Worship July 3, 2021
Let us worship!
How great is the Lord!
How much we should praise him.
Lord, here in your Temple we meditate upon your kindness and your love.
Your name is known throughout the earth, O God.
You are praised everywhere for the salvation you have scattered throughout the world.
Rejoice! O people, rejoice!
For God will see to it that you are finally treated fairly.
For this great God is our God forever and ever.
(from Psalm 48)
A prayer to center you
We come to praise you, most Holy God.
May your Spirit swoop amongst us and lift us up to your glory.
May we feel your presence with us as we enter this time of praise and reflection.
Turn our hearts to you that we may hear your word anew this day.
May we find strength through your word and good hope for a bright future where we may see glimpses of your kingdom each day in love, hope and grace!
Amen
Holy Words from Mark 6:1-13
Soon afterwards he left that section of the country and returned with his disciples to Nazareth, his hometown. 2-3 The next Sabbath he went to the synagogue to teach, and the people were astonished at his wisdom and his miracles because he was just a local man like themselves.
“He’s no better than we are,” they said. “He’s just a carpenter, Mary’s boy, and a brother of James and Joseph, Judas and Simon. And his sisters live right here among us.” And they were offended!
4 Then Jesus told them, “A prophet is honored everywhere except in his hometown and among his relatives and by his own family.” 5 And because of their unbelief he couldn’t do any mighty miracles among them except to place his hands on a few sick people and heal them. 6 And he could hardly accept the fact that they wouldn’t believe in him.
Then he went out among the villages, teaching.
7 And he called his twelve disciples together and sent them out two by two, with power to cast out demons. 8-9 He told them to take nothing with them except their walking sticks—no food, no knapsack, no money, not even an extra pair of shoes or a change of clothes.
10 “Stay at one home in each village—don’t shift around from house to house while you are there,” he said. 11 “And whenever a village won’t accept you or listen to you, shake off the dust from your feet as you leave; it is a sign that you have abandoned it to its fate.”
12 So the disciples went out, telling everyone they met to turn from sin. 13 And they cast out many demons and healed many sick people, anointing them with olive oil.
Reflection:
So, deep breath, I am one of those people that went back home. Even as I was doing it, this Scripture rang through my mind as a warning. Through out the 14 years that I served the church that I grew up, the church that I was baptized and confirmed in, the church that loved me throughout my life, this Scripture always hung over my head. Straight out of Seminary I headed back home to start my ministry, possibly a questionable move. Originally it was suppose to be short term and a simple step to get my feet in the door to ministry, but it turned into so much more.
I was incredibly lucky that I did not experience the magnitude of difficulties that Jesus did in this Scripture passage from Mark when he returned to his home town. In my fourteen years of ministry at said church, I was able to do many good things for God’s glory. I was able to minister to people of all ages—particularly the older ones, those that remembered me from my youth—no doubt a small miracle. I feel honored that these people, many of whom had seen me at my most immature, let me in to their lives to walk beside them through difficult and emotional times. I can see now how difficult it is to see the youth of the past for more than what they were, and I am so glad that they were able to see me for the person I had grown in to and not just the child that I once was. (Now that was not true for everyone, nor was the walk always an easy one. There were many hurdles to jump along the way and challenges I had to face but, overall, the experience is one that I will treasure.)
As I have surpassed the forty-year mark in life and as I have watched children that I remember from birth grow into functioning young adults, I am even more thankful for that opportunity. It is not always easy to let someone grow up in your mind. It is not easy to let the faults of a youth melt away in your mind and allow the glories of their adult existence flourish before you. So, when the people of Jerusalem struggle with the return of Jesus, I can also understand.
Jesus returned to his hometown transformed. Who could have imagined that the young boy who had lived a humble life among humble people, the one they had watch grow up all these years beside their own children and grandchildren, the one who used to play in their streets and run around the town, the one who they walked beside through the creaking voice of puberty and stubbly face advancement to young adulthood, the one who left with nothing remarkable to his name, how could he would return home with wisdom and power beyond anything they had ever seen.
Is this not just the carpenter’s son? Is he not just one of us? How can he (one of us) have such power? They could see who Jesus was because of their own preconceived notions. They were unable to see him for who had become because of all they knew of who he was.
I grew up in a smallish town and a doctor’s daughter to boot. I always felt like there were a lot of preconceived notions of who I was. I remember when I went four hours away to college thinking to myself, “no one knows who I am and I can be (or become) whoever I want.” With this realization came much freedom. I became the person I wanted to be not the person everyone around me thought that I should be (or that I thought they thought I should be!)
In the news this past week there was this story of a man who just graduated from law school and passed the Bar exam. He was sworn in as a lawyer by the judge who had once sentenced him for drug possession charge who at that time challenged him to do more than be a drug dealer. The man had taken the challenge to heart and worked hard to advance himself. But as the story went on, the judge had done more than just challenge him. The judge had walked beside him and encouraged him along the way. The judge reached out and helped. He believed the man could more and supported him until he was more.
We often let the experiences of the past shade the glories of what people can become and in so doing we can short ourselves of miracles before our own eyes.
The people of Jerusalem were so closed off to the possibilities of who Jesus had become that Jesus was unable to work miracles. Their disbelief limited what could happen. Their preconceived notions of what ‘one of them’ could become cut short the healing works that could have happened.
Luckily, God could not be limited. Jesus went on to send his disciples out and they were able to do many great works. But Jesus did tell the disciples that if they were not well received to simply shake the dust off their sandals and move on. If people could not see what was before them, if they were not open to the works of God, then they were to move on to a place where the peoples hearts where open and where good work could be done.
Let us open our hearts to those who can be miraculous. Let us be open to what can be in those around us, supporting them and loving them into all that God made them to be. Let us not be the those with hard hearts shutting out others but let us open our hearts and minds to all of God’s children and all that they can be.
Let us not just see people as they were, but let us love them into what they can be!
A hymn for your heart…
Open my eyes that I may see
Glimpses of truth Thou hast for me;
Place in my hands the wonderful key
That shall unclasp and set me free.
(Chorus)
Silently now I wait for Thee,
Ready, my God, Thy will to see;
Open my eyes, illumine me,
Spirit Divine!
Open my ears that I may hear
Voices of truth Thou sendest clear;
And while the wave notes fall on my ear,
Everything false will disappear.
Open my mouth and let me bear
Tidings of mercy everywhere;
Open my heart and let me prepare
Love with Thy children thus to share.
Open my mind that I may read
More of Thy love in word and deed;
What shall I fear while yet Thou dost lead?
Only for light from Thee I plead.
What do you think?
-Think of a time when someone prejudged you.
How did it make you feel?
What affect did it have on you?
-Now imagine if that person had supported you.
What difference would that have made
for you in that moment? In the long run?
-Is there a time when someone believed in you and it made a difference in your life? What was it? How did it make a difference?
-Is there a time when you believed in someone else and it made a difference for them (or for you)?
Action Challenge:
Go out in the world this week meeting people without expectation, accepting them as they are, welcoming them with the hospitality of Christ Jesus. Your eyes might just be opened.
Prayer of sending
God of grace and compassion,
as we go out into the world this week,
may our hearts be open to you.
May we walk amongst your people with open eyes, ears, mouths and hearts,
that we may see each of your children as just that— children of God—
with gifts to give and worthy of your love.
Amen
Going out.
Go out into the world, surrounded by the peace of Christ Jesus and may you see all around you the love, compassion, joy, generosity, and hope in the Kingdom of God.
and in all that you do, may the love of Christ Jesus uphold you,
the peace of God sustain you and may the Holy Spirit guide you each step of the way
Let all God’s people say: AMEN
