A) Pulls over to the nearest gas station right away to fill up the tank;
B) Keep on driving, “I have a big tank — I think” tempting fate
C) Keep on driving but try not to use the accelerator too much - after all, you can make the next 20 miles home.
Now I’d like for you to imagine how it feels to have a full tank of gas. Do you lean on the accelerator just a bit more? Does having that full tank give you just a bit more “edge,” “control,” or security as you travel to your destination? It’s interesting, isn’t it? Like it or not, there seems to be a big gap between “full” and “empty,” and it does influence how we go about life on a daily basis.
In our Gospel lesson this morning, I picture Jesus in the temple, hiding behind one of the pillars and whispering to his disciples. He is watching and listening to the poor widow, about to put her last two coins in the offering box. Can’t you just see him sneaking behind the pillar, telling them, “Here she comes….wait for it — Ker PLUNK ker PLUNK,” That was the sound of the Saducees’ coins in their long robes. Then came the widow with her two small coins (lepta), both adding up to about a penny. In her case, it was probably “clink - clink.”
Jesus’ point? Long story short, he says to his followers, “The Saducees gave from a place of abundance while the widow gave from a place of need.” To Jesus, the difference between the two of them was not how much they gave, but what motivated their giving. There is a difference.
What about our OT widow today? We heard about her in our first reading. Elijah goes to Zarephath, already on a mission. The Lord already told him, “I have commanded a widow to feed you.” Apparently this is his God-ordained rest stop, so he meets her by the gate of the city as she is gathering sticks, and asks her first for a little cup of water. So she goes to get the water, and Elijah calls out to her, “Bring me a little piece of bread.” It appears he’s trying not to presume she has a whole lot, he’s just asking for a tiny pice, but she answers, “As the Lord God lives,” - which is a strong statement, meaning perhaps, “I swear to you (with undertones of “give me a break, who do you think I am?”) all I have is a handful of meal and a little oil in a jug — I was just about to bring these sticks home, make a little cake for myself and my son — and die.”
The story could have ended there. Elijah could have excused himself, saying, “Ok, I get it, sorry to bother you, I’ll be on my way, you’ll be in my thoughts and prayers.” But — he had a mandate from God. And whenever someone is sent by God in the Bible, it seems that they utter three amazing words ‘’ “Do not be afraid.” Remember Mary again? And the angel? “Do not be afraid, Mary..” That is the ultimate example. “Be not afraid” are PIVOTAL words — words that indicate a turning point in every story. They signal that something great is about to happen. (Moses on the mountain? — cite other examples)
“For thus says the Lord God of Israel,” he says. The jar of meal will not be emptied and the jug of oil will not rail until the day that the Lord send rain on the earth.” Next step: SHE WENT AND DID as Elijah said, so that she as wells he and her household ate for many days. (I guess he stayed there for a while). The jar of meal was not empited, neither did the jug of il fail, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah.” Hello? Feeding of the 5000? Manna from heaven? The list goes on and on…
And if that weren’t enough, we have the Psalmist chiming in today He, too, mentions the widow and the orphaned - “the least of these,” the ones the Hebrew Scriptures as well as Jesus command us to make our priority. But here, also, we see how God acts in the world. First of all, he praises God and very quickly becomes quite specific: “Put not your trust in rulers, in mortals in whom there is no help.” A very timely reminder especially after a particularly loaded midterm election, a reminder that only GOD is in ultimate control. We have our rulers, who pledge to do their best, but the distinction here is that “in them there is no help.” An earlier Psalm says, “I lift up mine eyes to the hills, from whence cometh my HELP?” My help comes from the Lord, maker of heaven and earth. And listen to what God DOES —
Many, many verbs here - read with me:
gives justice to those who are oppressed,
food to those who hunger,
sets the captive free,
opens the eyes of the blind
lifts up those who are bowed down
loves the righteous
cares for the stranger
sustains the orphan and widow
And furthermore, he frustrates the way of the wicked.
With such a mighty God, we still tend to forget the immensity of God’s strength, the immediacy of God’s help, the blessed assurance that God knows what we need. He acts in this world through the Holy Spirit, who in turn, sets people into action.
in just a few minutes, we will hear from two members of the Deborah Circle, who have inspired me greatly as I have watched just these few moments as they talk about their work at St. Paul’s community and how it impacts the world at large. They do lots of work with the Welcome Church, and hearing about this community again took me back to my first days in seminary.
I was taking the Intro to Liturgy class, and our professor, Dr. Claudio Carvalhaes, was a very hands-on instructor. It was coming up to Ash Wednesday 2013 and one of our first assignments was that the class would meet outside the Free Library at 19th and the Parkway with the intent to break up into groups and distribute ashes to people walking by - whoever wanted them. The results were surprising and heartwarming. Nearly every person, regardless of their faith tradition, seemed genuinely appreciative and so thankful that we approached them. In one case, I met a Muslim couple. They did not outright refuse the ashes, but of course pointed out that they were Muslim and not sure they could do that. My partner and I asked, “Well, how about a blessing?” They nodded, “Sure.” I gently laid my hand on their head, one at a time, saying, ‘Child of God, remember that you are loved by God and be blessed.” The next person I met was a woman named Lisa, This resonated with me for obvious reasons, but it made me see that in blessing others, we also bless ourselves — a reminder that we all are much more connected that we usually realize. Finally, we regrouped again and met Pastor Violet Little in front of the Library, where she set up a card table with Dixie cups, grape juice, and a paper plate of Ritz crackers for Communion. Other people began to arrive and chat with us. Many if not all were homeless. They were gracious, warm, and hospitable - living up to their community’s name - The Welcome Church. One of the men had written a song and sang it for us. He taught us the refrain. Another woman testified about how good God had been to her that week. Yet it appeared she didn’t have much at all and was carrying what little belongings she had along with her in one of those granny carts. We shared the Eucharist. It was truly amazing.
God is at work in this world, my friends! Let’s watch….
It certainly is inspiring to see our sisters jump into action right here, right now, and reaching out to those in need. YOUR help makes groups like the Deborah Circle possible, groups that have touched lives for decades right out of St. Paul’s. Thank you to Nancy and Linda and all who worked hard to produce this video.
In a Stewardship report after service, Cathy Keim read a lot of statistics last week. We heard about all the tiers of giving we have here at St. Paul’s. What you may not have heard is that our giving reflects faithful obedience to a great degree - we, as in life, don’t generally see the whole picture. When we get to the bottom line, our church, like most churches, still has a ways to go. The cost of building maintenance and the cost of living constantly goes up, so our giving needs to go up as well. Remember those important three words I mentioned earlier? The ones that come up in the Bible many times just before God shows up? — “Be not afraid”
I am told that if all of us — those presently giving as well as those units who have not — gave $10 more per week (that’s roughly the cost of a sandwich and drink at Wawa) — St. Paul’s would be closer to reaching the bottom line. “Are you a ’10?’”
It’s not up to me, or the pastor, or anyone on the stewardship committee to convince you to give. Only Jesus, through the power of the Holy Spirit, can transform and convince your heart about those details.
It’s not about what you have, but what we have been entrusted with. It’s about grace. It’s about power made perfect in the very weakness and emptiness we feel. In what ways are you widowed and orphaned today? We don’t all lose our spouses or parents, but we all suffer loss and emptiness.
Our Veterans, whose sacrifices we remember this weekend, are valiant examples of the kind of selfless giving that cost them their very lives. Of our Veterans that do survive, many have an extremely difficult time resettling into civilian life - finding jobs, homes, and the health care they desperately need to help them with conditions developed or exacerbated by their deployment. Pray for our veterans. Also, remember that this year we celebrate the 100th Anniversary of Armistice Day, remembering World War I and those veterans which gave their lives - many of our grandparents, great grandparents, brothers, sisters, husbands and wives. As Rudyard Kipling writes in The Old Issue, "When you go home, tell them of us and say, for their tomorrow we gave our today."
This Armistice Day, realizing the great costs of the Great War, we say no to war and yes to peace. Despite Satan’s continued efforts to thwart us, we say no to evil and yes to God. That’s what Baptism is all about, and that’s yet another reason to celebrate this day. Stewardship, too, is connected to this commitment of our lives to God in baptism, when we empty ourselves by dying to sin and rising to new life in Christ.
When Jesus came down to earth in human skin, He emptied himself, too. He gave up his heavenly power to come down and become one of us, “once for all,” as it says in the Paul’s letter to the Hebrews. It was this power of the Spirit that allowed the Widow’s “mite” - 2 small coins become the widow’s ‘Might” — her strength made perfect in weakness. Giving — from a place of abundance — the abundance that God gives us each and every day, through his infinite love for each one of us.
Be not afraid. Put your pedal to the metal!
Be not afraid. Put your pedal to the metal!
