December 18, 2011
Advent Prayer
All: Loving God, we open ourselves to you this Christmas season.
As these candles are lit, light our lives with your imagination.
Show us the creative power of hope.
Teach us the peace that comes from justice.
Fill us with the kind of joy that cannot be contained, but must be shared.
Magnify your love within us.
Prepare our hearts to be transformed by you,
That we may walk in the light of Christ. Amen.
Morning Prayers
O God our Father and our Mother, we come to you today with praises on our lips and love in our hearts. We are glad to be here and thankful for the opportunity to worship you. In this season of hope, peace, joy, and love, we see so much celebration, but very little joy. Help us to share the true joy of Advent and Christmas with all whom we encounter this season.
We are anxious, o God, about the future of your church. We have so much at stake in our finances and in our planning that it seems overwhelming. Guide us in your way, and give us peace and comfort so that we may serve you with gladness.
We are concerned with out cities and townships, O Lord. We pray for wisdom and justice for all who govern, especially our own Russ. Help them all to know your presence and guidance.
We are concerned for the sick among us and known us. We pray for healing and wholeness for them. May they know your healing presence.
We have brought burdens with us today on our hearts which cannot speak with our lips. Hear us Lord, even in our silence.
We pray all these in the name of Jesus, our Christ. Amen.
Luke 1:26-56
26 When Elizabeth was six months pregnant, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a city in Galilee, 27 to a virgin who was engaged to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David’s house. The virgin’s name was Mary. 28 When the angel came to her, he said, “ Rejoice, favored one! The Lord is with you! ” 29She was confused by these words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 30 The angel said, “ Don’t be afraid, Mary. God is honoring you. 31 Look! You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. 32 He will be great and he will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of David his father. 33 He will rule over Jacob’s house forever, and there will be no end to his kingdom. ”
34 Then Mary said to the angel, “ How will this happen since I haven’t had sexual relations with a man? ”
35 The angel replied, “ The Holy Spirit will come over you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore, the one who is to be born will be holy. He will be called God’s Son. 36 Look, even in her old age, your relative Elizabeth has conceived a son. This woman who was labeled ‘unable to conceive’ is now six months pregnant. 37 Nothing is impossible for God. ”
38 Then Mary said, “ I am the Lord’s servant. Let it be with me just as you have said. ” Then the angel left her.
39 Mary got up and hurried to a city in the Judean highlands. 40 She entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. 41 When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the child leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. 42 With a loud voice she blurted out, “ God has blessed you above all women, and he has blessed the child you carry. 43 Why do I have this honor, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? 44 As soon as I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. 45 Happy is she who believed that the Lord would fulfill the promises he made to her. ”
46 Mary said,
• “ With all my heart I glorify the Lord!
• 47 In the depths of who I am I rejoice in God my savior.
• 48 He has looked with favor on the low status of his servant.
• Look! From now on, everyone will consider me highly favored
• 49 because the mighty one has done great things for me.
• Holy is his name.
• 50 He shows mercy to everyone,
• from one generation to the next,
• who honors him as God.
• 51 He has shown strength with his arm.
• He has scattered those with arrogant thoughts and proud inclinations.
• 52 He has pulled the powerful down from their thrones
• and lifted up the lowly.
• 53 He has filled the hungry with good things
• and sent the rich away empty-handed.
• 54 He has come to the aid of his servant Israel,
• remembering his mercy,
• 55 just as he promised to our ancestors,
• to Abraham and to Abraham’s descendants forever. ”
56 Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months, and then returned to her home.
©2010 Common English Bible
Making Room for Jesus
This is the season for hospitality. Most of us have been to or will attend a Christmas party. Many of us will be a part of family gatherings next weekend. Everything will be at its brightest and best. The good silverware will be used, and the best china on the table. New recipes will be tried out and old standards revived.
My mother loved the holidays--especially the cooking. She loved watching her husband and three sons and their families consuming the good food she made--even though sometimes it looked like we were attacking the food like lions on a wildebeest. In many ways, she made me what I am today.
Henry Langknecht, who teaches at Trinity Lutheran Seminary in Columbus, writes this about Martin Luther’s wife Katharina:
She rose at 4 a.m. every day. She cooked and fed the household, bred cattle, brewed beer and ministered to the sick. She provided a home for six children of her own, four orphans, and a constant stream of Luther’s students from the seminary.
Now, that’s hospitality.
John Dominic Crossan has said that if you boil Jesus’ ministry on earth down to the core, what he was about was hospitality and healing. Jesus practiced what Crossan calls “open commensality,” which means everyone was welcome to whatever table Jesus would grace, regardless of profession (Tax Collectors), reputation (Sinners), religious sect (Pharisees), or gender. Men and women were welcome to eat with Jesus and be partners in the conversation. Scandalous, indeed!
The readings before us today are so well known that they have their own names. The first part of our reading is called the Annunciation, in which the angel Gabriel visits Mary and tells her that she is going to conceive a child and give birth to God’s Son.
Mary is confused--and probably frightened--I mean, how often do angels appear out of nowhere and say such disturbing things? And yet, even in her fear and confusion, she accepts the situation that has been thrust upon her. In so doing, Mary performs the ultimate act of hospitality. She welcomes the Christ-child into her womb and into her heart. The Creator of all there is has found a home in the womb of a peasant girl from Nazareth.
Mary then goes to visit her cousin Elizabeth and Elizabeth welcomes her into her home. Again, hospitality. When Mary greets Elizabeth, the child inside her leaps for joy. This is important, because it foretells a positive relationship between the boys that these two women are carrying. Elsewhere in the Bible, activity in the womb is not good. It was written that Jacob and Esau were fighting in Rebecca’s womb. But the son that Elizabeth is carrying (whom we will later know as John the Baptist) will make way for and then get out of the way of Mary’s son, Jesus.
While she is enjoying Elizabeth’s hospitality, Mary sings for joy. And this song has its own name--the Magnificat. The name is from the first word of the song in Latin. Older translations begin it with “my soul magnifies the Lord.” Our version, from the Common English Bible begins this way, “With all my heart I glorify the Lord! In the depths of who I am I rejoice in God my savior.”
Imagine that. A poor, pregnant, unmarried peasant girl from Nazareth crying out with joy at the circumstance she is in. I just had a thought this week that maybe Mary went to her cousin Elizabeth’s house in the hill country because of the shame of her pregnancy. I wonder.
But her words do not tell a tale of shame. Her words are about justice--not criminal justice, but God’s justice--which is about putting things right. What she sings is radical. Those folks down at Occupy Wall Street don’t have anything on Mary. In the world that Mary sees, the powerful will be brought down and the lowly lifted up. The hungry will be filled, but the rich will be sent away empty-handed. What’s up will be down and what’s down will be up. In a world where the creator of all there is finds a home in the womb of a poor Galilean peasant girl, all bets are off. Nothing will ever be the same.
So what about us? What is our call today from this ancient text? We are called to welcome the Christ-child into our hearts and minds and to continue to sing about justice. Three weeks ago we read the parable of the final judgment, in which two groups of people were surprised to learn that in their interactions with the poor, the hungry, the stranger, the thirsty, the naked, the sick, and the imprisoned were interactions with Jesus. He told them and he tells us today that how we treat the least of these is how we treat him.
I want to challenge each of us to perform an act of hospitality for someone today--someone not in your family. Inviting strangers into our homes is scary, but welcoming them is welcoming the Christ-child. Do something for someone else--even if it’s putting a buck in a Salvation Army bucket. The Salvation Army is very good at welcoming, and when you give to them, you participate in that welcoming.
Welcome Christ into your Christmas. Put the shopping on hold and open your heart.
I’d love to know what you are thinking.
Offering Invitation and Prayer
In addition to our weekly giving, today, we receive the Christmas Offering of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). This offering stays entirely in our region, funding our Camp Christian and the Regional Church Staff. Let us give with Great joy!
Loving God, we thank you for all you give to us. As we return these gifts, may they and we strive to bring justice to the lives of others. In the name of the Christ-child we pray. Amen.
Benediction
Depart in peace, and take with you the certain knowledge
That God is always coming into the world.
We will seek God, not in a long ago stable or ancient manger,
But in the people we meet and the depths of our own hearts.
May the blessing of Christmas make you a blessing to others;
May the peace of the season pervade all that you do.
We will welcome the challenge of discipleship.
We will offer ourselves as God’s ministers.
We will go forth in hope, peace, joy, and love. (Thanks to the good folks at Processandfaith.org for the Advent Prayer and Benediction)
Sermons of Pastor Chris Whitehead from the First Christian Church, Disciples of Christ, located in Mansfield, Ohio
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Monday, December 12, 2011
Worship December 4, 2011
Advent Prayer
All: Loving God, in this time of preparation and planning,
We thank you for the hope and peace you unfailingly offer us.
Show us the creative power of hope.
Teach us the peace that comes from justice.
Prepare our hearts to be transformed by you,
That we may walk in the light of Christ.
Morning Prayers
Isaiah 40:1-11
Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.
[2] Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended,
that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the LORD's hand
double for all her sins.
[3] A voice cries:
"In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD,
make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
[4] Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low;
the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain.
[5] And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed,
and all flesh shall see it together,
for the mouth of the LORD has spoken."
[6] A voice says, "Cry!"
And I said, "What shall I cry?"
All flesh is grass,
and all its beauty is like the flower of the field.
[7] The grass withers, the flower fades,
when the breath of the LORD blows upon it;
surely the people is grass.
[8] The grass withers, the flower fades;
but the word of our God will stand for ever.
[9] Get you up to a high mountain,
O Zion, herald of good tidings;
lift up your voice with strength,
O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings,
lift it up, fear not;
say to the cities of Judah,
"Behold your God!"
[10] Behold, the Lord GOD comes with might,
and his arm rules for him;
behold, his reward is with him,
and his recompense before him.
[11] He will feed his flock like a shepherd,
he will gather the lambs in his arms,
he will carry them in his bosom,
and gently lead those that are with young. (RSV)
The Candle of Peace
I was listening to the radio the other day, when a song came on I had never heard before. I knew the artist--Dr. John--also from New Orleans, but I didn’t know the song. The title of it is “Hello God” and it is a lengthy prayer. In the first verse were words that shook me to the core of my being. In the midst of this prayer, he asks, “Are you tired of my prayers, or something, God?”
Are you tired of my prayers, or something, God?
I’m betting that at sometime in your life, every one of you could have prayed that prayer.
Those words made me flash back through my life and through my ministry and remember the times of desperation.
I remembered what remains the worst night of my life, when I was doing a favor for a hospital chaplain who needed a weekend off. I did this from time to time, and most of the time, I never got a call.
But on that Sunday night, I got called to the ER and asked to be with a family there. There were police cars outside and officers behind the nursing station. One of the nurses took me aside and told me that a five-year-old boy had taken his father’s gun from a locked cabinet and killed his two-year-old brother. The body was in one bed in the ER and the five-year-old was in the next bed because the gun recoil had opened a large wound on his forehead.
The hours that followed were horrible. The police interviewed the mom, then the son. And they stitched up his head so he could go. One of the police officers was so upset by it all that he went in the bathroom and vomited. Another officer gave the mother a card of a cleaning service that specialized in cleaning up after shootings.
As things were winding down, I offered to pray with the family. The mother looked at me and said, “We have nothing more to pray about.”
Are you tired of my prayers, or something, God?
Read the prayer Requests that our breakfast guests turn in every month. It would not surprise me that every one of them comes from someone who has wondered if God had just stopped listening.
Are you tired of my prayers, or something, God?
The passage before us today is written to a people in exile. Their nation had been overrun and destroyed by the Babylonians, who then dragged them off to Babylon where they lived in captivity.
One of my favorite Psalms is one of lament--Psalm 137, which begins, “By the waters of Babylon we sat and wept as we remembered Jerusalem,” and continues “…How can we sing the Lord’s song in a strange land?”
This passage was written to people who were in the depths of despair --so desperate that they had no hope to cling to. They were so down that they couldn’t even sing. William Congreve wrote that “music hath charms to soothe the savage breast,” but nothing could soothe the misery of the people of God as they sat for 60 years without hope.
When I was reading Psalm 137 this week and read, “how can we sing the Lord’s song in a strange land,” what I heard in my head was Dr. John’s voice: “Are you tired of my prayers, or something, God?”
In the middle of this hopelessness and despondency comes forth a prophet. And remember, a prophet is not one who predicts the future but one who challenges the present.
This prophet, whom we identify as the second Isaiah, speaks words of comfort and hope.
Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.
Speak tenderly to the people,
and cry to them
that their warfare is ended,
that their iniquity is pardoned,
that they have received from the LORD's hand
double for all their sins.
And how is this accomplished? Their Lord is coming. And the prophet announces this comfort and peace as if it is already accomplished, even though the exile lasted more than 60years.
Somehow, this glimmer of hope--assurance that war had ended, when they knew better, assurance that all was well, even though they lived in despondency--somehow this hope carried them through the awful experience of being strangers in a strange land.
And then there’s us. Here we are, strangers in our own land. Having church in a neighborhood that is no longer our own. Immersed in a culture that associates Christmas with Santa Clause and not the Christ child. Trying to preach Christ to a world which on its best days is indifferent to the Gospel. Trying hard to do ministry with resources that get more and more scarce each day.
It’s enough to make you look up and ask, “Are you tired of my prayers or something, God?”
This week, I buried the eighteenth person this year. The most I’ve had in previous years is eight in one year. It’s a good thing I believe the things I say at their funerals, or I would sink into the depths of gloom. I sometimes have to fight the gloom, and there are times when I have heard myself ask, “Are you tired of my prayers, or something, God?” I think that’s why that song so affected me.
But today, the prophets words come fresh to me and say, “Comfort my people, speak words of peace and forgiveness to them. Tell them from the highest mountain that our GOD comes with strength and might--but also, He will feed his flock like a shepherd he will gather the lambs in his arms, he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young.”
Advent is the assurance that God has not grown tired of our prayers. Advent is the promise that comes again and again that God loves us and has a purpose for us.
We have a tendency to idolize the past, and that leads us to think that our best days are behind us. My beloved, God has a purpose for First Christian Church which we may not yet have seen, but Advent is the promise that God is not done with us yet!
Advent is the assurance that God has not grown tired of our prayers.
My God, I love Advent. How about you?
Offering Invitation and Prayer
“He will feed his flock like a shepherd” (Isa. 40:11). What a peaceful image Isaiah portrays of God’s love and care! Our gifts promote God’s peace by feeding the bodies and spirits of the many who are wanting. Let us give generously!
O God, we live amidst abundance that can only be imagined by many. With our heartfelt thanks, may these gifts be used to further the cause of peace in the world. Amen.
Benediction/Commission and Blessing
Take your encouragement from Christ,
that your joy may be complete.
We will share in the Spirit;
We will find consolation in love.
Practice a ministry of humility and compassion
For God is at work in you, empowering you
We will welcome Christ into our hearts.
We will live worthy of the Gospel.
We will go forth in hope and in peace.
Advent Prayer
All: Loving God, in this time of preparation and planning,
We thank you for the hope and peace you unfailingly offer us.
Show us the creative power of hope.
Teach us the peace that comes from justice.
Prepare our hearts to be transformed by you,
That we may walk in the light of Christ.
Morning Prayers
Isaiah 40:1-11
Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.
[2] Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that her warfare is ended,
that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the LORD's hand
double for all her sins.
[3] A voice cries:
"In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD,
make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
[4] Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low;
the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain.
[5] And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed,
and all flesh shall see it together,
for the mouth of the LORD has spoken."
[6] A voice says, "Cry!"
And I said, "What shall I cry?"
All flesh is grass,
and all its beauty is like the flower of the field.
[7] The grass withers, the flower fades,
when the breath of the LORD blows upon it;
surely the people is grass.
[8] The grass withers, the flower fades;
but the word of our God will stand for ever.
[9] Get you up to a high mountain,
O Zion, herald of good tidings;
lift up your voice with strength,
O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings,
lift it up, fear not;
say to the cities of Judah,
"Behold your God!"
[10] Behold, the Lord GOD comes with might,
and his arm rules for him;
behold, his reward is with him,
and his recompense before him.
[11] He will feed his flock like a shepherd,
he will gather the lambs in his arms,
he will carry them in his bosom,
and gently lead those that are with young. (RSV)
The Candle of Peace
I was listening to the radio the other day, when a song came on I had never heard before. I knew the artist--Dr. John--also from New Orleans, but I didn’t know the song. The title of it is “Hello God” and it is a lengthy prayer. In the first verse were words that shook me to the core of my being. In the midst of this prayer, he asks, “Are you tired of my prayers, or something, God?”
Are you tired of my prayers, or something, God?
I’m betting that at sometime in your life, every one of you could have prayed that prayer.
Those words made me flash back through my life and through my ministry and remember the times of desperation.
I remembered what remains the worst night of my life, when I was doing a favor for a hospital chaplain who needed a weekend off. I did this from time to time, and most of the time, I never got a call.
But on that Sunday night, I got called to the ER and asked to be with a family there. There were police cars outside and officers behind the nursing station. One of the nurses took me aside and told me that a five-year-old boy had taken his father’s gun from a locked cabinet and killed his two-year-old brother. The body was in one bed in the ER and the five-year-old was in the next bed because the gun recoil had opened a large wound on his forehead.
The hours that followed were horrible. The police interviewed the mom, then the son. And they stitched up his head so he could go. One of the police officers was so upset by it all that he went in the bathroom and vomited. Another officer gave the mother a card of a cleaning service that specialized in cleaning up after shootings.
As things were winding down, I offered to pray with the family. The mother looked at me and said, “We have nothing more to pray about.”
Are you tired of my prayers, or something, God?
Read the prayer Requests that our breakfast guests turn in every month. It would not surprise me that every one of them comes from someone who has wondered if God had just stopped listening.
Are you tired of my prayers, or something, God?
The passage before us today is written to a people in exile. Their nation had been overrun and destroyed by the Babylonians, who then dragged them off to Babylon where they lived in captivity.
One of my favorite Psalms is one of lament--Psalm 137, which begins, “By the waters of Babylon we sat and wept as we remembered Jerusalem,” and continues “…How can we sing the Lord’s song in a strange land?”
This passage was written to people who were in the depths of despair --so desperate that they had no hope to cling to. They were so down that they couldn’t even sing. William Congreve wrote that “music hath charms to soothe the savage breast,” but nothing could soothe the misery of the people of God as they sat for 60 years without hope.
When I was reading Psalm 137 this week and read, “how can we sing the Lord’s song in a strange land,” what I heard in my head was Dr. John’s voice: “Are you tired of my prayers, or something, God?”
In the middle of this hopelessness and despondency comes forth a prophet. And remember, a prophet is not one who predicts the future but one who challenges the present.
This prophet, whom we identify as the second Isaiah, speaks words of comfort and hope.
Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.
Speak tenderly to the people,
and cry to them
that their warfare is ended,
that their iniquity is pardoned,
that they have received from the LORD's hand
double for all their sins.
And how is this accomplished? Their Lord is coming. And the prophet announces this comfort and peace as if it is already accomplished, even though the exile lasted more than 60years.
Somehow, this glimmer of hope--assurance that war had ended, when they knew better, assurance that all was well, even though they lived in despondency--somehow this hope carried them through the awful experience of being strangers in a strange land.
And then there’s us. Here we are, strangers in our own land. Having church in a neighborhood that is no longer our own. Immersed in a culture that associates Christmas with Santa Clause and not the Christ child. Trying to preach Christ to a world which on its best days is indifferent to the Gospel. Trying hard to do ministry with resources that get more and more scarce each day.
It’s enough to make you look up and ask, “Are you tired of my prayers or something, God?”
This week, I buried the eighteenth person this year. The most I’ve had in previous years is eight in one year. It’s a good thing I believe the things I say at their funerals, or I would sink into the depths of gloom. I sometimes have to fight the gloom, and there are times when I have heard myself ask, “Are you tired of my prayers, or something, God?” I think that’s why that song so affected me.
But today, the prophets words come fresh to me and say, “Comfort my people, speak words of peace and forgiveness to them. Tell them from the highest mountain that our GOD comes with strength and might--but also, He will feed his flock like a shepherd he will gather the lambs in his arms, he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young.”
Advent is the assurance that God has not grown tired of our prayers. Advent is the promise that comes again and again that God loves us and has a purpose for us.
We have a tendency to idolize the past, and that leads us to think that our best days are behind us. My beloved, God has a purpose for First Christian Church which we may not yet have seen, but Advent is the promise that God is not done with us yet!
Advent is the assurance that God has not grown tired of our prayers.
My God, I love Advent. How about you?
Offering Invitation and Prayer
“He will feed his flock like a shepherd” (Isa. 40:11). What a peaceful image Isaiah portrays of God’s love and care! Our gifts promote God’s peace by feeding the bodies and spirits of the many who are wanting. Let us give generously!
O God, we live amidst abundance that can only be imagined by many. With our heartfelt thanks, may these gifts be used to further the cause of peace in the world. Amen.
Benediction/Commission and Blessing
Take your encouragement from Christ,
that your joy may be complete.
We will share in the Spirit;
We will find consolation in love.
Practice a ministry of humility and compassion
For God is at work in you, empowering you
We will welcome Christ into our hearts.
We will live worthy of the Gospel.
We will go forth in hope and in peace.
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Sunday, November 20, 2011
November 20, 2011
strengthens the weak.
For Bill,Steve, LaTaunya, and Brenda, our Regional Pastors, and for all who serve your church.
in every place.
Lord, have mercy.
For the leaders of the nations and all in authority, and for mercy, justice, and peace.
Lord, have mercy.
For good weather, abundant fruits of the earth, and peaceful times.
Lord, have mercy.
For our city and those who live in it, and especially for those who serve our cities and townships (and of those, especially our own Russ),, and for our families, companions, and all those we love.
Lord, have mercy
For all those in danger and need: the hungry and the thirsty, strangers and the naked, the
sick and those in prison.
Lord, have mercy.
For those who rest in Christ and for all the dead.
Lord, have mercy.
For our deliverance from all affliction, strife, and need.
Lord, have mercy.
God our shepherd, who raised your Son from the dead and made him king of all creation,
hear the prayers we offer this day and enable us to see your glory in the face of the poor;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
Gospel Lesson Matthew 25:31-46
Mt 25:31 ¶ "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory.
32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats,
33 and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left.
34 Then the king will say to those at his right hand, 'Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world;
35 for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,
36 I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.'
37 Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink?
38 And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing?
39 And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?'
40 And the king will answer them, 'Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.'
41 Then he will say to those at his left hand, 'You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels;
42 for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink,
43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.'
44 Then they also will answer, 'Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?'
45 Then he will answer them, 'Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.'
46 And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."
Hear what the spirit…
Sermon “The King and the Nations”
Do you know “Rent?” It’s one of most successful Broadway musicals in the last 40 years, and it’s actually a reworking of Puccini’s “La Boheme.”
Only instead of
There are some great songs in that show—some that you’ve probably heard like “Seasons of Love.”
But, the song that’s been in my head this week is titled, “What You Own,” which pokes fun at American consumerism:
“You're living in
At the end of the millennium
You're living in
Leave your conscience at the tone
And when you’re living in
At the end of the millennium
You are what you own”
And, because they are dying of AIDS, the song concludes:
we’re dying in
at the end of the millennium
dying in
to come into our own
and when you’re dying in
at the end of the millennium,
you’re not alone.
I get this feeling every year about this time. After the Christmas ads and decorations have been in full swing about a month.
After watching ads for cars in bows which cost more than our first house--and we’re not that old--I get a little queasy. When you’re living in
I get that feeling because we have evolved to the point where we celebrate our Lord’s birth by engaging in the sin of idolatry.
Idolatry is the sin of holding other gods before the God who has created us, redeemed us, and sustains us. Idolatry is a denial of the truth of creation.
Instead of knowing who we are by the God in whose image we are made, we are known by what we own.
Idolatry.
What would you guess is the number one theme in all of scripture? Anybody?
According to Jim Wallis, it is idolatry. And the second most frequently occurring theme is poverty. Could there be a connection?
Of course, there is a connection! The balance between idolatry and poverty is obvious.
The effects of idolatry on the “haves” is that we become more oriented to things that capture our worship and less oriented to God, and certainly less oriented to the poor, leading to an impoverishment of the soul.
And the effect on the poor is that other idolatries--idolatries of survival, power, and violence--move in to fill the void of God. And if you don’t believe this is true, look, not only at
And so, with each passing moment, the haves and have-nots move farther from each other and more dis-oriented toward understanding each other.
Each moment we sink further into idolatry, we are less able to know God and less able to know God in each other.
Less able to know God in the faces of the folks who will get their holiday meal from the Grace Episcopal’s food pantry instead of the grocery store.
Less able to know God in the inmates in all the correctional facilities in in our county.
Less able to know God in the people living and dying with AIDS in and among us.
Less able to know God in the guy at the bottom of the panhandler whom we turn our head to avoid.
Less able to know God in anyone as we sink deeper into our various idolatries.
Last Sunday, one the folks who regularly seeks help here came to me to ask for assistance. I caught this person in a lie last year and I will no longer help her, because I don’t want to support or encourage scammers.
And yet, today’s Gospel compels me to see God in the scammers, too.
It’s a curious thing, this parable of the final judgment. The participants--the nations-- in this drama are equally clueless as to the identity of the king as seen in the hungry, the poor, the naked, the imprisoned, the stranger. Both the goats who ignored those people, and the sheep who cared for them were oblivious to the eternal implications. They both say so. The ones who did connect with their fellow humans are non-plussed about the situation.
“When did we see you, Jesus?”
The goats, the ones who failed to reach out ask the same question, but it has a totally different feel to it.
“Well, Jesus, if we had known it was you, we would have done something.”
The story is told that some years ago, an American soldier on a bus in
The man said, “That's nothing. In
When the man got off the bus at the next stop, the American was told by other passengers that he had been sitting next to King Gustav Adolf VI.
It’s hard to see a king in an ordinary person, but that is the point. And the sheep do it without trying to or even realizing it. We can only expect to encounter God-in-Christ in the faces of ordinary people if we immerse ourselves in the worship of God and God alone. If we take seriously the words in the first creation story--we are made, each of us, in God’s own image.
Even then, it’s hard. It’s hard to see the face of God in the sex offender released into our neighborhood. It’s hard to see the face of God in the guy who scams churches for money. It’s hard to see the face of God in the faces of those living or dying with AIDS--or folks dying with anything.
But, seeing the sacred in all the world is a beautiful thing. Seeing Christ in people with disabilities changes things. Seeing Christ in the hungry changes the reality for both us and them.
Look in the mirror when you get home today. Do you see a sheep or a goat? Perhaps, more importantly, do you see God? That may be the most crucial matter. Because loving one’s neighbor as yourself, involves loving yourself. And loving one’s own self involves acknowledging that you are made in God’s own image--just like everyone else.
Go check the mirror for God. God’s already checking for you, and calling to you from the lives of others. You don’t prepare for this exam--God prepares you. Connecting with the God in ourselves and others is a first step out of idolatry.
Everyone you meet--on the street or in the mirror--is made in God’s image.
What do you think?
Offertory Sentences and Prayer
This Sunday, you are invited not only to make your regular gift in the offering plate, but an estimate of your giving for the coming year. May both be offered in the same spirit: the product of much prayer, thought, and with great joy. Let us present our present and future gifts together.
Great and loving God, we are thankful all you have given us. Help us today to see your world as one of abundance, not scarcity. Help us to give of ourselves in time, talent, and treasure. May these gifts for now and the year to come bring blessings upon your world. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Benediction
Go in peace; love and care for one another in Christ's name,
- and may our Lord and King watch over you,
- may our shepherd and our shield defend you,
- and may our rock and our fortress, our judge and our hope keep you safe and strong within his life-giving word now and forevermore. Amen
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
November 6, 2011
Morning Prayers
Ever living, and ever loving God, we come today in thanksgiving for this day. For the joy of gathering in this place to praise your name. It is good to be here, God.
We come seeking your wisdom and guidance always, but especially this day. Pour out your spirit on us that we may do your will and see your call for this congregation. Help us, no matter what decisions we make, to know that you are with us and that you call us to love one another.
We come seeking guidance for our nation. We pray for our President Barack, our Vice-President Joe, our Senators Rob and Sherrod, and our Representative Jim. Give them wisdom, mercy, and compassion in all they do.
We come seeking guidance for our state and our city. Bless all who will vote on Tuesday with your wisdom as we choose the paths for our future.
We come as a people who are not whole. There are sick among us and known to us, and we pray for their healing--both those we have named aloud, and those whose names we call out to you in silence.
Remind us, O God, that above all, we are not here for each other, but for all your children in a hurting world. Give us the compassion and courage to reach out to others in your name.
We lift all these prayers in the name of Jesus. Amen.
I Corinthians 13
1 ¶ If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.
2 And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.
3 If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.
4 ¶ Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant
5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;
6 it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth.
7 It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
8 ¶ Love never ends. But as for prophecies, they will come to an end; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will come to an end.
9 For we know only in part, and we prophesy only in part;
10 but when the complete comes, the partial will come to an end.
11 When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways.
12 For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known.
13 And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.
“Faith, Hope, Love: These Three”
This passage has earned a beloved place in the hearts of Christians over the centuries--and deservedly so.
It has been called Paul’s “Hymn to Love,” “The Love Chapter,” the “Love Letter,” among many others. It has been a favorite to read at weddings over the years, although I wonder about its value for that.
You see, this passage is all about love--but not romantic or spousal love. This passage is about love in a very sick church.
Let’s look at a laundry list of problems in the church at
· item-the members were dividing themselves by the names of the one who’d baptized them.
· item-there was rampant sexual immorality in the church. It had been reported to Paul that one member of the church was sleeping with his mother-in-law.
· item-members were suing each other in the civil courts, rather than trying to remedy their disputes within the church.
· item-they were fighting over whether or not people should marry in the church. (maybe this works as a wedding text, after all)
· item-they were fighting over the role of women in the church.
· item-they were having potluck suppers but not allowing the poorer members to share in the food.
· item-they were fighting about which kinds of service (and which gifts of the Spirit) were superior to others.
And that’s just some of the high points.
And Paul begins to address these problems by talking about the gifts and the body.
The gifts given by the Spirit are not ranked--they’re just different, like the eye is different from the hand. He writes, “The eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I have no need of you.’”
That reminds me of something Joey Jeter wrote in his book Re/Membering. He writes that when we speak of the church and re/membering the body of Christ at the table, the opposite of re/membering is not forgetting, its is dismembering. For any part of the body to say to another--either with words or feet--“I have no need of you,” is to dismember the Body of Christ.
God has so arranged the body that different parts have to work together in order to function.
After describing how the different gifts can function together, “He asks, “are all apostles? Are all prophets” are all teachers?” and so on. And then he says to strive for the greater gifts.
Which brings us to this chapter, and the greater gifts are faith, hope, and the greatest of all, love.
Let me say that entire series of sermons have been preached on this one chapter--so I can hardly do it justice. Let me just lift up a few points.
1. While this letter was written to a sick church, we are not a sick church, at all. Crossroads? Yes. Sick? No.
2. Paul writes that even if you have all the gifts available to you--like speaking in tongues, prophecy, faith to move mountains, giving away everything--all this, but without love, it means nothing. Nothing we can do in the church, whether it be ministering, being a trustee, a Sunday School teacher, a musician matters if we don’t do it with love. Jesus said all the law and prophets hung on two commandments--Love God, and love neighbor. So it is in the church. Without love, we are nothing.
3. Love is patient; love is kind. If these two descriptions of love were all we had, it would be pretty good. Can we approach all our interactions in the church with patience and kindness? I believe we can.
4. Paul writes about what love is not. Not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude or insistent in its own way. To love is to acknowledge that we won’t always get our own way.
5. Love bears all things and endures all things--and dare I say it--endures together, even when we--no, especially when we disagree.
The greater gifts are these--faith, hope, and love. We are here because our forebears had faith and hope when they first me in the blockhouse and made their journey down the generations to this beautiful place. Without faith and hope, they would never have dreamed that the people who call themselves Disciples would still have such a place in this city. But, I suspect that in addition to faith and hope, they also had lots of love in all their dreams and decisions. Were it not for love, we would not be here. May it be so for us today, and wherever God calls us to be in the future.
Offertory Invitation and Prayer
The invitation to give comes from Jesus, who said, “Give, and it will come back to you.” Sounds like a good investment, don’t you think?
Giving God, Thank you for all your gifts. Bless these that we return to you, and bless us always to your service.
Benediction
Go out into the world in peace, knowing that you are children of God, called to be the church in all that you say and do. Comfort the afflicted, welcome the stranger, and above all, love. Love.
Love. Amen.
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
October 16, 2011
October 16, 2011
Morning Prayers
Let us remember before God all who labor in the faith and love of Jesus Christ and all in every danger and need.
For this gathering, and for the people of God in every place.
Lord, have mercy.
For all peoples and their leaders, for candidates for public office, and for mercy and justice in the world.
Lord, have mercy.
For good weather, abundant fruits of the earth, and peaceful times.
Lord, have mercy.
For doctors, nurses, and hospital staff, and for all who work in healing others.
Lord, have mercy.
For the sick and the suffering, travelers and refugees, prisoners and their families, and the dying and dead.
Lord, have mercy.
For our city and those who live in it, and for our families, companions, and all those we love, and those for whom we pray in silence.
Lord, have mercy.
Loving and true God, who raised your Son from the dead, hear our prayers and make us imitators of Christ, in whose name we pray. Amen
1 Thessalonians 1:1-10
Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace.
2We always give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in our prayers, constantly 3remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.
4For we know, brothers and sisters beloved by God, that he has chosen you, 5because our message of the gospel came to you not in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction; just as you know what kind of persons we proved to be among you for your sake.
6And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for in spite of persecution you received the word with joy inspired by the Holy Spirit,
7so that you became an example to all the believers in
“What Is Your Reputation?”
Many years ago whi8le I was serving as a hospital chaplain, Kate and I began looking for a Disciples congregation to join. In
We were told in particular to beware of two different congregations which had “bad reputations.”
One had been bearing this “bad” reputation based on something that had happened 79 years before. Can you imagine that? 79 years before, the elders moved the pastor’s belongings out to the street in the middle of the night--and people still remembered.
The other church had gotten its bad reputation only months before with a vote it had taken opposing the candidate for General Minister and President. The word of that vote got around pretty quickly, and within days, this church had a bad reputation.
And so, I ask you today, First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) of
Before we can get to that answer, we need to look at our text for today.
The book before us, 1 Thessalonians, is an example of apocalyptic thought, though not apocalyptic literature. Apocalyptic literature would be the books of Daniel and Revelation, while this letter of 1 Thessalonians only suggests what is full blown in Revelation.
The Thessalonian letters are very much shaped by apocalyptic thought, in which it is held that there is a fundamental distinction between the forces of good and the forces of evil. They envision an “old” age ruled by the forces of evil, and a “new” age ruled by God. They envision an imminent judgment in which God will bring an end to all the evil forces.
Before that imminent judgment occurs, the followers of Jesus Christ must straddle the two ages or two worlds. They must exist in the old “evil” age, but live according to the spirit of God’s new world ways. This will bring about a clash between the old and the new that will result in persecution.
Thessalonica was a stronghold of idol worship. The cults of the Roman gods were the center of social networking in that city. You weren’t anybody if you didn’t “belong” to one of the Roman temples.
Alan Segal writes that “no truly committed Christian could maintain idol cult membership. Thus Christianity was subversive to the basic religious institutions of society.”
And so Paul writes to encourage continued faithfulness to an already faithful church. In many ways, it’s a simpler, plainer version of the book of Revelation.
Revelation, for all its bizarre imagery and numerology, has a very simply message: keep the faith, and everything is going to be alright.
And here in 1 Thessalonians, that’s exactly what Paul writes to the church suffering under persecution and disenfranchisement.
I want to lift up four points from this particular passage as it relates to the early church and to ours.
First: “We always give thanks to God…and mention you in our prayers constantly.”
It mattered to Paul and to the early church to pray for the churches--so much so that Paul makes note of it in his letter, offering both thanksgiving and petitions before God.
You need to know that your church leaders pray for you. Our Elders pray for this congregation and its members, and I give thanks every day that you have called me to be your pastor. My prayer is that all of you will also be in prayer for our church and seeking God’s direction for us.
Second: “…the gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit…”
When Paul preached at Thessalonica, it wasn’t just words that were heard, but an encounter with the risen Christ.
My prayer is that every Sunday in this place, we encounter the risen Lord--in song, in bread and wine, and in the love we have for each other. Remember, when we invite our neighbors to come to church, we’re not asking them to just occupy the pews, but rather inviting them to encounter Jesus Christ.
Third: “…in spite of persecution you received the word with joy…”
The Thessalonians were under fire from the culture around them and experienced estrangement from family and friends and even torture, and yet, they did not turn away from Jesus Christ--knowing that if they endured sufferings as Jesus suffered, they would share in his glory.
We live in difficult times, and our church is in a thorny place--though I could not call our situation persecution. Yet we are called to be joyful even in the midst of difficulty. We must continue to be joyful amongst ourselves and to the world around us. I wish more of you could see the joy that goes on with the Saturday Community Breakfast, as we put the gospel into concrete action. We need to translate that joy to inviting our friends and neighbors to encounter Christ in our worship.
Finally: “…you became an example to all…”
Here’s where the reputation part comes in. The church at Thessalonica was so amazing in their faith that the whole Mediterranean world knew of it. Their reputation of faith under pressure was so widely known, that Paul write they didn’t even have to speak of it.
And so, what is our reputation? How are we known to those around us? I can tell you this--the other Disciples churches in our
But what is our reputation in our community? What do people in
I’m not going to answer those questions. Instead, I’m going to ask, how would you respond?
Offering Invitation and Prayer
As one wise soul once said, “If we are to give unto God what is God’s and give unto Caesar what is Caesar’s, there will not be much left for poor Caesar!” Everything is of God and belongs to God, so what we give now is a thankful response for blessings of creation.
God of Wisdom, we rejoice that you have provided us with numerous examples of generous giving. We obediently share this offering in full knowledge that all of our resources and assets are ultimately a gift from you. Help us to use them wisely and to share them generously. We pray in the name of your son, Jesus Christ, who gave his life, so we may live abundantly. Amen.
Benediction
Go in peace,
- and may God's love surround you and fill you;
- may the Spirits power support and guide you,
- and may the grace of Christ our Lord shine in all that you say and do,
both now and forevermore. Amen
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Morning Prayers Gracious and loving God, whom we have long called Father and are still learning to call Mother,we come before you today as a people who are hurting. Jobs are scarce. Money is tight. And sometimes we don’t seem to know what to do. We ask you to bless us with good things, but that you will also make us mindful of the riches we already have. Riches of shelter, food, and family. We pray for our families, o God. These are times where children of all ages are at risk on many fronts. Help us to seek your protection and guidance as we raise our children. We pray for your church, O God. You have blessed us in so many ways over the years and we can never pay you back, Help us to grow in generosity so that your church can bless the world. We pray for the troubles in the world around us. We especially pray for your children in Israel and Palestine. We don’t claim to know how peace is possible there, O God, but pray your grace and peace be upon them. May all your children know peace. We pray for healing--for those names we have called out loud, and for those we now lift in silence. Give your healing touch, o God to all who grieve. Help them to know your presence and feel your comfort. We lift these prayers to you in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Philippians 2:1-13 1If then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, 2make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. 3Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. 4Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. 5Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, 6who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, 7but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form,8he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death— even death on a cross. 9Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, 10so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,11and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. 12Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence, but much more now in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; 13for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
“The Emptied Church”
Tony Campolo is one of my heroes. He’s a sociologist and Baptist preacher who works hard to remind the church of its commitment to justice and the poor. He’s also the best preacher I’ve ever heard, and I am indebted to him for much of this sermon. Max Weber, the father of modern sociology, states that with power comes the ability to coerce. For example, the county has power over me when it comes to paying my property taxes. If I don’t pay them, the county can take away my property. That’s power and coercion. If I see the lights spinning behind me in my car, I pull over and follow every instruction given to the letter. Why? The officer in that car has a gun, and I don’t want to give her reason to use it! That’s power and coercion.
Authority is different. Authority is earned. When the District 6 Disciples’ pastors gather on Tuesday morning, Dr. Harold Hopkins will join us. Harold is our District Elder, meaning he has pastoral responsibilities for all the ministers and churches in District 6. When Harold speaks, we listen, because Harold has authority. Harold has zero power or the ability to coerce us, but he has authority that has been earned by his years of service to the church, and his gentle and kind ways through which he has nurtured all of us.
That’s authority. Jimmy Carter speaks with authority. Agree with his politics or not, when he speaks, people listen. Not because he was a governor or president, but because he has earned the authority he has by building houses and digging wells and countless other acts of self-emptying over the years.
Jesus was said to be one who spoke with authority. And here in Philippians, we see how he earned it. According to Paul, he didn’t see equality with God as something to be grasped. That word that is translated “grasped” is meant to evoke memories of the first humans, Adam and Eve, who did think equality with God was something to be grasped, and they grasped at the fruit in order to become like God.
Jesus, however, did not want to take the shortcut. He was in the form of God, but in order to carry out his mission on earth, he emptied himself. And that’s primarily what we want to talk about--the emptying of one’s self”--or kenosis, which is the Greek word for it. To convey this mystery, Paul uses first of all the words "emptied himself," which refers especially to the reality of the Jesus becoming human.
"The Word became flesh" (Jn 1:14). God the Son became one of us. It means rather, as Paul wrote, that "he did not deem equality with God something to be grasped," but "though he was in the form of God,” as the true Son of God, he assumed a human nature without glory, subject to suffering and death, in which he could live in obedience to God, even to the ultimate sacrifice. In becoming human, he did not wish to belong to the powerful; he wished to be as one who serves. "The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve" (Mk 10:45). He lived out what Paul wrote here about putting the interests of others first--ahead of his own.
We see in the Gospels that Jesus’ earthly life was marked by poverty from the very beginning. This was clearly set out in the story of his birth, when Luke observed that "there was no room for them [Mary and Joseph] in the inn," and that Jesus was born in a stable and laid in a manger (cf. Lk 2:7). From Matthew we learn that already in the first months of Jesus' life, he experienced the life of a refugee--to Egypt and back (cf. Mt 2:13-15). His life at Nazareth was lived in extremely modest conditions; his father was a carpenter (cf. Mt 13:55) with whom Jesus himself worked (Mk 6:3). When he began his teaching, his situation continued to be one of extreme poverty, as he himself bore witness to in a certain way by referring to the insecure conditions of life imposed by his ministry. "Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head" (Lk 9:58). That’s what it means to empty one’s self--to be able to have it all, but to choose not to have anything at all, in order to carry out the mission of good news for the poor and lowly of the world. And, as Paul writes, because he chose this lower path, he is given the name above all names that shall be called Lord by all people. He could have chosen power, but instead chose service and humility, thereby earning authority. And it looked like, at least on Good Friday, that power won. The coercive power of the Roman Empire appeared to have beaten down love and humility. But on Easter morning, the resurrection proves that loved beats power every time. Jesus earned his authority on a cross--but the cross didn’t have the last word.
I’ve been wondering the past few weeks if we have the authority to speak to the community at large about the gospel. I wonder if we lack authority because we have not emptied ourselves and done more for the poor. Maybe the Community Breakfast isn’t enough. There are 89 other mealtimes in a month.
Maybe we need to continue to look further beyond ourselves in order to earn the authority to speak in our community.
Maybe our families need to look for ways in which they can empty themselves so that their kids can understand what a life lived in Jesus Christ looks like.
Maybe we all need to look beyond our thresholds to see how God can use us in sharing the good news of Jesus Christ in word and deed--in other words, not just by what we say, but what we do.
In fact, the authority to speak can only be earned by the example of what we do. Mother Teresa of Calcutta spoke with authority. She once gave an address to students at Harvard University about the value of chastity. Can you imagine that? Ann aged nun lecturing Harvard students about sex! How do you think they responded? With a standing, thunderous ovation. Why? Because she spoke with authority, earned on the streets of Calcutta by caring--emptying herself--for lepers and others whom the world would rather forget.
We are never going to be Mother Teresa. She was an extraordinary individual with a unique calling. But we can be the best us we can be. Maybe in our families this week we can think of one thing--even a small thing we can do to empty ourselves in some way. To put others’ interests ahead of our own. It’s not in our nature to do, but with God’s help, we can. And maybe all of us can find ways not just to empty selves, but but to have emptied (not empty!) church as well. Then maybe we’ll be heard in Mansfield, and beyond.
What do you think?
Offering Invitation & Prayer
We are invited to the harvest. There are many workers needed and the reward is the same: to be present for the purpose that God gave us. Our offerings help us to do that. What a joy it is to know we are a blessing to God’s ways. Come, for the work has begun! God, we are thirsty, give us drink! Only you can satisfy our thirst by baptizing us with the spirit of abundant life. We find ourselves full of gifts to share, but often unaware of what to do with them. With this money and our time and talent, we pour ourselves into the vessel of your Word, Jesus, and water with which we thirst no more. Thank you, it is great to be in this place! Amen.
Benediction
In the power of the Holy Spirit we now go forth into the world, to fulfill our calling as the people of God, the body of Christ. Go in peace - love and care for one another in the name of Christ and may the blessings of God, known to us as Creator, Redeemer, Sustainer be with you, both now and forevermore. Amen
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