Good afternoon and blessings from Chuckatuck on the 25th Sunday of Coronatide – as we find ourselves nearly two-thirds of the way through 2020. The days are flying along and are finding the next “new normal” in our life in 2020. We are thankful for the Parish and the members, near and far, that have helped us through these trying times. While we haven’t been perfect we have tried to bridge the gaps between what we knew and what we need to do today. May God bless you as we start reaching for the down side of 2020.
In worship today we reflected on the practice of true religion, or better the practice of a true faith. We heard enduring stories from Scripture which should help lead us in our lives. Paul’s letter to the Romans reminds us that we are supposed to focus on the good and not the evil. If someone wrongs us or does evil to us, it’s not our place to extract and eye-for-an-eye; rather we are called to love and reach out for God is in charge of the punishment meted to the evil in the world. In Matthew’s gospel we (possibly) heard Jesus call Peter satan (or Satan) and acting as a stumbling block in the accomplishment of Jesus’ mission in the world. We are reminded that God’s plans are often outside our understanding and we need to try to stay out of God’s way. In our story from Exodus it is easy to focus on the burning bush and God’s theophany. But the story of Exodus is the mysterious ways that God interacts with humans – not mysterious to God but often hard to understand by humans. But God also assures us that God sees, hears, and experiences our pain – and will lead us if we stay related in the mystery. How are you asked to embrace what you can’t adequately describe but know as true with regard to God?
I invite your comments,
Les+
Readings: Exodus 3:1-15; Psalm 105:1-6, 23-26, 45c; Romans 12:9-21; Matthew 16:21-28
Today’s worship video: https://youtu.be/Xlw7faqfWYE
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