SERMONS
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With us in the chaos
God is with us in the chaos. God is with us when the boat is rocking and everything seems out of control. God is with us when we cannot see the shoreline and when the future is uncertain. God is with us when we are afraid and feel alone.
Reaching out
So when I heard stories like this one and was told that faith meant keeping my eyes on Jesus, I sometimes wondered if I was simply a bad Christian. Other people seemed to be able to focus, why couldn't I? I thought maybe I didn't have enough faith or maybe other people were just trying harder than I was.
What are you feeling?
How are you feeling? I really dislike that question, especially when my therapist asks it. I learned pretty quickly in therapy that an acceptable answer is not, “good” or “I’m fine.” Good is not a feeling, he tells me. A better question is what are you feeling, can you name the emotion? “No! I can’t,” I sometimes stubbornly respond. But most of the time I just say, “I don’t know.”
Beyond Measure
How does an I Love Lucy scene about dough and yeast relate to a parable of Jesus in which a woman hides yeast in three measures of flour? The Greek word suggests encryption. What is going on here? In this sermon, Pr. Mueller describes yeast as the ferment that brings about the kingdom of God. Learn some very surprising things about this simple parable.
Wheat and weeds
Scripture readings like this one are understandably difficult for many of us to talk about. We know how quickly conversations about readings like this can become conversations about good people versus bad people, the righteous versus the sinners. Historically, Christianity has used the language of evil to divide, condemn, and justify harm.
Don’t Miss It!
This past week I was in a bit of a funk because inspiration for this sermon was not coming. So, I decided to walk to the lake. Nature can provide inspiration and can be one of our best spiritual guides.
Quandaries
I love the word quandary. It expresses so much about life.
As humans we have to make choices. Yet we are limited by our cognitive capacity. Which often leads to information overload. The result: quandaries.
Does God cry too?
Does God cry too? That’s the question a young girl asked her dad many years ago. My wife Julie shared a childhood memory with me when we were discussing this morning’s readings. She was four or five years old, playing with dolls, when a thump at the window drew her attention.
The harvest is plentiful
"The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few." It’s easy to hear those words as a challenge. The church needs volunteers. The world needs people to step up. We need more people to work harder to fix the world’s brokenness.
But before Jesus even mentions laborers, he does something else: he sees.
Now what?
Sometimes, I wish I could just pick up the phone and call my mom. She died ten years ago; and even though we didn’t talk on the phone every day, or even every week, there are times now when I wish I could simply talk with her again. To hear her voice. Or tell her about my kids, who are now young adults; she’d be so proud and delighted. Or to ask her how she made the potato salad taste just right.
The promise of the Holy Spirit
Happy Mother’s Day! This week I found myself thinking of all the ways my mother has poured wisdom into me, helped me to understand the world in new ways, and equipped me for life. Before my mother taught me to read, she would read stories to me, and sing songs that taught me important lessons about faith, community, and how to live well. She taught me that the best stories always teach us a lesson, they speak truth to our hearts, and send us out into the world changed.
Do you know where you’re going to?
Jesus tells them that they know the way to the place he is going. Befuddled Thomas says what everyone is thinking. Lord, we have no idea where you are going. How can we possibly know the way?
Attune our ears
Whose voice do you recognize easily? There are a few voices of public figures that I try to tune out and not listen to at all, because their voice grates on me and I don’t want to listen to what they have to say. But there are also voices I love hearing, like my kids’ when they call me from college. And there are some voices I miss hearing too. I wish I had a recording of my son, Oliver's sweet, high-pitched, prepubescent voice or the voices of my parents which are now only a distant memory.
A Visceral Reaction
Have you ever had a visceral reaction?
In Jesus’ time, people didn’t say “I’m heartbroken.” They said, “My liver is on fire.” Back then, Greeks and others didn’t say that emotions came from the heart, or the head. They said emotions came from their intestines. They had “gut feelings.” They said that they felt anger and sor-row in their viscera — they had “visceral reactions.”
Shock and awe
To the gospel writer Matthew, the resurrection of Jesus is earthshaking. The Greek word is seismos, and means shaking, shock, earthquake. In seismic events, nothing is certain. Nothing is the same. Nothing is stable.
A brilliant, terrifying angel rolls back the stone and sits on it. As if to mock the empire that rolled the stone there in the first place. As if to mock the power of death itself.
To tell the truth
Today truth is elusive. What to believe? Was it generated by AI? Is it a downright lie? Is it fake news? If it’s on the internet, if it’s shared on social media, can you trust it? If you keep telling people an untruth, are they cajoled into finally accepting it?
Holy work in human hands
In tonight’s Gospel, Jesus lays aside his garments, wraps a towel around his waist, pours water into a basin, and begins to wash the disciples’ feet. I wonder what the disciples thought when they saw their teacher kneeling down like a servant, preparing to wash their dusty, worn, calloused feet. Foot washing with Jesus wasn’t like a luxurious pedicure at the spa. It was dirty work. A messy act of love.