Midweek message from Fr. David 10/28/20

 

Midweek message from Fr. David

October 28, 2020

It's a high bar. October 25, 2020 The Rev. Kathleen M. Sturges

Matthew 22:34-46

Jesus raises some tough questions. "Do you love God with all of your heart and with all of your soul and with all of your mind? Uh...no. Do you love your neighbor that way? No. And what about yourself? That would also be a no.

As bad as that sounds, though, I know I’m not alone in this epic fail. Loving to that degree with all of one’s heart and soul and mind is a mighty high bar to reach. Sometimes we might get there, but certainly not all the time. That’s the truth that we confess every week that as we pray, We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. And, thank God, every time we humble ourselves and confess that, we are forgiven. Forgiven by God with the very love that we, all too often, fail to employ in our own lives. For we are forgiven by a love that actively works for our good so that we might have abundant life.

Because that’s what God wants for all of God’s people - Abundant Life. And that is why we are commanded to love. But this love isn’t about stirring up some kind of positive emotions towards other people. Jesus isn’t commanding us to sit in our homes and have good feelings about others. That’s nice and all, but that’s not what this love command is about. It’s not about our feelings but about our behavior. Loving behavior that actively works for the good of the other. Because when we love in this way we are always, at the same time, loving God.

It’s easy to think that the command to love our neighbor is only about caring for individuals, and it is. We are called to seek the good for the people that God has placed in our lives. The other day in a Zoom staff meeting, Scot Jonte, our Administrative Assistant, mentioned that her mother always said, “Your manners are reserved for your family first.” And that stuck with me because it’s all too easy to let simple acts of kindness and respect slip with those you see day in and day out - especially in these times when we are seeing the same people all the time. I know my kids could tell stories of times when I had been grousing at them for one (good) reason or another only to be interrupted by a phone call. And then, upon picking up the phone, my voice would change into the most pleasant tone as I said, “Hello?” And their eyes would roll! How we treat the daily people in our lives matters. It matters so much that it’s part of the greatest commandment of all.

But it’s not all of it. The command to love goes way beyond our personal interactions. To actively work for the good of others applies not only to individuals but to communities as well. There’s no denying that we live in an interconnected world. What we do or don’t do has the potential to impact countless others that we will never personally meet and yet who are just as loved by God as we. And one opportunity for us to love our neighbor on this kind of macro level is by voting. If, that is, we do more than vote with our own interests in mind but consider what is in the best interest of our neighbors that are not in our same circumstances. Our vote can be a concrete way that we live out our baptismal vows, that is, to strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being.

Of course, loving a community of neighbors doesn’t stop with casting one vote. We are always called, commanded even, to care about things that people need to thrive. Things that for most of us we take for granted, but for many of our neighbors is not the norm. Things like access to healthy food, to quality education, to fair treatment under the law, to affordable medical care. Jesus’ command to love means that these, among others, are areas where we are to actively work for the good of all people, all of our neighbors, so that they too might have abundant life.

But like I said, it’s a high bar. I mean, how can we really love this way? Only imperfectly, for sure. But that shouldn’t stop us. Especially since we are connected with the One who does love perfectly. The source from which all love flows. And as we turn more and more towards that source, towards our God, we experience that perfect love. Perfect love that is always being poured into our lives so that we become more able, more empowered, to fulfill the greatest command of all. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. [And] You shall love your neighbor as yourself.

COOS Sunday Worship 10/25/20

 

COOS Sunday Worship

October 25, 2020

Order of Worship

(may be printed out)

Experiencing God: Recorded Sessions

 

EXPERIENCING GOD: RECORDED SESSIONS

Experiencing God  

September 30

(Session 2 recorded, on October 7, was corrupted and is not available.)

Experiencing God: When we fall short      

October 14

Experiencing God: When we don't    

October 21

Midweek message from Fr. David 10/21/20

 

Midweek message from Fr. David

October 21, 2020

Everything we have is a gift from God. October 18, 2020 Cathrine Cashwell, Stewardship Co-Chair

 

Cathrine Cashwell - Stewardship Reflection

October 18, 2020

 In the beginning

Our daughter, who was eight at the time, returned home from visiting Church of Our Saviour with her friend, Nikki. She walked in the family room and announced that she had found a church that our family would like. How cute was that? This eight-year-old thought she had found a place that would fulfill the complicated needs of each of our family members.

 Still, I was impressed that she had made that declaration. Philip, Stephanie, Cat E. and I visited the church the very next Sunday. Well, that was 18 years ago and here we are.

 Shortly after our first visit

Cat E. and Steph found a niche of friends and fellowship with people their age. Philip found Judy Gary and the choir. But Lamont Tupper found me. He saw me sitting alone and took me to the COOS Adult Forum class, introducing me around. If you arrived here after the death of the Tuppers – you missed a treat. Lamont had a special gift of welcoming people to make them feel comfortable and he used his gift to serve COOS.  As a matter of fact, after the death of Lamont, the church realized we needed a welcoming committee to fill his shoes.

 Highs and lows

Over the last 18 years, our family has experienced a number of highs and lows in life. Our low points were dark nights of the soul. God placed you in my life to be my rod and my staff.

 When my family and I were unable to see light, you guided us.

When I was angry over my loss - my COOS family did not turn me away.

When I was sad, you held my hand.

When I felt unlovable, you showed me love.

During the good times, you have demonstrated happiness and encouragement for our family. Through the highs and the lows you have invited our family to take a closer walk with you.

 And, may I mention that you DO NOT run when you see me coming - arms wide open - asking for help with Summer Celebration VBS!

 Blessings

I have enjoyed directing this program for the past four years. What a smile it puts on my face. This event brings children from across this community that could be at any number of camps, near or far, yet they choose to spend that week at our church. It’s fun but it’s work. Summer Celebration is held in mid-July which is usually the hottest week of the summer. Yet, when all is said and done, the adults who give of their time and energy receive as much of a blessing as the children we serve. We make friends with one another and best of all, we make memories.

These stories and personal observations are a few of the reasons why I felt so honored to be asked, along with Philip, to co-chair the COOS Stewardship Committee.

Never having served on a Stewardship Committee, I read up on it and learned that stewardship is having the wisdom to understand that everything we have is a gift from God of which we are to be the absolute best caretakers. It is the courage to give back out of love, a portion of every gift that has been entrusted to us.

 Pledge cards

I hope you received an envelope from COOS in the last week or so, and that you opened it and found a letter that Philip, myself, and our daughter, Stephanie, helped to write.

 Next, I hope you looked at the graph created by Matt Darring. It shows all the ways we are still giving to those in need, even if we aren’t able to meet within our building. After our Blessing of the Pledge cards, next week, you can place it in the mail. Or, you can make your Pledge online. If you did not receive a pledge packet and would like to receive one, please contact the church office.

 Philip and I love this church and the people who make it a refuge from the world. We are grateful for the opportunity to be present in your lives, even if we are now apart. I hope you feel the same. If so, please support COOS with a portion of your finances.

 The Mosaic Law of the old testament spoke of 10% tithing. While in the new testament, the Corinthians asked Paul how much they should give to the church. He replied that people give in proportion to their means. If God has given you wealth, you should give back accordingly.

 Not only do we want to safeguard our health during this season of COVID-19, we need to safeguard the health of our beloved Church of Our Saviour because We are One…. Together.

 Thanks Be to God.

 Pledge your support here.

COOS Sunday Worship 10/18/20

 

October 18, 2020

COOS Sunday Worship

Stewardship Homily by Cathrine Cashwell, Stewardship Co-Chair

Order of Worship

(may be printed)

Midweek message from Fr. David 10/14/20

 

Midweek message from Fr. David

October 14, 2020

COOS Sunday Worship 10/11/20

 

COOS Sunday Worship

October 11, 2020

Order of Worship

(may be printed out)

We don't do this alone. October 11, 2020. The Rev. Kathleen M. Sturges

Philippians 4:1-9

The anthem this morning, It Is Well with My Soul, played by Donna Rehorn is one of my favorite hymns. I find the somber and peaceful tune together with the words deeply moving. No doubt part of the power of that song flows from the circumstances from which it was created. 

 Horatio Gates Spafford, was a successful lawyer and Presbyterian church elder in the late 1800’s. His wife, Anna, and he had five children at the time, one boy and four girls. However, when their son was only four years old he died of an illness. As the family was dealing with that loss, only months later, a large part of Horatio’s fortune went up in flames in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. Seeking rest and solace, the family planned a trip to Europe. But because of a last minute business development, Horatio stayed behind sending his wife and daughters to sail on ahead. On the fourth day of that voyage the ship collided with another vessel and sank. Most of the passengers went down with the ship, including Horatio’s four daughters. Only his wife, Anna, survived.

 Upon hearing the devastating news, Horatio set sail to join his grieving wife. And on that journey across the Atlantic as his ship passed near where his daughters had died he was inspired to write these words:

                    When peace like a river, attendeth my way,

When sorrows like sea billows roll

Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say

It is well, it is well, with my soul.

 How does someone do that? In the midst of such suffering how can someone be able to proclaim, It is well, it is well, with my soul?

 Let’s hold onto that as we turn to our reading from Philippians where something similar is going on. The apostle Paul has been living amongst the horrors of a Roman prison. His life is literally in the hands of a brutal and corrupt regime. Yet he writes about joy. His own and the joy that is available to all of us. 

 But let’s be clear, the joy that Paul is talking about here is a completely different animal than having fun or being happy. Paul’s life is not fun. It’s not happy. So where is the joy? What is it that Paul could find to rejoice in? Well, he tells us it is the experience that the Lord is near. The Lord is near to him in prison. The Lord is near to the recipients of his letter hundreds of miles away. The Lord is near to us. Real and lasting joy comes from the confidence of knowing that no matter where we are or what is happening we are inseparably connected to God, grounded in  Love. And that has the power to make any soul well.

 Rejoice in the Lord always, Paul writes, and again I will say, Rejoice! This isn’t about faking it - putting on a happy face when you’re crumbling inside. It’s about holding two realities in view at the same time. Acknowledging the immediate reality of a world that is fraught with struggle and pain while, at the same time, knowing that another just as real reality exists. God’s reality of love, hope, peace, mercy. A reality that is both already here and still drawing near.

 Which all sounds really good to me, but at times can be quite difficult to pull off. Because I don’t know about you, but sometimes I can be swamped by the fear, anxiety, and pain of this world to the point where that’s the only reality that I can see. But that’s maybe the point. That we don’t do this alone. The Lord is near - near in Spirit and near through people. And if we want to be in touch with the joy of that nearness then, Paul explains, that we would do well in developing certain habits of the heart - regularly connecting to God. Pouring everything out, the good, the bad, the ugly in prayer. While also engaging in certain habits of the mind - that is, to intentionally bring into focus and think about things that are good, that are true, that are noble. Cultivating such habits of the heart and mind gives God’s Holy Spirit some space to work in us so that we can be more fully in touch with a reality that sometimes seems hidden but is no less real or true. The Lord of love is always, always near.

 That is why Paul is able to rejoice. That is why we can rejoice too. And that is why, I suspect, Horatio Spafford was able to give voice to a reality of joy that was clearly not tied to his present circumstances. Whatever my lot thou has taught me to say, It is well, it is well, with my soul. May your soul be well - this day and always.

 

 

 

 

Midweek message from Fr. David 10/7/20

 

Midweek message from Fr. David

October 7, 2020

When the path diverges. October 4, 2020. The Rev. David M. Stoddart

Philippians 3:4b-14

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

Though as for that, the passing there 

Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I —

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

“The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost. When I first read Robert Frost, I fell in love. I stopped worrying about rhyme schemes and meters and just let the poetry move me. Rather than analyzing it like a compulsive student trying to make an A in English class, I just soaked in its simple beauty and relished it.

I’ve been thinking about this particular poem a lot as I have sat with Paul’s message to the Philippians today. He also reached a critical moment when the path before him diverged. He could continue to be a devout Pharisees and to obey the commandments and follow all the rules and observe all the traditions of his people in order to serve God — or he could fall in love. And Paul fell deeply in love with Christ. He allowed himself to be swept away by the love and beauty of God which Jesus reveals, a holy magnificence that no law or tradition could ever adequately convey. And rather than try to keep earning God’s favor, Paul chose to embrace Christ and let that favor just wash over him and open up his heart and change his entire mindset. He took the road less traveled by and it made all the difference.

When Jesus calls us to follow him, he invites us to fall in love. Because without being filled with love, what he teaches makes no sense: Turn the other cheek? Forgive everyone who hurts you? Do good to your enemies? Share what you have generously? Don't worry about anything? Be willing to die? If we stick to the commandment road, that all sounds like nonsense. It’s only by walking the path of love that we can actually follow Jesus and live like Jesus, with his Spirit. It’s not that the Law is bad: of course it’s good. But it can only take us so far. The Ten Commandments can help keep our behavior in line, but no one ever fell in love with a commandment. By contrast, Jesus can blow our minds, pierce our hearts, and open our eyes to see a Love awesome beyond words. He can take us to a place that no law or commandment could ever get us to.

I cannot make you fall in love with Christ. But I can assure you that’s exactly what he is calling you to do. He is inviting each one of us to be loved into goodness, to be loved into abundance, to be loved into full and eternal life. And truly, there is no other way. God is love, and we can only know God by loving and being loved. If we think that the Christian religion is about following lots of rules, enacting lots of rituals, and signing off on lots of doctrines so that God doesn’t get angry at us and punish us by sending us to some kind of hell forever, then we have taken the wrong path and have completely missed the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Fortunately, we can always get back on the life-giving path. So I’m going to urge a simple practice on you. Jesus tells us to abide in his love. So, every single day, multiple times throughout the day, take a moment and close your eyes and imagine Jesus saying to you: “I love you. I love you just the way you are. You are precious to me, and I will love you forever.” Hear those words spoken to you every single day, and then over time let the Holy Spirit do whatever she is going to do. The goal is not to have gushy feelings about Jesus, though there’s nothing wrong with those if they come. The goal is to be filled with the love of Christ so that we love God and love other people more and more like Jesus loves us. That is the path. That is the way. In our world, sadly, it is the road less traveled by. But at least for the people of Church of Our Saviour, I don’t want it to be the road not taken.

COOS Sunday Worship 10/4/20

COOS Sunday Worship

October 4, 2020

Order of Worship

(can be printed out)