Angel wanted me to update the blog for Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in Troy.  At this point normal Sunday services will be Morning Prayer only until further notice.

Sunday: Closely Watching

Today we're listening to the Gospel lesson, and Jesus had been asked to attend a Sabbath dinner at a private home of some Pharisees.  The Bible is anything but subtle about the lessons that we will receive.  Within one verse, we know something's up, because Jesus is being very closely watched.  With this first verse, we know this isn't simply a nice invitation to Sabbath dinner.  Something is going to challenge Christ, and it won't take long for the controversy to arise.  In our lesson this morning, we've already heard the "rest of the story", and know both lessons told within the words from Luke. 
The first example is the lesson not to choose one's own place of honor, but rather display humility so that a host may display honor, emphasizing the humility you've shown.  If one assumes honor and ends up having to "move down", so to speak, one then shows their own disgrace.  This example is only the first part of the lesson, because in this, we are only dealing with people who are dealing with others within one's same social class.  Jesus went to a private party, and understandably, he should not have been expected to deal with anything more than dinner and potentially interesting discussion.  But again, with that very first verse, we've already been told, "they were watching him closely."
So Jesus has explained the first lesson, but since He's apparently expected to earn His own supper, Christ continues to teach the Pharisees.  Blessed are those who are able to provide food, when others have nothing to offer in return.  Here, Christ refers to the crippled, the lame, the blind.  It would just as easy today to be people providing a meal for those who are homeless, who has AIDS, or who are abused.  These are the people outside of "common society", and Jesus is reminding us to wake up, that you will be repaid "at the resurrection of the righteous.”
This has got to be pretty heavy dinner conversation, but that's right, you missed the first part of the discussion Jesus first told in Verses 2 through 6:
"Just then, in front of him [that would be Christ], there was a man who had dropsy. And Jesus asked the lawyers and Pharisees, 'Is it lawful to cure people on the Sabbath, or not?' But they were silent. So Jesus took him and healed him, and sent him away. Then he said to them, 'If one of you has a child or an ox that has fallen into a well, will you not immediately pull it out on a Sabbath day?' And they could not reply to this."
Very often, these lessons from Christ seem repetitive, and so the portions are skipped in our Sunday lesson.  Dropsy was a collective term for conditions including everything from simple edema to deadly swellings of the lungs.  Luke did not define the problem, but given the man stopped at a private home to see Christ, it was probably not just something easily treated by other physicians on the Sabbath.  But Jesus wanted other people to realize that, even if it was something non-threatening, people could have "a child or an ox that had fallen." 
All of the lessons in this Gospel are asking people to think – what would they want if they were in the situation?  Are they open to realizing that God would like us to take care of His people, feeding His sheep as Christ will later ask Peter? 
Christ takes time before telling the next part of this same dinner where Jesus was attending.  And here, you will find that the perspective is changing from people being invited and encouraged by Christ, to the perspective of God basically setting down the law.
One of the dinner guests, on hearing this, said to him, “Blessed is anyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!” Then Jesus said to him, “Someone gave a great dinner and invited many. At the time for the dinner he sent his slave to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come; for everything is ready now.’ But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of land, and I must go out and see it; please accept my regrets.’ Another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to try them out; please accept my regrets.’ Another said, ‘I have just been married, and therefore I cannot come.’ So the slave returned and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and said to his slave, ‘Go out at once into the streets and lanes of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.’ And the slave said, ‘Sir, what you ordered has been done, and there is still room.” Then the master said to the slave, ‘Go out into the roads and lanes, and compel people to come in, so that my house may be filled. For I tell you, none of those who were invited will taste my dinner.’”
So here again, we're given understand that God is providing us many opportunities, but eventually, God will set His mind.  We don't know when we will be called in.  What we do have are the opportunity to choose to follow God – or not.  We do know that part of that responsibility is teaching others so that they, too, have the opportunity to choose to follow Christ. 
This whole story in Luke provides each of us the chance through Christ the opportunity for a full lesson.  Should we follow the letter of the law, or live with the spirit of the law?  Should we maintain our own humility so that our position can be raised through someone else's regard for our raised opinion?  Should we care for the least, the lost and the last, so that we maintain the blessing we will be paid at the resurrection?  And finally, do we realize that time is not infinite?  We truly do have a decision to make in how we treat those God provides us.

Tuesday Sermon: Scribes, Pharisees and Hypocrites

Jesus went to the heart of the matter when he called the religious leaders of His day:  scribes, Pharisees and hypocrites!  The word hypocrite means actor -- someone who puts on a show to draw attention to themselves. The scribes devoted their lives to the study of the Law of God and regarded themselves as legal experts in it.  They divided the 10 Commandments and precepts into thousands of tiny rules and regulations.  They were so exacting in their interpretations and in trying to live them out, that they had little time for anything else, even the love of God.  By the time they finished compiling their interpretations, they combined no less than 50 volumes!  Jesus chastised them for neglecting the more important matters of religion, such as justice and the love of God.  In their misguided zeal, they had lost sight of God and of His purpose for the law.

Jesus used the example of tithing to show how far they had missed the mark. God had commanded a tithe of the first fruits of one's labor as an expression of thanksgiving and honor for His intended care for His people (Deut. 14:22; Lev. 27:30).  The scribes, however, went to extreme lengths to tithe on insignificant things (such as tiny plants) with great mathematical accuracy.  They were very attentive to minute matters of little importance, but they neglected to care for the needy and the weak.  Jesus admonished them because their hearts were not right.  They were filled with pride and contempt for others. They put unnecessary burdens on others while neglecting to show charity, especially to the weak and the poor.  They meticulously went through the correct motions of conventional religion while forgetting the realities. Jesus used a funny example to show just how out of proportion things had gotten with them.  Gnats were considered the smallest of insects, and camels were considered the largest of animals in Palestine. Both were considered ritually impure.  The scribes went to great lengths to avoid contact with gnats, even to the point of straining the wine cup with a fine cloth lest they accidently swallow a gnat.  The stark contrast must have drawn chuckles as well as groans.  What was the point of Jesus' lesson and humor? The essence of God's commandments is love — love of God and love of neighbor.  God is love and everything He does flows from His love for us.  Love is sacrificial; it both embraces and lifts the burdens of others.  Do you allow the love of God to transform your mind and heart?

Now, you know me – I'm fairly exacting in the words I want to choose – even if I might not currently be able to pronounce everything just as I know it's right inside my head – but maybe this particular lesson for me is to remind others that the love of God is the important message from God and to all of God's creations.  As Episcopalians, we tend to look for the positive, but reading the Gospel today makes us listen to both the chastisement and the humor that Christ brings forth.  Achieving perfection is, in actuality, only achieved by God – and striving for that is certainly admirable.  But when the striving for perfection makes us forget the meaning of God's love for His creation, then we need to laugh at ourselves, and remember Christ's message to us.  Are you loving God and His creation?

Tuesday Sermon: Bigger Pictures

          One of the things that I love about mid-week readings is that we are given the opportunity to see portions that we don't get to hear about the lessons, stories and people who share their lives with us.  And while the gospel lesson today is definitely interesting and well worth reading about, today, we're going to focus on the story in Judges.  And today, our short sermon will focus on Deborah, the only judge in this book that tells about the judge chosen by God among the women in history.

          Now, first, the reading from today tells the battle in poetic form, and essentially is a stylized song in Chapter 5 that was a much more factual story about what happened in Chapter 4.  So when you listen to the story, remember that if you go back and read Chapter 4, you'll get a lot more of the facts that took place.  Chapter 5 talks more about the victory of Israel in total, while at the same time, admonishes those tribes that didn't bother to participate in the war.  So there's a bit of commentary that wasn't in Chapter 4.  It's up to you to determine whether Deborah acted as a stateswoman or a propagandist.

          Starting one verse before today's lesson, Deborah writes:  “Tell of it, you who ride on white donkeys, you who sit on rich carpets and you who walk by the way.  To the sound of musicians at the watering places, there they repeat the triumphs of the Lord, the triumphs of his peasantry in Israel.  'Then down to the gates marched the people of the Lord.'"  Fresh water sources were extremely important in passing news to the people. Wells were places where a man can find his bride, where a leader can negotiate a treaty, and where a community comes together. So in Deborah’s time news was spread through singers "at the watering places”.  The song today may have been written for just that purpose, as her recording of the war for the people.

          In today's reading, Deborah tells about the sections where Deborah and Barak were called up by God, provided a list of the tribes that participated, as well as admonishing against the tribes that didn't show up, and then provided a description of the battles.  As a stateswoman, Deborah wasn’t just telling a "true" story – you can go back and read Chapter 4 for that.  She was telling a story in a way that united Israel – even as she admonished those tribes who did not participate in the war.  The important story tells about the capital of the Canaanite king who is causing so many difficulties. 

          Deborah's states craft in her song changes a fairly local skirmish between a couple of tribes to involving leaders who had participated by not actually sending troops, but rather sent leaders.  But by mentioning the other tribes, Deborah is changing this story of a small set of skirmishes in northern Israel into one of national importance. And this is the story that is being sung at the wells all over Israel, about how six of the tribes got together to defeat a common enemy, even when two of the tribes were far from in danger, and in reality only two of the tribes actually did the fighting.

          As we often find in today's editing to achieve political goals, this method of telling the victor's story omits certain facts.  The combatants become a bit more generic as she writes, " The kings came, they fought; then fought the kings of Canaan."  (Judges 5:19)  Instead of being one thorn in the side of one tribe, she widens the story.  All of the tribes had enemies among the Canaanites and by expanding the fight to the “kings”, everyone that heard this song could have identified with it.  And by castigating the others that didn’t help, she’s both asserting her – and God’s – leadership of them and encouraging them to participate next time. That was brilliant, and it worked: Manasseh and Asher will both send troops to the next incursion in Chapter 6.

          Deborah's brilliant military strategy, her oratory, and her mastery of Israeli tribal politics is remembered. Because of her efforts, Israel was at peace for forty years.  My suggestion here is that we keep in mind God's lessons within the Bible may be more about the lessons we need to learn, rather than the specific facts.  Today's lesson is more about unity, defending God's people, than more specifically about skirmishes and detailed fights.  Today, we're asked to look at the bigger picture, uniting people under God. 

Sermon: Seize the Day

          This week, I've been looking at what inspires people.  The inspiration from the Bible itself is much easier to listen, and understand the passion that was actually written in those words.  Our Psalm this morning can inspire the words that David speaks:  "They have burned it with fire, they have cut it down; may they perish at the rebuke of your countenance.  But let your hand be upon the one at your right hand, the one whom you made strong for yourself.  Then we will never turn back from you; give us life, and we will call on your name.  Restore us, O Lord God of hosts; let your face shine, that we may be saved." 

          We can often learn the words that inspire us more easily when we hear it set to words that speak to our hearts.  If we were lucky when we attended school, we learned to do more than just read the words in our classics. Some of you may remember the movie "Dead Poets Society."  The movie stars the amazingly talented Robin Williams.  Williams plays John Keating, a high school English teacher at an all-boys private academy, who is committed to helping his students take advantage of life's opportunities.  Keating leads his class out into the foyer of the building where old photographs of graduating classes from decades past cover the walls.  As the boys study the portraits of the classes who had graduated generations before them, Keating remarks that the men in those pictures were just like them, full of hope and ambition.  Then Keating asks his class, "Did they wait till it was too late to realize their full potential?" 

          Then he tells the class that if they lean in close they can hear a message from the men in these pictures.  So they lean in and Keating whispers, "Carpe Diem.  Carpe Diem.  Seize the day, boys.  Make your lives extraordinary."

          Whenever I read Hebrews 11, I feel a bit like one of the students in Keating's class.  Except in this case, the writer of Hebrews is my teacher, and he is taking me on a field trip through the "Hall of Faith."  I see portraits of Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Moses, David and Samson.  I learn about the heroes of the faith and the extraordinary things they did for God.  As I take in this inspiring tour, it's as if these heroes are calling out to me, "Carpe Diem!  Seize the day.  Make your life extraordinary for God!"

          So listen again to Hebrews:  "And what more should I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets— who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, quenched raging fire, escaped the edge of the sword, won strength out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women received their dead by resurrection. Others were tortured, refusing to accept release, in order to obtain a better resurrection. Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned to death, they were sawn in two, they were killed by the sword; they went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, persecuted, tormented— of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground. Yet all these, though they were commended for their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better so that they would not, apart from us, be made perfect."

          So here, we are led from Hebrews, discussing the men from the Old Testament.  We've been listening to Christ telling us about the people of faith, led to today.  And it feels like Jesus has had a terrible, horrible, nogood, very bad day. “I have come to bring fire to the earth, and oh how I wish it were blazing already! Do you think I have come to bring peace to the earth? No! I’ve come for division!”

          We've been listening to Christ telling us of the love of God, of how we need to follow the words God has provided us.  But often if our following the words we hear and listen, we don't really take in.  How many people hear the words they listen to on Sunday, and by afternoon, they've forgotten the words?  We may get the gist, and we might even think about it during the week, but how often are we hearing words that actually inspire us to take action, to change something in our own lives, to follow God's words? 

          CS Lewis wrote within a story, to find a method of reaching those who could actually hear the message.  "In the children’s novel The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe … four British siblings enter a coat closet and discover a whole other world called Narnia. This magical world is filled with talking animals and the original Lion King, a lion named Aslan, who rules over all of Narnia. The youngest child Lucy strikes up a conversation with Mr. Beaver, asking about Aslan, “is he quite safe?” to which Mr. Beaver replies, “"Safe?...Who said anything about safe? 'Course he isn't safe. But he's good.”

          We know the story being told in the Bible.  We've heard Christ say, "I have come to bring fire to the earth!"  And has it occurred to you that we are Christians – our responsibilities require us to follow Christ.  Simple attendance on Sundays merely feed our own souls, but when we leave here, our responsibilities as Christians is to bring that word of Christ to the world, whether that is said aloud or demonstrated in our own actions and choices. 

          Christ brought fire to the earth.  We were taught that "since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of God."  Carpe Diem, followers of Christ – Seize the day, and make a difference.

Tuesday Sermon: True Greatness

          Today's Gospel hits home with me.  When I was ordained, responsible for guiding the souls of this church, concerned with numbers in both of people and of monies, I focused on everything but concentrating on my own responsibility.  There's a story that put today's lesson into perspective.

          A preacher uses his cute, young children in every sermon:  his four-year-old daughter Elena is not only beautiful, but she's also a genius.  He told her often how proud of her that he is for various things, and how smart he thinks she is.  One day in the car as they were driving, dad hears from the back seat after a bit of driving silence:  'Daddy, I think I might be the smartest girl in the whole world.'  Okay, at four, she's cute, but the reason it's cute is because of the naiveté of a child.  A statement like that when wrapped in roots of pride and arrogance beginning to bud in the words of a fledgling Pharisee bloom in our ears and should make us cringe at our own words.

          Like today's gospel, we're often talking about political and societal position.  The disciples were seeking political rank, social status, perks and power that come from being buddies with the King. They're wondering about the org chart.

          In these words of Jesus, I must be converted from pride to humility; from worldly ambition to spiritual ambition; from godlessness to godliness.  Jesus has told us, we must be born again!  The gospel wasn't given to us to just to be an easy ride into a good place; it was given to cleanse us of sin by His blood and change our lives, from the inside out!  When I obey the gospel, I'm not just saying, "I was wrong about the church."  I'm actually saying, "I was wrong about how I was living my life, wrong in my behavior, wrong in my attitudes, ambitions and associations – I was lost!"

          Christ focused His listeners, "calling to Him a child, He put [the youth] in the midst of them and said, Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.'"  If we attempt to realize our own hubris, the size of our world, the amount of our knowledge, particularly when compared to Christ, we realize that like the pastor who recognizes the cute 4-year-old, we, too, must recognize that we are naïve, our world is quite small, and our understanding and perspective is actually quite trifling. 

          But here, Christ is telling us, with our own perspective of many more years than the 4-year-old child, we need to realize that we are still children in God's eyes, and eliminate the hubris, pride and arrogance that we practice, and change our attitudes in recognition of our actual reality.  We truly are children.  God, the all-powerful, the all wise, all good, perfectly right:  God, is asking us to see ourselves in relationship to Him, not relative to each other.

          Christ's message today is, if we want to be the best among the rest of the disciples, we're aiming far too low.  To enter heaven, we must realize that we are the child's position and have so much to learn in knowledge, in understanding.  We need to set aside our rights and privileges, and recognize our neediness and dependence,  The best way we can emulate Christ's actions is for us to serve others the way He served us.

Sermon: Plans

          One of the interesting things we find in the Bible is that people – faithful, everyday people who believe in God – were pretty normal people.  Their conversations with God included thanks and praise, prayers and worries, but like today, also included a bit of kvetching because things weren't exactly as promised by God.  As you've heard me say often, God's time is perfect – we still have to work on practicing patience and trust.

          Abrahm in this instance has done his best.  He's achieved his military successes and his financial successes.  But he and Sarai are running out of human time for a baby to be born to fulfill the promise that God made to Abrahm.  And his concerns are taken to God.  God tells him, "Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great."  Well, Abrahm appreciates the words, but he wants something a little more – he'd like a timeline.

          God reassures Abrahm saying, "no one but your very own issue shall be your heir."  But before Abrahm can bring up his age and Sarai's age again, God takes him outside, and says, "Look toward heaven and count the stars, if you are able to count them."  Then he said to him, "So shall your descendants be."  And Abrahm trusts God's word, not realizing at this point that it will be 13 years before Sarai gives birth to Isaac, with yet another step in which Abrahm fathered Ishmael with Hagar, trying to fulfill God's word.

          It's often that as humans, we establish "Plan B", just in case what we think God has plans for our lives isn't going to happen the way we thought.  And Plan B may be something good – it may just be taking up time until Plan A takes place, or maybe it should have been changed from Plan B to Plan A to begin with.

          It is so easy for us to think we have to limit our expectations. Not to hope too high.  Not to dream dreams. To live as people would say "in the real world". But that was not God's plan for Abrahm, and that is not God's plan for us.

          Let's look at these in a bit more modern activities.  Back in the 1930's there was once a student called George Danzig.  Being a typical student, he was late for his lecture.  The math professor had written two problems on the blackboard.  Danzig thought they were the homework assignment. It was the most difficult homework assignment he'd ever encountered. Night after night he tried solving the two problems.  It took him nearly a week to finally figure them out.  He finally turned in his assignment and thought he’d get a bad grade because it took so long.

          A few weeks later, George heard a pounding on his door early in the morning. He was surprised to see his mathematics professor standing there. His professor said, “George, you solved the problems.” George said, “Well yeah - that was our homework.” The professor said, “That wasn’t your homework. Those were two of the most famous insolvable problems in mathematics. The world's leading mathematicians have been trying for years to solve the two problems you solved in a few days.”

          George Danzig, who later became a professor at Stanford University, said, “If someone had told me that they were two famous unsolved problems, I probably wouldn’t have even tried to solve them.” (Contributed by Mark Batterson)

          The thing is, God has plans for each and every one of us.  Now, because we tend to be fairly industrious people, we look for the "Plan A" and if that doesn't happen, we work on other things.  The importance is being aware and being prepared to follow Plan A when God says the time is right. 

          Bill Gates may have made many people's lives easier through the software he developed.  However, his greatest achievements through his charitable trust, seeking to cure malaria and change the world, have only become possible after first spending many years of slogging at Microsoft.

          The importance here is being aware when God is moving in your life, and being prepared to follow the plans He has.  And at the same time, keeping at least one of your ideas and plans to be fairly practical.

          Sherlock Holmes and John Watson are out camping.  In the middle of the night, Holmes wakes Watson up and says "What do you see", “I see millions of stars.” “What does that tell you?” asked Holmes.  Watson ponders for a minute. “Astronomically speaking, it tells me that there are millions of galaxies and potentially billions of planets. Timewise, it appears to be approximately a quarter past three. Theologically, it’s evident the Lord is all powerful and we are small and insignificant. Meteorologically, it seems we will have a beautiful day tomorrow. What do the stars tell you, Holmes?” "Elementary my dear Watson - As we look up at those stars it tells me ... Someone has stolen our tent.”

          Sometimes we can be so stuck in one way of thinking, we need be given a new perspective. Abrahm is inside his tent, thinking about walls, God has to take him outside to give him a new perspective. God has to take him outside. "you see these stars - count them" " one, two three...." "Look towards the heavens and count the stars if you are able - so shall your descendants be."

          Even though we have a small church, God has plans for us – even when we didn't have the plans we might have personally had.  Before we say no about the growth of our church, we each need to move ourselves out of the way of our own plans.  We may not know what's going to happen, but I'd ask each of you to pause and listen – is God enacting Plan A in His time?  Are you ready to follow through with that?  And of course, likewise, is Plan A not yet time?  And are you ready to enact Plan B until then?

Thursday Sermon: Perceiving Reality

Teachers live for the "aha!" moments.  Their student's eyes light up and you can almost see the lightbulb above their head as they finally get it.  The problem is, sometimes what they're getting isn't what you're teaching.  And that can only be discovered if you take things a little bit further.

Stranger danger is a lesson many parents provide to their children, repeatedly, going through "what if" scenarios, and hoping against hope that their child will get it right, so that if the moment ever comes, they'll make the right choices.  One mother explained that she asked her young son what he'd do if a stranger approached him and asked him to help find a missing puppy.  She was happy to hear her son respond, "I wouldn't help him, Mom."  Fortunately, she took it a step further.  "What if he needed help finding a missing kitten?"  Her son responded, "Well, I'd have to help, 'cause kittens are littler than puppies, so that would be okay."

What we have to remember is that each person's perception is their reality – and that's the place they act from.  In the little boy's experience, kittens were smaller and therefore should be protected; his reality dictated his thoughts and actions.

So undoubtedly, when Jesus was asking the questions in today's Gospel, questioning who others thought he was, the disciples were glad to provide him answers.  Then Jesus asked the tough question:  "who do you think I am?"  Peter, bless his heart, got his own aha! moment, and came up with the answer of "the Messiah."  And Jesus was pleased with the answer.  

Jesus went on and explained what he would have to go through, but this didn't fit with Peter's reality of who the Messiah was, so he really didn't pay attention at that point.

What we have here is a failure to communicate.

In Peter's reality, the mashiach or Messiah, obviously had the following qualities and plans:  he would be a great political leader descended from King David, according to Jeremiah 23:5.  He will be well-versed in Jewish law, and observant of its commandments according to Isaiah 11:2-5.  He will be a charismatic leader, inspiring others to follow his example. He will be a great military leader, who will win battles for Israel. He will be a great judge, who makes righteous decisions according to Jeremiah 33:15. 

But above all, he will be a human being, not a god, demi-god or other supernatural being.  God is Eternal, above time. He is Infinite, beyond space. He cannot be born, and cannot die. Saying that God assumes human form makes God small, diminishing both His unity and His divinity. As the Torah says: “God is not a mortal” (Numbers 23:19).

Now, in Jesus' defense, He did give the disciples the particulars of God's plan.  But to them, the one word – Messiah – said it all, and apparently, they stopped listening.  And as the saying goes, "that's when the fight started."

Words can have such different meanings, depending on where your reality is; and that reality colors every perception you have.  But, then again, so can cultural differences.  It doesn't necessarily take words to insult your dinner guests and compare them to farm animals, as my mother discovered when I was little and living in Germany.  Like any good mid-west city girl, she served corn with dinner, not realizing that in Germany, corn was food reserved for livestock.  

So while Peter and Jesus' backgrounds seemed similar, as two Jewish men, we forget that Christ has the spiritual background as well as the human, and those may as well be two very different cultures.  The spiritual culture, we assume from our human perspective, looks at more than the big picture – it looks at the whole picture, at how events have occurred in the past, how they happen now, and how they will happen in the future, all with a sense of timelessness.  It looks at human life here as the blink of an eye, but at the everlasting life of souls.  

Peter's rebuke of Jesus teaching about the things he must suffer and experience, dying and rising again show the stark difference in the two cultures.  Christ's use of the word "Satan" here doesn't mean the devil, but one who is adversarial to God's plan.  His continuation, "For you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men" states plainly that we've got a significant cultural communication problem happening.

Those who have had the opportunity, or misfortune, to discuss something with me about which I am passionate know that I can, at times, get loud in defense of my position.  The way I grew up, arguments and debates were absolutely the stuff of life, and passion was a necessary component to defending your position.  Fights, on the other hand, were to be avoided, as they were unpleasant, personal and led to everyone feeling bad.  I love debating, but have learned that people who have more experience with fighting only hear the loud, and skip, what to me, is the fun part.  

Since at least half of communicating what you intend to say is ensuring that the other person's perception is at least close to what you intend, you have to be aware of how your words are going to be perceived.  If you know someone you're speaking with is not going to react well to a loud voice, even if you know you're not yelling but simply speaking passionately, then you need to alter your tone.  The only person you can change is yourself, and if you want clearer communication, you have to be willing to make that change.

Now let's take things a bit further – our communication with God.  Like most people, we pray to God, we talk to God – and how much listening do we do?  How much are we willing to put aside our perceptions of what we need or want, in order to hear and understand what God believes we need?  

Long ago, a friend of mine was having all sorts of problems with her 4-year-old.  So, she prayed to God for patience.  She expected that God would provide her with more patience.  What God gave her was more and varied opportunities to practice patience.  Two rather different realities there.  She finally learned to stop praying for patience, and discovered that she had more than she started with – or, her reality had changed.

Are we, like Peter, only listening with ears that are tuned into our own reality?  Or do we attempt to cross that cultural barrier into the spiritual realm?  

In the Lord's prayer, which Christ taught to us, we literally state, Thy Will be done.  Are you ready to put aside what you want for the Will of God?  For His timing and His concept of what is best for you?  

It's not just Peter who has to reevaluate his perception of reality.  

Sermon: Choose

          Ecclesiastes examines the age old question:  why are we here?  Koheleth, the author/teacher/pseudonym for Wisdom, goes through a litany of experiences in life, building on basic knowledge, acquiring proficiencies, enjoying sensual experiences of all the senses.  He concludes, however, that without fear of God – fear meaning trust, awe, reverence and submission to God's will –all is meaningless, a mere vanity.

          Referencing back to Genesis 3, when humankind disobeyed God in their acquisition of knowledge, it was the fear of God that began the building of wisdom.  Two verses in Proverbs sum up how the author could come to this conclusion: 

"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding." (Proverbs 9:10)

"The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom.  Though it cost all you have, get understanding." (Proverbs 4:7). 

          Humans toil, build, accumulate things, but also accumulate the intangibles like knowledge, skill, understanding.  The author points out that these are things that, when we die, will be left to those who haven't acquired those things on their own – which is both meaningless and "a great evil."  (Ecclesiastes 2:21)  Alternatively, the tangibles will turn to dust and the intangibles will die with us.  As indicated in Ecclesiastes 3, everything has a time or a season; but with the understanding of the fear of God, one realizes that time is a true gift to experience those things, for only that which is created by God endures.

          It is not really that humankind should not strive or do their best, but rather that in striving and doing their best, they gain the knowledge, wisdom and understanding that humankind truly knows nothing, and are at the beginning of their journey.  With the fear of God combined with what they have achieved, then they can begin to understand that all of their efforts are as a mere breath when compared to what God has created.

          When we look then at the lessons this morning from both Colossians and Luke, we see that again, we have the choices before us:  We can shuffle along, eyes on the ground – or in your phone, absorbed with things right in front of you. Look up and be alert to what is going on around with Christ. 

          There's an interesting story from Max Lucado, a preacher and story-teller, who tells the story of Bob, who was born into the land of coats.  His mother loved the color blue and made Bob's first coat a lovely shade of blue. Every time she noticed her son in his lovely blue coat, she cheered, "Yay, Bob!" He felt good in his blue coat, but Bob had to grow up and go to work. So he put on his best blue coat and slipped out of the house, going to his new job. The people on the street saw him and began to yell, "Yuck, Yuck!" Their coats were yellow and they hated blue.

          Into a store ducked Bob and bought a yellow coat, put it over his blue coat and continued on his way to work. The people cheered, "Yay! Bob!" Bob felt good in his yellow coat over his blue coat. He stepped into his boss' office to get his assignment for that first day. He sat waiting for this boss, who came in, looked at him and yelled, "Yuck!" Bob jumped up, took off the yellow coat and stood waiting for approval in his blue coat. The boss yelled, "Double Yuck! Bob. Here at work we wear green coats!" With that, Bob slipped back on the yellow coat, over the blue coat and put the green coat on top. "Yay! Bob!" said the boss. As he left for work, Bob felt good.

          Bob became very good at changing his coats to match what other people wanted him to wear.  He became a popular man around town. He changed coats so swiftly until he had folks fooled into believing that whatever coat they had on, he had it on too. Bob loved hearing the crowd say, "Yay! Bob!" He couldn't stand hearing any criticism, and Bob was elected mayor of the Town of Coats and had a faithful constituency. One day he heard a noise outside of his window and then heard a pounding on his door. The Yellow Coats brought in a man wearing no coat. "Kill him!" they cried, "he doesn't fit in!" In his yellow coat, Bob said, "Leave him to me."

          "Man, where is your coat?" he asked. The man said, "I wear no coat." Bob replied, "everyone wears a coat. What color do you choose?" The man responded the second time, "I wear no coat." By then the Green Coats had gathered under Bob's window. Running to the window, his green coat on top, Bob yelled down to them, "I have it under control." The Green Coats shouted, "Kill him!" At this time his mother entered into the room, and Bob slipped his blue coat on top. "Bob, where is his blue coat?" Mother asked, The Man replied, "I don't wear a coat." "Kill him," said Mother as she left Bob and the man alone.

          "Man, said Bob, you have to wear a coat or they are going to kill you."

          "Bob," said the man, "you need to decide to stop wearing your different coats. Take them off, take them all off and let the world see who you truly are." "Take them off? Take them all off?" asked an incredulous Bob. The man said again, "Bob, you have to make a choice." As the crowd kept crying, "Kill him!" Bob washed his hands, opened the door and marched the man toward sure death. The man looked at Bob, with one final word, "Choose." Bob was left alone with his three coats and the questions ringing in his mind, "Take them off? Take them all off?"

          Paul responds to us that we "have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.  Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth, for you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.  When Christ who is our life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory."  It's about taking off the politically correct, the socially right, and morally expedient coats and standing naked before Christ in order to be fitted with the appropriate Christian garb. It's time to select from all the world's popular options and to stand up for Jesus Christ. This passage says that deceiving ourselves and trying to fool others is not sufficient for eternal life. This passage comes and declares that there are some things we can no longer do and call ourselves Christ-like. We have to take off that quick anger and temper. We have to take off that meanness which allows us to do three snaps and a flip of the third finger, when someone cuts us off on the highway. We have to take off that dirty language that just slips out. We have to take off telling those nasty jokes which make fun of God's people who don't look like us. We have to take off lying, which we claim "everybody does it." All of those things belong to the outdated, outmoded wardrobe we wore before Christ! 

          Jesus stands with one word for all of us today--choose! Choose by making the decision with Him today.  Let's avoid all the coat-changing, or how we fit into this group, that employer, this set of friends and family.  Christ tells us in Luke, "So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God."  Look at the lessons from Ecclesiastes, from Colossians and from our Gospel, and choose to stand naked before Christ and to allow Him to dress us with His wardrobe of love. All that we have comes from God.  While we are yet lost in our sins, wearing all the colorful coats, trying to cover ourselves, to fit in, to strive for more "stuff", God loved the world so much, that Jesus came to die for our sins and to rise that we might have eternal life.

          How can we dare to continue slipping off one coat into another coat, filling in where others want to dictate where we should be fitting in, when every coat, every thing created by God belongs to God?  In the way we use all of our material goods, from water and food, to the way we use our money and resources and in our care of all of creation, we can be "rich toward God."  We must instead become much more responsible stewards with which we have been blessed, so that we learn our abundance is not meant to be consumed solely by us, but must be protected, cared for and properly distributed.

          Without God, we are but a mere vanity.  With God, we choose to be clothed as He would have us be, choosing to be rich with God, blessed with the glory of God.  Let us pray:

          Lord, you have blessed us with so much! We want you to know that we are truly grateful. Let us never fall into the trap of becoming wasteful or overly preoccupied with storing up for ourselves that which is not truly necessary and let us use everything you have blessed us with to be a blessing for others. May your generosity toward us make us truly more generous toward all, especially those in greatest need. Amen.

Sermon: Losing the Word

          "But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God.  I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever.  I will thank you forever, because of what you have done.  In the presence of the faithful I will wait for your name, for it is good."  (Psalm 52:8-9)

          That portion of the Psalm is both a promise we can make, and a reminder to ourselves.  All of the readings today provide warnings that when we look around ourselves today, we see the same problems, and we're being warned about the consequences, yet again.

          Those at the time with Amos had the Word of God removed from them, as they focused on making money and improving status, leaving off fairness, let alone providing charity.  They're missing the importance in their own busy-ness, sometimes going so far as to cheat others to obtain their own comfort.  In Leviticus 23, God said, "When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very edges of your field, or gather the gleanings of your harvest; you shall leave them for the poor and for the alien: I am the Lord your God."  In Amos' time, they lost the Word of God for a long time because of their own actions. 

          In today's society, gleaned food may be marginal, just on the threshold of becoming bad, and so many won't eat it, knowing that it will make them ill.  Our stomachs don't have the intestinal flora to keep up with such things.  However, one of the things learned from working within the Renaissance reenactment community was how people of the Renaissance time used spices to make such marginal food digestible.  Those spices that are currently used most often in baking – like cinnamon, ginger, cloves, allspice – and those that spice things up a bit – like cayenne, curry, any of the peppers – will actually help the body digest things that it might not otherwise be willing to.  This works with both meat and vegetables, and can lengthen the shelf life of your food. 

          There are ways to assist those who are homeless, unemployed, down on their luck or abundantly blessed with children, by providing them with transportation to get to gleaning programs, raising their self-esteem as they know they are not only providing for themselves, but also helping others in a time of shared need.

          We are beyond blessed in our town.  There are areas in the wild where a wide variety of wild fruits and vegetables grow.  As we're also often competing with bears and other wildlife, we can organize groups for safety to go and pick, and then parties for canning and preserving.  Willing hands are all that are needed, and those unused to the process will have those experienced to teach them and help them along.  Don't forget to share with your neighbor as we all have the feast provided to us by the Divine.  In some places, not only are people prevented from gathering the bounty of the earth – even to the point of not being allowed to collect rainwater – but people can literally be arrested for such gleaning.  The society around our country is very, very similar to what we see in Amos' time.

          Today, our focus is lost.  We're busy with making enough money to pay the bills, with cleaning the house to be presentable, with ensuring our kids are in the best schools, making the best grades.  And certainly, those are important things.  But Paul writes, "To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. It is He whom we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone in all wisdom, so that we may present everyone mature in Christ."  (Col. 1:27-28)

          Professor and Episcopal priest Barbara Brown Taylor writes in her book Home By Another Way, suggests that the things that made God angry in Amos’ day are also much in place in our own society.  In her words: “Why is Amos in such a bad mood? Because the rich have used their riches to burden those who will never work their way out of debt. Because the clever have used their cleverness to trick those who cannot think as fast. Because making a profit has become more important than anything else in the land – more important than justice, more important than Sabbath, more important than God.” (p. 182, Home By Another Way, “Famine in the Land,” Barbara Brown Taylor).

          Christ has paid the price for us, but still, we have to choose to turn toward God, to listen, to be still and hear the Word of God.  The fruit is turning bad, rotting in our own souls.  We are literally starving among our possessions and status symbols, ignoring the importance of teaching the next generation and we condemn them because of their own ignorance.

          When we look at the Gospel lesson, we recognize the need and contribution Martha makes, as do so many others within our own society.  These are the people who make things more comfortable for others, who like serving others – but oftentimes, they are also the invisible people.  Not only do we not recognize their contributions and thank these people, but we also forget to live up to our own contributions made possible for us to do through the efforts of those who serve. 

          Christ took the time to remind Martha that the curious nature of Mary is equally valued.  She listens and questions, seeking understanding and helping others find understanding where they might have been too timid to ask.  Each must serve, according to their own nature and inclination, and all bring value in the sight of God.

          Christ also opened Martha's eyes to appreciate Mary and her ways, without needing to chastise her for neglecting their guests or being unseemly in the minds of others, but rather see that she cares for them in a different manner, helping to keep the learning and conversation going, helping others feel more at ease with their questions.

          The lessons today are all asking us to look at our own actions.  Is Christ at the forefront of our thoughts?  Are we helping our neighbors?  Because right now, looking at the actions around the world, we have to wonder if we have stopped listening for the word of God.  Like those that Amos addressed, are we allowing politics to interfere with the commands of God?  We must remember that each one is a child of God, and these days, likely need to help them know the word of God, as many have been kept ignorant of the Word.  The words of Amos must be a warning in our ears.

          In the words of Stephen Mattson, author of a book called The Great Reckoning: Surviving a Christianity That Looks Nothing Like Christ:  " So when we’re confronted with national questions regarding refugees, immigrants, racism, national security, the economy, and social justice issues, we must remind ourselves of the old adage: 'What Would Jesus Do?' because we already know what He did, and it’s our responsibility to do the exact same thing.  God help us."

Thursday Sermon: Need for Comforting Words

          Today's Gospel is one of the words of comfort.  In our lives, all of us need comfort, refreshment, rest.  We're in the midst of summer, and this is the time of year when people hope to get some refreshment. We hope to slow down a little, play a little more, have more time, here in the midsummer.  We take a trip, if we can afford one; relax a little at home, if we can't. We are tired. We need a break. A little refreshment. A little comfort.

          My sister has a small pack of grandchildren who spend a lot of time with them in the summer. Sometimes one of them will hurt themselves slightly -- scrape a knee, bang a funny bone, shut a finger in a drawer. The grandchild will pause, absorbing the shock of a sudden pain, and then, if one of the grandparents are nearby they will look at the hurt child. Sometimes the content of that look will determine whether the child goes on to wail at the top of their lungs and end up on their grandparent's lap for five minutes or else just laughs and says ouch. If someone seems receptive, a small injury becomes a good opportunity to soak up some serious comfort. If not, there are better things to do. Interesting, for a child, crying is not just a private response to grief or pain. It is also a form of communication, and a most effective tool for influencing the behavior of others.

          This is so often true, in fact, that a lot of us who are no longer children come to believe unconsciously -- that the people we care about will know we are crying even if they can't hear us. That the people we love will automatically know when we are sad.  

          There's a story about a woman who remembers crying in school once, in the second grade. Her teacher spoke firmly to her: "Stop right now!" she said, and she did, whispering silently to herself about how mean the teacher was. She called to her later to explain. If she had spoken gently to the child, she would have cried harder and found it harder to stop herself.  The teacher didn't mean to be sharp, but only wanted to help find her own strength. 

          Little as she was, she appreciated that explanation.  The teacher was right: her tone did help her pull herself together in a situation where crying was not appropriate. Comfort and refreshment isn't always a gentle, "There, there." Sometimes it's a sharp "Here, here." Comfort and refreshment doesn't usually fall magically into our laps from the sky. Usually, we must put ourselves in its way. Often, it does not come from someone more powerful than we are. Often, God sends us refreshment through another person who also needs it.

          Our Old Testament reading reminds us of the ups and downs in Moses' life.  Born under threat of death, he was put into a reed basket, rescued by an Egyptian princess, and raised in the palace.  There he learned along with the other royal sons, and became very well educated.  Now according to the movie so many of us are familiar with, he "discovered" that he was born to the Jews, but biblically speaking, there was no dramatic reveal.  He was, however, a very fair man, and when coming across an overseer beating a slave, he killed the overseer, and then fled for his life.  He settled in Midian, married and had children.  About that point, God got his attention through a bush that was on fire, but not burning, and told him to go and free his people from the Egyptians.  Moses was definitely not the most self-confident of people, and had excuse upon reason upon denial for God as to why he should not be the one to fulfill God's command. 

          So in today's lesson, Moses asks, what do I say when I am asked who sent me?  And here, we get the name of God.  Among Jews, it is the unpronounceable name of God, the Tetragrammaton.  But to describe it to others, God is the I AM that I AM – the very essence of existence.  And in today's lesson, Moses essentially hears what his mission is to be – to free all his people from Pharaoh, and speak on behalf of God. 

          We know that after that, Moses continues to argue that he is not eloquent, but for now, think about what Moses thought at the assignment he received from God.  We could suppose that Moses felt himself absolutely unequal to the task, to feel that God provides to him a very heavy burden, indeed. 

          Like Moses, there is no one who will not one day find themselves bearing a load too heavy to carry alone. None of us are self-sufficient, however strong or weak or rich or poor we may be. We are all in need of comfort, in need of refreshment, in need of rest. Blessed are those who know their need of it early; they are the ones who will put themselves in the way of the Comforter.  And they often are the same people who are first to offer comfort to others in need.

Sermon: The Law

          Hear, Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is One.  Blessed be the Name of His glorious kingdom for ever and ever. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be in your heart.  And you shall teach them diligently to your children, and you shall speak of them when you sit at home, and when you walk along the way, and when you lie down and when you rise up.  And you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be for frontlets between your eyes.  And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

          Our Old Testament lesson today points out that if the people cannot follow the Sh'ma, finding it too difficult to obey, then God reminds us, "No, the word is very near to you; it is in your mouth and in your heart for you to observe."  It's not an impossible, or even a difficult law, because we remind ourselves, each other, our children that these words are no further away than our own voice and our heart.  Following those words, those laws, will cause us to be blessed abundantly "in the fruit of [our] body, in the fruit of [our] livestock, and in the fruit of [our] soil."  And yet, the Jews of the Old Testament still found it too difficult.  In every instance of guiding prophets, kings, and the gift of the law -  in all of these instances, it is God, not Israel, who makes it possible for Israel to be in relationship with God.

          Let's look here at one word in all of these instances:  shall.  Working in a law firm, I learned to read rather closely the words that are chosen, particularly within the law, and within decisions created by judges.  The law often provides modal, auxiliary verbs, and you'll see the same choices found in the Bible.  Auxiliary verbs include can, could, may, might, must, shall, should, will and would.  Out of all these, only the word "must" does not provide an option.  All the others provide guidelines, but can lead to ambiguity.  Unfortunately, as with so many arguments created by the choices of words, it's very difficult for absolute, hard and fast rules to be created. 

          But nearly every jurisdiction has held that the word “shall” is confusing because it can also mean “may, will or must.” Legal reference books like the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure no longer use the word “shall.” Even the Supreme Court ruled that when the word “shall” appears in statutes, it means “may.”  And thus, even the Sh'ma, that prayer which should be said at least twice a day, and should be on the hearts and minds of those saying it, is still a choice.  God gave us that free will.  If we want to follow the commandments, the rules and tenets that God has given us, we have to make that choice.  And with our choices, we are provided our consequences.

          So let's look at the Gospel lesson today.  Interestingly enough, it's lawyer asking Christ a question about how do we "inherit eternal life".  And Christ, ever the teacher, asks him, well, "what is written in the law?"  And the lawyer provides him with the Sh'ma, which today is now practiced by Christians as the greatest Commandment.  Same words. 

          Now of course, lawyers can't just accept words without picking apart meanings.  And so of course, this is not the end, neither for the lawyer, nor for us. As is so often the case when the right answer is on the tip of our tongues, we waver. We point out obstacles that would make doing the right thing difficult. Truly, the most demanding journey is the hike from a right answer to a right action.  That's why the lawyer suddenly seems so anxious. "Do this and you will live," says Jesus.  Okay, wait!  Love God and neighbor? You can hear the screech as the lawyer stomps on the brakes. How complex of a case is that going to be?  This could get tricky. It could take over my whole life.  Love God and neighbor? I need a little clarification here, Jesus. Tell me, who counts?  So he asks Christ, "Who is my neighbor?"

          And so now, we heard the story of the Good Samaritan.  What we don't hear are the thoughts going through the minds of the priest and the Levite, as they choose to pass by.  Any first-century attorney would quickly recognize both the priest and the Levite in this parable as people who would also have a deep understanding of the law.  Like the attorney, these clergy knew the law well enough to have the right answers come to mind under pressure. They also knew the law well enough to make it work for them. What does God's law say? What case has precedent here? In this story, a religious man finds a bloodied body lying by the road. What should he do? What does the law dictate?

          Well, there are passages that say love your neighbor. Of course, if you wanted to avoid the messy roadside situation, you might also recall that there are verses that instruct a priest not to approach a dead body.  If he doesn't approach, he can simply assume the body is dead.  They would be ritually unclean and could not perform their service at the temple.  And the Levite? Who can blame him?  What if there were accomplices lurking in the bushes along the road, waiting for just such a “do-gooder” to come along so they could relieve him of his money? They were using common sense in not stopping to help.

          Perhaps Jesus is reminding us that Scripture can be used to justify some pretty ungodly behavior. We are probably not surprised when he portrays the clergy in this parable as the culprits. Are we? Over the course of history, preachers have quoted the Bible to prop up slavery, to support the persecution of the Jews, to justify not providing clean water and soap for children whose parents brought them illegally into our country.  Even today, you don't have to channel-surf for long to find ministers who sprinkle their prescriptions for America with bits of Scripture as if such snippets provided an excuse for the meanness of their message. "What is written in the law? What do you read there?" These questions challenge all of us to give careful thought to the way that we read the texts of our faith. All too often we use verses of Scripture to license whatever benefits us. We appeal to the Bible and find support for our perspectives, our way of living, and, yes, even our prejudices. This parable cautions us. Just because you've got the good book in hand doesn't mean that you've cornered the market on holiness. As Luke points out, even the devil can quote Scripture.

          So here, we have a Samaritan. In other words, he is an outsider. Samaritans were from the wrong side of the tracks. They were also unorthodox. They did not share mainstream Judaism's beliefs about God. So, the next person we see jogging down the road is a foreigner who we know has a strange take on God.  There's no way he'll feel a compulsion, religious or otherwise, to help someone in a ditch. And, yet, Jesus tells us that this man is kind.  Maybe he's not able to quote Deuteronomy at the drop of a hat, but he is hospitable. The stranger makes the trip from right answer to right action. And is it just me or does he seem to go about this act of charity with a lightness of heart. You might even call it joy.

          "Which of these three," Jesus asks the lawyer, "do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?" "The one who showed him mercy," said the lawyer. "Right!" responds Jesus. And in extending a hand to pull the attorney free from the bog of selfishness, Jesus says, "Go and do likewise." And the story finally ends.

          Or does it?  We're left wondering.  Has Jesus just placed the burden of endless service on that attorney?  Probably.  But if you stare at the attorney long enough, you may see Jesus blessing him, giving him a chance for meaningful life, maybe even a life steeped in the eternal. "Go and do likewise." I guess it does depend on how you look at it.  How do you at it?

          Let us pray.  Holy God, open our eyes to the stranger before us. Help us to see our neighbor; help us to be the good neighbor lest we pass you by when you are hungry, thirsty, or lonely, and so miss a time to spend with you. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.