Jul 15, 2020

Friends,

 

It seems like I keep talking about anxiety in these messages – I wonder why! I know it is easy to get caught up in the news of the day and the worries of the times. Today, I want to reiterate (for myself as much as for the rest of you), what I said in my sermon this past Sunday:

 

I think Jesus recognized that sometimes anxiety gets the best of us. And when we focus on ourselves, our fears, the uncertainties of the future, then we aren’t living in the Spirit, and we aren’t living a God-centered life.

 

It is not easy for us to put aside our anxiety and embrace hope when the whole world around us seems to be in crisis. It is not a simple matter to stop living a life focused on ourselves and begin living a life toward God and others. Especially when we are isolated, sequestered, staying out of groups, unable to visit the sick in hospitals, restricted from offering clothing to those in need, hesitant to welcome a stranger for fear of what might happen if we embrace someone who isn’t part of our social bubble. Still, as those who are called to live as if the Spirit of Christ indeed lives in us, we are called to focus our life towards exactly this vision for the world, and to ask ourselves, “What can we do now, in this time, in these days, to move toward the kind of life and relationships and community and world that God is calling us to cultivate?”

 

The answer to that question is the answer to our anxiety. The answer to that question is our hope for tomorrow. Life in the Spirit is always a win!

 

In the days ahead we will have the chance to brainstorm the answer to that question in our Town Hall meetings. I encourage you to participate in those discussions. If you don’t feel comfortable using Zoom, please arrange to speak by phone with a Session member.

 

Meanwhile – Stay home, stay healthy, stay safe!

 

Peace,

Pastor Jack