Today I am tired of gloom and want to be positive. And, in-fact, the calendar gives me three quotes. “One joy scatters a hundred griefs. (Chinese Proverb) Cheerfulness is the atmosphere in which all things thrive. (Jean Paul Richter) A cheerful look brings joy to the heart, and good news gives health to the bones. (Proverbs 15:30)” This morning I want to give a huge shout out and take my hat off with gratitude for one of our ministries at Bethany, Bethany Community Gardens was awarded first place in The Neighborhoods, USA (NUSA) National Convention virtual awards program. Their category was Multi-Neighborhood Partnerships, National Neighborhood of the Year. Wow!!! The award is wonderful but it has been a real joy to watch about 20 little plots, strips of land, be used by people from our community and volunteers from our church worked throughout the growing season to provide food for families and for local food pantries in our area. I get to pray before interesting lectures that help us be more environmentally aware, before we are fed by community organizations that pitch in to support this effort, and before we put elbow grease into our little plots – the young and the old! Our Day Care tots are introduced to growing gardens and the local high school students can get credit for introduction to farming class in the summer. There are too many names to list but perhaps the smile (insert emoji happy faces) is better than a sermon. This cheerful news does bring joy to my heart and tells of health brought to the bones! For those of us who may not be able to “dig in the trenches” anymore, our role in helping serve the workers, praying for others and caring for our communities is important. May you be blessed and smiling in your area of service today!
Shout Out to our Community Gardens
May 22, 2020
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Cafeteria-Style Life
May 21, 2020Calendar wisdom: “The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting. It has been found difficult and left untried. (Chesterton)”” for yesterday and for today, “ Too often we conduct our lives cafeteria style – self service only! (Unknown)” That brings pictures to mind as I go down a cafeteria line weighing the cost against the amount of food purchased. I try to round out the good stuff with vegetables and rolls, of my choice of course. The problem is that I suspect life and faith do not come cafeteria style. A prayer for patience may have the side of mashed ego, err potatoes. A prayer for healing may require paying for a doctor visit too. The problem today is that we are not sure if the side dishes of “masking,” “”sheltering,” and “social distancing,” will take us where we want to go, will give us the abundant life we want to live. Proverbs 21:31 reminds us very poignantly, “The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the Lord.” How true. Our lives are ultimately in the hands of God.
Today is Ascension Day when we remember Jesus “ascending” to heaven. For some that means, up the elevator and out of sight, “social distancing.” I heard the explanation that it is more like a prince ascending to power when the king leaves i.e. Jesus finished his purpose on earth and ascended or assumed his full, invisible place. Now that is hard to grasp with our finite minds. Jesus did not distance to the heavenlies. I tend to doubt whether his telescope or microscope is on me and whether He understands my situation fully. It is difficult to believe and I revert to cafeteria-style life. Rather, he resumed full godliness, not needing to “mask” parts of his character for us. We can now be sure that the meals we are served every day pass his inspection and there are no secret viruses to harm us. He holds the victory in His hands! Thank goodness. Blessings as you tackle your battles today.
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STUDY 6 DANIEL 2: 24-49 Inspiration
May 20, 2020Today we finish Chapter 2 of Daniel. Our young man, carried off to Babylon, was chosen and trained in his new culture to be a “wise man.” Perhaps he was in the king’s office of cultural affairs but we know he was not in the church, just an ordinary person doing his job. BUT, culture and faith always live in tension and we see that in Daniel. First he feels the rub with dietary expectations. He negotiates for a trial period to live within his religious restrictions, and passes. So far, so good. Then the king has a terrifying dream and demands that his wise men tell him the dream and interpret it for him. There is no indication Daniel is in that meeting. The men cannot and in-fact believe no one can but the gods can and “they do not live with men.” Death is ordered for all the “wise men.” Hmmmm.
The executioner, Arioch, arrived at Daniel’s door last week. Daniel had the situation explained to him and went to the king to ask for time. He and his friends pray. Today we pick up our story as Daniel has indeed received “wisdom” from the gods! “ v. 19 Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision of the night, and Daniel blessed the God of heaven.”
Let’s continue:
24 Therefore Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon, and said to him, “Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon; bring me in before the king, and I will give the king the interpretation.”
25 Then Arioch quickly brought Daniel before the king and said to him: “I have found among the exiles from Judah a man who can tell the king the interpretation.” 26 The king said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, “Are you able to tell me the dream that I have seen and its interpretation?” 27 Daniel answered the king, “No wise men, enchanters, magicians, or diviners can show to the king the mystery that the king is asking, 28 but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has disclosed to King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen at the end of days. Your dream and the visions of your head as you lay in bed were these: 29 To you, O king, as you lay in bed, came thoughts of what would be hereafter, and the revealer of mysteries disclosed to you what is to be. 30 But as for me, this mystery has not been revealed to me because of any wisdom that I have more than any other living being, but in order that the interpretation may be known to the king and that you may understand the thoughts of your mind.
- Today we reflect on this. I believe we would call this “inspiration,” “revelation,” or what? For my master’s I had to read a professor from Stanford University. His sociological explanation of life had perhaps three categories: social, psychological, and environmental but then he posited a fourth category he call “fortuitous events.” He had to agree, while not giving credit to God, that things happen that change the course of events, change understanding of how 1+1=2, and impact our life direction. I put down the phone, having accepted to go to a conference that the synod would pay half way if I could find the cost of the other half. I walked to the mailbox and there was a check from our home church for the exact cost of the conference donated by an anonymous person. Never before and never since has that happened. I credit God. It was a “fortuitous event.” Have you ever had a dream that illumined a problem you were grappling with? Been inspired right when you needed to perform? Reflect and think of a time where you received inspiration, an answer, an insight that just popped into your head and impacted your life. _____________________________
- Perhaps it is significant that Daniel confesses that he was given insight, not for his own advancement, but for the king’s insight. The word we might use here is “humility.” One of the characteristics of Daniel, a man esteemed by God, an employee of the king was humility. What does humility look like to you?________ Synonym____________ antonym_______________ Describe an experience with a humble person________________.
31 “You were looking, O king, and lo! there was a great statue. This statue was huge, its brilliance extraordinary; it was standing before you, and its appearance was frightening. 32 The head of that statue was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its middle and thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. 34 As you looked on, a stone was cut out, not by human hands, and it struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and broke them in pieces. 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold, were all broken in pieces and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, so that not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that struck the statue became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.
- The king’s dream is of a giant statue. We shall learn next that it is a picture of the kingdoms of the world. A rock hits the statue and shatters it. Today we might think of the kingdoms of the world as a globe being struck by a meteor. Can you think of an image that would share a sense of how you understand the kingdom’s of your world? ______________
- What kingdom would you put at the center of your image?_________________________ And what might threaten or shatter it?__________________
36 “This was the dream; now we will tell the king its interpretation. 37 You, O king, the king of kings—to whom the God of heaven has given the kingdom, the power, the might, and the glory, 38 into whose hand he has given human beings, wherever they live, the wild animals of the field, and the birds of the air, and whom he has established as ruler over them all—you are the head of gold. 39 After you shall arise another kingdom inferior to yours, and yet a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over the whole earth. 40 And there shall be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron; just as iron crushes and smashes everything, it shall crush and shatter all these. 41 As you saw the feet and toes partly of potter’s clay and partly of iron, it shall be a divided kingdom; but some of the strength of iron shall be in it, as you saw the iron mixed with the clay. 42 As the toes of the feet were part iron and part clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly brittle. 43 As you saw the iron mixed with clay, so will they mix with one another in marriage but they will not hold together, just as iron does not mix with clay. 44 And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, nor shall this kingdom be left to another people. It shall crush all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand forever; 45 just as you saw that a stone was cut from the mountain not by hands, and that it crushed the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold. The great God has informed the king what shall be hereafter. The dream is certain, and its interpretation trustworthy.”
- Daniel gives the interpretation. The statue represents four kingdoms. For historical interpreters who understand the symbols to be historical facts equate the gold head with the Babylonians, the silver chest and arms as the Media-Persian kingdom, the bronze belly and thighs to be the Greeks, and the iron legs to be the Roman empire. The rock that rises up is the kingdom of God that shall eventually emerge with eternal dominion. The advantage of these 20th century interpretations is hindsight. The test of a prophet is that the prophecy takes place but at this point in the story, the future…is future. Many scholars would do a more general summary. Kingdoms rise and fall but God’s kingdom “shall never be destroyed, nor shall this kingdom be left to another people.” I wonder what about this message impacted the king and what impacts us. So what can we draw from this?
- Agree,Disagree God works outside the box. God cares about non-Christian kings and kingdoms. God is aware of world events. So what might that imply as we ponder the impact of Covid-19 on Christian “kingdoms” today?_____________________________________
- How might the symbol of the rock smashing the statue shed light on the role of the kingdom of God in our world?____________________________________
- How might the assurance of the coming of the kingdom of God impact the king or us? _________________________
46 Then King Nebuchadnezzar fell on his face, worshiped Daniel, and commanded that a grain offering and incense be offered to him. 47 The king said to Daniel, “Truly, your God is God of gods and Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this mystery!” 48 Then the king promoted Daniel, gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon and chief prefect over all the wise men of Babylon. 49 Daniel made a request of the king, and he appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the affairs of the province of Babylon. But Daniel remained at the king’s court.
- The king seems to acknowledge Daniel and Daniel’s god. What seems to be missing? Has he become a “believer” or what is missing? _________
- Daniel is promoted but Daniel does not forget his friends and speaks up for their benefit also. Daniel was humble but also recognized his support team. Who is your support team? _________________________________________ How might you show appreciation this week? __________
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Bargaining
May 20, 2020There are three verses in Proverbs 20 that bring memories. V. 10 “Differing weights and differing measures – the Lord detests them both.” V.23 is almost the same. Sandwiched between is v. 14 “”It’s no good, it’s no good!’ says the buyer, then off he goes and boasts about his purchase.” In the market in Kenya there would be large gunny-sacks of ground corn, beans, and all kinds of things. The food would be measured and sold by old cans that were often beaten up, indented, reducing the amount of flour inside. But also the merchant would stand there, lifting a can of flour and letting it pour out before you to see and drawing attention to himself and inviting you to buy his goods. Others lifted handfuls of flour and let it fall back to the sack. The effect is visual and drawing but in essence the flour is being loosened and air is entering the deal. Perhaps you can picture pouring a bag of flour into a container at home and then pounding the container to compact the flour to get that last little bit in. Merchants didn’t compact, they added air. At the end, giving you an extra handful of flour as a “baraka,” blessing, to make you think the merchant was generous. Let the bargaining begin, no “fixed price!” While these verses bring wonderful memories of community, of interchanges and laughter, of friendly bargaining and bantering, the underlying message is a question of integrity. Am I so desperate, I am trying to take advantage of you, or am I so needy I am willing to claim poverty that is not honest. Hence I walk away boasting of my purchase. We all love a good sale. I heard on the TV, at the Governor’s Covid update the question, “What are you going to do about the great mid-Western phenomena of the garage sale this summer?” The proverb today challenges us to reflect on our “masks” that we use these days. God “detests,” and that’s a strong word, taking advantage of another either by under-selling or by over-bargaining. May we use honest measures and honest words as we interact with each other today. I will post the Daniel Bible-study later. Blessings.
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Offenses
May 19, 2020Proverbs 19: 11, “A man’s wisdom gives him patience; it is his glory to overlook an offense.” I was quite offended by something this last weekend and carried my “woe is me, nobody loves me, I’m going to eat worms” plaque for a couple days. Yup, after the sun went down, I was chewing my bone. So this verse intrigues me. How does wisdom give me the patience to overlook an offense? The first thought is that with wisdom comes time and learning lessons over time. Little children, youth, wellll are not very patient. Remember worrying over who is the right person, what is the right job, when???? But now I more quickly realize that tomorrow comes when I am not so tired, not so worried, not so stressed and I will be able to understand the other better but also, given time, the other will grow and gain perspective. I had no idea what it was like to be “retirement age” and fear I owe my mother an apology when I get to heaven. “Time heals many wounds” is the secular saying. Time allows me to gain wisdom, be patient, and overlook offenses. Differently, this proverb does not say that wisdom automatically leads to forgiveness. Overlooking an offense is not necessarily forgiving an offense. Perhaps patience is the ability to experience an offense but then to set it aside in one’s mind or heart to see if the offense is symptomatic of a character flaw that needs to be recognized. My mother would say, “There’s many a slip between the cup and the lip.” Patience in someway is allowing the other to grow from the offense even as I do. And the third things that come to mind is that often, it is not wise to respond “in the heat of the battle” but wait for a calmer time to discuss an issue when feelings aren’t so aroused. How does that apply today? I watch our news media scrabbling to respond and give the latest insight on Covid-19, election speeches, and economic predictions about our future. We are so very quick to find fault in someone we disagree with. One of the values I love about sacred space, Sabbath, church is the ability to sit in sacred space and be patient, seek forgiveness for sin, and search for eternal perspective. May you find the quiet place today to reflect with the Holy on those things that offend you. Blessings.
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Gardens
May 18, 2020Two quotes tie together today as we start another new week. “He who plants a garden works hand in hand with God. (Malloch) And, “As the blossom cannot tell what becomes of its fragrance so no one can tell what becomes of his influence. (Unknown) Make me aware, Lord, that today never returns. May the sweet fragrance of Your loving kindness follow me through this day. Amen.” For various reasons, we may not be able to work in Bethany Community Gardens that reaches out to many. The Gardens are a valued ministry of Bethany but each person is a flower however loosely connected to Bethany and our lives are multiple gardens with all sorts of variety of flowers, talents, seen and unseen, affirmed and unrecognized but of great value to God. We have no idea of the ripple effect of our lives but my prayer today is that we will be a sweet fragrance spreading not viruses of gossip and jealousy but the fragrance of forgiveness and patience – the grace we all receive from the Master Gardener. You are his valued work! Blessings!
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An Advocate
May 16, 2020Sunday, May 17, 2020
Sixth Sunday of Easter
Prelude: Is He Worthy? By Christ Tomlin , https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FkRiYsTN7KY
Alleluia! Christ is risen.
Christ is risen indeed. Alleluia!
Welcome to our virtual worship. The Lord be with you.
GATHERING
Confession and Forgiveness
If you were to keep watch over sins, O Lord, who could stand? Yet with you is forgiveness, and so we confess: (I invite you to reflect in the privacy of your home before a time of confession.)
Confession: Gracious God, have mercy on us. We confess that we have turned away from you, knowingly and unknowingly. We have wandered from your resurrection life. We have strayed from your love for all people. Turn us back to you, O God. Give us new hearts and right spirits, that we may find what is pleasing to you and dwell in your house forever. Amen.
Forgiveness: Receive good news: God turns to you in love. “I will put my spirit in you, and you shall live,” says our God. All your sin is forgiven in the name of ☩ Jesus Christ, who is the free and abounding gift of God’s grace for you. Amen.
Gathering Hymn: Christ is Alive! Let Christians Sing, ELW 389, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYA0tFX2tV4
The grace of our Lord, Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
Prayer of the Day
Almighty and ever-living God, you hold together all things in heaven and on earth. In your great mercy receive the prayers of all your children, and give to all the world the Spirit of your truth and peace, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Selection of the Faithful: This is My Father’s World, ELW 824, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uja5sSx0HjM
THE WORD
First Reading: Acts 17:22-31
22Paul stood in front of the Areopagus and said, “Athenians, I see how extremely religious you are in every way. 23For as I went through the city and looked carefully at the objects of your worship, I found among them an altar with the inscription, ‘To an unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. 24The God who made the world and everything in it, he who is Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in shrines made by human hands, 25nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mortals life and breath and all things. 26From one ancestor he made all nations to inhabit the whole earth, and he allotted the times of their existence and the boundaries of the places where they would live, 27so that they would search for God and perhaps grope for him and find him—though indeed he is not far from each one of us. 28For ‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said,
‘For we too are his offspring.’
29Since we are God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the deity is like gold, or silver, or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of mortals. 30While God has overlooked the times of human ignorance, now he commands all people everywhere to repent, 31because he has fixed a day on which he will have the world judged in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed, and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.”
Psalm: Psalm 66:8-20
8Bless our God, you peoples; let the sound of praise be heard.
9Our God has kept us among the living and has not allowed our feet to slip.
10For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us just as silver is tried.
11You brought us into the net; you laid heavy burdens upon our backs.
12You let people ride over our heads; we went through fire and water,
but you brought us out into a place of refreshment.
13I will enter your house with burnt offerings and will pay you my vows—
14those that I promised with my lips and spoke with my mouth when I was In trouble.
15I will offer you burnt offerings of fatlings with the smoke of rams;
I will give you oxen and goats.
16Come and listen, all you who believe, and I will tell you what God has done for me.
17I called out to God with my mouth, and praised the Lord with my tongue.
18If I had cherished evil in my heart,
the Lord would not have heard me;
19but in truth God has heard me and has attended to the sound of my prayer.
20Blessed be God, who has not rejected my prayer,
nor withheld unfailing love from me.
Second Reading: 1 Peter 3:13-22
13Who will harm you if you are eager to do what is good? 14But even if you do suffer for doing what is right, you are blessed. Do not fear what they fear, and do not be intimidated, 15but in your hearts sanctify Christ as Lord. Always be ready to make your defense to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the hope that is in you; 16yet do it with gentleness and reverence. Keep your conscience clear, so that, when you are maligned, those who abuse you for your good conduct in Christ may be put to shame. 17For it is better to suffer for doing good, if suffering should be God’s will, than to suffer for doing evil. 18For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, in order to bring you to God. He was put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit, 19in which also he went and made a proclamation to the spirits in prison, 20who in former times did not obey, when God waited patiently in the days of Noah, during the building of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were saved through water. 21And baptism, which this prefigured, now saves you—not as a removal of dirt from the body, but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 22who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers made subject to him.
Gospel: John 14:15-21
[Jesus said to the disciples:] 15“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. 17This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you.
18“I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. 19In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. 20On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. 21They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.”
SERMON
Easter 6 signals the Easter season is coming to an end. Thursday is Ascension and next Sunday we close Easter before Pentecost Sunday, May 31. There will be no restrictions on wearing red while we worship virtually! These weeks I have been drawing a strong parallel between the upheaval of life for the first Christians after the empty tomb and the upheaval we are going through today in 21st century. We have heard the testimonies of those who saw, touched, and interacted with the risen Christ. Today we are a bit jaded because of testimonies of con-people raising money using Jesus’ name. Testimonials are not a part of Lutheran worship. We are what is called a “confessional” church. We stand on the confessions and creeds of Christians through the ages, not just on our experiences. We hear testimonials but grow faith differently. We like to say, “God has no grandchildren!”
Next we looked at Jesus’ teaching about being the Good Shepherd and pondered the suffering in our world today, ultimately asking if our lives are not indeed in greener pastures than our life without Christ. Last week we listened to Jesus’ master plan, an overview as he leaves the upper room and heads to Gethsemane. Knowing our lives were going to be upturned by events of life Jesus told his disciples: believe in him, he is going to prepare a place where we will be with him, and that he is indeed in God and God in him and so we can believe his words. Hope.
Today we continue with the disciples and Jesus to the Garden and hear the end of his talk. The promise that jumps out to me from our text today is the words, “I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you.” The word “orphan” is a big word in our family. So these words grab my heart. My husband was adopted at two months. From the arms of a woman who had grown to love him, he went into the arms of loving parents, excited to receive him. Our son, though, was left at Kenyatta Hospital when the family of his mother claimed her body and left him to die. He was put on a bed with 50 other babies rejected, covered with rags. Strong ones lived and many died. The orphanage rescued him from there. So the story goes anyway. We fell in love with him a year later and he became one of our clan. Our daughter was turned into a police station at age four months, almost catatonic from abuse or neglect, given to the orphanage, and we found her at ten months. Not all our stories are happy family stories as we live in the shadow of Mother’s Day and anticipate Father’s Day. For the Christian now living, the question of “where do I belong” may well plague.
Jesus starts his talk with, “Let not your hearts be troubled.” What troubles our hearts today? Covid-19 virus, memories of rejection or abuse, limitations from accidents, finances, or what?? Jesus speaks into those troubles to say we are not orphans. How is this true as we isolate and shelter?
Jesus explains: He will send an “Advocate,” the “Spirit of truth” who will “abide” with us. This promise takes on flesh and blood, realness as we love God and obey his commandments. I would understand this passage to be saying, as we “obey,” as we submit our wants and will to His way, we learn and rejoice that we are not orphans. So let’s look at the three words.
“Advocate”
16And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever.”
An Advocate. What comes to your mind? My mind goes to John 8: 1-11 and the story of the woman caught in adultery. At the temple in Jerusalem, the Pharisees bring a woman to Jesus. The woman was caught in the very act of adultery. They test Jesus by asking him if she should be stoned as required by the law of Moses. Jesus bends down and writes in the dirt and then encourages the one who has not sinned to throw the first stone. The crowd melts away and Jesus has the woman note there is not an accuser, neither does he and she is to leave and sin no more. There is a whole sermon here but in terms of understanding what Jesus meant by “Advocate,” I note several things.
The woman is accurately accused of adultery by law, by society and by herself (she makes no defense claiming to be set up or needing money for children or widowed). She is guilty and no one is defending her. There is a crystal clear reality here, advocacy happens in the face of guilt.
Advocacy stands on the side of the accused, the woman, not the law. Jesus stands there, true God and true man, saying, “Neither do I condemn you.” GRACE. We may be accused but we are not condemned. I can only cry.
But, thirdly, advocacy is honest in directing us to reform and leave our sinful behavior. The advocate is not just giving us a “free pass” but is working for our growth, betterment, directing us to green pastures. There is not threat against future slips but encouragement. As Christians we have someone on our side, cheering for us even as we are now captives of sin, offering grace and encouraging us to grow.
Spirit of Truth
7This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive,
because it neither sees him nor knows him.
Spirit of Truth. What story comes to mind? For me it is the story of the woman at the well. Jesus passing through Samaria rests by a well at noon while his disciples go to buy food and he meets a woman coming to draw water. He engages her in conversation about “living water” – but for this sermon – then asks her to bring her husband. She responds that indeed she has had five husbands and is living with someone now. She realizes he knows all about her. He knows the truth.
The Spirit of Truth knows all about us, our private truth as well as our public truth. Jesus knew that the woman needed “living water” as well as water from the well. The Spirit of Truth knows what lies behind the mask. My daughter has a missing front tooth from falling off her bike and so wears a “flipper,” a kind of bridge that she can stick in when she wants. An advantage of wearing a mask inow s that she can go without the flipper. The Spirit knows what we really need and operates at that level of truth.
When asked to bring her husband, the woman has to tell the truth that she has had five and is living with a man. I find interesting in this story that after the woman’s confession of her marital mess, she seems to be freed from the shame of her past and is motivated to return to town and tell others about Jesus. Truth in God’s hands is not a chain around our neck that chokes us but is the shedding of a dark secret that has shackled us. It is moving from social outcast to community.
The world does not receive this kind of truth because the world is not in relationship with God. Again we see that God’s truth is not something analytical, sterile, detached from reality but is relationship with Jesus. Pilate turns to Jesus at the trial and asks, “What is truth?” when Jesus confesses that he came into the world “to testify to the truth.”
We are not orphaned. We have an Advocate walking with us, fighting for us and we have the Spirit of Truth walking with us and helping us navigate life. Finally, the verb used to describe the Spirit’s presence is “abide.”
Abides
“he abides with you, and he will be in you.”
It is hard for me to use the word “abide” without thinking of the hymn “Abide with Me,” written by Henry F. Lyte, an Anglican priest from Lower Brixham, England. All his life he struggled with tuberculosis and near the end had to move to Italy. He famously coined the phrase, “It is better to wear out than to rust out.” It is said that he had to crawl to the pulpit and in his final sermon said, “It is my desire to induce you to prepare for the solemn hour which must come to all, by a timely appreciation and dependence on the death of Christ.” He was inspired before the sermon while reading about the two followers meeting Jesus on the road to Emmaus whose hearts burned within them when they realized they were with the risen son of God.
- Abide with me, fast falls the eventide,
The darkness deepens – Lord, with me abide;
When other helpers fail and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless, OV, abide with me!
2. Swift to its close ebbs out life’s little day;
Earth’s joys grow dim; its glories pass away;
Change and decay in all around I see –
O Thou who changest not, abide with me!
3. I need they presence ev’ry passing hour –
What but thy grace can foil the tempters pow’r?
Who like Thyself my guide and stay can be?
Thru cloud and sunshine, O abide with me.
4. Hold Thou thy word before my closing eyes.
Shine thru the gloom and point me to the skies;
Heav’ns morning breaks and earth’s vain shadows flee –
In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.
5. I fear no foe, with Thee at hand to bless
Ills have no weight, and tears no bitterness
Where is death’s sting? Where, grave, thy victory?
I triumph still, if Thou abide with me.
“Abides,” verse 1 means that the Advocate does not flee like others but stays. Verse 2, the Advocate does not change and stays close through all of life. Verse 3, the Advocate helps me defeat the evil one. Verse 4, the Advocate will be with me in death. And verse 5, the Advocate escorts us to greener pastures.
Our hearts do not need to be troubled in these uncertain times. We are not orphaned. We have an advocate who is for us, who tells us the truth, and who goes with us through all of life and death.
Thank you, Lord!
Hymn of the Day: Love Divine, All Loves Excelling, ELW 631, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y33xr6_B7Kc
Let us join our voices virtually by sharing the Maasai Version of the Apostles’ Creed.We believe in the one High God, who out of love created the beautiful world and everything good in it. He created man and wanted man to be happy in the world. God loves the world and every nation and tribe on the earth. We have known this High God in darkness, and now we know him in the light. God promised in the book of his word, the bible, that he would save the world and all the nations and tribes.
We believe that God made good his promise by sending his son, Jesus Christ, a man in the flesh, a Jew by tribe, born poor in a little village, who left his home and was always on safari doing good, curing people by the power of God, teaching about God and man, showing the meaning of religion is love. He was rejected by his people, tortured and nailed hands and feet to a cross, and died. He lay buried in the grave, but the hyenas did not touch him, and on the third day, he rose from the grave. He ascended to the skies. He is the Lord.
We believe that all our sins are forgiven through him. All who have faith in him must be sorry for their sins, be baptized in the Holy Spirit of God, live the rules of love and share the bread together in love, to announce the good news to others until Jesus comes again. We are waiting for him. He is alive. He lives. This we believe. Amen.
Or you can listen to the Creed in vocal form: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuDI-sk2nJU
Prayers of Intercession
Uplifted by the promised hope of healing and resurrection, we join the people of God in all times and places in praying for the church, the world, and all who are in need.
Abiding God, you have revealed yourself to us in the form of your Son, Jesus Christ. Embolden your church, as your followers, to reveal your love to everyone in our speaking and in our living. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
You are the creator of heaven and earth. Revitalize the health of oceans, rivers, lakes, springs, glaciers, and other bodies of water that give life to your creatures. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
You call all people of the world your children. Judge the nations justly, show mercy to the oppressed, and speak truth to power through your prophets. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
You come near to us when we are lost, and you hear our distress. We pray for those who suffer in any way. Draw near to those fighting for theirs and others lives and those who grieve. Help leaders be wise about reopening. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
Your commands are good and merciful. Give us courage to take hold of our promises to work for justice, advocate for the voiceless, and free the oppressed and imprisoned in body, mind, or spirit. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
You remain with us always, O God, and your kingdom has no end. We remember the saints who have gone before us. Unite us forever in your final victory over death. Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
With bold confidence in your love, almighty God, we place all for whom we pray into your eternal care; through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Peace: If you are worship with someone else, turn and share, “The peace of Christ be with you always.” Response, “And also with you.” You might use your finger to mark you children or loved one with a cross on their forehead. If you are practicing social distancing, put your palms together in-front of your chest and open them outward to the other to show your blessing of them. Peace!
THE MEAL
Offering Prayer: (We cannot pass the offering plate but we can respond to God’s for his gracious gifts to us.)
Merciful God, our ordinary gifts seem small for such a celebration, but you make of them an abundance, just as you do with our lives. Feed us again at this table for service in your name, in the strength of the risen Christ. Amen.
Communion: We can here take a piece of bread and eat and think how Christ gave his body for us. Never forget. sip a bit of fluid and remember that he is as close to you, strengthening you as the blood in your body. Never forget
Prayer after Communion
Life-giving God, you have fed us with your word, and our hearts burn within us. You have opened us to your presence. Now send us forth to share the gifts of Easter with all in need; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Lord’s Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come. thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those that trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.
THE SENDING
Blessing
May the One who brought forth Jesus from the dead raise you to new life, fill you with hope, and turn your mourning into dancing. Almighty God, Father, ☩ Son, and Holy Spirit, bless you now and forever. Amen.
Sending Hymn: Come, We That Love the Lord (We’re Marching to Zion), ELW 625. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FmbqN0yiT4I
Dismissal
Christ is risen, just as he said. Go in peace. Share the good news. Alleluia!
Thanks be to God. Alleluia!
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Grace
May 16, 2020I am going today with calendar wisdom, “That we are alive today is proof positive that God has something for us to do today. (Lindsay) Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. (Heb. 4:16) Very often in Kenya, church services started by the leader sharing, “Many wanted to see today and did not, so let us rejoice.” Those all seem even more poignant as we live today with the pandemic, with politics, and with economic challenges. A student I taught in the 70s in junior high math, now an adult, shared on Face Book that his cousin, a beautiful young woman of 33, so proud of becoming a nurse, was a victim of Covid-19, leaving a four- year old child. I cried. It is a privilege to wake today and face the challenges – and joys. The quotes remind us that we have purpose and we have a God to run to for help. As you face the grief, the shadows, the unknowns of today, may they turn into comfort, joy, peace and grace as we turn to Him. Blessings.
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Backpacks
May 15, 2020Calendar wisdom for May 15, “It isn’t the load that weighs us down – it’s the way we carry it. (unknown author) My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. 2 Corinthians 12:9” I’ve shared the following story before in church but I love it. A hitch hiker with a heavy backpack is given a ride by a driver in a pick up. The driver says to the hiker, just throw your pack in the back. The hiker refuses saying he needs to carry it so as not to cause the driver more work. The humor is, of course, that the car is carrying the back pack whether it is on the hiker’s back or on the floor of the car. The hiker only weighs himself down. How we carry our loads is important. While speaking with someone I care about yesterday the litany of an old grievance was again recited. So much pain and consequential anger. I ponder today how the things in my “backpack of memories” weigh me down. The proverb says that it is not the memory but how I carry it. The past is the past and probably remembered through my much younger self and from a much different time but if I carry it now with bitterness and resentment rather than gratitude for a lesson learned, it makes a big difference in who I am and how I face life. Perhaps a lesson for today is the realizing how God works through my weakness to His glory. Certainly we are weak now and need His perspective on all the issues challenging our lives. May we be able to put our backpacks on the floor of God’s car, as He carries us! Have a good and safe day!
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Oxen
May 14, 2020Proverbs 14: 4 for May 14. I found a funny proverb for sheltering! “Where there are no oxen, the manger is empty, but from the strength of an ox comes an abundant harvest.” I have never said “amen” to that one and probably let my eyes slide over it many times. But it caught my eye today. Where there are no workers, there is no need to feed them but it is also true that with the strength of the workers comes profit. At face value I ponder the drop of expenses because our shops are closed but I also grieve for the many unemployed and then the problems that brings the economy. I can remember my father saying, “You need to spend money to make money!” But perhaps, as I ponder, there are other arenas to which this applies. I ponder the empty nest dynamic. The children have left and are doing well but I need not fix big dinners, the conversation is “different,” and my energy does not rise as there is no challenge. As church buildings are closed, people worship in homes but the harvest of fellowship and music and corporate prayer is being gathered differently now. I grieve. Oxen are needed for work, for a good harvest, and perhaps the lesson is that, it is a privilege to feed them properly. As you go about today, may you be blessed in caring for the oxen in your life and may there be an abundant harvest of gratitude. Blessings.
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On the Way to Wonder 