Values

Charlotte Collins Reed
Christ Church Episcopal
January 28, 2024

4 Epiphany B/Annual Meeting 

          From a very young age, our sons Slocomb and Caldwell have been quite clear about what they value in a church.  First and foremost when they were young was coffee hour, and not just the treats although those were certainly important.  Was coffee hour fun?  Did the adults talk with them or just get on their case for being too loud or having too many cookies?  They took a very wholistic approach to their evaluation of coffee hour.  Secondly, while they enjoyed being with their peers at church, they also valued their relationships with adults who were not their parents.  Did the adults really care about them, listen to them, and involve them deeply in the life of the church, or did they just want to say that the church has kids and then expect them to serve the pancakes at the pancake supper and otherwise stay out of the way?  Those two kids could accurately size up the values of a church in about a nano-second and could be brutal in their assessment. 

          This morning, we see a bit about what Jesus might value in a worshipping community.  The very first thing Jesus does after he calls his first four disciples is take them to the synagogue.  So this community must be important.

          Since this is the first thing Jesus does with his disciples, right off the bat we get the message that worship is a priority for followers of Jesus.  In our own worship life over the past year, we have grown in numbers, in energy, and in joy.  And yet, we still have Sundays where a visitor would wonder where all the people are.  If we go to a restaurant that is empty at peak hours, we wonder what is wrong.  If we go to a restaurant with a waiting list, we are excited for the experience.  The exact same is true for people visiting a church.  Our presence matters and tells people that worship is a priority for disciples of Jesus.

          In the synagogue, Jesus encounters a man said to have an unclean spirit.  We don’t know what that means, exactly, but likely the man has a mental health concern.  What matters to me is that the man was in the synagogue, showing that everyone was welcome there, and Jesus did not pass judgment.  Jesus just healed the man, demonstrating radical hospitality.  Inclusion is a priority for followers of Jesus.

          The healing of the man with an unclean spirit in the synagogue also shows that a worship community is called to be a place of healing.  All kinds of healing can happen at Christ Church.  Yes, Allan and Daniel offer healing prayers each Sunday.  But just as importantly, we can be a congregation that offers healing to those who have been wounded by church or society due to sexual orientation, marital status, race, economics, or anything else that humankind lets divide us.  Being a place of healing is a priority for followers of Jesus.

          Lastly, after experiencing Jesus in the synagogue, Jesus’ fame began to spread throughout Galilee.  How did that happen, you might wonder?  It wasn’t via Facebook or text message or TicTok.  Jesus’ fame spread because people talked.  It’s that simple.  Sharing our experience is a priority for followers of Jesus.

          Based on this passage, and this passage alone, Jesus values four things in a worshipping community.  #1: People show up for worship.  #2 Everyone is actively welcomed and included.  Coffee hour probably falls in this category, as does the full inclusion of children and youth.   #3 Be a place of healing from life’s wounds.  #4 Spread the fame (and the love) of Jesus. 

          On this Annual Meeting Sunday, we can take stock of what people experience when they walk through our doors and how they experience a lively and vital church.  They, like my sons, will size us up based on the welcome and acceptance they experience, and whether this seems to be a place of healing or division.  Last May, I gave you the top secret super simple method for becoming the church we want to be, with vibrant worship, great hospitality, an active children and youth program, amazing music, and meaningful outreach among other things.  Here is the super simple method again: Be That Church.  We have been doing that together through thick and thin over the last 8 years.  I will say this over and over again as we move through these next three months together before I retire at the end of April.  Just Be That Church.  When each and every one of us works to be the church we want to be, Christ Church will continue to grow and flourish for years and decades to come.

                                                                             Amen.