Colourful Dreamer

When we read our bibles, it is important to remember that the headings provided for each of the stories were not part of what was originally written. They have been added much later by some publishers. And they differ between publishers. The story of the lost sons is a good example of this. For the gospel reading for the 4 th Sunday in Lent, Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32, some versions of the bible have no titles, and others include them. This reading is commonly known as the Parable of the Prodigal Son – the title given by the KJV. Other versions of the bible have other names including The Parable of the Prodigal and His Brother, The Lost (Prodigal) Son and the Dutiful Son, and The Parable of the Lost Sons. Each title shapes how we read this story and how we understand it. They are both helpful and misleading. Another title given to this story by one commentator is “The Undesirable Son” which begs the question which son is the undesirable one? Another title I like is “A Prodigal Son, An Undign...

Gate Pa – Year C  3 rd Sunday in Lent, 2022 Readings: Psalm                            Psalm: 63:1-8                                             First Reading :              Isaiah 55:1-9                                              Second Reading :         1 Corinthians 10:1-13                       Gospel:               ...

Two weeks ago, I invited us to reflect on what has been life giving over the last while, and to use Lent as a time to give more time to those things, and to fast from those things that take us away from life. And last week we spent time thinking about God’s faithfulness as expressed in the story in Genesis 15, and repeated through the law and the prophets, and in the life and teaching of Jesus, and the writings of Paul. Finally last week I talked about the theme “blessed to be a blessing.” This is not about us, but all of creation, and the invitation to join God’s work of being a blessing to this world. This week, in our gospel reading (Luke 13: 1-9) we hear one of the big themes of Lent – “repentance”. Repentance is a big important word. But, Matt Skinner warns, “Repentance becomes less interesting when people mistake it to mean moral uprightness, expressions of regret, or a "180-degree turnaround." Rather, here and many other places in the Bible, it refers to a changed mi...

This sermon can be listened to here                    Gate Pa – Year C  2nd Sunday in Lent, 2022 Readings: Psalm                            Psalm: 27                                                First Reading                Genesis 15:1-12, 17-18                      Second Reading           Phil 3:17-4:1                           ...

What an interesting collection of readings this week. Take Genesis 15: 1-12, 17-18. A gruesome story that makes little sense to us. It is easy to get hung up on the brutality of the sacrifice and miss the significance of the moment. This is an ancient way of promising that what is being promised will happen, or the person promising will end up like the animals whose remains they walk between. Or in other words, God will be faithful to this covenant or God will die. God makes this promise even while Abram sleeps. God’s faithfulness does not depend on our response. God just is faithful. And God fulfilled the promise. Abram and Sarai did have a son, and through that son they had many descendants. God remained faithful to those many descendants. They were blessed, so that they might be a blessing for all creation and all life. For the gospel writers and for Paul, Jesus is how God fulfils the ultimate promise of this moment. Humanity would be restored, and creation renewed. Through Jesus,...

This sermon can be listened to here Gate Pa AGM – Year C   1st Sunday in Lent, 2022 Readings: Psalm                         Psalm: 91: 1-2, 9-16                                                    First Reading :              Deuteronomy 26:1-11 Second Reading :         Romans 10:8-13          Gospel:                          Luke 4:1-13      What I want...

Some of us have been ashed. Lent has begun with this sign of our mortality and repentance visible. A sign of our willingness to walk the way of humility and have our minds blown by God’s shalom. In my reading for this Sunday, I came across this by Karoline Lewis from Working Preacher. “In the past, I have called into question the notion of giving up something for Lent and instead, invited a decision on something to embrace. Not something “to do” but something “to be.” Something that gives you joy, that nurtures you. It’s okay to have joy during Lent. It’s okay to think about how you will take care of yourself during Lent. It’s okay to imagine a Lent that does not have to have as its primary mood that of sacrifice. Your starting point for Lent matters. You can suffer through Lent. Or, you can choose to move through Lent from a place of wonder and gratitude: wondering where God might show up, what God might reveal in this dormant time, this time set aside so as to anticipate life, a ti...