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May the Words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be always
acceptable in your sight, Oh Lord our strength and our redeemer. What a week it’s been! I don’t know about you: But it’s been a ROUGH week in our house. We began the week with the death of our beloved cat: And then roamed in our grief as all four of us recovered from different strains of Strep. Four separate doctors visits, and five different antibiotics later: Here we are. And it sort of fits with this fifth Sunday of Lent: Where next week we’ll begin the Holy Week Journey: And the recounting of Jesus’ last days. Ultimately: Those last days will bring us to the day of all days. The day of the Resurrection. We WILL shout for joy. But first: We will mourn in pain. Today’s readings set this up. In each one, we hear of pain. Sorrow. Weeping. And even some Anger. All of the emotions that are a part of grief. (I came back to these readings many many times this week as our family had conversations about death and grief.) But just like the Holy Week Journey that we begin next week, None of this is the end. Sorrow and Weeping are necessary parts of the grieving process. But that’s not the end. Death is never the end. Life wins. And God is strong enough to take all of it. Our Old Testament Reading from Ezekiel speaks of the famous valley of dry bones. And God tells us that dried up bones are not the end. Hope is never lost. Because God will breathe the spirit of life. God is sure to say, “I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live.” Dry bones don’t stand up to God. God can take it: God can turn dry bones into life. The Psalmist cries out in anguish. In a prayer of deep lament: We hear “Out of the depths have I called to you O Lord: Lord, hear my voice.” But the Lament is not the end. Because the psalmist has confidence in God, saying: “I wait for the Lord; My soul waits for him, In his word is my hope.” The pain of Lament isn’t the end. The Psalmist: Even in anguish is waiting for God-- Hoping in God’s word. And the anguish doesn’t stand up to God. God can take it: God can turn it into life. Paul writes to the Romans: “To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.” Paul is hoping for eternal glory with Christ-- Knowing that focusing on the things of this world-- The things of the flesh-- Leads only to pain and anguish. But again—the things of the flesh don’t stand up to God. God can take it: And turn the flesh into the dwelling place of God, Just as Paul says, “The Spirit of God dwells in you.” And finally: The Gospel reading. This famous story of the raising of Lazarus. We know how it will end. That death doesn’t stand up to God. God can take it: And turn death into life. But there’s more: Lazarus, the brother of Martha and Mary is deathly ill. These three are close friends of Jesus’ and the sisters send word to Him. But Jesus doesn’t come. He stays—two days longer in the place where he was. KNOWING the Lazarus needs him. Lazarus, and Mary and Martha whom he loved. And Lazarus dies. He’s been dead for four days when Jesus finally arrives. And Martha and Mary are angry. They’re not just grieving the loss of their brother. They’re pretty angry at Jesus. In Separate, private occasions, both women say to Jesus: “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” And who can blame them for feeling this way? How many times have we thought the same thing? “If only God would have answered my prayers.” “If only God HEARD me.” Like the Psalmist, Martha and Mary lament. But unlike the Psalmist—who is praying to God-- Martha and Mary get the opportunity to say it right to his face. And they take that opportunity. Saying: WHERE WERE YOU? IF ONLY YOU HAD BEEN HERE: HE WOULDN’T HAVE DIED IF YOU HAD BEEN HERE. IT’S YOUR FAULT. And you know what? Whether it’s true or not: Jesus takes it. God can take it. Our Anger. Our Anguish, Our pain. Our need to place blame. Even if we place it in the wrong place. None of it stands up to God. God can take it all: And God can turn it into life. I think that Martha and Mary are two of the bravest people in the Bible. Because they weren’t afraid to say what they were thinking. They weren’t overly sweet and adorable when looking Jesus directly in the eye. They didn’t try to put up a perfect act. They were honest. They lamented. They wailed with grief. And so did Jesus…. I find this part of the story to be one of the most moving lines in the New Testament. “Jesus began to weep.” Even though Jesus KNOWS that he is going to Raise Lazarus from the dead-- Jesus WEEPS. And weeping is more than crying. The actual definition of to weep is “Expressing DEEP Sorrow.” Deep Sorrow. Jesus weeps. This compassion-- This expression of Human emotions-- Shows us that God can take it. God can handle all our pain. Our anguish, our sorrow and our weeping. And not only take it: But take it on. God will take it on too. God becoming human: Jesus on the cross: TAKES ON our pain, anguish, sorrow and weeping in a real and tangible way. And turns it into life. God takes it. And takes it on. For us. With us. But it’s also never going to be the end. This little story ends with Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. But that’s not the end of the larger story. Because the part that we don’t hear is that Lazarus is going to die again. A human death. In which his loved ones once again cried out in anguish. Weeping for him. Weeping for themselves. But the real end of this larger story-- Is that God will again breathe the breath of life into Lazarus’ body. And it will be different than the raising that we read about today, Because it will be ETERNAL, resurrected life. And God will do the same for us. Because death is never the end. Only life—eternal life with the Spirit of God. And in the meantime-- In our own human anguish-- In our weeping-- Our mourning-- In all of it-- God can take it. We can tell the truth. Like Mary and Martha, We don’t need to hide from our anguish. We can tell it. We can pray it. We can shout it. And none of it stands up to God. Because in the end: Life with God always wins. God can take it all: And turn it into life. Amen.
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Sometimes I wonder if Jesus is thinking: What is the matter with you? To us: and to his disciples at the time, I can imagine him saying: Why do you never seem to understand what I say? You have ears: Why do you not hear me? Or are you blind? Can you not see what I am doing? You have eyes: Why can't you see? Our Bible lessons for today speak directly to us. It is as if they were written with us in mind. They all make at least some reference to problems of deafness and blindness-- to the problem that plagues us. Maybe you’re thinking: HUH? These lessons don’t have anything to do with me. I’m not blind. I’m not deaf. I don’t need that kind of healing. And that may be true—physically. But these lessons about blindness and deafness have everything to do with us. Because humans are often, in one way or another deaf and blind-- particularly when it comes to God. So in what way does blindness (and deafness) have to do with us? Part of it has to do with how we read the Bible. Sometimes, when we hear these stories we are tempted to think: "Oh, all that is interesting, and it is wonderful to think that God could do this for people long ago; but it does not have much to do with me" To overcome our deafness and blindness, we have to be prepared to find ourselves in those stories. To see ourselves in those stories. To hear God talking to us. We come to learn a little bit about who we are by identifying ourselves with the people in the Bible. So how do we identify with the blind man in today’s Gospel? The blind man is brought to Jesus on the Sabbath day, And Jesus heals him by putting some clay on his eyes. Clay mixed with Jesus’ very own spit, by the way! But my favorite part of this story is the gratitude that this man has for Jesus. This gratitude brings true faith-- True faith that teaches us something about ourselves. Like the blind man, we have all been touched by the Good News of Christ. In a way, this Good News of Christ heals us from our own blindness. This is what Paul is talking about in today’s Epistle reading when he says: “Once you were darkness, but now in the Lord you are light. Live as children of the light.” (It reminds me of the song “Walk in the light, beautiful light: come where the dewdrops of mercy shine bright. Shine all around us by day and by night, Jesus the light of the world.”) We are not in darkness; we are not spiritually blind anymore. That is: If we remember and truly and deeply know that all we have is given to us by God. Given graciously, lovingly, in great mercy. Not Blind Not walking in darkness. But living in the true light of Christ. And like the Blind man’s gratitude, We witness to our own gratitude in Christ and witness to our faith by our attendance here-- Worshipping the living God who continually opens our eyes and ears. But there’s more: After being grilled by the Pharisees, After telling the Pharisees about what a great guy Jesus is, The blind man runs back to Jesus. And Jesus asks him, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” The Son of Man, meaning: The messiah, the savior of the world. The blind man-- (who’s no longer blind, but we’ll call him that because we don’t know his name) The blind man: Looks at Jesus, after being healed by him and says: “And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him.” Jesus answered: “You have seen him, and it is he who speaks to you.” It’s crazy! Here is the answer, right in front of him. The blind man has experienced Jesus’ great power. He can see, his eyes are working fine, But he’s still blind to who Jesus really is. And sometimes, so are we. Week after week we come here. To hear the good news of Jesus Christ. To worship the living God. But does it make a difference in our lives? Time and time again, we have heard the good news of Jesus-- Urging us to live by faith. How many times have we been urged not to be anxious about the future? Yet we keep worrying about tomorrow. How many times, have we heard about Jesus’ healing power. How many times, have we heard about God’s love? That God loves us just the way we are. That we don’t have to earn God’s love. Yet no matter how many times we hear it, we need to hear it again and again. Because sometimes we’re deaf. Because it’s hard to get it to sink in. Sure, we “know” that God loves us. But too often, we don’t take the next step. We don’t live our lives in the complete confidence that we are loveable. Instead we worry about what other people might think about us. But it’s okay. Because again and again the good news of God’s love for us is told to us. It comes to us in God’s Word. In the Bible. It comes to us in the Sacrament of the Eucharist when we use our sense of taste. Yet sometimes, we have not really seen, heard, and tasted. Jesus talks about this at the end of the Gospel story. Some Pharisees were overhearing Jesus’ dialogue with the blind man. And Jesus said to them: “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains. We say that we can see, but in actual fact we do not notice all that God has given us. We really must be blind. And we need to admit that we are often deaf and blind. But Listen deaf and blind people! THIS IS GOOD NEWS. Because God isn’t done. God is still eager. God is still Working. God is still here. Present right here. And God is eager. So let’s open our eyes, And open our ears, (and walk in the light, beautiful light, come where the dew drops of mercy shine bright.) And see and hear God. Amen. While we were not able to gather today in person due to the snow, Rev. Portia was able to record reading the Gospel and her sermon for us! May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be always
acceptable in your sight, Oh Lord our strength and our redeemer. God said to Abram: “I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.” The same is true for you. You have been blessed. But there’s more to it than that. You have been blessed, So that you can be a blessing to others. But what does it mean to be blessed? What does it mean to be a blessing to others? First, let’s start with what it does NOT mean. Being “Blessed” does not mean to be merely “Happy.” Although happiness might sometimes be a part of it. And There’s nothing cute or trite about a blessing-- Although our society often uses the language of blessing in a way that seems trite. (Like the Southern aphorism “Oh bless your heart.” To be blessed is much more than that. And to be a blessing is a great responsibility. The first and foremost definition of a blessing is, “approval that allows or helps you to do something.” The fact that you have been blessed to be a blessing to others IS the very definition of a blessing. A Blessing allows you to help others to do something. To BE something. Blessings are not static. Blessings are not complacent. Blessings are not simple. Blessings are not about the past. Blessings—being blessed, and being a blessing to others is about constant transformation. It’s about New life-- Rebirth-- Continuously—over and over again-- Always striving. Blessings are about continually growing and changing. And it’s sometimes about getting out of our comfort zones. Exploring something new. Becoming something new. Today’s reading from Genesis points to this. Many consider Abraham the “Father of Faith.” And Abraham was deeply blessed. And he became a blessing to many others. But Abraham had a great, great responsibility. Abraham was blessed: only because he was willing-- Willing to be transformed and changed-- Willing to be the blessing to others-- Willing to help others DO SOMETHING. God said to Abram: “Go from your country and your kindred and your fathers house to the land that I will show you.” God asked him to leave everything he knew. Everything he loved. In order to be a blessing. And Abram was transformed. In fact, he was so transformed, that his very identity changed-- His very name changed—from Abram to Abraham. He was renewed, And reborn-- And his willingness to be reborn and changed carried from generation to generation-- To all of his descendants And today’s Gospel reading talks about this willingness to be changed. To be transformed and reborn. But it’s harder for Nicodemus. He struggles. He operates from the past, From his preconceptions, And because of that, he has difficulty fully hearing and embracing Jesus’ words. Nicodemus: a pharisee: Comes to Jesus in the night. Jesus tells him that “no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and spirit.” (Jesus says some other stuff too.) And after all of it: Nicodemus has a hard time understanding it, And he replies to Jesus saying: “How can these things be?” Now: To be fair to Nicodemus-- Jesus isn’t always the easiest to understand. Because Jesus says weird stuff. Complicated stuff-- And frequently speaks in riddles. But that’s not where Nicodemus has his trouble. Nicodemus has trouble understanding Jesus because he can’t let go of what he knows. He can’t understand this business about “being born again from above.” Or being born by “water and spirit.” And in some ways, Nicodemus is right: We know that you can’t re-enter your mother’s womb and be physically born again. But that’s not what Jesus is talking about. Jesus isn’t talking about literal re-birth. Jesus is talking about God’s great mystery. When Jesus says, “The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the spirit.” Nicodemus misses the point. The point being: that New birth is not literal. It’s like the wind. A mystery beyond human knowledge and control. But Nicodemus can’t let go of his knowledge and control. He can’t let go of the past. And so he can’t fully hear Jesus. And he can’t except Jesus’ invitation to new life and transformation Like Abraham did. Jesus REPETEADLY offers new images-- Inviting Nicodemus to be transformed, To be changed-- To let go of the past that he knows-- And enter into a new future—a new identity. To be reborn. But I don’t want to demonize Nicodemus either. He might miss the point-- He might be unable to hear Jesus because of his preconceptions. But Nicodemus DOES seek Jesus out. Nicodemus Goes to meet Jesus-- Which is certainly worth something. He’s off to a good start. And so are we. Because we show up here. To worship the living God-- To meet Jesus. And every Sunday-- The service ends with a blessing. A blessing that sends us out to be a blessing to others. To help others DO something. And it’s with great responsibility that we take that blessing on. Like Abraham: to be willing-- To be transformed and changed-- To be willing-- To be reborn-- To be willing-- To let go of the past. To let go of what we know. And to be willing: To be open to something new-- To be open to someone new-- And to be a responsible blessing to all we meet. Amen. May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be always acceptable in your sight Oh Lord
my strength and my redeemer. We’re going on a journey today. The 40 day journey of Lent: Which began on Wednesday, But got shuffled up due to the snow storm. So we’ll mark the beginning of that journey today. The journey from death to life: Beginning with the ashes and dust of death, And ending in the journey to Easter: To the resurrection. Traditionally, the season of Lent is also the journey to baptism: (Which makes sense in a journey to life.) In the Early Church: People were baptized on Easter: At the Easter vigil. Lent was a time of preparation for baptism. Which is part of why: whether we have a baptism or not: We renew our baptismal covenant on Easter Sunday. And if all goes according to plan: We WILL have a baptism on Easter! (Stay tuned!) One of the questions in our baptismal covenant is: “Will you persevere in resisting evil, and, Whenever you fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord?” This question is particularly relevant today, On this first Sunday of Lent: When we hear stories of sin and temptation. First, we hear the famous story of Adam Eve: Which describes sin and death entering the created world, As Eve is tempted by the crafty serpent: And both Adam and Eve eat from the forbidden tree. In the second reading, Paul describes Jesus as a kind of Second Adam: Who brings righteousness and abundant grace: Transforming the trespass and condemnation brought on by the sin of the first Adam. And then the story about Jesus: After his baptism, Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness: To be tempted by the devil. It seems kind of crazy: That Jesus was “Led by the SPIRIT: To be tempted by the devil.” Why would the spirit lead Jesus to the devil? To temptation? To sin? There must be a lesson there. A lesson about baptism: A lesson about sin. During this season of journeying from death to life. And maybe that lesson is this: While Baptism points to new life in resurrection: Baptism doesn’t make this life any easier. Even after baptism: We continue to persevere in resisting evil. We continue to fall into sin: And we still have to repent and return to the Lord. For forty days: Jesus fasted in the wilderness. Forty days: The same amount of days that are in the season of Lent: And on the Lenten journey from death to life in the resurrection. In the Bible: forty is always “The time in between” It’s not a literal specific number: It’s a time of waiting before renewal. Whether it’s forty days or forty years: The number forty is the time in between: It’s marked in the bible with The rain of Noah’s flood, Moses on Mount Sinai, Israel in the wilderness, The spies scouting out Canaan, Israel in the hands of the Philistines, The taunting by Goliath, The reigns of Saul, David, and Solomon, Jesus’ fasting and temptation in the desert wilderness. And even Jesus’ appearance after Easter before he ascended into heaven. And now for us: We too wait in the wilderness, In our “Time between” As we move from death to life, And tell the truth: About our own sins: Our own temptations: About the things we have done: And the things we have left undone: As we repent and return to the Lord. In this time in between: We tell the truth about the fact that baptism doesn’t make life easier. It wasn’t easier for Jesus: And it isn’t easier for us. Actually, baptism sometimes makes life more challenging: Because it calls us into a new way of living. Because it pushes us to tell the truth: To repent, Return, And try again. Again, and Again, and again. Constantly striving to be better: More like Jesus. One of the ways that we mark and notice Lent as a “time in between” Is in the absence of “alleluia’s” in the liturgy. Traditionally, As the season of renewal, repentance and preparation before baptism: The church takes all references to “alleluia” out of liturgy until Easter. It feels funny. And sad. But it’s important. Because it’s a concrete reminder of the time in between: A concrete reminder of our active journey from death to life. So while we’ll try our best to refrain from our usual “alleluia’s” in the liturgy: We’ll also take a minute today to pack up our Alleluias. You all received a paper on your way in. And when you come up to receive your ashes in just a few minutes: I’ll invite you to also drop your paper into this box. We’ll close the box up, and leave it here throughout our Lenten journey. And on Easter, We’ll bring them back out. Because while we’re packing them up today: They WILL be back. Jesus promises abundant life: Even after death. And just like baptism: That doesn’t necessarily make it all easier. Death isn’t made easier. But it is a promise that we can cling to. Hold onto: And remember that Jesus always keeps his promises. Amen. We welcomed Fr. Wilson Roane His sermon was based on this Moral Story Minute
There was once a mountain climber who wanted to climb every mountain. Once he was climbing a mountain in the night. He couldn’t see anything and hence he slipped on a rock. He kept falling down and down and realized he is going to die. But suddenly his safety rope caught him and he stopped falling. He stayed there dangling and praying to god. Then he heard a voice calling his name. “I am God, son. If you believe that I can save you, cut the rope you are hanging to.” He looked down and all he saw was pitch black darkness so he didn’t cut the rope. The next day he was found frozen to death by rescuers. But they saw he was hanging only two feet away from the ground. “Only if he had cut his rope, he would be safe and alive,” one of the rescuers said. https://moralstoryminute.com/two-feet/ Rev. Portia will return next Sunday, 2/26/2023 May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be always
acceptable in your sight oh Lord our strength and our redeemer. Amen. The church makes many claims about God – about who God is and what God does and what God is like. One of the biggest claims of all: One that is at the very core of the rest of our claims: Is that God is love. We talk about it all the time. We sing songs about the God of love: We pray to the God of love: We offer the gift of ourselves to the God of love: We follow the God of love: We love, because he first loved us. And then this morning: Which happens to be the Sunday before Valentines day, We hear these lessons that are largely about law. We may be taken a back, As the God of love sounds a bit harsh today when he says phrases like: “If you call your brother or sister a fool, and insult her, You will be liable to the hell of fire.” And, “If your right hand causes you to sin: Cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to go into hell.” It’s not the most good-feeling-reading in the Bible. And there isn’t a way to get around it. These are words from the God who is love. We can’t throw these words out, And since we can’t get around it: We need to go through it: To get to the very heart of it: To get a glimpse of the heart of the God who is love. And this gospel reading says a lot about what we would hear: If we would listen to our hearts: And If we would listen to the heart of God. We hear the sounds, and feel the beating of the heart all of the time. We’ve felt, even heard the sounds of our own hearts beating in excitement. Some of us have heard the beating of an unborn baby’s heart. Touching a loved one, we might feel their heart beating. While the heart is a vital physical organ: The word “heart” is also used to describe the core of our selves. We talk about the human heart as the seat of loving, Of compassion, tenderness, and courage. We can see it in our language, when we say, “take heart.” Or in speaking of a change of heart, we mean that there has been a shift of perspective. The Heart is also the seat of memory. To know something by heart is to know it perfectly. The heart is the center of yearning and desire: To seek with your WHOLE heart: Is to pursue diligently, To strive for something with all of the perseverance you can muster. And so what does all of Jesus’ talk about the law have to do with our hearts, and the heart of the God of love? The answer is in the fact that our hearts are not perfect. While our hearts are the center of love, Our hearts also harbor fear, hatred, judgment, and selfishness. And yet: The God who is love, loves us anyway. And offers opportunity to mend our hearts: striving for a heart more like God’s own. In today’s Gospel story, Jesus is sitting with his disciples: Teaching them what it means to follow him. It’s a continuation of the famous sermon on the mount: Which we’ve heard pieces of the last few weeks. Last week, in particular, Jesus said that he came not to abolish the law, but to fulfill it: And that righteousness must be greater than the scribes and Pharisees in order to reach the kingdom of heaven. What we hear today, are the illustrations and implications of those statements. Today, Jesus talks about some of the big commandments: You shall not kill, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not swear falsely… And the disciples might say: Yes. We’ve heard this all before. We know that’s what God wants for us. But then Jesus goes on to breathe new life into these commandments, By explaining what they mean in their fullness: By getting to the heart of the matter. He explains what these commandments mean if we are to love as God loves: Because law tells us what is in Gods heart. The law exposes God’s fondest desires of how we would live with one another. And the law also shows us the difference between our hearts and God’s heart. The God of love: Wants more for us: Has higher expectations for us: Because of that love. Jesus came not to abolish the law: But to make it even tougher: Not as a punishment: But because God listens to our hearts: And knows just what our imperfect hearts need. God listens to our hearts, and knows that even if we can keep the commandment not to kill one another: We still hate and despise others. We are willing to kill relationships with others: To treat people as if they are dead to us. And so God fulfills the law: Makes it stronger: All for love’s sake. So that our hearts might become more like Gods. God listens to our hearts, and knows that even if we can keep the commandment not to commit adultery: We can still let lust overtake us, And allow it to disrespect others by treating them, or seeing them as less than fully human. And so, God fulfills the law: Makes it stronger: all for love’s sake. So that our hearts might become more like Gods. God listens to our hearts, And knows that even if we can keep from swearing falsely: We are still willing to manipulate others with our words: To lead others astray by what we say: To let our words be meaningless, rather than letting our yes mean yes, and our no mean no. And so, God fulfills the law: Makes it stronger: All for loves sake. So that our hearts might become more like Gods. Our hearts: Though we are made in the image of God: Do not keep time with the beating of God’s heart. Our hearts fall short. And so: In God’s great mercy: The God who is love gives us law-- Not as a punishment: But so that we might be better. So take heart. Do not be afraid: Because our God IS love. The heart of God knows our hearts: However imperfect they might be: And God continues to give us the opportunity to perfect our hearts through the law of love. Amen. May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be always acceptable in your sight, oh Lord my strength and my redeemer. Amen.
You are Salt. You are Light. Jesus sometimes says some weird stuff. And Jesus often says stuff that have pretty serious consequences. This is one of them. You are Salt. You are light. The stakes are high. Seriously—like life and death. Because Salt and Light are necessary, universal, indispensable elements of human life. Salt and Light are what preserve life-- What make life possible-- And Salt and Light is YOU. Salt and Light are everywhere. Our bodies have salt-- Tears, blood, sweat—they’re all salty. Without salt our hearts would not beat. Our blood would not flow. Our muscles would not work. Life needs salt. And Salt is also precious. In Roman times, salt was used as money-- To actually pay workers. In fact, the word “salary” comes from the latin word “Salarium” which means “Salt.” You know the saying, “A person not worth his or her salt?” A person not worth salt, is not worthy of getting paid-- A person not worth salt is basically useless. And Salt also Preserves-- It keeps food from getting spoiled. Its preservation keeps what is old like new. And we can’t forget that Salt brings out flavor-- And if Christ had a flavor—you know it would be love. Salt—brings out the flavor of love into the world. Salt—brings Christ into the world. You are Salt. And what about light? Just like salt—light is necessary for life. Without light—we couldn’t see. We would lose our senses. We would be lost in darkness. Without light from the sun We would perish in cold darkness. Plants would not grow. There would be no food to sustain life. Light allows Christ to be visible-- Allows Christ to be seen in the world. You are light. Salt and Life are necessary for life. And YOU are salt and light. This is wonderful news. But also a great responsibility. As Salt and Light-- We are meant to be sustainers of life-- To provide to the world what is necessary for life-- We are to be God’s Preserving, purifying, and illuminating force in the world. This is who we are. This is who God made us to be. And this is who we are every day. Not just on Sunday’s Not just during Church. But Salt and Light—every day. Because salt and light are used by every human being, every single day. Without Salt and Light—every day-- There would only be death. You are Salt and Light-- YOU are LIFE. But you also have to BE and SHOW what you are-- Jesus is calling us to BE and SHOW that we are light-- That we are salt-- That we are life. We have to show it-- Through our words, and through our actions we must show what we are. Being Salt—Being light—being a DISCIPLE is about more than just believing. It’s about doing. It’s about BEING. It’s about being visible light-- It’s about being salty flesh. This is what Jesus is talking about when he says, “A city built on a hill cannot be hid.” And this is what I love about St. John’s and its ministry. We’re not just a church building. We’re a downtown food pantry: And a downtown thrift store. We’re trying to be visible—out in the open—bringing salt and life for everyone to see and taste. We cannot hide the light that we are-- Because then in the darkness, Christ could not be seen. We cannot hide the salt that we are-- Because then the preservation of life in Christ could not be felt. And the flavor of life’s goodness could not be tasted. These are big consequences. This is a big responsibility. God has given us the gift of life-- God has made us light-- God has made us salt-- So let us go out into the world: to be and show what we are. Amen. Annual Meeting report is included in the weekly email.
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be always be acceptable in your sight, oh Lord our strength and our redeemer. The last line of our Gospel lesson tells us that Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people. We’ve got some good news to proclaim today: On our annual meeting Sunday. We’ve had a great year: Proclaiming the good news of the kingdom together: Both in this building, And in the world beyond. Like Andrew and Peter: We’ve been called to be followers of Jesus. And while we’re certainly not perfect at, There’s some things that we’ve been doing pretty well. Our Sunday worship attendance has remained steady in the past year: Something that many congregations are still struggling with since the beginning of the pandemic. Our attendance on both Easter Sunday and Christmas Eve, Were higher than the previous year. This year we celebrated a baptism, A wedding, And two confirmations! Our financial pledges for the upcoming year came in over $1500 higher than last year. We’ve made some advances in our worship too. We finally got our big screen TV: Allowing us to put the service up for everyone to see. This has reduced our need for a Sunday bulletin: Which has saved us both time and money! I want to give a very sincere and special thank you to Mark and Sam Metko. They have worked terribly hard, To not only get the screen up and going: But I’m certain they’ve put in HOURS of work getting everything onto a powerpoint for all of us to see. If you’re interested in helping with the compilation of those powerpoints: Or in being the power point “clicker” on Sunday morning: Please let us know! And while We’re on the subject of worship: We have to give our sincere thanks to our fabulous music team. Mark, Tim, and Steve. Our worship would absolutely not be what it is without you, And your tireless commitment to help us each week to make a joyful noise to the Lord. You all know as well as I do: How important music is to our worshipping community. And not only that: But its part of what makes us particularly unique. (especially in the Episcopal Church) But there are other things that make us unique! We continue to be a part of the Order of Saint Luke. This past year, we hosted our first healing conference since before the pandemic: And the Holy Spirit was most certainly present! A big thank you goes to Jan Peskie for all of her hard work in keeping us going in our healing ministry. Besides the conference, and the offering of healing prayer after services, Jan has also lead a small group throughout the year in various book studies, prayers, and fellowship. It has been a great joy of mine to attend many of those events, And those events are expanding! This winter, The OSL group is moving further out in the fox valley, And meeting or a book study in Appleton. It’s been a wonderful way to connect with other healing prayer ministers in our area, And to study and pray for one another. The Healing prayer ministry was also essential in our Blue Christmas service this year. We had a beautiful service, With a soup meal before hand. And I’ certain that the whole experience was healing for those who attended. What else makes us particularly unique? Our food pantry! The food pantry continues to be sign of Jesus’ love in our community. And not only through it’s gift of feeding people in need: It’s also been a sign of Jesus’ love through the overwhelming amount of gifts and donations that people in our church—and beyond—have donated to keep the pantry going. LuAnne Nelson has a true God-given gift for this ministry: And I can’t express enough my gratitude to her and her commitment and care. And of course: Our Thrift store! St. John’s Thrift store has been through MANY changes in the past year. Besides a debacle getting a new furnace put in: The biggest and most wonderful change has been with our new Manager. Our own Pam O’Brien stepped up this spring to manage the store, And she has been doing a wonderful job. I can tell you that the work at the thrift store is CONSTANT and never-ending. There’s always donations coming in to sort through, and put out, And it is HARD work! Pam has taken this in stride: And, I would be remiss if I didn’t also mention her husband Pat: Who can often be found helping out at the store as well. Both Pam and LuAnne will give us a brief update at our meeting following the service. And truly: to both LuAnne and Pam: THANK YOU. For being not only ambassadors of St. Johns, But for being ambassadors of Jesus by bringing this ministries out into the world. Finally, We couldn’t run this church without our vestry! I want to thank Jason Marks, Jenny Marks, Mary Kamp, Cheryl Weyers, Kathy LeClair, And Dan LeClair. Our vestry not only helps with the day-to-day running of the church: But they are an amazing and essential support to me as your priest. Thank you: to each of you: For your ministry this past year. But there’s an especially big thank you here: And that’s to Dan LeClair. As of our annual meeting today: Dan is retiring from TWENTY years of service on the vestry. That’s a SUPER long time! Dan was the Senior Warden when Fr. Paul retired in 2016: Which was a major transition to oversee. He also oversaw the paying off of our building mortgage in 2019, And then of course: The long and grueling 5 year search process ending in my arrival here. Dan was the first person I had contact with when I was discerning whether we would be a good fit. And I’ll always be grateful that that first contact was with someone as committed to the church, genuine, thoughtful, and FUN person like Dan. Just to be clear: Dan isn’t going anywhere. He’s just not going to be serving officially on the vestry. If you would: Please join me in giving a big round of applause thank you to Dan for his long-time service to our church. At the actual meeting: We’ll vote on our vestry members for the upcoming year. Finally: We would not be where we are as a church: We would not be WHO we are as church: Without each and every one of you. Thank you: For your faithful commitment to St. Johns: For your unwavering commitment to Jesus: And for your willingness to show up: To be with each other, And see the Living God. I’m grateful for each and every one of you: And I know that God rejoices in your presence. I can’t wait to see what God will lead us to do in 2023! Amen. Annual Meeting Discussions 1.) Vestry Slate a. Kathy LeClair Cheryl Weyers Jason Marks Jenny Marks Sam Metko 2.) Convention Delegates and Alternates a. Significant because we’ll be voting on the trialogue. b. Saturday October 21 st i. Either in Fond du Lac or Menasha 3.) Discussion on Common Cup 4.) Discussion on Ecumenical Ash Wednesday Service 5.) Discussion on Earlier Service Time May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be always
acceptable in your sight Oh Lord our strength and our redeemer. Amen. There’s a lot going on in today’s Gospel reading. It’s like there’s a number of different stories: A number of major themes in only a dozen verses. First, John the baptist sees Jesus coming toward him and proclaims: “here is the Lamb of God.” Second, John the Baptist reminds us that he baptized Jesus: And the Spirit descended on Jesus like a dove. Third: John proclaims that Jesus is the very Son of God. Fourth: Two of John’s disciples call Jesus rabbi: or “teacher.” And Jesus invites them deeper into the mystery with the simple phrase: “Come and See” Finally, Andrew and Peter decide to follow Jesus, and proclaim: “We have found the Messiah.” There are a lot of important theological points in this short reading. “Here is the Lamb of God.” “This is the Son of God.” And “We have found the Messiah.” Each one could be the subject of its own sermon. There’s so much going on, That we might want to ask more questions than the one question that the disciples asked in today’s reading: “Where are you staying?” We might also want to ask, What does all of this mean? These big theological points? We might ask Jesus: “What exactly are you up to?” “What’s your purpose?” And maybe even, “What do you want of us?” To all of these questions, And to many others, Jesus gives us the same answer that he gave those two disciples: “Come and See.” Within the answer to this question, is an invitation. An invitation to a new life: An invitation to new relationship: With Him. With Jesus: The Lamb of God, the rabbi and teacher, the Son of God, the Messiah. What exactly is this Lamb of God? Come and see. Who is the true Messiah? Come and see. Why should we follow you, Jesus? Come and see. What do you want us to do? Come and See. It sounds simple enough. But is it really? How often, in today’s world, Are we willing to accept an invitation to just, “Come and see?” People today like to have all the details. To know the schedule. To know the risks. And know the rewards. We rarely accept an invitation to just “come and see.” We carefully explore all our options: We search for information and compile lists of pros and cons. And of course: It IS important to make informed decisions. Informed decisions help us to avoid repeating some of life’s biggest mistakes. But sometimes, we’re invited to just “come and see.” With no explanation: No schedule. And when it comes to Jesus: This is a risk worth taking. But do we accept the invitation? Are we ready for what we might see? Because if we’re honest: When we come and see: We’re moved to do more. To see again: To do more work. When we accept the invitation to come and see: We become aware that there’s more for us to give: More for opportunities for us to surrender. More risks to take. If we choose to become disciples of Jesus, and to give our time, talent, and treasure, what do we get for our trouble? It doesn’t end there. Because we receive the same invitation: Come and see. Jesus invites us to experience a reality that’s different from the world that cherishes wealth, power, and control. It’s an invitation to love the poor and serve the needy, without condition. It’s an invitation to surrender our lust for power, And give up our need for control: Or our need to be right. And what are the consequences of that? The same invitation: Come and see. The invitation is offered again and again, In a constant cycle. Come and see. Come and see. It never ends. It leads to more and more. And we really do need to come and see in order to understand-- Or even begin to understand what Jesus is up to. Come and see: Again and again. Take a risk, And try again: To see more and more. So come and see the Lamb of God. Come and see the one on whom the Spirit descended like a dove. Come and see the son of God. Come and see Jesus the rabbi, who teaches the way of salvation. Come and see Andrew and Simon Peter, who drop their nets and leave behind everything to follow Jesus. Come and see what Jesus is up to. Come and see his purpose. Come and see what he wants for us. And come and see what we gain when we accept the invitation. Even if you think you know what Jesus is up to: Come and see again. Even if you think you know his purpose: Come and see again. Even if you think you know what he wants us to do: Come and see again: With an open heart each time. That invitation was offered to those disciples thousands of years ago. And it’s offered to us today, tomorrow, and every day. Take the risk: Knowing that the cycle of invitation will continue again and again. Come and see: And be enriched in Christ: In speech and knowledge of every kind. Come and see: And learn again that God is faithful: That you are called into the fellowship of Jesus Christ our Lord. Come and see: So that you too can declare with confidence: As the first two disciples did: “We have found the Messiah.” Amen. |
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