Taking Time to Reflect – August 28, 2022

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Scripture:    Revelation 21: 22-26     “I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. Its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. People will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations.


When we begin to broaden our experience of lands and peoples in our travel, or in our own towns and cities, we may move through a personal crisis if the plurality of religious thought and practice has not come into close view in our lives before. And yet, if we continue to reflect and open, what feels so different may not be as far from us as we first imagined. The light we seek and life-sustaining river that runs through the “Kin-dom” of God is full of common themes across religions: peaceful coexistence, food and shelter, love and compassion for those suffering and oppressed. How can deeper reflection about our own hesitation to connect to the wider human family free us to explore more possibilities for a better world?

Roadblocks, Speedbumps, and Potholes – August 21, 2022

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Scripture:   Philippians 4:4-9  “Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you’re on their side, working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute!

“Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.”  (The Message)

Every journey has its setbacks and disappointments.  The Apostle Paul certainly had his share of them.  A man on a quest for God’s will, Paul is the consummate example of someone who saw in new ways, ate with strangers, included the outsiders, and knew the blessings of God’s light in the world.  But he ultimately landed in jail because of his willingness to follow the quest.  What does Paul teach us about how to respond when in the course of our journey, things don’t go as expected?

When You’re the Guest – 14 August 2022

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Sermon:   “When You’re the Guest 

14 August 2022

10th Sunday after Pentecost

Scripture:  Luke 14:1, 7-14   

Synopsis:  Dining with others is an intimate and sacred occurrence.  When we embark on a quest, we are often graciously invited to dine with the host community.  Jesus tells a story of guests at a dinner party who seek out the best seats at the table.  Jesus reminds us that, as those on a journey far from home,  we especially don’t  know everything about those who will also be joining the party.  We lose out on the relationships of the community when we travel with an egocentric attitude..  Who will we meet when we sit at the “end of the table” of our hosts?   What might we learn about the community, and the world, if we follow Jesus’ advice, traveling and arrive with humble intentions to spend time with those who are not considered most important or influential?  What other opportunities might we miss if we fail to learn the customs of our hosts?  

Seeing Through the Eyes of Jesus – 7 August 2022

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Sermon:   “Seeing Through the Eyes of Jesus” 

7 August 2022

9th Sunday after Pentecost

Scripture: John 4: 7-40 

Synopsis:   Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well invites us to  seek out and open ourselves to new encounters, new people who are not like ourselves, new relationships with people not of our tribe.  Jesus often crossed paths with others not from his “tribe.” He did not shy away, but  most often sought out these opportunities. He met and saw people in their daily lives and locales, and engaged with them at the point of their deepest yearning. When we seek out and open to new encounters, new people, new relationships, we allow ourselves a spiritual rendezvous with humanity. And in this act, we discover more spiritual depth within us than we previously imagined. How can we shift our perception, redefining “strangers” as “friends we have not yet met?”  This is an invitation to be curious and welcoming to our interfaith brothers and sisters. It changed her life!  

Seeing With the Eyes of Amos – July 31, 2022

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Sermon:   “Seeing With the Eyes of Amos” 

31 July 2022

8th Sunday after Pentecost

Scripture:   Amos 8:1-12

Synopsis: Once we begin to journey, a quest implies that we will see new things in new ways.  Our first challenge to see in a different way is issued by the prophet Amos, and it’s a hard scripture to hear.  God is asking the prophet Amos what he sees.  Amos at first sees a basket of summer fruit, but God asks Amos, who then asks us, to look deeper.  Amos is asking us  to see what is underneath our wealth, our comfort, our excess.  He’s asking us to see who is suffering, who is hurting, who is wasting away like the basket of summer fruit in our text.  Yet, with God, our seeing is always undergirded with hope–hope that with God all things are possible; hope that there are possibilities and solutions, just as in the end, God promises to Amos restoration for Israel.  This is a “roll up your sleeves and get to work” kind of invitation. From seeing to visioning, to questing for justice.   

 

Leaving Home – July 24, 2022

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Scripture: — Exodus 13: 17-21   “The Lord went in front of them in a pillar of cloud by day, to lead them along the way, and in a pillar of fire by night, to give them light, so that they might travel by day and by night. Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.” 


Leaving Egypt was not a pleasure excursion for the Hebrew people. But the story of their pilgrimage in the desert in the Book of Exodus reminds us that traveling, moving, leaving home, is part of our Judeo-Christian tradition. The author of Exodus explains that the people were led not by the shortest route, but by the (seemingly) safest route. The route through the wilderness was one in which battles would be far less against another nation, but more about their internal battles of identity and strength as a newly-freed people journeying together. How do we set our course on this Quest?   If we are open to the invitation for deeper reflection, the journey can be more important than the destination. We affirm this week that the first step out the door is the one that counts the most, because without it, the journey won’t happen.

Preparing to Quest – 17 July 2022

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Scripture:  2 Kings 5: 1-14

Synopsis:  Before we begin any lengthy journey, there is planning involved.  Planning requires physical, mental and spiritual insight.  It requires us to acknowledge in the beginning that our experiences will not all be as we planned..  It requires us to make room for the unexpected. What attitudes are needed in order to be prepared for a Quest?   The story of Naman, Elisha, and the little girl through whom Naman finally heard God speak, gives us some valuable insights on how to prepare for the challenges and joys of this journey of awakening.  

The Way – July 10, 2022

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Scripture:  Psalm 23

Movie: The Way (2010)

Synopsis: 

What do you do when life throws you a tragic curveball?  How do you manage to speak the words left unspoken and dreams unrealized?  Who are the unlikely companions you’ve encountered on a long and difficult journey to healing?  “The Way” is a story of the pilgrimage of a father who unintentionally finds himself walking the Camino de Santiago (The Way of St. James),  an ancient pilgrimage over Spanish mountain country, towns and villages to the Cathedral de Santiago. Starting out as a solitary traveler, the father encounters three unlikely companions, each with their own wounds and expectations for the long walk. Over time  together and alone, each character discovers empathy and compassion deep within, and there is transformation.    Psalm 23 is an ancient and beautiful poem that captures the essence of life’s journey in relationship with the Divine Companion.  We travel with purpose and mystery, in shadow and light, through fear and hope, joy and grief with the One who guides us like a tender shepherd.  We finish our series, “At the Movies” contemplating and affirming the sacredness of all life and honoring those who have been our companions along the way.   

 

Finding Balance – July 3, 2022

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Scripture:  Galatians 5:1, 13-15

Movie:  “In the Heights”

Synopsis:   The passage we consider in Galatians calls us to embrace our freedom to become all that God has created us to be, while being duly considerate of those to whom we are committed in community. “The Galatians are invited as a community, rather than just as individuals, to live by the Spirit and to enjoy the freedom of life in the Spirit. Such is the journey of following God’s Spirit—a journey best traveled with companions alongside, a journey that intermingles freedom and obligation.” (Abbington).  The characters in this high energy musical are diverse, yet they have one thing in common.  They all feel stuck in their neighborhood and in their jobs, “afraid of flying” as one character puts it. Each one  must ask themselves, “What must I be willing to let go in order to soar? How do I make my dream come true?”  “In the Heights” is a story of self-discovery, family, community, and fidelity to self and others.  In this message, we’ll explore insights from the movie and the scriptures to help us find our balance and set our priorities in life.  We’ll look at ways of finding strength in one another, building trust, charity, unconditional love, compassion and acceptance for who we are.

Finding Peace – June 26, 2022

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Scripture:   Philippians 4:8 

“Raya and the Last Dragon” is filled with metaphors and images that remind us of the universal human condition of imperfection.  In our diversity and with all of our gifts, God’s vision and plan, the Kingdom, is that we would all live in harmony.  But in the present, people have different values and expectations.  In our relationships we betray and are betrayed.  When tragedy strikes, hearts can respond by hardening and minds by shutting down.  This movie will give us a chance to examine our inner dragons, both good and bad, and our reliance on the goodness and grace of God, in Christ, for redemption every day.