Texts: Joshua 5:10-12; Psalm 34:1-8; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11; Mark 6:30-46
As we bring this uncommon lectionary season to a close, I am returning to a theme from early June, when I preached on the feeding of the five-thousand. In that scripture which we heard again this morning, Jesus said to his disciples, "You give them something to eat."
"But, we have nothing, but a few loaves and a couple of fish," they protested.
But the disciples gave what they had, and Jesus took it, blessed it, and gave it back to them, to give to others. And by the grace of God it was more than enough.
That is the miracle that we witness in every church, in every age.
Jesus calls the church to give the poor of the world something to eat. You give them -- those who are poor in spirit as well as those who are literally starving-- something to eat.
We have nothing, we might say, nothing but this old church, a couple of hundred members, only one pastor, only our limited budget to share. But what we have, we give to God, and God takes it, and blesses it, and gives it back to us to give to others. And, by the grace of God, it is enough, and more to spare.
Worship is a meal in which God feeds us, and we feed each other, so that we might have the strength to feed those beyond our church doors. Worship is, in another sense, putting on our own oxygen mask before assisting others.
Most of us have the altruistic impulse-- the desire to help others in need. But, as the flight attendant reminds us before takeoff, we won't be much good to others if we don't take care of ourselves. Neglecting the spiritual disciplines of prayer and worship, on the excuse that we ought to spend our time and resources in mission-- well, that would be like rushing to help other passengers (in the event of loss of cabin pressure) with their oxygen masks without putting on our own. We won't be much help to others when we are passed out in the aisle. We can't feed others if we don't take the time to eat.
Our uncommon lectionary is one example of how we feed each other. Every time we come to worship we all bring with us the gifts of the Holy Spirit that God has given to each, for the common good. Every time we gather together it is like making stone soup, or setting out a spiritual smorgasbord. But even more so with the uncommon lectionary, which has allowed us to share our stories with each other. Not only the scriptural stories which we claim as our own, but also our life stories, our comforts and our concerns.
If following the Revised Common Lectionary is receiving the manna in the wilderness, our uncommon lectionary is like the fruit of the land of Canaan. It is as if we have arrived at the promised land, and now we eat what the earth and our own labor has produced, and we drink from the wells that we ourselves have dug. The bread is still from heaven, because the earth is God's, and everything within belongs to God. And yet we have a hand in production. Our experiences season the broth. It's a Lake Country Harvest of another kind.
The next great idea to come out of the Vision Quest group is called Heart-to-Heart. It's a structure for small group gatherings, to help us get to know one another so that we can better support each other on the journey of faith. It will be another opportunity to feed each other and be fed by God's holy word, as the Spirit speaks to the church using familiar voices. Together we will listen for God's still-speaking voice, together we will discern what the spirit is saying to the church.
The members of the church are here for service to Christ, using the gifts which the Holy Spirit gives to each for the common good. Today we feed each other, tomorrow and the next day and the next we get to work, feeding others as we have been fed. Every week we will return to receive bread for the journey. For what we are about to receive, thanks be to God. Amen.
