Lifted Up

A Protestant minister, an Iman and a Catholic priest were out in the middle of a small lake fishing together. The minister had to use the restroom, so he got out of the boat and walked on the water to shore. After using the restroom, he came back to the boat the same way. The Iman had to use the restroom next....he also got out of the boat and walked on the water, and returned to the boat.

Finally, the Catholic priest had to use the restroom.....he thought  hehad as much faith as these other two! He proceeded to get out of the boat and promptly sank into the lake. The minister said to the Iman, "I guess we should have told him where the rocks were!"
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Sometimes we hear it said of a person that he thinks he walks on water. It is a derogatory inference that presumes that person is arrogant or egotistical or, on the lighter side, maybe just over-confident.  Of course, as we see in the news, every Olympian and every political candidate must be at least a bit over confident to compete for the title World Champion or President…but, of course, no one really walks on water and, frankly, the shoes to fill on this one are so huge who would want to try?

Except, of course, for Peter. Peter could never quite get the hang of what Jesus wanted him to do. He did want to be that rock Jesus called him to be, yet he fell quite short almost every time he tried. It was only after Jesus died and Peter had to think for himself – without Jesus to show him the way  - that he did a better job of being a disciple.

Our lesson this morning begins very much like last week’s lesson. Jesus is trying to get away  to be by himself and, this time, he succeeded. His cousin, John, had been killed and Jesus’ grieving had been interrupted by the crowd which followed Jesus and  needed him. So Jesus preached and the disciples, with Jesus help, fed the congregation gathered. Then Jesus dismissed the crowd – finally – he must have thought – finally, I can get away to pray. He went to the mountain top and prayed all night. Meanwhile, Jesus disciples in their little boat were being tossed and turned by wind and rain.

Again, what might have been in Jesus mind?  Would it have been – what were they thinking getting out that far? Aren’t they said to be fishermen – don’t they know better – haven’t I taught them anything? Well, may be he did think these things – but what we read is that he  walked on water to save them. And, of course, in their very human way they were at first frightened. Then Peter, so wanting to be the best disciple – the one who could emulate Jesus - says to Jesus, “If you command me to, I will walk on the water to meet you.”

Again, what was Jesus thinking? You walk on water? How silly – or how touching – or are you ready Peter for walking on water and all that means to you and the people who follow you?  Of course Jesus gives Peter the benefit of the doubt – and they are both disappointed in the result.

Did Jesus forget to tell Peter how to do it - how to walk on water? Or did Jesus hope that Peter knew already? Or was Peter being presumptious, thinking he could walk on water just like Jesus?

To crawl into Jesus mind is something millions of people have tried to do for centuries  Those people are called theologians and preachers.  Libraries are packed with books written by people trying to say – in new words – what Jesus meant – what Jesus was thinking.

Wouldn’t it be amazing to know what Jesus was thinking as he watched Peter try to do what Jesus himself had just done so easily – was Jesus sad that Peter couldn’t walk on water or worried – or like so much else in the last little time he had left,was he disturbed that his work not yet taking hold with these wonderful if faithless people? Maybe this is where the saying comes from no peace for the weary…or is that rest for the weary – or was that for the wicked. Well you get my point.

I have been very interested in watching the Olympic competitions that have, as you know, just begun. I think Jesus was a bit like those people – working years and years, repeating the same things over and over again with little variation – hoping for a perfect result.

Over the years many preachers have, undoubtedly, tried and maybe even presumed that they knew exactly what Jesus was thinking and told their congregations exactly what they thought.  We talk not just about  when Jesus saw Peter fall into the water and lose faith in himself  – but preachers talk on any number of occasions and many think they knew what Jesus was thinking.  

I personally think we take our best shot at understanding Jesus, but I also suspect that we fall short of what Jesus must have been thinking at any particular moment in time. I, for one, might guess right along with the rest of them what was going on in Jesus mind, until I realize how silly that is.

I think it is particularly interesting that Peter is considered one of the founders of the church – he was called the rock – and yet he was always falling short of emulating Jesus. He was, in other words, so human, so imperfect…and anything but a rock.

When I was a kid on a long car ride, I would play Rock, Paper, Scissors with my siblings – I bet you all have played Rock, Paper, Scissors – rock breaks scissors, scissors cut paper, paper covers rock. None of these seemed too satisfying an outcome yet somebody did win the round and the other person lost. You could always try again to see if you guessed better next time. Rocks broke things, scissors cut things, but paper – thin and fragile as it is, covered things that break and cut up other things – hurting them, changing them into something that can never be the same again.

Paper is more what I think Jesus is calling us to be. We, nor Peter, are really very good rocks…we can be strong and try to do things out of our ken, but we sink – sinking farther and farther until we remember that Jesus never said you silly girl thinking you could do what I am doing . No! Jesus, with that thin, fragile, divine paper covers me and you as he says – do not be afraid.

With that we can move forward, not needing to know what is in Jesus mind. Instead, all we have to do is follow his example  - to care for others, to care for ourselves, finding time for soloce and prayer -- and then getting back at it -- reminding others to be not afraid. After that, all things are possible…for it is action, not mind reading or walking on water that Jesus is longing for us to be about.

Peter answered him, "Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water." He said, "Come." So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came towards Jesus. But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, "Lord, save me!" Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, "You of little faith, why did you doubt?" When they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshipped him, saying, "Truly you are the Son of God."

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May 4, 2008 |

Community of Prayer
When I was a girl, my Catholic grandmother made it clear that I was not in the right church and that bad things could happen to both of us as a result. She ignored me since I was baptized a protestant but she did have 35 grandchildren so part of this could be my imagination, too.

Every Christmas Grandma did give me a subscription to a Maryknoll publication - of course, I can’t remember which one but it had something to do with being a missionary. She probably gave the same thing to all my cousins but I, for one, didn’t appreciate it very much.  I can’t speak for my other cousins.

To me, my Catholic grandmother (as opposed to my Protestant one) was trying to get me to be a Catholic and I resented the implication that there was somehow something wrong with me, so I tossed those little magazines in the trash as soon as they arrived in the mail.

I am sure my grandmother would be bowled over to discover that of all her grandchildren I, the heathen protestant, is the only one who is a clergy person. Even though I’m a pastor and not a nun, I think she would have approved. Our past and what we learn makes a difference. We are just never sure who or what part of that past might be the compelling ones that shape our lives.

As I was thinking about this, I went to the Maryknoll website to see what they were saying today. The headlines under the beautiful scrolling pictures of children from Central America, Africa and India say these three things “Where the compassion of the faithful changes lives” and “Makes God’s love visible” and “We are all one.” All little one-liners that fit me and my ministry beliefs --- and the UCC---quite well. And, as luck would have it, I have several books by the Maryknoll publishers in my library.

I mention the Maryknoll publications because I think the back of our bulletin is similiar. Here we find a small little missive, and this Sunday’s entry is very instructive, if not enlightening. The piece, which you can read at you leisure, talks today about biblical history – and about the past brought forward to current time. 

That is what I think this whole faith - religion thing is all about … learning from the past and growing forward as a result…the process is about digesting what we know – like our body digests nutrients from the food we eat -- sustaining us as we journey on to learn and experience more. Then we continue on making the future something new and even more valuable and substanitive than it was in the past.

For some, this is scary. It is much easier, safer and gentler to stay with what we already know, rather than move forward into a new way of thinking, or praying or worshiping God. But I am not sure that is what Jesus was hoping for us. If it was all about hanging on to the old way, we have missed the point of Jesus ministry all together.

The last few days and weeks we have heard lots about religion--who believes what and where it came from. The name Jeremiah Wright is now a household word and many people are upset about things he said or didn’t say. Maybe he knew what he was doing and maybe he didn’t, but I personally have been appalled at his divisive comments, his inaccurate information and his racialist remarks. I would hope we had come farther than some of the words, postures and attitudes that Rev. Wright spoke out loud. And friends, I am here to tell you we have.

Yesterday Roger, Harriet and I attended the CMA meeting and lots of Rev, Wright’s parrishioners were in attendance as was Rev. Otis Moss, III, the new minister who has replaced Rev. Wright at Trinity. The meeting was worship and business – talk about health care, nutrition and, yes, race. But we were civil, some friends talked and everyone stayed pretty far from the topic of the damage this has caused the Obama campaign and the UCC. We just decided to go for the relationship. Which is always my preference. In the eyes of politics this isn’t very comforting but in the eyes of what it means to be the church it was all about pouring nard on our broken places and leaving the conversation for later – after the dust settles. Which I am sure we will.

For the record, I’m not a prophet. I do not expect you to believe everything I do and say. I do hope we will work together in our shared humanity to move ourselves and others forward – with God’s help -into the future. The rest, well, is up to us but not up for grabs.

Theologian Diana “Bergant claims that we need one another in this liminal time, and her "case" for the church is persuasive: "the radical nature of this in-between living requires the support of a community…not only for help in the ordinary experiences of life…a community of believers with whom we can pray, who will understand our spiritual aspirations, who will support us in our Christian commitment, who will challenge us when we stray from the right path…who are companions with us on our journey…who experience the same struggle to be faithful in a world that does not share our values or our insights. We need a community of believers through whom shines the glory of the exalted Lord.

The world is still an often hostile place, and the cross makes no sense to many "optimists," any more than the resurrection does, but our reassurance rests in the knowledge that Jesus has left us in God's care. We are not alone.  As Fred Craddock puts it: "The Evangelist leaves no one in doubt: the church is not an orphan in the world, an accident of history, a thing dislodged, the frightened child of huddled rumors and superstitions. The pedigree of truth is established and unbroken: from God, to Christ, to the apostles, to the church (Preaching through the Christian Year A).”

There is much to be said for seeing Christ in each other; there is also something to be said for seeing ourselves as God sees us, with steadfast love and compassion, but with hope, too, for the future and what is yet to be. 
We have learned many things, good and bad, from our past and from those ministers, family members, teachers and friends, and even accidents of our past – but with God with us to guide us how could we not move forward and find a new way? It is our call, our mandate – but as our preacher said yesterday at the meeting, gardening requires that we show up and recognize that we will need to get dirty  to help our garden grow.

I would like to end with a chorus from a song by Bob Franke – sung by dear friends Greg and Terry from Magpie…that speaks to many more things than what I have said today.

There's a hole in the middle in the middle of the prettiest life
So the lawyers and the prophets say
Not your father nor your mother nor your lover's ever gonna make it go away
Now there's too much darkness in an endless night
To be afraid of the way we feel
Let's be kind to each other
Not forever but for real
Amen and amen

- (by Bob Franke)

Death took the husband of a neighbor of mine
On a highway with a drunk at the wheel
She told me keep your clean hands off the laundry he left
And don't tell me you know how I feel
She had a tape that he'd sent her from a Holiday Inn
That she never played much in the day
But when I heard him say I love you through the window at night
I just stayed the hell away

Chorus:
There's a hole in the middle in the middle of the prettiest life
So the lawyers and the prophets say
Not your father nor your mother nor your lover's ever gonna make it go away
Now there's too much darkness in an endless night
To be afraid of the way we feel
Let's be kind to each other
Not forever but for real

My father never put his parachute on
In the pacific back in World War II
He said he'd rather go down in familiar flame
Than get lost in that endless blue
Well some of that blue got into my eyes
And we never stopped fighting that war
Until I first understood about endlessness
And I loved him like never before

There's a hole in the middle in the middle of the prettiest life
So the lawyers and the prophets say
Not your father nor your mother nor your lover's ever gonna make it go away
Now there's too much darkness in an endless night
To be ashamed of the way we feel
Let's be kind to each other
Not forever but for real

Lucky my daughter got her mother's nose
And just a little of her father's eyes
And we've got just enough love
That when the longing takes me
It takes me by surprise
And I remember that longing from my highway days
When I never could give it a name
And it's lucky that I discovered in the nick of time
That the woman and the child aren't to blame

For the hole in the middle of a pretty good life
I only face it 'cause it's here to stay
Not my father nor my mother nor my daughter nor my lover
Nor the highway made it go away
But now there's too much darkness in an endless night
to be afraid of the way I feel
I'll be kind to my loved ones
Not forever but for real

Some say god is a lover, some say it's an endless void
And some say both, and some say she's angry
And some say just annoyed
But if god felt a hammer in the palm of his hand
Then god knows the way we feel
And then love lasts forever
Forever and for real

March 16, 2008

Isaiah 50:4-9a
Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29
Matthew 21:1-11

May These Words Be to the Glory of God

*This morning I will begin with two jokes off the internet and a serious question that will lead us to do some pew work…that is work you will do in the pew, not work that is smelly. This pew work will then lead to a political statement/comment on the state of our nation…but first this message from our sponsor…
*I am the way the truth the life…I am the sun, the moon the stars and all that matters – for I come from God to teach the message that we all come from God; that we are all loved by God regardless of any flaws we might be perceived as having in ourselves or in others To achieve this truth in your life you only have to believe you will see this love some time in your  lifetime. The good news is tha is is free. Everything about the truth, the way and the light is free…all you have to do is believe, find others who believe, oh there is one more thing…You need to care for yourself and others – even if they are not in your group. This is what might cost you a little money for they may need some of what you have but with the love of God what does it matter how much you spend on love? So again it is all free!

Now the first joke…

*A man was blissfully driving along the highway, when he saw the Easter  Bunny hopping across the middle of the road. He swerved to avoid hitting the Bunny, but unfortunately the rabbit jumped in front of his car and was hit. The basket of eggs went flying all over the place.
 
The driver, being a sensitive man as well as an animal lover, pulled over to the side of the road, and got out to see what had become of the Bunny carrying the basket. Much to his dismay, the colorful Bunny was dead.
  
The driver felt guilty and began to cry.  A woman driving down the same highway saw the man crying on the side of the road and pulled over. She stepped out of her car and asked the man what was wrong.
  
"I feel terrible," he explained, "I accidentally hit the Easter Bunny and killed it. What should I do?" The woman told the man not to worry. She knew exactly what to do. She went to her car trunk, and pulled out a spray can. She walked over to the limp, dead Bunny, and sprayed the entire contents of the can onto the little furry animal.
 
Miraculously the Easter Bunny came to back life, jumped up, picked up the spilled eggs and candy, waved its paw at the two humans and hopped on down the road. 50 yards away the Easter Bunny stopped, turned around, waved and hopped on down the road another 50 yards, turned,  waved, hopped  another 50 yards and waved again!!!!
The man was astonished. He said to the woman, "What in heaven's name is in your spray can?" The woman turned the can around so that the man could read the label.  It said:
 
"Hair spray. Restores life to dead hair."

The second joke:

*A friend was in front of me coming out of church one day, and the preacher was standing at the door as he always is to shake hands. He grabbed my friend by the hand and pulled him aside. The Pastor said, "You need to join the Army of the Lord!"

My friend said, "I'm already in the Army of the Lord, Pastor."
Pastor questioned, "How come I don't see you except at Christmas and Easter?"
He whispered back, "I'm in the secret service!"

Now the question…
I have been plagued with many dilemmas in my life, as have you.  Now, I think mine possibly might have been a bit more challenging that some of yours – but we must all know that suffering is relative. Anyway I digress…All our dilemmas can be reduced to needing to answer one particular question and it all centers around the same thing. First, lets start with me…I don’t want to be scared, afraid or hurt – I want to know what is going on so I can proceed and respond and live my life with integrity. But why work so hard, what’s the point? Being alive can’t possibly just be about my comfort or state of well-being. So, what is it – what matters or, put differently, what is the meaning of life? And I am not talking about Monty Python’s movie of the same name…

And let’s not reduce the question of the meaning of life to John Cleese and his imagination. Instead let each of us ask ourselves what matters the most. Is it to love and be loved by your children, your partner, your family and your dog -- unconditionally? Well, unless you have a dog you probably need to give up on this answer, for we all know that only a dog can love unconditionally, if you feed him, walk him and pay attention to him anyway…
But really – what matters to you? That you are safe, your family is safe – safe and secure from all alarms… what really matters to you? Okay here comes the pew work…this is the part where you tell me what really matters to you…I will take hands and write down your answers…

Drawing in the marginalized; my wife; my family; my husband; restoring relationships with those close and far away and with the earth; walk with people who are hurting; help create a world for everyone; health, children and grandchildren;  God’s love for each of us and between us; doing the right thing; attitude of gratitude; doing no harm; peace on earth; animals, music; growing relationship with God and with creation; forgiveness and healing…
Wonderful answers spoken by wonderful people…I love you; you make me cry…

When we look at the meaning of life does it matter to you that Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey? Or a donkey and a colt at the same time – and is this a little humor; did Jesus ride one for a while and then switch – does the colt represent the rich and the donkey the poor…is it an error? Does it matter? Or does it matter that you lost your brand new coat when someone in the crowd grabbed it off your shoulders and threw it down for Jesus and his donkey to enter the city like royalty? Are you ticked off your coat is ruined, or pleased to be a small part of welcoming Jesus-if only briefly- into your community?

Does Jesus coming to Jerusalem to his death matter much to you if you are cold – or hungry and think that maybe you will never be warm again… Does Jesus coming to Jerusalem to his death matter much to you when you are in the ditch and your whole life is falling apart and you see no meaning whatsoever does God come to you? Or is it the stranger, with a warm hand offering hot soup, a hand to pound a hammer on that roof that blew off years ago when Katrina hit your community? Does it matter that our members are in Sunday school teaching about this story--teaching lessons to our children about God’s love? Does it matter or doesn’t?

Of course it matters,

Only when the world and her air, people, water, earth, and animals are cared for will we know the real answer to the question what matters the most…and until then we have to get in there and think more about others than ourselves.
I want to end by singing to you one verse from “When I’m Gone”  by Phil Ochs…

Amen and Amen

January 20, 2008

Isaiah 49:1-7 with Psalm 40:1-11
I Corinthians 1:1-9,
John 1:29-42

Meeting Jesus

May These Words Be to the Glory of God

January 13, 2008

May These Words Be to the Glory of God


Recently, I was among a group of friends. We’d gone out for dinner and then went to one of the friend’s homes for dessert. The conversation started predictably enough and meandered from what we were up to professionally to our families and favorite recipes. Then, as the conversation moved, and turned gently like a small river finding its way something changed. I blinked and thought “oh-oh.” Somehow, we were heading full steam ahead into one of those dreaded topics that people in civil society are advised to stay away from. Now, given the current climate you might guess the topic was politics, but no, our very sobering conversation was about religion. Out of the blue someone asked if we’d heard about the Creation Museum where they made the dubious claimed to have artifacts that proved the existence of Adam and Eve. Then someone asked if Adam and Eve had Cain and Able where did the women come from to populate the earth? At first I wanted to laugh, but he was serious. Then there was much bantering back and forth about what religion was and what it wasn’t.

The group consisted of  two Unitarians, a Buddhist intellectual, and a person who believed in a good God-high power, an agnostic and professed atheist, and me.  Earlier in the day, I had had a wonderful connective invigorating conversation with one of you about what church means and what we believe. But after dinner with a group of my dearest friends I found myself wanting to get out of a conversation where I had to explain, if not justify, what I believed and why. I was, after all the minister in the group.

But rather than talk too much, I tried to listen. Yes, we agreed on a few things but except for one or two of the more open minded of the group we all were convinced that our life’s path, with or without church much less God, was already fixed.

I am not sure how many of you have seen the movie the Golden Compass based on the work of Phillip Pullman but there, too, is another bit of religion, or some might say the lack of it, right up there on the big screen for all to see. This movie was all about good and evil – that is for sure. The Golden Compass is also about how to overcome difficulties; it is about accepting your lot or busting out of it; it is about something they call dust that is not to be discussed openly.  More than this it was about the expanding soul – or as the Greeks would say – the open and growing daemon of the child as compared with the fixed soul of the adult.  

In the movie each person has a daemon, in the form of an animal who is present with them always. But when something happens to the daemon it also happens to the human and visa versa. In the January 15 edition the Christian Century magazine there is a piece by Harvard professor Stephanie Paulson comparing the “fantasy worlds of [Phillip] Pullman and [C.S.] Lewis” called “Stories to Live By.” She “emphasized that both writers were interested in having a theological discussion with their readers, ‘For all their much discussed differences…Pullman and Lewis give us remarkably similar visions of what they desire for children: that they be, in the words of both authors alive and awake to themselves and the world.”

In the Golden Compass the daemon – the soul of the child is always changing and growing but once they reach a certain point, probably adulthood, their daemon or their soul is fixed, to never change again.

I have to wonder if our story this morning of Jesus’ baptism offers us a bit of the hope we need as we negotiate the world we walk in.  After all many, including some of the people we love the most, don’t have the same beliefs as we do, but, fortunately we have found a home for our beliefs here in this church. And no, we don’t all agree but frankly, when compared to the world we live in we are at least, for the most part, on the same page.

In recent days and weeks I have been bemoaning the fact that more of us are not in church on Sunday morning. Church attendance is an indicator of church health and so few come to any church any more. More, I suspect, go to the movies more often than they go to church.

But today I am changing my tune. I am so pleased that in our individual wisdom to support this church that we have this community and this place to come to and be together in our journey.  Frankly, if there are a few or many we still have the mutuality of the journey to carry us through.

This story of the baptism of Jesus doesn’t really shake us up. We know it, we’ve heard it before. It is the official beginning of Jesus realizing who he is and what he is to be doing in the world.  But if we think about what it was like for Jesus. He has to have been  a little nervous—yet pleased that others are with him and that God has recognized him in a very public way, sending a dove on his shoulder as a sign for all to see, calling Jesus his son, his beloved loud enough for all to hear. In my conversation with seeking, yet mostly non-believing friends, I think if I said that God had called me beloved theywould raise eyebrows at each other and write me off as daft – one of those hearing voices – one of those using God as a compass and not reality. But in this story this was not something just heard in Jesus mind, like the version of Jesus baptism in John…this was heard by all those gathered, and there most certainly was a crowd gathered that day by the Jordon.

It occurs to me that all those lined up to be baptized by John, the Baptist, were seekers like you and like me. People who were longing to find the meaning of life and they, like our families and friends, were probably all over the place on what the meaning of life might be and what it might look like. I think outsiders can scoff at religion as confusing at best and contradictory at worse – and on that I won’t disagree. However, there is one thing to my mind, that the lonely seeker, or broken non-believer don’t have, they don’t have a community of others on the journey.

If we are small today I don’t care, in fact I am thrilled we are here at all. Here in this place we have the freedom, the resolve and the resources to keep together in a most difficult time—for this in this an almost dust-bowl-mentality-world we are living in. As we huddle together, to keep warm, to keep the fires of our faith alive we are so blessed…for the holy spirit has said to us – carry on you brave and faithful servants – in you I am well pleased. Remember your baptism and carry on…

If that were not true we, as a church community with all the financial pressures on us we would have disappeared long ago. But we, as the Congregational Church in Deerfield have not disappeared, in fact we have grown and changed. As a result of our faith, our connection and our commitment we have – as adults gathered in community together changed the shape of our soul – our daemon, if you will.

Phillip Pullman says “we should tell children stories ‘as if it would make a difference, … as if life were going to win.” Cecil and I took Riley, our grandson to see the Golden Compass…his questions were about daemons and what happened when the daemons turned into golden dust and what that meant. I was amazed at the questions that kept coming from Riley and that he was so engaged with this conversation about soul.

We do have so many wonderful stories to share with our children and with each other. We so long to know that life is winning and that when the end comes we will be dust – not scattered meaninglessly but eternally shared with others with us on the journey.

I am compelled to end with another story…a sermon recounted by Lueking about Martin Luther's words, "Remember your baptism!"  Lueking paints of picture of the Reformation leader, an "anxious Luther as he struggled through the lonely months of his safekeeping in the Wartburg Castle. 'I am baptized,' he would scribble on his desktop, and remember his baptism as he battled back despair."  "Remembering" our baptism, then, isn't a sentimental journey or an effort to recapture lost enthusiasm (ours or that of our parents and godparents) but closer to seeking equilibrium on a storm-tossed sea, getting our bearings, remembering who (and whose) we are.

And on this we, as a church, carry on and go forward and live—believing that God loves us regardless of all those sins and missed steps and that, as we remember our baptism – our promise to be of God and for God, that all will be well with our souls and with our church.

And,yes, words can inspire…and give us hope and teach us about being more than we can imagine…today and in all the days to come.

Amen and amen

Isaiah 60:1-6 with Psalm 72:1-7, 10-14
Ephesians 3:1-12
Matthew 2:1-12       

May These Words Be to the Glory of God

The story of the Magi makes Christmas, Christmas because it is all about the presents. Not all gospel writers thought it was relevant and left it out of their telling of the story. Or maybe they just didn’t have enough room. Or maybe they weren’t going to complicate the story of Christ’s ministry with Wise men who came bearing gifts.

I, for one, am glad we have this narrative. It adds such wonderful texture and color to our story and it foreshadows the message of Jesus that I take so seriously.  That is that we are to give to each other, to love each other-our neighbors—strangers and friends -  just because. To love our neighbor, just because.  And if we think about it, maybe the gifts just confuse things and let us off the hook. In our culture we have confused the gifts of the magi with Santa - Christmas in America has become about the presents. We all want to give our loved one a present and we hope there is a loved one near us who plans to give us a present, too. Actually presents, given from the heart and not obligation, are the best presents to give – and not just at Christmas.

I come from a family who always perceived themselves as never having enough money and I confess a present or two on Christmas fills that “I hope I am loved enough” hole I recognize too well, scarred over but still there.  Love, not trinkets, fills up that hole. But there is a cultural edict most of us have fallen for that goes along with the idea that if you are loved, or if you love enough, you will give and get lots of presents. I know lots of people who don’t have much money, who have glorious Christmas celebrations because they have learned to lower their expectations. Finally, in my wisdom years, I believe that by lowering expectations with those we love the most, we have a better chance of having a loving relationship, be that on Christmas day or any day.

When Cecil and I went to Puerto Rico, we heard about Three Kings Day. The art and posters all around Old San Juan were about Three Kings Day. I know this day, today, as Epiphany. I know it is about when the wise men came to see Jesus but Three Kings Day in Puerto Rico is something else. If you are Puerto Rican then you have to celebrate Los Reyes. After Christmas put a Reyes statue as a centerpiece on your dining room table so the kids know - it's no over yet "faltan los Reyes."

Celebrate it Puerto Rican style, that is.... have the kids cut grass on January 5th and put it in a box under their bed. [Grass to feel the camels of the magi] Put a small gift from Los Reyes in the box once they fall asleep - and don't forget to throw out the grass. Los Reyes arrive before dawn on January 6th. For centuries Puerto Rican children have celebrated Los Reyes in the same manner as their grandparents did when they were children. Even to this day in Hispanic countries throughout the world, January 6 is the day that children receive their Christmas gifts, in commemoration of the Magi's visit.

The Reyes only come if the child has been good all year and if the children are awake, their  house is passed by. On this night children sleep lightly, listening for any strange noises, whispers, or maybe sounds of the camels' hooves, or any tale-tale signs of the Kings' arrival. Sometime during the night Los Reyes arrive and quietly leave their gifts for the children while their camels enjoy their snack.  In the morning the island is filled with the joy and the laughter of happy children enjoying their [gifts]. It is a joyful day full of celebration. Later in the day a holiday dinner is prepared and friends and relatives join in the festivities. Relatives bring the children the boxes left under their [own] beds now empty of grass but filled with gifts.

Some could say, this is no different than leaving cookies out for Santa – but I think it is, slightly different. You see, on Los Reyes they think of the camels who are stinky creatures at best. Without the camels how would the Wise Ones arrive at a manger, or at our house?

Los Reyes recognizes that the wise ones lived into the words from Isaiah to “Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.” The wise ones came from what is now Iraq and Iran, to bring gifts to the Christ Child…

As we take down the decorations of Christmas on this last day of remembering Jesus birth and welcome Iraqis and their camels into our homes to give us gifts that we hope will make us better people and teach us more about how to love our neighbor.  All we might have to do is feed their camels while they are teaching us something we need to learn.

Let us pray
O God, by your heavenly light that shines for all people,
you guided those who were wise to your beloved Son, Jesus Christ.
May your blessing come to rest on our homes and on all of us.
Make our lives wise with your wisdom, true to your teaching,
and enlivened by your love. May your Word made alive in Jesus
make his home among us and teach us how to give gifts and accept them and to be a light of love for others.
Amen and amen

Fourth Sunday of Advent

Isaiah 7:10-16
Psalm 80:1-7,17-19
Matthew 1:18-25

May These Words Be to the Glory of God
When was it, do you suppose, that the tradition was begun to enclose a letter in your Christmas card? I haven't researched this practice but I might guess it started as early as the late 60's.  That is when our friends and families started moving around much more, so we needed to get out the news in a different way. Since we wouldn't be seeing each other around the Christmas table, a letter would have to do.

Some might say, "Who cares what you, your kids,  and your dog did this year?" Others are pleased to have an up date about all your comings and going. This season the letters I've gotten have been sometimes poignant and usually newsy. Many greetings have come by e-mail. Hey, things are different, and we don't even need cards or letters at Christmas - we have e-mail. Another tradition that is changing.

And speaking of changing traditions, what about Christmas songs? I've read that George Washington's favorite Christmas carol was "While Watching Shepherds Watch Their Flocks by Night." But he didn't have many to choose from since most of the songs we call Christmas Carols weren't even written until the 1800 and 1900's. John Adams preferred "Joy to the World," written by a man who went to church with President Adams. Thomas Jefferson and Dwight D. Eisenhower both chose "O Come All Ye Faithful."  It wasn't until JFK picked "Silver Bells"  that a secular song appeared in the Presidents' favorites. John Kennedy was the first Catholic President, a big deal back then and I think he was showing a more modern approach in his choice.  While "Silver Bells" was not religious, per se, the silver bells mentioned are to recognize the Salvation Army bell ringers and had a bit of a social justice ring to them, but that message is hard to find. The last President to choose a favorite carol was Richard Nixon and his favorite was "Little Drummer Boy." Then there's no record of favorite Presidential Christmas songs. Another tradition lost.

Many changes are a foot. Not just in our time, but in every time. Change is inevitable, and we just have to keep up. Last week in scripture we heard what Mary was thinking about this new baby to come and this morning's passage in Matthew speaks about Joseph. And talk about changing traditions!

The law and custom of Joseph's time said that if your betrothed turned up strangely pregnant, you were to walk away and leave her to her own devices. But Joseph didn't do that. He had angelic help guiding him as he had the courage to reject the rules and the practices of the day. Joseph was a radical, a change agent, a man who could see the benefits of listening to his heart and believing the angel who told him to not be afraid.

First Joseph goes to Bethlehem to register - making his family official, and then after Jesus is born, he gets the baby circumcised,  then hears about Herod killing all male babies under two, so he takes his family to Egypt to protect them. Joseph is doing all the right stuff, but he is, if you will, floating on his faith alone.

Today, none of us may have to make such earth shattering decisions as Joseph, but in our own way we too are capable of participating in the world as it changes, rather than just watching give it a go. Not just reacting to those who are literally sticking their neck out, is the way to begin. Ours feels to be very complicated times, but I wonder if, for the church, they are no more complicated than any other time?

The church, as we know it, is changing. The mainline protestant church isn't seen as relevant or important nor are we doing a very good job of being angels...and our young people are telling us just that. A new book by Kinnamon and Lyons call Unchristian is telling us that we are all but dead in the water as in institution unless we make big change. Here are a few words reviewing their book...
Christians are supposed to represent Christ to the world. But according to the latest report card, something has gone terribly wrong. Using descriptions like "hypocritical," "insensitive," and "judgmental," young Americans share an impression of Christians that's nothing short of . . . unChristian.  Groundbreaking research into the perceptions of sixteen- to twenty-nine-year-olds reveals that Christians have taken several giant steps backward in one of their most important assignments.

Have we as a church stepped up to the plate and offered our children what they need, or have we said I put in my time I'm just wanting to sit back and enjoy the benefits of all my work?
The way we can be revolutionary is to grow this church, but that may mean to become something new that we don't feel we are - or maybe are we too tired - and think we might just dismiss her quietly? What if Joseph, reportedly past middle age - and just as tired as many of us - had said to Mary, a teenager, "I'm too exhausted to go to Bethlehem, too tired to go to Egypt. I have given all I can to God already. You are on your own." Had Joseph done that I am not sure our baby Emmanuel would have survived in story or song much less taught us about loving our neighbor or given us the promise of redemption.

What is there to say when angels aren't appearing to us everywhere to help us not be afraid? Angels telling us to have courage to make big changes; to do everything we can imagine to keep up and keep this Christian life going for others as well as ourselves. Maybe we aren't recognizing them as angels.

As a church what we do  one or two small things that we can accomplish that will make a real difference. Raise real money, not just for our expenses, but for Heifer International for example...or any other worthwhile cause...or maybe we could plow up our land and grow food to give away to the hungry rather than have it just sit there...
As we listen to the angels as well as our budget we might need to lose those carols and songs we love so well, and write new ones--for we might need to sing to God in a new way - we may need to set the past aside, and face the future with love, and hope, and peace and joy. For what this Christian life is, and what others need us to be, is a journey we must be willing to take for our Emmanuel.

We as church goers have a great deal to share and to give and we must not be afraid...

This is where on the Sunday before Christmas I usually sing "Count Your Blessings" - a song that speaks of helping us sleep during times of trouble...but I am not sure we need to be sleeping well. Instead maybe we need to be up nights praying to God to guide us---keeping us sleepless in Illinois, as we make a commitment to keep Christ's message alive and well for others to hear--however we might accomplish that.

For the manger has no heat, our clothes are thin, the desert night is cold and all we have to wrap the baby in is old strips of cloth...it is not a comfortable place to grow a church and yet kings will bear gifts to provide an income for the young family to survive and hence for Christ's ministry to come to alive and to continue.

I will leave you with this question. Is it possible, that with all we already are, and with what we already know, are we the wise ones called by the star to come to the Christ child? Are we being called to present life-giving gifts of our hard work?  If the answer is yes, can we recognize that the future of the church depends only and especially on what we know and what we have to share? For we are all called this day, to be people of God and to share good tidings and great joy to the world. I have no doubt that we can do it~
Amen and amen

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Second Sunday of Advent

Isaiah 11:1-10 and
Psalm 72:1-7,18-19 and
Romans 15:4-13 and
Matthew 3:1-12
Focus Scripture: Isaiah 11:1-10

Isaiah Envisions God's Realm of Shalom.

 by Harriet Cavanah Dart, M/Div
"Shalom," Walter Brueggemann says, "is creation time, when all God's creation eases up on hostility and destruction and finds another way of relating" (Peace). "This poem is about the impossible possibility of the new creation!"  Isaiah urges the people to remember who they are as the people of God.  He reminds them that their power, their life, comes from goodness, not greed. He describes the reign of a new King from the house and lineage of David, son of Jesse.  This king will rule with justice, wisdom, and integrity.  Isaiah speaks of harmony between people and all of creation.

In Romans, Paul writes about the church and its importance in fulfilling this vision of Isaiah: a vision based on harmony and peace.  Following the example of Jesus Christ leads us on the path to achieving this vision.  Jesus is the good King who ushers in God's shalom.  By welcoming the stranger and accepting one another, by living lives of caring and service to others, we can generate a faith community where hope, peace, and joy abound.

What can you and I do on a daily basis to bring about God's realm of Shalom? I submit that something that each of us can do is to pray.  As I said to the children, each of us can pray daily for peace in the war torn places of our world. More specifically, we can find the time to say grace at our family meal. When you are a family of one at your table for a meal, please stop to recognize that you are part of this family, the Congregational Church in Deerfield, the Christian family, and the human family.  We can dare to hope that our prayer has an impact on the world.
Prayer is central to the Christian life.  Prayer joins us to God, and it leads us to know ourselves in God.   Prayer is the place that we can be completely ourselves.   In prayer, we can see ourselves as we are and be truthful about what we see.  We can enjoy our own gifts and wonder at all we have been given.  We can acknowledge our mistakes and set them aside.  More importantly we can learn to love God, to love ourselves as belonging to God, and to love other people as images of God.  The first and most fundamental truth that our Christian ancestors knew about prayer was this: God's love is the starting point and the ending point of all prayer.  god is our source and destiny.

Whenever we pray, we pray with the whole people of God, with those of the Hebrew covenants as well as with all of the faithful Christians throughout the centuries and around the world.  Prayer is an expression of each person's relationship with God.  Therefore, there is no one right way to pray.

Beginning to pray and growing in our prayer life means finding and maturing into a way of prayer that suits us in a particular way.  Our early monastic ancestors knew that love and prayer, being closely related, must both be learned over a whole lifetime of work on our part.  Our work is coupled with the continuous gift of God's grace.  Far from being spontaneous at all times, the sincere prayer of the monastic rested on the recitation of and meditation on the Psalms, which they believed were given to God's people because we often would be at a loss for words in prayer without them.

We must be intentional about our growth in prayer.  The monastics spoke of prayer as the gift from God: that whenever we are present to God in our prayer, God is present to us, a gift of God's grace. God's grace and our response come together in prayer as surely as they come together in every other place in our lives.  Prayer is paradoxically both something we learn to do and a gift that is given to us by God.

Scripture has formed the backbone of prayer through the ages.  The Psalms express the full range of human emotion.  The Psalms open up a way to pray authentically, to engage in the work of prayer which refuses to take refuge in a domesticated God who smoothes out life's rough edges.  These old prayers and songs remain vibrantly alive.  They have sustained Jewish and Christian worshipers through many centuries.  In them we hear the expressions of joy, hope, lament, fear, rage, oppression, abandonment, and trust that are part of our human experience also.   There are moments of triumph during which God is blessed and there are times of tragedy when life empties itself of meaning and God seems absent.

The seasons of our lives will condition our response to the God we encounter in the Psalms.  Thanksgiving and celebration play a central role in the life of God's people.  Many psalms commemorate great redeeming acts and times of triumph.  Dancing, music, and festive joy filled the community as they rejoiced together and praised God for their deliverance.  Our own joy resonates with theirs as we recall the giftedness of our own lives and the times that God has saved us from the enemies of despair, fear, and pain.

Many Christians have difficulty with the psalms of revenge.  Banishing them from the Psalter has the effect of denying a real part of our human experience.  While it is true that we are to forgive our enemies and pray for those who hurt us, we can usually arrive at that place only when we truly acknowledge the vindictive rage we bear toward them.  In the expression of our desire for revenge, we tell God who we are--hurting, broken people not yet able to relinquish our pain-and then give this rage to God.  Often in the Psalms we see a healing taking place and a fresh vision of reality emerging as all of the bitterness and disappointment are poured out. If I choose to bury my anger, it is likely to erupt inappropriately in a far more destructive form.

The season of lament also finds voice in the Psalter.  There are times when life is sad, when sickness, disaster, and loss overwhelm us, and we need to express our anguish to God.  The best known of the corporate psalms of lament is Psalm 137, where the covenant community languishing in Babylon cries out hopelessly: "How could we sing the song of the Lord in a foreign soil?"   Exile had robbed them of the Temple and all of the other familiar structures that offered comfort and security.  It was appropriate to wail and mourn as they went through the painful experience of loss; it was appropriate to give their tears to God.  We, too, can give voice to our own experience of anguish and losses.   The Compassionate One hears and weeps with us and, in due time, enables us to begin the healing process.

Many of the Psalms reflect the pilgrim nature of the community.  The individual travels, sometimes securely but often hesitantly on a precarious journey.  The valley of the shadow of death is as much a part of the experience as the green pastures and still waters.  Our own individual journey has many contours and leads us through places where fear or despair threatens our willingness to continue.  Praying the Psalms helps us to move forward.  We can identify with those pilgrims in the past who have run and stumbled.   We find, as they did, the unseen Presence of God in all of our wandering.

As I have shared my diagnosis of breast cancer with friend and stranger alike, I have been inspired by the generosity of the human spirit.  e.g. a group of early teen girls came trick or treating to our door.  One exclaimed that she loved the York mint patties "Oh look, they are pink for breast cancer."  I replied something about liking the peppermint patties too and that I was having surgery in two weeks for breast cancer.  The "Chicago Bear" said "I'll pray for you" and asked my name.   Again, it is the little child that leads us.

When Roger and I were in San Antonio, I went to our small hotel lobby for breakfast.  There I met a young woman from Aledo...Aledo, Texas, that is.   She shared a song that she had written when her husband had been badly injured at work: "I am the One.  I am the shepherd, you're my sheep.  I am on watch while you're asleep."  Then she took my hand and offered a prayer for my healing.  I believe that sharing our own experiences connects us with another human being and initiates conversations that open up the possibility of God's realm of Shalom.  For those of us in the UCC, these moments of Christian witness do not come easily. However, my own faith has been strengthened by sharing myself with others who differ from me.  I have been amazed at their responses.  The most frequent response has been "I will keep you in my prayers."  These are not empty words.

Some years ago I took home this message from an Illinois Partners in Education retreat.  If we could alter one thing to make a difference in the development of mature Christians, we would commit to and have our entire congregation commit to saying grace together before meals.  My challenge to you this Advent is to take on this practice for achieving God's Shalom.

We may be tempted by the illusion that prayer and action are polar opposites.  It would be more true to say that prayer and work are two distinct kinds of action.  In the sixties, the civil rights marchers stopped in the churches for a time of prayer.    A wise friend once told me, "Prayer is not a substitute for action; prayer is action for which there is no substitute."  Prayer is action because it is a conscious choice to engage in a relationship-a relationship which happens to be the most significant relationship in our lives.  As St. Augustine said, "My soul is restless until it finds its home in God."   As you wait hopefully for the Promised one this Advent season, may you find your home in God.

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On Our Way Rejoicing

Jeremiah 29:1, 4-7
Psalm 66:1-12
Luke 17 2:8-15


May These Words be to the Glory of God

"A wise person climbs to the top of Mt. Sinai to get close enough to talk to God and asks, 'God, what does a million years mean to you?'
            'A minute." says the voice from God.
            'And what does a million dollars mean to you?'
            "A penny,' says the voice of God.
            'Well, God, can I have a penny?'
            'In a minute'." (Rumors #470)

Sometimes it feels like it is all about the money - the haves and the have nots - us and them...and if God could just help me win the lotto - or heck, just give me a million ... well then, what? Would it all be as good as we think? But wait, we know all those statistics about how lotto winners get divorced, lose all they have gambling or die early from some kind of abuse. But statistics shamistics -- we still want a chance to give it a try...we want to go from that place of worrying about not having enough, to having plenty.

The lepers in our scripture lesson know that money isn't what they need - it might help them some, but what they really need is to be free of disease. And Jesus seems to accidentally just happen upon them on his way from Galilee to Jerusalem, and Jesus has to go through the border town of Samaria to get there.  He and his disciples are in dangerous territory, not so much because they are near sick people but because they are geographically in enemy territory. We remember that Jews and Samaritans don't get along, not unlike Palestinians and Jews today. This is the same the same strip of land, the same border people are still fighting over today and Jesus and his followers were right in the thick of it.

The people who happen to have caught leprosy are just a group of sick beggars that they pass along the way who know their place. They know they are outcasts and they stick together and beg for scraps of food.  Unlike the continuing Middle East turmoil that, to this day, has not found resolution, Jesus does heal this group of people as he passes by. Today, we know that leprosy is a progressive disease that can affect the skin and the nervous system. It is bacterial in nature, not easily transmitted and, when managed with antibiotics, it is curable.  But the story of the place - the land - the fighting - the danger - the peoples who are afraid of each other and who want something from each others, well, that hasn't changed. No long term course of antibiotics can  do much to get rid of hatred and fear.

The miracle in this story is not so much about the ten being healed of their disease, which of course was profound, but the important part of the story is who these people were and how they reacted to the healing itself. People, then and now, gather together around similar interests or because they are part of the same group...in this case these people are outcasts together and, in recognizing their sameness, formed a kind of community because they had something in common - leprosy. Nine are presumed to be Jews and one a Samaritan-which is amazing all on its own. When they are healed, the nine go off to have their healing verified by the rabbi as the law requires so they can go back into society - but the one, the Samaritan - the hated enemy of the Jews and visa versa, well he does something else.

He comes back to Jesus and thanks God; he thanks Jesus.  He recognizes Jesus for who he is - that he is of God to do such an amazing thing as to cure him and the others. It is a very simple thing the Samaritan does and Jesus is moved and perplexed when he asks...'Were not ten made clean? But the other nine, where are they? Was none of them found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?' Then he said to him, 'Get up and go on your way; your faith has made you well.'

Barbara Brown Taylor, in her book The Preaching Life, says, "Ten were healed of their skin diseases, but only one was saved...Ten behaved like good lepers, good Jews; only one... behaved like a man in love."  She goes on to [say]..."I know how to be obedient but I do not know how to be in love." We're commanded to "love God," and our efforts to do so are usually expressed in faithful actions and regular prayer. (Samuel Sermon Seeds.)

Last night our church sponsored a concert by Tricia Alexander who every year around thing time  gives a concert in gratitude She talked about our lives moving so fast that we don't have time to breathe out because we are always just gasping in  She said when we notice that when is the time to slow  down, to take some time to breathe in and slowly breathe out, we aret grateful for all those things we have been given like the smell of fall, music, our sight, the ground beneath our feet. Then once we have completed our list of all those things we are grateful for today,then  we need to say those words we learned as kids. Tricia asked the children what those most important three little words were and they said immediately, "PLEASE AND THANK YOU." Then Tricia looked up at the cross and said, "Whew, I am so glad kids are still learning to say those most important words...please and thank you."

Yes, we are as surprised as Jesus was when someone comes back to us and thanks us for the help we have given them...and maybe this is the real healing miracle. When we can turn to another to show our gratitude and to say, "Thank you." Aren't we really saying thanks to God...for it is God who created us and God who gave us the opportunity to co-create with God and be part of the beauty all around us, including the beauty of difference, as well as sameness?

It is this simple action of gratitude that leads to other things. It leads to recognizing the good in our neighbor, maybe one we thought was an enemy. If everyone in the world could thank God for all we have been given - if we could thank each other when we have been given something  - maybe we could be part of much bigger miracles in our world than we could possibly imagine.

Yes, maybe by remembering to act on those simple lessons we learned as a child we can be more generous than we imagined. We can recognize that for all God and the church have given us, we can be generous and give back even more than we imagined we could. We, too, can be part of something much bigger than our own wants and desires.  We can be co-creators with God and perhaps [we can be like the]...Samaritan who noticed the beauty and wonder of his own healing - who was awake to the holiness of what had happened. Maybe that was the miracle Jesus had in mind when he said, "Get up and go on your way, your faith has made you well." (Rumors) That may also have been the real story that explains why the last shall be first.


Amen and amen

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Lamentations 1:1-6 with Lamentations 3:19-26
Psalm 137
2 Timothy 1:1-14


May These Words be to the Glory of God


We are journeying toward ourselves and hopefully with the certainly of God with us as we journey. But some of us have been banished, sent to Babylon, to be part of the displaced, the hungry and the frightened - in the diaspora there is nothing to count on...nothing to give us hope, except the sun coming up assuring us of a new day.

In Greek the word diaspora means scattering - as in the seeds to the wind.  We  who live in the Judeo-Christian ethic know the diaspora to be the time when the Jews were forced from Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 586 before Christ was born, and then again in 136 CE, by the Romans.  In the 21st century the word diaspora can apply to other scatterings - now we talk about the Katrina diaspora...a tragic scattering cause by a hurricane, perpetuated by poor management, spreading grief all around.

There is also a sense of being disbursed away from that place where all was once well to a place where things are difficult. We hear from author Thomas Wolfe that we can never go home again. We know this to be part of the human condition and the world we live in. We are all aware that tragedy can hit anywhere - be it hurricane or tornado, or  a murder in our back yard; we live in a global society where no one is any longer allowed to live a cocoon of warmth and absolute comfort forever.

For some, the diaspora might not be about a roof or a meal but about illness or depression or fear of deportation or fear of repercussions for what was done in the past. These scripture readings this morning are some of the most reassuring for those of us ever caught in the diaspora. The writer reminds us to "rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands; for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power, and of love and of self discipline." The writer goes on to remind the reader that we learned all this from our mothers in church.

This morning we are together in church for a variety of reasons...but one reason might be to reconciled with the fact that we have been banished to a place we didn't want to go -- be it the diaspora of cancer/ the diaspora of divorce/the diaspora of grief/the diaspora of poverty/the diaspora of fear/the diaspora of racism/the diaspora of war/the diaspora/of uncertainty and unknowing...There is an African Spiritual that you might know - that I invite you to sing with me that talks about this very thing...


"Waters of Babylon"

While we, as individuals, struggle to pull ourselves out of our own personal diasporas, there are others who don't have what we have. We have this community of faith where we gather together to remember the past, share the strength of the present in worship as we wander once more into the future.

We are now in what I call the "Season of Stewardship" where we are being asked to think about what this place is worth to us. Our church needs everyone to give to its resources for the mission and maintenance of this place. As a church we can no longer pass a deficit budget nor hope that the bills will magically be paid by someone else. Take these next four weeks to ask yourself what the church means to you. What would it be like if it weren't here? What is the church worth to you? You will be asked to pledge your time/your talent/and your money to this church so we can keep our doors open to welcome all who enter our doors.

"This letter to Timothy implies that he is in trouble. His faith is wavering...the writer, (perhaps Paul) is saying, "Hang in there, Tim! Plug back into the spiritual power you received from your mom and your grandma. Lean on the Spirit and show what kind of person you really are." (Rumors #467

Here we can do that - we can lean on each other - we can remember where we have come from and journey forward sharing communion with the world, giving gifts to our neighbors in need and keeping our doors open for all who need to be welcomed in Christ. It is a wonderful thing we do being the church and we do it all with the help of God!


Amen and amen

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Jeremiah 32:1-3a, 6-15
Psalm 91:1-6,14-16,
1 Timothy 6:6-19

May These Words be to the Glory of God

When I was in seminary it was passages like these from Jeremiah and 1Timothy that would give me pause.   Was I really in the right place? Maybe God called me to ministry but I took the wrong road. As I journeyed on, as I really heard words from Psalm 91, for example, that I began to understand more about why I was in seminary and more about how God calls us all to ministry.

Ministry is not a job - you never go to work - yet, you are the work, and you are always in it. It is a call. Only a few people in my world could see behind the person they thought I was, to the person I was being called to be.
I suspect we all shake our heads at the wonder of God. Sometimes, things are so powerful as to blow the wind of doubt almost knocking us over - yet somehow we occasionally find ourselves moving forward- into, that good night.

In the most difficult of situations we can rage against the light, or we can accept it-and maybe even be the light. The poem of Dylan Thomas' to his dying father is entitled Do not go Gentle into that Good Night. It is a wish we all might want to send out for people we love who are dying, or may be when a part of us is dying and just needs to go. I also think it is wise to rage against God when this is happening. Now, I cannot begin to guess about how it is for you. I only know that when God calls me to do outrageous things, like be a minister in Deerfield,  a stones throw from where I was raised and promised  myself that I would never go back-, I could rage all I wanted...but in my rage, my God still held on me to. In my  anger, in the snare of the flowler as it were, God held me until I believed that God's way was better than mine.

There are places where we all have come to a crossroads, where we have had to change or kill ourselves trying. We have railed so hard, in our resistance, that we often hurt ourselves even more. Somehow God has held of us. We eventually know that God is our rescue and our fortress, the one in whom we can put our trust.

Dylan Thomas couldn't prevent his father from dying, so he wrote that famous  prayer that  lives on in a world that appreciates a little talk about how hard it is to let go of someone you love. You and I will leave behind similar gifts. It might not be a famous poem, or a legacy of riches,  but we all will leave our presence in the lives of others that we have touched and made a difference. Maybe what we leave behind is who we are after we have paid attention to God. I remember a woman friend of mine who decided to go to seminary after I did. She said, "I figured if Blair could go to seminary, Blair with all her imperfections, well then, so could I."  Did my decision give her courage?
I am not recommending that you all go flocking off to seminary - although I know at least five of our membership have already graduated from seminary...but I digress...I think my point, more simply put is this: when God calls you to something you can't imagine doing, and you rage against it, tooth and claw, you have to know God is smarter than you. All you need is to start with one little light and then move on with that tiny light and show others what you have found.

I am an old hippie from the 60's - the only time a true hippie is from. There is a new band in Germany call 17 Hippies...hippie in German is translated to mean well meaning but not quite right.  There was a band who took being a hippie far past the '60s -  the Grateful Dead. They have a song called "Just a Little Light."
No more than I would presume to understand the writer of the Bible, or Dylan Thomas, I wouldn't ever try to understand the Grateful Dead...But they, too, have this theme of the little light. Here are the words of the chorus of "Just a Little Light":
Even though I been a stranger, full of irony and spite
Holding little but contempt for all things beautiful and bright,
Something shines around you and it seems, to my delight
To give me just a little sweetness...
Just a little sweetness...
Just a little sweetness...
Just a little light.

I know now that I am called to ministry - called to see that the writer of first Timothy isn't condemning money, he is condemning greed - the love of money that prevents us from using our money for God's church and helping God's people.  I know now that love is the little light we all have - the light we can hold on to as we rage against the dying of someone we love or even see in contemporary society if we try. Money is the currency - the light, we often use to help another.

In this scripture, Paul is instructing Timothy about what it means to be a good and faithful leader of the church. He says greed leads away from the path of truth - and many in the name of church and God have been greedy for themselves and not done the right things...but that doesn't mean we can't change all that by lighting one little light and recognize that this makes a difference - especially when combined with others to be the light.

So, where have we been today with all this? We have journeyed in the places where God calls us to be more than we would imagine. We have remembered that there are many who have been called - who have changed our lives by the bright light they have become - offering a model-a sample of what it might mean to be a light, a little light, that we let shine  to help our neighbors see who might need a light along the way.

This brings me to that little piece of paper that is in your bulletin. We have collected some items and gathered them together in this plastic bag - I have 20 all ready to go - ready to join others - ready to be given to those who have lost everything to flood, hurricane or earthquake.  What is missing is a note of comfort and hope from you. So, here in this place, I invite you to let a little light shine as you offer a few words of comfort to go out, literally into the world. So write a few words that will be read by  strangers who needs to know they are not alone-that there are others pulling for them and sending comfort and love...Please take a moment to write your note. Then when the plate comes around we will collect your offering of comfort - your little light, and send it on to others - as a gift to us and to God.

Amen and amen




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Amos 8:4-7 with Psalm 113 and
1 Timothy 2:1-7

May These Words be to the Glory of God


Many of you have asked what is the difference between infant dedication and baptism?  Often I take the opportunity to talk about the sacrament of baptism and what it means in the UCC. Today we have had a dedication, not because Chase's mothers don't believe in baptism but because they do. This is a choice made by Lisa and Eva to dedicate their baby in the church with family, friends and church community taking part in this naming celebration. In baptism, with which we are more familiar , parents  make promises for their child. In a dedication,  the child is welcomed into the church and is given the same love and care,  but at age fourteen he or she chooses baptism for themselves. They are baptized and then confirmed,  making the promises themselves to be Christian.

Dedicating a baby requires faith. It requires a deep commitment on the part of the parents to guide their child in such a way that baptism and church membership will be one of those milestones they will work for, and undoubtedly achieve. That doesn't always happen with baptism. Some folks think once they have seen to it their child is baptized, they are done with it. One way is not better than another.

This also represents EXACTLY who we, as the Congregational Church in Deerfield are...for we are a church that is not stuck in the past - but open to learning and accepting new ways to be God's people...new ways to be Christian. Some might say that the old way is more comfortable, but we should be used to change by now.

Our world is spinning so fast. Ten years ago I never thought I'd keep my calendar, my lists, camera, phone, phone book and calculator all on a device no bigger than a deck of cards.  Am I more punctual? Maybe a little, but I no longer carry a briefcase and my back appreciates the lightened load. It is a small change that made my life better, but to get there I had to spend money, engage in a long learning curve and, since I am not the most naturally technological person, it has been a bit of a struggle.

Ah, but we were talking about our faith, and the things we believe and have held as beliefs for a long time, and how maybe they need to be reviewed if not overhauled. Our scripture starts us off thinking about prayer. The writer of Timothy says we should pray for everyone, even the world's leaders so that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and dignity. For many the very act of praying for those we don't like might be a change and challenge to our faith, especially if we think those with power over us could hurt us. But this scripture says doing just that will bring us a peaceable life - wouldn't we all like that? Now that certainly would change how we see ourselves and our world. And if everyone did it - kings, queens, - presidents and the like - well, we could have peace. Not just in our hearts, but in our world.

There are some places in our faith that never change for some and are a continual challenge for others, for as 1 Timothy: 2 says, "there is one God; there is also one mediator between God and humankind." And that, of course, is Jesus, but where did he go? First century Christians were really upset. They thought Christ would come again in their lifetime and give them peace. But they didn't see him. The funny thing, no the tragic thing, is that they didn't notice him, for he had changed. They missed Jesus walking among them and so do we. But when he left he handed us the baton of peace.
What were some of Jesus last words - you remember them don't you? Words from John 14:27: "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you."
Jesus said he left his peace with us, he gave it to us...Jesus left his peace with us...not to hold on to but to pass on.  There is where Jesus is...living and giving and hoping we will not only have peace but that we will be peace...ah this really does ask a lot more of us than a few minutes of prayer.  But Jesus wouldn't have left his peace with us if he didn't think we could carry on - in his name - in all we do and all we are. For most of us that will require that we change - but if our savior is confident we will pass on the peace he has left with us, who are we to question it.
So as you and I begin our time of change with prayer, let's ask Jesus for the courage to change our comfortable lives and to go out into the world and be peace, not just think about it- so that we [ALL] may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and dignity.

Let us pray

Seventh Sunday of Easter  

Acts 1:6-14