In the Meantime be Good

December 10, 2023 2 Peter 3:8-15 2nd Sunday of Advent In the Meantime, be Good Year B Prelude Greeting Lighting the Advent Candle Today, we light two candles, Remembering the God can always begin anew. We respond and plan for the coming of Christ, During this holy season of Advent. As we consider all the plans we have made For our upcoming celebrations, May we share in God’s generosity And always plan for more siblings Who might come to feast at the table. (Kara Eidon, Stay Awhile) Call to Worship People of God, listen! A voice cries out in the wilderness. What does the voice say? People of God, look! The time has come to plan for the coming of God’s kin-dom. When will the kin-dom come? The kin-dom of God is near at hand, And the glory of God shall be revealed. We will plan and prepare for the way of the Lord. (Kara Eidon, Stay Awhile) Opening Prayer Creator God, all too often, We put too much faith in our own plans. Help us to trust in the plan you set forth In the covenant of baptism. As we continue to pan For the coming of Christmas Day, Help us trust in the plan of salvation You created by coming to live among us. As we prepare our hearts and minds For the coming of Jesus, in the past, present, And future, May we share in God’s generosity And always plan for more siblings Who might come to feast at the table. (Kara Eidon, Stay Awhile) Song Angels from the Realm of Glory UMH 220 Children’s Sermon Object: a box of salt (Appropriate for Advent) Good morning, boys and girls. Do you know that today (or last Sunday) begins a new year in church? (let them answer) Everything starts over with the first day, the first week, and even the first month. It all seems fresh to us as we wait for Jesus to come into our hearts all over again. Have you ever wondered how many times Christians have done this? (let them answer) I wonder why God doesn't send Jesus so that we can be done with all of our waiting. Most of us are ready, aren't we? (let them answer) Doesn't everyone know about Jesus and love him as their Savior? (let them answer) The reason that God doesn't send Jesus is that he wants everyone to have a chance to receive Jesus as their Savior. That's what the Bible says. But you may think it is taking too long for Jesus to come. I brought with me some salt this morning to help us learn something about our waiting for Jesus. There is a lot of salt in this one box, but we are going to pretend that every one of these pieces of salt is a day. Now the Bible says that one day is like a thousand years to God. A thousand years is a long time to us since none of us will ever live that long. But one day doesn't seem like a very long time since we have already lived many days. But the Bible says God has lived so long that time doesn't make much difference to him. If one of these pieces is a day and you would have to count out 365 of the pieces of salt for one year, then you would have to have 365,000 grains to make a thousand years. But if we counted out 365,000 of them we would not have all of the pieces of salt in this one box. And if you think of all the boxes of salt in one grocery store and then think of all of the grocery stores, then you see how little that one piece of salt is compared to all of the salt in the world. One piece of salt in a box (put the piece back into the box) is not much, but it is important to that box just like one day is important to you. We may get tired of waiting, but God knows just the right time to send Jesus back to us so that everyone will have an opportunity to know Jesus as Savior. We must be patient and trust God since only he knows when it is just the right time. The next time you put some salt on your food, you can think of what the Bible means when it says: one day is like a thousand years. Will you do that? God bless you. (Wesley T. Runk) Prayer Lord, we have pulled out the Advent wreath, the Christmas tree, the poinsettias. We dusted off the hymns, unsung for a year, and unearthed the words of your prophets. Yet, in your eyes, these efforts are for nothing without the regular, persistent, deep pursuit of justice for all people. Our efforts are hollow without consistent work toward peace, reconciliation, and participation in your mission for creation. In our hearts, we do long to be your people, to carry out your mission, to be lights in the darkness— proof that no darkness can overcome your truth. Awaken us to action. Stir us to courage. Rouse us to prepare a way in the wilderness for your coming, clearing the brush of oppression, racism, injustice, and hopelessness— so that all may see your light and perceive your coming. Amen. Posted on the Pilgrim Uniting Church website Scripture 2 Peter 3:8-15 Sermon In the Meantime, be Good Phillips Brooks, the 19th century Christian leader who composed the beautiful Christmas carol, "O Little Town of Bethlehem," once wrote: "The coming of the Lord has been the inspiration of the Christian world. The power of any life lies in its expectancy." (3) "The power of any life lies in its expectancy." What are you expecting this Christmas season? Are you expecting crowds of people, jam-packed schedules, family tensions, stress-filled shopping expeditions? Are you expecting a big Christmas bonus, or a Martha Stewart-inspired party? Or are you expecting to meet Jesus? What are you expecting to happen this Christmas? What needs to happen in the world, in our lives, in the church. I think that most of us go through all of the trouble and stress of the holidays, because we are expecting a meaningful and heartfelt day with family and friends. It is the second week of December, by now, the season is in full swing. All of the radio stations are playing Christmas music, the decorations are up, the traditions have started, we may not be done with our shopping, but we have certainly gotten started. Advent is an invitation fur us to take a step back from all of that and the get a bigger perspective on life. We are invited to see life from God’s eyes for a minute. We are asked to find a bigger meaning in our celebrations and our faith. Getting ready for Christmas is not just about the here and now, but in the time to come. The only way to get to the time to come is to have patience. ohn Ruskin once said, “Endurance is nobler than strength, and patience than beauty.” Ruskin was born in London in 1819. As an adult, he continued in the family business as wine merchant, which made him very wealthy. As a child, his father interested John in art, and his pious Protestant mother created an interest in John to study the Bible. As a merchant, Ruskin traveled to many countries, and in each country, he took the time to study art of the native land. As a Bible scholar, he took time to learn about the people in each country he did business in. From these two perspectives, he wrote a number of books that interpreted the great paintings through history. Perhaps this is why Ruskin considered patience as a form of beauty. Again, I will repeat the quote, John Ruskin said, “Endurance is nobler than strength and patience than beauty.” To help put patience into perspective, Peter wrote a line that I think most everyone has memorized. Peter wrote, “That with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day.” We have inappropriately applied this verse to everything but what Peter intended. We have used it to try to justify the seven days of creation, saying those seven days are not like our seven days today. We have used it to give a reason for unanswered prayer, that God’s time in answering prayer is not the same as our time. The list could be extended for several more minutes. Peter understood “that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day” is a confession that God’s concept of time is not contained within our human perspective of time. It is a confession that we cannot understand the mysteries of God. If we cannot understand the mysteries of God as it relates to time, then we must have patience. And patience, remember, is beautiful. Patience is beautiful, as patience is a quiet steady perseverance. The message of quiet steady perseverance is what Peter wants to instill in those who hear his letter read during worship. As congregations were illiterate and every letter had to be reproduced by hand, the letters were only made available to the Christian populace as they were read from the pulpit. Patience is the key to our faith. We have to learn to be patient, with ourselves, with others, with time. It is important for us to remember that God is always patient with us. Patience is the perfect theme for the second Sunday of Advent. So I felt that 2 Peter was the perfect theme. The gospel lesson for today is Mark 1 – Mark starts out telling us about John the Baptist. John the Baptist is important to advent because he tells us to expect something more. The Hebrew bible text is Isaiah which tells us the importance of prophecy and how God works in the future. The main character of 2 Peter is patience, God’s patience. So let me give you some background to this story. There are 2 letters from Peter in the bible. The second one was written later than the first. Some say that it is Peter’s last words of wisdom before he died. The letter could have been written as early as 80 AD, or as late as 120 AD. We know that Peter would have been considered an apostle – or one who actually witnessed the life of Jesus personally. These were the ones who had an urgent message for the rest of the world. Get your lives together and be a part of god’s movement before it is too late. Jesus is coming back, very soon and there will be confusion and chaos. The early church was formed by those who listened to this message. Well remember that I said that this book was written around 80 AD? Well if Jesus was crucified about 30 AD, then how many of those original apostles were will around in 80AD? Or what about 120 AD. Probably none of them. All of them eventually died waiting on Jesus. Many of those who formed the early church and who worked so hard to form the church also died, waiting on Jesus. So what is the point of a faith where you work hard, and you wait for something to happen and it never happens. Well the 3 chapters of 2 Peter help us to understand. Living a life of expectancy teaches us to have patience. Not just any patience, but God’s patience. Today as we watch the church decline, as we see empty seats where faithful followers used to sit, as we see less and less children come to church, we can relate to the early church watching the apostles die one by one. What is the point of us sitting here – praying for nothing, singing and giving to a dying church. What are we giving to? Those who told us to wait, died waiting, so why are we still sitting here? If God is an all powerful God – what is God waiting on? 2 Peter reminds us that God patiently waiting on you- and your neighbor, and those around you – to put their lives in rhythm with God’s patience and God’s time. There are a lot of faithful followers, who like the apostles have gone on to their reward. But there are so many other people out in the world – who are alive and well and have heard nothing about Jesus. Jesus is waiting on us to tell them. 2 Peter reminds us that our ways are not God’s ways. Our patience is not God’s patience. God’s patience takes into account a bigger picture, a picture where there is a place for everyone. How long can God wait. Well lets put time into perspective. The sun is 4.57 billion years old and it has not completed its life cycle. The earth is slightly younger at 4.54 billion years give or take 50 million years. If you were to take the history of the earth and put it on a 24 hour timeline. People did not come into existence until 11:30 at night. Jesus was crucified 10 minutes before midnight. And the clock is still ticking up to midnight. God’s patience for everything to fall into place is beyond anything that we know, and yet, God is calling us to fall in line and get with the program. And most of us are not even listening, watching, working or paying attention. I heard the story of an atheist who stood before a congregation and said, "If there is a God, I dare him to strike me dead within sixty seconds." He then took his pocket watch in his hand and began to count off the seconds. Some people fainted. Others thought that surely within sixty seconds the man would be dead. They were convinced that God would not put up with such foolishness. Well, when the allotted time was up, the atheist said, "You see, I told you there is no God." A sweet little Christian lady stood up in the back of that group and said, "You fool, you cannot exhaust the patience of an infinite God in sixty seconds." Well I thank God that His patience has not yet been exhausted, but we don't know when it will be; and one day even His patience will come to a close. This world will come to an end. Jesus will come back, and you can take it to the bank. Returning to the question with which we began -- "Will it end with a bang or a whimper?" Dear friends, after listening to Peter, it really doesn't matter, does it? Amen. One of the most often quoted lines from the Bible is when Peter wrote: “But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.” We often associate this line with unanswered prayers, a delayed healing, asking why I can’t find someone to marry, or when will God rescue me from my plight. This is just a very short list of how we have used this verse when God seems unresponsive in our lives. And, perhaps, this is a meaningful interpretation. Though, for Peter, in the five preceding verses, informs us of his meaning for composing a standard of time for God. Peter wrote, “Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, ‘Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.’ But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word, the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water. By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.” Peter is saying that God is delaying the second coming desiring that as many who are willing to be saved are saved. The “slowness” will allow unbelievers to turn from their secular ways and live spiritual lives. It is the hope that they will no longer live in darkness but will come and live in the great light. The line expresses the hope that everyone will invite Jesus into their lives as Lord and Savior. To put this into perspective, Advent is only 4 weeks of our life. Our themes for this year – is stay awhile. Our themes are invitation, plan, prepare, welcome and stay awhile. This week we are planning. I said that each week we would have a interactive project. Our project for today – look around the sanctuary – see who is here. But also look at how many seats are empty- who is God calling to fill those seats? The good news is that it is not up to us to fill those seats. There are notices in the narthex with all of our activities on them – we are all invited to share them and invite people to church. But ultimately, God will do the work to fill those seats. God is wing in the hearts and minds of people to come. Our task for this week is to plan and pray. Expect God’s spirit to move, be patient, and be prepared to experience God in a whole new way. On Christmas Eve when they come – invite them to stay awhile. God is patient, God is giving us all a chance to come to the table and sit down. Our scripture says Therefore dear friends, while you are waiting for these things to happen, make every effort to be found by him in peace – pure and faultless. Consider the patience of the Lord to be your salvation. This second Sunday of advent, may we find our meaning in being patient. Amen. Song Lo, How a Rose E’er Blooming UMH 216 Morning Prayer (just print title) How things will change on the day of the coming of the Lord! Every valley will be lifted up and all the mountains will be made into a plain. Equality will exist for all God’s people. O God, we long for that day of hope and peace. We strain our ears to hear the voice of one crying in the wilderness of our lives; the wilderness of despair and discouragement; the wilderness of anger and fear; the wilderness of alienation and selfishness. The voice cries to us to make ready the pathway for our God, to remove the obstacles which we have placed there; to respond with acts of compassion rather than react in violent ways. Lord, attune our ears to hear the voices of those who cry out in their need. Open our hearts to respond in caring ways. Teach us again the great truths about how we should live as your children. Forgive our failings and help us to try again and again to be the kind of faith-filled people you would have us be. As we cry to you, offering the names of loved ones who are sick, who mourn, who are lost, who live in anguish and in anger, keep us mindful of the ways in which we can be of help. Likewise, as we rejoice with all those who are happy, who dance with delight at the wondrous gifts you have given, remind us that joy and peace is what we all seek and what we can accomplish. In the name of your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ, we offer this prayer. AMEN. (United Methodist Ministry Matters, Nancy Townley) Lord’s Prayer Stewardship Moment You may already be tired of hearing advertisements counting down the days until Christmas (hint: 2 weeks from tomorrow!) Between television, emails, radio announcements, piles of mailers and newspaper ads, we’re all inundated to be “prepared” with gifts for family, friends, neighbors and assorted others (including postal employees, Uber drivers, hair dressers, teachers…) And for many of us, we have an internal sound track putting an extra push: “God loves a cheerful giver.” Beyond that, we also know we’re nearing the end of the calendar year, and recognize this congregation would be delighted to receive a year-end financial gift from us. Let me put all that behind a big “STOP” sign! Instead, today let’s remember sharing gifts is one way to build up relationships of care and love. Supporting this congregation with both regular and year-end financial giving is a positive action. Without pressure, but in recognition of the privilege it is to be able to give from our hearts, let us share our tithes, offerings and gifts as expressions of our love for God, for this congregation, and for the ways we reach out with Good News for those yearning for peace in their lives. Prayer of Thanksgiving Receive this offering, Great and Giving God, as one way of acting out the peace which comes from you. Accept what we’ve brought. Inspire us to regularly share a portion of what you’ve given us, so our witness as followers of Christ will go beyond the limits of our physical presence. AMEN (Disciples of Christ, Center for Faith and Giving) Announcements Closing Prayer for Facebook (Inspired by Psalm 85) Send us forth to become to peace we wish to see in this world And as we go, May Steadfast love and faithfulness meet May Righteousness and peace embrace May Faithfulness spring up from the ground And May righteousness look down from the sky. Amen. (United Church of Christ Worship Ways, Mia McClain) Community Time - Joys and Concerns Benediction (Isaiah 40, Mark 1) Go out to a world that hungers for righteousness. Prepare the highway for our God: make ready the paths of peace. Amen. (United Methodist Ministry Matters, Deborah Sokolove) Additional IllustrationsLouis Pasteur, the pioneer of immunology, lived at a time when thousands of people died each year of rabies. Pasteur had worked for years on a vaccine. Just as he was about to begin experimenting on himself, a 9-year-old boy, Joseph Meister, was bitten by a rabid dog. The boy's mother begged Pasteur to experiment on her son. Pasteur injected Joseph for ten days with his new rabies vaccine--and the boy lived. Decades later, of all the things Pasteur could have had etched on his headstone, he asked for three words: JOSEPH MEISTER LIVED. Our greatest legacy will be the lives of those who know God's love because of our efforts. (7) Whose life will be transformed because you shared with them the love of Jesus? Claim this moment for God. Let that be the true present you give this Christmas. The present of a life lived out in service to God and service to others. The Christmas season, as most of us experience it, seems almost designed to distract us from God-centered living. There is so much pressure to shop, shop, shop and rush, rush, rush and spend, spend, spend. And all for what? How many of us remember the Christmas presents we got last year? The gifts of Christmas are temporary; the message of Christmas is eternal. The Almighty God came to earth in the form of a man. Christ lived among us and shared our suffering and pain. He died a horrible death in order to save us from our sins. He opened up the way to eternal life for us. And someday, he will come again to establish his perfect and eternal kingdom here on earth. Until that day, our job is to share the love of Jesus Christ with everyone we know. The Qiche Indians of Guatemala take the concept of purposeful living very seriously. Each Qiche tribe has a person who serves as a "day keeper." The day keeper's job is to show the other members of his tribe how to use each day well, making every moment count. To the day keepers, living each day well is an art form, and it requires concentration and guidance. The day keepers remind the people to do every job, no matter how mundane, with a sense of purpose. (6) Journalists Bill and Judith Moyers did a documentary on death and dying in the U.S. They discovered that many of the terminal patients they interviewed found peace in the face of death. In fact, many of them found greater meaning and beauty in life after learning that they would die. One man lived four years past his doctor's prognosis. In that time, he learned to cherish every moment of life. As he said, "If you are told you will never see spring again, and you live to see spring, spring takes on a whole new life." (5) Nothing focuses our priorities quite like the knowledge of our own mortality. Advent is not a season for focusing on a morbid subject like death. But it is a season for looking beyond the present moment to the eternal, and then evaluating our life in the perspective of eternity. So the question for this Second Sunday in Advent is, what do you want to do with your life? For the Christian, there is only one answer: to live in a loving relationship with God and with everyone else with whom we share this planet. THAT'S WHAT ADVENT AND CHRISTMAS ARE ABOUT--CLAIMING THE MOMENT--TAKING TIME TO NURTURE THOSE RELATIONSHIPS THAT MATTER MOST. What do you hear in Paul's words? Grace or judgment? Law or gospel? Hope or despair? Advent is a time of waiting. Often we wonder, "How long? How long can I wait for his coming? How long can I look off to the horizon? How long can I proclaim his return?" When we see Paul's words through the filter of grace, we realize the answer is just a little bit longer. During a British conference on comparative religions, experts from around the world debated what, if any, belief was unique to Christianity. They began with the obvious — the incarnation? The resurrection? The cross? The debate droned on until C. S. Lewis wandered into the room and asked, "What's the fuss about?" They told him that they were discussing Christianity's unique contribution among the world's religions. Lewis responded, "That's easy. It's grace." Contemporary preacher, Fred Craddock, preached a sermon on the prodigal son but with a twist. Instead of the father honoring the younger, rebellious son, he slipped a ring on the older brother, thanked him for his faithful years of service and killed the fatted calf in honor of doing what was right. And from the back of the sanctuary, a woman yelled out, "That's the way it should have been written." But it wasn't. That's why Christianity is so unique. It's not written the way we would have written it. Christianity is for the person who feels like the younger son — unworthy, unloved, not good enough. And yet there's a place at the table. It was written for the person who feels like a thief on the cross — out of time, out of luck, out of hope. And yet there is a place at the table. It was written for the person who feels like Judas — my life is a lie; this smile covers the deceit; I've sold my soul to the devil. And yet, Jesus welcomed him to the table. It was written to the person who feels lost, excluded, and forgotten by God and yet, like a lovesick father, God makes sure there is a place at the table. Grace. That's what makes Christianity unique. Jesus came not for the well people but for the sick people, not for the righteous people but for the unrighteous people, not for the good people but for you. "Come and eat." . H. Auden was arguably the greatest writer of the 20th century. Auden came to America in 1939. He found himself lonely for family. In New York he was befriended by Ursula and Reinhold Niebuhr, Reinhold whom some would say was the greatest theologian of the 20th century. Auden would often spend holidays – Thanksgiving and Christmas – with the Niebuhrs and their children. Auden loved to play the piano and sing hymns and carols, belting out 19th century Anglican hymns and songs that Ursula Niebuhr knew and could sing along with him. Reinhold Niebuhr didn’t like the old-fashioned English hymns, or the singing of carols before Christmas, so he would go into the study and close the door to drown out the noise, refusing to succumb. While the season of Advent is steeped in tradition, Advent craziness is such that we also prepare ourselves and our communities for the newest, most revolutionary changes ever experienced on earth. There is an ancient tale of three horsemen riding across the desert one evening. As they crossed the dry bed of a river a loud voice called to them out of the darkness, commanding: “HALT.” They obeyed. The voice then told them to dismount, pick up a handful of pebbles, put them in their pockets . . .. And remount. Again they obeyed. When they remounted, the voice said, “You have done as I have commanded you. Tomorrow at sunrise you will be both glad and sorry.” Mystified, the horsemen rode on. When the sun rose, they reached into their pockets and found that a miracle had happened. The pebbles had been transformed into diamonds, rubies, and other precious gems. They remembered the voice, and they were both glad and sorry. Glad they had taken some . . . Sorry they had not taken more. God’s gifts are only gifts if we receive them and open them. Advent prepares us to accept the sacrament of matter. With the birth of Jesus, physical matter doesn’t just “matter,” but is deemed good. Even more than that, this incarnated physical matter is not just good, it is as sacred. As Paul put it (Romans 5:5), “the love of God is poured into our hearts.” God poured the divine essence into human flesh. Somebody once said to Mark Twain: "I'm afraid the world is coming to an end." Mark Twain just laughed and said, "That's all right, we can get along without it." Well, we can and one day we will, because there is a new world coming. There is going to be a new birth for planet earth. Now there are many who doubt that this world is coming to an end, and many who wonder why it has not already come to an end. C. S. Lewis had an answer for both people. This brilliant thinker said: Why is God landing in this enemy-occupied world in disguise and starting a sort of secret society to undermine the devil? Why is He not landing in force, invading it! Is it that He is not strong enough? Well, Christians think He is going to land in force; we do not know when. But we can guess why He is delaying. He wants to give us the chance of joining His side freely….God will invade. But I wonder whether people who ask God to interfere opening and directly in our world, quite realize what it will be like when He does. When that happens it is the end of the world. When the author walks onto the stage, the play is over. One day this play called life is going to be over, and this stage called the world, is going to be destroyed. Peter gives us three reasons why we can "take it to the bank." You see, if this world is a created world, then there must be a Creator. If there is a Creator, then there must be an absolute standard of what is right and what is wrong, and therefore you cannot "walk according to your own lusts," you must walk according to His righteousness; and that is exactly what people do not want to do, because as one great philosopher once said: "Without God, anything is permissible." Go all the way back to Charles Darwin, the father of modern evolutionary thought. This is what one scholar said about him: There are some who think that Darwin accepted the theory of evolution only after many many years of studying the subject. This, however, is not the case. As his religious faith ebbed, his faith in evolution developed. It came in to fill up the void that was being left by his rejection of creation.1 You see, the root cause of skepticism about spiritual truth, is sin and a rebellious heart. Julius Huxley, of the famous Huxley family, who championed the cause of evolution, was once interviewed on television. He was asked why evolution was accepted so quickly. Instead of saying something like: "The scientific evidence led any rational person willing to look at the facts to come to that conclusion," he said, "The reason we accepted Darwinism, even without proof, is because we didn't want God to interfere with our sexual mores."2 Aldous Huxley made this startling admission: I had motives for not wanting the world to have a meaning…because the philosophy of meaninglessness was essentially an instrument of liberation. This liberation we desired, was liberation from a certain system of morality. We objected to the morality because it interfered with our sexual freedom…most ignorance is vincible ignorance. We don't know because we don't want to know.3 Now we get down to the real reason why these scoffers reject the fact of creation—because they don't want anyone to interfere with their own personal brand of morality. That is, they want to "walk according to their own lusts." I am reminded of a story of a man who was fishing, and every time he caught a large fish he threw it away, and every time he caught a small one he kept it. Well, somebody watched him for a while, and after he couldn't stand it, walked over to him and said, "What in the world are you doing throwing the large fish away and keeping the small one?" The man said, "Well, I only have an eight-inch frying pan and the larger fish won't fit!" Well, there are a lot of so-called scholars who are nothing more than skeptics and scoffers who simply reject truth that doesn't fit their eight-inch frying pan.

Why are You looking up?

June 2, 2019 Acts 1:1-11 Ascension Sunday Year C Why are you looking up? Scripture Focus: Luke 24:44-53 (note: this is the Gospel text for Thursday, May 17, Ascension of Our Lord. Many churches read the ascension texts on the Seventh Sunday of Easter. There will also be a Children’s Sermon posted using the texts appointed for Sunday, May 20.) Preparation: Make a “to-do” list with the items: 1) Receive power from God. 2) Go to the temple and pray. 3) Go tell what you have seen. Faith+Open: As the children gather ask them, “Have you ever been left with a list of things to do?” Maybe you get a list at home like, first you need to finish your dinner, then you need to clean up your room, then you can go play with your friends. Guess what, the disciples got a list like that, too! Faith+Share: Today we are celebrating the Ascension of Our Lord. That’s a big word, don’t you think? Does anyone know what it means? Wait for a few answers. You guys are pretty smart! Ascension means to go up. It can also describe when someone gets more power or more responsibility. Kings and queens ascend to the thrown when they become a kind or queen. In the story of Jesus’ ascension he really does go up – up into the sky to be with God, but before he goes he leaves a “To-Do” list. Right before he ascends, Jesus tells the disciples that they are the ones who know what happened in Jerusalem (what we know as the Easter story) and that they need to tell the story to other people. Get out your list. First, though, they have a few other things to do. Jesus tells them to wait in the city until they have been “clothed with power from on high.” That always makes me think of a super hero suit from God! Like the disciples become super storytellers for God! Storytellers who can baptize people, and heal the sick and injured, who can travel amazing distances and tell the story over and over. Pretty cool, huh? Then they go to the temple and bless God for the amazing gifts that God has given them. Then they head out into the world to share the good news! That story starts next week when we celebrate Pentecost. So, this is our last chance this year to say this, Happy Easter! Faith+Prayer: Powerful God, we thank you for the gifts you give us. Help us to use our gifts like the disciples did, by going out into the world and sharing the good news of Christ. Amen Faith+Blessing: Remember what Jesus says to his disciples: Do not be afraid and peace be with you. + ~GB Permission to use for nonprofit. When printing give credit to Faith Formation Journeys. Intellectual property rights apply. Acts 1:1-11 Common English Bible (CEB) The risen Jesus with his disciples 1 Theophilus, the first scroll I wrote concerned everything Jesus did and taught from the beginning, 2 right up to the day when he was taken up into heaven. Before he was taken up, working in the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus instructed the apostles he had chosen. 3 After his suffering, he showed them that he was alive with many convincing proofs. He appeared to them over a period of forty days, speaking to them about God’s kingdom. 4 While they were eating together, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem but to wait for what the Father had promised. He said, “This is what you heard from me: 5 John baptized with water, but in only a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” 6 As a result, those who had gathered together asked Jesus, “Lord, are you going to restore the kingdom to Israel now?” 7 Jesus replied, “It isn’t for you to know the times or seasons that the Father has set by his own authority. 8 Rather, you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” 9 After Jesus said these things, as they were watching, he was lifted up and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10 While he was going away and as they were staring toward heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood next to them. 11 They said, “Galileans, why are you standing here, looking toward heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way that you saw him go into heaven.” Common English Bible (CEB) Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible Have you ever wondered why birds chirp like to sing the first thing in the morning? I just love to hear the birds in the morning, chirping away signaling that a new day is coming, and it is time to get up. When I was a small girl, there was a rooster the lived in the back of my grandmother’s apartment. His crowing in the morning was such an important way to wake up in the morning. It seems that the birds around the parsonage are not city birds – they are on a different time table. They start chirping at 3am in the morning. Usually, just as I am about the go to bed – the birds outside my window start to sing. I read somewhere recently that birds sing in the morning as a way to signal to their partners that they are still here. They have survived through the night- and they want to celebrate life and the beginning of a new day – of adventure and love. In many ways it is like us and our faith. We too come to church to signal to the community that we are here for another day. We have survived and are well enough to come together in church to sing, and to pray. It is also interesting that as you follow along the Easter story – it seems that every week we read a story – where the disciples are gathering to sing and to celebrate. They sing when they re happy, they sing when they are confused, they sing when they understand what is going on, they celebrate when they don’t. They are not celebrating their life, but the life of Jesus. It has been 40 days since Jesus was cruficied and they found an empty tomb. Actually it was 40 days last Thursday - that is ascension Sunday. The day that Jesus supposedly ascended into heaven. I say supposedly – because this story is only found in the book of Acts and in the book of Luke. The disciples are enjoying their second chance time with Jesus. Jesus has come back, so that must mean that He is going to stay – and like Lori Lightfoot – he is going to clean up the government and make this world a better place to live. Jesus is still teaching them, and then Luke reports that Jesus takes them to a beach, starts to pray and then just lifts up in the sky. And they are standing there looking at his feet. Did that really happen? No one is for sure. But it is always the most dramatic part of a passion play – in every passion play Jesus is hoisted up into the air and he flys away and the story ends. Being that the other gospels don’t say anything about how jesus left the earth, we really don’t know if this happen, or if Luke was being dramatic. The point of the story however – is that Jesus no longer walks amongst us. We can no longer just ask Jesus every time we have a faith struggle, we have to find the answer ourselves. Christianity is not the religion of Jesus, it is the religion of the disciples. And the moment they realized that Jesus has left them all alone stays etched in their mind as if they watched him float away. It is sort of like a story of a faithful dog. There is a monument to a faithful collie at the train station in Fort Benton, Montana. The collies’s master died in 1936. The collie was there at the train station when his coffin was shipped back east to be buried. The collie followed the train as it pulled off, but of course could not keep up. So he came back to the train station and waited. Every time a train pulled up to the station, the collie was there waiting for his master to return. He never left the station. One summer day in 1942, the dog ran in front of a train and was killed. The conductors buried him on a hill and marked his grace. The monument still stands to his faithfulness to his master. No doubt the dog was faithful and loyal and honorable. But he also wasted six year of his life doing nothing. He was never able to move past the moment of his masters death. If his master had ever stepped off one of those trains, would he be impressed that he was still waiting, or would he has wanted him to go on with his life, carrying the memory of their time together and yet still living.

The point if waiting
Jesus has been constantly telling us to be patient, to wait for the holy spirit – but he is not asking us for a passive waiting, but an active waiting. A waiting where we go on with our normal lives, filled with the knowledge that life gets better. We are called to move forward, even in times when we don’t understand, knowing that it will eventually make sense. Even in times when times are hard, with the knowledge that in time things will get better. Even in times when we believe that jesus is coming back – but have no idea of what that even means Unfortunately, the dog did not have the guidance of the two angels, the same two angels that sat at the grave – to tell the disciples to stop staring at the sky – and to move on with life. they don’t have to look for Jesus – Jesus will look for them. Losing a mentor can be devastating and disorienting. I can imagine how broken the disciples must have been. They had put so much faith in this man, and now he was gone. What did that mean for his trust? What did that mean for them, for the world and all that they had hoped for? They must have been so discouraged, when Jesus told them to wait for the presence of the comforter – the holy spirit. The spirit would come and give them strength and power. We get that next week when we celebrate Pentecost. I recently read an article about spiritual awakenings. It caught my attention, because it reminded me that spiritual awakenings can be tricky and confusing. Sort of like the birds starting to sing at 3 in the morning. Truthfully, I sometimes have a hard time falling asleep at night. Hearing the birds at 3 in the morning is my spiritual trigger, that the night is over and it is the dawn of a new day – so my mind can relax enough to fall asleep in peace. Spiritual awakening have a way of taking who we are and who we should be and shaking them up together. They take our bad side and our good side and make use of both of them. Spiritual awakening are never simple, or straightforward, or easy to go through. They are like driving through a storm. We are not in control and things are not pretty. But the good news for us is that when we come through them, we are stronger, and more confident and able to face things that would have bought fear before. The disciples faced the death and resurrection with fear. Today, they were still alone, but they understood what Jesus was trying to tell them. They did not have to wonder what Jesus would do, because it was written in their hearts, they would face an uncertain future and not be afraid. >Story of the chief’s successor
A tribal chief lay dying. He summoned three of his most loyal subjects and told them that it was time for him to choose a successor. He told them to climb the holy mountain and to return with the most precious gift you can find. The first brought back a huge gold nugget, the second brought back a priceless gem. The third returned empty handed, saying “when I reached the mountaintop, I was on the other side a beautiful land, where people could go for a better life. The chief said, you shall succeed me. You have brought back the most precious gift of all: a vision of a better tomorrow. That is why Ascension is so important to us. it was the day that the story was no longer about Jesus life, but about the faith of his followers. Recently purchased a lifesized cut out of Jesus and he is in my office now. It is interesting how many people on facebook commenting on the color of Jesus complexion. Many of my African American friends complained that he was much too light. I purchased him because it looks like a middle eastern man. But the point of the ascencion is that it does not matter what color Jesus is – or what ethinic group he came from. If he ascended into heaven, to get beyond race, culture and human definitions. Jesus of Nazareth is now Jesus the Christ. Jesus of Nazareth lived a life in Isreal – Jesus Christ belongs to the world to whole world. Jesus is Christ of all people, no matter what. He came to earth to save all people, no just some. His disciples went from men who had never went more than 30 miles from home, to men who were not afraid to travel the world – to spread to the good news a universal good news. It is interesting, that we can read how the book of acts begins – but we don’t know how it ends. We can follow Jesus life on earth, but if we stare at the sky waiting for him to come down. We will be waisting our time. We don’t know how the book of acts ends, because we don’t know what is going to happen in our lives tomorrow. The book starts with Jesus – but it ends with us, with our faith. I know I have told this story before – but it tells such an important point. I have told this story before, but it works here too… NO OTHER PLAN An old legend imagines Jesus arriving in heaven right after the Ascension, welcomed by all the angels. Then the angel Gabriel asks Jesus, "You suffered much, dying for the sins of mankind. Does everyone down on earth know it?" "Oh, no," replied the Savior, "just a handful of folks in Jerusalem and Galilee know about it." "Well, Master," continued Gabriel, "what is your plan for everyone to know of your great love?" The Master replies, "I asked all my apostles to carry the message into all the world. I told them to tell others, who will in turn tell others until the last person in the farthest corner has heard the story." Gabriel’s face clouds, for he spots a flaw in the plan. "What if after awhile Peter forgets, and goes back to his fishing on Galilee, also James and John and Andrew? Suppose Matthew returns to his tax booth in Capernaum, and all the others lose their zeal and just don’t tell others. What then?" After a pause comes the calm voice of the Lord Jesus, "Gabriel, I have no other plan." You are not just a part of the plan – you are the plan. The next chapter is waiting to be written by how we live our faith. Let us pray…..

Standing at Skyfall

December 2, 2012 Luke 21:25-36 Standing at Skyfall First Sunday of Advent Year C Theme of skyfall for advent God’s words of wisdom come to us in many unexpected ways and in unexpected places. My theme for advent came to me in late September, driving in my car, when I first heard to theme song to the new James Bond movie – Skyfall. This is the end Hold your breath and count to ten Feel the earth move and then Hear my heart burst again For this is the end I've drowned and dreamt this moment So overdue I owe them Swept away, I'm stolen Let the skyfall When it crumbles We will stand tall Face it all together At skyfall, what does that mean? Where is skyfall? Is that a planned event? Chicken Little gave us sky fall – when a rock fell on her head, and she went to tell all of her friends that the sky was falling, she saw it with her own eyes, she felt it , and the king must know that the sky is falling. We all know the moral of the story – the sky is not falling, chicken little is driven more by her fears, than what is really going on, and she is able to convey her fear to everyone else and they all run for their lives, just based on what chicken little said. Skyfall is real The title of my sermon this morning is standing at skyfall. In the story – we all know the sky did not really fall. But I think that in our lives there are times, when the sky does fall, when our world comes to an end. I think that there really are days that we can stand and look at the broken pieces of our lives, and know for sure that the world had ended around us. As a matter of fact, I can guarantee you, there is a skyfall in every life. Have you watched the news lately? The politicians are talking about the financial cliff – the point at the end of the year when all that we have worked so hard to achieve will fall apart unless the politicians come to some sort of agreement. And then there was the announcement last month that all of the united methodist cokesbury stores would be closing, just as borders and many other bookstores have done in recent years, people just are not going to the store to buy books anymore, since amazon will send you any book you want right to your front door. And the one that I had to laugh at this month, the closing of the hostess plant. People all over the world are in a panic because they wont be able to buy twinkies anymore – it is the end of an era. What is so funny to me is that everyone is so upset about not being able to buy twinkies anymore - whereas if twinkies were something that people actually bought on a regular basis – the company wouldn’t be going out of business. The world has changed since we were kids, we now know that twinkies are not healthy for us, not only do they make us fat, but that crème in the middle – that stuff doesn’t go away – it last longer than most of us will be alive. That cant be a good thing to put in our bodies – it is okay for them to go away. The whole premise of the movie skyfall is that the world that we live in is falling apart before our very eyes. The enemies that we used to be afraid of – don’t exist anymore. The way we used to do business is gone, they understandings that we had in life have evaporated, and all of us in many ways are still stuck in a world that doesn’t exist anymore. Our world is literally falling apart around us – we are standing at skyfall. But you know that one that gets me the most – is the death of the church. People arent coming to church anymore, not to worship at least. They will come for what we offer them for free – but don’t want to hear anything about Jesus. We are not attracting our your people, and our young families. In today’s world Sunday is not the day that you come to worship, Sunday is your free day to stay at home and do what you want. Even in giving, I have received all kinds of letters from all kinds of good organizations that ask for our money – money that used to go just for the church. It as if the world doesn’t need church anymore – things are not getting better, things are getting worse. We are not attracting new members, and those who are the most faithful are dying off. How much longer before the church falls in the same category as the twinkie, and the bookstore, and the concept of james bond – not much longer if we look at the signs of the times. Christians are literally standing at skyfall. As a matter of fact, we always start advent at skyfall – at the despair of the world, at the hopelessness of the situation, at the end of the world. Jesus always reminds us that the world is coming to an end. That the endtimes will be a time of distress and confusion. That we will go through many tribulations. The bible says that no man knows the time or the hour, but we as Christians have been predicting the end of the world since the last time jesus walked the earth. And just like the stuff in the middle of the twinkie, we are still here. Still standing on the edge. I wanted to show you a clip from the movie skyfall, but even the trailer advertisement was so full of sin and bad language, that it was not a good idea for church. But long story short- James Bond is fighting a villian on the top of a train, one of is fellow agents shoots at them both and hits james bond. He falls into the water and the spy agency assumes that he is dead. It takes him awhile to come back to work. When he returns – his boss ask him where the (expletive) has he been? He says he was enjoying death. One of his colleagues ask why didn’t he just stay dead. It had to be much easier then facing reality. You know I think that there are a lot of us in church – we are a lot like James Bond. When the world as we know it is falling apart- it is easier for us to choose to die with it, rather than stand in the miracle of resurrection. I knew that I had to go see the movie skyfall, when the villian tells James Bond that everyone has to have a hobby – and he asks what is your hobby – James Bond responds resurrection. Wow – coming back to life, after you have died – resurrection. For Jesus resurrection wasn’t just a hobby – it was a way of life. and following Jesus means that resurrection is a way of life for me too. Advent reminds us that Jesus was not just born once, but that Jesus was born twice. "Jesus Christ was born twice. The birth at Bethlehem was a birth into a life of weakness. The second time he was born from the grave – the first born from the dead – into the glory of heaven and the throne of God." It is that second birth that makes all of the difference in the world. And it is that second coming that we await in advent. In the meantime – we wait, we survive what life brings at us, we move forward in faith, we await our resurrection. We don’t have any more control over our death, then we do our life. if taxes go up at the beginning of the year. We will just have to find a way to pay them. When the world falls apart – we find a way to face it. The end of the world as we know it is no big deal. Advent reminds of that it is time for us to give up the comfort of our world, and be prepared to start all over again. For the faithful the world ends every year at the beginning of advent, and we are asked to stand and wait for a new year. Every beginning starts with the end. Sometimes my world does not end every year, sometimes it is one day at a time. Where everything that I worked for falls apart and I have to start all over again from scratch. I like the ways Adele puts it Skyfall is where we start A thousand miles and poles apart Where worlds collide and days are dark You may have my number, you can take my name But you'll never have my heart Let the skyfall (let the sky fall) When it crumbles (when it crumbles) We will stand tall (we will stand tall) Face it all together In Luke 21 – Jesus is predicting the end of the world. He says that we should be able to look at the signs of the times and see it coming, and to know that this generation will not pass away until it all happens. Jesus reminds us that the end of the world is a scary thing for those who don’t know Jesus. But for those who know god it is a time for us to sit and to wait. To prepare and to have hope. Hope in hope is useless. Hope in Jesus, in the power of resurrection is what matters. Resurrection is the work of God, not us. The church may very well go the way of the bookstore and the twinkie if we are not careful. But God’s word is like the crème in the middle – it never goes away. Scripture says heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. The message for advent is for us to be alert at all times, praying that you have the strength to escape all these things that will take place and to stand before the son of man. We are the lights of the world During his 1960 presidential campaign, John F. Kennedy often closed his speeches with the story of Colonel Davenport, the Speaker of the Connecticut House of Representatives: On May 19th, 1780 the sky of Hartford darkened ominously, and some of the representatives, glancing out the windows, feared the end was at hand. Quelling a clamor for immediate adjournment, Davenport rose and said, "The Day of Judgment is either approaching or it is not. If it is not, there is no cause for adjournment. If it is, I choose to be found doing my duty. Therefore, I wish that candles be brought." Rather than fearing what is to come, we are to be faithful till Christ returns. Instead of fearing the dark, we're to be lights as we watch and wait. Resurrection is the work of god. The work of the people of God is to watch, wait, and promise to live in the light. Is the church dying? Is the work of God’s people finish? If we have breath, and the world still has sin, I think not. Let us pray, and this advent let us prepare – for the world to begin anew – with the coming of Christ into the world….. A. J. Gordon was the great Baptist pastor of the Clarendon Church in Boston, Massachusetts. One day he met a young boy in front of the sanctuary carrying a rusty cage in which several birds fluttered nervously. Gordon inquired, "Son, where did you get those birds?" The boy replied, "I trapped them out in the field." "What are you going to do with them?" "I'm going to play with them, and then I guess I'll just feed them to an old cat we have at home." When Gordon offered to buy them, the lad exclaimed, "Mister, you don't want them, they're just little old wild birds and can't sing very well." Gordon replied, "I'll give you $2 for the cage and the birds." "Okay, it's a deal, but you're making a bad bargain." The exchange was made and the boy went away whistling, happy with his shiny coins. Gordon wa lked around to the back of the church property, opened the door of the small wire coop, and let the struggling creatures soar into the blue. The next Sunday he took the empty cage into the pulpit and used it to illustrate his sermon about Christ's coming to seek and to save the lost -- paying for them with His own precious blood. "That boy told me the birds were not songsters," said Gordon, "but when I released them and they winged their way heavenward, it seemed to me they were singing, 'Redeemed, redeemed, redeemed!'" This is Advent. And the message of these times is the song of those wild birds… TELL THEM OUT LOUD Scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer once said "The best way to send an idea is to wrap it up in a person." The theological word for all of that is incarnation, meaning "in the flesh." Jesus was the incarnation of God. Jesus was the way that God sent His "idea" to humanity; there was and is no better way! Like the little girl who said, "Some people couldn't hear God's inside whisper and so He sent Jesus to tell them out loud." From Stephen Sheane's Sermon "God With Us" How many observe Christ’s birthday! How few, his precepts! O! ’tis easier to keep holidays than commandments. — Benjamin Franklin A. Years ago an interesting sign was seen hanging in a store window during the Christmas season. The original message stated, “Let’s make this the best Christmas ever.” Underneath, some perceptive person had scribbled a legitimate question: “How will we top the first one?” God has promised an event that will easily overshadow the events that surrounded the first coming. B. Anyone who knows the history of the Adventist church knows that our founders started out believing they knew when Jesus would return. As they studied the prophecies of the Word of God, they became convinced that His return was imminent. When it didn’t happen as expected – that day we mark as the Great Disappointment on October 22, 1844 – many began to doubt and fall into discouragement. It was a few weeks after the Great Disappointment that William Miller wrote these words to the discouraged Advent believers: “Although surrounded with enemies and scoffers, yet my mind is perfectly calm, and my hope in the coming of Christ is as sure as ever…. I have fixed my mind upon another time, and here I mean to stand until God gives me more light. – And that is To-day, TO-DAY, and TO-DAY, until He comes, and I see Him for whom my soul yearns.” I can remember one late winter’s day when I was about 7, my grandmother had taken a cousin and me to the grocery store. When the shopping was done and the brown paper sacks were in the car, we headed home. On the way, grandma had to stop off at another store for a few minutes, so my cousin and I stayed in the car. Well Grandma took more time than she thought, so what was about to happen was all her fault. Back then, they put prizes in laundry detergent boxes as an incentive for people to buy. Well, we had two giant boxes of soap because Grandma bought everything in bulk. Well I had discovered that you could pop the ashtrays out of the doors in the back seat and when you looked down into them you could see a big black hole. So, we popped both ashtrays out, opened both boxes of soap and began to pour in the soap. Before we knew it, the boxes were empty and we had a nice little coffee cup and a nice little salad dish. It was then that we realized what we had done. I know that we have not been together long, but trust me on this: There is no way to make a soap box look and feel like it ‘s never been opened once you’ve poured all the soap down an ashtray hole in a car! It was all Grandma’s fault anyway! You can get into a whole lot of trouble while you wait! Especially if there is no purpose in your waiting. Quote: Andrew Murray: The official, dictionary definition for epiphany is “to show" or "to make known" or even "to reveal." However, we better understand the word as suddenly “getting” something. We jokingly call “aha” moments an “epiphany.” When my son realized that he really did have to take out the garbage everyday or lose privileges... that was an “epiphany.” When high-level executives were indicted in the last few years for “cooking the books” and when they realized they were not above the law—that was an epiphany.

No Time Like the Present

No Time Like the Present
Acts 1:1-11
Luke 24:44-53
Ascension Sunday
Year C


Introduction – story of the faithful collie
There is a monument to a faithful collie at the train station in Fort Benton, Montana. The collies’s master died in 1936. The collie was there at the train station when his coffin was shipped back east to be buried. The collie followed the train as it pulled off, but of course could not keep up. So he came back to the train station and waited. Every time a train pulled up to the station, the collie was there waiting for his master to return. He never left the station. One summer day in 1942, the dog ran in front of a train and was killed. The conductors buried him on a hill and marked his grace. The monument still stands to his faithfulness to his master. No doubt the dog was faithful and loyal and honorable. But he also wasted six year of his life doing nothing. He was never able to move past the moment of his masters death. If his master had ever stepped off one of those trains, would he be impressed that he was still waiting, or would he has wanted him to go on with his life, carrying the memory of their time together and yet still living.

The point if waiting
Jesus has been constantly telling us to be patient, to wait for the holy spirit – but he is not asking us for a passive waiting, but an active waiting. A waiting where we go on with our normal lives, filled with the knowledge that life gets better. We are called to move forward, even in times when we don’t understand, knowing that it will eventually make sense. Even in times when times are hard, with the knowledge that in time things will get better. Even in times when we believe that jesus is coming back – but have no idea of what that even means

Explanation of scripture
In the story of Jesus- the disciples were hoping that Jesus was going to establish a heavenly reign, that he was the Obama of his time- he was the one who was going to change things- he was going to make a difference on the earthly world. Of course dying on the cross put a wrench in that expectation. But he came back – he appeared to them for 40 days. He promised that things were going to get better, and that the holy spirit was coming to bring about that change they were waiting for. It all seemed to make sense. He only appeared to his disciples- but no matter he was still on earth, he was still present, so there was still hope that he was the one. Ascension Sunday was the end of that dream. God takes Jesus back into heaven. If his body is not on earth – then he can’t very well be the one to change the world.

Two men dressed in white
If you follow the Luke’s Easter story – Luke has a fascination with two men dressed in white. They were at the tomb telling the women to move on and not look for Jesus in the grace. Two men are walking to Emmaus when a stranger comes along side them whom they didn’t recognize. And in Ascension story two men are standing among the crowd – and tell the people to move on – not to look for Jesus in the heavens, but to go on with life. Imagine if the poor collie in our story had a caring angel to give him some direction to move on. Imagine if someone had taken the time to teach him the real meaning of goodbye.

Goodbyes
In life there are always goodbyes. There are always endings. Sometimes we are ready for them. And sometimes we need to hold on for dear life. Some we celebrate, some we mourn. Some are easy, some are difficult. Some we were expecting, some come out of the middle of nowhere. Some are insignificant. Some are so devastating that we have no idea of what to do next. We cannot even picture life from that moment. The one thing that we can be sure of is that no one or nothing will last forever. At some point we have to learn to be comfortable with saying goodbye. Ascension Sunday is goodbye Sunday. The disciples not only had to say goodbye to Jesus. They also had to say goodbye to their hopes and dreams for the future. The beginning of acts – in the passage for today – Luke mentions a mysterious man – theophilus. Luke was a lawyer writing Luke and Acts as a proof of the power of Jesus Christ. Acts is written to show the power of the holy spirit. He intentionally demonstrated the transformation of the disciples from people dependent on their teacher for every aspect of life- to powerful witnesses to the presence of the holy spirit. There was one more thing that the disciples had to say goodbye to that day – their fears, their concerns, their comfort with the way things were. Jesus intentionally took that all with him, and replaced it with one thing – the promise of the holy spirit the promise that the holy spirit would make it all clear, give you all the strength that you need, and lead you where God wants you do be.
The whole point of the Easter story- is learning to be comfortable with change. The first step to transformation is always goodbye.

The importance of Easter time
When I used to read the gospels I used to get really depressed when I got to the point when Jesus was gone. What was the point in reading anything that was written about the time after Jesus death. Now I realize that us indeed the whole point of telling the story – to understand what happens after Jesus has moved on. Of Jesus has not left, there would be no story of the disciples, there would be no church, there would be no reason for us to gather today, there would be no hope for those who don’t know the story. Jesus knew that he had to step out of the way in order to let the holy spirit take over. As a pastor, this is my favorite part of the story. The goodbye. The place where the past meets the future, where what we learned meets what we always wanted to do, the transformation for when it is our time to take over and continue the work.
Interestingly enough, in Jesus time it was believed that above important cities was a portal between heaven an earth. And that you had to be in the right place in order to pass from heaven and earth. In the Easter sitings, Jesus travels from Galillee to Jerusalem. The hole to heaven would have been above Jerusalem. So he travels up the tallest mountain above the city and is taken up to heaven. Interestingly, Muhammed also travels to Jerusalem in order to be taken up to heaven.
For us today that portal is in time, not in a place. It is between ascenscion and Pentecost. Next week we celebrate the birth of the church post Jesus.

Goodbyes in the Methodist church
Speaking of goodbyes, as United Methodist we have to learn to become comfortable with goodbyes. Someone asked me if it was difficult to say goodbye to a congregation. After ix times you get used to it. When I am here I am here, when the district superintendent calls and tells me to move on- then I have to get ready to say goodbye. After your sixth appointment you get used to it. As a matter of fact, the one thing that I have learned – is that my ministry has nothing to do with the time that I am here. Everything that I do points to the day that I leave. What is the church going to look like when I am not there. If it is not going to last past the minute that I am there to manage it, then it is really not worth doing. I have learned to spend my entire ministry anticipating saying good bye.
The appointment season is more determined by annual conference. And annual conference is in June because that was the time when it was easiest for people to travel by horseback in order to gather. But I appreciate that we go through the Easter story as appointments are coming to an end. As we reflect on what it means to say goodbye to Jesus, we can reflect on what it means to say goodbye to our leader. As we gather the strength to go on past Jesus goodbye, we gather the strength to redefine ourselves as faithful disciples. We learn to respect the fact that goodbye is not the end of the world – it is the beginning of a new chapter in our faith story.

Story of the chief’s successor
A tribal chief lay dying. He summoned three of his most loyal subjects and told them that it was time for him to choose a successor. He told them to climb the holy mountain and to return with the most precious gift you can find. The first brought back a huge gold nugget, the second brought back a priceless gem. The third returned empty handed, saying “when I reached the mountaintop, I was on the other side a beautiful land, where people could go for a better life. The chief said, you shall succeed me. You have brought back the most precious gift of all: a vision of a better tomorrow.

The Importance of Joy
That is the whole point of the ascension story – to learn to see the good in goodbye.
The last paragraph of the good news for today say “Then he led them out at far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. While he was blessing them, he withdrew from them and was carried up into heaven. And they worshipped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy; and they were continually in the temple blessing God.”
They were able to see the joy in the moment. And that joy gave them the strength to go on. To wait in anticipation of a new life in a new world.
On earth – the story was about a middle eastern man, who got a group of friends together to change the mindset of his people. A story that would have been written in time and forgotten in time
In heaven – the gospel is the story of all people in all times. Passed on in the lives of those who listen and sing the story for their times. A Christ for all time and all situations. He is our strength to get us through any and all goodbyes. Let us pray……