Denver Community Church

June 2, 2013: Solitude – Michael Hidalgo

The biggest problem with solitude is that most of us don’t like to be with people we do not love. And the biggest, unaddressed sin in the church is the sin of self-hatred. We must learn to see ourselves the way that God sees us. As difficult as this is, it’s the very thing that will give us the courage to be alone – with ourselves and with God. When we practice solitude we tap into the presence of God in a way that nothing else can.

May 26, 2013: Service – Michael Hidalgo

When we serve others, we use what we have been given – in resources and talents – to actively seek the highest, common good of others and the causes of God in our world. Serving, as a discipline, is a way for us to teach ourselves to stay away from arrogance, possessiveness, envy, resentment, or covetousness. When it is done this way it is done as a discipline. This is an important distinction to make in our world today.

In the last decade, justice, advocacy, protest and the like have become rather sexy. To serve the poor has become the place of rock stars and celebrities. What once used to be repulsive – serving the least of these – has become decidedly glamorous. While we need not throw stones at the celebrities for their insistence that we join them, we must pause and look at ourselves. For much of what is passed off as service these days comes with a minimal price. It’s easy. We can wear a t-shirt, sign an online petition or go to a benefit concert. But Paul said our attitude of mind should be like Jesus … who was willing to give his life to serve all. 

May 19, 2013: Fasting – Dave Neuhausel

We live in a culture of excess and wanton waste. If we want it buy it. And if you can’t afford it, charge it. We want more, we want bigger, we want newer, we want better … we want, we want, we want. Fasting, seems to work against this. But what if, fasting is not abstaining from our desires, but pursuing them with greater clarity?

When we give some things up, it produces in us the ability to understand our desires better. When we are without something, we then have the ability to know what we really need and what we really want. This is what the pious have known for years. They did not abstain from things because that is somehow “spiritual.” Nor did they abstain, because their desires were wrong. They abstained, because it allowed them to see their desires more clearly.

May 12, 2013: Simplicity – Michael Hidalgo

God is the giver of all good things. Which means the things we have are not really ours. We don’t earn anything – it’s a gift. All of it. So why do we have such a hard time giving? Because we have a dim view of ownership. What we need is not more guilt, or to see the needs of others. Anyone will give if we pour out enough guilt … but God loves cheerful givers. And what makes us more cheerful than receiving a gift. 

You see, our joy comes in first learning how to receive from God. It means cleansing the lens of how we understand possessions, finances, talents and resources. When we understand this, we are then freed to share with any and all who have need. What if we did this? How much more joy would there be in our world?

May 5, 2013: Prayer – Michael Hidalgo

Is prayer something we schedule? Is it something we do all the time? Do I write stuff down or read stuff other people wrote down? One thing is for sure – these and more questions seem to surface whenever we talk about prayer. So what exactly is prayer?

Prayer is the shifting of our lives away from self-centeredness to the place of self-surrender. It is a way for us to take on the mind and heart of Jesus by sharing with him and allowing him to share with us. It is a conversation, not a monologue. So how do we share? How do we hear? Well, by praying – which is an exercise of our heart. We don’t need words.

April 28, 2013: What Was I Supposed to Remember? – Michael Hidalgo

The number one command in all of Torah is, “Remember.” Why is God so intent on people remembering who he is and what he has done? What does it mean to remember and how do we do it? Too often we are guilty of doing the opposite – we forget. But there are ways we can remember that go far beyond memory, but are a way of participating with God in what he is doing in this world.

April 14, 2013: Laziness – Michael Hidalgo

Wisdom literature is filled with commands to not be lazy. So how do we receive this without becoming workaholics? Perhaps it is a return to the recognition that work is sacred. Work is holy. And when we neglect engaging with work – we then neglect a part of what it means to be essentially human. After all, we were created for work. For a vocation. 

And when we engage this rightly, we then can celebrate with God as we continue the ongoing process of creation with him. Because when we find that place where we can work and it does not feel like work – that’s the place where we begin to worship. 

April 7, 2013: God and Government – Michael Hidalgo

Some advocate a total obedience to the King and to government in general. There is the conviction that God has ordained them, and they deserve our allegiance. Many quote a text that has echoes of Ecclesiastes 8 in it in Romans 13 and 1 Peter 3. But in all of these contexts there was political leadership that was living evil and corrupt lives. Which raises the question, “How do we submit to those kind of people?”

Maybe we have been misguided in our notion of submission to the powers. Perhaps we need to do all we can to subvert the powers, not through their power games, but through love and peace and humility. How do we respond to not only our government but all government?

March 31, 2013: Life – Michael Hidalgo

What does it mean to live? God speaks in Gen 1 and creates life. God breathes and gives life. Jesus said he came to give life. John said in the Word was light and life. The story of Jesus ends, not in death, but in life. But is that how we live day to day? I mean, what is the real difference between death and life – and do we actually grasp that? Do we ever stop to recognize that we breathe … we have breath. That breath is given to us by God himself. Every second of our day we experience life – God with us.

Is it possible that we live in this world, and we don’t ever really truly live? If that’s the case, what did Jesus mean exactly when he spoke about life? If we are to live in the power of the resurrection these are questions that we have to consider if we are to live as Jesus calls us. After all, we know the tomb is still empty, so perhaps we need to live like it is. 

March 24, 2013: They Never Said It Would Be Easy – Jon Gettings

When we talk about community, and living in vibrant relationships with one another, we can often pretend that because it’s what we should do it will just happen. Nothing could be further from the truth. This is hard work. It’s not easy. And there will be people along the way who will make this difficult for us. All the same – we are called to live this way. 

In the midst of the most difficult circumstances, the command given to us is to “be devoted to one another in love.” Rome was a church torn by strife – and Paul’s advice is love. A willful choice to seek the highest and greatest good of the other. It sounds a lot like Leviticus 19.18. We often say, “love your neighbor as yourself …” and forget the words that immediately precede that in the very same verse. Those words read: “DO not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself.” God’s command to love came in the midst of revenge and grudges … no one said this would be easy.