You Belong, You Matter: Sermon for the 25th Sunday after Pentecost (November 10, 2024)
You Belong, You Matter: Sermon for the 25th Sunday after Pentecost (November 10, 2024) at St.James’ Episcopal Church in Hyde Park, NY. View the scripture readings and the Collect of the Day.
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Transcript
May only truth be spoken here and only truth be heard in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Please be seated.
For the last two days, Deacon Gail and Maggie M.and I were at the 248th annual Convention of the Diocese of New York. Alison was also there! And I had an interesting experience on Friday afternoon when we celebrated the Eucharist. During the offertory, just like we do here, they were collecting an offering and they were passing around these big baskets. So I, along with everybody else, got out their wallet and I thought, Hmm, let's see what I have in here. Maybe I'm feeling a little generous. I'll put in a 20, but if I don't have it, I'll put in a 10 or a 5. In my wallet, I have $2.
I thought, I'm not proud of this, but my very first thought was, oh God, what if someone sees me putting $2 in the basket? And my next thought was, maybe it's better not to give anything. Then people will assume I donated online. But the basket came around and I put my $2 in, and then I remembered a story that Ron told me. Where is Ron? Is he in here? Yeah. Ron told me a story this past week. Ron is the chair of our stewardship committee, and today St. James is launching. I've had a hard time because we are having a luncheon to launch our stewardship campaign after this service. I'm also a little bit tired, and when I do that, I start mixing up my consonants. So we're having a luncheon. The stewardship committee was together to plan this luncheon and to prepare for all the good stories that we're going to share over these next six Sundays together. And Ron told me this story that came to me while I was debating about my $2.
Ron and Kathy, they're, they're volunteers with the SPCA and they were tabling at a festival, outdoor park. They had a table with literature, they had a donation bucket and people were coming by putting in their twenties and their fives and their tens, taking the pamphlets, getting the information. And then a man came up to the table who looked more disheveled than some of the other people at the festival. He actually maybe looked like he had been sleeping outside. And he said, oh, what are you doing? And they explained the mission of the SPCA to care for the little creatures, to take in little dogs and cats who don't have a home to feed them, to find them good homes. And the man reached into his pocket and he pulled out, counted it on his palm. He had what, like 82 cents and he looked at it and he took a quarter and he put it back in his own pocket and then he put the rest into the basket and then he got a big smile on his face and he said, I want to help. Thank you. And then he went on his way.
When the stewardship committee was meeting, we talked about this gospel passage. I want you to know every time we read this story in church, part of me is really scared and you know what I'm scared of? I'm scared that some widow in this church is going to give everything that he or she has because they think that's what is required. But someone is going to eat into their own basic needs because they feel guilty. They feel that they need to do a certain amount to give enough to be enough and to belong here.
That's what motivated me to almost not put my $2 into the plate. But when we talked about this, it was you, Bobby who said the phrase, “give until it hurts”. Have you heard that? That's what I think. We think when we hear the story of the widows might give till it hurts or you're probably not doing enough. Now that happens in church, not just with our money, but it happens with our time and our treasure too. If I’m not exhausted, am I doing enough to serve my church? Some of us are giving until it hurts. But Bobby said, I don't think we should give until it hurts. We should give until we feel joy.
That man who took his 82 cents and took the quarter for himself, that was what he needed. And he put 82 minus 25 into, ( not good at math), into the bag. And then he smiled and he said, thank you. He had an opportunity to give until he feels joy. That is the opportunity we have in this place; to give from the gifts that God has given us until we feel the joy of having something to offer because everybody has something to offer. Think about what's happening in the temple. I like to imagine that there's like a big courtyard. I am totally making this up. Okay? There's a big courtyard and in the middle of the courtyard is like a big brass kettle and all the wealthy scribes are coming along. There is no paper money, okay? There's no paper money. So everybody has coins. Coin club. Eric is a coin collector. Everybody has coins. So the wealthy come along and they take out the big bag and they pour in the coins. Can you imagine the sound like ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding. And one after another. People come and give and it makes the impressive sound. And here is Jesus. He's just watching and everybody else is watching too. Do you understand? Everybody is listening.
We can tell what everyone is giving by the sounds that ring through the courtyard. What courage it takes for that widow to take her two tiny coins, plink, plink, and walk on. If she were me, she would've said, it's probably better that I don't give anything at all. Every time the church enters into the season of stewardship, I hear stories just like that. People who felt since I didn't have what I was expected to give or what I thought I should have to give, I didn't give and I walked out. I didn't think I belonged. I will tell you, there is not one person here today who does not belong completely to God and to this community.
God does not make mistakes when God calls someone into God's one, holy and Catholic church. And God has brought you here because God loves you, because you belong here. You belong to this community. And God brought you here because you have something to offer to this community. And you might be sitting in your seat in this very moment thinking, not me though. Maybe it is your hard earned treasure. Maybe it is a skill or a talent that God gave you probably also hard earned. Maybe it is your prayers. Even those who cannot get out of bed in the morning can sing and pray for this place.
God brought you here because you belong here because there is something you can offer to this place and you are called to offer it until you feel joy and only you can know. And you know what? It really, really matters that you belong here, that you belong to God that you matter because a lot of people aren't feeling belonging right now.
On Monday night before the election, we had a prayer service in this holy space. A lot of you were there. We prayed for peace and for unity and for the healing of our nation. And at the close of the service, we invited people to come to the altar rail to receive healing prayer. And many people brought their broken hearts to the altar for prayer. And one of them whispered to me, I just pray that half the country doesn't hate me.
I don't care what your identity is, who God made you to be, who you voted for. Any person in this room might have said that prayer. Because we live in a country where people are turned against one another and where belonging is in question, but not in here. In here, every child of God has something to offer and deserves to give until she feels joy. In here, everybody belongs. Because we are nourished here, we go out to extend the hand of belonging. We are given so many gifts. The gifts that God gave are that some would speak the truth and that some would pray, but that all would be healers. The gift that God has given to the people of this place is that we have a message of taking the broken and holding it and saying, you belong. We love you.
Everyone is here for a reason. God made every one of God's children. I want you to know that God loves you and I love you. I love you so much. What a gift that we have this place, here we belong, and here we place before God and before our neighbor the gifts that God has given us to give. You belong. You matter. We walk together from here. Amen.