Yesterday we reflected on the passage of scripture from the Gospel of Matthew 14:22-33, where Jesus comes to the disciples on the Sea of Galilee in the midst of a storm. I mentioned yesterday that when I was studying this passage, I was struck by something the biblical scholar Dale Bruner suggested. He picks up on Jesus’ words to the disciples, “Take Courage. It is I. Do not be afraid.” 

The middle phrase, It is I, in the Greek language in which Matthew originally wrote, reads simply, “I am.” This calls to mind the words God speaks to Moses out of the burning bush, when Moses asks God’s name, God replies, “I am.” … I am the One who called the sea and the stars and life itself into being.. I am the One who calms the storms. I am the One who created you… and cares for you. I am… It is I.

Bruner says that these phrases – all three of them: Take courage. It is I. Do not be afraid, “are worthy of inscription in churches, in homes and on hearts…” And I wondered, what if I could make these words a meditation – a mantra of sorts… Perhaps it could be a kind of refrain when the storms mount or worry and anxiety creep in…

You could simply close your eyes for a moment. Then silently repeat these words silently to yourself. As you do, hear Jesus speaking to you. As you breathe in, hear the words, “Take courage…” As you breathe in again, hear the words, “It is I.” And as you breathe in for a third time, hear the words, “Do not be afraid.”

The next time you find yourself anxious, worried, or afraid, the next time you feel battered by the storms of life, I invite you to try this mediation. And may the One who stills the storm, still also your heart.

Let us pray: Meet us, Lord Jesus, amid the storms of life. Ground us in your peace, and fill us anew with your healing grace. Amen.

Today’s message was written by Rev. Roger Kunkel, founder of Dial Hope.

The pain of this world is an opportunity for us to be an instrument of God’s redemptive healing. Or said another way, we have the opportunity to be an ambassador for Christ amid someone else’s pain. 

Dr. James Stewart, the brilliant professor of the New Testament of Edinburgh, Scotland once made a hospital call. He went to the cancer ward of the hospital and as he walked in, he noticed the nurses and the doctors were all frazzled. Many of the interns had just had it. People had been dying, there was pain, there was suffering. And Dr. Stewart was invited to go to a meeting of the nurses and doctors. They called him because they wanted to ask for his pastoral wisdom. In this meeting, there were doctors, nurses, and technicians who were groping for answers. And they asked Dr. Stewart – “Why did God allow a 31-year-old woman, mother of three to die of cancer?” “Why did God allow a teenage boy to die of leukemia?” “Why is it, Dr. Stewart? Why does God allow a little child to die at childbirth because a mother could not function because she had cancer?” “Why, why, why Dr. Stewart?” “Why does God do that?” “And Dr. Stewart what is God’s answer?” “What do we tell these people?” “Dr. Stewart, what is the answer?” 

In four words Dr. Stewart gave an answer that thundered down the corridors of the hospital when he whispered to all those doctors and nurses hanging on his every word “YOU ARE GOD’S ANSWER. God has put you in this hospital right now today, for this moment so you might care for one of these children or one of these moms or one of these dads or one of these people waiting in the waiting room. God has given you arms and legs. He has given you mouths, ears, eyes, and touch. And a mind to think creatively in which to care. YOU ARE GOD’S ANSWER.” 

What is the answer to the homeless in Sarasota, in St. Louis, in Chicago? What is the answer to the pain and the suffering and the loss? What is the answer? We are God’s answer. For God has strategically placed us in hospitals, in apartments, in condos, on the street, in retirement centers, in classrooms, in the church, in church meetings, in the store, in the office meeting, to be creative listeners, to bring redemptive healing to the people around us. Don’t ever underestimate the difference your touch, your card, your smile, your note, your call, your fax, your email, your look, your listening ear can mean in the life of someone who is hurting, who is experiencing pain. 

Let us pray: Awesome God, bless us today so that we may be a blessing to others. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Several years ago there was a story in the news about two men living in Lincoln, Nebraska. One of them, a man named Larry Trapp, was wheelchair-bound and had been diagnosed with a fatal disease. Larry was also bound, not only by disease but also by crippling hatred. He was a Grand Dragon in the Nebraska Ku Klux Klan, and most recently been directing his hatred toward a Jewish cantor named Michael Weisser. Larry harassed Michael with threatening phone calls and a slew of hate mail, ultimately trying to get him to leave the community. Michael decided to confront his tormentor, and with great courage, he picked up the phone and called Larry.

“I just kept leaving messages on his answering machine,” says Michael, “until finally one day, Larry Trapp, in a fit of anger, picked up the phone.” ‘What do you want?’ he said. ‘You’re harassing me! My phone’s got a tap on it.’”

“I was real quiet and calm,” says Michael. “I said I knew he had a hard time getting around and thought he might need a ride to the grocery store. Trapp got completely quiet, and all the anger went out of his voice. He replied, ‘I’ve got that taken care of, but thanks for asking.'”

The powerful end of the story is that the two men eventually became friends. Mr. Weisser and his wife would have Larry, the former grand dragon in the KKK, over for dinner. Amazing! Eventually, Larry decided to devote the time he had left to freeing others from the destructive power of hatred and bigotry.

What a beautiful story.

Martin Luther King, Jr. once said: “Hate cannot drive out hate; only love; can do that.”

Let us pray: Gracious God, we thank you for Michael Weisser’s courage and for his example to us. With so much anger and hatred in the world around us, help us to be instruments of your grace and love. And by doing so, may we dispel darkness and change hearts. We pray today in the name of the One who came as the Light of the World. Amen.

Over the last few days, I’ve been reflecting on hospitality. 

I’m reminded of an older nun I met years ago who had served all over the world. I met her at a Catholic retreat center in Europe, and I felt immediately drawn to her. She had this presence about her, and she really took the time to get to know each guest personally. She was curious about us and you could tell she was interested.

I was there with a group of students – most of us studying to be pastors. She reminded us that the greatest gift you can another person – is to listen to them. Not the kind of listening you do, while you’re sharpening your own opinion, or while you’re thinking of what you’re going to say next. But to be a non-judgmental presence – to be generous with your listening, generous with your understanding. If you can do that with those who are different from you – or who may see the world differently, it is a true gift.

In an interview I once heard the philosopher John O’Donohue claim that there is a hunger in everyone’s spirit to be seen, to be loved, and to be accepted as you are, without being judged. But we offer each other these spaces less and less these days. It’s to the point where we are just starved for community… 

There is a lot of opportunity for even a little hospitality.

Let us pray: Lord Jesus, give us eyes to see you in the eyes of others. May we care for them as you care for us. Amen.

“Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me… and whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple—truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward.”

Initially, these words were spoken by Jesus to the very first disciples (Matthew 10:40-42). He had sent them out to do what he did, to teach and preach and to care for others. Jesus was saying to them, as you go about your mission, your ministry, whoever welcomes you, welcomes me… and the One who sent me. I am in you in some mystical way. When people show hospitality to you, they are showing hospitality to me… And there is a blessing for them in that.

I imagine, for these first disciples, these words were comforting and reassuring. When Jesus said, whoever gives even a cup of water to one of these little ones… they knew that they were the “little ones.” The first Christians were small and insignificant in the eyes of the world. They had no power – no influence – not much in the way of resources.

Jesus was saying to them, even though you are insignificant and powerless, I’ve welcomed you. I loved you. And I’m with you in your ministry… Those who look out for you, those who care for you, they are caring for me. 

I imagine, those first disciples, feeling powerless, would feel a deep empathy for others who were powerless in the world. In fact, later in Matthew’s Gospel (25:31-46), Jesus makes it clear that those who welcome, who feed, who clothe, those who care for anyone in need – they have done it to him. He is present in the vulnerable, the hurting, the hungry, and the outsider.

“Whoever offers even a cup of cold water…” Jesus says, “Truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward.”

What is the reward? We don’t know what Jesus was getting at there. But I do know there is a blessing in giving. And most of us have found that by extending hospitality to others, we experience new insights and we hear new stories. Our perspectives are widened, our hearts expand, and we create space for relationships to flourish.

May you come to see that when you open your heart, your eyes, your ears, and your hands to someone in need, you are indeed opening them to Christ. 

Let us pray: Lord Jesus, give us eyes to see you in the eyes of others. May we care for them as you care for us. Amen.