Let’s
Connect – Week of April 19, 2020
Opening Prayer:
We gather as people on a
journey. We believe & we have doubts, we do good & we sin. We are
imperfect humans, and still beloved by God.
Love and grace. Hope and
faith. These are the essence of the one we call God. We seek forgiveness
& grace from the One and from those we’ve harmed.
Assured of that grace, we
are ready to grow again. We yearn for a new way, a new perspective, and a
clear path. Though we are full of trust and full of doubt, we are here.
Speak to us, God! Continue
creating us! Inspire our hearts. Enlighten our minds. Guide our actions.
Amen.
Doubting
Thomas is a work of art by Juda Ward
Thomas, the one called Didymus, one of the Twelve, wasn't with
the disciples when Jesus came. The other disciples told him, "We've seen
the Lord!" But he replied, "Unless I see the nail marks in his hands,
put my finger in the wounds left by the nails, and put my hand into his side, I
won't believe." After eight days his disciples were again in a house and
Thomas was with them. Even though the doors were locked, Jesus entered and
stood among them. He said, "Peace be with you." Then he said to
Thomas, "Put your finger here. Look at my hands. Put your hand into my
side. No more disbelief. Believe!" Thomas responded to Jesus, "My
Lord and my God!" Jesus replied, "Do you believe because you see me?
Happy are those who don't see and yet believe."
Musing:
Thomas is one of my favorite biblical characters because he seems
so honest and real. I mean I can see myself in that same situation and saying the
same thing. How could something like that have really happened? Bad time for a
practical joke. Mass delusion. Maybe someone spiked their wine. I wouldn’t
believe them. I would demand proof. I would require that something tangible and
substantive be presented before I would let myself be carried away by a moment.
Then Jesus’ words at the end of the passage hit me, “Do you
believe because you see me? Happy are those who don’t see and yet believe.” And
I realize that I believe without seeing. Maybe you’ve had a direct and specific
revelation of Christ a tangible something that has convinced you that Christ
lives, and God is real. I haven’t had such a moment. I have had spiritual
experiences that help me know that God is real and that there are things too
beautiful for words. I have seen things and experienced things
that convince me of the reality of God and Christ. But I have never had Christ
appear and speak with me, be with me.
My faith is wrapped up in things I cannot see and things I can
see. It is tied together with the explainable and unexplainable. I have decided
in life there are very few absolutes and that faith and belief are never among
them. Faith and belief are ebb and flow, high and low, confident and skeptical
all at once. I like Thomas.
In this world of pandemic reality, we all must believe without
seeing. The Covid-19 virus is so small that it can only be seen by a
microscope. Most of us don’t know someone who is sick from it and have not seen
it at work in someone’s systems. Most of us have not seen the impact staying at
home and practicing personal distancing are making. But we believe. We believe
that the virus is real – science tells us it is and so do the numbers. We
believe that people are getting seriously sick and some are dying. We believe
that the last 6 weeks have been making a difference and that all the sacrifice
has been worth it because those who know these things are telling us that it is
so.
I believe these things and because of that I worry when people
start gathering by the hundreds protesting to have the restrictions lifted. I
worry when beaches open and folks ignore the directives to go to the dog park
or gather for church. I worry because what we cannot see will affect us. I
worry because it only takes one among hundreds to spread that which we cannot
see to others.
BUT I believe. I believe that Christ lives, that people will care
more for others then for easing personal restrictions. I believe that folks
will listen to the professionals and scientists and will do what is best for
all. I believe that what we cannot see – the presence and power of God and
Christ – will ultimately be the guiding force and we will do what is necessary,
believe what we cannot see, and we will live.
And so, I breathe. I breathe in the peace of Christ and the calm
assurance that comes. I breathe through my mask as I am out and about knowing
that in makes a difference. I breathe and God’s presence and love come over me,
into me, around me. I breathe and I believe. So now take a few deep
breathes…relax…allow your mind and body to just settle into your
chair…breathe…let the Spirit come…breathe…and believe that the peace of Christ
enters you.
Closing prayer:
have
you ever noticed that it is the space that holds everything we believe – it is
the gap… the lacuna… the void in which we place everything we fundamentally
believe
in
that space, the emptiness of tombs lies the fullness of our faith and in such
spaces we believe
when
the void is found, the emptiness of the tomb is met, it is then we trust
resurrection and that what Jesus said is true we remember what he told us and
believe
it’s
kind of obvious that you need an empty tomb for resurrection but you need that
emptiness to have a full faith filled with hope, and possibility, and what
might be
so,
may we step into this emptiness and believe the life Jesus spoke of might be
true… the love he held to might be true… the words he spoke might be true because
there is only space where death ought to be
this
possibility of life, this resurrection of spirit in every empty space is our
new hope
go
and believe into the void
~ written by Roddy Hamilton and posted on the New
Kilpatrick Parish Church website: https://www.nkchurch.org.uk/original-liturgy
The
agenda for the gathering is:
- Welcome
- Share
prayer requests with chat feature
- Please stay
muted until you want to speak
- Stay or
leave as you wish
- A brief
devotion
- Report about
what is happening in the district, conference, episcopal area, and
denomination as a whole
- By now you
have heard that the shared Annual Conference planned for this year has
been cancelled. This means we will need to figure out how to do the
essential business of the annual conference in some way. The Bishop,
cabinet and conference leaders are looking at the options and
possibilities and will have a way forward figured out soon.
- No final
decision has been made, look for word on this in the next week or so, but
it is very likely that we will still be under these restrictions for
awhile so make plans accordingly. As I have said, decision about what
will happen after April 30th will depend upon what health
authorities, government officials and Governors do. As soon as something
is known you will be informed.
- New
appointments and moves are going ahead. Those that fall into these areas
need to begin to plan on how to do it within the restrictions we are
under. Get creative! I have ideas so if you want to reach out to me do.
Also, those of you who are not moving or getting a new pastor figure out
ways to welcome the new folks among us. Again, get creative!
- And I
remind you once again, the Greater Northwest Area Website has a lot of
resources to help you maneuver through these times, make sure and check
it out. https://greaternw.org/
- A time for Q
and A
- An
opportunity for you to share
with me and each other, how is it with your soul?
- Closing blessing
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