9 Pentecost/Year A/August 2, 2020
Psalm 145: 8-9, 15-21; Isaiah 55:1-5; Matthew 14: 13-21
Jesus withdrew in a boat to a deserted place….
I wonder how many of us are longing to do just that?... right now… to just step away from the news of how the Covid-19 pandemic is continuing to cause great suffering among people of all walks of life; to just step away for a few moments from the reports of violence and unrest…that has left no community untouched….
As we scan our local and national news feeds…and look around in our various communities where we live…we are being reminded daily…that there is so much suffering and so many hurting people among us, who are grieving, longing for things to change… longing for relief for themselves and their family members…longing for comfort…for love…for mercy…longing for equity….for justice…longing for compassion….for peace…in the midst of so much uncertainty…
Jesus gets it…we are not alone in this.
Jesus withdrew in a boat to a deserted place…just after he received the news of John (the Baptist) death. He withdrew for a moment, to be alone with the God of abundant love and compassion….The One who hears every cry, who hears every longing for an end to such grief…and acts upon it, even now… with a love and compassion that feeds and nourishes one’s soul…with a love and compassion that has no limits… in bringing healing and a peace that surpasses all of our understanding….in whatever circumstances we find ourselves in…
When Jesus, emerges from this moment alone with God, and looks out at the crowds who had followed him, as soon as they heard Jesus was nearby, we are told Jesus had compassion for them.
I imagine that Jesus’ heart was breaking with compassion for the crowds gathered…for he could see them now, through the heart of God’s abundant love and compassion that was a healing balm for his soul…he could see they were longing for something, he could see that they were searching for answers to questions that maybe they weren’t even sure what they were…they were hungry for something…they were hurting…they were longing for some measure of hope and peace…in the midst of so much uncertainty that was present in their daily lives…
And it was in the actions of what happened next, ..after Jesus saw them, and had compassion on them…that they were provided a measure of hope and peace….Not just because Jesus saw them…but that he helped the disciples to see them and act with compassion and love too…
When the disciples complained that evening to Jesus, and wanted to send the crowds away for them to fend for themselves, Jesus reminded them of their neighbors they were called to love and care for, and said to them, “They need not go away; you give them something to eat.”
But, but, but…the disciples say. We don’t have enough…only five loaves and two fish, that we can see around here…no way that would be enough to feed the thousands who are gathered here today…
Jesus tells them…to bring him what they have…and he tells the crowds to sit down…
After all this frantic worrying by the disciples, Jesus invites everyone to sit down…to sit down together….to just begin…by acknowledging one another, being present to one another…seeing one another, as God sees all of us…
Then Jesus prays, and the disciples and all who were gathered, were empowered to feed one another, care for one another, love one another….
Taking the five loaves and the two fish, (Jesus) he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. And all ate and were filled; and they took up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve baskets full.
All were filled that day with a measure of hope and peace, through love and compassion for one another, through a love and compassion, grounded in the love of God, that fed and nourished souls in a time of great need, and in a time of so much uncertainty…
These days, reaching out to love and care for one another, can feel overwhelming. We can barely keep our own emotions in check these days. Perhaps it’s a good time to ask ourselves – what our spiritual diet is looking like these days? Are we taking time to feed and nourish our souls...so that we can be strengthened, ourselves and to be able to reach out in love to others?
Jesus reminds us, in today’s gospel…that we are not called to do any of this alone….we are called to navigate all the suffering, the beauty and the joys of this world together….and with the love and the presence of a gracious God in the midst of all we seek to be and to do…
We are all a broken people, at times, and we are all in need of a love and compassion, that begins and ends with God….that begins with time away, by ourselves to a deserted place, a time of prayer and stillness, to connect with a gracious God of abundant love and compassion….the one who feeds and nourishes our souls…
It is from that place of prayer, that our hearts, and our minds are refreshed, and encouraged, once again, to not only care for ourselves, with the blessing of God’s love and compassion, but to look up and around to our neighbors, who we share this world with…and offer that same blessing of God’s love and compassion to them, through our words and in our actions…on behalf of the whole human family…
For today: Be filled with a measure of hope and peace.
Pray with God and with one another.
Love and serve one another with compassion.
Bless one another.
Do this again tomorrow, and the next day…and all the days after that…
Be filled with a measure of hope and peace.
Pray with God and with one another.
Love and serve one another with compassion.
Bless one another.
Hymn after the sermon: (LEVSII) - #146 Break Thou the Bread of Life
Rev Julie Platson, Rector
St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church
Sitka, Alaska