Luke 15.1-3,11b-32
This story is very familiar to us; it is one of the most well-known stories attributed to Jesus. It is often viewed and presented as a story of God's boundless grace and love. The younger son is often used as a symbol of one who has gone astray, who sees the error of their ways, and is received back by God, just as a lost sheep is welcomed back into the fold. We are probably not surprised to find that the parable of the lost sheep precedes the story of the prodigal son.While there are many similarities between the two stories, the emphasis placed on the actions of the characters are somewhat different. In the parable of the lost sheep, Jesus describes what would have been a common occurrence in the rural community Jesus spoke to; a sheep wanders off and becomes lost. The sheep does not deliberately run away, it simply becomes separated from the flock. The shepherd takes it upon himself to go and search for the sheep, celebrating when he finds it, carrying it home safely.
Now, contrast that with the story of the prodigal son. Here, Jesus tells of something that would have been reprehensible within the culture. This younger son goes to his father, who is in seemingly good health mind you, and DEMANDS to receive what will only be his once his father dies. He is not asking for a loan, or a gift; it's not like there is a separate bank account set aside, collecting interested titled "inheritance." He is, essentially, impatient, and cannot WAIT for his father to die to get his hands on the family funds. If that was not bad enough, once he receives "what is his" he deserts his family, taking with him their resources needed to survive. This son is no lost sheep; rather, he is a thief. He does not put his inheritance to good use, and eventually finds himself in as low a position he COULD find himself; tending the religiously and literally unclean pigs. He has become as far removed from his family, faith, and culture as he can get. It is at this point he decides it would be a good idea to return home. We cannot know if his confession is heartfelt or not, but it is clear he feels it will be enough to welcome him back home, even if only as a slave. And so he sets off for home.
Remember the shepherd in the previous parable?
The father is not like the shepherd.
He does not hurry off to find his wayward son. He does not try to save him. Instead, he let's him go.
I wonder what the father felt, after his son had left. Was he sad? Was he angry? Did his son become dead to him? Did he even care at all, now that he had lost a good deal of his wealth AND a pair of hands around the farm that would need to be replaced? Did he watch for the improbable return of his son? We don't know. But Jesus tells us that when the father sees his son far off, he runs to him, embracing him and welcoming him home.
The shepherd went off to seek for what was lost. The father stayed behind, but welcomed his son when he returned. Jesus begins the parable of the lost sheep with the words, "which one of you...?" And now I turn the question to you. Which one of YOU will search for those who are lost? Which one of YOU will be ready to welcome those back, regardless of what they have done? Which one of YOU will care for the least, the last, and the lost? I challenge you, to see the shepherd and the father not only as symbols of God and Christ, but also as a model for how we should be as Christians. Let's BE the shepherds. Let's BE the fathers and the mothers, rejoicing when what was once lost, is found.
Amen.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Lenten Practice
I was at a loss of what to do during Lent; to give up, or not to give up- that was the question. I usually try to "add" something instead of giving something up, so here is my plan:
each week the Revised Common Lectionary has four scripture readings, almost always in this order:
1- passage from the Hebrew Bible
1- psalm
1- epistle (letter from Paul, or, atleast attributed to Paul)
1- Gospel
What I am going to try to do is to read and reflect in some way on each of these readings during Lent. I am hoping this will lead to creative ways of reflecting on the scriptures. We'll see how it goes.
Peace be with you all!
each week the Revised Common Lectionary has four scripture readings, almost always in this order:
1- passage from the Hebrew Bible
1- psalm
1- epistle (letter from Paul, or, atleast attributed to Paul)
1- Gospel
What I am going to try to do is to read and reflect in some way on each of these readings during Lent. I am hoping this will lead to creative ways of reflecting on the scriptures. We'll see how it goes.
Peace be with you all!
Monday, February 8, 2010
What to do....
Hey! I'm pretty sure no-one really reads this, which is fine. BUT, if you d0 then you can help me out.
Ready?
What should Evan and I do for Valentine's Day!?
We don't want to do the cliche things, but we want it to be a special day. We never go to the movies, only eat out once a month, and do all of our (really yummy!) cooking at home. I have forbidden flowers (the prices get SOOOO inflated!)and he's not a huge fan of chocolate.
Any ideas to make our first Valentine's Day special?
Ready?
What should Evan and I do for Valentine's Day!?
We don't want to do the cliche things, but we want it to be a special day. We never go to the movies, only eat out once a month, and do all of our (really yummy!) cooking at home. I have forbidden flowers (the prices get SOOOO inflated!)and he's not a huge fan of chocolate.
Any ideas to make our first Valentine's Day special?
Friday, January 15, 2010
Adventures in Maine
I promised I would finish re-counting my holiday travels, so here I am, doing just that. If you remember from the last post, I spent several days at home in MD with my family before traveling up to Maine...
December 29:
I woke up bright and early, finished loading the car, and said good-bye to my family. It had been a really nice visit with them, albeit it quite busy, but I knew I would be seeing them again soon so I was eager to start my next journey. I drove from MD to my home in NJ (a bit over 3 hours), traded my MD luggage for my ME luggage, got some gas, and headed up to ME. I drove thru New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire before finally reaching my destination (about 7 hours later!). It was very windy, but luckily there was no snow. At one point in Massachusetts Roxy (my car) reported that it was 3 degrees outside. I called my sister to inform her I might freeze to death.
I arrived at Evan's cousin's house in Auburn, ME and finally got to see my sweet. : ) This had been the longest we'd been apart- it was soooo good to see him! I got to meet his cousin Ralph, and the three of us went to dinner at a Thai place in town. We spent the night in Auburn the drove 4 more hours to Starboard, where Evan's family lives. (If you've been counting, this adds up to about 14 hours from MD...that's A LOT of driving!)
When we reached Starboard it was dark out, so I couldn't see much scenery wise, but I finally got to meet the people I've heard so much about! We stayed at Nana's and met her, then Evan's parents came down the hill to meet us. They are all such lovely people. I felt at home right away. We were all tired, so we didn't stay up visiting terribly long.
The next morning I woke up, walked into the kitchen, and went, "Wow!" This is what I saw:
I got to meet more family that day; Evan's uncle and his family live right next door, so I got to meet Jeff, his wife Tracy, and their three children, Jeff, Andrew, and Maya. I fell in love with Maya right away, but it took her a little while to warm up to me. By the second or third time she saw me, she was asking for candy, having me carry her throughout the house, and signing to me. I was so excited to sign with her (she's deaf); she is super smart, and picks up new signs very quickly.
She loves Evan:
(in this picture I asked her what her name is, and she is signing it to me)
During the blizzard we made donuts and bread with Nana- she is a wonderful baker, and during tourist season sells her baked goods at stores in town. She gave me some recipes to make in Madison, which I am very excited about. : )
On New Year's Eve Evan had a gig in Eastport, the eastern-most town in the United States. They played at neat little place called the Rose Garden. It was a lot of fun; despite the snow, it was well attended, and everyone had a good time. I have a feeling we'll be spending next New Year's up here.
I had a wonderful time in Maine; I absolutely love Evan's family, and I think they all like me too (apparently, I'm a keeper). I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to visit his home and meet his friends and family. It was a great start to the New Year!
December 29:
I woke up bright and early, finished loading the car, and said good-bye to my family. It had been a really nice visit with them, albeit it quite busy, but I knew I would be seeing them again soon so I was eager to start my next journey. I drove from MD to my home in NJ (a bit over 3 hours), traded my MD luggage for my ME luggage, got some gas, and headed up to ME. I drove thru New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire before finally reaching my destination (about 7 hours later!). It was very windy, but luckily there was no snow. At one point in Massachusetts Roxy (my car) reported that it was 3 degrees outside. I called my sister to inform her I might freeze to death.
I arrived at Evan's cousin's house in Auburn, ME and finally got to see my sweet. : ) This had been the longest we'd been apart- it was soooo good to see him! I got to meet his cousin Ralph, and the three of us went to dinner at a Thai place in town. We spent the night in Auburn the drove 4 more hours to Starboard, where Evan's family lives. (If you've been counting, this adds up to about 14 hours from MD...that's A LOT of driving!)
When we reached Starboard it was dark out, so I couldn't see much scenery wise, but I finally got to meet the people I've heard so much about! We stayed at Nana's and met her, then Evan's parents came down the hill to meet us. They are all such lovely people. I felt at home right away. We were all tired, so we didn't stay up visiting terribly long.
The next morning I woke up, walked into the kitchen, and went, "Wow!" This is what I saw:
I got to meet more family that day; Evan's uncle and his family live right next door, so I got to meet Jeff, his wife Tracy, and their three children, Jeff, Andrew, and Maya. I fell in love with Maya right away, but it took her a little while to warm up to me. By the second or third time she saw me, she was asking for candy, having me carry her throughout the house, and signing to me. I was so excited to sign with her (she's deaf); she is super smart, and picks up new signs very quickly.
She loves Evan:
(in this picture I asked her what her name is, and she is signing it to me)
During the blizzard we made donuts and bread with Nana- she is a wonderful baker, and during tourist season sells her baked goods at stores in town. She gave me some recipes to make in Madison, which I am very excited about. : )
On New Year's Eve Evan had a gig in Eastport, the eastern-most town in the United States. They played at neat little place called the Rose Garden. It was a lot of fun; despite the snow, it was well attended, and everyone had a good time. I have a feeling we'll be spending next New Year's up here.
I had a wonderful time in Maine; I absolutely love Evan's family, and I think they all like me too (apparently, I'm a keeper). I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to visit his home and meet his friends and family. It was a great start to the New Year!
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Holiday Recap
Peace and greetings to you all! Hahaha, enough with the church jargon.
Hello! It's been a while since I have blogged anything, so I thought a summary of the holidays was in order. I will try to be as brief as possible (we'll see how that works out).
Christmas Eve:
Wow! What a marathon! I spent the day cleaning the house and making sure I had everything I would need packed and ready to go to both Maryland and Maine. I made cinnamon rolls, from scratch!, to take to MD as a surprise for breakfast Christmas morning. I went over to the church around 4 to set up the hand-bells and to get ready for the Christmas Eve service/pageant. While it did not go off without a hitch, it was a lovely pageant, and one I thoroughly enjoyed being a part of. I got to sing several solos, play my trombone, AND direct the brand-new hand-bell choir; I was so proud of the Mustard Seeds!!! After the service was over, and hugs and Christmas greetings were passed around, I hopped in the car and booked it to MD. I made it in under 3 hours! I was so pleased with myself!
When my family got home from church (I got to the house before they did) we exchanged gifts among sisters, and then headed back to church. I was able to attend the 11 o'clock service at Hiss, where they did a traditional Lessons and Carols service followed by communion. With hot dog rolls. Hahahahaha- it totally made my night. When we got home we got to open our traditional Christmas Eve gifts- Mommy-made pajama pants!! Megan and Riley were fast asleep in the basement, so I crashed with Sarah and Sophie for the night.
Christmas Day:
Well, we woke up and exchanged more gifts. Megan had to work at the hospital, so we decided to save a few gifts to open when she got home. I made breakfast for the family with the help of Sarah and my dad: scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, sausage, and the surprise cinnamon rolls. They were a hit! We had a nice visit with my grandmother, and then I took Sarah to spend some time with her boyfriend. Jackie and Colette came over and had dinner with us! It was so nice having them spend some of Christmas day with us. We all watched the Muppet's Christmas Carol together; it is one of my favorites. They left right around the time Megan got home from work. We finished exchanging gifts, and then relaxed the rest of the evening. It was far from our normal Christmas "routine", but it was a wonderful day with family and friends.
Sunday/Monday:
On Sunday we had an Open House which kind of turned into a football party.
I don't want to even START talking about that horrible game...
But the party was nice!
Monday Lauren had sinus surgery. We went to the hospital at 5am...the surgeon was late, which is apparently normal for him, so we waited about 3 hours before they took her back. I went home around noon; by then she was finished in the OR and in was in the first level of recovery. Sarah and I went shopping for a few things, and I took her to the barn to take care of the horses. Lauren was really out of it- her pain meds kept her sleepy, which was good.
On Tuesday I started my journey up to Maine.
I think I'll save that for the next entry : )
Hello! It's been a while since I have blogged anything, so I thought a summary of the holidays was in order. I will try to be as brief as possible (we'll see how that works out).
Christmas Eve:
Wow! What a marathon! I spent the day cleaning the house and making sure I had everything I would need packed and ready to go to both Maryland and Maine. I made cinnamon rolls, from scratch!, to take to MD as a surprise for breakfast Christmas morning. I went over to the church around 4 to set up the hand-bells and to get ready for the Christmas Eve service/pageant. While it did not go off without a hitch, it was a lovely pageant, and one I thoroughly enjoyed being a part of. I got to sing several solos, play my trombone, AND direct the brand-new hand-bell choir; I was so proud of the Mustard Seeds!!! After the service was over, and hugs and Christmas greetings were passed around, I hopped in the car and booked it to MD. I made it in under 3 hours! I was so pleased with myself!
When my family got home from church (I got to the house before they did) we exchanged gifts among sisters, and then headed back to church. I was able to attend the 11 o'clock service at Hiss, where they did a traditional Lessons and Carols service followed by communion. With hot dog rolls. Hahahahaha- it totally made my night. When we got home we got to open our traditional Christmas Eve gifts- Mommy-made pajama pants!! Megan and Riley were fast asleep in the basement, so I crashed with Sarah and Sophie for the night.
Christmas Day:
Well, we woke up and exchanged more gifts. Megan had to work at the hospital, so we decided to save a few gifts to open when she got home. I made breakfast for the family with the help of Sarah and my dad: scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, sausage, and the surprise cinnamon rolls. They were a hit! We had a nice visit with my grandmother, and then I took Sarah to spend some time with her boyfriend. Jackie and Colette came over and had dinner with us! It was so nice having them spend some of Christmas day with us. We all watched the Muppet's Christmas Carol together; it is one of my favorites. They left right around the time Megan got home from work. We finished exchanging gifts, and then relaxed the rest of the evening. It was far from our normal Christmas "routine", but it was a wonderful day with family and friends.
Sunday/Monday:
On Sunday we had an Open House which kind of turned into a football party.
I don't want to even START talking about that horrible game...
But the party was nice!
Monday Lauren had sinus surgery. We went to the hospital at 5am...the surgeon was late, which is apparently normal for him, so we waited about 3 hours before they took her back. I went home around noon; by then she was finished in the OR and in was in the first level of recovery. Sarah and I went shopping for a few things, and I took her to the barn to take care of the horses. Lauren was really out of it- her pain meds kept her sleepy, which was good.
On Tuesday I started my journey up to Maine.
I think I'll save that for the next entry : )
Friday, November 20, 2009
Personal "Poem"
Yesterday in Pastoral Formation we talked about forgiveness; how it is one of the requirements of being a part of the Christian community. We talked about different ways of expressing our pains, of going about giving/receiving forgiveness. It made me think of a piece I wrote- I actually thought it was older than it is, but oh well. I don't know if it counts as poetry or if it's just a letter of sorts. I think I am hoping that by putting up here, it will help me to move on. I don't know. But here it is.
9.24.2009
To All the Men That Have Hurt Me-
I f*cking hate you.
There, I said it.
I hate you.
You all took things from me you had no right to take.
It was not your right,it was not your choice to make.
It was mine.
And you took that away from me.
You left me broken and afraid, unable to trust.
You left me full of doubts.
You left me with small pieces of me that I won't ever get back.
And I hate you for that.
I am afraid when men make sexual advances.
I shut down when I should burn with passion.
I don't trust people's intentions.
I don't trust myself.
But I can't hate you forever.
Eventually I have to forgive you.
With God's help, I must forgive you.
But it's not that simple
I fail to see how forgiving you will help me.
And, although I am supposed to love you as a child of God,
I sure as hell don't want to.
I am consumed by memories and fear, so much so that I cannot look at one who resembles you.
So:
names ommitted
and any others that may exist past my memory-
I want my pieces back.
Because I need to be at peace.
9.24.2009
To All the Men That Have Hurt Me-
I f*cking hate you.
There, I said it.
I hate you.
You all took things from me you had no right to take.
It was not your right,it was not your choice to make.
It was mine.
And you took that away from me.
You left me broken and afraid, unable to trust.
You left me full of doubts.
You left me with small pieces of me that I won't ever get back.
And I hate you for that.
I am afraid when men make sexual advances.
I shut down when I should burn with passion.
I don't trust people's intentions.
I don't trust myself.
But I can't hate you forever.
Eventually I have to forgive you.
With God's help, I must forgive you.
But it's not that simple
I fail to see how forgiving you will help me.
And, although I am supposed to love you as a child of God,
I sure as hell don't want to.
I am consumed by memories and fear, so much so that I cannot look at one who resembles you.
So:
names ommitted
and any others that may exist past my memory-
I want my pieces back.
Because I need to be at peace.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
All Saint's Sermon
Yes, yes, I know All Saint's Day was weeks ago. I hesitate to even post this still, so much time has gone by, but I've decided to do it anyway.
On November 1 I gave the sermon at the church I am currently serving. Like many pastors, Saturday morning dawned and I did not have a single word on paper. While in the shower, I figured out my sermon outline, intending on writing it as soon as I got finished. However, life got in the way, and it was several hours later before I was able to sit down to write my sermon. By then, all my thoughts had left me, and I was left staring blankly at my computer screen. Taking the advice of a friend, I headed home and back to my place of inspiration: the shower. This was the result:
I think for Christmas I would like those special markers you can get children to play with in the tub...
The final version of my sermon, was, of course, more fleshed out, and not written on my shower wall.
(I was going to post my sermon, but it is rather long...if it would like to read it, let me know, and I will post it).
On November 1 I gave the sermon at the church I am currently serving. Like many pastors, Saturday morning dawned and I did not have a single word on paper. While in the shower, I figured out my sermon outline, intending on writing it as soon as I got finished. However, life got in the way, and it was several hours later before I was able to sit down to write my sermon. By then, all my thoughts had left me, and I was left staring blankly at my computer screen. Taking the advice of a friend, I headed home and back to my place of inspiration: the shower. This was the result:
I think for Christmas I would like those special markers you can get children to play with in the tub...
The final version of my sermon, was, of course, more fleshed out, and not written on my shower wall.
(I was going to post my sermon, but it is rather long...if it would like to read it, let me know, and I will post it).
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