Vocation in Action

By Kelly Liebengood I'm sorry, but my goggles are tainted. Can You help me see? I have been here so long, And I still don't know who You are. Sometimes I think You're my waiter Here to take my order. Aren't you suppose to be the Advil for my pain? I put You on like Clairol to hid my ugly soul. Aren't you my Daytimer? Make my life orderly! Be my Blockbuster and show me a good time. You're the supply wanting my demand. You're the goods that need to be sold... Who is the potter and who is the clay? I'm sorry, but my goggles are tainted. Can You help me see? I have been here so long, And I still don't know who You are.

Scripture Readings: Psalm: 25 Gospel: Matthew 6.5-13 Epistle: Colossians 1.9-14 Introduction 1.       Last week I mentioned that we can learn a lot about who we think God really is by looking at what we pray for and what we expect of God. We can also learn a lot about what we think the aim of the Christian life is by looking at what we pray for. a.        Sometimes prayer reveals that we view the Christian life as a means to a greater end. God is the means by which I get what I want; the means by which I live out my story, my dreams, and my will. b.       Moralistic Therapeutic Deism—the aim of the Christian life is to be happy, achieve your goals,   to be fair and nice,   and to do good. c.        And yet, when we read prayers recorded for us in Scripture, we do not find that sentiment at all. Instead, we get another picture of what life, and God, is all about. 2.       The next two weeks we are going to learn about the life God has for us, the aims of the

God, Our Shepherd Readings             OT: Ezekiel 34.1-24             Psalm: 23             Gospel: John 10.11-18             Epistle: 1 Peter 2.21-25 Introduction “ What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us…worship is pure or base as the worshiper entertains high or low thoughts of God. For this reason the gravest question before the Church is always God Himself, and the most portentous fact about [us] is not what [w]e at a given time may say or do, but what [w]e in [our] deep heart conceive God to be like. We tend by a secret law of the soul to move toward our mental image of God. This is true not only of the individual Christian, but of the company of Christians that composes the Church. Always the most revealing thing about the Church is her idea of God, just as her most significant message is what she says about Him or leaves unsaid, for her silence is often more eloquent than her speech. She can never escape the