Looking Up / Based on Luke 18:9-14 / Delivered on October 23, 2016 to CCH

Looking Up / Based on Luke 18:9-14 / Delivered on October 23, 2016 to CCH

Hymns: Just as I Am, To God Be the Glory, A Mighty Fortress Is Our God

Luke 18:9-14

18:9 He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt:

18:10 "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.

18:11 The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, 'God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.

18:12 I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.'

18:13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, 'God, be merciful to me, a sinner!'

18:14 I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted."

The reading from Luke deals with the contrast between the way we think and the way God thinks.  It also brings out the beauty of God’s mercy.

My three ideas for today are:

There is no value in comparing

Our hope is in God’s mercy

Look up to God

There is no value in comparing

The example of the Pharisee and tax collector praying in the temple is an interesting turn for Jesus listeners.  It took two personalities that had very set status in the community and showed God didn’t think about them in quite the same way. 

A Pharisee was someone who had devoted his life to God, and the study of scripture.  They were viewed by the public as spiritually superior, and thought of in a positive light.  Certainly there were good ones and bad ones, but the focus of their life was something people admired.  They were who you went to if you needed spiritual advice.  They were also the kind of people to be invited to dinner parties. 

Tax collectors on the other hand were not viewed as positively.  The Romans wanted to deal with the Hebrew people as little as possible so gave a fellow Hebrew the job of collecting taxes for them.  They made their living by collecting more than Rome was demanding in taxes – basically stealing from the members of their tribe.  The fact they were friendly with the Roman oppressors, and made their living by lying about how much taxes the people owed, made their friends few.  This is not a person you would want to associate with in public.

Jesus listeners would have heard the prayer of the Pharisee and agreed with him.  He was far better spiritually than a tax collector.   

There is a joke that speaks to comparing.  Two men are in the woods hunting.  One puts on a pair of boots and the other puts on running shoes.  The man with the boots says, “why are you putting on running shoes?”  His companion replies, “I heard there is a bear in the woods and I want to be ready to run.”  “You can’t outrun a bear.” The first one laughs.  “I don’t have to outrun the bear”, the other replies, “I just have to outrun you.”

That sounds like what the Pharisee was counting on.  18:11 The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, 'God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector”, but God is not like the bear.  He does not have a quota to fill.  He does not grade on the curve.  There is not a percentage of sinners that make it into heaven.  You either meet God’s standard or you fall short of it.  In God’s view both had fallen short of his law.  Comparing didn’t change that.  The scripture is clear that all have fallen short.   

So where does that leave us?

Our hope is in God’s mercy

The prayer of the Pharisee was one of thanks, but it was also one of boasting.  He was asking God to acknowledge how good he was.  His was depending on his own behavior.  He didn’t reach out to God because he felt he was good enough without Him.  Just look at his healthy spiritual life.  Verse 12 I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.'   This is not to say his spiritual works were not positive.  They are positive, but they are still not enough.

The tax collector knew he was falling short.  He knew his only hope was God’s mercy.  He didn’t try to cover up what he had done when he came to God.  Verse 13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, 'God, be merciful to me, a sinner!'

The sin of the Pharisee was in not acknowledging he needed God.  He was so focused on himself and his own spiritual superiority, that he failed to see the places in his life where he needed forgiveness.

God’s mercy is there for those who turn to Him.  Even for people as bad as the tax collector.  18:14 I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted."

The word “justified” is from a Greek word whose full meaning is to render just or innocent: —free, be righteous.

God loves us all right where we are and is there to make up the gap, large or small, when we confess it to Him.  In the end the Pharisee left the temple with his own human form of righteousness, but the tax collector had wrapped himself in God’s righteousness.

I sometimes see God’s mercy and grace like a life-saving ring thrown out to people that have fallen out of the boat and are at risk of drowning.  The tax collector grabbed that ring.  The Pharisee considered himself a good enough swimmer, but being a good swimmer doesn’t mean you won’t drown. 

Look up to God

This idea not only refers to who to compare to, it also is who we can look to for help in getting closer to that mark.

The parable is a reminder that we don’t get more points with God if we just stay better than our neighbors.  If we compare ourselves to others, we will find ourselves judging and taking a better-than-thou type of attitude.  We get trapped in what humans think and lose sight of what God thinks. 

Jesus taught us to call God, Father, so using the analogy of parenting works for me.  My father use to tell me, “you can always find someone behaving worse.  Do not compare down – compare up instead!” 

I would hear those words especially when I was trying to explain away my bad behavior when I really needed to acknowledge what I had done wrong and say I was sorry.  My father wasn’t interested in me telling him all about how the behavior of my friends was worse than mine.  He was quick to remind me that they had their own lessons to learn and I would be much better off if I focused on my own.  He wanted me to grow and become a better person.  Not better compared to them, but better than my current self. 

When I was young, to compare up meant to look at how my parents behaved as a benchmark.  As an adult, to compare up in a spiritual sense I look to Jesus as my benchmark.  The slogan, “What would Jesus do?” comes from this idea.

You cannot grow and improve until you know where you are failing to meet the mark.  If we only focus on our positive traits and ignore where we are failing, then we will continue to fail.  When I compared how much better I was then my poorly behaving friends, I was trying to get my Father to focus on my good qualities instead of my poor behavior that needed to change.  He was more interested in my willingness to improve in those areas where I had made poor choices.  I was blessed to have a patient earthly father that taught me to see where I had failed and seek forgiveness with my “I’m sorry.” 

I sense our relationship to God is the same.  He is interested in helping us to come closer to being the like Jesus.  “I’m sorry”, “forgive me”, and “be merciful” show we recognize where we have failed.  That is the starting point of being able to change our behavior.

We don’t know if the tax collector left the temple and changed his life around.  I’d like to think that the moment in prayer with God showed he saw where he was failing and resolved that moment to repay the money he had taken through deceit and find a new more honorable profession to earn his living.  That would be a happy ending.  All we are left with is the knowledge that he recognized his sin and asked for mercy.

We can assume the Pharisee made no changes in his life.  His future self has no hope of becoming better than his current self because he feels good enough already.  He is comparing himself to the wrong benchmark.

Here’s what I’m hoping we can all take away from this teaching of Jesus.

When we examine our life we don’t get bonus points for being better than our peers.  There is no value in comparing that way.  All of us have fallen short when we compare to what God desires us to be.  We are called to look within and recognize where we personally are failing, where we need forgiveness, where we need to change.

We are not alone in this.  God’s mercy, God’s life-saving grace, is here for us all.  We need to reach for it.  Release your guilt and accept His love and forgiveness.   The Holy Spirit is here to help guide us in this growth. 

May we confess where we have fallen short, and seek God’s mercy as we continue to grow from our personal life lessons.  Blessings on your journey.

Amen.

Seize Life / Based on 1 Timothy 6:6-19, Luke 16:19-31 / Delivered on September 25, 2016 to CCH

20160925 Seize Life

Based on 1 Timothy 6:6-19, Luke 16:19-31, and Psalm 91

Delivered on September 25, 2016 to CCH in Hudson, WI
Hymns: Spirit of God, Descend Upon My Heart, Come and Find the Quiet Center, On Eagle's Wings.

1 Timothy 6:6-19

6:6 Of course, there is great gain in godliness combined with contentment;

6:7 for we brought nothing into the world, so that we can take nothing out of it;

6:8 but if we have food and clothing, we will be content with these.

6:9 But those who want to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.

6:10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pains.

6:11 But as for you, man of God, shun all this; pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness.

6:12 Fight the good fight of the faith; take hold of the eternal life, to which you were called and for which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

6:13 In the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, I charge you

6:14 to keep the commandment without spot or blame until the manifestation of our Lord Jesus Christ,

6:15 which he will bring about at the right time--he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords.

6:16 It is he alone who has immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see; to him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen.

6:17 As for those who in the present age are rich, command them not to be haughty, or to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but rather on God who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.

6:18 They are to do good, to be rich in good works, generous, and ready to share,

6:19 thus storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of the life that really is life.

I’ve read the lesson from 1 Timothy.  I’m also going to be referencing two other scriptures that are possibly familiar to you.  The story of the rich man and Lazarus from the Gospel of Luke, and Psalm 91 which is where our song “On Eagle’s Wings” comes from.  You’ll get a few bonus scriptures thrown in too.

My hope is to weave these scriptures together to communicate three ideas.

Eternal life is now

We are called to seize “real” life

Trust in God

Eternal life is now. 

In 1 Timothy vs 6:12 Paul told Timothy “take hold of the eternal life, to which you were called and for which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”  We don’t know for sure, because it isn’t named, but some Bible scholars believe that “good confession” was his baptism.  Eternal life is not something we look forward to.  It is something that has already arrived because Christ brought it into our world with him.  He conquered death before he returned to be with God.  I believe it is what Jesus meant in Luke 17:20 “Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The coming of the kingdom of God is not something that can be observed, nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is in your midst.”  The King James translation of this scripture is “Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.”  In baptism we become a member of God’s family.  That means God is our Father right now, and will always be.  We are loved right now for all eternity.  We are right now in the presence of God.  We may not see him clearly quite yet, as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13:12 “For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.”  Don’t let the fact we can’t see clearly make you doubt your place in God’s family.  We do not have to wait until we transition from earth to enter into our eternal life with God.  We are already in it, or maybe better said, it is already in us.

We are called to seize “real” life.

The words translated “take hold” can also be translated as “seize”.  Just as Timothy was advised to seize eternal life, his is advised to seize the life that really is life.  Paul continues in verse 17-19 “As for those who in the present age are rich, command them not to be haughty, or to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but rather on God who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.  They are to do good, to be rich in good works, generous, and ready to share, thus storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of the life that really is life.”  That is to seize “real” life.  The lesson for Timothy is to be warry of the love of money and instead verse 11 tells him, “But as for you, man of God, shun all this; pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, gentleness.”  We bring nothing into the world as far as possessions, and we can take nothing out.  Certainly we need to be good stewards of what we’ve been given, but focusing our love on things moves us toward idolatry.  It is only God that deserves that level of devotion. 

The story in Luke 16 of the rich man and Lazarus bring out this lesson.  Luke 16:14 tells us Jesus audience for this story, “The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus.”  The lovers of money.  I’m going to paraphrase it.  There was a rich man who had all good things.  At his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, who was starving and covered with sores.  They both died.  Lazarus was carried away to be with the angles.  The rich man suffered in Hades.  The story doesn’t say the rich man was a bad man.  He did nothing to harm Lazarus.  It doesn’t say he caused the suffering.  He just didn’t see the poor around him and also see his call to hospitality.  One of the dangers of wealth is this type of blindness.  He ignored the suffering that was at his own gate.  We know he physically “saw” Lazarus because he called him by name.  He failed to take hold of the life that really is life.  He failed to be generous and ready to share his material things, which were not important, to provide love and hospitality to another, which was important.  Everything we own will fade away.  Our possessions do not make us who we are.  Our behavior is what defines who we are.  Our money and possessions do not contain life.  Life is present in how we live with others.

Trust in God

Our society teaches us to put our trust in wealth, yet this scripture asks us to set our hope “on God who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.”  In the story of the rich man and Lazarus, the rich man learned the hard way he could not trust his wealth.  Lazarus learned he could trust God.  Toward the end of the story in Luke, the rich man asks Abraham to send Lazarus to warn his brothers so they don’t repeat his mistake, and Abraham reminds the rich man that his brothers have been given the writings of Moses and the prophets to warn them what kind of foundation they were building for the future.  We have those writings too.  They are there to teach us where to put our trust.

There were two Psalms assigned to the lectionary this Sunday.  Both are Psalms of trust. 

Psalm 146 tells us “Do not put your trust in princes, in mortals, in whom there is no help.  When their breath departs, they return to the earth; on that very day their plans perish.  Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord their God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them; who keeps faith forever.” 

Psalm 91 is a favorite of mine.  I’m going to read the verses chosen for this Sunday and we’ll echo them again as we sing our final hymn.

91:1 You who live in the shelter of the Most High, who abide in the shadow of the Almighty,

91:2 will say to the LORD, "My refuge and my fortress; my God, in whom I trust."

91:3 For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence;

91:4 he will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.

91:5 You will not fear the terror of the night, or the arrow that flies by day,

91:6 or the pestilence that stalks in darkness, or the destruction that wastes at noonday.

91:14 Those who love me, I will deliver; I will protect those who know my name.

91:15 When they call to me, I will answer them; I will be with them in trouble, I will rescue them and honor them.

91:16 With long life I will satisfy them, and show them my salvation.

We may not be in our heavenly home yet, but we are living within God’s sheltering love right now.  Eternity with God has already begun for us, and forevermore nothing can separate us from God’s love.  As Paul said in Romans 8:38 “Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God's love.” 

Seize “real” life and fight that good fight as Paul advised.  Remember that our possessions do not represent that life.  Life is in how we live, not what things we live with. 

We can’t trust our possessions but we can trust God.  This little message was filled to the brim with scripture this Sunday, and for good reason.  We don’t need to test God to learn to trust God.  Let the experiences of others that have been captured in scripture strengthen your trust.

May we each feel God’s amazing love and, by trusting God, live our life sharing that love with others.

Amen

Hospitality / Based on Luke 14:1, 7-14 / Delivered on August 28, 2016 at CCH, Hudson WI

Hospitality

Based on Luke 14:1, 7-14

Delivered on August 28, 2016 at CCH, Hudson WI

Hymns:

We Gather Together, Here I Am Lord, They’ll Know We Are Christians

Luke 14:1, 7-14

 14:1 On one occasion when Jesus was going to the house of a leader of the Pharisees to eat a meal on the Sabbath, they were watching him closely.  

14:7 When he noticed how the guests chose the places of honor, he told them a parable.  

14:8 "When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, do not sit down at the place of honor, in case someone more distinguished than you have been invited by your host;

14:9 and the host who invited both of you may come and say to you, 'Give this person your place,' and then in disgrace you would start to take the lowest place.  

14:10 But when you are invited, go and sit down at the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he may say to you, 'Friend, move up higher'; then you will be honored in the presence of all who sit at the table with you.  

14:11 For all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted."  

14:12 He said also to the one who had invited him, "When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, in case they may invite you in return, and you would be repaid.  

14:13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind.  

14:14 And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you, for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."

This parable of the dinner party seems simple enough, yet it was a hard concept for Jesus listeners.  I’m going to explore three ideas from the story.

Be a gracious guest

Be a gracious host

Understand hospitality

Be a gracious guest

We don’t have seats of honor often, though I remember only Mom and Dad sat at the ends of the table.  We use to sometimes laugh and say if someone sat at the end seat that it was their responsibility to pick up the tab because that meant they were the parent.  That seat of honor came with paying the bill. 

Weddings are a different story.  There is a head table for the wedding party.  There often are special tables for the family of the bride and groom, and maybe one for special friends.  Some couples give a name card at each place so people know where to sit.  If the couple take care with table-mates, I can trust I’ll be put with people I enjoy.

Other times the wedding couple leave it up to the guest to sit where they would like.  I kind of like the name cards because I don’t know who is also invited.  I know I’m friends enough to the bride or groom to be invited.  I want to be close to their table because I love them and want to see them as they continue their special night.  I also want them to see me and know I’m supporting them, but where do I really fit.  The day is about them, not me.

 The parable includes the verse “For all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted." Yet I have a feeling Jesus was hoping to get them away from the “exalted” part totally.  One way to look at this verse is to see it as both becoming level.  Adding a little to those at the bottom and cutting down a little from those elevated until they were shoulder to shoulder.  After all, both were “invited” according to the scripture.  In the eyes of God both are loved and wanted as guests.

When you are invited to be with a group of people, don’t assume you’re superior.  Try not to focus on yourself at all.  Honor the fact each of you there are important to your host.  This was a wedding banquet. Only the happy couple should be on your mind.  They are for the moment the exalted ones.

This is not easy.  Our comfort and our happiness seems to always be at the front of our minds.  It’s part of our self-preservation – take care of number one!  Self-promotion may have some benefit in the workplace, but it has no place in community.  Living in community calls for a servant’s heart, and servants normally ate in the basement or in the kitchen.

Be a gracious host

The first parable is seen through the eyes of the guest, but I feel for the host.  I’d feel terrible to have to tell someone to move because the seat was saved for another person.  Yet at a wedding, it may happen.  It is only the host who knows the full invitee list, and even if they don’t have place cards they have a vision of who will be at a few of the special tables.  I’ve already given my vote on having place cards, but understand that isn’t always the option that is chosen.

A good host is attentive to his guests.  He wouldn’t know a special friend was sitting in the less desirable spot if he wasn’t also visiting with the people in those spots.  The host visits with all who are invited.  The host is also someone who can see the big picture because he knows the details.

The host in the story is better not focusing on himself.  He is best as a host by staying focused on his friends.  In Jesus day it may be that he raises his own status by showing off who is at the party, but I believe it was Jesus recommendation to be other-focused instead.  Mingling, chatting, greeting the guests personally is part of a good host’s behavior.

Jesus parable also gave this advice to the host.  14:12 He said also to the one who had invited him, "When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, in case they may invite you in return, and you would be repaid.   14:13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind.   14:14 And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you, for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."

When my daughter was married I considered myself a second-host.  I visited each table at the reception, introduced myself as Mother-of-the-bride, asked how they knew the happy couple, and then I thanked them for their love and support of the two of them. 

It doesn’t need to be your party for you to take the role of greeting and offering love to those there.  The act of accepting those gathering around you puts you in that host role of this parable.  Offer love whether you will be repaid in kind or not.

Understand hospitality

This passage of scripture has two separate lessons.  Both are connected to the meal theme but he has a different audience he’s focused on.  This second lesson is helping define hospitality.  Hospitality was an important part of community life.  If you only invited people who would invite you back it was more like a barter system than hospitality.  True hospitality meant you gave without expecting payment back.

The Greek word translated “hospitality” literally means “love of strangers.”  By that definition, inviting only your friends wouldn’t really be hospitality.  You can be a giving person and a loving person by inviting those you know, but you become a person with hospitality when you offer that same kindness to someone you have never met before.

The hospitality of the local community was how the gospel was spread.  Jesus had sent out his disciples in Luke 9:3-5 telling them, “Take nothing for the journey—no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no extra shirt.  Whatever house you enter, stay there until you leave that town.  If people do not welcome you, leave their town and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.”  They depended on hospitality and that was rewarded by the listeners hearing the good news of God's grace!  

So that’s hospitality.  Be a humble guest and be a host to strangers without expecting anything in return.  The scripture is about good behavior now, but I believe it is also about our heavenly banquet.  When the Mother of James and John asked Jesus if one could sit at his right and one his left Jesus asked if they could suffer as he would and when they said yes he said, “You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father.”  God is the great host.  He knows the big picture.  The person with a servant’s heart is what is prized.

Love those who love you, but don’t forget to offer love to strangers as well.  When you are at a special event recognize all present are invited just as you are.  Also remember to feel free to be a second-host and offer your love and acceptance of those present.  It is our calling.  It is the gift that God gives us, and the gift that we can pass on to others.

So let mutual love continue.  Embrace the true meaning of hospitality.  The command to love one another is repeated throughout Biblical teaching.  To love each other because God first loved us.  This means caring for the stranger because they are loved by God.  It also means remembering when we gather as community we are gathering as a people each loved by God – each and every one of us.  One great fellowship of love throughout the whole wide earth.

Amen

Where Your Treasure Lies / Based on Luke 12:13-21 / Delivered July 31, 2016 at CCH in Hudson WI

Where Your Treasure Lies

Based on Luke 12:13-21

Delivered July 31, 2016

Hymns:

Spirit of God Descend Upon My Heart, The Gift of Love, You Are My All in All

Luke 12:13-21

 12:13 Someone in the crowd said to him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me."  

12:14 But he said to him, "Friend, who set me to be a judge or arbitrator over you?"  

12:15 And he said to them, "Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one's life does not consist in the abundance of possessions."   

12:16 Then he told them a parable: "The land of a rich man produced abundantly.  

12:17 And he thought to himself, 'What should I do, for I have no place to store my crops?'  

12:18 Then he said, 'I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.  

12:19 And I will say to my soul, 'Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.'  

12:20 But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?'  

12:21 So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God."

Where does your treasure lie?  The parable deals with treasures.  I don’t see the story so much about the crops as about the man’s thoughts.  Jesus wasn’t saying it’s bad to have things, but it was bad to make them your focus.  Money isn’t the root of all evil, but the love of money is.  As I begin to think on this message I fear I need to preach this one to myself.  Feel free to listen in and if something fits you I hope you find it useful.

So where is our focus?

With things?

With people?

With God?

Is my treasure with things?

The parable deals with this one directly.  “Take care!  Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.”  I don’t have “treasure” but I do have lots of stuff.  I spent the first half of my life collecting it and now it is stored in the basement.  My husband retired in 2014 and I told him I was his new boss and his main job was helping sort through and get rid of the stuff in my life.  This isn’t an easy task.  I don’t let go very easily.  This parable is a great reminder for me.

Some things do bring joy because of their purpose.  I have musical instruments that I will not part with because I still play and create songs with them.  Other things sit in boxes.  I have bins full of old clothes that have sentimental value.  These are the types of things that must go.  My thoughts are held by them but they do not bring me joy.  Books are another treasure of mine.  I am slowly letting go of my fiction books, but can’t part with those that have given me training spiritually.  They hold my thoughts.  I tell myself I may read them again.  They will take more work to let go of.

The parable calls me to think of my stuff in a different light.  'You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?'  Eventually my kids will be forced to clean out my house.  What treasure will they find in my stuff?  Seeing it from the perspective of someone else is eye opening.  My husband has a fulltime job helping me sort and release the things that tie up my thoughts.

Is my treasure with people?

While it certainly feels more Christian to make people your focus, it also misses the mark.  Yes, we share love, we pray for one another, and we take care of each other.  We are called to be in community.  But that should not slide to make a person our treasure.

I fell into this one with my children.  All three of my kids are my favorite.  I will say that up front because I will send them this message to read.  However, more than likely, only my daughter will actually read it.  This example has to do with her so I’m pretty safe.

My daughter was my last born.  The two boys were 15 months apart, and then three years later my daughter was born.  Three years after that my marriage dissolved and I was a single mother of three kids.  My children were my treasure.  I took classes in how to be a good parent.  I read book after book on how to help us all cope in a single parent household.  If I thought there was a problem I couldn’t solve I quickly brought in counselors even though I was in pretty rough shape financially.  My children had to have the best possible chance to grow up and be successful.  That was my passion!

My boys knew this.  Even in the rebellious teen years when I was setting down limits and they were testing every one of them, my first born would come sit on the edge of the bed and would have long talks.  When most boys wanted nothing to do with their mother I was blessed to spend a week on a tandem bicycle with my second son at his request.  I made us iron-on t-shirts that said “Mike and Mom Team” on his and “Mom and Mike Team” on mine.  The other riders were amazed by our relationship.

Then there was my daughter.  She and I felt like sisters or best friends.  When she was away from me I nearly couldn’t focus.  Summer camp was tough on me and I was the one who stayed home!  I worried for her safety to an unhealthy level.  My extended family could see this and worried about how I would handle the separation of her going to college.  So the summer before college she went to live and work with my father and my brother.  She wanted to be a nurse so working in their Chiropractic office was a great opportunity.  I knew she was safe, I could visit but it was a four-hour drive so couldn’t be with her daily, and it was the best thing for me.  I still cried like a baby when I dropped her off at college, but the summer separation had helped me know I would be OK.

It wasn’t healthy.  I learned to let go over time.  It would have harmed her if I hadn’t.  All three children are wonderful adults.  I have a great relationship with each of them.  My love is still strong, but I have let them go and know I am OK with letting them go.

Is my treasure with God?

While it is true we are commanded to love one another, Jesus said the first great commandment was to love the lord your God.  This must be our center.  Leaning on my ability to make money is fleeting.  Leaning on people can be unhealthy for both of you.  Leaning on God, making him your source of strength, is what we can rely on.

When my marriage dissolved for a time I stepped away from God.  I felt unworthy of His love.  Yet I stayed in church because it was good for my children.  They had mentors there, they enjoyed social time with others, and I was able to get help with things like having a church member pick them up for me after school.  But I was depressed.

My pastor encouraged me to take an adult Bible study class called Disciple.  It was life changing.  I learned God never stopped loving me.  I reconnected with Him.  I took four years of that Disciple series and then because I needed to be reminded often, I taught the four-year course to others twice.

Life hasn’t been easy, but life is good with God by my side.  Coming to speak here has caused me to dive deeper into scripture and spend more time in prayer.  I hope I can help your relationship to God grow through my visits, but I can tell you coming here for sure has helped my relationship to God grow stronger.  Thank you for that gift.

I warned you I was preaching to myself today.  I hope my example brings clarity to this lesson for you.  I want to leave you with just one more story.

I had a friend, who loved golf, that was dying of cancer.  He had moved into the hospice stage of his journey and we knew he wouldn’t be with us here long.  Once night I had a dream he came to visit me.  He said he wasn’t quite sure if he was ready to leave.  He asked if there was golf in heaven.  The answer that filled my mind was this.  I don’t think there is golf in heaven, but do you know how you feel when you hit that perfect shot – the one that goes straight and long and lands on the green just a foot or so away from the cup?  That feeling of joy will be in heaven.  That love of the moment will be in heaven.

I believe it is fine to find joy in things, activities, and people that help love flow.  But do not attach yourself to them.  That only brings greed and worry.  Instead of focusing on the thing, activity, or people, focus on the joy and the love that is flowing.  The scripture tells us God is love, and when we love we are like him.  When we attach to a thing instead of realizing the true treasure is the God of Love we miss what is important.  We cannot “store up” these physical treasures, because they do not travel with us.  Focus instead on letting that love flow, remembering that God is love.  Love is the true treasure.

Where is your focus?  What do you treasure?  Between the choices of things or people or God, choose God.  Choose Love.  Your life will be truly rich.

Amen

Growing Up / Based on Galatians 5:1, 13-25 / Delivered June 26, 2016

Growing Up

Based on Galatians 5:1, 13-25

Delivered June 26, 2016

Delivered to Christian Community Home, Hudson WI

Hymns:

I Have Decided to Follow Jesus, Be Thou My Vision, They’ll Know We Are Christians By Our Love

Galatians 5:1, 13-25

 5:1 For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

 5:13 For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another.

 5:14 For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."

 5:15 If, however, you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another.

 5:16 Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh.

 5:17 For what the flesh desires is opposed to the Spirit, and what the Spirit desires is opposed to the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you want.

 5:18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not subject to the law.

 5:19 Now the works of the flesh are obvious: fornication, impurity, licentiousness,

 5:20 idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions,

 5:21 envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

 5:22 By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness,

 5:23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things.

 5:24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

 5:25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit.

The Jewish people had law upon law.  First there were laws as communicated by the prophets.  Then they added additional laws to help guide people further to not break a “big” law as a safety net.  We see hundreds of laws written in the books of the Old Testament and more referred to in the New Testament from the old ways.  There were many more in separate volumes not within our standard Bible.

People were killed for not following the law.  The Old Testament has stories of painful punishments given by God for not following the laws.  The religious leaders were the police department of the day.  It was better to stone one person than to put the whole tribe in danger.  Laws kept them safe from God’s anger.  The added laws kept them even more safe because it forced a step farther away from breaking a law of God.

They were living in a time of “do it because I told you so”.

The switch from many rules to just one major rules seems like crazy change.  It helps to consider the people of Israel as a whole being like a person in their relationship to God. 

My three thoughts today take on that theme.

Grow up

Understand the ‘why’

Live with love

Grow up

When a child is young most parents have a lot of rules.  In the beginning of life they don’t have historical knowledge of what can hurt them or others.  They don’t have the ability to handle complex tasks safely.  They haven’t developed their full brain centers to help drive good behavior.  So we set rules for their safety and the safety of others.  We cover power outlets, we lock cupboards with cleaning supplies, we install fences to keep them in the yard and out of the street and stick them in a play pen full of soft toys.  To the best of our ability we attempt to keep the house free from breakables or things that would poison them if they put it in their mouth, because they put nearly everything in their mouths! 

We use the word “NO” so much that often that is the word the baby says back to us.  That “NO” is sometimes followed by consequences; things being forcefully taken away, being grabbed and moved suddenly, a time-out in their room, or even a slap of a hand.  The loud “NO” is enough to scare sometimes, and that is its purpose.  The “laws” we give certainly are like a yoke of slavery. 

Not only do we set rules to protect them, we also set rules to train them how to be a good person.  Share your toys, do not hit your brother, do not pull your sisters hair, say “thank you” to Grandma for the present, do not shout in the house – such things help a person fit into their community as they grow and learn.

A small child cannot understand the why so we as parents must resort to the “because I told you so” in the early stages of life.  This would equal the stage of laws.  They don’t understand the “why” but they know if they break the rule there will be consequences. 

Those childhood laws remain until they develop self-control.  That is a sign of maturity.  If we leave out self-control and just do what feels right, we easily fall into the list of the works of the flesh.  At our most immature level we care deeply about ourselves and self-preservation, but not so much about others.

Understand the “why”

As a child gets more understanding some of the rules are eased.  They can understand the “why” a little better too.  You can cross the street, but look both ways.  Cars come down the street fast and drivers don’t always look for small children.  You can help in the kitchen, but use oven mitts when you are around the stove.  The stove is very hot and can burn you.  You can look at Mommy’s pretty vase but be very gentle with it.  It was a gift and Mommy would be very sad if it was broken.

Some of the rules stay, but as you age you don’t see them as rules because you understand the “why”.  You don’t hit others or pull their hair because it is unkind and makes them feel very hurt.  You say thank you to show gratitude and it makes Grandma feel good inside.  Sharing with others builds a sense of community.  Plus, hopefully the child learns that when he is kind to others more often they are trusting and kind back to him.

Paul is giving us a parenting lesson in our scripture today.  Through Jesus ministry the “why” was clearly revealed.  Verse 14 – “For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."”

The 10 commandments given directly by God support that commandment.  They don’t go away, but now we know the “why”.  If you truly loved another you wouldn’t steal from them, take their spouse, kill them, or lie to them.  If you truly love God you would keep Him first in your heart and honor him.

The “why” is love.  We love because He first loved us.  We love our neighbor like a brother or sister because God loves them as His child just like He loves us.  It isn’t that far away from a parent training a child not to pull their little sister’s hair.  Not only does it hurt the little sister, but it hurts the parent because they love her.  We may not have the capacity to love everyone, but God does.  He loves what we find unlovable, and that is enough to be the “why” for us to be kind.

Live with love

We are freed from the laws because we no longer need to memorize them.  If we are looking through the lens of love we will do them naturally.  “Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh.”  Our mammal selves are selfish.  At our lowest level we are about survival and procreation so our genes live on.  That life is living as ‘flesh’.  But we have the Spirit to guide and teach us a higher way.  “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”  This is learning to live in community and seeing a higher purpose than your own brief life.

The scripture today is asking us to grow up.  It is true we are called ‘children’ of God, but we are challenged by Paul to mature from childish ways of thinking.  We are not asked to forget about ourselves, we are asked to love others as we love ourselves and to love God most of all.

Christ has set us free from those hundreds of laws by teaching us the “why”.  The laws are still a guide to what love looks like.  If you are acting in love you will be following them naturally and without the stress of worrying a religious leader was going to punish you.  We no longer act in this way because we fear punishment.  We act in love because we know it is the right thing to do.

Our path can be one of adding to what we care about and who we love.  We start by caring only about ourselves.  Next is caring about our family unit.  Next is our community – people who think and believe like us.  Next our country.  But what if we continued to expand our love to include all of the human race, and beyond that to all living creation on our small planet.

I dream of a world where all people love and care for each other.  It doesn’t seem very possible as I look at the world today.  I can only pray we, the human race, grow up.  I commit myself to live with love.  I pray you each join me in that path.  It is a start.

Amen

The Good the Bad and the Average / Based on Luke 7:36-8:3 and more / Delivered on June 12, 2016 at UMC Hudson

The Good the Bad and the Average

Based on 1 Kings 21:1-21a, 2 Samuel 11:26-12:15, Luke 7:36-8:3, Galatians 2:15-21

Delivered on 6/12/2016

Delivered to UMC-Hudson, WI

Luke 7:36-8:3

 7:36 One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee's house and took his place at the table.

 7:37 And a woman in the city, who was a sinner, having learned that he was eating in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster jar of ointment.

 7:38 She stood behind him at his feet, weeping, and began to bathe his feet with her tears and to dry them with her hair. Then she continued kissing his feet and anointing them with the ointment.

 7:39 Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what kind of woman this is who is touching him--that she is a sinner."

 7:40 Jesus spoke up and said to him, "Simon, I have something to say to you." "Teacher," he replied, "Speak."

 7:41 "A certain creditor had two debtors; one owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.

 7:42 When they could not pay, he canceled the debts for both of them. Now which of them will love him more?"

 7:43 Simon answered, "I suppose the one for whom he canceled the greater debt." And Jesus said to him, "You have judged rightly."

 7:44 Then turning toward the woman, he said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has bathed my feet with her tears and dried them with her hair.

 7:45 You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not stopped kissing my feet.

 7:46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment.

 7:47 Therefore, I tell you, her sins, which were many, have been forgiven; hence she has shown great love. But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little."

 7:48 Then he said to her, "Your sins are forgiven."

 7:49 But those who were at the table with him began to say among themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?"

 7:50 And he said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."

 8:1 Soon afterwards he went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. The twelve were with him,

 8:2 as well as some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out,

 8:3 and Joanna, the wife of Herod's steward Chuza, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their resources.

I chose the passage from Luke to be read during the time for scripture, but we’re going to cover four different passages this morning.  I’ve had them listed for you if you want to pull out a Bible, or bring one up on your phone, to follow along.  I’m going to pull highlights of the lessons from 2 Samuel and 1 Kings but encourage you to read them.  Galatians I’ll add in fully during our time together.

I hope to cover three ideas with you this morning.

The Good, the Bad, and the Average all sin

Sin has consequences

God’s grace is here for us

The lesson from 1 Kings gives us a brief look into the life of King Ahab and his wife Jezebel.  King Ahab was a bad man.  1 Kings 16:30 tells us so; “Ahab son of Omri did more evil in the eyes of the LORD than any of those before him.”  I add in that earlier verse because by the story it seems like the evil deed is all on Jezebel

King Ahab is visiting one of his palaces and he decides he’d like a vegetable garden.  He politely asked the owner of the vineyard next door, Naboth, if he can buy it from him.  Naboth refuses because the land is part of his ancestral inheritance.  King Ahab is bummed about it and his wife, Jezebel, basically calls him weak.  “Do you now govern Israel?” She writes letters using Ahab’s seal to have others bring up false charges against Naboth saying “Naboth cursed God and the king”.  This was breaking the commandment from Exodus 22:28 “Do not blaspheme God or curse the ruler of your people.” Poor Naboth is stoned to death based on the lie, and King Ahab takes the vineyard.

God calls Elijah to let King Ahab know that what he did in secret was known to God.  Elijah is to deliver this message, “Thus says the Lord: In the place where dogs licked up the blood of Naboth, dogs will also lick up your blood.  It isn’t included in our passage today but down the road King Ahab and Jezebel both pay for their actions with their life.

The lesson from 2 Samuel gives us a brief look into the life of King David.  King David was a good man.  Acts 13:22b tells us, “After removing Saul, he made David their king. God testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.'”  Yet King David wasn’t without sin.  Just before our lesson today is the telling of King David hanging out in his palace while he sent his men to war.  He takes a fancy to Bathsheba, who is Uriah’s wife.  He forces her into his bed and she becomes pregnant.  So to cover up his indiscretion he has his commander put Uriah in the front lines of the battle without support from his fellows to get him killed.  Then he takes her as his own wife.

His cover-up may have fooled the people, but God is not pleased.  God sends Nathan to David to tell him a little story.

"There were two men in a certain city, the one rich and the other poor.

 12:2 The rich man had very many flocks and herds;

 12:3 but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb, which he had bought. He brought it up, and it grew up with him and with his children; it used to eat of his meager fare, and drink from his cup, and lie in his bosom, and it was like a daughter to him.

 12:4 Now there came a traveler to the rich man, and he was loath to take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the wayfarer who had come to him, but he took the poor man's lamb, and prepared that for the guest who had come to him."

 12:5 Then David's anger was greatly kindled against the man. He said to Nathan, "As the LORD lives, the man who has done this deserves to die;

 12:6 he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity."

 12:7 Nathan said to David, "You are the man!

David confesses his sin and seeks forgiveness, and is told his life will be spared but the child born of his adultery will die.  And the child does die.

You heard the passage from Luke.  The woman washing Jesus feet with her tears had many sins, according to the host of the meal.  She is neither very good or very bad.  She is my “average”.

The Good, the Bad, and the Average all sin.

King Ahab – very bad.  King David – very good.  The woman – neither bad nor good, just average.  The only thing they had in common was falling short of God’s law.

When my kids were growing up I remember parenting advise encouraging me to not call the child “bad” when they had acted out, but instead focus on the “bad behavior”.  “Bad” wasn’t who they were, it was a description of what they had done.  The Old Testament lessons are a reminder of how true that is.  You can be a very good person and still fall out of relationship with God.  You can also be a very bad person but keep up good appearances for the public.

In each of the events the separation from God is brought out.  King Ahab and King David both create an elaborate scenario to keep a good face to the public.  They are so focused on what their peers will think that they don’t remember God already knows the true story.  Their cover-up only adds to their list of wrongdoings.  King Ahab could have just taken the garden, but he would have looked bad.  King David could have left Uriah alive and maybe adopted the child, or not, but he would have looked bad.

To God…they both looked worse after their creative plans played out.

Even the New Testament lesson carries the idea of God being aware. 

7:39 Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw it, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what kind of woman this is who is touching him--that she is a sinner."

God does know. 

Not only does God see the sin, he sees the heart.  We need to remember this as well.  I’ve heard people say of someone who has their bad behavior revealed, “I thought he was a good person but I guess I was wrong.”  I disagree with that statement.  Sin does not mean the person has a bad heart.  It means they fell short.  The good that they did in other areas of their life can still be honored.  It is the sin that needs to be confessed and the relationship to God restored.  The Bible tells us ALL have fallen short.  That means the good, the bad, and the average all need to deal with sin.

Sin has consequences

Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

King Ahab and Jezebel both payed for their sin with their life.  They did not reconcile with God.  They didn’t turn from their evil ways.  King David did confess his sin and sought to be reconciled with God.  His desire to renew his relationship was honored and God spared his life.  Yet his first son with Bathsheba died instead.

I don’t know about you, but such thoughts make me very uncomfortable.  Did God just kill an innocent child there?  Or perhaps the child was born ill because of the stress King David’s acts put on the mother.

The message is clear though, that sin does cause innocent lives to be lost.

Jesus was the innocent life that paid the cost for us.  He faced death in our place.  The woman at his feet had returned to focus on her relationship with God through Jesus and she was reconciled.

7:47 Therefore, I tell you, her sins, which were many, have been forgiven; hence she has shown great love. But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little."

 7:48 Then he said to her, "Your sins are forgiven."

 7:49 But those who were at the table with him began to say among themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?"

 7:50 And he said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."

There are still consequences as the results of our behavior.  I was told as a child, “when you pick up one end of a stick the other end comes with it.”  Your actions and behavior have consequences.

I have heard it said, “You aren’t punished for your sins; you’re punished by your sins.”  A song by Steven Taylor called “Sin for a Season” came to mind.  In the lyric there are two examples of falling short, as well as their result.

There's a sweaty hand handling his cocktail napkin

 "Come on up and see me", is scribbled with a gold pen

 But you'd better ring twice

Seven months after his little indiscretion

 He sits with his wife at a therapy session

 For a little advice

If the healing happens as the time goes by

 Tell me why I still can't look her in the eye

God I'm only human, got no other reason

 Sin for a season

There's a shaky hand shaking with the hand of her hostess

 Drank a little much, but she'll drive herself home

 If she can make it to her car

She never saw the sign or the boy with his daddy

 Driving home late from their very first ballgame

 And they don't get far

Now the years run together as her guilt goes wild

 She still sees the body of an only child

God I'm only human, got no other reason

 Sin for a season, sin for a season

There is pain in sin.  It brings a mental and emotional weight that can bring us to the depths of despair.  Our scripture offers us another path.

God’s grace is here for us.

Here is the passage from Galatians 2:15-21

 2:15 We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners;

 2:16 yet we know that a person is justified not by the works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ. And we have come to believe in Christ Jesus, so that we might be justified by faith in Christ, and not by doing the works of the law, because no one will be justified by the works of the law.

 2:17 But if, in our effort to be justified in Christ, we ourselves have been found to be sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin? Certainly not!

 2:18 But if I build up again the very things that I once tore down, then I demonstrate that I am a transgressor.

 2:19 For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. I have been crucified with Christ;

 2:20 and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

 2:21 I do not nullify the grace of God; for if justification comes through the law, then Christ died for nothing.

One definition for justification is “the process of making the letters at the right or left edge of a printed page form a straight line.”  To me that fits!  Christ helps straighten us out.

In sin we have lost our relationship to the degree that we no longer even remember God is there.  I believe the root cause of all sin is this separation from God.  My daughter was married in a catholic church a couple weeks ago.  After the rehearsal the priest said he would be available for anyone who wanted “reconciliation”.  In my youth that was called going to confession, but I really appreciated the change in the name to “reconciliation”.  It gets to the core.  Reconciliation is defined as “the restoration of friendly relations.”  It is by returning to relationship to God that we are healed.

It is by living in relationship to Jesus Christ that we understand our relationship to God.  The law couldn’t accomplish that.  King Ahab and Jezebel even used the law as part of their murder plot. 

But we have this promise.

Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Christ died to restore our relationship with God.  The law failed to accomplish that.

So what do I hope to leave you with this morning? 

First, recognize sin comes to us all – the good, the bad, and the average.  Sin does not indicate a bad heart.  It indicates separation from God.  We must remember that before we judge another because of their sin, and remember it when we become aware of our own. 

Second, remember that sin has consequences.   This is the cost of our free will.  We can choose to cause pain and suffering to ourselves and others.  Jesus sacrifice on the cross assured us God’s love is there for us when we return to him but our choices still have an impact on our life. 

Third, when we become aware we have fallen short we can return to God.  Christ is there for us as he was for the woman.  His words for all who return are, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."  Like Paul I pray we can pursue a life where we can say, “I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”  

Remember Romans 8:38-39 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

That “anything else” includes our sin.  It cannot separate us from God’s love.  We don’t have a ceremony of “reconciliation” in the Methodist church, but we can each come to God ourselves and acknowledge where we have fallen short and seek to restore friendly relations.  The love of God that is in Christ Jesus is there to restore wholeness for all who turn back to Him.  These are wonderful words of life.

God’s amazing grace reaches out to heal and make us whole again.  We can use that free will of ours to return to him, to be reconciled, and to be justified by our faith in Jesus Christ.  Let that be our choice today. 

Amen