Words of Welcome

  Sunrise at Arches National Park Isaiah 49:1-7 After Elwood Blues picked up his brother Jake from the Joliet Prison, they set out on a “Mission from God.” This divinely authorized mission involved raising money to prevent the bank foreclosure on the Catholic orphanage where they grew up. Although their mission from God was a race against time, nothing, not even the Illinois State Police, which was authorized to use “all unnecessary violence to apprehend the Blues Brothers,” was going to stop them from saving their childhood home.  In our reading from Isaiah 49, a prophet commonly known as Second Isaiah, may face different kinds of obstacles than the Blues Brothers, but he also found himself on a mission from God. The prophet speaks to Jewish exiles living in Babylon, offering them hope, encouragement, and their own mission from God. In an earlier chapter, God tells the people: “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my spirit up...

  Hebrews 11:29-12:2 “When the going gets tough, the tough gets going.” We often hear this saying before a tough race, game, or big decision. It’s supposed to serve as a word of encouragement when we feel like giving up in the face of difficult challenges. It speaks of the importance of persistence and perseverance.  Here in our reading from the Book of Hebrews, the author encourages us to persevere as we race toward the finish line.     I’m not a runner. I’ve never run a marathon or a 5K. Even when I was in my best shape, a long time ago, I wasn’t very fast, nor did I have the stamina to run a long-distance race. Nevertheless, I did live in Eugene, Oregon, which is known as Track Town USA. The famous marathoner Alberto Salazar was on the University of Oregon track team at the same time I was a student at a little college next door. I even got to attend the 1980 Olympic Trials that were held in Eugene. So, even though I’ve never run track, I feel like I know...

  Colossians 3:1-14 Mark Twain famously said that “Clothes make the man.” With that in mind, there’s a nonprofit called “Dress for Success” that provides appropriate clothing for job seekers. So, even in this much more casual era, clothes still stand for something. The Colossian letter speaks of life in terms of  “before and after.” Once upon a time, the majority of Colossian believers were pagan Gentiles. Then, when they received the Gospel of Jesus, they in essence put on new clothes to represent their new status as children of God. Although they once lived in darkness marked by sinful idolatry, now that they have clothed themselves with Christ, they live in the light. These new clothes represent the new, transformed self (Col. 3:9-10).  In our reading this morning, we see Paul contrasting the difference between the old and new clothes by providing the reader with a list of vices and a list of virtues. The list of vices represents their old life, their old clothes...

Mark 1:29-39 Qoheleth wrote long ago that there is a season for everything under heaven, including a time to heal (Eccl. 3:1, 3). Is this a time when healing is needed? With all the brokenness present in our world, including the physical, mental, and emotional toll of COVID, the answer is yes. We need the “balm in Gilead” that makes “the wounded whole.” So, “Heal me, hands of Jesus, and search out all my pain; restore my hope, remove my fear, and bring me peace again” [Michael Perry, Chalice Hymnal , 404].  According to Mark, Jesus immediately left the synagogue and entered the home of Simon and Andrew. Just to catch you up on the story, Jesus went to the synagogue in Capernaum that Sabbath morning with Simon, Andrew, James, and John. Whether or not he was the scheduled preacher that day, Jesus proclaimed the good news and cast out an unclean spirit. Mark reports that everyone who heard him preach was amazed because he taught with authority. As a result, his fame spread through...

Isaiah 49:1-7 When Elwood Blues picked up his brother Jake at the Joliet Prison, they set out on a “Mission from God.” They felt called to raise money to prevent the foreclosure of the Catholic orphanage in which they grew up. It’s a movie filled with music and car crashes, but the main point is this “mission from God.” Nothing was going to stop them from raising the money to pay off the creditor before it was too late. It was a race against time, but nothing would stop them from saving their home.  In our reading last Sunday from Isaiah 42 we heard God speak to a group of exiles, reminding them that they were God’s covenant people. God said to them:  “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations.” ( Is 42:1 ). This morning we’ve heard a second Servant Song as found in Isaiah 49. In today’s reading, we hear that God called the Servant to be a light to the...

Luke 13:31-35 It is written in the book of Ecclesiastes: For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: (Eccl. 3:1) There is, therefore,   “a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance (vs. 4).   We began our Lenten journey with the imposition of ashes, which is a sign of mourning and repentance.  This is a time to weep.  But, we end our journey on Easter Morning with shouts of Alleluia, because Christ our Lord is Risen from the Dead.     Lent reminds us that the life of a disciple of Jesus is complicated.  There are moments of great joy, but also moments of sadness and even suffering. The reading from Luke begins with a warning from a group of  Pharisees.  They tell Jesus that Herod Antipas wants to add his head to that of John the Baptist.  Jesus tells the “fox,” as he calls the king, that his destiny lies not in Galilee but in Jerusalem. Th...

Third in a series of four Acts 17:16-21     I think we’ve established over the past few weeks that even if God doesn’t normally speak to us in an audible voice, we can still hear the voice of God.  We just need help.  There’s Scripture, of course, which we often call the Word of God, and it is normally our starting point.  After all, we read from Scripture every Sunday as part of worship.  But as the Gospel of John reminds us, Jesus is the Word of God in the flesh, not the Bible.  Although Scripture seems to be a central way in which God speaks to us, is it the only way we hear God speak?      We started to answer this question last Sunday with a conversation about Tradition, which is the ongoing story of God’s involvement in our world, beginning with Creation and continuing to this day.  Tradition is an important voice, but perhaps there are still others that might speak to us.  If so, could Reason b...