Date: March 29, 2020
Scripture: John 11:1-45
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells
There’s another story in the Bible involving Mary and Martha. In that story, Mary sits at Jesus’ feet listening to him. And Martha is busy with much serving – making dinner, setting the table, etc. And she wants help from Mary. But Jesus reprimands her and affirms Mary as the one who has chosen the better portion. All of you who know me know I tend to be in the Martha camp and I don’t think she deserves the put down attributed to Jesus. But in this story, Martha shines. When Mary encounters Jesus, she manages, ‘If you had been here, Lazarus never would have died.’ But when Martha gets to Jesus, after her brother has been in the grave four days, she tells him, ‘If you had been here, my brother would never have died! Yet even now, I am sure that God will give you whatever you ask.’ Martha goes above and beyond. She expects something more. Her faith, hope, and trust lead her to look past what would normally be expected. She sees a new reality.
This past week, the President has informed us that he wants things back to normal by Easter. He wants people back to work by then and the pews full on Easter Sunday. That’s about two weeks from now. In that time, the President wants the disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic to be over. He wants us all freed from life on lock down. Roll away the stone. Come out of the tomb and get back to business as usual. He seems to have forgotten that he does not control this situation.
Business as usual. That is not what Martha wants. She knows her brother is dead. But she knows that there is more. There is something more than normal. She puts her faith to work expecting a new reality. And she gets it.
What if what we want in the face of this pandemic is not to go back to ‘normal’ but to expect something more. To see this as an opportunity for creating a new reality. Beyond usual expectations and business as usual?
Yes, thousands have died in this pandemic so far and thousands more will die. They will not get their physical health back.
But what if this pandemic means the death of limited access to healthcare in this country?
What if this crisis means the death of misspent resources?
What if it puts some greed and lust for gain in the grave?
What if this pandemic awakens our concern for children, elders, and those who are vulnerable? What if it resurrects our commitment to the common good over selfish individualism?
What if this coronavirus calls forth compassion for other people and other life forms?
What if it brings out patience?
What if COVID-19 calls to life solidarity in grief? What if it summons a reverence for nature?
What if this pandemic wakes us up to the value of reflection, rest, relationship, and play?
What if it renews our appreciation and respect for those who work in the healthcare sector?
What if we don’t go back to normal, but awaken to a new reality that is better than the one we knew?
Did you notice in the story of Lazarus that for the new reality to emerge Jesus practices social distancing! Think about it. The way the story is told, Jesus is informed that Lazarus is sick. Lazarus is Jesus’ dearly beloved friend. Surely Jesus’ first impulse is to go to his friend, to be with him, to heal him. That is what’s normal. But Jesus waits. Two whole days – which can seem like forever when someone is sick. By the time Jesus goes to Bethany, Lazarus has been dead for four days. Imagine the self discipline and the restraint that Jesus employs. He doesn’t go to his friend, he holds off, for a greater good. As usual, Jesus is our example!
Maybe the President wants things back to normal in two weeks. But our faith invites us to expect something more than “normal” to emerge from this pandemic. And it may require much more of us in terms of sacrifice and self discipline and restraint.
May our faith, hope, and trust persist and spread exponentially so that we may all see the power of Divine Love creating a new reality before our very eyes! Amen.
(Click HERE if you wish to see the post containing the video of this text.)
Date: March 22, 2020
Scripture: Genesis 12:1-5a
Poem: The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells
Well, in these corona days, we find that we are on a journey. And this COVID-19 is taking us on quite a trip! In the story we heard from Genesis, Abram is directed by God to journey to a new land, to start a new community, rooted in the justice and joy of God. While this journey is unexpected for the elderly Abram and Sarai and their family, it is a journey of promise. They are to be part of something big and important and new that God is doing. It is daunting but it is also exciting. COVID-19 feels nothing like that to me.
In the poem, we are also told of a journey. And almost arbitrarily, we are told of picking a path. The one less traveled. But that makes all the difference. In this poem, the writer choses the path and the way seems to be that of an adventure not a forced march or migration. And again, there is a sense of promise and possibility in the unknown.
As we face the unfolding of the corona virus pandemic, we find that we, too, are on a journey, but it is not of our own choosing. And we have little say about the route. We awake each day to new horrors in foreign lands and new restrictions in our own. We are not being called to this unforeseen path. It’s more like we are being hijacked or kidnapped. We have had no say-so in the direction or destination still very much unknown. It does not feel like we are adventuring into something new and promising. Given the tanking of the economy, this journey seems to be dominated by fear and dread.
But in times of peril and crisis there is opportunity. As followers of Jesus, our faith is rooted in serving others. In this crisis, we have the opportunity to reach out to others – not with our physical touch – but with our words, with images, and with prayers. There are people suffering the world over and next door and we can support them with our love and concern. The wonderful awful internet is the perfect tool for such a time as this. We can be in instant communication with the world – literally. We can video chat with those we cannot touch. When we are in the literal presence of others – in the doctor’s office, at the grocery store, with the cleaning person, the health aide, the delivery person, the housemates – we can offer support, gratitude, and encouragement.
We didn’t choose this journey. We didn’t select this path. And I don’t believe that there is a God creating this crisis. But we are needed to be people of compassion, love, and service in these times. For ourselves and for others. And, who knows, this experience may make us just a little more human and humane. Amen.
(Click HERE if you wish to see the post containing the video of this text.)
This week, and the coming Corona Sabbath, is Earth Week at Lakewood UCC. So in celebration there’ll be a daily hymn about the beauties of creation. There can’t be any hymn more arch-typical of the topic than this first one, All Things Bright and Beautiful, the melody of which is ROYAL OAK, a traditional English Melody, adapted by Martin Shaw, 1915. That link gives 5 verses plus the refrain, but I’ve stuck with the 3 versus and refrain of the New Century Hymnal.
The Week of April 20 – 26 includes EARTH DAY on Wednesday, April 22th, the 50 th Anniversary of the very first Earth Day held in 1970. To honor and celebrate this event and to show our support for our at- risk environment, LUCC Creation Justice Task Force would like to recommend a number of possible activities for you and your family to do together or individually on each day of Earth Day Week. On April 26 th at our 10:30 church gathering on Zoom, you will be asked to share what you did and how this activity made you feel and think about Mother Earth. We especially look forward to hearing from our children and youth!
Please feel free to add to this list and find other creative ways to celebrate Earth Day Week!
NON-ELECTRONIC ACTIVITIES – NOINTERNET OR COMPUTER NECESSARY
Take a walk or sit outside and observe the natural world around you for 15 – 30 minutes. Make a list or note what you observe
Stand barefoot or lie down in the grass or sand and feel the earth under you as you “Ground” yourself with the earth. Research has shown that allowing the bottoms of your feet, palms of your hands, or entire body to touch the earth may have health and mental health benefits. See https://www.healthline.com/health/grounding or search the net for other information
Write a Haiku poem about nature or the environment
Traditional Haiku Structure The first line is 5 syllables. The second line is 7 syllables. The third line is 5 syllables like the first. Punctuation and capitalization are up to the poet, and need not follow the rigid rules used in structuring sentences.
Draw, sketch, or photograph an image of one of your favorite animals, flowers, trees, or landscapes/seascapes of the natural world
Enjoy singing or listening to a hymn or song celebrating nature. Some examples,
For the Beauty of the Earth To You, O God, All Creatures Sing In the Bulb There Is a Flower Finlandia Home on the Range America the Beautiful Edelweiss
Plant a tree, bush, flower, or vegetable in a garden, a pot, or in your yard
Hug a tree – Even if we can’t hug each other now, we can hug and say thank you to our trees. Facts about trees: filter pollutants from the air, especially CO2 cool the air slow evaporation, save water, prevent erosion help the healing process – patients with trees out their window heal faster. reduce symptoms of ADHD, mental fatigue, and even violence in neighborhoods with more trees reduce level of fear.
Go through your house and eliminate any single-use plastics still in your drawers and cupboards
Eat a meatless meal one day
Use an item usually recycled or thrown in the trash and repurpose it for another use
Create an Altar with natural elements from outside your house, Light a candle, and use this blessing.
Climate Blessing – We Hold the Earth
We hold everyone who suffers from storms and droughts intensified by climate change. We hold all species that suffer. We hold world leaders delegated to make decisions for life. We pray that the web of life may be mended through courageous actions to limit carbon emissions. We pray for right actions for adaptation and mitigation to help our already suffering earth community. We pray that love and wisdom might inspire my actions and our actions as communities. So that we may, with integrity, look into the eyes of all living beings and truthfully say, we are doing our part to care for them and the future of the children. May love transform us and our world with new steps toward life. So may it be. Find more Climate Blessings for different faith traditions at www.faithclimateactionweek.org
ELECTRONIC ACTIVITIES – COMPUTER AND INTERNET ACCESSREQUIRED
After each web experience or activity, reflect on the experience by writing a brief paragraph, poem, or letter OR draw an image or picture that best describes how this experience has touched you, what you learned, and what action you might take based on this knowledge.
Attend a Multi-Faith Earth Day Service at the Washington National Cathedral co-hosted by the Interfaith Power and Light Organization on Sunday, April 19, 2020 at 2:00pm live on Facebook at http://facebook.com/wncathedral
Check out the Eat the Weeds website at http://www.eattheweeds.com/ See if you can identify any edible plants in your garden or neighborhood. Ruth and Claire regularly make Spanish Needle and Lemon Grass tea from their yard plants! Use the Search function at the right top of the website screen to see any of these plants and their use!
For many options to get involved and do one of them. Here is a sample script shared by leaders of the Green New Deal locally if you contact Mayor Kriseman (727-893-7201 or by email: mayor@stpete.org ) or the City Council of St. Petersburg ( 727-893-7117 or by email: council@stpete.org ) via email or phone Script: Hi, my name is __ and I’m a (local activist/resident of) ________ (St. Pete, Pinellas County, etc.). I am (calling/writing) to urge ______ (you/Mayor Kriseman/City Council/Councilman/woman X) to advocate for more funding for St. Pete’s Integrated Sustainability Action Plan in the upcoming fiscal year’s budget. I’m proud of St. Pete for the work we’re doing to become green and sustainable, but we need to do more to combat climate change as well as help foster social and racial justice and equity in our community. I would love to see this plan become more of a priority, and a blueprint for other cities in Pinellas County to do the same.
Go to the Eckerd College Environmental Film Festival website https://www.environmentalfilmfest.com/ and choose one film that you missed and would like to view. Kim liked Aga and Honeyland and Claire liked The Wall and the River.
These weeks when we cannot gather in person for Sunday worship, Lakewood United Church of Christ is providing brief weekly sabbath programs for you to listen to on your own or with those you live with. They will be posted on Friday so that you can schedule your sabbath time to suit your schedule and your spiritual inclinations. We hope these programs are of spiritual support to you in these difficult times.
Find a quiet place, inside or outside. Light a candle. Breathe. Be present.
You may begin by offering these words:
What we are confronted with, then, is a foreign land, a passage through a desert; testing and discernment. But in this same land, from which God is not in fact absent, the seeds of a new spirituality can germinate. This spirituality gives rise to new songs to the Lord.
–Gustavo Gutierrez
When you are ready, start the video below.
There is a scripture lesson and a brief meditation by Pastor Kim Wells followed by music offered by Music Director Hilton Kean Jones.
As you listen to the music from Hilton which follows, you are invited to pay attention to the thoughts and feelings and reflections that arise for you.
After viewing the video and listening to the music, you are invited to offer the following closing:
Fill me, joy of Jesus; anxiety shall cease,
and heaven’s serenity be mine, for Jesus brings me peace!
–from the hymn “Heal Me, Hands of Jesus” by Michael Perry
Breathe. Extinguish your candle and engage whatever may come with a sense of peace and a desire to serve.
This week, and the coming Corona Sabbath, is Earth Week at Lakewood UCC. So in celebration there’ll be a daily hymn about the beauties of creation. There can’t be any hymn more arch-typical of the topic than this first one, 
Lakewood United Church of Christ 