Pentecost 6, July 5, 2015 (full size gallery)
A busy week at St. Peter’s and in the Episcopal World.
- FredCamp lunches June 29-July 3 Link to story and pictures
- Village Dinner July 1
- July 4 celebrations. Link to story and pictures
On top of that, for some of us, it was squeezing in watching General Convention.
We had 42 in Church today on an overcast somewhat muggy day which has been typical the last few days. The corn is tasseling out. Azaleas are in bloom in nearby yards.
BJ made the communion bread. Johnny brought corn for the entire church – 12 ears! Wow. He also made a pitch for gleaning. Catherine answered a question from the question box on tract 1 and 2
We had a different coffee hour after Church – "Sweet Land of Liberty" coffee your with sweets – 4 types of ice cream and the fixings, cookies, cakes. So many temptations. The children enjoyed all of it and play time afterwards
The sermon was about handling beliefs about issues that are diverse. The readings are here
"The past few weeks have been a perfect storm here in the United States. The Charleston church shooting, the controversy over the Confederate flag, churches burning, the Supreme Court affirming the right of gay people to marry and upholding the Affordable Care Act
"On Wednesday, those of us who were at Bible study unhesitatingly shared our differing views with one another and found ourselves, based on our various positions, at odds with one another, and at least temporarily, irritated with one another
"How do we stay in loving community when we find that we just aren’t wanting to claim the center at the moment? And this question goes beyond this St Peter’s community. I’ve been praying over these passages, and asking for God’s help, and then ignoring what God has spelled out right in front of my eyes."
"And here’s God’s answer to me—“My grace is sufficient for you, and travel light. That’s how you can stay in loving community.” God is telling Paul, “This work is not about you, Paul, or anyone else in this community. It’s about me, God. It’s about spreading my love in the world so that people will long for my grace.”
"And Jesus didn’t send the disciples out alone, each with his or her strongly held opinions. He sent them in pairs. We need each other to carry out God’s work in the world. And sometimes the best way to carry out God’s work is for disciples who stand on opposite edges to come together and to then go out together in unity, carrying nothing but what God wants them to carry—God’s grace and God’s power.">
"I’m beginning to talk myself away from the edge and back into the center after all. Because now I can see that sheer grace at the center, God’s love and mercy waiting to enfold me, empower me, strengthen me, and fill me."
Commentary by Canon Lance Ousley of the Diocese of Olympia I am finding three distinct messages of stewardship in our readings this week. One is to know and understand that each of us in our calling through our baptisms is called (and equipped) to be prophetic. The saying goes, "God does not call the equipped, God equips the willing." The second is the reality that we are not to lean on the things of this world to accomplish this work. We can be prophetic without material and financial resources; and in fact, we are called to be prophetic whether we have or do not have these resources. The third thing, while it is not explicit it is certainly implicit, is that we are called to support this work with our resources.
In the Old Testament lesson for this week we hear of Ezekiel’s call by God to be a divine prophet and how God’s spirit entered him and set him on his feet. In both cases, God takes the willing servant and equips them for the work God has given them to do. The point for us is to be good stewards of our lives for God’s kingdom.
Paul makes this point in his 2nd letter to the Corinthians, boasting not in his own gifts, but in God’s grace that makes him more than adequate to do his ministry. So often we feel we are not adequate or equipped to do a ministry God may be calling us to do because we forget that openness to God’s call also opens us to God’s Spirit equipping us. It is in our own weakness that God’s strength is shown overcoming that which we thought we could not do. This is stewardship of ourselves for God’s work. Jesus’ charge to the disciples, sending them out to do his work, echoes this sentiment, after all we have just heard he was not able to do much healing in his own town because they would not receive him.
In our Gospel lesson we hear Jesus sending his disciples out, "two by two" and charging them not to take anything with them except for the traveling equipment of sandals and a walking staff. Note that Jesus equips them with "authority over unclean spirits." This is not a skill they possess, but one that is given them by Jesus. His sending them out in twos and with only sandals and a staff with no bread, luggage or money suggests that regardless of the resources they have on hand, they are to do this work. Jesus’ disciples are to be stewards of what they have and put it to use for the work Jesus has given them to do. We also hear the expectation of the faithful to support this ministry through the sharing of resources to support those doing this work. In particular, Mark emphasizes the high importance of this work through relating that the disciples should move-on if their message and work is not being received. Not only do we get the utmost importance of the message from this, but also the urgency of our time well spent.
Nothing should stop us from doing the work and ministry of God’s kingdom Jesus has given us to do, not our feelings of inadequacy nor a lack (or abundance) of resources. And we should put what we do have toward accomplishing this prophetic work!