One brief moment

Mark 2:1-12 (GNT

A few days later Jesus went back to Capernaum, and the news spread that he was at home. So many people came together that there was no room left, not even out in front of the door. Jesus was preaching the message to them when four men arrived, carrying a paralyzed man to Jesus. Because of the crowd, however, they could not get the man to him. So they made a hole in the roof right above the place where Jesus was. When they had made an opening, they let the man down, lying on his mat. Seeing how much faith they had, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “My son, your sins are forgiven.”

Some teachers of the Law who were sitting there thought to themselves, “How does he dare talk like this? This is blasphemy! God is the only one who can forgive sins!”

At once Jesus knew what they were thinking, so he said to them, “Why do you think such things? Is it easier to say to this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, pick up your mat, and walk’? I will prove to you, then, that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, get up, pick up your mat, and go home!”

While they all watched, the man got up, picked up his mat, and hurried away. They were all completely amazed and praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”

Reflection

I wonder if our faith would lead us to such great efforts on behalf of another fellow human being?

Was the paralyzed man a friend, a family member? Who was he, that those who brought him to Jesus, were so persistent in their efforts to bring him to Jesus? What did they already know and believe about Jesus?

There was such a contrast of persons present in the room that day.

Many were gathered to listen to what Jesus had to say. And were eager to believe in his words. But, the moment Jesus, offered a “hands-on” example of what he was speaking in word… the teachers of the law who were gathered in the room began to cry “blasphemy!” They were appalled at what Jesus had done: he forgave the sins of the paralytic…and healed him…telling him to take up his mat and go home…

The scriptures say that ALL were amazed and praised God, when they saw with their own eyes…the healing of the paralyzed man…who indeed did get up, take up his mat…and left, hurriedly…for home…

Were the teachers of the law, momentarily amazed at what Jesus did, too?

Was there a brief moment of belief in their hearts?

Sometimes…that’s all it takes, doesn’t it? One brief moment, in the midst of our doubt… to be witness to God’s forgiveness and healing in the world among us…and to see a life transformed…a community is transformed…by the love of God, made known to us…in Jesus…

It takes one brief moment to believe, to dare to have hope and faith in the One who reconciles us to God, and each other…

I’m ready to begin the day now…eyes wide open…ready to be amazed by God, wherever I go throughout the day…

Rev Julie Platson

St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church

Sitka, Alaska

July 16, 2019

A Beloved Story

5 Pentecost/Year C

July 14, 2019

Amos: 7:7-17; Psalm 82; Colossians 1:1-14; Luke 10:25-37

A beloved story…

Today’s gospel reading includes one of the most well-known parables in the bible to many of us sitting here this morning…It’s also a pretty well-known story to those who perhaps claim no church affiliation, or had no association with a faith community when they were growing up. It is one of many familiar teaching stories that Jesus shares to help others see for themselves…what Loving God and your neighbors looks like: Loving God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.

I imagine many of us, sitting here today would have no trouble retelling this story with ease to others.

So, who needs another sermon on this passage...we all know the message and meaning of the story: The Samaritan, the compassionate one who stops to help the man who was robbed and beaten, the Samaritan, the one who shows mercy, and cares for the man who was left for dead, is the one who illustrates what it means to love your neighbor…and we discover…that  “our neighbor” is really everyone we pass by…and of course, as the story ends…Jesus tells us to “Go, and do likewise.” We get it.

So, why? Why another sermon on a familiar gospel story? Why read or listen to the scriptures that you’ve probably heard well over 100 times in your lifetime?

Why? Because…the scriptures still have something to teach us…every time we encounter them…

The familiar stories still have so much to teach us, every time we encounter them…there is always something new we can take away from the story…from the scriptures…every time we pause to open up our hearts and minds to listen anew…and allow ourselves to look again, listen again, look a little closer, listen a little closer, look at them from a different angle or perspective, listen again to the words being spoken today…Because today is a new day…we are not the same person…who heard that familiar story last time…the context in which we are hearing the story today is different…the people, the community, the world,  the blessings and challenges that are present in one’s lives today…have all changed…

I’m thinking of the children’s stories that I am currently reading and re-reading with my grandchildren and the children here in church. When I was a child, I noticed different things in the stories, than what I notice now. Even though the “story” is familiar…I am noticing new things in the details that I hadn’t noticed before…

In our first reading from Amos today, the Lord asks Amos, “What do you see?” In the beginning of our gospel reading today, Jesus asks the lawyer a question, “What do you read there?”

I wonder, if we could ask ourselves those same questions, every time we sat down to read or listen to the scriptures or a familiar story in the bible?

What do you see? What do you read there?

I wonder, if being intentional about looking for and listening for signs of what God is doing in our lives today…would help us pay attention to new details that reveal themselves to us…and discover something new that would inspire us to see our neighbors anew…and we would pray that we may know what things we ought to do, and be given the grace and power faithfully to accomplish them…

Let me give this a try…

When I read and re-read the familiar gospel story throughout the week…I kept those 2 questions in front of me….What do you see? What do you read there?

Those two questions…prompted me to wonder and ask more questions…

What is it about listening to familiar stories, that we are so quick to judge and zero in on the characters, who are portrayed as the ones Not doing the “right thing”…

What is it about listening to familiar stories which cause us to jump ahead to the ending that we already know, without paying closer attention to the details of the whole story…as we hear it today…

What is about listening to familiar stories, that draw our attention to the surface of the page – forgetting – that in this story – there was someone, a fellow human being, a neighbor, who was robbed, beaten, forgotten, passed by, and left for dead…why do we glance over that…

What is it about listening to familiar stories and thinking how wonderful “that Samaritan” did the right thing….he really was so kind, compassionate and caring…he really is a good example of what it means to love our neighbors as ourselves…

It is only fitting, that Jesus ends the story by telling the lawyer…Go, and do likewise…telling him to follow the example of the Samaritan…

But, what is it about listening to familiar stories and scriptures in the bible that we forget that Jesus is speaking to us today, too…when he says…Go, and do likewise…

Let me stop for a moment…and think about those 2 questions again, that I began with:

What do you see? What do you read there?

Right there on the page, I see…You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.

And who is my neighbor?

The neighbors I am thinking of today, are those like the man who was robbed and beaten in today’s story, the ones who are easily overlooked, the ones lying in the ditch, the ones we pass by every day, because they make us nervous, afraid, uncomfortable, and are an inconvenience…

The neighbors I am thinking of today, are the ones we judge and pass by, those struggling with addiction, or mental health issues…

The neighbors I am thinking of today are the ones who are afraid of their futures – their jobs, their healthcare, their education…

The neighbors I am thinking of today, are those who are fearful and being displaced because of fires, floods, earthquakes and hurricanes…

The neighbors I am thinking about today, are the mothers and fathers, the brothers and sisters, the grandparents, the aunts and the uncles…that are being separated from one another, from their children, the ones who are suffering, and being cast aside, passed by… hidden in plain sight…

If I could sum up, what’s rising to the surface for me today, in this familiar story, it would be the realization of so many forgotten neighbors, who are being passed by daily…we watch the daily news and are overwhelmed at the complexities of the issues and challenges before us…we don’t know what we can do or where to begin….

But, something else I see, once again, with new eyes today…in the example of the Samaritan who responded with love and compassion, is that it took one person, moved with pity, to stop and bring hope and healing to the life of another fellow human being…a person who matters to God….it took one person….to remind us…of our call to love our neighbor…a person who matters to God…and should matter to us, too…

Yes…one person…but imagine, how that one person, and another person, and another would add up…every time, each one of us answered the call to go and do likewise…Imagine if we payed attention to that detail too, of the familiar story and we were inspired to do the same…

In the re-reading and listening of this familiar story today, when we take a closer look at the world around us, indeed, we would see that there are already many people following the example of the Samaritan….reaching out in a variety of ways to love and help their neighbors…

But, as we heard in last week’s gospel reading…the harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few…God can always use more helpers…

Fred Rogers, the one we know best from a long-running children’s show, Mr Roger’s Neighborhood…spent a lifetime teaching children and adults about being a good neighbor…

One of my favorite quotes attributed to him, has to do with focusing on the helpers that are out there…

He said, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”

So, yes…pay attention to the details of the people who are often passed over, discarded, and forgotten…but don’t stop there…look for the helpers…look to the ways you have seen God at work in the world around you,  through the neighbors you meet and are called to serve…. go, and do likewise…

There’s always more to the story, no matter how many ways we look at it…no matter how many times we hear it… we are all called to be a part of it…the greatest story ever told… the old, old story…of Jesus and his love…

We all love a good story…don’t we?

Then let’s leave this place today….inspired by the hearing of this beloved old story, once again, and go…go out into the world, to share this beloved story with others…the story of Jesus and his love.

Closing Prayer/Hymn: Lift Every Voice and Sing II - #64 I Love To Tell the Story – JAZZ RENDITION

I love to tell the story

Of unseen things above,

Of Jesus and His glory,

Of Jesus and His love.

I love to tell the story,

Because I know it's true;

It satisfies my longings

As nothing else would do.

I love to tell the story;

Twill be my theme in glory.

To tell the old, old story

Of Jesus and His love.

I love to tell the story,

For those who know it best

Seem hungering and thirsting

To hear it, like the rest.

And when, in scenes of glory,

I sing the new, new song,

'Twill be the old, old story

That I have loved so long.

I love to tell the story;

Twill be my theme in glory.

To tell the old, old story

Of Jesus and His love.

Rev. Julie Platson

St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church

Sitka, Alaska

Why do you look for the living among the dead?

Luke 23:56-24:11 Common English Bible (CEB)

56 then they went away and prepared fragrant spices and perfumed oils. They rested on the Sabbath, in keeping with the commandment.

24 Very early in the morning on the first day of the week, the women went to the tomb, bringing the fragrant spices they had prepared. 2 They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they went in, they didn’t find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 They didn’t know what to make of this. Suddenly, two men were standing beside them in gleaming bright clothing. 5 The women were frightened and bowed their faces toward the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? 6 He isn’t here, but has been raised. Remember what he told you while he was still in Galilee, 7 that the Human One[a] must be handed over to sinners, be crucified, and on the third day rise again.” 8 Then they remembered his words. 9 When they returned from the tomb, they reported all these things to the eleven and all the others. 10 It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles. 11 Their words struck the apostles as nonsense, and they didn’t believe the women.

Reflection

Why do you look for the living among the dead?

We do that all the time don’t we?

Instead of looking at what is right before us, the gift of a new day, new beginnings, new life…we too often, look back…at what is no longer there…we forget…that with the gift of a new day, comes new opportunities, new hopes, new dreams to be explored….

The women in the story were reminded of that…they were reminded of Jesus’ words…that he would die, but on the third day, he would rise again… they were reminded and blessed in believing this…and they went back to share the good news with the others…and to invite them to remember too, the hope-filled promises that were fulfilled in this day of discovery…

But their words were received as nonsense…the women were not believed…

We find ourselves doing that too often, also…don’t we?

Discounting what others tell us, that seem to be unbelievable…not possible…

Discounting what others tell us, without really stopping to consider it….

Discounting what others tell us, because of who it is that told us…

Discounting what others tell us, because we didn’t see it for ourselves yet…

Today, in this reading…the women’s words were heard as nonsense…they were not believed…

But they know the words to be true…

So, even though they were not believed today…they know that in believing that Jesus is now among the living…the hope and promise of a new day, a new beginning is always just a moment away…

Today’s nonsense…may very well be the good news someone hears tomorrow…

Remember this…and share the good news of God’s love revealed to us today…and everyday!

Rev. Julie Platson

St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church

2019 Sitka International Cello Seminar

Welcome the 2019 Seminar students! Here’s their schedule of public performances:

Tues July 9, 6:30 pm – Mean Queen (lower level)

Thurs July 11, 5:30 pm – Ludvig’s Wine Bar

Fri July 12, Noon – Sitka Public Library

Tues July 16, 6:30 pm – Mean Queen (lower level)

Wed July 17, Noon – Sitka Public Library

Thurs July 18, 5:30 pm – Ludvig’s Wine Bar

Saturday, July 20, 7:00 pm – Cellobration! Click here for tickets.

For more info: Meet the 2019 Cello Seminar Students

https://sitkamusicfestival.org/meet-the-2019-cello-seminar-students/

4 Pentecost/Year C

2 Kings 5:1-11; Psalm 30; Galatians 6: (1-6), 7-16; Luke 10: 1-11, 16-20)

Let us pray: our collect for today

O God, you have taught us to keep all your commandments by loving you and our neighbor: Grant us the grace of your Holy Spirit, that we may be devoted to you with our whole heart, and united to one another with pure affection; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Our gospel reading today begins with Jesus sending 70 others out ahead of him, to the places that He also intended to go. He is sending them out to proclaim the good news of God’s love, His peace, and the nearness of God’s kingdom…He’s sending them out on a mission...a mission that invites a response with their words and actions that says:  “yes, God”…by the grace of your Holy Spirit, I will be devoted to you with my whole heart, and I will strive to love my neighbor, as Jesus is always teaching us.

In today’s story, Jesus tells the ones being sent out…that it will not be easy…some will be ready to pounce on you, to try and discount anything you have to say. Some will make personal attacks on you perhaps, arguing with you about everything you have to share with them. Some will make you angry. But don’t retaliate with hatred. Don’t try to tell them, that they are wrong, and you are right. Just wipe the dust off your feet, remembering the kingdom of God has come very near to them. You brought the good news of God’s love to them, as you were called to do, on that day.

The ones being sent out, may also go out hesitantly, and with fear about those they will encounter, or whether or not, they will have anything worthy to offer them…because Jesus tells them, Don’t take anything: Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals…

Just go… Jesus says…trusting in me, that you will have everything you need for this mission trip:  Just focus on the purpose of your mission in front of you…Loving God, and sharing that love that you have experienced and known…with your neighbors. Love God, through proclaiming to your neighbors, in word and action…that God’s love, His peace, and His kingdom has come very near to them…

Indeed… it has always been very near…to all of us…

Believe this, and rejoice in this Good news!

Open your eyes and ears again, dare enough to get out of the way…and let God’s voice do the talking once again…let God’s glory, as made known to us in the people, and the created world all around us…be what inspires us, and brings us home again, as a people united to one another, in pure affection.

Will we be laborers of God’s love, in helping to restore his creation to its original purpose: A world that God has created out of love…for His people, and for their abundant joy….a creation of a beloved community of diverse people, sharing their varied gifts with one another, in ways that reveal God’s love for one another, as God has always loved us?

God’s dream for his beloved community, has always been about His Love for all of us and all of creation. And it has always been about calling our attention to this love that is revealed to us, night and day… that reminds us of His love, and presence that is always among us...

But somewhere along the way, people have grown weary. We’ve stopped believing that there is a God who loves us. We’ve seen too much division in the world, too much hurt, too much anger, too much us vs them. We’ve given up on trying to get along with our neighbor, and instead of going to the places and people who perhaps we don’t agree with, it has become easier to not go…to just turn around…and go to someone that already believes what I do…already looks like me, thinks like me….It has been easier to just argue and keep disagreeing….and leave it at that…and believe that’s how it will always be..

It is tiring work, very tiring at times…and we may never see a solution or an end to this work of loving our neighbors, this difficult work of reconciliation…

But it is worthy work, sharing the Love of God, for all of His people….sharing this love, the only love,  that has the power to transform people’s hearts and lives and our communities…

Jesus said, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few”. And He tells them to pray…that more laborers will be sent forth…

Will we be one of those new laborers sent forth…will we go out into the world, empowered by the Holy Spirit, to help others discover or rediscover how God is still at work in the world among us, and how he still reveals himself to us, every time, we have the courage to come to the table…and sit down with others, listen to one another, and do the difficult work together, of seeking ways to love one another, even in the midst of not understanding each other yet, even in the midst of our frustration and anger of those who seem to make decisions on behalf of those, who have no voice…those who are oppressed, those who are held hostage by fear and abandonment…

Will we be one of the new laborers sent forth to bring love and hope to those who are lost and lonely?

Will we be one of the new laborers sent forth to stand up for children and families?

Will we be one of the new laborers sent forth to work for the well-being of our communities, and other communities across the state?

Will we be one of the new laborers sent forth:

 To bring good news to the poor,
To heal the broken-hearted,
To announce release to captives
And freedom to those in prison.

Will we be one of the laborers sent forth to proclaim the Good News of God’s love for them, bringing the blessing of God’s peace to them, and affirming for them…that indeed ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.'

Let us pray that we will all answer the call to be laborers in fulfilling the Mission of Christ: The Mission of all the baptized….Inspiring in each one of us, to go out into the world: loving God and our neighbor….

The Hymnal 1982 - #541 Come, labor on

Come, labor on.

Who dares stand idle on the harvest plain,

while all around us waves the golden grain?

And to each servant does the Master say,

"Go work today."

Come, labor on.

Claim the high calling angels cannot share-

to young and old the Gospel gladness bear:

redeem the time; its hours too swiftly fly.

The night draws nigh.

Come, labor on.

No time for rest, till glows the western sky,

till the long shadows o'er our pathway lie,

and a glad sound comes with the setting sun,

"Servants, well done."

Rev Julie Platson

St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church

Stopped in our tracks…

Acts 9:1-9 (GNT)

Reflection

We hear things, see things, smell things, touch things, taste things everyday…we just kind of “go about our daily tasks” without giving much thought to them, these various senses, that connect us to the world around us…

Every once in awhile, something or someone stops us from our mindless wandering….and leaves us speechless…

In today’s reading from Acts, Saul is stopped in his tracks…He has been so busy looking for ways to persecute followers of Jesus…he has been so intent on depending on his own voice of reason and judgment…his heart has been so hardened against other fellow human beings that don’t think like him, or believe like him… that any sense of connection or relationship to them, is clearly not there..

Saul, is stopped in his tracks…by an unmistakable light and voice…

A light so bright, that it is blinding for a moment…a light that overpowers him and us with a sense of love and compassion…a light that calls us to stop…stop talking…stop judging and persecuting others….and listen…listen and hear what the voice of the Lord has to say to us…listen to what Jesus wants to say to us…listen, look, and pay attention with all of your senses…and you will notice…that following Jesus…is worth it…following Jesus means following a way of life that boldly proclaims love…love of God, love of neighbor, love of all of creation…

A love that is meant for all people…

Prayer for today… God of light and love….help us today, to stop…and use all of our senses to get to know you and our neighbors, to love you and our neighbors - transforming all of our lives, by uniting us as one family, strengthened by the power of your light and love. Amen.

Rev Julie Platson

t

Episcopal Church Response to Crisis on the Border

Released by the Episcopal Church yesterday:

July 2, 2019

Over the past several weeks, The Episcopal Church has responded to the reports of inhumane conditions for children and other asylum seekers in government custody in a number of ways. This response includes calls for donations and goods from Episcopal dioceses on the border, prayers for those seeking safety, efforts to engage in advocacy, and pastoral messages from bishops around the Church.

“We are children of the one God who is the Creator of us all,” said Presiding Bishop Michael Curry. “It is our sisters, our brothers, our siblings who are seeking protection and asylum, fleeing violence and danger to children, searching for a better life for themselves and their children. The crisis at the border is not simply a challenge of partisan politics but a test of our personal and public morality and human decency.”

Read more here

To Remember

June 26, 2019

Then he took a loaf of bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” And he did the same with the cup after supper, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.  Luke 22:19-20

A mother shared with me recently, the words that her child said to her during a church service…

He leaned over to me, out of the blue, “These people know God is in here, right?”

“These people know God is in here, right?”

We need this reminder, at times…don’t we?

That’s why we gather each week in church. To remember.

To remember God’s love is in here.

To remember God love is in here (place your hand over your heart).

To remember Jesus’ words.

To break bread together.

To share the cup.

To give thanks.

To be joined together as one body, one Spirit, in Christ.

And to be sent back out into the world, by the grace of God: as a people forgiven, reconciled to one another, fed, nourished, strengthened and renewed for the work we are all called to:  To go in peace to love and serve the Lord. Alleluia!  Alleluia!

Thanks be to God. Alleluia!  Alleluia!

Rev. Julie Platson

St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church

Sitka, Alaska

Luke 22:14-23 (NRSV)

In Jesus, we will always find life

(The Disciples) They went off and found everything just as Jesus had told them, and they prepared the Passover meal. Luke 22:13

I wonder if the disciples were surprised or amazed that they found everything Jesus had told them?

Or I wonder if they were a bit hesitant or worried that they wouldn’t find everything Jesus had told them?

Why would they doubt or worry about that? Hadn’t Jesus already numerous times, showed his trustworthiness to them? Hadn’t he always followed through with an action that affirmed what He was teaching them, or telling them?

Yes…but let’s think about that for a moment…We are human…we have doubts…we have moments of weakness…We hesitate often in making decisions about the unknown…

If the disciples were feeling any sense of doubt..they didn’t let that influence their decision…

They went off and found everything just as Jesus had told them, and they prepared the Passover meal. Luke 22:13

But, Judas, in today’s gospel…that’s a different story…

I think about how many times, it takes just one solitary moment of doubt, and insecurity, to set us down a road of denial and betrayal that consumes our lives…just as we heard in today’s reading… when Judas, one of the disciples, in a moment of human weakness…was seized by Satan, and chooses to betray the trust of not only Jesus, but his fellow disciples…

One moment of weakness…could have been any one of us…

Will we choose this day…to build a solid foundation of trust in the Lord, so that in moments of weakness, we will rely on the love and guidance of Jesus…trusting, that in Him…trusting in His Words…trusting when and where he sends each one of us…that everything we need…will be there?

This day, I pray, that we will choose trust in the One, who gives us life.

They went off and found everything just as Jesus had told them, and they prepared the Passover meal. Luke 22:13

Luke 21:37-22:13

Every day he was teaching in the temple, and at night he would go out and spend the night on the Mount of Olives, as it was called. And all the people would get up early in the morning to listen to him in the temple. Now the festival of Unleavened Bread, which is called the Passover, was near. The chief priests and the scribes were looking for a way to put Jesus to death, for they were afraid of the people. Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was one of the twelve; he went away and conferred with the chief priests and officers of the temple police about how he might betray him to them. They were greatly pleased and agreed to give him money. So he consented and began to look for an opportunity to betray him to them when no crowd was present.

Then came the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. So Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, "Go and prepare the Passover meal for us that we may eat it." They asked him, "Where do you want us to make preparations for it?" "Listen," he said to them, "when you have entered the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you; follow him into the house he enters and say to the owner of the house, 'The teacher asks you, "Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?"' He will show you a large room upstairs, already furnished. Make preparations for us there."

So they went and found everything as he had told them; and they prepared the Passover meal.

Rev Julie Platson

St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church

Sitka, Alaska

God Has the Whole World in His Hands -June 23, 2019 - 10am service

Special Family Service today 

Genesis 1 (from Desmond Tutu Childrens Storybook Bible); Matthew 6:25-34

We listened to the beautiful and beloved Creation story, as told to us in Desmond Tutu’s Children’s storybook bible. We listened to the beautiful and beloved scripture from Matthew, that is often read on Thanksgiving Day, and is often a go to – when one needs to be reminded to not let worry consume you…and to take one day at a time…

To take one day at a time…to stop, pause, notice…and remember…that it is God who gives us life…and in the gifts given in creation…we can’t help but be reminded of this Good News for all of Gods people…

God loves to delight us and surprise us, and give us reasons to be joyful! 

And God sends us signs and reminders of this every day. Especially, when we can stop worrying for a moment…stop, pause, and take a look at the beautiful world that is right outside our doorstep.

A good friend I knew, back in Nevada, had a wonderful gift for reminding us to do just that. In a conversation that I had with a mutual friend, the day after her death, I was reminded of this special gift of hers. She shared a story about when she was leaving the facility where our friend spent her final days. She noticed the flowers and the shrubs, and how beautiful they were, and she remembered that our friend loved to share her love and knowledge about flowers, and shrubs, and birds…and knew them all by name….

….and that she would always pause and make sure to point them out, wherever they were, and call their attention to them…perhaps reminding them and all of us…to stop worrying for a moment…look at what God has created and how he cares for them…the birds of the air…the lilies of the field…the grass of the field…look at this beauty in the world that He has created for us to enjoy…look at the beauty of His created world…that has been entrusted to our care…look, pay attention to their cycles of life and death, and resurrection….

Day after day, year after year…they have so much to teach us about the love of God, for all of creation…the birds, the trees, the oceans, the rivers, the stars, the animals (the elephant and giraffes, cats and mice, and bees and bugs)…and yes…we…his beloved children…who He has created all of this for….

We just need to pause, notice, and remember this…

We need not worry…

For it is God who gives us life… and in the gifts given in creation…and in Jesus, we can’t help but be reminded that it is abundant life, we have been given…

On the Seventh Day, God laughed and rested, and enjoyed his glorious creation. (from Desmond Tutu Childrens Storybook Bible)

May we pause today, rest in God, laugh with God and rejoice with God, by honoring God with our care of creation and celebrating with God, this glorious creation that reminds us of the abundant gift of life given to us, in Christ Jesus.

Let us pray: All things bright and beautiful – H405

All things bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small,

all things wise and wonderful, the Lord God made them all. Amen

Rev Julie Platson, Rector

St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church

Sitka, Alaska