The Great Daring

A Liturgy of Fear and Hope.

We took a chance last Sunday and wrote down our fears, many of them, filled a glass vase jar. Then we wrote down our favorite Scripture-more than our fears! We taped the verses to the outside of the vase, to remind us that our faith is greater than our fears. It is a powerful symbol, one we won’t easily forget. And the special grace? No 2 Scriptures were named. They were all different. What a gift.

‘A GREAT DARING’ (with homage to Howard Thurman’s 

Jesus and the Disinherited)

3rd Sunday after the Epiphany - Psalm 27; 1 Cor. 1.10-18; 

Matt. 4:12-23

Rev. Tiare L. Mathison, Pastor & Soul-Tender

Howard Thurman, one of the great religious leaders of the Civil Rights movement in the 1950’s & 60’s.  Martin Luther King, Jr. claimed him as his pastor and spiritual mentor.  Thurman says, “...nothing but a great daring in the face of overwhelming odds can achieve the inner security in which fear cannot possibly survive.  It is the essence of the religion of Jesus of Nazareth.  Yes God cares for the blade of grass, the fallen sparrow, the stars in their course.  But more so?  God cares for me!  To be assured of this is the great daring.”  Unquote

  Rebecca Solnit, a favorite writer, pens an eloquent testimony to the territory of hope.  Its uncertainty is a foundation of strength she suggests; hope is a broad perspective yet with specific possibilities; and she states, “hope  demands we act”.  Listen to this quote from her:  She calls hope "an account of complexities and uncertainties, with openings.  She goes on,

  "Hope locates itself in the premises that we don't know what will happen and that in the spaciousness of uncertainty, is room to act.  Its the belief that WHAT WE DO matters.."  unquote sounds a bit like Jesus, doesn’t it?

Hope in the Dark, Rebecca Solnit, Nation Books, 2004; Haymarket Books, Chicago, 2016, p. XIV

   The spaciousness of uncertainty; what we do matters!

  The Psalm writer of #27 pursues God, uncertainty at the fore, yet with rich hope.  With enemies at the door, she seeks beauty, the goodness of the Lord, the land of the living.  She is no optimist; 'everything's going to be fine, I don't need to do anything.'  Nor a pessimist, 'everything's going to hell in a hand basket, there is nothing I can do.'  Rather, she sets the stage for her admission of great fear and her claim of great faith:  The Lord is my light, whom shall I fear?  The stronghold, of whom shall I be afraid?

  Well, how about the evil doers who devour her; the army encamped against her; the threat of the Assyrians breathing down her neck; let alone false witnesses telling lies about her!  Rather than remain afraid or only afraid, the writer lays claim to this uncertainty: in conversation with God.  She knows, as do we, sometimes answers are not forthcoming.  At least not immediately.  Nonetheless, she writes her faith statement:

'I believe I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

Wait; take heart; have courage; be strong.'  

A word for herself, a word for ancient Israel as threats of invasion and exile are all around; a word for us, as we walk into the future clouded with fear, almost unable to see the spaciousness of uncertainty .  Memorize verses 13 & 14, I strongly suggest.  They are a lifeline in times of trouble.

  This Word is given  for our next act together:  

A Liturgy to Surround Fear with Light and Hope

  I know that I am asking you to do something that makes you uncomfortable.  I know this because I have been praying for you all week and your resistance is revealed.  The purpose is to disrupt your habits of thinking when it comes to fear and the presence of God and life and light and hope.  Your discomfort is a good sign the Holy Spirit is with you.  This is an opportunity to strengthen your faith in Jesus Christ.  By laying before Him your fears—small, big, in-between.  “For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who don’t believe, BUT FOR US!  WHO ARE BEING SAVED!  IT IS THE POWER OF GOD! Paul shouts in All capitals!

  Your fears may be economic - I don’t think I’ll have enough to live on in retirement; relational - our marriage is teetering; faith - I have so many doubts I’m not even sure what I believe anymore;  

You may hold deep guilt or shame for some sinful act you fear is unforgivable;

 Our children go astray; our health - the diagnosis came back rough; mental illness, yours or your loved one, loss of a job or a profession;  global - climate change; nuclear war; economic disparity; racism; homophobia, sexism.  Gun violence. (Pause)

  After hearing about the mass shooting in downtown Seattle last Wednesday evening, I got afraid.  Btw, mass shooting is a term when there are 4 or more victims, according to Police protocol and federal policy.  

  Almost every time I go downtown for a meeting at the presbytery office or to shop, I get off at 3rd & Pine, kitty corner from the MacDonalds.  I know that intersection like the back of my hand.  I’ve been getting off the bus  there ever since I was a child growing up riding the 5 Phinney .  All of a sudden, I thought, “Oh my word-I could get shot right there.’  I tried to think of a different bus route to get to First Pres. On Pill Hill; maybe I should Uber or Lyft instead of riding the city bus.  A privileged position.

In the end, on Thursday afternoon, I decided to enact hope in my faith in a small way.  Had a meeting at First Pres, , took the bus, got off at 3rd & Pine, stopped and prayed.  Begged God to be with the victims who were shot, the families and friends, especially of the one who died, the spectators who are now traumatized, the police, fire, medical help and the shooter or shooters.  That they may be caught and stopped.  And to be honest, I prayed for gun restrictions to be put in place. As a survivor of gun violence, I pray this prayer a lot.  God has not seen to fit to answer it in a way I can understand, nonetheless, I pray.  

The Great Daring

  So we enter the spaciousness of uncertainty; to act in hope;  this time of naming our fears before God and one another: remember this is a safe place with people who love you and are attached to you through prayer and the community of faith we are building here.  

 I invite you to write your fears down on the purple or blue squares.  See?  I’m not making you name them out loud:). Take a few minutes—there are lots of pieces of paper available.  And we got all the time in the world, for this is a  KAIROS Moment.  I will collect them,  put them in the vase. (WAIT!)

  The next step of this liturgy is to respond to our fears.  Please take a green square and write down your favorite Scripture verses.  If none come to mind, look at Psalm 27:  p. 503:  verse 3; 4; 5; 6; 10; 13-14

  I’ll collect them, we will do a call and response reading,  so to surround your fears with these words of hope.  

Please join me in the prayer:

Leader:  Nothing is hidden from you, Dear Jesus.  Nothing.  We approach your beautiful throne with our hearts broken open by this naming of our fears.  Our lives are a jumble of fear and faith.  We bow down before You, waiting in uncertainty.  

People:  We beg You, Dear Jesus, to carry our fears as we carry our faith in You.

Leader:  By the power of Your Holy Spirit, Dear Jesus, You have given us graced energy to move forward into a future already mapped, even if we cannot see the whole cartography.

People:  Walk beside us Holy Spirit as we step off our surety and control toward our new life in You.  Amen

Thank you so much for participating in this liturgy.  My prayers will continue for your faith to surround your fears.  The Great Daring

Now we are going to Stand and sing,

This little light of mine.

CALLED TO BE A WE

Do you know the word ‘Ubuntu’? It is from South Africa, it is the structure of understanding person-hood. There is no ‘I’ only person in relation to other persons. It has rich philosophical and theological depth as we ponder what it means to be the Body of Christ. Here at WPC, we believe God calls us into relationship—for a season, a decade, even a lifetime. Please join our Ubuntu—we’d love to have you!

CALLED TO BE A WE                  

Psalm 40; 1 Cor. 1.1-9; John 1:29-42

Rev. Tiare L. Mathison, Pastor & Soul-Tender

For those of you who heard the sermon last week, here’s a pop quiz:

1). What is the word tattooed on your heart? (Beloved)

2) What is the sign that seals this tattoo? (Baptism)

3) What is your response? (Blessed, gratitude)

Beloved, Baptized, Blessed is the rhythmic trinity I recommend.

  This is the sanctification that Paul writes about to the folk in the church at Corinth.  “Sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints”—IN COMMUNITY.  Let me give you some examples.

To help out Skykomish residents, Garry Vire and Wendy Haynes, of Gold Bar, created a GoFundMe account, “Skykomish Convoy Relief,” which had raised $12,600 — more than its $12,000 goal — by Wednesday night. “Skykomish is in dire need of heat, fuel, water, diapers, food, propane, etc.,” the site read. On Wednesday morning, Vire said that 12 SUVs and four-wheel-drive vehicles went from the Family Grocer in Gold Bar to Skykomish. Along the way, they stopped at the two small unincorporated communities of Baring and Grotto and dropped off supplies. Vire, who owns the Big Bear Vape & Glass shop in Gold Bar, said about organizing the convoy, “These are my neighbors, my family. When the call went out for help, that’s what we did.” Called.  Called to help.  That’s what they did. 

Another story:

“In Louisville, at the corner of Fourth and Walnut, in the center of the shopping district, I was suddenly overwhelmed with the realization that I love all these people, that they are mine and I theirs, that we could not be alien to one another even though we were total strangers. It was like waking from a dream of separateness, of spurious self-isolation in a special world…

This sense of liberation from an illusory difference was a such a relief and such a joy to me that I almost laughed out loud…I have the immense joy of being human, a member of a race in which God Himself became incarnate. As if the sorrows and stupidities of the human condition could overwhelm me, now that I realize what we all are. And if only everybody could realize this! But it cannot be explained. There is no way of telling people that they are walking around shining like the sun. Then it was as if I suddenly saw the secret beauty of their hearts, the depths of their hearts where neither sin nor desire nor self-knowledge can reach, the core of their reality, the person that each one is in God’s eyes. If only they could all see themselves as they really are. If only we could see each other that way all the time. There would be no more war, no more hatred, no more cruelty, no more greed…But this cannot be seen, only believed and “understood” by a peculiar gift.”  Thomas Merton

Desmond Tutu from South Africa:  “Life is given as a people, not individuals.  Our word, UBUNTU, connotes that person is a person only through other persons.  To be is to be “we” and not “I”.  Called To Be a We,  Grace is given to form a community in answer to the question Jesus raises in John’s gospel, chapter 1:   “What are you looking for?”  It is a community that remains and abides together-from the Greek word meno.  John uses it 5 times in these 13 verses.  Remain, abide.  It is echoed in Jesus’ prayer of John 17:  “I ask not only on behalf of these (my disciples) but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word.  That they may all be one.  As Father, You are in me and I am in You, may they also be in Us, so that the world may believe that You have sent Me.”  It is a called community gathered in Jesus’ Name.  Even here, at WPC.  You have been called into this community for a season, a decade, a lifetime.  Our UBUNTU is incomplete without you.

Called to be a we   This is the reminder that Paul declares to the church at Corinth, before he takes them to the mat for their many failures.  The very formation of their community is not their own doing.  They have been called into community, through sanctification IN Christ; called to be a we and called to be saints, as a community.  It is an objective fact done FOR these subjective persons.  They are not required to be reformed to earn back their sanctification.  Rather, they are called to admit their failures and receive what has already been given. As Alan Gregory, Professor at the Seminary of the Southwest in Austin says, “Paul’s rebuke of the church, however severe, does not bind the Corinthians to their failures and divisions; it does not make their calling dependent on their reformation.  It is not the sanctity but the failures that are untrue.  Christian critique is always an exhortation to receive what has already been given.”  Unquote. You have been given new life in Jesus Christ. Such Mercy. (Pause)

What are you looking for today?  What brought you to worship? Desire?  Resolve? Habit?  Hunger for community? Do you count on an encounter with the Living God?  Do you need to be here, called to be a we, to strengthen your faith for another tough week of life?  Or maybe just the music and the singing!

It is my contention that as bearers of the Image of God, we are meant for relationship.  Look at the Godhead - a Trinity - peculiar, a mystery - yet, some kind of deeply profound relationship is at the center of the universe.  This fundamental connection is the scaffolding for the structures of our personhood, all of us, together.  Walking around, shining like the sun. 

Sanctified in Jesus Christ - as we say every week, in Jesus Christ we are forgiven.  God swings low as He inclines toward us and hears our cry, draws us out of the desolate pit, the miry clay, sets our feet on the rock of our salvation, making sure we are secured.  We are given a new song to sing.  Like Miriam after the Exodus was complete; like Mary with her unexpected positive pregnancy test; like Paul & Silas in jail with no bindings.  ‘Worthy is the Lamb, who takes away the sins of the world, Glory.’  The chorus rings across the ages and all over the world in myriad languages.  Called to be a we

What were they looking for?  The senior pastors, Bible Teachers, and religious leaders? 

“I am not the Messiah,”

“Who are you then?” They ask. 

“I’m one crying out in the wilderness, make straight the path of the Lord. I baptize with water.  The One who is coming?  I am not worthy to untie His sandal.”   

They didn’t like his answer.  We know what happened to him. 

Then in this daily sighting referential, the next day, John sees Jesus walking toward him and declares, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes way the sins of the world.  The One I’ve been telling you about, I am here to testify this is the Son of God.”  The next day, John points his finger to Jesus again, here is the One and some of John’s disciples turn from him and follow Jesus.  They found what they were looking for, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.  In Jewish tradition, the lamb is rooted in their self-identity and their liberation, for it is the lamb’s blood that became the Passover.  Two spots were  put on the lintel, the door frame of Jewish homes, the night the Angel of Death swarmed through Egypt.  If a home was marked, they were saved.  The next day, Pharaoh let the people go.  The exodus began.

These two guys brought two guys, infamous Simon, née Peter.  John’s witness is complete and he fades away.  Called to be a we

I love this question, even though it haunts me:  what are you looking for?  My answer changes throughout the season of the liturgical year, as well as the seasons of my own life.  After a terrible sexual assault in my late 20’s, I wanted an avenger to strike my attacker dead.  With a difficult pregnancy 10 years later, I wanted a Calm Presence and a baby alive.  After  15 years came the very public divorce. I prayed for strong Black Women Angels to stand guard around my home,  as I learned to sleep alone again, afraid of the dark once more.  These days I find myself examining every tree, leaf, flower and sky for the Presence of the Holy.  I walk around a lot smiling at strangers ala Thomas Merton.  I want to love wide open like he does.  There are some I just can’t abide but I keep praying for them and for me. 

What are you looking for?

Called to be a we. Amen.