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Brothers and sisters,

As I’m writing this article, the church is decorated for Vacation Bible School. The sanctuary is decorated with trains, mountains, trees, and a giant water tower. The choir room has been transformed into Ananias’ house for Bible stories (though that will change each night!). The fellowship hall’s windows have been painted with a train that is chugging on to a wonderful time! All of this in preparation for our adventure on the Rocky Railway, where Jesus’s power pulls us through!

I’m excited for the next four days of VBS as we come alongside these children and talk to them about our faith in God and the simple, but profound truth that Jesus can bring us through difficult times. I do want to add just one layer of shading to that theme. Part of the amazing power of Christ, the wondrous love of God, is that God is with us through these difficult times. Our faith tells us that not only does Jesus have the power to pull us through, he has the will to stand with us in the face of adversity. The presence of God is always with us. You’ve heard me say this before, but it always bears repeating—there is no problem, no crisis, no challenge that can scare God away. Nothing.

This week, pray for the children that are coming to our church. Pray that they would have fun, that they would make new friends, and that they would hear and remember that they are loved deeply by God. Pray for the volunteers. Pray that we would be able to encourage these children in their faith, that we would have ears to hear them and words to say to them. Pray for our feet and knees and backs, that we don’t shuffle into church on Sunday like zombies. Most of all, pray that God would be glorified in all of this and that God’s kingdom is served by this VBS.

Grace and peace,
Pastor Ben

Over the last few weekends, I’ve been spending a lot of time in some of our local art museums. Art museums interest me for a few reasons. One is simply that they are wonderful places to slow down and spend time thinking—about life, about faith, about what I’m going to eat for supper. Another reason is just that it is always amazing to me to go to a place where you can be surrounded by so much talent. The time and dedication these artists put into their work, not to mention their command over their tools and materials is inspiring! Finally, I love being surrounded by so many stories from so many different people. Whether the artist is telling their own story, telling their version of a familiar story, or speaking to some truth that is difficult to put into words, it is always incredible to me. I love the way the artists are willing to share themselves with people.

I tell you all that to introduce you to our next sermon series, “Faith and Art.” The series will start on July 3 and each sermon in it will draw inspiration from a piece of art that is currently on display at one of the three major art museums here in the Triangle: the Nasher in Durham, the Ackland in Chapel Hill, and the North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh. Each piece will be paired with a scripture passage that the artwork reminded me of, meaning that the sermon itself will be based on the scripture and the art will help to illustrate the themes of the sermon. I am not an art expert by any stretch of the imagination, but I am a firm believer that art can speak to what it means to be human. I think that can pair beautifully with the scriptures because God so consistently tells people that we are loved, that we bear God’s image, that we are precious to God. God knows what it means to be human and speaks to that experience.

One of the major components of this sermon series that I would encourage everyone to participate in is simply to go and see the pieces we’ll be talking about. Some of the pieces are huge (paintings taller than me!) and their size helps communicate their message. Some of the pieces are highly textured and the hardness or softness of the medium speaks to the artist’s ideas. All the pieces that I’ll be talking about are available in the parts of each museum that are free to the public. If you cannot make it in person, you can go to each museum’s website and look up the pieces (websites at article’s end).

All that being said, the first piece we will be looking at on July 3rd is at the Ackland Art Museum in Chapel Hill. It is entitled, “Aligned by the Sun” and it was created by a team of artists known as Ghost of a Dream. It is a simple piece, but it has a message of unity that will go wonderfully with that first sermon. The reason I mention it now is because it is only on display through July 3rd, meaning if you’d like to see it in person, you’ve only got about two weeks!

I’m looking forward to this series and the insights into our faith we can gain through this art.
Grace and peace,
Pastor Ben

Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University— nasher.duke.edu
The Ackland Art Museum at UNC-Chapel Hill—ackland.org
North Carolina Museum of Art—ncartmuseum.org

Brothers and sisters,

It is hard to believe it, but June is upon us! The (very) high temperatures are becoming more regular and the sun is shining longer and longer each day. To me at least, it feels like Easter was just a couple weeks ago, not a month and a half! But as the Easter season comes to a close this Sunday we are invited, as a church, to contemplate the arrival of the Holy Spirit and what that arrival means for us as Christians. There are three main symbols used by the church to reflect on Pentecost and what it means.

The first symbol is a flame. Drawing on the story from Acts 2 when the Holy Spirit descended on the disciples as tongues of fire, the church has used fire imagery to symbolize the arrival of the Spirit. The church talks about the Holy Spirit “lighting a fire” in us to go and do the work of the kingdom. You’ll hear people say they have a “burning passion” for something. Famously, John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, spoke of attending a church service and having his “heart strangely warmed.” That moment renewed his faith and spurred him to continue to preach. The Holy Spirit creates a kind of energy that fire represents so beautifully — strong and persistent.

The second symbol you’ll see on Sunday is a dove. This is actually a symbol that gets moved from where it originally started over to Pentecost. The dove descending from heaven comes to us from Christ’s baptism in Matthew 3. Jesus goes down into the waters of baptism, led by John the Baptist, and as he emerges from the waters, “suddenly the heavens were opened to him and he saw God’s Spirit descending like a dove and alighting on him” (Matthew 3:16). And so the dove comes to us as a heavenly symbol of the Holy Spirit’s presence.

Finally, you’ll notice a lot of red in the sanctuary on Sunday. The paraments, the scarf on the cross, even Amy’s and my stoles will all be red. On the surface, the red symbolism is pretty simple — it hearkens back to the tongues of fire. Heat and fire can be represented by the color red. But for a long time now, the color red, as a liturgical color, has symbolized a desire for justice. It has come to represent the arrival of God’s Spirit, yes, but also a church that speaks up for those whose voices are ignored. I particularly like this symbol because I think it speaks to the main point of the Pentecost story. Yes, the Holy Spirit descends upon the disciples with power, in the form of flaming tongues. God’s presence is reestablished with them, but the Spirit then immediately sends them out into the world to care for people. The Spirit immediately sends them out to continue Christ’s ministry. It does not descend upon them for no reason! The Holy Spirit comes to guide them to the people who are hurting and give them power to help them.

As we come to Pentecost this year, seek the Spirit’s presence in your own life. Who may the Spirit be calling you to? How might God be calling you to help those people? Jesus’s ministry was centered around his conviction that every person was a child of God. How is the Spirit leading you to continue that ministry?

I look forward to seeing all of you on Sunday in your brightest red!

Grace and peace,
Pastor Ben