23 Pentcost

 

Stewardship Sunday

 November 13, 2022

 Malachi 4.1-2a; 2 Thessalonians 3.6-13; Luke 21.5-19

 + I don’t want to do this.

 Not today, on Stewardship Sunday.

 But…

 Let's go back for a moment.

 Let's go back in history.

 We’re not going to go far.

 In fact, it’s a very shorts trip.

 And, sadly, it’s not going to be a pleasant one.

 For a moment, let’s go back to…2020.

 We all remember it.

 It was a terrible time.

 In fact, it was truly one of the most terrible of times in our collective history.

 It was a time for the history books.

 And going back to 2020, let’s look at where we were here at St. Stephen’s.

 Here, even in the darkest days of the pandemic, we kept going on.

 Thanks to Livestreaming and a devoted core (or “pod” as we called it at the time) of Vestry, church members and staff we never missed a Sunday.

 We plugged away, even when it looked scary and uncertain.

The reason I want to take you back for a moment is this:

 Let’s now look at where we are now.

 It’s not perfect.

 But it’s certainly so much better.

 And for the first time, this past year, we were able to move away from the pandemic and all it’s difficulties.

 And where are we here at St. Stephen’s?

 And we are right back, for the most part, to where we were in 2019.

 Well, at least on a operating level.

 And the reason I’m bringing it up is because I don’t want us to take anything we have for granted.

 Today, as I said, is Stewardship Sunday.

 Today is the day in which we are asked to take a good, hard look at ourselves as members of St. Stephen’s.

 At who we are as this strange, unique, eclectic, eccentric congregation in a hidden, out-of-the-way back corner of Fargo.

 Stewardship time is a time for the mirror to be set up and for us to look deeply into it.

 And to realize that we are unique, and eccentric and eclectic.

 And vital.

 And alive.

 And, we’re survivors.

 And that we survived that ugly time in 2020.

 Let’s face it: there aren’t a whole lot of churches out there quite like St. Stephen’s. 

  We are an amazing place! I think we can say that.

 And Stewardship is a time to say one important thing:

 Thank you.

 Thank you, O God, for leading us here.

 Thank you, O God, for what you have done here.

 Thank you, O God, for your goodness to us here.

 Thank you, O God, for the refuge that we are to people who need a refuge.

 Thank you, O God, for bringing us through.

 And thank you, O God, for restoring us.

 Sometimes when we’re in the midst of it all, we don’t realize how amazing these things are.

 Sometimes we take it all for granted.

 But let’s not do that.

 Let’s not take for granted what has been happening here.

 It’s also not a time for us to become complacent.  

 There is still work to do.  

 There is still so much more ministry to do.

 What’s even more amazing is that you—the congregation, the ministers of St. Stephen’s—you have truly all stepped up to the plate.

  You have given of yourselves, of your time, of your talents, of your finances, of your very presence this past year.

 And that is amazing.

 And we ask you to do so again this coming year.

 As we look around at St. Stephen’s, I don’t think we fully realize what has been happening here.

 We need to know that we are more than these walls, than these pews, than these windows, than this tower and bell, than an organ, than this building.

 If we think following Jesus means safely ensconcing ourselves in this church building—and I seriously doubt anyone here this morning thinks that—then we are not really following Jesus.

 As we, who are members of St Stephen’s know, following Jesus, means following him out there—out in the field, out on the battlefield.

 It means being out there, being a presence out there, being a radical presence out there.

 It means shaking things up.

 It means speaking out—respectfully and in love.  

 It means being an example of a follower of Jesus in all we do outside these walls, as well as within.  

 It means giving people a new vision of what the Church really can be.

 Back in 2020, there were, as can be expected, prophets of doom.

 There were those so-called experts who were us telling this then:

 “This is the end of the Church.”

 “They’re never coming back.”

 That was something everyone seemed to saying at the time.

 “They’re never coming back.”

 We will never see anything like we did before the pandemic started, they told us.

 But as you know I scoff—and scoff loudly—at prophets of doom.

 I did then.

 And I do so even more confidently now.

Do you know why?

 Because, this year—this first real year after the pandemic, when things really started to feel normal again—when the prophets of doom predicted that churches would be dying off, this year, we welcomed 18 new members to this parish.

 18!

 And we were even welcoming new members in 2020.

 And in 2021

 But 18!

 That is an amazing thing!

 And we should be grateful—deeply grateful—for that growth.

 And if people ask why, I like to share stories like this.

 A few weeks ago, after one of our Wednesday night Masses, we were at supper and we were talking about the uniqueness of St. Stephen’s.

 And two of our new members both said, in different words, that this is the only congregation they knew in which they would be fully welcomed and included.

 And they had done their research.

 And we are more than that.

 We are more than inclusive.

 We also really do believe in God.

 We also really do worship a true and living God.

 We also really live that out in our lives and in the worship we do together.

 We definitely do that here!

 We need to be a church that is alive and breathing and moving and changing.

 Of course, because it is, our job has doubled.

 Of course we will continue on as we always have, doing what we’ve always done.

 We will to be who we need to be and do what needs to be done.

 We will continue to be a safe refuge for those people who have been hurt or alienated by the larger  Church.

 And there are plenty out there.

 People who are gay or lesbian or trans or who simply were hurt by the Church in any way.

 There are plenty here this morning that have been hurt by the Church.

 Which is why we are here!

 We realize that the words of this morning’s Gospel are made real in our lives.

 Looking in the mirror also means seeing ourselves for who we are.  

 The church of the future is made up of people who step up to the plate and say, “here I am, Lord. I am willing to do it.”

 We have our work cut out for us.  We do.

 There’s a lot of work to do.

 But, none of that is anything to fear.

 Jesus tells us not to be afraid.

 Nor should any of us.

 Not a hair of our head will perish to them, he tells us.

 As we look around here, we know—God is here.

 God is with us.

 That Spirit of our living, breathing God dwells with us.

 And God and God’s radical, all-inclusive love is being proclaimed in the message we carry within each of us.

 When we welcome people radically, when we embrace those no one else will embrace, when we love those who have been hated, when we are hated for loving those who are hated, we know that all we are doing is bringing the Kingdom of God not only closer, but we are birthing it right here in our midst.

 And we have nothing to fear, because, as Jesus says today, “I will give you words and wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to withstand or contradict.”

 We are blessed, here at St. Stephen’s.

 And that is what we are thankful for today.

 Paul tells in in his   letter to the Thessalonians this morning: “do not be weary in doing what is right.”

 Those words are our battle cry for us here at St. Stephen’s.

 Those words are the motto for the Church we represent.

 Do not be weary in doing what is right.

 Yes, I know.

 We are weary at times.

 We are tired at times.

 We have done much work.

 And there is much work still to do.

 But we are doing the work God has given us to do.

 And we cannot be weary in that work, because we are sustained.

 We are held up.

 We are supported by that God who truly loves and supports us.

 But we must keep on doing so with love and humility and grace.

 St. Stephen’s is incredible place.

 We all know it.

 Others know it.

 God certainly knows it.

 So, let us be thankful.

 Let us continue our work—our ministries.

 Let us do the ministries we are called to do.

 Let give of our time, talent and resources.

 Because we can’t do any of it without all of those things.

 And as we do, as we revere God’s Holy Name, see what happens.

 The Prophet Malachi is right.

 For those of us who continue our work, who continue to revere God’s holy Name, on us that Sun of Righteousness shall rise, with healing in its wings.

 Amen.