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!  

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.   

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.