Rev. Russell Reflections
Russell Clark • May 8, 2025
๐ฆธโ๏ธ Flawed Heroes. Redeemable Villains. Real Grace.
Stan Lee, the creator of Marvel Comics, wanted to do something no one else was doing in the
comic book industry. He made superheroes who were flawed and villains who had the
possibility of redemption. He blurred the lines between good and evil, superheroes and villains.
In the real world, we are also capable of doing something nice one minute and something
completely terrible the next. The reality is “we are all sinners who have fallen short of the glory
of God” (Romans 3:23).
๏ปฟBut the truth of the Gospel is we are all “now justified by his grace as a
gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:24).
John P. Bowen says this is the difference between definitions vs. decisions. Definitions try to put
people in a box, to put labels on someone. But humanity is not so easily defined. We are more
free to not be defined by the sins of our past or our history, but who we decide to be now.
Every moment we have the capability through the grace and freedom of Jesus Christ to do good
now, to use the superpower of God’s love to reach people in a new way. What will you do now
with what you’ve been given?
We’ll be talking about this more on Sunday as we start our “Superheroes and Scriptures”
sermon series based on Dr. Russell Dalton’s book Marvelous Myths.
This Sunday is about “Superheroes, Villains, and Humanity” and exploring Romans 12:17-18.
Come have fun with us this Sunday!
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This Sunday’s setlist is all about transformation. Not just spiritual, but emotional. Pastor Russell's message explores the anger inside us and how, like the Hulk, we sometimes feel out of control. But unlike the Hulk, we have the Holy Spirit, not gamma rays. Anger isn’t a sin. Jesus got angry. But He used it for righteousness, not destruction. Our worship this week invites the Spirit to refine us, walk with us, and draw us nearer, even in our rage. ๐ Opening Hymn: "All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name" A royal declaration: Jesus is Lord over every emotion —even the ones we’re scared of. This hymn reminds us that all power (even our own inner power) bows to Him. ๐ฌ Holy Spirit Come – Patrick Mayberry We can’t do this on our own. This song is a cry for the Spirit to invade our chaos and bring peace to the storm inside us. “Like a fire in the night / Like a flood that’s running wild / Holy Spirit come.” ๐ฅ Responsive Hymn: "Refiner" This is where things get real. We don’t just want comfort—we want to be changed. “I wanna be tried by fire…” We’re offering our anger, our fire, our very selves for refinement. ๐ Communion Hymn: "Nearer, My God to Thee" A soft landing. From the fire of anger to the nearness of peace. At the table, we trade rage for rest, war for wine, control for communion. ๐ถโ๏ธ Benediction Hymn: "Just a Closer Walk with Thee" We don’t leave here fixed, we leave walking. Step by step, a little closer to Jesus, and hopefully, a little farther from the Hulk inside. Closing Thought: When we worship through our anger, we don’t lose ourselves; we find the version of ourselves God is calling out. Refined. Bold. Brave. Still fierce, but now filled with fire from above, not just within. Next time your blood boils, remember this: you weren’t made to smash, you were made to shine. See you Sunday!
Jesus’ sermon on the mount is considered to be one of the greatest sermons ever. But when it was first preached, I doubt it was very popular. It was challenging and different and against the status quo. The beatitudes flipped the script on who was considered blessed and holy. Dare I say that Jesus’ words probably made a lot of people uncomfortable and angry. When we hear challenging theology that we’ve never heard before, it’s often hard to swallow. But the best teachers don’t tell us what we want to hear; they tell us what we NEED to hear. And if we allow ourselves to truly listen, we will become much better persons because of it. Pick up your Bible and read Matthew chapters 5-7 again (or for the first time) and allow Jesus‘s words to transform how you live, love, & treat your neighbors. We will be discussing Matthew 5:7 and “Black Panther and Power” as we continue our Superheroes and Scripture series this Sunday. Black Panther is one of my favorite superhero movies because it creates this fictional country, Wakanda, and like the sermon on the mount it flips the script of who is most powerful in the world. I encourage you to watch it too before Sunday. See you Sunday!
“I run for dear life to God, I’ll never live to regret it. Do what you do so well: get me out of this mess and up on my feet. Put your ear to the ground and listen, give me space for salvation. Be a guest room where I can retreat; you said your door was always open! You’re my salvation—my vast, granite fortress.” – Psalmsโฌ 71:1-3 Thank you all so much for all of your prayers, love, and support this past month while I have been attending to my parents and after my dad passed away. After sitting with many of you during the time you all prepared to lose a loved one, it means the world for you all to do the same for me during this time of grief and loss. My friend, Rev. Mike Love, said to me this past week, “We know resurrection is real when we see God bring glimpses of new life to us after loss.” You all have made resurrection a reality in my life. From Holy week to Easter to Star Wars Day to Mother’s Day, worship has been so meaningful lately. I know I’m not the only one going through personal struggles right now and because of this I feel that there is something sacred about us worshipping together amidst our pain. I can feel the deeper connection we have with one another because it feels like we are in the valley together right now. I pray that God gets us out of our mess – financial struggles, building struggles, personal struggles. Prayer and leaning on one another has never been so important in the life of our church. To laugh and find joy together at a time we could just as easily dip our head in the sand is powerful. To have a little fun on Star Wars day and talk about superheroes to take our mind off of current realities helps us to breathe a little lighter. I’ve been really impressed with the inspiration of our leaders lately. The music with Jessie’s leadership has been getting better and better. Joey wrote a great poem for Mother’s Day and a journal for the eBlast last week. Inspiration from the Holy Spirit has found you all and that is really important that we continue to feed our creative juices to keep being the church. I hope we can really build on Vacation Bible School this year and pray for all the kids we can impact this year. It’s important that we are at the VBS planning meetings on Wednesday, May 28 and Sat, May 31. It is also imperative that you all are at “The Five Languages of Allyship” luncheon and presentation on Sunday, June 1 after worship. This will be an important discussion on how we can help empower marginalized persons and it is essential that we are present for this discussion. I know my family has an extremely busy summer coming up with camps, trips, and vacation. My office hours will vary this summer as I’ll be taking my kids all over the place. I pray that even with the busyness of life we all find the space to allow God to rejuvenate our souls this summer. This Sunday is Batman Sunday as we will be discussing Romans 12:21 and “Batman, Suffering, and Identity.” See you Sunday! Grace and peace – Pastor Russell
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