Life: Part 1
Psalm 23; Acts 2.42-47
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| Together: Beauty! |
I’m glad you’re here this morning …
within these sacred walls,
with so many stories to tell …
stories of faith and hope, crisis and sorrow …
the joy of a wedding,
the baptism of a child,
welcoming new members into the fellowship of faith,
the somber moments of a funeral, the quiet tears of love and loss.
It’s all here - in this sacred place.
Because God is here …
God is everywhere …
God is in your heart, your mind.
Your feelings, your thoughts.
Your hands, your toes.
God is in your work, your play.
When you sleep, when you rise for the day.
When you can’t sleep - tossing and turning … it may well be some great sorrow, some deep fear that keeps you awake … or, it could be happiness, too - the next vacation … like a child waiting for Christmas morning.
God is everywhere, in everything, around the corner and in all the nooks and crannies of life … above and below, behind and in front … in whom we live and move and have our being.
The LORD is present …
The LORD is our shepherd …
Green pastures … still waters … right paths.
Even in the dark and haunted places of life,
The darkest valley.
The valley of the Shadow of Death.
God at work … setting a table for us.
A cup overflowing,
Even when enemies are present.
And enemies there are.
Things that go bump in the middle of the night.
Monsters in the closet.
Wars and rumors of war.
As the poet Poe put it:
Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing,
Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before.
Sometimes - the enemy is us.
Who hasn’t been their own worst enemy a time or two?
Foolish behavior, crazy ideas.
Terrible things … in the basement of the mind.
Yes, even then, even then, God is with us.
The abiding presence of Christ.
The hope that will not let us go.
The eternal love of God works it out.
Prepares the way.
Smooths the road.
Opens some doors.
Calms the soul.
I’m glad you’re here, this morning!.
And I’m glad to be here, too,
In the presence of one another.
We find our best selves.
There’s a lot we can do alone, of course!
Prayer and meditation.
Reading and writing.
Sitting back, having a drink.
Moping around in a funk …
But even then, we’re not alone -
we have memories … books … paper and pencil, a computer, the internet … we have family, we have friends … maybe too few, maybe not enough …
Are we ever really alone?
We’re always in the company of our own humanity …
Our DNA is not our own …
We bear within our bones and blood the whole of humanity … our time is connected to the seasons of the year … the dirt of the earth, from whence we were fashioned by the hand of God.
A whole world of people - people who’ve hurt us, who’ve helped us … the stranger who writes a piece of music that lifts our heart and makes us dance … the stranger who writes that one book forever imprinted on the mind … the young lady at the counter whose smile makes our day …
And the animals - the morning songbird … the dog on the beach running like mad into the surf … squirrels, those clever creatures, outfoxing our best efforts to keep them off our bird feeders.
All along the way, an abundance of life and love, dancing all around us.
The task before us, here in this place, is to intentionally create and sustain community … where love can flow … hope abound … patience be practiced … gratitude given … in a way unique to sacred places … to what the church has always pointed to … what God always had in mind.
But, let’s be careful.
Being together doesn’t necessarily guarantee anything good … a mob in Berlin, 1934, crying out for the blood of Jews … a mob in Alabama, 1918, dragging an African-American to a lynching tree … the mob that smashed its way into the Capital, January 6 … or some fundamentalist church full of itself, mean and proud.
Being together is NOT an automatic guarantee of anything good.
But when good gets together, good things happen.
Here, in this place, we practice the good … and it’s good for the soul.
We sing the songs of Zion, say the prayers, hear the sermon, ponder the deep and glorious things of God …
We’re devoted … life requires devotion … not just to anything, but to the things of God … the best things of life … faith, hope, and love; grace, mercy, and peace - to these things, and to the God and Father of our LORD Jesus Christ. Dedicated! Determined! Devoted!
I’m glad you’re here this morning!
And I’ll say it - loud and clear, for all the world to hear:
Westminster Presbyterian Church, on Lake Avenue, Pasadena, California - a safe and welcoming church … a place to find life … where life can find a place.
Where a woman’s right to choose her health care is affirmed.
Where trans-children and their families are welcomed.
Where gender-diversity is celebrated …
Where all are welcomed … for who they are, and all they hope to be!
Where dreams are honored …
Because “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”
In this place, we learn the love of God - from the Sacred Text … our reading today says it well … the early Christians did some mighty important things that mark the way for us.
They devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles - (there’s that word, devoted).
Those early Christians spent much time together - in the temple … they broke bread at home … ate their food with glad and generous hearts.
The learned together … they worshipped together … they were devoted … and the world has never been the same.
There is strength - being together, being devoted to the things of God: the rituals of the past, the dreams of the future … everything is better said, and more fully lived, when done - in the company of others.
Dear friends, I’m glad you’re here this morning.
And I’m glad to be here, too.
Onward we go.
Upward we look.
Outward we move.
Devoted - to the things of God.
Hallelujah and Amen!
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