Sermon - Jesus silences the storm

In today’s world, we love to travel.  No longer do people tend to stay in their own neighborhood for their entire lives, or their own county or even their own state.  People travel, we have cars that can get us places quickly, but we also have trains and planes.  Just one generation back, people did not travel anywhere near like what we do today.  When my parents were in high school they might dream about foreign lands, but never would they think that they would go to Australia or Spain or England or France.  By the time I was in high school, my family had travel all over the United States as well as allowing me to travel to England to visit my best friend who had moved there and to Spain with my high school Spanish class.  These opportunities did not exist for my parents when they were the same age as me. 

            In the day and age of Jesus, people also traveled, mostly for trade.  They walked, or rode animals, or traveled by boat.  And traveling was dangerous.  There were bandits on the roads, Roman soldiers stationed throughout, storms would blow through, they didn’t have convenient stores to stop into if they were hungry or thirsty.  They didn’t have cell phones or GPS or AAA for roadside assistance. So, most people limited their travel. 

            One of the commentaries I read shared that this story is less about the storm at sea, but rather more about getting into the boat and traveling from one place to another.  For the most part, when we decide to go on a roadtrip, we know where we plan on going.  We set a destination and make arrangements for when we arrive, but it seems with Jesus, he gets his disciples into the boat and off they sail, intending to go to the other side, but not knowing anything about what awaits them when the arrive.  

            Do we ever hear Jesus calling:  Let us get in the boat and cross over to the other side?  Symbolically, asking us to move from a place of comfort to a place where we just might engage in a new ministry.  This summer, nine of us will be getting into the boat and traveling to Philadelphia for a week long mission trip.  To be honest, we have no idea what to expect once we get there other than we know we will be given shelter and food.  We don’t know how hot it will be, or which urban ministry project we will spend time with, but we do know Broad Street Ministry has been hosting church groups for years and that they know what they are doing.  For some people, the unknown can bring great anxiety while for others it is a thrill of adventure and brings great excitement in that anticipation of encountering the unknown.  Jesus must have had an adventurist heart, for he was constantly moving from place to place always with the trust that God was calling him in whatever direction he took. 

            Let us get in the boat and cross over to the other side – might speak to our young adults that have just graduated from high school and are heading off to the unknown of college.  Or to our college graduates that are heading off to the unknown of a new job.  Or to parents that are becoming empty nesters.  Or to a church that is seeking new ways to partner with the local community. 

            The thing is, nothing in life is smooth sailing.  There will always be ups and downs and storms will blow through, literally or symbolically.  Another writer shared this:  in the storm, we disciples cried out to Jesus to wake up.  How this speaks to us in todays world.  Don’t we want to shout, to cry out, to demand that God do something to stop these storms that we are in?  Our Presbytery is focusing on current events that we believe are breaking God’s heart.  We have already done one meeting on the Opiate addiction crisis and another on the #metoo.  In September we will be addressing the Immigration crisis and in November we will be sharing about gun violence.  We are in a storm, all around us, in so many different places and topics and issues and we cry out, God save us.  God, do something to stop this madness, stop children from killing children, stop people from overdosing on heroin, stop families from being separated one from another, stop the sexual discrimination and abuse that seems to be running rampant in our nation.  We, just like the disciples, want God to break in and perform a miracle and bring life to some sort of peaceful calm.  Jesus woke up, and he silenced the storm, but he also scolds his disciples asking them, why are you afraid have you still no faith?   

 Would that be God’s response to us today?  As we move across the waters from one place to another, as we wonder what is becoming of this world, would God say: why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?  Is God encouraging us to allow our faith to guide us through our fear?  Or can we travel through the storms not calling out to God to stop them, but rather knowing that God is in the boat with us, traveling with us, present with us, promising us God’s love and grace and mercy. 

And what if, what if God responded, stop the storm with me.  How would we respond?  Would we be willing to get involved in the things that make us angry about our world?  We are seeing more and more people involved in marches because in these storms people are waking up and wanting to be empowered to be a part of change.  There is an incredible desire within our society of people wanting to restore peace, of people wanting to stop the storms, of people understanding they can no longer sit quietly waiting for someone else to take care of the problem.  More and more boats are moving out into the lake, despite knowing there are storms at sea.  Over the centuries, it has been people of faith that have spoken out, despite the fear of others, to condemn slavery and segregation.  People have taken incredible risks to be in the middle of the storm, working with God to bring peace, peace not just for one group of people, but for the greater good, the whole of society.  At one church, we held monthly peace vigils, we chose a topic and then spent an hour, out on the front steps of the church with signs, and discussed with each other the issue at hand, and shared with those that passed by, and made ourselves a visible presence of peace to community. 

There is no denying we are in a storm, what is your anchor or where do you place your hope?  What brings you peace when torrential rains hit?  Is it knowing God is present, is it trust that God is faithful?  Is it through prayer or becoming involved in some sort of social justice movement?  Or maybe you are in a place where you have lost your mooring and feel tossed about and truly believe we are perishing just like the disciples did, cry out as they did, reach out to the source of peace, the source of creation, the source of love that has been present in your life.  The disciples knew Jesus was there, they knew he would come to them, they knew they could answers or help or calm in his presence.  And he me them in their need.  Some of us just need to find a place of calm, a place of peace, a place where we truly feel safe, and in this particular story, it does not happen on the beach or the safety of land, but in the midst of traveling from one place to another, in the midst of the storm, in the midst of not knowing where they were going next, they engaged the peace that only God can give. 

Whether we are in the boat or not, there is a storm, and God is not sleeping, but is calling those who will listen to participate in Biblical justice for all humanity.  Amen. 

Bible Sunday - sermon

A Light Unto our Feet

                Our lives are filled with stories.  Some stories are about us or our families, others are stories that we hear.  Our lives are immersed in stories, stories on TV, the movies, books, and songs.  There are stories that we tell and others we keep secret.  Some stories are worth billions of dollars and some stories are thousands of years old.  Authors, writers, story tellers all work on developing good stories, developing what will catch the attention and interest of others.  Some become classics, worth sharing from generation to generation while others get quickly forgotten.  Our lives are immersed in stories.  And most of us a one or two that we would call favorites. 

            How much time do we give to our stories?  Some people watch the same movie over and over again until they can repeat every line.  My children are suppose to read at least twenty minutes each day, sometimes that twenty minutes seems like an eternity while other times they don’t want to stop and continue reading longer.  It all depends on the story.  Each year, when my children go for their annual doctor visit, we are asked the same question, how much screen time does your child get each day?  The recommendation is no more than two hours.  There are days that I know they are watching more than two hours of shows, so what are they watching?  What are the stories that they are learning?  How is that two hours of screen time forming their own inner story of this world in which we live?  These are all questions we should be asking, no matter what our age.  How much time do we allow the voices of others, whether it be a movie, a show, the media, or a novel infiltrate our lives?  And what impact does it have upon us?  The Psalmist writes that the Word of God is like a light unto our feet.  The word of God is to guide us as we journey in these lives.  If we just live by the stories of the world, what will our true guide be?  What will be our true north? Our anchor?

            For the most part, it seems our stories are often filled with some sort of conflict, crisis, bad news, and the characters seek to resolve the problem and by the end of the show good has overcome bad.  I just finished re-reading a Wrinkle in Time, a favorite story of mine from my childhood.  A friend of mine shared how she loved these books, how the religious symbolism really spoke to her.  And I thought to myself, hmmm, I must have missed something when I was a child, I don’t remember anything religious about them at all, in fact, I felt like they were rather scientific rather than religious.  So, as I re-read this book all these years later, I realized that the religious symbolism was not hidden at all in the story but rather overt.  There is light – good;  and there is darkness – bad or rather evil.  And the more you learn about the light, you learn that the light is not just good, it is love. 

            Today, we give our second graders their Bibles.  We hope that this collection of stories is read, and re-read, and talked about.  We hope these Bibles become a light unto your feet.  I still have two Bibles that were given to me by my church, one as a child and the other as I went off to college.  Sometime during high school, I decided I would read the Bible from front to back, and so each night, before going to bed, I would read.  There was a lot I did not understand and even more that I did not absorb, but I read and eventually I made it through the entire Bible. 

What I did not know as a child or as a youth was that this book is not one book but many books.  And some of the books are collections of stories, some of the books are historical, some of the books are poems, and some of the books are letters.  There is such a variety.  Some of the stories are over two thousand years old and yet, we continue to tell them.  We continue to tell them, we continue to find meaning in them because they are stories of faith shared from one generation to the next in how people found themselves connected to the sacred in this world.  These are stories that shaped an entire nation of people and stories that continue to shape communities of faith in how we feel called to be a people of God. 

            Without these stories, without reading these accounts of faith from one generation to the next, we would have no anchor, we would be like a young sapling with no deep roots.  The more people immerse themselves in learning these stories, the more they understand and see how God is active in the world today and how God is continuing to call and guide us in the decisions that we make.  Our sacred stories help form our own inner story of this world in which we live.  By knowing our sacred story, we cry out when we hear stories of injustice, violence, hatred, and greed.  We celebrate when we hear stories of justice, mercy, and love.  Perhaps we even find ourselves with inner conflict when the stories of this world collide with our sacred story, not sure how to respond, asking if what is happening is ethical, moral, or for the better good. 

 As Jesus teaches about the word of God, the word of God known to us as the scriptures, he uses a pretty straight forward parable.  The farmer sows seeds, scattering them all about:  some fall in the weeds, some on the rocky ground, some fall on the hard path, some fall on the fertile soil.  Sometimes I feel that way with ministry ideas, let’s just brainstorm, throw out ideas and see which ones might actually take.  Not every idea is going to take off, but if we don’t try, we won’t ever know.  Some falls in the weeds and gets smothered, some falls on the hard path and never has a chance to grow, some grows quickly but does not take root and dries out quickly.  Good soil is no accident, it takes work, it takes nurture, it takes cultivating.  Today, we seek to cultivate the good soil, with the gift of these Bibles. 

            God never tires of spreading God’s word upon this world.  Just like in a Wrinkle in Time, the over arching message of this collection of sacred stories is that love overcomes evil, that God’s power overcomes sin, that life can be transformed for the good and that as a people of God, we have the responsibility to be agents of goodness, kindness, compassion, and love in this world. 

            Don’t let the size of this book overwhelm you.  Don’t let segments of this book push you away.  Begin with Genesis and Exodus, and the collection of Gospels.  Six books out of the whole, begin there and see what God has been up to in this world and how God continues to be a God of justice, Mercy, Peace and love. 

            We teach our children each and every day.  We teach them with Dr. Seuss and Walt Disney, we teach them about our values, we teach them that sports, dance, arts, and education are important.  Our story of faith encourages to teach our children and our children’s children about God.  About God’s love for us and for this world in which we live.  As we spend hour upon hour with screen time, or sports practice, or lessons and even homework, do we lift up our values as a people of God?  Just as we absorb all of the stories of the world around us, we are called to find time to absorb, to learn, to study, and to understand the stories of faith shared by the people that came before us and then in turn to share our stories with the next generation.  What I love to be able to do is take our modern stories and find the connections to our faith stories and compare and contrast them.  But I would not be able to do that if I didn’t know our story, if I didn’t understand the ways God is calling us to be harbingers of justice, mercy, and love.  Be a reader of our sacred stories. Be a story teller, be a messenger of God’s love in this world and allow the seeds of God’s word to fall in the fertile soil of your hearts so that you live into God’s hope that life can be transformed into God’s greater goodness.    

Confirmation Sunday

1 Samuel 3

            In today’s society, our young people have numerous opportunities before them.  They can play a variety of sports, they can participate in music, dance, or drama programs, they can do scouting, some gravitate towards art while others immerse themselves in reading.  As a parent, I want my children to try a variety of activities in order to see what they enjoy the most.  Is there one area that perhaps my child will excel and become passionate about? 

            Our young people that we confirmed today are involved in numerous activities: from hockey to Marital Arts, from Drama Club to Marching Band, from Robotics to dance, and from scouting to summer camp at Camp Johnsonburg.  There is a strong interest within them for cooking, and they are a group that is interested in making a positive difference in this world in which we live.   This group of young people have a variety of gifts, a variety of interests, a variety of ways in which to contribute to their schools, their teams, their clubs, and to their church. 

            We have had a handful of baptisms over the past month, and one of the things I share as I walk a child around the church is about seeds of faith within him or her and how, the church family promises to provide the nurture that will encourage those seeds of faith to grow, to mature, and to bear fruit.  This group of confirmands have spent time in the church, they have spent time listening to the word of God in a variety of ways, whether it is through Sunday School, Vacation Bible School, Camp, worship, or through the actions of the church and its members in our ministry.  The word of God speaks to us in a multitude of ways, and it does not matter if we are young children, adolescents, young adults, or adulthood. 

            What I love about today’s story of Samuel is that Samuel is young and God is speaking to him.  Samuel is being raised by an elderly priest Eli, and the word of God was rare in those days. Things really were not great.  There seems to be an ongoing cycle through the scriptures of God’s people participating in the life of faith and falling away, of God’s people being inspired and participating in the life of faith and falling away.  Of God calling new leaders to inspire the people of God and new energy being born and then the people once again falling away.  Over and over again.  And over and over again, God reaches out and calls people to once again bring the people back into a life that is sacred and holy. 

            When we have these stories, these stories of God reaching out to people to be the ones that bring the flock, the fold back to God, we say they are: “Call Stories.”  Call Stories are scattered through the scripture: Abraham, Moses, Jeremiah, Samuel, even Mary in our Christmas story is called.   Samuel, as young as he is, hears the voice of God but Samuel does not know it is God.  He things that it is Eli that is calling him.  Three times Samuel is called and three times he gets up and goes to Eli saying:  Here I am, what is it?  Finally, it is the wisdom of Eli that realizes this must be God calling Samuel.  There is this beautiful mentoring moment as the elderly Eli is able to help interpret what is happening to young Samuel.  In order for Samuel to truly hear God, to truly know what is happening, he needs Eli, he needs the wisdom of his mentor to guide him. 

            God is calling Samuel to transform the future relationship of God and God’s people.  The people of God are soon to become a kingdom and as they do, God is calling spiritual leadership to participate alongside of the king.  These new spiritual leaders will be called prophets.  But if Eli had not listened to Samuel, if Eli had said you are just a child go back to bed, God’s plan would have been slowed down.  But Eli listened.  He not only listened to Samuel but he connected it back to the true source and listened to God. 

            How do we listen to God in our world today?  How do we listen to each other?  Are we good at listening to the thoughts and ideas and passions and interests of each other?  Because God is calling, God is speaking, God is at work but we have to listen, we have to listen to each other no matter how old or young we are, and we have to discern if this just might be a seed of faith that is starting to grow and mature into something that will bear fruit. 

            That is one of the things that I love about confirmation class.  I love to listen to our youth.  I love to listen to their music, their concerns, their interests and brainstorm with them how we can transform our worship in various ways to be more inclusive of them.  Confirmation class is not just about learning the basics and deciding if you want to officially join the church, but it is also about becoming leaders, about feeling that their voice is heard and respected.  They are now full members of the church, and two seeds that they would like to see grow not just within their own lives but within the life of the church are:  a functioning youth group and perhaps a cooking group of some sort.  This group also expressed interest in continuing to meet next year with our mission mornings.  This was something new I introduced since Confirmation class met on Sunday evenings.  Those Sundays that we met at night, instead of a formal Sunday School lesson, we did activities that connected to mission such as making signs for Souper Bowl of Caring and baking quick bread for Faith Kitchen.  So as we begin to plan and prepare for next fall, the CE committee will be looking for adults that would like to be like Eli and mentor our youth, listening to their voices, listening to the ways in which God is speaking to them, and guiding them in hands on mission projects as we continue the mission mornings. 

               

sermon - Baptism

            Our lives are marked with transitions.  It is graduation season, we mark the end of set period of time and requirements of study and honor the students with a ceremony of completion.  In a few weeks, my little Daisy troop will be bridging, moving from Daisies to Brownies.  Next Sunday, our youth will be confirmed, we will celebrate a time of study and transition our youth into adult members of the church.  Transitions are all around us:  from being able to vote for the first time and getting a driver’s license, to weddings and births, to retirement.  And most of the time, we mark these transitions with some sort of ceremony, certificate, or party. 

            Rituals, ceremony, help guide us through times of transition, people of all cultures participate in various rites of passage, often with those transitioning being marked in a specific way, such as a bride wearing a white dress, or a graduate wearing a gown. 

            Our Sunday worship reflects this as well.  We mark our sacred time together with the ringing of the church bell, we set aside this space as sacred space, and we, in a sense, exit the secular world in which we live, and enter into sacred time and space before being sent back out into the world.  We transition weekly, reminding ourselves of the sacred, of the need to be in intentional connection with our beloved creator, of connecting to the sacred story and sharing with one another in prayer. 

            It is this very topic of sacred transitions that we find in our story from the Gospel of John today.  There is a very well educated man, Nicodemus, that has heard about Jesus and heard about his teachings.  Nicodemus wants to know more, he has questions that he wants answered, but he seems somewhat concerned about being seen, about being associated with Jesus,.  For you see, he was a Pharisee, a leader of the Jews, the very people that were resisting Jesus and his teachings.  But he knew there was something more happening here, he knew Jesus was from God, but he takes a great risk to his own reputation and leadership to be seen with Jesus.  so the text tells us, that he comes to Jesus in the night. 

            In the Gospel of John, light and dark are symbolic themes throughout.  In the night, in the dark, can be interpreted symbolically as not yet fully knowing, not yet exposed to God’s light, not yet fully aware of the divine presence.  So, it is possible Nicodemus sneaks out in the night so no one will see him speaking with Jesus or it could be a metaphor for where he is spiritually, but either way, he wants to learn more. 

            And Jesus, in his own way, speaks symbolically of what it means to be in relationship of God.  He speaks of being born again, or being born from above.  The only way to see the kingdom of God, is to be born from above.  And Nicodemus seems to take this very literally and asks how can one be born a second time?  And Jesus responds proclaiming that one must be born of water and spirit to enter the Kingdom of God.  He then elaborates explaining the difference of being born of the flesh and being born of the spirit.  As people, as living creatures here on earth, we are all born of the flesh from our mothers.  But we all have the ability to also be born of the Spirit.  We transition into this world through birth, but we also transition as spiritual beings through water and the Spirit. 

            We, as Presbyterians, mark this transition, this celebration, this gift from God of being born of water and Spirit in baptism.  We have had several baptisms over the past few months and we will have another next month, and these children are all being marked by water blessed by the Holy Spirit and the parents, Godparents, and members of the church promise to raise the child in the faith.  Are these children born again?  Well, that term born again is a loaded expression depending on your faith tradition.  As Presbyterians, we believe that baptism is a transition, a transition of promised love, nurture, and care.  In this sacred time and sacred place, sacred vows are expressed that we desire a life of faith and discipleship for this child.  So, is this child born from above?  Absolutely, and throughout her life, seeds of faith will sprout and bear fruit and she may find a moment where she truly understands God’s love for her in her life.  We often talk about our faith journeys as on-going conversion experiences.  On-going moments of feeling seeds sprout and grow, on-going moments of being touched by God’s grace and love, on-going moments of the water and Spirit breaking into our lives connecting us to the Kingdom of God. 

            Although we believe in one baptism, that one baptism is sufficient for our entire lives, we also believe that the promised water of nurture is on-going.  So we may have moments when our baptism becomes real to us, where it becomes relevant or alive.  We hope that for our children that will be confirmed next week.  That the vows of baptism taken on their behalf twelve or so years ago are now alive in their own hearts, in their own faith journey, in their own understanding of who God is to them.  And so we mark this experience again, not as a second baptism, but as the time in which their baptism makes sense to them, where they can now take the vows of church membership on their own behalf.  It is the same transition and yet another transition, being born of the water and the spirit, it is on-going, ever calling us to grow in our faith no matter how old or young we are. 

            Rites of passage call us to be transformed, to live differently, to grow into a new phase of life.  Nicodemus cannot stay the same if he listens and deeply understands what Jesus is telling him.   Just like when you get your driver’s license, you get it to want to use it.  Along with a changed life of greater independence also comes great responsibility.  I didn’t get my driver’s license to have it sit on a shelf and admire what I had accomplished.  I got it, to use it. 

            Nicodemus is given a purpose behind what it means to be born of the water and spirit.  By being born from above we are given the ability to see the Kingdom of God.  We are marked by the water and the Spirit by God as a means to grow in our lives, we are called to use our baptisms, not just mark it as a specific day in our lives, but to see the Kingdom of God.  We are marked by the water and the Spirit, we are born from above, as an on-going gift from God, empowering us to be disciples, participants in God’s Kingdom, not just in the next life, but here, in this particular place in this particular time.  Let us this day, all remember our own baptisms, marked by the water and the Spirit, growing into God’s people, transforming the world around us through God’s amazing love.  Amen. 

Pentecost - sermon

                I feel like it was just Easter, but fifty days have past which brings us to this day, a call it the best kept secret of the church.  Christmas and Easter are the big days in the life of the church, but so should be Pentecost.  Pentecost, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon God’s people.  God at work in the world, God’s breathe stirring life into God’s people.  Wind, breathe, Spirit, and a sacred connection.  In Easter, we celebrate life over death, we celebrate God’s yes in the face of the world’s no.  Pentecost continues the story, continues the message of the resurrection, continues the story of life returning to places that can speak of death. 

            I am going to put you all on the spot today.  How many of you want to make a difference in the world?  Raise your hand.  How many of you actually feel like in some way, either large or small, you are actually making a difference in the world today?  There is a movement in our greater society to seek ways to make a difference in our world.  We are constantly being asked to make a donation to this cause or that cause; sometimes it is at the grocery store – would you like to donate a dollar to the St Jude’s fund?  Or it might be in purchasing an item: for every item purchased, a dollar goes to bringing fresh drinking water to a thirsty child.  And even our pets are included in this, for every bag of dog food bought, twenty meals will be given to dogs in shelters.  Last year, I bought pink ribbon earrings and a percentage went to breast cancer research.  It goes on and on.  How do we see this?  Do we see this as marketing strategies to prey on peoples’ desires to do good in order to sell things?  Or do we see it as the Holy Spirit moving upon the waters of consumerism seeking to do the better good? 

            Pentecost is upon us, it is here, not just on one particular day, but each and every day, each and every moment of time.  The breath of God’s life is pouring out upon us if we are open to hear its call.   

            As I wrestled with our first text today, that of Ezekiel and the valley of dry bones, we could do a very in depth conversation group on this.  One of the resources I read, asks this question:  Has anything of great importance died in our own community?  Where are the places that are crying out for rebirth?  And I love this one:  Can our dreams dance again?  As I thought about places that have died, other than the war torn areas of our world, I thought more specifically to our own country and towns ridden by various addictions such as meth and heroin.  While living in Florida, there was the bad part of town, and as the police and drug enforcement agencies seized crack houses, the houses were turned over to the town for community resource centers.  I had the opportunity to teach ESL in two such houses, once used for drugs, now used to empower people through education:  Life out of death, hope out of despair.  Throughout our nation there are small towns that have literally become ghost towns, with a handful of people still living there, there is the city of Detroit, an entire city going bankrupt, the foreclosures and extreme poverty. 

            And so as I thought about rebirth, for the power of dreams dancing again, I thought about Waco Texas and Chip and Joanna Gaines and the work they are doing to restore homes throughout the city.  They have truly changed this town, they have brought hope into a town that had been struggling for so long.  They have put a positive name on a place that seem to only know bad press.  Ours is a God that continually offers life, offers life in what even might seem to be a dying world.  We can view the world through the negative lens that things are just bad, or we can view the world through the lens of faith, through the promise of God, through the hope of our scriptures that even in destructive times of history, God is restoring life. 

            Can our dreams dance again?  As the Holy Spirit continues to pour out upon this world, as the breathe of God continues to renew and restore creation, our dreams based in God’s love can come to life, can be a reality.  Pentecost is being lived out this week, as Ledgewood Baptist hosts families that are currently homeless.  Families, all across our nation, but also right here in our own community, without a consistent place to come home to.  I can’t even imagine it, but through God’s love, through the power of the Holy Spirit the agency Family Promise is at work to find permanent housing for these families as well as to provide them the resources they need for this transitional time in their lives. 

            Can our dreams dance again?  For three families, they will soon be receiving a home through Habitat with an upcoming Building blitz over in Mine Hill in June.  Why will 150 people give 9 days of their lives to build three houses?  Why are people so willing to help others?  Why do people take to the streets in order to voice their message of hope and justice and love for each other?  Because God is at work in this world, because there is incredible power in the Pentecost story, because God puts a message of hope in our hearts and a passion to make this world a better place. 

Mother's Day - sermon

                Mary, the mother of Jesus, takes center stage in the beginning of the Gospels of Matthew and Luke in what we call the Nativity story or birth story of Jesus.   But then, she seems to almost disappear completely.  She is mentioned a few more times in various ways, but no longer are angels coming to her, no longer are shepherds or wisemen coming to visit her and her child. 

            The Gospel of John has this unique story of Mary attending a wedding where Jesus and his disciples were also in attendance.  John does not have the birth story like Matthew and Luke do.  John starts with a Creation story, then the baptism of Jesus, and then he calls his disciples, all in the first chapter.  This is the first time that Mary is mentioned and her name is not even used, she is named as:  the mother of Jesus.  On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.  She is described, not named, but she is mentioned before Jesus. 

            Once the Gospel writer sets the stage by letting the reader know who is there, he immediately names a problem.  Mary, Jesus, and the disciples are at this wedding, but the wine has run out.  Mary notices the problem and knows how to fix it.  She has raised this amazing young man and she knows what he is capable of.  The reader may not know, the disciples may not know, no one else at the party may not know, but Mary knows that Jesus is more than just another guest at the party.  So, in order to keep the party running smoothly she tells him that there is no more wine.  And his response is rather fresh.  Yes, he is a young adult, but he seems rather rude – he seems to rebuke his mother stating:  Woman, what concern is that of you and me?

            Well, Mary doesn’t let his comment stop her.  Some may say she is meddling, others might say she saves the day.  Maybe it is a close family member who is getting married and she does not want the family to be embarrassed that the wine has run out.  Maybe she is ready to push Jesus out into the public eye letting others know what she already knows about him, that he can perform miracles.  Whatever her motives are, she quickly goes to the servants and gives them a heads up.  Do whatever he tells you to do.  And sure enough, Jesus goes to the servants and has them fill 6 stone jars with water.  Now, I think we all know where this story is going right, no spoiler alerts here – the water has been transformed into wine. 

            Mary might not have a name in this story, Mary might even be called woman by her own son, but in this story, she prepares the way for Jesus’ first miracles, she paves the way for water to turn into wine, she paves the way for abundance instead of scarcity.  Perhaps this was an actual wedding or perhaps it is a parable or metaphor for God’s gift of Jesus into the world.  How ever we read the story, literally or symbolically, Mary is the catalyst inviting the presence of God to get to work. 

            Mothers just might know their children have special talents or a unique calling and sometimes they sit back and wait for the child to discover that talent or calling on their own.  Or, sometimes they encourage and nurture and maybe even push a little to help the child engage in that calling.  Or, sometimes the child feels pushed in a direction that they have absolutely no interest in at all.  Do I really have to take piano lessons?  Do I really have to play tennis?  Do I really have to turn water into wine? 

            There is a lot of deep meaning going on in this passage, as Jesus takes water jugs set aside for the ritual of purification and transforms water into wine.  There is some major forshadowing going on here leading into the sacrament of Communion.  In the Jewish faith, water was used for purification, just as we do with baptism.  But now, this water becomes wine.  It is not just wine for the party, but it is really good wine, usually the host serves the better wine first, but the better wine is that which Jesus creates.  For those that follow Jesus, for those that continue to follow him after his death, they will remember the story of the purification water transforming into wine and the connection to Jesus at the last Supper proclaiming that this cup is the cup of the new covenant sealed in his blood for the forgiveness of sins.  It is a new form of purification, a spiritual purification, cleansing our inner being. 

            And Mary paves the way.  Just is in the Christmas story, Mary opens her life for this miracle of possibility, she allows her life to be changed forever, she does not run from all the fears and questions that she has, but embraces the divine and becomes a servant to God, trusting that God’s plan is at work.  And then, after all the years of raising this child, she knows it is time for God’s plan to unfold even more, and again, she sets the stage to allow other people’s lives to be changed forever.

            We have much we can learn from Mary.  Mary learns that there is scarcity at the wedding, they are out of wine, but she also knows that God is a God of abundance.  Mary turns to the source of God’s abundance, she seeks him out, perhaps interrupts him with his buddies, and abundance is restored to the party.

            Where in our lives, where in our community, where in this greater world is there scarcity?  We live in such an abundant culture that sometimes it is hard to see the scarcity.   But just this week, we are engaging in two places of scarcity and we will bring, through God’s love, abundance.  We have been collecting coffee in honor of Mothers and will bring from our abundance to Faith Kitchen coffee for those whose lives are so fragile and vulnerable as they struggle day to day in scarcity.     And then on Thursday, a handful of church members are fixing a meal, serving the meal, offering hospitality to several families in the Family Promise program.  These families are housing insecure, and Family Promise is the safety net of meeting them in their scarcity and lifting them up and providing a lifeline until the family is able to get back on their feet. 

             God calls us to those places of scarcity and to use our resources, our time, our talent, and our treasure to bring abundance.  We may not be able to literally turn water into wine, but maybe we can be like Mary and set the stage for the divine, the sacred, the gift of God’s abundance to be present in the situation, and who knows, who knows, perhaps instead of water into wine, we will have families with a home or hungry people with a meal or isolated people with a friend.  Amen. 

Earth Day Sermon

This year, the Earth Day Network’s theme is to end single use plastics.  I have been taking time this past month to look through my house to see how much single use plastic I use, and it is a lot.  Single use plastic is everything from shopping bags, to plastic spoons and forks, to water bottles, and even the gallon of milk which is a must have in my household.  As I have spent this time, I know there are certain items that I cannot stop using, such as the milk, but for so many others, there are other options, such as reusable shopping bags, water bottles, and just learning to make wiser choices. 

            So, yes, we should recycle, but even recycling plastics is not the long term answer.  Plastic does not recycle well and eventually it ends up in the landfill or the ocean.  Today, my sermon title is:  Life Giving Water.  Water, throughout our scriptures has a significant place in providing new life to God’s people.  Our God is the God of creation, and our God uses creation to remind us that we are spiritual beings, that we belong to God, and that we are called into a life dedicated to God. 

            Today, as we celebrate Earth Day, and use God’s gift of water in the sacrament of baptism, we remember how important water is.   Just as we use water to clean our dirty dishes or our dirty clothes, we remember that it is God that has cleansed our beings, washing us of all our sins and embracing us as beloved children.  Just as we use water to keep our bodies hydrated and to water our plants, the waters of baptism remind us that God is the living water, that it is God that hydrates our souls and provides the teachings that will nourish us in our journey of faith. 

            Water is essential to life and God uses it to emphasize God’s presence within our own lives.  So, why do we not treat water as holy?  Why do we allow our rivers, lakes, waterways, and oceans be filled with plastic pollution?  In this passage from Ezekiel, the prophet has a vision of water flowing and he proclaims that as the salty water enters into the Dead Sea, it becomes fresh.  The Dead Sea is called the Dead Sea for a reason.  It is so salty that nothing can live in it, and yet, and yet the water from the Temple of God will flow into it and bring freshness, and will bring life, because this water flows from the sanctuary, this is Holy water flowing into places where life has failed to thrive.  God goes into the barren places and brings life, brings renewal, brings hope. 

            As we embrace the holy meaning of water, as we remember God is the God of creation, as we learn more about how plastic and other garbage is choking our water ways and oceans, we should embrace the role of being the living waters of God flowing forth from the sanctuary bringing renewal and life to barren places.  We are beginning the process here within our own congregation during our fellowship times together.  Many years ago, the session of the church asked that we stop using Styrofoam during fellowship events.  Last year, we asked that we do our best to stop using plastic water bottles during church events.  We had the tap water tested to ensure that it is safe to drink, which it is, and we are using pitchers of water whenever possible.  This year, we would like to take it one step further and encourage our fellowship time to not use any type of single use plastic, such as plates, cups or utensils.  One roadblock to this was who is going to wash the dishes?  And so the mission began to replace the dishwasher which, thankfully has been fixed.  The less plastic we use, the less makes it to the landfill or accidently meanders its way into the ocean. 

            In the creation story, God asks humanity to have dominion over this amazing creation.  We, unfortunately have misunderstood the word dominion and have taken this planet for our own needs.  Dominion is a form of stewardship, dominion is a practice of intentional care.  It is not to use until we have our fill, it is to remember the harmony of how God created each ecosystem to work and for us to respect that harmony as we use what we need. 

            I wrestled with what New Testament passage to use for today, since there are a few that connect with the Ezekiel passage of the living waters, but I turned to Luke 10 for many reasons.  Luke 10 is the passage we use for Missional church, and this past week, as I participated in my monthly mission pastor study group, the passage of:  The harvest is plentiful, resonated with me.  Jesus is speaking of the harvest as people, as going out into the world and brining the good news of God’s love to people, but for me, this week, it is the harvest of our stuff.  The harvest is so plentiful that is becomes waste.  We live in such abundant times that we can just throw things away.  The harvest is plentiful, so let us be mindful of how we interact with the harvest, and let us prayerfully, and spiritually connect ourselves to how we consume these overly abundant, plastic wrapped foods and toys and clothes and household items. 

            The laborers are few, but as more and more people understand the harmful impact plastic is having upon our lives, and most importantly upon our sacred waterways, the momentum will pick up and we will become a part of the solution.  Amen.