Musings for Pentecost

Sunday, June 12, 2011
Day of Pentecost

Midweek Musings

Reflection by Judy Lazenby

INTRODUCTION
Today's festival derives its name from the Jewish festival of Pentecost, observed fifty days after Passover. On the fiftieth day of Easter we celebrate the Holy Spirit as the power of God among us that heals, forgives, inspires, and unites. In the reading from Acts, images of wind and fire describe the Spirit poured out on disciples of all nations. In John's gospel the risen Christ breathes the Spirit on his followers on Easter evening. In the one Spirit we are baptized into one body, and at the Lord's table the Spirit unites us for witness in the world.

PRAYER OF THE DAY (ELW)

O God, on this day you open the hearts of your faithful people by sending into us your Holy Spirit. Direct us by the light of that Spirit, that we may have a right judgment in all things
and rejoice at all times in your peace, through Jesus Christ, your Son and our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

READINGS

Numbers 11:24–30 (Alternate)
Psalm 104:24–34, 35b
Acts 2:1–21 (Alternate)
John 7:37–39 (Alternate)

FIRST READING (ALTERNATE)

Numbers 11:24–30

The Spirit of God rested upon seventy elders in Israel who had been chosen to share the burden of leadership with Moses. When some became jealous that two others also had the spirit and could prophesy, Moses said that he hoped that all of God's people would be prophets.

²⁴So Moses went out and told the people the words of the LORD; and he gathered seventy elders of the people, and placed them all around the tent. ²⁵Then the LORD came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took some of the spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders; and when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied. But they did not do so again.
²⁶Two men remained in the camp, one named Eldad, and the other named Medad, and the spirit rested on them; they were among those registered, but they had not gone out to the tent, and so they prophesied in the camp. ²⁷And a young man ran and told Moses, "Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp." ²⁸And Joshua son of Nun, the assistant of Moses, one of his chosen men, said, "My lord Moses, stop them!" ²⁹But Moses said to him, "Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the LORD's people were prophets, and that the LORD would put his spirit on them!" ³⁰And Moses and the elders of Israel returned to the camp.

PSALM (ELW)

Psalm 104:24–34, 35b

Send forth your Spirit and renew the face of the earth. (Ps. 104:30)

²⁴How manifold are your ^| works, O LORD!

In wisdom you have made them all;

the earth is full ^| of your creatures.

²⁵Yonder is the sea, great and wide,

with its swarms too man- ^| y to number,

living things both ^| small and great.

²⁶There go the ships ^| to and fro,

and Leviathan, which you made for the ^| sport of it.

²⁷All of them ^| look to you

to give them their food ^| in due season. R

²⁸You give it to them; they ^| gather it;

you open your hand, and they are filled ^| with good things.

²⁹When you hide your face, ^| they are terrified;

when you take away their breath, they die and return ^| to their dust.

³⁰You send forth your Spirit, and they ^| are created;

and so you renew the face ^| of the earth.

³¹May the glory of the LORD en- ^| dure forever;

O LORD, rejoice in ^| all your works. R

³²You look at the earth ^| and it trembles;

you touch the mountains ^| and they smoke.

³³I will sing to the LORD as long ^| as I live;

I will praise my God while I ^| have my being.

³⁴May these words of ^| mine please God.

I will rejoice ^| in the LORD.

^35bBless the LORD, ^| O my soul.

Hal- ^| lelujah! R

SECOND READING (ALTERNATE)

Acts 2:1–21

Pentecost was a Jewish harvest festival that marked the fiftieth day after Passover. Luke portrays the Holy Spirit being poured out upon the disciples before the gathered and astonished people assembled in Jerusalem for the festival. Filled with the Spirit, the disciples were able to witness to the power of Christ's resurrection.

When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. ²And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting.³Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. ⁴All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.
⁵Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. ⁶And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. ⁷Amazed and astonished, they asked, "Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? ⁸And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? ⁹Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, ¹⁰Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, ¹¹Cretans and Arabs — in our own languages we hear them speaking about God's deeds of power." ¹²All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, "What does this mean?" ¹³But others sneered and said, "They are filled with new wine."
¹⁴But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them, "Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say. ¹⁵Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o'clock in the morning. ¹⁶No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:
¹⁷'In the last days it will be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams.
¹⁸Even upon my slaves, both men and women,
in those days I will pour out my Spirit;and they shall prophesy.
¹⁹And I will show portents in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and smoky mist.
²⁰The sun shall be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood, before the coming of the Lord's great and glorious day.
²¹Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.'

GOSPEL (ALTERNATE)

John 7:37–39

Jesus describes the Holy Spirit as living water, quenching the thirst of all who come to him and filling the hearts of believers till they overflow.

³⁷On the last day of the festival, the great day, while Jesus was standing there, he cried out, "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, ³⁸and let the one who believes in me drink. As the scripture has said, 'Out of the believer's heart shall flow rivers of living water.'" ³⁹Now he said this about the Spirit, which believers in him were to receive; for as yet there was no Spirit, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

REFLECTIONS

^“And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting.” How many people in Joplin relived this scripture when the great tornado winds came through their city? I’m sure many of them called on the Lord for help. We never know when the great winds of life will come upon us, but we always know the Sprit will be with us. Whatever befalls you; “Peace be With You.” We seek Gods Peace and the Holy Spirit will bring it to us.

QUOTATION

Peace be to you, fear not. ~Genesis 43:23

PRAYERS

Let us pray for

· Those who need peace in their lives.

· Those who live in fear of the powers of Mother Nature.

· Those who have lost everything but life itself.

· Those who need our support and love.

Musings for Advent 3

Sunday, December 12, 2010
Third Sunday of Advent

Midweek Musings

Reflection by Judy Lazenby

Introduction
A note of joyful expectation marks today's worship. Isaiah announces that the desert shall rejoice and blossom. Jesus points to signs of God's reign: the blind see, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear. We wait with patience for the coming of the Lord, even as we rejoice at his presence among us this day: in word and holy supper, in church and in our homes, in silent reflection and in works of justice and love. We pray that God would open our eyes and ears to the wonders of Christ's advent among us.

Prayer of the Day (ELW)

Stir up the wills of all who look to you, Lord God, and strengthen our faith in your coming, that, transformed by grace, we may walk in your way; through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

First Reading	Isaiah 35:1–10

The prophet describes the return from the Babylonian captivity as a joyous procession to Zion. God's coming reign will bring a renewal of creation in which health and wholeness will be restored. There is no need for fear, for God is coming to save.

The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad,
the desert shall rejoice and blossom;
like the crocus ²it shall blossom abundantly,
and rejoice with joy and singing.
The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it,
the majesty of Carmel and Sharon.
They shall see the glory of the LORD,
the majesty of our God.
³Strengthen the weak hands,
and make firm the feeble knees.
⁴Say to those who are of a fearful heart,
"Be strong, do not fear!
Here is your God.
He will come with vengeance,
with terrible recompense.
He will come and save you."
⁵Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,
and the ears of the deaf unstopped;
⁶then the lame shall leap like a deer,
and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy.
For waters shall break forth in the wilderness,
and streams in the desert;
⁷the burning sand shall become a pool,
and the thirsty ground springs of water;
the haunt of jackals shall become a swamp,
the grass shall become reeds and rushes.
⁸A highway shall be there,
and it shall be called the Holy Way;
the unclean shall not travel on it,
but it shall be for God's people;
no traveler, not even fools, shall go astray.
⁹No lion shall be there,
nor shall any ravenous beast come up on it;
they shall not be found there,
but the redeemed shall walk there.
¹⁰And the ransomed of the LORD shall return,
and come to Zion with singing;
everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;
they shall obtain joy and gladness,
and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

Psalm (ELW)

Psalm 146:5–10

The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down. (Ps. 146:8)

⁵Happy are they who have the God of Jacob ^| for their help,

whose hope is in the ^| LORD their God;

⁶who made heaven and earth, the seas, and all that ^| is in them;

who keeps promis- ^| es forever;

⁷who gives justice to those who are oppressed, and food to ^| those who hunger.

The LORD sets the ^| captive free.

⁸The LORD opens the eyes of the blind; the LORD lifts up those who ^| are bowed down;

the LORD ^| loves the righteous.

⁹The LORD cares ^| for the stranger;

the LORD sustains the orphan and widow, but frustrates the way ^| of the wicked.

¹⁰The LORD shall ^| reign forever,

your God, O Zion, throughout all generations. ^| Hallelujah!

Second Reading

James 5:7–10

In anticipation of the Lord's coming, Christians are called upon to cultivate patience rather than discontent.

⁷Be patient, therefore, beloved, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious crop from the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains. ⁸You also must be patient. Strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near. ⁹Beloved, do not grumble against one another, so that you may not be judged. See, the Judge is standing at the doors! ¹⁰As an example of suffering and patience, beloved, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.

Gospel

Matthew 11:2–11

John the Baptist expects the Messiah to bring God's judgment upon the earth. From a prison cell, he wonders whether Jesus is the one who will do this.

²When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples ³and said to him, "Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?" ⁴Jesus answered them, "Go and tell John what you hear and see: ⁵the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. ⁶And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me."
⁷As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: "What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? ⁸What then did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. ⁹What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. ¹⁰This is the one about whom it is written,
'See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way before you.'
¹¹Truly I tell you, among those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.

Reflections

“Go and tell John what you see and hear….” This is the opening line from an anthem the choir has song several times over the years in response to this Gospel. It’s a very lively piece and one we often had fun singing. I’m sure I will always think of it when I hear this lesson. Our actions are always a witness to our true personalities. People will know us by what we do and say, just as Jesus wanted John the Baptist to know him by what he did and said. Let this Christmas season fill you with the Holy Spirit so that those who see and hear what we do will know Christ.

Let us pray for

Safety from the cold for the homeless

Safe travel in the weeks ahead

Safety for children in all schools

Safe return to home for members of the armed forces

Quote

Preach the gospel everyday; if necessary, use words. Francis of Assisi