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			Scripture: 
			
			Exodus 17:2-6 
			(NLT) - "So once more the people complained against Moses.  
			'Give us water to drink!' they demanded.  'Quiet!' Moses 
			replied.  'Why are you complaining against me?  And why 
			are you testing the Lord?' But tormented by thirst, they 
			continued to argue with Moses.  'Why did you bring us out of 
			Egypt?  Are you trying to kill us, our children, and our 
			livestock with thirst?' Then Moses cried out to the Lord, 
			'What should I do with these people?  They are ready to stone 
			me!' The Lord said to Moses, 'Walk out in front of the people.  
			Take your staff, the one you used when you struck the water of the 
			Nile, and call some of the elders of Israel to join you.  I 
			will stand before you on the rock at Mount Sinai.  Strike the 
			rock, and water will come gushing out.  Then the people will be 
			able to drink.' So Moses struck the rock as he was told, and 
			water gushed out as the elders looked on." 
			
			Message: 
			The people of 
			Israel spent more time in the wilderness than they wanted to.  
			As someone who has traveled in the Sinai Peninsula I can tell you 
			the conditions are rough, dry, rocky, and the sun is blazing. 
			
			The wilderness wasn't just a place for the people 
			of Israel.  It was also their state of mind.  They were 
			not ready to move into the promised land.  After God led them 
			out of slavery, across the Red Sea in front of Pharaoh's army, and 
			on the way to their new future they still had not learned to trust 
			God.  Without trust it is hard for a relationship to grow. 
			
			The Season of Lent can feel like a wilderness.  
			We are preparing ourselves to enter God's promise of the 
			resurrection of Jesus Christ.  During this season I challenge 
			you to ask God for living water as the anxious people of Israel did 
			and to ask God for the faith of Moses who believed God is at work 
			even when it doesn't feel like it. 
			
			Prayer: 
			Lord Jesus, give us 
			faith to trust You even when we are in the wilderness and when we 
			are thirsty.  Lead us Lord into Your coming promise.  
			Amen. 
			
			Pastor Mike Luzinski 
			
			Spring of Life United Methodist Church 
			Orlando, Florida 
			
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			Scripture: 
			Genesis 32:24-30 (NIV Extract) – “Jacob was left alone, and a 
			man wrestled with him till daybreak….  Then the man said, ‘Let me 
			go, for it is daybreak.’ But Jacob replied, ‘I will not let you go 
			unless you bless me.’…. Then the man said, ‘Your name will no 
			longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and 
			with humans and have overcome.’…. Then he blessed him (Jacob) 
			there.  So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, ‘It is 
			because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.’”
			 
			
			(Please read the entire text in your Bible)
			
			
			
			Message: 
			When I think of Advent, I imagine a cool night, sitting wrapped in a 
			blanket, gazing at the stars. Maybe it is because we are told the 
			birth of Jesus happened at night and the shepherds were watching 
			their flocks and the magi followed the stars. In the season of 
			Advent, I imagine myself in a spiritual place of darkness. Not the 
			kind of darkness that is helpless and hopeless. The kind of 
			darkness that brings peace and tranquility… that allows us to stop 
			seeing for a moment, and instead focus on our other senses: feeling, 
			hearing, smell. Many of us are not so good at sitting still and 
			making peace with the darkness. We have come to fear the dark 
			because it is filled with unknown, rather than approach it with 
			curiosity about what it could birth in us.  
			
			 
			One of my favorite 
			scriptures is when Jacob wrestles with God. Jacob has some inner 
			work to do after stealing his brother’s birthright. He wrestles 
			with God in the dark the night before he is to meet his brother 
			after decades of being apart. He probably pokes God in the eye and 
			grabs at God’s ear, trying to see and understand. We know after his 
			night of wrestling, Jacob leaves with a limp and a new name. I 
			wonder what it would look like to make peace with ourselves in the 
			dark… and how that would change who we are in the light.  
			
			Prayer: 
			Holy God, You were 
			born and so often revealed to us in the dark of night. Help us to 
			make friends with the dark and see it as a place of transformation, 
			rather than a place of shame and fear. And then, when we are ready, 
			draw us into the newness of light. Amen. 
			
			Pastor Madeline 
			Luzinski 
			
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					Scripture: 
					Revelation 21:1-5a (CEB) – “Then I saw a new heaven and a 
					new earth, for the former heaven and the former earth had 
					passed away, and the sea was no more. I saw the holy city, 
					New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made 
					ready as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband….. God 
					himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away 
					every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more. There 
					will be no mourning, crying, or pain anymore, for the former 
					things have passed away. Then the one seated on the throne 
					said, ‘Look! I’m making all things new.’”   
					
					
					Please read the full text in your Bible. 
					
					
					
					Message: 
			Sometimes there are things in our lives that happen and we wish they 
			had not.  Maybe a friend said something hurtful and you are not sure 
			you can keep being friends with them.  Maybe someone you know is 
			very sick and you want them to get better.  When these things 
			happen, we sometimes wish that we could make things go back to the 
			way they were before.  Often times that is not possible.  Instead, 
			God uses the parts of our lives that feel broken and creates 
			something new with them.  God gives us new life. 
					
					Family Activity:  Supplies: 2-3 
			pieces of different colored paper; 1 piece of white paper; tape.  
			Take one piece of colored paper and tear it into small pieces.  Then 
			try to tape it back together.  You might be able to do it, but it 
			will never look exactly like the piece of paper you started with.  
			Tear up the other two pieces of colored paper.  This time instead of 
			trying to make them look like they used to, use the pieces to make a 
			new picture by taping them onto the white sheet of paper.  Maybe you 
			make a butterfly, a flower, a beach scene, or whatever comes into 
			your imagination.  This is what God is able to do with the broken 
			parts of our lives.  God is able to take them and make them into 
			something new and something beautiful! 
					
					Prayer: 
			God, Help us to see the ways You are taking the difficult parts of 
			our lives and making something new from them.  Amen. 
					
					Pastor Madeline 
			Luzinski  
					
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								Scripture: 
								
								Jeremiah 18:1-6 (NRSV) - "The word that came to 
								Jeremiah from the Lord: 'Come, go down to the 
								potter's house, and there I will let you hear my 
								words.' So I went down to the 
								potter's house, and there he was working at his 
								wheel.  The vessel he was making of clay 
								was spoiled in the potter's hand, and he 
								reworked it into another vessel, as seemed good 
								to him.  Then the word of the Lord came to 
								me: 'Can I not do with you, O house of Israel, 
								just as this potter has done?' says the 
								Lord.  'Just like the clay in the potter's 
								hand, so are you in my hand, O house of 
								Israel.'" 
			
			
			
			Message: 
			
			Lent is a season of reflection and spiritual growth.  I have 
			found in my life that when I am growing I am often 
			uncomfortable.  When I read the words of the prophet Jeremiah 
			my first thought is, "ouch!" I t must hurt to be the clay being 
			reshaped.  It must be uncomfortable to be one shape and then be 
			bludgeoned into another shape.  The hands of the potter can be 
			forceful. 
			
			
			I have had seasons of my life where I felt dizzy and bruised from 
			being spun and shaped on the potter's wheel, 2020 was one of those 
			seasons.  Being a follower of Jesus is sometimes an experience 
			of being on the potter's wheel.  It requires deep hope and 
			faith to remember that the outcome of the banging and the reshaping 
			is something better than before.  I've experienced, God working 
			through experiences of pain, grief, and conflict to make me a better 
			vessel of the Holy Spirit. 
			
			
			Being a useful vessel of the Holy Spirit is at the core of a life of 
			faith.  May the Holy Spirit flow through us so that we can 
			share the life transforming Grace of God.  May God use this 
			season of Lent to shape us if we are in need of reshaping. 
			
			
			
			Prayer: 
			
			Lord we submit ourselves to be shaped by You.  We know this is 
			a lifelong process and we know it is uncomfortable.  Lord give 
			us the grace to be shaped by the potter's wheel.  Amen. 
			
			
			Pastor Mike Luzinski 
			
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			Scripture: 
			1 Timothy 3:16 (NRSV) – “Without any doubt, the mystery of our 
			religion is great: He Jesus) was revealed in flesh, vindicated in 
			spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among Gentiles, believed in 
			throughout the world, taken up in glory.” 
			
			
			Message: 
			Mystery can be fun when you’re reading a novel, watching a movie, or 
			in an escape room.  At other times, mystery can be 
			demoralizing, confusing, and draining.  Lent is a season of 
			mystery and waiting.  Growing up in church, I was taught that 
			everything was black and white, good or bad.  I confess that as 
			I first started to study more deeply I thought divine mystery was 
			just a way people tried to sound smart while saying “I don’t know”.  
			As I’ve grown in my faith I believe that leaning into the mystery of 
			God is a key part of what it means to be a follower of Jesus.   
			
			Lent is a perfect 
			time to contemplate the mystery of faith.  After all, it 
			wouldn’t be faith if we understood everything.  There are a lot 
			of things I learned about in seminary that I still don’t understand.  
			I confess to you that I went to seminary thinking that I would learn 
			the answers to all of my questions.  I left with more questions 
			and better questions.  I still don’t understand how Jesus is 
			totally human and totally divine.  I still don’t understand how 
			resurrection works but I believe it to be true.   
			
			It took me a long 
			time to accept that not having an answer was alright.  I think 
			I struggled with the emotional side of the question.  Admitting 
			that I didn’t have an answer made me feel powerless and small.  
			Maybe those feelings lead us towards humility and open us to be 
			better vessels of God’s grace.  During this season of Lent may 
			we reflect on God’s mystery and be at peace when we don’t have all 
			the answers.  
			 
			
			
			Prayer: God, 
			You are mysterious and You reveal Yourself to us each day.  
			Lord give us grace to serve You even when we don’t fully understand.  
			Amen.   
			
			Pastor Mike 
			Luzinski
			 
			
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			Tuesday April 21, 2020 
			
			
			
			
			
		
			
	
			 - 
				"The Connection" Series 
			
			
			Hope In Dust 
			
			 
			by Mike 
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			Scripture: 
			
			Genesis 3:19b 
			(NRSV) – “you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” 
			
			
			Message: This scripture draws our collective gaze back to Ash 
			Wednesday, when we courageously acknowledge the reality that we will 
			all face death.  Reminding ourselves of the truth of our mortality 
			prepares us for resurrection.  New life comes after death.  During 
			this difficult season we are reminded each day of the small deaths 
			we are experiencing.  Those small deaths hurt.  We are not able to 
			go out or gather at church as we normally do.  Some of us are 
			experiencing even more painful things, like not being able to be 
			with your family member while she in hospice.  These are difficult, 
			dark, and painful times that we are all going through. 
			
			In 
			the midst of it all, may we hold on to the good news that God is 
			with us and death is never the end of the story.  There is always 
			new life springing forth out of the ground, especially in this 
			season of spring.  This resurrection truth reminds me of my 
			grandmother’s favorite hymn. When she was alive I never understood 
			why she liked it so much, but now that she is gone I am beginning to 
			see what she saw. 
			
			
			“In our end is our beginning; In our time, infinity; 
			In our doubt there is believing; In our life, eternity, 
			In our death, a resurrection; At the last, a victory,  
			Unrevealed until its season, 
			Something God alone can see.” 
			
			
			(Hymn of Promise: Words & Music by Natalie A Sleeth, 1982© Hope 
			Publishing Company) 
			
			
			Activity: 
			
			Today 
			spend time paying attention to where new life is springing forth.  
			Take a walk around your neighborhood and make a list of all the 
			places you see new life. 
			
			
			Prayer: Let’s pray, Lord Jesus we confess that we are suffering and 
			hurting. We feel it in ourselves, in those we love, and in our 
			world.  Pour out your Holy Spirit on us so we may have the vision to 
			see resurrection in the midst of the ashes.  Amen. 
			
			
			Pastor Mike Luzinski 
			
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			Scripture: 
			Ephesians 1:17-19 (NRSV) – “I 
			pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may 
			give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know 
			him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know 
			what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of 
			his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the 
			immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to 
			the working of his great power.”  
			
			
			Message: 
			Lately many people have been feeling out of control.  The things I 
			want to change the most in my life are the things I can’t control; I 
			wish I could end the pandemic, I wish I could give jobs to those who 
			are unemployed, I wish I could bring healing to those who are sick 
			and scared to go to a hospital.  It can be easy to feel helpless and 
			dejected believing there is nothing I can do.  That feeling is real 
			but the idea behind it is a lie.  The apostle Paul reminds us we 
			have hope in God’s power.  He implores us to hold on to “the hope to 
			which God has called you” and rest in the “immeasurable greatness of 
			God’s power.” This is good news!   
			
			How do we hold 
			on to hope and rest in God’s power?  In my experience, the first 
			step is admitting I am out of control.  This can be done through 
			prayer or a conversation.  I often admit my powerlessness out loud, 
			“God I can’t control the pandemic.” That liberates me to ask God 
			for help.  Once I’ve given the heavy lifting over to God, I am free 
			to direct my time and energy on smaller things I can control.  
			Instead of solving the pandemic, I can lament for those who are 
			hurting, be a good friend who listens, and affirm the feelings of 
			those who need support.  May we be beacons of hope for one another 
			shining the light of Christ in the midst of the darkness.  
			 
			
			
			Prayer: 
			Lord Jesus give us grace to accept our feelings of being overwhelmed 
			so that we can place our hope in Your faithfulness and power.  We 
			trust You are at work in the midst of everything going on.  Amen. 
			 
			
			
			Pastor Mike Luzinski 
			
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			Pearl Harbor Day, Monday, December 7, 2020 
			
			
			
			Incarnate Love 
			
			 
			by Mike 
			
			
			79
			years since the Japanese bombed 
			Pearl Harbor 
				
			
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			Scripture: 
			Ephesians 3:8-10 (NRSV) – “Although 
			I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given to me to 
			bring to the Gentiles the news of the boundless riches of 
			Christ, and to make everyone see what is the plan of the mystery 
			hidden for ages in God who created all things; so that through the 
			church the wisdom of God in its rich variety might now be made known 
			to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.”  
			
			
			Message: 
			This year I feel tired of waiting to enter into the season of 
			Advent.  Why do we have to continue to practice waiting?  I’ve been 
			waiting since March for things to get better and that experience has 
			been far from satisfactory.  We must remind ourselves what we are 
			waiting for during the season of Advent, the birth of Jesus Christ! We celebrate the birth of Jesus as the precise moment of 
			incarnation.  God’s love is made tangible in human form.  Can you 
			think of what incarnates the love of God today?  
			
			 
			The church, we the 
			body of Christ exist to make God’s love tangible and we are waiting 
			expectantly to celebrate the good news of the gospel and we are 
			taking the opportunity to live it out.  The apostle Paul challenged 
			the church to embody the love of Jesus.  My challenge to you during 
			this season of Advent is the same.  Remember that you and I have a 
			great gift to share, “the boundless riches of Christ.” God’s love 
			is coming and it is worth waiting for.  The healing power of love is 
			always just around the corner.   
			
			
			Prayer: 
			God we come to You today remembering that Your love is made tangible 
			through Jesus. Lord Jesus open my heart to receive Your love that I 
			may be a vessel of Your love to others.  Amen.  
			
			Pastor Mike 
			Luzinski  
			
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			Friday, March 29, 2019 
			
			
			Vessels 
			 
			by Mike  | 
			 
		 
	 
	
		
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								Scripture: 
								
								1 Corinthians 
								1:26-29 (NIV) – "Brothers and sisters, think of 
								what you were when you were called.  Not 
								many of you were wise by human standards; not 
								many were influential; not many were of noble 
								birth.  But God chose the foolish things of 
								the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak 
								things of the world to shame the strong. God 
								chose the lowly things of this world and the 
								despised things and the things that are not - to 
								nullify the things that are, so that no one may 
								boast before him." 
								
								
								Message: 
								My wife would 
								tell you, I qualify as "not wise by human 
								standards" or maybe even "foolish." Maybe 
								you qualify too!  I love this passage 
								because it reminds me that ministry is not about 
								you or me.  It is about what God is doing!  
								We're a part of it, but it is about God's Spirit 
								flowing through us to bless others.  In the 
								process, we are blessed.  The best metaphor 
								I've heard is that we are often like a cracked 
								cup that has been glued back together.  If 
								we are facing God, then we are able to be filled 
								up when God's Spirit is poured out (maybe we've 
								had times when our cup is facing upside down, 
								that can get messy quickly).  When we 
								receive the gift of God's Spirit we are able to 
								be poured out in a way that benefits the people 
								around us. 
								
								
								Prayer: 
								Holy Spirit of 
								God, be poured out during this season of Lent. 
								Open our hearts to receive the gift You so 
								freely give, not for our own benefit but to 
								share with the people You have placed in our 
								lives. Amen. 
								
								 Pastor Mike Luzinski 
								
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			Scripture: Judges 2:11, 16 (NRSV) - "Then the 
			Israelites did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and worshiped 
			the Baals"; "Then the Lord raised up judges, who 
			delivered thorn out of the power of those who plundered them." 
			
			
			Message: 
			
			How many of you have thought to yourself, "I will never do that when 
			I'm a parent." If you're like me, you have also realized you are 
			more similar to your parents than you first thought. Sometimes we 
			even live into family cycles whether we realize it or not. Some of 
			these patterns are harmless but others can be quite serious. 
			
			
			Sometimes we can just go through the motions of celebrating 
			Christmas without ever realizing that Jesus came to earth to break 
			our old patterns of sin and death. God came to shine light In the 
			middle of cyclical darkness. Christmas isn't the first time God has 
			disrupted a pattern of human behavior. Like any good parent, God 
			has done this before. 
			
			
			The book of Judges describes Israel's cycle of violence and falling 
			away from God. God raises up leaders to move them out of that dark 
			place, but somehow the cycle keeps repeating, Jesus came to break 
			the cycle of violence and apostasy permanently. When Jesus came to 
			earth, He experienced violence and replied with nonviolence, thus 
			inviting humanity into a new way of being.  
			
			
			This Advent Jesus Invites 
			us to break the harmful cycles we too easily get trapped in. What 
			pattern do you find yourself falling into? How can the Holy Spirit 
			empower you to embrace God's grace by breaking the cycle? 
			
			
			Prayer: 
			
			God, Your incarnation breaks the cycles of
			violence. Remind us that Your Grace calls us into a new way of being, 
			centered on the Hope, Love, Joy and Peace of God. Amen. 
			
			
			
			Pastor Mike Luzinski 
			
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			Wednesday, March 28, 2018 
			
			
			
			Amen 
			
			
			 
			by Mike  | 
			 
		 
	 
	
		
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			Scripture: 
			
			Isaiah 43:18-19, (NRSV) - "Do not remember the former things, or 
			consider the things of old.  I am about to do a new thing; now 
			it springs forth, do you not perceive it?  I will make a way in 
			the wilderness and rivers in the desert." 
			
			
			Message: 2018 will be a year of new things for many of us 
			at Asbury: new neighbors, a new pastor, and many more.  Some 
			people say a new thing is better than an old one, but I don't agree.  
			Sometimes, old things are preferable, like a well-worn Bible or a 
			vintage bottle of wine. 
			
			How do we balance the old with the new?  How 
			do we create space to hold onto our history and be open to new 
			things?  Lent is the perfect time to pray and reflect on these 
			questions. 
			
			When I first read these words of Isaiah, I was 
			troubled.  Forgetting the things of old doesn't seem like a 
			good strategy for moving forward.  What does the prophet mean? 
			
			Here’s one possibility: 
			if we hold on too tightly to the former things, we won’t be able to 
			grasp the new.  We must have free hands for the ministry God has 
			called us to do, because Easter is ongoing and transformative.  It 
			occurs when an addict is set free, when miraculous healing 
			takes place, and when a broken relationship is restored.  
			
			As we prepare our hearts for Easter, may we make 
			the space to see and perceive the ongoing resurrection of Christ. 
			
			Prayer: God, You bring the dead to life.  
			You are the God of miracles; use me and use Asbury to bring forth 
			Your resurrection.  Amen. 
			
			
			Pastor Mike Luzinski 
			
			
 
			
			
 
			
			
 
			
			
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			Scripture: 
			
			Isaiah 55:1-2
			
			
			(NRSV) – ““Come, 
			everyone who thirsts, come to
			the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! 
			Come, buy wine and milk without money and without
			price. Why do you 
			spend your money for that which
			is not bread and your labor for that which does not satisfy? 
			Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves 
			in rich food” 
			
			Message: 
			I love 
			watching a child rip through wrapping paper with a gleeful laugh and 
			excitement in their eyes.  The pure joy of the experience is 
			beautiful. 
			
			On the other hand, one of my least favorite 
			aspects of Christmas is the rampant commercialism and chaos at the 
			Altamonte Mall. 
			
			In the midst of all this noise, the prophet Isaiah 
			speaks: "Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you 
			that have no money, come, buy and eat!  Come, buy wine and milk 
			without money and without price.  Why do you spend your money 
			for that which is not bread and your labor for that which does not 
			satisfy?  Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good, and 
			delight yourselves in rich food." (Isaiah 55:1-2) 
			
			Most of us are guilty of buying things that do not 
			satisfy.  But people have been doing the same thing throughout 
			history.  Modern Americans just found better ways to market the 
			purchasing of what doesn't satisfy us.  So I have a 
			question for you: "Have you stopped and asked God to show you what 
			things really satisfy?" 
			
			During this season of Advent, ask God to help you 
			be intentional about how you spend your precious resources of time, 
			energy, and money- each an amazing gift. 
			
			Prayer: 
			God, as we 
			celebrate Your incarnation this Christmas, show me how I can live 
			more faithfully.  To what might I need to say no to in the new 
			year?  For what might I need to carve out more time in my 
			schedule?  In Christ's name. Amen. 
			
			
			Mike Luzinski 
			
			
 
			
			
 
			
			
 
			
			
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			Scripture: 
			Romans 8:22 
			- "We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains 
			of childbirth right up to the present time." 
			
			Message: Have you been 
			groaning during Lent?  In this season, we are working to 
			prepare our hearts for Easter.  We are anticipating the great 
			change that happens when Christ comes.  Yet, there is tension.  
			Christ already came, Christ already rose, and the world is still 
			really messed up. 
			
			Paul is wrestling with a deep theological question 
			in this passage.  He asks, how can we hope in a good God who 
			created a good world when we see brokenness and sin all around us?  
			How do we make sense of the truth that God is present while also 
			facing the reality of intense suffering in the world around us? 
			
			Paul helps us bridge the disconnect between the 
			pain we see on the news and the good things we know God is doing.  
			Paul makes the argument that the discouraging suffering we see is 
			only the beginning of something new.  Those things are just the 
			birth pangs of what God is doing.  This is a source of hope 
			that reminds me of a conversation I had with my mother.  She 
			told me that the hope and joy of having a child helped her cope with 
			the pain of childbirth.  This was especially true for my 
			younger brother, and this is precisely what Paul is saying.  We 
			should have hope because this present suffering is the labor working 
			towards a new creation. 
			
			Prayer: Lord Jesus, give us 
			the hope to anticipate Your resurrection when we can only see pain 
			and suffering.  Amen. 
			
			
			Pastor Mike Luzinski 
			
			
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			Wednesday, April 5, 2017 
			& Thursday, 
			November 19, 2020  
			- 
			"The Connection" Series
			
			
			
			
			
			Salvation Begins Today 
			
			 
			by Mike  | 
			 
		 
	 
	
		
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			Scripture: 
			Luke 23:42-43 (NRSV) – “Then he 
			[the thief on the 
			cross] said, ‘Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.’ 
			He replied, ‘Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in 
			Paradise.’” 
			
			Message: 
			Jesus speaks these words to the thief while being crucified.  Stop 
			and think about that.  God was still listening to sinners while He 
			was dying.  God was extending the grace of salvation in the midst of 
			the brutality of the cross.  These actions of Jesus reveal a lot 
			about who God is.   
			
			The cross has 
			become a symbol of love.  When we look at it we are reminded that 
			not even sin and death could come between God and us.  Yet, this 
			story raises a fundamental question that we can meditate on during 
			this season of Lent.  "When does salvation begin?"  In this story, salvation 
			began “today,” before Jesus was resurrected! 
			
			I have 
			studied different atonement theories, and other scholarly works on 
			the death and resurrection of Christ.  Salvation is a miracle in the 
			same way that the resurrection of Christ is a miracle.  This miracle 
			is a Holy mystery, and we will never know exactly how God blots out 
			our sins and restores us to relationship with our Creator.  I bet 
			the thief on the cross wasn’t thinking about atonement theory.  He 
			was thinking about being united with God in that moment and 
			forevermore.  Maybe that is what we should be thinking about, too.  
			When we prepare our hearts during this season of Lent, may we begin by 
			finding hope and strength in the promise that our salvation has 
			already begun.  When we celebrate the resurrection at Easter we are 
			celebrating once again God’s promise that salvation begins here and 
			now.   
			
			Prayer: 
			Jesus, remind us that our relationship with You starts here on 
			earth and so does our salvation.  Amen. 
			
			Pastor 
			Mike Luzinski 
			
			
			(first published in 2017) 
			
			
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			Scripture: 
			Genesis 15:8-10 (ESV) -
			
			
			“But he [Abram] said, ‘O Lord God, how am I to know that I shall 
			possess it?’ He [God] said to him, 
			‘Bring me a heifer three 
			years old, a female goat three years
			old, a ram three years old,
			a turtledove, and 
			a young pigeon.’ And he brought him all these, cut them
			in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he 
			did not cut the birds in half.” 
			
			 Genesis 15:8-10, 17-18a 
			(ESV) - 
			
			“When 
			
			the sun had gone down and 
			it was dark,
			behold, a
			smoking fire pot and 
			a flaming torch passed between these pieces. On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, ‘To your 
			offspring I give this land,’”  
			
			
			
			Message: 
			God promises
			Abram descendants
			and land, 
			but Abram has a question as recorded in 
			Genesis 15:8 “O Lord God, how am I to know that I shall 
			possess it?” After Abram carried out God’s instructions, 
			
			God made a covenant with Abram. This is one of my favorite Bible 
			stories because it shows
			us just how much God
			loved Abram,
			and how much God 
			loves us, as Abram's descendants. 
			
			Why does God make this covenant? Surely, He knows 
			the most likely outcome is 
			that Abram, and his descendants, will let Him down. And that makes 
			God’s promise—and His faithfulness—all the more marvellous. 
			
			God confirms this ancient contract with
			Abram by essentially agreeing to pay the price if we fail to 
			hold up our end. In other words, God says, “I’m willing to suffer
			and die so that I can be in relationship with you, even if you 
			don’t want to be in 
			relationship with Me.” This story is the purest articulation of
			the gospel I can find in the Bible. 
			
			During this season of Advent, may we revel and 
			rejoice in the perfect 
			love God extends to us. The perfect love that was born humbly into a 
			manger. 
			
			God was willing to leave heaven and become fully 
			human to be in relationship with us. And that love is something to 
			celebrate! 
			
			
			
			Prayer: 
			God, Your love
			for us extends 
			beyond our capacity to receive it.
			Draw us deeper into relationship with You this Advent. Amen. 
			
			
			Pastor Mike Luzinski 
			
			
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			 Scripture: 
			Genesis 12:1- "Now the 
			Lord said to Abram, 'Go from your country and your kindred and your 
			father's house to the land that I will show you.'" 
			Message: God called Abraham to 
			go.  To leave the comfort of his life.  He was 75 years 
			old when God called him to leave the land of Haran, the land where 
			he lived for a long time.  God made a covenant with Abraham and 
			through him blessed every person on earth.  I bet it was hard 
			for Abraham to leave, but look at what God did in and through his 
			obedience. 
			As we anticipate Jesus Christ leaving 
			heaven and taking on human flesh, it is good to remember that God 
			has been working to restore human relationship with God for a long 
			time.  God worked when Abraham went.  What is God calling 
			you to go and do? 
			Prayer: Redeeming God, we pray 
			that you would empower us to answer the calling you place on each of 
			our lives so that we might be faithful like Abraham.  Amen. 
			Reverend Mike Luzinski 
			
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Scripture: Luke 4:16-19 - "He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom.  He stood up to read, and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him.  Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written: 
			'The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.  He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.'"
			 
			Message: The God who is coming into the world comes with a purpose.  When Jesus reads the words of Isaiah, He is making a statement of intent.  Jesus didn't come to make us feel good.  
			Jesus came to change the world.  As the anointed one, He is God's chosen instrument of change.  The change taking place through Jesus' ministry is the liberation of those who are oppressed, the relief of those who are suffering, the humanization of those who have been dehumanized.  When we anticipate Jesus' coming in this season of 
			Advent, we must keep in mind the purpose behind His arrival.  Through the relationship with Jesus, we are changed and so is the world.  As we celebrate the arrival of Jesus, we must ask ourselves, are we proclaiming good news to the poor, recovery of sight to the blind, freedom to the oppressed and the prisoners, and the year of the Lord's favor?  Being ready to celebrate Jesus' birth entails carrying on His mission.  Let's pray. 
			 
			Prayer: Living God, we thank you for your mission, and we pray that you would focus us so we can carry on the holy work of your Son.  Amen. 
			 Mike Luzinski
			 
			
			
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