Today’s scriptures - July 18, 2021
Jesus said, “Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.”
Choose the way of love...
Pentecost/Year B
July 11, 2021
Ephesians 1:3-14; Psalm 24; Mark 6:14-29
Let me begin by telling you, that today’s gospel reading from Mark is a really hard one to listen to…and I always wonder why…it has to be included in the Sunday lectionary…and I really struggled all week, to discern what “good news” the Holy Spirit could possibly reveal to me to share with you today…
But the more I read the gospel, (which translates as “good news”), and read the other scriptures appointed for today, and listened to the music for this week, and prayed the collect for this Sunday, in the context of all that was going on around me this week…the “good news” message that I wanted to share with you today…finally trickled down my cheeks with tears of sorrow and with songs of mercy and grace washing over me…
Tears of sorrow at how cruel human beings can be to one another at times, because of fear, and insecurities and the inability to forgive… and songs of mercy and grace…at seeing how others, facing similar circumstances, can learn to trust in the power of the Holy Spirit, to help them choose the loving way, the way of love that Jesus has taught us…
In today’s gospel reading, we get a glimpse into a moment of decision…by several different persons… and how they chose to act in the story leading up to the beheading of John the Baptist…and the aftermath…
The decisions made by King Herod, Herodias, even the guests and bystanders at the birthday banquet…were all centered around themselves… and were based on the fear and insecurities they were experiencing, and they responded by using their power and control to ease their own anxieties in whatever way they desired…I don’t want to go through the whole story again to point out the ways that such cruelty and hate was evidenced in the story…you don’t need me to explain any of that…
But, what I do want to call your attention to … what prompted the sense of songs of mercy and grace washing over me … was the loving action of the disciples as told to us in the last verse of the gospel reading for today:
When his disciples heard about it, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb.
While the others in the story feared Jesus, and one another perhaps, the fear escalated and spun out of control until the head of John the Baptist ended up on a platter...
The disciples, on the other hand…responded in their moment of fear…with love, and mercy and grace…
When his disciples heard about it, (the beheading of John), they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb.
The disciples responded in their moment of fear…with love, and mercy and grace.
They could have easily got caught up in the unfolding drama and violence that led up to the beheading of John the Baptist…they could have chosen to renounce Jesus; they could have easily stayed away, and let someone else take care of John, fearing for their own lives…now that they were being called to go out and invite others to turn their lives around, by turning their hearts and lives back to God, by focusing on Jesus, just as John the Baptist had done…
I like to think that the disciples caught on to last week’s teaching from Jesus that taught them not to fear, but to have faith in knowing that they weren’t being sent out alone…that they were being sent out in two’s…and with the power of the Holy Spirit to lead them and guide them…
We are faced with fears and insecurities and times of great conflict, every day. We are faced with hard decisions throughout our lifetime. But, we need not act upon our fears, with violence and hatred for one another. We need not act upon our fears by giving up hope, that people or our own circumstances will ever change.
We can call upon God, in times of prayer, we can learn to trust in the power of the Holy Spirit, to help us know and understand what things we ought to do, and also may have grace and power faithfully to accomplish them…to choose the loving way, the way of love that Jesus has taught us…and the way of love that the disciples showed us in today’s gospel…
A well-known Frederick Buechner quote tells us this:
“Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Don't be afraid.”
I would add to that today by saying: But if you are afraid, because as human beings there are many, many times, that we are afraid……don’t let fear keep you from choosing the way of love…trust that your fears will be transformed by the love and the mercy and the grace of God, through the power of the Holy Spirit that lives in you.
Remember: (that) You are sealed by the Holy Spirit in Baptism and marked as Christ’s own forever.
Rev Julie Platson
St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church
Sitka, AK
Hymn after sermon: Loving Spirit (WLP) 742
Vs 1: Loving Spirit, loving Spirit, you have chosen me to be;
you have drawn me to your wonder, you have set your sign on me.
Travel companions along the way
6th Sunday after Pentecost/Year B
July 4, 2021
Psalm 48; Mark 6:1-13
It’s summertime…and this summer, a lot of people are beginning to travel again….
There’s excitement in the air for some…as they get to travel off the island of Sitka to visit families and friends in other places….and there’s excitement in the air, for those who get to travel here to Sitka! Lots of summer activities are filling up the calendar these days…ranging from summer camps to music festivals to fishing trips…to fourth of July weekend festivities…
There’s a lot to think about when we prepare to travel…especially in a time such as this, as we are moving into a new season of the COVID-19 pandemic that is still with us, and still effecting the lives of so many vulnerable people, near and far…
So, when we travel now, whether for fun, or for medical reasons, we have to research the covid-19 protocols at the airports we will fly in and out of and the protocols in place once we arrive at our destination…Are we vaccinated yet? if not…where can I get the vaccine before I travel, or where can I get the covid test before/after I travel??
As we prepare to travel these days…it’s a clear reminder that it’s not only about us who is traveling…but about those around us too…
And, yes, as always, we will have to decide what kind of clothing we will pack, where we will stay, how much money we will need, for meals, for transportation, for activities……
Yes…a lot to think about when traveling for vacations and family visits or medical visits…
In today’s gospel…we learn about a different purpose for travel… travel for the sake of proclaiming the love of God, as made known to us, in Jesus…travel with the hope of bringing a message of light and love and healing to those who will listen and hear…..and with the hope that they will be filled with the love and joy and peace of knowing that with God we always have a traveling companion with us, leading us and guiding us, to be a companion for others too, as we journey through the twists and turns, and the joys and sorrows of this earthly life, together…
So, for this type of travel…Jesus gives instructions to pack light…
Preacher Kate (an Episcopal priest and blogger at water daily spiritual reflections -http://preachergirlkate.blogspot.com/) has this to say about Jesus’ instructions to pack light…
I would have flunked Jesus' Packing 101. As he headed out on another teaching tour, he sent his disciples out too: He called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics.
I guess he didn’t mean sandals in seven colors, did he? They were to carry nothing, no luggage, no change of clothes, no money. As we will see when we look at his instructions about where they were to stay, he insisted they rely completely on the resources they could find in the villages to which they went. They had to live by faith and the Spirit's guidance.
Could we do this for even one day? Some do; others have tried it. I know of a bishop who lived homeless in New York City for a month, and there is Barbara Ehrenreich’s experience detailed in her book “Nickel and Dimed,” in which she attempted to live in America on minimum wage jobs, which would be even more challenging today. I don’t think many of us would get very far.
Why would Jesus insist on such stringent conditions for his disciples on their first trip out? To go with nothing, no money, no safety net?
Perhaps it’s because he didn’t send them out with nothing. For one thing, he sent them in twos; nobody went alone. And He sent them with the Spirit’s power and authority over unclean spirits. They had ammunition against the strongest danger they faced, spiritual temptation and interference from the minions of the Evil One. Physical challenges they could handle, if they could learn to trust.
Absolute faith would be required for those who were to carry forward the mission of God revealed in Christ. Absolute faith is still required.)
So, you see…Jesus’ instructions to pack light…are meant to help us turn and focus once again…on what is truly needed to travel through this earthly life…putting our faith and trust in the love of God, as made known to us, in Jesus…Putting all of our faith and trust in Jesus’ message that calls us to go…to be bringers of light and love and healing to those who will listen and hear…with the hope that they too will be filled with the love and the joy and the peace of knowing that with God we always have a traveling companion with us, leading us and guiding us, to be a companion for others too, as we journey through the twists and turns, and the joys and sorrows of this earthly life, together…
We will pray, later in our service this morning, for travelers…as we do every week at St Peter’s…
But, here I close with another short prayer, based on the hymn (Lead me, Guide me) to help us prepare for the kind of travel Jesus is sending us out to do….
Let us pray:
God of grace and traveling mercies: Lead us and guide us, along the way…Lord, let us walk each day with you…Give us your strength and power to help us in our weakest hour, putting all our trust in you…Lead us and guide us, and let us walk each day with you…Amen.
Rev Julie Platson
St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church
Sitka, Alaska
let us pray that the work of our hands will be used for love and healing
5th Sunday after Pentecost/Year B
June 27, 2021
2 Corinthians 8:7-15; Psalm 130; Mark 5:21-43
In today’s gospel reading, we hear two stories about healing…the healing of a women who had been suffering from hemorrhages for 12 years….and a story about a young girl being raised to life again, who we are told is 12 years old.
I’m always curious when the scriptures mention numbers or how old someone is.
You may recall another familiar story in the scriptures that notes Jesus, as a 12 year old young boy. In Luke, chapter 2:41-52, we hear the story about Jesus, as a twelve-year old boy, going with his parents to Jerusalem for the festival of the Passover, like they did every year. When the festival ended, Jesus stayed behind, without his parents knowing… and after three days, his parents finally found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. The scriptures go on to tell us in this story that: All who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. And as the years went on, according to this verse in Luke…Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor.
This story was just one of two narratives about Jesus’ childhood in the gospel of Luke…the other one being about his dedication in the temple, as was the custom of the time… that “Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord”.
It really strikes me, that we have these two foundational stories about Jesus and his early years… Jesus… presented to God in the temple…and then the story of Jesus as a young 12-year old boy….asking questions and learning from the elders about who God is, and discovering for himself perhaps, who He is, and is destined to become... in the family of God…
I can’t help but think of baptism in our church…specifically thinking about our practice of baptizing children…young children are presented in baptism by the parents and Godparents…lifting them up as a beloved child of God, in the presence of the community gathered, who celebrate with them and welcome them into the household of God…the family of God…A family who strives to love one another, as Christ has loved us and taught us, in the stories we’ve heard about of his life, his death and his resurrection…
And then my thoughts turn to one of the closing prayers of the baptism service…right after baptizing them with the water…
The rubrics right before the prayer says this: when this action has been completed for all candidates, the Bishop or Priest, at a place in full sight of the congregation, prays over them, saying
Let us pray.
Heavenly Father, we thank you that by water and the Holy Spirit you have bestowed upon these your servants the forgiveness of sin, and have raised them to the new life of grace. Sustain them, O Lord, in your Holy Spirit. Give them an inquiring and discerning heart, the courage to will and to persevere, a spirit to know and to love you, and the gift of joy and wonder in all your works. Amen.
Just like the two narratives about Jesus’ childhood beginnings…we too lift up our children, in the faith community, as a beloved child of God…and we pray, that as they are growing up…they may have a safe space, in the presence of the elders and adults in the church community….to explore all their questions about God, about Jesus, about themselves, about the big questions of life….and we pray for them to be filled with courage to persevere, when life is full of more questions than answers, and we pray and we hope that they will see and experience the gift of joy and the wonder of life, when lived out in a loving relationship with God, with one another, and with all of creation.
When the church is at its best, we not only pray and love and care for the children in our own churches, but we pray and advocate for the love and protection of all children…beloved children of God, of all ages, all races, all cultures and all walks of life…
This past month, and most recently this past week, we’ve been reminded that there have been far too many times throughout history, that we have failed to love and protect the young children, the 12 year olds, the vulnerable children of all ages, entrusted to our care, to the care of the worldwide church community.
This week, we heard the news of yet another discovery of unmarked graves of hundreds of children, near a former residential school for indigenous children, in Canada.
While these news reports have been about findings in Canada…they are not unique to Canada only. Here in Alaska, and in other states in the U.S., generations of indigenous mothers and fathers and grandparents and aunties and uncles have been crying out to God, for their children who never came home from their boarding schools…for their missing and murdered indigenous daughters and sisters who have never been found…they have been crying out for help for their children, for themselves, for their families, year after year after year after year…their voices falling upon deaf ears…people turning their backs on them…and passing them by…
Yet, in today’s gospel reading, in the 2 healing stories...we have been given a word of hope...that this long-suffering will come to an end…and that death does not have the final say…
We see and hear in this gospel reading today, that this word of hope, is proclaimed through the love and healing hands of Jesus… Jesus hears the desperate cries of the people among him…those asking for their own healing, and those asking on behalf of others…and he responds with love and healing, in his words and actions…
For the children, for the children’s families, let us pray that the work of our hands will be used for love and healing…and for the lifting up of all God’s beloved children for the anointing of God’s blessing….all children, of all ages, all races, all cultures and all walks of life… so that all will experience the gift of joy and the wonder of life, when lived out in a loving relationship with God, with one another, and with all of creation.
Rev. Julie Platson
St Peter’s by the sea Episcopal Church
Sitka, Alaska
Hymn after sermon: Wonder Love and Praise - #773 Heal me, hands of Jesus
Heal me, hands of Jesus, and search out all my pain:
restore my hope, remove my fear and bring me peace again.
Cleanse me, blood of Jesus, take bitterness away;
let me forgive as one forgiven and bring me peace today.
Know me, mind of Jesus, and show me all my sin;
dispel the memories of guilt, and bring me peace within.
Fill me, joy of Jesus: anxiety shall cease
and heaven’s serenity be mine, for Jesus brings me peace!
Who is this Jesus?
Pentecost/Year B
June 20, 2021
Psalm 107:1-3, 23-32; 2 Corinthians 6:1-13; Mark 4:35-41
I’ve noticed that in my sermons the past few weeks, I’ve focused quite a bit on asking questions…and wondering aloud…about who God is, where God is in the midst of all that has been going on in our lives this past year of the pandemic…I’ve been wondering aloud with all the questions the disciples and Jesus have been bringing up in our gospel readings every week…and I think I’m finally beginning to catch on this week…that if we are serious about getting to know who God is, who Jesus is, and what the Holy Spirit has to do with all of this…and why it even matters in our lives…we need to spend time asking questions, and wondering aloud, together….we need to allow our hearts and our minds to be stretched and opened wide to receive the Good News of God’s love present among us, in Jesus, who came to proclaim boldly and persistently…that God is love…and that even as all the windstorms of life rise up all around us, and the waves of problems and unknowns continue to come and go…Jesus reminds us, that the peace of God, the stillness of God…is always there, in the midst of any storm that may come our way…Yet, not everyone knows this…who this Jesus is….
The other thing I’m noticing today…is that every time we ask questions or wonder aloud with others, about the scriptures we’ve just read, or in the times we are offering up prayers with others, asking for help with something we have no clear answer for….Jesus rarely gives us a simple yes or no answer to any question…but he just shows up, every time we call out to him, every time we get to that point when we fear there is no possible answer that makes sense, when we feel like there is no way forward…or no way that we will survive the next storm that comes along…we can trust that Jesus is there…to offer a word of peace…and a moment of calm and stillness…. Yet, not everyone knows this…who this Jesus is….
All shall be well…all shall be well…all manner of thing shall be well…These words from Julian of Norwich help me remember that…that Jesus is there in the boat with us…always ready to offer a word of peace…and a moment of calm and stillness… Yet, not everyone knows this…who this Jesus is….
Yes, we can trust that Jesus is always there…ready to listen and respond to our next question…
Our gospel reading today, ends with a question…
“Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”
Minister/writer Bruce Prewer reflects on this last question in a poem he wrote:
Who is this Jesus? (Bruce Prewer; bruceprewer.com)
To leave the safe sheltered quay;
to rest while strong men fear;
to doze through a storm at sea:
who is this Jesus?
To display the might of the meek;
to sleep while threats are near;
to dream while fierce gales peak:
who is this Jesus?
To know what keeps you afloat;
to let another hand steer;
to be safe in a foundering boat:
who is this Jesus?
To be seen when there’s no light;
to trust when nothing’s clear;
to confront the powers of night:
who is this Jesus?
To speak the word that saves;
to know God is even here;
to command the wind and the waves:
who is this Jesus?
_____________________________________
Who is this Jesus? “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” That’s one of the questions we explore week after week, as we gather as a church community. Who is this Jesus?
We seek to make sense of the world we live in, which often makes it difficult to believe that there is a loving God who is even here among us, that we have a savior, whom we know as Jesus, who speaks a word of peace to our wearied and worried hearts, a word of peace that stills our troubled spirit, and whose presence among us, captures the extraordinary love and power of God to bring healing and hope to a hurting world.
Our call as Christians…is to look outside our own boats, our own personal lives, our weekly gatherings here in the church, to see that there are others out there, in different boats, who experience different life experiences who have no idea who this loving Jesus is…whose presence among us captures the extraordinary love and power of God to bring healing and hope to a hurting world…..And then to go...to go out into the community and the wider world among us…to reach out to others, to listen and learn from one another…to wrestle with the hard questions that come up in the difficult conversations with each other… And to reach out in all that we do, with love…God’s love, made known to us in Jesus…and in Jesus’ saving words: Peace! Be still!
There will always be questions about life’s difficulties and sufferings all around us… Yet, we need not fear that we will be left to face the storms of life, alone…
God is here among us, we can trust that Jesus is present with us, ready to offer a word of peace and a moment of calm and stillness….and a word of healing and hope…
Prayer: Mighty God, who speaks a word of peace to calm our troubled sea; Caring God, who nudges us away from fear and toward faith; Ever-present God, who fills us with awe but also raises many questions without easy answers; Open our eyes to see you in our boat, and in others’ boats—today, Strengthen our hearts for the challenges that lie ahead, Open our ears this hour to hear the word you speak. This we pray, In Jesus’ name. Amen.
— posted on the Long Green Valley Church of the Brethren website. http://rockhay.tripod.com/
Rev Julie Platson
St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church
Sitka, AK
SUNDAY SERVICE UPDATES
JUNE 16, 2021 UPDATE
THE CHURCH BUILDING IS OPEN DAILY FOR YOU TO STOP IN FOR A TIME OF REST, QUIET AND PRAYER.
OUR WEEKLY SUNDAY WORSHIP SERVICES CONTINUE TO BE HELD ON ZOOM.
***UPCOMING CHANGES FOR SUNDAY SERVICES***
*JUNE 27: NEXT IN-PERSON SERVICE @ 8:30AM
10AM SERVICE ON ZOOM
DRIVE-BY COMMUNION (11:30AM-12:30PM)
*JULY: IN-PERSON SERVICE EVERY SUNDAY @ 8:30AM
10AM SERVICE ON ZOOM
DRIVE-BY COMMUNION (11:30AM-12:30PM -JULY 11 & JULY 25)
*AUGUST: IN-PERSON SERVICES WILL BE HELD
EVERY SUNDAY AT 8AM AND 10AM
(10AM SERVICE WILL ALSO BE ON ZOOM)
FACE MASKS RECOMMENDED,
ESPECIALLY FOR THOSE NOT FULLY VACCINATED
The See House remains closed, except for scheduled groups and meetings.
For information on all services and current offerings, or if you need to talk with someone from the church, please call us at (907) 747-3977,
and leave a message with your contact info.
OR email us at stpetersbytheseak@gmail.com
We will get back to you as soon as possible.
stpeters-sitka.org
Every moment is indeed alive with God....
3 Pentecost/Year B
June 13, 2021
2 Corinthians 5:6-10; 14-17; Psalm 20 ; Mark 4:26-34
Prayer: The Season after Pentecost
(ordinary time) – From Liturgy for the Whole Church
God of seasons and Sabbath, God of our days and our hearts: You bless us with greening time, that we might be renewed. Teach us to live slowly, and taste the goodness of your love. Show us how every moment is alive with you, far from ordinary, trembling with hope, shining with glory. Through Christ, who found you in corners of quiet, and in whose arms we find rest. Amen
Show us how every moment is alive with you, O God, far from ordinary, trembling with hope, shining with glory.
Jesus seeks to do just that with today’s parables.
In today’s gospel reading, we hear two different parables, The Parable of the Growing Seed, and the Parable of the Mustard Seed. Jesus often used parables, a simple story-telling style, when speaking to those who were eager to sit at his feet and learn from him. He used stories to try and help them see where God was at work in their own lives, in the lives of others, and in all of creation. He used parables to open their eyes, and their ears, and their hearts and their minds to help them come to believe that every moment is indeed alive with God, far from ordinary, trembling with hope, shining with God’s glory throughout the world.
The first parable today, the Parable of the Growing Seed as it is titled in some bible translations….is the one catching my attention this week.
Let me share those few passages again, according to the Good News Translation: Jesus went on to say, “The Kingdom of God is like this. A man scatters seed in his field. He sleeps at night, is up and about during the day, and all the while the seeds are sprouting and growing. Yet he does not know how it happens. The soil itself makes the plants grow and bear fruit; first the tender stalk appears, then the head, and finally the head full of grain. When the grain is ripe, the man starts cutting it with his sickle, because harvest time has come.
There are so many different thoughts and questions and wonderings that came up when I read this scripture this week., (this year!)
I wonder about the man who scattered the seed in his field….
Who is this man? What kind of seed did he scatter? How much seed did he scatter? Does he scatter the same seed year after year, expecting the same, or hoping for more growth and a more abundant harvest this year than last year? I wonder what his faith in God was like?
The scripture tells us that “He sleeps at night, is up and about during the day, and all the while the seeds are sprouting and growing. Yet he does not know how it happens.”
Does he ever wonder if God has something to do with the sprouting and the growing?
When the harvest time has come, does the man ever pause to say thank you to God for the abundant gifts brought forth from the earth…
Then my thoughts backed up to the Kingdom of God is like this….
And I had a lot of questions and wonderings…
When was the last time, I really wondered what the Kingdom of God was like? And I wonder what stories Jesus would be sharing with me, to help me understand what the kingdom of God was like? I wonder how I might tell someone else what I believe the Kingdom of God is like? When was the last time, I paid attention to the extraordinary that is unfolding right in front of me every day in my seemingly ordinary moments…
How often have I neglected to live out my beliefs that every moment is alive with God, far from ordinary, trembling with hope, shining with God’s glory…because I’m too busy, too worried, too concerned about so many things…to remember that God is present…at all times and in all places…
I could add a few more pages to this sermon, with a whole lot of wonderings and questions…because that’s what the parables of Jesus are meant to do…to help us seek and see God…through the eyes and the heart of Jesus, to help us come to believe, that indeed every moment is alive with God, far from ordinary, trembling with hope, shining with God’s glory throughout the world.
They also help us turn our focus back to God, and to give thanks and praise to God for the abundance of love poured out for us and for providing all that we need.
So, the more time I spent with this parable this week, the more gratitude swelled up in my heart…
Gratitude, as I marvel in thinking about God’s hand in the beauty of all creation, and especially now in Sitka, in the flowers, and in the abundance of the vegetable gardens growing everywhere!
Gratitude, as I reflected back on this past year of the pandemic, to see how in our relationships with God and one another, we were strengthened and encouraged to reach out and care for one another in so many new and unexpected ways, extraordinary ways, during these most difficult times….
Gratitude, as I think about our days ahead…knowing that as we rest, God is there, as we work together day by day, God is there…In all times and in all places, we can believe that God is there…helping us to grow in love for God, and one another...with the seeds of love that have been planted in our hearts and scattered far and wide…
I invite you to begin again, every new day, with a wondering about God….perhaps one from the parable today…The kingdom of God is like this…. And then go out into the world, to be amazed and grateful by the extraordinary signs of God’s presence surrounding us on every side, and showing us that indeed every moment is alive with God, far from ordinary, trembling with hope, shining with God’s glory.
Let us pray: God, our Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer: we thank you who has planted your holy name, and your holy love within our hearts. Amen.
Rev Julie Platson
St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church
Sitka, AK
Hymn after sermon: Father, we thank thee who has planted
1 Father, we thank thee who hast planted
thy holy Name within our hearts.
Knowledge and faith and life immortal
Jesus thy Son to us imparts.
2 Thou, Lord, didst make all for thy pleasure,
didst give us food for all our days,
giving in Christ the Bread eternal;
thine is the power, be thine the praise.
3 Watch o’er thy Church, O Lord, in mercy,
save it from evil, guard it still,
perfect it in thy love, unite it,
cleansed and conformed unto thy will.
4 As grain, once scattered on the hillsides,
was in this broken bread made one,
so from all lands thy Church be gathered
into thy kingdom by thy Son.
It is well with my soul
2 Pentecost/Year B
June 6, 2021
Psalm 138; 2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1; Mark 3:20-35
Summer is upon us…and in Sitka, and other places….this usually means a transition into a season with more outdoor activities, such as gardening, walking, hiking, boating, swimming, days spent at the beach, summer camps for kids, travels for families, fishing season for many, music festivals, family get-togethers, an influx of visitors, the start of seasonal jobs for the summer months, and for other folks, such as our coastguard families…it’s a time to head off to their new home for the next few years…
I was struck by how grateful I felt as I began to list all these summer activities and things to look forward to this summer…because last summer…many of these things I mentioned…came to a standstill because of the pandemic...
The words of the psalmist come to mind, as I think about all that is set to take place this summer… “I will give thanks to you, O Lord, with my whole heart; before the gods I will sing your praise”
Yet, in the midst of my remembering so much to be grateful for, I was also remembering how difficult this past year has been for so many people….and that even as we begin to navigate through another phase of the pandemic… and look forward to seeing more signs of life emerging all around us….our lives, and the lives of our friends, families, neighbors and people known to God alone, will continue to be a mix of moments of celebration and lament, joy and sorrow, life and death, hopes and fears, hellos and good-byes…
So, how do we keep ourselves from being tossed all about from the storms of life, and the mix of emotions that come to every human life?
We turn our hearts to God again and again…and to God’s love made known to us, in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus…and we pray for the Holy Spirit to help us, comfort us, sustain us, and guide us to focus on our inner nature….the eternal life….so that we can then turn our hearts to one another, our siblings in the family of God… to love one another and encourage one another, as we have been so loved by God…
In our reading from the 2nd letter of Paul to the Corinthians today…we are reminded of this need to focus on our inner nature, to look there, to find our hope… our hope in the God who raised the Lord Jesus, who we believe, by our baptisms, will raise us also with Jesus… into the family of God…which is for eternity…which is for ever…
“So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day. For this slight momentary affliction is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory beyond all measure, because we look not at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen; for what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal.”
The Rev Malcolm McLaurin shared in “Faith at Home” this week a meditation that reflects on how we might experience moments with God that help us focus on our inner nature…the eternal life….the good news of God’s love that continually flows through us, even as the outer world, our earthly life challenges, seem to lead us to a standstill in our lives…
These are his words:
(Have you ever had those times when you feel the comfort of something outside of yourself? For me it feels like a wave of peace. I’ve experienced this when looking at a sky full of stars in the night sky. Or even when I’ve experienced a radiant sunset. But I most often feel this when I’m in the midst of something difficult. During a hard conversation. Sitting with someone who is sad. This presence, that I cannot truly explain, seems to say to me “no matter what you are going through, I am here with you.”
I think these are GOD moments. Moments when God breaks through the noise and emotions of this world to remind me that I am not alone and that whatever experience and emotion I am feeling, God is sharing that moment with me. The thing is, the more I name these moments as GOD moments, or encounters with GOD, the more and more I have them.
(He asks) I wonder if you have had GOD moments before?)
I would expand on that question….I wonder, as you look back over the past year of the pandemic, and in recent weeks…if you have had God moments? Moments that you know, that all is well with your soul…And I wonder…if you are beginning to notice them more now, as you reflect back on this past year, and as you begin to plan for Summer 2021?
There were so many things in our lives that seemed to have come to a standstill last year….yet the passing of time, the changing seasons of the year, the Love of the Lord that endures forever, for eternity, reminded us often…that our lives really weren’t at a standstill after-all…and for that good news reminder….I am grateful….
“I will give thanks to you, O Lord, with my whole heart; before the gods I will sing your praise”
Instrumental Hymn after sermon:
When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like seabillows roll;
Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well with my soul.
It is well with my soul,
It is well, it is well with my soul.
Rev Julie Platson
St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church
Sika, AK
Trinity Sunday: 1st Sunday after Pentecost 2021
1st Sunday after Pentecost: Trinity Sunday/Year B
May 30, 2021
Isaiah 6:1-8; Canticle 13; Romans 8:12-17; John 3:1-17
Opening prayer: (from d365.org)
Breathe in, breathe out.
Open your mind to the Spirit of truth.
Open your heart to the Spirit of compassion.
Open your hands to the Spirit of justice.
Open yourself to the Spirit of God, moving in you. Amen.
When was the last time you thought about the Spirit of God moving in you? When was the last time you sat down with someone, and shared how you believe you have experienced the Spirit of God moving in your life?
I think for many of us, we probably don’t give much thought to the Spirit of God moving in us. Sure…we probably think about God and our beliefs about God, often….And as we come to the end of one season of the church year, the Easter season….we’ve probably come to a renewed understanding about who Jesus is, and how his life, death and resurrection from the dead, proclaimed the love of God for us, in the way of love that Jesus showed us, as we listened and learned from the stories about Him, throughout the scriptures…And just last Sunday… we celebrated the last day of the Easter season on the Day of Pentecost…the day we celebrated the fulfillment of yet another promise that Jesus had made to his disciples, as he prepared to leave this earthly life….the promise that the Holy Spirit, the Advocate, the Spirit of Truth would be sent to them (and us)… to guide us all into the way of truth….the truth of God’s love and power made alive in us, and throughout the world, through the gift of the Holy Spirit given to us…
Today, we pause, as we transition to the season after Pentecost, to celebrate how this final gift of the Holy Spirit, weaves and binds together what sometimes seems on the surface to be three separate stories in the scriptures about God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit…We pause to consider the invitation to explore and to be open to the Spirit of God, moving in us now, helping us to acknowledge the mystery and the glory of God, in three Persons, blessed Trinity…
On the church calendar today, we mark this day as Trinity Sunday, the 1st Sunday after Pentecost.
On pg 851 in our Book of Common prayer Catechism section… we can learn some very basic info about the foundational teachings of the church, as outlined in the creeds, regarding the understanding of God, the Trinity, and the importance of this final gift of the Holy Spirit given to us…
Q. What is the Trinity?
A. The Trinity is one God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Then this section jumps right into the teaching on the Holy Spirit…
The Holy Spirit
Q. What is the Holy Spirit?
A. The Holy Spirit is the Third Person of the Trinity, God at
work in the world and in the Church even now.
Q. How is the Holy Spirit revealed in the Old Covenant?
A. The Holy Spirit is revealed in the Old Covenant as the
giver of life, the One who spoke through the prophets.
Q. How is the Holy Spirit revealed in the New Covenant?
A. The Holy Spirit is revealed as the Lord who leads us into
all truth and enables us to grow in the likeness of Christ.
Q. How do we recognize the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives?
A. We recognize the presence of the Holy Spirit when we
confess Jesus Christ as Lord and are brought into love
and harmony with God, with ourselves, with our
neighbors, and with all creation.
Q. How do we recognize the truths taught by the Holy Spirit?
A. We recognize truths to be taught by the Holy Spirit
when they are in accord with the Scriptures.
Holy Scriptures
Q. Why do we call the Holy Scriptures the Word of God?
A. We call them the Word of God because God inspired
their human authors and because God still speaks to us
through the Bible.
Q. How do we understand the meaning of the Bible?
A. We understand the meaning of the Bible by the help of
the Holy Spirit, who guides the Church in the true
interpretation of the Scriptures.
All of this, that I just shared with you…is just an outline…one very small section in the book of common prayer, often used for preparing persons for baptism and confirmation….it does not explain everything about God and the Holy Spirit once and for all…
What it does highlight, is the importance of the Holy Spirit, to help us see where God is at work in the world now….and why it matters for us today…
Why does this all matter to you and I today?
I go back to my first questions at the start of my sermon…
When was the last time you thought about the Spirit of God moving in you? When was the last time you sat down with someone, and shared how you believe you have experienced the Spirit of God moving in your life?...
If you haven’t spent much time thinking about the Spirit of God, moving in you…then perhaps now is the time to begin again, with an open mind, heart, and hands to discern what the Spirit of God is calling you to do, to help transform the world, with the truth of God’s love and power made alive in us, and throughout the entire world, through the gift of the Holy Spirit given to us…in a language that we can all understand and share with one another….the language of love….God’s love for all of creation, for all of God’s people…
We need the Spirit of God to help us continue to navigate through these ever-changing days of the pandemic…
As we move into the summer season…this is a perfect time to linger and explore these questions….and think about ways you might open yourself up more to the movement of the Spirit of God in your life…
It is important to spend time, regularly, attending to your spirit, to ask questions of God, to ask for the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit with all of your concerns, wonderings and questions…and to spend time listening for the voice of God, the Spirit of God, calling your name...and waiting for your response….doing so through prayer, silence, music, reading of the scriptures, walking amongst the created world….and equally important…to do all of this in conversations with others, and in in community with others, too…
When I think of the story of Nicodemus today, going to Jesus at night with his wonderings and his questions…. “How can these things be?”
I don’t think it was just Jesus and Nicodemus sitting there…I truly believe there was a third person present…the Holy Spirit…The Holy Spirit that breathed upon us from the very beginning…and the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity…the final gift given to remind us that God is at work in the world and in the Church even now.
Think about that the next time you are alone with God…or sitting with another person…
And pray…
Pray that your mind would be opened to the Spirit of truth.
Pray That your heart would be opened to the Spirit of compassion.
Pray That your hands would be opened to the Spirit of justice.
And pray that you would know without a doubt that the Spirit of God, the truth of God’s love and power, is alive in you, and moving in you.
(from d365.org)
God is calling your name, and waiting for your response…
Whom shall I send?
Here I am, Lord. Is it I, Lord?
I have heard you calling in the night.
I will go, Lord, if you lead me,
I will hold your people in my heart.
Rev Julie Platson
St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church
Sitka, AK
Closing prayer/Hymn: I the Lord of Sea and Sky
Pentecost Sunday Sermon
The Day of Pentecost/Year B
May 23, 2021
Acts 2:1-21; Romans 8:22-27; John 15: 26-27; 16:4b-15
OPENING PRAYER: Intergenerational Prayer for Pentecost (written by Joanna Harader)
Holy One,
For all of the ways you speak to us –
in rushing wind,
in dancing flames,
in words we understand,
and in all that transcends language,
we give thanks.
Give us courage to speak your love,
everywhere we go,
to everyone we meet. Amen.
We just listened to the scriptures appointed for the Day of Pentecost and a beautiful hymn sung by Sarah, all spoken in a variety of languages … Later on in the service, we will listen to yet another language, as we observe the Lord’s prayer being offered using British sign language…And as I think about the rest of our service….I would venture to say, that we will be listening in other ways to hear about the power of God’s love made alive in our world, through the gift of the Holy spirit given to us, in other languages besides the spoken word…we hear this good news through our music, through the visuals, and as we pray... in silence…when the Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words…
It's a strange mix of readings today about the Holy Spirit…we hear of the Holy Spirit coming like a rush of wind and tongues of fire, we hear of the spirit interceding with sighs too deep for words…and we are assured through the words of Jesus, in today’s gospel, that the Holy Spirit, the Advocate, the Spirit of truth will come among us, to guide us all into the way of truth….the truth of God’s love and power made alive in us, and throughout the world, through the gift of the Holy Spirit given to us…
So, you see…this gift of the Holy Spirit…comes to us in many ways….in many languages….in the midst of the noise and the chaos of our day to day lives… in the stunned silences when we wonder aloud, what is going on? What does all this mean? In the silences, when we pray and pray and pray…and hope and hope and hope….Yet, The truth of God’s love and power is made alive in us, and throughout the entire world, through the gift of the Holy Spirit given to us…in a language that we can all understand and share with one another….the language of love….
Not just any love…but the way of love that Jesus has told us about, and shown us, time and time again, in the stories of his life, death and resurrection…In the way of love Jesus made known to us…in the fulfillment of yet another promise to those who would be left behind to continue the movement he began while walking upon the earth…Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit, the Advocate…the Spirit of truth….so that the truth of God’s love and power would be made alive in us, and throughout the entire world, in a language that we can all understand and share with one another….the language of love….God’s love…A love that unites us, in Christ, in the interest of others…Love poured out for all persons, all races and all nations…
On the Day of Pentecost – the fulfillment of this promise was made known to all who were gathered, as we heard in the book of Acts scriptures today..….and the same gift of the Holy Spirit has been poured out for you and I, too… We are sealed by the power of the Holy Spirit in Baptism, and marked as Christ’s own forever.
Throughout this whole time of the pandemic…it’s been a struggle to understand all the varying messages that are out there to help us navigate these uncertain times…and to try and keep up with the dizzying pace with which they are changing and being updated…
So, I am particularly mindful and grateful for this reminder of the gift of the Holy Spirit to us…to help us navigate times such as this…with a clear starting point…
The truth of God’s love and power is made alive in us, and throughout the entire world, through the gift of the Holy Spirit given to us…in a language that we can all understand and share with one another….the language of love….God’s love for all of creation, for all of God’s people…
We are reminded of that good news when we turn to the scriptures often, when we turn our hearts regularly to a time of prayer…especially those times when we just don’t know how to pray anymore….for it is the Spirit, who helps us in our weakness…in our times of not having any words to make sense of all that is going on….it is in the moments of uncertainty…that the Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words….
Let us begin again, on this day of Pentecost…giving thanks for the gift of the Holy Spirit given to us…to help us love another, understand one another, through the language of love….God’s love… A love that unites us, in Christ, in the interest of others…Love poured out for all persons, all races and all nations…
Rev Julie Platson, Rector
St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church
Sitka, AK
Closing Prayer/Hymn: (H) 512 - Come Gracious Spirit
(Ali Hosford/soloist)
Come, gracious Spirit, heavenly Dove, with light and comfort from above;
be thou our guardian, thou our guide; o’er every thought and step preside.
The light of truth to us display, and make us know and choose thy way;
plant holy fear in every heart, that we from thee may ne’er depart.
Lead us to Christ, the living Way, nor let us from his precepts stray;
lead us to holiness, the road that we must take to dwell with God.
Lead us to heaven, that we may share fullness of joy for ever there;
lead us to God, our final rest, to be with him for ever blest.