church

Rejoicing Together Again

/ pastorpete51 / 2 Comments

Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you? Psalm 85:6 ESV

During the pandemic many of us began to get just a small taste of the loneliness that those living in long term care face daily. During the height of the lockdowns people rarely left home and when forced to go out, there was both social distancing, as well as the wearing of masks making everyone seem anonymous. Some of us dealt with the isolation by watching endless reruns, others rearranged the furniture or put together 1,000-piece puzzles. While these activities distracted us for a while, our problem was that God created us for community. We were created to share life together. Now, after more than a year of social separation many of us have forgotten how to connect. The good news is that God has a restoration plan. Notice that today’s reading focuses on the word “Us”. Just as the Lord’s Prayer begins with, “Our Father”. This Psalm of David begins with the cry, “Revive us!”

His prayer reminds me of a story my father told me of his time in the war. During the invasion of Anzio his landing craft was hit with a bomb. His ship exploded and he along with everyone on aboard were thrown into the sea. Dad only remembered beginning to swim and then losing consciousness. Later he woke up on the beach with a severe head wound. His unit had been separated by death and destruction, and yet his healing took place in a hospital, surrounded by other people. That is what God has for us today as well. He has a plan to revive and restore each one of us. No bombs that have separated us in this battle can destroy God’s plan. If we put our trust in Him, our wounds will heal and by His grace we can rejoice together again!

Like a Home Coming!

/ pastorpete51 / 2 Comments

On my first time into Watermark Assisted Living since the beginning of the pandemic, it was great hearing my friends sing, taking their requests for songs and finding out that one elderly lady took on leading Bible studies once a week since they had been closed down. We often hear or even say things about God being in control but it is amazing to actually see how He has been doing it!

Here I am visiting after the service. We actually had a full room during our time of singing and prayer

Here is a photo of just visiting with some of my friends at Watermark after church. The room was almost full during our first church meeting we have had after 14 months of COVID. What a blessing. If you have been vaccinated, live in the North Tampa area and would like to help out let me know. For now we have been invited to meet every other Sunday at 11 AM. God has been faithful! So much to tell but space will not allow here!

An Inheritance of Prayer

/ pastorpete51 / 1 Comment

To an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you. 1 Peter 1:4 ESV

Recently Dave from Dave’s Daily Dose wrote on the subject of solemn assembly. For those not aquatinted with solemn assembly, it is a meeting something like a prayer vigil involving an entire church. I remarked that I remembered prayer vigils -vigílias de oraçãoes- at our Brazilian church where we served on staff for about 14 years. When Dave challenged me to write about it, in spite of my fear of diving into the deep end of the subject, I had to accept his double dog dare!

But to explain the unique experience of a vigília will take at least two posts. Today, I will just offer a little glimpse of what the Brazilian church in America is like. Like a fish being unaware of water because he is in, none of us really understands our own cultural inheritance and the Brazilian community is no exception. So f there are any Brazilians out there in my reading audience, I apologize if I am over simplifying, but if I were to start with a single word, it would be saudade – roughly translated homesick. Though saudade may fade after many years here in America, it is never truly absent and it touches every part of life. It effects who you work with, what food you cook, who you tell your secrets to and most of all how you pray. Saudade includes a deep longing for things that are far beyond our control and forces us into a desperate dependence on God.

But when we as Americans think of prayer we think of our devotional time, our prayer closet and time alone with Jesus. But Brazilians almost never do anything alone. If somebody has a baby, not only the entire family, but also half the neighborhood shows up at the maternity room to visit! Communion at church often included all of us crowded around the front to receive it together. Birthday parties for a one year old featured more than half the church showing up of every age and of course lots of food!

This is me with the youth after church

When the church was healthy, that same togetherness happened when we went to prayer. In fact, that unhurried time at the altar with people all around each asking for God’s help, was the single greatest attraction of us when we began attending. That intensity of community prayer was and is a special part of the inheritance that God has given the Brazilian church and the single greatest reason we remained through thick and thin for so long.

Tomorrow, I promise I’ll dive straight into what it is like being a part of my favorite -vigília de oração of the year – New Years Eve, so stay tuned and have a blessed week!