Easter Sunday by Seventy Gil Martell

After the other women left, Mary was alone.   She wept for her dead beloved friend.  They had found the tomb empty.  Mary was crushed even further in her anger, disappointment, emptiness, and hopelessness.  She tried being strong, offering comforting to the others.  She hadn’t known her dear friend as long as them, being a new comer to his circle of friends.  She felt forsaken, fearing of what was to become of her now.

She hadn’t slept or eaten for days.  When she tried to eat, to satisfy the other women’s wishes, she became sick.  She was exhausted ready to collapse to the ground.  Her eyes were red and swollen, cheeks raw, and mouth dry with cracked lips.  She forced herself to breathe.   

She and the other women came to the burial site to finish burial anointing.  Discovering tomb open, body missing, and burial linens laying in the dirt, they feared grave-robbers had come in the night.  Mary shivered in the morning air and wrapped her shawl tighter, finding neither comfort nor warmth.  Horrified, broken, and distrait, Mary lost all sense of her surroundings.  Her pain pierced her, as if, it had been her body nails were driven into.  Sorrow and anger tangled in her mind as she tried understanding why her dear, kind, caring companion was so brutally killed - crucified.  

She wished her dear friend was still alive.  He accepted her for who she was and never judged her past.  He invited her into his intimate circle of friends and followers.  Many who had betrayed him, denied him, abandoned him, and hidden in fear.  She had hidden in fear, too.  Could she have done something to prevent his death?  Maybe she was the blame, for what she had been, that brought about the crucifixion.  Had she betrayed, denied, and abandoned him? 

He, yes he had accepted her.  Do the others truly accept her or do they just tolerate her, now to abandon her?  She had not always felt welcomed or approved by the community, especially the men.  She felt the others’ resentment as their teacher invited her on errands or to talk and pray together.  What was she to do?  She could not return to her old way of life.  Confusion and devastation rang loudly through her mind. Mary thought of her own death.

Deep in thoughts of despair, Mary was oblivious to the presence of someone with her.  But something within nudged her to look up.  Through her glazy-unfocused eyes she assumed it was the gardener.  “Do you know where they took him?”  Unsure if she spoke aloud or just thought it?

Then she heard her name. “Mary.  Mary it is I, Jesus, your beloved friend. I live, and now, I also live within you.

Mary’s mournful tears turned to tears of hope, being filled with the Spirit of Peace.  Bright morning sunlight comforted and warmed Mary.  Before her was a banquet of beautiful colors, sweet bird song, and her beloved friend, Jesus.  She wept tears of joy, rushing to tell the others that Jesus was alive. 

The biblical story of Jesus’ resurrection reminds us that Easter is also the celebration of OUR RESURRECTION in Christ’s Mission of justice and peace.  Jesus calls us to gratefully receive and generously share God’s blessings of joy, hope, love, and peace. 

Our lives, communities, country, and world are experiencing great exhaustion and fear from pandemics, the economy, civil unrest, violence, war, and the Climate Crisis.  And yet, we are called out of the pain and suffering to be filled with the Spirit of Peace.

Let truly celebrate Easter as Mary did, rushing forth, restored with peace, joy, and hope to share that CHRIST LIVES -- experiencing fuller God’s loving reign even now. 

Amen.

*Joy*, Because of Him by Lavera Wade

A friend gave me a card a few days ago, it said “Joy, because of Him”, as we celebrate the Easter season, and spring is in the air this card was certainly appropriate for the time.  But what is joy?

I recently read the difference between pleasure, and joy can be described as, pleasure is when something happens to you, it is all about you. Maybe an ice cream cone on a summer day, a walk near the river, the laughter of a child.  Joy is when something happens to you that is so wonderful, you feel you must share it with others.  A celebration, a wedding, a promotion, the birth of a child, a new puppy.

At Easter we celebrate Jesus’ sacrifice, and that he was risen.  The story of Jesus tells that he came to share the good news that God loves us.  Jesus also told us that we must love one another.  As disciples we try to live as best we can, in the example that Jesus lived.

“Be kind” seems to be the best we can strive for, as we go about our daily lives.  There is so much need in the world, one could feel overwhelmed and unable to think of what to do to help others.

On my way home every day, I come to an intersection where two roads merge, it would be almost impossible for those coming from the left to merge, if those on the right did not open up space by slowing or stopping.  Without exception, they do.  It is like a dance, who are these people who show such kindness?  Unknown strangers, who let others into traffic every day.  Kindness is the result of small, simple, actions.  We are all given the opportunity to show kindness to strangers, as we go about our lives.  Most often it takes a moment to move out of our busy minds, and notice what’s happening around us. Share a smile, or let someone in line.

We know joy because of Him, we share that joy by simple kindness shown to others.

Giving up Judgement for Lent by Lavera Wade

I grew up in the Methodist church and was not raised to practice abstinence as a part of the Lenten season.  After I was baptized in Community of Christ, I felt called to engage in a Lenten practice. 

Giving up chocolate did not speak me, so for that first year I gave up “the need to be right”.  As I told everyone. This is not forever, it is 6 weeks, with Sundays off.  It may not be perfect, but I will try.  It was an amazing experience, and when I tell the story I find many relate to my struggle with the need to be right.

It is many years later, and last year I chose to give up judgement.  This year I find I wish to complete more work on judgement.  It is not a topic you can explore in six weeks.  In fact, much of this last year has been learning about the topic.

Last year included a great deal of time and study that spoke of “it’s not all about me” and other studies such as white privilege and social justice.

I have not been spending a lot of time thinking about how judgmental I may be.  But how many of us can honestly say we are not, and where did the beliefs come from that result in judgmental attitudes.

I am reading and amazing book titled “Beguiled by Beauty, by Wendy Farley.”  The chapter on non judgement is what spoke to me about Lent this year.

In the book she speaks of being open to gentleness, patient with others who may be struggling and acting out.

Looking at the world with curiosity, as in” I wonder what that is all about.”  Rather than diving into prefabricated assumptions about what is happening around us.  Even if we are right, and others are wrong, contempt for others is damaging to the Spirit. 

And first and foremost, stop judging myself.

To quote Julian of Norwich (an ancient mystic) “Our Beloved Mother God does not condemn what she has made, and neither should we."

And so, a little abstinence during Lent, is an opportunity for introspection.  After all it is only six weeks with Sundays off, and does not have to completed perfectly, if one at least tries.

Or there is always chocolate.   

Meditation on Hymn “We Shall Overcome” By Roberta Tilden

 We shall overcome – I remember fervently singing this song when I was in high school.

I remember watching innocent people being beaten with clubs and attacked by dogs just because they wanted equal rights.  Been there done that.  I thought we had overcome fear and prejudice permanently. Wrong, wrong, wrong.  Here racism is rearing its ugly head again.

What is a person to do?

Fortunately those of us who belong to Community of Christ have a real vehicle for change at our disposal.  We have been encouraged to proclaim Christ and create communities of Joy, Hope Love, and Peace.

I do believe that we SHALL overcome one person at a time.

Walking hand in hand to create communities where people truly respect each other, and love diversity is our calling and our hope.

We can pray for peace but we must also work for peace.

Will we live in peace someday?  Perhaps that is up to you and me. 

Violence and racism can be catching, but so can Joy, Hope, Love, and Peace.  Live your commitment to the Christ and someday we will live in Peace.

Hope of a New Year by John VanDerWalker

 As 2021 comes to an end most of us are probably looking forward to 2022 with anticipation.  When we closed out 2020 a year ago most were quite optimistic about 21 thinking that we had been through the worst of the upheavals.  Well as we head into wave 5 of the pandemic, we look at 2022 with guarded hope.

Advent season, the time of waiting, is over.  Jesus is born!  The story of a baby born under questionable circumstances into a family in poverty under a brutal political regime and an unforgiving religious realm is a poignant reminder of how extraordinary God’s choice was with Mary and in the that place and that season of history.

Unlike Jesus, I am a part of the dominant culture in my society.  I have been employed my entire adult life and have always lived in a home, and while there have been times when things were a little tight, I have always been well fed and warm.  While my faith community at one time used questionable tactics to help me modify my behavior, I have never been oppressed in anyway by my religion, and the government I live under is in a constant state of reinvention, some of which I am thankful for and some—not so much.

The point I am trying to make is that the coming of Jesus means something different to me than it would to a teenager in Central America, a child in India or an Adult in Russia.  Yet, Jesus’ coming is universal in its promise of Joy, Hope, Love and Peace.  There can always be more Joy, more Love, more Hope and certainly more Peace.

The message of the angel to Mary and Joseph was to “Fear not.”  We may have much to fear because of how things are right now, but really most of us have enough and we are very blessed to have each other.  In the story of Jesus’ birth, we are reminded that Joseph and Mary faced the coming of their son alone and when they asked for help, there was no room for them.  But God provided community by calling shepherds to attend the family and men of means to help provide for the future. 

May the God who put the hope for humanity in the womb of a teenage Palestinian girl place the hope of a bright future for you, your family and congregation, in your heart as you celebrate the coming of Jesus.  Enjoy your time of celebration and as you spread the cheer of the season always remember, God is with us, around us, in us and binding us to each other and to creation.  What kind of love is that?

Love Kindness ..................................by Lavera Wade

November always speaks to us of the many things we are thankful for.  This last month I have been blessed by several strangers who have been kind to me in unexpected ways and how grateful I am for their help.

My husband I were unloading our utility trailer at the transfer station recently, when the young fellow unloading a truck next to us finished what he was doing, came over to us, and in a matter of minutes he helped my husband finish the job.

It is leaf cleanup time in the neighborhood and neighbors on both sides have been by several times to help me load their trailers and take the leaves to recycle.

Micah 6:8 speaks to us of what God requires of us, that we do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with our God.

Thankfulness for random acts of kindness by strangers are best rewarded by passing the favor on when we are blessed with the opportunity to help a friend or stranger.

Sometimes a kind or thoughtful word can make a strangers day.

I pray the Prayer of Examen each evening, as I thank God for the blessings of my day, I am as grateful to remember the opportunities to be kind, as I am for the kindness others show me.  

When we ask God that we may be filled with loving kindness, we often find we are blessed with moments when we are at peace with our world. 

This life is not about who we are individually, but who we are when we walk humbly with God, and trust that He will lead us in His ways. 

And so, in this season of cold, dark nights, may you be blessed with many opportunities to provide random acts of kindness to strangers and friends. 

It is about us………… by Lavera Wade

Many years ago, when I was new to Community of Christ, I was attending Discipleship Now, a two-year program devoted to everything a disciple might need to know.

The instructor that weekend was a well-known member of the leadership of the World Church, whom I had not met before.  As the class continued we were asked to raise our hand if we had thoughts to share.  At the time I was not comfortable with silence, and when a question was asked and no one responded for what seemed a long time I would raise my hand to offer my thoughts.  I had spoken a few times that morning, and once again I had my hand in the air, as no one had offered to speak, when the instructor turned to me and said “it is not all about you Lavera”.  I was flabbergasted and did not know what to say. I do not think I said much the rest of that weekend.

Years passed and every now and then I would think of that incident, not because I held a grudge, but with curiosity, what was the lesson in that incident.  I was beginning to think maybe I talked too much and would learn more if I learned to listen more.  I was recently attending a class that was preceded with the instruction. Please do not ask to speak a second time until everyone has shared.

Another year and another class and this thought was shared. 

When we have become indifferent to our need to be seen in the eyes of others as wise, then we are ready to receive wisdom from God.   

Another year passed and I was in a women’s meeting and we were sharing about people who had played a significant role in our faith journey. A woman spoke who shared about her grandparent, but she went on to say if she was to name a second she would name the minister who spoke at reunion many years ago, who at the end of his sermon he said  “Remember, it is not all about you”  I burst out laughing.  The next morning, I opened my morning meditation and the message read “It is God and I working together, that brings me to a place where I can serve as a faithful disciple.”  

I am not sure I will ever get over thinking events somehow are about me.  I have learned to listen more then I share, I am always working on keeping my ego out of the conversation.  Most of all I am grateful to a loving God who continues to teach me how to be a faithful disciple.