On the Way to Wonder

First Reading: Acts 2:14a, 36-41

^14aPeter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed [the crowd], ³⁶“Therefore let the entire house of Israel know with certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
 ³⁷Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?” ³⁸Peter said to them, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ³⁹For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him.” ⁴⁰And he testified with many other arguments and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” ⁴¹So those who welcomed his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand persons were added.

Psalm: Psalm 116:1-4, 12-19

 ¹I love the Lord, who has heard my voice,
  and listened to my supplication,
 ²for the Lord has given ear to me
  whenever I called.
 ³The cords of death entangled me; the anguish of the grave came upon me; I came to grief and sorrow.
 ⁴Then I called upon the name of the Lord:
  “O Lord, I pray you, save my life.” 
 ¹²How shall I repay the Lord
  for all the good things God has done for me?
 ¹³I will lift the cup of salvation
  and call on the name of the Lord.
 ¹⁴I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
  in the presence of all God’s people.
 ¹⁵Precious in your sight, O Lord,
  is the death of your servants.
 ¹⁶O Lord, truly I am your servant;
  I am your servant, the child of your handmaid; you have freed me from  my bonds.
 ¹⁷I will offer you the sacrifice of thanksgiving
  and call upon the name of the Lord.
 ¹⁸I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
  in the presence of all God’s people,
 ¹⁹in the courts of the Lord’s house,
  in the midst of you, O Jerusalem. Hallelujah! 

Second Reading: 1 Peter 1:17-23

¹⁷If you invoke as Father the one who judges all people impartially according to their deeds, live in reverent fear during the time of your exile. ¹⁸You know that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your ancestors, not with perishable things like silver or gold, ¹⁹but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without defect or blemish. ²⁰He was destined before the foundation of the world, but was revealed at the end of the ages for your sake. ²¹Through him you have come to trust in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are set on God.
 ²²Now that you have purified your souls by your obedience to the truth so that you have genuine mutual love, love one another deeply from the heart. ²³You have been born anew, not of perishable but of imperishable seed, through the living and enduring word of God.

Gospel: Luke 24:13-35

¹³Now on that same day [when Jesus had appeared to Mary Magdalene,] two [disciples] were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, ¹⁴and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. ¹⁵While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them, ¹⁶but their eyes were kept from recognizing him. ¹⁷And he said to them, “What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?” They stood still, looking sad. ¹⁸Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?” ¹⁹He asked them, “What things?” They replied, “The things about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, ²⁰and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him. ²¹But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place. ²²Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, ²³and when they did not find his body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. ²⁴Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but they did not see him.” ²⁵Then he said to them, “Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! ²⁶Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?” ²⁷Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.
 ²⁸As they came near the village to which they were going, he walked ahead as if he were going on. ²⁹But they urged him strongly, saying, “Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over.” So he went in to stay with them. ³⁰When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. ³¹Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight. ³²They said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?” ³³That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together. ³⁴They were saying, “The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared to Simon!” ³⁵Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread.

CHILDREN’S SERMON:  I think today we will go back to one of my favorite Aesop’s Fables:  The Lion and The Mouse.

“A Lion lay asleep in the forest. A timid little Mouse came upon him unexpectedly, and ran across the Lion’s nose. The Lion laid his paw on the tiny creature to kill her.

“Spare me!” begged the poor Mouse. “Please let me go and some day I will surely repay you.”  The Lion was much amused to think that a Mouse could ever help him but he let the Mouse go because he fancied himself generous.

Some days later, the Lion was caught in a hunter’s net. He filled the forest with his angry roaring. The Mouse found the Lion struggling. Running to one of the great ropes that bound him, she gnawed it and soon the Lion was free.”

Question to share with your neighbor:  Why was the Mouse’s plea so foolish to the Lion?

Let us pray.   Lord, May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptible in your sight, my Rock and my Redeemer.

SERMON

         Last week we jumped from Easter morning to Easter evening, from sharing “The Lord is Risen” to hiding behind locked doors, afraid.  Today we go to the gospel of Luke and Easter afternoon. We read of two people walking away from all the action and excitement of Jerusalem, the crucifixion and the rumors of the resurrection.  While some followers gathered behind locked doors in fear, these two people just plain left.  “I’m out of here!” may have been their cry.  When life becomes overwhelming, distancing ourselves from the chaos and all the voices around us is a valid coping mechanism.  In significant ways we become like the little mouse pleading, “Let me go.”  Perhaps we are scared but we are also confused and we need a safe space.  I love to get in my car and drive.  My father went to the garage and his tool bench.  Others go to the mall or zone out in a video.  We have ways we cope with overload.  Our two people in the text are leaving the scene and walking along, engrossed in conversation, talking about all they’ve been through.

God’s wisdom confuses worldly wisdom

         The lion’s first impulse is to kill that mouse that disturbed him.  He has the power.  He has the right.  He is king of the forest and has the authority.  Besides mice are…you name it cause mice are near the bottom of the food chain.  Our knee jerk reactions often are to lash out and get rid of the nuisance.  Pilot washed his hands of Jesus.  The Jewish authorities demand the death of Jesus.  The soldiers were just following orders.  The disciples fled.  Judas committed suicide.  Easter morning and the cry, “He is risen,” makes no sense.  The followers of Jesus at some level understood that Jesus was the promised Messiah but they had their own definition of what that meant.  The Messiah would get rid of Rome and return them to their glorious past.  The followers knew mice should not disturb lions and dead people don’t rise.

     Even we have our expectations of how God should or could or ought to be acting in our world. We even back up our wants with Bible verses that tell us we can have anything from God if we have faith and pray.  For sure we know God is on our side and doubt his presence with our enemy.  So who are the lions in our world today?  Wealth, youth, talent, government and yes, beauty.  If we have one of these we are on the right side of the equation of life and if we are poor, the “other” ethnicity, weak or differently abled, we are at the bottom of the food chain.  Most of us would admit we are somewhere in-between but hoping to climb the respect ladder.  When the tables are turned and Jesus is crucified, dies and is buried but maybe resurrected, the two people are confused and need space to process.

“talking with each other about all these things that had happened”

Confusion turns us inward in discussion with those we trust.

         The lion is amused at the tiny mouse’s plea.  He frees her, not because he believes the mouse can help but because he chooses to be generous.  We hear the Easter message.  Many are willing to be CEO Christians, be baptized and come to church on special occasions like Christmas/Easter/and Other times like funerals or confirmations but the resurrection is not truly integrated truth in their lives.  It might be interesting to talk about but it is not life changing.  Many are on the road to Emmaus and do not even recognize Jesus walking beside them.  We are busy discussing all the things taking place in our world today.

“What things?”

         Interestingly Jesus comes as a presence, not a power.  He wants to know what we are so preoccupied with and what is so confusing.  He walks with us in the events of our lives.  He does not stand outside our reality and manipulate our lives either as he thinks they should be or as we would like them to be.  Jesus travels with us and wants to know what is on our minds.  But what does he do?  He points our two people to scripture.  Jesus is not only the risen Lord but he is also the Living Word.  I find it interesting that he starts with Moses; laying a foundation they would understand from their heritage and drawing them into the present.  He goes from the known to the unknown, from the seen to the unseen.  Part of the problem with confusion and events that challenge our understanding of our faith is the need to go back and clarify our concept of God.  And so Jesus starts with Moses.

         Perhaps as we face situations in our life today, the challenge is to ask ourselves how we think God ought to solve it and then chat with a friend to broaden our understanding of how God might choose to be acting.  Legendary coach John Wooden of the UCLA Bruins is famous for starting his seasons by teaching his players how to put on their shoes and socks.  He took them back to the basics because no game can be won with sore feet.  Jesus took the two people on the road back to the basics, Moses.  I sure would have loved to be a Kleenex in the pocket in one of those people hearing Jesus review scripture!  We have Bibles and can review whenever we are confused.  We have prayer and can talk to God about our confusion and the Holy Spirit sheds light.  God joins us in our questions.

^“21But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel.”

         Our understanding of God impacts our expectations of our lives.   As we clarify our understanding of God, we see our present in a new light.  When the mouse chews through the rope holding the lion captive, the lion sees the mouse in a new light and he is set free to be all God created him to be.  The lion has been redeemed and the crucifixion redeemed Israel and all of us too.  The resurrection is not just an historical event we celebrate at Easter.  Freedom for the lion is not just a scriptural assurance that someday he will lay down with the lamb.  It is a reality he lives into three dimensionally, touching and feeling.

         Jesus ate with the two from Emmaus.  “³⁰When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. ³¹Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight.“  Jesus gave us the sacrament of communion.  It is in communion that he tells us the bread is his body broken for us and the wine is his blood shed for us.  He is with us three dimensionally, right inside us as we eat and drink.  We can be assured that he is in the midst of all circumstances we go through.

^“35Then they told what had happened on the road,

 and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread.”

         God’s wisdom is not like worldly wisdom.  Letting the mouse go free is counter intuitive.  Dramatic events can overwhelm us and drive us to seek space with others we trust.  We are confused and seek clarification but unlike the world, we do not become the brilliant insightful ones, we become the sharing ones.  Wisdom and clarity come from God in the midst of our lives.  Our joy of discovery is meant to be shared.  The two people had to return to Jerusalem and tell the other followers who themselves were experiencing the risen Christ. The resurrection sets us free to be our better selves, the person God would have us be in our worlds.

         The resurrection turns us from inward fear and confusion to outward awareness of God presence with us in our world, speaking into our dynamics today through his word.  Fear gives way to peace and confusion gives way to clarity. The seen calamities of this world gives way to the unseen presence of God walking with us, helping us to understand, and communing with us.  The lion realizes the mouse is not a silly disturbance and bother but a significant encounter with unseen blessings to be lived into.  The Lord is risen!  The Lord is risen, indeed.

Let the people of God say, “Amen.”

First Reading: Acts 2:14a, 22-32

^14aPeter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed [the crowd], ²²“You that are Israelites, listen to what I have to say: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with deeds of power, wonders, and signs that God did through him among you, as you yourselves know—²³this man, handed over to you according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of those outside the law. ²⁴But God raised him up, having freed him from death, because it was impossible for him to be held in its power. ²⁵For David says concerning him,
 ‘I saw the Lord always before me,
  for he is at my right hand so that I will not be shaken;
 ²⁶therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced;
  moreover my flesh will live in hope.
 ²⁷For you will not abandon my soul to Hades,
  or let your Holy One experience corruption.
 ²⁸You have made known to me the ways of life;
  you will make me full of gladness with your presence.’
 ²⁹“Fellow Israelites, I may say to you confidently of our ancestor David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. ³⁰Since he was a prophet, he knew that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would put one of his descendants on his throne. ³¹Foreseeing this, David spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah, saying,
 ‘He was not abandoned to Hades,
  nor did his flesh experience corruption.’
³²This Jesus God raised up, and of that all of us are witnesses.”

Psalm: Psalm 16

 ¹Protect me, O God, for I take refuge in you;
  I have said to the Lord, “You are my Lord, my good above all other.”
 ²All my delight is in the godly that are in the land,
  upon those who are noble among the people.
 ³But those who run after other gods
  shall have their troubles multiplied.
 ⁴I will not pour out drink offerings to such gods,
  never take their names upon my lips. 
 ⁵O Lord, you are my portion and my cup;
  it is you who uphold my lot.
 ⁶My boundaries enclose a pleasant land;
  indeed, I have a rich inheritance.
 ⁷I will bless the Lord who gives me counsel;
  my heart teaches me night after night.
 ⁸I have set the Lord always before me;
  because God is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken. 
 ⁹My heart, therefore, is glad, and my spirit rejoices;
  my body also shall rest in hope.
 ¹⁰For you will not abandon me to the grave,
  nor let your holy one see the pit.
 ¹¹You will show me the path of life;
  in your presence there is fullness of joy, and in your right hand are     pleasures forevermore.

Second Reading: 1 Peter 1:3-9

³Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ⁴and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, ⁵who are being protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. ⁶In this you rejoice, even if now for a little while you have had to suffer various trials, ⁷so that the genuineness of your faith—being more precious than gold that, though perishable, is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. ⁸Although you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy, ⁹for you are receiving the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Gospel: John 20:19-31

¹⁹When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” ²⁰After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. ²¹Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” ²²When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. ²³If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”

 ²⁴But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. ²⁵So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.”
 ²⁶A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” ²⁷Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.” ²⁸Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” ²⁹Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.”

 ³⁰Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. ³¹But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.

CHILDREN’S SERMON:  When I taught a nursery school  in Kenya, one of the songs that had hand motions and taught language was “Going on a Lion Hunt.”  Repeat after me

Going on a lion hunt, going to catch a lion.  (congregation echoes)

Put on your shoes (motion of putting on shoes)

Put on your hat (congregation puts on hats)

Let’s go

Oh no, tall grass. (place hands by face as if in dispair)

Can’t go over it (motion with hands trying to reach over tall grass)

Can’t go around it (motion with hands going out to left and right)

Can’t go under it (motion with hands scooping under)

We have to go through it ( motion parting grass, swish sound)

Going on a lion hunt, going to catch a lion.

Oh no, a river.

Can’t go over it, can’t go around it, can’t go under it, we’ll have to go through it (splash, splash, splash  swimming motions).

Going on a lion hunt, going to catch a lion.

Oh no, a cave.

Can’t go over it, can’t go around it, can’t go under it, we’ll have to go through it (make a creeping motion with your feet)

Oh No! A Lion!  Run.

Stomp your feet for retreating back through the cave.

Swim your arms for recrossing the river.

Swish your way back through the grass.

  (The children meet a lion and have to race home going running out of the cave, swimming back across the river, and swishing back through the grass.) 

 Whew!  We are safe at home.

Let us pray.  Lord may the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be pleasing to you, my Rock and my Redeemer.

SERMON

         We are all on a lion hunt.  We all meet barriers to reaching that dream that is out there that we want to achieve.  Perhaps Mr. Wonderful doesn’t realize we exist.  Perhaps the ideal job is not delivering as we thought.  Perhaps a different doctor will give a more hopeful path to recovery.  Sometimes we meet barriers we just cannot jump over, go around, or dig under and we just have to go through as best we can.  Our disciples today have met a barrier.  They have followed Jesus believing he was the Messiah and expecting him to usher in the new kingdom, rid them of those bothersome Romans, and return the good life.  He could do it.  He had healed, fed, resurrected, taught and done so many wonderful, hopeful deeds.  But suddenly they met a barrier.  The crowd that shouted, “Hosanna,” on Palm Sunday turned to shouting “Crucify him” on Good Friday. They walked through the horror of Gethsemane, the injustice of the trial, the cruelty of the cross and the death of their leader and dreams.  Today we see them disoriented and hiding in fear.

           Last Sunday we heard the news, “He is Risen.”  We greeted each other with those words, “He is risen indeed.”  We hear Jesus is risen but the Romans are still in power and we still face death.  Houston, we have a problem.  During the Easter Season for the next six weeks we will look at the tension and reality that Jesus resurrected but we are still in this world.  We will be challenged to redefine the lion we are hunting for.  We use words for Easter like “conquered the grave,” “is alive,” or “saved us” but what does having a resurrected Savior mean to the nitty gritty of our everyday lives?

Inward to Outward

         Our first reading today is telling us how Peter gives a rousing sermon on Pentecost to an audience of people gathered in Jerusalem from all over the world.  People hear the sermon in their own language.  3000 become followers of the Christ.  Any pastor would be overwhelmed if 3000 people responded to the sermon!  Today we call it a revival when suddenly people are touched by the Holy Spirit, confess their need for salvation, and cry out to God.  There are reports that revival is “breaking out” around the United States today.  Even as revival broke out during the “Jesus Revolution” when I was a young adult in Los Angeles and as recorded in the recent movie by that name, revival is happening today.

         BUT…but we find our followers huddled behind closed doors in fear.  Something happened between Easter Sunday and Pentecost, between resurrection and revival.  We call it the Easter season.  We look at proofs that Jesus Christ is alive in our world today.  Easter Sunday starts with the women going to the tomb to anoint the dead body of Jesus.  They are looking inward at their grief.  They are locked within themselves and the events that have taken place.  The angels tell them that Jesus is risen.  Don’t look in, look out.

         The two people on the road to Emmaus meet a stranger who walks with them but they are so absorbed in the shock of the crucifixion they don’t recognize their companion.  Shocking events turn us inward in disbelief and possibly grief.  Easter teaches us not to look in but to look outside ourselves.

         That evening the followers gather behind closed doors in fear.  I am sure they are wondering if they would be the next to be crucified, the next to catch Covid, the next to be shot randomly in a public “safe” place.  When we meet barriers on the road to catch that lion, we turn inward with questions like how to get around the challenge, with fears of vulnerability, and with grief at the challenge.  The cross and Lent turns us inward acknowledging our limitations.  Easter and the resurrection challenge us to reframe our understanding and turn outward.

         The tomb is empty.  Life without Jesus is empty.  The Scriptures are empty unless we turn to the living Word that transforms our understanding of our history.  Our meetings are empty and perhaps fear ridden when we meet behind closed doors for fear of the forces that threaten to overwhelm us.  So I think the first thought for us to ponder this morning is to honestly ponder what doors, what barriers close us inside ourselves in fear of the future?  Perhaps we fear what the new pastor might be like.  Then again it can be illness, finances, family squabbles, and that is not to mention the national politics and random violence in our culture.  We all have “doors” that lock us inside ourselves in grief, fear, and vulnerability.  Easter challenges us to look outward to a new reality.  Jesus is risen.

Fear to Peace

         The followers meet with each other and do not isolate.  As they share their stories Jesus suddenly stands in their midst.  His first word is, “Peace.”  As we turn from inward chaos outward to Jesus, we are able to regain peace, not from finding the lion but because of Jesus’ presence.  Jesus gives us peace.  Peace comes not from achieving our goals but from realizing his presence in the midst of the struggle.  Our eyes and minds turn from inward preoccupation to outward awareness of who is with us and what he is saying.

         Resurrection is not just about Jesus being alive and so we will be alive in heaven.  Our text gives us more texture than our joyful Easter greetings about the defeat of death.  Jesus tells the followers they are now being sent outwards.  They become followers with a purpose.  Life is meaningful and the events we walk into are not random nor are they punishment sent by God because we skipped church or didn’t tithe enough.  We are a sent people.  We have purpose and meaning.  That does not mean the barriers, the tall grass, the rivers, and the caves we will be challenged to pass through should not scare us but we are not alone.  We go in community with other followers, with Christ, and also with the Holy Spirit that he breathes into us. We are sent and we are not alone.

         Secondly Jesus tells us that the key to looking outward, to unlocking fear is forgiveness.  This seems like a random statement in the text but it is important.  The followers fear life and possibly potential disaster.  When life does not go the way we expect, it is easy for fear to take residence in our hearts and for us to turn inwards.  Forgiveness frees us to turn outwards.  God will bring justice.  Forgiveness is not easy but it is the Easter message of the resurrection.  We are forgiven and we are called to forgive.

         Let us think this morning of some situation we would rejoice that Jesus enters into with us this week because he is alive and active.  Is there a person we would love to have a heart to heart chat with?  Is there an encounter that has us terrified that we need to remind ourselves that we are not alone?  Then again there may be a situation we need God’s help us to forgive. Perhaps we need to ask for prayer for the “lion” we will be facing this week. Certainly we need to pray about the lions our country is dealing with!

Seen to Unseen

         The crucifixion was a highly visually impacting experience.  The tomb could be seen and the rock feared.  The gathering behind closed doors was a three dimensional experience.  That which is seen whether it is the pictures of war on the news, the documentaries on disease, or the absence of a beloved at gatherings impacts our sense of reality.  The resurrection moves us from that which we experience with our physical senses to that which we experience with our spiritual senses.  Thomas was not with the other followers that first Easter Sunday.  The others reported about seeing Jesus and believing, but Thomas was unconvinced.  He wanted to touch and feel Jesus to know the truth.  And there we have the rub.  We want to see and believe.  Learning to believe and trust that which we cannot see, which goes through closed doors, which gives commands that are counter intuitive is sooooo hard.  It is a journey of growth.  There is a reason for Easter season because for most of us we don’t just jump from believing to living the faith.  The reality of the resurrection, of maturing, of truly grasping what relationship with Jesus means, takes time.

         I think all of us who were ever married know the “I do” did not at all explain the reality of living into that relationship.  The first day of work while exciting to have a job, needed to become a work routine.  The check deposited after payday is not the bank balance later in the month.  Jesus closes our text today acknowledging the challenge of going from inward to outward, of going from fear to peace and of going from seen to unseen.

“Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.”

         We are going on a lion hunt.  We want to achieve those goals, defeat those lions that scare us, and be heroes and heroines.  But we will encounter barriers.  There will be tall grass, rivers, and caves that we cannot go over, around or under.  We will have to go through.  That lion we finally meet will be bigger than we thought and often scarier.  True security comes when we retreat away from the inward fears to the reality of the risen Christ.  When we turn over the fears that paralyze us and receive the peace Christ gives us.  And when we learn to trust his unseen presence with us daily in the lives of our community, his presence in his Word, and learn to use the key of forgiveness that unlocks the future.  The Lord is risen and walking with us as we venture out to tackle lions!

Let the people of God say, “AMEN.”