Learning and Reaching Out Together in Love
Our scripture from Philippians 1 is a wonderful reference for our theme today – Learning and Reaching Out Together in Love.
Philippians is written while Paul is in prison. He is being persecuted for his beliefs as a Christian. Paul’s faith is real even though he lives in troubled times. These letters express the challenges and heartache of being a Christian but the lst letter if full of hope even as he writes from prison.
We can imagine the early church community of Philippi gathering together in the market square to hear a letter from their leader Paul. He has journeyed with them since their formation. They remember his teachings and encouragement. They are eager and excited to hear his words, just like the anticipation we feel in opening a card or an email from a friend.
The beginnings of Paul’s letters in Scripture are beautiful. His opening words are full of promise, hope and thanksgiving as he reflects on the gifts and strengths of his community of faith. He opens his letter with prayer giving God thanks for the people in the community and their faith as they help in spreading the Good News and Christ’s light to the world.
Chapter 1 contains the longest greeting recorded in Scripture. Paul’s words reflect a wonderful relationship he had with these people.
He points to the challenges ahead. He encourages them to ready and faithful during the crucial time to come. He advises them to let their life overflow with love for others.
Mission is all about reaching out to difficult situations and places. As Living Faith tells us “Mission is service, a call to help people in need and to permeate all of life with the compassion of God. When we reach out, we share the Good news of Christ. We share God’s love by our actions and our words.
Reaching out begins with love. It begins with the strength we find in learning and serving together. As Paul whispers from prison, he prays that the Philippians will overflow in their love for God. He writes “May your love overflows more and more with knowledge and =insight and help you determine what is best. For us we need to love before we know can help and we need to serve others to help with decisions we make. When we are willing to reach out in love, we will find ourselves in places and meeting people we never expected. By God’s grace we step in a whole new world.
Rev Scholey who created this Mission Awareness Sunday Worship talks about the worlds that she has stepped into. She recounts her time in the world of disability and rehabilitation when her father became a quadriplegic; She talks about the world of multiple children when she and her husband became parents to triplets She shares her experiences in the world of relief and development through her work with PWSD.
In all cases she points out there are things she did not know about these worlds and wondered why she was so out of touch. But in each experience she tells us you learn so much and your life is forever changed by the experiences you incur in the midst of the world. ‘Every one of us is enabled by God to step into worlds that we never expected to enter. We can enter the worlds of a new career, of parenthood, relationships, worlds of grief or illness, worlds of leadership, mission and service. Each time we step into one of these worlds as a person of faith, we seek to figure out why we were called to do this as our eyes are opened to new things. When our compassion and love grows, we gain knowledge and insight in how we can help by developing new relationships and partnership with people and new ways to reach out.
Like Paul who drew strength knowing others were praying for him while he was in prison we can draw and be lifted up by the prayers and the strength of others who help us in time of need, crisis or grief.
When we travel or support projects through PWSD, WMS or PS we learn that people are grateful to Canadians who are praying for them and caring enough to help them. Mission is more than a transfer of money. It is asking what people need and how they draw on the strength of our prayers and our support. We also draw strength from knowing them and hearing their stories. We can be blessed by knowing their determination, their faith and their willingness to reach out and make things better for their communities. Examples Laura used were her work with Farmers in Guatemala who taught each other to use new farming practice or a volunteer home based care workers as they cared for people with Aids and HIV in their own community.
Relationships are also built in local mission and outreach. In love for our community, we share time and resources and figure out how to meet needs. I can think of some things our Church has done that show our love for others – our support for our local food bank and the SnowSuit Fund; our local hospital. Supporting and Encouraging our Presbytery as they plan to bring a Syrian Refugee family to this community; our support to special PS projects such as Haiti and supporting business opportunities for women in Malawi. One Mission Project that I will always remember is Cans for CanHave, where our extra coin and pennies helped support a project of Rev MCPhee in Uganda. Our church raised over $3000 for CanHave.
The needs of our communities and the world can be overwhelming. We may not feel that we have enough resources, energy or know how to reach out in Mission. But we have been called by God to love others and play a role. By working together in Mission we can do work locally and globally by learning from one another and as Paul suggests we can overflow with compassion. As we work in Mission we seek to bring the Good News Christ spoke about --where the last are first and there is abundant life for all. We let God’s light shine through us and we see people around us near and far , similar and different as God’s beloved children,
As Christians we are called in his name to pray, help, hope and have faith. Paul challenged the Philippians and all of us to continue our food work and to grow in love. He wrote; “the God who began the good work in you will bring it to completion in Christ. With the eyes of faith it is possible. Paul is confident in God’s activity among the Philippians and in the early church long ago. His words speak to us today.
Last week I was listening to Ideas on CBC radio. Adrienne Clarkson was talking about the discovery of the heart and how it people and not government or policies that make a good society. She said that God is not an old man with a beard in the sky. God is love and whoever lives in love, lives in God and God lives in them. Love comes from the Greek word agapay and we need to live in a world filled with justice, equality, forgiveness, compassion. We need to think of love as a paradise around the corner. We need to experience all what life gives us in absolute joy and she closed her presentation that she hoped that was your life’s experience.
How many are watching the Stanley Cup Playoff’s. Yesterday in the Ottawa Citizen there was a story about the Pittsburgh Penguins goal tender Matt Murray. In his first interview he told reporters his NHL idol was Alex Ault, a retired journeyman goal tender in the NHL. As a kid growing up in Thunder Bay there were 4 teams with two goaltenders each. Hockey was an expensive sport and especially for goaltenders and with all teams being travelling teams it was even more expensive for families. When Matt was 13 Ault purchased each of the 8 goaltenders of the time their equipment and he was one of them. When Ault found out, he said it was really cool to see someone you did something nice for while growing up be appreciative of it and take and turn it into a pro career. This is what mission is all about == doing something for someone else and not expecting anything in return for your good works.
Live out you many callings to love and work and serve. How can we a God’s people, as a church, as an organization or as an individual overflow in love and reach out in mission. The God that started the God work in you will finish what He started.
Do one thing for a Better World
Tolerance
How far you go in life depends on you being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving and tolerant of the weak and the strong. Because someday in life you will have been all of these. Tolerance is giving to every other human being every right that you claim for yourself.
Equality
Martin Luther King Jr. I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit together at the table of brotherhood.
Freedom
Freedom--no word was ever spoken that has held out greater hope, demanded greater sacrifice, needed more to be nurtured, blessed more the giver. . . or came closer to being God's will on earth. Freedom consists not in doing what we like, but in having the right to do what we ought. Pope John Paul II
Humanity
Each day holds a surprise. But only if we expect it can we see, hear or feel it when it comes to us. Let’s not be afraid to receive each day’s surprise whether it comes to us as sorrow or as joy. It will open new places in our hearts, a place where we can welcome new friends and celebrate more fully our shared humanity.
Malala: "I want my child to walk in a world guided by love. This means that everybody will have a job, or the resources to take care of basic needs. A world where families are not oppressed and are connected to their neighbors and their communities, where the best in humanity is honored. That's when we will truly be at peace."
Justice
Observe good faith and justice toward all nations. Cultivate peace and harmony with all.
Finally, let understand that when we stand together, we will always win. When men and women stand together for justice, we win. When black, white and Hispanic people stand together for justice, we win. Bernie Sanders
Summary with Gwen’s Picture: Learning and Reaching out in love
Jesus is our Friend
Companion for All time
Giver of Joy
Unending forgiveness
Unconditional love
Compassionate
Infinite patience
Faithful
trustworthy
Let us pray
Live out you many callings to love and work and serve. How can we a God’s people, as a church, as an organization or as an individual overflow in love and reach out in mission. The God that started the God work in you will finish what He started.
Thanks be to God. Amen.