JOY-FULL

You may wonder why we are reading about Mary coming to see Elizabeth and why we are singing Joy to the World today.  It’s not even close to Christmas!   But this week, we are focusing on the word “JOY.”

It comes from our VBS theme verse: “May the God of hope fill you with all JOY and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

So the question that I have been asking this week is: What fills you with joy?  What makes you joy-filled? And I’ve received wonderful responses. Here’s just a few: family, friends, an act of kindness. One father was joy-full for the blessing of teenage children full of curiosity, energy and life. A mother was joy-filled at watching her daughter  -- who is on the autism spectrum – joy-fully graduate from college. He had been told that he could never make it.  Another person was grateful and joy-filled because of neighbors who reached out in new ways because of the coronavirus, offering to get groceries, sharing a good word over the fence and even leading an exercise class!

When I asked the young woman who cuts my hair what fills her with joy, she smiled and said, “I’m pregnant! My joy is knowing that despite all of the hard things that are happening in the world, I’ve got joy coming this year.”

New life is often a reason to celebrate – but not always. When a pregnant young Mary came to see her cousin Elizabeth, she could have been seeking refuge. After all, in their culture, it was disgraceful for a young woman to become pregnant before she was married. Mary could even have been stoned to death.

But instead of receiving hushed words of condemnation, Mary heard uncontrollable joy that bubbled up and out of Elizabeth. Elizabeth, pregnant with John, who would become John the Baptist, notices that her baby John is jumping in her womb. Filled with the Holy Spirit, she speaks as a prophet in a really loud voice a word of welcome to the mother of her Lord and proclaims that her son – also a bit of miracle, coming years after she had given up hope of having a child – her son is jumping for joy that the child in Mary’s womb is the Messiah. The Holy Spirit revealed to her – and she prophesizes --- that God was doing a new thing. God was keeping God’s covenantal promises in a completely surprising and unexpected way – through an unwed mother and a little baby who would be born to be our Savior.

Elizabeth was full of joy – but not because life was easy or comfortable. She and Mary were still living in a country occupied by Roman soldiers.  The source of her joy was the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit gave her eyes to see God at work in her world.

And God is still active in our world today. Sometimes it is not easy to see what God is up to. We get distracted by the many challenges of our day-to-day lives. We can get disheartened by the negativity, “disinformation” and lies of social media and political campaigns and… the list goes on.  And that was true even before the coronavirus. But, as we heard in the scripture from Isaiah, God has made a covenant, a promise to God’s people and God’s word will not return “empty” but will accomplish all that God has promised.

And that is why we can be joy-full. Despite the disheartening circumstances around us, we know that God’s word will accomplish all God intends.  As my neighbor said, “I am joyful for each new day.” And then she quoted Psalm 118, “This is the day that the Lord has made, let us be JOYFULL and glad in it!” Psalm 118:24

This has been a favorite verse of mine too – it reminds me to not get “stuck” on the challenges of my day and instead to look at each new day as a part of God’s creation.  God has made the day – and the night - and since God continues to make all things new, each day has new possibilities -- and the promise of God’s presence with us. 

Recently I heard another translation of this verse: “This is the day that the Lord has made, let us be glad and rejoice in HIM.”  That too an opportunity we have each day – to rejoice in God our creator, our redeemer, and our savior. And to rest in that assurance of God – no matter what comes our way.

As Lutherans, we are sometimes a little reticent about expressing our joy. But I’ll never forget a very joy-full first communion. A little boy came and place his hands out in the form of a cross to receive Holy Communion, just as I had taught him. And after he received the communion, he jumped up, gave a fist bump and a joy-filled shout, and ran all the way back to his pew.  He was joy-full.

As people of faith, one of the gifts that we can give to our community is a joy-filled response to God’s work in our world.  Our expressions of joy can have the exuberance of a little boy or the quiet confidence of a grandparent. It doesn’t matter how we do it, but perhaps what the world – and our neighbors – need right now is a witness of joy.

Inspired by Psalm 98, Isaac Watts wrote the hymn, “Joy to the World,” proclaiming the joy of resurrection and the salvation of the world as well as the joyful response of the whole world: earth, sky, seas and trees to the presence of the Lord God at work in our world. The song later became associated with Christmas. But it wasn’t meant as just a Christmas song but rather points to God’s presence in our world now, the Lord IS Come and will come again with truth, grace and love. So, let us rejoice!  Let us join our voices to the music of the fields, floods, rocks, hills and plains in a joy-filled response to the presence of God in our world and in our lives. Thanks be to God!

July 5, 2020

Grace, peace, and mercy from God, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen.

Good morning. I want to begin with a thank you to Bishop Svennungsen for this opportunity to serve as your preacher this morning. I recently retired from my congregation back in February, just one week before the coronavirus. I hadn’t really preached very much since that time.

I think about how when the bishop was deciding who among the many wonderful preachers she has on staff who she might have preach for today, she looked down the synod deep bench of preachers and saw me sitting at the end of the bench, at got the call. It’s like the bishop was that coach who looked down at the end of the bench and said, “Chatman, you’re in.” Thank you, Bishop Ann. Thank you faithful people of the Minneapolis Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

These are challenging times. These are times of tremendous change when we cannot gather the ways we used to gather. These are challenging days when we do not get to see all the people, we are accustomed to seeing. We do not get to hear the voices we are accustomed to hearing or the children we are used to seeing and the hope they give to the church. I don’t know about you, but the people I see when we gather, the children I see when we gather, the voices I hear when we gather, well, thy give me hope. The people I see when we gather, they remind me of the people I see in the neighborhood. Sunday morning for me, looks a lot like the rest of the week. Now, while I can’t be in the building on Sunday morning, it’s the WEEK that reminds me of Sunday morning. When I visit that sight at 38th and Chicago where George Floyd died, was killed, lynched, it kind of causes me to think of the church on Sunday morning. It causes me to ask the question, “Where is God?” The church does not cut us off from the world, the church connects us to the world. It does not matter if your congregation is in Assante, Jordan, Eden Prairie, Elk River or North or South Minneapolis. The church is the body of Christ connecting us to God’s world, God’s neighborhood.

Our gospel text for today is from the 11th Chapter of Matthew. Jesus has already been baptized by John the Baptist and fed those 5,000 people on the side of the mountain. Jesus faced temptation in the wilderness. Prior to this morning’s text Jesus had been teaching and healing people throughout the land. At the beginning of this 11th chapter, John the Baptist is in prison and he sends word to Jesus. He wants to know if Jesus is the one the world has been waiting for or should they be looking for someone else? John wants to know, “Where is God?” Jesus, are you the ONE? Are you the answer to our hopes, the answer to our dreams, or should we be looking for someone else? Jesus with a “Dah!” Go and tell John what you hear and what you see. “The blind receive their sight. The lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them.” And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me.

What we see in the text is, Jesus is lifting up John and John is lifting up Jesus. Jesus and John are great leaders in the tradition of the prophets and their mission is to fulfill God’s promise of liberation for the people of God. John and Jesus are following in the great tradition of the prophets, they are picking up their mantel and they are saying to one another and to the people of their day, “It is time.” CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW? The kingdom of God is at hand! It is time. But of course, there is resistance and there are people who do want or are not able to see or hear the promise in the person of Jesus and John.

I am reminded of when I was growing up as a child. It was way before we had cable television. We had one of those big box televisions. As a family we would gather around that tv when Mohammad Ali had a boxing match. We gathered around that big box tv when Martin Luther King was giving a speech and the civil rights movement was televised and we saw children being sprayed with water hoses and chased by police dogs. On that big box tv we relied on big rabbit ears antenna to give us reception. Quite often that reception would grow weak. Someone in the family would have to jump up and begin maneuvering that antenna to our reception. They would position the antenna to just the right position to where that reception would provide us with us a clearer picture. As we got older, we learned that that if we added aluminum foil to the antenna it would give us even better reception.

Jesus and John served as prophets. to help people hear and see the promise of God. Since the time of Abraham and Sara, God sent prophets to bring liberation and help people not forget. God sent prophets like Moses, Elijah, Elisha, Lydia, Jeremiah, Martin, Bonhoeffer and so many more. It is in this deep, deep tradition and witness that Jesus and John the Baptist offer testimony to the faithfulness of God.

The tension in the text is, people of God, our reception grows weak. In the text Jesus talks about how the people are distracted and unable or unwilling to see. Sound familiar? Our distraction is in the reality of racism. Our distraction is in the reality of white supremacy? The distraction is in the privilege and comfort of living in a nice neighborhoods where “our” children get to attend good schools, and the privilege of living in a country where we don’t have to worry about our children being forced into gangs or into sex traffic and walls are built to protect “our” privilege. In recent weeks, Minnesota has had a spotlight shined on us. In a lot of ways, the church has been fortunate that the focus has been on the police for a history of abuse and neglect.

Thankfully, we have the witness of congregations like, Holy Trinity and Calvary and others who have been at the epicenter where the death of George Floyd has turned into an international cry for racial justice and confrontation with white supremacy. That is the reality of South Minneapolis, 38th and Chicago Avenue. Let us not forget, from Wilmer to Duluth, Albert Lee to Fergus Falls and throughout our state, there are stories.

We are the church. Like Jesus and John, we are rooted in that rich prophetic witness to be the voice of God, “Can you hear me now?” We are the church, called and baptized into that prophetic tradition to proclaim, “the blind receive their sight. The lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them.”  Amen!

A cup of water; A cup of love

Jesus said, “Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. Whoever welcomes a prophet in the name of a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward; and whoever welcomes a righteous person in the name of a righteous person will receive the reward of the righteous; and whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple—truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward” (Matthew 10:40-42).

It was a hot summer day on the farm and my grandmother had sent me on an errand.  Bring this basket to your grandfather – he’s in the hayfield. I wondered what she had packed… I hoped it was cookies and I hoped she had packed enough for me to have one too.

I trudged over the fields to where my grandfather was working and hailed him as he came around the corner of the field. Seeing me and the basket, he stopped the tractor and walked over to the shade tree. It was a hot day and so he mopped his brow before opening the basket. Hoping there were cookies inside, I could wait for him to unpack the basket… but he took his time.

Don Juel, one of my seminary professors, helped me to understand how to unpack the message of the Bible. This too takes time – and he suggested that we start by asking the right questions. Unfortunately, we don’t always ask questions - as many faithful Christians treat the Bible as simply a book of rules, or as a set of commandments, so the question we tend to ask is, “What does the Bible tell me to do?” And while the Bible does teach lots of commandments, especially in the Old Testament, that’s not all the Bible has to say. Indeed, if we jump to the question of what should we do first, we might miss the most important message that the Bible has to teach us.

The Bible tells God’s story in history – but it is not a history book. God’s story continues today. It teaches commandments for how to live a good life but it also gives words of lament as God’s people grieve in pain and loss and offers profound words of promise as God’s people hear a word of hope. Dr. Juel taught that the first question to ask when reading the Bible, is “What does this text mean? And secondly, what does it mean for me?”

So let’s begin with the first question: What does this text mean? Putting it in context, Jesus is talking to the disciples who he is sending out to villages ahead of him and proclaiming Jesus’ message, healing the sick and preparing hearts and minds to come and see Jesus. Jesus has warned them that it won’t be easy. Not everyone will accept them. But they will not be alone. They will be welcomed and when someone welcomes them… they welcome Jesus too.

But now let’s ask, “what does it mean for me?” Rolf Jacobson, another seminary professor, invites you to look for where you, the reader, is located in the text, because the Bible is not simply a history book. It’s written for you and me too. The first line of today’s text reads:  “Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me.” The “you” in this line is plural so what Jesus is saying in our Gospel today is that whoever welcomes you’all is also welcoming him, Jesus – and Jesus’ Father in heaven.  And that’s a promise. God is with you’all.

So we can understand what that meant for the disciples, but we aren’t going out into villages ahead of Jesus, healing people and proclaiming the good news. We are somewhere in the middle of social unrest because of the racial injustices facing our black and brown brothers and sisters AND a pandemic – trying to be safe and to keep physical distance between one another while at the same time trying to live life in a way that makes sense until a vaccine is developed. So what does it mean for us to be sent out and what does Jesus’ promise mean for us?

Our circles, those we interact with on a regular basis, feel like they have gotten smaller, for a time. And yet… Jesus has sent you’all out –like the apostles – to share God’s love with people in your circle, people who are in a variety of places and who have a variety of attitudes about Jesus.

Of course, being sent out doesn’t always mean that we need to be physically present in order to share God’s love.  In this time of physical separation, God has still been at work as congregational members call, mail, email and use social media to extend a word of care to another. God has been at work in healthy conversations about the need to change racial injustice. God’s word is being sent out in a variety of ways – from online worship to radio services to mailed out bulletins and sermons.

And sometimes, we are called to show up. This past week I was invited to lead the celebration of life for Dave Olson, the husband of Heather and father of 10 year old Noah and 5 year old Lily. We held the service in a nearby park and friends and family and most of the guys from Dave’s work came too. There were lots of people – but people wore masks and did their best to both try to be safe and to support the family. After memories were shared, they welcomed me to share a word of grace and God’s love in this time of pain and loss. And as they welcomed me, they welcomed Jesus Christ. And Jesus gave me the words to speak into their pain, words of God’s love and care and presence with them always.

After the service, the extended family, wearing masks and gloves shared God’s love another way – by offering hotdogs, pulled pork and a whole smorgasbord of food for the whole community. The cross of Christ shone brightly on their foreheads as they served their neighbor. Jesus sends us out to share God’s love in many ways. And helps us unpack it.

After I gave my grandfather the basket my grandmother had prepared, he carefully unwrapped something wrapped in newspaper. I waited with anticipation. As he unwrapped it, I heard a clinking sound and watched as he opened up. It was just a mason jar filled with ice and water. But the way my grandfather savored that ice cold water made it look like he had received the finest drink in the world. It looked so good that I asked if I could try it. He smiled and shared it with me. It really was still water. But it was good. And so were the cookies that he shared that had been hidden under the water jar. But that cold water and clinking ice in the mason jar that had been carefully wrapped in newspaper by my grandmother wasn’t just water. It was love. And I was glad to be the messenger who was sent out to bring a cup of love to him.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we are messengers of God’s good news. Sometimes we deliver it in mason jars filled with water and sometimes with cards and messages of hope and sometimes just with a phone call, a text message or tweet. But, however we share God’s good news, Jesus is with us and blesses us and the message we share. In Jesus’ name. Amen.   

Following Jesus

The Gospel of Matthew 10:24-39 

Jesus said: “A disciple is not above the teacher, nor a slave above the master;  it is enough for the disciple to be like the teacher, and the slave like the master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household!

“So have no fear of them; for nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known.  What I say to you in the dark, tell in the light; and what you hear whispered, proclaim from the housetops. Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. And even the hairs of your head are all counted. So do not be afraid; you are of more value than many sparrows.

 “Everyone therefore who acknowledges me before others, I also will acknowledge before my Father in heaven;  but whoever denies me before others, I also will deny before my Father in heaven.

 “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and one’s foes will be members of one’s own household. (Micah 7:6)

Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up the cross and follow me is not worthy of me.  Those who find their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.NRSV  The Gospel of our Lord.

Following Jesus

If you asked a marketing expert how to excite people, woo them, get buy-in, chances are, they would not point you to this passage from the Gospel of Matthew. But then… Jesus isn’t interested in gaining market share. Instead, Jesus is interested in you, not just the Sunday morning you, not just a piece of you, but your whole life.  Jesus is calling you into discipleship.

In our Gospel, Jesus warns that it won’t be easy; he tells followers not to be afraid, and then challenges us to a life of discipleship, which means not only learning the way of Jesus but then also actively following Jesus….so that we may truly live. 

Susan Beaumont, a pastor consultant, shared a story about an ordinary follower of Jesus named Ada Mae, the matriarch of a congregation she once served. As the story goes, early in the church’s history, the church had fallen on hard times – the attendance dwindled and they couldn’t even afford a pastor. But… faithfully, every Sunday, Ada Mae went and lit the candles in the sanctuary and every year she filed the paperwork so that they could stay open as a congregation. This was the story that everyone knew about Ada Mae. They told the story when celebrating their anniversary. They told the story to new members. Everyone knew about Ada Mae and how she lit the candles and filed the paperwork until the church grew again.

But Susan wondered: Well… how did the church grow again? What happened? She asked the pastor. He didn’t know. She asked the council. They didn’t know. She asked some long-time members. They didn’t know either. The only story that anyone seemed to know about their past was that Ada Mae faithfully lit the candles and filed the paperwork until the church grew again.

Susan then asked the office volunteers if they could check the archives to find out what happened. How did the church start to grow again?

They did. It turns out that something else did happen. One year, Ada Mae and the handful of the faithful members of the church who were left, decided that they needed a pastor if they were going to grow. So, they prayed – a lot. But that’s not all. Then they moved into action. Ada Mae – and this group of faithful members -- gave sacrificially until they had enough money saved so that they could hire a pastor.

And then the pastor joined them in giving sacrificially and in going out into their neighborhood to invite people to worship. But that still wasn’t enough for them to grow. So they prayed some more. And then, Ada Mae led the charge to sell the building and join with another congregation so that together they could minister to and with the neighborhood. 

And THEN they grew – by a lot.  Ada Mae was an ordinary person who people remembered for lighting the candles and filling out the paperwork. But it turned out that she did other things too.  She prayed; she gave; and she dared to try something new for the sake of Jesus. That’s discipleship.

Discipleship, following Jesus, is about putting God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – first in your life, above all other things and all other relationships. It means trusting in the Word of God and letting God’s spirit guide you.  - even if it isn’t popular, even if it will raise eyebrows, even if it goes against the authorities of the day.

So, how do we follow Jesus in this day and this time filled with fear of the pandemic, anxiety about a slow economy and an awaking to the reality of injustice, especially to our black and brown brothers and sisters that is captured on film and proclaimed on the internet?

Although we began this year with a theme of “Seeing with 2020 vision” and mission, it is now clear now that we can’t see what lies ahead. I don’t even know when we will be able to worship in the church in-person!  But that unknown has forced us to try new things: online worship; Holy communion with zoom and at your doorstep; worship at home; worship in the parking lot with a radio transmitter that.. usually works. We have had to change. We have had to adapt.

We are in a changing time. But that also brings opportunities.

I wonder, if we are also able to change the way we as a country treat people who are black and brown because of the injustices that we now see, thanks to technology. Because of technology, with horrified eyes, we can’t help but see the injustices our black brothers and sisters endure and have endured.

Jesus tells us not to keep silent but to proclaim it from the rooftops. Or from the internet… or in letters written to the editor of the paper or to the elected officials.

In the 1930s, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German pastor, in response to the horrors of Nazi Germany, refused to keep silence.  In The Cost of Discipleship, he challenged fellow Christians to adopt costly and not cheap grace, saying “Cheap grace is the grace we bestow on ourselves… Cheap grace is grace without discipleship… Costly grace is the Gospel.” Further, he writes that the life of discipleship is obedience to Jesus Christ and Jesus’ call to love God and love the neighbor.

Friends, Jesus calls you and me into a life of discipleship.  It might be you are called to pray and give and encourage like Ada Mae. Or it may be that you are called to protest or to write letters or make phone calls. I can’t claim a clear 20/20 vision for exactly how you should live out this call of discipleship. But I do know this:  1) Jesus has promised to be with us – and so we don’t need to be afraid; 2) Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to guide us as we listen both to scripture and to our neighbors; 3) Jesus is calling you to a life of discipleship, following Jesus. Brothers and sisters, siblings in Christ, let us follow Jesus in loving God and loving our neighbor – all of them -- so that we can live in the beloved community where God’s will and God’s way rather than our will our way is done.  We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Faith-Lilac Way Lutheran Church                   June 21               Pastor Pam Stalheim Lane

Sin, Suffering, Sustaining, Saving

Suffering. This is a very real term. Suffering has been and continues to be a universal truth. Suffering is certain right along with “death and taxes.”  Suffering is the uniting force that everyone is a part of and bot one can escape from.  And I surely don’t have to convince you of this reality of suffering—all you need to do is talk a walk in your neighborhood, drive through the streets of your city, turn on your television, or look in the mirror. Indeed, you do not need to look hard or far to find suffering in this world or in your own life.

And since this is such a real and constast presence in our lives, we want to understand it. Great thinkers, philosophers, theologians, writers, poets, mothers wiping dirt-stained tears off their child’s face—all have grappled with the cause, meaning, or explanation of suffering because maybe then suffering could be contained or avoided all together. Why do we suffer? It’s a question for the ages.

In a sermon during his tenure as Minister at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. preached a sermon on the human condition.

There is something wrong with human nature, something basically and fundamentally wrong. A recognition of this fact stands as one of the basic assumptions of our Christian faith… Wherever we discover life, somehow we discover this gone-wrongness. Wherever there is a struggle for goodness, we discover, on the other hand, a powerful antagonism, something demonic, something that seems to bring our loveliest qualifies to evil and our greatest endeavors to failure. Theologians have referred to this over the years as “sin.” That is something that stands at the core of life, this element of sin. And whenever we think about man we must think of this tragic fact-that man is a sinner.[1]

We are sinners. All of us. Sin is the core problem in our lives and the core cause of our sufferings. Sin—inwardly or outwardly. Sin—individually, communally, systemically. Sin is our problem.

We don’t much like that word, “sin” though. It’s accusatory and harsh and so, we as a church, as a culture, as individuals—have devised ways to skirt around the issue. We’ve evolved as a people. We know better now. We’ve softened the language and psychologized the theology so we don’t feel so “bad” about sin. We’re so progressive. We’re so well-intentioned. We’re so “woke” that sin isn’t really a problem for us anymore. Maybe sin still exists metaphorically, or maybe sin exists for “those” people, but certainly not for me, right?...The greatest sinner is the one who denies the existence of sin within themselves.

If we peel back the protective layers of denial and expose the truth in ourselves—our thoughts, words, deeds, jerk reactions, racing thoughts, actions or inactions, our hatred or indifference of injustice towards marginalized people, our participation in the perpetual destruction of the Earth and its resources, the self-loathing that permeates every fiber of our being. When we peel back the layers, the truth about us is exposed: We are in bondage to sin and cannot free ourselves.

Sin is real. Sin leads to suffering.

And if this were the end, what a bleak and depressing reality that would be. If this were the only truth how could we ever have the strength to face another day, another moment, another breath in this life?

But, my dear Brothers and Sisters, this is not the end. We are not abandoned and left alone to succumb in our sin-sick state. For you see, Brothers and Sisters, we have a Savior. A Savior named Jesus the Christ, who, while we were still sinners, claimed us as Beloved, and died on a cross to rescue us from our sinful selves.

The Apostle writes, “God proves God’s love for us in this: that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom.5:8).

This is the reality and truth that we cling to. And it is because of this reality and this truth—that Christ died for us sinners—because of this that the Apostle Paul proclaims that we can boast in our suffering. And it is because of this truth and reality that Martin Luther wrote, “God does not save those who are only imaginary sinners. Be a sinner, and let your sins be strong [or sin boldly], but let your trust in Christ be stronger, and rejoice in Christ who is the victor over sin, death, and the world.”[2] Sin boldly. Boast in suffering. What odd concepts!

We boast in our suffering, not because we have to “smile through the pain” or as some sort of masochistic act. We boast in our suffering because God USES our suffering for good. Boast in our suffering because “suffering produces endurance, endurance produces character, and character produces hope and hope does not disappoint” (Rom. 5:3-5).

 God knows your suffering. Jesus Christ knew suffering and God used his suffering on the cross to reclaim us and save us from our sinful selves. God does not promise to spare us from suffering, but God promises to walk with us as we go through it. God promises to use our suffering and indeed all of our experiences for God’s good in the world. God uses our suffering so that we, filled with the oomph of the Holy Spirit can be the hands and feet of God for the world and our neighbors in need.

Suffering is real. But so are God’s promises. The promise to give to the faith, courage, mercy and hope to endure whatever you face on your journey.  The promise to be with your from your first breath until you last, from this day until the end of days. The promise of resurrection into New Life.

Thanks be to God.

Amen.

May God bless you with discomfort,
At easy answers, half-truths,
And superficial relationships
So that you may live
Deep within your heart.

May God bless you with anger
At injustice, oppression,
And exploitation of people,
So that you may work for
Justice, freedom and peace.
 

May God bless you with tears,
To shed for those who suffer pain,
Rejection, hunger and war,
So that you may reach out your hand
To comfort them and
To turn their pain to joy
 

And may God bless you
With enough foolishness
To believe that you can
Make a difference in the world,
So that you can do
What others claim cannot be done
To bring justice and kindness
To all our children and the poor.

Amen.

  --Sr. Ruth Marlene Fox

[1] The Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Jr., Sermon. “Man’s Sin and God’s Grace.” Montgomery, Alabama. 1954-1960. http://okra.stanford.edu/transcription/document_images/Vol06Scans/1954-1960Man'sSinandGod'sGrace.pdf

[2]Martin Luther. “Let Your Sins Be Strong: A Letter From Luther to Melanchthon” Letter no. 99, 1 August 1521, From the Wartburg. LW Vol. 15:2585-2590.

I am with you

Matthew 28:16-20

Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age." 

Jesus, said, “Remember, I am with you always.”That’s a promise. And at times like these, it is a promise that I need to both hold onto as tightly as I can and proclaim this promise to you: “Jesus said, “Remember, I am with you always.” 

We live in challenging times. It’s a time of lament. It is a time to lament not being able to gather even to worship because of the danger of Covid19 which is still infecting and killing people; a time to lament the death of George Floyd at the hands of police; a time to lament the sin of racism; and a time to lament the destruction of hopes and dreams, and the burning and vandalism of businesses, a post office, a school and lots of buildings. 

In the midst of this time of lament, you may be wondering, where is the God who promised to be with you always? If this is your question, I invite you to take a look at the Psalms. The Psalms are considered the prayer book of the people of God and contain prayers and songs to God over the entire span of human emotion. 

Psalm 13, for example, begins with this plaintive cry, “How long O Lord? Will you forget me forever? Will you hide your face from me? How long shall I have perplexity in my mind and grief in my heart day after day?” 

We too have a lot of uncertainty in our midst and questions about what in the world God is doing.  So you might ask, “Where are you God when people get sick from the virus? Where were you when a police officer was leaning on George Floyd’s neck? Where were you when some people pretended to be protestors and instead of grieving, start fires in the community and smash windows and burn buildings?  It’s ok to ask these questions and more! The Psalmists did and so have people of faith throughout history. Questions do not scare or offend God.  Instead, God welcomes the conversation. So, whenever you feel like it is time to lament, I encourage you to take your questions, your concerns and your heartache to God in prayer.  Remember - God can take it. 

I can imagine a psalmist who is angry with God writing Psalm 13. Because, after asking God another question, “How long must this go on?” the Psalmist challenges God saying, “Look at me and answer me! After all, God, you don’t want people to say that you let me down, do you?” 

The challenge to God is swift and honest. But then…. something happens. God somehow answers that prayer. Because, despite all the heartache and all the complaints that have been lodged against God, the Psalm ends with these words: “But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart is joyful because of your saving help.”  Even though the Psalm is only 6 verses long, in those six verses, the Psalmist goes from lament and despair to challenging God to rejoicing and praising God.

But many of us aren’t there yet. We are still stuck in the despair of lament. And, while I would love to clap my hands or snap my fingers and get out of this season of lament and be able to say, “Aha! That’s what God is doing!” God doesn’t work like that. God doesn’t work on our schedule,  because even or maybe especially, in those times when our eyes are dimmed – maybe too full of tears -- we often can’t see God’s presence in our midst. And yet, God is with us – just as God promised.  It’s just that sometimes, we can’t see God’s presence, until we look in the rear-view mirror.

Earlier this week, I was in conversation with Charles Clomon, the trustee of Greater St. John Missionary Baptist. I asked him how he was doing and how their people were doing. He said that they were mourning the loss of businesses that people count on for employment, for groceries and for living their daily life. But, he said, he had grown up in the South, had experienced the pain of the 60s. Looking back, he was able to put the present time into context and so he said that we are at a time that is better than any other time before for tackling some of the issues of racism because, he believed, people are ready to listen.

I was encouraged by Mr. Clomon’s word of hope and I pledged that we would listen to hear his story and the other stories of the people at Greater St. John Missionary Baptist. 

Listening. Respect-filled listening can be powerful.   Bishop Desmond Tutu tells what happened in Rwanda with the Truth in Reconciliaton Commission.  Victims told their stories. Perpetrators listened. Those who did wrong to  their neighbor confessed. It was a holy and difficult process.  

I don’t know what kind of a process would work in our world today. But there is one thing that I do know: Jesus is with you and with you and with you, just as he promised.  And so, whenever you meet with another person, you are meeting with that person AND Jesus.  

That’s a powerful combination.

It is clear that we have work to do to show our love and care to our neighbors – our brothers and sisters, siblings in Christ especially those who have experienced hardship and pain because of the color of their skin, the place that their parents were born, their gender or something else. But the good news is this: Brothers and sisters, friends in Christ, despite the challenges of this world, know this:  Jesus is WITHYOUand has sent the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us – just as he promised. Thanks be to God! Amen. 

Pentecost

There is nothing better than a cool breeze on a summer night. But the wind in the Acts story sounds more like a tornado than a soft breeze off the lake. And we all know how unpredictable and unexplainable tornadoes can be – ripping up everything in its path from houses, barns and big trees while leaving a swing set in the neighbor’s yard intact.

The wind that came on Pentecost was indeed unpredictable – it brought tongues of fire.  

Fire. Fire can be wonderful source of heat and light – like a campfire you might gather round to roast marshmallows or sing Bible camp songs. But fire can also be dangerous – and out of control, like the fires in Australia, California and elsewhere that burned and burned and burned, destroying homes and forests and turning the air black.   Fire burns – and as it burns it destroys.

But in the book of Acts, no one rushes for the fire extinguisher or even a bucket of water because the divided tongues of fire didn’t burn, hurt or destroy. Instead, they brought people together.

The Spirit that came in on the rushing wind gave people from different cultures and places the ability to understand – in their native tongue – the message of Jesus. And notice – the spirit did not just land on one person, identifying a leader. It rested on everyone. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability. Peter  - a fisherman -  began to preach quoting  scripture and proclaiming the good news of Jesus’ love, forgiveness and salvation for each one. And the people believed.

This was a remarkable moment in time, and sounds like it would make a good ending to the story.  But it is not the end of the story. It is a new chapter in God’s story that extends to you today. For God’s promise is that “I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions and your old men shall dream dreams… even those who are slaves, men and women…” This is a statement not about what has been done already but a prophesy for the future, what God will do.

But here’s the challenge:  The Holy Spirit is impossible to measure or quantify or to contain. Jesus compares it to the wind, saying, “The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” 

So how do we know what the Spirit is up to?  The simple answer is that Holy Spirit does the work of God.  But that is like saying God does God’s work.  Turning to Martin Luther, who was wise in these things, said in the small catechism that the Holy Spirit “calls, gathers, enlightens and makes holy.” And, “abundantly forgives all sins – mine and all believers.”

This means that God, through the Holy Spirit, is actively engaged in your life, calling you through the Gospel – that is the Good News story of Jesus Christ and gathering us together – however we can gather – to worship God and be in community with one another.  The Holy Spirit is also enlightening you with God’s gifts  - every flower, the birds that chirp in the morning – even the crows, the spectacular sunrise and sunset each day, the wonder of all of creation and all of God’s created creatures… including people. The Holy Spirit gives it all to us including the gifts of intellect, creativity, beauty and wholeness so that we catch a glimpse of the wonder of God.  It means that the Holy Spirit is working on making you holy.

But…maybe you don’t feel holy. That’s ok. That probably means that you acknowledge that you’ve got room to grow. That’s why the Holy Spirit also ABUNDANTLY forgives our sins – those things that we do, say, think and imagine that are not in line with the way that God would have us be. Believe me, we all fall short.  

During this pandemic time, one Christian leader encouraged me and other pastors, to stop, hit the pause button and take some time to reflect on what lessons we could learn from this time of disruption  -- and from the Holy Spirit. I’ve begun to do this and think it’s helpful and so I invite you to press the pause button too: What are the things that you do just because you always do them? Are there any of these things that you or the Holy Spirit might want you to change?  What are the things that you used to do that you really want to return to? Are there things that you took for granted that you want to celebrate? Have you learned anything?

These are questions that can challenge us to grow in the way that we live and order our lives. And the Holy Spirit is there to help!

The pandemic is affecting our community and our world but not everyone is being affected in the same way. Some are inconvenienced; others are facing hardship or challenge or grieving from the loss of a loved one, a job or a dream or an opportunity. The question, for us as Christians, is how do we care for those who are grieving, hurting or in pain?

And the pandemic is not the only problem that we face as a community and as a culture. When we read the story of Pentecost, it is clear that the prophecy and promise are for all people regardless of what gender or culture or age or economic status or race or what country or club or tribe they are in or were from. But this week, many of us saw the video of the police officers kneeling on the neck of George Floyd, even while he begged them for his life, telling them that he could not breathe.  George died because they would not – until an ambulance came to take him away after he was no longer responsive. This kind of police brutality cannot be tolerated. Racism in all its forms goes against the will of God.

As people of God, we must speak up against this act of violence. This is not the way that God calls us to act and calls us to repent and calls us to pray. May the fire of God burn the sin of racism from our hearts and our minds and our actions. May the Holy Spirit blow into us a new and renewing spirit – and not only to us – but to all God’s people. 

Brothers and sisters, friends in Christ. We’ve got work to do so that all God’s people may be safe and not bullied because of the color of their skin or the origin of their parents or anything else. We’ve got some work to do. And we have a teacher. Jesus calls us to love our black neighbors as he loves us. The Holy Spirit calls us to stand with our black brothers and sisters in this time of pain and hurt and loss. 

Rob Bell, in his book, “What we talk about when we talk about God,” asks whether God has “a better, more inspiring vision for our future than we could ever imagine or is God behind, back there, in the past, endlessly trying to get us to return to how it used to be?”  Frankly, our past has not been great when it comes to loving our neighbor. But the Holy Spirit is leading us and calling us into greater love, joy, justice, equality and peace.

We’ve got work to do.  But we’ve got a great partner because the Holy Spirit is also called “The Advocate.”

The Holy Spirit is our advocate and the advocate for all who are hurting, all who are abused and mistreated. So even when bad things happen and fires rage and winds blow and illness threatens, and even we don’t know the best course of action, know this: We are not alone but God, through the Holy Spirit is with us, for us and ahead of us, renewing the face of the earth and beckoning us ALL to new life in Jesus’ name. Amen. 

Living in a Liminal Time

When playing hide and seek, Lucy decides to hide in a wardrobe – a closet that stored old winter coats. Wanting to be really well hidden, she takes a step back and then another and another until she notices that the warm wool and fur of the coats suddenly feels more like evergreen tree branches. She takes one step further and she finds herself no longer in the wardrobe but in the land of Narnia. 

This is how C.S.Lewis’ Chronicles of Narniabegins. When Lucy is in-between the wardrobe and Narnia, in that place where the coats start to feel like tree branches, she was in what is called a “Liminal place.” 

Liminal gets its name from the word lintel, the piece of wood that you step over when you cross the threshold of a doorway.  A liminal time is when you feel like you are neither here nor there but in-between. That’s what this time of pandemic feels like to me. We are living in a liminal time, a time between what we used to consider “normal” and a time when the corona virus will be contained. We are in transition, not really knowing where we’re going and not able to go back to where we were. 

It’s a surprising time: Who would have guessed a year ago that we would be worshipping at home – either online or with a mailed bulletin? I certainly wouldn’t have – nor would I have guessed at the creativity that has sprung up as we seek to connect with one another via online worship, zoom, and with good old telephone calls. And it isn’t just us. People are reaching out more than ever. Verizon recently reported that customers are making 800 million calls a day now—double the amount on a normal Mother’s Day and sending 9 billion text messages.

The whole world is in liminal time, a time of uncertainty, a time of crisis. So what do we do?  We could just hunker down and wait. But the church has been on the verge of this liminal time for a while now and so maybe this is an opportunity to try new things. As Winston Churchill is often credited with saying, “A crisis is a terrible thing to waste.” That’s because, in a crisis, people are more open to trying new things – because we have to – and we are less afraid of failing. Not all experiments are going to work. But there is no shame in that! Who knows? Some of our experiments may birth new ways of being church together and reach people that we have not reached before. 

When Jesus was talking with the disciples about keeping his commandments, the disciples did not realize that this was Jesus’ last night with them. They did not know they were about to enter a liminal time – a time of uncertainty, of unknowing, a time in which everything that had seemed certain would be changed. God was doing a new thing, and like it or not, they were a part of it. 

Jesus tries to prepare them. He assures them that, even though they might feel abandoned, lonely and afraid, they could count on two things staying the same: 

1)     God loves them;

2)     They will notbe alone. 

But…Jesus does not hide the fact that some things are going to change.

Yet even in the changes, they will not be abandoned. They will have an Advocate. The Greek word is paraclete. Parameans “with” and cletemeans “walk”. So a Paraclete is one who walks with you, who is your advocate. Jesus promises that the Paraclete, who is also called the Holy Spirit, will accompany them – and us!. 

In addition to comforting the disciples, Jesus also encourages them to act. He tells them: keep my commandments.Again, some things remain the same - the commandments of Jesus haven’t changed for the disciples – or for us. Remember? The greatest commandment is to  love the Lord your God with all our heart and strength and might. And the second is to love your neighbor as yourself. These commandments were based on commandments given from the beginning of God’s relationship with God’s people.  Some things don’t change. 

‘In this liminal time, this time in which our routines have been disrupted and habits changed, uncertainty prevails and it is tempting to despair. But at times like this, it is good to remember what we can count on – what stays the same. What Jesus said to the disciples, I proclaim to you:  

1st:  Jesus loves you ; 

2nd: Jesus will never abandon youbut has sent the Paraclete, the Advocate, the Holy Spirit to walk with you; and

3rd: Jesus calls us into action!

What is this action? We are called to love God, our neighbors and ourselves just as Jesus loves us. This is what is core to our faith and to who we are as God’s people. 

I know this time is hard. Change is hard.  Yet, in this liminal time, we have discovered that we can adapt. It no longer works to “do it like we always have.” As a result, we are finding new ways to share the love of God and resurrecting old old ways. Creativity is exploding!  For example, we and our Wildfire partners are in the midst of creating a VBS at Home. It’s creative, it’s fun and we hope to engage parents and youth as well as kids. And that’s a good thing. 

In this liminal time, I invite you to hold on to both God’s promises that remain the same: God loves you and will never abandon you and, even in the midst of change, trust that the Holy Spirit will walk with us as God calls us into action to love and serve God and our neighbor as Christ has loved and served us. 

The hymn that we are about to sing proclaims those things that Jesus promises will not change – God’s love and the promise to be with you always. These are the promises you received at baptism: “I have called you each by name…I love you and you are mine.” 

And, because music has a way of staying with us, the song that we will sing at the end of the service will remind us we are called into God’s transforming mission even as things change. The ways that we can act now may be different than they were before the pandemic. But with Jesus calling and the Holy Spirit leading, God’s possibilities for you to share God’s transforming Good News have just begun. Thanks be to God. Amen! 

How can we possibly know the way?

How can we possibly know the way? Click here to read the sermon.

Abundant Life

There are a lot of sheep in the Bible. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob all had sheep. Moses tended sheep.  Even King David was first a shepherd boy and the 23rdPsalm is ascribed to him. There are sheep in the Christmas story. Jesus tells the parable of the lost sheep. And, in today’s Gospel, Jesus compares himself to a shepherd. 

In speaking about sheep, Jesus used an image that was pretty common in Israel then – and now. But…there aren’t many – if any-- of us that have raised sheep, at least not lately – but I think that a sheep can still be a good image for us and our situation today if we learned or remembered a few things about sheep. 

First, we tend to think of sheep as adorable stuffed animals.  But it turns out that sheep are much dirtier and more resilient than they are made out to be. When the Psalmist talks about “green pastures” I often imagine sheep in a field with lush green grass or sweet alfalfa.  But sheep can find nourishment in the green grasses that creep up along the sides of the rock that is sprinkled with dew or snow. Sheep can travel up mountainsides and down into valleys. However… they aren’t known for being very bright. Instead, they follow their nose from one green grass to another.  Resilient – but highly distractible – sheep need a shepherd. 

And so do we.  Like the sheep, we are resilient – and distractible. Like sheep, we don’t always make the best choices and like sheep, we too need direction, protection and care.  We need a Shepherd. And Jesus offers us that – and more. Jesus said, “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” 

Maybe life doesn’t feel very abundant these days. Separated from family and friends, we are getting restless to resume life as “normal.” We all yearn to be able to go to work, school, and other events. We long to gather together for worship and play without having to worry about getting sick ourselves and overloading the hospitals. 

And yet… What does it mean to have abundant life? 

In the 23rdPsalm, the abundant life is described as green pastures (remember what green pastures looked like? Maybe they were verdant or maybe they were rocky – but there was enough…especially when resources are shared). Abundant life was described as still waters – peace - as well as safety even in the midst of dark valleys. There is not only enough, there is an abundance, a fullness of life - because of the presence of the Lord. 

This is why Jesus came - that they – and we all - may have life with him. That’s what abundant life is – it’s life with Jesus Christ.  

Abundant life – with Jesus Christ - this is the promise that Jesus gave his disciples – and this is the promise that Jesus gives to you. And not only to you – this gift of Abundant Life, life with Jesus Christ, is given to you ALL. 

This is not a promise that you will have everything that you want. But this is a promise – from Jesus – that regardless of the situation that you find yourself in today or any of your tomorrows, your life will nevertheless be filled with the fullness that comes from Christ.

Again, this is nota promise that you won’t get sick. This is not a promise that bad things won’t happen to you or to those you love. But if and when you or those you love are ill, hurting or in pain – you will not be alone, even if your family and friends can’t be near. For Jesus Christ will be. 

For Jesus is with you when you use your gifts as a medical or care person – going into the hospital or nursing homes to care for the people despite the danger; 

Jesus is with you when you go to your job at a grocery store or other place that needs to stay open to serve people; 

Jesus is with you whenyou shelter in place so that you keep yourself and others from getting sick and overwhelming the medical teams;

Jesus is with you when you are feeling lost, alone or afraid. 

Jesus is with you if you get the virus or have to quarantine. 

Jesus is with you… no matter what. 

We do not know what will happen with the corona virus in the next days and weeks and even months. But we do know the end of the story – and so you and I do not have to be afraid.  Our Shepherd, Jesus Christ, is with you and will never forsake you. We know that Jesus came so that you, you all may have life, abundant life, with him.  That’s a promise. Thanks be to God.  Amen. 

Pastor Pam Stalheim Lane        Faith-Lilac Way Lutheran         May 3, 2020

Come Thou Unexpected and Surprising Jesus

Have you heard the news? I’m sure you have, after all it’s all anyone is talking about now-a-days. Normal feels so far away. Instead, all anyone can talk about or think are the recent events that have turned the world upside down, and in the process, shattering hopes and dreams for what could have been. It’s all anyone is talking about, now-a-days. People feel confused, scared, they are grieving and mourning, disoriented and in deep despair. Have you heard the news? How could this have happened?

These questions and these feelings may very well capture the zeitgeist of our current time amidst the COVID19 pandemic wrecking havoc on the world right now, but these questions and feelings also set the scene for the scripture reading today as we hear about two grieving disciples walking away from Jerusalem, lamenting the hopes and dreams they left behind.

You see, these disciples, these two people had been following Jesus, watching him perform miracles, listening to him teach and preach, sharing meals with him and the other disciples. But then the events of the past few days, shattered their way of life, turned their world upside down, left with nothing but dashed hopes, they decide to leave Jerusalem—what’s left for them there now anyways?

Along their journey, a stranger approaches them. It was Jesus, but their eyes were kept from recognizing him. Jesus asks what they are talking about, to which they respond something to the effect of, “What? Have you been living under a rock?” But as they journey on the road together, the disciples share with new travel companion.

They continue talking and share the trauma experienced during the recent events—How Jesus of Nazareth was arrested, put on trial, beaten, mocked and whipped, how he hung on a cross, crowned with thorns, how he hung in shame and pain until finally, in agony, he breathed his last. They tell how he was then buried in a tomb before the evening of Sabbath, but then, three days later, earlier this morning, some women in their group had gone to Jesus’ tomb, which was empty, and then they saw a vision of angels declaring that Jesus was alive. These travelers knew the details of the events that took place, but that data does not add up to belief in and hope for the resurrection. Faith is not self-generated, so with nothing left for them in Jerusalem, they decided to leave.

Their new companion listens as these disciples share of their grief and loss—“But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel” they told him. But now, hopes dashed, they wander away from Jerusalem and all that could have been…

What are the dashed hopes in your life? What are you grieving? Our whole world is experiencing the trauma of the coronavirus pandemic and I know that this was not what any of us had anticipated for our lives in 2020. What are the dashed hopes in your life right now?

          Perhaps you are missing school and seeing your friends. Perhaps you’ve been looking forward to you graduation from High School, College, or Seminary. Perhaps a birthday, anniversary, or travel adventure has been postponed. Perhaps you’ve lost your job or you’ve been furloughed, or your hours have been cut, or you don’t know how much longer your business will be able to stay afloat. Perhaps you’re overwhelmed by the mounting bills or the dwindling food in the pantry. Perhaps “home” is not a safe or happy place to be, perhaps you have nowhere to call home. Perhaps you are in addiction recovery or struggling with mental illness and the isolation is causing old demons and temptations to pop-up again. Perhaps you or a family member is sick, and you worry if treatment will be available. Perhaps the task of getting though each day has become insurmountable.

“But we had hoped,” the disciples shared to the veiled-Jesus. Jesus listened to their grief and continued to walk with them on their journey.

Jesus hears your grief, too. He walks with you even when you can’t recognize him and He accompanies you on your journey even if you don’t know he’s there.

As the three travelers approached the village of Emmaus they invited their traveling companion to, “stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over”(v.29). And so Jesus, his identity still hidden from them, stayed with them for the evening. When he sat down at the table, he took bread, blessed it and broke it and gave it to them (v. 30). Immediately, their eyes were opened and they recognized Jesus—Here in the flesh, here in their midst! Their eyes were opened and with exhilarating recognition they saw their Risen Lord, transforming their dashed hopes to burning hearts.

In times of grief and mourning, when hopes have been lost and the future is a frightening—in these times, it can be hard to recognize when Christ is among us. These travelers knew the whole story of Jesus, and indeed had personally witnessed the events of Holy Week, they knew the tomb was empty, and yet, their eyes remained closed to the Risen Christ. They lacked faith. This is not due to any fault of their own, because faith is not self-generated. You can have all the stories, all the data and still it wouldn’t add up to belief. Faith is a gift. It is created and given by God. Their eyes were opened when God showed up where God has promised to be—in the breaking of the bread, in the sacraments and the Word.

Faith is a gift that comes through a direct encounter with the Risen Christ himself. This faith, and this resurrection to faith comes through the action and presence of the Living Christ himself. That’s the most exhilarating and disorienting message of Easter—that there is no resurrection of faith unless Christ is really alive and continues to be active in our lives—showing up in unexpected and surprising ways.

In their hopelessness, grief, and doubt the Risen Christ showed up, walked with and listened to the travelers to Emmaus. He stayed with them, ate with them, and when he broke the bread their eyes were opened because here was the tangible sign of Christ’s presence where Christ has promised to be---in the bread and wine, water and Word.

Later on this morning, On April 26, 2020—the Risen Christ will again show up where he has promised to be, in the tangible sign of the Lord’s Supper—and it doesn’t matter if you are sharing this meal at the altar, on your doorstep, or via ZOOM—The Risen Christ’s presence is real, feeding and sustaining you with the gift of faith, opening your eyes to the gift of his presence.

And the Risen Christ continues to give this gift of faith again and again and again—

                   As he continues to meet people on the road.

                   As he continues to be present in Word and sacrament.

And as he continues to reveal himself in unexpected and surprising ways

So that your eyes may be opened to the gift of Christ’s presence, and that you may recognize the gift of life.

My dear brothers and sisters, Our Lord Jesus Christ is alive! He has been raised from the dead on your behalf and he continues to be with you, walking with you, giving you faith and food for the journey, continues to reveal himself in unexpected and surprising ways, again and again and again, as he turns our dashed hopes to hearts of burning joy. Amen.

The Walk to Emmaus

13 Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles[f] from Jerusalem, 14 and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. 15 While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them, 16 but their eyes were kept from recognizing him. 17 And he said to them, ‘What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?’ They stood still, looking sad.[g] 18 Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, ‘Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?’ 19 He asked them, ‘What things?’ They replied, ‘The things about Jesus of Nazareth,[h] who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, 20 and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him. 21 But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel.[i] Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place. 22 Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, 23 and when they did not find his body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. 24 Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but they did not see him.’ 25 Then he said to them, ‘Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! 26 Was it not necessary that the Messiah[j] should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?’ 27 Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.

28 As they came near the village to which they were going, he walked ahead as if he were going on. 29 But they urged him strongly, saying, ‘Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over.’ So he went in to stay with them. 30 When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight. 32 They said to each other, ‘Were not our hearts burning within us[k] while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?’ 33 That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together. 34 They were saying, ‘The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared to Simon!’ 35 Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread.

Jesus shows up! And that's Good News!

How about some Good News today?  We need Good News. If you are like me, I’ve heard way too much news lately – and a lot of it has been bad.  So when a friend told me about “SGN” which stands for “Some Good News” I was eager to check out the new web-based show by actor John Krasinski. I love it.  Krasinski shows clips of ordinary people who are coping with physical distancing in some really creative and fun ways such as a man bouncing a ball over his house and then catching it with a hoop on the other side. Or a woman who practices basketball by throwing her laundry into the machine. And the heartwarming example of a man who, since he can’t be with his wife of 62 years, goes to her window in the nursing home and sings Amazing Grace with her.

In his latest episode, Krasinski hosted some health care workers from a COVID-19 medical unit in a hospital in Boston. They have been working hard – and some of them are not even able to go home to their families because of the risk to their families. But Krasinski and had a few surprises in store for them.  First, Red Sox legend David Ortiz showed up. Then he announced they – and the other medical workers were being given free Red Sox tickets for life. Finally, they were taken on a well sanitized duckboat to Fenway field. They had to themselves. But then, they were invited to toss out the first pitch of the season while Red Sox players, the Boston mayor and Massachusetts governor cheered them on from the video boards. Krasinski insisted that it was the least that they could do for those who are on the front lines treating those infected with the coronavirus. Wow. I would say his show is well named: That’s SGN - Some Good News. 

The Gospel is also about Good News. In fact, that’s what Gospel means. It’s “Good News!”  And the Gospel – like other “Good News" seems to surprise people and make them wonder – is it too good to be true? 

It was hard for the disciples to believe it when the women came and told them that the tomb was empty and that Jesus had risen. Some of them went and saw for themselves. Yep. Empty tomb. But, did they gather that night to have a Resurrection party?  No. They locked the doors because they were afraid. After all…even though the crowd loved Jesus – the authorities killed him.  What would the authorities do to them?  That did not seem like Good News. So, they went into hiding. 

But…into that room full of fear and anxiety… Jesus brings Good News – just by showing up.

The disciples were overjoyed. What Good News! But later, they tried to tell Thomas, who wasn’t with them at the time… he wasn’t so sure. To be fair to Thomas, he simply wanted what they had - he wanted some assurance that it was true. 

The next week, the disciples gathered again – this time with Thomas. But their happiness from the week before seems to have evaporated. Again, they are afraid. They didn’t know what to do. So, again, they went into hiding. This time, they locked the door. 

But Jesus shows up… again… and again brings the Good News of hope, healing and new life – for the disciples… including Thomas. But that’s not all. Jesus also brings Good news to all those who have not seen him and yet believe.  In other words – you and me.  

Jesus still shows up. In fact, Jesus has a habit of showing up in surprising times and places. Jesus shows up in the hospital, working through the doctors and nurses who are treating Covid 19 patients and all of the other people. Jesus shows up, working through people like John Krasinski who, in addition to showing fun videos and treating medical workers to baseball games,  is encouraging companies to do some good for people who are on the front lines of treating this pandemic. Jesus shows up as a friendly neighbor when we are lonely. And, Jesus shows up in the words of Scripture to continue to share God’s love and presence with us. 

Yes, Jesus still shows up and that’s Good News. Truly, I believe that Jesus is with us always – and especially at a time like now in which we can feel isolated and alone and discouraged. Jesus is with us. Always.

But sometimes, in the midst of hearing all of the other news – all of the bad news – really it can be overwhelming at times– I think we have to be intentional about looking for Jesus.  Because there is so much other stuff – so much distracting bad news going on… that we can easily not notice that Jesus has been here all along. 

So, I would like to ask you, brothers and sisters, friends in Christ, to be on the look-out for Good News. That’s right - be on the look-out for Good News – and be on the lookout for Jesus. Because, Jesus still shows up. But sometimes – it’s easy to miss what is right in front of us if we aren’t focused on looking for Jesus or at hearing the Good News. And then, I’d like to ask you to share your Good News, your sightings of Jesus at work in the world with me and, if you are willing – but only with your permission, I’d love to post your stories on our web or Facebook page. Because, frankly, at a time like this, we all need to hear Good News. 

Brothers and sisters, friends in Christ, this is what Jesus calls us to do – to share our Good news so we and others will have eyes to see, ears to hear and hearts that are open to the amazing and surprising Good News of Jesus. Amen. Alleluia. Thanks be to God. Amen! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=16&v=Eg08rJGKjtA&feature=emb_title