Overland Park Christian Church
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The Legend of Faith

8/19/2016

 
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Scripture:
​Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16 (Common English Bible)
Faith is the reality of what we hope for, the proof of what we don’t see. The elders in the past were approved because they showed faith.
By faith we understand that the universe has been created by a word from God so that the visible came into existence from the invisible.
By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was going to receive as an inheritance. He went out without knowing where he was going.
By faith he lived in the land he had been promised as a stranger. He lived in tents along with Isaac and Jacob, who were coheirs of the same promise. He was looking forward to a city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.
By faith even Sarah received the ability to have a child, though she herself was barren and past the age for having children, because she believed that the one who promised was faithful. So descendants were born from one man (and he was as good as dead). They were as many as the number of the stars in the sky and as countless as the grains of sand on the seashore. All of these people died in faith without receiving the promises, but they saw the promises from a distance and welcomed them. They confessed that they were strangers and immigrants on earth. People who say this kind of thing make it clear that they are looking for a homeland. If they had been thinking about the country that they had left, they would have had the opportunity to return to it. But at this point in time, they are longing for a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore, God isn’t ashamed to be called their God—he has prepared a city for them.

Leaving Anatevka 

8/13/2016

 
Picture
​Tradition is like the crest of a wave always pushing forward. Faithfulness to a tradition is not gained through treading water in repetition of some aspect of the past, but through swimming with the crest into fresh interpretations of God’s gracious presence with us.
                                       - Marjorie Hewitt Suchocki

READINGS
“Forget about what’s happened; don’t keep going over old history. Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something brand-new. It’s bursting out! Don’t you see it? There it is! I’m making a road through the desert, rivers in the badlands. Wild animals will say ‘Thank you!’ —the coyotes and the buzzards— because I provided water in the desert, rivers through the sun-baked earth, drinking water for the people I chose, the people I made especially for myself, a people custom-made to praise me.
                                    - Isaiah 43.18-21 (The Message)
 
 “I still have many things to tell you, but you can’t handle them now. But when the Friend comes, the Spirit of the Truth, he will take you by the hand and guide you into all the truth there is. He won’t draw attention to himself, but will make sense out of what is about to happen and, indeed, out of all that I have done and said. He will honor me; he will take from me and deliver it to you. Everything the Father has is also mine. That is why I’ve said, ‘He takes from me and delivers to you.’
                                  - John 16.12-15 (The Message)
 
REFLECTION
​On Sunday our worship will take its cue from the classic stage musical Fiddler on the Roof; and specifically the song Sunrise, Sunset. In its immediate context, the song is set at the wedding of Tevye’s daughter, Tzeitel, to Motel the tailor. Gazing teary eyed at the couple standing beneath the traditional canopy, pledging themselves one to another, the parents can’t help but wonder how things had come to this. Only yesterday these two were children, running through the fields laughing and playing, with not a care in the world. Now, here they were, adults, preparing to leave home and make a life for themselves. Life was changing, and they all found themselves up against this reality.
 
In the context of the musical as a whole, this scene gives expression to the concern that dominates throughout; how to remain faithful to a traditional lifestyle in the face of a rapidly changing world that will impact their lives. The change will come; their only choice is how they will respond to it.
 
It occurs to me that this is true in the life of the church as well. We often resist change, preferring to stay loyal to our traditional ways of doing things. This attitude may be comfortable, it may be safe; but is it the attitude God expects of us? That’s the question on which we will reflect this Sunday; how should God’s church respond to the need for change? Otherwise stated, must God always drag us kicking and screaming into the future?
 
I hope you will join us for worship on Sunday.
 
Bo 

Hearing Good News in the Musicals We Love

8/5/2016

 
“Music is a unique theological language that speaks when words alone fall silent.”
  - Paraphrase of a quotation attributed to Karl Barth


REFLECTION
​One of the things I loved most about our time in New York City was the ready availability of Broadway musicals. From long beloved classics like South Pacific, to the premiere of avant garde creations, all were there, beaconing with their siren call. Not that we could respond very often. Broadway productions are just a bit pricey on a pastor’s salary. Luckily, we learned of a ticket outlet in Time Square where one could buy same day tickets at discount rates. And that was a game changer. So from time to time we could be inspired, challenged, amused, bemused, or enraged; in one way or another drawn into the world that is a musical, a world that speaks to our own, illuminating and interpreting the live we share. At times these utterances touch on the spiritual, and provide an opening for God to be present to us, to speak to us, to touch and mold our lives.
 
With this in mind we have been moved to offer a late summer sermon series entitled Hearing Good News in the Musicals We Love.  We have chosen one significant song from several musicals, a song that will provide the starting point for our sermon each week. We encourage you to prepare each week by viewing the week’s musical, with an emphasis on the song singled out for examination. The musicals and highlighted songs are listed below for your convenience.
 
August 7  Rent  “Seasons of Love”
August 14  Fiddler on the Roof  “Sunrise, Sunset”
August 21  Altar Boyz  “I Believe”
August 28  Lion King  “He Lives in You”
Sept. 4  Godspell  “Day by Day”
 
We invite you to join us each week as we listen for God’s Good News in the musicals we love. See you on Sunday!

​                                                               -  Bo
    Permission to use and stream music in our worship services obtained from ONE LICENSE #A-730652
    and CCLI #36152
    and CSPL #143030. 
    All rights reserved.
    ​

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When viewing our calendar:

OPCC
= Overland Park Christian 
RAV = Rios de Agua Viva Iglesia
IHN - Interfaith Homeless Network

CMS = Case Management Services
AIM = Advocacy in Motion
​HBCS
 = Honeybee Community Services
Monarch = Monarch Montessori Preschool
Most other names of groups are 12-step support groups.

Church Office Hours: 
Monday - Thursday: 9:30am - 4:00pm
Friday: 9:30am - 3:00pm


©2013-2022 Overland Park Christian Church
​7600 West 75th Street
Overland Park, KS  66204
(913) 677-4646
office@opccdoc.org
Worship Schedule:
10:30am Sundays In-Person
and Online Live-Stream Worship
913-299-9002 Sunday Worship by Phone