7 Easter/Year A - May 24, 2020
Acts 1:6-14; Psalm 68:1-10, 33-36; John 17:1-11
I want to begin this morning…with a brief check-in with all of you…
How are you doing this morning? What is weighing heavily on your mind and in your heart, this morning?
Let’s take a moment of silence right now…Let your thoughts be known to God alone…and imagine that God is right there with you…listening to every heartfelt cry, and listening to every hope that you are holding onto…silence…
With the words of the psalmist this morning, I pray… You sent a gracious rain, O God, upon your inheritance; *you refreshed the land when it was weary. I give thanks for this moment to be still and remember, that God is always listening to us, God is always with us, pouring out his gracious love upon us; refreshing the land, and the places, we call home, a home with God, where we can find true rest, and refreshment for our weary hearts. Amen.
I wonder how often any of us, are taking moments like this throughout our day, throughout our week?
I know that I have not done it, faithfully and as often as I should, lately.
Like most of you, who have jumped in with two feet, who have hit the ground running, and who have poured out every ounce of energy within you to respond to the immediate needs, and the ever changing landscape in this time of the COVID-19 pandemic…I’m right there with you…understanding that we’ve all been doing what we need to do, to survive and try to keep up with all the changes.
We have been thrust into learning new things daily, changing and updating plans daily. We’ve endured loss after loss in these past several months…and we’ve been witness to other’s accumulating losses; our hearts are heavy as we try to cope with the news of how this current pandemic is affecting the lives of the most vulnerable people among us. We are overwhelmed at times, in our attempts to comprehend the dizzying swirl of news and resources that are being published and broadcast daily.
And then, boom…here we are…fully two months into this season of our state and city’s response to the pandemic…and longer, in many other areas of the country and world…and we realize…that we’ve barely had a chance to stop and catch our breath to even begin to mourn any of our losses…
We haven’t taken a moment to stop and grieve for the people we love, and miss, who have fallen ill and died during these past few months, and for others whose names we don’t know, whose deaths have been attributed to the COVID-19 virus….almost 100,00 in the United States, alone...We haven’t taken a moment to stop and grieve for the friends and family we’ve been unable to meet up with, in our usual gatherings in our church buildings, our schools, and other public places that have been closed.
And even now…when some of the places are slowly opening, there are still so many uncertainties, there are still so many restrictions and requirements associated with opening safely…that cause us to continue to grieve…and wonder…how long, Lord…how long, Lord?
When will you send some relief…when will you send some comfort…when will you put our hearts to rest, and refresh our hope in life again?
Jesus addressed a similar question the disciples were asking him in last week’s scriptures.
Jesus was talking about the time that was coming, when he would be leaving them, yet not leaving them orphaned.
They were worried and distressed about so many things and wondering how would they go on without him? Jesus offered words of assurance and hope, that they would not be left alone.
Jesus spoke of sending the Holy Spirit, the Advocate, the Spirit of truth, to live and dwell with them, and in them…reminding them that they would never be left alone to navigate the heart-aches of this world.
He spoke of sending the Holy Spirit, who provides a seed of stillness to calm and comfort the sorrowful heart.
He spoke of sending the Holy Spirit, who whispers words of encouragement to support the weary heart.
He spoke of sending the Holy Spirit, in moments of stillness and prayer, to help us let go of whatever grieves our hearts by offering up every heartfelt cry, every worry and sorrow, and every hope we are longing to hold onto…and to place it all, in God’s hands…reminding us that God is always listening, and that God is always with us, pouring out his gracious love upon us; refreshing the land, and the places, we call home, a home with God, where we can find true rest, and refreshment for our weary hearts.
And again this week, in our Gospel reading, Jesus offers additional assurance, in his final words to his disciples before his arrest… Jesus lifts up a prayer of love to God, for all of us…lovingly and passionately asking God to take care of us, to protect us, and to bind us to one another in this life and the life to come, through the love of God, through the remembrance of the many ways the love of God was revealed to us in Jesus, and through the love of God, that will continue to be revealed to us, abide in us, comfort us, and restore and refresh our hope in life again, through the gift of the Holy Spirit.
As we prepare to begin a new week….Be sure to include time for prayer…for yourself and for others, as Jesus so lovingly prayed for us…. Make a plan to set aside some time in your day to regularly pause and breathe, for a moment of stillness and prayer with God.
Ask the Holy Spirit, to help you let go of whatever grieves your heart….take time to mourn your losses…and place it all, in God’s hands…believing and trusting that God is always listening, and that God is always with us, pouring out his gracious love upon us; refreshing the land, and the places, we call home, a home with God, where we can find true rest, and refreshment for our weary hearts.
A home, too…where we can find true joy…in gratitude for the many blessings in our lives that remind us to smile, to pray for one another and to love one another…
***Show photo/video collection of the children at St Peter’s***
Rev Julie Platson, Rector
St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church
Sitka, Alaska