Catholicity of the Chruch-February 15

During my sabbatical I plan to visit several local congregations in the Treasure Valley. I always value the opportunity to worship with my brother and sisters from other faith traditions. I am reminded of the catholicity of the church and the important role we all play in proclaiming the good news of peace.

This Sunday I attended two local congregations in Nampa; Bethel Church of the Nazarene and First United Methodist Church. I enjoyed attending Bethel Church of the Nazarene and hearing Pastor Doug Wilson preach. His sermon on Hebrews 13:15-25, which concluded a sermon series on the book of Hebrews. His sermon focused on continuing to offer God a sacrifice of praise (v. 15). He tackled a difficult section of the passage that focused on "obey leaders and submit to their authority" (v. 17). He talked about the challenges that spiritual leaders face today and the need for us to pray for our pastors and church leaders. It reminded me of the importance of praying for all leaders who have authority over others, especially those in spiritual leadership. Before the sermon, the worship team lead us in worship and participation in communion. This was a very meaningful time of worship.

I also enjoyed attending First United Methodist Church. I met Pastor Kim Fields at the Wesley Conference a couple of weeks ago. We talked about the changing landscape of the church and the need to develop new avenues of ministry. Pastor Fields preached a wonderful message on "pouring new wine into old wineskins." He talked about how hard it is to move from the past into the future. Tradition is important, but sometimes we are called to move beyond tradition and the old to the new. He challenged us to move beyond the comfortable to minister to those who are not like us, including those who might make us uncomfortable. He ended the sermons by talking about the new changes the church has made recently, all of which were hard, but necessary to be missional. The service focused on the thinking of new possibilities of what God might be calling us to do. I enjoyed my time of worship with Pastor Fields and the folks at First United Methodist.

I look forward to worshipping with other local congregations in the Treasure Valley during the next few weeks. It reminds me again of the catholicity of the Church and the oneness we have in Christ Jesus.