by Anne Robertson | Sep 25, 2020 | Conversations
The sanctuary is still covered in butterflies.
For some that’s a sign of an Easter that never was; gathering dust just like our spiritual lives as we claw through these difficult times.
But I see them as the promise of an Easter yet to come; a transformation that’s happening within us now, even though the isolation of our cocoon makes it hard to see.
This next month we’ll focus on that cocooning time of transformation—the struggles, the letting go, and the basics of spiritual growth. The high point will be at our outdoor service on November 1st—the Blessing of the Saints.
At that service we’ll remember the saints of our own lives—the ones who’ve shown us the way to faith, the beautiful butterflies who pushed their way through life’s hardships to model spiritual maturity, compassion, and grace.
That Sunday will also be the culmination of our annual pledge campaign. You’ll get a letter and pledge card in the mail soon and we’ll ask you to send or bring it back on November 1st.
But this year we’re adding a twist.
As we remember the saints on November 1st, we’ll invite you to present your financial pledge to Crawford in honor or memory of someone whose life showed you the fullness of faith. We’ll print your dedications in the Messenger and on the website.
Just as each of us has been transformed by God through the saints in our own lives, so God will transform Crawford through our prayers, our presence, our gifts, and our service.
Here in our cocoon, the wings we never knew we had are taking shape. Soon we will fly. The butterflies in the sanctuary are keeping watch over sacred space until we join them.
Blessings,
Pastor Anne
by Anne Robertson | Sep 21, 2020 | Conversations
Jesus changing water into wine at a wedding in Cana of Galilee is Jesus’ first miracle. He only does it because his mother pushes him, and John’s Gospel is the only place that tells about it. Since some traditions (with biblical support) believe John’s mother was Mary’s sister, it could be that extended family were at the wedding, giving John a unique memory from before he was formally called to be a disciple. But I do wonder what Jesus’ may have done growing up that made Mary so sure he could solve the bridal couple’s wine problem.
But all those questions and more, including the question of whether the account as the Bible tells it is factually true, are beside the point if we want to get to the core truth that the story is trying to tell us. For that, we need to pay attention to the fact that John doesn’t call this a “miracle.” John calls it a “sign.” What did the act of turning water into wine signify? What is John trying to tell us about the purpose of Jesus’ ministry? That’s what we’ll be looking at in Sunday’s sermon. Hope to see you there!
Blessings,
Pastor Anne
by Anne Robertson | Sep 11, 2020 | Conversations
Lots of things in the Bible are confusing or open to many interpretations. But one thing that is crystal clear is the thing that should be crystal clear: What must I do to inherit eternal life?
Jesus himself is asked that question and his answer is simple: Love. Love God and your neighbor as yourself. The man asking tries to make it more complicated: “But who is my neighbor?” Jesus is having none of it and tells an uncomfortable parable about a Samaritan to drive the point home.
Paul also makes us uncomfortable if we can read 1 Corinthians 13 without thinking of weddings or funerals. Paul begins that chapter by telling us if we don’t love, all our religious language and grand sacrifices are like a noisy gong. And then he ends with the surprising statement that when comparing the value of faith, hope, and love that the greatest of the three is love.
According to Paul, love is greater than faith. Let that sink in. It’s another way of saying what Jesus said when answering the question of how to inherit eternal life. The answer wasn’t to profess faith but to practice love. We’ll be looking at both those passages on Sunday: 1 Corinthians 13 and Luke 10: 25-37. Join us live on Zoom or catch up later on YouTube.
Blessings,
Pastor Anne
by Anne Robertson | Aug 28, 2020 | Conversations
Traumatic events like the pandemic we’re living through have a way of focusing us on the big questions of life. In normal times they come up, too, but they’re much easier to push away or ignore when we aren’t facing our own mortality quite so directly every single day. Who are we? Why are we here? Who is God—if there is a God at all?
The Bible doesn’t answer that last question. For the people of the Bible, the existence of God was a given. But in the context of that belief, the Bible jumps right in to the other questions that so frequently keep us awake or send us to therapy when we get close to them. Who am I? Is there something I should be doing? Does my life have a larger purpose? Does our life together have meaning or is it just every person for themselves?
The Creation story in Genesis 1 taught us who we are and who God is in relation to the world. But it is the Creation story in Genesis 2 that expands to tell us not just who we are, but why we are—what our purpose is as a human species. It also gives us the very first instance of God calling something “not good.”
On Sunday, come for the nerdy Bible word analyses, stay for the purpose of the human race, and go away with a divine mandate to take a nap while God finds you some help. See you then!
Blessings,
Anne
by Anne Robertson | Aug 21, 2020 | Conversations
Can This Bible Verse Be Saved?
In last week’s sermon we did a deep dive into Genesis 1 and came to recognize that the “formless void” described in the first verse might be dark and chaotic but is also a place filled with hope and opportunity. All things that every have been or ever will be begin there. When we find ourselves feeling like our lives are like that formless void, we should expect that the Spirit of God is hovering somewhere nearby, getting ready to create something new and beautiful beyond our imagining.
But in that sermon, I also threw a flag at Genesis 1:28, which gives the newly-minted humans “dominion” over all God has made and tells them to “subdue” the earth. In hindsight, this verse looks like a very poor management decision on God’s part. Many, many people working to save endangered species, find sustainable energy solutions, and otherwise work to help the planet read that verse and want nothing more to do with the Bible and sometimes toss out Christian faith entirely. It seems to justify the very spoiling of the earth they are working to prevent.
But what if there were another way to read that verse? Might a different interpretation lead to different behavior? The old Ladies’ Home Journal magazine had a column called “Can this marriage be saved?” This week’s sermon is that kind of effort, only for Bible verses. Can Genesis 1:28 be saved? You’ll have a chance in Sunday’s sermon to try.
by Anne Robertson | Aug 14, 2020 | Conversations
I love the book of Genesis. The stories are ancient and rich with wisdom, passed on orally for thousands of years before anyone decided to capture their beauty in writing. While I don’t take these stories literally, I do take them as carefully-crafted reflections of how the ancient Israelites thought about the world and the God in whom they placed their trust. That’s important because it is that worldview and that depiction of the nature of God, humans, and the relationship between them that formed Jesus and, by extension, us.
If you don’t get caught up in taking them literally, the stories of Genesis ring with hope and faith, not to mention a pretty accurate picture of human nature in all of our heroism and folly. So, we’re going to spend a few weeks with the oldest of these stories—the narratives of Creation and the world’s first family. We won’t be looking for facts; we’ll be looking for Truth—the wisdom they share about the ways we are connected to one another, the way God uses power, and what it means to be made in that divine image.
So join me this Sunday for a deep dive into Genesis 1, my favorite Bible word, and the story of what happened when the parsonage air conditioner tripped a circuit breaker.
Blessings,
Anne
