Today is Independence Day. And many of you will celebrate with pool parties and cookouts and fireworks. I hope you will pause to give thanks to God that we live in a country where we have all kinds of freedom. We are free to worship God – or not; free to choose where we live, choose our jobs, who we marry. What a gift!

Freedom is one of the central themes of the gospel. The Apostle Paul wrote to the church in Galatia, “For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another. For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

In Christ, we are free from the bondage of guilt, free from our past mistakes, free from our failures, free from legalism, free from having to earn God’s love. But Paul tells us, most importantly, we are free to love and to serve other people. A natural expression of our freedom should be love.

Let us pray: You have blessed us so richly, Lord. We live in a time and place of great abundance, and great freedom. Yet we still see need. Remind us that we are blessed to be a blessing. Show us everyday, ways in which we can use our freedom and our resources to bless others.

We pray today with much gratitude for those who serve us by serving this country. We lift up the men and women of the military and their families, public servants, and civic volunteers of all types. We are inspired by their sacrifice and ask your blessing and guidance upon them. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Yesterday I spoke about the connection many have found between being generous and deeper happiness. Indeed there are so many ways we can learn to be generous… with our time, our energy, our creativity, our hospitality, and our money.

But in light of all that is happening in the world around us, today, I want to focus a little more on another type of generosity – and that is being generous with our listening and understanding.

In our country right now, there is a real dearth of willingness to even try and understand where others are coming from. I think about the events of this past month. And I have to ask, what if, what if those of us who are trying to follow Jesus were to simply start by working on being generous with our listening – with our understanding… especially with those who look different from us or who may see the world differently? What if we were to work on being a student first and a critic second?

I know that even on a small scale, in my family, when politics come up, tempers so easily flare, things are said that hurt. In wanting to be right (or, in knowing we’re right) we damage our relationships. And not only that, we add anger to the world; we add fuel to the flames. And we do nothing to help our own sense of equanimity and peace.

Now, that’s not to say we shouldn’t have deep convictions. We should. It just seems we have lost the ability to have a real conversation, real dialog around certain topics. Things disintegrate so easily.

Of course, there will be times when we disagree and even argue our point with others. But, if we try and dominate every conversation, or beat people up with our point, or we shut them out, then we only isolate ourselves. Even worse, if we begin to demonize or hate people who see the world from a different perspective, that hate, that disgust begins to corrode the soul. It hurts our families. It hurts our communities. It hurts our country, and it hurts our world.

On the other side of this, may you and I, who are so blessed, who have received mercy and grace upon grace, may we find ways to cultivate a spirit of generosity with our listening ears and our understanding hearts.

Let us pray: Loving God, help us to find ways in this divided world, to be ambassadors of your love, mercy, and peace. We ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.

There is a story about an old-time revival preacher who began his message by holding up a $20 bill. He turned to the crowd and asked, “Who would like this $20 bill?” Hands started going up. He started to crumple up the $20 bill and then asked again, “Who still wants it?” All of the hands went back up in the air. “Well,” he replied, “What if I do this?” And he dropped it on the ground and proceeded to grind it into the floor with his shoe. He picked it up, now all crumpled and dirty. “Who wants it now?” Still the hands went into the air.

The preacher went on to say,” Friends, you have all learned a very valuable lesson. No matter what I did to the money, you still wanted it because it did not decrease in value. It was still worth $20. Many times in our lives, we are dropped, crumpled, and ground into the dirt by the decisions we make and the circumstances that come our way. We feel as though we are worthless. But no matter what has happened or what will happen, you will never lose your value in God’s eyes. To God, you are always priceless.”

In chapter 43 of the prophet Isaiah, God speaks to a people who have fallen short time and again:

But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: Do not fear, for I have redeemed you. I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you… For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior… you are precious in my sight, and honored, and I love you…

Let us pray: We thank you, O Holy God, for your mercy, for your grace, and for your unconditional love. Help us to accept that love, mercy, and grace that it would be ours to share – this day and every day. Amen.

“Today’s message was written by my friend, Rev. Roger Kunkel, founder of Dial Hope.” -Joe

A few years ago, the Special Olympics were held in Seattle, and a beautiful thing happened. Nine contestants, all with physical or mental disabilities, stood at the starting line for the 100-yard dash. As the gun sounded, they all started out, not exactly in a dash, but with a relish to run the race to the finish and win. But as they ran, one boy slipped and fell. He tumbled over a couple of times and began to cry. The other eight runners heard the boy crying. They all stopped, turned around and went back, every one of them. One girl with Down’s syndrome bent down and kissed him on top of his head, and said, “This will make it all better.” The other runners helped the fallen boy up, and all nine of them linked arms and walked together, side by side, to the finish line. They all won! They all came in first! Everyone in the stadium stood, cheering went on for ten minutes. People who were there are still telling the story. People who weren’t even there, say they were.

You see, as a Christian, you don’t have to win. Maybe you need to slow yourself down and change your course to help someone, to partner with someone, to reconcile with someone, to encourage someone. When you do that you will have peace within and peace with God.

Let us pray: God of love, we thank you for this day. Forgive us when we lash out at others and at you. Forgive us and make us whole, with the capacity to sense your presence, your strength, your grace, and your love. By sensing your unconditional love, make us able to uphold others in their grief and pain and loneliness. We ask these things in the name of your son, our redeemer, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Our family loves to go camping. We especially love to camp in the North Carolina mountains. Every summer we try to choose a location near a good stream to play in, or a good trail to hike on. We try to choose a place that is off the beaten path to avoid the crowds and potential road noise. Location is everything!

In the book of Numbers in the Bible, we find the Israelites camping in the wilderness. God gives them very careful instructions about where to set up their tents and how to organize their camp. They are each given a specific site surrounding the tabernacle which is the place God has promised to dwell. It is clear that God wants to be near his people.

In a commentary on Numbers, Joshua Kang writes, “Just as God dwelt among the Israelites to reassure them in the wilderness, God wants us to experience his presence now. In the spiritual life, we are called to ‘camp’ in God’s presence – to go deeper into our own hearts, where Christ dwells, as we learn to be loved by him and to worship him.”

Today may you find a location where you can sit still and attend to God’s presence, listen for God’s voice, and allow God’s healing grace to rest on you.

Let us pray: God of Hope, often we find ourselves in the wilderness of life, sometimes lost, lonely or confused, other times overwhelmed with awe at the beauty that surrounds us. Often we forget that you are as near to us as our next breath. Today, we ask you to help us find moments to camp in your presence, to receive your Spirit, and to tap once again into the very source of life. Thank you for drawing close to us. We draw near to you – even now. Amen.