Discern Care – Fully
March 13, 2016
Christ Church Episcopal, Norcross, GA
5th Sunday in Lent
Isaiah 43:16-21; Philippians 3:4b-14; John 12:1-8
(Gospel text is provided at the bottom of this post)
Have you ever been out to dinner with a group of friends you’ve known for a long time, or with family, and someone starts telling a story about a shared experience that happened years earlier? You get excited because it was such a special adventure that you’ll never forget! 
Then, as the story unfolds, there are variations in the storyteller’s version that don’t quite match your memory of what happened. Some of the details seem okay, but other aspects, like who actually did or said certain things, or when it happened in relation to other life-events, seem out of line. And while it isn’t exactly how you remember it, the teller is so sure of their version that there’s really no use in arguing about it. It’s their reality, after all.
We see those same kinds of variations in Biblical stories, including today’s gospel reading from John. While this story about the anointing of Jesus appears in each of the four gospels, they don’t all match up. For many people it can be confusing to have these different versions of the same story. When there are inconsistencies, it can create doubt about the validity of any of it!
Let’s Grow
February 28, 2016
Christ Church Episcopal, Norcross, GA
3rd Sunday in Lent
Exodus 3:1-15; 1 Corinthians 10:1-13; Luke 13:1-9
Today we heard the familiar story of Moses and the burning bush. The burning bush has become the quintessential symbol of God’s call to do God’s work in the world. In the story, we’re told that Moses is tending the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro. He’s just doing an ordinary thing on an ordinary day. He’s taken the flock beyond the wilderness and finds himself at Horeb, the mountain of God. Then Moses sees something that catches his eye… a bush on fire, yet not being consumed. And what does Moses do?
He doesn’t run away. He doesn’t ignore it and return to his flock. Instead, he says “I must turn aside and look at this great sight…” Moses TURNS and takes a closer look.
[Quick Sidebar: Remember that the root of the word repentance is μετανοέω (metanoeó) – to change direction, to TURN toward God. We are in the season of Lent, so the theme of repentance, of turning toward God, is everywhere! Even in this burning bush story!]
A New Thing?
January 31, 2016
Christ Church Episcopal, Norcross, GA
4th Sunday after Epiphany
Jeremiah 1:4-10; 1 Corinthians 13:1-13; Luke 4:21-30
(Gospel text is provided at the bottom of this post)
Although Lent hasn’t even started, it seems like today’s gospel has a Palm Sunday quality to it. 
We begin Palm Sunday with a joyous entry, waving palm branches as we recall the Hosannas that welcomed Jesus as he entered Jerusalem. Yet, by the end of the Palm Sunday service we endure the taunts of “Crucify him, Crucify him” in the Passion story.
In today’s lesson I can hear the Hosannas as Jesus returns to his hometown of Nazareth. He goes into the synagogue, reads scripture, and asserts that it has been fulfilled. We’re told that “all spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth.” Yet, by the end of the reading we hear that:
…all in the synagogue were filled with rage. They got up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill… so that they might hurl him off the cliff.
Palm Sunday, indeed! So what did Jesus say that was so disturbing? What turned their amazement into mutiny?
Well, let’s go back to last week’s gospel reading, which is where this all began. Jesus had been baptized, anointed by the Holy Spirit, tempted in the desert, and now “filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee.” He was teaching in synagogues and the buzz about Jesus had begun.
With Arms Wide Open
December 20, 2015
Christ Church Episcopal, Norcross, GA
The 4th Sunday in Advent
Micah 5:2-5a; Hebrews 10:5-10; Luke 1:39-55
(Gospel text is provided at the bottom of this post)
Three years ago I preached on this same passage from Luke’s gospel. I had just been ordained to the Transitional Diaconate a week earlier, and was back in Houston for Christmas break. I had been invited to serve as Deacon – for the first time – at St. Andrew’s, the parish that helped me on my vocational journey. I was a bit nervous and also thrilled to finally be doing what God had called me to do.
That day three years ago had begun three years before that. That’s when I made the decision to leave all that was familiar; to leave mother and father, brother and sisters and the rest of my family and friends. I left places of comfort, including the parish of St. Andrews, to embark on a new thing, in an unfamiliar place, where “what’s next” couldn’t be fully grasped.
St. Andrew’s Episcopal
So, to return to a familiar place after being ordained, surrounded by loved ones, those who supported me from afar, and to serve at that familiar altar – it was pretty surreal. I’m guessing Gretchen has some of these same feelings today, and I’m excited to see what the future holds for her.
jodygreenwood 