22 Pentecost/Year B – Walk in Love Stewardship Kick off Sunday Oct 20, 2024
Isaiah 53:4-12; Psalm 91:9-16; Mark 35-45
Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself?
I will, with God's help.
Opening Prayer: (WIL/TENS resources, adapted)
Creator God, as we begin our fall stewardship journey of Walking in Love with You and one another, may the gifts that we pledge in the coming weeks help us to honor the work you have given us to do, to serve You and one another, here in this place and in this time. Inspire us and guide our footsteps as we bless, break, and share our gifts of time, talent, and treasure with our neighbors, walking in love as you have walked with us. Amen.
IN our gospel reading today, James and John boldly approach Jesus and say to him: “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” …When Jesus asks them what they want, they say to him: “Grant us to sit, one at your right and one at your left, in your glory.” James and John seem to be seeking the honor, and power, and status of being truly great, if only they could “sit” on the throne and “rule” the kingdom they think they know something about. But Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking.” And he goes on to teach them and the other disciples about what being “great” is truly about…and it has nothing to do with sitting on thrones of self-importance or striving to rise to places of power and glory for oneself, that are often used to look down upon others, oppress others, or dismiss others as being unworthy…
Jesus said: “You know that among the Gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. But it is not so among you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.”
Yes, Jesus calls us to a different kind of greatness: A greatness defined by the way we walk in love with one another, in the ways we strive to love others, care for others, and serve others…a greatness defined by serving others by being extravagant with the love we offer to one another, with the kindnesses we offer one another, with the forgiveness we offer one another, and the relationships we seek to create with one another, as we strive to build up God’s kingdom, a kingdom that is “ruled” with love….a world-wide family and community that believes that this love, Christ’s love…is the love has the power to reconcile us to God, one another, and all of creation…right here, right now…
And, in seeking this kind of greatness, we must often give up what’s comfortable for us and cross boundaries, cross the street, be the first to extend a hand of welcome….be the first to set aside the words that destroy relationships, and divide us from one another, be the first to step out in faith in the face of change needed… be the one who pro-actively invites those we meet, to come and see…that there is another path to greatness…and that path is illumined for us every step of the way, as we strive to walk in the Way of love, that Jesus has taught us…in so many different ways…in ways that build up and encourage one another…in ways that say and show that each and every person matters and belongs…in ways that affirm that all are welcome, all are beloved children of God, all are worthy of God’s love…
If we were asked to draw a picture, to envision and capture what our communities could look like, if we followed Jesus’ way of love, by humbling ourselves, and by serving others…what would it look like? What would “greatness” look like?
Would we see hands reaching out to help one another? Would we see hands reaching out to help lift others out of the depths of loneliness and isolation, addictions, and domestic violence? Would we see hands distributing food to the hungry? Would we see long tables, filled with people of all ages, eating, and laughing and enjoying conversations with one another?
Would we see men, women, and children of all ages, and all cultures joining in the dance of life together, learning from one another, teaching one another, encouraging one another, treating one another with dignity and respect? Would we see rivers and oceans flowing, trees and flowers blooming, seasons changing in the way that God created them to? Would we see people tending to the earth and all of its creatures with care and concern for today’s world…and for the people who will inhabit this earth long after we are gone?
The possibilities are endless….no sketch pad or mural is large enough to capture the vastness of what is possible, when we strive to seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving our neighbors as ourselves, as we strive to walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. Ephesians 5:1-2, NRS
I’ve seen the vastness of what is possible when people walk together in such a way, unfolding in real time right before my eyes, not only this past year here at St Peter’s and in the wider Episcopal Church, but in the evolution of changes that we have been through together in my nine and a half years since being welcomed into this community.
The ways all of you have stepped up in such a wide variety of offerings this past year, continues to give me seeds of hope for the ways in which the church and its people will continue to be shaped and transformed for the labors of love and work we will be called to in the coming year.
I’ve seen how you’ve loved and supported one another through times of illness and loss; I’ve seen how you’ve loved and supported people in our community through your monetary and in-kind donations and through your volunteer efforts to feed the hungry and provide shelter for those in need, visit the lonely, encourage the young and the elderly; I’ve seen how generous you’ve been with your monetary and in-kind donations that you’ve given this past year to support the operating budget of the church, and to support all the buildings and grounds projects at St Peter’s, most recently the stonemasonry work.
I’ve seen the fruits of your labors and donations in the ways that your stewardship of our historic buildings has been an incredible gift to the community, enabling us to use the See House as a safe and welcoming gathering space for many community organizations, AA groups, youth groups, as well as for all of the church-organized activities. I’ve seen how it is possible, that even through some of the big and abrupt changes that we’ve all faced in the past few years, in our personal lives, in the church, in the community, your commitment to walking in love with one another, as Christ has loved us and gave himself up for us, continues to be an inspiring and hope-filled witness to the “greatness” of which Christ is inviting us to live out in all our days to come.
So, thank you. I’ve seen all of you, on the front lines, and those who do the everyday quiet work behind the scenes.
My hope and prayer for the coming year, is that we will bring all of those gifts of greatness together again this year, ensuring that St Peter’s can continue to offer ourselves and our buildings as “A sacred place to gather, be anchored in the beauty of God’s love, and sent forth to walk in the way of love”…
And now, as is sometimes my best way to express my gratitude for the examples of the greatness of God’s love that I have been witness to in the people and places I have been in my lifetime…I close with this instrumental offering…
Closing Prayer/Hymn: How Great Thou Art
Rev. Julie Platson, Rector
St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church
Sitka, AK