In Between Times
Joe Albright

In Between Times

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Back during the Covid shutdown, I read this great book by Susan Beaumont called, “How to Lead When You Don’t Know Where You’re Going.”

Great title! It was a great book.

She talks about how there are times in history, when we find ourselves between the disintegration of the old and the emergence of something new – on kind of a threshold. 

And in these times, not only does anxiety rise; but sometimes motivation will fall. There is the temptation to give up or to give in. And if we are not careful, our fears will drive us.

She argues, however, if we are open to it, God’s greatest work occurs in this space. The Franciscan theologian, Richard Rohr claims that all transformation takes place here.

Some time ago, I was listening to an interview with a Benedictine monk, David Steindle Rast. He was talking about anxiety… which so many of us have been feeling these days. He said, “We have to acknowledge our anxiety, but we must not fear. There is a great difference.”  

We have to have space and time in our lives – to stop, to pause, to get in touch with what’s happening inside us. So that we are not driven by fear.

It is true that so much of what’s going on in the world around us is completely out of our control. And often we wonder, what can I do? What difference can I make? 

I’m more and more convinced, that the one gift we have to offer the world around us, is our own inner peace.

My prayer today is that you would carve out time in your own life for silence, for stillness – to allow that larger, stronger presence of God fill you and nourish you. And may the peace and strength that you experience, be a gift you share with a world desperately in need. 

Let us pray: We pause for even just a moment in your presence, O God. Take our anger, our grief, our pain. Wash over us again with your grace, that we might be healed, restored, and filled anew with your peace. We ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.

The Tie that Binds
Joe Albright

The Tie that Binds

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I remember one Wednesday night a number of years ago now, Pastor Bob Smith was teaching a class on the parables at our church. He had us sing “Seek Ye First the Kingdom of God…” as a closing song. I had been through a particularly hard year that year. As we were singing, I looked around the room at all the faces of these people I’d grown to love, and in spite of outward circumstances, an overwhelming sense of joy washed over me. I thought about all the love and support that had been extended to me. And I thought about all the love and support that had been extended to others in that room. I thought about the kingdom of God… and I wondered: Is this what heaven will be like? Will love, and grace and connection be what ultimately endures?

I am reminded today there is a deep tie that binds us together as a people of faith. And that truly, we are bound together as a human family, in ways that ever more clearly coming to light. I pray that you and I, as people of faith, would be the kind of people who honor that tie, that connection. And, may we be the kind of people who invest deeply in our relationships, and in the lives of our communities.  

Let us pray: We thank you for the gift of community, O God. Empower us to build it, and cherish it. Amen. 

Giving Your Heart
Joe Albright

Giving Your Heart

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When he was asked, Jesus said that the first and the greatest commandment is to love God with all your heart, strength, soul, and mind. 

In my first year teaching high school, I’ll never forget a student named Earnest. Earnest was failing. He often skipped class, and when he did show up it was almost as if he’d checked out before he even got there – wouldn’t even try. He had an “I’m here, because I’ve got to be here,” kind of attitude. 

I finally found the courage to call his mother, and she came in to talk to me. After a long conversation that felt like it was going nowhere, she said, “Ernest ain’t getting nothing out of your class.” Frustrated, I answered, “But Ernest ain’t putting nothing into my class.” After that, Ernest switched out of my class. He decided to take Latin. 

Have you noticed that we tend to put the most into those things that we care about the most, things that we love, things that we treasure?  

It’s also true that if you care enough about something or someone to put your heart and your soul into it – it is so rich – so rewarding. Think about a job or a relationship. But, if we give only half our heart – we never really get to experience the fullness of what it could be.

This is true also with our faith, isn’t it? When we make time for prayer and worship, when we give, and when we serve, our faith is most often alive and it is a resource we can draw on. 

I pray today that the fullness of God’s peace would rest upon you. May you know God’s love, forgiveness, and hope in the very deepest part of your being. And, may you respond with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind.

Our prayer today was written by my friend Rev. Roger Kunkel. Let us pray: Awesome God of hill and valley, of sunshine and thunderstorm, of the tall pines of the forest and the humble forget-me-nots that bloom on the forest floor, or purring cats and snoring dogs, of popcorn and pizza, we that you for the gift of this day which is unlike any other day. Forgive us when we do not think of you, and help us to find our way back to who we really are in you, and to the joy of your salvation, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Stepping Out in Faith
Joe Albright

Stepping Out in Faith

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One of my favorite movies as a kid was the movie Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. It’s an old movie, but if you remember it, it is about his quest is to find the Holy Grail, the original chalice used by Christ at the Last Supper. Along the way, Indy finds himself in these life-threatening challenges that test his humility, his obedience, and his trust. 

In the final challenge, he finds himself dangerously close to the edge of a deep, vast chasm. According to the legend, the way across lies right before him. But he can’t see it. The only way he can get through it is by stepping out in faith. He has to trust what his eyes cannot see. 

There’s this great scene where Indy is right on the precipice – you can see the fear in his eyes. He lifts one leg out over the ledge, eyes closed, and out he steps… For a brief moment, you think he is history. But sure enough, as he steps out, he finds himself standing on a bridge of rock, solid and firm beneath his feet, but invisible to the eye. 

What’s that like? 

If you have ever been worried sick about a job or a loved one – and turned the situation over to God, you have stepped out onto that bridge. If you have ever given beyond your means – you have stepped out onto that bridge. If you have ever been so overcome by grief or sorrow that you didn’t know how you would ever survive but trusted God to carry you, you have stepped out onto that bridge. If you’ve ever dropped to your knees in prayer, asking for mercy, strength, or a way forward, you’ve stepped out on that unseen bridge. 

We know it is there. We’ve been on it. We just can’t see it.

One of the elders at my church Jennifer King, shared that her Great Aunt Rose October used to say, “Trust Him where you cannot trace Him.”  

Let us pray: Gracious God, Help us to believe where we have not yet seen, and to trust when we cannot know. Grant us faith. Grant us hope. Amen. 

Stop the World
Roger Kunkel

Stop the World

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

In the Broadway musical, “STOP THE WORLD, I WANT TO GET OFF,” actor Anthony Newley sang a powerful song: “Once in a Lifetime.” It contains these poignant words: “This is my moment… I’m gonna do great things.” 

Sadly, we must confess that we know the empty feeling of “missing our moment,” letting the moment pass. All of us, because of fear or timidity, or insecurity, have let special opportunities, special moments slip by us. Psychologists tell us that if we do not act every time we have this kind of feeling, we are less likely to act later when other such moments present themselves. Each time we fail to act, we become more hardened, more desensitized, more emotionally paralyzed. We trick ourselves by substituting emotion for action, by thinking that just because we felt it, it has been cared for. 

How many letters never have been written? 

How many phone calls have never been made? 

How many compliments have been left unsaid? 

How many “I’m sorrys” remain unspoken? 

How many “Thank yous” have never been said? 

How many “I love yous” are still unexpressed? 

How many commitments are still not made? 

because we missed our moment! 

If there is an emptiness, a void, a vacuum, a hunger in your life, remember: Jesus offers you life. Don’t miss this moment! If there’s any kindness or love you can show, show it now. Seize the moment! Live today fully and make it a masterpiece! 

Let us pray: God of love, we know you are always with us and you love us. How patiently you tutor us! Straighten the backbone of our beliefs, strengthen our resolve, move us to action, so that the roots of faith will reach the center of our hearts. Grant us peace that comes from your love…that whether we walk through fields of flowers or stumble along streets of sadness, we will walk beside you. Be close today to those who are experiencing grief or loneliness. In Jesus’ name. Amen. 

Where the Light Shines Through
Joe Albright

Where the Light Shines Through

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Some time ago, I listened to an interview with Dr. Rachel Naomi Remen. She spoke about a twenty-four-year-old young man who had to have one of his legs amputated to stop the spread of bone cancer. He had become angry and bitter.

Eventually, Dr. Ramen was able to help him come to grips with his loss. And as he recovered, she encouraged him to reach out and help others – to turn from an inward, self-focused grief, to an outward focus. So the young man began to visit others with physical disabilities, to share his own story of recovery and hope. 

One day he visited a young woman who had just been operated on for an aggressive type of breast cancer. She was suffering from deep depression. Her room was silent, aside from the radio playing by her bed. She wasn’t really responding, and he seemed unable to get through to her. Desperate to make a connection, he took off his artificial leg and began dancing around the room on his one good leg to the rhythm of the radio. Sure enough, the woman began laughing, and said, “Okay, if you can dance, I can sing.” And she did. 

About a year after the young man’s turnaround, he sat down with Dr. Remen to wrap up his therapy. At one point, they looked over some of the artwork he had done early on, and they discussed how his views of life had changed. One picture expressed it beautifully. When he had been asked to draw a picture of his body, he had at first drawn a vase with an ugly, jagged crack running down the middle. This crack represented all the anger, bitterness, and disgust that had filled his heart after he lost his leg. He had seen himself as broken, and therefore, useless. 

However, as the young man now looked at this picture, he knew it no longer represented how he felt. He took out a yellow crayon and drew vibrant yellow streamers pouring from the crack in the vase. Then he explained to the doctor, “You see, where it is broken, this is where the light shines through.” 

All of this makes me think about the brokenness in my own life, and in yours. And I wonder in what ways we are allowing the light to shine through. 

Let us pray: God of Grace, we have all experienced loss. Some of us today are carrying heavy burdens. We all have some measure of brokenness within us. We pray for healing. We pray for grace. But please don’t stop there, O God. May your light shine in us, and through us. Amen. 

Hands
Joe Albright

Hands

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My friend Robert McCrary used to have a prayer attached to a bulletin board in his office titled “Hands.” The prayer itself speaks of transformation and grace. It moves from a preoccupation with the self to a love of others. The author is unknown, and today, we will make it our message and our prayer. 

As we pray, begin with your hands clenched. Then, follow the prayer’s leading. 

Let us pray: I see, Lord, in my tightly clasped hands the representation of myself. I hold onto myself – my cares, possessions, pride. I shut you out – lest you change me. I shut out other people – lest they know me – lest they would hurt me. In fact, with these fists, I could strike out against those who would threaten me. But I see in my whitened knuckles what this is doing to me. I am uptight, enslaved, imprisoned with myself. I am tired, tense, lonely, and am destroying myself.

And now in slowly opening my hands, I release myself to you, Lord. Take my guilt, cares, burdens, emptiness, and loneliness. My arms no longer hurt! My knuckles are no longer white! Thank you, Lord, for your release – for freedom – for peace. With open hands, I can no longer shut you out – shut out other people – or strike out against those who would threaten me. Open hands are for helping. Fill them with your love. Show them what to do – how to serve. 

Suddenly now I am aware of the hurts and needs of other persons – of other situations. In my mind’s eye, I place them in these hands and lift them to you for your sustaining grace and healing love. I realize now, that I am no longer alone. Thank you, Lord, for your grace. Amen.

Something New and Unexpected
Joe Albright

Something New and Unexpected

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The year that I taught High School in Jamaica, I’ll never forget the first PTA meeting I attended. The vice-principal gave a speech where she encouraged the parents to teach their children how to use flush toilets because many of the new students had never seen one. She also encouraged the parents – even though they themselves might not know how to read – to encourage their children to spend time reading and not to be jealous of their education. The struggles they faced were far from anything I could have ever imagined.

At the end of this PTA meeting, a young student led us in a devotional she had prepared. And as a part of that devotional, she read a testimony. I don’t know who actually wrote it. I’ve seen it in other places since. But when I heard it in that setting, amidst great poverty, it hit me in the most profound way and I asked her for a copy of it. She said:

I asked God for strength that I might achieve. I was made weak that I might learn humility. I asked for riches that I might be happy, I was given poverty that I might be wise. I asked for power that I might have the praise of others. I was given weakness that I might feel the need of God. I asked for all things that I might enjoy life. I was given life that I might enjoy all things. I got nothing that I asked for – but everything I needed… Almost despite myself, my unspoken prayers were answered. I among all people am most richly blessed. 

Many of our students came to school hungry. Many lived in homes that had dirt floors and no running water. Yet, in the face of all that, this young girl could claim with great sincerity that she among all people is most richly blessed. 

Now I don’t believe that God gives poverty or weakness. But I do believe that if we are open – God can work through our circumstances, work through our weakness – and work through our sufferings – to bring beauty and meaning and even new life. I’ve seen it time and time again, and I know you have too.

The scriptures tell us story after story about how – in the midst of great brokenness and despair – God does something completely new and beautiful and unexpected! The scriptures paint this beautiful picture of a God who is at work taking the broken, the hurting, the bad, and making it whole and new. 

Let us pray: At times, O God, it’s difficult to see a bigger picture. At times, it is difficult to imagine any kind of redemption. It is difficult to imagine the dry bones we see scattered everywhere living again. Help us in these times, not to become cynical, not to become hard-hearted, not to become bitter, or to blame others, but to trust your Spirit is at work beyond anything we can begin to imagine. Meet us at the deepest point of our need today. We ask in Jesus’ name. Amen. 

Detours
Roger Kunkel

Detours

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Today’s message was written by the founder of Dial Hope, the Rev. Roger Kunkel

Most of us are allergic to detours. Others are waiting for us, and we’re exactly on time… then the “Detour” sign appears. It may be that a bridge is being repaired or the road is being rebuilt. The fact remains that our planned journey has been interrupted. Detours also confront us as we travel through life. Illness comes. The company closes its doors when our need for work is greatest. Even in little matters, it happens. Our garage door won’t open, for example. Or, you have that flat tire on your way to a job interview. Murphy’s law sometimes seems to be the controlling force of life: If anything can go wrong, it will. Friend of Dial Hope, interruptions and detours will come. The big question is… How do you handle them? Let me suggest five positive ideas:

  1. Never view a detour as the end of the road.
  2. Don’t wallow in self-pity.
  3. Think about detours and interruptions as fresh and new opportunities.
  4. Try to learn from detours.
  5. Trust the Lord of the read.

These are some of the most powerful words in the Bible: “I am with you always.” (Matthew 28:20; “All things work together for good for those who love God” (Romans 8:28). You may stumble, but God is ready to pick you up. Trust God… trust God and move on to becoming the person God wants you to be.

Let us pray: Awesome God, we believe, help our unbelief. Help us to risk love and trust completely in you. Enlarge our hearts and move us to become hope-a-holics. Surprise us now with your grace in unexpected places as we make this day a masterpiece. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

You Are…
Joe Albright

You Are…

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One year our choir director led our Sunday school class in a study of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. He had us do a pretty interesting exercise. He asked us to read the first three chapters and list all the things God has done for us in Christ. It really is amazing. For three chapters, Paul goes on and on about who we already are, what’s already been done for us, and what’s already true.

Paul tells us we are blessed, chosen, predestined, given, redeemed, forgiven, included, marked, made alive, saved, raised up, seated with, created, brought near; we are fellow citizens, members, being built together. There is not one single command for the first half of the letter. He doesn’t tell us to do anything. He simply recalls who we are and how much we are loved.

Our teacher reminded the class that Paul wrote the letter this way because he knew that what we believe about ourselves would ultimately shape how we live.  

So what do you believe about yourself? Regardless of anything you have done or failed to do, Paul claims that you are loved, chosen, blessed, forgiven, redeemed…. 

May you hear and believe.

Let us pray: God of grace, we thank you for your unconditional love. Help us to accept this love and share it with a world desperately in need. Amen.