| Love Lift Us Up Where We Belong |
Love Songs From God: “Love Lift Us Up”
Isaiah 40:28-31
February 17, 2008
During our last two Sunday worship experiences together, as a way of
approaching this month of love, we began to look at some love songs
and how God reaches out to us. We heard Tina Turner ask the question,
“What’s Love Got To Do With It.” And hopefully you heard that God’s
love has everything to do with it. We listened as Cher sang about how to
find love in the world and discussed how God’s love is found in his cross.
I’ve suggested that without love... God’s love... we are lost. But, with the
love of God... the unmerited love offered by God... love that we can’t buy
or force or cause to happen by our own actions... With the love that God
offers to us willingly through the experience of the cross... we can
experience a wholeness that causes the barriers to an authentic life to
be torn down.
God’s love for us is at times the antithesis of the way the world treats us.
At times, it is even the opposite of how we treat ourselves. The way of
the world, too often, is a way that would drag us down... But God’s love...
God’s love is a way that only wants to lift us up.
That is the good news this morning.... offered with the help of Joe
Cocker. God’s way... God’s love... lifts us up where we belong. Each of
us.
Without a doubt there are those times when I know I need to be lifted up.
Perhaps you have felt times similar to me? Times when it seems as if
there is a great conspiracy all focused on wearing me down... tearing
me up… turning me inside out. Moments when I am frayed... on the
verge of exhaustion... when nothing seems to go right. And don’t believe
it when somebody says it can’t get any worse... because it probably can.
I would guess that I am probably not alone in having experienced
moments of being overwhelmed. Times that are definitely not Hallmark
Valentine moments. Just home from work, where it seemed every
deadline for the year and every crisis for a lifetime occurred in one short
day. Meanwhile the kids are hungry and arguing, your spouse has had a
lousy day and just needs to be held for awhile, and somebody... on the
phone.... trying to make a living... needs to discuss the merits of re-
siding your home at that particular moment.
Not your story? Then fill in the blanks. You’re not sure how you’re going
to pay the taxes... just lost your home... your spouse works all the time...
your teenager has been arrested for the third time... a relationship just
ended... bad news from the doctor... you’re flunking out...
It seems like the stress will never end!
Have any of you ever struggled with feelings of being overwhelmed by
the expectations of the world? Struggled with the thought, “Why does the
act of living seem to be so difficult?”
If so, if any of the feelings I’ve voiced resonant with your own, then you’ve
come to the right place this morning. Because this morning we are
going to be about the task of discovering the way God’s love lifts us up
where we belong. We are going to explore some of the celebration
possibilities that a relationship with God offers.
Were you listening to the words of the prophet Isaiah that were read?
“Do you not know? Have you not heard?” It seems there is a possibility
being offered to us that is different from the norm. A possibility that we
don’t have to give up. We don’t have to atrophy in the darkness of the pit
of despair... because the Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the
ends of the earth.
Are you with me.
He gives strength to the weary.... That’s you and me.
He increases the power of the weak.... I know there are moments of
weakness in my life. And, I would imagine, that as strong as you might
seem on the outside... a little emotional weight training on the inside
would be helpful for you as well.
Isaiah is talking about you and me.
Even youths grow tired and weary... As much as it might seem that
children and youth have a source of energy that is inexhaustible, there
will come a time when even they will stumble and fall.
Isaiah is saying that we don’t have to stay face down in the gravel of guilt
when we do fall... because the Lord will renew our strength. More than
that, God will cause us to soar like eagles.
That is the promise... if we place our hope in God.
And, it doesn’t end there. We can run and not grow weary, walk and not
grow faint. Now that is good news. Amazing, astonishing, marvelous,
remarkable good news.....
........So why is it that at times I act like I have never heard God’s
promise? Why am I so worn at times? Why so Soul-shocked?
Let me suggest that it is because I have relied at those times on my
strength - rather than God’s strength. I have trusted in the pride of Chuck,
rather than the power of Christ. I have pushed my performance, rather
than prayed His presence. All the while becoming weaker. You’d think I’
d know better by now. I seem to fall into the same quandary that the
Apostle Paul encountered: I do the very thing I don’t want to do.
But God hangs in there with me. And God is there for you. That is what
this morning is all about. God is offering you the strength to go forward
and I believe that this church... this gathering of people seeking healthy
relationships... can be a part of that strength. As we continue to know
each other better, share in each others joys and struggles, we will
discover just how real God’s promises are. I invite you to explore your
faith... develop your spiritual strength... in this congregation of caring.
Together we can grow into Christians that soar... together we can
develop a ministry that will make a difference... together we can
experience what God promises and Isaiah writes about a couple of
chapters later:
“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you
pass through the rivers they will not sweep over you. When you walk
through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.”
That’s quite a promise from God.
Do you believe it? Do you really believe that God is walking with you?
Do you really believe that God is capable of keeping you from becoming
overwhelmed with the flood of life? Do you trust that God will keep you
from becoming burned-out by the consuming expectations of existence?
Isaiah did. Take some time to read more about his walk with God. It
might give you some insights for your own walk.
You and I have faced, and will again face difficult situations in our lives.
Times when we will again feel overwhelmed. Perhaps it will be a
financial crisis? Perhaps a crisis in our family? Perhaps the pressure
will come from work, or at school? Something that threatens to weaken
our faith, something that causes us to want to rely on our own strength
rather than God’s strength.
I hope that in those moments of our lives... when we begin to wear
down... we can find a way to pause... to reach out to others in this faith
community and... together... regain the joy of soaring in God’s strength.
The promise is that God will never leave us... never forsake us... never
give up on being in a healthy relationship with us. God will be there.. is
here... in the midst of our weakness, reaching out, offering the strength
we so desperately need at times. I invite you to hear the Good News of
God’s love this morning... “The Lord is the everlasting God...He gives
strength to the weary.” That’s good news! AMEN.
UP WHERE WE BELONG (Joe Cocker)
Who knows what tomorrow brings
In a world, few hearts survive
All I know, is the way I feel
When it’s real, I keep my prayer alive
The road is long
There are mountains in our way
But we climb steps every day
Love lift us up where we belong
Where the eagles cry, on a mountain high
Love lift us up where we belong
Far from the world we know
Up where the clear winds blow
Some hang on to "used-to-be"
Live their lives locking behind
All we have is here and now
All our lives, out there to find
The road is long
There are mountains in our way
But we climb steps every day
Love lift us up where we belong
Where the eagles cry, on a mountain high
Love lift us up where we belong
Far from the world we know
Up where the clear winds blow
Time goes by
No time to cry
Life’s you and I, alive, baby
Love lift us up where we belong
Where the eagles cry, on a mountain high
Love lift us up where we belong
Far from the world we know
Up where the clear winds blow
Love lift us up where we belong
Where the eagles cry, on a mountain high
Love lift us up where we belong
Far from the world we know
Up where the clear winds blow
Isaiah 40:28-31
February 17, 2008
During our last two Sunday worship experiences together, as a way of
approaching this month of love, we began to look at some love songs
and how God reaches out to us. We heard Tina Turner ask the question,
“What’s Love Got To Do With It.” And hopefully you heard that God’s
love has everything to do with it. We listened as Cher sang about how to
find love in the world and discussed how God’s love is found in his cross.
I’ve suggested that without love... God’s love... we are lost. But, with the
love of God... the unmerited love offered by God... love that we can’t buy
or force or cause to happen by our own actions... With the love that God
offers to us willingly through the experience of the cross... we can
experience a wholeness that causes the barriers to an authentic life to
be torn down.
God’s love for us is at times the antithesis of the way the world treats us.
At times, it is even the opposite of how we treat ourselves. The way of
the world, too often, is a way that would drag us down... But God’s love...
God’s love is a way that only wants to lift us up.
That is the good news this morning.... offered with the help of Joe
Cocker. God’s way... God’s love... lifts us up where we belong. Each of
us.
Without a doubt there are those times when I know I need to be lifted up.
Perhaps you have felt times similar to me? Times when it seems as if
there is a great conspiracy all focused on wearing me down... tearing
me up… turning me inside out. Moments when I am frayed... on the
verge of exhaustion... when nothing seems to go right. And don’t believe
it when somebody says it can’t get any worse... because it probably can.
I would guess that I am probably not alone in having experienced
moments of being overwhelmed. Times that are definitely not Hallmark
Valentine moments. Just home from work, where it seemed every
deadline for the year and every crisis for a lifetime occurred in one short
day. Meanwhile the kids are hungry and arguing, your spouse has had a
lousy day and just needs to be held for awhile, and somebody... on the
phone.... trying to make a living... needs to discuss the merits of re-
siding your home at that particular moment.
Not your story? Then fill in the blanks. You’re not sure how you’re going
to pay the taxes... just lost your home... your spouse works all the time...
your teenager has been arrested for the third time... a relationship just
ended... bad news from the doctor... you’re flunking out...
It seems like the stress will never end!
Have any of you ever struggled with feelings of being overwhelmed by
the expectations of the world? Struggled with the thought, “Why does the
act of living seem to be so difficult?”
If so, if any of the feelings I’ve voiced resonant with your own, then you’ve
come to the right place this morning. Because this morning we are
going to be about the task of discovering the way God’s love lifts us up
where we belong. We are going to explore some of the celebration
possibilities that a relationship with God offers.
Were you listening to the words of the prophet Isaiah that were read?
“Do you not know? Have you not heard?” It seems there is a possibility
being offered to us that is different from the norm. A possibility that we
don’t have to give up. We don’t have to atrophy in the darkness of the pit
of despair... because the Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the
ends of the earth.
Are you with me.
He gives strength to the weary.... That’s you and me.
He increases the power of the weak.... I know there are moments of
weakness in my life. And, I would imagine, that as strong as you might
seem on the outside... a little emotional weight training on the inside
would be helpful for you as well.
Isaiah is talking about you and me.
Even youths grow tired and weary... As much as it might seem that
children and youth have a source of energy that is inexhaustible, there
will come a time when even they will stumble and fall.
Isaiah is saying that we don’t have to stay face down in the gravel of guilt
when we do fall... because the Lord will renew our strength. More than
that, God will cause us to soar like eagles.
That is the promise... if we place our hope in God.
And, it doesn’t end there. We can run and not grow weary, walk and not
grow faint. Now that is good news. Amazing, astonishing, marvelous,
remarkable good news.....
........So why is it that at times I act like I have never heard God’s
promise? Why am I so worn at times? Why so Soul-shocked?
Let me suggest that it is because I have relied at those times on my
strength - rather than God’s strength. I have trusted in the pride of Chuck,
rather than the power of Christ. I have pushed my performance, rather
than prayed His presence. All the while becoming weaker. You’d think I’
d know better by now. I seem to fall into the same quandary that the
Apostle Paul encountered: I do the very thing I don’t want to do.
But God hangs in there with me. And God is there for you. That is what
this morning is all about. God is offering you the strength to go forward
and I believe that this church... this gathering of people seeking healthy
relationships... can be a part of that strength. As we continue to know
each other better, share in each others joys and struggles, we will
discover just how real God’s promises are. I invite you to explore your
faith... develop your spiritual strength... in this congregation of caring.
Together we can grow into Christians that soar... together we can
develop a ministry that will make a difference... together we can
experience what God promises and Isaiah writes about a couple of
chapters later:
“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you
pass through the rivers they will not sweep over you. When you walk
through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.”
That’s quite a promise from God.
Do you believe it? Do you really believe that God is walking with you?
Do you really believe that God is capable of keeping you from becoming
overwhelmed with the flood of life? Do you trust that God will keep you
from becoming burned-out by the consuming expectations of existence?
Isaiah did. Take some time to read more about his walk with God. It
might give you some insights for your own walk.
You and I have faced, and will again face difficult situations in our lives.
Times when we will again feel overwhelmed. Perhaps it will be a
financial crisis? Perhaps a crisis in our family? Perhaps the pressure
will come from work, or at school? Something that threatens to weaken
our faith, something that causes us to want to rely on our own strength
rather than God’s strength.
I hope that in those moments of our lives... when we begin to wear
down... we can find a way to pause... to reach out to others in this faith
community and... together... regain the joy of soaring in God’s strength.
The promise is that God will never leave us... never forsake us... never
give up on being in a healthy relationship with us. God will be there.. is
here... in the midst of our weakness, reaching out, offering the strength
we so desperately need at times. I invite you to hear the Good News of
God’s love this morning... “The Lord is the everlasting God...He gives
strength to the weary.” That’s good news! AMEN.
UP WHERE WE BELONG (Joe Cocker)
Who knows what tomorrow brings
In a world, few hearts survive
All I know, is the way I feel
When it’s real, I keep my prayer alive
The road is long
There are mountains in our way
But we climb steps every day
Love lift us up where we belong
Where the eagles cry, on a mountain high
Love lift us up where we belong
Far from the world we know
Up where the clear winds blow
Some hang on to "used-to-be"
Live their lives locking behind
All we have is here and now
All our lives, out there to find
The road is long
There are mountains in our way
But we climb steps every day
Love lift us up where we belong
Where the eagles cry, on a mountain high
Love lift us up where we belong
Far from the world we know
Up where the clear winds blow
Time goes by
No time to cry
Life’s you and I, alive, baby
Love lift us up where we belong
Where the eagles cry, on a mountain high
Love lift us up where we belong
Far from the world we know
Up where the clear winds blow
Love lift us up where we belong
Where the eagles cry, on a mountain high
Love lift us up where we belong
Far from the world we know
Up where the clear winds blow
DeWitt United Methodist Church
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |