July 31, 2016 - Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost - Making Our Lives By What We Give

An exciting announcement today.  Chris and Susie will be married on October 26.  It is on a Wednesday, a sentimental nod that celebrates their 32nd anniversary.  (The wedding date has since been changed to November 2nd).

I thought back to October, 2012. On  October 6, 2012  Kim and Samantha were married in Creator's sanctuary, a first for Creator and became a memorable part of Creator’s history.

So much has changed going on four years.  Oregon law did not recognize Kim and Samantha's marriage at the time.  It was legally recognized because they were both Washington residents   As with most new experiences, there was trepidation mixed with resolve, just as in many weddings.   Many did not know what to expect. 

At Creator, this dovetailed in with the prior speculation about what our next steps might be as an RIC congregation after our Year of Hospitality. Most thought the congregation would gradually move from hospitality towards more advocacy in our RIC welcome.  However, on October 6th love in action completely overwhelmed what we previously imagined.

Pastor Dayle reminded those gathered then for the wedding on that beautiful October morning, “Marriage does not happen in isolation, it is a community thing”. The Creator community gave Kim and Samantha their recognition, love and support at the ceremony and beyond.  Kim and Samantha then beautifully shared their joy back with community.

Kim and Samantha's wedding day changed many of us forever. We were all invited to a unique awareness of God’s time and space, once again in Creator’s sanctuary. The day after the wedding Kim wrote about their feelings of “making this dream a reality” and that the blessing, love, commitment and reality of the marriage now couldn’t be taken away them.

It was also a reality that cannot and will not be taken away from Creator.  The cloud of witnesses was present, acknowledging, affirming and holy.   

I am looking forward to what I expect will be abundant sharing, celebration and love on Chris and Susie's special day.

For some reason, opening the service with Open The Eyes of My Heart this morning felt like a powerful prayer for that particular moment.  We are still seeing how including what was Creator Praise into worship will bear fruit.

Pastor Michelle started her sermon with a quote attributed to Winston Churchill:

We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.

She was preaching on the Gospel where a man says to Jesus "Tell my brother to divide to divided the family inheritance with me".  Jesus answers that he should not focus on an abundance of possessions and gives the parable of the rich man intending to build bigger barns.

Jesus ends by talking about how critical it is to be rich towards God   Having been in much prayer and thought about justice and what it looks like on earth, Luke 12:13-21 was like a refreshing drink or taking a breath of sweet air.  Being rich towards God - as a possibility of liberation, and a way of being intimately bound with the proverbial "other" - is a tonic. This kind of justice is an event rather than a transaction between "I" and "Thou".  While acknowledging the importance of fair distribution to also keep our perspective on what stays truly important.