Welcome

2 Corinthians 5:1-5

Welcome. 

Welcome to the next step in our collective journey. Today is a new day. It has not been. It is here now. Welcome to this day.

There is reason for joy today. I know that may seem hard to believe considering the past week’s chaos--floods in Colorado, a shooting in Washington, DC, the ongoing war in Syria, the uproar in Egypt, the continued gridlock in our government, and all the rest of the ongoing litany of all that is wrong. Joy? Where does that come? 

Breathe. You are alive. God is with you. God’s creative Spirit continues to mold and shape you. God’s love is present.

Look around you. You are not alone. You are in the presence of friends. You are in the embrace of family. Love is present in these people.

Breathe. There is nowhere else to be. There is nothing else to do. We are here in this moment, in this sanctuary, whatever and wherever that place may be. It is peaceful and quiet. There is time to pray, to open ourselves to God, to listen for the whispers of God’s wisdom. The day will wait for us. 

Look before you. Look at all the useful things there. You may be in your  kitchen. There is food before us. You may be in your room. There are clothes, shoes, a place to lie down, and all else for our comfort and care before us. Wherever you are, there are useful things there. It is providence laid before us--a sacred meal. It is God’s own provision for us. It is God’s nourishment for our being. You are fed. You are nurtured. You are loved.

Breathe.

See?

There is reason for joy in this moment. Despite all else, there is reason for joy here and now.

Remember this even as we reenter the world, as our schedule, to-do list, and other people begin to ask us to do things, be places, and answer their needs. You can breathe anywhere, anytime. God is with you anywhere, anytime. God’s creative Spirit is with you all the time. 

Now, come back to this moment, this place. Be here. 

Feel the presence of the people around you. Feel your presence with them.

What can you offer someone today? 

We are so ready with the reply, “I have nothing to offer.” Let that thought go. Each of us has a treasure trove to offer to others. 

We have the ability to listen. Our world and time are so noisy, so preoccupied, so distracted, that actually hearing one another is a rare experience, indeed. When someone speaks to you today, give them the gift of paying attention to what to say. Do not interrupt, do not immediately shift the conversation to yourself--listen. The gospels agree that when Christ encountered another person, he listened first. He listened well enough to hear what they said, and, more importantly, what their words implied about what was happening with them, to them, and around them. He listened, giving them the chance to say who they were and what they were. We can do that, too. That is such a gift. 

We have the ability to be present. Dr. Judith Jordan, a psychiatrist at Harvard Medical School, made a remarkable comment at the conference Alison and I attended--

It should come as no surprise that our society is dysfunctional and hurting--we proclaim the absolutism of      

        individualism, ignoring the fact that by biology we are a connectional species. 

Being present brings healing to our being because it restores the connectionalism. Of course, this is true in our homes with our partners and our families, but it is also true in every circumstance where there is more than one person present. Being present for the people in the check-out line offers them love. Being present for the people waiting for a table at a restaurant brings them loving kindness. Smiling at the clerk at the drug store acknowledges her reality as a human being. Even these simple gestures of being present carry powerful transformation and transcendence because they connect us to the people around us. That connection is powerful because it makes the unknown more known, alleviating fear, which, in turn, is the cause of so much pain in our world. When fear is the base from which we work and live, we are immediately estranged from one another. Note that Christ again and again reached to those whom his disciples feared--lepers, Samaritans, Church authorities, Roman soldiers--to all of these Christ offered presence. As he did so, he removed the basis for lethal fear, giving everyone the opportunity to fully engage with one another.

So, you see? You have more than enough to offer.

Now, breathe. Come back to this moment, this place.

God is with you. God’s creative Spirit continues to work within you. There is hope. There is peace. This room, wherever it is, truly is a sanctuary of God. Be here. Be present. Listen for the voice of God in the gathering.

You are welcome.

You are loved.

All shall be well and all manner of things shall be well.