Author: MASadmin

Quake: When God Shows Up

When God shows up, what do we expect will happen? Today’s reading from Isaiah 64:1-9 is asking this kind of question. This section of Isaiah was probably recorded immediately after Israel’s captivity in Babylon ended. For almost 70 years, many of the people from Jerusalem lived in exile in Babylon. They built new homes and created new communities in the heart of the empire that defeated them. When the Persian empire destroy Babylon, the people of Jerusalem were invited to return home. Most decided to stay home in Babylon but some moved to Jerusalem, a city they never knew. The city was in rubble and God’s Temple was gone. Food was scarce. Conflict was everywhere. As the community started to rebuild, they lamented and prayed to God. They wanted to God to be God and cause the world to tremble.

I’ll admit that this image of God is a powerful one. Wouldn’t it be great to have this kind of experience of God? Imagine the heavens opening up and God landing in Northern New Jersey. The hills would quake and move. The Pascack Valley would rock and roll. God would show up and everyone would know God is here. A God who does this is a God who is easy to see, experience, and share with others. It’s a God who expresses strength and might. A God who shakes mountains is a God we want on our side because nothing on earth can compare.

And yet this is the first reading from scripture we hear this Advent season. We are in a period of waiting until Christmas, a story about God coming down, finally comes. But when God finally does come, the mountains do not quake like we expect. Instead, God enters the world as a baby named Jesus. The cries of this baby do not shake buildings. Instead, his cries bring his mother and father to his side. In Jesus, God chooses to live a human life, from birth to death and beyond, because that’s the awesome deed no one would reasonably expect.

As Christians, we are invited to lament like the prophet in Isaiah does here. God wants us to call God out, telling God to be a promise keeper. But we are also invited to open our eyes and see the ways God is already here. Sometimes the most powerful experience we need is a whisper of hope, a shoulder to cry on, a person who says they care about us, or a baby who spends his first night in a manger.

Each week, I write a reflection on one of our scripture readings for the week. This is from Christ Lutheran Church’s Worship Bulletin for First Sunday of Advent, 12/3/2017.

Don’t Yawn: The Season Doesn’t Depend on Us

[Jesus said:] “But in those days, after that suffering,

the sun will be darkened,
and the moon will not give its light,
and the stars will be falling from heaven,
and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.
Then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in clouds’ with great power and glory. Then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.
“From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates. Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

“But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come. It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch. Therefore, keep awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn, or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly. And what I say to you I say to all: Keep awake.”

Mark 13:24-37

My sermon from First Sunday of Advent (December 3, 2017) on Matthew 25:31-46. Listen to the recording at the bottom of the page or read my manuscript below.

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If you are giving out Christmas gifts this year, who on your list is the hardest person to shop for? For me, it’s my parents. They are terrible to shop for. They are one of the few people I know who, when you ask them what they want, will say “nothing” – and they mean it. They buy what they want when they want it; they like to plan and pay for their own adventures; and they are content with what they have. It’s so annoying. So over the last few years, I’ve resorted to sending them a photo book full of pictures of their grandkids. I go through all the pictures I took over the last year, relive all those memories we created, and put an entire year into book form. It’s sort of a fun thing to create. But making this kind of book is also a little terrifying because I want it to be perfect. I have this subconscious desire to give my parents a photo book that’s full of beautiful pictures. I want them to open the book up and instantly know what we were doing without me having to explain it. And if I’m honest, I also want to – sort of – show off just a tiny little bit. I want to humblebrag and overtly brag about just how fun, awesome, and well-adjusted my family is. And this is an odd thing to do because my parents know just how imperfect we are. They’re not asking me to brag or measure up but I feel like I need to anyways. There’s probably some kind of family dynamic at work here that I should unpack with a therapist at some point but there’s another issue here too. There’s something about this season, about these four weeks before Christmas when all of us, I think, try to chase after a picture perfect kind of Christmas. And even if we don’t think we do, the image of what a perfect Christmas looks like is all around us. Stores, tv ads, and every show on HGTV flashes hints about just how postcard perfect your holiday could be. I wonder if, even subconsciously, being around so much perfect ends up changing what we do. We start needing our Christmas tree and out decorations to be just right. We need to find that perfect present for everyone on our list. And we do all we can to look impeccable and festive at every holiday party we attend. We are in a season where being perfect isn’t only for kids trying to use their good behavior to convince Santa to bring them the toy they really really want. It’s also a season when all of us chase after perfection: the perfect home, the perfect meal, the perfect relationship, and a perfect, peaceful, and loving family. The weeks before Christmas is when we try to make an ideal a reality. That’s why I want my photo book for my parents to be all kinds of awesome. And why I want the last photo in that book to be a perfect family portrait with everyone, including the 3 year old, looking straight at the camera.

But you know what? That perfect picture has yet to come. And it’s sort of amazing how many different ways that picture fails to actually work out. The Christmas ideal, this picture or expectation we carry with us – rarely ever shows up – because we live in the real world. There’s never a holiday where there isn’t stress, or worry, or disagreement, or conflict. And even when the stars align and we are blessed to have a moment that meets our incredible expectations, that moment doesn’t last. The imperfect always comes back. And even though I think most of us know, deep down, that this season will not be perfect, we still get caught up chasing after our ideal. And that chase causes us to act as if this season, somehow, depends fully on us. If the tree lights go out or a turkey gets burned or if a heated conversation leads to conflict and anger around our dining room table – the more we chase after the ideal, the more we make Christmas depend on what do, what we say, and what we can afford. We make Christmas, in the end, depend on us. And a Christmas that depends on us, doesn’t really sound like Christmas at all.

Now, the next four weeks will not be as perfect as we want them to be. Our homes will not look like they belong on HGTV nor will every Christmas light on our pre-lit tree actually last all month long. And not everyone in our family will be looking at the camera. But that’s okay. Because this season, this Advent, this waiting for Christmas – isn’t a season that depends on us. It’s a season about a God who showed up, stuck around, and will come back soon even though we, as people, rarely live and love and serve the world as the ideal Christians God calls us to be.

Jesus, in this passage from Mark, makes a promise to us and to the entire world. He tells us to keep awake because we do not know when the master of the house will come; they might come in the evening, or at midnight, or at the cockcrow, or at dawn. Jesus, in these verses, seems to tell his friends to be ready for the moment when God will shake every mountain. But I think Jesus is really telling them to keep their eyes open because God is about to do something that doesn’t appear ideal. Jesus, in the chapters right after this passage, takes his first steps towards the Cross: a journey starts with a meal, in the evening, with his friends. And after this last supper, Jesus is betrayed and, in a moment of anguish and prayer, he finds his disciples asleep because it was the middle of the night. Jesus is then arrested and his trial begins. We listen and watch his disciple Peter deny him as the cock crows. And then, in the morning, Jesus is brought before the Roman Governor Pontius Pilate who then condemns him to death. In the words of David Lose, “the heavens shake and the sun is darkened … [at] precisely … the moment when [Jesus] is nailed to the cross and our breath is taken away as we see God’s love poured out for us and all the world.” We are not in a season asking us to reach some ideal. Rather, we are with a God who, regardless of the season, comes to us as we are because the imperfect, the vulnerable, the sick, lonely, poor, and hungry are worth a love that does not end. Will we still try to chase our ideal Christmas this year? Yes. But does that mean that Jesus will only show up if we get Christmas right? Not at all. Because the picture perfect love that God gives the world is a love that shows up in the form of a fussy and vulnerable little baby and is made real by a savior who, with arms outstretched, shows us what a picture perfect kind of love actually looks like.

Amen.

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An Invitation: A funeral homily for T.C. Sr.

After these things Jesus showed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias; and he showed himself in this way. Gathered there together were Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples. Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will go with you.” They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

Just after daybreak, Jesus stood on the beach; but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to them, “Children, you have no fish, have you?” They answered him, “No.” He said to them, “Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish. That disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on some clothes, for he was naked, and jumped into the sea. But the other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the land, only about a hundred yards off.

When they had gone ashore, they saw a charcoal fire there, with fish on it, and bread. Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.” So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, a hundred fifty-three of them; and though there were so many, the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.”

John 21:1-12a

This bit from John chapter 21 is one of my favorite parts in all of scripture. But to really know why I like this text so much, we need to rewind one full chapter. Chapter 20 is full of what Jesus does after the resurrection. He meets Mary Magdalene in the garden and she mistakes him for the gardner. Later on, Jesus walks into the room where his disciples are gathered together, hiding in fear. They did not expect Jesus’ death and they’re not sure what to do next. Jesus shows up to say hello and he makes a plan to come back the following week. But not everyone was in the room that first time. The Apostle Thomas didn’t believe what his friends told him. So Jesus responds by making sure Thomas is in the room when he shows up, and Jesus invites Thomas to see the holes in his hands and side. And then, after these stories, the entire chapter ends with a conclusion telling us that the gospel of John doesn’t report everything Jesus said and did – but it shares what we need for a full life with God. These last verses wrap up the entire book. It truly the end of the story. But then we turn the page and Jesus is there, inviting us to breakfast. The gospel according to John is supposed to end with Chapter 20. But it doesn’t. Jesus’ story with his disciples, continues. When we get to those moments in our life that feel like endings; when we get to those moments when disease or death draws our loved ones away from us, scripture tells us that our story, with Jesus, continues. And that story starts with an invitation.

Invitations can be powerful things. An invitation connects us to new experiences, new people, and new ideas. An invitation can bring people and communities into our lives that we never knew before. And an invitation is why I am here today. My first experience with T. was through his daughter-in-law, A. She called my church office when I was away from my desk so my parish administrator took a message and left it for me. On a piece of bright pink paper with the words “While You Were Out” on top, there was a name, a phone number, and a short note asking me to call back. Right there, in black ink, was my invitation into the story God had already written in the life of T.C. Sr. But I’ve also learned that this wasn’t the only invitation to show up this week. An invitation from one of T. and R.’s neighbors is what connected them to our church. And when I talked to their neighbor last Sunday before worship started, she shared with me that she had extended an invitation to R. over breakfast – and she was thrilled to find R. later that morning, waiting for the bus to church. This same neighbor made sure to invite me to meet R. And as I sat with R. in the back pews, before worship started, I got a taste of who T. was. I was honored and blessed to see the love R. has for him. I heard about his faith and his heart. And I felt the sorrow and sadness all deaths bring but also witnessed the thankfulness we have for the special people God brings into our lives.

I never knew T. but I know that you did. All of you are a testament to the life he lived. It was a life that began with an invitation to know God – an invitation God extended and made true to T. in his baptism. And in the years since, Jesus’ invitation to be with T., no matter what, was an invitation Jesus never walked away from. T.’s weariness is now gone. His burden is light. And he is now discovering the fullness of love that Jesus’ invitation brings while basking in the eternal light of our glorious Lord, forever and ever.

Amen.

A sermon on John 21:1-12 at a memorial service held a Funeral Home in Tenafly on 11/30/2017.

Church Twice on Sundays. From Pastor Marc – My Message for the Messenger, December 2017 Edition

One of the gifts the November time change gives us is a gift I don’t usually embrace. The sun is setting earlier which gives me an opportunity to see something vibrant and colorful. But the sun sets at the same time when my day is transitioning. I race from the church to two different schools to pick up my kids. I take them home, unpack bags, feed cats and try to figure out what’s for dinner. In the middle of this daily busyness, I rarely notice the sky turning orange and red as the sun sets. I miss the best sunsets. Once my night calms down, at the moment when the sky turns a deep blue, my social media feeds are filled with pictures of the beautiful sunset I just missed. I experience the reds, oranges and golds that just happened in the deep blue moment before night begins. I try to remind myself to take a break and make time to look out the window tomorrow. But that reminder rarely sticks. My experience of the vibrant color-filled sky is limited to those moments when they sky is a deep blue.

The season of Advent is a season of blue. The cloth and fabric decorating our church mimics the blue color in the sky right before dawn breaks. But I think that blue matches the color that appears right after a sunset. Both of these moments are when we have just enough light to see. We remember the beautiful colors of the day that we just experienced and we look forward to dawn that’s about to come. It’s at these moments, I think, when our hope in Christ feels very real. We might be experiencing our own moments of being blue, waiting for something life-giving to come. We might feel as if the best moments of our lives are in our past, and we are in the sunset of our lives. We might long for the vibrant colors we have never seen or wish for a return to a past that, in hindsight, always looks better than they truly were. The deep blue moments in our lives can feel very long. But the story of Jesus is a story where the moments of deep blue are overcome by a love that shines bright. As followers of Jesus, we know Jesus has come. He walked on earth, gave hope to the hopeless and conquered death itself. There were times in his story when it looked like the sun had set, but a sun that sets is also a son that will soon rise.

This year Christmas Eve is on a Sunday. We will celebrate with our traditional evening worship at 5:00 pm and 10:30 pm (note the new time). But we will also mark the final Sunday of Advent that morning with one service at 10 am. Christmas is exciting, but Advent reminds us that we are people always rooted in the hope that the deep blue in this world is not God’s final word. I invite you to attend church twice this 24th. Spend the morning knowing that Jesus is with you even in the deep blue moments of your lives. And then celebrate that evening with all of God’s people because, in Jesus, a new day for the entire world has broken.

See you in church!
Pastor Marc

Christ the King or Reign of Christ?

You did it! You survived another church year. Today is Christ the King Sunday. It’s a new holiday in the church calendar, established less than 100 years ago. In 1925, Pope Pius XI established this day to encourage Roman Catholics to recognize Christ’s authority in our lives. Christ the King was originally scheduled for the last Sunday in October (which might have been a way to push back against Lutherans and their Reformation Sunday) but was moved to the last Sunday in the church year in 1970. Many different protestant churches (including Lutherans) adopted this feast day because its central question is important for all Christians. We know Jesus is important and we commit ourselves to follow him. We celebrate his presence in our lives and sing hymns calling him the “king of kings.” Jesus matters – but does our everyday life act like he does?

Over the last few decades, a debate about name of this Sunday has emerged. Should we call this Sunday Christ the King when the word “king” is so problematic? There are plenty of kings in scripture that give the word “king” a bad name. In 1 Samuel 8, the prophet Samuel describes what kings actually do. They value power more than anything. They want to keep everything for themselves. They oppress the poor, fight wars, and bring ruin to entire communities. They demand the obedience of others while filling their bank accounts with other people’s wealth. Kings in scripture are not a good thing. Even the kings we celebrate (like King David), have immense personality flaws that lead to their downfall and destruction. All of us think we know what a good king looks like. They are full of power and majesty. They are wise, caring, and give hope to others. They live lives worthy of being in a Disney animated film. And they are a king that looks nothing like Jesus did when, broken and battered, he died on the Cross.

I still call today Christ the King Sunday because that’s a name other people use. But, in my own devotion, I prefer to call today: “Reign of Christ Sunday.” Because that’s what we’re really celebrating. We are, through out baptism, called to live as if Jesus really matters. We are to recognize his love for us and love others just as much. We are to celebrate service rather than power and to always cling to hope. We are to live as if Christ truly rules over our lives because, through the Cross, we know he already does.

Each week, I write a reflection on one of our scripture readings for the week. This is from Christ Lutheran Church’s Worship Bulletin for Christ the King Sunday, 11/26/2017.

Children’s Sermon: King (Queen)

Bring a printout of a coloring sheet that has “Love the Lord with all your heart, etc.” Bring the book of Peppa Goes to London.

Hi everyone! I’m so glad you are here today. I hope you all had a happy Thanksgiving. I’m still pretty full from all the delicious foods I was able to eat. My favorite was a fancy cheesecake and pie that I had. What was something you ate recently that you liked? Accept answers.

So when I was thinking about today’s lesson today, I was thinking a lot about a king. What does a king have? Fancy clothes, a castle, a crown. It’s hard to think about kings and queens and royalty here because we don’t have them. But there’s a book my in-laws recently gave my kids that I thought might. Read Peppa Goes to London through the page where the Queen takes over a bus. A king or queen is someone who, like in the story, tells us to do something – and we’re called to do it. Kings were people that were in charge. They oversaw countries, territories, and towns. They made decisions about government, who did what, and what kind of things they should do. And there were all sorts of different kings – and kings with other kings over them. So in Jesus’ time, there was a king over where he lived – King Herod – who had a king who told him what to do, Pontius Pilate – who was a governor from Rome – and Pontius Pilate had a king he reported to – the Emperor of Rome who was in charge over everyone and everything. What the Emperor said, was what everyone was supposed to do. And, sometimes, the Emperor would say good things but sometimes they would say bad. And it was hard to say no when the Emperor asked everyone to do bad things – things that hurt people, or made people cry, or took things from them. When people said no to that, they would be arrested or hurt themselves. So people did what the Emperor did because the Emperor was in charge – and it was dangerous if they didn’t do what the Emperor asked.

But you know what? There’s a king who is even more important than the Emperor. It’s a king who oversees everything. It’s a king who cares about what we say, what we do, and loves everyone – whether they call him king or not. And it’s a king who will always tell you to do the king, caring, and loving thing. And that’s Jesus. As Christians, as people who have been baptized, and as people who know who Jesus is – Jesus is our king. But what are the things you think Jesus tells us? Accept answers.

Well – one thing that Jesus tells us is to do this – go over the coloring sheet. Point out the crown. Point out our response. What are the ways we can love and serve like Jesus does? Take care of people. Help people. Be kind. If you want to connect to the lesson last week, talk about the leaves full of promises.

So I want you to take these back to your seat – these coloring sheets – and color them during the service. And then, when you get home, you can hang it on your fridge and your wall – as reminder that we have a king who will never steer us wrong, who will love us always, and who will help us always.

Thank you for being here and I hope you have a blessed week!

Each week, I share a reflection for all children of God. The written manuscript serves as a springboard for what I do. This is from Christ Lutheran Church’s Worship on Christ the King Sunday, 11/26/2017.

Surprise! A surprising text and a surprising God

[Jesus said to the disciples: ] “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.’ Then he will say to those at his left hand, ‘You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?’ Then he will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Matthew 25:31-46

My sermon from Christ the King Sunday (November 26, 2017) on Matthew 25:31-46. Listen to the recording at the bottom of the page or read my manuscript below.

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So what are the things you expect to see on Thanksgiving weekend?

For me, I like to drive down route 17 and see the miles of cars trying to get into the Garden State Mall parking lot. Others, I know, are glued to the tv, watching football on Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday, and praying that their NFL team will do all they can to secure the #1 spot in next year’s draft. This is a weekend where some set-up Christmas trees, hang garland and lights, and place 9” long inflatable dinosaurs in Santa hats on their front lawns. It’s a busy weekend for weekend warriors, travelers, and all kinds of consumers. But it’s also a busy weekend for everyone who works. Even though more and more people spend their holidays shopping online, retail stores and malls still need a small army of employees to open, staff, and survive this ultra busy time of year. Thanksgiving weekend isn’t only the start of a season where we stuff ourselves full of turkey and eggnog and a huge amount of stress as we try to do everything and still find that perfect gift for family and friends. This weekend is also when hundreds of thousands of people will become a seasonal retail employee. As you stare at a mountain of tvs, trying to decide which one is right for you, the staff person who helps you might not be who you expect. It could be a college student trying to pick up some extra hours of work, or a stay-at-home dad trying to help his family stay afloat, or it could be one of the countless underemployed folks in this country who need these kinds of jobs to survive. Even pastors, seminarians, and interns take these kind of seasonal retail jobs. Now, that fact might surprise you since the holiday season is a busy one for pastors – but sometimes student loans, a health crisis, and an unexpected expense makes seasonal work a requirement for a clergyperson. That cashier you saw yesterday at Target could be, at this very moment, preaching in a pulpit. And I know this because, yesterday, that cashier/preacher posted in a clergy Facebook group a note he received from his new boss. The boss sent out a group-text to all the seasonal employees as they got ready for Black Friday. The boss wanted to remind them of the expectations management had. After writing about being on time and how to dress, they ended with an important piece in big, capital letters: “PLEASE ALWAYS BE AWARE THAT OUR GUESTS MAY BE TARGET EXECUTIVES. WE ARE TO TREAT EVERY GUEST AS IF THEY ARE.” It might surprise you to find out that the seasonal retail worker helping you might be clergy. But it’s probably just as surprising to learn that the management at Target is sharing with their seasonal employees a version of today’s reading from the gospel of Matthew. The sheep and the goats is not a parable only for the Bible. It’s a story for our modern retail life because you never know who you might run into while shopping this holiday season.

Today’s passage from Matthew is an interesting text to chose to end the church year on. Starting next week, we are in a new year in our 3 year cycle through scripture and we’ll be focusing on the gospel according to Mark. You would think, since we’re starting with a new gospel, we would end this year with the last words from Matthew. But we don’t. Instead, we end with Jesus’ last public teaching before his betrayal, arrest, and crucifixion. We end our church year with Jesus standing in the Temple and talking about farm animals, visiting people in prison, and a final and fiery judgement. This isn’t the most hope-filled text to end the church year on. And it’s also a text where, if we were given the choice to pick which story today to use, the sheep and the goats would be a surprising pick. But maybe that surprise is why our 3 year cycle picked this text to end this church year on. Because this isn’t just a surprising text. It’s also a text with surprise built in.

And did you notice that? The surprise the sheep and the goats both express? In today’s story, the Son of Man shows up in full glory. Everyone knows who he is and everyone understands that something important, amazing, and all-powerful is about to happen. No one doubts what’s going on. But they do have a question for this eternal judge. They are surprised to learn that this isn’t the first time they’ve met him. So Both sides wonder when they saw him last. And this judge, this Son of Man, answers them strangely. Because He simply tells them who he was with. Jesus was with the stranger who lived in their nation. He was with the hungry, the thirsty, the sick, and the ones who had nothing. Jesus was stuck in the prison cell with the justly and unjustly convicted. He was always there, in the open, with people we could actually see – but we, as a society and as individuals, chose not to see them. We keep our distance because they are different, or scary, or because we assume they brought this pain and suffering and poverty on themselves. We act as if they deserve their fate – and that’s who Jesus chose to be with. Jesus is there, hanging with the ones we don’t like, with the ones we don’t agree with, and with the ones who we label as the goats in our world. When we see the surprise in today’s text, we finally see how Jesus chooses to be with people, even the people we don’t think he should be with, because that’s just who Jesus is. God’s presence in our lives doesn’t depend on us having the title, or the wealth, or the good looks, or all those things society says we need to have to be seen and noticed by everyone else. Jesus is with everyone, especially the ones society doesn’t see, and that’s surprisingly good news. Because a God who chooses to be with people is a God who chooses to be with us; and with the person sitting next to us; and with that seasonal retail employee we might run into later this week. Jesus is right there – in the middle of places and events and with people we don’t expect him to be with. And unlike the management at Target, we don’t have to be afraid that a Target Executive might show up because we know that the king of kings, the Son of Man, this Jesus of Nazareth who was born in a barn and had an animal food dish for his first bed – we know that Jesus is with whoever is in front of us. And he’s also with us, because Jesus keeps his arms outstretched and open so that he, and we, can serve and love all.

Amen.

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A Reflection on Zephaniah 1

This reading from Zephaniah 1:7,12-18 is terrifying.

It begins with a command from God demanding silence. This phrase lets us put this text in context. This command is used when something is taking place in the Temple. In ancient Israel, the Temple was where heaven and earth meet. It’s where God truly is. By demanding our silence, the prophet Zephaniah tells us that these words are spoken in the place where God is present and where God is being worshipped. These words take place as people gather to pray and celebrate God. The people are participating in rituals, telling stories, and experiencing God. As we will discover, the people expect to be blessed when they worship God. Instead, they are challenged and undone.

We don’t worship in the Temple but but we do worship in our church. Within these eight walls, we pray, sing, and experience Jesus’ presence in a holy community. We gather here on Sunday morning because this is where Jesus promises to be. In the stories we share and in the rituals we participate in, we experience a vision of what God’s community of welcome, love, and hope actually looks like. We are living and expressing what God’s reality truly is. Our rituals are both ancient and new. They are designed to help us experience the presence of God. We are invited guests, brought here to find comfort and joy at God’s table.

But imagine Jesus speaking these words to you. What do you hear? What do you feel? The metaphors in the passage are centered around vines, vineyards, and wine. God, in the verses around this passage, is the tender of a vineyard, making fine wines and drinks. This drink is designed to be life-giving to all who consume it. In this metaphor, God’s people are not drinking the wine God created. Rather, the people are the wine itself. God stored us, tending us carefully, and waiting for us to mature. Yet the wine grew complacent in dealing with God and each other. The wine sought out its own comfort at the expense of others. The wine went bad. And so, in the presence of the God, the wine is destroyed. The people trusted their strength as a nation and a culture so that is the first thing God takes. They did not see God living in their community, so God takes their sight. They did not live lives believing that God will do both good and harm. They didn’t believe that God keeps God’s promises. The people just lived, assuming they were good people, and that’s all they need.

When we are in God’s house, we expect God to brings comfort and joy. But this text doesn’t do that. This is not a text meant for other people. It’s a text spoken to the people God claims as God’s own. It’s a text meant for us. Prophets bring us words that are harsh. Their words challenge us and terrify us. They can turn us defensive but they are here to change us into the people God wants us to be. Zephaniah wants to know, when it comes to daily life, do we live as if the vision of welcome, love, and hope that God proclaims is what we strive to be or do we pretend that our point of view, expectations, and perspective is the only thing God actually wants?

Each week, I write a reflection on one of our scripture readings for the week. This is from Christ Lutheran Church’s Worship Bulletin for 24th Sunday after Pentecost, 11/19/2017.

Children’s Sermon: Pledge

Set-up a “tree” in the sanctuary. Have leaves of different colors that you can hook to the branches of the tree. Bring a pledge card and time and talent sheet. Start at where the tree is. A commitment/stewardship tree based on Psalm 1:3. “They are like trees planted by streams of water, which yield their fruit in its season, and their leaves do not wither. In all that they do, they prosper”

Hi everyone! I’m so glad you are here today. Thank you for doing something different today and sitting with me by this tree. So let’s talk about the tree. Is it small or big? Is it tall or short? What is it missing? Leaves! Right! It’s missing leaves. Now I know it is fall outside and trees out there are loosing their leaves. But I think this tree could use some pretty leaves, don’t you? YES! So let’s each put a special leaf on the tree but first…I want us to write something on them first because today is a special day at church.

Today is a day when many people here will drop in the offering plate later in the service an envelope that is filled with a green pledge card and a time and talent sheet that is filled out. This pledge card is green, like the leaf of a green and growing tree. The time and talent sheet is filled with different ways to volunteer to help people, help the church, and make a difference all over the world. Each year, we’re asked to fill this out and turn them into the church. They both represent a promise that we make to God of the ways we’ll support what God is doing in the world. God gives us financial gifts so, if we can, we give that money to the church. God made each of us as special and unique; we all have different things we can do that others can’t. So we make a pledge to use our gifts to help the church and the world. This pledge and this time and talent sheet is one way we respond to all the blessings and love God gives us.

But even if we can’t fill out a pledge card or a time and talent sheet, even if we think we’re too young to help out, too busy, or too old, we all have something we can offer to God and to others. We can all make a promise that we will share God’s love by doing one thing. And so these leaves that we have will be leaves of promises that we will hang and cover this tree. So let’s start: what’s one thing you can pledge to God to help love others as much as God loves you? Help at church. Clean my room, Help my brother. Donate a toy to a friend. Listen to someone who needs help. Be kind.

These are all great! And let’s hang them on the tree. Hang them on the tree. Now, I need one more thing for you to do. This tree needs more leaves – and everyone else is going to put them on. So let’s pass out a leaf to everyone – no matter their age. They can spend time thinking about what they can give to God, and then they’ll write it down and before they leave church today, they’ll hang them on this tree. And then, at the end of the worship today, we’ll have a tree covered in promises because God makes a big promise to each of us: no matter what and no matter where we go, God will never stop loving us.

Thank you for being here and I hope you have a blessed Thanksgiving!

Each week, I share a reflection for all children of God. The written manuscript serves as a springboard for what I do. This is from Christ Lutheran Church’s Worship on the 24th Sunday After Pentecost, 11/19/2017.