Advertise on podcast: Cultivate NJ

The cross of Christ reveals the horror of what we've done to the world, to each other and to ourselves; and in the same moment, reveals the depths of God's love for us and the potency of God's power to save us. Beloved, we really are in bad shape, but we are held with a love that goes deeper than our worst and is working even now to liberate us from the fear of death. Behold the man upon the cross.

 Yahweh is our unbreakable promise… He always finds a way to fulfill His word and work powerfully through quiet, unseen acts of courage and obedience. As followers of Jesus, we are invited into that same story—trusting that even our hidden faithfulness matters and is part of a much bigger story that we may never fully see. 

The trauma of our past is not the final word on the quality of our future. Our God specializes in metamorphosis – turning silenced victims into archetypes of agency. Helping the voiceless find their voice. Transforming the shamed into paragons of promise. Beloved, your story is not over. This covenant-making, covenant-keeping God has promised himself and all things to you.

Our God works through his people, and through our relationships with each other, to accomplish his plans and advance His kingdom. Our God is always present and at work. We look for and support what He is doing above all things and within the relationships and friendships given to us. 

Beloved, though the days are dark and difficult, persist in prayer and don't lose heart. Because more is happening through our prayers than we can see. Though the way to better days may seem closed off for a time, God is good and is present with us in the barren places. He will remember his people and raise us up in due time. Arise and pray… there is no Rock like our God.

God is always doing a new thing among his people, overturning the xenophobia of the past to make way for his everlasting love. Even today beloved, God is expanding the boundaries of his ever-widening mercy – Turning the faithless into the faithful; Turning the bitter into springs of hope; Turning the rich into sources of goodness; Turning curses into blessings. The question is NOT “Is God moving among us?” But “Who is God moving us to love?” 

God delights to subvert our ideas of power, raising unlikely people and calling us to lead together for the flourishing of the world. Even now, God is stirring courage in ordinary hearts and inviting us to refuse the world as it is. When we say yes — even imperfectly — peace begins to take root among us. So let us walk in Deborah’s footsteps, trusting that through faithful partnership our land may find rest.

God delights to work in and through overlooked and underestimated people. He uses the least who hold those with power to account and bring about justice when justice is denied. The Tamars of our world are here to enable us to open our eyes to injustice. They are often more righteous than us and will lead us to become better versions of ourselves. How are you being invited to open your eyes today?

When we think about the book of Exodus our minds are typically drawn to the singular leadership of Moses standing up to Pharaoh, the 10 plagues, God demanding “Let my People Go”, the parting of the Red Sea, the giving of the 10 commandments, the golden calf, etc.  But without the unsung women of chapters 1-2, there is no Moses. They risk their lives to disobey the highest human authority without any sign of reward or status gain. They aren’t trying to be heroes. But they see that lives are in danger and so they endanger their own lives to protect and give life to others.  The good news that we celebrate today is that the God of Rescue gives courage to those ready to do the next right thing. He blesses and raises up the disregarded to engage in transgressive acts that spur life.  We too, church, are midwives of God’s kingdom: agitating liberation through seemingly small acts of resistant love even if we cannot see what those acts add up to. Where are you being called to this work of liberative love? What is your next right thing?

The God Who Sees intervenes on behalf of the oppressed and mistreated. He calls them by name; hears their story; promises his goodness to them; and sends them into the world imbued with new status. Today beloved, see the God who sees you in your distress and look for those who need the waters of his presence. The well is still there for all who thirst.

This Message is the Start of a New Series: Hidden Figures: We will be looking at the stories of an array of people throughout the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament). These are some of the women and men that partner with God to advance the story of redemption. They are often overlooked either because of their gender, their ethnicity, their social standing, or because of their mistakes and poor choices.   What makes Eve a Hidden Figure is not that she's overlooked or forgotten. But that's she's typically remembered for her wrongdoing. How she and Adam broke God's story rather than the ways she advanced that story. In other words, she's remembered for her broken trust and sin, instead of any kind of faithfulness or redeeming qualities.   But there's more to Eve's story that we often remember. Eve tells the truth. She speaks of both what influenced her choice as well as her own responsibility in making that choice. She’s not just the first person to fail in Scripture, she’s also the first model of repentance in scripture. Today we proclaim the good news: In God's story the morally comprised are experts of repentance. Those devastated by disappointment and loss are the first to find hope. And those are vilified for their failures become models of faith for everyone. Today beloved, receive your first Mother, no as a pariah, but as a flawed yet faithful example of how God makes good on his promises. Follow in her footsteps, become her children. Learn from Eve and call on the name of the LORD.

Even though we continue to suffer and doubt and grieve, tonight, our Advent longing makes room for Christmas JOY. Because in the incarnation of Jesus, the word made flesh, God has taken on all that it means to be human… All our suffering and pain and weakness and frailty are now shared by God and brought into God's presence to be seen and dignified and honored. From this moment on, friends, humanity and divinity are inextricably connected at the deepest level. From this moment on, we have a human God. And our full human experience is honored as holy. 

 A new identity is given to us this Advent as we move toward the light of God’s presence this Christmas. But this light is a fire that has come to burn away all the junk in our lives and to make the soil rich for a plant that will bear much fruit. So, prepare for this light and fire by rethinking your relationships… to your wealth, work, and the weak. A fresh start is here. 

Advent means: Getting in touch with our own waiting, our own suffering, our own darkness in solidarity with the rest of God’s people as we watch and pray for the arrival of Jesus, light in the darkness. God is meeting us in the middle of this mess to instill HOPE and strengthen our hearts in holiness, as we watch for the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ who brings justice and redemption. Though the days are dark, beloved, the kingdom of God is near. Stay awake, stay connected, and practice love. 

The Bodily Resurrection of Jesus from the dead is the PATTERN of Eternal Life. What has happened to Him WILL happen to us. Therefore, your body isn't a prison from which your soul needs to be set free. You ARE an embodied soul. And Eternal Life is FULL of bodies, moved and animated by God's Spirit. And that Spirit is available to you today to train you for the life you’ll always have in eternity. Where do u need Eternal Life in your body today?