Epiphany 3 - B

One Person

Introduction

Margaret Mead once wrote: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.”

She was an anthropologist, she studied human culture, and her studies showed her that it is the little person, who acts on what they believe, that makes a difference.

We might not always know their names; like the Chinese student who stood in front of the row of tanks during the Tiananmen Square uprising in the eighties, or they might become heroes, like Rosa Parks who refused to give up her seat in the whites only section of the Alabama bus she was riding.

I think it might surprise us to go through history and see how often the actions of one person have changed everything.

It can be a famous person, or a stranger; a leader, or an average citizen… but that one person, if they are thoughtful and committed, will make a difference.

With the Kids – Making a Difference

Ryans Wells

The Ryan’s Well Foundation grew from the commitment of one boy, Ryan Hreljac, who learned of the great need for clean and safe water in developing countries in his 1st grade class. With the support of friends, family and the community, Ryan raised enough money to build a well in Africa. In 1999, at age seven, Ryan's first well was built at Angolo Primary School in northern Uganda. To this day, the well continues to serve the community.

Although Ryan started raising money for water projects in 1998, the Foundation was not formed until 2001. Since then, Ryan’s Well has helped build over 700 wells and 830 latrines bringing safe water and improved sanitation to over 736,000 people.

Resting My Soul

Our Psalm makes a big deal about relying on God. The Psalms usually do. God is my refuge, my mighty rock, my salvation…

Tradition holds that the Psalms were written by King David. They were written as poems, or perhaps even hymns to be used in worship. They were meant not as logical statements about God, but as emotional reactions to God.

Not so different than our hymns are meant to be. I mean, think about it… last week we sang “Open my Eyes, that I may see and Here I am Lord… today we have already sung Seek Ye First and Tell the stories of Jesus… these are emotional songs… they stir feelings in us… they remind us of not only our love for God, but God’s love for us.

That is a key point. God’s love for us.

The great leaders of the Bible, Like King David when he wrote the Psalm; are not really all that talented, or special – sometimes they are the last and least – but they recognize something at a very deep level; they recognize that God loves them, and that God empowers them.

Sometimes, like Jonah, they are stubborn. Sometimes, like the King in the city of Ninevah, they recognize right away when God is at work in their midst. But at some point, they see that it is God who is empowering them to be better than they could be on their own.

Mother Theresa, someone who many people would call saintly in her actions; was, as she herself claimed, a very average person; someone who got angry, who lost faith, who was often tired and cranky… but she knew something else.

She once said this: “I try to give to the poor people for love - what the rich could get for money. No, I wouldn't touch a leper for a thousand pounds; yet I willingly cure him for the love of God.”

It’s sort of a variation of the “there but for the grace of God go I” theme.  To say that we realize that we could not possibly do it on our own – that our own courage would fail us – that our own sense of inadequacy, or shy-ness would get in the way…

But with God, with God, all things are possible.

This past week was the day we celebrate the life of Martin Luther King Jr. A social activist who changed the way blacks and whites see each other forever. But before that, he was a simple preacher. He knew what I am talking about. He was humbled by who he had become just by being willing to stand up. Here are, prophetically, some of the last words he said:

“I just want to do God's will. And he's allowed me to go to the mountain. And I've looked over, and I've seen the Promised Land! I may not get there with you, but I want you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the Promised Land.”

That is what we need to be about. Believing that as we do God’s will, it is about more than us, it is about the horizon, and the Promised Land just beyond.

Recognizing the Moment

I don’t believe Jesus did random things.

I don’t think he just happened to be walking upon that stretch of beach that particular morning. I think he knew these guys.

Maybe he had seem them with John the Baptist like Nathaniel and the lads, Maybe he saw them yesterday at the rally where he was preaching… but somehow, I think they made an impression on him and he knew them – saw into their souls. Knew they were destined for greater things.

So it is not to random fishermen that Jesus offered this call. It is to Simon… and Andrew… and James… and John. It is to people who were destined to become preachers, and apostles…  Jesus knew intimately that they were not living out their true gifts and their potential, and he offered them a choice.

That is the reason they jumped at it. They were already thinking about it. They were probably fishermen because that is what was expected of them, or because it was the only opportunity, or because they were following in their father’s footsteps…

But along comes someone who knows better and offers them a choice, God’s choice… and they leap at it.

Don’t get me wrong. My father knew when he was 10 that he wanted to be a doctor, and he will die a retired doctor. That was his calling. No one had to come along and tell him to change. Somehow he knew himself enough. And a lot of us do too.

But others of us are waiting for that call. And I guarantee it comes to each of us.

“Come with me” is the equivalent of God waking you up at night with a whisper saying “join the church” or “be an accountant” or “go back to school” or “forgive your sister”…

Or whatever it would take to put you on the right track.

I firmly believe that for most of us call is not a onetime thing, it is a lifetime journey. The thing is we have to be thinking a little about what life has in store for us and be willing to take risks to get there.

Imagine how different James life would have been if he had decided to finish mending the nets and ignore Jesus? The question for me is always that, am I ignoring what God wants me to do.

It is something for all of us to think about.

Conclusion

All of us are called, all of us are servants. What we forget is that it is how we live our lives that makes a difference, not what we believe.

I think Martin Luther King said this best too, so I leave you with this to consider:

“If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as a Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, 'Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well!”

Epiphany 2-B 2012

LISTENING

Introduction

What keeps you up at night? I go through periods when I cannot sleep. Sometimes it is a bad dream, sometimes it is just thoughts and fears running through my mind. Sometimes I am so excited for tomorrow that I just can’t sleep.

Anyone ever told you to “sleep on it” when you have a problem? You know the opposite of being up all night worrying or wondering is to fall asleep and have life sort itself out in those hours of relaxation. 

Sometimes that happens too. I remember once, a decade ago, I wrote an entire sermon for about five hours on a Saturday night, I struggled to get everything right. Then woke up the next morning and in 20 minutes had written a completely different sermon. During my sleep my mind worked some things out.

Interestingly, a lot of the significant encounters of the Bible happen during the nighttime. Jacob has the dream of the angels and the ladder into heaven, for example. Mary is sleeping when the Angel Gabriel wakes her up. Nicodemus comes to Jesus during the night. Jesus prays in the Garden of Gethsemane on the night before his crucifixion.

I could go on. It seems that a lot of the time what happens when we sleep is that dreams and visions come from God and straighten things out for us.

In today’s readings we are talking about call – about listening to the voice, the dream, the vision….

Time with the Kids – Come and See

-         Ever found anything you wanted other people to see? Sea shell, frog, etc.

-         How excited were you?

-         That is what this guy Philip was like when he first met Jesus, he was so excited he wanted to tell all his friends. Come and see.

-         We can do that to… We can say to people, come and see when they ask us about God.

Knitting it together

As a young child Samuel was just doing what was expected, he went to work in the temple because it was expected of him; he had no idea what he wanted to be when he grew up, or what life was really like.

If we fast forwarded his story, he becomes the first major prophet to preach in the nation of Israel, he changes everything and is key to the future of the nation.

But look at where it begins…

A young boy named Samuel is awoken in the middle of the night when he hears his name being called over and over again.  Each time, he hears someone say “Samuel,” he gets up out of bed and goes to Eli's room. 

He logically thinks it must be the only other person in the temple who is calling his name… but eventually, with Eli’s help, he realizes he is not hearing a human voice; but that it's God speaking to him. 

And so he finally responds by saying, “Talk to me.  I will listen to you now.”

It took a number of attempts to get through to Samuel, to make him aware of a presence that he couldn't necessarily see or understand.  Samuel couldn't hear God calling to him at first because he was in his own way – not allowing himself to think outside the box.

But let's not be too hard on Samuel for not catching in so quickly; after all he was just a child.

But even when we become adults, there are all kinds of reasons why we can't or won't hear God calling to us.

Sometimes we ignore these callings because, like a childhood nightmare, they scare us. 

Sometimes we misunderstand them and think that there something else other than God trying to get our attention.

But the thing about God's callings, those divine naggings as I like to call them,  is that they are persistent.  

They won't just go away.  God doesn't give up on us.

God knows us better than we know ourselves…

The Other Disciple

When I ask people how Jesus called the disciples and who it was that he called the answer would probably always be the same – he was walking by the seashore and saw some guys mending their nets and said, “come with me and I will make you fishers of men.”

Curious, eh? In the gospel of John it is completely different. First off, the disciples are already following someone – John the Baptist; who sort of introduces them to Jesus. Then the next person to be called, Nathaniel, someone we do not really hear about again until we are told he is at the crucifixion, was actually called by his friends, not by Jesus.

We sometimes forget that lay people are called too.

But we are realizing more and more how important it is to talk about how God calls everyone to do specific things, to share unique gifts and talents, to be active in certain communities, to speak our thoughts out loud.

That doesn’t mean we always hear it, or get it, or pay attention.

One of the best descriptions of what a call is like comes from a professor at STU, Father Dolan, who said, “A calling is like a little fly that won't stop buzzing in your ear.  It will just keep on buzzing until you finally pay attention to it and swat that sucker!”

We often resist doing the things we feel called to do.  We keep God at an arm's length. 

We say, “You want me to do, what?”  “No offence God but I have my own plans, etc. free will and all of that.” 

But if one approach fails, God will try another and another and another until we get it.

Nathaniel didn't want to follow Jesus at first. 

He tried to get out of it by making smart-aleck remarks about people from Nazareth, the place where Jesus was from. 

But Jesus convinced him to follow him not by making an argument about why it was a good idea. No.  He convinced Nathanael to follow him by not giving up on him, by keeping his eyes on him and his hopes set on him from the moment he laid eyes on him sitting under a fig tree. 

The psalmist tells us that God has searched us and knows us well.  God knows us in a deep, intimate way that began when we were knit together in our mother's wombs.  Therefore, God knows what our gifts are; God knows all about our hopes and our dreams.  Who better then to give our lives direction?

Conclusion

Whether you're a young person starting out in the world, trying to figure out which direction to go in, or someone at middle age trying to re-evaluate your life; or a senior discerning your purpose at this unique time in your life, God calls you to go this way and that.

And all the little times in between too, in decisions that might not seem so major.  If you listen you will find that God has a word for you. 

We are all called to do different and many things throughout our lifetime.  Pay attention to the things that happen around you.  Maybe they are trying to tell you something.  Keep your ears wide open to hear the voice that calls to you in the night.

Epiphany - Year B

A Different Way

Introduction

So, have you packed away all those Christmas decorations yet? For some reason, it seems like a lot more work to take them down than it does to put them up. Did you notice that the stores are already on to Valentine’s Day?

Christmas has been over for many people for a couple of weeks but for the church, the season of Christmas ends with Epiphany, which we have been celebrating today. Epiphany marks the visit of the Magi or wise men to Bethlehem to visit the baby.

If it seems a long ways from the shepherds and angels...well...that's because it is. 

I'm sure the wise men were moving as fast as they could, but it takes some time to get from the East to Bethlehem on the backs of camels, especially when you're not exactly sure what you're looking for. 

Most scholars say it took up to two years for them to actually get there and when they arrived, Jesus' crib had been changed back into a feed box and the holy family had moved from their temporary lodgings in the shed behind the inn into a more permanent home.

Jesus, then, had moved from cute and cuddly to his terrible twos.

Children’s Story

Of Frankincense and Myrrh – Gifts and Specialness… What would we give God?

Science and Religion

We can learn so much from the wise men – a group of people that we usually don't quite understand

or lump in with the rest of the Christmas characters. We don't usually spend a lot of time trying to understand their wisdom and apply it to our lives. But today we are being called to do just that.

Paul wrote to the church in Ephesus telling them to embrace the mystery of Christ, to let it be revealed to them. When we do that, when we are willing dive in and swim around in the divine for a little while, then we are truly wise. 

Astrophysicists tell us that the star that the wise men followed was actually a planetary alignment – Mars, Saturn and Jupiter, all in a row, something which happens about every 400 years. It was rare and it was odd and those who know about these things would call it a sign.

And just in case you want me to back this up with some rough-shod historical science, how about this; a planetary alignment happens about every 400 years and changes everything. And here's how history proves it...

Jesus is born. 

400 years later, the Roman Empire falls. 

400 years later, the holy Roman Empire falls and divides Europe in half. 

400 years later, the first Crusades are launched. 

Another 400 years brings us to 1600 when the King James Bible was written, the 30 years war began, and the first colony was settled in Jamestown in America. 

Add another 400 years, give or take, and we're talking about now. And we live in a time when we don't know what's going to happen to the environment, to the economy, to society. But if I had to guess, I would say we might be in a time of great change. 

We might be in a place where the star is leading us into something new and different.

Perhaps all of this significance is why we can't help but be fascinated by the wise men. Perhaps it's why we push them into the manger scene although they couldn't possibly have arrived yet. Their silk robes and kingly presence, turbans and spices and camels are an interesting contrast to all of the swaddling clothes and hay.

To the shepherds, Jesus was a baby – soft and cute. To the Magi, Jesus was a hero, star-prophesied and glowing with destiny.

Matthew and Sherlock Holmes

Perhaps that's why I love the characters of the Magi so much – these Persian priests. I've been there before.  Trying to find the place I need to be at a given moment in life, not knowing exactly how to get there, trudging along in the cold, taking a stab in the dark, not knowing what might come next.

The story of the wise men is like a biblical Sherlock Holmes story. I recently went to see the second Sherlock Holmes movie when it was in theatres. And like any Sherlock Holmes story, you have this eccentric detective with a mystery to solve. 

He has no idea what the solution will end up being, where it might take him, what adventure he is about to go on. But he knows that he will figure it out, that he will end up where he needs to be. So he depends on his keen observational skills, on hunches that seem to come out of nowhere, on clues that are revealed one at a time, on all of these things in order to solve the mystery.

We often forget that the wise men went on a wild adventure like that to get to Jesus. But it's true. I mean, it's not like they were handed a map with “X” marking the spot. It's not like their camels were equipped with GPS.  

Not only did they not know how to get to Jesus but they weren't even entirely sure what or whom they were looking for. They had seen this star and heard about this special baby being born. They put the two together and began a trek to this place called Bethlehem that nobody had heard of; a little po-dunk place, off the beaten track. 

They were travellers, seekers, searchers, journeyers. This is what made them wise. They didn't dismiss those yearnings and longings that kept pulling them forward, closer and closer to God.

The Magi likely thought that the manger was their destination; that the purpose of their trip was to witness and pay homage to the babe of Bethlehem. But really, little Jesus was and is just the starting point.

And that's what the prophets have been trying to tell us for centuries. 

We hear Isaiah proclaim today: “Arise and shine for your light has come.” Even though the world feels like a dark and hopeless place, God is there, a bright light that fills you. “You will see God and then you will be radiant; your heart shall thrill and rejoice because you will be filled with God's abundance.”

Matthew tells us that the Magi chose to go home a different way. Instead of going home the way they came, they chose a different path. Their experience of Jesus changed them. They didn't go back through Herod's territory where they would be questioned about the whereabouts of Jesus and the young child would end up killed. 

Instead, they went out into undiscovered territory. Scripture doesn't tell us what became of the Magi; it just gives us that one evocative statement that says, “They left for home by a different way.” 

Conclusion

 Once you experience God in your life, when you see that divine light shining, you are changed. You can't walk the path you did before. Finding Jesus means taking risks in life, and may mean risking all simply to find him.

But once he’s found, life may have to take a different direction, one that is responsive to and obedient to God’s call.

So as we move away from Christmas and more fully into this new year, are you willing to seek God out and be led in a different way, like the wise men of old? What does your new path look like? How is it different from the well-worn path you have been walking? 

Be brave and allow yourself to shine out there in the world because you are truly radiant. Jesus is the light of the world but you are a light in the world. Arise and shine!

Christmas Eve 2011

The Story Thus Far

Isaiah and Luke 2:1-7

We have all heard the story, if not at church in the last few years, then maybe on television, or you read it in a book, or something. It seems part of the collective consciousness to say that once a long time ago, in a little town, in a stable behind an inn, a baby was born.

We are also told that the heavens rejoiced, that kings trembled, that wise men searched him out.

It happened to fulfill a prophecy…

It happened so that the people who walked in deep darkness might see a dawning light on the horizon… It happened so that God might increase the joy of a people struggling in a time of uncertainty.

Legend has it that a German Priest by the name of Martin Luther began the tradition of decorating trees. 

One crisp Christmas Eve, around the year 1500, he was walking through snow-covered woods, thinking about the Christmas sermon he would preach.  Time slipped away from him and it began to get quite dark. Luther began to get nervous as the shadows lengthened and he could hear the howls of wild animals around him. 

Just then, he looked up at the night sky to see it filled with tiny pricks of light – twinkling blue and silver stars. As he looked around, he was struck by the beauty of a group of small evergreens. Their branches were dusted with snow and shimmered in the moonlight. 

He was no longer afraid

. 

When he got home, he set up a little fir tree indoors so he could share this story with his children. He decorated it with candles, which he lit in honour of Christ's birth. All of a sudden the image of the birth of Jesus as God's light shining in the darkness for everyone made more sense to him…

This is the same light that the prophet Isaiah talks about when he tells us that God sends light to those who walk in darkness. It is as true now as it was then.

Wonder

Do you know what an Angel is? Most religions have them, but we in the Jewish Christian and Islamic tradition know them as Messengers.

Angels come to bring a word from the Lord - When Mary first conceived, it was the Arch-Angel Gabriel who broke the news to her and helped her to be excited about what would transpire. Joseph moved from anger to understanding about the whole pregnancy situation only when an angel appeared to him in a dream.  

And after the birth of Jesus, it was a choir of angels that brought the good news to the shepherds, and in that moment, “the glory of the Lord shone around them…”

I see that as awe… everything lit up, it overwhelmed them, God was present…

I don’t know what most of you do tonight when the presents are wrapped and the kids are asleep and everything is ready… I remember when I lived with my five brothers for a brief period of insanity that the 11pm on Christmas Eve was magical.

We would sit in the living room, only the lights on the tree illuminating the world. Outside would be dark and quiet. No one would be fighting, we were usually allowed some rum in our egg nog… and it was somehow, momentarily, perfect.

The Celtic folk call this a thin place – a time where the line between heaven and earth is a little blurry. A time where you realize there is more than meets the eye going on. Those moments are indeed quite rare, but they often happen on Christmas Eve.

Whether it is as a child waiting for Santa, or seeing the presents under the tree, or the quiet of a night filled with significance…. If we are open to it, the Angels are still bringing a message from God.

And the message is the same as it always has been, a message of God’s glory and of peace for us.

Treasured in the Heart

In the 119^th Psalm we are told that God has hidden love deep within our hearts. In fact, there is a tradition that says we spend our whole lives searching outwardly for that love, and it is only when we realize it is hidden within us that we become capable of loving fully.

I think too often we forget the last words of the Christmas story, that Mary “Treasured these things in her heart.”

I was listening to an interview with Rabbi Harold Kushner the other day and he was talking about how it is a good idea to go to the graveyard and read the tombstones every now and again. He pointed out that never once will you come across ones that say things like: Brett Anningson, good with numbers; or exceptional preacher; or anything remotely like that… what you will see is devoted wife, loving son, you will see expressions of the heart.

Too often we have those moments in front of the fire, or sitting around the tree, or opening presents, or feasting with family, and then go back to work the next day as if it is all over. We forget to treasure those moments that allow us to see the world from a different perspective.

Christmas is a time that we can let seep into our soul. It is the coming of the light into an otherwise darkened world. And it is not just right now, it is forever.

So enjoy it, revel in it, relax in it, but let it seep into your very soul. Tomorrow the light is dawning.

 Words of Reflection:  Sharing the Light & Blessing

Look around this sacred place and see all the lights that are burning. 

See the light that shines in each of us.

From the Light of the World comes light for every one of us to take into our corners of the world. 

Take this light with you tonight and remember who you are and who has made you.

Tonight, light has broken through the darkness.

New life is starting right now!

Go forth and live in the light.

Go forth in peace to love and serve our God.

ADVENT 4 - B 2011

God with Us

Please note, as with many of my sermons what is written is not "Exactly" what is preached. I usually end up ad-libbing and changing things on the fly. In this case, the entire conclusion of this sermon was done differently. But the written conclusion is still valid. grin.

Introduction

In the beginning…. We walked in the Garden with God.

Ever stopped to think of these stories figuratively, rather than historically? Once upon a time the people were so close to God that we were friends, walking in the cool of the evening… Then we rebelled, or got uppity, or something, and strained the relationship…

Still being our friend, God intervened when we needed help, was always there to lend a hand, walked with us through the desert and gave us his prime vacation property when we had nowhere to live, the Promised Land…

We still didn’t see the true value of that friendship and went ahead and worked on things that were really important like nation building and politics. Eventually getting some kings to take the place of our friend God.

Well – God was still there, but there were fewer visits, after all, we thought we could do everything all by ourselves…

Eventually God thought we were so far off track that God decided to try something new, to relate to us in a new way, instead of an equal, God became the person who needed the help, a tiny little baby… still full of the same wisdom we needed to hear, still trying to help us along the way… but maybe this way we would be more welcoming…

This morning our readings start with King David. They tell us that he wanted to bring God closer, to build a home for God, but that he was going about it the wrong way… he was that king who was too self-reliant to really need God anymore and so…. Still the promise was made: I will still be with you, and your family, and someday, we will walk together again…

With the Kids

Jesus Birthday Party

Exalted Forever

I think most of the encounters people have with God in the Bible go this way:

“…but, God, things aren’t working out like I planned!”

“It’s ok, I will still be with you, and all of your family forever…”

That was God’s promise to Adam and Eve after they left the garden, it was the promise to Noah, to Moses, to King David, to us…

More than that – imbedded in that statement, “I will be with you” is another deeper promise – “things will get better.”

John the Baptist said it this way – the one who is coming is someone far greater than I am… And in fact, fart greater than anyone you have ever heard of; a greater father than Abraham, a greater leader than Moses, a greater prophet than Elijah, a greater king than David, a greater Hockey player than Sydney Crosby… Whatever you imagine, whatever you think the best was… There is still more…

This is partly why I don’t get upset with shopping malls and Christmas elevator music – or sappy movies and holiday cheer. It is not the competition – it is the exact same message: Life can be better. People can be happier. Love can be more real.

I think of Charles Dickens as the best prophet for the Spirit of Christmas we ever had – he was always on about Christmas changing hearts – about how even the hardest heart could be softened by the season.

The Angel Gabriel

Have you ever woken up and found an angel at the foot of the bed?

I haven’t. I know people who have. If you ask me, this is the scariest of all ways God might communicate with you.

I mean, I have felt the gentle push, I have known a calming presence, I have had unexpected things happen. All of these seem to me to be God speaking… but to wake up to Gabriel in the middle of the night telling me some unimaginable thing…

Right in the middle of that proclamation is this line:

"The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you”

It is that which changed everything. I want you to imagine that literally in your life right now… what if the spirit of God came upon you – what if you felt God’s will and presence so completely that it overpowered you?

How would the world be different if we were so convinced of God’s way that we never rebelled?

It is said God chose the most unlikely place, the most unlikely person… and that is just like God…

Conclusion

I think the old promises are still true. I think that God still whispers to us that everything will be all right.

It might not seem it in the heat of then moment, and it is totally possible that the bad things out weigh the good right now, But Christmas was and is a time to see the horizon, a time to recognize that something new is always happening and to set out in hope. 

Advent 3-B 2011

A Cup of Joy

Introduction

There is nothing like seeing the world through the eyes of a child. I remember the first Christmas with each of my kids. I remember the magic they felt seeing the decorations, the excitement of Christmas morning, the joy of tearing open presents.

Luckily I still feel most of that myself. I try to enter into it with the excitement and wonder that I first felt.

Today is the Sunday of Joy, the Third week of our preparations for Christmas. The thing is, Joy is something I think we cannot limit to one day a year. I also think it is one of the things we have the most control over.

Joy is an approach to life. Joy is the ability to look at an event with wonder. It is seeing the decorations on the tree for the first time every year. It is driving around looking at the lights just like you are a kid again. And… it is taking that first sip of coffee and enjoying it like it was meant to be enjoyed.

I truly think approaching life with joy and wonder is a religious practice. And I want this Sunday to be a reminder for you to see beyond the stress, beyond the hustle and bustle, and enter the magic.

Isaiah and Words worth Preaching

When Jesus was first asked, as a wandering preacher, to give a sermon in church, he stood up and read from this passage in Isaiah. It was, for him, the Good News.

I just want you to think about that – what brings you joy? What is good news for you? How does it relate to the idea that the more people we can make happy, the happier we are?

To console the broken-hearted, to help those who are captive to break free, to be with those who mourn… these are the things Isaiah suggests would be Good News…

So take my attitude problem theory and put it here:  There are usually external factors that make us think we cannot be joyful – we lose the ones we love, we get sick, we cannot afford the lifestyle we think we need, 

those type of things make us see the world in a way that is clouded over…

What if our religious duty was to look deeper, to be able to see that those things are real, and true, but do not have the last word? What if we are to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour – in spite of

Life sucks, you know what, laugh and have fun anyway…

With the Kids

(adapted from sermons4kids)

John the Baptist said repent - turn around and reflect God

- Flashlight and a Mirror 

Magnifying the Lord

I remember the first time I heard Emily’s heartbeat. I mean, it was pretty obvious that Mary was pregnant, but for some reason, that little ultrasonic scanner picking up the thump thump thump brought tears to my eyes.

I imagine that for the woman carrying the child, that feeling is multiplied a hundredfold.

Now – not having any sort of medical equipment – I want you to understand that this is that moment for Mary… the child has lept in her womb… she knows it is real… I think this might be the first time she feels little Yeshua kick…

So she prays, or sings, and her soul magnifies the Lord…. God saw me, God blessed me, and she is filled with Joy!

Now, certainly this is a moment of joy that will change Mary’s life forever, but she can see something even further… she can see that if God notices her, little old Mary in her backwater village, well, maybe God really does care…

Maybe God does restore fortunes, and bless people, and care about them…

It is little wonder that down through the centuries this song has meant so much – who among us has not been in this place, alone, desperate, hoping that God notices and does something about it…

Up all Night

Do you remember waiting for Santa as a child? Ever lie in bed straining for the sound of sleigh bells, or the patter of tiny hooves on the roof. Ever try to stay up all night? How excited where you?

I remember going through the Wish Book from Sears as soon as it came, circling all the things I wanted a hundred times – or cutting them out, and sending them to Santa.

And then we grow up and realize that there might be something self-centred, something a little selfish about hoping for presents, and having it all focus on us… is that really what the season is all about.

But instead of moving from the exciting joy of childhood to a joyful anticipation of the season, many of us seem to lose the magic instead… we forget to, as Dickens said, Keep Christmas in our heart.

Alice Walker, who wrote The Colour Purple told a story about a little girl names Meridian. It seems one day Meridian was playing in the back yard and she dug up a bar of dirt encrusted heavy metal. She went to the shed and got some sandpaper – and the more she cleaned, the prettier it became. To her wonder, she had discovered a bar of gold.

Running into the kitchen she put the bar on the counter and tried to get her mother’s attention.

“Move that thing,” was all her mother said, ‘can’t you see I’m busy getting these peas ready for supper?”

“But… it’s gold!” Meridian said, “It will make us rich!”

“I’m busy!”

It was the same with her brothers, it was the same with her father… and not knowing what to do, Meridian decided to put the gold in a shoebox and bury it in the backyard under the Magnolia tree.

Each week she would go out, dig it up, look at it and dream about it, but as time went by, she dug it up less and less, forgetting about it entirely after a while.

I think this is the same story of John the Baptist – here is a guy who has struck it rich, he has found Gold, he knows God has blessed him to bring a message of hope that will change everything – the saviour is coming!

And here he is running around filled with excitement, trying to teach us how to anticipate with joy – someone is coming… who is so great… I cannot even describe it... And we know that his enthusiasm is contagious, everyone is coming out to hear him, everyone is repenting and getting baptized and preparing….

But Jesus doesn’t show up that afternoon. And there are peas to get ready. There are jobs to do. There are taxes to pay and kids to worry about… and time goes by… and the joy fades.

The joy of spending the whole day swinging on a swing set, of catching frogs, of waiting up for Santa, of a new born baby… life gets the better of us and we start to focus on the problems, on the stress, on the pain.

So here is your wake up call. Here are some stories of our faith that remind us – there is something to be joyful about… always!

Da Ro Dor Me

Anyone ever read The Grinch who Stole Christmas….

Here is the conclusion:

And the Grinch, with his grinch-feet ice-cold in the snow, Stood puzzling and puzzling: "How could it be so? It came without ribbons! It came without tags! "It came without packages, boxes or bags!" And he puzzled three hours, `till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before! "Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store. "Maybe Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit more!" 

Advent 2- B 2011

Of Prophets and Kings

Introduction

What are you waiting for?

I sort of asked that question last week as well, but the thing is, Christmas has context… It doesn’t just happen, there is a reason. 

The thing about being a Christian is that you are supposed to be an “as if” type of person.

Let me explain. As Christians we are called upon to live as if God’s promises were true, as if the world were what God meant it to be, as if the goodness of God was more powerful than the evil we see around us.

Or think of it this way - We live in a time of war and terrorism, but we are called to live as if peace were more important. We live in a time of instant communication and gratification but are called to live as if peace and tranquility were of a higher value. We live in a time of natural disaster but are called to live as if there was security. We live in a time of poverty and chaos but are called to live as if people have more value than things.

So when we say, Christmas is coming… we are making a powerful theological statement. We are saying, something changed, something will change again, and we recognize and celebrate it.

Comfort O Comfort

Imagine for a second that you live in the time of the prophet Isaiah – Isaiah was the counselor to the king, during a time when two different nations wanted to drive the Israelites off of their land, the Syrians were at war with them, and the Assyrian Empire was waiting in the wings to take what was left. It was a time of darkness, despair and utter hopelessness, a time when people wondered why God had abandoned them, and this is what Isaiah called to his beloved people in the temple:

“Comfort, O comfort my people… Get you up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good tidings; lift up your voice with strength… lift it up, do not fear… Here is your God! See, the lord comes… he will feed his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms, and carry them in his bosom…”

White Gift (children’s time)

White Gift Sunday dates back to 1904 in Ohio. The wife of a Methodist minister and her two daughters came up with the idea of giving gifts wrapped in white paper at Christmas time to people in need.

Gifts are wrapped in white so that they will be anonymous. People who can only give a little will not be embarrassed.

There is a Chinese tradition where all the people gave their king a gift wrapped in plain white paper so that every gift would look the same. Each person gave the king what they we re able, and the king welcomed them all.

The White Gift shares in the spirit of Christ and the God of love at Christmas. We give gifts of love to people in need. These gifts are often nonperishable food items which are distributed to people in the community.

White Gift Sunday celebrates the stew a rdship of Go d’s love and giving at the time of year when we remember the coming of the King of Kings.

Prayer of Dedication of White Gifts

Holy God, you are the giver of all gifts. We come before you today with these white gifts given in our Lord’s spirit of love. May they be offerings of love, symbols of our faith in you and signs of the work of Christ’s church. Bless us as we dedicate these gifts in the service of others. AMEN

The Struggle

This is the second Sunday of Advent, and I have to say, the world does not seem very “Christmassy” maybe it is the lack of snow, maybe it is that the radio stations are not playing any Christmas music yet, I don’t know; what do you think, does it seem as Christmassy as other years? Does it feel like it is three weeks away?

The Psalmists and Paul try their best to remind us that even in the times that life seems hard, Christmas is on the Horizon. They do not say it quite like that – but listen again:

“Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God… A voice cries out: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain.”

“Surely his salvation is at hand… Steadfast love and faithfulness will meet; righteousness and peace will kiss each other. Faithfulness will spring up from the ground, and righteousness will look down from the sky. The LORD will give what is good, and our land will yield its increase.”

So believe in tomorrow, have hope, keep the faith, something is about to happen… we forget that urgency, but that is what people have always felt, that the world is changing out from under them… And it truly is, we live in those changing times…

Repent

And the context of Christmas is the very real world we all live in; a world that, as we all know, can make us lose sight of all these Advent words, Hope, Peace, Joy and Love.

Jump ahead 500 years and we come across another prophet, this one closer to the original Christmas; Jesus’ cousin, John; who we sometimes call the Baptist. This wild and crazy prophet shows up outside of Jerusalem wearing a camel skin cloak and eating locusts with honey. He is so out of place that he draws a crowd – and then he begins to preach:

“Repent. The Kingdom of God is at hand.”

Now what we sometimes miss in this story is that John is pretty much recreating Isaiah for his generation. The people are still stuck in a war torn country – this time it is the Herodians and the Romans who have divided the spoils, and they are still wondering where God is.

The writer of Mark saw this – he even quotes Isaiah when he describes what John is doing – preparing a way for the Lord in the wilderness, making level every mountain and hill and raising up every valley and smoothing every rough places.

Now what else did Isaiah say? “Here is your God, see, the Lord comes!” Both Isaiah and John start with where we find ourselves and offer us a message filled with grace – a message about God’s presence with us – and how that can change everything.

There are people out there that think Christianity and other religions are “quaint” that they are from another time and another way of seeing the world… I think the messages, and the problems faced, are timeless…

Why does this world suffer from more depression, more suicide, and more pain than we ever have?  Could it be that the same sort of injustice, the same sort of poverty, the same sort of misery that was there in Isaiah’s time, or John’s time, is still there with us now?

We all struggle with meaning, and we all wonder if things will ever get better…

So here is the good news – here is the Gospel – as told by the Archangel Gabriel to a lonely young girl afraid for her life: “you will conceive in your womb, and bear a son… he will be great, and of his kingdom there will be no end…” And you remember what Isaiah said the kingdom of God would be like? The Lamb and the lion, the baby and the snake, will all live in harmony with one another.

Conclusion

See, God still has a message for us in these dark times. Peace, I leave you with – not as the world understands peace, but as God does – wholeness, love, wonder, joy, and safety – peace. This is the grace of God and the love of God which Jesus came to show us.

So as we wait remember that our calling is to be the ‘as if’ sort of person that the world needs. The birth of Jesus in the dark of midwinter was a reminder that nothing bad ever gets the final say…

I heard a great quote this week and I want to finish my sermon with it…

A Candle is a message to the darkness – saying, “I beg to differ!”

Christmas is coming.