The Weekly View

Sunday, September 6, 2020

Dear St. Luke Community,

Commandment is an odd word. At least it is for me. Commands are something masters give their slaves or their genies who live in a bottle in their living room (if you grew up in the 70’s and watched too much TV). In other words, command is a word I’d rather find another word for. What about the word request? Too soft. How about suggested? Nope. How about required? Now we’re getting somewhere. We’re required by God to love God and love neighbor above all else. 

In Paul’s letter to the Romans (13:8-14), Paul says all the other commandments are summed up in this word, "Love your neighbor as yourself” (verse 9). The idea being, that if you focus on that one command, the rest of it will take care of itself. This command presumes we love ourselves first, but it means so much more. It means this requirement will come with a sacrifice, because loving another will often require we give something of ourselves in order for God’s justice to be served (Love God).

As a culture our distaste of words like commands has grown alongside our distaste for sacrifices, being obligated or required to put others’ needs first. Serving God will often put us at odds with our own wants. And like children, we too often want what we want and are willing to ignore what’s right, decent and good to get what we want. 

If history has taught us anything time and time again, it’s that looking out for number one doesn’t work in the long run, and it’s most certainly not what we’re commanded or created to do. As Christians, we’re commanded to follow Christ's principles of love, not only on Sunday, not only when we’re thinking about personal growth, but in every aspect of our lives. Given these tumultuous times, it’s more important than ever to ask whether we’re acting out of selfishness or whether we are putting our greatest commandment to the test by looking out for (loving) others.

See you Sunday,
Nicole

Sunday, August 30, 2020

Dear St. Luke Community,

I am looking forward to being together with all of you this Sunday by Zoom. 

I’m also excited to welcome our guest preacher, Reverend Dvera Hadden, to preach the Good Word. Two years ago Rev Hadden and her family moved to Marin from Columbia, South Carolina. She and her husband have come to worship at St. Luke numerous times and Dvera has made her presence known and valued within the Presbytery. Along with occasional preaching, Dvera volunteers with local non-profit organizations. She is applying to the Diploma in Spiritual Direction program at University of Redlands Graduate School of Theology (home of former San Francisco Theological Seminary). Dvera and husband Curtis Ford, Jr live with their two high-school-age sons and three cats in Curt's childhood home in Mill Valley.  Their adult daughter lives in Chapel Hill, NC.

The scriptures that Dvera will be preaching on are two of my favorites: Exodus 3:1-15 and Romans 12:9-21. In the Exodus passage, God describes God’s self to Moses as the God of his ancestors, connecting the past to the present and the future. We know too well that none of us live in a bubble of time. Our past influences our present and our future. For example, my mother is present every time I prepare the same comfort food she prepared for me. When my children are sick they ask for the same pastina soup that my mother made for me and her mother made for her when she was sick. And while I haven’t asked, I’m willing to bet my great grandmother made the same soup for my grandmother.

God’s love is like that: connecting, nurturing and nourishing us always through all the people who have loved God before us. Those whom God entered into covenant with, all of those who have accepted the call of God, now live the message of the Gospel through love. And just in case we’re not sure how to do that, Paul’s letter to the Romans spells it out.

I am very excited to hear Dvera, to pray with all of you, to see Ben and Will get excited over the bear puppet, and more.

See you Sunday,

Nicole

Sunday, August 23, 2020

Dear St. Luke Community,

On Wednesday morning we gathered for Bible Study with heavy hearts. The fires had burned overnight and a few of us could see the ashes, however small, accumulate on the ground. The air quality and ashes serve as a constant reminder that there are people very close to us facing challenges we hope to never face – those fleeing homes, those putting their lives at risk to fight the fires, those providing services and shelter all in the middle of a pandemic.

One of our Bible Study participants expressed the need for encouragement. We decided to search scripture and landed on one of my favorites from Philippians 4.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.  Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

 Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

Each time I pray this passage, a different verse stands out. This time, it’s the end of verse 8: ”If there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” There is so much to focus on that brings heaviness to the heart. But God is still bringing moments that are worthy of praise. 

I suppose the question is, can you allow yourselves to rejoice in them? Is it okay to be okay for a moment or an hour or two? Can we allow ourselves to rejoice in the grace of God when it comes our way, even as we pray that same grace would go to someone else? It would seem our scripture encourages us to do just that.

See you Sunday,
Nicole