Author: Pastor Aleese Kenitzer

Last Friday evening, I found myself surrounded by 30 kids and 7 adults staring up into the night sky. Even though it was a cloudy night, we could see a lot of stars. With some coaching, Dave Bakke showed the kids where the Big Dipper was and how to find the North Star. 

But then, as we took in all the stars in the sky, I broke the news to the kids that, really, we can’t even see all the stars. Our human eyes can only take in so much. There are stars lightyears away that we can’t see because their light hasn’t reached us yet, and because our eyes weren’t made to see all those shining, twinkling lights. So, even though we could see a plethora of stars, there were even more out there. 

In our readings this past Sunday, we heard a theme: that by the power of the Spirit, there is always something more than what we could ever imagine. Sometimes – especially as adults – it’s easy to lose our imagination and get to the point of thinking that what we see is what we get. But with God, there is always more out there. 

Just think of the story of Abraham and Sarah and when God told them they were going to have a child. They were getting old, and they thought that what God was saying to them was absolutely impossible. Already by Genesis 18, the Lord had come to Abraham twice to tell him the news. And during one of those times, the Lord told Abraham that he was going to receive as many promises – and as many kids! – as he could count in the sky. But the Lord hadn’t come to Sarah yet. So by chapter 18, now it was Sarah’s turn. But when the messengers came to Sarah, she just couldn’t believe it. Instead, she laughed. But in response, the messengers said: “Is there anything too wonderful for the Lord?”

Truth is, there is nothing that is too wonderful for the Lord. And God has promised us so, so much that we can’t even see it – or perceive it – yet. So the next time you’re out at night, take a look at the stars. And think of every star as a promise that God has for you. And then, think of every star that you can’t see, and imagine all the promises that God has yet to give you, and show you. 

We might not be able to see what God is doing all the time. But always, always, God is doing something so that we might know Christ’s love, and so that we might live together with God…and with each other. 

Many of you have come to know me as a pretty driven person. I’m a planner, and in a situation of disorganization, I’m prone to create some semblance of structure. That’s the way I’m wired.

Which, makes it challenging when I hear stories in the Bible of Jesus interrupting people’s plans, jobs, and directions. And yet, that’s exactly what we heard in our Gospel reading this past Sunday. Jesus interrupts Matthew’s job – calling him to discipleship while he’s on the clock. It’s not like Matthew didn’t have anything to do with his life. But when Matthew was presented with something different, something new, something life-giving and liberating in a way that he hadn’t known before, Matthew chose to follow. 

When we hear Jesus call the disciples in Scripture, it’s easy to write these stories off as something that couldn’t possibly pertain to us. “It was ‘easier’ for those guys to just up and follow Jesus back then,” we might think. But even for those guys, their lives, their lifestyle, and their perception of their world was interrupted when Jesus called to them. 

So what happens when God calls to us and interrupts our lives? The call God gives us may not be to move somewhere new, to pursue an occupational change, or to start a new mission project. It may be. But often, God’s call to us is to live and serve right where we find ourselves…just perhaps with a different intention, and perhaps with an openness to how God is directing us to live. 

So this week, as you’re willing, ask God to interrupt your schedule. And if you do, be prepared. Because God will show up, and God will provide opportunities for you to serve in Christ’s name and offer the love of Jesus. Each day, we may be striving to live out our call to discipleship in a multiplicity of ways. But having invited God to come into our midst, and allowing God to direct us according to God’s will? We just might find ourselves responding to a call, and to a fullness of life, that we never knew was there. 

After celebrating Holy Trinity Sunday this past weekend, we begin almost six months of time in the season of Pentecost. From now until November, the gospel readings will move chronologically through Matthew.

Sometimes, this time is referred to as “Ordinary Time.” Which, can be misinterpreted. “Ordinary Time” seems to suggest that it is nothing special, and something that is humdrum. But in this context, the word “ordinary” comes from the root “ordinal” meaning “related to a series.”

So instead of thinking of the next few months as “nothing special,” think of Ordinary Time as an ordered, deliberate, six-month step-by-step pilgrimage through the story of Jesus’ life with Matthew as our guide. We may not have high holidays like Christmas and Easter to celebrate in the coming months. But each and every week, we have the opportunity to gather together for worship, to hear the story of Christ’s life, and to be sent forth into service with the Spirit leading us. 

We hope to see you around this summer as we dive into “Ordinary Time” together, and we look forward to where our pilgrimage takes us…together!

Did you catch the words of our hymn of the day this past Sunday? Each week the intent of the song that falls immediately after the sermon is that it is to be our response to what we just heard proclaimed. 

So, if we were to relook at what we sang in the hymn of the day, how do you feel about offering these lyrics as your response? As your prayer?

God of tempest, God of whirlwind, as on Pentecost descend!
Drive us out from sheltered comfort, past these walls your people send!
Sweep us into costly service, there with Christ to bear the cross,
there with Christ to bear the cross!

The words of this hymn are not shy. They’re bold. And if we truly mean what we sing (and pray), the Spirit may actually do something. 

So this week, sing/pray these words again (the verse above and the remainder of the verses below). And, as you’re willing, offer yourself to the Spirit to work within you as God claims us for God’s Kingdom work.

God of blazing, God of burning, all that blocks your purpose purge!
Through your church, Christ’s Living Body, let your flaming Spirit surge!
Where deceit conceals injustice, kindle us to speak your truth,
kindle us to speak your truth!

God of earthquake, God of thunder, shake us loose from lethargy!
Break the chains of sin asunder, for earth’s healing set us free!
Crumble walls that still divide us; make us one in Christ our Lord,
make us one in Christ our Lord!

God of passion, God unsleeping, stir in us love’s restlessness!
Where the people cry in anguish, may we share your heart’s distress.
Rouse us from content with evil, claim us for your kingdom’s work,
claim us for your kingdom’s work!

If you scan through the announcements that follow, you’ll notice a theme: though there are some announcements for things just SOTC is hosting, there are a lot of joint endeavors goin’ on. 

• Summer Book Club
• Vacation Bible School for preschoolers
• Christian Day Camp
• Summer GOLF (Generations of Living Faith)
• and even the opportunity to purchase a t-shirt or long-sleeved SOTC shirt has the potential to be worn at a RAGBRAI pie fundraiser, should we accept the invitation to help prepare and serve pie alongside several other local congregations. 

Point being: there’s a lot of collaboration going on recently! And that doesn’t even begin to think about opportunities coming up in the fall as kid, youth, and adult groups continue through the joint Family Faith Night program with Grace and Zion. 

So why are we doing all this collaborative work? Why can’t we just do our “own thing” at Shepherd? 

It’s a valid question. For decades, churches have historically worked independently and focused on thier flock. Which, there’s merit to that. But in the past few years, we’ve recognized the joy of living and serving alongside one another in a way that uplifts the spiritual gifts that we all have to share in the body of Christ. And, we’ve recognized the joy of what can be done when we work together. 

But the thing is, the reason we work together isn’t only because it lessens the work load. And we don’t do this work together only because it’s the “good” thing to do, or because it stewards the resources we have. We do this work together, because in doing so, we live out Christ’s prayer for his disciples. And in doing so, we become a witness so that the world might come to believe in the truth of Jesus Christ. 

That’s the reason we live as one with each other. Because even when it takes more time, and even when it creates more headaches, we trust Christ’s prayer for his disciples. And we trust that just as Christ prayed for his disciples to be one, so too are we called to be one with each other and one with Christ…all so that we, and all the world, might come to know the love of God. 

So this week, I have two challenges for you: 
1) Consider how you’re doing at living as one with those around you. What’s causing that to be challenging? And, how might you be called to extend a hand and live as one with someone/a group near you? 

2) And, consider joining us in any of the various collaborative opportunities coming up this summer. You might not find your niche in each opportunity. But I can almost guarantee there’s an opportunity coming up that will give you the space to practice living as one with others.

Two weekends ago, I brought a glass of water and an Alka-Seltzer tablet to worship to illustrate the nature of how God dwells within us and how we dwell within God. As Jesus promised his disciples on the eve of his death, Jesus has created places us for us to dwell with Christ – not only after our death, but here and now as we dwell in God and as God dwells in us. 

But how, really, does that work? How could God – the almighty and all-powerful God – reside within mortal bodies like our own? And how could we dwell in God? 

It’s a solid question. And just as much as I wouldn’t be able to tell you exactly how or why an Alka-Seltzer tablet dissolves completely in water, I wouldn’t be able to tell you exactly how we dwell in Christ and Christ dwells in us. But this past weekend in our Gospel lesson, we got a hint as Jesus promised his disciples an Advocate – the Spirit of Truth. For it is only by the power of the Spirit that we are united to God and we are united to one another in the body of Christ. 

But that only raises even more questions! What is the Spirit and what does the Spirit do? How does the Spirit work within us and how does the Spirit actually connect us to God? 

Again, solid questions. Dare I say, even faithful questions. Questions that I’ve wondered for years, and questions that so many scholars and leaders of the church have spilled serious amounts of ink over. 

So then, with all these questions, what are we to think as people of faith? Well, I wonder if the invitation to us as followers of Jesus is not necessarily to “understand” all the in’s and out’s of the Spirit and the Triune God. Rather, I wonder if the invitation to us is to allow the Spirit to move within us so that we might be united to Christ and to one another. 

For sure, to live in such a way won’t erase all the questions. And, if you’re wondering about questions like these, I invite you to consider joining us this summer as a part of our Book Club or next fall as a part of an adult formation group. In these spaces, together, we have the opportunity to hear various perspectives, and bring our own experiences of God to the table as we discover the truth of God for ourselves. 

But in the meantime, this week, keep pondering and wondering…faithfully. And, as you are willing, invite the Spirit to move through you – uniting you to God and to those around you and leading you, and all God’s creation, to fullness of life.