Worship February 19, 2021
Let us worship!
Let us worship God this day
with open hearts and open minds.
Come Holy Spirit, come
and guide us on this journey.
Let us worship God!
A hymn:
See! Now is the Time!
LYONS 10.10.11.11 ("O Worship the King, All Glorious Above!")
See! Now is the time! Salvation has come!
We thank you, O God, for all you have done.
You entered our world and redeemed us from sin;
Through Christ, we're made righteous; our life is in him.
O God, may your church bear witness to Christ
Who brings us to you and shares in our life.
May we who are loved and forgiven this day
Show others the blessings of living your way.
God, count us as those who serve in your name;
Give strength to endure through hardship and pain;
Give patience and kindness and holiness, too,
And love as we seek to bring others to you.
We offer you praise for all that you give:
In sorrow, we sing! In dying, we live!
The poor in your kingdom have wealth from above!
Now make us ambassadors, sharing your love.
Words by Carolyn Winfrey Gillette
A prayer to center you
Gracious God,
we are stepping into the season of Lent—
a time of repentance and searching.
We begin our journey with you toward Jerusalem…towards the cross.
As we start this journey with you this season,
open our hearts and minds towards you.
Open our eyes to the places that you dwell here on earth
and help us to see you in all your glory around around us.
When we do see you,
help us to speak your name and your glory,
help us to praise you in the here and now,
help us to do what we can, in that moment, to proclaim your glory.
Amen
Holy Words from Mark 14:1-11
4 It was two days before the Passover and the festival of Unleavened Bread. The chief priests and the scribes were looking for a way to arrest Jesus[a] by stealth and kill him; 2 for they said, “Not during the festival, or there may be a riot among the people.”
The Anointing at Bethany
3 While he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper,[b] as he sat at the table, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very costly ointment of nard, and she broke open the jar and poured the ointment on his head. 4 But some were there who said to one another in anger, “Why was the ointment wasted in this way? 5 For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii,[c] and the money given to the poor.” And they scolded her. 6 But Jesus said, “Let her alone; why do you trouble her? She has performed a good service for me. 7 For you always have the poor with you, and you can show kindness to them whenever you wish; but you will not always have me. 8 She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for its burial. 9 Truly I tell you, wherever the good news[d] is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in remembrance of her.”
Judas Agrees to Betray Jesus
10 Then Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve, went to the chief priests in order to betray him to them. 11 When they heard it, they were greatly pleased, and promised to give him money. So he began to look for an opportunity to betray him.
Reflection:
If you would like to watch the reflection, you can do so by going to: https://youtu.be/SRuHdQT3RAk
In todays scripture reading, things are beginning to heat up. This Sunday, which is the first Sunday in Lent, is always a turning point. We have moved past the celebration of the birth, past the stories of Jesus’ work and now we begin to move toward the cross. While it doesn’t seem all that long ago that we were just celebrating the birth of the tiny baby born in manger, here we are already finding the tides turning—the movement from celebration to contemplation is at hand as we step into in this first Sunday of Lent. How quickly we have moved from a season of anticipation and joy to the season of penitence and reflection. We have left Bethlehem and are headed straight to the heart of Jerusalem.
If you cannot tell, I really enjoy the ebb and flow of the church seasons. I love how we move through the story of Christ, hearing again and again the glorious Holy words, the story of Christ’s life. I love how each season has it’s own focus, emotions, and purpose. Like most l people, I like Christmas for the celebrations, family time and joy that it brings, my favorite church season is Lent. As Lent begins, we step out into the 40 day journey down the long road of reflection of the Lenten season. We slowly walk with Jesus towards Jerusalem and what awaits him there. This season normally makes me feel spiritually attuned. In years past it has been a time in which my faith is strengthened in the solemn nature of the season.
Every year as we walk the road to Jerusalem, toward the mystery of Holy Week, my heart and soul are filled with the spirit like no other time of year. I normally love all the traditions and rituals involved. From the Ash Wednesday’s marking of foreheads to the searching for Easter eggs with my children way too early in the morning, I generally jump into the Lenten season feet first. There is something somber, sacred and meaningful to this time of year.
I am normally that person who knows exactly what I am giving up for the season of Lent weeks before fat Tuesday. I normally pick up a spiritual discipline to focus on as well. A little something to challenge me—some form of reflection or spiritual growth, calling me closer to God. But to be honest with you, this year it has been difficult to gain my normal energy to face the season with any enthusiasm.
There was no smudged forehead this past Wednesday for myself or my family to remind us of our earthly state. I have already given up eating out. Due to the political climate I have already cut back on watching the news and scrolling through social media, so giving those up would not be a spiritual discipline this year. The thought of finding time by myself for an added devotion while everyone in my family is either working or schooling from home seems near impossible. So this year I am facing a Lenten season with no new spiritual focus. I just could not muster it.
This Scripture, however, brought me back to a better place with my chosen path for this Lenten Season and gives me some peace about where I am. You see this scripture is what I like to call a sandwich scripture. The meat of the story is placed between two pieces of bread. We begin the Scripture with the chief priests and scribes beginning to plot the death of Jesus. They are caught up in the middle of worldly things. The stakes are getting high, their anxiety levels are soring. We end the scripture reading with Judas agreeing to betray Christ—he has given in to temptation and sin. But there, stuck in the middle is this wonderful story of the woman at Bethany anointing Jesus’ head with nard. In the midst of all the conspiracy and controversy, the rising heat of the political climate of the day, in the middle of fear and tensions rapidly escalating, we find the story of this women who pauses for just a moment to celebrate the presence of Christ with her. In all that is happening, this one woman is brave enough to come forward, in front of a group of men, she dares to approach Jesus and lavish on him treasure. She is willing to give of her time, energy, and her worldly possession to worship Christ while he is there! She pauses in the midst of this chaotic story to praise Jesus.
Wow friends, what a wonderful testament. In the midst of everything, this woman, sees Jesus, sees his glory and his might and drops everything to worship him. When she sees what is Holy, she gives thanks. She does what she can in the moment—and that is enough for Jesus. While the disciples argue around her that she could have done more with wealth and means—that she could have given to the poor-- that she has wasted so much. Jesus acknowledges and even praises her for doing what she could. Jesus praises her for her ability to see what is before her in that moment and to give thanks and praise while the he is there. She has done what she could. And that is good enough.
While pursuing some post this weeks I learned that I am not alone in my struggle with facing Lent this year. I ran across a post from a friend that I would like to share with you, It said
“Hey friends. It's okay if you don't feel like Lent-ing this year.
Life is like one big Lent right now. We've given stuff up. We've taken on other things that heighten our awareness.
We keep finding ourselves in huge moments.
We sit in the deep grief. We try to hold ourselves and others accountable.
Lenten practices -- both fasting and spiritual disciplines -- are about seeking God's presence.
Maybe this year we can just look for where God is at work, notice what love looks like,
and name aloud (for ourselves and others) the hope and joy we see.”
Isn’t that what Jesus praises the Woman at Bethany for doing. She saw God at work in Jesus, she saw the embodiment of love in Christ and she named it, anointing Christ with cost oily then and there. She took a moment and celebrated the glory before her in the moment. And that was enough!
So maybe my spiritual discipline this year will not be fasting from this or that or adding a spiritual practice but simply following the lead of the Woman at Bethany and looking for Christ at work in the world round me, opening my eyes to see Christ in the world, and when I do I will stop and giving thanks because that is what I can do this year.
And Perhaps that is enough. Amen
Prayer of Sending
God of all
As we go forth into the world,
May our eyes seek the joy of the Lord in the world around us.
When we see the love of Christ, may we shout to the heavens
and give praise to the Lord.
In the middle of this sticky world, in the midst of these trying times,
may we see you O God, and may we give you glory.
Amen.
Going out.
Go out into the world, seeking the light 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
