John 2:1-11
A miracle and hard work don't seem to go together, yet this is what John's gospel has presented to us this morning. In order to have the wine the stewards or servants have to do a lot of work. There would be no way to haul those six jars to the watering hole. The jars would have weighed too much in order for a person to bring them back. In South Sudan the women carried five gallons on their heads for a days worth of water. So this would have been done thirty-six times just to fill the jars, before any miracle occurred.
In the church some of us have lost our perspective on this. We expect a miracle of growth, but we don't expect to do any work. We are so used to another age, where every Sunday people showed up to fill the pews. We expect this again and we expect them to just show up through the doors. This isn't going to happen any longer. We need to begin pour own hard work of becoming a part of the work.
The church has talked for years about the priesthood of all believers. Maybe these sermons somehow missed us, or maybe they fell on deaf ears, hoping we again didn't have any work to do. This is not so. If you Google millennial and the church you will find all sorts of articles on why they don't come to church. The strongest reason is connection, relationship. We need to give a place where people belong and that is work.
With the rise of technology we are more and more isolated. When they encounter others, they want to know they matter, that their voice is of value. It means we need to find ways to create those connections. It means we have to reach out beyond a Sunday morning service. Sunday's are not enough. They need to know they are already a part of the fabric of the church. This was key in my years of youth ministry, now those youth have grown and this is the fabric of what we were taught, relationship. Relationship is hard work. It means we have to notice when someone is not in the pew and care, not guilt. "We missed you this Sunday, do you need anything?" this goes a long way in creating relationships which extend beyond Sunday in the pew.
The thing is relationship also helps to develop us. Jesus traveled around with 12 disciples, in messy and hard relationship. Knowing one stole from the money bag (Judas), knowing Peter would say the first thing out of his mouth, which wasn't always the best, knowing they all would desert him in the end, yet he bargained on those relationships. Its time for us to do the same. Invest in the relationships among the new people who come to our door. Let them know their voice matters too, not just ours, because we never know who the Spirit might speak through.
Now to abundance. God's abundance was shown in this miracle. More than enough wine to have a feast for days. Don't expect a drive of numbers to the door, do expect God's abundance will surprise you. Maybe its in a renewed energy for our congregation, maybe we will grow as a person, maybe we will find the wild abundance of God coming out of us in new ways. Pay attention to where it is and let it start to flow. Because abundance in God's love is an amazing thing. Its even displayed in a wedding feast.
A miracle and hard work don't seem to go together, yet this is what John's gospel has presented to us this morning. In order to have the wine the stewards or servants have to do a lot of work. There would be no way to haul those six jars to the watering hole. The jars would have weighed too much in order for a person to bring them back. In South Sudan the women carried five gallons on their heads for a days worth of water. So this would have been done thirty-six times just to fill the jars, before any miracle occurred.
In the church some of us have lost our perspective on this. We expect a miracle of growth, but we don't expect to do any work. We are so used to another age, where every Sunday people showed up to fill the pews. We expect this again and we expect them to just show up through the doors. This isn't going to happen any longer. We need to begin pour own hard work of becoming a part of the work.
The church has talked for years about the priesthood of all believers. Maybe these sermons somehow missed us, or maybe they fell on deaf ears, hoping we again didn't have any work to do. This is not so. If you Google millennial and the church you will find all sorts of articles on why they don't come to church. The strongest reason is connection, relationship. We need to give a place where people belong and that is work.
With the rise of technology we are more and more isolated. When they encounter others, they want to know they matter, that their voice is of value. It means we need to find ways to create those connections. It means we have to reach out beyond a Sunday morning service. Sunday's are not enough. They need to know they are already a part of the fabric of the church. This was key in my years of youth ministry, now those youth have grown and this is the fabric of what we were taught, relationship. Relationship is hard work. It means we have to notice when someone is not in the pew and care, not guilt. "We missed you this Sunday, do you need anything?" this goes a long way in creating relationships which extend beyond Sunday in the pew.
The thing is relationship also helps to develop us. Jesus traveled around with 12 disciples, in messy and hard relationship. Knowing one stole from the money bag (Judas), knowing Peter would say the first thing out of his mouth, which wasn't always the best, knowing they all would desert him in the end, yet he bargained on those relationships. Its time for us to do the same. Invest in the relationships among the new people who come to our door. Let them know their voice matters too, not just ours, because we never know who the Spirit might speak through.
Now to abundance. God's abundance was shown in this miracle. More than enough wine to have a feast for days. Don't expect a drive of numbers to the door, do expect God's abundance will surprise you. Maybe its in a renewed energy for our congregation, maybe we will grow as a person, maybe we will find the wild abundance of God coming out of us in new ways. Pay attention to where it is and let it start to flow. Because abundance in God's love is an amazing thing. Its even displayed in a wedding feast.
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