Wednesday 28 December 2016

A Thought For The Week Of December 26, 2016

"... always be ready to make a reply to anyone who asks you to explain the hope that is in you." (1 Peter 3:15) I get the sense that at least in Peter's eyes, hopefulness is not the default position of the human heart. And I think if you follow the news and look at what goes on in the world you can probably understand that. In a lot of ways people do seem to have lost hope - and I see that this week as people begin to look ahead to the new year. It's as if the move forward in time is being made very tentatively. It's not that the year that's almost passed away is being lamented as a great year. Famous and inspiring people from Leonard Cohen to Carrie Fisher to Richard Adams have died seemingly one after another; various elections haven't turned out the way they were expected to, and those on the losing end of them are apprehensive about what the results will bring. And the feeling seems to be that 2017 will be worse. It all seems rather bleak. I feel a sense of unease rather than celebration as people look ahead to a new year. People have lost hope in institutions, including the church. People have lost hope in politicians and governments. We're conditioning ourselves to believe that things will not be as good for our children as they've been for us. The Arctic is 30 degrees celsius warmer than it should be. Terrorism and violence are in the news it seems every day. Where will it end? To be hopeful seems foolish. That, of course, represents an opportunity for people of faith - who should, of all people, be the most hopeful! Hopeful people stand out at this moment in history - and, really, who should be more hopeful than followers of Jesus, who died and yet rose again to life! Surely that's why Peter tells us that we should be prepared to offer a reason for our hope, because simply by being hopeful we will be noticed! There are a lot of things we should be able to do as hopeful people: we have to look for the good rather than expect the bad; we have to speak truth rather than surrender to falsehood; we have to work to make things better rather than lament how bad things are. Then, we have to be ready to explain why we do those things. And, really, it's simple. It's because we believe in Jesus - that he is alive and with us. And if you have a real belief in a Lord who died and rose again and is still alive then we of all people should be the most hopeful. I don't have all the answers to the world's problems. But I'm convinced of this - that if God truly loved the world so much that he gave his only Son (that he gave, literally, of himself) and if God's Son continues to be with us, then God has not given up on us. The world will go on. I am a person of hope. Happy new year!

Sunday 25 December 2016

December 25, 2016 sermon: God Gave

If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed.
(John 3:12-20)

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     Gather around, friends, because I want to tell you a Christmas story. Now, I confess that I'm no Charles Dickens – so there won't be a miserly old curmudgeon suddenly transformed – and I'm no Chevy Chase -  so you're not going to be rolling on the floor laughing. I'm not even Macauley Culkin – so there will be no accounts of children left to fend for themselves. My Christmas story is just a little bit different than any of those, and it revolves around these words: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” They're familiar words – probably among the most familiar words in the Bible. They're at the heart of this extended passage that we read, which looks at the past, moves on to the future and even discusses judgement. They're at the heart of the entire Gospel message. In fact, John 3:16 has sometimes been referred to as “the little gospel” - the point being that everything you ever really needed to know about the gospel you find in that one verse. We usually associate the verse with Good Griday, so that “God gave” is associated with sacrifice, but I often think of the words “God gave” as being about Christmas. “God gave his only Son” reminds us that Christmas ultimately isn't about the gifts we found under the Christmas tree today, and it's not about Santa or shopping or turkey or lights, or any of those things. They're all wonderful. I'm not one of those Christian grumps who complain about the secular Christmas. But, for me, “God gave his only Son” reminds me about what this day is all about – God gave us Jesus. In a sense, Jesus himself was the first Christmas gift – given by God. I want to focus on John 3:16 for just a few moments as a part of our Christmas celebration.

     “God so loved the world ...” God loved. The birth of Jesus was an act of divine love. It wasn't love defined as an emotion that you might feel toward some and not others, or that might come and go depending on a whole lot of variables. This is love – the perfect love – the love that will not die – the love that will not end. This is love not just as an emotion, but love as an action. This is love not just as an uncontrollable feeling, but love as a deliberate choice. This is a love that doesn't look with mere affection on its object, but love that offers complete devotion to its object. This is love that doesn't look with pity on its object, but love that stands in solidarity with its object. This is not selfish love that seeks to be loved in return, but selfless love that simply loves for the sake of loving. This is love with no ulterior motive and no secret agenda. This is simply love. As John would later write in 1 John, “In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son ...”

     “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son ...” God gave. And the point is that God gave of himself. God didn't give a trinket bought at WalMart, neither did God go into debt believing that love has a price or can be bought. God gave of himself – of that which was nearest and dearest and closest to God. God gave. God did not give a gift that would be of fleeting value – appreciated but someday probably forgotten; heart-warming but not life-changing; fading away with the passage of time and ultimately replaced in our hearts by something bigger or shinier or more interesting. God gave “his only Son” - a Son who would promise to be with us forever. Matthew's Gospel is interesting, because it begins and ends on the same note: in Matthew 1, Jesus is called “Emmanuel” - “God With Us” and in Matthew 28, Jesus' last words to his disciples are “I will be with you always ...” God gave – a gift of lasting value and importance. God gave us Jesus, who stands with us and never abandons us.

     “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him ...” That word “everyone” is key. God doesn't give as we give. As Jesus himself said, “I do not give to you as the world gives.” How does the world give? The world tends to give sparingly – only to those we think of as deserving. We're cautious about our giving. We pick and choose the recipients of our love carefully, as if love is a limited commodity that we can't choose to give away in abundance. We tend to get a bit cynical if those we give to don't seem to appreciate what we've given as much as we think they should. Not so with God. God gives extravagantly. God is love and so God loves without limit. God doesn't stop to consider who is or isn't worthy of receiving gifts. The gift God gives is there for the taking. It's not reserved for anyone in particular, it's not restricted to only certain groups of people, the supply of what God gives never runs out. It is, quite literally, a gift for “everyone.”

     And, finally, “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” It is, literally, the perfect gift. Once we receive it, we never perish. I think the point here is beyond simply saying that we won't die. That's important – but it goes beyond even that. I think the point is that we aren't insignificant. Most people fear insignificance. They're worried that they won't make a difference; that they won't leave anything of lasting value. Saying that we won't perish but will have eternal life I think is meant literally – our death will not be the end – but it's also meant figuratively: it tells us that we are of great significance. We matter to God; we are important to God. What matters is more than just this flesh and blood existence that we lead. What matters and gives us significance is the love that God has for us. We will not perish because God will not forget us or leave us or abandon us. We will not perish because Jesus – the great gift that God has given – is with us always.

     “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” This is the real Christmas story – beyond anything that any author has imagined or any movie maker has produced. This is the real Christmas story – even beyond the manger and angels and shepherds and magi. God loved – God gave – for everyone – forever.

     I'm glad we've gathered here today, on Christmas Day. Henry Van Dyke said that “It is a good thing to observe Christmas Day. ... But there is a better thing than the observance of Christmas Day, and that is, keeping Christmas.” We truly keep Christmas by remembering the great gift that God has given us and by letting it touch us and guide us every day of the year. God gave – and may God's giving be our example.

Monday 19 December 2016

A Thought For The Week Of December 19, 2016

"And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn." (Luke 2:7) I came across an article in the news today about Patapsco United Methodist Church in Dundalk, Maryland. It seems that over the years the church grounds had become a place where homeless people slept. The congregation is small (about 50 people on a Sunday) and as a result somewhat limited as to what they can do to help the poor and homeless, but decided that allowing their property to be used in such a way was in keeping with Christian love and charity. Not long ago, the pastor of the church found a notice on the door from the local municipal authorities telling them to evict the homeless people and refuse to allow them to sleep on the property (it was a residential neighbourhood, and the neighbours objected) or be fined $12000. There's no word on what the church plans to do, although they note that a $12000 fine would be difficult for them to pay. It's ironic that this story made the news just as Christmas is fast approaching. Mary and Joseph had no place to stay. The innkeeper found them a place in a stable. Not luxury accommodation - but the best he could do. In spite of the fact that he's often looked down upon, the innkeeper is actually an example of sorts. He did what he could. This church in Dundalk is doing what they can. The church everywhere is called to do what it can. The world has a tendency to look down upon the poor and homeless. We'd much rather sweep them out of the way and pretend that they're not there. And we certainly don't want them in "our" neighbourhoods. But perhaps we need to reflect just a bit about the Christmas story - and about Jesus' teaching that "whatever you do for the least of these, you do for me." If the church can help, the church should help. If there's a price to be paid - well, Jesus never told us that living out our faith in him would be easy or that there would be no price attached. "Take up your cross and follow me" suggests that being a disciple of Jesus has a huge price tag attached. The world is full of such desperate need. Find a way to show love to those who desperately need love. If those who think they aren't worthy of that love object - well, just wish them a merry Christmas and go about your work of sharing the love of Jesus with all.

Sunday 18 December 2016

December 18, 2016 sermon: The Chosen Mother(s)

And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name.
His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.” And Mary remained with her about three months and then returned to her home.
(Luke 1:46-56)

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     It’s called “cutting off your nose to spite your face,” or perhaps “throwing out the baby with the bath water.” Those are ways of referring to over-reactions. There’s some problem that we’ve identified; something that isn’t quite right - but instead of just fixing the problem we end up doing so much to compensate for it that we cause more damage than the original problem had created. Protestants should be able to understand that. The Reformation might have been necessary corrections to some aspects of the theology of the Roman Catholic Church in the 16th and 17th centuries, but in some ways it really did throw the baby out with the bath water. If you want a classic example of that, well - I give you Mary: Mother of Jesus and - yes - Mother of God. The great reformers of the church believed that Mary had been elevated as a figure of veneration (and almost worship) that nothing in the Bible entitles her to, but in response they went too far, and Mary virtually disappeared from the Protestant horizon; trotted out as part of a nativity scene every December, or played by a young girl in a Sunday School play at Christmas, but she’s rarely given a voice, and she’s not thought of in Protestant churches as much more than a sideshow to the main event. I think she deserves more; I think she deserves better. I think Protestants need to reclaim Mary.

     Aside from the fact that she was Jesus’ mother, the words we read today might be the most well known thing about Mary. They’re called “The Magnificat” - or, “The Song of Mary.” They’re recorded as the response that Mary gave to the angel when she was told that she would become the mother of the Son of God. They’re some of the most beautiful words that we find in Scripture: they are comforting, they are faith-filled, they are passionate, they are humble and they are revolutionary. They are all those things at the same time. There are few other expressions of faith in the Bible that come even close to capturing what we find in those 11 verses.

     That might make it sound strange when you hear me say that at first glance I was a little put off by Mary’s words in this passage. I don’t know how many times I’ve read the Song of Mary over the years, but for some reason it suddenly struck me that Mary seemed to say that her reason for glorifying the Lord and rejoicing in God was simply because of what God had done for her - because all generations would call her blessed and God had done great things for her. That sounded on the surface just a little bit selfish. Should we really be glorifying the Lord and rejoicing in God just because of what God does for us? I started to think that Mary was getting into some dangerous territory: so God can be glorified and we can rejoice when we’re blessed - but otherwise? Does that give us license to not glorify and rejoice in God if we don’t seem to get the blessings? But then, of course, I remembered the most important thing to remember about any passage in the Bible: context.

     To really appreciate what Mary is saying and why this is such a powerful statement of faith, we have to dig into the question of what it is that God has actually done for Mary. First - this puts her at risk. She’s unmarried, and she’s going to have a baby. Under the Law, that’s an offence worthy of stoning! But Mary looks beyond the immediate risk and realizes that she has been blessed. She has been chosen to be the mother of Jesus. So she’s glorifying the Lord and rejoicing in God not because God has set her aside for great material blessings, but because God has chosen her to be a servant - and a servant whose servanthood would carry a huge price. Maybe that’s what we’re supposed to be holding up as an example here. It’s not just that it’s a beautiful passage - but it tells us that we are to glorify the Lord and rejoice in God because God calls us to be servants. Now - that has bite! That’s counter-cultural! We don’t want to be servants. We want to be in charge. We don’t want to be at the bottom of the barrel - we want to work our way to the top of the heap! Not everyone can make it, but that’s the goal. But Mary (and later Jesus) was content being a servant. More than just content, Mary saw being called to be a servant as a great blessing. That tells us something hugely important about our faith and gives us something to ponder about what our faith does for us: we glorify the Lord and rejoice in God not because we are called to greatness, but because we are called to service. That is radically counter-cultural. That goes against everything our culture tells us we should aim for. These 11 verses highlight for us the difference that faith in God makes in our lives. It gives us a radically different perspective on what greatness really is. I wonder if those who translated the Bible even really know what to make of it.

     I don’t talk a lot about translation issues, but this one is interesting. In v.49 most translations of the Bible have Mary saying that the Lord has done great things “for” her. But there are a few translations that have Mary saying that the Lord has done something “to” her - and that actually seems to be more accurate. Maybe it’s just a semantic issue but this seems to make a difference - which translation you choose gives a different feel to the whole story. “To her” sounds as if God has done something unpleasant; “for her” sounds as if God has done something wonderful. Knowing, of course, how the story ultimately ends, I think I could easily understand Mary saying that God had done something “to her.”

     And what does this say to us? It seems to me that Mary - even more than Jesus in some ways - becomes our example. Mary is our example of how to live a humble life and still glorify God through it. Mary is our example of how to live a life of service that is also a life of blessing. Mary - yes, the Mother of God - reminds us that we - each and every one of us - are called to incarnate the divine each and every day. In the 13th century, Meister Eckhart - a German Dominican theologian - wrote that “we are all meant to be mothers of God … for God is always needing to be born.”  We do that by living as an example of how God wants all of his children to live: humbly, with courage and without pretension, with a steadfast faith and a steely resolve to follow whatever path God has laid out for us, even if at times it’s unpleasant and hard. And as we contemplate this divine call upon our lives, perhaps we can also say with Mary, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name.”

Monday 12 December 2016

A Thought For The Week Of December 12, 2016

"Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word." (Luke 2:29) Simeon could die in peace. He had known that the Messiah was coming, and having seen Jesus, he was basically able to say that to God. "You can take me now or whenever you want. I'm at peace because I've seen him." There seem to be two things going on here. The first is the idea that Simeon's life had been fulfilled by the appearance of Jesus. Everything he had been waiting for - all his hopes and dreams and expectations - had come in Jesus. He needed nothing else. That's a point for Christians to remember today. In Jesus, we find our deepest yearnings fulfilled. Once we encounter Jesus, we find that everything else pales in comparison. Which then leads me to the second point that comes from Simeon's encounter with Jesus. With his life now totally fulfilled, Simeon could be at peace - Simeon could live in peace; Simeon could even die in peace. He had no more needs, no more struggles and no more fears. It was all good - because of the appearance of Jesus. So it should be with Christians today. We should be at peace - able to face the future and whatever it holds (up to and including death) without any fear. Jesus brings complete peace, and knowing that he is a part of our lives should be enough to satisfy us totally. Country singer Tim McGraw sang a song in which he said to "live like you were dying." I think Jesus would understand that, because it's basically what Jesus did. It's not a sombre thought. It's a challenge to those who listen to the song to not hold back - to live each day as if it's our last, and to make sure that we live meaningfully in a way that tries to make a positive difference - because even if it is our last day, we have nothing to fear and we have everything we could possibly need in Jesus. As Simeon said, "my eyes have seen your salvation." All who follow Jesus have seen the salvation of God. All who follow Jesus can be at peace.

Sunday 11 December 2016

December 11, 2016 sermon: The Gifts We Can Give To The World

When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?” Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me.” As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? What then did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written, ‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.’ Truly I tell you, among those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.
(Matthew 11:2-11)

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     Gifts. They’re wonderful - and yet I suspect for many people gifts are also the hardest part of the Christmas season. There was a survey done in the United Kingdom that suggested that the only life experiences that are more stressful than Christmas are the death of loved ones, buying a new house, losing or starting a new job, getting divorced and becoming a parent. Christmas is right up there with those life changing and sometimes life shattering events - and a big part of the stress around Christmas has to do with gifts. That survey says that 86% of people say they find buying presents difficult and 65% find Christmas shopping a stressful experience. 30% of people get stressed just at the mere thought of starting Christmas shopping, and 61% say they have no idea what they should buy and they worry that people won't like what they've bought them. 60% of people have at some time had the horrible experience of buying a gift for someone and seeing disappointment on their faces when they opened it. It was a British survey, but I doubt that the results would be that much different in Canada. Buying gifts is tough - not to mention that it can be expensive. You don’t want to look cheap by spending too little, but you also don’t want to go into too much debt by spending too much. So what do you buy? That’s why shopping malls are often full on Christmas Eve - because many people like to put Christmas shopping off until literally the last possible moment. They just don’t want to face it. And they honestly don’t know what to buy. When I was about 7 years old, I bought my mother deodorant for Christmas. DON’T JUDGE ME! I WAS 7!!!!! I didn’t know what to buy her. I remember buying it, but I don’t remember her response. I’m sure it was gracious and thankful. I mean - it was a useful gift! And then - as the survey said - there’s the problem of receiving gifts. 60% of people have given a gift and known from the look on the face of the person they gave it to that they don’t like it. And how do I respond if I don’t like something that someone gives me? Do I manage to successfully mask my disappointment and look enthusiastic? I hope so. Remember - it’s not the gift that counts, it’s that someone thought enough about you to give you the gift! That’s what matters.

     I thought about John the Baptist and his disciples. A couple of weeks ago I was speaking of how important the question they asked Jesus in today’s reading was: “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?” If Jesus was a gift - and I would say that Jesus was in fact God’s gift to the world - then how did John and his disciples receive that gift. Not well apparently. They had questions and doubts and uncertainties. Jesus, as it turned out, wasn’t exactly the gift from God that they had been expecting. Who knows exactly what they were expecting - but John himself was a pretty fiery guy who wasn’t shy about telling people exactly what he thought, so one might assume that a Messiah who came saying “blessed are the meek” was a bit unexpected. And they seem to have been among those who were disappointed by the gift they gift. “Really? Are you really the one?” It’s as if what they’re really saying is, “Please tell us there’s someone else!” And Jesus said, “No. I’m it.” And he cited the various “gifts” (if you will) that he had to offer: “the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them.” The gifts of God for the people of God, you might say.

     Today, I think, the church wonders what we have to give; what we have to offer to those around us; what gifts we can bestow upon the people we encounter. I suspect that a lot of Christians have trouble answering that question. In congregations I’ve served in the past I’ve sometimes asked people “what would people in the community miss about this church if we weren’t here anymore?” And, distressingly, I find that most people can’t answer the question. They can say what THEY would miss about the church. They know what the church does for them, but - others? What do we offer to others? The British survey about Christmas stress said that when people are asked the kind of gift they’d like to receive almost everyone wants something primarily for themselves. Only 3.7% of those who took the survey said that they wanted something they could share with others. Isn’t that interesting. Only 3.7%!! Maybe that’s part of the problem in the church. We’ve forgotten how to share, and in many cases I suspect we’ve forgotten that we have something to share. Evangelism has become the word that dare not be spoken. We think primarily of what our faith or our church does for us - but what would the person who lives across the street or down the road from us miss about Pickering Village United Church if we weren’t here? That’s something to think about. It’s a question I hope the Visioning Committee that’s been meeting will take some time to ponder.

     But at least in general terms, I think Jesus does give us the answer. Rev. Mary Hinkle Shore wrote that “I get how John got Jesus wrong … But how are we getting Jesus wrong? It’s tough to understand because it’s not that complicated. Jesus explained what he gave: “the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them.” The key to understanding both the gift we’ve been given and the gift we have to give is probably found in those last few words: “the poor have good news brought to them.” Who are the poor? Does Jesus just mean those who don’t have very much money, or is it wider and broader than that? I suspect that the poor are those who have need; those who don’t have enough - whether that be enough money, enough food, enough health, or maybe the poor are those with no power, no respect, no status, maybe it’s even those with no faith.

     And what “gift” do we have for them? So many today think that the church has little to offer. Maybe we’re not sure ourselves what we have to offer to those who have little. But that isn’t true. We can’t solve everyone’s problems and we can’t provide for everyone’s needs - but what we can do is be a place where those who have little or where those who are tossed aside and ignored and even hated are welcomed - without question and without judgement, but always with love and grace. That should be what we do best, because we’ve seen it and experienced it in action - because it’s what God has given us in Jesus: unconditional love and acceptance without question and without judgement. Gift giving doesn’t have to be hard or stressful. And when you’re the church, it should be easy. Just give the grace of God. Just give Jesus.

Monday 5 December 2016

A Thought For The Week Of December 5, 2016

"Pharaoh then summoned wise men and sorcerers, and the Egyptian magicians also did the same things by their secret arts ..." (Exodus 7:11) I thought I would continue on to another part of the exodus story this week. Moses and Aaron are now in front of Pharaoh. According to the story, in a first attempt to convince Pharaoh of the power of God, Aaron threw his staff on the ground, and it turned into a snake. Well, there are a lot of false prophets. They're in the world today - and they were in Egypt long ago. And, as we all know - because we've see it happen - they have the ability to lead many people astray; to draw them away from God. And the reason (or at least one reason) that they can lead so many people astray is because - quite honestly - false prophets can sometimes seem to do amazing things, even as false as they are. We see an example of that in Exodus 7:8-13. The magicians of Egypt were able to make their staffs turn into snakes, just as Aaron's staff had done. There are, indeed, a lot of deceptive false prophets out there. A lot of miracles; a lot of signs and wonders. And I don't dismiss that there are miracles and signs and wonders in the world around us. Some of them are from God? Others? Well ... some would argue I guess that if it looks good and impresses people then it must be of God. I'm not so sure. Pharaoh was impressed by his magicians. So impressed that he wouldn't even consider the possibility of letting the Hebrews go. Why should he - when his magicians were every bit as impressive as Aaron and his God. Even the elect can be deceived, the New Testament tells us. How much easier to deceive Pharaoh? In the end the power of Aaron's God was shown by the fact that his "snake" ate up the other "snakes." Still, Pharaoh wouldn't be budged. So taken was he by his magicians - his false prophets - that even the one God couldn't get his attention. This story is a call to discernment. Amazing things in and of themselves don't point to the presence of God. The results of those amazing things are what matters. Pharaoh's magicians did tricks; Ultimately, Aaron's God would set the people free. Does anything productive come from the signs and wonders that false prophets today love to point to? People can be easily led astray - as even Jesus acknowledged. Sometimes the results are tragic. So we have to be cautious and act always with discernment. God's way is the way of truth, freedom and love which all are invited to share. Anything else is a word from a false prophet.

Sunday 4 December 2016

December 4 2016 sermon: A Call To Be Humble

A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, and favour is better than silver or gold. The rich and the poor have this in common: the Lord is the maker of them all. The clever see danger and hide; but the simple go on, and suffer for it. The reward for humility and fear of the Lord is riches and honour and life.
(Proverbs 22:1-4)

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     Ego. Pride. Arrogance. Narcissism. Self-Centredness. And I'm not even talking about the President-elect of the United States! I'm talking about the human condition – the sinful nature, as Paul would have described it. The tendency of human beings to become so focused on ourselves and our own needs and our own wants that we become oblivious to everyone and everything around us; oblivious to how our actions impact those around us; oblivious even to God. Now, all of us have a little bit of natural ego and pride. I've studied a wee bit of Freud over the years. I understand the concept of the id. We all have one. And, to continue with Freud for a moment, we hopefully all have a super-ego as well, helping to keep that darn little id under control before it wreaks havoc. But sometimes we do wreak havoc. It's in our lives, in the lives of others – including those we love, in the world. “Cure your children's warring madness” wrote Harry Emerson Fosdick in the hymn “God Of Grace And God Of Glory.” It's the id that causes war – ego and pride and arrogance, etc. It's the id that causes a lack of peace – whether in the world or in our own lives. It's the id that sometimes causes us to go to war with God, reflecting our desire to be our own god – to do what we want when we want and to face no consequences for it. It does us no credit. It gains us no honour. It creates nothing but chaos. And we see its effects all around us. The reverse would be to live in peace – peace in the world; peace in our lives; peace with those around us. And that requires that we do battle with and ultimately take control of those things – ego, pride, arrogance, narcissism, self-centredness. Today is the Second Sunday of Advent – Peace Sunday. A life freed from the control of such qualities would be a life of peace – a humble life of contentedness with what we have rather than desperate grabbing after what we want.  Proverbs says that “the reward for humility and fear of the Lord is riches and honour and life.” I admit that I'm not sure about riches and honour – material rewards seem somehow out of place, although the reference could be to spiritual riches and honour before God - but to live humbly and with a proper awe for God is true life, at peace with the world.  Surely that's the goal of God for his creation. Surely that would “cure [God's] children's warring madness.” Surely that's a part of the vision of Advent.

     I find myself struck by the relationship between humility and “the fear of the Lord,” and especially relating it to the season of Advent; to the appearance of Christ. Fear was a part of that event as well – once Herod discovered that the Christ child had been born, it's said that he was filled with fear or dread – and all Jerusalem with him. I've never thought of a connection between fear and humility before, but as I reflect upon it I see that it makes more and more sense. Herod and Jerusalem were filled with fear because their predictable and comfortable lives were suddenly threatened. Jesus always upsets and threatens the powerful. The powerful think of themselves as above all else; as gods unto themselves – accountable to no one, or at least as unaccountable as possible. Then Jesus appears, and demands that we make the choice to live for ourselves or for God; demands that we live in awe of God; demands that we give up the privileges of our existence and join him in that crude and bare manger, where life is often a struggle, but where God shines most brightly and we find ourselves awestruck by the divine presence. And we cannot be in awe of the Lord if we aren't humble. If we're not humble then our tendency is to become more and more self-centred. It all comes down to us. That's arrogance, and eventually it impacts our view of God. We no longer encounter God as God chooses to be encountered, and instead we restrict God to only those areas of our lives where we want God. A lack of humility is what creates the problem of creating God in our own image. If we're not humble then our assumption is that God must be basically like us; our assumption is that we know everything there is to know about God. A lot of people are like that.

     I wonder sometimes what it actually looks like to be humble? Sometimes – just given the nature of our society – some of these qualities that are held up as ideals for Christians are looked down upon by society as weaknesses; as qualities not to be desired or developed. But humility – to me – means to have the ability to be in real and productive relationships with others. It means to recognize that we’re no better than those around us. In reference to God it means to learn to accept the fact that God is not like us. That’s always been a problem for people of faith. We constantly want to create God in our own image. I suppose that makes God comfortable to us, but it’s not humble. To be humble is to accept that God is not like us; that God cannot be judged by human standards; that God is not subject to human limitations. It is to accept that there are things about God that I do not know and that I will never know. Once I acknowledge that, only then am I able to truly “fear the Lord” in the way the phrase is meant in the Bible – to be in awe (awestruck) by God. You can't really be in awe of a God who is just like you after all. It's being humble enough to admit that God is far greater than I am and that I will always have a lot more to learn about God that causes me to be in awe of God. Jesus sets the example for us.

     Think about what we’re doing at this time of year; think about who we’re worshiping. The omnipotent God becoming the helpless child. Mary's Saviour becomes dependent on Mary for survival. What does this tell us about God? It tells us that God does not abuse divine power. It tells us that God does not seek to coerce those he has created. It tells us that God chooses the way of humility; that God chooses not to come in power and majesty to overwhelm the creation, but rather than God comes in weakness rather than power; in the ordinary form of a baby rather than in the majesty of a king – not to overwhelm us but to be one of us. This is God. This is Jesus. This is the example that’s been set for us to try to live up to. Even in life, this was the example of Jesus. Jesus – who “being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.” This is our example of how to live a life of faithfulness; a life of true witness to Jesus.

     It’s the only way to peace – whether we’re talking peace on a grand scale at the level of nations, or whether we’re talking peace in our relationships with those around us, or whether we’re simply talking about inner peace. To be humble is to be content. It is to let go of the grasping and selfish nature that so many people are conquered by and it is to be content with the provisions God has made for us, and it is to use those blessings to reach out ourselves to those who have need. Because this is what Christ did.

     The table tells us. The table witnesses to us. The bread and wine cry aloud to us. This is a memorial feast to honour Jesus and all he did and continues to do for us. This is a reminder to us of the very nature of God, who through Jesus sought nothing and gave everything.

Tuesday 29 November 2016

A Communion Litany For Advent

I've put this together for use at our service this coming Sunday. Some of it is completely original, and some parts are loosely adapted from other sources. I love the hymn "It Came Upon The Midnight Clear." It's known and used as a Christmas carol, but I've always thought that it worked really well as an Advent song, and I got it into my head that I wanted to write a Communion litany for Advent using the four verses of the song. This is what came of that idea. Thought I would share.

THE SACRAMENT OF HOLY COMMUNION:

Leader: May God be with us.
People: God is here among us.
Leader: Let us open our hearts to God.
People: We open them to God and to one another.
Leader: Let us give thanks to God.
People: It is right to give our thanks and praise.

Leader: God, we give our thanks and praise to you today as we reflect upon your promise of peace to come upon the world. Through Jesus Christ you worked unceasingly to reconcile all peoples to yourself, to break down barriers and to offer to all people the hope of freedom and justice. And yet, we who speak for you today and who seek to live out your gospel, often fall prey to the ways of the world, and we fail to hear the lessons you taught.
People: Hush us, that we might hear your word:
HYMN #44 (VU): "It Came Upon The Midnight Clear" (verse 1)

Leader: God, even in the face of humanity's rejection of you and of your Son, Jesus Christ, your love continues to shine. But we have taken this world you have created, and engulfed it in chaos. We have stopped listening to you; we have stopped listening for you. We often believe you are silent, but we simply choose to drown you out with our foolishness. And yet, even over the din of competing and often angry voices, your word continues to go forth.
People: Hush us, that we might hear your word:
HYMN #44 (VU): "It Came Upon The Midnight Clear" (verse 2)

Leader: God, you have created the human family. You have called us and claimed us as your own. You love each one of us as your beloved children, and you call us to a radical and selfless love: for one another, for our neighbours and even for those we think of as enemies. But that love is difficult, and we often content ourselves with loving only those whom we feel are deserving. We resort to hatred and violence; war rather than peace becomes our norm.
People: Hush us, that we might hear your word:
HYMN #44 (VU): "It Came Upon The Midnight Clear" (verse 3)

Leader: And yet - God, you promise us new beginnings, in our lives and in the world. Long ago, in a Bethlehem stable, your love appeared in Jesus - not just to shepherds and wise men, but to us as well; not just to Israel, but to all the nations and people of the world. He lived, he loved and he died. But death could not contain him. The power of his life overcame death, and he was resurrected to glory, our hope that the challenges of this world can be overcome.
People: Hush us, that we might hear your word:
HYMN #44 (VU): "It Came Upon The Midnight Clear" (verse 4)

Leader: Now, together, hearts and souls joined with all the saints of every time and place, we join even the angels and archangels of heaven in proclaiming:
All: Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might. Heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.

Leader: We gather at this table to remember that on the night before he died, Jesus ate with his friends, he took a loaf of bread, and after blessing it, he broke it and gave it to them, saying: “Take, eat. This is my body, given for you. Each time you do this, remember me.” That same night, Jesus also took a cup, and after giving thanks, passed it to his friends, saying: “Drink. This cup, poured out for you, is the promise of God. Whenever you drink it, remember me.”  We remember Jesus’ death and celebrate his resurrection; we await with hope his coming again to bring peace and justice to the earth; and we proclaim the mystery of our faith:

All: Christ has died; Christ is risen; Christ will come again!

Leader: Send, O God, your Holy Spirit upon us and what we do here, that we and these gifts, touched by your Spirit, may be signs of life and love to one another, and to the world. Through Christ, with Christ, and in Christ, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory is yours, God most holy, now and forever.

The Lord's Prayer (Sung)

The Breaking of the Bread and The Raising Of The Cup

The Invitation To The Table

The Sharing

Prayer After Communion (from the Coptic tradition):
All: O God, how great is the gift that you saved for your people. How sweet is your grace to those who love you. We thank you our Lord for looking after us. You granted us this holy food that doesn’t perish, by which you opened to us all the way to eternal life. Kindle the flames of your love in us, save the blessing of Your grace in our hearts not for judgement or to fall into judging but to receive glory, purity of soul and body and to live with you, survive for you and continue with your grace. So guide us to your holiness and fill us with your grace and consecrate us with your soul. Glory to You, Father, Son and Holy Spirit now and until eternity arrives. Amen.

Monday 28 November 2016

A Thought For The Week Of November 28, 2016

"... Moses said before the Lord, “Listen! I am unskilled in speech, so how will Pharaoh listen to me?”" (Exodus 6:30) Speaking truth to power. This was the dilemma that was facing Moses at that moment. God had asked Moses to speak the truth to power: to go to Pharaoh with the demand "let my people go." And - understandably enough - Moses was hesitant. "How will Pharaoh listen to me?" he said. And it was a good question. And it remains a good question for people of faith today - why would "power" listen to us? And it seems to me that - with tragic consequences - the question causes people of faith (and the church corporately) to react in one of two ways. First, we can become very insular. So we think only about ourselves and we care only about ourselves and we stop trying to make any sort of difference in the world around us - because why would anyone who matters listen to us anyway? Or there's the second option. Sometimes we choose to accommodate ourselves to or even ally ourselves with those in power.We become a part of the power structure. But when you're a part of the power structure it's hard to hold the power structure accountable. So we might be listened to, but what we're saying isn't the radical, world changing message of Jesus. This was the tragedy of christendom: the church gained worldly power and then compromised itself to try to hang on to it, choosing not to speak the truth to power but to turn a blind eye to power. Moses had to face this dilemma. "How will Pharaoh listen to me?" Well, maybe Pharaoh wouldn't.  But God freed the people anyway. And maybe the powers today won't listen to us. But God will still be active. We should never be afraid to speak the truth to power, or despair that we can make a difference when we do, or just give in in the hopes of sharing in worldly power. We should simply speak the truth - God's truth - to power. The results of that witness we leave in God's hands.

November 27, 2016 sermon: Preparing To Be Prepared

The word that Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem. "In days to come the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be raised above the hills; all the nations shall stream to it. Many peoples shall come and say, 'Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.' For out of Zion shall go forth instruction, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations, and shall arbitrate for many peoples; they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. O house of Jacob, come, let us walk in the light of the Lord!"
(Isaiah 2:1-5)

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        It’s Advent. Four weeks to go. We can all probably remember the buildup of excitement we felt as children in the weeks before Christmas - the “I’m so excited I can barely wait until Christmas Day” kind of feeling. But as we grow older and wiser, we also lose that wonderful childlike innocence and wonder that Jesus found so precious. I suppose it’s a sign of maturity when the excitement of the weeks before Christmas starts to fade and we begin to temper our expectations in the hard, cold light of reality but while it may be mature and grounded in reality, sometimes tempering expectations with reality does nothing more than shatter our dreams - and our dreams are the expressions of our hopes.

        God’s people were on the precipice of losing their hopes and dreams. Isaiah’s prophecy, which we read earlier, was offered in the midst of a great war being fought between Babylon and God’s people of Israel and Judah. Even as Isaiah wrote, the Babylonian armies were advancing battle by battle and kilometre by kilometre. The situation was desperate, and there truly seemed to be no hope. And yet, in this vision, God does offer hope to his people - not hope that the Babylonians would be stopped, but hope of what lay beyond the immediate future of defeat and exile. In this vision, God promised his people that one day God’s temple would be exalted as the highest mountain of the earth; that it would become a gathering place for all nations; that all the people of the world would come to know God and to live in God’s way; that the weapons of war would be replaced by the tools of peace. It was a vision of the future - and it’s still a vision of the future. The First Sunday of Advent is set aside for a consideration of hope - but sometimes the temptation is there to ask: what hope? As Christians, we proclaim that our hope is found in Jesus Christ; our hope is that Jesus is Lord; our hope is that he will rule as Lord for eternity. In other words, our hope transcends the generations of history that have been known or that will be known, and rests in a Kingdom beyond time - the eternal Kingdom of God, which has not yet come but which surely will come, and the anticipation of which is what Advent is all about. How do we properly await that coming Kingdom? I want to offer this advice today: Advent isn’t so much about preparing, as it’s about preparing to be prepared. Jesus once warned that people would have to be constantly ready for his coming, because there’s no way for us to know the day and hour. Not even he knew such things, he said. It’s hard to be prepared for something you’ve never experienced before, so what we’re really doing is preparing to be prepared for Christ’s coming. And yet, even as we do that, Christ shows up in our midst now, and he does so at the oddest times.

        Think about it. An everyday conversation turns suddenly serious - and Christ shows up; an ordinary worship service led by ordinary people with ordinary talents - and Christ shows up; a time of prayer not unlike thousands of other times of prayer - and Christ shows up; in the middle of mundane and often tedious chores - and Christ shows up. Even now, Christ shows up when we least expect him, and while we’re grateful for his appearance, we’re not necessarily prepared for it. Can we truly be prepared for the coming of the Kingdom? Probably not, because its timing is unknown and its glory will be too spectacular for us to imagine right now. But we can be preparing to be prepared - and that’s what Advent is about. How do we do that? We learn to ask simple but deep questions at the right time, and we avoid the temptation to give shallow answers to them. Let me suggest a few questions you might want to contemplate as the season of Advent progresses: where is Christ in your life right now, and in the events (good and bad) taking place around you? Where is Christ in the lives of your family and friends - both those who are devout and those who seem to have no interest in the faith? Is your life truly open to God’s presence and to the power of God’s Spirit, or do you close enough of yourself off from God so that God can’t really change anything about you? Would you be able to recognize Christ if he chose to appear to you? If you’re serious about using Advent as a time to prepare to be prepared, those are good starting point questions to be asking.

        And prepare to be prepared for answers that aren’t comfortable. Early on in Jesus’ ministry, the disciples of John the Baptist came to him and asked, “Are you the one who is to come …?” It’s a good question. You might say that it’s THE question. If Jesus isn’t the One, then we’ve all been duped. But if he is, then everything about life and death and eternity changed the moment he appeared, and we have to make some changes - and change is never comfortable. The Christmas tree is in a different spot in the sanctuary this year. I’ll bet that a few people here are uncomfortable about it! And then there are the things that matter. Because of Jesus, we may have to change our priorities to bring ours into harmony with his; we may have to give up some of the things we like to do because they’re not consistent with what he would do; we may have to give up cherished political or social or economic ideologies because they’re not consistent with how he taught his disciples to live. If Jesus is the One who is to come, then I might have to live my life in a radically different way. If Jesus is the One who is to come, then the church takes on a whole new meaning: no longer a religious club (which is, unfortunately, too often how it’s perceived, even by its own members) but instead a community of real and radical hope held together by its Lord, Jesus Christ. If Jesus is the One who is to come, then, as Phillips Brooks wrote in a memorable Christmas carol, “the hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.”

        During Advent we are preparing to be prepared to meet a revolutionary figure who will turn the world upside down - and we don’t always want that. Over the centuries, the church has tried to domesticate Jesus so that we could be more comfortable with him; the church has tried to tame Jesus so that he would be less threatening to our preferred way of life; the church has tried to change Jesus so that we ourselves wouldn’t have to be changed by him. But the Jesus of the New Testament is not the domesticated, tamed and changed Jesus the church too often portrays. Actually, the Jesus of the New Testament is often quite disturbing in the obedience he demands and the places and times in which he appears. But it is this Jesus who demands both radical obedience and radical faith who transforms our existence into a vibrant and abundant life. The Jesus of the New Testament fills us with the hope that whatever may happen now, God will somehow see us safely into eternity. It’s time for us to prepare to be prepared.

      Although she wasn’t talking about Advent, I thought Emily Dickinson summed up the Advent hope quite well: “Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul and sings the tunes without the words and never stops at all.” I don’t understand exactly what she’s describing - and maybe that’s the point! Hope in a world filled with apparent hopelessness is hard to grasp sometimes; difficult to catch and almost impossible to hold on to. But it’s there. And today, as the season of Advent begins, we celebrate the hope God holds out to us. Friends – prepare to be prepared!

Monday 14 November 2016

A Thought For The Week Of November 14, 2016

"For God wants you to silence the ignorant talk of foolish people by the good things you do." (1 Peter 2:15) I've noticed that most of the time when disagreements come up we have a tendency to try to outshout each other. That doesn't work of course, especially when the disagreements are passionate. Passionate people believe passionately in what they believe! They believe that those who don't agree with them are wrong at best and foolish at worst. That makes it easy for us to begin to disrespect those who disagree with us. The end result is that we look foolish, as we try to first yell at each other and then yell past each other. All that happens is that those we're trying to appeal to look upon us with increasing disdain or even contempt. I'm thinking about this verse in the light of the protests that have been occurring in the United States (and, to a lesser degree, in Canada) since the election of Donald Trump as president a week ago. I have nothing at all against peaceful protests, but I'm not sure that those who are taking to the streets to protest the results of a completely free and fair election are helping themselves, or making their message respectable. This verse from 1 Peter seems to point us to a better way. Rather than yelling and shouting against what we see as foolishness, we could set an example by acting as God would have us act: by standing for what we believe but doing so in a way that demonstrates that we are the children of God. I'm not saying that people shouldn't protest. When we feel strongly about something then protesting is a right we should cherish and claim. But if shouting (and, in a few cases, rioting) are all that we do, it's going to be of little use. We can't simply stand against something - which is usually what protests do. We have to stand for something. As the children of God we have to stand for the way of God - revealed by Jesus: a way that seeks to change hearts by persuasion and not coercion; a way that seeks to change the world by transforming people rather than by ranting against them; a way that leads people into love and hope rather than leaving them in anger and despair.

Wednesday 9 November 2016

A Thought For The Week Of November 7, 2016

"Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever; a scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom." (Psalm 45:6) I held off writing this until today, after we had found out the result of the presidential election in the United States. I'm a Canadian, of course, so in some ways that election had little to do with me. Except that we all live in God's world - and whatever happens in the lives of any of my neighbours also has some affect on me. It's been an ugly and brutal campaign (I don't think anyone would deny that.) And there have been a lot of almost apocalyptic predictions made by people on both sides of the divide. This is why I think it's important for Christians to step back from the fray, take a deep breath, and reflect on God. There is no doubt that human government and human powers can do a lot of damage and cause a lot of trouble. But let us never forget that ultimately this is God's world. The fear that has seemed to characterize much of this campaign (and that to some extent raised its head in the Canadian election campaign last year) is simply the result of sin. But for those who know and have experienced the love of God, we live with the certainty that "perfect love casts out fear," and even when things happen in the world around us that make us shake our heads, we need to remember that. In a vision from Jesus, Julian of Norwich is said to have received the following message: "It was necessary that there should be sin; but all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well." All shall be well. Why? Because, ultimately, God reigns. Because, ultimately, in the words of a hymn, "Jesus shall reign where'er the sun does its successive journeys run." Whatever leaders we may elect, we ourselves are the children of God, and unlike earthly kingdoms - which will all pass away - God's kingdom "will last forever and ever" - and it will be a kingdom of peace, love and justice.

Sunday 6 November 2016

November 6, 2016 sermon: Rights And Responsibilities

Go to the ant, you lazybones; consider its ways, and be wise. Without having any chief or officer or ruler, it prepares its food in summer, and gathers its sustenance in harvest. How long will you lie there, O lazybones? When will you rise from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want, like an armed warrior.
(Proverbs 6:6-11)

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     Ants. They’re not exactly what you’d think of right off the top on Remembrance Sunday - but as I was thinking about what to share today I thought about this passage and realized that it had something important to say. Ants are amazing little creatures. They’re small, but they’re tough. And surprisingly enough, they’re a lot like us. They organize themselves into colonies just as we organize ourselves into nations. Different ants have different roles to play in the community, just as we have different jobs. The centre of the colony is the queen, there are worker ants whose only job is to take care of the queen, and other ants who care for eggs and larva. There are ants that hunt, and there are ants that farm - some grow fungus to feed the colony and others actually take care of little insects called aphids, like humans look after cows. There are also soldier ants whose only job is to protect the colony against invaders - whether the invaders are other ants or other animals, but except for a few very aggressive species of ants they really do just defend rather than attack. And unlike human society (at least unlike many human societies) for the most part ant colonies actually work.

     You’re probably wondering what any of this has to do with Remembrance Sunday. How are ants relevant? Well, they were relevant to the author of Proverbs as an example of how societies should function. “Go to the ants,” he said. Another way to say it would be “consider the ants” or “look at the ants.” Nature has a way of reflecting God’s ways and God’s priorities, which isn’t surprising since nature is, after all, the work of God. I wonder if the ant colony isn’t a good analogy for the Kingdom of God - and if that isn’t why the author of Proverbs refers to it. “Here’s the way things should be,” he says. None of the ants are motivated by selfishness or greed or a desire to be noticed. They just work together as a community, every ant having a part. They will rescue ants that get trapped somewhere, and they will carry injured ants back to the colony and care for them. They’re truly amazing creatures. And as I think on Remembrance Sunday of those who have served in past conflicts I wonder how much suffering could have been abated - and how much could be abated in the future - if we could have taken the advice of Proverbs seriously. If we could work together.  That, it seems to me, would be the Kingdom of God, and that, it seems to me, is what most who have experienced war would like to see.

     I know people who dislike Remembrance Day or Remembrance Sunday. They think it doesn’t belong in church because they find it too militaristic; they feel as if it glorifies war. I respectfully disagree. I don’t think we glorify war today - but I do think we honour the warriors who believed in a cause and who gave themselves for that cause. Is honouring warriors glorifying war? I don’t think so.  Over the years, I’ve known a lot of veterans. I’ve known them as parishioners. I’ve known them from having served as a Legion chaplain for a few years. I’ve know some in my own family. I’ve never known anyone who is more opposed to and appalled by war than a veteran of war. And I wonder what they would say about the generations that have succeeded them. The generation that fought in World War II was called “The Greatest Generation.” And then came the Boomers, and then came Gen X, and then came the Millennials. Each succeeding generation more distant from the experience of war, and perhaps each succeeding generation more averse to the types of sacrifice that the Greatest Generation was called upon to make. And the end result is perhaps a society less inclined to pull together for the common good or for great sacrifices and far more fixated on “me.”

     I think about that ant colony and how it reflects the values of the Kingdom of God. And then I think about Canada. What unites us as a nation? What symbolizes us as a nation? Some would say - perhaps flippantly - hockey. But there are other things. Multiculturalism? Peacekeeping? Universal health care? Perhaps all of those. But a recent survey suggested that what defines Canada is now the Charter of Rights And Freedoms - which is interesting, since it’s only been around for a little over thirty years. I value my rights, of course - but I wonder sometimes if we don’t put too much emphasis on rights, and not enough emphasis on responsibilities? We seem to be living in a society in which we all want what’s ours - and we’re not shy about demanding it - but sometimes we aren’t willing to sacrifice much so that others can have a little bit. We don’t accept our responsibilities to each other or to society as a whole as willingly as perhaps happened in the past.

     The ants don’t worry about their rights. They simply work together. They support each other. They defend each other. They take care of each other. They’re a community rather than an isolated set of individuals. “Consider the ants.” It’s an analogy for the Kingdom of God. It’s an analogy for the church. People choosing to live in community, sharing with and supporting and caring for each other, and sacrificing for each other.

     There’s no group in my experience who would like to see the Kingdom of God come more than veterans of war. There’s no group that would like to see God simply break the arrows and shields and swords and all the weapons of war (as our Call to Worship spoke of) more than veterans of war. There’s no group who understand how precious peace is more than veterans of war. When Solomon writes, “go to the ants, you lazybones,” he’s not being flippant. Neither am I when I bring your attention to those verses today. The ants - with their focus on the community rather than the individual and on the well being of all rather than on survival of the fittest or strongest or most powerful - are a wonderful reflection of what the kingdom of God will be like, and on what our society could be like, if only we as a society can get our act together and work towards it.

Tuesday 1 November 2016

A Thought For The Week Of October 31, 2016

"Go up to the land flowing with milk and honey. But I will not go with you, because you are a stiff-necked people and I might destroy you on the way." (Exodus 33:3) I don't need Bible verses to always be comforting. Sometimes I like them to challenge me to try to figure out what exactly it is that they're saying. This is one such verse. What a disconcerting view of God is contained in just these few words: "I will not go with you." What? Really? Those were God's people, on their way to the land God had promised them, but now God was saying that he wouldn't go with them? How can God not go with them? Isn't God everywhere? Isn't God with us at all times? That's six questions marks I've used already! Perhaps the most unsettling aspect of the verse is the reason that God won't go with the people. Essentially - "I might destroy you if I do because you're so bloody stubborn!" It's a very human view of God who admits that his people make him so angry that he might not be able to control his anger. I don't like the idea of a God whose anger seems to be right on the edge of raging out of control, but perhaps what I like even less is what this verse says about us - about you and about me. If God is absent - or at least if God seems absent - perhaps it isn't God's fault. Perhaps it's ours. Perhaps we drive God away - or at least perhaps we drive God out of our conscious thinking so that God seems absent. Maybe that's what's going on here. The Book of exodus is a continuous telling and retelling of the story of God's people effectively forgetting about God. Maybe here the author is reflecting on his own sense of God's absence (rather than the reality of God's absence.) His conclusion is simple. God seems absent because we're stubborn and stiff-necked. Sometimes I wonder if we make it impossible for God to act because of our attitude - similar to the New Testament concept of quenching God's Spirit. I suppose the point might be that if God seems absent - don't blame God. We need to look inside and see what is in within ourselves that's shutting God out. Because God is always present; always near to those who want to experience him.

Monday 24 October 2016

A Thought For The Week Of October 24, 2016

"For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near." (2 Timothy 4:6) I want to reflect on two separate passages (2 Timothy 4:6-8 & 16-18) which may be separated by several verses but which are quite similar in a number of ways. I find myself linking this with Paul's statement in Philippians that he had learned how to be content in all circumstances. What we have described here are basically two sets of circumstances - both of which could have been enough to cause many people to fall into despair and give up. In the first, the author seems to be reflecting on his impending death, and the inference is that it isn't a pleasant or natural death. He is being poured out like a drink offering. In other words, he sees himself as a sacrifice; perhaps a martyr. And yet, rather than despair, he looks back on his life - and especially his faith - and he expresses not despair, but satisfaction: "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept that faith." Having remained faithful in the face of whatever was happening to him, he now realized that his life had been worthwhile. And he also expressed hope in what many would have considered a hopeless situation: "Now there is laid up for me ..." NOW! What a great expression of faith and hope. Death is here - so "now!" Something else is coming. What a great testimony! And in the second snippet we have another circumstance described that could have embittered many people. The author had been abandoned - "everyone deserted me." Apparently even those he thought would stand with him abandoned him. (There are shades of Jesus and the disciples there.) Many would be embittered at being abandoned by those they believed they could count on, but the author just expresses forgiveness: "May it not be held against them." People are, after all, weak - and the truth is that not everyone can stand against evil.  Some fall. But for the author - God was there, and that was enough. Many scholars believe that Paul didn't write 2 Timothy, but at the very least these words resonate with one of Paul's most important and most challenging messages: "I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want." Whatever the circumstances, in other words. If only we all had such faith.

Sunday 23 October 2016

October 23, 2016 sermon: A Living God For A Living Church

Some Sadducees, those who say there is no resurrection, came to him and asked him a question, “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies, leaving a wife but no children, the man shall marry the widow and raise up children for his brother. Now there were seven brothers; the first married, and died childless; then the second and the third married her, and so in the same way all seven died childless. Finally the woman also died. In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had married her.” Jesus said to them, “Those who belong to this age marry and are given in marriage; but those who are considered worthy of a place in that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. Indeed they cannot die anymore, because they are like angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection. And the fact that the dead are raised Moses himself showed, in the story about the bush, where he speaks of the Lord as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive.” Then some of the scribes answered, “Teacher, you have spoken well.” For they no longer dared to ask him another question.
(Luke 20:27-40)

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     I found it interesting to look at the cover of this month’s edition of the United Church Observer. The cover article is about ghosts. It’s entitled “Ghost Whisperers,” and the subtitle is “Do the dead remain among us? Paranormal investigators are determined to prove what science rejects, Christianity scorns - and half of Canadians believe.” I readily admit - I like stuff like this. Ghost stories; the paranormal; a good horror movie. My favourite TV show is “The Walking Dead.” They’re all fun. So I read this article pretty closely, and some of the statistics it cites surprised me. It seems that belief in ghosts is not exactly rare. Although the church has routinely condemned belief in ghosts - and sometimes quite vociferously - apparently that hasn’t had a lot of impact on what people actually believe. I was surprised, for example, to discover that in 2009 a survey suggested that 20% of evangelical Christians believed in ghosts. The numbers were about 30-35% for both Roman Catholics and mainline Protestants. In the United Kingdom, more people believe in ghosts than in God. 48% of Canadians believe in ghosts, 18% say they’ve encountered or experienced a ghost and 10% believe they have a ghost in their home! Even in very secular countries like Japan and Sweden, belief in ghosts is very high. I found those numbers fascinating, and it’s another piece of evidence to me that while people might not be as interested in church or Christianity as they used to be, there’s still a very high degree of interest in spiritual matters and spiritual things.

     I will come clean with you this morning and confess that I don’t believe in ghosts - although given the numbers it’s likely that at least a few people here do. But even if I don’t believe in them I am interested in the belief. These words never appeared in the article in the Observer, but it seemed to me that belief in ghosts (just as much as belief in God) reflects the deep seated yearning expressed in the question “is there life after death?” That question - or at least a variation of it - is in the Bible. It comes from the lips of Job, who asked “if a man dies, will he live again?” I think that for as long as we humans have understood the concept of death, we’ve wondered if it’s really the end. The widespread belief in ghosts, combined with a still widespread belief in God suggests that most people believe that there is something of us that continues on when our lives on this earth have ended.

     That was one of the keys to what Jesus was speaking about in today’s passage. The Sadducees - one sect of Judaism present in his day - were people who didn’t believe in life after death. They didn’t believe in resurrection. They believed that once you died, you were simply dead. They tried to trap Jesus with this nonsensical question about a woman who had had many husbands, wondering - with a smirk on their faces as they asked the question, I’m sure - whose husband she would be after the “resurrection” (said with a “nudge, nudge, wink, wink” undoubtedly.) They assumed Jesus would be left speechless. How can there be an answer to that question? How could Jesus possibly find a way out of this one? It was a trap. And it seemed to be a good one. But Jesus had an answer. “You silly people,” he seemed to say. “The next life isn’t at all like this one so your question is pointless. And we know that there’s life after death because Moses ‘speaks of the Lord as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive.’” Is there life after death? Apparently so. But I thought of another question: is there life before death?

     Yes, you heard me right. Is there life before death? It might seem obvious on the surface, but maybe it’s not. There are a lot of people who seem to exist without really living. They lose sight of the things that make life worth living. It was Bob Dylan - who, you may have heard, recently won the Nobel Prize for Literature - who said that “if you’re not busy being born, then you’re busy dying.” I thought about those words as I reflected on the Sadducees and the story they told about this woman. It was a story, of course. The woman wasn’t real. But the basic problem is that the Sadducees clearly didn’t believe people could be busy being born - and so they must have assumed everyone was busy dying. It’s a strange idea, perhaps, that Bob Dylan had - but it makes a lot of sense from a Christian perspective. We speak about rebirth in the Christian faith - being “born again” or “born from above” or experiencing “new life” (however you choose to put it.) Basically we believe that people change; that people aren’t in a static state of existence. About this woman the Sadducees thought that she would always be what she had always been. They would deny her (or those like her) the dignity of being alive by denying them the possibility of rebirth and new life. And if we’re static, and if we’re unchanging, and if we’re satisfied with simply being rather than with becoming, with what we are rather than with what we could become - then in a way we are dying, just as Bob Dylan said would happen to those who aren’t busy being born.

     This all seemed relevant to me today because next week we’re going to have a special service to commemorate the 27 years that Pickering Village United Church has worshipped in this building. I think that what Bob Dylan said about people applies to churches as well: if we’re not busy being born, then we’re busy dying. If we’re satisfied with ourselves as we are then we are never going to be more than a shell of what God wants us to be. If we lose hope that we can be more than what we are then we’ve given up not just on ourselves but also on God. Anniversaries can have a tendency to make us focus on the past at the expense of the future. I’m hoping that what we’ll be able to do next week (and perhaps more next year, because we have some special plans coming up) is to reflect on the past not as a way of giving up on the future, but rather to inspire the future - to point us to what God would have us be and to give us the hope and the assurance that we will become what God would have us be. After all, if we’re not busy being born then we’re busy dying. I think we’re still busy being born. I think we have a lot of life left to live, and that we have a lot of lives left to touch.

Wednesday 19 October 2016

A Thought For The Week Of October 17, 2016

"Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say." (Exodus 4:12) God finds a way to get our attention. That seems to be the basic message in this story contained in Exodus 4:1-17. And - having got our attention - God doesn't let us off the hook for responding. Moses didn't know how he would possibly convince Pharaoh to let God's people go. But God's response to Moses' concern was basically  - "you just do what I tell you to do and leave the results to me." As I reflect upon that I realize that it's also the real basis for evangelism. The issue in evangelizing isn't whether anyone gets "saved" or comes to faith through what we do. The issue in evangelism is whether we faithfully accept the call God has given us to share good news. The results are up to God. As we routinely say, we can't convert anyone - only the Holy Spirit can do that. But we have to accept our responsibility to share what God asks us to share. That's the other part of the passage. Moses didn't care to do what God wanted him to do. He had excuses - he wasn't a good enough speaker was the big one - but basically I think he was afraid not only of the responsibility of speaking for God but also of the potential consequences of speaking for God. But, again, God wouldn't let Moses off the hook. Whatever excuses Moses came up with, God had an answer for them. Again, to draw the link - we might have any number of excuses for why we don't think we can do what God asks of us. Mostly, though, I suspect it comes down to either just not wanting to do it, or being afraid to do it. Either way, God doesn't let us off the hook. Eventually, God's call to us is irresistible.

Sunday 16 October 2016

October 16, 2016 sermon When Thanks Are Not Enough

He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt: “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 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. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.’ 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!’ 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.”
(Luke 18:9-14)

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     It seems to me that one of the problems with Thanksgiving is that it can give us the impression that saying “thank you” is the only thing we have to do for people. It's kind of like the idea that saying “I'm sorry” fixes everything. It's a good start, but somehow both thankfulness and apologies need to go beyond mere words. There's a story that makes the rounds – I've been told that it's true – about a missionary who had come home for a furlough. One of the things he did when he was back home was accept speaking engagements in churches, and the churches that asked him to speak would give him a donation of some sort for his missionary work when he was finished. Sort of like Dr. Paul Thistle, who you might remember visited with us back in June while he was home from Zimbabwe. Well, this particular missionary was home, and he received an invitation from a church to join them and to speak at both their morning and evening services. It was quite a trip – the church was about a three hour drive from where he lived – but the missionary happily accepted the invitation. So, on the appropriate Sunday morning he woke up early, got himself dressed and made the three hour trip. He preached at the morning service, did a lunch and a sort of question and answer session afterward, stayed in town and went back to preach at the evening service. It was a long day. After the evening service the person who had invited him approached him, thanked him for coming and handed him an envelope, which he assumed was a donation for his mission. He packed up, got in his car and made the three hour drive home. It worked out to about a 17 hour day for the missionary, not to mention the time he had spent beforehand preparing for the two services. When he got home he was getting ready for bed when he remembered the envelope that he had stuck in his jacket pocket. He took it out and opened it, and took out what was inside. He looked at it. It was a piece of paper: a hand drawn fake cheque, on which someone had written in the “Amount” line - “A Million Thanks.” That was it. A fake cheque with “A Million Thanks” scrawled across it. Nothing more. That story – which, as I said, I've been told is true (and I know some congregations who might actually do that!) - raises a question for me that seems particularly relevant a week after Thanksgiving: are there times when thank are not enough?

     Jesus would have understood that question. In the parable we just read, Jesus offered a warning about giving thanks. Two men went to the temple to pray. The first was a very good man. He was a Pharisee, which meant that he kept the rules. He was respected and honoured by all; he was a pillar of the community. This good man is praying, and he gives thanks to God: “God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.” This, indeed, was a very good man who did a lot of very good things. He did the things good religious folk are supposed to do, and given this man's obvious goodness, Jesus said the strangest thing. He said that this prayer of thanksgiving was worthless. The whole thing was a farce. Jesus said it wasn't enough. “Thanks for your thanks – but no thanks.” That was the message from Jesus. What was wrong? The man did pray, after all. He took the time to go to the temple and express his gratitude to God. And what he said wasn't wrong. There were a lot of robbers and evildoers and adulterers out there. There were a lot of people who couldn't be trusted. There were a lot who weren't interested in God. But this Pharisee was interested in God. He was faithful in his own way. He never lied, he fasted and he tithed a tenth of everything he had to God. If he were alive today we might even name a church after him. So, why were his thanks not enough? And does this serve as a warning to us that sometimes our thanks might not be enough?

     In order to really understand this parable you have to consider who it was addressed to. Jesus told this parable to “to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous.” The Pharisee in the parable was priding himself on his own virtue; he was sure of how good he was, convinced of his own righteousness. Now, to be honest, this Pharisee did have a lot going for him. To be honest, in a lot of ways he was a much better and more faithful man than I am. Surely that virtue has to count for something. But perhaps sometimes we think too much of our own goodness. I’ve known people who do a good job of seeming pious – they do all the good religious stuff just like the Pharisee in the parable – but they’re also some of the meanest and nastiest people you’ll ever meet. They never forget a single mistake or forgive a single slight – but they’re in church every week and they’re often among the biggest givers! They’re like the Pharisee in the parable. They’re convinced of their own goodness. They know everything and more importantly they know that they know everything. But somehow they’ve forgotten that their righteousness is a gift from God – nothing more, nothing less. The thanks that the Pharisee offered was the kind of righteousness that says “thanks, but I’m so good that I really didn’t need the help.” He thanked God, but he made sure that he did it in a way that would let God know that he could have done it all on his own.

     To push that opening verse a little farther, Jesus told the parable “to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt.” When our thanks erects barriers between ourselves and our neighbours, then our thanks are not enough. In Jesus’ time, the pious men in the Jewish community (or, at least, those who wanted the world to think that they were pious) would say this prayer: “O God, I thank you that I am not a dog, a Gentile or a woman.” Jesus was speaking to those who would have said a prayer like this – to pious people who not only trusted in themselves but looked down on others with contempt. There’s a story about a Sunday School teacher who was teaching this parable to her students. She told the children that the Pharisee was a bad man, and that the tax collector was a good man. When she finished her lesson she said, “now boy and girls, let’s pray and thank God that we’re nothing like that mean old Pharisee.” She had missed the point completely. If our saying “thank you” is really a ruse that allows us to say “I’m better than the rest of you!” then our thanks is not enough.

     I trust we all understand the mistake that the Pharisee made, and that we’re here today for the right reason. We’re not here to proclaim our goodness to each other; we’re not here to show the world what good “church people” we are; and, in fact, we’re not even here because we’re good. We’re here to sing, to listen, to pray and to ponder the mystery of God together until somehow we really know deep in ourselves that we don’t depend on ourselves or our own goodness but rather on God and on divine grace. Only then are we really able to give thanks – not for what we do or for what we are, but for who God is and for what God has done for us.

     Jesus ended the parable by talking about that tax collector who went to the temple to pray: “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 Pharisee thanked God for making him so good; the tax collector thanked God for mercy and forgiveness, and, in response, Jesus said of the tax collector that “this man went down to his home justified rather than the other …” You see, it’s not about what we’ve accomplished – it about what God has done. Somehow, the Pharisee had got it into his head that he was a winner because of all the good and pious things he had done. But I liked the words of John Madden. John Madden knew what winning was all about as the head coach of the Oakland Raiders team that won Super Bowl XI. That man, who knew how to win, said “Self-praise is for losers. Be a winner. Stand for something. Always have class, and be humble.” You see, patting ourselves on the back for how often we come to church or for how much money we give to the church or for how many committees we serve on or how much work we do misses the point. We’re just not that good – and so we do need God’s forgiveness. So thank God yes – by all means – but for the right reasons. Thanks God for mercy and forgiveness and compassion and grace poured out in abundance. Only when we’ve learned that these are the things for which we should be thankful is our thanks really going to be enough.

Wednesday 12 October 2016

A Thought For The Week Of October 10, 2016

"Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him." (Proverbs 30:5) Those opening words - "every word of God is flawless" - represent quite a challenge.You have to wonder first what's meant by "word of God." A lot of fundamentalist Christians take what I would consider to be a simplistic approach and just draw a one to one equation with the Bible. Bible = word of God; word of God = Bible. And I understand, of course, that we refer to the Bible as the word of God. But that's challenging. For example, when we read of God ordering mass killings and plunder - is that really the word of God? Ethically and morally - even given that the root of ethics and morality come from God and more precisely from the Bible - there are parts of the Bible that seem ungodly. And, of course, the Bible isn't witnessing to itself. So we can't take this verse from Proverbs and say that because of it Romans or 1 John or Revelation are flawless. I always think first and foremost of the word of God as Jesus. Jesus is flawless. His life and his way - yes, as described in the Bible - is flawless. And, of course, that begs the question of what's meant by "flawless." Does it literally mean that everything that's written down in the Bible is perfect? I think that what it means is that's what written in the Bible is inspired. Perhaps the author of 1 Timothy had this verse in mind when he wrote that "all Scripture is inspired ..." I think it's too simplistic by far to simply believe that "every word of God is flawless" means that every single word and letter and comma and period of the Bible is perfect. I believe that "every word of God is flawless" leads us into a much deeper exploration of both the Bible and of the life of Jesus - an exploration that's going to change our lives for the better by bringing us ever closer to God.

Sunday 9 October 2016

October 9, 2016 sermon - A Lemonade Recipe

These are the words of the letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the remaining elders among the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. ... Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.
(Jeremiah 29:1 & 4-7)

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     I think that I'm on pretty safe ground in assuming that most of you have probably never heard of Marshall P. Wilder.

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Today he's largely unknown. But in the 1890's and early 1900's, Marshall P. Wilder was one of the most famous men in the world. He was a very successful actor. He began his career by performing one man comedy monologues, and eventually branched out into vaudeville and the stage and finally became a significant figure in the very early days of motion pictures. Wilder made several world tours, and regularly performed in London. He was a favourite of the British royal family and became a close personal friend of the then Prince of Wales, who would become King Edward VII. He was also a successful author who wrote several books. At the height of his career, Wilder had an annual income in the five figures – and while that doesn't sound like very much today, by the standards of that day it was an astronomical amount of money. But the most astonishing thing about Marshall P. Wilder was that he shouldn't have been that successful. You see, to use the language of that day, Marshall P. Wilder was a dwarf.

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He also had a severe spinal deformity. In that era, the most Wilder should have been able to expect out of a career in entertainment was a place in a carnival freakshow. In fact, he was offered such a position by no less a figure than P.T. Barnum. But Wilder was determined to overcome the odds against him, and in 1907 the Syracuse Herald wrote of one of his performances that “his pathos, his humor, his indescribable droll and uplifting optimism keeps bubbling forth all through the evening.” A few years later, the Washington Post wrote that “Wilder coaxed the frown of adverse fortune into a smile,” a line that was illustrated in ths 1905 pictorial from Theatre Magazine, called “The Evolution Of A Smile.”

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Another of Wilder's friends was a Christian writer named Elbert Hubbard, and writing of his friend, Hubbard wrote in 1915 that “he picked up the lemons that fate had sent him, and started a lemonade-stand.” That's the first known version of the now familiar proverb that advises us “when life hands you a lemon, turn it into lemonade.” Many others have used variations on the phrase. Julius Rosenwald, who was part owner of Sears Roebuck and Dale Carnegie. Eminem and Beyonce have incorporated it into songs. Tammy Faye Baaker used the phrase. But I like Hubbard's version because it speaks of a lemonade stand, reminding us that whatever positive we create out of the adversity of life is meant not only for ourselves, but also to make a positive difference in the lives of others.

     It was after his death that Elbert Hubbard coined that earliest version of the now well known saying when, in an obituary, he wrote it of Wilder, “He picked up the lemons that fate had sent him and started a lemonade stand.” In other words, life handed Marshall P. Wilder lemons, and Marshall P. Wilder turned them into lemonade. I thought about that as I read the passage from the prophet Jeremiah this week.

     It's not your typical Thanksgiving reading. In fact, there's not a single message here about giving thanks to anyone, never mind giving thanks to God. To be honest, there was very little reason for thanksgiving among God's people at the time. A little context is necessary. As Jeremiah writes these words he's reflecting upon the fact that God's people – Israel and Judah – have been conquered by Babylon. The land was laid waste, the temple was destroyed, the people were in exile. Nothing was as it had been. Life had handed the people of God a huge lemon. When you get that kind of lemon handed to you there are a lot of possible responses. Just think about it.

     Some people will fall into never-ending despair over what they've lost. Some people will simply become angry about what they can't have. Some people will spend their time lamenting what they don't have. None of those options are good ways of making lemonade out of lemons. If anything they just make the lemon more bitter. Grieving what we've lost is understandable, but to fall into despair is to be trapped in the past and unable to move on. Lamenting what we don't have is to give up on possibilities and to simply settle for things the way they are. To be angry about the things we can't have (because none of us can have everything) is to fall into covetousness – and covetousness in some ways is that foundation of every bad behaviour in existence, because others have something that we want. In all those cases, there's a loss of hope, and life gets sapped of its vibrancy. God's people had to deal with those options after the war with Babylon. They had lost everything, and there was no guarantee that they were going to get any of it back.

     God's people fell into all three of the camps I just spoke about. Some fell into inconsolable despair, some into endless lamentation and some into barely controlled anger. And so Jeremiah the prophet wrote a letter to the exiles to tell them that they were going to be in Babylon for quite a while and so they would have to learn to simply get on with life:

Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.

     You're going to be here for a while, he said. Quite a while. (Seventy years, actually, history tells us.) So you have to make the best of it. Don't despair, don't lament, don't lash out – make the best of it. Those words from Jeremiah offer a simple but powerful message for not only how to make the best of it, but actually to start to appreciate what you have. And if we're talking about making lemonade from lemons, that's really the recipe. Because if we can learn to appreciate what we have, we can also become thankful – as Paul said, in any and all circumstances. That's the recipe for making lemonade from lemons. That's how we prevent disappointment and lamentation and anger from taking over. We add a little appreciation and a little thankfulness and – before you know – it, we're leading a life in which we can marvel at little things and express wonder at simple things and be joyful over everyday things. If we can live with that kind of attitude then life can throw lemons at us. It won't matter. We can make lemonade of it – just as God's people made lemonade thousands of years ago. They were defeated and exiled, tossed out of their homes and taken away from everything familiar, but the prophet Jeremiah told them to make a home out of where they were.

     We all face times when giving thanks doesn't seem to be a reasonable thing to do – times when, perhaps, it seems that simply being thankful for what we have is impossible. I have no doubt that there are some here today who for one reason or another don't feel especially thankful. And it's especially hard at Thanksgiving, when we're not only faced with the Christian ideal of being thankful at all times and in all circumstances, but when we're told by the season that we should be thankful. So, we learn from Jeremiah that whatever our circumstances are and as unfair as they may seem we have to engage in the process of taking those circumstances and turning them around and continuing to live life to the full – being thankful for what we have rather than despairing over what we've lost, lamenting what we don't have or being angry about what we can't have.

     I started by reflecting on the life of Marshall P. Wilder, who overcame what at the time would have been insurmountable obstacles that could have confined him to a pitiful and miserable life as a side show freak and became a respected author and actor. In 1940, The Rotarian published this poem, which was written as a testimony to Wilder on the 25th anniversary of his death:

Life handed him a lemon,
As Life sometimes will do.
His friends looked on in pity,
Assuming he was through.
They came upon him later,
Reclining in the shade
In calm contentment, drinking
A glass of lemonade.

     For all the challenges he faced, Wilder was thankful. For all the challenges they faced, the people of God learned to be thankful. May we, on this Thanksgiving weekend, learn the secret of turning lemons into lemonade, and may we, as God's people, be truly thankful, in whatever circumstances we may find ourselves.