Wednesday Wondering - October 18, 2023

Scripture

Isaiah 55: 8 - 9

8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts,

nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord.

9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth,

so are my ways higher than your ways

and my thoughts than your thoughts.

James 1: 17

17 Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

Reflection

I have been wondering lately about the idea of trust. If we think about it, as we grow up, trust is something that we just do without really thinking about it. For many of us we just trust that we have a place to live, food to eat. We trust that we will be going to school, as much as many of us didn’t like that early morning call, “get out of bed, you are going to be late for school!” I have been thinking about when we lose that trust in the things of this world. Do we lose that trust when we come to realize the truth of the world and how difficult this world can be for us? Do we lose that trust as, throughout our lives, our trust has been violated or broken as we experience loss, heartache, strife, and struggle? It seems that for many of us, as we grow and experience more of the world, we lose our trust.

I know that personally I struggle to trust. I know that I had, what I would have considered to be, a pretty consistent and solid childhood, and yet I struggle to trust in many things in the world. I have often wondered if this lack of trust is because I don’t think that I am deserving of good things? Other times I find so much in this world to be fleeting that there is some hesitation to trust that things will last. I think that there is another part to this for me and that is the idea that I have to be able to control everything and when I am not the one in control, I don’t trust in those things. I think that, for me, it comes from the idea that I struggle to let go of my sense of control and in holding tight to things there is much that I fail to trust and I begin to question everything. But in doing this I think that I miss some amazing experiences, people, and situations in my life.

American author Lauren Kate has said, “Sometimes beautiful things come into our lives out of nowhere. We can't always understand them, but we have to trust in them. I know you want to question everything, but sometimes it pays to just have a little faith.” Sometimes we just need to have a little faith! That is what this really comes down too, doesn’t it, to trust. The scriptures I picked speak to the idea that sometimes we need to let go of our need to control everything and when we can do that we might just open ourselves up to some wonderful gifts. In letting go of our need to control and in trusting in God we come to see that there is much that God provides for us in our lives and to trust that we are being led to where we need to go. There is some wonderful wisdom in 12-step programs and one of the saying has stayed with me for many years, “let go and let God.” To let go of our need to control, to let go of our need to always know, to trust in God, might just lead us to place, people, and experiences that we never thought possible. It is our call to trust in God to lead us to where we need to go.

Prayer

God of gracious gifts, give us the courage to let go of our need to control, our need to always ‘know’ so that we might trust in you and your lead in our lives. Give us the wisdom to accept gifts as they are offered, without questioning and doubt. Help us to trust in you today and everyday. We ask this in the name of the one who came, trusting you, your son, Jesus. Amen.

Wednesday Wondering - October 11, 2023

Wednesday Wondering - October 11, 2023

Good morning fellow travellers along the way,

Usually when I do my mid-week I have a piece of scripture, a reflection and a prayer but today I thought of something different. I was listening to music this morning and this piece came up and as I listened to it I thought about how appropriate it was for us right now and so I offer this to you today.

"One Voice" by The Wailin’ Jennys

This is the sound of one voice

One spirit, one voice

The sound of one who makes a choice

This is the sound of one voice

This is the sound of one voice

This is the sound of voices two

The sound of me singing with you

Helping each other to make it through

This is the sound of voices two

This is the sound of voices two

This is the sound of voices three

Singing together in harmony

Surrendering to the mystery

This is the sound of voices three

This is the sound of voices three

This is the sound of all of us

Singing with love and the will to trust

Leave the rest behind it will turn to dust

This is the sound of all of us

This is the sound of all of us

This is the sound of one voice

One people, one voice

A song for every one of us

This is the sound of one voice

This is the sound of one voice1

In listening to this song I focused in on a couple of lines of the lyrics, “The sound of me singing with you, helping each other make it through.” And, “This is the sound of all of us, Singing with love and the will to trust.” This is really what this time is about isn’t it. It is about us knowing that with each other’s help we can and will make it through this time in which we currently find ourselves. But it is more than that too. It is about love and trust. It is about showing those around us, our families, our church community, our wider community, that we continue to love them in the midst of these difficult times. It is reaching out as we are able to those who need to hear that they are not alone in the midst of this time.

We find ourselves living in very different times right now. We live in a world that is being pulled apart by war and conflict, hatred and division, and sometimes it is difficult to know what to do. It is challenging in the midst of all of what is happening in the world to remember that we too are on a journey together, a journey that we where we really don’t know the outcome. But in all that is happening we know that we are not journeying alone. We come together in communities of love and support to make our way through this world together. Although times may seem to be dark, and the future ahead is unknown we are not alone for God is always with us. We journey this time with God and with each other.

We also know that in our faith stories many times those who followed Jesus found themselves so alone, confused, and unsure of what to do. They must have felt like they were living through some very dark times. Just like many of us today. One of the last things that Jesus did with the disciples was to gather them together in community, and in community they journeyed through the remainder of what they faced together. We too have community with which to journey through our dark times and it is in community that we are sustained. It is in community and family where that love and trust will help us make it through this time. I suppose that that is why this song spoke to me so strongly today. Know that we are not alone, that we are walking this way together, trusting in God, trusting in community, and trusting in each other.

Prayer

God of deep abiding presence, we ask that you make your presence known to us today, in the midst of the struggle and strife of this world, in the midst of this journey that we are taking to an unknown future. Give us the wisdom to find you in the faces of those around us, in the love shown by this community of faith. Give us the strength to be your presence to others in the midst of this rather confusing, challenging, and sometimes dark world. We ask all of this in the name of the one who came offering peace to a suffering world, your son, Jesus. Amen.

1. Written by Ruth Moody, released in 2004 on the album 40 Days by the Wailin Jennys.

Wednesday Wondering - October 4, 2023

Scripture: 1Corinthians 12: 4 – 11

4God’s various gifts are handed out everywhere; but they all originate in God’s Spirit. 5God’s various ministries are carried out everywhere; but they all originate in God’s Spirit. 6God’s various expressions of power are in action everywhere; but God himself is behind it all. 7Each person is given something to do that shows who God is: Everyone gets in on it, everyone benefits. All kinds of things are handed out by the Spirit, and to all kinds of people! 8The variety is wonderful:

wise counsel

clear understanding

9simple trust

healing the sick

10miraculous acts

proclamation

distinguishing between spirits

tongues

interpretation of tongues.

11All these gifts have a common origin, but are handed out one by one by the one Spirit of God. He decides who gets what, and when.

Reflection:

I would like to start off with a short story today. I was beginning my ministry and I was asked to go and visit with a member of the congregation where I was working at the time. I went to see this individual and we were sitting and having a chat. Suddenly this individual got up and said that they had tea and cookies and would I like some. I politely declined this offer and didn’t think too much of it. When I was speaking with another minister about this interaction they asked me why I would decline. I responded that I did not want to impose on the person that I was visiting. Their response surprised me. They asked how my declining the offer of tea and cookies could be seen as my blocking this person’s ability to offer the gift of hospitality to me and what that might have said to this individual. Up until that moment and this conversation I had never really thought about this situation in that way.

Okay, one more story, just because it is Wednesday. When I was in theological college we had chapel services every morning. These services were student organized and led and they were really the spiritual life of the community. My first day at chapel of my first year I was asked if I would read a particular part of the service. I reluctantly agreed because I really didn’t know anyone there and I thought that being involved might help me meet people. Not only were students present but so were all of the faculty, and some of the staff of the college. So the service began and I got up to do my part, only to realize after that I was at the completely wrong place in the service and it had, in essence, messed up the order of the entire service. I was horrified. I sat back down and when the correct time came I stood up and went to the lectern and read my part of the service, after making a comment about, “now it is my turn.” Everything seemed to turn out okay, or at least that is what everyone told me after the chapel service.

So both of these stories are about the offering of gifts. They are stories about gifts that we each have and are challenged to offer to another. In the first story I was asked to look at my actions and how they might impact the ability of another to offer gifts to myself and others. The second story was about the gift that I offered, even though I was, and still am, not perfect, yet that gift was graciously accepted. In the reading from 1Corinthians Paul is speaking to those at Corinth about the gifts that come from God through the Spirit.

I believe that each one of us has been given gifts to share with this world. Are those gifts going to be shared perfectly? I doubt that, but we are still asked to share those gifts regardless. Are those gifts going to be graciously accepted every time? Probably not, but we are still called to offer them. These gifts that we have to offer, to the world, are as unique as each one of us and I truly believe that they come from God. We are challenged, as people of faith, to look at the gifts that we bring, to offer those gifts to those around us, to then accept the gifts that others are offering, and in this way we continue to allow these gifts of the Spirit to move throughout the world. It is important for us to recognize the gifts that we each have and them to offer them to those around us, including this community. But it is also important that we open up a safe space for others to offer their gifts to us as well. To offer the gift of ourselves and accept the gift of others is what we are called to do as Christians. It is accepting, embracing, and celebrating the uniqueness of each one of us. It is accepting the uniqueness of who we were created to be and accepting the same in others.

Prayer:

God of wondrous diversity, help me to recognize the gifts that you have given me to share with the world. Give me the courage to bring those gifts to those around me. Help me to have an open heart and an open mind so that I will be open to receive graciously the gifts that so many others have to bring to me and the world. We ask this in the name of the greatest gift, Jesus. Amen.