Rev MaryGean Cope

Tag: prayer

  • The Heart of Prayer

    The Heart of Prayer

    I want to talk about something coming up that matters to us as a church. Vacation Bible school. It’s not just a week of activities. It’s a whole-church production. And I need all of us.

    Can you help with snacks? Can you be a group leader? Can you teach at one of the rotation stations? Can you be a greeter or a prayer? Can you help with setup, decoration, cleanup?

    All of us.

    And then there’s something else coming this summer. Glen Lake Camp. If you haven’t been there in the last couple of decades, you might be surprised at what’s changed. But it’s a wonderful place for families to go together, for elementary kids, junior high, high school—all ages can go.

    Here’s what I’ve said for years: A week at church camp is the equivalent of a full year of Sunday school. Because of the intensity of the Christian community there. Because of the learning that happens in that concentrated time. Because kids experience what it means to be part of the body of Christ when they’re away together, worshiping together, learning together, being challenged together.

    So I want us to start thinking about it now. Praying about it. And making sure we’re able to provide scholarship assistance for families who need it. Because every child should have the chance to experience what it means to belong to something bigger than themselves.

    A reflection by Rev. MaryGean Cope

  • The Gift of Forgiveness (Romans 6)

    The Gift of Forgiveness (Romans 6)

    Romans 6:23 says that the wages we earn for our sin is death. It is a debt each of us must pay one way or another. But that verse goes on to say that God decided to give us a gift instead of death. We can accept the gift of eternal life because Jesus paid the debt for us when he took our sin to the cross.

    The old hymn says it: “Jesus paid it all, all to him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain, but now I am white as snow.”

    Jesus became sinned for us so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. Scripture tells us that everything went dark as Jesus hung on the cross. The sun disappeared. He completed the sacrifice and yielded his life.

    The women who had followed him watched from a distance. Two influential but secret followers buried his body. A heavy stone rolled across the tomb’s entrance. But all that happened before Sunday came.

    We have been bought. Our freedom purchased with God’s grace. And there’s more to this abundant life we’ve received than just forgiveness. The Savior who made our future secure wants to make this life we live now something that brings him honor and glory.

    A reflection by Rev. MaryGean Cope

  • The Heart of Prayer

    The Heart of Prayer

    For three years, Christ followers watched Jesus reach out to the poor and weak, heal the sick and dying, even bring the dead back to life. They heard him speak to the storm and watch the sea become still. They saw a small lunch become enough food to feed thousands on a hillside.

    And yet something even greater was happening. In every encounter Jesus took broken lives and made them whole. A woman who had exhausted every resource trying to find a cure for her disease touched his robe and was healed. Another who had searched for love in half a dozen failed relationships found his forgiveness. One who was facing death was given new life when Jesus rescued her.

    But a life of love had led Jesus not to admiration and applause but to suffering and death. He didn’t die by accident. It wasn’t a malicious plot that caught him off guard. Jesus laid down on the cross a willing sacrifice for us.

    And then Sunday came. The stone rolled away. The women arrived to hear the glorious news. Darkness had covered the earth. But the darkness of death could not cover the light of resurrection. He arose. Hallelujah, he arose.

    A reflection by Rev. MaryGean Cope

  • Walking by Faith

    Think about this: What is it about you that is holy? What part of you is set aside, consecrated to God? What is other than the ordinary?

    When we talk about holiness, we’re not talking about being perfect or better than anyone else. And we’re definitely not talking about that snooty piety that says “I’m better than someone else.” That’s not holiness. That’s just religious pride.

    Real holiness is about being set apart for God. It’s about being called out and asking what God wants to do through you. It’s the idea that you’re not just living for yourself, but for something bigger. Not in a weird way. Not in a judgmental way. But in a way that changes how you live, what you prioritize, how you love people.

    Look at your own life. What in you has been consecrated to God? What have you set apart for his purposes? That’s holiness. Not performance. Not judgment. Just your life, deliberately given.

    A reflection by Rev. MaryGean Cope

  • Walking by Faith

    Walking by Faith

    There’s a difference between knowing something exists and actually believing in it. Let me tell you a story.

    There was a debate about infant baptism, and someone asked a guy: “Do you believe in infant baptism?” And he said, “Believe in it? Heck, I’ve seen it done.” He thought belief meant the same thing as knowledge. But it doesn’t.

    When we say “I believe in the Holy Catholic Church” in the Apostles Creed, we’re not just saying we know it exists. We’re saying we trust it. We’re part of it. We’re committing to it. Belief is about relationship. It’s about being in.

    And when we talk about something being holy—in the biblical sense—we’re talking about something set apart. Consecrated. Different from the everyday. Not in a holier-than-thou way. That’s just snooty piety and that’s not what holiness is about. Real holiness is being set apart to God. Being called to something other than the usual. That’s what the church is. That’s what we are, if we’re willing to be.

    A reflection by Rev. MaryGean Cope

  • The Spirit Among Us (Matthew 3)

    The Spirit Among Us (Matthew 3)

    When Jesus went to John to be baptized, John knew something was off. Jesus didn’t need to be baptized. Jesus had no sins to repent of. But Jesus said to him: I need to do this. I need to fulfill all righteousness. I need to show you how.

    And when Jesus came up out of the water, something amazing happened. The heavens opened. The Holy Spirit came down like a dove. And a voice from heaven said: This is my son.

    All three persons of the Trinity, right there at once. The Father speaking, the Son being baptized, the Holy Spirit descending. It’s one of the few places in Scripture where you see all three together.

    The dove image stuck because that’s what people could understand. How do you describe the Holy Spirit? It’s invisible. But it came like a dove—gentle, pure, unmistakable. And that’s why we use the dove for the Holy Spirit even now. Because at that moment, people needed to know the Holy Spirit is real. Tangible. Present. Coming upon Jesus to anoint him for the work ahead.

    A reflection by Rev. MaryGean Cope

  • The Heart of Prayer

    The Heart of Prayer

    The church needed a way to sum up what it believed. And there was this guy named Marcian who had completely wrong ideas about God. He thought all matter was evil. So Jesus couldn’t have actually been human, couldn’t have been born, couldn’t have died. He was just some spiritual being delivering nice messages.

    The church said no. That’s not what we believe. So they wrote the Apostles Creed to push back against that heresy. And if you look at the middle part of that creed—the part about Jesus—it’s all about him being real. Conceived. Born. Suffered. Crucified. Dead. Buried. Because if Jesus wasn’t actually human, he couldn’t have suffered. He couldn’t have paid the price for our sins.

    Here’s what matters: Jesus came in flesh. He walked on earth. He bled. He died. And that’s how he saved us. Not as some ghost, not as some idea, but as a person. A real person. That changes everything.

    A reflection by Rev. MaryGean Cope