will be 3-dimensional and will swing in the teardrop holes of the candles.
On the plywood, draw teardrop shape about 8” tip to bottom, about ¾” wide at the tip, and about 4¼” at the widest part. This teardrop should fit inside the candle’s teardrop with at least a ¼” clearance on all sides.
Draw and cut out ten (10) of these teardrops.

On five of them, cut out a 4” slot from the center of the tip to the center of the teardrop, ¼” wide.
Paint these five yellow, both sides.

On the other five of them, cut out a 4” slot from the center of the base to the center of the teardrop, ¼” wide. Paint these five orange, both sides.

The yellow and orange should slide into one another to make a 3D colorful flame.

Attach an eye in the top of each orange piece. These will allow you to add a flame to each candle, and each flame will flicker in the wind.

05Advent2020

  Placeholder for the final Advent devotional for teens -- the Christ candle

04Advent2020

fourth week (LOVE) Advent devotional for teens

¹ Time is a funny thing, don’t you think? On the one hand, it feels like we just started doing this Advent thing. I mean, you’ve only received this delivery three times before. Barely started. And on the other hand, it feels like we’ve been doing this for a long time. What? We’re still waiting? How can this be? ¦

We’re not the first people to experience this variation in how time feels. They felt it in the days of Jesus, and a thousand years before that as well. Psalm 90 (written long before Isaiah’s time – in fact, scholars believe it’s the oldest of all 150 psalms) says that “a thousand years in your sight, Lord, are like a day that has just gone by,” and the letter of Second Peter (2 Peter, written a few decades after Jesus) quotes Psalm 90. And actually, English hymnwriter Isaac Watts (a pastor who wrote Joy to the World three hundred years ago) used the same phrase in the hymn O God, Our Help in Ages Past. Each of these writings examines the difference between God and people when it comes to the passing of time.

Anyway, on the fourth Sunday of Advent, the Sunday before Christmas, we light the candle of LOVE. No reflection on love could be written without mentioning the most famous of Bible verses, John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his only son, that whoever believes in him would not perish, but have eternal life.”

And of course the accompanying candy for “love” has to be Hershey’s Kisses. So grab some Kisses and turn the page.            (I’m curious, do you smooth the Kisses wrappers out,
or do you squish them all into one ball? Send me a picture!)

 Remember: email or call the church or Pastor Kerry if you have questions, or want a Bible, or if you want to share this thing with a friend. We’ll get another reflection to you on Monday!

4.1 A reflection for the third week of Advent

So like “shalom,” “love” is one of those words whose definition we think we know, but actually the word is much bigger.

Think of the different kinds of love we have. We love chocolate. We love kittens. We love our family. We love our friends. Maybe we have a romantic partner we love. Maybe we love God. That’s at least six different kinds of love right there, and there are many more. People have written all kinds of things about love, and not surprisingly, we find the idea throughout the Bible as well. Almost at the very end of the Bible is a little book called “First John (1 John),” and that author writes some good reflections about love:

     1 John 4:7-12
       ⁷ Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God;
       everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.
       ⁸ Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. 
       ⁹ God’s love was revealed among us in this way:
          God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. 
          ¹⁰ In this is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us
          and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. 
       ¹¹ Beloved, since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another. 
       ¹² … if we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is perfected in us.

Love has to do with value, with how much we appreciate a certain thing or person, with what we’ll do to hang on to something or someone. And God’s love for us, God’s love for you, is so great, so big, that God would do *anything* for you, to get your attention, to see you smile. If God has a refrigerator, your picture is on it.

 

Let’s pray: God, your love is amazing, and I’m learning to see it with new eyes. Thank you for the ways people have shown me your love. Amen.

4.2 A reflection for the fourth week of Advent

The family is probably the first place we learn about love. When my daughter was born, I just held her in my arms and looked at her and cried, I was so happy. Having a child changed me – it helped me understand and appreciate my parents even more. Did you ever consider that your parents were your age once? That they faced some of the things you’re facing? Even though the world you’re growing up in is different than the world they grew up in, they still had things to deal with; teachers they liked and teachers they didn’t like, best friends as well as people they didn’t like or understand. They wanted to belong and they felt hurt when they were left out. They longed for love, for acceptance, and some of them found it. They loved their parents and at the same time probably didn’t understand them. The family is one of the first ways we learn about love.

Becoming a parent also changed my understanding of God my relationship with God. I understood that God cared for me in the same way I cared for my daughter, that the feeling I felt looking at my newborn child, God felt that way for me. I understood love in a new way.

We started Advent by considering how God was arriving in the world – how Jesus was a baby 2,000 years ago, how he said that he would someday return, and how we can be in relationship with him today. The light that is Jesus is still coming into the world, and we are all still growing up, and maturing, and looking forward. Consider this other writing from First John about love:

      1 John 3:1-2
      3 ¹ See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God;
      and that is what we are…  ² Beloved, we are God’s children now;
      what we will be has not yet been revealed.
       [But] what we do know is this: when Christ appears [that is, when he returns],
      we will be like him, for we will see him as he is [that is, as fully God and as fully mature]. 

Do you see the Advent language here? Anticipation of his arrival?
Do you see the family connection and the love?

Let’s pray: God, it’s kind of new to me to think of you as family. Thank you for loving me. Let your light show me more of you, and make me more like you.

Writing prompt:
Christmas is not far away! What are some things you’ll remember about December 2020?

03Advent2020

third week (JOY) Advent devotional for teens

(Almond) JOY to the World!

So you may have noticed the church’s Advent candle display out by the road. The season of Advent begins in the dark, and the weekly lighting of additional candles is a way of marking the light coming into the world. Normally we light actual candles in the sanctuary, and some people have Advent candles in their own homes, but the display by the road is a visible way to share with the community “the light that is coming into the world.”

I’m excited to see all four Advent candles lit – the fourth candle will be lit on Sunday Dec. 20 – and then there is a fifth candle in the center, a white candle, the Christ candle, which is lit on Christmas Day (or Christmas Eve). And you probably know that December 21 is the winter solstice – the “longest night” of the year, and that after Dec 21 the sun rises a little earlier and sets a little later each day. We truly do celebrate the light coming into the world.

And it fills us with JOY, and that is the theme for the third Advent candle,
as well as the name of the candy for our third week of reflections.

By the way, I would love to see any drawings or writings you did based on last week’s reflection. Heck, take a picture of you and your empty Almond Joy wrapper, or just the wrapper itself, and send it to me at the email address or cell phone number listed below. And then kick back and turn the page and check out the reflections for this week.

 

Remember: email or call the church or Pastor Kerry if you have questions, or want a Bible, or if you want to share this thing with a friend. We’ll get another reflection to you on Monday!

3.1 A reflection for the third week of Advent

So you remember the prophet Isaiah? (Um yeah, we can’t forget him, you keep bringing him up!)
In chapter 7 the prophet delivers another word of hope to the people. It’s a curious exchange.
Isaiah tells the king that the king’s enemies will be destroyed before those enemies have any
chance to hurt the king and his people. And then, get this, after Isaiah delivers the Lord’s message
to the king, the Lord says to the king, “Go ahead, ask me for a sign that what Isaiah has told you
will happen.”

Can you imagine that? You get great news, and then God says to you, “You believe me? Want to peek at what’s going to happen?” What would you say? “Um, yeah!”

The king replies “I will not put the Lord to the test.” It sounds like an honorable reply, but really
the king was doubtful and scared, and he couldn’t allow himself to believe. So Isaiah fills in: “The warring kings you’re worried about? They’re going to vanish, your troubles will be gone. A young woman is going to give birth to a baby, and the baby’s name will mean ‘God-is-with-us’, and before that baby is a toddler, the things I’m telling you will happen.” (Isaiah 7:10-17)

Sometimes we have a hard time believing. And there’s good news because we can lean on others when we can’t believe. We can say to ourselves, “This whole gospel message, this Advent stuff,
I don’t know. The idea that there’s a God who cares about me, I just don’t know. But. There are people I trust, and they believe. They have had some more experiences than I have, and I can
trust them.”

And that is doing the work of Advent. Preparing ourselves to receive God’s gift.

One last thing for this reflection: there’s a story in the Gospel of Mark where the disciples bring a boy to Jesus, a boy they have tried to heal but they can’t. The father says to Jesus, “If you are able to help him, please do.” Jesus says to the boy’s father, “If I’m able? All things are possible for those who believe.” And the man replies, “I believe! Help me when I don’t!” And Jesus heals the boy. (Mark 9:14-29)

Let the father’s prayer be our Advent prayer today: “Lord, I believe. Help me in my unbelief.”

3.2. A reflection for the third week of Advent

I know, I didn’t really talk about JOY in the earlier reflection.

Part of Advent is about preparing yourself for the arrival of Jesus into your life.

It’s like, say, becoming a licensed driver. You have the desire, you do some studying and some practice, trusting in a parent or teacher or friend to help you learn things and gain experience, and then one day you take a test and get a license (okay that part doesn’t really connect but hear me out). So you’re licensed, and you’re still you, and you have a new something that you can share with the world.

See, the point of getting a driver’s license is not so that you can have a fancy piece of plastic in your wallet, it’s so you can do something. It’s great to accept God’s gift, but it doesn’t stop there. We accept God’s gift and then we do something with it. We prepare ourselves to receive God, and then we celebrate the new relationship.

One way to think about “JOY” is “Jesus, Others, You,” and I want to share two verses with you:
- Jesus said, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind… and you shall love your neighbor as yourself. (Matthew 22:26-40)
- Jesus said, If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy will be in you and your joy will be complete. This is my commandment: love each other just as I have loved you. (John 15:10-12)

Joy is connected to receiving God’s gift, and sharing it with others, and seeking to live in harmony with God’s “shalom” intent for our lives.

Let’s pray: God, thank you for Jesus. Thank you for others who have been there for me. Lead me to be there for others as well. Amen.

 

Writing prompt:
Who are some of the people that have been leaders or helpers in your life? Write a few names on the blank page inside. Maybe send them a personal note right now!

Who are some people you can share your experience with as a guide?

02Advent2020

(this is the text of a devotional pamphlet that was printed doublesided on 8.5 x 14 paper and delivered to local teens along with a few Tootsie Rolls)

And we’re back! Cuz that’s how we ROLL!

 

We told you last week about Advent, that church thing with candles and calendars between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Do you remember what “Advent” means? That’s right, it means “arrival.” Advent is the four weeks leading up to Christmas, and we think about the arrival of Jesus. We get ready for it and we think about what it means to people today that Jesus came to earth in the first place.

A reminder that Lakeview UMC wants to give you some things to think about before Christmas, and we’ll give you candy. And you’re welcome to tell friends. If you email LakeviewWVUMC@gmail.com we’ll make sure to add info for your friends. (Also email if you have particular candy allergies)

So the first Sunday of Advent was November 29, and we lit the candle of HOPE. Sunday December 6 is the second Sunday of Advent, and we light the candle of PEACE. Each week as we light an additional candle, we are “celebrating” the light coming into the world.

(Each Advent candle has a theme. The themes can be changed, but the basic set is the candle of HOPE, then PEACE, then JOY, then LOVE, followed by the Christ candle).

2.1. A reflection for the second week of Advent
Peace. That’s this week’s candle. But what does “peace” mean?

You might think that peace is the opposite of “war”, so maybe peace has to do with not killing each other or even fighting with each other. And that makes a certain amount of sense, but we can all imagine a home where there isn’t fighting, but there also isn’t peace. Peace is more than just an absence of conflict – peace includes an element of “wholeness,” of “original design,” of the way things are supposed to be.

The Hebrew word for that is “shalom” and it’s written like this: (inserted graphic of the word shalom in Hebrew)

(remember that Hebrew is written right to left. That W-looking part with the dot above it is pronounced SH, the character next to it is pronounced L, and the boxy character on the left is like M.)

(Here’s a thing you could do: copy that word a few times while thinking about peace. That could be part of your prayer today.)

Thinking about a home at shalom (hey that rhymes) it would be what it’s supposed to be. Not just a lack of conflict but the presence of a feeling of safety and belonging, of contentedness (contentedness is a deeper kind of happiness, I think). A home at shalom has love and warmth and no negative pressure.

There’ll be more about shalom in the next reflection, but now it’s your turn: what makes you feel comfortable, peaceful, contented? Try to write it down, or maybe draw it.

A prayer: Dear God, sometimes things are so busy and hectic. Let me rest in silence for a moment, with the knowledge that you are here and that you are good. Amen.

 

 

2.2. A reflection for the second week of Advent
“The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.”

Wait a minute, wasn’t this last week’s reflection? Well, yes, last week’s second reflection started that way. That verse is Isaiah chapter 9 verse 2, and last week we talked a bit about light and hope and the need for Advent.

The prophet Isaiah continues. Verse 6 says, “For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called ‘Wonderful,’ ‘Counselor,’ ‘Mighty God,’ ‘Everlasting Father,’ [and here’s the kicker:] ‘Prince of Peace.’”

Isaiah is speaking to a people who are living in a land where there are kings at war with each other. Not peace. Not shalom. Not the way things are supposed to be. And the people feel like this war is always going to be going on, like things are never going to get better.

Now I know you can relate with that. It sure seems like life will never be “normal” again, that not only will we always have to deal with COVID, but that there will always be some kind of fighting going on.

And that’s why we need Jesus. We believe Jesus is the Son of God, and that he is the Prince of Peace. We believe that a life where we pay attention to Jesus is going to give us peace inside, and if we have peace inside, we can pretty much put up with just about anything.

Isaiah, by the way, was telling those people that the wars would not last forever; in fact, God would be sending someone into the world soon – like in their lifetimes – and the wars they were experiencing would be no more.

And you guessed it, we’ll talk more about that later! And that leads us to another Advent prayer:

Dear God, it can be hard to believe that the world, my world, won’t always be messy. Thank you for hearing my prayer, and for teaching me to trust in you. You know what is really going on, and I am learning to trust that you are safe and you are good. Amen.

 

Remember: email or call the church or Pastor Kerry if you have questions, or want a Bible, or if you want to share this thing with a friend. We’ll get another reflection to you on Monday!

01Advent2020

(this is the text of a devotional pamphlet that was printed doublesided on 8.5 x 14 paper and delivered to local teens along with a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup)

Jesus is the REESEon for the Season!

You probably remember that the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas is Advent,
or at least you probably remember that there’s some church thing with candles and calendars in December, leading up to Christmas.

Lakeview UMC wants to hang out with you a bit during December, during Advent.
And by “hang out” I mean we want to give you some things to think about before Christmas. And we’ll give you candy.
But we want you to promise to think about these things more than once a week.
And you’re welcome to tell friends.
If you email LakeviewWVUMC@gmail.com we’ll make sure to add info for your friends.
(Also email if you have particular candy allergies)

So here’s what’s happening in the rest of this thing.

1. Advent – what is it?
2. What is Lakeview UMC going to be doing?
3. Reflection on the First Week of Advent

 

1. Advent – what is it?
Advent is a word that means “arrival”. In the church, it is the four Sundays before Christmas Day, and we get ready for the arrival of Jesus (more about that in point 3.2.) One of the ways we get ready is marking the weeks with candles. Other ways we get ready for the arrival of Jesus include singing Christmas carols, decorating Christmas trees, and putting up Christmas lights on the house or lawn. There’s more, but that gives you an idea.

The First Sunday of Advent is November 29, 2020.

p.s. the church lights a candle every Sunday in Advent, a light in the darkness.
The first candle is the candle of Hope.

p.p.s. Sometimes people use a calendar that has a chocolate or a sticker or something for every day leading up to Christmas. It’s a way of specially counting down the days.

 

2. What is Lakeview UMC going to be doing?
The folks at Lakeview UMC are making weekly craft packets for kids in the neighborhood, and we’ll be reading some Christmas stories on video (YouTube and Facebook), and we’ll be sharing this connection with teens in the area. Some church folks will hang out on the church lawn around 11am and 1:30pm on Mondays – when the schoolbus stops right outside – to give the craft packets out, and we plan on delivering these things to teens that we know about, also on Mondays.
You can contact Lakeview UMC by email (LakeviewWVUMC@gmail.com)
or phone (304-727-4681)
or find us on Facebook (www.Facebook.com/LUMCWV)
Kerry Bart is our pastor, and his email is Kerry.w.bart@gmail.com,
and his phone (610-304-5437).

By the way, if you would like a Bible, call, text, or email Pastor Kerry.

 

 

3.1. A reflection for the first week of Advent (some time around November 29)
There is a verse in the Bible that says “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.” That’s what the prophet Isaiah said about 2,500 years ago to the people living in Israel. You know, of course, that they weren’t *actually* walking in darkness, but that they lived in a time and a place that was pretty bleak. They didn’t have HOPE. I imagine it’s pretty easy to get a glimpse of that. Our lives have been turned upside-down by COVID19: school is so un-normal, we’re tired of video classes and masks, we might have family members who have died, it seems like things are never going to be normal again, the country is crazy about politics, and it’s literally dark at 5:30pm. Those are just a few things that might make us feel like we don’t have any hope.

The prophet Isaiah can speak to us today, too. What would it mean for you, given the hopelessness, the darkness I described, what would it mean for you to have a great light dawn on you? It might mean the opposite of some of those things: school back to normal, being able to be with friends and not have to worry about wearing a mask, the sun not setting until at least 7pm… That’s the hope of Advent. It’s the voice of God saying, “I know it’s dark now. I know you can’t see what’s coming. But trust me: there is good news on the way. Hang in there a little longer. It will not stay dark forever. There is good news coming.”

We’ll tell you that good news is Jesus, and we’ll talk more about that as the month goes along, but Jesus is the Reason for the Season, and he is like a light shining in our darkness, so hang in there.

 

A prayer: Dear God, thank you for the possibility of hope. Thank you that there are some people in this area that care about me. God, help me to get ready for your light coming into the world. Amen.

 

Look for things this week that make the darkness a little brighter.
Maybe you could even *be* the lightness that brightens someone else’s day!

 

 

3.2. A reflection for the first week of Advent (some time around December 2)
The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned.”
So the prophet Isaiah shared that good news like 2,500 years ago, and Jesus was born like 2,000 years ago, so how does Advent, “arrival” happen again? Good question.

There are three ways (at least) of looking at Advent.

One is that we read the Bible parts that talk about the arrival of Jesus. We read some of the prophets. We imagine what it might have been like for Mary (a teenage girl!) to be told she would give birth to Baby Jesus. We imagine what it might have been like for Joseph (engaged to Mary) to think about how he was going to provide for Mary and a baby that wasn’t exactly his. In Advent we think about what leads up to Christmas, about why God decided to send light into the world.

Another way we think about Advent is kind of crazy-sounding. When Jesus was a grown man, he told his friends that he was going to go away (he was talking about dying) and that he was going to come back. In fact after Jesus was raised from the dead and after he ascended into heaven, an angel told the people that Jesus would return (Acts chapter 1 verse 11). Since then, people have been wondering what that could be like, but we believe that Jesus is going to return to earth. It’ll be different than it was the first time. It might be terrifying, honestly, but we anticipate the arrival of Jesus by paying attention to his teachings, by sharing hope with other people, and by committing ourselves to God.

So we think about Advent in terms of when Jesus came into the world 2,000 years ago, and we think about Advent in terms of Jesus returning sometime in the future, and we can also think about Advent in terms of our personal relationship with Jesus. I mean, it’s one thing to say “okay, yeah, Jesus was born about 2,000 years ago” (that’s a fact – even people who don’t believe in God agree that Jesus was a real person), but it’s another thing entirely to realize, “My life is kind of messy, and truth be told, I’m not real good at running my life.” That’s exactly where the good news comes in. Jesus is alive, and we can be in relationship with Jesus now, and we can let the Son of God give direction to our lives. And that leads us to another Advent prayer:

Dear God, I’m learning about life. At least I think I am. And I know I could use some help, some direction. God, will you help me? Will you help me make decisions? Will you guide me? Will you do this through Jesus and through other people who follow him? Help me believe you will. Help me listen. Amen.

Remember: email or call the church or Pastor Kerry if you have questions, or want a Bible,
or if you want to share this thing with a friend. We’ll get another reflection to you on Monday!

We're On A Mission From God

Sunday, July 19, 2020

Seventh Sunday After Pentecost

Lakeview UMC (St. Albans WV)
and Humphreys Memorial UMC (Tornado WV)

Scripture Reading    

Romans 8:18-25   CEB

¹⁸ I believe that the present suffering is nothing compared to the coming glory
that is going to be revealed to us. ¹⁹ The whole creation waits breathless with anticipation for the revelation of God’s sons and daughters. ²⁰ Creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice—it was the choice of the one who subjected it—but in the hope ²¹ that the creation itself will be set free from slavery to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of God’s children. ²² We know that the whole creation is groaning together and suffering labor pains up until now. ²³ And it’s not only the creation. We ourselves who have the Spirit as the first crop of the harvest also groan inside as we wait to be adopted and for our bodies to be set free. ²⁴ We were saved in hope. If we see what we hope for, that isn’t hope. Who hopes for what they already see? ²⁵ But if we hope for what we don’t see, we wait for it with patience. ò

Sermon title: “We’re On A Mission From God”

This sermon outline was used for the worship service at each church.

Each church’s worship service was live cast on Facebook:

Lakeview UMC: https://www.facebook.com/LUMCWV/videos/556971758306051/?t=168

Humphrey’s Memorial UMC: https://www.facebook.com/humphreysmemorialunitedmethodistchurch/videos/803876540016333/?t=420

•  There were five planets visible this morning!

Three years ago on a visit to my hometown I was having breakfast with my father, who had turned 75 a few months earlier. He told me he’d ridden his bicycle at least twenty miles in every state he’d been in, and he just didn’t think he was ever going to get to Alaska. He had a route planned, though, if he were ever to make the trip: Anchorage’s Coastal Trail.

Well I conspired with my brothers and several months later, we four were riding on Anchorage’s Coastal Trail.

The Coastal Trail also hosts the Anchorage Light Speed Planetary Trail, which mimics a scale model of the solar system, with a leisurely walk being equivalent to the speed of light. It takes 8 min for sunlight to reach earth, therefore the model of earth was an 8 min walk from the model of the sun. Four blocks away.

Jupiter was 45 minutes away. Saturn 80 minutes. Uranus 160 minutes.
At a leisurely light-speed pace, it would take 5½ hrs to walk to Pluto. 10.3 miles. This was our bike ride.

• Interesting but why?
Paul writes the suffering we know now does not compare to the glory to come.
20000 seconds (5 and a half hours) for light to get from sun to Pluto.

• Creation groans, frustrated, awaiting the revelation of God’s kids.

Aspects of our world are broken.
Some things we can fix. Some we can’t.
But God who makes all things new, who made it all to begin with,
CAN fix, WANTS to fix, CHOOSES to fix. And INVITES us to participate.

• 1995 Toy Story Buzz Lightyear. On a secret mission in uncharted space.
defend the galaxy against the evil emperor zurg, sworn enemy of the galactic alliance.

Identified problem, commissioned address.

• Same. Again, we can’t fix, but God can, and God invites us to participate
God is more interested in our response (willingness) than our ability to fix.

• The response that glorifies God: Trust. Hope. Bear.
Scatter the seed.

• Hymn 382 (Lakeview) Have Thine Own Way
Hymn 421 (Humphreys) Make Me A Captive