“But Jesus answered them, “My Father is still working, and I also am working.”
John 5:17
“Are You Done, Yet?”
Earlier this week, I was thinking about my childhood. It was an amazing time to be alive especially after the gas shortage of the 70’s subsided and my family could take road trips once again. We would go all over seeing various types of historical sites and amusement parks. However, as with most pre-electronic age children, playing the “out-of-state license plate” game would get old after a while and one of us would invariably ask the dreaded question, “are we there yet?”
Not unreasonable by any means after a four – eight – twelve-hour journey cramped in the backseat of a car. Anyone would get bored. But, what about the ten, fifty, eighty-year journey of life. What about the journey of our faith overall or the journey of our faith throughout lent? Are you the one now asking, “Are You Done Yet?”
Are you asking: “Are You, God, done creating and shifting the world in new ways? Changing it all around and making us re-learn things in order to speak with one another? Are you done, God so I can finally be at peace at the journey’s end?”
Have you asked these questions as you threw up your hands and said, “I’m done – I’ve done my ministry – time for someone else to do all the work.” It kind of sounds like – reminds me of – when we were children and someone would ask, “are we there yet?”
The reality is though, God is not done creating and recreating our world. We are not yet perfected in the kin-dom to come. We are all still on the journey of our faith. However young or old we are! Still, the way forward is not always a straight line. There is not just one road before us. It is more like a great untamed desert and with the help of God, we are plotting our way to the next stop along the journey. But it will take us to have a faith in God – a humbleness in our lack of perfection – and a loving goal to go further than the generations before us. It will take all these gifts, beloved, so the journey ahead may be transformed from the frustrated “are You done Yet” into a ministry of love as we journey together through the wilderness of life.
May these gifts fill your life and transform our fellowship; so, we may hear God calling us to the next waystation on the journey knowing full well that God is not done, yet.
With loving faith
Your pastor and teacher, Brian
Please consider the ways you care for your own spirituality and faith throughout Lent. If you would like, you may text, call, or email me always to talk and discover ideas to help you refresh your soul. As I am here to support you and your relationship with God wherever you are on the journey. My number is (207-350-9561) if you need anything or simply want to talk. Next week, my pastoral care hours are Mon. 9-4, Tues. 12-5, Wed. 9-4, Thurs. 10-2 to provide some time for visiting. Many blessings and Love to you all.
Presented to the First Congregational Church of Salem, NH on April 18,2021
It is said that today, in the twenty-first century, we are living in a “post-truth” era. An era “in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief” according to Oxford Languages. And although we can witness this reality in the world today in everything from the environment to the pandemic, it is not how we are called to live as disciples. It is not how we are called to live and engage the world for there is truth – The Truth of God – truth which relies on both fact and belief. However, when we choose to only follow our emotions or beliefs without witnessing objective facts, we are being deceived by our own eyes.
As we begin, would you pray with me
Blessed teacher, teach us the Way of Truth – guide us in discernment and reveal to us Your Way to be whole in Your Holy kin-dom. May the words from my lips and the meditations on all our hearts be pleasing to You God.
Now beloved, the issue is not necessarily the post-truth era of today – but really the problem of deception and manipulation. For, we have been deceived many times – in many ways. People manipulate our emotions to convince us to follow – support – or even believe in a perception which may or may not make sense according to our beliefs. We can see this reality in our biased opinion-based news sources – on social media – and in the discussions about many journeys of shadow. We see this reality in advocates for environmental justice, like Greta Thunberg, who openly shamed society by saying, “How dare you. You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words.” Although her message of environmental care may have been good, it was lost in the emotional plea and shame filled speech trying to manipulate people into action.
This reality causes us to question everything. Even the statistical number of Covid-19 cases is in question – because we know there are false positive test cases – Yet we do not know how many? Were they removed from the overall statistical number? Are people even capable of tracking this information? These very real questions, which no one seems to answer, is leaving people doubting the statistical numbers, feeling deceived, and relying on fearful emotions or compassionate beliefs without any objective facts for there do not seem to be any objective facts left in the world today. This reality though is just another way to deceive ourselves. It is another way we will be deceived by our own eyes and fail to be Christ’s disciples discerning and revealing the Truth of God.
This same deception arose in our scripture reading today from the Gospel According to Luke when the disciples first saw Jesus after his execution. For in that moment, the disciples did not witness the Truth or even the objective fact that Jesus is standing amongst them again. Rather, our beloved disciples doubt – doubt what they see – doubt which caused them to rely on the emotion of fear. And this emotion of fear which filled their hearts would not allow our sisters and brothers to witness the Truth before their eyes. Not allow them to witness the objective fact that Jesus was not a ghost but is the resurrected Christ fulfilling scripture. In that moment, our brothers and sisters are deceived by their own eyes unable to witness the Truth before them.
Now imagine if Jesus had attempted to manipulate the disciples – to demand their acceptance of him through shame – or their compliance to his leadership through deception. What would have happened? Would our sisters and brothers ever be able to witness the Truth revealed – the Love of God revealed in that moment – and the fulfillment of the scripture revealed; or would they have simply felt deceived as the theologian Alan Culpepper suggests they felt when Jesus first appeared. Furthermore, if they continued to feel deceived, would the disciples have continued to follow Jesus or simply resisted the authority of Christ and the Truth revealed to them on this day? Thankfully, we will never know because that is not what Jesus did in this story. He knew the disciples needed to witness the objective facts – first – first to feel these facts through our beliefs which then became the revealed Truth.
Jesus seemed to know this reality; for, he uncovers his hands and feet to show the disciples the flesh. Yet, doubt still clung to their hearts. To which, Jesus asks, “have you anything here to eat?” He then eats the “broiled fish” which changes the paradigm of the story, for this is a clear objective fact that Jesus is not a ghost. Now although variations of this story occur in all four Gospels and a similar sending of the disciples in the Book of Acts, Jesus eating the “broiled fish” is only present in today’s scripture from the Gospel according to Luke which confirms the objective fact that Jesus is not a ghost and proves the disciples are not being deceived. Beloved, in this very act Jesus helps the disciples let go of the fears and doubts which were deceiving their own eyes; so, they can witness the Good news being revealed.
Good News which is emphasized more in this Gospel than by any other New Testament author according, again, to Culpepper. The Good News that Jesus and his resurrection is the fulfillment of scripture. Which sounds wonderful, but what does that mean? What does this theme throughout the Gospel of Luke mean for us today? Well, beloved, to understand the fullness of this Good News, we must understand that Jesus is speaking about the scripture we call the Old Testament – everything in these texts is fulfilled through Christ – Christ who is at-one with God. Add to this objective fact the part which comes next in the story: Jesus commissions the disciples – all disciples – all of us with the gifts and Love of God. Commissions us to continue to fulfill the Mission here on Earth.
The scripture from First John explains this best: “See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are.” Children of God – siblings of Jesus – disciples of Christ. Commissioned and called to fulfill the promises of scripture. To seek the Truth and to not be deceived. the author of First John presses this point and says, “let no one deceive you. Everyone who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous.” So, what does this Good News mean for us today? It means be like Jesus. If you are a child of God and a disciple of Christ, be like the one who sent us: do what is right and you will be righteous, just as Jesus is righteous. It means, do not be deceived by others or by your own eyes. Do not let others manipulate your emotions to convince you of anything – seek the objective facts and witness if those facts feel like our beliefs; for, here is God’s Truth.
Finally, it means eat the fish – reveal the objective facts – be an example of discipleship so others may witness the Good News – the Truth which still exists. For, we are not in a world that is post-truth, no matter who may argue this position. We are in a world of manipulation and deception and the only way to counter these atrocities is by revealing objective facts and then showing how our beliefs follow or counter these facts. It means we cannot use fear, guilt, shame, or any other emotion to force another into the way we believe. It means we cannot alter words or definitions to win an argument. It means we cannot deceive – be deceived – or deceive ourselves. But today’s Good News does mean we can celebrate every person’s faithful discernment as we discuss objective facts with our beliefs. For, Truth is only revealed through both like the loving example set forth by Christ who fulfills and continues to fulfill the scripture through all disciples. So, beloved, may we all embrace Truth once more this week and the celebration of facts and belief – together – to find God’s Truth revealed through Christ and all disciples – past – present – and future. Amen.
Presented to the First Congregational Church of Salem April 11, 2021
Recently I have been drawn to an idea that humans understand very well. Even if we do not know the term. The name of this concept is “liminal space” and it is the space between “what was” and “what will be.” The theologian Richard Rohr explains that the “term ‘liminal’ comes from the Latin word limen, meaning threshold.” Therefore, the liminal space can be as simple as the physical threshold of your front door and the physical space between when you are within your home and when you are within the world. Yet, it can be more complex. For, it is also the transition which happens in our state of mind like when we go from being single to a couple, from youth to adulthood, or even from a racist society to the Dream of Rev. Martin Luther King JR, a dream that is summed up best in his own words: “a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.” That is how vast this concept is – a concept which we understand well. For when Christ was resurrected, we disciples entered a liminal space waiting to discover “what will be” in the kin-dom to come.
That said, these liminal spaces can produce quite a bit of anxiety – stress – and fear. It is these emotions we humans seem to focus on as our world undergoes the dreaded “C” word. You know change. And we fear the changes in this world and in our lives – the transitions and the liminal spaces when nothing is like “what was” and not quite yet “what will be.” However, these liminal spaces in our lives can also be full of innovation as we are recreated through the Holy Spirit.
Before we continue, would you pray with me:
Holy Creator – recreate us this day though the blessed celebration of your disciples operating in this fellowship – invoke in us the teachings of Christ whose breath commissioned us into Your Holy Mission – guide us through the liminal spaces into Your kin-dom of Heaven. And may my words speak only of Your truth and the meditations upon all our hearts be pleasing to You God.
Now, beloved, I bring these words to you today in celebration of our confirmands – Jack, Luke, and Abby. For these three souls are walking through their own liminal space of confirmation. One which I pray they will all choose to complete, especially as I believe they are already revealing that they are each disciples of Christ. A truth which I believe we are all witnessing today. To explain, the confirmands were invited to explore a part of Christ’s Mission as outreach is part of what we are called to do as disciples. The choice of their journey was left entirely up to them as was how they would reveal their growth on this journey. Without a breath, they three chose to bring awareness to the Mission of racial equality.
Now, mind you, of all the possible journeys they could have explored, these disciples were called to follow the one which is also undergoing a liminal space as we desperately try to discover how to live into “what will be” like the dream of Rev. King let alone the blessed unity of all people in the kin-dom – through God.
And that is the point. Rev. King revealed the Dream to us – a goal of “what will be” in the kin-dom where no one is judged by the color of their skin. Yet, we as a people are still in the liminal space between “what was” in our racist past and “what will be” in the kin-dom. As such, we are redefining words like racism – creating new words like microaggressions – and being told that some of our most basic truths like the dream of Rev. King is perpetuating racism. So, the whole Mission for racial equality seems to be in transition which can create anxiety – stress – and especially fear for people who feel persecuted for simply seeking equality.
The same fear of persecution our ancestors felt following the Resurrection of Christ in the Gospel according to John. In this reading, we are witness to the fear which the disciples felt – “fear of the Jews” – when the disciples locked themselves away. I bring this to our attention not as a judgement of the Jewish community. For, we know it was not all Jewish people who killed Christ or persecuted the disciples. Rather, this truth is to highlight the feeling the disciples felt during this liminal space – during this time after “what was” and before they discover “what will be.”
However, there is also Good News in our scriptural reading – Good News when Jesus appears in the locked room; reveals himself as the risen Christ; and is at-one with the disciples again. For in this moment, we witness the blessing of our faith – Christ came to that locked room to support his disciples – to assure them that the persecution would end – to reveal the liminal space would be over one day and all would be at-one with God in the kin-dom. The Good News though does not end there for Christ also reveals how to reach “what will be” in the kin-dom.
This revelation Beloved is called the commissioning which is when Christ breaths the Holy Spirit upon all disciples and empowers all of us to continue Christ’s Mission. And yes, I do mean all of us as the theologian Gail O’Day rightly points out Christ is not only addressing the “apostolic leaders” but the entire faith community. In fact, following our passage today the author of this Gospel explains that Thomas, “one of the twelve” is not part of the assembly. Now if only the twelve are considered disciples, why would the author need to point out that Thomas was one of them? It seems to me the author would not. Therefore, I do believe the disciples represented here are all the faithful disciples of Christ. And this truth is what we believe when we say all the faithful are disciples of Christ and ministers called to be sent forth from Christ to continue her Mission when he recreated us in the Holy Spirit.
But what does any of this have to do with racial equality or our beloved confirmands? Well, my friends it has everything to do with them for unbeknownst to Abby, Luke, and Jack God has worked through them to do what Christ does for all disciples – to support the African American community in their liminal space – to help bring peace by hearing the voices – the anxieties – and the fears of a community persecuted in our country. This truth is witnessed when these disciples chose to watch a film called “The Hate U Give” which reveals many of the fears and anxieties facing our sisters and brothers in the black community. After which, the confirmands, the mentors, Merri, and I gathered to discuss these issues not as anyone with authority but as equal disciples growing in awareness of the persecution felt by our beloved siblings. Finally, the confirmands then chose to share this awareness with all of you, both the racist past of Salem as well as some literary gifts of the African American community.
And I pray that you can witness their ministry is allowing all of us to know more about the Mission and journey to racial equality – helps us to let go of the anxiety in the liminal space of this journey – welcomes us to be free of fear of “what will be” in the kin-dom to come by knowing more about what is happening today. This truth reminds me of what Rev. King also said, “people fail to get along because they fear each other; they fear each other because they don’t know each other; they don’t know each other because they have not communicated with each other.” However, this celebration of the confirmand’s ministry is the first step of that communication. It is awareness and support of our African American sisters and brothers by giving voice to the joys, concerns, and feelings.
So, thank you, beloved disciples – to all three of you who have stepped into this Mission of Christ by helping bring awareness of our sisters and our brothers. This worship service and the three of you are the living example of Christ’s commissioning and Mission which we are all called to explore as disciples of Christ.
That said, beloved, there is more to do – we disciples are still living within the liminal space before Rev. King’s dream, let alone the kin-dom of God. We are all recreated through the Spirit – all commissioned to be disciples who support and love one another – all in need of growth in awareness and a willingness to recreate the world in love – all called to experience the anxiety while discovering the innovation God is calling us all to become as one people in the kin-dom.
This call though does not always require a march through the streets. It can be a handwritten letter of love – a conversation on a park bench – a phone call to our legislature. Christ’s commission of you and I is an ongoing continuation of Jesus’ Mission – a Mission which could include any of these and so much more. But it begins with awareness – awareness of the part of God’s Mission you are each called to support – So beloved disciples, what Mission is God calling you to embrace? May each of us discover and live into Christ’s commission and Mission which recreates us through the Spirit to be God’s hands and feet bringing all people together as one in the kin-dom of God. In the name of Christ who shows us the Way. Amen.
Presented to the First Congregational Church of Salem, NH February 7, 2021
From 1 Corinthians chapter 12: “There is one body, but it has many parts. But all its many parts make up one body. It is the same with Christ…If one part suffers, every part suffers with it.”
These words from the Bible strike to the heart of how I witness our discipleship as Christians. Words which speak of how we are interconnected through the Holy Spirit and the call for each of us to help ease the suffering of other people in the world. Yet, I wonder what is the cost of discipleship; What is the price each and every one of us must pay for such a deeply ingrained empathy; what is the price when our world is hurting and suffering?
For, today, we are witnesses to people who are suffering from racism, environmental destruction, misogyny, food insecurity, political unrest, LGBTQIA + inequality, domestic violence, isolation, health care concerns, inadequate support for schools, the pandemic, and a host of other issues. Are you overwhelmed, yet? With everything happening in the world around us, are you overwhelmed with grief for our Body? When all the people in the world are crying out in pain and agony and you want to help them; do you feel overwhelmed and not sure which way to turn – who to help – what part of God’s ministry you came here to help as part of the Body of Christ? This beloved is the price each of us sometimes pays for our discipleship – a price for our empathy when we can become overwhelmed by the pain of those who are suffering.
The problem is that if we become overwhelmed, we may become the wounded – the wounded people who become self-protective and thereby avoid – disregard – or minimize the wounds of other people, no longer empathetically walking in the Way of Christ as one Body but only concerned with our own wounds. The cost of discipleship has and will cause a spiraling wound of trauma if we let ourselves become overwhelmed.
Yet, beloved, we are not alone in this struggle. The darkness cannot win for there is a light and it begins with Christ – and within each of us as the Body of Christ. So, although the world is hurting – hungering for healing – thirsty for justice in ways which I have never seen in my life, I invite us all to stop – take a step back – and refocus ourselves as Christians to ask the very real question: what did we come to do?
As we ponder this question would you pray with me,
Body of Christ reveal to me Your Way and invoke in me Your calling; so, we may each be Your gift to the world. Reveal this gift through Your Holy Spirit so each of us may be healed by those who are called to heal – taught by those who are called to teach – guided by those who are called to guide. May the words from my lips and the meditations on all our hearts be pleasing to You God.
Now, Beloved, I am speaking today specifically about our personal call of discipleship – our purpose in God’s ministry – our individual part of God’s Mission. I am speaking of this call through the realization of our pandemic isolation which has provided more time for us to witness the ailments of our world as many people are out of work, working from home, or unable to engage in social activities. Even if this reality is not your case, people do seem to be expressing all the issues of the world louder and more viscerally than ever before. And I hear these concerns, but I am worried about you – worried that these issues of the world are being intensified by your own sadness and loss. Worried that your empathy will become overwhelmed and cost you – your empathy for other people.
I imagine this same conflict was afflicting Jesus in our scriptural reading from the Gospel according to Mark. This same concern over becoming overwhelmed. For, the story begins in the middle of a narrative of healing early on in his ministry. In fact, these healings in Capernaum were at the very beginning of his ministry directly after he had been baptized and called the first of his disciples. Then, he began his ministry of teaching while using his gifts to heal people and cast out demons. Let me clearly say that although there are interpretations which state the casting out of demons is a metaphor for the healing of mental illnesses, this text according to the theologian Lamar Williamson JR. is referring to actual demons as that is how the Hellenistic world of the first century understood what was happening to people. Either way, the casting out of demons is clearly different than the physical healing which Jesus is also performing. This point becomes especially important as the narrative continues to bring more and more people to be healed by Jesus. I imagine his empathy for their wounds and afflictions must have been overwhelming. For, even though he could heal them all – the streets were full of people needing to be healed.
Then something interesting happens in the Gospel according to Mark, something vastly different than in the accounts of Matthew or Luke. Jesus stops – as he sits there healing people in Capernaum – he stops. And we know the healing is not done; for, the disciples share that “Everybody is looking for you.” There is more healing to be done and they are looking for the healing touch of Jesus. Yet, he stops, and we are left without the answer of why. Why he stopped in the early hours before dawn. Why he stopped healing when people were crying for this touch. And although we do not know, I imagine it is because of how each and every one of us is feeling right now as the world cries out hurting – hungry for healing – thirsty for justice. I imagine that anyone with empathy hearing all these cries needs to stop and take a moment for self-care. Because no matter how much we love all people, residing in the pain, the loss, and the devastation will overwhelm us and destroy our ability to help one another as disciples of Christ.
And this beloved is the Good news of the account from Mark – the good news of how to continue being a disciple when you start to feel overwhelmed by all the tragedies in the world. Just stop and take a step back to engage in self-care. Jesus’ need for self-care is revealed here by stepping back and entering a “deserted place.” Yet, this deserted place is not like our pandemic isolation; it is a place where he can pray and discover what God is calling him to do. That said, prayer in this Good News can and should be witnessed: as a form of self-care; as a way to refocus our lives; as a way to remember our part of the Body of Christ and thereby be able to help other people throughout the world.
Furthermore, I believe this Good News is needed; so, we may remember what we came here to do – what we are called to do as people individually and how we are called to be part of the Body of Christ. For, as we saw in the scripture of Mark even Jesus needed to stop, step back, and refocus. We are witnesses to his amazing gifts of healing; but healing is not what Jesus was called to do as the head of the body of Christ. Instead, he is called to “proclaim the message and cast out demons” throughout Galilee, to teach all people about God and heal them spiritually by casting out their demons. This Good news beloved is the Way of Christ – the Way of the disciple – not the exact way for we are all different parts of the Body. Yet it is the Good News we are invited to follow as disciples of Christ especially when we feel overwhelmed by the suffering of the Body.
So, what is your Way – your Way of self-care – Your Way to stop – step back – and refocus? That is the depth of the question this week and one which we will explore throughout the Lenten season. Yet as we explore the various paths, I wish to remind you they are paths with a purpose. For, we are disciples and there is a cost of that discipleship. The cost and joy of allowing God to use us to make the world better. And as I mentioned in my letter this week, I would like each of us to discover that part of God’s Mission – ministry – purpose we came here to do in this life. Now perhaps discovering this purpose will be through trial and error which is why I invited all of you to experience Lent in a new way – instead of giving something up – I have, and am, inviting you to take on a purpose – a ministry – a part of God’s Mission throughout the season of Lent. I offer this invitation knowing that many of us are feeling overwhelmed with the suffering and the pain that is happening in our world. But I offer this invitation now because it is not a simple discernment and I wish you to take your time, consider your gifts, and the variety of ways to share them with the Body of Christ. This Good News, beloved, is the Way Jesus walked – the way of the body of Christ – the Way of the disciple which invites each of us to stop, step back, and refocus on what we came here to do in this world. May each of your days be full of self-care and reflection as we walk in the way of Jesus as the body of Christ. Amen.
Presented to the First Congregational Church of Salem, NH January 24, 2021
Today – we have a brand-new world. No matter how you lean politically, this week has been a historical change in our lives. We have our first African American female vice-president and for many people that sign brings hope – hope that this week marks the beginning of a future where gendered and racial human inequality will come to an end. This month has also been a historical change. No matter how you feel about the vaccine, New Hampshire has begun vaccinating people over the age of 65, for many humans that sign brings hope – hope that this month marks the beginning of a future where this pandemic will come to an end.
But do these signs of hope – help? Do they help everyone in our society feel hope? Do the doctors in hospitals feel hope when the emergency room is full? Does the person of color feel hope when their environment – the place they live and work – is increasing their chance to catch this pandemic? Do you feel hope from these signs when you disagree with the vaccine, voted for someone else, or have resisted the call of Christ to share worship – our fellowship – our love of all people in an innovative way?
Beloved, only you can answer that question; but I feel it must be asked as so many hopeful praises for the future this week have been focused on human works either absent or minimally using our faithful hands to help create a better world. Thus, these praises seem empty. Empty of God’s divine hope. That said, this divine hope is present – this divine hope that we were reminded of one month ago, this day, is amongst us – this divine hope of Christ is present with us when he came into our world and called us to not just be hopeful in word but to be disciples in action: disciples who “fish for people” – who share the hope of God with all people – who reveal our hope by living our faith to recreate a better world without divisions – without isolation – without inequalities – through God.
Before we continue, would you pray with me
Blessed Creator – create in us the divine hope for a better world where we not only witness your hope but become the examples of Your divine hope for all people regardless of who they are, what place they call home, or where they are on Life’s journey. May the words upon my lips and the meditations in all our hearts be pleasing to you, God.
Now beloved – do not get me wrong. I do not want to besmirch any form of hope that you are feeling today. Hope is by far one of the most blessed gifts that God gives to each of us every day of our life. It helps us climb out of bed each morning and face the world when all we see is unfairness – it helps us be at peace when we are alone – it helps us come together as one people. But hope without God – hope in humanity without God feels empty. This type of hope without the love of God for all people makes me ask: what is the human motivation; as, I am sure it does for so many of you.
As I am sure it does for the people who are living in our cities throughout this nation and have not had the privilege of isolating themselves during Covid. Not had this privilege because their employment requires them to be present and their communities are over populated. Added to these realities are medical, educational, and financial disparities within a population of people who are predominantly the ancestral minorities in this country. When we say this reality is racism – environmental racism – beloved, the story of how Covid -19 has affected these minority communities is what we mean. It is the reality that the environment of Boston with a population predominantly black must expose themselves to Covid more than us here in Salem, New Hampshire with a population which is predominantly white and able to work, live. and worship virtually. So, of course when we say there is hope for our future where we may all be one because we have a new vice-president – the words seem hollow. They seem empty to our black sisters and brothers as they only seem like words – these beloved people have neighbors, families, children coming down with a pandemic at a disproportionate rate and Washington DC is very far away.
I can only imagine how hollow the sentiments of hope must feel for these souls who are stuck in an environment which is making them more susceptible to this pandemic. It reminds me of the story of Jonah from our scripture reading who was thrust into the sea because of his failure to follow God’s call. He was rescued and then stuck in an environment – the inside of a whale – which offered him no escape. Much like the people of Nineveh were stuck in their “evil ways” because of how they had lived in their city – their environment that was going to be destroyed by God because of their ways. Are we stuck in our environment as well – destined to be destroyed because we have failed to see the Truth that people – all people – are children of God and that we hold onto traditions of “fish(ing) for people” which rely on techniques from a pre-electronic age? Do we feel the hope is hollow when “hope” is claimed by our community while we cling to our physical church environment which may be killing us in this new world of hybrid worship?
Again, this question is something we must answer for ourselves, especially since many of us are living in the Good News by becoming the hands and feet of God through this community – bringing hope through worship and outreach to all through innovative ways. And for each of you, I must say thank you – thank you for the blessings of divine hope your ministry has and continues to share with this community. But there is more work to do – more ways to share this divine hope – more Good News to bring. For, like Jonah we are called to thank God – focus on the divine and repent. Following this path, Jonah was freed from the whale – the environment which was keeping him stuck. Likewise, the people of Nineveh put on “sackcloth” – repented and were free of their environment which was about to destroy them. The Good News, beloved, is not just in the hope of words alone but in the divine hope which reveals our repentance and actions to secure freedom from the environment which is holding us and could be killing us. Through this path we discover words of hope spoken aloud are no longer empty, but a revelation of God’s hope through our actions which seek a better world to come – a place where all are equally loved and equally cared for regardless of where they live or the color of their skin – a place we call the kin-dom of God.
Now this call to bring divine hope is happening in this community. Much like when Jesus called the “fishermen. And … said, ‘Follow me and I will make you fish for people.’” You, beloved from other states, have been called across the internet. I pray you continue to answer the call, we continue to share our voice of God’s love with each other – continue to be free of the singular environment of Salem. For our fellowship has grown – grown through you who visit across the internet each week. Your ministry of joining us brings me hope – a hope in the ministry we can do together; but we need to hear your voice as part of our community so we may all feel divine hope and reflect it into the world – divine hope for all people no matter where they are, what place they call home or where they are on life’s journey. You in Michigan, Maine, Florida are part of our ministry and please share your voice so we can live into our faith together. Yet, there are also more ways for all of us to bring divine hope to the people of the world; for, we are no longer limited to the confines of a building – an environment.
As such, let me ask: what would Jesus’ words be if they were spoken to us today? What would it be like if our computer programmers – our retired – our teachers were called instead of fishermen? Would God’s call be, teach of God’s hope – guide with God’s love – fish for people across the internet? Beloved, know that the call of discipleship is not limited to one way; but it is an expansive call within today’s world – it gives people hope – divine hope for they know our words are not hollow when we invite their voice, when it is based on caring for everyone, when it has no limits and no boundaries. And this call, beloved, is what we are called to do as disciples of Christ – stretch beyond ourselves and bring God’s divine hope to those who feel stuck in their environment – not out of some false sense of superiority; but so, we will be better together when people know they are not alone. So, reach out across the internet and fish for all souls who need spiritual love, care for all people in these trying times, share divine hope so we will truly be one people under God. May your days be filled with discernment as we discover new ways to reveal God’s divine hope with our sisters and brothers stuck in environments which may be killing them. In Your eternal name we pray. Amen.
