shoe shed pictures

Easter Sunday Freedom March 23, 2008

John 20:1-18
Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the cloth that had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. Then the disciples returned to their homes.
But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Who are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, `I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her.
A child was told to write a book report on the entire Bible. This is amazing and brought tears to my eyes. I wonder how often we take for granted that children understand what we are teaching??? Through the eyes of a child Children’s Bible in a NutshellIn the beginning, which occurred near the start, there was nothing but God, darkness, and some gas. The Bible says, ‘The Lord thy God is one, but I think He must be a lot older than that. Anyway, God said, ‘Give me a light!’ and someone did. Then God made the world. He split the Adam and made Eve. Adam and Eve were naked, but they weren’t embarrassed because mirrors hadn’t been invented yet. Adam and Eve disobeyed God by eating one bad apple, so they were driven from the Garden of Eden. Not sure what they were driven in though, because they didn’t have cars. Adam and Eve had a son, Cain, who hated his brother as long as he was Abel. Pretty soon all of the early people died off, except for Methuselah, who lived to be like a million or something.
One of the next important people was Noah, who was a good guy, but one of his kids was kind of a Ham. Noah built a large boat and put his family and some animals on it. He asked some other people to join him, but they said they would have to take a rain check.
After Noah came Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Jacob was more famous than his brother, Esau, because Esau sold Jacob his birthmark in exchange for some pot roast. Jacob had a son named Joseph who wore a really loud sports coat.
Another important Bible guy is Moses, whose real name was Charlton Heston. Moses led the Israel Lights out of Egypt and away from the evil Pharaoh after God sent ten plagues on Pharaoh’s people. These plagues included frogs, mice, lice, bowels, and no cable. God fed the Israel Lights every day with manicotti.
Then he gave them His Top Ten Commandments. These include don’t lie, cheat, smoke, dance, or co vet your neighbor’s stuff. Oh, yeah, I just thought of one more: Humor thy father and thy mother
One of Moses’ best helpers was Joshua who was the first Bible guy to use spies. Joshua fought the battle of Geritol and the fence fell over on the town.
After Joshua came David. He got to be king by killing a giant with a slingshot. He had a son named Solomon who had about 300 wives and 500 porcupines. My teacher says he was wise, but that doesn’t sound very wise to me.
After Solomon there were a bunch of major league prophets. One of these was Jonah, who was swallowed by a big whale and then barfed upon the shore. There were also some minor league prophets, but I guess we don’t have to worry about them.
After the Old Testament came the New Testament. Jesus is the star of the New Testament. He was born in Bethlehem in a barn. (I wish I had been born in a barn, t too, because my mom is always saying to me, ‘Close the door! Were you born in a barn?’ It would be nice to say, ‘As a matter of fact, I was.’)
During His life, Jesus had many arguments with sinners like the Pharisees and the Republicans. Jesus also had twelve opossums. The worst one was Judas Asparagus. Judas was so evil that they named a terrible vegetable after him.
Jesus was a great man. He healed many leopards and even preached to some Germans on the Mount. But the Republicans and all those guys put Jesus on trial before Pontius the Pilot. Pilot didn’t stick up for Jesus. He just washed his hands instead.
Any way’s, Jesus died for our sins, and then came back to life again. He went up to Heaven but will be back at the end of the Aluminum. His return is foretold in the book of Revolution.
I have been thinking a lot about freedom lately. It seems to me that the world on many different levels craves to be free. What got me thinking about it was a billboard I have seen on the interstate that says one right turn to freedom and it has a Harley Davidson Motor Cycle in the center of the add. The message saying that buying a motor cycle that costs more than my parents’ second house will give you a ticket to be free.
I like Harley’s as much as anyone to It started me thinking about true Freedom. Poor people want to come to free. People risk everything to come to America to be free. People work 80 hour weeks to have financial freedom. People in their jobs feel trapped and just wish they could be free, free from tyranny, free from strife and war, free from family obligations, free from financial worry, we all dream of being free. G Campbell Morgan says, the purpose of life is not to find freedom but your Master. I started to think where is true freedom held. In the cross, in the tomb and in the arms of Jesus, In the whipped, bloody and resurrected arms of Jesus.

We have walked through the sand for 6 weeks and now we are standing at the foot of the empty tomb. The butterfly has left the building. He is Risen Alleluia, Little Bird it is time to fly Alleluia.
In our Easter Joy we have a choice, we can search and spend our lives looking for the elusive freedom that slips through our hands like rain water in cupped hands or we can stand at the feet of Jesus and say real Freedom is only I you. The world can not hold us, the tomb can not hold us, death can not hold us if we are held by you. If our treasure, if our heart, if our freedom is only in God then whatever tragedy, what ever financial catastrophe, what ever overwhelming event comes our way. We will know that God is our guide and our all.
May true freedom be your this Easter Day and always.
In the name of God

Lent 5 March 9 2008

May the Choirs of Angels come to greet you. May they speed you to paradise. May the Lord enfold you in his mercy. May you find eternal life.Give rest, O Christ, to your servant(s) with your saints,
where sorrow and pain are no more,
neither sighing, but life everlasting.

You only are immortal, the creator and maker of mankind;
and we are mortal, formed of the earth, and to earth shall we
return. For so did you ordain when you created me, saying,
“You are dust, and to dust you shall return.” All of us go down
to the dust; yet even at the grave we make our song:

Give rest, O Christ, to your servant(s) with your saints,
where sorrow and pain are no more,
neither sighing, but life everlasting.

The First Song is from the Roman Catholic funeral service, I have loved the melody which is like a ribbon from our heart prayers to God who we trust holds the loved one we are praying for and missing
The second song is from our service both are part of the commendation where we commend, we entrust for their care or preservation.

Today’s reading center on life and death. They show us for God how close the two are to each other. The gospel shows us the mix in Jesus of Truly God and truly man. Here is Jesus weeping at the death of his friend and at lack of faith and distrust in those who love him. He knows that Death is not how this story ends.

For us this Gospels puts it in front of us and the 1st century believers. How strongly do you believe in resurrection? Is this just a story to make us feel better or do we really believe this. I’m putting all my eggs in one basket on this one. When the God/Man says I am the resurrection and the life. I believe him
In 14 days we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. This is a fore shadowing of that happening. Jesus cries and says to his friends and followers roll the stone back and they say but it will stink. He says trust me and miracles will happen.
Here is my question. What’s hiding behind the stone that’s keeping you from resurrection? From that life giving relationship from Christ in the middle of your heart and your life. What is keeping you and me from new life in Christ? I believe many of us are dead long before we die and I believe that many of us a live with Christ long before we rise from the dead.
Jesus stands at your heart where the stone has closed any chance for God to get to you and Jesus says “Don’t be afraid, Roll the stone back and let me in.” Come to me, rest in me abide in me and I will be your strength and I won’t win the fight for you but I will arm you with peace, joy and hope. With perseverance and the ability to be and know that with faith and trust in me all things are possible.
May the Choirs of Angels come to greet you. May they speed you to paradise. May the Lord enfold you in his mercy. May you find eternal life.

Give rest, O Christ, to your servant(s) with your saints,
where sorrow and pain are no more,
neither sighing, but life everlasting.

You only are immortal, the creator and maker of mankind;
and we are mortal, formed of the earth, and to earth shall we
return. For so did you ordain when you created me, saying,
“You are dust, and to dust you shall return.” All of us go down
to the dust; yet even at the grave we make our song:

Give rest, O Christ, to your servant(s) with your saints,
where sorrow and pain are no more,
neither sighing, but life everlasting.

In the name of God

Lent 4 Laetare (Rejoice Sunday) Mid lent Blind March 2, 2008

The Lord does not see as mortals see. Paul says once you were in darkness but now in the Lord you are inn light.
Jesus says if you were born blind there would be no sin in that but you claims to see yet your sin remains.
We are called this mid lent, this Laetare Sunday to rejoice. The custom in the tenth century came from a custom of carrying a rose on the 4th Sunday of lent to take a break from the stick and stark observance of lent. I think the reading this Sunday lends well to the theme of reprieve from dark and stark as we look at light and where the Sin of blindness really comes from.
The custom in many European countries is to celebrate Mid-lent from the Wed before Laetare Sunday to the Wed after. Apprentices in London would be given this week to go home to their baptismal church and bring a gift of flowers to their church mother and then do acts of kindness to their earthly mother. This fits very well into Canon Johnnie Ross and his visit to us on Monday Tuesday and Wednesday. His topic of Holy conversations is all about how we prepare ourselves to rejoice in Christ, how we put on Christ and how we see with the new eyes of Christ. Because isn’t being a follower of Christ about being Christ like, about seeing the world as Christ would. You know the slogan what would Jesus do? Well the first step is to see like Jesus sees.
I believe Jesus calls us in the scriptures today to put on his eyes. We are called as followers of The Christ to put on the Eyes of Christ. To see the world as Jesus sees the world. That the believers who put on Christ can never go back to seeing the world the same way again. There is no glass half full in the kingdom of God, there is no sacristy in the Kingdom of God only abundance, the harvest is rich, the fields are ripe the work is before us.Our job as believers is to see. It reminds me of the scene in The Kevin Costner classic “Field of Dreams” where Kevin Costner and the whole family see only these ghost baseball players but no one else can and in one of the final scenes one of the in laws trying to talk reason to Kevin has a life and death moment and suddenly can see what everyone else could see and he says where did all these people come from.

We need to see people differently with the eyes of Christ, we need to see the world differently we need to see ourselves differently. God tells Samuel the Lord does not see with mortal eyes. The Sin is not in physical blindness, the sin is in spiritual blindness. The sin is in missed opportunity, the sin is in lack of faith and lack of trust.
So we take a mid lent break from bleakness and we spend a holiday/ Holy day focused on the light in a couple short week we will celebrate the first service of Easter on Holy Saturday at 7pm we will have the Easter Vigil. We will light the Easter candle off the flames of the new fire which we will burn the palms from last year with our timeline and we will march into a dark church and sing the light of Christ as your candles are lit off the new easter light. We will sing the Exulted which uses Rejoice about 100 times. We will bless the Easter water and renew our baptismal vows and we will be bathed in the new Easter light of Christ. Let us prepare well to see the world with Christ’s eyes to tell the world that sin and death no longer hold us but that in Christ all things are possible. My motto from ordination is from Paul‘s letter to the Galatians, My soul is not my own for Christ dwells within me.

In the name of God

Holy Week Schedule

Here is the Holy Week Schedule

March 16 -Palm Sunday -Liturgy of the Palm 8am Rite I (Traditional Language) and 10 am Rite II (Contemporary Language)

March 19 – Wed eve Eucharist 6:30 pm

March 20 -Maundy Thurs ( With washing of the feet) 7pm

March 21 -Good Friday – 10am Morning prayer with Communion from the reserve sacrament – 1pm Good Friday service with Communion – from the reserve sacrament- 7pm Stations of the cross with communion from the reserve sacrament

March 22- Holy Saturday – 9am Easter egg hunt with a visit from the Easter Bunny - 7pm The great Vigil – (the 1st Liturgy of Easter)

March 23 Happy Easter – 8am and 10 am

Have a blessed Lent and Easter – Call with questions -(608) 837- 3308

God bless,   Fr. Mike