tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-70699479602227462472024-03-05T08:07:07.476-08:00A View From The EarthKevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.comBlogger89125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-37029087285691500102020-11-01T20:15:00.002-08:002020-11-03T08:21:39.058-08:00"You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."<p style="text-align: center;"> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2hmArblljgCEE3xYXaOwjpAh9B5KIsX_UhyeG9WxLlFEpNxrvJkPJ3yRaI29hBsCfhombu8qHNHHQ6Fn8kHtVFlAeSIiqQfGtTjmhO8ZZQP2Yc9frMFUV8W8iuTGDplnT7LkK05sYmH0/s2048/melyna-valle-XLnPeFSCJKQ-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1297" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2hmArblljgCEE3xYXaOwjpAh9B5KIsX_UhyeG9WxLlFEpNxrvJkPJ3yRaI29hBsCfhombu8qHNHHQ6Fn8kHtVFlAeSIiqQfGtTjmhO8ZZQP2Yc9frMFUV8W8iuTGDplnT7LkK05sYmH0/s320/melyna-valle-XLnPeFSCJKQ-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@melynavv?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Melyna Valle</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/blessed?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Unsplash</a></span><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Holy God, may we remember those who have gone before us, that you say they are Blessed in ways in which the world may scorn, we pray that we may do your will and be counted as a saint, blessed be in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One of the movies my family has watched over and over is </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Princess Bride. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In one of the scenes, a kidnapper of the princess repeatedly mutters: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Inconceivable</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Inconceivable.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Another man responds:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">That’s my common thought when I see t-shirts and wall icons and decals on the back of vehicles proudly stating,</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I am Blessed. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We are indeed fortunate if we have a warm place to sleep, we have food to eat, and our family is not under a threat of violence, but Jesus doesn’t promise us that security. And we should be thankful. However, being blessed is not some sort of litmus test to tell us and others that we have God’s Ear, and that we will be rewarded with financial stability and health.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">No, when we say we are blessed we actually are claiming we are holy.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">That is the meaning in today’s Gospel.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Holy are you when you are persecuted.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Holy are you when you show mercy to someone.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Holy are you when people revile you.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Blessed equals holiness.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Blessed equals consecrated.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Perhaps the reason that I have such a strong reaction to the phrase, “I am Blessed” is because it has become a type of Christian codespeak. The spark of God is in all of us. Being holy is not a costume we put on. It’s not a group that is privileged while others are left out in the cold. Jesus welcomed those who were on the outside far more often than he praised the privileged.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Holiness is not a black and white proposition. To be fair, the first two readings give into that in-or-out mentality, especially if the entire chapter of First John is read. That is unfortunate, but not surprising. Revelations and First John both were written by a group of believers known as the Johannine, and they had a bit of history. To start, they lived around the time of Nero, so they had to worry about persecution. Only two answers were possible, and if you said Yes to a question about believing in Jesus, you could and likely would be killed. The Book of Revelation speaks in code about the depraved nature of Rome and the rewards of belief in Christ and the rewards of the afterlife.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sometimes it seems as if humanity hasn’t progressed much since the first century. It’s easy to divide people into two groups, rather than seeing a spectrum of abilities, strengths and weaknesses. But it’s not a blessing when we divide people into camps. It’s not holy, and that’s not the Gospel. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jesus didn’t share the Beatitudes as a way to convince us that life is about suffering. Indeed, the opposite is true. Jesus is saying that </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">sometimes</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> you will struggle. It is not the goal. We don’t get extra points for getting beat up. We’re not extra-blessed if we’re always in mourning. And while peacemaking is holy, being born doesn’t guarantee stability in location or circumstances.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">That brings us to the holiness of All Saints’ Day. Saints are the holy people of God. Because of their humanity, they struggled. They were sinners as well as saints. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Let's think about that for a moment. Saints give us an example of moments of holiness sprinkled in with daily living. It’s uncomfortable to be put on the spot as holy, because the expectation becomes one of perfection. Saints are not perfect.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">St. Francis had an explosive fight with his father, who told Francis he had squandered his resources by being too generous with the poor. In response, Francis stripped naked in the town square of Assisi and renounced his family as he walked out of the town’s gates .</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Mother Teresa, who cared for the dying in Calcutta, was often abrupt with those who joined her for the work she did. She struggled with doubts about her own faith her entire life.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jackson Kemper, the missionary bishop for this area during the pioneer times for the Episcopal Church, and definitely did the work of the Holy Spirit. He had a long legacy that included starting Seabury Seminary in Faribault, Minnesota, which is an ancestor seminary of my alma mater of Bexley Seabury in Chicago. But when seven Iowa churches banded together without his explicit permission to form the Diocese of Iowa here at a meeting in Muscatine, he was unavoidably detained and didn’t show up. I often think about that when I’m here in this space where that meeting occurred back in 1853. How the Holy Spirit sometimes uses people we may disagree with to further the Kingdom of God here on Earth.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Saints are sinners. We’re a mix of human frailty and also the potential our Creator has sprinkled upon our soul. Let’s add to a few stanzas to that idea of blessedness being the potential for good.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Blessed are you when you wear a mask to help protect others.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Blessed are you when you wash the dishes without asking.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Holy are you when you realize people are not defined by for whom they vote.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Holy are you when you step into the fray and stand up for another person.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Blessed are the essential workers and the exhausted parents and the online students who are trying to make it through the day.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt; text-indent: 36pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Blessed are you when you build community in the coming days and weeks as we work to heal our divided country.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The holiness of our lives is consecrated with our intent and our actions. It’s not a grand expression that says we are always faithful, but it’s an admission that we are living and doing the best we can at the time. The community of saints is filled with men and women who have passed to the other side, imperfectly but authentically loving others through their entire lives. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Blessed.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But it’s absolutely true that each of us has moments of blessing every day. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friends, may God bless you and may you be a blessing to God.</span></p><p style="text-align: left;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-b534d4d3-7fff-0110-839d-863ef56d21ff"></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Amen.</span></p>Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-59781056001177165132020-10-25T19:39:00.001-07:002020-11-03T07:45:04.539-08:00Trick or Treat<p style="text-align: center;"> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkvmlAPzxn39lGbERkiylah-XcmrC8OfUGorCzJaGtiF0bdlpdLtoUzxKG4hOLgudDevI6MpZsLQ8aY24FFJn6nRlrdykvbVit8f2I6iUQ3a8oQKJKqVplFfu8zS88hKHJ8tznd6otVu8/s2048/conner-baker-7FC-84Ap_IU-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkvmlAPzxn39lGbERkiylah-XcmrC8OfUGorCzJaGtiF0bdlpdLtoUzxKG4hOLgudDevI6MpZsLQ8aY24FFJn6nRlrdykvbVit8f2I6iUQ3a8oQKJKqVplFfu8zS88hKHJ8tznd6otVu8/s320/conner-baker-7FC-84Ap_IU-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@connerbaker?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Conner Baker</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/trick-or-treat?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Unsplash</a></span><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Good and Gracious God, may we remember to love you with all of our heart, soul, and mind, may we also remember to love our neighbors as ourselves, in the name of the creator, redeemer, and comforter. Amen.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">My daughter, Glyn, has a favorite prayer from the Scottish tradition. It seems an appropriate way to start today</span><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. From ghoulies and ghosties. And long-leggedy beasties. And things that go bump in the night, Good Lord, deliver us! Amen.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Next weekend combines All Hallow’s Eve, which we call Halloween, and the feast of All Saint’s Day on Sunday. They both are Christian holidays.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Let me repeat that.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">They are both Christian holidays. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Regardless of that social media post you saw or that story your well-meaning neighbor shared about paganism, the All Hallows Eve Vigil and All Hallows Day were placed into the Christian tradition in the 7th Century by Pope Boniface IV. Hallow means ‘holy,’ so we are celebrating the holy people who have gone before us. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Of course, remembering the dead is part of cultures across the world. Over the last several hundred years, this holy day has expanded as we welcome new believers and their native cultures. Originally celebrated in the summer, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Día de los Muertos</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, the Days of the Dead, are an indigenous tradition that Mexican, South and Central American peoples have intermingled with the Christian traditions. The Irish tradition of Samhain and the German harvest festival counterpart both understood that death was part of the cycle of life.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Is this important background knowledge? I think so. In a world that easily can be tricked by false information, it’s important to share our own faith calmly and listen actively. Halloween is not a day that encourages evil or corrupts individuals. Instead, it reminds us that death is simply a part of the cycle of life. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Halloween and All Saint’s day are indeed reminders that we are all called to be holy people. But there’s another reason I started this sermon with Halloween. It’s because Halloween gives us the all-important tagline that directly ties back to the Gospel today.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Here it is:</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Trick or Treat, smell my feet, give me something good to eat.”</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Embedded in this sing-song chant is the wisdom of children. In it, we find a strategy that is a match for the tricks of the Pharisees. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In previous stories, Jesus has outwitted the Temple scribes, the Sadducees, the Herodians who visited him, and today he banters with the Pharisees. Jesus, who has no home of his own and no steady salary, has outplayed all the major priestly aristocrats with his knowledge of Scripture. It is obvious that a game show approach of winner-take-all with Jesus is too high stakes to continue to play.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Pharisees realize Jesus speaks with Authority they lack and they become afraid. The Scripture says, “No one was able to give him an answer, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.”</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Unfortunately, we are often paralyzed with that same fear as the Pharisees. Instead of daring to question our God about injustice and hard topics, we turn away from faith. We have a vision of God that is too small; the abundant treats our world holds are hidden from us by the masks we wear each day.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Children don’t have that filter. They ask for what they want. Embedded in the Trick or Treat chant is a request, a dare, and a consequence. Kids are blunt in their expression of needs, and we could learn something from them. Let’s look at that children’s verse.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Trick or Treat. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Implicit in the first part of this that is uttered when young children pretend to be superheroes, ghosts, dinosaurs or adorable kittens is an uncomfortable consequence of our choices. Do you give out free candy or risk a trick later on? </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jesus actually gives everyone the treat first, reminding the assembled that a richer life comes when we love our God and our neighbor as ourselves. Such gratitude provides a model of abundance, both in life and in faith. Still, the Pharisees try to trick Christ, more interested in their societal status than the idea of sharing the gifts we have in our possession. Jesus is tired of the tricks, and gives a paradoxical answer to the rote motions of the Pharisees. They incur a consequence because they do not dare to believe that Jesus is the Son of God.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Smell my feet. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There’s a dare if I ever saw one. While the odor of smelly socks may seem to be a weak threat, there are times when I’ve thought gloves might be helpful when clearing out a gym bag at the end of a school semester or the end of a sports season. Phew! In comparison, Jesus, who dealt with the filth and human waste and the smell of decay as he was crucified at Golgotha, has the ability to deal with outrageously smelly situations if we just ask. Dare to ask Jesus for what you need, and place your trust in Him. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Give me something good to eat. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">That request for gifts is pretty clear to me, both as a parent and as a Christian. It’s implied that we should feed others when Jesus asks us to Love our neighbors as ourselves. The powerful in this Gospel and those from the last few weeks see generosity to the poor as a sign of weakness. Jesus sees it as strength to love our neighbor. Giving candy to kids is easy, but when we operate from a sense of gratitude, it impacts our mission here at Trinity Muscatine. Where is Christ calling you to give joyfully to others in your life?</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Our world is filled with consequences, dares, and gifts. All of these are things that we don’t necessarily deserve, but that come to us as human beings. As we remember the holy saints of God who have passed ahead of us, let us be aware of both our human frailties and our human possibility. Jesus asks us to live and love both ourselves and our neighbor and in that we find the greatest possible treat: that we ourselves are living hallows in which the Spirit of God can dwell. </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love God with all your heart, soul, and mind.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Love your neighbor as yourself.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Amen.</span></p>Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-82908650585333102912020-10-21T18:42:00.002-07:002020-11-03T06:58:06.069-08:00A Poem, The River Flows Never Ceasing, October 21, 2020<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8noSjE17Su9xi3nJfADChIC5b3JlXdJl90C9na8vetKMLIghxyrZNC5R_mATv3hS8zgjkhQ_25u-2a3vjJvwm6ICm7i4LhtWRH6EW_wWr2uLUDpqy0-xnnm3hfAgq9aBK7jhBAKr-JCA/s1555/IMG_20201021_130113864.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="806" data-original-width="1555" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8noSjE17Su9xi3nJfADChIC5b3JlXdJl90C9na8vetKMLIghxyrZNC5R_mATv3hS8zgjkhQ_25u-2a3vjJvwm6ICm7i4LhtWRH6EW_wWr2uLUDpqy0-xnnm3hfAgq9aBK7jhBAKr-JCA/s320/IMG_20201021_130113864.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Gulls along the Mississippi in Muscatine, Iowa</div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>The River Flows Never Ceasing</b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><br /></b></span></div><div style="text-align: center;">The river flows never ceasing</div><div style="text-align: center;">Fifty degrees, sun in the sky</div><div style="text-align: center;">By the river, ring billed gulls on the shore</div><div style="text-align: center;">A lone fisherman in a boat</div><div style="text-align: center;">Checking to see what is biting </div><div style="text-align: center;">The mighty river flows by</div><div style="text-align: center;">Pulling the water downhill</div><div style="text-align: center;">Towards the Gulf of Mexico</div><div style="text-align: center;">This river has been moving</div><div style="text-align: center;">For millions of years</div><div style="text-align: center;">How many have come before?</div><div style="text-align: center;">Settlers moving west</div><div style="text-align: center;">Hunters moving east</div><div style="text-align: center;">How many have stood on it's shore?</div><div style="text-align: center;">With water at their feet</div><div style="text-align: center;">Creatures of all types</div><div style="text-align: center;">Some never to be seen again</div><div style="text-align: center;">The river flows never ceasing</div><div style="text-align: center;">A mallard laments that</div><div style="text-align: center;">The summer is ending</div><div style="text-align: center;">And the snow and ice</div><div style="text-align: center;">Will be here soon</div><div style="text-align: center;">The river flows never ceasing</div><div style="text-align: center;">Through summer heat</div><div style="text-align: center;">And winter cold</div><div style="text-align: center;">The gulls stand in a line waiting</div><div style="text-align: center;">They know the mystery</div><div style="text-align: center;">The river flows never ceasing</div><p></p>Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-63096243991636985832020-10-18T18:19:00.000-07:002020-11-03T06:30:41.563-08:00Malice and Mercy<p style="text-align: center;"> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg5f3Spb-Wwyc2EF1JosqYfYkORKo_DVoL9ODtIFAAL8dW3dyYoYUw7r5sZ-Ikjh_u0_JsNfVt-AcakatL4BjYi38u8zwR6OqFG3Inku3X0TXGhMQnremrAdfH_ueD5s1L1dOp3WI1EDg/s2048/jon-tyson-HVi9hQMehR0-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg5f3Spb-Wwyc2EF1JosqYfYkORKo_DVoL9ODtIFAAL8dW3dyYoYUw7r5sZ-Ikjh_u0_JsNfVt-AcakatL4BjYi38u8zwR6OqFG3Inku3X0TXGhMQnremrAdfH_ueD5s1L1dOp3WI1EDg/s320/jon-tyson-HVi9hQMehR0-unsplash.jpg" /></a></div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@jontyson?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Jon Tyson</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/mercy?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Unsplash</a></span><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Dear God, thank you for all that you do for us as your people, provide for those who are suffering, especially those who are having to deal with the coronavirus, we pray for those in the hospital, give skill to their caregivers, we also pray for those who have died, may you comfort their family and friends in their grief. In your name, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s only a few days until the election, and that gives me hope. I for one, am always grateful when the last ad airs on whatever video platform you use: network, cable, internet video, or social media. A steady diet of half-truths, nasty attacks, and bitter language does not unite us. It’s a cycle of outrage that splits us into for and against camps on the issue of your choice.</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">That sets the stage for today’s Gospel. Jesus has been hammering the point, again and again, that being employed in the Temple should not be a for-profit position. It is also not a guilt factory, complete with a predatory approach to collecting funds. In a world where people believed that the sins of one generation were visited on the next, toxic theology could flourish. And the poor and the needy, who had no bootstraps to pull themselves up by, were caught in a mental dilemma. Perhaps if they just gave more to the Temple, God would bless them, or at least their children.</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">At this point, the gulf between the Pharisees and Jesus is so wide that they aren’t even speaking. The stand-ins sent to ask Jesus the question fail, yet again, because of the brilliant answer Jesus gives. And while you have probably heard a sermon or two on the issue of where money should be spent, I’m not going there today. Because right now, what I really find interesting is that observation that ‘Jesus is aware of their malice.’</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Malice. </span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Malice is calculated.</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> <br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Malice is cruel.</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It delights in the harm that is caused to another. And when malice is involved, nastiness and spitefulness are intertwined. </span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">2020 feels like it could be a poster child for malice. Forest fires have devastated the western United States and Australia. The Gulf Coast has been in the bullseye for hurricanes. The derecho damaged a third of the corn crop here in Iowa. And COVID has claimed the lives of more than a million people, with 200,000 of them in America. This year feels menacing, in part because it forces us to reflect on our own mortality. We have lost the illusion of control. </span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But...</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But we have, as Isaiah says, a God who calls us by name. We are reminded in First Thessalonians that we are showered by the love of the Holy Spirit, who helps us persevere regardless of our failures, and who fills us with joy even in the worst times.<br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So how does Jesus respond to the malice directed towards him? Does he strike those who question him, creating what Isaiah calls ‘weal and woe’? Stockpile weapons in a nearby cave? Or call upon his followers to rise up against the corruption of the Temple?</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> <br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">No.</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">No he doesn’t.</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jesus responds to his detractors with truth and mercy.</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jesus responds to us with truth and mercy.</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Mercy is the opposite of malice. It’s compassion or forgiveness shown toward someone whom it is within one's power to punish or harm them. Jesus, as the Son of God, has the power here to walk away. He could have told his Father, “Look, just punish these corrupt Israelites. Why should I put my life on the line when they are eaten up with jealousy and decay?” </span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jesus instead loves his people, his disciples, and yes, even us, showing us mercy until his death upon the wood of the Cross.</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There are some that would tell you that mercy and forgiveness are for losers. Triumph means a vow to defeat the unrighteous, bloodshed and anger. But violence and defeat do not create unity. Instead, they polarize the camps further, defining winners and losers. </span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the words of Nadia Bolz Weber, a Lutheran pastor and preacher, “Mercy doesn’t wrap a warm, limp blanket around offenders. God’s mercy is the kind that kills the idea that wronged it and resurrects something new in its place.”</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jesus was angry at the arrogance of the Chief elders. He is proclaiming that they must turn back to the mighty God who wanted the best for them. And when they don’t, Jesus is willing to die on the Cross to show them that they are loved by God more than they can imagine in spite of their failings.</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When we worship together, we sometimes say, “Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord have mercy.” </span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What we really are proclaiming is this: Lord, we are fallible. Forgive us. Christ, help us understand that your death was just the step that led to the Power of Resurrection. Lord, change our hearts and attitudes and bring us together.</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord have mercy.</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In a time where we are divided as a society in this country, in the days leading up to the Presidential election, can we practice mercy instead of malice? Yes, people wrong one another, and yes, there must be justice. This is not a ‘get out of jail free’ card, but it is the hard work that focuses on mending fences between those who have wronged us.</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Mercy is one of the hardest things Christ ever preached. Forgiving those who trespass against us is brutal. And it is the only way forward to unity.</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord have mercy.</span></p><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Amen.</span></p>Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-31002428699932406982020-10-11T17:18:00.010-07:002020-11-03T05:37:12.591-08:00Wedding Banquet of the Kingdom<p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuspyRereTwaeA1w3OMhRj4LHbQ4yfpJJC7n33OND01oI57iNjMrb2OmglIJViUeyfW-uhn-gHh39jE82cy7fhnL8i1SaWE-jZebsL-o4TvbCaVZCXWC-LotTop-0h7r-5SBjujtmueOg/s2048/chuttersnap-aEnH4hJ_Mrs-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1367" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuspyRereTwaeA1w3OMhRj4LHbQ4yfpJJC7n33OND01oI57iNjMrb2OmglIJViUeyfW-uhn-gHh39jE82cy7fhnL8i1SaWE-jZebsL-o4TvbCaVZCXWC-LotTop-0h7r-5SBjujtmueOg/s320/chuttersnap-aEnH4hJ_Mrs-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@chuttersnap?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">CHUTTERSNAP</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/wedding-banquet?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Unsplash</a></span><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-3c261dd5-7fff-4caf-ee7a-bdd1419535d6"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Good and Gracious God, we pray that we will accept the invitation that you extend to us, doing your will, and loving you and our neighbor. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">With a teacher for a spouse and years of serving as a school board member, we receive a lot of invitations. I’m not certain about Muscatine, but parties for graduations arrive in stacks starting in April and continue through July. But June through August are the height of the wedding season, so those envelopes show up too. It’s not uncommon to have six or seven commitments in one day. Uffda!</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If that’s what was going on in today’s Gospel, we could probably understand a note being penned that offered regrets to the King, Sending along a nice gift or buying something from the wedding registry at Target or Bed Bath and Beyond also would have lessened the blow.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Another possible interpretation is that accepting the invitation was a matter of conscience for the receiver. For example, our companion Diocese of Swaziland has a king, Mswati III, who hoards wealth. He has an annual household budget of over 60 million dollars while his people struggle with HIV infection, extreme poverty, and a life expectancy of less than fifty years old. While children raise their younger brothers and sisters and subsist on one meal a day, his lavish lifestyle includes cars that are worth a half-million dollars. So perhaps the guest would have been excused for not wanting to attend the wedding on principle.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But this is no ordinary wedding. The people in the first century who heard this parable would have understood it for exactly what it was: a valuable political alliance. It’s quite likely that the wedding taking place was designed to unite an adjacent kingdom, where the daughter of that country’s king was marrying to cement power.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jesus is telling the people that they belong to the kingdom of the daughter in this alliance. They are refusing the invitation through their stubbornness and unwillingness to submit to a new Ruler. And then, some of these people cross a line that can’t be undone. Just as in last week’s Gospel reading, these stiff-necked people kill the messenger slaves, totally disrespecting the wishes of those wanting the alliance. Both kings would have been upset at the rejection, and an eye-for-eye type of justice would have been seen as totally legitimate.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If that’s where the parable ended, we’d have a good example about the limits of resistance and the amount of power the first king wielded.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In today’s New Testament reading, we hear that Paul speaks of a banquet of values to prepare in our own life. Instead of fatted calves and a multi-day feast, Paul wants us to dine on truth, and justice, and honor. It’s a beautiful sentiment, but just like the king in the Gospel, it’s easy to ignore the call that we receive and instead do things that please ourselves and grow our own influence and appearance. Praise for God becomes secondary to praise for ourselves. And when we are asked to consider the merits of the request of our King, the Lord Jesus, we hem and haw and worry about other ideas, including our standing in the community and our financial bottom line.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We are human. We do make mistakes. God gets it, and sends reminders, again and again, to ask us to give up our waywardness and return to his protection through our faithfulness.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the second part of the parable, Jesus approaches us again, telling the story from a different viewpoint. In this telling, we are the wayward, the poor, the blind, and the lame. And Jesus sends out the Spirit to woo us back to faithfulness, and truth, and invites us into the king’s multi-day feast. In this telling, the king is a generous and caring Ruler, willing to provide clothing, food, drink and lodging to the people who are most in need of help. By putting on the wedding robe provided, the people are proclaiming their joy and acceptance. They are rejoicing in the fulfillment of the promise of Isaiah to have a leader that provides shelter from the rainstorm and shade from the heat. The feast of well-aged wines and plentiful meat is ready. Really, who would not want to be in the sandals of one of these wedding guests?</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">That’s the last little twist in this parable. There will always be people who lack a moral code and who are bad actors. These are those that pretend to profess loyalty, but have a knife ready in their belt to commit violence. They sit quietly and stir up mischief designed to undermine the ruler. Here, they refuse to wear the wedding robe, and are sending a subversive message that they do not support the King. As you have no doubt figured out, the Ruler is our God: Creator, Son and Spirit. These people believe in a code that is focused solely on themselves, and as such, have no use for humility. As a result they are thrown out of the banquet.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’ll be honest. This third part of the parable is uncomfortable for me, but without it, where would we be? Our God is offering to us the freedom to choose, to ignore the Kingdom, to subvert the Kingdom or to become part of the Kingdom. Free will is both the blessing and the curse for our lives as we consider our choices and ask for the grace to follow the Great Commandment and build our lives living out the Way of Jesus.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Amen.</span> </p></span>Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-81679665739429320082020-10-04T11:15:00.001-07:002020-10-06T08:31:30.161-07:00Woulda-Coulda-Shoulda<p style="text-align: center;"> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB08xJI0SgvY9NJmx0VUOeyB1Z7rXBqhR5GLYQGjrTMHtJh7IJAErv1m8BLy-svxdRe-unyaVGmTk1_OnRRdZsz6NCq1RqpEmajehrNaJI8l9i4fK6drrqOttWatiulEXo0DQmGhEx_DE/s2048/lasseter-winery-asG1QSDvb4g-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB08xJI0SgvY9NJmx0VUOeyB1Z7rXBqhR5GLYQGjrTMHtJh7IJAErv1m8BLy-svxdRe-unyaVGmTk1_OnRRdZsz6NCq1RqpEmajehrNaJI8l9i4fK6drrqOttWatiulEXo0DQmGhEx_DE/s320/lasseter-winery-asG1QSDvb4g-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@lasseterwinery?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Lasseter Winery</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/vineyard?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Unsplash</a><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">O
God, be with us today as we look to you as our cornerstone upon which
we build our faith. May we always look to you in all that we do. In
the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">The
imagery of a vineyard was such a familiar idea in the Bible, but for
many people who live in the city, it's a totally unfamiliar process.
Our culture makes wine or raisins or juice available year round, so
sweat and toil become a type of codeswitching.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">Codeswitching
is a anthropology term. It helps describe the process of navigating
through the language, the customs, and acceptable behaviors of a
region or location. Baseball caps or dew-rags are preferred in
different neighborhoods, and yelling 'Roll Tide' on a Saturday will
not generate nearly the excitement here in Iowa as cheering for the
Cyclones, Hawkeyes or Panthers.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">The
codeswitching language we see today talks about the spread of the
Kingdom of God, but it also focuses on personal choices,
woulda-shoulda-coulda thinking and safety. Let's take a closer look
at this.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">In
both Isaiah and the Gospel today, we see detailed descriptions of the
vineyard, with it's lush foliage and careful cultivation. Planting
grapes takes at least three years before a good fruit yield can
happen. Irrigation and pruning are labor-intensive.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">To
the culture at the time in the Holy Land, having a vineyard
symbolized wealth, because the owner could dig out rocky ground and
afford a delayed return on his investment, as well as building walls
and hedges around the grapes to keep out wild animals or the
neighbor’s sheep, goats, or cattle. With the tendrils and leaves of
the grapevines spreading and multiplying, the image also speaks of
multiplying God's Kingdom. And the watchtower built in both of these
vineyards marks the space as a safe space.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">When
it was time to harvest the grapes, long hours of labor were required
and day laborers were hired. The family helped, staying safely inside
the watchtower at night, protected from predators that still roamed
the countryside then. There's something really beautiful about this
imagery of being protected from the inside of a productive vineyard,
mirroring the way our Creator takes care of us.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">However,
both of these vineyards are destined to see destruction. In our own
lives, the wild vines are those concerns that occupy our time but
yield little fruit. Instead, we become tangled in them, leading to a
dangerous trap.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">It's
called woulda-coulda-shoulda thinking</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">Woulda-coulda-shoulda
thinking means that we always are second-guessing our own ability to
make positive decisions.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">We
guilt trip or gaslight ourselves.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">And
we struggle with our own worthiness.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">We
ask questions.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><u><span style="background: transparent;">Could</span></u></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background: transparent;">
</span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">anyone
love me if I show my authentic self?</span></span></span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">What
if I </span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><u><span style="background: transparent;">would</span></u></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background: transparent;">
</span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">have
done something else at a critical crossroads in my life?</span></span></span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><u><span style="background: transparent;">Should</span></u></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background: transparent;">
</span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">I
forgive someone who has broken my trust?</span></span></span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">Its
a terrible codeswitching of finding fault rather than reflection on
how we can get better.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">Look,
we all have failures and mistakes to our name. I know I do. The hope
is that we will reflect and learn from them. In Isaiah, wild vines
are ruthlessly destroyed. Unfortunately, I don't find it to be that
easy. Sometimes I am just glad that anything is growing in my garden
at all, even if it is weeds. In the worst case, many of us replay
situations endlessly and the wildness becomes unruly.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">It
is hard to rip those vines out of the ground. Woulda-coulda-shoulda
thinking drags us down, replacing opportunities for Grace with a
sense of dread. Our lives become less about working in the Kingdom
and more about believing we must fix things to become worthy.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">If
we just do enough.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">If
we just work harder.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">If
we just hide our flaws a little bit better.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">God
doesn't work that way. No matter how hard we try to grow wild grapes,
our yield will be unsatisfactory. It won't be enough for us, and it
won't help others quench their thirst either.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">Instead,
God will make sure we have good plants if we take the time to ask.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">In
his telling of the story, Jesus is less worried about wild grapes and
more critical about the laborers. Jesus had studied the Jewish holy
scriptures. He knows this story from Isaiah, but his way of telling
the parable and the imagery is more direct. Killing a property slave
in Jewish culture required a payment of restitution; tenants killing
the heir would be punished by death.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">This
Gospel continues from last week's reading, where tax collectors and
prostitutes are ranked as more just than the Temple scribes and
elders. This week's imagery is filled with violence, foreshadowing
the betrayal and death of Jesus that arrives in chapter 27. The Heir
of the Kingdom is under attack, and God is the Landowner.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">Imagine
how different this story would be if the leadership of the Temple had
listened, taking time to learn about the Way of Jesus and his
followers and sheltering in them love of God. The vineyard was
already fruitful. The harvest was ready.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">The
Temple elders </span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><u><span style="background: transparent;">could</span></u></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background: transparent;">
</span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">have
changed the ending but they made bad personal choices.</span></span></span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">They
</span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><u><span style="background: transparent;">should</span></u></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background: transparent;">
</span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">have
built on the Cornerstone instead of rejecting the Son of God.</span></span></span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in;">
<span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">They
</span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><u><span style="background: transparent;">would</span></u></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background: transparent;">
</span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="background: transparent;">have
received forgiveness, if they had only wanted it.</span></span></span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">Jesus
understood the codeswitch culture of the Temple priests. The heavy
lifting was being done by others while they lived a life free from
heavy burdens. They rejected the safety of the watchtower and tried
to build their own.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">So
that's the lesson for us as well.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">Are
you ready to do the work?</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">To
give up the woulda-coulda-shouldas in your life?</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">For
the grace to run to the safety of the Cornerstone that is our God?</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">May
we speak plainly, avoiding the flowery, churchy language that has its
own codes and buzzwords. Let's gather at our own watchtower. Here at
Trinity Episcopal Church, working in relationship, relaxing, and
regrouping. When we leave and head out into the world, let us head
into the Kingdom of God wherever we are called.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 120%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-right: 0.33in; text-decoration: none;">
<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background: transparent;">Amen.</span></span></span></span></p><br /><p></p>Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-47157556123666114692020-09-27T11:34:00.001-07:002020-10-01T13:01:30.075-07:00Have Jesus as your partner<p style="text-align: center;"> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsBoSf0XoFnx655V2fYHukfOotTH0dcN4OA-fcZyvGvpO7371gOTalEXgt9tCatAL8SXIJ-fk1Lxy7G9x3razqXjT3szPK4x1PGoXx4flGJ21OVBSCuP5cTOpumiwycnXAbvmkdqIQnkU/s2048/amanda-jones-P787-xixGio-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsBoSf0XoFnx655V2fYHukfOotTH0dcN4OA-fcZyvGvpO7371gOTalEXgt9tCatAL8SXIJ-fk1Lxy7G9x3razqXjT3szPK4x1PGoXx4flGJ21OVBSCuP5cTOpumiwycnXAbvmkdqIQnkU/s320/amanda-jones-P787-xixGio-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@amandagraphc?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Amanda Jones</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/cards?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Unsplash</a></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 10pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">This is the sermon that was offered up during Eucharist on September 27, 2020 outside on the lawn at Trinity Episcopal Church in Muscatine, Iowa. The Eucharist service was also streamed to Facebook. Services were affected due to the COVID-19 pandemic and all people in person were physically distant and wore face coverings. The scripture readings were Ezekiel 18:1-4,25-32, Psalm 25:1-8, Philippians 2:1-13, and Matthew 21:23-32.</span></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Almighty God, Let us go into the vineyard, whatever time of day it might be, and work for you, to do your will. May we go when you call us, but even if we don’t go then, let us go when we are able so your will is done. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">My parents were card-players. Avid card players. They hosted card clubs, attended daytime card groups after they retired, and I’m pretty sure that each one of my children knew that they had a Grandma who was a card shark who would play for nickels if they wanted to get rid of excess pocket change. When I was a kid, I often sat in as a fourth person on a game of 500. From them I learned you could always count on your partner for a trick, and there was no shame in losing a hand or a game, because another one would be happening soon.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">What does that have to do with the readings today?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Have you heard the saying “play your cards close to your chest?” </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">A person who is playing their cards close to their chest is cautious, and keeping their intentions secret. Details are on a need to know basis, and right now, in today’s Gospel, Jesus is not in the mood to give the temple elders easy answers. The chief priests want to put Christ in a trap because they are the moral authority of the day. They are tired of Jesus. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Now, to put this in context, this story comes in Matthew right after Jesus enters Jerusalem, riding on a donkey as the people shout Hosanna, Hosanna. It’s quite an entrance and they travel to the Temple, where Jesus overturns tables and throws out the money changers in the outer courtyard. The priests are outraged, and here, on the morning after, Jesus shows up again. And the people are on his side.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Jesus is cagey here and doing a type of political tango with the authority in the Temple of Jerusalem. The story we hear today is one of many he will tell over the next three chapters of Matthew, eventually leading up to the Last Supper and Crucifixion.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">The Gospel of Matthew is written for Jewish people wherever they were located at in the Jewish Diaspora, so the audience knows the audacity that Jesus is displaying as a teacher who is in the Temple. He is telling the entire Jewish Community that he has a different interpretation of what faith is really about, and who is really worthy. He’s doing that in Jerusalem, in the Temple that represents the holy dwelling place of God here on Earth.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">The question of authority is extremely relevant. The priests asking questions also are trying to be cautious, but they are comfortable with their power. Jesus speaking in parables, rather than quoting a verse or two of scripture is disconcerting to them. It’s not part of the rules of the way the authorities see their religion as being done.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Jesus is announcing that the rules are changing. Now, as a card player, that’s just not done. If you want new rules, get a new game. Make up your own. Jesus isn’t doing that. He’s telling them that the religious authority of his day has rotted from the inside out, and needs reform. The parable Jesus shares with us is a direct insult to the priests and scribes and elders. This parable is an in-your-face commentary and Jesus knew it. Being compared to the tax collectors or prostitutes of the day was not meant to be a compliment. Then, suggesting that such outsiders were closer to the Kingdom of God than those who worked in the Temple was meant to enrage. Jesus knew what he was doing.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">The question needs to be asked, “What does that have to do with Trinity Episcopal Church here in Muscatine?” </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">First, I don’t ever want to have a meeting filled with suspicion and a lack of good will.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Second, I’m not going to make it my mission to insult anyone, and I surely don’t want to turn over any tables. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Finally, arguments about who has the highest authority, instead of the needed skills to do something, is not how community is built.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">But I still think Jesus models something very important about second-chances in this parable.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">We all fall down and refuse to do some things. Perhaps you are asked to empty the dishwasher, or clean up the backyard, or finish a task on a to-do list, and you conveniently ‘forget’ to do it. But later, you realize that another person was counting on you, and out of respect for them and the value of your relationship, you get up from the ball game or the book you were reading or a Sunday nap and do what you are asked. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">Paul, in his Epistle to the Philippians, is much more specific about whose relational authority we should accept. It’s not about titles, it is about the Love of God emptied onto humanity and spread through grace to all of us. Paul tells us to </span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">In card player language, that means: Resist the chance to play your cards close to your chest when it comes to Jesus. Ask Jesus to be your partner instead of your competition. That will allow us to build relationships with God, with each other, and with the community; and it will shift authority into its rightful place.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jesus is asking us to move towards righteous action, echoing the statement in the Old Testament reading today: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Cast away from you all the transgressions that you have committed against me, and get yourselves a new heart and a new spirit!</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">We follow the way of Jesus when we serve others, not out of a sense of puffed up self importance, but as a way to serve the community. We see that here in Trinity with those of our congregation who generously volunteer their time and energy and talents. In the next weeks and months, the owner of the vineyard (that’s God) may be asking you to help as we move forward and ask questions, and focus on the work Trinity is here to accomplish.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Just like in cards, we’ll lose a few hands. We’ll have some wins. But through it all, I hope we have some laughter and fun at the table. Most of all, though, I’m counting on Jesus to be at game, not keeping score, but using our hands and our minds to do his will to our best ability.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">So pull up a chair and get ready to have Jesus as your partner.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-right: 24pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Amen.</span></span></p></div>Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-83438993686448458712020-09-20T11:15:00.004-07:002020-10-01T11:27:57.433-07:00Do All the Good You Can<p style="text-align: center;"> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2qeBTfarDvdRi7VbSZFGjg09CYxf-RJXiK5AnhYHz8P7-XsSlxpeG6jAt8ye9a7hXp8khlHxENYKigH2hMtENLrHs8k1SlbbpDwcfdI5OW1hW99_7yKnk917IYg1Lagnuh3HTiIGO9Cs/s2048/engin-akyurt-zVGkxRG6pDg-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2qeBTfarDvdRi7VbSZFGjg09CYxf-RJXiK5AnhYHz8P7-XsSlxpeG6jAt8ye9a7hXp8khlHxENYKigH2hMtENLrHs8k1SlbbpDwcfdI5OW1hW99_7yKnk917IYg1Lagnuh3HTiIGO9Cs/s320/engin-akyurt-zVGkxRG6pDg-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@enginakyurt?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">engin akyurt</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/good?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Unsplash</a></div><p style="text-align: left;"></p><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;">This is the sermon that was offered up during Eucharist on September 20, 2020 at Trinity Episcopal Church in Muscatine, Iowa. The Eucharist service was also streamed to Facebook. Services were affected due to the COVID-19 pandemic and all people in person were physically distant and wore face coverings. The scripture readings were Jonah 3:10-4:11, Psalm 145:1-8, Philippians 1:21-30, and Matthew 20:1-16.</span></span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">O God, let us remember that we are to labor in your name, to do your will. May we work to love you and our neighbors, remembering that the last will be first, and the first will be last. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.</span></span><b id="docs-internal-guid-4106e3e5-7fff-dd2a-c4b9-e8d2675fa37b" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b><b id="docs-internal-guid-4106e3e5-7fff-dd2a-c4b9-e8d2675fa37b" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">In a sermon from 1799, John Wesley, an Anglican priest, spoke about his own guiding principles for life.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">"Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. Neither is love content with barely working no evil to our neighbour. It continually incites us to do good: as we have time, and opportunity, to do good in every possible kind, and in every possible degree to all men."</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Like all good ideas, people have carried it with them. Google John Wesley and the word “quote” and you will find any number of inspirational memes and posters that have rewritten these words in a fashion that matches our own language </span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Do all the good you can,<br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">By all the means you can,<br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">In all the ways you can,<br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">In all the places you can,<br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">At all the times you can,<br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">To all the people you can,<br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">As long as ever you can.<br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">-John Wesley</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><br /></b></span></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Today’s readings do a great job of reminding us that sometimes ego gets in the way of understanding what “Do all the good you can.”</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></b><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">And that’s today’s big idea.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></b><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Do all the good you can. Can you say it with me?</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><br /></b></span></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Do all the good you can.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><br /></b></span></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">It sounds so simple, really. But it’s not. </span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"> </span></span><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Imagine that a rock has hit the windshield of your car, spiderwebbing cracks across the driver’s side of your car. Darn. As a result, you have to cancel plans to head out of town. Instead, you spend the time having new glass put into your vehicle. That’s not good.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"> </span></span><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Or is it?</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></b><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Later on, we’d be thankful that the circumstances allowed us to be home for a surprise visit by a cherished loved one. Or if we heard that there had been a pileup on the interstate that we were going to be traveling. Or if any of a thousand different unexpected things happened as a result of us not being able to travel on that day.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></b><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">God has a sense of humor that way. He sends Jonah to Nineveh to tell the people to change their ways.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></b><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">That’s a </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Do all the good you can”</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> moment. </span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></span><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">But Jonah doesn’t follow instructions and heads the other direction. He thinks he knows what is best. Prior to this reading, he’s been thrown off a boat and swallowed by a giant sea monster and thrown up on the land. Chastised, he went to Nineveh and the people listened.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></b><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Then, instead of rejoicing because the people changed their ways, Jonah goes off for a good pout. He complains that God cares more for people than a plant he was sleeping under. </span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></b><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Although I always have figured this was more of a parable than a true-life event, I can appreciate the story of Jonah. The point is, Jonah has good inside of him. He cared for people in the boat he was traveling in while he tried to escape God. And God interacts with him. In spite of being a very human mix of good and bad choices, God loves Jonah enough to put up with his tantrum and to still love him.</span></span><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jonah just needs to work on loving his neighbor. And so do most of the workers in the Gospel today. </span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">They are toiling for a daily wage, as we do, and they are tired. But they don’t seem to know enough to “Mind Your Business.” The workers who were there were paid fairly enough--unless they compared themselves to someone else. The idea of </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Do all the good you can </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">conflicted with the concept of “It’s not a fair world.” And Jesus calls them on it.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></b><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">It’s not a fair world. I get it.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></b><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">It’s not fair that women get paid less than men for the same work.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Or the color of your skin can impact your chances for getting a fair shake in the world.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">It’s not right that some people have to choose between filling the car with gas and filling a prescription.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></b><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But the people of Trinity Episcopal here in Muscatine have a long tradition of doing what they can to ease those burdens. Instead of complaining about the lack of fairness, they have rolled up their sleeves and done what they can to alleviate the burden. There’s a history in this church of </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Doing All the good you can.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><br /></b></span></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">In this whirlwind of the past week, it’s been one thing after another for me. We all have times like that, and perhaps that isn’t fair either. For our Jewish brothers and sisters, this next week is known as the Days of Awe, that time between the Jewish New Year and the Day of Atonement, or Yom Kippur. It’s a time of introspection and reflection.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></b><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Reflection. That’s what I am hoping for this week and I hope you take time for the same. As I listen to your stories, and collect ideas as I call your families, I will be praying for us as a community, within these walls and without, as we work to define and then put into action what </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Do All the Good You Can</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> means for us.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><b><br /></b></span></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">And I’ll fail sometimes. My ego will get in the way. I will disappoint you, because I am authentically and truly human. Unintentionally, my best attempts may step on a long-held traditional way of doing things of which I was unaware. But I’ll ask you to lovingly engage in conversation with me, and to give me grace as I learn. I’ll do the same for all of you. And our community will become stronger because of it.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></b><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">As we go forward, let us pray that our faith and our sense of good may help us to reach out to one another in Grace and honesty, for those who are easy to love and those who are not.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"> </span></span><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">And together we will do all the good we can.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Amen.</span></span></div><p style="line-height: 1.2; margin-bottom: 10pt; margin-left: 24pt; margin-top: 2pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="display: inline-block; position: relative; width: 100px;"></span></span></span></p>Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-39681596184996912612020-09-13T16:07:00.001-07:002020-10-01T10:49:15.203-07:00Loneliness in a Connected World<div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjubL0AXVkReKv7C4O_VTBryz7cqjSwU3aKwixZNA91qi_hGyViVB15ZYkNHUm8PfHQbTiN5Qf0Mlc85vF7eRQo1HpZaZb6u66Igo7iti6fLPy1vQNQk6xAqZ0vvwchiFz6dnASJvGvnxQ/s2048/kristina-tripkovic-nwWUBsW6ud4-unsplash.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjubL0AXVkReKv7C4O_VTBryz7cqjSwU3aKwixZNA91qi_hGyViVB15ZYkNHUm8PfHQbTiN5Qf0Mlc85vF7eRQo1HpZaZb6u66Igo7iti6fLPy1vQNQk6xAqZ0vvwchiFz6dnASJvGvnxQ/s320/kristina-tripkovic-nwWUBsW6ud4-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@tinamosquito?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Kristina Tripkovic</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/loneliness?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Unsplash</a></div><p style="text-align: left;"></p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">This is the sermon that was offered up during Morning Prayer and Eucharist on September 13, 2020. The Morning Prayer service was held via the zoom platform and the Eucharist was held in person with restrictions for St John's Episcopal Church in Dubuque, Iowa. Services were affected due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This was the first in a series of sermons on loneliness that St. John's was having for their fall sermon series.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Dear God, be with us today, wherever we are, whether we are with family or friends or are by ourselves. If we are alone, let us not feel lonely, we know you are with us and that there is a community that is here for us. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Think about the last time you sat down and had a favorite beverage with someone outside of your family. Now, that could be Sunday coffee time, since we have one here over Zoom, or it could be a physically-distanced opportunity outside where you could catch up on the details of what is happening with one another. You talk about good things and one of you mentions that one of the worst things about the past few months is the sense of loneliness. Later that evening you find yourself in thinking about mental health, and part of a song from the musical </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Dear Evan Hansen</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">When you're falling in a forest and there's nobody around<br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Do you ever really crash, or even make a sound?</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: #a2c4c9; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Have you ever felt like nobody was there?<br /></span></span><span style="background-color: #a2c4c9; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Have you ever felt forgotten in the middle of nowhere?<br /></span></span><span style="background-color: #a2c4c9; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Have you ever felt like you could disappear?<br /></span></span><span style="background-color: #a2c4c9; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Like you could fall, and no one would hear?</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: #a2c4c9; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Pretty unsettling, isn’t it? Like Bishop George Berkeley back in the 1730s, who first asked about trees and forests, is an action meaningful if no one notices? This is about more than trees, of course, because it asks about the value of individual living things. Questions about fitting in, the purpose of life, and the quality of relationships are worth thinking about, and they speak to the anxiety and loneliness in our world.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">These are not new questions; in fact, Joseph’s brothers are asking the same thing in the Old Testament reading today when they invoke the name of their father and ask Joseph not to punish them. They aren’t sure where they stand, and they are hoping for reassurance. Aren’t we all asking for that?</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">We live in a connected world. In my pocket is my phone, I have a tablet I use in the evening, I can tune the radio or listen to podcasts as I drive. In my spare time, I can game and join with others on social media. It would seem that relationships would be easily made.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Unfortunately, that’s not the case. Regardless of the data you pick, the National Association of Science, the British Red Cross, or peer-reviewed studies, loneliness is on the rise. A researcher from UCLA even composed a Loneliness Scale, and there are some studies that suggest that more than half of Americans are lonely. </span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Half of Americans? That’s about 165 million people in our own country. How do we deal with that as followers of Jesus? Let’s start with being personal and filled with grace. We see that today as Jesus speaks with Peter, offering grace to those who wrong us 77 times, a metaphor for infinite opportunities for forgiveness. I don’t know about you, but there are people who I struggle with in my relationships.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">And as I read and reread the Gospel, a new perspective became clear. That parable that follows the math problem Peter mentions is not about the wrongdoer. That parable is about us. Jesus is telling us that what WE do matters. Living out the unconditional love and grace of Jesus means something radical.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">WE must be the forgivers.<br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">WE must be the ones who offer to cancel debts.<br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">WE must be the ones who respond when we are asked for help.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">And when it comes to loneliness, WE must reach out to others who have broken connections.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Loneliness in a connected world is a complicated topic, but one thing I saw over and over is that relationship building is the key to solving loneliness. People who have four or more significant people with whom they can be their authentic selves are better able to withstand the struggle of loneliness and the physical and mental stress it causes on the body.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Right off, let’s establish that the media is not the enemy. It’s a tool we’ve used for hundreds of years to entertain ourselves, starting with postal letters, then newspapers, then phone calls, radio, and television broadcasts. While I have great memories of some phone and letter exchanges, I don’t know anyone who developed great relationships with a newspaper or one-way television or radio broadcast, so perhaps we need to think of the Internet in the same way. </span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Use your media intentionally. Not all social media is authentic communication where you listen to understand. Push notifications on our phone or a ticker on the bottom of a video screen can numb us and shift our perception. I’m not bashing digital connectedness here; simply asking us to recognize that heavy social media users are correlated with increasing loneliness.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"> <br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Loneliness is so widespread in our world that well-being strategies have evolved to help us make healthier choices. One of the most popular is called the PERMA technique. P-E-R-M-A. PERMA can help stop permanent loneliness.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">P is for POSITIVE. Notice the Positive each day, and encourage others to see it too. This mindshift can make a huge difference, and often it is as simple as disengaging from screen time or intentionally keeping a gratitude journal.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">E is ENGAGEMENT. Engage with your interests. Walk the dog. Make a new recipe. Paint or Doodle. Read a fiction book. Talk with your roommate. Join some sort of interest group. Ask someone to dinner.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">R is for RELATIONSHIPS. Rekindle relationships. Take the time to make a daily call with a friend or family member. Join a small group video call, or put on a mask and meet someone at a park or on a porch. We are humans and we need regular conversation. If you are feeling lonely, talk with someone.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">M is for MEANING. Build spiritual meaning and opportunities for prayer and reflection. At St. John’s, that means trying to follow our Rule of Life and growing in faith in whatever way possible.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Finally, A is for Accomplishments. Accomplishment means to celebrate the small steps; making a healthy meal, clearing out a box from the cupboard, walking a certain number of steps in a day, or improving on a daily task of your choice.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">PERMA, P-E-R-M-A, </span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Positive-Engaging-Relationship-Meaning-Accomplishment</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">All of these steps are found in the Gospel today. Jesus is </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Positive</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> we can forgive people more than we ever imagined, and he tells Peter that through an </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Engaging</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Parable. Jesus and Peter have a strong </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Relationship</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, and the Parable builds </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Meaning</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> so Peter and the other Disciples can understand. Our sense of </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Accomplishment</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, of course, depends on how well we hear and receive what Jesus is telling us.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> <br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Our goal is to build authentic relationships and meaningful habits of reflection. Loneliness varies by age group. Users under the age of 30 report higher anxiety and loneliness, especially if they don’t have a good work-life or school-life balance. People who live alone may go through a half-a-week or more without talking to others.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">You are not alone. That’s the other big message of the musical I mentioned at the beginning of this sermon.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">You are not alone.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">As a church community, our most important job in the wider world is to spread relationships, because we don’t have a private Savior. How can we reach out to the college students up the hill? What do our youngest members and our teachers at St. John’s need to help recover from the stress of these last months? How about those who have been sick or recovering from surgeries? I don’t have the answers, but I know we need honest admissions about where we are, and strategies to build those four or more significant relationships that can reduce loneliness. Games? Online conference calls? Bag lunches over the next two autumn months in local parks?</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Loneliness in a connected world means that we need to decide which connections are most important. As my time here at St. John draws to an end, I am reminded of those moments which have sustained me over the last two years, and those relationships I have witnessed among those in this congregation.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">With Jesus, we are never alone.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">My friends, with one another, we are a community. Long before church buildings and bell towers and steeples, Jesus and his disciples showed us that ministry in the church is really the sum total of the people who are willing to stand up and band together to make this world a bit less lonely through their kindness and commitment to God. </span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">With Jesus, we are never alone.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">With each other, through Jesus Christ, we are not alone.</span></span></div><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Amen.</span></span></div>Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-36108815682977727212020-08-23T16:46:00.012-07:002020-10-01T10:16:24.257-07:00Changing<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRg9rteGUwUvFh3o0mV031b4nGYmDN7o6ZPAqjKs08pT9GnP7JEDvaC2pl6RZbYRN1V3z218I_ErTn8LLYull2_oFtuvivQGqFlrq68ZpM7MmIKadgAlrpYkyQhSV8CDNgWSqdwobkyTc/s2048/ross-findon-mG28olYFgHI-unsplash.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1152" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRg9rteGUwUvFh3o0mV031b4nGYmDN7o6ZPAqjKs08pT9GnP7JEDvaC2pl6RZbYRN1V3z218I_ErTn8LLYull2_oFtuvivQGqFlrq68ZpM7MmIKadgAlrpYkyQhSV8CDNgWSqdwobkyTc/s320/ross-findon-mG28olYFgHI-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@rossf?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Ross Findon</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/change?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Unsplash</a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">This is the sermon that was offered up during Morning Prayer and Eucharist on August 23, 2020. The Morning Prayer service was held via the zoom platform and the Eucharist was held in person with restrictions for St John's Episcopal Church in Dubuque, Iowa. Services were affected due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The scripture readings were Isaiah 51:1-6, Psalm 138, Romans 12:1-8, and Matthew 16:13-20.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-a863b79e-7fff-c330-4f67-4772c315d6f6"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">O God, we ask of you today that we may be disciples of the Messiah and that our lives might be transformed by your love and grace. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b id="docs-internal-guid-74d38024-7fff-92cd-7cdc-3996be2494e4" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">It would have been much easier if Jesus had just asked a simple question like "Do you want mayo or tartar sauce with that fish sandwich?" or “You want fries with that?”</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">We get asked perfunctory questions like that each and every day and we quickly come to an answer, because we don't have to invest much of ourselves in answering. And there's relatively little shame in either option that we pick. Choosing ‘neither’ as an answer does not have a lifetime consequence.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">But being a follower of Jesus isn't like that. Jesus doesn't banter pleasantries with a fast food server, but goes right for the meaty questions that have consequences for the long haul. Paul doesn't either. Today's question from Romans is basically: "are you willing to transform your life for Jesus?"</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Wow. Not a little bit of change. Not a half-hearted attendance at a worship service. To be sure, those steps are appreciated, but what this is, is a </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">in-your-face,</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">slamdown, </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">question.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">A little history, here. Paul’s letter to the Romans is the last letter he wrote, around the year 60 AD, and it asks a question before any of the Gospels were written down. That might be news to some, but it simply means that in the oral tradition of the time, people told the stories about Jesus, before they were part of the written word.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">This question Paul asks must be really important. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Why? </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Paul is writing this letter to people he hasn’t even met yet. He is setting the tone for what he believes is a reasonable expectation for a follower of Jesus.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">The mission, should you choose to accept it, is to use the gifts God gave you to make a difference here and now on this earth.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Please realize that it's not the gifts you may want God to give you; you may not become a social influencer or the town philanthropist.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">The Spirit will pick. The Spirit will help and will choose the strengths you receive as a follower of Christ.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">And doesn't that make us humble? Knowing that we must trust that God gives us the tools we need at the time we need them. Like clay, that is molded into something useful and beautiful, we will be transformed by the gifts of the Spirit.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">To be honest, I’d much rather struggle with the question Jesus asked of his disciples today. Jesus is asking the question to his community because he is starting that journey towards Jerusalem. Things are getting tense, but the disciples do not yet understand the ramifications of the question Jesus is asking, or that he is heading towards eventual death and Resurrection. They don’t know that they are headed for really hard times.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Paul, however, knows how the Jesus story turns out. He’s already spent time in prison for his faith and his vision is tempered by hindsight. His question comes with an underlying expectation. We all have a vocation that God will give each and every one of us and our job is to live out that transformation.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Are we willing to change our lives for Christ?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Are you willing to change your life for Christ?\</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Am I willing to change my life for Christ?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">What would that look like? Over the past several months, we have seen worship services change. We have different expectations for social gathering. We are interacting in different ways with our community. Sometimes our church walls have been replaced by a digital space. Some of us have grown in our faith through injury, or illness, and others are responding by knowing that there is a new job or adventure waiting for us as the school year starts. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">This translates into concrete action. Pam, for instance, has the patience to teach middle school kids science. Our St. John's children help their families. Annie's Acres is a labor that provides healthy local food to others. Corky has spent years opening the church up each Sunday morning. I could go on and on about the labors that each of you do for the community of St. John’s and for the community at large.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">I could not do what any of you do. I don't have the structure or the skill set to do everything. And our congregation is filled with many many unique and different gifts, from ordering Scrip to praying without ceasing. The Spirit can use your gifts in ways that matter and build God’s Kingdom here and now.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Building the Kingdom and following Paul’s question to its conclusion is a hard ask. It's a change to put God in charge when our work is tedious or unfamiliar.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Change is never easy. Simon is renamed Peter in today’s Gospel as an indicator that his life as Simon the fisherman was going to be changed, transformed, and his life would never be the same again.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">This also is not about one choice we make being good and another being bad. Change isn’t always binary. While my life hasn't actually turned out the way I have planned, and there has been pain along the way, I hear from Marcia that I am a wiser man than I was when we were married. Along the way I’ve asked questions as doubts crept into my life and I tried to negotiate just how much God wanted me to change. I’ve made mistakes. I’ve asked for forgiveness. I’ve stumbled.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">What I have learned is that God can handle those questions I ask . God will help you dig deep and face your worries honestly and wholly. While you will not always be satisfied with the answers to the questions you receive, that intent to live your life by following the way of Jesus will be a mark that shines forth.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Are you willing to change your life for Jesus?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">We ask this question when we renew our Baptismal Vows.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">We ask this question for ourselves as we help those who are unjustly accused or unfairly incarcerated.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">We ask this question of our children and grandchildren as we try to raise them in the faith.</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Are you willing to change your life for Jesus?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">The answer, then, must be tempered with the grace of the Spirit and the recognition of the talents of our community. Our response must allow others to tell us, with love, of both our strengths and our weaknesses. As we are many parts of this one Universal Church, I ask you today to consider yes to God as we are asked to answer the call. </span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: times;"><br /></span></b></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Are you willing to change your life for Jesus?</span></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><br /></p><div style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: left;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: times;">Amen.</span></span></div></span></div><p></p>Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-62895071407660432552020-08-09T17:38:00.000-07:002020-08-09T17:38:18.872-07:00Coming into Focus<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisM2DJcev39kj2tGeIiGYbMMxHIqOp4hBT-sWzPiJWkYg9DX26-eGOviKgy8KPEhpCdQ20bNupLuhFY2UppdpXUgK-dOM195CoS8symMGzgf3b-4Rp1a88hOTKZyod2fTX3IU6gmdbN_M/s1600/devin-avery-VBBs_SWsdwU-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisM2DJcev39kj2tGeIiGYbMMxHIqOp4hBT-sWzPiJWkYg9DX26-eGOviKgy8KPEhpCdQ20bNupLuhFY2UppdpXUgK-dOM195CoS8symMGzgf3b-4Rp1a88hOTKZyod2fTX3IU6gmdbN_M/s320/devin-avery-VBBs_SWsdwU-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@devintavery?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Devin Avery</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/focus?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Unsplash</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is the sermon that was offered up during Morning Prayer on August 9, 2020. This service was held via the zoom platform for St John's Episcopal Church in Dubuque, Iowa. The reason that services weren't held in person was due to the COVID-19 pandemic that prevented the congregation from gathering together. The scripture readings were 1 Kings 19:9-18, Psalm 85:8-13, Romans 10:5-15, and Matthew 14:22-33.</span></span></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-64ba5696-7fff-c67a-0feb-fbabfb7c74a3" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dear God, may we not be distracted when we pray, may we be able to focus on you and in the silence, hear your voice. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Awkward. Uncomfortable. Embarrassing. We all feel these emotions that we see in today's readings.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Like the time in the elevator when someone's stomach makes noises and we pretend we don't hear.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At the dinner where two family members with different political opinions stray from the script and start speaking of topics sure to lead to uncomfortable glances. People shift their eyes to the mashed potatoes and make small talk trying to change the subject.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And it’s that moment when you have put your foot in your mouth during a conversation and you are desperately trying to find a way out of the dilemma. But you can’t think. Silence reigns and your cheeks grow hot with embarrassment. Definitely one of the most awkward things of all.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Awkward moments are moments when we have lost focus. We don’t know what to do.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Focus. Be still. Listen for the voice of God.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today, Elijah struggles with prayer and focus at a mountain called Horeb, the dry place, in the wilderness, in the desert. His starting prayer is a laundry list of what he wants to say to make his case. He is asking God to protect him and keep him safe because of what he has done in the past for God. The focus is on Elijah and his personal value to God.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Do you ever find yourself in a dry place, out somewhere in the wilderness, where you feel that your worth is dependent on your past actions? Here, we see Elijah taking great pains to remind God that he is not one of Them, the people who follow false gods.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">God doesn't answer right away, which is Infuriating. I mean, Elijah wouldn't have asked God if he didn't feel it was justified. However, God doesn't not operate on our time table. He leaves Elijah to focus.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Wind and earthquakes and fire come and turmoil reigns, both outside the cave and in Elijah's mind. Swirling emotions distract Elijah from understanding God's purpose for him.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">God will not be rushed.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But Elijah Is a prophet on the run, having denounced the worshippers of Baal who now want to kill him. </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Focus. Be still. Listen for the voice of God.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But what is going on outside the cave? The odds of trouble grow even greater, as the opening to the cave could easily be blocked or the path up the mountain to the cave could be blocked by a rockslide and would trap Elijah on the mountain top. </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But God is not in a hurry, </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Elijah can wait.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And then comes the moment of sheer silence. That's the moment where Elijah knows that it's time to hear the answer, whatever it is, and accept it.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It's a profoundly human moment. </span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That moment when an anticipation of an answer and the dread of not liking what will be said push against one another. The moment when we are humble enough and ready to hear what God has been saying becomes the moment we gain focus.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jesus understood that need for sheer silence and models prayer for us. He regularly withdrew to pray, often leaving his disciples behind to wait, or sleep, or in this case, to spend a night out on the water in a boat. Jesus knew the value of humbleness, of the sheer silence that welcomed in the Presence of God. </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Prayer strengthens us. Elijah focusing on prayer, leads to that Sheer silence that welcomed in God's voice. Only then was Elijah ready to receive an answer. And God tells him to go back into danger. It’s not about him. It’s about the faithful and ordinary people of Israel.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Focus. Be still. Listen for the voice of God.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That’s what Jesus models for us today. He sends his apostles on their way and goes to intentionally look for that time with his Father. Prayer time was important to Jesus, and going up on a steep hill by himself certainly gave that focus and quiet missing in his public ministry. So often when Jesus is praying, his disciples are getting on with the business of living, whether it be sleeping, talking, or even spending the night on a boat. That contrast is repeated so many times in the Bible that it seems an intentional choice for us. The outside world will always be there to distract us.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When we pray, when we strive to hear God’s voice, we are wanting an answer and we want it now. But God will not be rushed.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the meantime, the disciples have their winds and waves battering their boat. They aren’t focused on God, they’re not focused on the silence that lets in the Holy Voice of God. When Jesus walks towards them on the sea, their focus is on their exhaustion and fear, not the idea of God coming to meet them where they are at. Peter trusts Jesus and, keeping eyes on his Lord, does what Jesus asks.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well Peter keeps his eyes on Jesus for a moment. Until the very real factors of this world frighten Peter. And he loses focus. How awkward is it to be in the very presence of God and not be able to be sustained by that?</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Peter and Elijah are human, and they provide several lessons for us today. </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Focus on God, not yourself. It is only then that the sheer silence will allow you to hear what God is saying. You may not like the answer, because God is not a vending machine, allowing us to select a cure for a disease or a promise that everything will be ok. </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Listen. It’s easy to be distracted by swirling emotional storms and outside disasters. Awkwardly grasping for answers. God is still there. Relationship with God is guaranteed, personal safety is not.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Focus. </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Be still. </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Listen for the voice of God.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Amen.</span></span></div>
Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0Dubuque, IA, USA42.502266100000007 -90.66546749999999142.314908100000004 -90.988190999999986 42.68962410000001 -90.342744tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-20879862343953452402020-08-02T17:15:00.000-07:002020-08-09T17:17:30.248-07:00Wrestlemania<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmrRIRIRpgG1OHrpRAB7U3px1kCOccPjzbpZZkfZnZCABvvxy5Wi8Mmd0hlcOrH_VpQ0iA27cx8_r4d9zA0t-vhJQViWxEzU3V29Uv4dow5tYMR5l1no-zfDPTKIrTaqZd0W6MCIdEHxE/s1600/chagall3159.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="650" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmrRIRIRpgG1OHrpRAB7U3px1kCOccPjzbpZZkfZnZCABvvxy5Wi8Mmd0hlcOrH_VpQ0iA27cx8_r4d9zA0t-vhJQViWxEzU3V29Uv4dow5tYMR5l1no-zfDPTKIrTaqZd0W6MCIdEHxE/s320/chagall3159.jpg" width="260" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Fight between Jacob and the Angel by Marc Chagall, 1967</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">This is the sermon that was offered up during Morning Prayer on August 2, 2020. This service was done by campers from the Episcopal Diocese of Iowa's EPIC online camp for congregations throughout the Diocese. The scripture readings were Psalm 17:1-7,15 and Genesis 32:22-31. A recording of this service can be found at </span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBDUssj2hWA">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eBDUssj2hWA</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Steadfast.</span></span></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-d61fb8cc-7fff-a51f-39a9-1f30c279ef37" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Stubborn.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Determined.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Dedicated.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Do you know what these words mean? Do you think they are all describing someone who is a person who sounds like they will keep their word?</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">That’s one way to describe the actions of Jacob who decided it would be a good idea to wrestle someone, a stranger, for hours during the night while his family waited across the river for him.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Why would Jacob do that? What was the point?</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Here’s another set of words:</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Persuadable.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Weak-willed.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Liar. </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Thief.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">How many of you would trust the first person, who was steadfast, stubborn, determined, and dedicated. Or the second person, who was persuadable, weak-willed, a liar, and a thief?</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You know what?</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Jacob was both of these. He was a good person some of the time and he was a bad person at other moments in his life. Just like all of us, he was human and he made mistakes. </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We see Jacob today wrestling, and he’s pretty reckless. He was doing whatever he could to win. But he couldn’t win. But at the same time he wouldn’t give up. That is the way Jacob lived his whole life. When Jacob was younger he had deceived his father and stolen from his brother. Jacob and his family were on the way to meet Jacob’s brother Esau and Esau had hundreds of servants that were willing to fight for him. Jacob’s not sure if his brother will forgive him or fight him.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But first, Jacob has to fight a stranger and it goes on for hours. That’s exhausting. To get an idea of what this is like, hold your arms out straight from your body and tighten them. We’ll count to ten together</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">1, 2, 3, 4, 5 (no cheating, keep those muscles tight) 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Do you feel that in your muscles? How long could you do that? A minute? An hour? Could you do that all night long? Now can you imagine how tired you might be? That’s sorta what Jacob did, and when he was done, God changed his name. </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I think one of the reasons God did that was because he understood that the man Jacob was that night was more than just the mistakes Jacob had made. Jacob had learned how to be a better person along the way, and God loved that. God gave Jacob a new name, Jacob was renamed Israel.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Israel means “struggle with God.” We all struggle with God sometimes. </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We all have questions.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When things happen in this world, like sickness, like a COVID-19 pandemic, or natural disasters, like tornadoes and floods, where people are hurt or die, we wonder why? Why would God let this happen? Sometimes we struggle all night long and we don’t get an answer.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But God doesn’t go away, any more than he did with Jacob. God stays with us for as long as we need God, and God let’s us fight out our fear and anxiety and frustration.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It’s not easy being Jacob in this story.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But it’s also not easy being God. </span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">God fought with Jacob.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But he didn’t defeat him.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Jacob wouldn’t quit fighting God. </span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He wouldn’t trust that if he stopped arguing he might learn something.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Spoiler alert: Jacob’s brother Esau forgives Jacob.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It reminds me a bit of a poem that Shel Silverstein wrote. </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Shel Silverstein was a poet and songwriter, and my own kids really enjoyed his work.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I did too.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Anyway, here’s the poem: Ainsley will read it for us today.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">God's Wheel </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">by Shel Silverstein</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">GOD says to me with a kind</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">of smile, "Hey how would you like</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">to be God awhile And steer the world?"</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">"Okay," says I, "I'll give it a try.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Where do I set?</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">How much do I get?</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What time is lunch?</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When can I quit?"</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">"Gimme back that wheel," says GOD.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">"I don't think you're quite ready YET."</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There’s lots of things we are not always ready for.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We’re not always ready to wrestle with God.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We’re not always ready to ask our brother or sister or cousin or friend for forgiveness.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sometimes we’re stubborn.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Other times we’re weak.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But God loves us, each and every day.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Jesus came to show us how much he loved us by living with us.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And learning what it was like to be human.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Even now, the Holy Spirit is here.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Not just to argue with us, or to wrestle with us, but to wipe away our tears.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I am not ready to take God’s wheel. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sometimes I struggle.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I think that sometimes you struggle.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I am certain that sometimes we all struggle.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But that’s ok.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This past week of EPIC online has been holy work for kids from across the Diocese. The Spirit has been working in their lives.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Let’s take that and go forward, knowing that God is with us.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Even when we struggle.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Even when we fight.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Even when we argue.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">God is with us.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">God is with me.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">God is with you.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">God is with all of us.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Amen.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 13.999999999999998pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><br /></span></div>
Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0Iowa, USA41.8780025 -93.09770238.854508 -98.261276 44.901497 -87.934128tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-77995613186256767682020-07-29T21:00:00.000-07:002020-08-09T16:01:35.265-07:00Jesus Understands<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBhkvp7oezjFtEMeL5GIX9kA8_NftX8mH1Y8TjWBGqYpEdfc4P-4D1XCopIgkRBh0gJMh5W1MHkG9pXlWi_Z_G97VHd_9VDgSoLrmGGjcPFxDm0zdtHsprVf_Rl7Y4TP006_rnEKq0J_c/s1600/ic-ma232-icon-holy-martha-martyr-mary+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="481" data-original-width="400" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBhkvp7oezjFtEMeL5GIX9kA8_NftX8mH1Y8TjWBGqYpEdfc4P-4D1XCopIgkRBh0gJMh5W1MHkG9pXlWi_Z_G97VHd_9VDgSoLrmGGjcPFxDm0zdtHsprVf_Rl7Y4TP006_rnEKq0J_c/s320/ic-ma232-icon-holy-martha-martyr-mary+%25281%2529.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Martha and Mary Orthodox Icon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is the sermon that was offered up during Morning Prayer on July 29, 2020 on the feast day of Martha and Mary of Bethany. This service was held at Trinity Episcopal Church in Muscatine, Iowa during a time of congregational discernment. The scripture readings were Psalm 36:5-10, Romans 12:9-13, and Luke 10:38-42.</span></span></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-79939ebe-7fff-1cf1-28a9-1c107103b7da" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">O God, be with us today as we discern together. May the Holy Spirit be present, as we remember that we need to both serve you and listen to your voice. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Have you ever been able to juggle? </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I can juggle one orange at a time.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And sometimes two.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But definitely not three...</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the reading from Romans, we hear lots of ideas about juggling priorities as Christian people. Here are four:</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Love one another.</span></span></div>
</li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Be ardent in spirit.</span></span></div>
</li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Serve the Lord.</span></span></div>
</li>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Extend hospitality to strangers.</span></span></div>
</li>
</ul>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And then in the Gospel story we just heard, we see just how hard those priorities can be to handle. Here’s just a little background. The story of Martha and Mary is shared only in Luke, just as raising Lazarus from the dead is found only in John. And the placement of this story is after a number of important things happen, Jesus anoints seventy of his followers to go out in pairs to heal the sick and proclaim the good news, then Jesus speaks about the Great Commandment (Love God, Love your neighbor), and follows that up with the Parable of the Good Samaritan. Then immediately after this story Jesus shares with the disciples how to pray, using the words of the Lord’s Prayer. In a way, this story is a pivot between depending on individuals for action from spreading the Good News and loving our neighbor to listening, learning, and trusting Jesus to lead us forward.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Mary chooses one way, Martha chooses another. </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now, I want to be clear here. This is not to pick on Martha. She had, after all, been the one to invite Jesus to the household. She had things to do, and it was reasonable to think that she would expect her sister to help out when they had a guest.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Instead, this story is about contrasts. Notice that it is Martha speaking to Jesus, both here and in the story in the Gospel of John. In some ways, Martha is the female partner to Peter: she’s bold, outspoken, and blunt. She’s the one who asks Jesus to rebuke her sister. She’s the one who reminds Jesus later on that her brother has been dead for days and ‘surely there will be a stench.’</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Martha is the one who gets things done.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Martha is the one who organizes others to help someone in need.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Martha is the take-charge person.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But for Martha to approach a house guest meant that she was frazzled. She was anxious. She was at the end of her rope. She had gotten out of balance between action, doing things, and the time needed for prayer and renewal. </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And Jesus notices. He doesn’t say that Martha cannot join in. Sure, dinner might be a bit late, but Jesus never worried about food when He could work with people. Think of the story of the five thousand, where he preached all day to a crowd, and then there was enough food to share with leftovers.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Let’s go back and take a look at those four points that I mentioned from Romans again.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0;">
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Love one another.</span></span></div>
</li>
<ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0;">
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: circle; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Certainly, Mary and Martha and Lazarus loved Jesus. And they loved one another. But here we see that BOTH Mary and Martha are struggling to love one another in a typical human way. Martha was being bossy, and Mary was more interested in what Jesus had to say than listening to her sister. I’d say that’s pretty typical of a lot of sibling relationships.</span></span></div>
</li>
</ul>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Be ardent in spirit.</span></span></div>
</li>
<ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0;">
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: circle; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I think it’s a tie on this one. Martha took a real risk inviting Jesus to the home. What if he had said no? But Mary focused on what was important: Jesus and his stories, and that’s admirable in a world where busy-ness is a disease.</span></span></div>
</li>
</ul>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Serve the Lord.</span></span></div>
</li>
<ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0;">
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: circle; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">How do you serve the Lord? That’s a good question. Some people cook for others. Some listen. Some take care of children. Some serve on Vestries. And some do all of those things. I imagine that all of us are trying to serve in our own way as we follow the Way of Love.</span></span></div>
</li>
</ul>
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Extend hospitality to strangers.</span></span></div>
</li>
<ul style="margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 0;">
<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: circle; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><div dir="ltr" role="presentation" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I don’t know that Jesus was a stranger to Martha and Mary, but hospitality means seeing to the needs of a person. I wonder if Martha and Mary just noticed different things. Martha saw Jesus was tired and hungry and Mary knew Jesus needed someone to listen to him.</span></span></div>
</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We actually know very little about these three siblings in the Gospels, but they are obviously important to Jesus. He is kind, even when Martha gives him an earful of indignation. He is patient as well with Mary, giving her the time and space she seems to need. </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jesus understands.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Let me say that again.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jesus understands.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jesus understands our anxiety.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jesus understands our struggle to keep all the balls we are juggling in the air.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jesus understands our humanity. On this feast day of Martha and Mary, I’m asking you to ask Jesus to give you what you need at this moment, on this day, and what this congregation will need in the future.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jesus understands.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jesus understands.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Amen.</span></span></div>
Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0Muscatine, IA 52761, USA41.424473 -91.043205141.329206 -91.204566599999993 41.51974 -90.8818436tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-36294570600306048682020-07-26T13:00:00.000-07:002020-08-09T09:52:31.677-07:00Who Do You Trust?<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEA6dFyaQ4PKZOoHbkcTHIDnwR4BVpQ7SNGh9Xw_vfdtHw_b5I-r3kHhYktjLiet8gvIpIByeIMr2d-wrslPKSUjkeyE76bovsAHWPBx_C36kuiDXKIEH4Vbi85g3-13fnpwWw7zTjhcA/s1600/aaron-burden-y02jEX_B0O0-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1202" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEA6dFyaQ4PKZOoHbkcTHIDnwR4BVpQ7SNGh9Xw_vfdtHw_b5I-r3kHhYktjLiet8gvIpIByeIMr2d-wrslPKSUjkeyE76bovsAHWPBx_C36kuiDXKIEH4Vbi85g3-13fnpwWw7zTjhcA/s320/aaron-burden-y02jEX_B0O0-unsplash.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo by <a href="https://unsplash.com/@aaronburden?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Aaron Burden</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/write?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Unsplash</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is the sermon that I offered up during Morning Prayer on July 26, 2020. This service was held via the zoom platform for St John's Episcopal Church in Dubuque, Iowa. The reason that services weren't held in person was due to the COVID-19 pandemic that prevented the congregation from gathering together. The scripture readings were 1 Kings 3:5-12, Psalm 119:129-136, Romans 8:26-39, and Matthew 13:31-33,44-52.</span></span></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-3379ae21-7fff-b49e-8006-a8ddccdead90" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">O God, may you be with us as we try to be builders of your kingdom and may we learn together what your love means in our lives and how we can better follow your will. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Fake news! Fake news!</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Lin Manuel Miranda will never sing again.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Regis: his rollicking final months.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Joan of Arc buried in the Seine.**</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Deacon Kevin becomes a traveling duck juggler.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now, at least one of those is actually true.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">How would you determine the truth?</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You might check several sources. You might discount anything from the National Inquirer. Or from my favorite supermarket tabloid, the Weekly World News. Where on a weekly basis you might find out that Elvis is alive, abducted by aliens on a UFO, and has a son whose name is Bat Boy. I’m so sad that the Weekly World News doesn’t have a print edition anymore.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ultimately, though, you have to trust some source, some point-of-view, because the truth is out there.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Who do you trust?</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What does that have to do with today's readings? Check the last verse in the Gospel:</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And he (Jesus) said to them (his disciples), “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.”</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I’ve heard and read this set of readings from the Gospel of Matthew many times in my life but I hadn’t ever really noticed the last line of this passage. What is new and what is old? In this context, what makes sense to me is that the old is the Torah, </span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: line-through; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">t</span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">he first five books of the Hebrew Bible (the Old Testament) and the new is the teachings of Jesus and the apostles. Jesus was acting in his role as a rabbi or teacher. He was using the rabbinical technique of midrash to show new insights into old thought patterns. Midrash, by the way, is done in community. It bounces ideas off of another and looks for feedback. Through this dialogue, people become more focused on their own understanding of what faith is to them personally.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That's important, because the world we live in today is both dramatically different from the world Jesus lived in, and sadly, it’s also the same, with inequality and suffering that needs to be healed. The Torah is not something Jesus Christ threw away, it's something Christ fulfilled. </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But maybe you’re thinking, what about this scribe that Jesus mentions? For the illiterate of the day (which was most people), finding a trusted scribe was really important. </span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Scribes had power. They had the power of the word, the written word.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If they were corrupt, they could write a letter that was not what the sender meant, or they could lie about what was said in a received letter. A scribe would be known by his reputation, so old and new were connected. A scribe who brings out the old and the new treasure would have an understanding of the subject and be able to combine ideas, old and new, to support the point of the message.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Who do you trust? The Scribes of the Bible were human but what they wrote reflects historical practice and Good News. I trust that there’s a message for us to tease out as we reflect upon the Word. It takes Wisdom, as we hear in the dialogue between God and Solomon, and as the epistle says today, it takes the Spirit of God, who moves in our lives. By looking for meaning, we must take the experience we have in life (the new) and combine it with the old story of Jesus.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jesus came to a captive people who were both Jew and Gentile. He came to people who were on the margins of society and showed them how to change their perspective. He taught them that they should love God with all of their heart and soul and mind, and love their neighbor as themselves. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He gave them hope.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He gave them joy and healing.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">He showed us that the kingdom of heaven is here, right now, as we walk among our neighbors. We look for the treasure of heaven in our relationships with others, within our prayer life, and with those whom we trust in our lives. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Who do you trust?</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I trust this community and the people in it.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I trust the Word of God.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I trust Jesus.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And even in times that have a constant echo of “Fake News,” I know that what we are doing right here, right now, is holy and important work to build the Kingdom of God.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Who do you trust?</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Trust this community and the people in it.</span></span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Trust the Word of God.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Trust Jesus.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Amen.</span></span></div>
Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-71158493842001486592020-07-05T16:05:00.000-07:002020-07-26T16:07:26.285-07:00Get Yoked up with Jesus<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_ddfNOnDMR_Kz2vhVD0Pr7fJWR0hEwGBQelUNEysbHtXAB6AIY2a-IC4O3k_rMAvQIJDOIUif0O8RcvBpTI9dU7G84yyfgQncPG04VuNSavVhrqWJ8YjOquk6vZOdiIGxisw-Tnsp_JY/s1600/Yoke_of_Draught_Oxen%252C_MON_1909.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="940" data-original-width="1600" height="188" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_ddfNOnDMR_Kz2vhVD0Pr7fJWR0hEwGBQelUNEysbHtXAB6AIY2a-IC4O3k_rMAvQIJDOIUif0O8RcvBpTI9dU7G84yyfgQncPG04VuNSavVhrqWJ8YjOquk6vZOdiIGxisw-Tnsp_JY/s320/Yoke_of_Draught_Oxen%252C_MON_1909.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">This is the sermon that I offered up during Morning Prayer and Eucharist on July 5, 2020 for St. John's Episcopal Church in Dubuque, Iowa. The Morning Prayer service was held via the zoom platform in the morning and an in-person Eucharist service in the afternoon. The in-person service followed protocols for lessening the spread of COVID-19 such as no singing and the wearing of masks. The scripture readings were </span><span id="docs-internal-guid-2bf6b2fe-7fff-69b2-2391-fbfa261be24e"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Zechariah 9:9-12</span></span><span style="background-color: white;">, Psalm 145:8-15, </span><span id="docs-internal-guid-1fbb5e07-7fff-1082-8507-ea6ceb29f2a9"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Romans 7:15-25a</span></span><span style="background-color: white;">, and </span><span id="docs-internal-guid-d110788f-7fff-64ba-88ae-0fe0113969e1"><span style="font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30</span></span><span style="background-color: white;">.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">O God, you have taught us to keep all your commandments by loving you and loving our neighbor: Grant us the grace of your Holy Spirit, that we may be devoted to you with our whole heart, and united to one another in love as Jesus taught. In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When I was a boy, maybe </span><span style="background-color: white; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">about seven years old, I was introduced to the responsibility of my own chores. We had a couple small sheds behind our hog house where runts or injured pigs were put when they couldn’t be in with the large group of hogs. My job was to make sure these pigs had feed, water, and bedding.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> But there was a problem. I wasn’t tall enough to carry the five gallon buckets of water and feed without the pails dragging on the ground and spilling the feed and water. My dad had a solution, digging up a yoke from who knows where. Imagine a four foot long board that basically was a 2x6 with a half circle for the neck. A rope was tied to each side and the weight of the buckets was redistributed so I could better do my chores.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This was a single yoke, fitting I suppose for the individual who does things on their own. You are doing all the work. Sounds a little bit like American individualism, doesn't it? Or maybe not. I was working for the family farm, our family business. My dad found the contraption. My mom washed it up and made certain that I didn't carry loads that were too heavy. It was a team effort, for the good of all.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Like it or not, we all have to carry a yoke in our daily lives.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some of us carry the yoke of mammon, of money, working for the almighty dollar at the expense of our health and our relationships.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Others yoke themselves to the belief in themself. You know, pulling themselves up by their bootstraps and toiling away and deserving everything they get, even if it comes at the expense of other people.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Still others carry the yoke of superiority and the dream of American exceptionalism, with the belief that their experience as a United States citizen translates into justice for all. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">None of these yokes are what Jesus wants for us.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jesus is all about team effort. It’s a damaging illusion to work for self, to consider our needs above all others. Jesus has harsh words today for those who expect to be rewarded for their own labors and talents. We see a collection of whining and griping where people don't get their fair due in the first part of the Gospel today, and Jesus isn’t having any of it. Such efforts, self-serving and vain, are not what he is looking for. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When Jesus asks us to take on his yoke, then, it requires us to think in terms that are unfamiliar to us today but would have been obvious to the culture of his people. He’s asking us to fasten ourselves willingly to him. He’s asking us to join in the important work, and to lean on one another.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The yoke Christ is speaking of is one of wisdom and understanding. It is not a single yoke, but a double one, like a yoke of oxen, that connects us to Jesus intentionally. In our individualistic culture, that’s much harder to agree with.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What yoke are you willing to put on?</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What yoke are you willing to tie yourself up with Jesus?</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Work produces weariness as we toil daily. On a scale of 1 to 10, how weary are you? A ten might be the numbing pain of a frontline worker who has lost multiple patients or relatives to Covid19. It might be a parent who has lost a child to gun violence. A one might be an annoyance, when the air conditioning in the car quits or you burn supper.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Since most of us aren’t working by heavy labor or picking vegetables in a field, our weariness is largely emotional. Watching the news can exhaust us, and worries about paying the light bill or having enough to eat are real concerns right now in the American life.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There's a solution to weariness. It’s a gift we are given today. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But there’s a catch. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I don’t get to do this alone.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You don’t get to do this alone.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We don’t get to do this alone. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Can you say with me? I don’t get to do this alone. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I don’t get to do this alone.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jesus binds himself to us when we willingly bind ourselves to him. Jesus lessens our weariness by giving us wisdom and understanding. Jesus helps us pick the right work to do. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It may be a work of solidarity, as we saw painted on the side of the Five Flags Center this week.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It may be a work of comfort, as Jesus is there in our grief and distress.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It may be a work of bravery, as we see in the essential workers who have been keeping this country running.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Binding yourself to Jesus means connecting yourself to the wisdom we find in worship and in this community. Our burden will be lightened because </span><span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">we are not alone.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our church is yoked with Jesus when we partner with St. Mark Youth Enrichment and provide a place for students to come and be safe in the summer.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our congregation is yoked with Jesus when we work with the Dubuque food pantry to help those who have food insecurity.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our community becomes the hands and feet of Jesus as we work to live our Rule of Life and make a difference in our daily activities.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Our world is yoked with those who work to tear down the pillars of injustice and systemic racism. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In choosing a yoke with Jesus willingly, instead of carrying our own load all by ourselves all of the time, we have a partner in the journey who can give us rest and to whom we can talk when the work is hard. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bring Jesus into your life. Bring Jesus into our life together. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When we do this we will accept the challenge in today’s Gospel. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Amen.</span></span></div>
Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-4847498333863577392020-05-31T16:00:00.000-07:002020-06-10T20:32:14.429-07:00The Breath of God: A sermon for Pentecost during a time of uncertainty.<span style="background-color: white; color: #757575;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This is the sermon that I offered up during Morning Prayer on May 31, 2020. This service was held via the zoom platform for St John's Episcopal Church in Dubuque, Iowa. The reason that services weren't held in person was due to the COVID-19 pandemic that prevented the congregation from gathering together. The scripture readings were Numbers 11:24-30, Psalm 104:25-35&37, Acts 2:1-21, and John 20:19-23.</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #757575;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">O Lord, you have given us peace and have forgiven us. May your breath move through us so we may do your will here on earth. In the name of the Holy Trinity, one God. Amen.</span></span></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-f0eff7d5-7fff-3149-439d-7b9bc422f190" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Today is Pentecost! It’s not just a day to wear red and white to church. It is remembered as the day that the Holy Spirit came down from heaven and filled the Disciples of Jesus. It was noisy, just like a day of protest. There was a violent wind, just as a night filled with unrest. There was prophecy, and tongues like fire rested on the Disciples. And they were filled, filled with the Spirit of God. The Breath of God. And that day the Disciples spoke, using the breath they had received to speak in the languages of all who were there. Many were amazed but perplexed at how this could happen. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When the Holy Spirit comes. Hold onto your hat, the breath of God can do amazing things, not just a couple thousand years ago in Jerusalem. But here and now. In this place. In your home. With you and me and everyone that we come into contact with. It can move across the pain and suffering and sorrows of systems of injustice.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Jesus introduced the Disciples to the Holy Spirit by breathing on them. Jesus’ breath. God’s breath. The Holy Spirit.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Breath is important to our life, if we don’t breathe, we die.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">All of us now take a deep breath and hold it for a few moments then exhale.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Let’s do that again.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For myself at least, that calms me. It gives me strength. It makes me feel better. The Holy Spirit, the Breath of God, is with us all of the time. It is just sometimes we don’t pay enough attention to notice.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">With the first cry of a newborn baby. The Breath of God is there.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">With the last exhalation before death. The Breath of God is there.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">With jubilant singing. The Breath of God is there.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">With a person intubated on a respirator. The Breath of God is there.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">With a protester standing up for what is right. The Breath of God is there.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">With George Floyd whispering, “I can’t breathe.” The Breath of God is there.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The Breath of God is around us. The Holy Spirit moves in and out of each one of us all of the time. The questions are: Are we going to notice the Holy Spirit? And, what are we going to do about it?</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Like the hymn says.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Spirit of the Living God.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Fall afresh on me.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Melt me.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mold me. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Fill me.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Use me.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Spirit of the Living God.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Fall afresh on me.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Across the country, and here in Dubuque, we have a chance to listen to the Breath of God, and we have the opportunity to use the privileges that we have to use our breath and raise our voices for justice. Pentecost is here. Pentecost is now. The Holy Spirit is in all of us. Let's do something about it.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Amen.</span></span></div>
Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-11691019633728074822020-05-10T18:00:00.000-07:002020-06-10T20:05:37.421-07:00A sermon for the fifth Sunday of Easter during a pandemic.<span style="background-color: white; color: #757575;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is the sermon that I offered up during Morning Prayer on May 10, 2020. This service was held via the zoom platform for St John's Episcopal Church in Dubuque, Iowa. The reason that services weren't held in person was due to the COVID-19 pandemic that prevented the congregation from gathering together. The scripture readings were Acts 7:55-60, Psalm 31:1-5&15-16, 1 Peter 2:2-10, and John 14:1-14.</span></span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #757575;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Let us pray: O God, may our hearts not be troubled. May we believe in you and in your son Jesus who came to redeem all of us with the help of our advocate the Holy Spirit. Amen.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One thing that I’ve noticed in the last few weeks is that there seems to be more conspiracy theories than normal coming from all over the world and for many of us, they are maddening. I suppose that is to be expected in a world dominated by the 24/7 news cycle, the use of social media as a political weapon, and the COVID-19 pandemic. People are searching for ‘the truth’, as they see it, as a way to control the uncertainty around themselves and the effect uncertainty has on their lives.</span></span></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-8a0e9e87-7fff-4bf4-fe74-c94dabf016ee" style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I’m not really surprised by the readings today, especially when Phillip starts searching for ‘the truth’ from Jesus. Jesus tells us this: </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Believe in God, believe in me, Jesus says. Do not let your hearts be troubled. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Believe in God. Believe in Me. Do not let your hearts be troubled.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Wait, wait... did I reverse that from the Gospel? </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Well, yes. Yes I did. Let me explain.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If I say that my heart should not be troubled, and then think of God, Jesus becomes an afterthought. To be honest, it is easy to run full-steam ahead, and think we’ll get to the God stuff later like a type of insurance. Maybe. By putting Christ first, it seems that the focus is on Jesus and what he asks us to do, rather than looking for a certainty that things are going to be smooth and worry-free in our daily lives. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As he gets ready to finish his ministry, Jesus is seeing things from a different perspective than the disciples. It seems pretty likely that Jesus knew the disciples were uncomfortable. Sure enough, there’s tension, first with Thomas and then with Phillip. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration-skip-ink: none; text-decoration: line-through; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Philip demands: “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.”</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 67.5pt; margin-top: 2pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In other words, Hey Jesus, show us God, we want to be certain that you are God, and then we will be happy with you.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 67.5pt; margin-top: 2pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What? Philip? Really? Phillip has been a disciple, following Jesus for a long time, and he’s still questioning who Jesus is and why Jesus is here on Earth. </span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 67.5pt; margin-top: 2pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What follows Philip’s demand is the beginning of a long farewell that Jesus offers that stretch through another three chapters of John. Where Jesus tells us over and over to Love one another. Through it all Phillip’s reply to Jesus, if he had one, is never quoted.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 67.5pt; margin-top: 2pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But you know, Phillip was looking for something we all look for. He was looking for certainty in an uncertain world. Would you be reassured by a farewell speech by someone you had been following for three years?</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 67.5pt; margin-top: 2pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I have to say, I probably would not have had much comfort in that if I was a disciple then.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 67.5pt; margin-top: 2pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The need for certainty on this earth, which I mentioned earlier, will not be found within the message of Jesus. In fact, we see in Acts today the stoning of Stephen. Persecution and anger and martyrdom were real consequences of believing in Jesus. </span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 67.5pt; margin-top: 2pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jesus says: Believe in God. Believe in Me. Do not let your hearts be troubled.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 67.5pt; margin-top: 2pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Believe in God. Believe in Jesus. Do not let your hearts be troubled.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 67.5pt; margin-top: 2pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The comfort we look for is also part of the message of Jesus, because Jesus promises that he will be with us, and we can be assured that Jesus will not forget us. The letter of First Peter tells us we have accepted Jesus as our cornerstone and we have received mercy. As a result of this mercy, we are compelled as disciples to act with love towards others. Reaching out to the poor, reaching out to the disenfranchised, reaching out to the victims of inequity, reaching out to everyone on the margins. Jesus takes care of the needs of heaven, so we can focus on the here and now, no matter how hard that may be.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 67.5pt; margin-top: 2pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is an uncertain world that we live in. But we do have certainty, that is Jesus is the Savior and our salvation. </span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 67.5pt; margin-top: 2pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jesus says: Believe in God. Believe in Me. </span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 67.5pt; margin-top: 2pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My friends, even during this time, do not let your hearts be troubled.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 67.5pt; margin-top: 2pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Believe in God.</span></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 67.5pt; margin-top: 2pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Believe in Jesus.</span></span></div>
<br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 12pt; margin-right: 67.5pt; margin-top: 2pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Amen.</span></span></div>
<div>
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Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-31843020588360338932020-03-30T21:04:00.000-07:002020-03-30T21:10:57.652-07:00A Virtual Sermon for the fifth Sunday of Lent during the COVID-19 PandemicThis is the sermon that I offered up during Morning Prayer on March 29, 2020. This service was held via the zoom platform for St John's Episcopal Church in Dubuque, Iowa. The reason that services weren't held in person was due to the COVID-19 pandemic that prevented the congregation from gathering together. The scripture readings were Ezekiel 37:1-14, Psalm 130, Romans 8:6-11, and John 11:1-45.<br /><br /><div>
Let us pray.<br />O God, bring us Grace at this time, this time of hardship for many, to believe in you and to bring us to you. In your name, of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.<br /><br />It’s been quite a week. Week two, of course, is when this all hits home. We’re no longer on a staycation, We who have the privilege available to stay home and practice physical distancing should do so. The headlines, too, are an uncomfortable reminder that death is a part of life.<br /><br />The reading from Romans today tells us to ‘To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.’ And while Paul was trying to encourage those who would listen about the peace of God, that’s not all that helpful to me today. It’s a form of spiritual bypassing.<br /><br />Spiritual bypassing was a term coined back in the 1980s, and refers to using faith to avoid the hard realities. It becomes a type of escapism, creating that idea in our minds that everything will be ok if we just have enough faith, instead of acknowledging truth. <br /><br />Yes, God is with us, always. That’s Good News.<br />However, we are humans, with bodies that wear out. <br /><br />Yes, God can resurrect the dry bones in the story of Ezekiel.<br />But staying home is a much healthier choice while the COVID-19 virus keeps spreading and threatens to overwhelm our healthcare system. <br /><br />And yes, we hear of a Gospel miracle, but even more healing is the example Jesus gives us in his response. The ministry we see to Martha and Mary is hard, and painful.<br /><br />The Gospel today starts out with a metaphor, and the disciples think Lazarus is sleeping. Jesus, however, is plain: “Lazarus is dead.” We don’t know what Lazarus died from, so it’s just as likely a virus as anything else.<br /><br />The rest of the story deals not so much with the idea that Lazarus is raised, but rather, the idea that Christ, God Incarnate, Jesus who was both human and divine, is present with us in our anguish and our grief. <br /><br />It’s not that Jesus wasn’t scared; in fact, Thomas expects him and the Apostles to die with him but willingly travels the pathway he has been given. But Jesus, like the healthcare professionals and essential workers all across this country, knows he must go, in spite of the risks.<br /><br />And when Jesus gets there, there’s accusation, and grief. “My brother wouldn’t have died if you had been here.” Jesus listens, and speaks with both Mary and Martha, and he weeps.<br /><br />And that weeping, that crying in grief is ok. Those conversations that are filled with doubt and fear and anger and sorrow are normal. Faith is not about certainty that all things will turn out perfectly. Instead, our God, Incarnate with us, will be with us in our uncertainty and fear. <br /><br />We don’t know what is going to happen as the days and weeks go by. There are no rosy scenarios out there right now, and the Psalm today offers the most consolation for me: “Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord.” That’s real. It tells me that my faith is there to cling to, not as a happily-ever-after scenario, but as a promise that God is always with me, regardless of the problems that I face. <br /><br />In this time of isolation, God is still making things new. The church is seeing a resurrection of sorts as people come together for worship in their living rooms or at kitchen tables. And in our uncertainty, we are finding out that the church is much more than a building. It’s you, and me, and others, tied together by the idea that the Breath of God is here, prophesying to us and telling us that we are not alone.<br /><br />Amen.</div>
Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-60572452275315532512020-02-27T04:43:00.000-08:002020-02-27T04:43:22.217-08:00An Ash Wednesday Sermon<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This is the sermon that I offered at both Ash Wednesday services at St. John's Episcopal Church in Dubuque, Iowa. The scripture readings were Joel 2:1-2,12-17, Psalm 103, 2 Corinthians 5:20b-6:10, and Matthew 6:1-6,16-21,</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The late poet Mary Oliver wrote a poem titled, “The real prayers are not the words, but the attention that comes first.” The poem itself describes the flight of a hawk that is watching, flying, and suddenly diving, coming up with its lunchtime feast. The life of a hawk is one of uncertainty, measured in length by the number of successful lunchtime dives. The details of its life are known to it and to its Creator, but not necessarily to anyone else.</span></div>
<span id="docs-internal-guid-050393ba-7fff-fbd2-1eef-b312cd298d7b" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I appreciate the detail that Mary Oliver was able to convey in the title of her piece. It seems to summarize the words of Jesus in regards to the annual spring cleaning known as Lent. It’s not enough to just engage in fasting, or in almsgiving, or in prayer; rather, part of the process is the mental preparation that will shift our actions from showmanship to authenticity, to authentic prayer that is designed to be between us and God.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Perhap you are a planner. You’ve used the Lenten planner that was in the bulletin and you’ve got a strategy that you believe will give you a successful Lent. On the other hand, perhaps you are a spur-of-the-moment person, waiting for some type of Sign that comes from the heavens to inspire you to a Lenten practice. Either way can work, but the time for preparation, for attention to detail, starts now with the ashes on our forehead.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On this journey of Lent, know that you are not involved in a reclusive, isolated solitary journey. But instead know that you are members of the family of God and that as you reach out to God, God in turn reaches back to you.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There’s a part of the service here at St. John’s each Sunday that I particularly like. It happens when Father Kevin asks for those with birthdays or anniversaries to come forward, and he prays, the beginning of the prayer is: “Oh God, our times are in Your Hands.” </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This Lent, during these forty days, what will we do with the time that God has given us? What will you do with the time that God has given you? What are we preparing to do as we work to strengthen our awareness of God’s Presence in our lives? What are you preparing to do as you work to strengthen God’s Presence in your life?</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s forty days, it begins now, God is waiting to be with each and every one of us on this journey. We just have to step out and start walking. Amen.</span></div>
Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-76680570911596499702017-11-26T11:31:00.000-08:002017-11-26T11:31:24.587-08:00A Christ the King Sermon<span style="font-family: inherit;">This short sermon was offered at the Episcopal Church of the Saviour in Clermont, Iowa on November 26, 2017. The lectionary readings were Matthew
25:31-46, Ephesians
1:15-23, Ezekiel
34:11-16, 20-24, and Psalm
100.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUgBMulp5ZLE2B7NErgD_q7rzbUDg1vlsoBeQxPZgNP1SfmlL9tHSvCnIPKhzmkOqohSO-UjbWmPWj9JgOTbZAqxsCvCFaQks0E-OSWtbAKWaFq5O3-EF4jAqeMqERAN7xvQsDISiypgo/s1600/ChristKing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" data-original-height="325" data-original-width="234" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUgBMulp5ZLE2B7NErgD_q7rzbUDg1vlsoBeQxPZgNP1SfmlL9tHSvCnIPKhzmkOqohSO-UjbWmPWj9JgOTbZAqxsCvCFaQks0E-OSWtbAKWaFq5O3-EF4jAqeMqERAN7xvQsDISiypgo/s320/ChristKing.jpg" width="230" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #0a0a0a;">This
Gospel has always struck a chord with me. Once, many years ago, I
was helping with a political event in Council Bluffs. While I was
outside getting some things from a car, an older man came up to me
and asked if he could have some money. I said no. Then he said that
he was hungry, that is why he asked for money. I said I had nothing
to give to him. He said that was ok and thanked me for my time. As
I carried the things I retrieved from the car into the building I
thought of the buffet of food that was set up inside. I dropped the
things inside the door and went back to look for him. The man was
nowhere to be seen. Then the next day in Church, this passage was
the Gospel Lesson. </span>
</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #0a0a0a;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #0a0a0a;">The
King says “</span><span style="color: black;">Come,
you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for
you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave
me food,” </span>
</span></div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: black;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">And
when those say ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave
you food?'</span></div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The
reply is ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least
of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.’
</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I
failed God, I failed Jesus, I failed the King that day, but I've
tried to learn from my failure.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
<span style="color: #0a0a0a; font-family: inherit;">I
think what Jesus is looking for is real compassion, a real response
to the needy. We often read about Jesus being filled with compassion.
A gut wrenching compassion. The heart of compassion is something that
cannot be manufactured. It is unintended, the natural product of the
heart rather than a conscious effort.</span></div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
<span style="color: #0a0a0a; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
<span style="color: #0a0a0a; font-family: inherit;">What
Jesus is looking for is uncalculating and unselfish. The blessed in
the parable gave without thought of reward, it was the last thing on
their mind. This is the very type of giving that Jesus commanded.
They gave what was needed. They gave very simple things. What they
gave did not necessarily involve very much. A meal; a place to stay;
some clothes; some time.</span></div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
<span style="color: #0a0a0a; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
<span style="color: #0a0a0a; font-family: inherit;">What
is our unselfish love? Just how do we respond to those around us? Are
we looking through people? Are we always looking for the important
person? Do we serve people out of duty, rather than love? Do we serve
people out a sense of responsibility? Do we serve people out a desire
to score points or to convert them?</span></div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
<span style="color: #0a0a0a; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
<span style="color: #0a0a0a; font-family: inherit;">And
like the need for a relationship with God, this is not something you
can either borrow or delegate. This is a real danger for us. We are
so used to paying other people to do things for us. But you cannot
buy unselfish love. You cannot delegate unselfish love.</span></div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
<span style="color: #0a0a0a; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
<span style="color: #0a0a0a; font-family: inherit;">For
we are judged not on our wealth, but on our response to the poor. We
are judged not on the evidence of our power, but on our response to
the powerless. We are judged not on our prosperity, but on our
response to the hungry.</span></div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
<span style="color: #0a0a0a; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
<span style="color: #0a0a0a; font-family: inherit;">Over
the next few days, people will be asking us the perennial
question‘Are you prepared for Christmas’. A far more important
question is this. Are you ready to see Christ the King in those
around you? I hope so.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #0a0a0a; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="border: none; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; padding: 0in;">
</div>
<div style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Amen.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: medium;"><br /></span>Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-16882243119480082252013-05-12T21:49:00.000-07:002013-05-12T21:49:53.116-07:00A sermon from May 12, 2013<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Planting the Seeds</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">This is the sermon that I preached on May 12, 2013 at Church of the Saviour, Clermont, Iowa. In addition to it being the seventh Sunday of Easter and the Sunday after the Ascension, our Church also marked it as United Thank Offering Sunday and Rogation Sunday. The texts used were Acts 16: 16-34; Revelation 22:12-14,
16-17, 20-21; & John 17: 20-26.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Wow, we are celebrating
lots of things today, the United Thank Offering, Rogation Sunday, and
the Ascension of Jesus was celebrated this past Thursday. Lots of
stuff. But thankfully for you I will keep this short.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The story in Acts about
Paul and Silas when they went to Philippi has always made me think of
the injustices that happen in our world. They were minding their own
business but a fortune telling slave girl was following them around
shouting who was telling everyone who they really were. Paul, who
must have wanted to keep a lower profile, got annoyed and with the
help of the Holy Spirit silenced the fortune telling which got the
girl's owners a bit miffed. So Paul and Silas were dragged before
the authorities who had them beaten and tossed in jail mostly because
of who they were. During the night while praying and singing, there
was an earthquake that broke open the doors and unshackled them.
Instead of running away, as most all prisoners would do, they
remained and used it as a teaching and evangelizing moment to bring
their jailer and his household to belief and baptism. They saw their
responsibility as being to God and they didn't escape. What would we
do if we were in their shoes? Would we wait around to proclaim the
good news or would we shoot out of that prison like a rocket? I
would like to think that I would stay, but I hazard to guess that I
would be afraid enough to get out.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The UTO helps those who
haven't been afraid, those people, organizations, and Churches who
haven't been afraid to stand up and proclaim the Gospel no matter
where they are. Our congregation has been the recipient of a
generous grant through UTO, through that grant we said to the local
community that in fact, we aren't a dead Church. We are living, we
are here, and we will proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ. And so
we say, 'Come'. Come to us those who have no other place to go.
Come to us those who are hungry. Come to us those that are thirsty.
Come to us those that seek Peace and Grace.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">When they come, they will
find a community of believers who might be diverse and sometimes have
their differences. And sometimes we do things which might be
considered by some to be different or old fashioned like beating the
bounds and blessing farms, gardens and those who tend them on
Rogation Sunday. But we believe that our diversity is our strength.
That God, through Jesus, and with the help of the Holy Spirit brings
us all together for our common cause.
</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">So let us remember that
Jesus died and then ascended for all of us. That with the help of
the Holy Spirit we can do great things, both here in Clermont and in
the wider world. That we should not be afraid to do what God asks us
to do. Let us remember those things and let us go out and proclaim
the Good News to whoever will listen.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">In the name of our God the
Creator, of Jesus the Redeemer, and of the Holy Spirit who is our
guide. Amen.</span></div>
Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-17796071751181039742012-05-10T22:00:00.000-07:002012-05-11T06:46:20.590-07:00Soil<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw5TDCEWLxbNzt6WPFsu2sUqzzlQKGzGsIrYfg7eunsYf1iwYf8eqlyEzNCZvxfwen7G1sQoUGfoXdAAzj5ed298gJmiCZLTYx5ut0a-I-wIimr7DO5HifUvDGerVJSs2t-4YkPPB15Hk/s1600/soil" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw5TDCEWLxbNzt6WPFsu2sUqzzlQKGzGsIrYfg7eunsYf1iwYf8eqlyEzNCZvxfwen7G1sQoUGfoXdAAzj5ed298gJmiCZLTYx5ut0a-I-wIimr7DO5HifUvDGerVJSs2t-4YkPPB15Hk/s320/soil" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Today as I was preparing the cornfield for planting and working in the garden. I started thinking about soil. Yeah, soil, dirt, that stuff that gets under my fingernails. I was just amazed at how this mixture of clay, loam, sand, organic matter, various elemental nutrients, microbes, and macrobes allows plants to grow and thus life as we know it to exist on Earth. When I got the mail, I noticed that I received one of my 'freebie' magazines that talks about soil as being a dead medium that is to be completely controlled and not something that is alive and needs to be worked with to grow the crops and produce needed for our existence. That, I believe, is the major divide in agriculture right now. The two extremes are very large scale industrial operations and very small organic practitioners. But most of the farmers I know are somewhere in the middle of these extremes. As a farmer, I try my best to grow healthy crops and as an extension, livestock, that are tasty and good to eat. Why did I become a farmer? It was for that very reason, nothing is nobler in my opinion than to grow food for people to eat. Just remember, it all starts with the soil.Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-23785751718447502052011-12-13T06:09:00.000-08:002011-12-13T06:10:25.779-08:00A Humpty Dumpty Advent Sermon<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: small;">This is the sermon I gave at the Episcopal Church of the Saviour in Clermont, Iowa on December 11, 2011.</span><br /><br />Readings:</div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">John 1:6-8, 19-28<br />1 Thessalonians 5:16-24Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11<br />Psalms 126</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">We've
all heard the old familiar nursery rhyme "Humpty Dumpty sat on a
wall. Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. All the Kings horses and all
the kings men. Couldn’t put Humpty Dumpty together again. You are
probably thinking, where in the heck is he going with this, so please
bear with me.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Humpty
Dumpty was this egg who lived in a kingdom. He was cheerful and
chipper sitting high up waiting on a wall. Never had the fear of
being poached, boiled, or fried. Never had the concern of becoming an
omelet or a meringue. Humpty Dumpty lived a good life. Sitting high
up, he was able to look down at the townsfolk as they went by. Never
had a care or a concern. But one day as he sat up on top of his wall,
something happened. Now the story doesn’t breakdown what it was.
Perhaps he had an argument with his wife. Maybe she became angry and
tried to scramble him. Perhaps he had upset his neighbor and they had
their boys go and attempt to crack him up. Maybe he had just received
a bill that was so astronomical that it caused him to split his yolk.
Maybe he found out his daughter was pregnant and became so angry he
popped, like an over boiled egg. Maybe he lost his job and it caused
him to tumble. Maybe his son got sick and it broke him up. Maybe he
got cracked up because he was strung out on crack. I don’t know, I
wasn’t there. But Humpty Dumpty fell down and he broke so the king
of the town was called to come and try to put this egg’s life back
together. Now we have all dropped an egg. We have each seen how it
splatters and shatters. Imagine the King and his men’s attitude
when they saw this mess before them. A shell in millions of pieces.
Egg white mixture possibly even beginning to sizzle on the hot
pavement. The yolk speckled with gravel and soot. Humpty Dumpty
dipped, tripped, and fell down to go splat! The king and his footmen
gave up and left Humpty Dumpty in a heap. What in the world does this
have to do with anything? </span>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Well,
Humpty was waiting around just like we do during Advent. We wait and
prepare for the birth of Jesus at Christmas. But just because we are
waiting doesn't mean that the rest of the world stops. Things happen,
and sometimes, they aren't good things, as in Humpty Dumpty's case. </span>
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<span style="font-size: small;">The
local yokels, the king and his men, couldn't put Humpty together
again. But we as a congregation can help, by supporting one another
during our time of waiting, when those little cracks appear along the
edges. </span>
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<span style="font-size: small;">But
let's look at the story again. Perhaps Humpty was a reptile egg.
Perhaps it was a baby turtle, and the cracking was a necessary part
of the process. In that case, the King's men wouldn't have been able
to put Humpty together again, but they wouldn't have wanted to.
Humpty, though the act of becoming cracked and broken, became
something new. Something that represented new life. In fact, those
cracks may have been the signal that something new was coming. In
that case, we, as a congregation, can gently help the people as they
move and grow, encouraging and being there as they transform into
something new. The cracks are normal—what we do when they appear
is our measure of Spreading the Kingdom of God.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Paul
tells us today to do a number of things including rejoice, pray, and
give thanks. Those are things that we do every week at Church during
our Prayers of the People and during Eucharist. We need to remember
that living our lives in the fashion that Paul describes will bring
us closer to God and help us in our waiting.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">In
the Gospel, John the Baptist came as a witness to the light, to be
the precursor to Jesus. John didn't simply wait though, he had an
active ministry in helping people to repent. Now we might not be all
called to a ministry like that of John the Baptist. But we all are
called to ministry, helping out those in need, and that is something
we can do during advent and all throughout the year. </span>
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<span style="font-size: small;">So,
I pray for all of us to be reminded that we shouldn't just wait
during advent or at any time of the year, we should help others when
they have a Humpty Dumpty moment and that they will help us when the
cracks appear. In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy
Spirit. Amen.</span></div>Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-31471535226425414112011-09-23T06:57:00.000-07:002011-09-30T06:59:10.346-07:00College Football - Week 4<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This week is a bye week for the Iowa State Cyclone football team.</div>
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I had a couple of fumbles in last weeks predictions. I had Oklahoma losing but they won and Iowa losing but they also won. So for the year I'm 10/12 which is 83%, a B grade, so I could improve.</div>
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My top team, Oklahoma, beat a very good Florida State team by 10 last week, this week they start conference play with Missouri. I believe that it will be a good game but in the end I have the Sooners winning by a couple touchdowns.</div>
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My bottom ranked team, the San Jose State Spartans, lost another one last week to Nevada but by a surprisingly small margin of 4 points. This week they face New Mexico State at home, this is a game that I think they can win, but it will be a squeaker, the Spartans by a field goal.</div>
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Iowa beat a good Pittsburgh team in the fourth quarter last week. They came back and beat the Panthers by 4 points. Next up for the Hawkeyes is Louisiana - Monroe of the Sun Belt Conference. The Hawkeyes should have no problem with this team. Iowa wins by four touchdowns.</div>
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The Iowa State Cyclones beat Connecticut by 4 points in a come from behind win. This is becoming familiar with this Cyclone team. Iowa State has a bye week this week, they will need it to get ready for Big XII action, starting with an improved Texas team.</div>
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Until next week, keep the grill warm at the tailgate!</div>
Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7069947960222746247.post-32139512913182532052011-09-16T09:22:00.000-07:002011-09-16T09:23:10.349-07:00College Football - Week 3<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The Iowa State Cyclones meet the University of Connecticut Huskies on Friday night.</div>
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There were some surprises that happened in the college football landscape in Week 2. But for the teams I mentioned last week, my predicted winners won and the predicted loser lost. So I was at a 100% again. But for the spreads I did ok but wasn't spot on. My top ranked team, Oklahoma had a bye week so that was easy on me. The bottom feeder, San Jose State, lost by only 10, where I had a loss by multiple touchdowns. I missed that spread by a bit. But for the BIG GAME, the Iowa State Cyclones hosting the Iowa Hawkeyes, I predicted a win by two from the Cyclones. As it turned out it was decided in the third overtime, Iowa State beat Iowa by three points. No matter who won, it was one of the most enjoyable games that I've attended in a long time. But that chapter has closed and it is time to move on to the upcoming weekend.<br />
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The Oklahoma Sooners travel to Florida State on Saturday. This is the marquee game this weekend. I believe that this will be a very tough game and a very close game. Since they are playing on the Florida State Seminoles home turf, I think that the Sooners will walk away with a loss by around a field goal.<br />
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The San Jose State Spartans host WAC foe Nevada. The Nevada Wolfpack has started out 0-1, but I believe that they should be able to handle the Spartans with no problem. The Wolfpack will win over the Spartans by a 4+ TD margin.<br />
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The Iowa Hawkeyes host Big East power Pittsburgh. The Hawkeyes have a lot of questions on both sides of the ball and I'm sure that the Pittsburgh Panthers will be ready to play. So I believe that it will be a close game but the Panthers will beat the Hawkeyes by less than a touchdown.<br />
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Finally, the undefeated Iowa State Cyclones travel to Connecticut to face the UConn Huskies on Friday night. This nationally televised game is very important to both teams. The Cyclones are overall playing better than the Huskies so my prediction is that Iowa State will win but by another close margin of less than a touchdown.Kevinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10068825247114101822noreply@blogger.com0