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Father Bill is away on a family vacation this week. His regular weekly letter will return next week, but for today, he has chosen to share these words of wisdom from the Heavens Inspirations website.
Carrots, Eggs, And Coffee Inspirational Story on our response to difficulties A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of fighting and struggling.Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil without saying a word. In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl. Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter, she asked, "Tell me, what do you see?" "Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied. She brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft and mushy. She then asked her to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hardened egg. Finally, she asked her to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled as she tasted its deep flavour and inhaled its rich aroma. The daughter then asked, "What's the point, mother?" Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity - boiling water - but each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin, outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water they had changed the water. "Which are you?" she asked her daughter. "When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?" Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong? But with pain and adversity, do I wilt and lose my strength? Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit but, after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and a hardened heart? Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water - the very circumstance that brings the adversity, the pain, the hardship – into something quite wonderful. When the water gets hot, it releases its fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you for the better. When the hours are the darkest and trials are their greatest do you elevate to another level? How do you handle adversity? ARE YOU A CARROT, AN EGG, OR A COFFEE BEAN? (Somehow, wake up and smell the coffee takes on a whole new meaning) - Author Unknown
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“But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must be the slave of everyone else. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give His life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10:43-45
When we hear the words, “I was called” or “you are called,” or “he was called,” it begs the question, what does it mean to be called? Most often what comes to mind are images of missionaries in Africa, or sweating servers in soup kitchens, or door-to-door Bible witnesses. While these things are true and good for those who are called to them, the call that goes out to all of us is the call to serve as Christ served us (see chapter 15 of St. Paul’s letter to the Romans.) “You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love.” (Galatians 5:13) We are not saved by serving, we are saved for serving. Jesus reminds us that He did not come to be served, “just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 20:28). This is an astounding statement. If anyone should expect to be served, it is Jesus. Yet His life on earth was filled with examples of serving others. And His specific instructions to us follow along with His example. To follow Jesus is to live a life where we are always looking for ways to meet the needs of others through our talents, gifts, and abilities. It is a lifestyle of putting others first, thinking not about ourselves and our own desires, but about what others lack that we can provide. So often when teaching about service in Christ’s name, Pastors and teachers quote Luke 6:30-36: 30 Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. 31 Do to others as you would have them do to you. 32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. 33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. 34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. 35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. This is a meaningful quote from Jesus; unfortunately, when it is read, the most notable (and memorable) line is, 35 "But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back.” Of course this is a true teaching, but getting stuck here obscures the total message, Do to others as you would have them do to you. St. Paul tells us, “You were called to be free.” When we are self-focused and defensive, guarding our opinions or preferences against others, service is impossible. You cannot serve God until you’ve been set free from the self by Jesus. He is the prerequisite for serving. Without the freedom of forgiveness, you’ll end up serving for the wrong reasons: trying to earn the approval of others, trying to run away from your pain, trying to remedy your guilt, trying to impress God. Service motivated by these illegitimate reasons is bound to leave you burned out and bitter in the end. Until you experience the transforming power of God’s grace in your life, you’re too enslaved by your own hurts, habits, and hang-ups to think much about others. God is far more interested in why you serve others than in how well you serve them. He’s always looking at your heart, serving willingly and eagerly out of love for Jesus and gratitude for all he’s done for you. You are most like Jesus when you’re serving others. After washing his disciples’ feet, Jesus said, “I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you” (John 13:14–15 NLT). In this way, the call to serve is founded in love. Paul says, “Serve one another in love.” This is an important key to building community: 1 Corinthians 13:3 records, “No matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love.” When you hear the words call or serve, push down the radical images of far off lands and inner city need; receive them where YOU are. For example, if you are a husband or a wife, you can start with your partner right under your own roof. Strengthen your marriage by serving together, and if you have kids (or grandkids), teach them how to be servants by working alongside them--lead by example. Jesus formed his ministry around people who had to give something up. For Peter and John, it was their fishing boats and nets. For Matthew, it was his tollbooth. Eventually, all of them surrendered their idea of the Messiah as a conquering king in favor of Jesus, the Suffering Savior. When we hear the stories, it is too easy to focus on the things that were left behind and ignore the inner decision to do so. Christ calls us to serve by deciding to do so. By giving up fear, by forgiving and by relying on Him to lead us in love. Learning to serve others well is about getting outside ourselves. God has given each of us strengths, gifts, and abilities to use for His glory. And we should be using those to serve others. And through that service you will also be served! Jesus still serves you as you become like the One who serves you! His joy is made manifest in you as you turn to Him. Follow the example of Jesus, answer the call to serve. People in the world need to see what Jesus really looks like. You can show them by serving others. Serving in the name of Christ, Fr. Bill+ Our Year of Jubilee
The following article was written in Fall 2016 for our 50th anniversary celebration. I still think it’s wild that our birthday is in “THE” Book, and I still give thanks for my Creator family. Happy 60th! Peace, Jenny Happy Birthday, Creator! Can you hear it? It is the horn of a ram sounding our Jubilee. In ancient Israel, the “Year of Jubilee” was a special observance of the 50th year in the life of a congregation. The word "jubilee" in the Old Testament is from the Hebrew word "yobel" or yovel," meaning "a ram's horn, trumpet" or "coronet." If someone announced the Jubilee, he would do so by blowing a trumpet and all of the congregation of Israel would be able to hear it. When the trumpet sounded on the fiftieth year, and specifically on the Day of Atonement, liberty would be proclaimed "throughout the land to all its inhabitants," and then all of the property that had been taken by others for unpaid debts would have to be returned to the original families (clans). In that year, there would be no reaping or planting or gathering of the crops, for it was to be "holy to" the nation Israel and everyone could "eat the produce of the field." What a celebration that must have been! Everyone that had been indebted was then released from their debt and able to start over again by having their land returned to them.* You may not know it. I certainly didn't until I went online to research the biblical concept of the Jubilee. But here is the wild thing, Creator. We celebrated the Jubilee. We did. Without even knowing it. When your faithful 50th anniversary committee met a year ago to plan the events of this year, we missed one date. A very important date. Kathy Barclay found it by chance, digging through shoe boxes of old photos that would become the BEAUTIFUL scrapbooks we enjoyed on October 9th. That was the crowning date we had been so focused on: October 9th: The date 50 years ago when the Bishop of Virginia first visited Creator and celebrated the first Confirmation. How handy (thank you, God) that this momentous anniversary was kind enough to fall again on a Sunday so that we could come to worship and mark it–with what? A homecoming–a call to the people far and wide to relinquish property, to free debts, and to return to one's own family. The crazy thing is, we were working so hard for October 9th as our Bishop's visit that we missed the date Kathy discovered in a faded, mimeographed service leaflet: the very FIRST worship held at Creator. Ever. July the 10th, 1966. How handy (thank you, God) that such a nearly forgotten anniversary also fell on a Sunday this year, so that we could observe it as a gathered Body. But we worship an awesome God, a Creator God–a God who can bring life out of dust and meaning out of chaos, and do you know what? The lonely little July date was our church's "real" birthday because it is the very first Sunday 50 years ago that our people gathered together in his name. More amazing still, this very date finds a precedent in holy scripture itself. As in, our date is in the book! As Leviticus 25:8-12 instructs, "You shall count seven weeks of years, seven times seven years, so that the time of the seven weeks of years shall give you forty-nine years. Then you shall sound the loud trumpet on the tenth day of the seventh month. On the Day of Atonement you shall sound the trumpet throughout all your land. And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you…” The “tenth day of the seventh month” ??? July 10th, 2016? We did that! Our 50th year celebration is in the BIBLE! As I recall it was birthday cake, piñata, and a ring toss--regrettably no ram's horn-- but we gathered, we celebrated, we sang praises and we gave thanks for five decades of God's providence and mercy. This past year has given us much to celebrate. We began in fellowship, enjoying a lovely spaghetti supper, and we will end gathered around the manger once again. In between were a bus trip, ball game, concert, homecomings. Ironically--(thank you, God) the Christian year "ends" with its very own beginning: just at that point where the harvest is gathered, the ground is shuttered tight and the air is bright with cold, just at that winding down of all things secular and seasonal comes the greatest beginning of all time: The Genesis of new life from the author of our salvation. And so the year ends with newborn life (IS there anything on the planet more hope-filled than the birth of a baby?) and the great pull to humanity to look up and understand so that we can come to worship and adore the only thing that ever mattered and ever will. Of course we can see what Jubilee means to us. Spiritually speaking, we have been freed from sin. Property which was rightfully God's (YOU, precious one) is being freed from family misery or Black Friday shopping or health issues or financial issues or any of the many modern grinds that grip our hearts and vie for that hold that only our God should like to have, freed back into the open arms of your Creator God. In our church body, friends we have lost are returning, new friends are finding home here as all "property" or claim on property has been released such that we are One Body in Christ. Indeed, the Jubilee year contains many of the pictures of our salvation. Just as the land, the people, and all the property was released, so we too have been released from a debt that we could not pay (our sins). We were once slaves to sin but now we've been released, once held captive but now set free. Christ's blood has atoned for our sins and satisfied the wrath of God that was due us (Romans 5) and as the land was given rest, we too have entered into His rest from all of our works for we could never save ourselves by our own works because salvation is fully a work of God. "What then?" They asked of Jesus himself: "What must we do, to be doing the works of God?" Jesus answered them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent" (John 6:28-29).* And so we will, this Advent, pour our hearts into that believing. Live our lives into that believing. For we are in Jubilee. We are a people Holy unto Him. Thanks be to God. AMEN. "And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you." Leviticus 25:10 "All must admit that the reception of the teachings of Christ results in the purist patriotism, in the most scrupulous fidelity to public trust, and in the best type of citizenship."
– Grover Cleveland, 22nd and 24th President (1885-1889, 1893-1897) President Cleveland voiced the truth he inherited from his father, a Presbyterian minister, and from the Founding Fathers, in whose shadow he served. What was known and understood by so many, and is lost by so many today, is that the United States was not founded to be a Christian Nation by force, but by faith. When John Winthrop led many Puritans from England to form the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1630, they envisioned a place of religious freedom and peace. Once established, the colony did indeed create a space where Puritan beliefs were honored and respected, but they soon fell prey to the same persecution they were running from. Establishing rules and rights for only those of the “Puritan faith,” earthly fear and earthly power conspired to obscure the Gospel and taint the dream. One hundred and seventy-six years later, in 1776, the Continental Congress gathered to create a new nation based on the same ideals that Winthrop found and then lost. To ensure that fear and power would not overshadow love and compassion, Congress built into the documents and vision of our new nation the foundation of the Gospel proclamation. Everywhere we look when we study the documents of the founding era we find the tenets of the Christian faith and the plan of faithful governance. This plan was ‘self-evident’ and known. It was a hope, a dream, that our nation would function based on love, charity, fairness, compassion, honor, integrity, self-sacrifice, self-awareness, and dedication to a higher ideal to which all could aspire. For Christians, this is an everyday action, and for a nation built on these tenets, it is truly the opportunity for “liberty and justice for all.” Often spoken in the public forum, this plan, this idea of a land where religious freedom for all was embraced as an opportunity for witness, was spoken as the foundation for deliberation. In 1850, Theodore Parker, a pastor and activist, spoke before the New England Anti-Slavery Convention. He said, "...There is what I call the American idea….This idea demands, as the proximate organization thereof, a democracy; that is, a government of all the people, by all the people, for all the people; of course, a government after the principles of eternal justice, the unchanging law of God; for shortness' sake, I will call it the idea of Freedom..." Parker only brought to mind the idea everyone could claim if they knew their history and were confident in the tenets of the founding documents. He tried to remind them of our roots and the hope of what could grow from that first planting: not fear and the quest for power, but honor, integrity, and compassion. Thirteen years later, in 1863, President Abraham Lincoln recalled Parker’s words while standing on the grief-ridden land of Gettysburg: ... But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate—we can not consecrate—we can not hallow—this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth. This moving address makes clear that the grand idea was still alive and had permeated the American mind. That “of, by, and for the people” was not separate from the tenets that had brought this nation into being. Today we celebrate the birth of our great nation amidst competing claims of ‘special knowledge.’ Constant are the news reports about Christian Nationalists who claim that our nation is only for Christians. Others contend that the United States is “blessed by God,” as Israel was, the new “promised land” appropriate only for Christians. These two views, among others, embody the same tragic downfall of John Winthrop in 1630 and fall victim to the fear and quest for power that promotes biblical heresy. Nowhere in scripture are these views supported, and nowhere in the founding of our nation are they proposed. This 4th of July, our Independence Day, we celebrate the birth of our nation and perhaps, claim for ourselves a new independence. Independence from the fear and the quest for power which freedom allows, and a new dedication to the tenets on which our nation was founded. The underlying vision of the Founding Fathers of love, charity, fairness, compassion, honor, integrity, self-sacrifice, self-awareness, and dedication to a higher ideal to which all could aspire is embedded in our national spirit and offered in witness to all the world. As Christians, we reach out in the name of Jesus Christ to embrace all people everywhere, with the hope of a new life. The United States of America has done the same as part of our national identity; not afraid of the loss of power, but confident and faithful in what has formed us and made America great. Perhaps there is no greater example or witness of our national identity, intention, and confidence, than that which is inscribed on our welcome beacon: the Statue of Liberty. I leave you with the poem, “The New Colossus,” written by Emma Lazarus. This poem was unanimously adopted to represent the national heart and mind to the world. Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame, With conquering limbs astride from land to land; Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame. "Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!" “I lift my lamp beside the golden door!” Fr. Bill+ |
AuthorFather Bill Burk† Archives
August 2026
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