One-on-One: The Devil

Sermon preached Sunday, February 26, 2023, the First Sunday in Lent, at Lutheran Church of Our Saviour in North Chesterfield, VA. 

The purple is out, the Alleluias are gone, and Lent has officially begun. Our seasonal changes in the church year lend themselves to sermon series—and oftentimes, I don’t even have to change the lectionary texts! This year, the Gospel texts during Lent feature several encounters that Jesus has: with the devil, with Nicodemus, with the Samaritan woman at the well, with the man born blind, and with his friend Lazarus. Each week, we’ll take a look at these stories and explore what impact these particular encounters have on Jesus, on the implications of the Gospel, and on us.

We begin this first week of Lent, as we always do, with the story of Jesus going into the wilderness for forty days to be tempted by the devil. This happens just after Jesus is baptized, when a voice from above calls out, “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:17) Immediately, Jesus is led by the Spirit into the wilderness.

The gospel text tells us that he goes there specifically to be tempted by the devil, although it’s unclear why. Whatever God’s reasoning, Jesus goes and the devil comes to test him.

The devil says, “Create some food for yourself!” And Jesus responds with words from Deuteronomy: “One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

The devil comes back with, “Why not jump off this highest part of the temple since angels will be sure to catch you?” The devil can quote scripture, too, and uses Psalm 91 to try and convince Jesus. Once again, Jesus quotes Deuteronomy, quotes the Law and states that no one is to put God to the test.

Finally, in a last-ditch effort, the devil tries to tempt Jesus with an easy life: wealth, power, military might…a life quite different from the one Jesus has led so far and quite different from the path to the cross laid out before him. An easy life, and all Jesus has to do is fall down in worship. And just like before, Jesus comes back with words from Deuteronomy about how God is to be worshiped.

Three temptations, trying to get at Jesus from different angles. The devil tries to attack through Jesus’ hunger, Jesus’ divine powers that never get to be displayed to their full advantage, and Jesus’ bleak future filled with adversity, torture, and death. But none of the devil’s suggestions work. None of the temptations take. Jesus is able to resist them all.

So, what does this one-on-one tell us? What is the impact here on Jesus and on his ministry?

I like to think of Jesus’ time in the desert as a time of preparation—a time of getting things together and making sure that he is ready for everything that is about to come. He’s just been baptized, so his ministry has been inaugurated…but he hasn’t actually done anything yet. No acts of power, no miracles, no teachings. His first act of ministry is this time in the desert.

The first thing he does to care for us is to take on the devil, head-on. He is faced with temptation because we are. If Christ is to be fully human, that’ll include facing forces that will try to sway him away from serving God. Of course, Christ overcomes these temptations and eventually comes back into society and jumps right in, proclaiming that the kingdom of heaven has come near and calling his first disciples.

As he embarks on his ministry, Jesus leads by example. He feeds people who are hungry. He blessed people who are normally overlooked. He comforts people who are afraid. He heals people who are sick. He lifts up love as the highest authority: love of God and love of our neighbor.

And that time Jesus spent in the wilderness? That was an example, too.

God knows that we are tempted, all the time, by all kinds of things.

There are the small things, like the temptation to stay up late and finish a book because it’s really good and you have just a few more chapters left but you have to get up early for work. Anyone else face that temptation? Or maybe it’s the more common temptation of whether or not to have that last cup of coffee in the afternoon…the caffeine couldn’t effect your sleep that much, right?

But we are tempted by other things, too, things that are central to how we live in our world, to how we relate to our neighbor and God.

We are tempted to hoard our money and goods. Maybe not as bad as the hoarders who have magazines dating back twenty years and so many piles of stuff that a path has to be created to move around their house…but we’re tempted to hoard none the less. When we go through our homes to clean stuff out, we reminisce and think about all the “what ifs.” What if I end up needing that next year? What if I decide to pick up that random hobby I did for two weeks three years ago again? What if I am able to fit back into that pant size I haven’t worn since college? How can I be more generous with my money? What if I end up needing it more down the road?

But possessions aren’t the only thing we’re tempted by. We’re tempted by control, especially control of our bodies and our health.

When I got pregnant the first time, I was amazed at the attempts to control everything that permeate pregnancy and early parenthood. There were articles about how to never get morning sickness, how to avoid stretch marks, how to have a “belly-only” pregnancy, how to ensure that you won’t have a c-section, how to have an “easy” or “pain-free” labor—without medication!

And then after the baby comes, be sure to read about how you can definitely get your baby sleeping through the night at four weeks old! Find out the surefire way to triple your milk supply! Buy this product or that product that will magically make your baby fall asleep or make them a genius or prevent them from feeling teething pain!

It’s ridiculous. Every person is different. Every pregnancy is different and every baby is different, but man do we want to be able to control as much as we can! And this occurs in all kinds of ways, not just around mothers and babies.

Do this workout three times a week and see these exact results! Eat this superfood and watch your health improve with no other changes to your lifestyle! Have this procedure or take this medication and you can be sure that you’ll live a long healthy life! Adopt this daily habit and see your wealth triple! Realistically, we know that there are no guarantees… but, man, are we tempted by the thought of one.

We’re also tempted by ideas of our own importance. We get so set in our own ways and so set in our own ideas that we stop listening to others and even sometimes stop listening to God. We convince ourselves that we know everything and understand how everything works and so we don’t take the time to hear what anyone else has to say.

This is something I’ve seen to an increasing degree in our public discourse. When someone says something we don’t agree with, we tend to just write them off instead of really trying to hear their point of view. By listening, we won’t always reach an agreement, but at least we’d be in a better place than if we just ignore them all together.

So yes, we are tempted—and in more ways than I’ve just mentioned. But we have Jesus to look to. Now we know that we can’t resist temptation like Jesus can—and God definitely knows that we can’t—so what are we to do with this story? It’s aspirational, certainly. But it’s not the most realistic for a humanity that is steeped in sin and who constantly need God to forgive us.

Instead, I think Jesus is giving us tools. What do we do when we are tempted? Go back to the Word of God. Listen to what God is saying. We won’t get it right every time, but at least some of the time we’ll have a fighting chance.

When you’re facing temptation, in whatever form that might take, remember that we can find strength and resolve in the Word of God. Words that remind us who we are and who we belong to. Words that remind us to show compassion and generosity. Words that remind us to seek justice and peace. Remember that God’s presence is always with us. And remember that Jesus has been there. Jesus was tempted and overcame so that we might find forgiveness when we fail to resist temptation ourselves.

Amen.

One-on-One: The Devil

Sermon preached Sunday, March 1, 2020, the First Sunday of Lent, at St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Littlestown, PA. Audio for recent sermons can be found here.

This is part of a sermon series “One-on-Ones with Jesus: Five Encounters that Had an Impact.”

The purple is out, the giant cross is up, and Lent has officially begun. Our seasonal changes in the church year lend themselves to sermon series—and oftentimes, I don’t even have to change the lectionary texts! This year, the Gospel texts during Lent feature several encounters that Jesus has: with the devil, with Nicodemus, with the Samaritan woman at the well, with the man born blind, and with his friend Lazarus. Each week, we’ll take a look at these stories and explore what impact these particular encounters have on Jesus, on the implications of the Gospel, and on us.

We begin this first week of Lent, as we always do, with the story of Jesus going into the wilderness for forty days to be tempted by the devil. This happens just after Jesus is baptized, when a voice from above calls out, “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:17) Immediately, Jesus is led by the Spirit into the wilderness.

The gospel text tells us that he goes there specifically to be tempted by the devil, although it’s unclear why. Whatever God’s reasoning, Jesus goes and the devil comes to test him.

The devil says, “Create some food for yourself!” And Jesus responds with words from Deuteronomy: “One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

The devil comes back with, “Why not jump off this highest part of the temple since angels will be sure to catch you?” The devil can quote scripture, too, and uses Psalm 91 to try and convince Jesus. Once again, Jesus quotes Deuteronomy, quotes the Law and states that no one is to put God to the test.

Finally, in a last-ditch effort, the devil tries to tempt Jesus with an easy life: wealth, power, military might…a life quite different from the one Jesus has led so far and quite different from the path to the cross laid out before him. An easy life, and all Jesus has to do is fall down in worship. And just like before, Jesus comes back with words from Deuteronomy about how God is to be worshiped.

Three temptations, trying to get at Jesus from different angles. The devil tries to attack through Jesus’ hunger, Jesus’ divine powers that never get to be displayed to their full advantage, and Jesus’ bleak future filled with adversity, torture, and death. But none of the devil’s suggestions work. None of the temptations take. Jesus is able to resist them all.

So, what does this one-on-one tell us? What is the impact here on Jesus and on his ministry?

I like to think of Jesus’ time in the desert as a time of preparation—a time of getting things together and making sure that he is ready for everything that is about to come. He’s just been baptized, so his ministry has been inaugurated…but he hasn’t actually done anything yet. No acts of power, no miracles, no teachings. His first act of ministry is this time in the desert.

The first thing he does to care for us is to take on the devil, head-on. He is faced with temptation because we are. If Christ is to be fully human, that’ll include facing forces that will try to sway him away from serving God. Of course, Christ overcomes these temptations and eventually comes back into society and jumps right in, proclaiming that the kingdom of heaven has come near and calling his first disciples.

As he embarks on his ministry, Jesus leads by example. He feeds people who are hungry. He blessed people who are normally overlooked. He comforts people who are afraid. He heals people who are sick. He lifts up love as the highest authority: love of God and love of our neighbor.

And that time Jesus spent in the wilderness? That was an example, too.

God knows that we are tempted, all the time, by all kinds of things.

There are the small things, like the temptation to stay up late and finish a book because it’s really good and you have just a few more chapters left but you have to get up really for work. Anyone else face that temptation? Or maybe it’s the more common temptation of whether or not to add the extra scoop of ice cream because, hey, you’re already having ice cream anyway and one more scoop couldn’t hurt.

But we are tempted by other things, too, things that are central to how we live in our world, to how we relate to our neighbor and God.

We are tempted to hoard our money and goods. Maybe not as bad as the hoarders who have magazines dating back twenty years and so many piles of stuff that a path has to be created to move around their house…but we’re tempted to hoard none the less. When we go through our homes to clean stuff out, we reminisce and think about all the “what ifs.” What if I end up needing that next year? What if I decide to pick up that random hobby I did for two weeks three years ago again? What if I am able to fit back into that pant size I haven’t worn since college? How can I be more generous with my money? What if I end up needing it more down the road?

But possessions aren’t the only thing we’re tempted by. We’re tempted by control, especially control of our bodies and our health.

When I got pregnant, I was amazed at the attempts to control everything that permeate pregnancy and early parenthood. There were articles about how to never get morning sickness, how to avoid stretch marks, how to have a “belly-only” pregnancy, how to ensure that you won’t have a c-section, how to have an “easy” or “pain-free” labor—without medication!

And then after the baby comes, be sure to read about how you can definitely get your baby sleeping through the night at four weeks old! Find out the surefire way to triple your milk supply! Buy this product or that product that will magically make your baby fall asleep or make them a genius or prevent them from feeling teething pain!

It’s ridiculous. Every person is different. Every pregnancy is different and every baby is different, but man do we want to be able to control as much as we can! And this occurs in all kinds of ways, not just around mothers and babies.

Do this workout three times a week and see these exact results! Eat this superfood and watch your health improve with no other changes to your lifestyle! Have this procedure or take this medication and you can be sure that you’ll live a long healthy life! Realistically, we know that there are no guarantees…but, man, are we tempted by the thought of one.

We’re also tempted by ideas of our own importance. We get so set in our own ways and so set in our own ideas that we stop listening to others and even sometimes stop listening to God. We convince ourselves that we know everything and understand how everything works and so we don’t take the time to hear what anyone else has to say.

This is something I’ve seen to an increasing degree in our public discourse. When someone says something we don’t agree with, we tend to just write them off instead of really trying to hear their point of view. By listening, we won’t always reach an agreement, but at least we’d be in a better place than if we just ignore them all together.

So yes, we are tempted—and in more ways than I’ve just mentioned. But we have Jesus to look to. Now we know that we can’t resist temptation like Jesus can—and God definitely knows that we can’t—so what are we to do with this story? It’s aspirational, certainly. But it’s not the most realistic for a humanity that is steeped in sin and who constantly need God to forgive us.

Instead, I think Jesus is giving us tools. What do we do when we are tempted? Go back to the Word of God. Listen to what God is saying. We won’t get it right every time, but at least some of the time we’ll have a fighting chance.

When you’re facing temptation, in whatever form that might take, remember that we can find strength and resolve in the Word of God. Remember that God’s presence is always with us. And remember that Jesus has been there. Jesus was tempted and overcame so that we might find forgiveness when we fail to resist temptation ourselves.

Amen.

Stewardship 3: Giving is in Proportion to Income

Sermon preached Sunday, October 7, 2018, the Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost, at St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Littlestown, PA. This is part of a four-part series on Stewardship. 

We continue this week with our emphasis on stewardship. We’ve explored how giving is an act of worship and how giving should be systemic and regular. Today, I’d like to talk about how giving should be in proportion to income.

In other words, we give according to what we have been given, by God or through our work. This is easy to understand when we talk about non-financial gifts: if we are a talented musician, we can give of our musical skills. If we are a good leader, we can find places to lead. If we are a good teacher or care giver, we can serve in those roles. If we are a good cook or baker, we can bring delicious things to fellowship events or offer to prepare a meal for someone who needs a night off. This makes sense.

It also makes sense when we talk about money, but we are less inclined to see it that way. Instead of understanding that everyone’s financial picture looks different and therefore every person’s giving should be approached in a different way, we often still fall into unspoken traps of feeling like people who give more should have more influence in a congregation or that someone isn’t fully committed if they don’t give very much.

But giving should be in proportion to income. Just go back to our gospel reading this morning, as Jesus watches the crowd giving money to the Temple. The wealthy people put in many coins—probably many noisy coins that made quite a racket as they fell in. They drew attention to themselves and the gifts they gave.

…and then comes this woman. She’s a widow… a poor widow, which is almost redundant, as most widows were poor and vulnerable, relying on their children, if they had any, or husband’s family for support. She approaches the treasury and places in her two copper coins which may have made a solitary *clink*. I wouldn’t be surprised if she was a bit embarrassed—all these other folks were putting in so much and she had so little.

And yet, it is her faith that is praised, her gift that is lifted up. All else being equal, her gift was bigger than that of the rich ones. Looked at proportionately, her gift was far costlier and more sacrificial and would have a much larger impact on her life.

When we talk about giving proportionately, the idea of tithing often comes up. To tithe means to give one-tenth of what you have received back. It’s a good practice and it can be a good goal…but ten percent can also be a huge amount. If someone is only making $1500 a month, choosing to give $150 a month might mean that they are not able to afford rent, electricity and food. On the other hand, if someone is making $5,000 a month, it may not be as big of a deal for $500 of that to be given away. The point I’m trying to make is that tithing does direct us toward proportional giving, but it is not the only way.

And, even if you’d like to tithe and want to set that as a goal, you don’t need to go zero to sixty all at once. If, say, you’re only able to give 1% of your income now, maybe think about increasing it a half percent in the next year…and maybe the year after that, another half percent. These small incremental changes can really grow a person’s giving over time.

There’s another way to think about it, though, that doesn’t require nearly as much math. Think about what you already spend money on, the things that you are already making priorities in your life…and maybe think about making your faith life as big of a priority.

I know some people who choose to give to the church the same amount they pay in a gym membership every month because they think their spiritual well-being is as important as their physical.

Others might look at how much they spend on their children’s after-school and extracurricular activities and decide to match that amount in their offering because the lessons learning through a faith community are as equally valued as the lessons of leadership, problem-solving, athleticism, teamwork, and other skills gained through sports or the arts or other clubs.

Others might match what they spend in eating out in a given month, or what they spend on take-out coffee. Still others might choose a larger bench mark, like their total utility bills or car payment or something else that helps them figure out a good bench mark for them.

That’s the big take away here: every person is different and everyone’s giving will look different. Even if two people have, in theory, the same income, there are a hundred different factors at play that impact how that money is spent or saved or given. Your giving is your giving and only you can determine what is right for you and your family through deep prayer and conversation with God.

You are not a better Christian if you give more than others. You are not a worse Christian if you give less than others. We give out of what we have and the notion of sacrificial giving does not mean that put ourselves in unnecessary debt or that we go without food or that we all leave our homes because we want to give to God. No, God wants us to care for ourselves and care for all who may be struggling.

When we have plenty, we can give generously out of that plenty to worship God and support others in our community. When we have little and may be struggling, we give what we can manage, and trust God to provide through the community we have surrounded ourselves with.

We are one body in Christ, helping each other, supporting each other, receiving the gifts others have offered and, above all, loving one another, as God has first loved us. And when we give, we give out of that love.

Amen.

Stewardship 2: Giving is Systemic

Sermon preached Sunday, October 7, 2018, the Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost, at St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Littlestown, PA. This is part of a four-part series on Stewardship. Audio can be found here.

It’s our second week of focusing on Stewardship. Previously, we explored how giving is an act of worship. Today, we’ll take a look at how giving is—or should be!—systemic.

By systemic, I simply mean “regular.” It is important for us to give on a regular basis out of what we have. To do anything well, we need to do it consistently.

I think about when I was in college. I was a music major and, as you might guess, my main instrument was voice. I dabbled and explored other instruments, as I was required to for classes: I studied percussion and brass and woodwinds and strings, but I really only ever learned enough to barely scratch the surface.

I was also required to take two semesters of piano. The idea was, even if you weren’t a pianist and never really got that good, you would at least be able to play some things and perhaps even a bit of the accompaniment if you ever found yourself needing to help a group out in that way. I passed my proficiencies and began to think that, hey, maybe I could actually be good at piano!

I signed up for private lessons the next semester. I was motivated! I was excited! And so, when I had my first lesson and my professor assigned me the pieces we’d be working on, I dutifully took them down to my practice room. That first week, I was in there almost every day. The second week was about the same. The third week, I think I made it four days. The fourth, only a few. …as you can tell, my motivation was waning. I wasn’t as excited about it anymore. I didn’t live in the dorms anymore, so I could practice my vocal music at home and my visits to my practice room grew fewer and farther between.

As you might imagine, my piano skills didn’t exactly excel during that time. I barely progressed from week to week. I must have frustrated my professor so much. Every week we would work together and I would promise I’d practice what we’d discussed…and then I wouldn’t. And then I would trip over the same measures over and over.

It’s because I wasn’t practicing. I wasn’t approaching the piano in a systemic way. I wasn’t developing skills that I could build upon. Instead, I was patching together my playing in a way that never took hold.

I tell you this rather unflattering story because giving is a skill, just like playing piano or reading or cooking or playing a sport. It’s something that we develop and something that we can get better at—but only if we do it regularly. I don’t necessarily think every person needs to give every week, because circumstances vary for each of us…but our giving should be well-thought out and prayed over. Instead of being surprised every week by the fact that the offering plates are going around, try to come up with a plan that works for you.

For my family, it means a reminder in my calendar to write a check for the last Sunday of each month. We choose to give monthly, rather than weekly, because it works best for us in our larger budget. I know other people who don’t want to rely on their own memory, and so have money automatically withdrawn from their bank account each month. Still others have carefully prayed over their giving and take joy in writing a check each week and placing it in the plate. The first few times it might feel strange and it still might catch us off guard…but in time it will begin to feel normal, or expected, or part of a larger routine in our faith life, like saying grace before a meal or saying a prayer before bed.

It takes time to encourage a new habit. It might take reminders on our phones or taping an offering envelope to our steering wheel on Saturday night to make sure we don’t forget it. And it’s still okay even if we do forget! We can always just take care of it the next week!

In our Gospel reading from this morning, Jesus tells a parable of a rich man who has more than he knows what to do with. If he had been giving systemically to his community, to the orphan and the widow and the resident alien, he likely wouldn’t have that problem. He wouldn’t have a hoard. He’d have enough. He’d have plenty. …but so would those in need around him.

Jesus tells the crowd not to worry, that God has provided for the flora and fauna, and so God will also provide for them. Here’s the thing: he doesn’t tell them not to plan—he tells them not to worry.

For many of us, this is a tricky distinction. I know that my planning can very quickly turn to worrying when I look at our monthly budget and start to think, “Well, but what if when I take my car in next week it needs new tires?” or “What if the washer stops working and I need to replace it?” or “What if Libby (my dog, for those of you who don’t know) gets sick and has to have an expensive vet visit?”

None of this is planning. It’s all worrying. Planning is saying, “Let’s set aside x amount of money every month to try and save for emergencies,” or “Here I’ve collected all the contact information for organizations and agencies that can help me get food or pay utility bills if money runs short this month.”

Worrying will not sustain us. God will. God will provide, even if it is in ways we can’t see or don’t understand or haven’t planned for. …and it is that provision that allows us to plan: to plan our spending and our giving.

When we trust that God provides for us, that God is working through all sorts of channels and people to help us cover our necessities, it becomes much easier to commit to regular giving. We can faithfully put that $5 in the offering plate, having planned well and having trust that we won’t need to hoard that money for ourselves.

We don’t need a bigger barn because the one we have is plenty, and so we can regularly give what have back to God and to our neighbor. Amen.

Stewardship 1: Giving is an Act of Worship

Sermon preached Sunday, September 23, 2018, the Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost, at St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Littlestown, PA. This is part of a four-part series on Stewardship. Audio can be found here.

Giving is an act of worship.

How many of you actually think about it that way? How many of you think about God when you write your offering check or when you pull out your wallet when the plate comes your way? Or are you more often thinking about how the church needs money to pay it’s bills or any one of the worthwhile causes we support here?

It’s true, our money does serve a purpose. It keeps the lights on, it pays staff salaries, it supports the life of this congregation and the ministries we are connected to…but it’s more. We don’t give just to make things happen. We give because it is an act of worship.

That’s why we collect offering in the midst of a worship service. We very easily could just put a basket out by the door and have you put your envelope there as you came in. We could just send you a quarterly bill, like water or sewer company. But we don’t. We place our time of offering smack dab in the middle of the action.

The act of giving, the ritual of giving, is part of the way we worship. We pray, we read scripture, we share this meal together—and we give back to God some of what God has first given us. If you notice, in the pews, there is a card designed for people to put in the offering plate if they only give once a month or if they give electronically: this way, they can participate in the ritual, even if their gift is coming in a different way or at a different time.

Our second reading from Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians has him giving some specific instructions: “On the first day of the week, each of you is to set something aside and store it up…” (1 Cor. 16:2)

Even in the earliest Christian communities, followers of Jesus were giving what they could, some to support those who could not support themselves, and some out of pure devotion.

On the first day of the week, on the Sabbath, on Sunday, we celebrate the generosity of God by being generous. We give for the sake of others. We give for the sake of Christ’s church. We give for our own sake, to demonstrate our trust in God to provide and our deep gratitude.

It’s because of that last piece that we don’t necessarily need our gifts to always be useful or efficient. God gives out of incredible abundance, extravagantly providing more than we could ever need. Sometimes our own giving could stand to be a little extravagant.

For the people in Jesus’ time, the most important offerings they gave were not supposed to be useful. They gave of their first harvest or of the first animals born that season. These offerings would be placed on the altar and burned. Some might call it useless. Some might call it a waste…but in fact this was a huge act of devotion and trust. God will provide, so giving sacrificially is not a problem. There will still be enough.

This is echoed in the story from the Gospel of Matthew we also heard this morning. A woman approaches Jesus and pours expensive ointment on him. She is wasting the ointment in the disciples eyes. This costly product was perhaps not prudent of her to buy in the first place, when it would be more practical for her to have bought food or some other useful item, but she gave it freely to Jesus. The disciples wanted that money to be spent on something more necessary.

But that’s just it—for this woman, anointing Jesus and showing her devotion to him is necessary. She worships him with a sacrificial gift. And she does it joyfully and not begrudgingly.

This isn’t so hard for us to comprehend when we think about our own giving to the people we love. When we love someone and care about them, we want to give them things. Sometimes those things are expensive. Sometimes they cost us not money, but time and energy. But we happily give up that money or effort because we know it will please the one we love. We don’t worry if it is the “best use of our resources,” we just want to see the smile and know that the person understands how important they are to us.

It can be the same way with our offering. Yes, we have bills to pay as a congregation. Yes, a portion of our collective funds also goes to support things like New Hope, Survivor’s, Habitat for Humanity and any number of other worthy causes. …but first and foremost our offering is an act of worship, praise, and, most of all, love.

The next time you write your offering check or put something in the plate as it passes by you, think about that. Is your gift joyful and full of love? Or is it an obligation? What would it take to change the way you see your giving? And if you can’t afford to give money, how do you view the things you do give: your time and skills and talents? We worship God with our gifts—and God gives us everything we need.

Amen.