Embracing God's Inclusive Love and Daily Resilience

**Bible Study Discussion Guide**

**Bible Reading:**
1. Luke 4:21-30
2. 1 Corinthians 13:8

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**Observation Questions:**

1. What was the initial reaction of the people in Nazareth to Jesus' message, and how did it change? ([16:57])
2. How did Jesus challenge the people of Nazareth's understanding of God's love and mercy? ([19:53])
3. What examples from the Old Testament did Jesus use to illustrate God's inclusive love? ([20:35])
4. What was the response of the people when Jesus spoke about God's love for outsiders? ([21:43])

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**Interpretation Questions:**

1. Why might the people of Nazareth have been proud of Jesus initially, and what caused their pride to turn into anger? ([16:57])
2. How does Jesus' message in Nazareth challenge traditional views of who is deserving of God's love and mercy? ([19:53])
3. In what ways does the story of Elijah and the widow, and Elisha and Naaman, illustrate the theme of God's inclusive love? ([20:35])
4. How does the concept of resilience in faith relate to the challenges faced by Jesus in his hometown? ([25:51])

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**Application Questions:**

1. Reflect on a time when you felt challenged to step out of your comfort zone to show love and compassion to someone different from you. How did you respond, and what did you learn from that experience? ([22:38])
2. Jesus' message was not well-received by those who knew him best. Have you ever experienced rejection when trying to share a message of love or justice? How did you handle it? ([21:43])
3. What daily practices can you incorporate into your life to help you stay grounded in your faith and open to God's leading? Consider practices like gratitude, movement, and connection. ([30:01])
4. How can you actively work to embrace diversity and confront your own prejudices in your community? What steps can you take to show compassion and justice to all people? ([22:38])
5. The sermon emphasized the power of love as described in 1 Corinthians 13. How can you embody this love in your interactions with others this week? ([37:24])
6. In what ways can you build resilience in your faith to withstand life's trials and continue to follow Jesus' example? ([25:51])
7. Identify one person in your life who might be considered an "outsider" or "enemy." How can you show them God's inclusive love this week? ([19:53])

Day 1: God's Love Knows No Boundaries
God's love is not confined to any particular group or community. It transcends all human-made boundaries and extends to everyone, including those we might consider outsiders or even enemies. This radical inclusivity was a central part of Jesus' message when he visited Nazareth, as he challenged the people to expand their understanding of who is deserving of love and compassion. This message is a call to action for us today, urging us to embrace a broader vision of love that goes beyond our comfort zones and prejudices. By doing so, we can embody the love and justice of God in our daily lives. [19:53]

"For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him." (Romans 10:12, ESV)

Reflection: Who in your life do you find difficult to love? How can you begin to extend God's inclusive love to them today?


Day 2: Building Resilience in Faith
Resilience is essential for living out our faith, especially in challenging times. By grounding ourselves in practices that nurture our spiritual and emotional well-being, we can better withstand life's trials and continue to follow Jesus' example. This involves cultivating habits that keep us connected to our faith and community, such as daily prayer, meditation, and acts of service. These practices help us to remain steadfast in our faith and to be agents of love and change in the world. [25:51]

"Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness." (James 1:2-3, ESV)

Reflection: What specific practice can you incorporate into your daily routine to build resilience in your faith journey?


Day 3: Embracing Diversity
Jesus' teachings call us to embrace diversity and to love those who are different from us. This requires us to confront our prejudices and actively seek out ways to show compassion and justice to all people. By doing so, we reflect the inclusive nature of God's love and create a more just and loving community. Embracing diversity is not just about accepting differences but celebrating them as part of God's beautiful creation. [22:38]

"For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ." (1 Corinthians 12:12, ESV)

Reflection: What is one step you can take this week to engage with someone from a different background or perspective?


Day 4: Daily Practices for Spiritual Growth
Engaging in daily practices such as gratitude, movement, connection, and creativity can help us stay grounded in our faith and open to God's leading. These practices enable us to live out our calling with intention and purpose, allowing us to be more attuned to the needs of others and the world around us. By incorporating these habits into our daily lives, we can cultivate a deeper relationship with God and a more meaningful connection with our community. [30:01]

"And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near." (Hebrews 10:24-25, ESV)

Reflection: What daily practice can you start today to enhance your spiritual growth and connection with others?


Day 5: The Transformative Power of Love
The enduring message of 1 Corinthians 13 is that love never ends. This love is the foundation of our faith and the driving force behind our actions. By embodying this love, we can transform our communities and the world. Love is not just an emotion but a powerful force that compels us to act with compassion, justice, and mercy. As followers of Christ, we are called to let this love guide our interactions and decisions, creating a ripple effect of positive change. [37:24]

"Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins." (1 Peter 4:8, ESV)

Reflection: How can you intentionally demonstrate Christ-like love in a specific relationship or situation this week?

"God of love and life, speak to our hearts this day. Speak words of wisdom and faith. Open our hearts and minds to perceive your message of love, even when it's hard. Now, speak. Open our hearts and minds to perceive your message of love, even when it's hard to hear. Strengthen our faith to answer your call. Even when we don't feel confident or capable." [00:05:15] (24 seconds) Edit Clip


"Jesus walked into the temple in the midst of the people he had grown up with, the people who had known him all his life. Some people who were undoubtedly related to him were in the crowd, or at least were there as friends of his family. He was handed the scroll of Isaiah, a big, heavy scroll. He unrolled it, and he found the passage he was seeking. And he gave a short nine-word sermon, or so it seemed. But then he continued to teach." [00:16:12] (35 seconds) Edit Clip


"If Jesus had stopped there I'm sure it would have been a glorious homecoming they'd slap him on the back take him out to dinner talk about the good old days when he was a little boy and things were so much better in Nazareth in the good old days once upon a time then Jesus would have been some kind of minor celebrity in town they'd all wave to him in the parking lot they'd sit by him at the basketball game I'm teasing but you get the picture right he could have done well in the little town if he just stayed in his place but he didn't stop he kept talking he had a bigger vision than one small town in the hill country of Galilee he actually came for everybody even the other towns even the other countries so he says I know you want me to settle down here because according to you here is where all the people that matter are I know you don't understand why anyone would want to leave Nazareth and go to other towns or other countries I know that many of you probably think we should keep everybody else out but you don't need me here you won't even hear me here wait he said that yeah he did no prophet is accepted in his hometown different translations have slightly different verbiage for that but we remember those words never in their hometown what does it mean why did he say that he said it because he knew what was underneath their approval he knew what they were wanting he knew they didn't want to hear what he actually came to say he did come to say they're important and that much they heard we're important God is going to get the kingdom going right here in Nazareth that'll show the folks down the road in the other country that this is God's kingdom they're going to get the kingdom going and that's country." [00:17:44] (119 seconds) Edit Clip


"He came to say that God thinks even the stranger, even the foreigner, even the enemy is important. Important enough to say, to show compassion, show mercy, show justice, important enough to love. This has been God's plan from the beginning, Jesus says. You remember Elijah and the story about that widow? God thought she was important, saved her, blessed her, loved her, fed her. And she wasn't one of us. She was an outsider." [00:20:00] (35 seconds) Edit Clip


"How dare you, Jesus, tell us to love even those who are different from us? We struggle to love the others in our own pews. Don't go asking us to love across the boundaries that are there to keep us safe. We have to have safe borders. We can't love those other people. But, the gift of love is not just for a chosen few." [00:22:32] (28 seconds) Edit Clip


"It's kind of a sad tale. In some ways, it's evidence that God isn't going to force us to change, to grow, to love as Jesus loves. God doesn't demand that we become something more, something riskier, something with potential to change the world for the better, to be more like it was supposed to be in the beginning. You remember? God created the heavens and the earth and said it was good, and it was good." [00:23:44] (31 seconds) Edit Clip


"God created us and gave us the mind and the spirit and the strength and the soul to choose to follow God and to be responsible for that choice. And Jesus isn't hanging around town to be thrown off a cliff. He goes through them, right through the midst of them, and he says, follow me, and he goes his way. He is going to follow God. He is going to fulfill his calling. He is going to heal, to call others to follow, to share love, to share compassion and mercy." [00:24:20] (37 seconds) Edit Clip


"And she spoke about resilience and how we need to cultivate resilience and build it up. She brought up the example of the very few houses in all these fires who withstood it because they had been built in a way to withstand fire. There were just a few, and she asked the question of how we're built. Are we standing on the rock? Are we getting up? Are we just doing what we're called to do?" [00:25:51] (26 seconds) Edit Clip


"What if the church were to be known? As the place of love and acceptance rather than a division and finger pointing. What if we treated our siblings in the faith with love as true siblings rather than heretics in need of condemnation when they're different? What if we were to approach them in love rather than angry name calling or shunning?" [00:35:37] (22 seconds) Edit Clip


"And if we were able to do this, even a little, then would it be possible that those not yet in the faith, not yet on the path to discipleship, might actually believe us when we proclaim a God of love and not of hate? Would it be possible that they would believe us because they could see it in our lives and the way we live it? In our dealings with one another and in the world?" [00:36:30] (24 seconds) Edit Clip


"The good news here is the seed from which this whole task grows is found in verse 8 of 1 Corinthians 13. The seed is, love never ends." [00:37:24] (14 seconds) Edit Clip

Good morning!

Good morning! Welcome to Bethel. We're glad that you're here. Looks like we're small and mighty today. That's all right. And hello, everybody online. Thank you very much, Sandy and Ken, for the beautiful music.

We're going to begin this morning with our call to worship. It's up on the screen and in your bulletins. Let me see if I can find the clicker and try to do something with that. Yay. All right. Let us begin.

In the Holy One, we take refuge. Let us never be put to shame. Our praise is continually of you. In your righteousness, deliver us and hear our cries for justice and peace.

In the Holy One, we draw strength. Let us never be put to shame. Our praise is continually of you. Be a rock of refuge for the vulnerable, a strong fortress to save creation, for you are our rock and fortress.

In the Holy One, we receive courage. Let us never be put to shame. Our praise is continually of you. Rescue us. Rescue us. Rescue us. Oh, my God, from the hand of the wicked, from the grasp of the unjust and cruel, for you, Holy One, are our hope and trust.

Please join me in our opening prayer. Let us pray.

God of love and life, speak to our hearts this day. Speak words of wisdom and faith. Open our hearts and minds to perceive your message of love, even when it's hard. Now, speak. Open our hearts and minds to perceive your message of love, even when it's hard to hear. Strengthen our faith to answer your call, even when we don't feel confident or capable. Be our wisdom, our strength, and our love that we may bring your wisdom, strength, and love to the world.

Our first hymn this morning is "The Gift of Love," also known as "Though I May Speak," and this one many of our folks do know. We've done this for many people, and we've been doing it for several years now. It is a choir anthem and a congregational song, and it seems to be a perfect song for today because one of the alternate readings that we're not officially reading but we're singing with this is the First Corinthians 13 chapter.

So let's have a welcome to everybody again. In terms of announcements, just a few things. Next Saturday, this coming Saturday, well, almost a week from now, on the 8th, the Southland Wind Ensemble will be here presenting a concert called "Can I Borrow That?" What George has done is programmed music that's normally done by other types of groups like orchestras and gotten the wind ensemble version of them. So they're doing all these transcriptions of some really wonderful musical literature. I encourage you to come; that's a free concert at four o'clock Saturday.

And then the following Saturday, the jazz orchestra will be here doing their thing at four o'clock. And then the following Sunday, the Southland Symphony will be here with their concert, "SSO Soloists," which features some of our principal players playing concertos. So that's going to be three weeks of wonderful concerts.

Of course, because of all of that, Friday evenings and Saturday mornings are busy with rehearsals. So you can see that on your list of things. Thursday morning continues with JIGAM. Wednesday evenings, the Cub Scouts are here in the basement. And the chorus rehearsals begin a week from this Tuesday. Not this Tuesday, but the Tuesday after that. The symphony chorus people will be rehearsing before the concert they have coming up on April 6th with the orchestra. So several things going on.

I think it's time for our Scripture readings.

Our Gospel reading today comes from the Gospel of Luke. This is the fourth chapter, verses 21 to 30.

Then he began to say to them, "Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They said, "Is this not Joseph's son?" He said to them, "Doubtless you will quote to me this proverb: 'Doctor, cure yourself,' and you will say, 'Do here also in your hometown the things that we have heard you did at Capernaum.'"

And he said, "Truly, I tell you, no prophet is accepted in his hometown. But the truth is, there were many widows in Israel in the time of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up for three years and six months, and there was a severe famine all over the land. Yet Elijah was sent to none of them, except to a widow at Zarephath in Sidon. There were also many with a skin disease in Israel at the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed, except Naaman the Syrian."

When they heard this, all in the synagogue were filled with rage. They got up, drove him out of town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they might hurl him off the cliff. But he passed through the midst of them and went on his way.

May we hear and understand what the scriptures are teaching us today.

Jesus walked into the temple in the midst of the people he had grown up with, the people who had known him all his life. Some people who were undoubtedly related to him were in the crowd, or at least were there as friends of his family. He was handed the scroll of Isaiah, a big, heavy scroll. He unrolled it, and he found the passage he was seeking.

And he gave a short nine-word sermon, or so it seemed. But then he continued to teach. Everything had been going so well. Jesus makes his proclamation, preaches his nine-word sermon, and the applause rains down.

I know that isn't the way you remember the story, especially Sunday. Since we talked a little bit about the rest of the story last week. Wasn't he rejected? Didn't he say he was? Didn't they say he's just a hometown boy getting too big for his britches? Well, not exactly, not at first. Look again. All spoke well of him.

Okay, so they thought, "Wow, hometown boy made good. He's one of us, he's ours. Aren't we special? Aren't we cool? We're so proud." That little phrase at the end of verse 22, the one that says, "Isn't he Joseph's son?" probably wasn't disparaging. It was probably proud, like, "Wow, this teacher, he was Joseph's son, look at him all grown up."

If Jesus had stopped there, I'm sure it would have been a glorious homecoming. They'd slap him on the back, take him out to dinner, talk about the good old days when he was a little boy and things were so much better in Nazareth in the good old days once upon a time. Then Jesus would have been some kind of minor celebrity in town. They'd all wave to him in the parking lot; they'd sit by him at the basketball game.

I'm teasing, but you get the picture, right? He could have done well in the little town if he just stayed in his place. But he didn't stop; he kept talking. He had a bigger vision than one small town in the hill country of Galilee. He actually came for everybody, even the other towns, even the other countries.

So he says, "I know you want me to settle down here because according to you, here is where all the people that matter are. I know you don't understand why anyone would want to leave Nazareth and go to other towns or other countries. I know that many of you probably think we should keep everybody else out. But you don't need me here; you won't even hear me here."

Wait, he said that? Yeah, he did. No prophet is accepted in his hometown. Different translations have slightly different verbiage for that, but we remember those words: never in their hometown. What does it mean? Why did he say that?

He said it because he knew what was underneath their approval. He knew what they were wanting. He knew they didn't want to hear what he actually came to say. He did come to say they were important, and that much they heard. "We're important; God is going to get the kingdom going right here in Nazareth. That'll show the folks down the road in the other country that this is God's kingdom. They're going to get the kingdom going, and that's country. God is kicking things off right here. Today the scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."

Yeah! He did come to say they were important. But he also said that they weren't the only important ones in the world. He came to say that God thinks even the stranger, even the foreigner, even the enemy is important. Important enough to show compassion, show mercy, show justice, important enough to love.

This has been God's plan from the beginning, Jesus says. You remember Elijah and the story about that widow? God thought she was important, saved her, blessed her, loved her, fed her. And she wasn't one of us; she was an outsider.

And do you remember Elisha? Remember the guy, the foreign general with the skin problem? He was an emperor, a conqueror of people like you. And yet, God healed him, blessed him, loved him. And get this, he was Assyrian. Assyrian. Imagine what the Hebrews thought about that.

"Wait a minute, Jesus, a refugee from Syria? He might want to hurt us. He might hate us. He might tell us he's running for his life, but it's just really a plot to catch us with our guard down. Maybe he isn't really sick, just like all those other so-called immigrants and refugees. Maybe they aren't really refugees. Maybe they haven't lived their whole lives in fear for their lives, surrounded by war and killing, and living in an unjust system. A system that doesn't value them as human beings but treats them as pawns in a terrible game of power. Maybe we should protect ourselves first and think of ourselves first. We don't want to show any mercy to foreigners. No mercy to anyone who's different."

He had his work cut out for him with that congregation. The congregation in Nazareth surely expected to be reminded that they were numbered among the chosen ones. Down through the ages, they had remained steadfast. They had worshiped God and remained faithful, even when it seemed they'd been abandoned.

And now, in Jesus' sermon, they did not enjoy being reminded that God was free, sovereign, to show mercy on those whom God would show mercy, to love whomever God chose to love. Even those from outside their circle of the chosen ones. And free to remind them that they are also called to act justly, to love mercy, to walk humbly with God.

How dare you, Jesus, tell us to love even those who are different from us? We struggle to love the others in our own pews. Don't go asking us to love across the boundaries that are there to keep us safe. We have to have safe borders. We can't love those other people.

But the gift of love is not just for a chosen few. No wonder they got angry. No wonder they turned into a mob. You can't blame them, really. Jesus was inconveniencing them, something awful. Asking them to make accommodations, to change and bring habits, to think differently about who and what a neighbor really is. That's crazy talk.

So they drove him out of town. They wanted to toss him off a cliff, but he left. He had places to go. He had a word to proclaim, a world to save, and he went his way. He went in the midst of them, passed through, and then away from them.

It's kind of a sad tale. In some ways, it's evidence that God isn't going to force us to change, to grow, to love as Jesus loves. God doesn't demand that we become something more, something riskier, something with potential to change the world for the better, to be more like it was supposed to be in the beginning. You remember? God created the heavens and the earth and said it was good, and it was good.

We didn't even have to be a part of building it then. God isn't going to just flip a switch and turn us into robot minions. God created us and gave us the mind and the spirit and the strength and the soul to choose to follow God and to be responsible for that choice.

And Jesus isn't hanging around town to be thrown off a cliff. He goes through them, right through the midst of them, and he says, "Follow me," and he goes his way. He is going to follow God. He is going to fulfill his calling. He is going to heal, to call others to follow, to share love, to share compassion and mercy. And he's asking us to do the same.

As we follow the stories after this, we see him calling his disciples, his apostles, to do this work. He left the ones that were trying to push him over a cliff, run him out of town. He left them behind.

Except maybe us, we think. We didn't want to hurl him over the cliff. We didn't want to do that. We want to follow Jesus. If we follow Jesus, we're going to be placing one foot in front of the other, doing the work. Sometimes it's one person at a time, and sometimes it's groups. It depends on what our own calling is.

And how do we do that? How do we get past the fear? How do we get past the challenges we face right now? I was giving some thought to it and reading a bunch of stuff, including some words of Tracy Blackmon, our previous assistant general minister in the UCC.

And she spoke about resilience and how we need to cultivate resilience and build it up. She brought up the example of the very few houses in all these fires that withstood it because they had been built in a way to withstand fire. There were just a few, and she asked the question of how we're built. Are we standing on the rock? Are we getting up? Are we just doing what we're called to do?

And as I explored things, I thought about how do I do this? And I knew that when I'm just, I look at the news or I look at something, and I get worried and afraid. So I thought about some practical things for me. I'm going to share them with you, and you can use what you want and throw out what you don't like.

Me? It's what we've been talking about now and then about, if Nike were here, they'd say, "Just do it." But get up, put a foot in front of the other and do something.

So here we go, and just see what you think. This will be recorded, so if you want to write them down later, you can if you don't keep up, and it's okay.

Wake up. That's the first thing. Wake up every day. Sleep is important, but hiding under the covers is bad. So try to get yourself on some sort of routine for sleeping and waking. And I know that one of the things I have to not do in order to sleep well and to wake up okay is to not doom scroll before bed.

So, okay, another one: welcome the day. When you get up, say thank you. Have some gratitude. First thing when you wake, night and day, you're still doing their thing. No matter what you might feel scared about something or worried about someone, but you are alive, and life is the first and most fleeting gift.

I was a big fan of Stephen Hawking, who said, "Where there's life, there's hope."

Now another one, one that's a little hard for me: move, or maybe walk. Get some fresh air and some exercise. It's not about a weight loss program or training for a marathon; it's just move around. Notice the ground under your feet, the little things in your street. Throwing a ball for the dog, if that's what you do. I do that a lot.

Now, look at the people in the park. Feel your body in the world. Move, pay attention. Pray and meditate as you move. Or just put one foot in front of the other because that's the only way through the next seven years.

Be with others. Don't isolate yourself. Reach out and connect with somebody every day. Face to face, text, email, phone calls, write a letter, go to church, go to synagogue. There are lots of people who have theological questions and might not be all in with whatever the church is doing, but sometimes they go to church just simply for the fellowship, the companionship, the fact that we hold each other up.

Do some volunteer work. Go feed the hungry. Read to children at the library. Do good for and with others. Go to conferences. Hang out with people you trust. Have a book group. Be with others. Don't isolate.

Work most days. But take Sabbaths too. Keep doing what you love. Keep doing your vocation. Don't try to do everything all the time. That one's hard for me. Don't try to do everything all the time. Focus on your own work. Focus on your own gifts and your calling.

It might just be cleaning your house and rearranging your closets. Take up a hobby. You might be challenged in the future to go beyond your comfort zone. But it's far more likely that the work you do will be in your primary arena. It might be acts of assistance, democracy, justice. It might simply be teaching somebody, helping somebody. Do your work. Be an everyday hero.

Write. Write every day or weekly or often. Keep a journal. Express yourself as fully as you can. If you don't like writing, draw, weave, throw pots, whatever. Have a creative way to work through your fears, your losses, your doubts. You may think you don't want to remember the stuff that is so frightening and challenging. But one day you will, and you'll be grateful, or someone who follows you will be grateful for your story.

Writing, art, painting, making music—all these things can help clarify things for you.

Now this next one is a little hard. It says watch the news. You do have to stay informed. The people tearing things apart want you to be ignorant. So if you can't watch it, read it, listen to it, subscribe to a few things, some sub-stacks or some digests that deliver news in smaller digestible groups. I subscribe to Heather Cox Richardson's daily newsletter, for instance. I do still get the New York Times online and the Washington Post. Even though I got mad at them, I still get them to see the stories. Support local journalism and bloggers; we're going to need them more and more.

Use the mute button on your remote if you don't want to listen to what's going on.

Now there's another thing; it's a practice to develop. Sandy thinks I don't know much about martial arts, and I don't know a whole lot, but I learned this from reading about the Japanese self-defense art of Aikido. This is called wide sight.

What this is about is normally if you're startled or taken by surprise, there's a sudden narrowing of our visual periphery, and we focus exactly on whatever is threatening us. It's an intense, fearful, self-defensive focusing of something called the gimlet eye, and it's associated with physical and intellectual combat.

But in Aikido, this particular narrowing is countered by something that translates to a practice that's called soft eyes. What it is is it's learning to lighten your periphery and take in more of the world around you. See what's out there that can help you.

See what else is out there around you. Usually, if you have sudden stimulus to somebody, this narrow thing kicks in. But if you train yourself, you can still be more aware and have more of an authentic response, such as thinking a new thought.

Don't get fixated on direct thoughts and direct threats. Instead, mind yourself to look to the edges of your field of vision, and I'm talking about your spiritual and your psychological vision as well as your physical vision.

Right? What's there? What's not immediately obvious? Is there something on the periphery that's helpful or healing or hopeful?

Weep whenever. Embrace whatever emotions come up. In the past few months, especially the past couple of weeks, I've really wanted to cry. Now that, but I've laughed too. Don't judge how you feel on any given day or given hour, and don't regret the tears and don't feel guilty about joy and all the feelings in between.

If you have someone to talk to about your feelings, share what's going on, but embrace your emotions.

Wonder. Wonder as much as possible. Go to nature, art museums, listen to your favorite music, read books, poetry, get obsessed with the space photos from the Webb telescope. Anything that connects you to beauty and deepens your sense of awe.

Researchers have discovered that awe leads to goodwill, cooperation, a transformed sense of self as part of a community. So embrace mystery. Ask unanswerable questions.

So here it is: wake up. Welcome the day. Walk. Be with others. Work. Write. Watch the news. Practice. Practice wide sight. Weep and wonder.

Mostly, right? Some of them are everyday practices. Some are occasional. Some have to be learned and developed. Some are intuitive.

It isn't a to-do list. It's just a list. It's just a map. Mix them up. Borrow what you like or need. Throw away what doesn't help you. Add your own ideas. Keep it simple. But it's literally our task to keep going. Our task to keep going. To keep the faith. To follow Jesus.

We pass through challenges. We continue to care for each other. We need some of those tools. Those are some of mine that I've been working on.

Some of us right now ask how to do that in spite of everything. And we can take a lesson from that First Corinthians reading, the one we sang rather than heard a reading. And the way of that is love.

What if? What if the church were to be known as the place of love and acceptance rather than division and finger-pointing? What if we treated our siblings in the faith with love as true siblings rather than heretics in need of condemnation when they're different?

What if we were to approach them in love rather than angry name-calling or shunning? And if we were able to do this, even a little, then would it be possible that those not yet in the faith, not yet on the path to discipleship, might actually believe us when we proclaim a God of love and not of hate?

Would it be possible that they would believe us because they could see it in our lives and the way we live it? In our dealings with one another and in the world? It is our lives; it is our actions which show the world who we are.

Would this more excellent way be possible? It's not something easy. People take work in each of us and all of us just to begin.

And I know that sometimes, especially lately, you can't even take a step forward without being pushed a couple of steps back. And it will take time. Because we have a long way to go.

If the world we see is anything or why, it's going to be quite a journey. The good news here is the seed from which this whole task grows is found in verse 8 of 1 Corinthians 13. The seed is, "Love never ends."

Thanks be to God. Amen.

Let's join together now in our prayer. This is our prayer, our prayer of yearning. Let us begin.

In a cynical and despairing world, O God, give us a prophetic voice to proclaim your hope.

In a violent and angry world, O God, give us a prophetic voice to proclaim your peace.

In a dismissive and disinterested world, O God, give us a prophetic voice to proclaim your compassion.

In a lonely and inhospitable world, O God, give us a prophetic voice to proclaim your love.

In a grieving and weeping world, O God, give us a prophetic voice to proclaim your joy.

May we be so captivated by your hope, O God, that we cannot help but to whisper, to sing, and to enact the message of your reign, which is always coming into our world. And may our prophetic lives be channels of your restoring grace wherever we may go. Amen.

This is the time of God's favor. God's grace continues to proclaim release to the captives, good news to the poor, and freedom to the oppressed.

We live as loved, forgiven, and free people through the grace of God. Hallelujah. Amen.

Joy is in concern today.

That was noisy. Sorry about that. Continue to, you know, sort of a prayer of joy and, of course, holding in prayer Donna as she continues to recover. She's watching from her recliner, according to her message on Facebook. So hi, Donna, we hope you're back with us soon.

And prayers for all of those who are now dealing with rebuilding, remediation things on their homes and their properties. It's going to be a many years project for most of them. Prayers for those who are trying to continue their lives and their livelihood.

I know that there are many groups that are helping, and that is wonderful. And so I praise God for that, and I still praise the concerns of all of the needs that there are.

So having said that, do we have any individual, well, prayers for Sandy, who's going to be having eye surgery soon, right? A week after next for that. So prayers for a successful procedure and an easy recovery with that.

And any other individual ones out there?

Okay, all right. Let's take a few moments of silent prayer to bring our concerns before God, and then we'll join together in the Lord's Prayer. Let us pray.

Let us begin.

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.

I'm going to begin our communion section of the service from up here, and I'll come down for our distribution.

In the United Church of Christ and at Bethel, we practice an open communion. That means that everyone is welcome at this table. You don't need to be a member of this church or of any church to partake. The table is God's table, and it is here for all of us.

Pour out your Holy Spirit on us, O God, that we might be disciples of your love and grace. Pour out your Holy Spirit on these gifts of bread and wine that your life and love might flow through us. Guide us in love by your Spirit that we might be one with Christ, one with each other, and one in ministry to all the world until Christ comes in final victory and we feast at the holy banquet.

Through Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit and your holy church, all honor and glory is yours, Almighty God, now and forevermore.

We remember the night before Jesus would be betrayed and crucified, that he sat among his friends and took the bread and blessed and broke it and said, "Take and eat this, for it is my body given for you. As often as you do it, do it in remembrance of me."

After the supper had ended, Jesus took the cup and blessed it and said, "Drink from it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins."

My friends, whenever we share the bread and the cup, we remember the compassion and love Jesus taught and the call to follow Christ in all we do—the life of Christ revealed in you, the love of Christ fully flowing through you.

Holy Creator, we remember the sacrifice of Jesus and are all grateful to bring love and justice to the world.

And our offering plate and bucket here are for the bucket with the bandanas for spare change for a mission offering or a regular offering plate. There are envelopes should you want to do cash, get a receipt, or direct something to a specific offering. If you want to dedicate your offering to fire relief, you can do that. Just make a note so that we can get you to the right place.

Those of you online and, of course, in the church, if you wish to donate online, you can use our website, BethelUCCOntario.org. Just scroll down, and you'll find a couple of different ways to donate. Or use Zelle. We love Zelle. That fine email for Zelle is info at BethelUCCOntario.org.

So those are the ways to do that. We love cash. Cash too is great. So let's consider our offerings as we hear a bit of music.

Dedication and thanksgiving.

Giver of good gifts, may the gifts we give reflect your abundance and generosity. Use our time, talent, and treasure to serve our faith community and the world. May each offering be a seed that will grow, spread, and perfume the atmosphere with faith, hope, and love. Amen.

Our last song is "Pass It On." We hope we will pass it on as we live our lives and put one foot in it. So let's sing together.

I like that little song, no matter if it's old.

Let's join together now in our benediction. We'll bless one another as we move into the world and pass in the midst of them. Let us begin.

Beloved, be amazed and amazing in the world. Be amazed that God goes with you. Be amazed that the Holy One is rock, safety, and trust.

Be amazed that you reflect the image of God. Be amazing in your love of neighbor. Be amazing in your hope for the world. And be amazing in your faith in the presence of the Holy One at work in you, through you.