Pastor Brian's Blog

Dear Trinity Friends, Does your nativity set have a lot of pieces or just a few?  The Art Institute of Chicago has a large nativity set that depicts the birth of Christ from the perspective of 18th-century Naples.  It has over 200 pieces.  I like to think of the pieces of a nativity set as a blended, extended church family.  Or a multicultural faith community.  The combinations in the larger sets are beautiful: two-legged human beings and four-footed animals; royalty and poverty; mortal and angelic; local residents and travelers. The Bible does not describe the birth of Jesus as a private family moment, but as a community event because the saving love of God creates community . 1   From a Wesleyan perspective, love is mediated.  We experience the love of God through others.  The church is the community where we learn and live out our new life in Christ.   The church isn’t a collection of individuals who first exp...

In the weeks leading up to Christmas, I will lead a new series called "The Props of Christmas."   Many of us place nativity scenes in our homes as “props” that tell the story of Jesus’ birth.  Some are simple sets with only Mary, Joseph, and the Christ child in a manger.  Others are more elaborate with a menagerie of characters: sheep and shepherds, camel and kings, donkey, ox, and angel.  In the world of theater, a prop is “ a physical object that an actor uses during a performance.” 1   According to drama professor Andrew Sofer, props are objects on a journey.  They “trace spatial trajectories and create temporal narratives as they track through a given performance.” 2   The props of Christmas take us on a journey.  The pieces of a nativity set take us back in time to first-century Bethlehem when God became flesh.  They have a theatrical purpose with theological meaning.  The Actor uses them in performing the divine dr...

I was deeply disturbed by the news of a shooting at a Baptist church on Nov. 5 in rural Texas.  Twenty-six people were killed, and twenty others were injured.  The fact that the shooting took place during worship leads some to wonder if it could happen at Trinity.  While it is unlikely, it is better to have a plan - just in case.    Last October, the two officers from the Wilmette Police Department made a presentation to the Trinity Church Council. "What if someone starts shooting at Trinity?"  The short answer is: (1) Run. (2) Hide. (3) Fight.  Here's a link to a simple pdf resource  with information from the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Bureau of Investigation prepared by the  Washington Post .    The Wilmette Police showed the following video clip during a recent training for faith communities that Trinity hosted.  The goal is to help you think about how you mig...

Last week, my cell phone suddenly stopped working.  The screen went blank, even though the battery meter indicated a 40% charge.  When I plugged the phone into the charger, it worked but not for very long without being plugged in.  It was time to change the battery.  With the new battery, my phone is now functioning properly.  Grace is the power of God that changes our hearts.  As the apostle Paul writes: “If anyone is in Christ, that person is part of the new creation.  The old things have gone away, and look, new things have arrived!” 1 God’s grace makes a difference in our lives.  With God’s help, we can experience a transformation into the image of Christ here-and-now. 2 One definition of grace, adapted from John Wesley’s Instructions for Children , is that grace is the power of God working in us enabling us to know, love, and serve God. 3   From a Wesleyan perspective, God loves us as we are but does not leave us th...

Consecration Sunday is November 12, 2017.   Our Guest Leader this year is the Rev. Chris Walters, president of the United Methodist Foundation of the Northern Illinois Conference.   Chris has a degree in fiction writing from Colombia College and previously taught 7th Grade English.  He has graduate degrees from Northern Seminary and Chicago Theological Seminary.   Chris enjoys vacationing and spending time outdoors with his wife Rev. Eun-Hye Choi and their son Tim.  The Leadership Dinner  (by invitation) will be Sunday, November 5 at 6:00 p.m. at Jilly's Cafe 2614 Green Bay Rd. in Evanston.   Rev. Walters will give a short inspirational message. On  Consecration Sunday, November 12 , you are invited to one of the  Celebration Meals  after worship, which will be a  special  prepared meal, not a potluck.  Reservations for the brunch (9:30 a.m.) or luncheon (11:30 a.m.) are requ...

Last night, a man opened fire on a crowd in Las Vegas from his hotel room where at least 23 guns, explosives, and thousands of rounds of ammunition were found.  He killed 59 people and injured 527 others attending an outdoor concert before killing himself. So far, the motive for this mass killing is unknown.  The senselessness of it escapes our understanding. There is a dark side in the human condition that puts us all at risk.  We are all a mixture of good and bad.  The temptations of sin and evil would disrupt and destroy the peace and harmony that God intends. An excerpt of a prayer by Walter Brueggemann acknowledges the danger: “We are reminded that the world is deep in instability, that the world is saturated with ready violence, that our ease is without full guarantee.” 1 After the tragedy in Las Vegas, we might ask: “Where was God?  Why would God allow this to happen?” In my view, God is not responsible directly or indirec...

Dear Friends in Christ, Grace is one of the most important words in our vocabulary of Christian belief.  It is both the love and power of God.  In his sermon “Free Grace,” John Wesley said that grace is “free in all, and free for all.” 1 Some people do not consider themselves “religious.”  That may be how they see themselves.  However, it does not change how God sees them.  As United Methodists, we affirm that God’s grace is for all people.  In other words, God loves every human person, and God’s power is working in each person’s heart.  Grace is what prompts God to bless us and forgive us and guide us toward God and what is good. When I was looking for an image that conveys the idea of “all people,” I found one that shows a diverse group of adults.  Among them are different genders, people of various ages, heights, skin colors, and cultures.  Whether they are professing Christians or not, religious or not, God’s grace is...