Ok, this session may be a difficult one to understand, but we are going to try! What is one thing you REALLY REALLY want, but may never get? If I told you that I was giving you one million dollars, but you could never touch, feel, see or spend it would you want it? Imagine you have a bf/gf that lives on the other side of the world. You never see, touch, or talk to them. How long would your relationship last?
If you went to church, week after week, and never experienced God, how long would you keep going?
Good News! You don't have to go to church and wonder where God is! Our church has something called Sacraments. A Sacrament is an event that allows us to taste, touch, feel, know and experience the grace of God. In the Methodist church, we celebrate two sacraments: Baptism and Communion.
Baptism
Do you remember your baptism? Can you name a baby you saw get baptized? What are the three ways you can be baptized?
No matter how you get baptized, something has happened to you! The United Methodist Church believes baptism is the cornerstone of our faith. During a baptism, we promise to bring the child up, teaching them about Christ. The parents, godparents, and the church promises to take care of this baby and teach them about how much Jesus loves them. Can you remember a time that your parents, godparents or the church made true on their promise to you?
During your baptism, God made a covenant with you, your parents and godparents and the church. God promised to cover you with Grace. Baptism reminds us that God is present in our lives, even when we don't pay attention to Him.
What does it mean to you, that you were baptized?
Communion
Right before communion, the pastor stands over the bread and wine and says a lot of words, right? Some of those words have been around since the first time this meal was shared, by Jesus and his Disciples. So, what does bread & wine have to do with experiencing God? Do we really eat and drink Jesus, when we take communion? No. But, there is a wonderful mystery in our communion. Can you remember the first time you took communion?
The coolest thing about communion to me, is the fact that the bread is regular, plain bread. Someone goes into the grocery store and buys it! We, as United Methodists, use grape juice instead of wine. Someone just walks into the store and buys the juice!
What's so cool about that? Well, think about it. . . we use regular, ordinary, everyday stuff to do something amazing.
During the communion service, the Pastor says a lot of stuff. One thing he says during the Great Thanksgiving "Pour out your Holy Spirit on us gathered here, and on these gifts of bread and wine." The church asks God to "make them be for us the body and blood of Christ, that we may be for the world the body of Christ, redeemed by his blood. By your Spirit make us one with Christ, one with each other, and one in ministry to all the world . . ." (UMH; page 10). When we take communion, we are eating ordinary bread. But, during the worship service, it becomes more. It is a symbol of the sacrifice God has made for us. It is a symbol that although we are all different, we are from one loaf. And, it is a symbol that even thought we are all plain, ordinary people, once God is in our lives, we become more than we every imagined!
Ok, so maybe you caught this. The hymnal says we drink wine, but in church, we have grape juice. Why? The United Methodist Church believes that communion is for everyone. No one can be turned away from the table. Who may be turned away, if we served wine at the table?
It is important to United Methodists that everyone experiences how God transforms us. So, we want to offer this sacrament to anyone!
So, that's the Sacraments in a short session. There is much more to learn and discuss! But, next time you are in church during a baptism or communion, look at the words and actions. You will find God in it all!
Once again, a reminder that God is with us and His grace is always holding us.
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