Happy Sunday on Armed Forces Sunday and the Sunday between Ascension Day and Pentecost. Our weather has been typical end of May, warm and humid followed by chilly and breezy; you just never know what lies ahead. We have enjoyed a wonderful spring and are looking forward to summer and all the possibility that lies there. We pray your families are well as school years draw to a close, a season turns from one to another, and we celebrate the blessings God has given us in our lives.

In worship, we celebrate the ascension of Christ as we remember that Jesus was taken to heaven with great fanfare. But we also remember that God did not leave us without hope in the in-between time; that the Holy Spirit has come among us to lead us on our mission for God. Our first reading from Acts was the account of Jesus’ ascension and the disciples asking if “now was the time when God would restore the kingdom of Israel.” Jesus offered them the reminder that their job is not to know the timing of the end times, but to serve as a witness of God’s power as long as they are able. The response from the Psalms reminds us that God will scatter our enemies if we trust God will do so. Peter’s first letter tells us a harsh truth – things won’t go our way all the time and we will be anxious about a lot. But Peter also tells us that God will carry our anxiety if we let God carry it. Our gospel is Jesus telling the disciples (and all of us) that the Spirit will come to support us in our ministry and bring real power to us.

Sometimes we wonder about the wrong things with regard to our relationship with God. We are reminded today that God has God’s part of our life on earth and we have ours. Our mission is to bear witness to the hope we find in God in this present moment – not before today and not after today – hope in this present moment.

I invite your comments,
Les+

Readings: Acts 1:6-14; Psalm 68:1-10, 33-36; 1 Peter 4:12-14, 5:6-11; John 17:1-11

Listen at: https://audiomack.com/fatherles-1/song/sermon-on-the-7th-sunday-of-easter

Video of sermon: https://youtu.be/pnm96ZMCnig

Video of worship: https://youtu.be/8YVnH-cljMU