For Sunday, March 23, 2025,
Readings: Exodus 3:1-15, Psalm 63:1-8, 1 Corinthians 10:1-13,
Luke 13:1-9
There the angel appeared to [Moses]
in a flame of fire out of a bush...the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed...When
the LORD saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the
bush..."...Remove your sandals...for the place you are standing on is holy
ground." [Exodus 3:2, 4b, 5b]
My soul clings to
you, your right hand holds me fast. [Psalm 63:8]
[O]ur
ancestors...all ate the same spiritual food and all drank...from the spiritual
rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ...Do not become idolaters as
some of them did... [1 Corinthians 10:1b, 3b, 4b, 7a]
"Do you
think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were worse sinners
than all other Galileans? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all
perish as they did"..."A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard;
and he came looking for fruit on it and found none. So he said to the
gardener...Cut it down!" [The gardener] replied, "Sir, let it alone
for one more year, until I dig around it and put manure on it. If it bears
fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down." [Luke
13:2-3, 6-7b, 8]
What possibilities
does life hold today? Limited or Endless? Have I simply decided that I can’t or
is it merely that I won’t? That is, has my finite mind has decided
what I can and cannot do and so no extra thought is required? I can comfortably
go through the day, the week, the month with the same old mindset of poor
tragic me or even YAY, Fabulous ME, and everything in between. I can sigh away
in the desert of my sameness or boast of my successes and post either and all
on Facebook. And isn’t it always just a bit of a shock when someone challenges
my personal and most-knowledgeable perspectives? Who knows better than me,
especially about me? The lessons for this week remind us that even the most
sincerely humble of us need to have our consciousness raised.
When he
realizes that God is speaking directly to him, Moses is overwhelmed before the
burning bush. Raised as a prince of Egypt yet knowing and clinging to his
Hebrew roots, keeping sheep was the job he knew how to do quite comfortably, no
extra thought required. Now God was giving him a task beyond his self-imagined
abilities ~ Who am I to go to Pharaoh? We can imagine the
reluctance of Moses, with a speech impediment among other seeming limitations,
to go back to face Pharaoh with outrageous demands. But of course God knew
Moses better than Moses knew himself. And God assured him over and over and
over that God was always present.
Paul
tells us that God gave those brought out of Egypt by Moses all the spiritual
food and drink they needed and yet, though filled with God's grace and
goodness, many failed God through intentional sin and were struck down. By
those being struck down in putting God to the test, we
are given one example of discounting God’s instruction. Christ is the rock,
says Paul, the Messiah that guides us all IF, we are open to the likelihood
that not everything will be comfortable in this life. What are the oppressive
pharaohs we have created for ourselves, the idolatry of gain or limit that we
use to stunt our own spiritual growth? The key is: God through Christ is always
present to help if we choose to seek him.
Jesus
says that just because some Galileans suffered doesn't mean they were worse
people than others and reminds the listeners ~ and us ~ to repent, to turn to
God. Will we be spared hardship and suffering in this life? No, but intentional
contrition and penitence, consciously walking towards God in what we say and do
is what we are called to in this human existence. Even when we slip off the
track, there is limitless forgiveness and patience in Christ once we awaken to
and acknowledge our turn off the right path, and then return to it.
The
owner of the vineyard reprieves the fig tree and the gardener will work hard to
save it from destruction. The tree will have to respond to the nutrients, the
food and drink in order to be saved. Christ is our perpetual gardener, always
tilling and toiling to give us endless possibilities for eternal life. How will
I respond? What am I willing to nurture and prune in my life to give my mind
and heart to Christ? I already have all the spiritual food and drink that I
need if I learn to recognize it.
LET
US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY
Leader: ~ O God, our God, our souls were seeded with your gift of
Free Will before our birth, and Christ provided us with the spiritual food and drink
to bring us to full flower. Fill us with the saving joy of ongoing repentance,
making choices to prune our unhealthy branches, so as to bear the ripe fruit of
Your love.
O
Lord of Loving-Kindness
RESPONSE: Our Constant, Eternal Helper
~ O
God, our God, root us so deeply in Your Holy Ground that we may not add to
or be consumed by the violence and hatred of race, religion, gender, ethnicity,
and all that damages any of Your children. We pray for all who govern in this
World, in this Nation, and in this Community to lead us out of inhumanity and
injustice, especially for: add your own petitions
O
Lord of Loving-Kindness
Our Constant, Eternal
Helper
~ O
God, our God, nurture the hope of all who suffer with chronic pain,
debilitating anxiety, or a frightening diagnosis, and revive the spirits of
their caregivers. We now join our hearts to pray for those in need…
add your own petitions
O Lord of Loving-Kindness
Our Constant, Eternal Helper
~ O
God, our God, gather the grieving under the shadow of Your wings, as our
faithful departed now live again with contentment and joy in their souls, and
life everlasting in You. We pray especially for: add your
own petitions
O Lord of Loving-Kindness
Our Constant, Eternal Helper
~
O God, our God, we pause in this moment to offer You our other
heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials, aloud or
silently… add your own petitions
O Lord of Loving-Kindness
Our Constant, Eternal Helper
~ O
God, our God, we give you thanks for all those anointed as the tillers of
our inner gardens. Grant them the tools to cultivate our spiritual hunger and
relieve our thirst for your grace, allowing Your work within us to continuously
sprout and thrive. We pray especially for: add your own
petitions
O Lord of Loving-Kindness
Our Constant, Eternal Helper
The
Celebrant adds: Lord God of the Past, the Present, and Forever,
release us from the idolatry of the oppressive pharaohs we create for
ourselves, that turn our souls away from Your constant Presence. Renew our
eagerness to seek and follow Your instructions, that we may flourish in Your
faithfulness as Your right hand always holds us fast. We ask through Jesus, the
Rock of our Salvation; and the Holy Spirit, the Blazing Flame of our Faith; who
together with You are One God, now and forever. Amen.
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