Making Choices

You know, life is all about making choices and our lessons really seem to point to that quite clearly today.  You probably make hundred’s of decisions everyday without really thinking about it.  To give you a few examples:  one of the choices you probably made was what to wear to church today.  Another might have been whether or not to eat breakfast.  You might have to decide where to go to eat after the service.

Some of the new choices we are faced with in today’s world are whether or not to get vaccinated and will you wear a mask.  Then there is the question of where do you feel safe to go - to church, to school, to the supermarket, to a rock concert?  Our grandson was exposed to COVID on the first day of school - the girl sitting in front of him tested positive for COVID.  

The movie theaters have reopened, but do you feel safe there?  What about flying?  We have tickets to fly to Kansas City for a Provincial meeting the first week in October.  In all the questions you have to decide if you feel safe in our Brave New World. 

For younger kids the choices might include whether to do your homework or watch TV or go play ball for an hour before dinner.  Older kids might have to decide whether to go to school or to skip for the day.  There are all kinds of choices out there.  There’s alcohol, drugs, tobacco,  promiscuity, or shoplifting.  There are all kinds of pitfalls waiting for us out there.  

Some of those choices should be governed by how we’ve decided to live our lives – if we’ve actually made that decision yet.  This is exactly what Joshua is talking about in our first lesson.  The Israelites are in the Promise Land and the conquest of Canaan is over – the land has been parceled out – and now the covenant with God is being renewed.  “Choose this day whom you will serve... as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”  

They had a choice – they could worship and serve the gods their ancestors had in Egypt, the gods of the Amorites, or Yahweh.  And they make their decision – “We, too, will serve the Lord.  He brought us out of Egypt, he did great signs, and he protected us.”  They will worship God and try to live their lives in a way that is pleasing to God.

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We see a similar kind of dynamic working in the Gospel lesson.  We’re picking up the end of last week’s lesson.  Jesus is telling the people that he is the bread of life, and he came down from heaven, and the people are looking at him like he just landed from Jupiter.  “What are you talking about!”  

 

My first year in Huntsville, a man got a box and set it up on campus and started preaching to the students who passed by.  One of the students from St. Stephen’s heard him and called the church.  He didn’t like what the guy was saying - it didn’t make any sense to him.  And he wanted Fr. Jim and me to go up on campus and set this person straight and tell him what God was really like.  

Some of the followers were feeling the same way about Jesus himself.  They’re probably not much different from you and me.  Most of us come to the church searching for deeper meaning in life; something beyond our humdrum existence and our petty problems.  We’re looking for something bigger than we are.  We want a God who can rescue us when we’re in trouble; a God who can take care of the problems that we can’t solve.  We want a God who does not abandon us when the going gets tough; one who understands us; our emotions, our inadequacies, our sins - and who can love us and forgive us anyway.  And here is this man talking about eating his body and drinking his blood, so they made the decision not to follow him anymore.  

Now Jesus is sitting there with the original twelve and he asks them, “Do you want to leave also?”  Peter speaks for the twelve.  He replies, “Lord, where would we go?” --  You see, they've left their homes and families, their jobs and careers.  “You alone have the words of eternal life.”  No one else inspired them like Jesus did.  No one else made their hearts burn within them.  No one else spoke of heaven and life with that kind of authority.  No one else cared about what happened to them.  Why should they turn anywhere else.  

“You are the Holy One of God.”  Jesus had given them the faith they thought no longer existed.  He had renewed their hope for the future.  They understood that this man was different - there was a completeness they felt in his presence that they had never felt before.  You see, God draws us to Himself with longings that we can neither understand nor describe.  It is that spirit that the twelve are hanging on to.   

Words alone are never sufficient to describe our encounter with the divine.  They can never catch the essence or the emotional impact that God has on us.  That’s what the twelve were experiencing - an encounter with the Holy One of God.  And they trusted, that even though they could not fathom what Jesus was talking about, that God was going to work and to move and that one day, some way, they would understand.  

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The problem is that when you make that decision to follow Jesus, to walk in the ways of Yahweh, you might think that everything is going to be just fine and you’ll never have any problems again.  Actually, there are preachers who make a lot of money by preaching exactly that.  The truth is you’re still going to have problems and troubles, because we live in a broken world.

Remember that choice you have to make?  Not everyone chooses for God, not everyone chooses to do the right thing.  Making that choice is not always easy.  In our lesson from Paul, he talks about standing against the wiles of the devil, and the powers and principalities that come against us.  And he tells us how we can stand against all the assaults of this world.  

There are times and places that we actually feel like we are under assault.  When I used to teach 8^th grade math at a junior high school in Alvin, at one time it got the point that every time I walked into the building I would begin to feel oppressed.  I wasn’t the only teacher to feel that way.  Seemed like the other Christian teachers began to feel that way also.  We formed a group and met at the school early on a regular basis and prayed for the school, and gee, the oppression eventually went away.  Wonder of wonders!

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Back to Paul - he gives us a formula for standing up against opposition and oppression.  He tells us to be strong in the Lord and to pray at all times.  He tells us to be aware that things are going to happen to us that are going to try to draw us away from the Lord.  He says to put on the whole armor of God.  

Paul had been in prison when he wrote this and he had watched the soldiers put on their armor day after day and he thought of a way to use that to teach others how to do battle with these powers that seem to try to drag us down, and to be able to keep the faith.  He says, “dress yourself as a soldier dresses for battle.   Put on the belt of truth.”  You’ve heard the saying, ‘the truth shall set you free’ – if you keep the truth before you, around you, then you won’t be distracted by lies and distortions others tell you.  

Next, you put on the breastplate of righteousness – that’s the knowledge that you are of God, made in his image and you have chosen to follow Jesus and therefore or righteous before God.  And that doesn’t change regardless of anything you do or that happens to you.  

Third, you put on the shoes of peace, that wherever you walk you strive to bring peace, not strife.  It’s not just proclaiming the gospel of peace, but it’s conducting your life in such a way that you demonstrate peaceful ways of co-existing with those around you.

Fourth, you must take up the shield of faith, that piece of armor that catches the darts and arrows that the enemy throws at you to distract you from the task at hand or to throw you off the course you have set for yourself.

Next you put on the helmet of salvation.  Jesus Christ loved you so much that he gave his life for you – regardless of who you are or what you have done.  Once you have made that choice to follow Jesus, that salvation can never be taken away from you.    

And the last thing you do is take up the sword of the Spirit – which is the word of God – given to us as our only offensive weapon.  When you are not sure of what to say, fall back on the word of God – scripture is a great offense as well as a defense.  Use it carefully to inspire and attract those who do not know Christ to become seekers of God’s grace; to experience for themselves how the light of Jesus can redeem their life.  Use the word to draw others to God.

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Joshua says, “Choose today who you will serve.”  Not who you will “worship.”  Sitting in the pews to worship is for beginners.  You only get out of worship what you put into it.  That’s very true – not just with God, but with all your relationships.  You might say that you love someone, but if you never do anything that demonstrates that love, how long do you think they’re going to believe it?  When we make a commitment to God, we need remember that it includes service.  Choose today how you are going to serve the Lord.  Amen.

God in the silence.

Our Old Testament lesson today is a continuation of the story where Elijah defeated the prophets of Baal, and killed them all.  The problem is that those were the prophets favored by Queen Jezebel and she took exception to their deaths.  So she sent the army after Elijah and that's where our lesson picks up today.  

Word gets back to Elijah that Jezebel wants him dead and he takes off – he runs away – and he’s so distraught that he asks God to take his life – not to let him suffer at the hand of Jezebel’s followers.  Elijah lays down under the tree and goes to sleep.  An angel of the Lord comes to him and wakes him up and makes him eat – food and water have miraculously appeared.  He eats and goes back to sleep.  The angel comes a second time and Elijah wakes up and eats again and then he gets up and travels 40 days and nights without food (does this sound familiar?) until he comes to Mount Horeb.  There he finds a cave and spends the night.

When he wakes up, the Lord asks him what he is doing there.  Elijah complains that he is the only one of the prophets of God left  in the land and now Jezebel want to take his life.  The Lord tells him to go stand on the mountain and wait for God to pass by – and we know this part of the story.

A great wind comes – stronger than any other – but God is not in the wind.  Next there is an earthquake, but God is not in the earthquake.  Then there is a fire, but God is not in the fire.  And at last, there is the sound, it says, of sheer silence – and Elijah knew that God was in the silence and he stepped out on the mountain to meet God.   

I think this says something to us.  Our world today is so full of noise – natural and artificial – that it’s hard to find that place of silence.  People seem to think that if there isn’t some kind of noise going on that there’s something wrong.  A few people will drive to work in the mornings using this silence as a time to pray or plan their day – but most people have the radio going – listening to music or to a talk show - or these days maybe talking on the phone.  Radio stations learn to keep that sound going at all times – if a disk jockey or radio commentator allows what is called “dead air” they are most likely fired, because people will change stations.  

I walk in the mornings, everyday except Sunday - I’m a little busy on Sunday.  I started out walking in silence, then I remembered that I had some nice earphones for my cell phone so I started listening to music as I walked - always classical - I can think with a classical music backdrop.  And then it was a great boon to discover that our local library had an app that allows you to download free books to read - or listen to.  So I started listening to books, mystery books mostly.  Then I got tired of the mystery books and wanted something with a little more meat in it - so I started looking at what else they had.  

I found, not a book but a recorded presentation by Brené Brown called “Rising Strong as a Spiritual Practice.”  Brene is the chair of the the graduate school of Social Work at the University of Houston.  She has been described as a Researcer-Story teller. Rising Strong is Brené’s lastest book.  This was excellent, so I listened to it twice - and plan to listen to it a third time because although she is not a religious leader, God speaks very strongly through her.  She is an Episcopalian and has even preached at the Washington National Cathedral.   But in this talk, she recommended “The Book of Forgiving” by Desmond Tutu.  So I downloaded and am listening to it.  I should finish it on my walk tomorrow.”  So while I’m no longer walking in silence, the things I am listening to speak of God, and God’s desire for us.  I have laughed, and cried and pondered so much as I have walked these past couple of months.  I feel like God has been speaking to me in a powerful way through Brené and through Bishop Tutu.  I can’t wait to see what He has to teach me next.  So what I am saying is that silence is sometimes most helpful when it extends out of conversation - as with Elijah, conversation with God.  

I think this lesson also says something else to us.  When we have so called “natural disasters” strike and some city or area is devastated – some media, religious, or political personalities immediately start finding all the reasons why God destroyed that sinful place.  But this scripture says very plainly, God is not in the wind, or the earthquake, or the fire.  Listen for him in the silence – not the cacophony.  God is there, but you will not find him in the noise.  You will find him in that quiet place that can surround you and cushion you and help protect you – even in the midst of turmoil.  

Look at our gospel lesson – this man in the tombs – he sees Jesus and he comes out yelling – it says that he “shouted at the top of his voice.”  Noise – noise can overpower the silence – can drive away the sound of God.  Jesus spoke softly, but with authority – “What is your name?”  “Legion - my name is Legion – for we are many.”  This name brought up the image of the Roman Legions that had over run the land – it reminded the people of the destruction that followed in their wake.  It brought fear to the hearers.

Legion begged to not be sent back to the abyss, but to be allowed to go and Jesus said, “Go.”  This legion had driven the man mad – the many voices telling him to do different things – fighting and arguing in his head.  And once the noise was gone – in the silence that followed – the man was healed of all that troubled him and he became a normal person once again.

When we allow those voices to take over our lives – allow the demons of addiction or self-gratification or self-pity or self-glorification to become the rulers of our life – then we no longer have control, or silence, or any place where God can come in and abide in us.  

But when we allow the silence to overcome those voices – to silence them, then God is there and he can be heard and our lives can be made whole.  Open up your heart and mind to the silence and hear the voice of God for your own self.  I’m going to ask you to sit in silence for a time – and listen – and abide – be still and know that God is here and that he can be found in those quiet moments that occasionally steal into our lives.

 

Father, Son and Holy Spirit

Our first lesson is a vision of heaven seen and described by Isaiah.  In this vision we see God sitting on the throne of heaven surrounded by Seraphs.  His train fills the temple and the angels sing “Holy, Holy, Holy,” as they fly around his throne   The voice of the Lord asks, “Who will go for us?  Whom shall I send?”  It is the same question he asks us today, “Who will go for me?  Who will present me to the world?”

That is the charge given to each baptized person.  We are charged to follow Jesus and to present God to the world.  But we can only do that through the power of the Holy Spirit.  This morning we will have the joy of adopting Clarissa Elise Garza into the household of God through baptism.  And as part of that ceremony, we will affirm our belief in God through the words of the Apostle’s Creed.  In that creed, each of us affirms, “I believe in God the Father.  I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son.”  And finally,  “I believe in the Holy Spirit.”   It is the creed in which we state our personal belief in this triune God, the Holy Trinity.  

That is what today is about, acknowledging the three parts of this Trinitarian God.  God has called us into existence and reveals himself on a daily basis if we just look for it.  Yesterday might well be an example of how He reveals himself.  While Sam was working in the yard yesterday, I went out and sat on the porch.  The sun was shining, and air was fresh and clear and there was a mockingbird singing his heart out in the tree across the street.  Then as the sun was setting, there was a gorgeous pinkish red and golden glow cast upon a facade of clouds in the north and east, a crowning glory for the day.  It was is if He was reminding us that he is the master musician and artist, giving song where he will and a glorious canvas for all to see.  

Later last night, a thunderstorm raged with all the fury it could muster in thunder and lightning, even hail and wind in places.  And even in the thunderstorm, God reminds us of our baptism and that ultimately He is in charge. Teach Clarissa* to look for God in the song of a bird, in the beauty of the sky and even in the power of the storm.  For God creates all things: the bird, the sky, the baby and even the storm, and He holds it all in the palm of His hand. *your children and grandchildren

Our second lesson, Paul’s letter to the Romans, tells us:  “All who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.”  We are all children, created by God, in His very image, and we are given this earth as a gift, to use, to enjoy and to take care of.  “When we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’ it is that very spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God and heirs of God along with Christ himself.”  He gives us a Spirit not to fall back into fear, but a Spirit of adoption.  

Oh, yes, there is that piece about “suffering with him” so that we may be glorified with him.  This earth that we have inherited is not perfect.  Fallen humankind occupies it, so there is going to be strife even for the children of God.  And that is when we cry out, “Abba! Father!” and our spirit connects with His and we are drawn in and comforted.

Today is Trinity Sunday.  Over the years, there has been a lot of time and energy spent trying to understand and to explain the Trinity.   Some say it’s like a three leaf clover.  Others will tell you it is like the three states of water – steam, liquid, and ice.  Someone might tell you it's like the 3 parts of the apple, or the sun producing light and heat.  Time after time people look for new ways to describe it.   Ways that will be more accurate, more understandable than what has been said before.  But as an idea, a concept, it is a little difficult to get a handle on it - because after all, we are trying to describe God.  That’s one thing about God - He will not be placed in a box so that we can take him out and examine him when we want.  He’s hard to describe.

One of the better things I’ve heard, is that the Trinity is about relationship.  What is important is the relationship that flows between the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.  In the Holy Trinity, there is a community of mutual love that is not only an example for us, but it reaches out into our lives to empower us to be able to love others more perfectly.  It’s easy for us to understand a father and son, but the Holy Spirit is more difficult.

It’s easier to say that in the Trinity, we have the three necessary ingredients for human kind – 

Creator (the one who creates all things and adopts us as his own); 

Redeemer (the one who redeems the world and rescues us from the ravages of sin); 

and Sustainer (the one who is with us to the end, to guide and direct us in all things).  

Our God is call a Trinity, because the God of the universe, who will always remain as the ‘divine mystery,’ was revealed to us through the flesh of the Son, who is God’s tie to created humanity, and He continues to be revealed through the Holy Spirit, who works in us and through us.  That Holy Spirit always points the way to Jesus, and Jesus always points the way to God.  

There are two scriptures that place the Father, Son and Holy Spirit in a single phrase.  One of them, Matthew 28 tells us to “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”  That is exactly what we are going to do today.  I would invite the parents and God parents to come forward and bring Clarissa at this time.  

Come, Holy Spirit, Come!

It has been an eventful weekend.  A horse named “Justify” won the Preakness yesterday, the second leg in his journey to the Triple Crown.  

Megan Markle married Prince Harry and became the first American and bi-racial member of the Royal Family of England.  

Closer to home was the violence that was visited upon a school only 8 miles from where we sit right now.  And I would be willing to bet that everyone here knows someone that was personally affected by that event.    

And there are those who would ask, ‘if God exists, where was He when the shooting started.”  When I was a police officer, I never had to face the kind of trial that those responding officers faced on Friday.  I can only imagine what it must have been like, and I can only pray that they never have to experience that again.  

The last three years that I taught school, I taught at Santa Fe High School.  Many of the teachers I taught with have retired now, but I can only imagine what the teachers and students experienced on Friday.  No teacher and no student should ever have to face that kind of devastating event.  

This could have happened right across the street from my house, or 8 miles down the road in the other direction at my grandson’s school.  We are not isolated and protected.  It is happening here and it touches all of us.  

The Bible tells us that we will experience trials and strife in this life because we live in a broken and sinful world.  

And as much as we want God to remove all evil from the world, that would require that he take away our freewill and our freedom to become children of God.

You’ve heard me say it before, and I will continue to say it, God’s promise is not that life will be perfect, but that he will be with us as we go through the pain, through the suffering, through the heartbreak.  We have a God who has suffered himself - Jesus Christ hung on the cross for our sake, to save us, to redeem us, to identify with us, to suffer with us.  We have a God who knows heartache - our Heavenly Father who watched his only Son die on the cross so that we might find entry into heaven.

A friend reminded me of this scripture:  A voice is heard in Ramah, lamentation and bitter weeping.  Rachel is weeping for her children; she refuses to be comforted, because they are no more.  (Jeremiah 31:15)  When we weep, God weeps with us. 

In today’s lesson from Acts, Jesus is gone – risen – no longer with the disciples.  They are having to learn to live without Jesus.   

They are all together – around 120 of them, praying and worshiping God in the upper room.  And then the wind begins to blow – probably not much different from the way the wind that picks up as a front blows in – you hear it coming, this one was blowing strong and bringing fire.

The tongues of flames danced on the disciples – and they were filled with the Holy Spirit. They began to speak in other tongues – languages.  Not the kind of prayer language that many people discover today, but known languages.  The people who had come from all these different places each recognized their own language – and the gospel was being spoken and understood by everyone there.  

Jesus had gone, but he had sent a gift – the gift of the Holy Spirit.  This had to happen for any number of reasons.

Jesus had to go in order that we might see him more clearly.  It is in looking back over the things that he said, and the things that he did – as recorded in scripture – that we begin to understand what was going on.  The gospels weren’t written until years later.  Partly because people caught up in the moment of these situations simply looked at the surface – the immediate effect of what was happening.  It was only years later – and in the light of the resurrection - that they began to understand Jesus more fully.

Jesus had to go so that all people might know him.  While he was here on the earth, his influence was limited – limited to those he could physically see and touch.  When Jesus left, it opened the door to allow the Holy Spirit to come in and fill those who were there.  As they were filled with the Holy Spirit, they were empowered to go out themselves and to take the message wherever they went.  And everyone they touched were empowered to go out also to spread the gospel even further.

Jesus had to go so that we would take responsibility to spread his message around the world.  You know the disciples were perfectly happy following Jesus around – listening to what he taught, watching what he did, and occasionally being sent out on a little test run.  They were in no big hurry to go running out to tell everyone about Jesus – they were somewhat greedy and wanted to soak it all up themselves and to bask in his glory.  So like baby birds, they had to be pushed out of the nest in order to learn how to fly on their own.  As long as Jesus was there, they weren't going to leave.

Toward the end of today’s gospel reading Jesus says, “I still have things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.  When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth.” 

I’ve heard people make a lot of statements about any number of subjects – quoting scripture to prove a point.  And the corollary of that is that if it isn’t in scripture, then it is false.  But that’s not true according to this statement.  Jesus clearly states that he hasn’t closed the books – he hasn’t told us everything.  There are other things he wants us to know that the world wasn’t ready for 2000 years ago. 

This is one of those scriptures, the living word of God that keeps on giving and giving.  As the world progresses and as we grow as a people – as we mature – we understand more and more of the scriptures – but we have to be careful.  Jesus didn’t have any trouble re-interpreting, or even changing what scripture said, when he saw that a scripture no longer served its purpose in his modern world.    I think we have to look at the way Jesus interacted with people – and the way he approached both the people and the establishment to understand what he was trying to say.  We need to look at the way Jesus lived his life.

Last year on Pentecost, I shared a Hasidic tale that asked the question, “Where is the Spirit of God?”  The answer: “God is where you let God come in.”  The Holy Spirit is the power that ushers God into our lives - whenever and wherever we allow that to happen.   

As we look back over this weekend, we want to think that the Spirit of God - that Jesus - was only in the good parts, but that’s not true.  Jesus was with every single person who died and who was injured at Santa Fe High School.  Jesus was with all the students who hid or fled in panic.  Jesus was with each panicked parent and friend.  

Jesus will find us when we are stressed, when we are scared, when we don’t know which way to turn.  His Spirit will find us to guide us and to comfort us and stay with us until the end.  In times like these, let us cry out:  “Come, Holy Spirit, Come!”

Where am I going?

For whatever reason, Sam has been singing the opening lines from Paint Your Wagon a lot lately, and it’s gotten stuck in my head. “Where am I going, I don’t know.  When will I get there, I ain’t certain, all I know is I am on my way.”  Do you ever feel like that?  Not sure where you are going or how you are going to get there?  Or even what to do once you do get there?

Sam and I had the pleasure of spending the past week down in Galveston with 20 other retired clergy couples.  There were also 7 members of the Church Pension Fund who led us through a series of talks, exercises and discussions designed to help us look at our life and our goals for living out our retirement and Christian vocation as couples.  The Credo conference that I attended in September did very similar things, but was focused only on clergy.  But this conference acknowledged that spouses are an important part of our life, planning and future.  

So in essence, this conference helped us address that burning question in Sam’s mind, “Where are we going...”. I think the disciples, after the death of Jesus had some of these same burning questions.  Where am I going?  What do I do next?  How do I get to my next assignment?  If you remember last week, after baptizing the Ethiopian eunuch, Philip was whisked away by the Holy Spirit and set down in Azotus.  But mostly the apostles had to walk where ever they went.  

In today’s lesson from the Acts of the Apostles, our focus is on Peter who is preaching to the household and friends of Cornelius, a Roman Centurion.  Peter is breaking a lot of rules just being in Cornelius’ home and preaching to these Gentiles.  Because the leaders considered this new sect to still be a part of the Jewish religion, they insisted that only Jews were acceptable in their movement.  They wanted to limit who could be included in God’s salvation.  But God had other ideas and He was beginning to spread his net over all people, not just Jews.  

So even though these are not circumcised believers, as Peter preached, the Holy Spirit fell on them all and they began to speak in tongues and extol God.  This is one of those examples where the disciples/apostles had to make an about-face and hurry to catch up with what God was doing in this place.  They not only had to accept the gentiles, but they realized that they also had to baptize them. 

When Peter got back to Jerusalem, he had to defend his decision before the counsel.  He had done at least four things that were wrong.  He stayed with Gentiles in their house.  He ate their food.  He preached to them.  And He had them baptized.  The church was not happy with Peter.

But Peter, even though he had broken the rules, knew that he had done what God wanted him to do.  And that was more important that any rule that had been imposed.  God’s will, not mine, be done.  So, what does that mean for us today?  It means when God leads the way into something new, whether we like it or not, whether we agree or not, we at least need to pay attention.  

The Gospel lesson tells us that we are to abide in God’s love – to obey the commandment is to love one another as God has loved us.  It also tells us that we are no longer servants, but friends.  That means something special - it has deepened the relationship between us and God – we are no longer slaves, but now are friends because the master has made known to us what he is doing in the world.  God is always navigating new pathways into our broken and torn world, and we sometimes have to run to keep up with what he is doing and the way he is reaching out to all people.  

His desire is that all should be saved.  In Chapter 2 of Acts, Peter preaches his first sermon and says, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”  Not if they are good enough.  ..  Not if they believe exactly like us...  Not if they are without sin...  But if they call on the name of Jesus, then they shall be saved.  

Our two lessons from John both speak of love and abiding in the grace of the Lord. Jesus also says, “You did not choose me, but I chose you.”  To many of us, in our humanity, question whether we are good enough to be chosen, but the truth is that we are all created in the image of God and he has chosen every single one of us.  All we have to do is answer his call to love, both God and one another.

And if we love him and choose to follow him, then we need to be prepared to go to uncomfortable places and live into the kind of love that he has for all creation.  When I started the journey with God, I told him, “If you open the door, I will step through it.”  That’s the way I’ve lived for the past 18 years.  Walking through open doors and trying not to look back when a door closes.  Following where God leads and very grateful that this last door he opened was right here at my home.

I’m not sure where I will go from here.  I have several short term plans for next month and Sam and I want to do some traveling.   Our collect says, “You have prepared for those who love you such good things as surpass our understanding...”  We plan to continuing to follow the Lord, because he has already led us into more wonderful places and relationships than we could have imagined.  I plan to continue preaching the love of God to those who will listen and to seek his will for our lives.  I also plan to continue singing a new song to the Lord whenever and wherever I can. I know that God is going to be here with you after we leave and that he will make a way for us to return someday.  

I believe that God has great plans for Grace Church, but you need to be willing to step into whatever role God has for you in follow him.  What is your plan for following the Lord?  What doors are you willing to step through for the Lord?

Love abides and grows

Today I want to focus on the second lesson - the letter from John.  This weekend feels to me like love is in the air.  Sam and I just celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary and I talked briefly about love yesterday at the party.  It seems so appropriate this morning to talk about love because some form of that word appears 27 times in our second lesson this morning.  Twenty-seven times, I think maybe John is trying to tell us that love is important. 

There is a story told about John who spent most of his later life as an exile on Patmos Island.  It is said that John would be brought out to preach to the people and he would say, “God is love.”  Each time he said the same thing.  Someone asked when he was going to say something else, and he replied, “God is love.  When you learn this, then I will teach you something else.”  

In our second lesson, John begins, “Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God.”  We often think of love as being a warm fuzzy kind of feeling toward other people, or an attraction to someone or something.  When Sam and I went to marriage encounter, we were taught that “love is a decision.”  It is a decision that needs to be made on a daily basis.  That funny little feeling that couples get that leads them toward marriage will not last a lifetime in the same way.  It is an attraction that can lead them toward love, but that love must mature and grow if it is to last a lifetime.   But in its early form, it is not the kind of love John is talking about here.  John uses the word, Agape, in both its verb and noun forms, throughout this reading.  

The Greeks have actually 6 words for love.  I’m only going to name 4.  There is Eros - the kind of love that is primarily sexual in nature.  It is the kind of love that keeps the species alive and can be the foundation for the bond of marriage. There is Phileo - a brotherly love or warm tender affection between people that draws them to be friends.  There is storge - the kind of love parents have for their children, it is the bond between family members.  

Then there is Agape -  Agape is defined as:   The unconditional love that sees beyond the outer surface and accepts the recipient for whom he/she is, regardless of their flaws, shortcomings or faults. It’s the type of love that everyone (should) strive to have for their fellow human beings. Although you may not like someone, you decide to love them just as a human being. This kind of love is all about sacrifice as well as giving and expecting nothing in return. The translation of the word agape is love in the verb – form: it is the love demonstrated by your behavior towards another person. It is a committed and chosen love.

Agape is the kind of love God has for us.  It is intentional.  It is God’s intention to treat us with love, even when we are not very lovable.  It is the glue that can hold a marriage together through rocky times.  It is the bond that can hold a family together when things go wrong. And it is the one thing that can hold a church together when people’s personalities rub each other the wrong way causing conflict.  Agape love is what we should be striving for as a congregation, because it is only through agape love that we will survive and grow strong.

Sam and I will be gone during this next week.  We are going on a “retreat” designed for retired clergy couples - yes, I know that I don’t always act retired.  We have been required to read a little book called “Strength for the Journey” in preparation for this retreat.  It is a little book that is designed to help us integrate all areas of life into a well-rounded balanced life.  It includes using prayer, ministry, study, movement and uses of technology and the arts to keep us centered in Christ.  Sometimes we think that going to church several times a month, and saying grace at the table before we eat and maybe a bedtime prayer is enough.  But God really wants more from us.  In our gospel lesson for today, Jesus says, “I am the vine, you are the branches.  Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit.”  

I think one of the most important things is being able to hear God when he speaks to us.  It takes practice and awareness to hear God.  God will lead us, guide us, direct us, nudge us for all kinds of reasons; sometimes to help us and sometimes so that we might help others.  But we have to know what his voice in our life sounds like.  

Most of you have heard by now that I have been declared ‘cancer free’.  It was the quickest journey down cancer road that I can imagine. Two months, that’s all it was.  Now I have a medication that I am being required to take for 5 years - one pill a day.  Well, I’m going to credit God with the miracle.  The miracle is not that He took away the cancer.  He didn’t.  The miracle was in the timing.  My doctor told me he wanted me to get a mammogram.  I ignored him.  The Clear Lake Breast Center called to set up an appointment time and I said no because I just didn’t want to go through that.  About a month later they called again - and this time I said yes.  I’m sure I was nudged by the Holy Spirit.  To catch this thing at stage zero was the miracle.  The actual malignant portion was 4 mm at it’s greatest dimension. 

The surgeon and his team used their God-given talent to remove the cancer and start me on the journey to healing.  I believe that God has a purpose for each of us and he gives us our talent and our love to further his purpose on earth, whether it’s healing, or encouraging, or feeding or comforting, or teaching.  And I believe that each of us is called to grow in love, and the way we do that is by being in community.  I believe that we are called to minister to all people we meet in some way and it’s so much easier to do that when we work together.  

We only have a month left together, but God has something wonderful in the works for Grace church.  I know that you are going to be blessed by God’s plan for Grace.  You’ve hear a couple of times now about the ‘Blessing Box’ that has been proposed for Grace.  I hope that the vestry will follow through with this idea and you will all embrace the concept to make it a reality to help fight hunger in Alvin and especially in our neighborhood.  I didn’t realize until recently how large our low income community was.  The Blessing Box, especially on weekends and during the summer, may be the only source of food some children will have.  We initially stock the box and the idea is, take what you need and give what you can.  Working and praying together, Grace Church can become a beacon of hope here in Alvin.  

May God bless you and keep you, feed you and encourage you, and grow you into the church that He wants you to be.   Amen.

Peace be with you!

Listen to the sermon.

Every year, the same lesson is read for the Sunday after Easter. Last year, on the second Sunday in Easter, I preached on Thomas and the four things that he missed out on by not being there on that first Sunday when Jesus appeared to the disciples the upper room.  Those four things were affirmation, affirmation of the resurrection that Jesus was alive.  Second was the peace that Jesus offers.  Third was the sending out of the disciples; and the fourth was receiving the Holy Spirit.  This year, I want to focus on the peace that Jesus brings into our lives.

The gospel lesson says: “the disciples were locked away for fear of the Jews.”  And Jesus appears among them saying, “Peace be with you.”  I know that the disciples needed that message then, and I know that I need that message now.  I need the reality of His peace in my life right now.   And I know that I am not the only one.  

The Very Rev. Kate Moorehead, Dean of St. John’s Cathedral in Jacksonville, Florida, wrote a sermon focusing on “that day” -  “When it was evening on that day...  the first day of the week” - that day when everything changed.  That day may be a very different day for each of us.  It might be the day we graduated from college, or the day we married that special person, or that day when a loved one died.  It might be that day when you got that special job or opportunity, or that day when your child was born.  Or it might be that day when you were diagnosed with cancer - . . .   It was the day when everything changed...

That day was the day - when the risen Lord came into their lives offering peace; the peace that passes understanding; the peace that takes away fear and apprehension; the peace that allows you to go on.  For the disciples, this was the difference between hiding away in that upper room for fear of the Jews, and being able to go out and tell the story of the risen Lord with boldness.  It didn’t happen all at once - but over a period of 50 days, from the first day of the Resurrection until the day of Pentecost.  It was in living d growing into that peace and the power of the risen Lord that the disciples became bold witnesses to the gospel.  Now, how do we tie into that kind of power and peace?

Over the past 3 days, I have had to admit that I am very anxious - not about the cancer - I know that God will take care of it in his own way, very probably using those people who have offered up their lives to help others overcome disease and injury - the doctors and nurses, the medical personnel.  I’m not worried about the cancer.  What I find myself worried about are the procedures themselves.  To be honest, I don’t like pain or even the prospect of pain.  I don’t like to go to the dentist - although I have a great dentist - just the shot to deaden my mouth and the recovery from that, makes me wish I were somewhere else.  I suppose if the cancer was far enough along to cause me pain, I wouldn’t be so worried about the procedures.  

And God has been so very gracious - at every step of the way, but there you have it - I’m afraid.  I would beg your prayers - that our Lord Jesus sooth my anxious fears and give me the same confidence that he gave to the disciples in that upper room so many years ago.  I have been using my meditation techniques to help overcome my anxious mind and by tying into scripture such as - 

“I can do all things through God who strengthens me...”

“Lord, you do not give me anything that you and I together cannot handle...”

“Lord, give me your peace that passes understanding, and take away my anxious fears...”

You see, Satan tries to distract us from God’s love and goodness, by placing small doubts and fears in our minds.  It is in overcoming them with the promises of God that we are given the strength to move past them into the future that God has prepared for us.  It is when we are at our lowest point, that Jesus shows up - and everything changes.  “Peace be with you.  My peace I give to you.”  He soothed the anxious fears of the disciples that day in the upper room, and he can soothe our fears also.  

One of Fr. Fred’s heroes was Julian of Norwich, an anchorite who lived in the presence of God.  In one of her encounters with the risen Lord Jesus, he gave her this message: “All will be well, and all will be well, and all manner of things will be well.”  It is a message in which we understand that God created all things, and he holds them in the palm of his hand.  We belong to him and if we allow him to, he will take care of us.

I’m reminded of one of my favorite movies, “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.”  Dev Patel plays the part of Sonny Kapoor, the owner of the hotel.  His favorite saying is “Everything will be alright in the end.  If it is not alright, then it is not yet the end.” -  “All will be well, and all will be well, and all manner of things will be well.”

Our Lord Jesus comes to us at out lowest point, and tells us, “Peace be with you...  My own peace I leave with you.”  It is the peace that passes understanding, that takes away our fear.  It is when Jesus tells us, “Don’t worry.  I’ve got this!  I’ve got you!”   Amen.

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