Last Wednesday's Reflection

March 4, 2015

Holden Evening Prayer

Lenten Reflection

Gathered in Grace…Forgiveness

Luke 15:11-32

Please pray with me,

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of all of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O God, our rock, our strength and our redeemer.  Amen.  

 

At the Lenten Fair on Sunday, our Sunday school kids were learning our mission statement.

Called by Christ, Gathered in Grace, Joyfully Serving. 

Sitting in with the 5^th & 6^th grade class, they asked, what is grace? 

Good question.  At first I tried to define it….and if asked again, I would say, it is forgiveness in the place you least expect it. 

But in the moment I shared this story...

Last month during a sermon I was preaching on healing, the congregation was invited to come up for the laying on of hands and a prayer of healing and peace.  As I went around to different individuals at the altar railing, I said their name as part of the prayer.  Towards the end of a line of people, I placed my hands on Chris' head, blessed her and went on to the next person. 

It wasn't until I got back to my office, well after worship, that I realized it wasn't Chris, it was Sue.  I felt horrible.  I sent her a note that week apologizing for my mistake and how I had hoped that by getting her name wrong that I had not made the experience unpleasant for her. 

When I saw her in worship the next Sunday, I said, "I am so sorry!"  She said, "You are amazing." 

Huh? 

She said, "You were going down the line and saying everyone's names and getting them all right, and I thought to myself, she's getting them all right, she's perfect.  And then you messed up my name and I thought, phew, she's human." 

What is grace?  Forgiveness in the place you least expect it. 

Maybe you've seen it in this place, too.  During communion, sometimes little ones come up with their parents or grandparents and the kiddos are grumpy, they may have tears on their faces and you can see the unhappiness at the communion railing…yet all the while, those children of God, too, receive the blessing, the meal, the love of God…..whether we or mom or dad think they deserve it in that moment or not….it is given. 

What is grace?  Forgiveness in the place you least expect it. 

In the story of the prodigal son….

It is when the father rushes and runs out to meet the son, wraps him in a warm embrace and treats him as royalty. 

We don’t always understand who is forgiven and why….maybe that makes us more like the older brother on some days…being disgruntled about why this reckless younger brother has been welcomed home with open arms. 

But then that leads us right back to this railing…where all are welcome.  All are loved and all are forgiven.  And isn’t that the challenging piece for us…that called by Christ, gathered in grace, we are called to forgive as we have been (and continue to be) forgiven. 

That’s what makes this place different than the real world…not that we are special, non-sinners who are perfect in God’s eyes and will never, ever do anything wrong, and that we are better than those people who squander their families riches and come running back with their tail between their legs….no, we are just like the younger brother…we have squandered things, made mistakes and sought forgiveness….and so we too, are called to forgive those who have wronged us, who have hurt us and with those whom we disagree. 

That’s not to say there won’t be consequences for our actions or the actions of others, but we are called to forgive, not to ignore, or exclude, but to forgive with the power of God’s grace and love. 

Think about a time when you did not expect to be forgiven….how did that grace moment feel? 

Think about how a word or action from you could be the same feeling for someone else. 

This is an amazing gift that we have been given by God. 

My prayers continue that we are able to receive the grace of God….and gathered in that grace, that we are free to forgive others as God continues to forgive us. 

And now may the peace which passes all understanding, keep our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus and let all God’s people say, amen.  

Sunday's Sermon-ish

Here is the basis of what was preached this weekend. 
The stories took on a different form at each service.  Thanks to people who were in worship who were willing to be examples of God in our midst here and now. 

February 15, 2015

Transfiguration B

1 Kings 2:1-12
Psalm 50:1-6
2 Corinthians 4:3-6
Mark 9:2-9

Please pray with me,

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of all our hearts be acceptable in your sight O God, our rock and our redeemer.  Amen. 
This morning we find ourselves on a mountain top and not just the mountain that overlooks Robesonia, but a mountaintop with Jesus, Peter, James and John. 
I don’t know about you, but because of my camp experience and travel experiences I’ve seen many mountains.  My native area of New England is home to many hills and mountains.  My summers at camp were up in New Hampshire, in an area called the White Mountain region…we went hiking often. 
Yet all those ranges throughout New England cannot even compare to the mountains I have seen in Alaska.  Wow…that’s all I can say.  They say everything is bigger in Alaska…and there is some truth to that.  The city of Anchorage is surrounded by a beautiful mountain range.  It’s a wonder to see the buildings of the city against the backdrop of the majestic mountains. 
While up in Alaska several summers ago, I had the opportunity to hike Mount Marathon.  Many people run up this mountain each year as part of a race...it’s a tricky course, not well groomed or marked, but people run it for a medal and bragging rights that they have run up and down a mountain.  Well, a few of us thought we would try it out. 
At the base of the mountain, the following notices were posted:

But we went for it, anyway!  Needless to say, we gave it our best shot to get up that mountain.  It was pretty treacherous and tricky…there was lots of slipping and sliding, but once we made it to the top….wow. 

Seriously, the view from the top was amazing…the view was spectacular.  We saw the whole town of Seward and were surrounded by even higher snow capped mountains. 

What a sight to see.  We didn’t want to leave…

Part of the reason we wanted to stay was because we knew the trip down would probably more difficult than the way up.  Part of that was because we didn’t want to leave the beautiful view. 
Who am I kidding?  We were worried about going back down. 
But we couldn’t stay on the top.  While the top of the mountain is a wonderful place to be, it’s not where we are meant to stay. 
While Peter, James and John are up on the mountain, they too see a marvelous sight.  Jesus is transfigured in front of them.  His appearance becomes one of dazzling white.  He is in the presence of Elijah and Moses. 
Upon seeing this sight, Peter is not sure what to do about it. 
He’s in shock…but he knows this is an amazing thing, so he wishes to capture the moment. 
In his confusion and fear, Peter wants somehow to preserve this moment.  As challenging as it is to understand, he wishes to hold onto this moment and never let it go.  He prefers not to leave the mountaintop.  He wishes to treasure this moment. 
I wonder what Peter’s selfie would look like from that mountaintop experience? 
How often do we find ourselves in this situation...where what is happening to us at a certain moment is so wonderful that we wish to preserve it.  We wish that it will not end.  In a way, we wish to keep it to ourselves. 
I was at a concert last year.  It was They Might be Giants.  Billy and I went with John and Tara Clauss.  As the show began, they said, we see some of you recording this show.  We don't mind you recording it...but think of the person behind you and all they can see is your hand holding the smart phone.  Don't be that jerk.  (But they didn't use the word jerk.) But they said...don't be that person...because for one, you block the view of the person behind you.  And two, you pretty much miss the whole experience because you are worried about the quality of the recording.  And I'll add three, when you go to watch the video you will only be able to see what is within the confines of the screen.  You'll miss the 'whole' experience. 
One of the highlights of our honeymoon in New Orleans was the evening we spent at Preservation Hall.  It's the home to a deep history of jazz musicians and concerts.  We waited in line for nearly an hour for a 45 minute show.  As we entered the hall, we got to sit on the last two cushions on the floor right in front of the band.  (The trombone slide nearly hit us during the show.) 
Before the band came in, we were welcomed to this little piece of jazz history.  We were asked to put away our phones and recording devices and were invited to be immersed in the music and experience for the next 45 minutes.  Everybody did.  It's 45 minutes of amazing music, laughter, and applause that isn't repeatable. 
Thankfully we captured the moment in our hearts. 
How many of you wish you could capture a moment like that?  That you were so blown away by the experience that you felt like Peter and wanted to build a tent and dwell there and never leave? 
I pray that that happens in this place week after week. 
That we see Jesus transfigured before us through the bread and the wine of communion and through the words of confession and forgiveness. 
It also happened last week in this space. As Neil and Julieann P. were serving as ushers during communion, SarahAnne was not pleased.  Nicole D. tried her best to soothe the tears, but SarahAnne would not be calmed.  And then, from across the sanctuary, Amy S. walked over and scooped up SarahAnne and just held her in the side of the sanctuary and she was at peace.  It happened....just there...in the midst of communion...Jesus being transfigured as the Body of Christ came together to love and support one another. 
It also happened at Ozgoods on Thursday.  As Pastor Bill, Vicar Tommy and I were out to lunch we saw Alyssa and her kids enjoying lunch. 
Well, they popped out of the booth to wave and smile at us as we ate and when we left, we stopped in to say goodbye.  As we went to leave, Sammie asked mom to get something to give to Pastor Jen...it was the valentine she had made at story time at the library that morning.  I asked if I could give her a hug and she said yes! 
Not to be outdone, Josie stood up and said I want to give Pastor Bill a kiss! 
(Now, what you need to know is that we were saying goodbye as they were eating dessert.  Ice cream sundaes, no less.) 
Pastor Bill got a bit of chocolate syrup, ice cream and whipped cream with his kiss.  I got a little too.  And just then in those moments, God broke into Ozgoods...into the bodies of two 4 year olds sharing valentines and hugs and kisses.
Can you see it happening?  Where are you seeing Jesus transfigured in your midst?  How are you capturing that moment?  And how are you sharing it with others? 
We are called to see and experience God in this world.  
Gracious God give us the eyes to see, the bodies to feel and the voices to share this amazing news with everyone we meet. 

And now my the peace which passes all understanding keep our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus and let all god's people say, amen. 

So it begins...

Here it is, Ash Wednesday. 

The Lenten journey begins as we remember from whence we came and to where it is we will return.
dust. 

Two years ago, I read and journaled through the 40+ days with the book 40 Day Journey with Julian of Norwich  by Lisa Dahill.  Last year, I spent time during the 40+ days taking pictures guided by a word a day for a photo a day.  Although, truth be told, I often was scrambling at the end of the day to find something that fit a word. 

This year, I had hoped to do another 40 day journey, but when I found a different book on Amazon, it wouldn't have been shipped until the end of February.  (This tends to happen when you think about your Lenten practice a week or less before the beginning of the season.) 

I ended up going with Writing to God: 40 Days of Praying with my Pen by Rachel G. Hackenberg.  I'll have to figure out what to do on Sundays, but I'm sure I'll come up with something.  Today's prompt included a poem, a passage from Ezekiel and a question to get the prayer juices flowing.  It was a really cool experience to be guided into putting the prayer on paper without thinking it out first.  I look forward to more prompts and different ways of expressing thoughts, questions and ideas to God. 

Before I did that, this morning, I looked at the Lent Photo a Day Facebook page.   (Feel free to look them up and like them on Facebook.)  You'll see this picture on their facebook page.

Today's word is dust.  My goal is to look at this guide first thing every morning.  And so today I did....and after finishing my written prayer, I snapped this photo.

It all comes back to dust.  

But in the case of my writing prompt this morning, it was dust as a verb.  It got me to thinking and praying about what dust I need God to sweep away out of different areas of my life in order that I may see God and God at work in my life more clearly. 

As this journey begins for you (or doesn't if your faith is different than mine) may you be continue to think about dust.  Whether it reminds you of a mess or the lack of time to clean or the truth of our existence.  

May this season, this journey to the cross, ever and always draw us nearer to God who loves us unconditionally and is always with us. 

+peace

A year in 40 pictures.

It's been a great year.

As I entered my 40s last February I thought about keeping track of fun, amazing, life changing events that I could look through as I turned 41.  It would've been super simple.  A jar and some slips of paper.  Maybe that will happen this coming year.  It didn't happen this past year, but here are some pictures that highlight year 40.

1) Breakfast on my 40th Birthday.  Cap'n Crunch french toast :) (With my husband.) 

2) Just another Friday night at Trinity....with over 100 youth at the West Berks Mission District Lock In.  

3) Quality time with my newborn nephew, Chase, and his amazing mom and dad.  

4) Mmmmmm...local breakfast at Shorty's Sunflower cafe, on St. Patrick's Day.  Carbomb pancakes. 

5) Muppets Most Wanted...with Chris (and just 4 other people in the theater.)

6) Good times with the Andersen family in CT.  

After a rainy day inside at the science center, we posed in puddles.  :)

7)  Second female...1st in my age bracket.  

8) #30daysofbiking Day 8:The reward for struggling with the hills. Downhill, that is, into the 19 mph winds.

9)  My yearly Easter morning breakfast selfie with this awesome lady!

10) Inter-office shenanigans.  

11)  A solid run at the Fox Trot 5K...another placement this spring.  

12)  Trying on my class t-shirt from the 5th grade....and it fits.  

13)  How do you eat a cupcake?

14)  FED at the Pocono retreat. 

15) Spring eats: asparagus quiche.  

16) Staff training devos at Bear Creek Camp.  

17) Yay....Joan and Ted are married!  So we posed for a picture, too.  

18) Senior High Beach retreat truck buddies!

19)  Survival snacks for VBS.

20) A peanut butter problem?  I don't think so.  

21)  Ah...the summer harvest.  Local corn for the fritters and the homemade gazpacho. 

22) Photos with minion balloons at 5th quarter.  

23) Holy hops, batman.  

24) Running the Hartford 1/2 with my awesome sister....as our husbands watched in the rain.  

25) That time I finished a porknado. 

26) A PR and 2nd female overall! 

27) Family. 

28) This girl. 

29) Great friends and a football game.  

30)  Sneakers for Sarah in Detroit!

31) Moving (fishing) for people Bible Study.  

32) Face timing with my nephew.  

33) Honored to be this little guy's godmother. 

34)  Walking a mile with the love of my life between tasting chocolates, riding the trolley, making our own candy bar and solving the mystery at the 4D theater in Hershey

And that was all before a tasty dinner at Troegs.  

35) Christmas Eve....sockies.  (Sock-selfies?)  Loved the socks on the acolyte next to me...nearly as much as I adore the awesome gal wearing them.  

36) Believe it or not, I maintained my weight between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day!  

37)  Sometimes I need extra motivation in the morning to get to the gym.

38)  Family (aka the group) gathering for a wedding in New York.  A fun walk mid afternoon.  

39)  The joy of baking...to enjoy with friends. 

40) Running a 5K with these two amazing chicks.  One completed her first 5K that day.  The other had a C-section just less than two months earlier.  

An excellent year.  One with miles, smiles, good eats and lots and lots of love.  So thankful for all the great folks in my life.  This is just a glimpse into the past 12 months.  I bet I have several more blog posts worth of photos from this past year.  But this was a fun way to see the year.  Thanks for reading/viewing.

+peace.

After the quake

"Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity." 1 Timothy 4:12 (NIV)


That was the theme verse this past weekend as we were REdefined at the Harrisburg Youth Quake. 


22 youth and 9 adult leaders spent the weekend together laughing, singing, dancing, dressing up in crazy outfits, playing games, meeting new people and deepening our relationship with God and with one another. 


We heard stories from Dan Scharnhorst about what it means to be REdefined because of God's great love for us.


We sang and danced with Captive Free and Bread of Stone as lyrics spoke to us about who we are as human beings created in God's image, loved and treasured by God for who we are. 


It was an amazing weekend. 


But I think what may have stuck out most for me was when we shared highs and lows on Saturday night.  The question asked was, "What is something you would not have experienced today if you didn't come to the Youth Quake?" 


All sorts of answers came out.  From silly things, like hiding under tables, playing team ninja and laughing uncontrollably, to real things, like
meeting new people and developing new friendships,
spending time in conversation with youth and adults from our congregation,
spending time with people,
sharing a meal with members of Captive Free,
getting to meet members of the band Bread of Stone,
being able to hear that a member of our group writes and shares poetry,
thanks given to the people at Trinity that for the first time high school youth attended as Junior guides,
hearing the adults thank the youth for being there for the weekend....
packaging food for hungry people around the world,
hanging out with my siblings and cousins for the weekend,
and the countless other things that we could only experience as attendees of the Harrisburg Youth Quake. 


And those are the joys and the challenges that come along with attending a life changing weekend like this one. 


Now we are back....back at home....back at work....and tomorrow, back at school. 


How will we share this message?  As Dan said, "We need to let go and jump out of the plane." 
In all reality, we came to the Quake just so we could leave.  We came to the Quake so we could be reminded of how we are REdefined.  We came to the Quake so that we could connect and reconnect and be sent from Harrisburg to share stories and laughter and the good news of Jesus Christ with others. 


What happens in Vegas may stay in Vegas, but what happened in Harrisburg is meant to be shared. 
If you attended the Quake, be sure to tell someone about it. 
If you didn't attend the Quake, ask someone to tell you about it. 


Share the stories, listen to the stories and hear the amazing ways that God REdefines each of us because of the gift of Jesus' life, death and resurrection. 


Until the next post . . .

What does God smell like?

And the word became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood.  (John 1:14 - The Message)


This is the verse (and the translation) that sparked my prayerful sermon preparation last week. 


Feel free to share or post sights, smells, sounds, tastes or things you've touched (or have touched you) that have reminded you that Emmanuel (God with us) is here...with us....now. 

January 4, 2015

2^nd Sunday of Christmas

Jeremiah 31:7-14

Psalm 147:12-20

Ephesians 1:3-14

John 1:(1-9)10-18

Please pray with me,

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of all of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O God, our rock, our strength and our redeemer.  Amen. 

Merry Christmas!  Even as we see decorations coming down, our homes returning to some sense of normalcy and preparing to return to school or work after some time off, Christmas is still here.  The 12 days of Christmas continue until January 6, when we celebrate the arrival of the magi visiting the baby Jesus. 

Even with this winding down, we still know that the celebration of that one night, changes our world and our lives every single day. 

This passage from John is one of my favorite passages of scripture.  Verse 5, in particular.  The light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not overcome it.  My favorite translation of this verse is from the King James version, The light shineth in the darkness and the darkness comprehended it not. 

The light has broken into our world, in the presence of a baby boy, and the darkness that we have walked in, that we have lived in, and that continues to be a part of our every day world, cannot comprehend this light. 

As we lit candles on Christmas Eve and heard part of this reading from John, we celebrated light overcoming the darkness in our homes, in our lives and in our world.  The glow of lights in this sanctuary on that dark Christmas Eve night was the light we needed to see breaking into our world. 

Yet our passage from John goes even further today.  As we continue reading we hear that the word has become flesh and dwells among us. 

Hear the words to verse 14 again:  And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.

And now hear that same verse from The Message translation:

The Word became flesh and blood,
    and moved into the neighborhood.
We saw the glory with our own eyes,
    the one-of-a-kind glory,
    like Father, like Son,
Generous inside and out,
    true from start to finish.

The Word became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood. 

God is here.  In flesh and in blood and abides, lives with us, in our homes, in our neighborhood, in our lives and in our world. 

And that, my friends makes a difference. 

Most likely, we have seen God in our homes through the seasons of Advent and Christmas…we made ready our homes with decorations, perhaps we lit Advent wreaths or read from an Advent devotional during meals.  We probably gave or received gifts and participated in a festive meal. 

You see, with (or without) us even noticing, the Word became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood. 

A few months ago, we had a warm evening the night of a Parish Planning Council meeting.  As I walked by the parking lot before the meeting there was a gathering of neighborhood youth just hanging out. 

I said, hey….what are you doing?  (You see sometimes there are local youth playing kickball or soccer, which could do some serious damage to these stained glass windows.) They replied….playing manhunt. 

“Oh,” I said, “Good luck.  And be careful, we have a meeting tonight, so there will be cars pulling into the lot shortly.

“Hey,” one of them said, “Can you pick someone to be it?  Nobody wants to be it.”

I said sure…and after guessing a few numbers, we had a new person and they were off and running….and I heard one of them say, hey, she’s pretty cool….

And that was light breaking into darkness, that was the Word living in the neighborhood.  So often, too often, I would say that the interactions I have with youth in the parking lot or around the churchyard are not as positive.  For whatever reason, there seems to be a wall of defense up between these young folks and myself. 

Yet in that moment…of a game and a favor….we had a connection.  God was in our midst, allowing us to be in community with one another.  

What are the ways and where are the places you have seen, felt, heard, touched or even smelled the word breaking into the world and living in our neighborhood? 

This past week at our Bible study, the local pastors got into a conversation about what God smells like.  No really….we did. 

We thought, if we’re going to talk about the word becoming flesh and blood and moving into the neighborhood, we have the opportunity to think about how we experience God in our lives with all 5 senses. 

I know, it may seem a little out there….but think about it, just for a bit…

We often talk about how we see God in our world.  Through all the volunteers and the generosity of the donations to the food pantry.  In all the volunteers that made the four worship services happen on Christmas eve.  To the conversations and positive interactions we have with people in our own neighborhoods.  We see God in our midst….

But how do you hear God?  Is it in the music and scripture proclaimed in this place?  Is it in the giggles of little ones as they try to escape mom or dad in the supermarket?  Is it in the sounds coming from the organ, from our choirs or from bells?  Is it in the familiar bark or purr from your pet? 

How do you hear God in your midst?  Perhaps it is even in the still silence at the very beginning or end of the day. 

Think about it. 

How do you know God is with you….by what you taste?  Do you taste God in the bread and wine during communion?  Do you taste the fellowship and the gathering around donuts in the social hall?  Do you taste the gifts of cooking and baking that God has given people when we feast upon soups, breads and desserts during fellowship nights?  Do you taste God when you sit with your family for a familiar meal?  Or when you have been away from food for a while, that first bite….does that taste like God?  Nourishing you and feeding you when you are hungry?

You may not have thought about this before….but think about the tastes that remind you of God. 

And now for the fun one….how do you smell God?  What scents remind you that God is here?  Is it the scent of hay and a calf on Christmas eve?  Is it the incense that rises during Lenten Vespers service?  Is it the double smoked ham that permeates this building for days after the ABO Christmas party?  Is it the scent of cinnamon that wafts into the sanctuary here on sticky bun Sundays?  I could go on and on….what about outside of this space? 

Is it the smell of chili or cornbread baking in your kitchen that you know will go to feed folks at the Opportunity House? 

Is it the smell of freshly treated fields?  (you know what smell I mean) Knowing that the food we receive is tended to and cared for by our neighbors? 

Or is it the scent of grandma’s perfume or dad’s aftershave….

What does God smell like to you?  How do the scents that fill our world and our noses remind us that God is with us? 

And that leaves us with the sense of touch.  How do you touch God?  Or rather, how does God touch you?  Is it when the bread is placed in your hands at communion?  Is it in a handshake or hug as we pass the peace?  Is it in the holding of someone’s hand when you cross the road?  Or is it the feel of wet cheeks as you hug or kiss a dear friend who has been crying?  Is it the physical shake of someone who feels completely broken down?  Is it in the picking up of drywall or paint as you work on a local service project?

Again…I think what started as almost a silly question at Bible study, really opens our eyes, ears, noses, hearts and minds to how God is living in our neighborhood. 

What ways do you experience God in your midst?  Smells? Sights? Sounds? 

How is God continually deepening God’s relationship with you by using all of your senses? 

The Word became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood.

Emmanuel, God with us….here.  now.  always. 

And now may the love, grace and peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, keep our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, and let all God’s people say, amen.