Author: lakewooducc

The grotto salamander is a pale, sickly looking thing about 4 to 5 inches long that lives in caves, especially in the vicinity of the Ozark Mountains. In the larvae stage which lasts one to three years, the creatures are brown or purplish gray. They have yellow flecks on the sides. They live outside in brooks and streams. But then they go through a metamorphosis which happens underground. They lose their color and their gills. And their eyelids fuse shut so that they lose their sight. In the blind adult phase, they spend the rest of their lives in caves in the dark. The grotto salamander is the only salamander species to undergo metamorphosis. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grotto_salamander and http://amphibiaweb.org/species/4220] Now, what does this have to do with Advent you may be wondering! Well, we’ll see.

In this Advent season, we are thinking about celebrating the birth of Jesus, the light of the world. Many of our hymns, carols, and decorations celebrate light. In these shortest days of the year the importance of light is heightened. Light is significant. It makes a difference. It is visible most noticeably in darkness. A candle doesn’t make much difference in the bright light of day, but in a dark room at night it is transforming. Light truly shines in darkness.

The beautiful vision of peace that we heard from the prophet Isaiah is light shining in the darkness. The people are suffering. They are devastated. Despair has overtaken them. But Isaiah shines a light: A light that reveals a future of peace with all people living together as one. There are no more wars or threats or hostility, but a universal community of mutual respect, dignity, and justice where resources go into sustaining human life not eliminating it. This vision inspires the people to invest in the future with hope. The prophet shines a light in the darkest of times.

It does not take much to make the case that we live in dark times. Yes, it is a time of amazing, unprecedented human potential, especially in terms of technology. But the will and spirit of the times seems to be less promising. There is much going on that is revealing the dark underbelly of the human character. We see people succumbing to fear and abandoning reason, rationality, and compassion. We see people regressing into violence. We see the eruption of alienation and frustration. These trends are in evidence the world over in large ways and in small. Within a week of the election there were over 300 hate crimes committed in the US, and the problems continue. [https://thinkprogress.org/300-hate-incidents-since-election-day-bf9fd91edbd6#.hs9becdqc] People were handing out fake deportation letters on a college campus. An Episcopal church with a Spanish language mass had the sign defaced with the message “Trump Nation Whites Only.” A gay-friendly church like ours was defaced with swastikas and the messages, “Heil Trump” and “Fag Church.” Muslim women have had their hijabs pulled off and been harassed. These are dark times. Bitterness and anger are coming out.

And all the while, people are trying to deal with the day to day. Loosing a job. A baby dying of SIDS. Dealing with health issues. Facing divorce. The death of a loved one. Spiraling addiction which touches every family in some way. All these things keep happening day by day by day. It is easy to be overwhelmed by darkness.

And here’s where the salamander comes in. In our youth, we may be idealistic. We may be led by our hopes and dreams. Eyes wide to the world like that young salamander. But the steady onslaught of life, day to day, and the wider influences in society and in the world can work on us. Change us. To cope, we may learn not to look. We may become hardened. Oblivious. Numbed to the darkness. Like the salamander, we, too, may lose our sight. Close our eyes. Narrow our focus. Block out the feelings, the events, and the horror that seem too unthinkable to incorporate into our reality. So we may find ourselves fabricating our reality. Making it smaller and narrower and blurred. We may choose to blind ourselves to what is going on because we don’t know how to respond; what to do. It’s too ugly.

It’s hard to know how to incorporate the harshness, the violence, the evil of reality into our worldview. I mean, what do we do with the fact that so far in 2016 in the United States, there have been 438 mass shootings involving 4 or more people shot in one episode? [https://www.massshootingtracker.org/about] That’s more than one mass shooting a day. What kind of world is this? So, we may just resort to closing our eyes. Burrowing into our individual silos of information. Blind to what is actually going on around us.

Advent reminds us that Jesus came into the world in dark times. He didn’t come when all was well, and people were all getting along, and everybody was living with dignity and self-determination. No. He was born in very dark times. The Roman Empire was oppressing its subjects. The Jews were living under the thumb of Rome with severe economic restrictions and extreme taxation. People were poor and had little means of empowerment or self-determination. And the religious community had pretty much resigned itself to cooperating so that things didn’t get worse. Times were dark. And that is when the light comes. When it is needed most. In the dark. The gospel of John tells us the light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it. Jesus is light in darkness. It’s no accident that Jesus’ birthday is celebrated in December. It is symbolic of his coming as light into dark times.

So, to truly appreciate Jesus and all that he can mean to us, we need to recognize the darkness in which we live. We need to name that darkness. And our need for the light.

The grotto salamander thrives in the darkness. Blindness is conducive to it’s survival in dark caves. The salamander does not need light to flourish. But it is not so with us. We are made to have our eyes open. To see. To understand. To be aware. We need light. Light which shines in the darkness. So, I invite us to embrace this season of darkness. To open our eyes to the darkness that is around us and within us. May we be willing to look with honesty. Fearless. True. Yes, the light still shines. But it shines in the darkness. And if we can’t see the darkness, we will likely be blind to the light as well. Amen.

Scripture Lessons: Isaiah 2:1-5 and Romans 13:11-14
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells

A reasonable effort has been made to appropriately cite materials referenced in this sermon. For additional information, please contact Lakewood United Church of Christ.

Date: Nov. 20, 2016 Thanksgiving Sunday
Scripture: Luke 17:11-19
Sermon: The Consequences of Gratitude
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells

Besides turkey, what will be on the Thanksgiving menu at your house? If you live in New England, squash will probably be served. In the west, expect salad. And in the south, yes, it’s macaroni and cheese. Now for the pies. There is the preeminent pumpkin. And here in the south, pecan and sweet potato. But in the northeast and mid atlantic regions, the number two pick is apple. And if you live in the west, it’s cherry. So, we have our preferences and we make our choices accordingly.

Now in the story we heard today about the ten people with leprosy who are healed, it appears there is also a choice to make. Give thanks. Or don’t give thanks. There is the one, the wrong one, by the way, the one who was hated and an enemy, who opts to return to Jesus and give thanks for his healing. And then there are the other nine who go on their way. So, what would we choose? Would we choose to go with the one or the nine? Let’s take a few minutes to think about that.

To give thanks or not to give thanks. Hm. What might be the consequences of our decision?

The one who gives thanks runs back to Jesus, throws himself on the ground, and pours forth his gratitude. The story ends with Jesus affirming that the man is not only cured, but he is saved, he is made whole. This man is not only free of his leprosy, but he is experiencing a whole change of life. He has a new orientation. He has been transformed by gratitude.

When we are grateful, when we give thanks, we are engaging in a powerful spiritual practice. To give thanks is to give up the illusion of self sufficiency. If we are thankful for our food, for instance,then we are led to think about those who have grown it, those who have harvested it, those who have transported it, those who have built the roads and trucks that carry it, those who work in the stores that sell the food, and of course, Earth itself that provides the food. So we see that we are dependent on lots of people and upon creation to sustain us. We don’t sustain ourselves. We are not self sufficient. We don’t take care of ourselves. We don’t pull ourselves up by our bootstraps. Gratitude helps us to see we are linked to the wider community, society, and Earth in a web of mutuality and interdependence.

When we give thanks we are acknowledging all that we are receiving and it is astounding. Each day, things happen, people help us, Earth nourishes us, and we receive and receive and receive. Gratitude helps us to see how gifted we are – by others and by creation. We see blessings abound. We see grace infiltrating our lives at every turn.

Being thankful helps us to see all that we are being given. Wow! Food, friendship, beauty, sunshine, work, play, so many things to be thankful for. Just think of all that we expressed in the Ritual of Thanksgiving. Such riches!

And when we affirm the abundance of life through gratitude, we move away from the illusion that we are wanting, that we don’t have what we need, an d that we are being shorted. Our reality shifts from one of scarcity to one of abundance. That’s what giving thanks does.

And then what happens? Seeing all that we have, and all that comes our way, we realize that we don’t have to hold on so tightly. We can open our hearts and our hands, and share with others. We uncover the generosity that is part of the image of God within us. We find ourselves giving and sharing and helping, and no longer afraid of what we are giving up or what we don’t have. Gratitude shifts our world view. We move from being self centered to being other centered. From a place of scarcity to a place of abundance. From individualism to the common good. From isolation to interdependence. Thanksgiving leads to a radical reorientation of life.

So, we think back to the story of the one with leprosy who came back to Jesus and the other nine who don’t. Perhaps the nine sense the power of gratitude. And they walk away because they don’t want to have their lives changed. They don’t want to see things in a new way. They just want to take their cure and go back to life as they knew it. But the one, the Samaritan, he doesn’t just want to be free of his disease. He is ready for a whole new life. For the faith that makes us whole. For the transformation that leads to our salvation.

Thanksgiving reminds us that we, too, have a choice to make. Will we align ourselves with the one, or will we stay with the nine? Each choice has consequences about who we will be and how we will live. Thanks or no thanks?

So, what will it be at your place? Turkey roasted? Smoked? Fried? And how about the pie? Amen.

A reasonable effort has been made to appropriately cite materials referenced in this sermon. For additional information, please contact Lakewood United Church of Christ.