Reflection for Palm Sunday 2023

How to Overcome.

“My soul is sorrowful even to death. Remain here and keep watch with me.” He advanced a little and fell prostrate in prayer, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet, not as I will, but as you will.”

Thank you for joining as we have arrived together to Holy Week.

In this week we go from the highs of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem to that night in the upper room. where they gathered in fellowship and bonding, a time where an eternal promise of Jesus’ abiding with us is given, to the garden where Jesus plunges into deep prayer and pleading, where the vision of what is to come crushes everything in Him except His dedication to His Father’s will, and as we heard throughout the Passion narrative His arrest, trial, cruel murder, and burial.

“My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet, not as I will, but as you will.”

You will notice throughout all this, as in each part of the gospel’s proclamation, Jesus faces what we face, experiences all we experience, celebrates and cries, feels anger and compassion. 

Not only that, but Jesus faced multiple levels of temptation attacking at every moment and seeking that He give up, quit, go home. We face that too, the push to give up, to walk away.

Like Jesus, sometimes we fall to our knees and cry out:

“My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet, not as I will, but as you will.”

Use Holy Week as an opportunity to consider our view of all this, its meaning for us.

Some may view Jesus’ Holy Week journey as disinterested observers, standing at a distance. Yeah, sure I know what happened, and it did me some kind of good, let’s move on.

Some may see Holy Week’s events as theologians might, trying very hard to explain the mystery, to delve into theories and to place what happened into neat compartments of cause and effect. Figuring it out as best as they can they say: It did people some kind of good, let’s move on.

Holy Week is shared experience. If these moments bring intimacy with Jesus, if we stand with Him, and watch with Him, we come to see ourselves in Jesus’ life and how He shared life and death with us. Our moments, whether joyful and glorious or painful and sad take on new dimension and we now face them differently.

As we bind ourselves to Him in great love, we finally realize that Jesus did not come as God distant and apart, but as God with us. Yes, Jesus did me eternal good and I will not move on, but I will remain with Him Who faced this too, Who understands and offers me strength. We remember how far His love goes and are ever thankful to overcome in Him.

Reflection for the 1st Sunday in Lent 2023

How to Overcome.

At that time Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil.

Thank you for joining as we together journey through Lent, walking humbly before God and working out our salvation.

As I mentioned Ash Wednesday, we spent the weeks of Pre-Lent identifying the hot stoves of sin in our lives, those dangers we love to run toward, and planned our strategies for getting rid of them.

Those old, hot, rusty, greasy, ugly things in our lives must go, but unfortunately, for many Christians, we spend Lent praying more, sacrificing small things, perhaps giving more, fasting, abstaining, engaging in increased prayer and scripture reading as mere curtains. We close the inner curtain on that hot stove, never really getting rid of it, never allowing Jesus and His team to take it away, so that on Easter Monday we can tear open the curtain and get right back to that hot stove of sin.

Fine Pastor, you’re right. I gave up M&Ms and one hour of TV, but that hot stove of sin remains, and even though I would prefer not to, I’ll probably go right back at it after Lent. You see Pastor, I do not know how to really get rid of that sin. Can the Church help me, give me some strategies to get rid of that sin?

Yes, and as with all the answers it begins with Jesus, looking to Him and what He faced.

We might see the temptations as something that happened at the end of Jesus’ fasting and prayer in the desert, but it was far more than that.

Jesus, as is often said, was tempted in every way we are. As soon as He began to get hungry, thirsty, tired, motivated to give it all up and go home, the Tempter came. The Tempter accused Him of being weak, unable to finish His mission, a disappointment to His Heavenly Father. We can hear that can’t we – because we face that Tempter all the time. He accuses and blames us – all directed at our giving up hope, giving up God.

The Tempter wanted Jesus to denounce His own Father. At the end of the forty days the Tempter hit Jesus with all he had.

It was not just bread for hunger, but the temptation to satisfy every craving of the body – food, drink, pleasure, quitting and being slothful. It was not just to throw oneself down from the parapet of the Temple, but to destroy oneself – quit and kill Your own body Jesus. It was not just rule over all the kingdoms of the world, but to surrender oneself and one’s true power to the ruler of the world – the Tempter.

Jesus, having faced all we face, and far more, would be tempted throughout His ministry and on the cross, yet He was loyal to His Father’s will and did not sin.

These are the tools He used: prayer, studying scripture, speaking about the kingdom, fasting, communing in relationship centered on the Father. Guess what – we can do all those things and have the same success. 

Our success in getting rid of sin is that we will actually feel good, wonderful, fulfilled – and if we find we hate that feeling, know the stove is being removed.

Reflection for the 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time 2014

We Have a BIG God

We have a big
God

For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

We are called to recognize and live the power of God.

Reading the Old Testament we see the multitude of tremendous things God did for His people. When they were threatened He gave them victory. When they were small like David He blessed them and gave them the power to slay giants. He led them from slavery and captivity. He caused them to pass through the sea, and He fed them and gave them drink when there appeared to be none.

Reading those accounts we see the power of our God – able to create from nothing, to protect, to lead, to save; Who as Isaiah says feeds us and sustains us, even though we have nothing to offer in return.

All you who are thirsty, come to the water! You who have no money, come, receive grain and eat; Come, without paying and without cost, drink wine and milk!

This big and powerful image of God was ever before the people of Israel. Even so, the people of Israel turned away from God over and over. They sought after the things they thought would give them power, success, and happiness and forgot that He was the only One who could deliver all that and so much more.

Finally, in His greatest and most powerful act ever, the New Testament reveals and witnesses to the fact that God emptied Himself of everything, became man, taught us, healed the sick, raised the dead, and …taking the five loaves and the two fish… gave them to the crowds. They all ate and were satisfied…

He then picked up all our sinfulness, fears, and our very deaths and offered them in His body on the cross. In doing that we now enjoy freedom and security in His power and promises.

Our God is big, powerful, almighty, and yet people still turn away, and pull into themselves. They try to find a way to fill the voids in their lives, to solve the problems they encounter, and to seek joy without Him. We must be different!

Our bulletin art says it well: Don’t tell God how big your storm is; tell your storm how big your God is. In God we have the ability to triumph, to overcome, and to succeed. This does not mean earthly success or freedom from life’s strains and pressures. It does mean that when we encounter these things we can stare into them and confidently say – my God is bigger than you and His promises are more important than you. We are called to recognize exactly how big our God is and to place our trust in Him. Take this huge leap of faith and trust. It is very much worth taking!