Angels Among Us

 

Daniel 10:10-14; 12:1-3   Revelation 12:7-12   Luke 10:17-20

St. Michael and All Angels

 

Are angels real?  A Google search for “angels” turns up pages of entries for the Los Angeles baseball team Angels.  (They have a zero percent chance to win the World Series this year.)  Are angels real? Amazon Alexa won’t commit.  My seminary professor for theology did not believe in angels.  When class got a bit too intense, asking him a question about angels provided a distraction, and often some comic relief.

We talk about angels frequently. This is especially true when we speak of children.  “Oh, she is a little angel!”  We have theorized about how many angels can dance on the head of a pin.  When someone bakes us cookies, especially with chocolate and nuts in them, we call them an angel. There are numerous movies and television shows about angels.  It’s a Wonderful Life features a angel named Clarence. My favorite angel movie is Michael.  John Travolta plays the title character, an angel who has the best dance moves.  There are various kinds or functions of angels.  We have guardian angels, cherubim and seraphim, archangels, and Hell’s Angels, just to name a few.  Jesus refers to angels as watching over children (Matt 18:10), and rejoicing over penitent sinners (Luke 15:10).

While our scientific advances have benefitted many aspects of our living and our world, have they also conditioned us to believe only that which is verifiable? How do we conceptualize the things beyond what God has chosen to reveal to us? Few could argue that here are forces of good and evil among us, and within us. How do we speak about that which we cannot see, but know is present? What language do we have for realities that lie beyond what we can explain?    What expresses adequately that which gives life, and that which takes it away?

Today is the Feast Day of St. Michael and All Angels.[1]  This year it falls on a Sunday. Our second lesson is from the Book of Revelation.  There is no “s” on the end because it is the revelation of Jesus Christ. (“Revelations” is a pet peeve of mine.) We hear in our reading from the book of Revelation of the war that broke out in heaven, a war of angels versus demons, and evil against good.

Michael is the leader of the forces of good.  The name Michael means one who is with God, and as an archangel, he is chief of the angels. The Greek word for “angel” means “messenger.”  He was the angel who told Moses he was about to die.  The prophet Daniel asserts that Michael stands guard over Israel.  Michael is a protector.  He had aided those who struggle against the spiritual forces of evil.  I don’t know if St. Michael can dance as well as John Travolta.

Today is a celebration of God’s creation, that which is seen, and that which is unseen, that which we can define and that which we cannot.  This day brings awareness that there are heavenly messengers, empowered with God’s love, who bring with them goodness and truth.

Evil and lies are part of our everyday experience, on a personal level and a global one. There are powers and people who try to subvert God’s desire for humankind, who trample down the poor and the weak. There are those who inflict unspeakable horrors on children and on those who are different than they are.  Today is a reminder that with the power of God’s truth we can boldly face these evils.  God’s truth is love, a gift revealed to us in Jesus Christ.

Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Messiah.  The power of these forces of evil and destruction, of hatred and death, have been broken. God has assured the victory through the death and resurrection of Jesus.

In the blessing of the body and blood of Christ, we proclaim the holiness of God’s presence. Using the call of the seraphs in the book of Isaiah, we sing, With the church on earth and the hosts of heaven, we praise God’s name and join the hosts of heaven, singing Holy, holy, holy Lord, Lord God of power and might, Heaven and earth are full of your glory.[2]    In this sacrament, we who are imperfect, take in Jesus’ holy body and blood.  As strange as it sounds, we swallow God’s love.  With it, we are given power to be Christ’s presence in this world.  We are formed to live as God’s holy people. Our forgiveness, love, compassion and healing join us with the powers of good in the world.

Here is our challenge—pay attention in these days to where you find the spirit of God’s love. Give thanks daily.[3]  Be God’s light in this world. This is the light overcomes darkness.

~Pastor Cheryl Ann Griffin

[1] References to the angel Michael can be found in Daniel, 10:13 ff. and 12:1, Jude 9, and Revelation 12:7-9.

[2] Isaiah 6:3.

[3] I strongly encourage you to engage in spiritual discipline of gratitude!  Keep a gratitude journal; write down 3 things daily for which you give thanks.  Some days, it might simply be that you are breathing.  Some days you will see God everywhere you look!

The Dishonest Steward

Luke 16:1-13    

Lectionary 25   15th Sunday after Pentecost

Do I look like I’ve been through a wrestling match?  Is my hip out of place like Jacob’s?  Our reading from Luke this morning challenges even scholars.  It’s been said that this passage “poses significant theological challenges,” and “is difficult to read and difficult to preach.”  One commentary read, “It is no exaggeration to say that the parable’s meaning has stumped even the best and most creative interpreters of Scripture.”  *Someone* even questioned God’s sense of humor. Had I been wiser, Pastor Wertz would have been here and preached this week instead of last.

Look at this parable! The beginning makes sense.  An informant told the rich man that his manager was mismanaging his business, and squandering his property.  The rich man must have believed whomever it was because he said to his employee, “I heard about you!  Give me an accounting of the things you have done.  You’re fired!”  The disgraced manager thought quickly.  He would have no means of income once he turned in his records.  Would he be able to get a job once references were checked? He couldn’t make a living doing physical labor.  He was too embarrassed to beg. If he lost his paycheck, where would he live?  How would he afford to care for his cat?

Apparently, he had no one to take him in, but he had a plan. The manager went to each client and struck a deal.  “You owe $100, make it $50,” he said to one.  He continued visiting his master’s debtors, crossing out their balances and writing in a lower amount.  Their purchases of wheat and oil became more affordable, while the rich man’s profits were erased. $400 became $300, and $200 became $100.  He falsified the accounts prior to turning in his report to the boss. This is where our wrestling match with this parable begins. The manager’s hope was that people would welcome him into their homes when he became unemployed.  If I do this for you, then you are expected to do this for me.

And the master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly; for the children of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light.  And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth so that when it is gone, they may welcome you into the eternal homes. What??!!

Jesus had just told them that when they host a luncheon, their guest list should be the poor, the blind, the lame.  And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you, he says [Luke 14:14].  The dishonest manager was praised for his shrewdness.  What are we to make of him? Is he the shrewd saint, or the shrewd sinner?

The parable of the father keeping watch for his lost youngest son is the story right before this parable. Connecting the two parables is the word “squander.” The younger brother squandered the prematurely given inheritance. The manager was accused of squandering his boss’s property.  Neither one took good care of, or put another way, were good stewards of, those things they were given.  Both were forgiven by the one who gave them those gifts and responsibilities.

We can start to make sense of this all when we recognize Jesus’ parable of the unjust steward is full of forgiveness, of death and of life.  (I give great thanks to Robert Farrar Capon for his insights into this text.[1]) This manager was at rock bottom in our story, not just in his life, but in the social order.  He had lost his job.  If that has ever happened to you, you know that it is a death.  This steward’s death led him to see things differently, to think of things he never would have otherwise.  Through his death, he came alive.  He also became the spark of new life for the others.

The rich man came to life through the manager’s action.  Whatever it was that he was holding on to, he let it go.  He forgave the manager, and he forgave the debts that were written off. He found the good that had come from the bad; he recognized blessing in the situation.

As far as the ones whose debt had been lowered, they found new life, too.  Capon writes, “…the steward is also able to be the resurrection of his lord’s debtors because they wouldn’t consent to deal with anyone but a crook like themselves; they would never have gone near him if they hadn’t been convinced he was dead to all the laws of respectable bookkeeping.”

Eating with tax collectors, and hanging around with prostitutes, Jesus also demonstrates a disregard for respectability, respectability as our world defines it. In forgiving sins, he disrupts the principles of bookkeeping.  He refuses to tally up our transgressions, to keep track of our sins.  Capon concludes that Jesus is the unjust steward, writing:

The unique contribution of this parable to our understanding of Jesus is its insistence that grace cannot come to the world through respectability. Respectability regards only life, success, winning; it will have no truck with the grace that works by death and losing—which is the only kind of grace there is….He became sin for us sinners,–for us crooks, that is—and all the losers who would never in a million years go near a God who knew what was expected of himself and insisted on what he expected of others….Lucky for us we don’t have to deal with a just steward. [2]

Amen!

~Pastor Cheryl Ann Griffin

[1]Capon, Robert Farrar.  The Parables of Grace.  Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdman’s Publishing, 1988. 145-151.

[2]Capon, 150-151.

Choose Life

Deuteronomy 30:15-20     Luke 14:25-33    

13th Sunday after Pentecost

 

We are faced with choices every day.  Some choices, such as which cereal to buy, are relatively inconsequential.  The college we attend, and what major we choose have more impact on our lives.  Choosing to have a life-partner will change our life in ways we cannot even begin to imagine.  We are faced with literal choices when filling out an Advance Directive for our medical care.  Even in our dying, we have choices.

In his book Being Mortal, Atul Gawande explores what it means to live a good life when our bodies are failing.  It is helpful, he suggests, to know what makes your life worth living.  What brings life to you?  What brings life to others?  How would God answer that question for us?  These are questions for you to ponder this week.  Make three lists.  Where do they overlap?

In our reading from Deuteronomy this morning, we hear Moses tell the Israelites to choose life.  Though that sounds simple and obvious, what does it mean to you to choose life?  Is it only your life as an individual, or the life of others, the life of the world, to which Moses speaks?

The Israelites had been wandering in the wilderness for forty years, and Moses had been talking the entire time.  Thirty chapters! By the time the Israelites get to the Promised Land, most of the first generation had died.  The only life these people knew was to keep going through strange territory.  Now the Israelites were on the edge of the Promised Land where there would be milk and honey instead of manna.  Their future is full of possibilities, full of choices, and all come at a cost.

If the Israelites do not keep steadfast in their identity as God’s people, they will be seduced by Canaanite practices. Moses spoke the word of God to them.  See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, death and adversity….  I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses.  Choose life so that you may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying him, and holding fast to him; for that means life to you…. Enabled by God’s grace, the Israelites need to choose to receive what God has already promised.

This is the same for us. We decide if we will receive what God has already promised.  We are called to choose life in response to our God who asks us to be God’s hands and feet in this world.  We are called to choose life so that the people God created in God’s image, whether white or black, short or tall, male or female, are seen as equal without prejudice. We are called to choose life in order that God’s peace prevails instead of our violence and war.  We are called to choose life so that God’s light can be seen through the darkness in our world.  We are called to choose life so that people can hear God whisper, “I love you.”

Sometimes choosing life is not a popular thing to do. Being Jesus’ disciple won’t always make you popular. Even Jesus tells us that! Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple.  As disciples, our relationships will be reordered.  Our family will include the poor and the lame, the person with no permanent home, and the one who cannot advance our future.  There is a cost to following Jesus!  Dietrich Bonhoeffer defines cheap grace as grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.[1]

That is what Jesus does when he himself is sacrificed on the cross.  Jesus chooses to give his very life for us to know God’s love and God’s forgiveness. Because Jesus gave his life for us, because of God’s unconditional love for us, we are free to choose life. That’s God’s promise to us. That’s what the cross is about, not just sacrifice, but about abundant life found in radical inclusion and in giving ourselves to others.

One of my favorite writers recounts an interview with a New York City rabbi from the podcast “On Being.” Rabbi Lau-Lavie shared this Talmudic parable:

A large, multi-cabined ship sets sail across the ocean.  A passenger whose cabin is on the lowest level of the ship decides to dig a hole in the floor of his cabin.  Sure enough, the ship begins to sink.  When the other passengers realize what’s happening, they rush to the man’s cabin. “What are you doing?!” they yell.  The man looks up from the hole and says, “It’s my cabin.  I paid for it.”  And down goes the ship.[2]

God offers blessings and curses, exile and restoration, life and death. Sometimes our choices bring pain, and death,–not just for us, but for others, too.  But there is life on the other side when we give up our claim that a good life is one in which we are the center.  God continues to offer us life. Trusting in the God who redeems us costs us our belief in our own power and importance, and our right to live for ourselves alone.

Through the Word, and the waters of baptism, we are joined to all of God’s creation, and to the life and suffering and death of Christ.  We die to our sinfulness and rise to new life. It is a daily struggle for us to choose to receive blessings instead of curses. Thanks be to God for another chance to choose life.

~Pastor Cheryl Ann Griffin

 

[1]http://www.worldcat.org/wcpa/servlet/DCARead?standardNo=0684815001&standardNoType=1&excerpt=true  accessed 9-2-2016.

[2]Debie Thomas. https://www.journeywithjesus.net/lectionary-essays/current-essay

Table Manners

Luke 14:1, 7-14     

12th Sunday after Pentecost

I want to ask all of you who are sitting, how much thought did you give it?  Sitting, I mean.  Not how to sit, but where to sit and why.  Are you in the back row or the front?  And with whom are you sitting?  Maybe you just come and sit in the same space every Sunday and so by now you don’t think about it much.  But if you have ever organized a wedding reception, you must.  If you don’t assign tables, nobody will sit with your crazy aunt.  Is the space large enough for separate tables for cousin Sue and cousin Mary, who swore a solemn oath never to be in the same room with each other?   If you’ve attended a reception, most likely you have thought about the seating arrangements as you walk into the banquet hall and look for your seat…  “Oh, table 23!  This is not a good sign.  It’s over there in the corner, by the kitchen.  Let’s see, do I know anyone at my table?  Who did they seat up front?”

The answer to that comes after everyone finds their place and voices hush, the mother of the bride stands up, and with a smile says, “I would like to thank you all for coming here today to celebrate my daughters wedding.  Just for your information, the seating arrangement has been specially organized such that all of the people that bought large presents are sitting towards the front and those that bought cheaper smaller presents at the back.  (Pause)  There is a special thanks for Uncle Fred, who is all the way in the back, for the oven glove.  (Pause)  The bride would like to ask Uncle Fred if she could have the other glove for their silver wedding anniversary.”

Jesus tells of a similar banquet, one given by a top leader of the Pharisees. You can place odds on who is invited. The governor, the city attorney, CEOs of various corporations, the president of the university and the head of the arts council.  Everyone who is anyone is there. As Jesus steps through the doorway, everyone’s eyes turn toward him; they’ve been keeping close watch lately.  But as they are eye-ing him,  Jesus’ eyes are on them.  He sees them jostling for position as they make their way toward the tables.  It’s the governor in the lead, but the arts council is gaining on the outside.  Coming from behind, the reverend doctor almost sideswipes the president.  They’re neck in neck. You see, the closer you sit to the host, the higher yoursocial status becomes.

The Pharisees made note of where people were seated, who ate with whom, what was eaten, and who washed their hands.  Dinner parties were a matter of honor and pride. This was true whether one was the host or the guest.  Gatherings became a vehicle for self-serving pride. It’s this pride that Jesus rails against, the kind of pride Ted Turner had when he said, “If only I had a little humility, I would be perfect.”

Miss Manners explains this issue this way:  “It is extremely difficult to make others acquainted with how very much one has to be humble about.  No, that’s not quite what Miss Manners meant to say.  What is difficult is to establish gracefully that one has cause to be proud and haughty, before one can be contrastingly humble.”

It is the Pharisee’s lack of humility, their self-serving pride and the jostling for position that cause Jesus to put on his “Mr. Manners hat.”    “When you are invited to dinner, go and sit at the last place,” he advises the guests. Turning toward the host he says, “Don’t ask people to your party because you expect a big gift when it comes time for the wedding.  The next time you put on a dinner, don’t just invite your friends and family and rich neighbors, in case they invite you in return, and you would be repaid.”

Jesus warns his guests, and us, “For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”  In God’s social strata, “The last shall be first, and the first will be last.”  God is unimpressed with our social credentials.  Whether we are of the Vanderbilt family or the Smith’s doesn’t matter.  If we are president of Apple, God doesn’t care.  If Oprah is our best friend, that won’t change God’s view of us.  The protocol of God’s kingdom is different than ours. Honor and glory are given to us by God, not because we are rich, powerful or successful, but because we are faithful. And when it comes right down to it, God’s approval is the only one that matters.  Perhaps its time we learn new table manners.

What Jesus teaches us holds true whether we are hosting a party, sitting in a classroom or riding the bus.  Time and energy spent trying to impress others, and trying to elevate our status is wasted time. Giving because we expect to get more than one glove for the wedding puts our focus on what we think we deserve because we earned it.  In God’s economy, there is nothing we can do to earn God’s love.  God loves us first, unconditionally.  Our love for God and each other is our response to God’s love for us.  Because God loves us, we use the hours and talents that God gives us to help others who cannot help us in return.

On this day of installing teachers and blessing backpacks, we are reminded of the many moments of great kindness without expectations of return.  Our Preschoolers share with each other. Teachers stoop to listen intently to a child.   Parents give their time to help with Winter Carnival.  Placing value on children is what Jesus is talking about; they are people who aren’t expected to further our social standing.

Jesus turns the tables on our human priorities and values.  God knows that when we strive to be the most important person in the room, the richest, the most intelligent,–when we place our value and our values on these things, we end up anxious, alone, stressed and disappointed.

That God cares so much for the poor, the crippled, the lame and the blind is good news, because we are them.  We are the poor who struggle to give more than we receive.  We are crippled by our fears of failure. We are the lame who cannot take a step forward into the unknown.  We are blind,– blind to God’s passionate love for us.  This morning, we come together in community to care for each other.   We are reminded that those things that we cannot do for each other and for ourselves, Jesus does for us on the cross.

Today is the social event of the season, and we are on Jesus’ guest list to celebrate at his banquet.  God’s kingdom is one of abundance, of generosity and hospitality. Jesus puts us in our place, opening our hands to receive salvation in bread and wine.  We are invited to the table to eat and drink the body and blood of Christ.  The thing about God’s table is that all the seats are in first-class.  It is a gift that we do not deserve and we cannot repay,– a foretaste of God’s feast to come.  Jesus is our host who says to us, “Friend, you there, in the back, come up to the front.”

~Pastor Cheryl Ann Griffin

Sinners and Saints

Hebrews 11:29-12:2    

10thSunday After Pentecost

 

What do you know about your family tree?  In recent times, we have become fascinated with locating ourselves in our families and culture.  The movie Rootshelped to spark our interest in “finding ourselves.”  Technology has helped make it easier for us to track our lineage.[1] Companies like 23 and Me and Ancestryhave tested more than26 million people’s DNA to add to their family tree data base.[2]  Where we come from and who we come from is an integral part of who we are.  One of my husband’s relatives, Mary Lewis, searched their family tree.  We never knew what she found because she burned all her research.

Ancestry was significant to the writer of Hebrews.  [Frankly, he or she was a bit of a name dropper.]  Abel, Enoch and Noah, Abraham and Moses are mentioned as our ancestors by faith.  In our reading today, we hear of those who passed through the Red Sea, and of Rahab. Rahab was King David’s great, great grandmother and is named in Jesus’ family tree in the Gospel of Matthew.  Rahab helped in getting the Israelites to the promised land.   Betraying her people, she hid Joshua’s spies on her roof, and sent the king’s men in the opposite direction.

All from the book of Judges, the writer of Hebrews names Gideon, Barak, Samson, and Jephthah.  All were unlikely heroes.  On God’s instructions, Gideon defeated the Midianites. Jephthah led the Israelites to victory against the Ammonites. Our ancestors in the faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, quenched raging fires, won strength out of weakness.  Living by faith and through faith, they have made a difference.  So, who is your favorite saint?  Who showed you what faith looks like? Who encouraged and inspired you?

There’s a chance that your favorite saint is also your favorite sinner.  Our ancestors cited by Hebrews as examples of faith are also flawed. Rahab was engaged in the world’s oldest profession.  After completing his mission, Gideon had clothing made for himself out of gold. In exchange for his victory, Jephthah made a vow to sacrifice whoever would come out of the door of his house first.  His daughter was the first one out, and he kept his promise.

Going further than the list of people we are given, there is Peter, who was one of Jesus’ closest disciples, denied he even knew Jesus.  Paul, who had been known as Saul, was a relentless persecutor of those who followed Christ.  Peter, Paul, – and then there was Mary, of course…  Moving on, Judas, one of Jesus’ disciples, sold him out to those who wanted him dead.

These are not just the Bible’s stories, they are ours. We are participants in their stories, and in God’s.  God uses flawed people to speak and do those things that will help to accomplish God’s purposes. Particular to our Lutheran heritage, Martin Luther spoke sometimes using language that was rather earthy.  He was a fierce anti-Semitic.  The ELCA has issued a few apologies on his behalf.

When Mother Teresa’s letters were discovered, the world was shocked.  The deeply committed woman who was Jesus to the poor and dying in India was also full of doubt about God.  Her witness through her love and care of people continued despite her dark thoughts.

We see people giving witness to God’s goodness every day.  The nurse who cares for people at their worst, and still manages compassion and a smile.  The person holding the door open for someone struggling to walk.  Someone saying, “I’m sorry.”  Whenever we act out of love, that is through the Holy Spirit.  As is joy, peace, patience, kindness generosity, gentleness and self-control.  So it is faithfulness.[3]  Some days are better than others, though.  Just as Moses, and Rahab, and Paul were sinners and saints, so are we.

God uses broken people, cracked pots if you will, to bring God’s desires to life.  God uses us to do God’s work, even with all our shortcomings. (If you don’t think you have any shortcomings, just ask your partner.)   There is both comfort and hope that as flawed as we are, Jesus still works through us. We, along with those who have died in the faith, are the great cloud of witnesses.

Isn’t that a rich phrase, “great cloud of witnesses?”  The image of clouds conveys enfolding each other, being surrounded and held.  Each cloud is unique.  From a meteorological perspective, there are cirrus, nimbostratus, different types of cumulus clouds, and others.  From an imaginative perspective, there are those that look like elephants, or big marshmallows, hearts or hummingbirds.  This tapestry of the faithful is as diverse as the clouds. We, who are both sinner and saint, are embraced by it, contributing to its shape.

Therefore, 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.

The baton has been passed to us.  God calls us to go forward.  Put aside those things that weigh us down, put our sin behind us, and run the race. Run the race, despite our fears, and our hurts.  Don’t focus on the distractions of current affairs.  Just keep running. Look at Jesus, right in front of us.

God does not ask us to get there first; Jesus always has been and always will be first.  God simply asks us to hang in there, to keep going, with the promise that we don’t go it alone.

 

~Pastor Cheryl Ann Griffin

 

 

 

 

[1]https://time.com/133811/how-genealogy-became-almost-as-popular-as-porn/accessed 08/16/2019.

[2]https://www.technologyreview.com/s/612880/more-than-26-million-people-have-taken-an-at-home-ancestry-test/accessed 08/16/2019.

[3]Galatians 5:22-24.

Hope in the Meantime

Genesis 15:1-6   Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16   Luke 12:32-40

9thSunday after Pentecost

 

Last Sunday morning, 27 people were injured, and 10 people were killed within 30 seconds in Dayton.  The dead included the sister of the shooter, and the shooter himself. I found out about the shooting from a text message that my daughter, Kelly, sent to me.

By the time I was able to search for the details, 22 more people were killed, this time in El Paso at a Wal Mart.  24 more were injured. The death count for that shooting is now at 31. The investigation so far indicates that the shooter hated immigrants, and wanted to get rid of Hispanics and Latinos.[1]  This was a hate crime.

Many mass shootings are related to domestic or family violence.  In 54% of killing sprees, the perpetrator has a history of violence toward women, and a partner or a family member is among those who are shot.  These shootings are acts of revenge or retribution for perceived slights and wrongs.  TIME magazine’s most recent issue lists 253 cities in which mass shootings have taken place.  Their cover reads, “ENOUGH” and “We are being eaten from within.”[2]

It was about quarter-till-10 in the morning when my daughter Kelly called.  That was shortly after a second person had been shot, making it clear that the 7:30 a.m. murder was not an isolated incident.  Resident dorms were locked down, andmessages came pouring in saying to stay wherever you were. Information was confused, but urgent. She was scared and crying.  It was a Monday, April 16, 2007, and she was a senior at Virginia Tech. Kelly’s lab partner and 3 of her classmates were killed.  Aftergraduation, she went to work for Tech in the Department of Recovery and Support.  Her job was to engage with those who were injured, and with the mothers and fathers, and sisters and brothers of the dead.  She plans remembrances and arranges for worship services. Her work continues to bring both comfort and pain.

The killing of so many is hard to forget, particularly if you have a personal connection.[3]  Every time there is another mass shooting, memories and emotions rise up.  The ripple effects of these events are innumerable and immeasurable.

Mass killings are well publicized and so frequent.[4]  Dayton marked 251 shootings in 216 days.  Are we numb yet?  Is this too much for us to deal with?  Have we lost hope?  Where is God in all this?

“Do not be afraid, little flock,” Jesus says.  But we are, aren’t we?  If you aren’t, then you aren’t paying attention!  It’s not just the mass murders.  Frequent shootings and public declarations of prejudice and hate permeates the media,and we know that are more than what we are told.  We hear of children who comehome from school one day and their parents are gone.  Exploitation of land and waters along with climate changethreaten the world’s food supply.[5]  We have personal fears, too.  What are yours?

“Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”[6]  God’s intention is for allGod created to flourish.  The giving of God’s kingdom is God’s promise, rooted in God’s generosity and desires for us. The kingdom of God became flesh among us in and through Jesus. It’s a kingdom that is was, and is, and is yet to come.  Yet even though God’s kingdom is breaking in now, it’s hard to see and even harder not to be afraid.

“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen,” the author of Hebrews writes. Abraham lived in hope.  For ten years, since God first promised, Abraham had been looking up at the stars in thesky, picturing each bright light as his descendant, while Sarah waited and waited for the gift of life from God.  The unnamed writer of Hebrews addresses a community caught up in their own challenges,and unable to see a better future.  They were looking for hope.   That sounds like us, doesn’t it?

“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen,” If hope is made visible, what does it look like?  I asked Kelly this question.  She said she saw hope in the Blacksburg community coming together in response to tragedy. They worked to heal the injured, to remember those who died.  They cried together and dried each other’s tears.  They drew sustenance from each other, and recognized that they were connected by their humanity.  They were family.

Frederick Buechner says of Christian hope, “…despite the facts that sin and death still rule the world, [Christ] somehow conquered them.  The hope that in him and through him all of us stand a chance of somehow conquering them too.”[7]

We place our hope in God, but I think God places God’s hope in us, too.  In Luke’s gospel, Jesus says to be dressed for action, with our lamps lit while we wait with hope for God’s promises to be fulfilled.  It’s not a passive activity, nor an individual one.  We wait together, as a flock. We become sanctuary for eachother until we can breathe again.  Speak through the voice of God’s love. Care for those who are suffering.  Feed the hungry.  Spend time with those who are lonely or grieving.

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that,”  Dr. Martin Luther, King, Jr. said.

We lift our face looking for the light of Jesus, and discover that in our holding on to each other, we become light, too, and our blessings are as numerous as the stars in the sky.

~Pastor Cheryl Ann Griffin

 

[1]https://www.businessinsider.com/deadliest-mass-shootings-almost-all-have-domestic-violence-connection-2017-11

[2]https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/08/media/time-cover-mass-shootings-trnd/index.html

For details of mass shooters and shootings, see the web site https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/12/mass-shootings-mother-jones-full-data/

[3]Those who are still at VT are reminded every time they open a door from the inside because the push bars on the doors were all replaced with safer ones.  Just so you know, our exit doors are in accordance with current safety standards. Several members and I attended police led workshops on church safety.  A police officer has toured our facilities, and we have implemented those recommendations. A task group has recently been formed to further study and report on security and safety.

[4]Mass shootings are defined as 4 or more people shot or killed, not counting the shooter.

[5]https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/08/climate/climate-change-food-supply.html

[6]This statement is found only in Luke’s Gospel.

[7]Buechner, Frederick.  Beyond Words. San Francisco: HarperOne, 2004. 160.

Enough

Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14, 2:18-23     Luke 12:13-21

18thSunday after Pentecost    

 

They say that you can’t take it with you, but that doesn’t mean that people haven’t tried.  Civil War Confederate Major William Wise was buried with his horse, his favorite hunting dog, and a sword.  He was convinced he was going where he could track down and kill Satan.  Jamaican reggae legend Bob Marley took his red guitar, a Bible, and marijuana with him to his grave.  More recently, people are being buried with their cell phone.  During the visitation, friends all call the person.  I wonder if, when the call goes to voice mail, the caller hears the message, “I’ll be right back.”  Some people get so attached to their stuff, it’s hard for them to let go.

This is why self-storage facilities are so popular.  The first modern units appeared in Texas in the 1960’s. Today there are more than double the number of self-storage facilities than there are McDonalds and Starbucks combined. [1]Almost 9% of American households rent a storage unit, and 67% of them live in single homes.  We like to hold onto our “stuff.”

Jesus’ parable in our readings this morning relates the story of a productive farmer.  The farmer has so many crops that he doesn’t know what to do with them.  Then he had the brilliant idea to tear down his barns and build bigger ones.  He was compelled to hold onto his “stuff.”  When would it be enough? This farmer was not planning on sharing his abundance of crops with those who did not have enough to eat.  He didn’t try to sell it and give the money to the poor.  The bigger and better buildings he built would not provide shelter for the homeless.

But having stored up that much food was not simply greed. Having enough for himself for a gazillian years must have given him some sense of security and allayed some of his fears.  I know because I have stacks of an essential paper product in my garage.

Generosity is a gift of the Spirit, and you all are well blessed with that gift! You are extremely generous people!  Our endowment and scholarship funds are growing, and our budget for benevolence is large.  Thank you!  Our financial giving is important!  But these words Jesus speaks are ours, too; Take Care! Be on your guard againstall kinds of greed. Jesus speaks to all kinds of things that we hoard, — forgiveness, love, guilt, power, food, shoes, paper products.  Jesus speaks to the things we store up and cannot let go of, like grudges, prejudice and hate.

What is it that you hold on to?  What do you have trouble letting go of?  Why? Is there an underlying fear involved? The man who approached Jesus told him, which is different than asking him, to settle a dispute. “Tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.”  Was the man the younger or the older brother?  Did he want more than his share?  If those kinds of details were important, they would have been shared.  When we talk about money, it is always about more than just money.  If you have ever been part of an estate distribution, it triggers emotions and memories that are rooted in relationships.

The details of this man’s request that are shared reveal that he saw Jesus as a judge, not a savior. He was not interested in a relationship with Jesus based on love and serving.  His interest in Jesus had nothing to do with relationship, or forgiveness or salvation.  He viewed Jesus as the one who would give him what he wanted, even if it was not what he needed.

This son placed his trust in things, not in God.  Jesus responded with a parable that echoed the son’s lack of recognition, let alone gratitude, for all that God had given him.  This man and the farmer in the parable both saw life in terms of what they deserve, and they earn.  The farmer in Jesus’ story envisions the time when he will have piled up enough.  “I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat drink and be merry.’”

A similar phase appears in the book of Ecclesiastes [8:15].  Although they both intended to drink champagne and eat hors d’ouevres, their reasons were different.   The writer of Ecclesiastes, the “Teacher,” assessed the things we have in life as vanity, or better expressed, emptiness or meaninglessness.  He, too, had worked hard and had much. In his search for meaning, he found that working got wearisome, and the search for wisdom brought sorrow.  Pleasure ended up as hollow and unsatisfying. Unlike the son and the farmer, the Teacher recognized that we are not promised tomorrow, and the things for which he worked may end up as someone’s inheritance.

While our reading from Ecclesiastes leaves the writing and us in a state of despair, the verses immediately following, which are not part of our reading, shift perspective. “There is nothing better for mortals,” the Teacher writes, “than to eat and drink, and find enjoyment in their toil.  This also, I saw, is a gift from the hand of God, for apart from him, who can eat or who can have enjoyment?” It is God who gives our work, our lives, our pleasure, meaning. Enjoy today what God has given to us, and give thanks.  It is enough.

If you haven’t fallen asleep yet, remember back to the beginning of our sermon  when we recalled Jesus saying, Take Care! Be on your guard againstall kinds of greedWe don’t need to hoard all the things that we do, — forgiveness, love, guilt, power, food, shoes, or paper products. Whatever that hole is that we are trying to fill can only be filled by our God, who loves us beyond all measure.  We are enough.

~Pastor Cheryl Ann Griffin

[1]https://www.simplyss.com/storage-options/self-storage-statistics/web accessed August 1, 2019.

Let’s Talk!

Luke 11:1-1    

7thSunday after Pentecost

Examen, intercessory, thanksgiving, supplication, meditative, contemplative, petitionary, ….  “What are types of prayers, Alex!”  (I am the only one who watches Jeopardy?) Richard Foster lists 21 forms of prayer in his book entitled, Prayer:  Finding the Heart’s True Home.[1]Do we stand?  Do we sit?  When should we pray? Does the place matter? Do we close our eyes when we pray?  Is there anything too selfish, or miniscule, or too large for which to pray?

Are we good enough to pray?  Are we ever not worthy enough to pray?  Luther wrote in a sermon, “We pray after all because we are unworthy to pray. The very fact that we are unworthy and that we dare to pray confidently, trusting only in the faithfulness of God, makes us worthy to pray and to have our prayer answered…. Your worthiness does not help you; and your unworthiness does not hinder you.”[2]

There are so many questions about prayer!  No wonder the disciples wanted Jesus to teach them. Out of all the accounts of the disciples with Jesus, this is only thing they asked him to teach them,– how to pray.  Actually, they did not ask.  It was more of a demand, said in the imperative.  Surely James and John, Peter and the others had prayed in their temple Sabbath services, and had witnessed Jesus pray on the mountain, and through the night, and with the crowds of people who sought his help.  Why did they think they needed lessons?

“Ask and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock and the door will be opened for you,” Jesus told them.  Is that always true?  There was an occasion when I mentioned to someone that I felt a cold coming on.  He told me that if I had faith enough, my prayer for health would be answered.  I was getting sick because my faith was shallow. I don’t think prayer works that way, or God. Then I think about our prayers for an end to homelessness, even as we make plans to serve at the shelter. We pray for end to violence, but the evening news tells us yet again of a murder or war.  Ask, seek and knock. It will be given, you will find, and the door will be opened.  When our prayers are not answered, we are often told that God does answer all prayers, but sometimes God’s answer is “no,” or that we just need to use the right words, or have more faith, or in God’s time, which is not the same as our time.

In the movie Bruce Almighty, God puts Bruce into the position of doing God’s job.  Now responsible for the prayers of everyone in the world, Bruce tries various ways of handling his responses.  In one scene, Bruce prayers are coming in faster than he can keep track. He decides to put each one on a yellow sticky note.  Every millimeter of the room, and his body, are covered.  Then he has the brilliant idea, download them to his computer in an e-mail like program. Just reply “yes” to every prayer request.  Seems great! The next day, we hear someone complain about winning only $17 out of a multi-million-dollar lottery prize.

How does God really handle our prayers?  Why I was healed and my friend was not; we both had many people praying for us to be made well.  We cry to God, but there are still forgotten children and dead sons.  I can’t explain the mysteries of prayer, but I know prayer does not work like a transaction. Our God is not a transactional god—if you do this then I will do that.  God is not an if/then God.  God acts according to because/therefore.  Because I love you, therefore I forgive you.

Jesus uses a parable to illustrate.  In a world where hospitality was vitally important, a man finds himself without any bread to feed his guest who had arrived in the middle of the night.  The man goes to a friend’s house to borrow some. He pounds on the door, waking the entire neighborhood.  “Go away. The door is locked.  We are all settled in for the night.”  Jesus ends the parable by telling us that the because of this man’s persistence, his friend will get up and give him whatever he needs.

A better translation of the word “persistence” is “shamelessness.”[3]  One scholar writes, “Though the petitioner acts in a shameful way, his neighbor deals with the shame in a way that will bring honor to them both.  Perhaps this is a better way to view what ‘hallowed be your name’ means:  God will act to honor God’s name even when we act in dishonorable ways.”[4]  While Jesus teaches us to pray, what we are really learning is about the One to whom we are praying.

God wants us to yearn for conversation, to trust God enough to go in prayer, confessing our longings without shame, to admit that we are still waiting for God’s kingdom to come, and that we are hungry for the bread that God gives.  Pray without ceasing,[5]  and when we cannot even speak, the Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words,[6]St. Paul writes.

Prayer is full of questions and mystery, but we pray because Jesus told us to.  Because God is our source of being, we pray. God has promised God’s presence through the Holy Spirit when we pray. Because God is the one who has changed our hearts.  God takes our broken pieces and loves us into wholeness.  We pray because it has been a year of sorrows.  Because we have not recognized all our blessings, let alone said thank you. Because God’s story and our story is not finished yet.  Because we long to love God more deeply.  We pray because we need a reminder that after the suffering and death of the cross comes resurrection, and only God can bring new life.  We pray to place our hopes into the hands of the only one who can hold them without letting go.  So, knock. And then knock again.

 

~Pastor Cheryl Ann Griffin

 

 

 

 

 

[1]Foster, Richard. Prayer:  Finding the Heart’s True Home.  SanFrancisco: HarperOne, 2002.

[2]As quoted in By Heart:  Conversations with Luther’s Small Catechism.  Minneapolis: Augsburg Fortress Press, 2017. p. 100.

[3]The Greek word is anaideia, and is used within our scriptures only in this instance.

[4]Brian Peterson’s Commentary on Luke 11:1-13.  https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=4119

[5]First Thessalonians 5:17

 

[6]Romans 8:26b

Serving the Lord at St. Stephen (Written and proclaimed by William Dichtel)

Good morning,

My wife and I have been members of St. Stephen for a little over a year and we have grown spiritually here and love this church more than any we have attended.

I’m pretty old…I’m even older than Pastor Ballentine…but in all of those years and despite attending a number of churches, I don’t think that I have seen so many positive ministries undertaken within a church on behalf of others in the church or in the surrounding community.

Let me give you some examples of ministries at St. Stephen…

Some of the ministries have been large cooperative efforts with other churches and groups in Williamsburg aimed at helping those who are less fortunate.  Our participation with Community of Faith Missions to help shelter and prepare meals for the homeless in Williamsburg is a wonderful ministry that has a huge impact.  Seeing the appreciation those individuals have for a great well-rounded hot meal and a good safe place to sleep after a tough day is a huge reward!

Some of our members work with the FISH program to make sure others in the community have food, clothing and other necessities that they may not otherwise be able to buy for themselves.

Other ministries are very visible and greatly enhance the spirituality of our worship. The Music Ministry within our church is nothing short of amazing.  Thanks not only to Karen but also to the incredible talents of the other musicians in our midst, we are lifted up on a weekly basis.

There are also ministries that we don’t always realize are there…until they are not there, like George Vonderheide keeping the air conditioning going on these hot days, or Chris and Randy Punchard with their Gardening and Lawn Mowing crews that have the outside looking beautiful and manicured each Sunday. And don’t forget the behind the scenes work of those arranging acolyte schedules, usher schedules, lectors, alter guild, communion bread baking, and all the other details that keep our services running so well week after week.  And Reed Nestor keeping us informed with the Quill in our mailboxes each month.

One very successful ministry in our church that has us well known throughout Williamsburg is the Preschool, which continues to provide an excellent early learning experience.   That experience doesn’t just happen….It is carefully nurtured and overseen by the administrator, by the teaching staff, by an advisory board and by the pastors. And I am always delighted to see how well the church turns out to eat at the fundraisers for the school…  Well, maybe a good turnout for food isn’t that surprising…

The College Ministry, coordinated by Pastor Ballentine, has been hugely successful as demonstrated by the beautiful service conducted by our William and Mary Students just before graduation a few weeks ago.  The weekly meals provided to the college students by the good cooks in our congregation also add a great deal to that ministry.

The Health Ministry has the important task of reaching out to those medically challenged in our congregation.  They also help those of us fortunate enough to be in good health, stay that way.

The Social Ministry helps to make our church a home, often supplying wonderful food in times of celebration or in times of bereavement.

There are a number of other ministries I have noted in our church that have made me incredibly proud to be here…

Like the crew led by Harlan Schone that typically builds ramps for shut-ins, but when a house burned down and a man and his ailing wife were left stranded, they “ramped up” their game and built a house instead of a ramp…

Or the members of the church buying new gym shoes for whole classes of school kids that would otherwise have to go without…

Or the large number of volunteers that without fanfare, go and check on shut-ins, often taking communion for those who have not been able to get to church for a while…

Or the goodly number of congregation members who are caretakers for family members in failing health or with various stages of dementia.

The outpouring of love by the congregation in adopting an immigrant family, who otherwise would not have a Christmas last December, and the generosity and thoughtfulness in the gifts they selected for each family member…

I know of one artist in our church who had a recent art show and made a donation to the church for each painting sold…

And how much have we benefitted when experts in our congregation enlighten us with programs such as Nancy Egloff’s presentation on “Tenacity” at Jamestown, or the timely legal insights on immigration law from Sharon Powell.

Needless to say, the caring and the ministries within St. Stephen are endless.

Well, now let me get down to what I particularly want to highlight in our congregation today…

This year, our congregation has reached a great milestone. We at St. Stephen have now been a Stephen Ministry congregation for twenty-five years.

Let’s think about that for a few minutes…

That means that for the last twenty five years, lay members of this congregation, like Kathy, Pete and Alison who were commissioned today, have committed to and completed extensive training in order to help men or women who may be down and struggling.

Those receiving care from a Stephen Minister may have lost a loved one, gone through a divorce, felt lonely or depressed, gone through a major or debilitating illness, lost a job, or may have had some other major challenging life experience.   They may be the caretaker of someone with dementia or failing health.

In such situations, Stephen Ministers in our congregation have met with their care receivers regularly, usually weekly, for months, sometimes even for years, to carry on a supportive, caring, spiritual relationship.  They have helped others through challenges that many of us will have to face at one time or another as we go forward through life.

These woman-to-woman or man-to-man ministries have been caring and thoughtful, free of charge but alwayspriceless.

These ministries are veryconfidential. Even in supervision groups, identifying information or details are not revealed; only non-identifying information that allows each individual to receive the best ministry possible is discussed. Therefore, each care receiver can feel confident in sharing their innermost concerns with their Stephen Minister, knowing that those concerns will remain confidential.

The Pastors and the Stephen Leaders coordinate the Stephen Ministers within the Congregation, and keep the Stephen Ministry going strong.   At St Stephen, Pastor Ballentine, Pastor Griffin and Stephen Leader Jane Wills deserve tremendous credit.  They, with God’s help, have done great work and have helped many individuals by working with and through the Stephen Ministers.

In addition, the many Stephen Ministers who have served our congregation over the years truly have been sent by God.  The Stephen Ministers have great trust placed in them by their care receivers, their pastors, their Stephen Leaders and our congregation.  They truly are given the opportunity to walk in the footsteps of Christ and to help many of us in the most difficult times of our lives.  Stephen Ministers are not there to replace psychiatric care or professional counseling but are often a welcome addition to add spiritual support and long-term care through extended challenges.

The care extended by the Stephen Ministers is Christ-centered.  As Jesus prayed according to the Gospel of John, “I made your name known to them, and I will make it known, so that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.”  He has taught believers in him to go forward with Christ-centered caring relationships in his name.

Congratulations and thanks to all Stephen Ministers of the Congregation for your contributions to this twenty-five year milestone.

Now for the challenge going forward…

We have a job for every adult in the congregation!

Don’t worry!  Not everyone needs to become a Stephen Minister…

However, we do need a few more good men and women to consider becoming Stephen Ministers.

Yes, there is a fairly major time commitment for training, meeting with your care receiver, and for supervision

But the rewards are great…..Most Stephen Ministers would tell you it is one of the most rewarding things they have ever done.

We aren’t necessarily looking for big talkers…..We are looking for good listeners, who can internalize and take to heart what their care receiver is experiencing and provide strength and spiritual support to help with his or her challenges.  But most importantly, we need someone who can reliably be there for him or her in a time of need.

Another task available….

We always need people in the congregation who can sense when things are not right for their friends:  Who can tell when their friends are under stress or duress.   Those friends may be individuals who would greatly benefit from having a Stephen Minister.  If you know of anyone who could be helped by a pastoral visit or possibly having a Stephen Minister, call Pastor Griffin.

And finally, another important task…

If someone suggests to you that you consider getting a Stephen Minister yourself, give it some careful thought.  They probably have looked at you lovingly and have seen you suffering or have seen you alone, possibly dejected.  We men are particularly slow at admitting that we could use a little help.  Be open to your friend’s suggestion.

One last important note about the Stephen Ministry…Of upmost importance to the continued success of the Stephen Ministry is confidentiality.  If you have concerns about a friend and are seeking help, please do so by direct conversation or by phone but not by e-mail or social media.

Again, I congratulate our congregation on this great anniversary and on its many wonderful, large and small, collective and individual, but all caring and heartfelt ministries.

God is with us all.

AMEN

Bill Dichtel

June 2, 2019

Radical Grace

 

John 5:1-9    

6th Sunday of Easter

“Do you want to be made well?” Jesus asked.  I am captivated by this question every time that I read it.  “Do you want to be made well?” These were Jesus’ first words to the sick man lying in the vicinity of the pool.  He had been ill longer than most people were alive.  He was slow to move, and when Jesus spotted him, he was lying down.  Could he even get up?

We with bodies that are fully functional can only imagine the impact of his disability.  Control of bodily functions may be compromised. Personal hygiene is difficult, which leads to other issues such as social isolation. There is no family present in our story, and our unnamed man lamented that he had no friends.   He was highly dependent on others for help.  Holding a job was impossible, so he was also dependent upon the generosity of strangers. The unnamed man was an invalid. In his society, he was viewed as in-valid.

How different are we in our society?  It was not until 1990 that the American with Disabilities Act came into existence.[1]  It’s a civil rights law to ensure that everyone has the same opportunities. While new building codes ensure compliance, older buildings are not always accessible. A person with inadequate vision and slowness of step told me about trying to get outside during a fire drill.  Obtaining adequate medical care presents other challenges, especially if employment pays minimum wage or is non-existent. For those with disabilities, everyday life can be a battle.

The in-valid man found lying down had given up hope that someone would help him to the pool when the water was stirred up.  The pool was known as a place of healing that was supposed to come from Asclepius, the Greek god of healing. The man waited there, and waited, hoping that this god would save him.  Yet he remained as broken as he was the day before, and the years before, and the decades. Soon he was no longer Frank, or Joe or Bob.  He was that nameless and helpless man lying by the pool.  His sickness became his identity.

Then one day, a Sabbath day, Jesus showed up at the pool, where the blind, lame and paralyzed,–the unnamed in-valids were hanging out.  “Do you want to be healed?” he asked.  “Of course, I do!” the man shouted.  “I’ve been waiting most of my life for this moment!”  I am just kidding!  What the sick man really said to this stranger is, “I have no one to put me into the pool, and when I start to make my own way, people jump in front of me.” We don’t know if these were excuses, or complaints, but it was this man’s reality.  He thought he needed the stirred-up water to heal him.  That’s where he placed his faith.

Sensing this man’s resignation to his situation, Jesus asked him, “Do you want to be made well?”   The obvious answer should be yes. Healing would bring change. Relationships, responsibilities, expectations—all would impacted. What is it in your life that you would like to be healed?  What are the changes that would come along with that? Who else would that affect?  In a family system, when one person becomes more emotionally healthy, it is difficult for the rest of the family to adjust. “Do you want to be made well?” That is Jesus’ question to all of us.  The sick man never said yes.  Jesus healed him anyway.  “’Stand up, take your mat and walk.’ At once the man was made well, and he took up his mat and began to walk.” God’s kingdom broke in.  It was a miracle.  It was resurrection.

Out of all the ill people in the porticos, why did Jesus choose this person?  Isn’t that among the top 10 questions we desperately want Jesus to answer? Our gospel writer John never explains.  In fact, Matthew, Mark and Luke don’t tell us why or how people are healed, either.  In this case, it was not the man’s faith.  It can’t be that he prayed the right words, or prayed long enough. He did not pray. He did not ask Jesus to help him. Jesus did not take this man into the pool, but instead cured him on his terms.  If you read the rest of the story, after the unnamed person was healed, he never expressed his gratitude.  In fact, when the religious authorities admonished him for carrying his mat on the sabbath, he blamed the man who told him take it up.  He did not even know Jesus’ name.

What we learn is that it’s not the quality or quantity of our faith that makes miracles happen. If only there was a formula, or some magic words, or maybe lucky socks.  If only we could use Magic Eraser to wipe out our illness, or how about even erasing our mistakes.  Then we would be in control.  We would be the ones who made things happen.  Maybe it’s a miracle when we realize that God is God and we are not.

There was nothing that the man lying by pool did to deserve his healing.  Jesus doesn’t bring us to wholeness because we deserve it.  We don’t get what we deserve, thank God.  Jesus doesn’t heal us because of what we do, or who we are. Jesus brings healing because of who he is.  God’s grace reaches all the way down into our dark places.

Not all healing comes in the form legs that run and ears that hear.  God’s ultimate healing is death. When our tears flow because our hands can no longer hold our loved ones, God’s grace is most abundant.  The one we love is still in God’s hands.

Jesus comes that we may have life, and have it abundantly.  Although he shows up in the church, he also walks to the pool where those who are blind, and lame, lonely and hopeless sit and wait for someone to help them.  He comes without our asking offering forgiveness and unconditional love. Sometimes, we even  recognize God’s miracles.

~ Pastor Cheryl Ann Griffin

[1]https://adata.org/learn-about-ada. Accessed May 22, 2019.