Afternoon!
Wow! January isn’t even over yet, but what a year it has already been! The biggest fires we have ever encountered in the US have destroyed acre after acre and home after home in California. President Jimmy Carter, who lived to be 100 years old passed away and was put to rest with a heartwarming and sincere remembrance of his life as one who chose love and simple service over power. Israel and Palestine have come closer to a semblance of peace than at any other time in this latest standoff. We have said goodbye to president # 46 and welcomed in #47. And it was a welcome of inaugural festivities, dinners, balls, glamor, wealth, controversial prayer services, and lots of general settling in amidst apprehension for some and jubilation for others. These are times in our country of deep change and division……. maybe even fear. On the one hand, we don’t know what to expect from the new leadership from one day to the next.
BUT ON THE OTHER HAND, we know exactly what to expect from the eternal! We know because we are Christians. And we are Christians who have a custom that we pray no one can do away with by decree or demand. Every Sunday, we worship God. And we do it together as a family. We don’t feel the need to elaborate on worship… or to change it in any real way. We just do it! The tradition, the sameness, the repetition is what brings us comfort. Do you know what Jesus did each time he entered a village? The very first thing he did was to find the synagogue – to find the local church, to get to know the people and to worship there.
From the Jewish synagogues to the early Christian home church to days of our grandparents to our little church right here in Whitesburg, not much has changed. We gather, we greet one another with a hug, we sing, we pray, we celebrate and offer concern for one another, we stand up, we sit down, we hear the Word of God read and proclaimed, we celebrate Holy Baptism and we come to the Lord’s table together. Sometimes we even clap and dance and put our hands in the air! Then we go out in the world and live what we learned, just to do it all over again next Sunday! And in it all, God is with us.
Y’all, here’s what I know: things may seem a little scary right now. Things may seem unsettling and unsure. We may wonder if the way we live will ever be the same again.
But this tradition we have going for us, this cycle of worship and service and life is what keeps us stable. It keeps us strong and safe and sure. It brings us peace, peace beyond understanding. I don’t know about you, but I can tell you that I am going to hold on dearly to worship and church life. I am going to sing the old songs and find joy in searching the Word and sharing with you. Even though the world may change from one day to the next, Jesus Christ is Lord of all. And I hope that the love and assurance of this God who does not change will be the lens through which we all view the evening news!
I love you! Look forward to seeing you on Sunday! (Reminder to all our leaders: We will have our commissioning of leaders service on Sunday!)
Check out the insert in the bulletin for more announcements.
Grace and Peace,
Rev. Martha