Reflection of Pat Edmonds, August 23, 2020

Scripture Reading:  Romans 12: 1-8

I don’t know how careful your family members are when putting dirty laundry in the clothes hamper. Or do they depend on the laundry lady to close buttons, zip zippers and check the pockets for stray items? It seems inevitable that at least a few times some money ends up going through the wash cycle. A friend of mine who had 3 sons and a husband which meant lots of men’s trousers in the laundry, finally gave up nagging them about checking their pockets before dumping trousers in the hamper. Instead she started going carefully through the pockets, removing all the coins and bills and donating all this “found money” to the Mission and Service Fund. Over the course of a year it was a tidy sum that went to a good cause.  It does seem inevitable that sometimes coins or bills end up being washed. Coins I usually find in the bottom of the washer or dryer and other than added sparkle seem none the worse for wear. But bills often do not fare so well. The remains are found balled up in a pocket or worse still become a paper mulch that sticks to all the dark colors. Unwrapping the soggy mess from itself often results in several pieces of torn, almost unrecognizable paper. If you let the pieces dry, smooth them out, use reams of scotch tape you might have a bill recognizable enough that the bank will exchange it for a new one or you might try to spend it, imperfect though it is. Well, today’s scripture from Romans deals with imperfection.

 Paul urges us to offer our bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God. This is very interesting especially as we look at our bodies and find them somewhat imperfect – our bodies have been through the wringer, or the washer, so to speak, and have been left somewhat wrinkled and torn, or filled with pain or disfigured in some way. Perhaps our bodies are not able to do what bodies in better shape are able to do. 

Offering our bodies as living sacrifices is a spiritual act of worship. But what does this mean? In worship at the temple in Jerusalem animals that were brought to be sacrificed to God for thank offerings had to be unblemished. Does this mean we need to go on a diet to please God? – or enroll in a gym? –or have everything in perfect working order to be “holy” and pleasing to God? What about those of us who are a bit less, or quite a bit more, than the super models who grace the pages of fashion magazines? What about those of us who appear to have been soaked, agitated, rinsed, spun and wrung out by life’s experiences inside and out? Are we unacceptable in God’s presence? Clearly since we know our loving God does not judge people by outward appearances this not what Paul is suggesting. It is not some form of bodily perfection that matters to God. So offering our bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God must mean something more. Something less physical, something more spiritual, must be in Paul’s mind when he speaks to the early Christians.

Let’s think for a minute about our spiritual bodies. What kind of shape are they in? Are they pure and unblemished – up to the tasks they are meant to perform? Or are they limping along, full of aches and pains, full of doubts and confusion, worries and hatred, even though they also contain faith and truth, trust and love?

I suspect the latter is true of many of us – not the former. I suspect that when we look at ourselves we don’t see ourselves as perfect in every way, or even in many ways. We may regard ourselves as having a good heart, as being loving and kind but we, especially as we grow in faith, are also aware of the arrhythmia, the little irregularities that occasionally come along, Sometimes it seems – even among the healthiest spirits there is a little shortness of breath, a little reluctance to go out and climb the highest mountains or even to go for a walk around the block.  I think most of us will all agree that not all the parts of our spiritual body are fully presentable, at least not now, not yet.  And if we are really honest about it all, it is really rather hard to see how they ever will be. There are so many others who have so much more to offer God than we do, so many others who are in much better shape – much more acceptable than we, both physically and spiritually. But the message today is that God doesn’t want the best of us, God wants all of us.

Just as the Government of Canada will take a crumpled and torn bill and value it as highly as one in perfect condition, so God will take us – when we offer to him whatever condition our condition is in – and value us as highly as the greatest saint in our midst.  Indeed God values each one of us as highly as he values his own Son!

The world says that the way to feel good about yourself is by climbing the ladder of success; by making a lot of money; by having influential friends; by belonging to the right circles. Those are the things that we are told make you feel good about yourself.

But the Bible teaches that we should feel good about ourselves because God loves us. You are such a treasured person in God’s sight that He gave His only Begotten Son for you. That makes you valuable, and you can feel good about yourself.

That is what the Gospel is all about. Through Christ’s offering of his whole life in obedience and in love to God, even unto death, we are able to offer ourselves to God completely – body, heart, soul and mind. God will accept us and God will take that which is now imperfect – and make it perfect, that which is perishable and make it imperishable, – and that which is mortal and make it immortal. 

That is what spiritual worship is all about:  The offering of all we are, everything – good and bad, perfect and imperfect, to God so that God can take us and do what he wills with it.   So that God can accept our lives and transform them into what they were meant to be. When we offer ourselves completely to God – body, heart, soul and mind – we too can be made whole again. Thanks be to God!

Let us pray,

 O, Gracious God – we thank you for your mercy and your love.  We thank you that you ask for all that we are and promise that when we give you ourselves that you will make us all that we were created to be – and all that you desire us to be – through Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Reflection by Pat Edmonds on August 16, 2020

Scripture Reading:  Genesis 45:1-15

Again I have chosen to preach on an Old Testament passage. This 45^th Chapter of Genesis is one of the most powerful and emotional scenes in the entire Old Testament. Joseph’s reunion with his brothers is dramatic. First, the brothers do not recognize Joseph, the young lad they sold into slavery years ago. But Joseph recognizes them. This brings Joseph’s emotions to the surface. Second, the tables of power have turned. The brothers have traveled to Egypt to beg for food. It is now Joseph who holds the power of life and death over his brothers, as they once held over him. Third, we recall how Joseph toyed with his brothers in the three previous chapters – pretending not to know them, accusing them of theft – engineered by him by the way and insisting that they return with Benjamin, the youngest brother. These actions cause the reader to wonder how the rest of the story of Joseph and his brothers will play out.

We cannot wait to see what Joseph will do. What will be his next move in this dysfunctional family and its complex relationships? The tension builds up in Chapters 42-44 and is finally released in the beginning verses of this Chapter. Joseph can “no longer control himself”. He is entirely vulnerable in the process. This is clearly one of those life-changing, pivotal moments when the very air in the room is charged with the significance of what is happening. He tells his servants to leave the room and tells his brothers who he is. In fact so emotional is Joseph that he sobs loudly – loudly enough for the Egyptians outside the room to hear. Joseph reveals himself and asks his brothers to come closer. They do come closer and the miracle of reconciliation happens. Joseph forgives his brothers and reaches out to them in love.

The story of Joseph explores familiar human traits and family relationships.  By overcoming his hurt and anger, by forgiving his brothers and saving them from starvation, Joseph gives all of us hope for reconciliation. It would have been natural for Joseph to act out of revenge and anger. Revenge would be consistent with our sinful, human nature. Instead Joseph chooses the way of God and forgives them.

This powerful moment in scripture can give us new hope for reconciliation, not just in our families but in our communities and in our world. Joseph set aside power and revenge and chose forgiveness and compassion. What would happen if individuals, political parties, or nations would act in the same way?

A few years ago I preached a sermon about forgiveness on September 11^th – an anniversary of “nine eleven” – the day forever etched in the minds of all North Americans and people world-wide. As the news reports flooded in throughout the day and in the weeks to follow and the death toll of ordinary citizens and rescue personnel mounted, we were all flooded with emotions – strong emotions – shock, anger, grief, rage, hurt, confusion, fear and overwhelming sadness. We wanted to strike out in anger, hit something or go hide in a cave away from all the terrible news reports and images of this destruction and loss of life. Collectively we were crushed, overwhelmed, numb, frozen, blown away with grief and filled with fear. We felt violated. We realized that no place on earth was safe from the deeds of evil man and many of us were overcome with a horrible sense of hopelessness. What could we possibly do in the face of this?

Well, I’m sure that the last thing that entered our minds was FORGIVE. Revenge, retribution, punishment perhaps, but forgiveness? I doubt it. We experience an almost instinctual response to injustice. When someone is oppressed, harmed or victimized, our gut tells us that those responsible must be punished. Even the most spiritual, faith-filled individuals probably never thought of forgiveness. But Jesus said long ago that “an eye for an eye” justice is old news and no longer the way to true reconciliation. The way of forgiveness may be more challenging, but it leads to a deeper, more satisfying outcome for everybody.

Some wrongs are easy to forgive. Other wrongs where we have been used, abused, degraded, shaken to the very core of our being, as on nine-eleven, are very hard to forgive. Even when we know God desires us to do so.

An acquaintance of mine once shared his story of terrible abuse at the hands of his father. As soon as he was able, he left home and never saw his father again. His father died a premature death partly as a result of alcohol abuse. Years later my friend returned to his hometown and went to the cemetery to visit his father’s grave. As he stood there he felt stirred to say out loud, “I forgive you.” The overwhelming sense of peace that flooded his soul with those three simple words was indescribable. The weight of the world was instantly lifted from his shoulders. He felt free at last! He credits this experience for leading him to pursue a life of service in the ministry.

There is an essential and mysterious ingredient to forgiveness that comes from a Divine source. We can have the desire to forgive someone, but it remains unplanted in our souls until God enters in. There is no mistaking the moment when it all comes together and a remarkable peace washes over us as forgiveness flows from a divinely touched source within each of us. Forgiveness provides one of those truly gracious opportunities for us to be co-creators with God as we create and forge deeper relationships.  The will to forgive combined with a prayerful appeal for God’s grace leads to something of a miracle – reconciliation. Although we may find as human beings that there may be a limit to our capacity for forgiveness, there is no limit whatsoever to the forgiveness and grace that God provides.

When we choose to forgive, we choose to lay aside our right to extract revenge. When we choose the path of forgiveness, we leave ultimate justice and vengeance to God. Some would argue that when we choose this path we’re yielding all our power and will end up as doormats, being taken advantage of at every turn. But forgiveness IS a powerful tool. Let me share a true story, a courtroom drama.

A young offender was convicted of gunning down another person execution style. The murderer had a bad record, was no stranger to the system, and only stared in anger as the jury returned its guilty verdict. The victim’s family had attended every day of the two-week trial. On the day of the sentencing, the victim’s mother and grandmother were invited to address the court. When they spoke they did not address the jury, they spoke directly to the young offender. What did each of these women say? “I forgive you!”

The older woman went on to say, “You broke the first commandment – loving God with all your heart, mind and soul. You broke the law – loving your neighbor as yourself. I am your neighbor so you have my address. If you want to write, I’ll write back. I sat in this trial for 2 weeks and for the last sixteen months I tried to hate you, But I couldn’t. I feel sorry for you because you made a wrong choice.”

For the first time since the trial began, the defendant’s eyes lost their laser force and appeared to surrender to a greater force – nurturing, unconditional love. After the grandmother finished speaking, the murderer sat, his head hanging low. There was no more swagger, no more icy stare. The destructive forces within him collapsed helplessly before this remarkable display of human love. In choosing the path of forgiveness, that grandmother unleashed a power that revenge and hatred could not.

When we are hurt as individuals or as a society our instinct is to grab a weapon and fight back. But the greatest “weapon” ever used to protect humanity was Jesus Christ who came humbly riding on a donkey and in his last breath said, “Father, forgive them.” That’s a powerful image in a world full of weapons of mass destruction. Thanks be to God!

Reflection by Pat Edmonds, August 9, 2020

Scripture Reading: Matthew 14:22-33

Charles Swindoll in his book “Three Steps Forward, Two Steps Back” tells a story about a farmer who wanted to impress his hunting buddies. He went out and bought the smartest, most expensive hunting dog he could find. He trained this dog to do things no other dog on earth could do – impossible feats that would amaze everyone. Then he invited his neighbors to go duck hunting with him. After a long patient wait in the boat a flock of ducks flew over and the hunters were able to shoot a few of them down. Several ducks fell in the water. The farmer looked at his dog and said, “Go, get ‘em!”  The dog leaped out of the boat, walked on water, picked up a bird and returned to the boat. As soon as he dropped the duck in the boat, he trotted off again walking on the water, grabbed another duck and brought it back to the boat. The owner swelled up with pride as his dog walked across the water and retrieved the birds one by one. Kind of smugly, he looked at one of his buddies and asked, ”Do you notice anything unusual about my dog?”  One of them sat back, rubbed his chin, thought about it for a while and finally said, “Yeah, come to think of it, I do! That dumb dog of yours doesn’t know how to swim, does he?”

Quite a few years ago when the school superintendent heard I was very involved with the United Church. He asked, “Pat, can you walk on water?” I quickly realized he was looking for a teacher on Christian Island. Since I had 2 young daughters I wasn’t interested in trying my “walking on water” skills on a daily basis! “Walking on water” is a biblical phrase which has found its way into everyday use.  What does it mean? The secular meaning is that a person is doing wonders – but we can’t quite understand how they’re doing it and there’s a hint of danger that it could go wrong!

Most of us are familiar with today’s story in Matthew 14. Following the feeding of the 5000, Jesus goes to the nearby hills to talk to God in prayer, but he sends the disciples on ahead in a boat to cross the Sea of Galilee. Jesus needs time to be alone with God and to listen to God’s voice in the quiet evening hours.

One of the sudden storms for which Galilee was notorious, comes up. The winds churn the waters of the lake into rolling waves. In their boat the disciples make very little progress against the wind and waves in spite of their best efforts. Being experienced fishermen, they know only too well the perils of storms and they are afraid.  It is the fourth watch of the night, between 3 am and 6 am, that time when human beings feel most vulnerable, when they’re naturally at their lowest in body, mind and spirit.

Suddenly the disciples are terrified as they see a figure coming towards them – walking on the water as it were. “It’s a ghost!” they cry out in fear. How could the disciples not recognize Jesus? They had lived very closely with him, yet they thought what they saw was a ghost or apparition. Perhaps the rain and fog and spray and the lack of light had something to do with it, but nevertheless it takes some time for them to recognize Jesus.

Jesus, sensing their terror, says, ”Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.”

Peter, the natural leader of the group, is the first to respond and says,” Lord, if it’s you … let me come to you on the water.” Peter was sometimes prone to acting on impulse, without thinking about what he was doing and without counting the cost. With remarkable trust Peter climbs over the side of the boat and begins walking on water. For a time, Peter succeeds in doing the impossible, but then he succumbs to fear.  Peter becomes more concerned about the wind than about his faith in Jesus. He begins to flounder and would have sunk if Jesus had not reached out and taken his hand. As we read this we may be inclined to criticize Peter for his lack of focus, but remember Peter was the only one who stepped out in faith, who took the risk. The other disciples cowered in the boat, paralyzed with fear.

But this is not a story of a sudden storm in Palestine many years ago. This is a story of trust vs. doubt, of fear vs. security, of risk-taking vs. the status quo and about the faith of a man called Peter, and his willingness to put what he believed into action.

To say we believe and to act on these beliefs are two different things. The saying is the easy part; the doing is much more difficult.  Focus is important. When Peter focused on Jesus, on walking towards him, he did not sink and was able to do what is humanly impossible. Impossible? No more than feeding 5000 with a small lunch! But as Jesus taught, “With God, all things are possible!” So here is Peter, contrary to the laws of nature, walking on water toward Jesus. But soon Peter fails to focus on the most important thing, his trust in Jesus. He is distracted by the wind and waves and begins to sink.

In desperation Peter cries out, “Lord, save me.” When circumstances escalate beyond his strength, his ability, his control, in the midst of his helplessness and powerlessness, Peter cries out for help. And Jesus responds immediately. He reaches out and grabs hold of Peter. “Why did you doubt, Peter?” Well I guess the answer is that Peter is human and it is human nature to doubt and ask questions. But the important thing is that although Jesus questions Peter for doubting, he does not condemn him, he saves him!  I’m sure Peter never forgot that moment. There were still times of doubt and testing in his life, and he wasn’t always successful, but the Lord was always there, ready to reach out and save him. 

Life is full of adventures and encounters and accidents and experiences, not all of them pleasant. Over and over again we are reminded that ultimately we are completely dependent upon God for our life, our hope, our salvation. There is no other way. The only choice we have is to let go and let God work his will in our lives.

This story illustrates what Jesus always does for God’s people. When the wind is contrary and we’re in danger of being overwhelmed by the storms of life, Jesus is there. When it is darkest, he comes. When we wonder when this pandemic with all its restrictions and worries will be over; when we wonder whether life will ever return to normal as we knew it; when we are weariest, he comes. Jesus comes at impossible times. When the sea of life is so wide and our boat is so small, when we’re up the creek without a paddle and our arms are so tired we couldn’t hold one anyway, when it’s too dark to see or worse yet to hope, Jesus comes. When we risk acting on our beliefs, when we go out into deep, unchartered water to continue the mission of God’s church in new ways, Jesus comes. He holds out his hand and says,” Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.”  Thanks be to God!

Reflection by Pat Edmonds on August 2, 2020

Scripture Reading:  Genesis 32:22-31

You may have wondered what a sermon entitled WWF could possibly be about. Well, it’s not about the World Wrestling Federation or even the World Widlife Fund. WWF is an acronym for Wresting with the Father, although even  reknown theologians do not all agree about with whom Jacob was wrestling. Is Jacob wrestling with God? – or with an angel of God? – or is he wrestling with his own conscience? – or even his brother Esau himself ?  The story of Jacob in Genesis Chapter 32 is wrapped in mystery and has about it an almost dreamlike quality. Wrestling with a supernatural power at a bridge or crossing is an ancient archetype, often found in fairy tales and folklore.

As we continue Jacob’s story we come upon a pivotal moment in his history. You will recall that Jacob has some definite character flaws. He is sneaky, deceitful, conniving, crafty, dishonest and selfish. He always seems to get what he wants! His nickname is “Heel Grabber” as he supposedly came out of the womb holding onto his brother Esau’s heel. Jacob with his mother’s help deceives his blind father and steals Esau’s birthright. He also swindles his father-in-law and ends up having to work an extra seven years in order to have the bride of his choice. But give Jacob credit, he has some strengths as well. Although his methods are not always respectable, his skill, determination and patience have to be admired. Jacob is a determined man. When he sees something he wants, he doesn’t rest until it is his. When he has a goal in mind, he pursues it relentlessly.

But as we meet Jacob in this chapter he has reason to be worried, maybe even a little scared. He is about to meet his brother Esau again for the first time in 20 years. Try to imagine the thoughts going through Jacob’s mind. He is about to meet face-to-face the brother he had deceived. He has come to the Jabbok River and crossing it means crossing into Esau’s territory. In the previous verses of this chapter, hoping to appease his brother, he sends gifts across the river ahead of him. He sends his servants with 220 goats, 220 sheep, 30 camels, 40 cows, 10 bulls and 30 donkeys. Then later that night he sends his wives and sons across the river with his servants and all his possessions. And Jacob is left alone wondering what the next day may bring.

He has done all that he can think to do, even pray. Have you ever noticed that God does not always answer our prayers in the way we expect? God answers Jacob this time with a wrestling match. Again we cannot be certain with whom Jacob wrestled. The description is vague, although clearly male. The important part of the story is not who or what the “being” is, but that Jacob wrestles. Jacob is determined no one will mess up his plans so the wrestling match is on. Jacob fights desperately but in the end Jacob is struck on the hip socket and his hip is put out of joint. Yet the wounded Jacob holds on and demands of the victor, “GIVE ME YOUR BLESSING.” Jacob is given the new name of Israel for he had striven with God and humans and had prevailed. Jacob is blessed, but carries forever the reminder of his encounter by the pain in his hip. Jacob wants to know his opponent’s name but the stranger refuses.  God won’t be named or controlled by humans. Nevertheless Jacob wrestles all night and in the morning has a new name and a new beginning.

 In life we all have struggles, regardless of who we are. We all have issues in our life that we wrestle with each day. Some of us may have had to struggle just to get out of bed this morning. Some of us struggle with what we want to eat as opposed to what we know is good for us to eat. Some of us struggle with fear of failure. We struggle with right and wrong. Some of us struggle with where to go to church – or whether to attend church – although lately there are not so many choices about what to do on a Sunday morning! Life really is full of struggles!

Struggles in life did not start with our generation for people have been struggling for a long time. For even the apostle Paul said he had to struggle. In Romans 7:15 & 19 Paul states, “ I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want, is what I do.” The good Paul wants to do, he does not do; and the evil he does not want to do that he finds himself doing. I’m sure some of us at some time, or many times, in our lives have experienced this as well.

I recall when a teenager I knew once announced that on Saturday she was going to a bush party! Her mother was not too keen on the idea as she had heard via the grapevine what went on at bush parties. But the teen was adamant about going. Since it was in a rural area the parent asked her to get directions so she could be driven and picked up. Well the weekend came and went. The parent checked to see if the teen had missed the party. Her reply was, “I was going to go, but this stupid little voice in my head said – really that’s not the kind of thing you do, is it? So I decided not to go!”  I’m sure an awful lot of struggling went on prior to the decision – whether the teen wrestled with her own conscience or with the moral code she had grown up with, who knows? But the outcome was good, the parent was relieved and the teen had taken another step along the road to maturity and good decision making.

This story about Jacob reveals the very real, human experience of wrestling with oneself and seeking to be delivered. Jacob is blessed by persevering in the fight. Some blessings, like Jacob’s mysterious wrestle, come out of struggles. We too can be blessed if we face our own past and risk the wounds that it takes to find healing. Jacob’s experience also affirms that it is okay for people to wrestle with God, to struggle with doubt, to engage God in mind-to-mind combat.  Another thing this story of Jacob affirms for us is the need to be alone with God – to rid ourselves of all the burdens and possessions that weigh us down and spend some time with God alone. We need to be free to pray and hear the still, small voice of God speaking to us.  

No matter how violent our struggles with God may be, if we persevere and continue to seek God, God will bless us. In fact we are blessed by and through the struggle. Anyone who has struggled with doubt and has come through to the other side can testify to their deepened faith and hope. In our wrestling with God, we may not come away with all the answers, and we may walk away limping, but God will always bless us and give us a new beginning. If we are determined; if we persevere, God can change our attitude, our heart and our very lives. God can cause the “old things to pass away” and we can become new and different people. The struggle is worth it! Thanks be to God!

Will Haughton’s Reflection on July 19, 2020

Scripture Reading:Genesis 28:10-22

Our reading today from Genesis 28 tells what has been one of my favourite Bible-stories over the years. I remember learning it as a boy in Sunday school and being amazed that Jacob could sleep in the wilderness with a rock for a pillow—surely one of the awe-inspiring mysteries of scripture. As a younger man, I remember appreciating the way that God had promised to be with one of his chosen people, Jacob, to the end of his journey—not because Jacob was a particularly good and faithful person or that he deserved it but because God is generous and faithful. These days, I’m hearing in this tale a reminder of the way God sometimes leads us into uncharted territory in order that we might be more attentive to God and better able to hear what God is saying.

I can’t remember having ever slept outside in my life. When I was growing up, we had a family cottage. It was very rustic and going there was a lot like camping, I suppose, but we never actually camped, in tents. Once, when I was about 10 years old, I tried camping out in our back yard with my best friend, Chris Oh, but we never fell asleep and ended up going back inside for the night.

One of the closer moments I ever came to not having a place to sleep was in Brazil, on a summer trip taken with friends when I was in university. Before leaving, we had decided to make as few plans as possible. We wanted to be spontaneous and flexible. We determined our first night’s lodging after asking one of the flight attendants on the way down: “where’s a good place to stay in Sao Paolo?” My memories of our arrival are spotty. The airport had not been given any updates since the 1970s. We took a shuttle bus to the city centre and were appalled at the conditions we saw. When we got to our suite-style hotel room, our nerdy engineering friend Curtis went immediately to flush the toilet in order to watch the water draining in the “opposite” direction. Apparently this happens in the southern hemisphere but I couldn’t tell the difference. Later, we went to get some dinner. Because the seasons are opposite in the global south, it got dark very early on that warm July evening. We couldn’t remember the way back to our hotel. Eventually, we decided to hail a cab and asked the driver to take us back to the Paulista Flats, which was the name of our hotel. Unbeknownst to us, there were several buildings in the city known as the Paulista Flats and it took some considerable time, with increasing anxiety, before we made it “home”.

I will admit, in hindsight, it was not the best idea to visit a foreign country without making sufficient plans in advance. We were never in any danger of being without food or shelter. However, the ideal of spontaneity was shown to be a myth. What happened primarily was that we ended up wasting a lot of time just figuring out where to go and what to do next. I think perhaps that for those of us with some stability in our lives, we neglect to realize how draining it is for some others to spend so much time and energy strategizing their next meals or sleeping arrangements. It’s difficult to focus on or achieve anything else with those questions hanging over your head.

One of the great challenges of this pandemic season, I find, as time goes on, is dealing with the uncertainty. Life feels freer than it did a few months ago, granted, and I, as an outdoorsy person in the summertime, am able to do presently most of the things I would normally do anyway. What is added to our daily routines is a level of uncertainty. It is difficult to plan ahead. It is an added burden to try and accomplish simple tasks while being always mindful of distancing, masks and other procedures. Often, it isn’t clear, what is the right decision to make? Or, what is the appropriate level of risk to be taking—not just for ourselves, but for those we love? Though we are all fortunate to have roofs over our heads, food in our refrigerators and things like technology to help us “zoom”, we are journeying through what, for us, is a relative wilderness.

Thankfully, we know from the biblical story that God sometimes leads us into the wilderness so we can stop being distracted and listen more attentively for what God has to say. In Genesis 28, Jacob had received his father’s blessing, but a highly dysfunctional family dynamic, to put it mildly, led to his fleeing the family home. On the run to his uncle’s family, homeless Jacob slept against a rock and dreamt—angels were going back and forth between heaven and earth and God spoke to Jacob, saying: “I am with you. You will someday have a home and family of your own. Your descendants will be countless and through your family all the families of the earth will be blessed.” This promise continues to come true every day as people from every corner of the earth put their trust in God. Jacob awoke and built his pillow-rock into an altar which marked the place at which his life, and the world, changed forever.

Our own times in the wilderness are not a sign that God has forsaken us. Rather, they area an opportunity to be reminded that God is with us, to draw closer to God, to grow as people and to hear God’s voice. Much uncertainty will remain in our lives. I’m sorry to say our wilderness wanderings usually go on far longer than we hope or expect. However, we can rest assured that God will guide us to our destination and be faithful to all God has spoken. 

At Dalston-Crown Hill United Church, we love to celebrate our rural heritage!

On Saturday, November 2nd, over 200 full turkey dinners followed by home-made pies were enjoyed by community members, guests, and members of our congregation. We are so fortunate to live in an area that still supports activities that are linked to our rural past. In fact, this year our dinner was sold out almost two weeks ahead of time! Thank you for your overwhelming support!  To everyone in our congregation…..yes everyone, thank you! There was total participation in one (or more!) areas which included ticket sales, set up, food preparation/donations, serving, dish washing, etc!  And, we are so thankful for energetic additional help from the ‘young leg team’ of Bev, Madison, Sydney, Anthony, Megan, Rick and John! Hosting our church dinners , sharing the workload , the laughter, the full tummies, brings us together….as a church family, and as a still vibrant rural community. Our springtime Ham Supper will be on May 2nd…..be sure to reserve early! Watch for more details in next issue.

Advent begins on Dec. 1 and we will be celebrating the four Sundays of Advent during December at both churches. Christmas Eve services are scheduled for Forest Home at 4 p.m. which will be a family service and Dalston-Crown Hill will hold its service, with Communion, at 7 p.m.  All Welcome!

Meditation Circle continued at Forest Home church for six weeks during the Fall, with Hazel Soares as the leader. For more info on the next session, please contact Debbie at 705-329-1709.

MEET, GREET & EAT Men’s Breakfast will be held at the Dalston-Crown Hill church on the following Wednesday mornings: January 15, March 18, May 20 at 9 a.m. All men welcome!  Please let Joe (705) 722-6965 or Al (705) 737-2552 know if you can attend.

Do you make Gingerbread for Christmas? If not, and you’d like to, here’s your opportunity to learn how. Generation to Generation “Learn to make Gingerbread” Saturday, Dec. 7^th – 2 – 4 pm – at the Dalston-Crown Hill Church. Bring friends or family of all ages to make and decorate gingerbread. For more info or to reserve your spot, please call Will at 249-877-0393. Bringing your own cookie cutters and rolling pins is welcomed but not required.

CHIT CHAT, SIP’N SNACK -. A Women’s Social Time happens on Wednesdays; December 11, February 12, April 15, at the Dalston-Crown Hill church at 9:30 am. For more info please call Janet Isaac at 705-835-2750. All women welcome!

Forest Home United Church Women (UCW) meets the 2^nd Friday of each month at 1:30 pm at the church. The next meeting is the Christmas Potluck on December 13^th at 12 pm.  All Women Welcome!

Our reno continues….

This Fall the Dalston church received a complete exterior facelift. While a master in stucco work was on site to stucco the exterior of the newly added storage room, he also repaired the well-aged stucco on the existing building. Then our church volunteers (youngest 8 years old – oldest 70+) spent a week-end painting the walls. One of those volunteers spent time the following week painting all the foundation, having to dig out the gravel around the foundation, paint the cement, then put all the gravel back. We rented a lift to get to the high spots, which worked well, and even the person who said he was afraid of heights, was determined to try it, and painted the dates in our “date blocks” on the front of the church. The weather so far has prevented any further outdoor work.  We could really use an “Indian summer” now. Over the winter, we’ll hopefully get the new storage room set up with shelving and get things organized. So the next time you drive to, or by, the Dalston church, you will find the little white church much whiter! Our volunteers, like in most places, are invaluable. We couldn’t find a painter who wasn’t booked all fall, so our amazing church members took on the job! A huge thank you goes out to all who assisted in some way on this project.

A few words from Rev. Will …

I heard from someone recently who had been chatting with some friends and family of hers after a funeral and the consensus of their conversation was something like this: “we should get together more often, and not just wait for times like this to see each other.” That struck a chord with me because I have been a part of that same conversation, on similar occasions, with my own friends and relatives. It is often the case that we get so busy with our lives, with important and even extraneous things, that we go long stretches between connecting with those who might be closest to us.

The Christmas season is a time when we might be more inclined to visit with those we care about. This is fitting, as we remember and celebrate those images of community being created around the baby Jesus, born amongst the animals and laid in a manger, as parent and stranger alike paid homage to the newborn king. Yet the holiday season has become for most of us like the rest of our lives–overwhelmingly busy! With God’s help, may we commit ourselves, this Christmas and in the year ahead, to spending quality time with the important people in our lives and, as we are able, gathering in community around this same Jesus–the perfection of God’s love among us.

To stay tuned to upcoming events, follow the postings on Facebook at Forest Home United Church and Dalston Crown-Hill United Church or check out the websites at:      www.DalstonCrownHillUnitedChurch.net  or  email dalcrown@gmail.com.
www.ForestHomeUC.ca  or email foresthomeunitedchurch@yahoo.ca

Humility and Hospitality

Pat Edmonds Reflection of September 1, 2019

Based on
Luke 14: 1, 7-14
Hebrews 13: 1-8, 15-16

Humility and hospitality are the themes of both the lesson from Hebrews and Jesus’ parable in the Gospel of Luke. Our opening hymn this morning speaks of how we are all part of the family of God. We are all welcomed by the Lord in this sanctuary. Here in God’s place there is life to be shared. Did you know? – that when this hymn was first published in Songs for a Gospel People – that little bright green book – it was titled “Part of the Family”? There was also another verse not included in Voices United. It went like this: Children and elders, middlers and teens,

Singles and doubles and in betweens,
Strong eighty-fivers and streetwise sixteens
Greeters and shoppers, long-time and new
Nobody here has a claim on a pew,
And whether we’re many, or whether we’re few
We are a part of the family.

Nobody here has a claim on a pew is the theme of today’s gospel reading from Luke. We see Jesus eating at the home of a prominent Pharisee and he is watching how the guests behave. Each seeks out the best place – the places of honor at the table where they can be noticed by the other guests and, by their proximity to the host, be served first and receive the best portions that the table offers.

This reminds me a bit of the dilemma our UCW faces at their Annual Christmas Luncheon to which we invite guests from other women’s groups. How do I decide which table goes to the buffet table first, second, last etc? I usually use some silly criteria such as – drawing table numbers from a hat, the table with someone wearing red shoes because it’s Christmas or someone who is visiting from a long distance or the group with the oldest member (although some don’t want to admit to this!). I don’t know why. I am beginning to regard being a senior as a badge of honor!  Anyway I usually end up letting those who were the last table for the main course be the first ones to go to the dessert table. There is always more food than necessary so no one goes hungry.

What does Jesus say about seating at a banquet? “When someone invites you to a wedding feast, DO NOT take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited and the host may ask you to give up the prime seat you have chosen. How embarrassing! But when you arrive, take the lowest place so your host may come and ask you to move to better place. Then rather than be humiliated you will be honored by all your fellow guests. For everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. I am reminded of the passage from Mark chapter 10 where Jesus says the greatest at the banquet is the slave who does the serving, not the host sitting at the head of the table getting all the attention and telling others what to do. According to Jesus greatness is found in humility and service. The only real greatness lies in service. Greatness in God’s kingdom is achieved by serving others; just the opposite of what society considers tobe great. We think the way to be number 1 is with hard work and long hours, stepping on others who get in the way, being tough and stern and making lots of sacrifices. Like so many lessons in the Bible, we learn that God treats us the opposite from how the world does. So often in the world, he who humbles himself is left in the dust. He’s passed over for promotions, ignored, forgotten, discarded. In the world, he who exalts himself is noticed by others. He’s praised, remembered, elected to office. But God is different. God exalts the humble and humbles the proud. God raises up those the world has forgotten and gives them a place of honor.

Humility is also a theme of today’s reading. What is humility? I found that Alcoholics Anonymous defines humility  this way – “Humility is not thinking less of yourself. It is thinking of yourself less.” Let’s think about that for a minute. “Humility is not thinking less of yourself. It is thinking of yourself less.” I also discovered that this definition of humility was originally a quote from the author C.S. Lewis. So as Christians we are asked to think of ourselves less and about others more.

There is an old country and western song recorded by Willie Nelson that goes like this:

Oh Lord it’s hard to be humble
When you’re perfect in every way.
I can’t wait to look in the mirror
Cuz I get better looking every day.
To know me is to love me
I must be one really great man.
Oh Lord it’s hard to be humble
But I’m doing the best I can.

I wonder if Willie Nelson ever read today’s scripture!

We are justified not by our actions or our looks and boasting of them. We are justified by God’s mercy. As disciples we are to ground our lives in God’s love – admitting mistakes and learning from them, being thankful instead of boastful and serving God and God’s people with dignity. God gives us the strength required. We need only believe in his mercy and come before God humbly in prayer, trusting in his forgiveness and guidance.

The passages today also deal with hospitality. Hospitality is no small matter, scripturally speaking. Think of all the times in his short ministry that Jesus spoke of being a good host and a good guest. So much of what Jesus taught and did took place in the midst of a meal. Whether it was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, or feeding a crowd of people on a hillside, or eating with tax collectors and sinners, or accepting a spur-of-the moment dinner invitation from a short man sitting up in a tree, it was at a meal that Jesus showed people who he was and what their lives were really meant to be. There was always a message in the kind of meal that it was.

And what is the message in the wedding feast passage?  Is it perhaps one of universal hospitality? Is it a reminder to apply the Golden Rule, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”, to our social invitations and our party arrangements? We are asked by Jesus to be the kind of host we would want if we were the guest and vice-versa. In other words the kind of host Jesus was.  The host who sought out the marginalized of society – the tax collector that no one likes, the prostitute, the foreigner, the woman at the well.

I don’t think one of us here today would seek out total strangers from unknown neighborhoods to invite to a family anniversary or birthday celebration. These celebrations with family and close friends are very important in our lives – and so they should be. These kinds of gatherings have meaning in people’s lives. They hold people together and help define who we are.

 A few years ago there was a movie entitled “Soul Food”. It was about a family meal that grandmother held every Sunday. The members of the family who lead very separate lives during the week all came together to share a meal and talk about their lives. There was care and concern for each other. There was acceptance of one another. There was respect for each other’s life style. Then, the grandmother became ill, ended up in the hospital and eventually died. The family didn’t gather anymore. They remained apart, everyone in their own world, doing their own thing. There was competition and dissension. Disagreements and quarrels arose when chance meetings did occur. In fact, since grandmother’s death they ceased to behave as a real family at all. Finally one of the younger family members had a scheme to get the family together for a Sunday meal. It was only after they finally got together that they realized the weekly meal was really something they were missing in their lives. It was truly their “soul food”.

Family get-togethers are very important. But surely there still exist opportunities for inclusion that we sometimes unthinkingly pass up. What about the new family down the road, the ones whose skin may be a different hue than ours or whose English doesn’t sound quite as polished as ours? – or the new co-worker who has just moved from a distant city or country? – or the child a few doors away who spends all his time after school sitting alone in the house waiting for a single working parent to return at the end of a long working day? – or the elderly man down the block whose wife passed away last winter and whose children live far away? – or the new couple in your condo building? When inviting some people over for a summer barbeque have we included these children of God or just the same two families we always invite? Have we considered inviting that lonely 11 year-old boy to join our children or grandchildren for a simple after-school snack and perhaps some hoops in the driveway? Or have we considered how lonely meals must be for the widower? There are surely opportunities in all our neighborhoods to extend Christian hospitality.

The Hebrews passage calls upon us to show true empathy and compassion. “Remember those who are in prison, as though you were in prison with them; those who are being tortured as though you yourself were being tortured.” I admit that often it is difficult for me to picture myself in some of the dreadful situations that exist currently in our world. What IS it like to live in a refugee camp? – to eat from garbage cans and sleep on the streets? Or even closer to home – what is it like to sit day after day alone in a house you had shared with someone you loved for 50 or so years? – to eat every meal at the table by yourself? True compassion exists when we try to imagine ourselves in these circumstances and then, most importantly, we DO something about it. Be it so simple as inviting someone to share a meal.

A few years ago there was a letter in The Observer  responding to a previous issue which had referred to the UCW as “catering” a church event. The women who wrote it said “When we are making a special lunch or dinner to share, it is part of everything else we do to be together and support the work and joy of our church. There can be no more caregiving gesture than the preparation and service of food to others.” Would anyone of us as we prepare a special dinner for our family members or friends refer to it as “catering”?

Are not the lunches we provide following funerals, the birthday parties we host for members of our community, Camp Awesome, the Men’s Breakfast, the church suppers we use as fund raisers the very kind of Christian hospitality Jesus asks us to engage in? In many cases these events are the only glimpse of us, as Christians, that many people in our community and town see. I’m not naïve enough to believe that any high percentage of people will flock to join our church community just because we served a nice funeral lunch, but the Christian hospitality, our gentle, caring attitude, the respect we showed them as a community of faith in their time of need – all these will become important parts of their family memories for years to come. Jesus, our most gracious host, invites us to show our Christian hospitality to others. Thanks be to God for sending his Son to show us the way!

FOOL’S GOLD
Pat Edmond’s reflection of August 4, 2019
Based on Luke 12:13-21

If you have ever taught a class or chaired a meeting you know there is always at least one person in the group who always gets the others off-topic, whether accidentally or on purpose. Let’s look at today’s scripture. The crowd is silent, listening to the words of the Great Teacher. Jesus is telling the people gathered there not to worry if they are called before the authorities. The Holy Spirit will tell them exactly how to defend themselves, what to say when the time comes. Pretty powerful words!

BUT that one person in the crowd is so wrapped up in his everyday problems he obviously is not paying any attention whatever to the Speaker. –and suddenly he breaks in and places a demand on Jesus. “Tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me”, he says. Off topic to say the least, but Jesus answers anyway by saying, “Friend, who set me to be judge or arbitrator over you?” Actually asking advice about legal matters was a role often fulfilled by the clergy in Biblical times. So although the timing may have been off, the request was not that unusual. However the man did not get the answer he was likely expecting. Jesus seizes the opportunity to deliver a lecture on the evils of greed including the Parable of the Rich Fool.

“Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.” – a very clear message to the man hoping to receive an inheritance and a very clear message to the others listening and a very clear message to us today!  Some versions of the Bible use the word “covetousness” which does not roll trippingly off the tongue and others say “all kinds of greed.” What is greed? A definition we might like to consider is “wanting more of what you already have enough of”. Wanting more of what you already have enough of. Saying it that way may help us relate to this story from a long time ago. After all very few of us would like to think of ourselves as “greedy”, but “wanting more of what we already have enough of” sounds a lot more like you and me than is comfortable.

This parable is the story of a man who has worked hard and done very well for himself. He has not obtained his abundance by illegal means or by cheating others. He has worked hard. Through a combination of skill and luck and plain hard work, his investment and labor have paid off. He’s got this massive crop, too big to store in his barns, so he plans to tear down the inadequate storage barns and build bigger ones. This is his vision. Then he will relax, eat, drink and be merry for he has ample goods for many years. Sounds like a great plan, doesn’t it? Work hard for many years, retire and live off the fruits of his labor and probably a few RRSP’s on the side. Sounds like the great Canadian dream! But God puts a BIG wrinkle in these carefully laid earthly plans! For the man’s hours on earth are numbered. All his bounty and planning come to naught for his time on earth is over. The man dies and all his riches are of no use to him.

A few years ago The Rumors website told the story of a rich man. “You can’t take it with you,” said God to the wealthy man. But the man argued so long and so hard, that God finally gave in. “All right,” said God, “But you can only take what you can fit in one suitcase.” The man quickly sold all his assets and used the money to buy solid gold bars, with which he filled a suitcase. Happy, he died and went to heaven, suitcase in hand. At the pearly gates, the streets of gold gleaming in the distance, St. Peter demanded to know what was in the suitcase. The man opened it proudly and showed St. Peter the gold bars. St. Peter took a look and asked,  “Paving stones?”

The message of today’s parable is NOT that God doesn’t like people who work hard and are successful. What happens to the rich man is not a denial of any of the good actions, the hard work or even the charitable things he may have done in his lifetime. Rather this is just one of those facts of life that happens to all of us, rich and poor, successful or struggling. Our life on earth is finite.

It’s not an easy story to hear, for it is difficult to face our own mortality.

And Jesus’ teachings around wealth and possessions may be even harder to follow for our age and generation than it was in Biblical times. In fact these teachings may be hardest to follow of all the commandments. After all, we are brought up to consume. My grandchildren, before they could hardly talk and certainly before they could read, were already bombarded with all sorts of messages that told them to have, to want, to need more and more things. As toddlers they already recognized certain brand names and products. In today’s society we’re trained to be consumers at a very early age and when we don’t consume we’re told that because consumers don’t have confidence, the economy is faltering. It seems if we’re not spending our money on goods and services that we already have enough of then we are causing our neighbors to be unemployed! So Jesus’ words that say “beware of greed of all kinds”, beware of wanting more of what you already have enough of, go against the grain of everything we have been taught by modern society.

The Romans had a proverb: “Money is like seawater; the more you drink the thirstier you become.” Yet money, or the things which money can buy, are a passion for many people. Howard Hughes made several billion in his lifetime. It was much more than he could possibly spend. If you spent a thousand dollars an hour, 24 hours a day, 365 days of the year, you’d need over 100 years to spend that billion. Why would men like Howard Hughes or J. Paul Getty strive to earn more money when they already had more than they could count, let alone spend? Surely not for happiness since each of them became more unhappy and lonely as their wealth increased. Much as the rich fool in Luke chapter 12, they died alone without anyone to inherit their bounty. And they couldn’t take it with them!

Jesus is asked to mediate an inheritance dispute between two brothers. Unfortunately, stories of this kind are often repeated in our time. Too often families can be divided forever because of such disputes. The very thought of such a thing happening can give nightmares to parents today. We never do find out the details of this story, but it must have been a troublesome time  and help was needed. Very few inheritance disputes end happily for anyone involved. The good intentions to provide for relatives after death too often backfire and cause irreparable rifts.

But I found a very interesting inheritance story that gave me much food for thought.

A very rich man died and left his inheritance equally to his two sons. Now one son had married young in life and had a large and happy family. The other was still a bachelor. The night after the division of the estate the single man sat thinking in his living room. “Why did my father make such a mistake? Here’s my brother with all those mouths to feed, so many to provide for and no real joy in it. I’m quite comfortable. I’ve got more than I could ever use. Why did my father divide the estate equally?”

The other brother, when the children were tucked in bed and his wife was off working on some project of her own, thought to himself, “Why would my father divide the estate equally? Here am I surrounded by a loving family and all that joy, while my brother sits alone over in his house. I have my family to care for me, while he will need financial security for his future. Why divide the estate equally?” So each brother, that very night, resolved to place the majority of his inheritance in a suitcase and take it over and hide it where the other brother would find it and make good use of it. As they were doing just that, they met between their two homes and realizing what each had intended, fell into one another’s arms – meeting in love just as their father hoped they might! Because of their equal inheritance they became more aware of each other’s needs and less selfish than before.

All material things are given to us by our Creator to be enjoyed. But it’s easy to become enslaved by them. We find ourselves driven by the urge for more, more, more – more to eat, more to drink, more to wear, more expensive toys to entertain us, more to distract our minds. Every time we surrender to that inner urge for gratification, for more of the things we already have enough of, we lose a little more of that inner freedom that allows us to exercise one of our most important human powers – the power to choose.

To choose what? To choose being rich toward God! Jesus was rich toward God, yet he had nothing – no material possessions. He was born in a borrowed manger; He had no permanent home; He borrowed a boat to travel across the lake; He even borrowed a cross to carry to Calvary! Yet He gave his life for others. You are rich towards God in what you give away to others, not in what you accumulate. When people met Jesus, they realized that he believed in them so much, that they were never the same again. We can choose to give ourselves to others in such a way that that we make a difference in the lives of those we meet. And we don’t have to have great wealth in order to touch the lives of others in very meaningful ways. One of the greatest humanitarians of the 20^th Century, Mother Teresa, had very little in the way of personal possessions or wealth. She was rich toward God. Mother Teresa once said, “It’s not what you do, but the love with which you do it. It’s not what you give, but the love with which you give it.” We can all be “rich toward God” as we allow his love to flow through us. Thanks be to God for his bountiful love and blessings.   These are our true riches!

Let us pray:

If we ever speak of riches, O God, may we do so only with words about love. For the only riches we have in this world, despite its wealth and poverty, despite its overfeeding and its hunger, despite its power and its powerlessness is the amount of love we have for each other.

So in our poverty, bless us; in our shallowness, challenge us; in our materialism, confront us; and in our living, love us. Amen.

Knock, Knock
by Pat Edmonds on July 28, 2019
based on Luke 11:1-13

Knock, knock
Who’s there?
Ketchup
Ketchup who?
Ketchup with ya soon.

Knock, knock
Who’s there?
Cargo
Cargo who?
Cargo beep, beep

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
A little boy.
A little boy who?
A little boy who can’t reach the doorbell”

I’m sure if you have children or grandchildren the age of mine you have been subjected to many ”Knock, knock” jokes – probably too many! Someone gave my grandson a whole book full of “Knock, Knock” jokes and we were sure whenever we saw him we would be subjected to a few. The thing about “Knock, knock” jokes is that if you don’t go “Knock, knock” nothing happens. No one answers.

In today’s scripture Jesus tells his disciples that if they knock on heaven’s door it will be opened for them. If they talk to God, that is if they pray, if they seek him, they will find him. God will give them the things they need each day. But you need to knock, you have to look, you have to ask, before anything can happen. Jesus says when we do this; when we talk to God; when we turn to God in prayer, that God will answer. All we have to do is come to God and speak to God each day. It is in prayer, in conversation with God, that we best hear the word of God and receive that which we need to live as the children of God.

In today’s gospel reading we find Jesus praying. When he is finished one of his disciples says, “Lord, teach us to pray as John taught his disciples.”

At first this seems a strange request – TEACH us to pray. Surely they knew how to pray! They had been there and done that, with John, with the village rabbis, in the synagogues and temples. As good Jews they had learned to pray at the Sabbath table. They would have recited the prayers of the Passover and called upon God during Yom Kipper and the Feast of the Tabernacles. At home each day, at every meal, surely there was a table blessing, a prayer of thanksgiving that the disciples like most of us, learned to say. So why? Why this request to Jesus?

After watching Jesus, after being impressed by his wisdom and power, his love, they ask him to teach them how to pray. Jesus had the appearance and the substance of God’s power about him and the disciples sensed that. They asked a person who was very close to God, who was in touch with God, to teach them how to pray.

Prayers learned by heart, prayers taught to us by tradition and prayers used in formal worship events are good things. But the prayers that arise from the heart that is connected to God are another. The Christian life is fuelled by prayer. It is made strong by our contact with God each day. Yet very few people ever show the desire and hunger of the disciples and ask “Teach us to pray.”

Jesus answers the request of the disciple, and shows his disciples a MODEL of prayer. The Lord’s Prayer, as we know it and say it, is only a model – an example of what prayer is like. When we learn the Lord’s Prayer by rote, we don’t know everything we need to know about prayer. The Lord’s Prayer is a form of prayer for disciples, for followers of Jesus, for the family of God. It is a form of prayer, not THE PRAYER or the ONLY PRAYER, nor even all prayers rolled into one. It is an example of how we as followers of Jesus MIGHT pray to God.

Often things we know by rote wane in importance and/or meaning. We often say the words without looking at them or thinking about what we are saying.

So today, let’s take a closer look at a very familiar prayer.

The first two statements in the prayer establish its foundation and orientation. God is addressed as holy or hallowed, that is, set apart from the world. The words of prayer then proclaim the great hope that God’s will, God’s way of being and God’s desire, will be present in the world. The next statements ask God to provide for three basic human needs – sustaining of the world by provision of food, restoration of individuals and communities by forgiveness, and protection of the world. We can imagine that when these three things are fully achieved; then God’s reign will have come indeed.

Jesus moves on to describe further to whom we are praying. Jesus employs two striking images to underline the certainty of God’s response to prayer. The first image is of a neighbor who refuses to provide hospitality. This would have seemed absurd to those first hearing the story because of the hospitality customs in first-century Middle Eastern cultures.  Hospitality was a social requirement and often essential to sustaining health and wholeness for one another in the community. The second image of a parent giving a child snakes and scorpions seems even more bizarre. It is assumed that even the least suitable of parents will provide basic care for a child.

The message to the disciples and to all hearers of this text, including us, is that God’s goodness exceeds that of any earthly neighbor or parent. God will always hear and respond to our prayers – not because we are worthy or have the right formula, or say the right words – but because it is God’s nature to be generous and loving.

The magic of prayer, if we can call it that, is not in the particular words we use in our prayer, nor even the particular things we pray about, but the relationship into which we enter when we pray to God in all things and about all things.

When we present everything that concerns us and everything that delights us to God, we are sharing with God who we are and what we are. That builds between God and ourselves the intimacy that allows the new life that God wants to give us and our world to come about. Just as spending time together in a marriage, speaking and listening, expressing our fears and hopes, our desires and wants, helps make the marriage a true marriage. Our partners help us where help is needed, rejoicing when we rejoice, weeping when we weep, and sharing with us all that they are.

As in human relationships sorrows shared are sorrows divided and joys shared are joys multiplied, so it is in the divine-human relationship – but even more so. For God is greater than we are and is fully able to help those who call upon him. God is ready and willing to lift us up when we are cast down and bless us when we hold forth our hands in trust and thanksgiving.

 God is like the neighbor who is close enough to pester us at the worst time or like the parent who wants what’s best for the children. God is the one we spend time with as a child spends time with his friends and parents. It is a simple time; a time of praise, of thanksgiving, of asking for forgiveness, of expressing hopes and dreams.

God answers prayer, not always as we want or when we want, and gives no magical solutions to our problems but God does answer.

I am reminded of an old story about the man who was marooned on the roof of his house during a flood. He prayed for God to rescue him. Later that day a man came by in a canoe and offered him a ride. The man refused. He continued to pray to God to rescue him. The next day a motorboat appeared. The people in it offered to take him off the roof. Again the man refused. He prayed to God to rescue him. A rescue helicopter flew overhead. The man waved it off. He prayed to God to rescue him. Finally God answered him. God’s voice thundered down from the sky, “Who do you think sent the canoe, the motorboat and the helicopter?”

Often God answers our prayers through other people. Twelve years ago when I was diagnosed with cancer I was going through a very difficult time. I was scheduled to travel to Newfoundland to join in the celebration of the 45^th Anniversary  of UCW. I went but felt I had an enormous cloud hanging over me and certainly didn’t feel much like celebrating.  But during the week’s celebration I met by chance several other women who, like me, had been diagnosed with cancer, had undergone treatment and were alive and well. Spending time with these survivors was just what I needed. I was also very fortunate to room for two weeks with a wonderful, upbeat woman, a nurse by profession. Her cheery yet realistic outlook on life caused the cloud hanging over me to gradually dissolve and I came home feeling like a different person –  a woman ready to face my diagnosis head-on, ready to be a survivor rather than a victim.

In 2016  I was again diagnosed with cancer. The prayers of family, friends, members of the congregations I serve and the wider church helped me weather this storm as well. The dozens of cards, e-mails and phone calls were such an important part of my healing, physically, mentally and spiritually. God has answered their prayers and mine as I stand here today, feeling very well, able to be engaged once again in my usual activities. I stand here filled with gratitude for all the doctors and researchers who persevered to find a cure for this particular kind of leukemia, for the care I received at one of the top 5 cancer centres in the world and most of all for the prayers that have been answered through these people.

Sometimes God answers simply by listening when we share – as a father listens to his daughter tell him about her day or as a mother listens when her son tells of his frustration and anger about how things are going at school or at work. God is a friend who understands us, holds us and reassures.

Lord, teach us to pray.

Teach us as Jesus taught his disciples. Teach us to be connected to God when  we are afraid and when we are full of courage.

Teach us to be connected when we are weeping and when we are laughing.

Teach us to be connected when we are in need and when we have much to give.

Lord, teach us to pray.

Teach us to turn to God as a child turns to his parents in trust and confidence that he will be heard and helped and encouraged and loved.

Lord, teach us to pray. Amen

JUST DO IT!
by
Pat Edmonds
From July 14^th 2019 service
Based on Luke 10: 25-37

Sometimes the most difficult passages to preach about are the very well-known ones and today’s parable of the Good Samaritan is no exception.  As humans we have a tendency to become complacent about things we are overly familiar with.  Each one of us here could probably stand up and give a fairly accurate account of this story without looking in the Bible or reviewing the facts. Basically a man is attacked by robbers and left injured at the side of the road. Several people, including a priest, pass by and leave him there until a Samaritan, a man from a group that usually treated the Jews with hostility, not only helps the traveler on the spot, but ensures he will be cared for until he is well enough to resume his travels. This is another of those nicey-nice stories we all like to hear and tell – some nice person did a nice thing for someone else and we can all feel nice about it!

But in order to reveal the real message of today’s passage we must examine the WHY – Why does Jesus tell this parable? – for Jesus always has a reason! He doesn’t tell parables to be nice. Jesus tells parables as indictments against the actions of people. Through parables He invites us to take a closer look at ourselves. Jesus is responding to a question from a learned man in society – a lawyer. In fact in this passage he answers two distinct questions.

First the lawyer asks, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” And like a good educator Jesus turns the question back to the man. “What is written in the law? What do YOU read there?” It seems to me that the lawyer really knew the answer all the time for he quickly replies, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” “You’re right”, says Jesus. “DO this and you will live.”

So the answer is simply to LOVE. That’s not too difficult. We all know what love is. We use the word all the time. We love our spouses; we love our children; we love our new home; we love a book or a movie or a play or a new outfit. We in Canadian society are great lovers! I even used to tell my little dog that I loved him!

But let me tell you a little story about love. A psychology professor who had no children of his own would frequently reprove a neighbor who often scolded his child. “You should love your child, not punish him,” the professor said on several occasions. Then one hot summer day the professor worked hard repairing his concrete driveway. After several hours of work, the professor laid down his trowel, wiped the perspiration from his forehead and started toward the house for a well-deserved rest. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a mischievous little boy putting his foot in the fresh cement. He rushed over and started ranting and raving at the boy and was about to grab the culprit by the scruff of his neck, when the neighbor, the boy’s father, leaned from the window and said, “Watch it, professor! Don’t you remember? You must LOVE the child.” At this point the professor yelled back furiously, “I do love him, in the abstract, but not in the concrete!”

Sometimes, we too love in the abstract. Love is the topic of the day, something to discuss, something to think about, something to base reality TV shows on, something to write songs about or tell jokes about. We talk endlessly about it. We use it in commercials. It’s a lovely word we use to describe our feelings, our emotions, that tingly sensation we experience on those romantic occasions. But the love Jesus talks about is not a feeling. Love in general, that is love outside our family or intimate acquaintances, is not based on a feeling. Love goes beyond being nice, being friendly to the people we know. If not a feeling, what is this love Jesus asks of us? This love is one of ACTION. In a society where there is an abundance of love-talk, there seems to be a super absence of LOVE ACTION.  The Golden Rule is not “FEEL about others as you FEEL about yourself.” The Golden Rule is, “DO unto others as you would have them DO unto you.” Real love takes a great deal of effort, and is often painful. It is an act of will. Jesus says in verse 28, “DO this and you will live!” Jesus is saying that love-talk is not enough. Love is something you DO.

True story: Picture a large secondary school lunchroom. A group of grade 10 girls are seated at a table eating lunch. At a nearby table is a group of students from the “special class” or the “handicapable class”. Some of the grade ten girls decide it would be fun to break off small pieces of food and throw them at the special students. One girl, however, does not consider this action funny or proper. She asks her friends to stop. Three times she asks them to stop. She feels that what they are doing is not right. But her friends continue. So what does she do? She stands up, picks up her lunch and goes to sit at a table with the special students who are being tormented. – And her friends then quickly get up and leave the cafeteria. It is one thing to say everyone is welcome, all are included, or it doesn’t matter how people look or how smart they are, but it is a different matter altogether to do something about it – to take action! This was love in action – the kind of love Jesus modeled.

The lawyer in today’s scripture has another very important question to ask. Even though he appeared to know the answer to the first question before asking it, lawyers being lawyers, he had to get the facts straight. So he asks of Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

In my grandfather’s time and to some extent my parents’ time this was a very easy question to answer. The neighbor was the farmer and his family on the next farm; the people you saw at church each Sunday; the men you talked to down at the general store or the feed mill; the farmer whose barn you helped rebuild after a fire; the lady down the road you borrowed a cup of sugar from. It was very clear who your neighbors were. They were the people who looked a lot like you, dressed in a similar fashion to you, experienced many of the economic and social difficulties you did, worshipped with you and raised their children with similar rules and moral values.

But the world has changed a great deal since then. As modern transportation and communications have caused the planet to shrink, our world has expanded. Our neighbors are no longer” just like us”. Our grandchildren attend classes where they as “white Anglo-Saxon Protestants” may indeed be in the minority. They walk to school with children who dress very differently than they do, have very different food, customs and religious practices. Due to the miracle of television and computers, at an early age they have knowledge of peoples and lifestyles, wars and violence half a world away. They know about refugees, immigrants, boat people, those with AIDS, welfare bums and even criminals. They are taught to “Never Talk to Strangers”. Police, teachers and parents work hard to street-proof this generation and keep them safe. All of this makes “Who is my neighbor?” a little more complicated to answer. It is not always easy because while we know the answer in our hearts, real life in the 21^st century keeps getting in the way.  Yet I cannot help but see the similarity between the “neighbor” in this story today and the neighbors we are being asked to love. For the Samaritan who came to the aid of the traveler was not the most like him, in fact was quite possibly someone he hated for the usual reasons of racial prejudice and stereotyping. Perhaps Jesus envisioned the kind of world that might evolve and chose the characters carefully so we could relate to them in our 21^st century world. There are many folks today who do not act like our neighbors, or the neighbors of anyone else, folks who are very different from us. People who do not show love to us or anyone else we care for. That is the way it is in the world around us. But we are not children of the world. We are children of God, loved unconditionally by God. As Christians we are called to live differently, to think differently, to do differently. We are called to be neighbors to those who are not our neighbors; to love those who do not necessarily love us back; to give to those who may not ever give back to us.

Last week as these thoughts of “Who is my neighbor?” were going through my head, I walked into the Sunday School room and there on the wall was the answer – in the form of a puzzle sheet, source unknown. The question is clear, but the answer had to be decoded using the symbols provided. And it is – ANYONE WHO NEEDS MY HELP! – the same answer Jesus gave to the lawyer so long ago.

There is no magic that transforms us into the kind of loving person who can and will do this. The secret is not to make ourselves loving persons, but to allow ourselves to be channels of God’s love. Loving is letting God love us and then letting that love flow through. Sue Lavery, a Canadian minister, shares the five rules given to her by her grandmother for dealing with people she disliked. They are:1. Remind yourself that the other person is a well-loved child of God. 2. See if you can discover why the other person is difficult. 3. Pray for the person. 4. Do a service for the other person. And 5. If you can, allow the other person to do a service for you.

Acting out our faith and sharing God’s love with those we come in contact with either personally or through the media, is its own reward. When we choose to follow God’s ways, our relationship with God deepens and as we share and care, our lives are enriched. In a world of Good Samaritans, there would be no war, poverty or suicide bombings. This is the world we are called to build by expressing our faith by our actions. I found this poster the other day. For me it sums up the story from Luke chapter 10, PEOPLE MAY DOUBT WHAT YOU SAY, BUT THEY WILL ALWAYS BELIEVE WHAT YOU DO. Thanks be to God for loving the world so much that he sent his Son to show us the way.