Day of Pentecost 2013

Acts 2:1-21; Ps. 104:24-34; 35b; Romans 8:14-17; John 14:8-17, 25-27

I absolutely love baptisms!  And one of the reasons we are here on this Day of Pentecost is to baptize Layal Felix Lazo-Berge.  Three generations of the Lazo-Berge family are here today.  This church family is gathered as well—all to celebrate Layal’s baptism with a promise to support her in her life in Christ.  And as much as we will all take delight in her actual baptism with water what I especially enjoyed was the preparation for it. 

As with every baptismal preparation I asked if I could meet with Miguel and Johanna in their home to talk about and prepare for Layal’s baptism. They agreed and on a recent Saturday morning with a cup of really good coffee, the three of us along with, Samira, Johanna’s mother sat in their living room with Layal.  We began by sharing our own baptismal stories.  Johanna was baptized in a Presbyterian Church in Chicago.  Miguel in a Roman Catholic Church in Nicaragua.  Samira in the Orthodox Church in Lebanon.  I was baptized in a Southern Baptist Church in Atlanta.  Clearly God’s great gathering of Christians far and wide, united as one body, was in that living room.

After about an hour of conversation on our understanding of baptism and the commitment Miguel and Johanna are making to raise Layal in a Christian home I turn to the longest rubric in the Book of Common Prayer.  (A rubric, if you are unfamiliar with the term, is an italicized instruction.)  In this rubric I, as The Minister of the Congregation, am directed to instruct the people, from time to time, about the duty of Christian parents to make prudent provisions for the well-being of their families.  So, as we are preparing for baptism and thinking about the spiritual welfare of a child I use this time to ask the parents if they have a will.  That if in the event of their untimely death, do they have a last will and testament that states their desires for the care of this child should they not be here to take care of her or him.  There is usually an awkward silence as one parent nervously looks to the other for a response.  The answer more often than not, is “no we don’t have a will.  We know we need one, we’ve talked about it, but wejust can’t think about not being here with our child.  And we can’t agree on who we want to be the guardian.”

Such things are never easy to think about. We’d all rather think about living rather than dying.  And departures of any kind often are difficult.  Such are the circumstances surrounding our gospel reading for today.  In this reading from Jesus’ farewell sermon, a pastoral concern arises as to what happens when Jesus is no longer around to take care of the community?  What happens when the community is left on its own, without his presence?  What will they do?  To whom will they turn?

With words of comfort and hope, the gospel writer John wants all of us, as disciples of Jesus, to be assured that we are not alone.  That with the presence of the Advocate, there is not and will not be any loss of the presence or power of Jesus.  Through the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, the community will be helped both to remember all that Jesus said and to discover what it all means in the constantly changing circumstances of being the church. Jesus is with us—really with us, through the Spirit. And it is the very presence of the Advocate in us that   brings Jesus to mind.

The Spirit of truth aids the community, us, to know how to be the church, how to be followers of Jesus.  The intent is to form a community of faithful, believing, loving, merciful, hopeful people.  A community that is open to the leading of Holy Spirit, doing the works of Jesus.  Our hearts are not to be troubled.  The Advocate, sent by the Father in Jesus’ name, will teach us everything and continually remind us of all that Jesus said and did.  Through the Spirit we are made one.  Through the Spirit we are being led.  Through the Spirit we are being taught.  And I for one am banking on this!

This Day of Pentecost is many things.  It is the birthday of the church, it is the sending of the Holy Spirit, it is a day for baptism, and it is the anniversary of my coming to serve as yourRector.  Today is the fifth Pentecost celebration we are sharing together—my first Sunday with you, being Pentecost 2009.  This was intentional because I wanted our ministry together to begin with a bang—the rush of a mighty wind, flames of fire, throwing open the doors of this church to the Holy Spirit for renewal and rebuilding.  I came here with a passion for and curiosity about doing church differently.  I brought with me some experience in church growth, gifts for healing, high energy, and a strong conviction that God was calling forth something MORE in me.

So in reminiscing about our first Sunday together I reflected on a couple of things this week.  First I read again the letter of Institution that Bishop Shannon read at our Celebration of New Ministry.  Empowering and authorizing me for ministry at St.   Andrew’s, he charged me with these words:  “Having committed yourself to this work, do not forget the trust of those who have chosen you.  Care alike for young and old, strong and weak, rich and poor. By your words, and in your life, proclaim the Gospel.  Love and serve Christ’s people.  Nourish them, and strengthen them to glorify God in this life and in the life to come. May the Lord, who has given you the will to do these things, give you the grace and the power to perform them.”

This week I didn’t just read these words.  I prayed over them and came to see some things about myself and our ministry together that I want to share with you this morning.  The first is the desire I have to continue doing the best I can to be your Rector in all the ways mentioned in this letter of Institution.  I do not take for granted the trust you have in me. And I commit myself anew to care for you—young and old, strong and weak, rich and poor. I commit to proclaim the Gospel as best I can in what I say, what I do and how I live. I do love you and I want to serve you. I seek to nourish and strengthen you. And I am praying faithfully that the Lord will give me the grace and power to do all these things.

But I also want to confess to you that I do not always succeed in doing them. I know that some of you have been hurt by decisions I have made and although that was not my intention, it happened and I am sorry. There are times I’ve been too impatient to slow down and have more conversation about things. Maybe I should have been willing to name some things more openly. Conflict avoidance has caused me to shy away from some difficult conversations that would have been  helpful. And I am sure that there were expectations you had of your new rector four years ago that have not been met.

Which brings me to the second thing I’ve been reflecting on this week and these are the questions that were asked of me by the Search Committee in our final interview.  There were five of them. The first had to do with how St. Andrew’s could have a stronger connection to the community. The second had to do with re-igniting the spark that had been generated in 2007 but had dwindled during the unforeseen pause in the search process. The third named the assumption by some that the new rector would come and make everything right.  The fourth was about Sunday School decline. And the fifth asked about strategies I had for growing the church numerically.

I’d say these continue to be relevant questions and I still don’t have all the answers.  But what I’ve come to see more clearly in these past four years is that we are all in this together.  To shoulder the responsibility for growing this church is not mine alone and for me to presume to be the one to make everything right is not healthy or helpful.  Nor is it right for you to expect this.

If things fall apart, if programs cease to exist, if people become discontent and leave the church or no one signs up for coffee hour, then we are all responsible.

To acknowledge the past, embrace the present and move into the future is work for us to do together.   Looking back over the four years I wish I had been less reticent to ask you for help.

I wish I’d been more adventurous, willing to take a few more risks.  I wish I had shown more vulnerability and shared how discouraged I’ve felt at times; how weary I’ve been of trying too hard to please and make people happy.  I wanted to protect you and this isn’t good for me or you.

Joe said it well when someone on the Search Committee of his new church asked him what his strategy was for growing a church.  He said he didn’t have one—that only when a church is healthy and happy will it grow.  I believe this is true—true for us and we must continue to strive for health and joy.

Going forward into our fifth year together feels to me like we are somehow off on a new adventure and I’m excited about it.  I don’t exactly know the course to chart or the path to take but I do know that Jesus is with us.  Through the working of the Holy Spirit we are being spurred on to greater ways of being St. Andrew’s Church in this community.  As messy as it is we are being challenged to be real to one another, to be vulnerable, to be open.  The time is ripe for asking new questions, better questions, and finding the answers together. 

Ready or not, the in-breaking of the Spirit descends upon us.  On the Day of Pentecost the Spirit sends her people into the world.  Sharing love, bringing hope, creating new possibilities requires humility, hutzpah, and a little foolishness.  Are you ready?  Am I ready?

Let’s pray that we are.  And if we do that, really pray, the Spirit will answer and give us our heart’s desire—new birth, new life.  Just like Layal’s baptism.

Come Holy Spirit Come!  By the power of your Spirit grow us into the people and into the Church you would have us become!  Amen.

Sermon sources:   commentary in Feasting on the Word by Eugene C. Bay and Stephen P. Ahearne-Kroll