The Calling of Pauline, Acts 9

10w for May 4th, Breaking Bread, E3.

The following is a 10 minute worship for May 4th, Breaking Bread, E3.  You can listen on the flash player below. You now also have the option of receiving these notices each week and on festival days by signing up for the 10W constant contact email list on the right side of the 10W blog where it says "Please Join our Email List." The song for the day is Missionary by Ed Kilbourne from the CD Play It Again.  Ed has given his permission to use his music and you can support him by checking out more of his tunes at:  https://www.edkilbourne.com/store.html
 

10w for May 4th, And So It Begins, NL.

The following is a 10 minute worship for May 4th, And So It Begins, NL. You can listen on the flash player below. You now also have the option of receiving these notices each week and on festival days by signing up for the 10W constant contact email list on the right side of the 10W blog where it says "Please Join our Email List." The song for the day is The Tie That Binds by Ed Kilbourne from the CD Play It Again.  Ed has given his permission to use his music and you can support him at: https://www.edkilbourne.com/store.html

Opening Litany based on Psalm 116

Pastor:  I love the Lord because the Lord hears my voice, my cry’s, my prayers for mercy and bends down to listen. I will therefore pray as long as I have breath!

Congregation: Death wrapped its ropes around me and the terrors of the death overtook me. In the midst of this mess I saw only trouble and sorrow, but then I called on the name of the Lord: “Please, Lord, save me!”

Pastor: How kind and good the Lord is! So merciful, this God of ours!

Congregation: The Lord protects those like me, those of childlike faith, for I was facing death, and the Lord saved me. The Lord let my soul be at rest again, for the Lord has been good to me and has saved me from death, tears, and stumbling.

Pastor: So let us walk in the Lord’s presence as we live here on earth!

Congregation: Because I believe in you O Lord, I will come before you and admit that there are times when I am deeply troubled and in my anxiety I cry out to you from the depths of my soul.

Pastor: What can we offer the Lord for all the Lord has done for us?

Congregation: We will lift up the cup of salvation and praise the Lord’s name, we will keep our promises to the Lord in the presence of all his people.

Pastor: The Lord cares deeply for the loved ones who suffer, O Lord, we are your servants, your children, for you have freed us from our chains.

Congregation: We will offer you a sacrifice of thanksgiving, calling upon the name of the Lord and will fulfill our vows to the Lord in the presence of all people.  Praise the Lord!!

live it

Sunday, May 4^th, Acts 2: 36 Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.”³⁷ When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”³⁸ Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ³⁹ The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.” Guilty, we are all guilty. We live in a world separated from God.  In spite of our separation through sin, we are also called to participate in the Kingdom life.  The promise is for you and I and the ones to come, those who are far off.  It is the promise not of just a sugar daddy god who will rescue us when things get rough, but of a Real God who will walk with us through the difficulties in life.  The gift of the Holy Spirit and of God’s grace is ours.  Our task is to go out there and live it.

recognize the relationship

Monday, May 5^th, 1 Peter 1: ¹⁷ Since you call on a Father who judges each person’s work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear. ¹⁸ For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, ¹⁹ but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.  Most of us have a hard time understanding things in a sacrificial way, but to the people of the 1^st century, that is how they understood God.  The perfect lamb, the blood, signs of the Passover feast celebrating the gift of life.  Reminders of the scapegoat, who would remove the sins of a community.  Reminders of a sacrificial lamb who would unite your life with the will of God.  Christ death and resurrection helps us see and recognize the relationship we all have with God.  It is the gift of seeing what is already there.

it is true

Tuesday, May 6^th, 1 Peter 1: ²¹ Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.²² Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart. ²³ For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. Who knew, we have been born again. That phrase has been use for years to indicate a two tier relationship with Christ, those who are in the inside and those of us who simply want to be.  But the reality is that being born again is not something we do, but something God does, it is a gift, not an accomplishment, it is permanent, not something we accomplish, it is God work, not human aspiration.  The next time someone asks you if you have been born again, simply say yes, God loves you.  It is true. 

celebrate and love

Wednesday, May 7^th, Luke 24: ¹³ Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. ¹⁴ They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. ¹⁵ As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; ¹⁶ but they were kept from recognizing him.  How often does Jesus walk with us and we never knew it?  On life’s journeys we are never alone.  It is not a matter of inviting Jesus to walk with us as much as recognizing that Jesus is walking with us.  We may be busy discussing all manner of things, but in the midst of the conversations, the beers, the friendships, the collaboration and discussion sessions, we are not alone.  The Lord is with you this day.  Celebrate and love.

comes down

Thursday, May 8^th, Luke 24: ¹⁷ He asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?” They stood still, their faces downcast. ¹⁸ One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, “Are you the only one visiting Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?”¹⁹ “What things?” he asked. “About Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. “He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. ²⁰ The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; ²¹ but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place. ²² In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning ²³ but didn’t find his body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive. ²⁴ Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but they did not see Jesus.” What keeps us from seeing God in our midst? How is it that we get so busy that in the presence of God we see only one another?  Perhaps it is because that is all we want to see.  Perhaps it is because we are so caught up in ourselves that the only world around us is the one we create in our own image.  That does not stop God however.  God is there to break down the barriers we put in place and to bring out the God colors in our life.  As you go into your world, remember that you are not alone, God is with you in your discussions, deliberations and distractions.  Stop for a moment and learn to love the God who comes down to you and I and our world.  

get to work

Friday, May 9^th, Luke 24: ²⁸ As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus continued on as if he were going farther. ²⁹ But they urged him strongly, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over.” So he went in to stay with them. And so it is with you and I.  In the midst of our longing, God stays with us a little while, but only a little while.  Then God is out in front of us urging us on into the world to bring the good news of God’s love and forgiveness and presence to others.  So enjoy the stay, in the morning it will be time to get to work.    

amen

Saturday, May 10^th, Luke 24: ³⁰ When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. ³¹ Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. ³² They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?” ³³ They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together ³⁴ and saying, “It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.” ³⁵ Then the two told what had happened on the way, and how Jesus was recognized by them when he broke the bread.  This is my body broken for you, this is my blood, shed for you.  These are words of presence, words of love.  It is not the lamb we break, but the redefined lamb of sacrifice, the coming together as community.  It is in the eating together, drinking together, recognizing one another together as the body of Christ that we see Christ in our midst.  The next time you gather for communion, remember the words, the presence, the promise and know you are gathered together in the body as Christ with those with whom you agree and with those with whom you disagree.  But you are gathered together as part of the body of Christ in this world.  Amen.

Poem based on 2nd Sunday in Easter John 20:19-31

I sit in darkness

late at night

the kids are asleep

quiet now

--after a day of fun

oblivious to the adult world

--as we have made it

of war and hate

and children very much like themselves

loved very much like themselves

without enough

--of their share

--to survive

I want to venture out

To help in this world

--of too much

----and not enough

but I often find myself

----------hiding

here in the darkness

----------comfort

-------------safety

of my own walls

when

--into this sanctuary

--of my

------awareness fear

comes a voice

----(peace)

of disturbing comfort

that seeks to destroy

------------my little kingdom

-------of what

--------------can

------------------I

--------------------do

-----------------------anyway walls

I am heralded again

----(peace)

from that voice of life

----(be with you)

I long to

--but wish not

------------hear

peace

in the midst of your world

and because of it

as the words still ring

------in my mind

I remember the one who came

To make all things new

And I long

--for that contact

that would take me by the hand

and lead me

--down the path of what will be

lead me

----(as the Father sent me)

somehow to show

--that Christ lives

show it to others

------and myself

Help me Lord to do thy will

----(I send you)

today

Opening Litany based on Psalm 16

Pastor: Keep me safe, O God, for I have come to you for refuge.

Congregation: We said to the LORD, “You are our Master! Every good thing we have comes from you.” The godly people in the land are our heroes and we take pleasure in them!

Pastor: Troubles seem to multiply for those who chase after other gods.

Congregation: We will not take part in their sacrifices or pretend to follow in their ways for the LORD alone is our inheritance, our cup of blessing.

Pastor: You guard all that is ours. The land you have given us is a pleasant land and a wonderful inheritance!

Congregation: We will bless the LORD who guides us; even at night our hearts instruct us to follow the ways of the Lord. Therefore we know the LORD is always with us and we will not be shaken, for the Lord is right beside us at all times.

Pastor: No wonder my heart is glad, and I rejoice. I rest in safety knowing the Lord walks with us and will not leave us to the powers of death.

Congregation: The Lord will show us the way of life, granting us joy of living in the presence of the Lord forever.

Old Rocker

Sunday April 27^th, Acts 2: 2 Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know. 23 This man was handed over to you by God's set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men put him to death by nailing him to the cross. 24 But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him.  That old rocker who passed away about 6 years ago, Larry Norman, was one of the first Christian Rockers.  In one of his songs he used the following lines about the resurrection, “but you shoulda known you can’t keep a good man down.” There's nothing wrong with playing blues licks, But if you got a reason tell me to my face Why should the devil have all the good music. There's nothing wrong with what I play 'Cause Jesus is the rock and he rolled my blues away. I ain't knocking the hymns, Just give me a song that has a beat. I ain't knocking the hymns, Just give me a song that moves my feet. I don't like none of those funeral marches I ain't dead yet!  Jesus told the truth, Jesus showed the way There's one more thing I'd like to say. They nailed him to the cross, they laid him in the ground, But they shoulda known you can't keep a good man down. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BznsjIe5sMk&feature=related  It is a bit crass, but true.  God raised him, in spite of us, because of us, for us.   Life goes on; Christ is out there ahead of us leading the way.  It is our job to tell the story and be the presence of the risen Christ in the world.  Go and tell whatever means you use, even if you are an old rock and roller.  

you, me, enemy

Monday April 28^th, Acts 2: 29 "Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. 30 But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. 31 Seeing what was ahead, he spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to the grave, nor did his body see decay. 32 God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact. That resurrection is the gift for all humanity.  It is the gift of life for us all.  All the striving, all the conniving and trying to get ahead, all the attempts to cast the life of Jesus as something that supports our, or anybody’s political agenda, is false.  Jesus came not to say one way is right and the rest are wrong, Jesus came to save humanity, all created humanity, all of life.  What we come together to celebrate is that all of life is redeemed and in the last day, you, me, and our enemy will all rise to be with the Lord.  

only Jesus

Tuesday April 29^th, 1 Peter 1:3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you.  I have watched as the Supreme Court has given the elections and with it, the rules that run the market place to the super wealthy.  I have seen the housing market rise and fall and rise again.  The price of gold is forever being marketed on the AM stations as a hedge against fear.  You and I, in the world of money, are left holding a few cents here and losing a few cents there while trying to help out with the food banks that try to feed the ever increasing populace of working poor.  In this world, the economy is rigged, and it is not rigged in favor of you and I.  Jesus calls us to put our faith in him, to store our treasures in heaven where there is no recession, no war profiteers or Supreme Court activists to wreck the economy for everyone else.  There is only Jesus.  My interest in him always pays beyond my expectations.  

choice

Wednesday April 30^th, 1 Peter 1: 6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. It always seems that it is the darkest times of our lives that we are closer to Christ, and it is the good times that we seem further away.  Perhaps it is not the good life that is the blessing, but rather the adversities, where we have little to depend upon other than Jesus, that are the blessing from God.  This is not to say that God gives us the hard times, but rather, when the world gives us hard times, it is there we often find our hearts and souls open to the love of God rather than the false promise of pulling ourselves up by the bootstraps.  I find when the going gets good, the people get going, fishing, to the cabin, to sports, anywhere but church.  May your life result in Praise, Glory and Honor of Christ, whatever it takes.  I even hope and pray you get to enjoy your cabin, fishing and sports in addition to the love of God.  But if there is a choice…………. just think about it.

one foot

Thursday May 1^st,  John 20: 19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. I imagine that the first response, right after Jesus came among them, inside the locked room, behind the locked doors, and spoke “Peace,” and then showed them his hands and side, that the first response was not one of being overjoyed.  I imagine the first response was utter fear.  Overjoyed might have been the second response, but not the first.  Jesus comes into our lives each and every day.  Jesus comes with the message of “Peace” and then for us to go out into the world.   Our response is to ignore.  But Jesus does come, Jesus does show us the cost, the hands and feet and Jesus does say Go, it’s your turn.  And Jesus waits…………………………. We may experience fear, but once we set one foot in front of the other, there is joy.  

balance

Friday May 2^nd,  John 20:  21 Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you." 22 And with that he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven."  Again, scary stuff.  Stuff we all tend to shrink away from.  After seeing the hands and feet, the cost of discipleship, we are told that it is now our turn.  We might not have to hang on the cross, but we might be asked to give up one of those things that takes away all our time and energy.  We might just be asked to achieve balance before blessing.  Maybe it is time to give up a hockey game, a fishing trip, a lazy Sunday morning, a trip to the cabin once in a while, to achieve this balance.  It just may be the greatest gift you can give to your children as well as to yourself. 

your turn

Saturday May 3^rd,  John 20:  26 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" 27 Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe." 28 Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!"  29 Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."  I love this story; it is after all so human.  Thomas was the only one who dared to be out of the room when Jesus came the first time, now he is the scapegoat for what they were feeling before Jesus came to them.  How often we project our issues on others.  How often we look for scapegoats to take the heat off what we should be doing.  All you have to do is look at all the voter fraud perpetrated in the name of preventing voter fraud to get a handle on this human trait. Jesus had sent the disciples out a week ago and they are still behind the locked doors, now Thomas gets the rap for doubting.  We too look for scapegoats to avoid what we should be doing.  We too look for reasons, out there, why we are avoiding doing the ministry we are called to do.  Come to church to celebrate Christ’s work through you and others in the world, don’t come to find Jesus, he is risen, he is not here, but he expects you to be.

Opening Litany based on Psalm 118

Give Thanks to the Lord (Psalm 118)

Pastor: Give thanks to the Lord who is good, whose love endures forever.

Congregation: Let everyone say, God’s love endures forever.

Pastor: Open the gates of righteousness and we will enter and give thanks to the Lord.

Congregation: They are the gates through which I may enter and give thanks for the Lord has become my salvation.

Pastor:  I marvel when I see that which was rejected by the world, has become the foundation of humanity

Congregation: This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.

Pastor:  Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord, 

Congregation: with boughs in hand we will join the festal procession.

Pastor: You are our God and we give you thanks and exalt your name

Congregation: Give thanks to the Lord who is good and whose love endures forever.

Poem based on Matthew 28:1-10 Easter

Watching from the margins

From the dark edges of the world

As the representatives of power

Guard the rock

Not letting anything happen by chance

Lest the people

In hope

Longing for something better

In the darkness of the morning

Know hope…

The earth rattles

The stones roll

The guards freeze

And hope is born

Watching from the margins they see it

Mary and Mary

Still and silent

They see the open tomb

They see the angel appear

They see the Messiah raised

They see the future of a universe

That has never been

And can never

Return

To what was.

Mary and Mary

You and I

Don’t freeze

Don’t hold on

Don’t stand still…

Run and tell…

And the church is born

To Run and tell.

knock it off

Sunday April 20^th, Jeremiah 31: "At that time I will be the God of all of the tribes of Israel," announces the Lord. "And they will be my people." The Lord says, "Some of my people will live through everything their enemies do to them. They will find help in the desert.  I have been in the desert of life, and I am sure that most of you have also been there, but if not, you will be there sometime in your life.  These are the dry times with no love, no hope, nothing feeding your life and you are in a state of mere existence where even taking a breath is hard work.  And yet there is something strangely pleasant in that place.  Facing our darkest hours, we find ourselves comforted somehow.  Without even realizing it we become aware that every breath we take, no matter how laborious, is somehow a prayer.  In that abandoned forlorn place, we are not alone and are often aware of that not-aloneness.  I will be the God of all the tribes of Israel, says the Lord and from that statement it is a short hop to the promise made to Abraham and the realization that God will also be the God of all the tribes of Abraham, both those of Isaac and Ishmael, and through faith that also includes you and I. So put down those rockets, give back the land, stop selling arms and making war for profit and everybody just get along.  Like it or not you are sisters and brothers loved by the same God.  All this bickering and fighting does to God the same thing your children bickering and fighting does to you.  So knock it off and go to your room until you can come out and learn to get along.  

kingdom presence

Monday April 21^st, Jeremiah 31: "Once again you will use your tambourines to celebrate. You will go out and dance with joy. Once again you will plant vineyards on the hills of Samaria. Farmers will plant them. They will enjoy their fruit. There will be a day when those on guard duty will cry out. They will stand on the hills of Ephraim. And they will shout, 'Come! Let's go up to Zion. Let's go up to where the Lord our God is.' " Won’t it be a wonderful day when peace among the children of God will be in the land and the children of Isaac and the children of Ishmael and the followers of Jesus and we all go up to the hill together, once and for all accepting one another as brothers and sisters in the family of God?  Won’t it be a wonderful day when the children of God grow up and give up the childish ways of bickering and fighting and recognize that all our differences only reflect the vastness of love of a loving God and father of us all who calls for us to simply get along?  Won’t it be great on that day when we gather on the hills of Ephraim and shout not insults to one another but invitations to come and gather as one people and recognize that the Lord our God is indeed the Lord and God of all?  Won’t it be great?  Until that day, work for the kingdom presence in the world, work for peace and justice.  

time to grow up

Tuesday April 22^nd, Acts. 10: Then Peter began to speak: "I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right.  When the spirit came, Peter started to get "it."  The "It" he got was that God does not show favoritism any more than you show favoritism to your own children.  They are each different, they each have unique needs and talents and wants and foibles, and you love each and every one.  Some parents may wish they would grow up and do this, others you wish would grow up and do that, but in the end you love them and recognize they are each on a path to becoming what they are called to be.  So too God loves all humanity, the creation God formed, breathed life and spirit into and called Good.  God did not just do this for part of humanity, not just for the ones that look like this or that or the ones who express their love for God this way or that way, but humanity, all of humanity.  When we recognize that and we find ourselves on the path to reconciliation, we find ourselves on the path to truly discovering the love of God in our hearts.   

gooder

Wednesday April 23^rd, Acts 10: He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name."  Jesus comes as the one promised from of old.  All the prophets testified to the love of God coming into the world.  Now in this person of Christ, the love is manifest and lives among us, then and now.  What of those who don't believe?  What of those who may use another name or may not recognize Jesus as the Messiah?  If grace is the order of the day and grace is the message of Christ, then it is not dependent upon belief to be manifest in the world or even to be manifest in the unbeliever’s heart.  The message as well as salvation is about Christ, not humanity.  It is about the goodness of God being “gooder” than all the bad in the world.  Our job is to be part of that and preach the "good" news.  Sometimes the church gets that mixed up with judging or claiming exclusive rights to the love of God.  For that we apologize, it just goes to show how much more work there is to do to manifest the love of God, and the vastness of God's grace, in this world.   

hope reborn

Thursday April 24^th, Matthew 28:    After the Sabbath, as the first light of the new week dawned, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to keep vigil at the tomb. Suddenly the earth reeled and rocked under their feet as God's angel came down from heaven, came right up to where they were standing. He rolled back the stone and then sat on it. Shafts of lightning blazed from him. His garments shimmered snow-white. The guards at the tomb were scared to death. They were so frightened, they couldn't move. Why do you think God always seems to use the marginalized in society as the witnesses and the messengers of the good news of God’s grace?  The disciples never seem to get it, but the Samaritan woman at the well does, Mary and Mary seem to get it, Nicodemus seems to get it, the woman anointing Jesus with the bottle of ointment seems to get it, and the list goes on and on.   I think that Jesus is good news only for those who, in the deep reaches of their souls, long for something different, long for hope that things will change, long for the grace that can only come from God.  The mainstream often seems to be vested in maintaining what is, keeping its power base going.  It is those in the margins that are looking for hope that will come and lives that will change, especially their own lives.  Mary and Mary, keeping watch, waiting for the dawn while others are sleeping soundly; they are the ones who see.  And what they see is hope reborn.  

Good News

Friday April 25^th, Matthew 28: The angel spoke to the women: "There is nothing to fear here. I know you're looking for Jesus, the One they nailed to the cross. He is not here. He was raised, just as he said. Come and look at the place where he was placed. "Now, get on your way quickly and tell his disciples, "He is risen from the dead. He is going on ahead of you to Galilee. You will see him there.' That's the message." And the Angel said to them, fear not!!! Where have heard that before?  Every time the messengers of God come into the world, they start with the message “fear not.”   One reason is that the church of that day, just as the church of our day, seems to preach more fear than faith.  The power status quo lives in fear that the power status quo will no longer be the power status quo, so any intrusion of God would indeed be seen as a fearful moment.  To the least, lost and lonely the message is always one of hope, not fear.  Hope is reborn and the message is that the power status quo may not be the power status quo forever which, though it may not seem like it to some, in the long run is good news for all.  

Christ is Risen!

Saturday April 26^th, Matthew 28: They ran to tell the disciples. Then Jesus met them, stopping them in their tracks. "Good morning!" he said. They fell to their knees, embraced his feet, and worshiped him. Jesus said, "You're holding on to me for dear life! Don't be frightened like that. Go tell my brothers that they are to go to Galilee, and that I'll meet them there."  It is not about hanging onto Jesus, it is about getting out there and telling others the good news.  Jesus is risen, and now the ball is in our court.  Go tell the good news that hope is reborn in the world and in people’s lives.  Go tell the good news that death ultimately holds sway over us no more.  Go tell the good news that life begins anew each day and the sins that plagued our lives plague them only when and to the degree we let them, because forgiveness is the name of the game and Christ is alive.  Christ is Risen, Christ is Risen indeed!!  Christ is Risen, Christ is Risen indeed!!  Christ is Risen, Christ is Risen indeed!!

10w for April 13th, Palm Sunday.

The following is a 10 minute worship for April 13th, Palm Sunday. You can listen on the flash player below. You now also have the option of receiving these notices each week and on festival days by signing up for the 10W constant contact email list on the right side of the 10W blog where it says "Please Join our Email List." The song for the day is Christ Our Savior Lutheran singing Amazing Grace.

 

Passion Sunday, and where was Mom?

Poem based on Matthew 26:14-27:66 Passion Sunday

Ride on Ride on in Majesty

Through the dusty streets

The crowds raise up their voices

And with hosannas greet

The horseman and his mighty legions

Law and order to keep

Solders

Leather, shields and swords

Marching in perfect step

Behind

The one who represents the son of god

His symbol leads the way

All the dignitaries were there

As he entered through the gate

Pilot rode in up the white horse

Onward solders marching

As to war

Ready to keep the peace and any cost

Life was secondary

Marching on in majesty

The flexing imperial power of Rome

On this powder keg celebration

of liberation

and the leaders came to see

on the other end of the holy city

a simple procession

down the hill and through the dusty streets

no armor, helmets or swords

only their voices, cloaks and a few palm branches

to line the way

of the

This is My Son

My Beloved

In whom I am well pleased

Riding on a small gently colt

While the shouts went up

Hosanna to the Son of David

The stones ready to roar

Quiet

Pilot will be sore if he hears

Hosannas from the heart

The stage is set

Majesties ride on

To the climax of the ages

New beginnings, fresh start

Betrayal

A meal

And coins change hands

And soon the beginning of the end

For the son of man

The dark night

Denial

Three times before the dawn

Another procession

A man dripping red

No hosannas this time

Only shame

Only dread

And soon the sound of spikes hammered

And blood being drawn

While silent

From a distance

The people looked on

Jesus remember me in paradise today

Forgive them

It is finished

Some heard him say

The darkness

The earth quake

The curtain torn in two

Hopes dashed and power roared

As the body was laid to rest

The tomb sealed

Life back to normal

And yet

Off in the distance a glimmer of light

Fresh breeze in the air

In the dark early morning

The body wasn’t there….

Opening Litany based on Psalm 31:9-16

Pastor: Be merciful to me, O LORD, for I am in distress; my eyes grow weak with sorrow, my soul and my body with grief.

Congregation: My life is consumed by anguish and my years by groaning; my strength fails because of my affliction, and my bones grow weak.

Pastor: Because of all my enemies, I am the utter contempt of my neighbors; I am a dread to my friends— those who see me on the street flee from me.

Congregation: I am forgotten by them as though I were dead; I have become like broken pottery. For I hear the slander of many; there is terror on every side; they conspire against me and plot to take my life.

Pastor: But I trust in you, O LORD; I say, "You are my God." My times are in your hands; deliver me from my enemies and from those who pursue me.

Congregation: Let your face shine on your servant; save me in your unfailing love.

which parade?

Sunday April 13^th, Matthew 21: They brought the donkey and the colt, placed their cloaks on them, and Jesus sat on them. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Hosanna in the highest!” As Jesus was riding into Jerusalem from Cesaria Phillipi to the North East of Jerusalem, Pilate was coming into Jerusalem from his palace in Cesaria Mauritania to the North West of Jerusalem.  On that Passover there were two processions entering the City, each representing a kingdom.  From the West was the power of Rome.  The royal Roman eagle on the staff, magnificent horses, regal attire followed by a mighty army, entering the city to keep order during this week of celebration of the liberation of the children of God from the rulers of power in Egypt.  He was met with shouts of Hosanna, king of kings, lord of lords, mighty god of mighty gods and the prince of peace. From the East came the one called Jesus.  He was riding on a donkey, like the beloved king David. He was greeted with shouts of Hosanna and Son of David, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Mighty God of Mighty Gods and Prince of Peace.  He came in the name of, and represented, the Kingdom of God.  Two kingdoms, entering the Holy City from opposite directions during the Passover week in which the people were celebrating liberation from slavery.  Is there any doubt conflict would follow.  

expedient balancing act

Monday April 14^th, Matthew 26: At that very moment, the party of high priests and religious leaders was meeting in the chambers of the Chief Priest named Caiaphas, conspiring to seize Jesus by stealth and kill him. They agreed that it should not be done during Passover Week. "We don't want a riot on our hands,” The Chief Priest and Caiaphas were not evil people.  They were good people, trying to live good lives and walk that tightrope between serving their people and keeping the Romans, who ruled the area, happy.  They also happened to be  politically motivated and resourceful, much like the politicians we love and hate in Washington today.  They were in power, it is true, but a tenuous power it was.  In this occupied land they were able to rule over their people only because Rome allowed them to do so as long as they kept order.  It worked for Rome, it worked for the power structure of the Hebrew people.  Maintain order your way or Rome would maintain order its way, and so a politically expedient balancing act was the norm.  Jesus was a threat to that balance.  He had already gathered a crowd of his own who dared to greet him as the liberator king during this liberation celebration.  To the ones at the top, the goal was maintaining status quo.  To the ones at the bottom, the goal was hope.  Hope is always a threat to the status quo when maintaining power is seen as the bottom line.  

break open the flask

Tuesday April 15^th, Matthew 26: When Jesus was at Bethany, a guest of Simon the Leper, a woman came up to him as he was eating dinner and anointed him with a bottle of very expensive perfume. When the disciples saw what was happening, they were furious. "That's criminal! This could have been sold for a lot and the money handed out to the poor." When Jesus realized what was going on, he intervened. "Why are you giving this woman a hard time? She has just done something wonderfully significant for me. You will have the poor with you every day for the rest of your lives, but not me.  First the question; who is Simon the Leper?  Some commentaries make the leap that he was someone who was healed by Jesus of his leprosy, others say that it is a misinterpretation and he was a pottery maker, and still others say that he was just a Pharisee with that name for some unknown reason.  All scripture says is that this is what he was called and Jesus went to his house for dinner.  While there, a woman came in and using very expensive perfume anointed Jesus.  Simon the Leper seemed to say nothing of note.  At least some of the disciples were concerned that they were not in charge of the money this could bring into their coffers, and Jesus was just grateful for the anointing and adoration before his burial. He then points out that the task of the Church, first and foremost is to worship God, as did the woman with the perfume.  Jesus’ second statement is the reminder that we will always have the poor with us, which is not a call to ignore them, but rather to take care for them also.  It is an echo of Jesus answer to what is the greatest commandment, to love God and to love others, with love being used as a verb not a noun.  Sometimes the church gets all caught up in other agendas and fights and comfort levels, we are after all made up of failing and sinful people.  For each church question the counter question needs to be asked, how does this move forward the agenda of honoring God and caring for those in need.  If it doesn’t fit into those two areas, it still might be a good thing to do, but it is not central to who we are and what we are called to do.  Perhaps it is time to break open the flask and honor Jesus first and foremost and to honor our neighbor as ourselves.  And to do it in that order.