One: Christ walk the Lenten road alone, his shadow the only thing that understands.

All: In the shadow of Christ we follow.

One: The path is punctuated by brokenness

All: As we walk this path we are called to reflect on broken Peace. Peace a delicate flower so easily crushed by human lust for power. Peace crushed by cries of “this is our right” even when those “rights” infringe of the rights of others. Peace broken by injustice.  Christ says “peace if give to you” but The peace of Christ is shattered on the floor. We confess that there are times when we have ignored keeping the peace, to further our own wants. 

One: When we fail to empower Peace for those that journey with us, the light of Christ is dimed as we come to know that all paths lead to the cross. 

Third Candle extinguished 

Prayer

God of peace manifested in the love for your world    we ask that as we walk this Lenten path  forgive us for those moments that we have failed to  seek out harmony in our lives and relationships.     Your world cries as peoples lives are shattered when war and the need for political agendas are seen as more important than common good which fosters peace.  Help us to understand that peace begins with listening.   

With a contrite heart we come and ask for forgiveness 

Personal Prayers of Confession

Song  Come now, O God of second chances

          May we forgive ourselves

          May we become your living sign

          Children of God’s love

One: God who takes away the sin of the world have mercy

All: Christ who takes on the brokenness of the world be with us

One: Spirit of wholeness bind us together once more. 

All: God comes to find us beyond the shattered pieces of our lives.

One: God comes to make all things whole. This is our hope touched by your love that will bring peace to our souls. The path that leads to the cross is our assurance of forgiveness

      Jesus here speaks plainly on the nature of sin and on the power of love. Sinners repent if you don’t your toast.  And that Love is patient. (Paul liked this idea) and therefore God does not give up. 

Bad things happen to good people. They are not sinful, their parents where not sinful. They are not being punished. As one Theologian said “If sin had direct consequences, the tower of Siloam should have fallen on the contractor who built it, probably with substandard materials and mortar.”

The reality is that God really is a forgiving God . If you sin and don’t repent well that’s your choice and you must accept the consequences of caring that burden . God has paid the price for sin, and forgiveness is free for the asking. We choose to carry our guilt and our sin.

 That is what the second part of the scripture is telling us. That God does not give. Up.

How many of us have looked at our Gardens at the plant that is just not doing well and think I should take it out but we don’t we give it that one more chance. Then there is that favorite piece of clothing. It is past its best before date but it is so comfortable so you keep it mended you don’t give up on it even if it should have seen the curb a while back. This of course is more of a guy thing.

Jesus tells the same story. Brian P. Stoffegen states “I note that the "sin" of the fig tree is not that it is doing something bad, but that it is doing nothing! It is just taking up space in the orchard.”   

Like living life on auto pilot, the sin is not that we are doing something bad, it is just we are not doing anything

 We are called to grow in our faith beyond just the motions of church to strive to better our lives in Christ. Growth is not so much advancing ones self as it is becoming oneself. To come in to our person of faith. 

Barbara Brown Taylor, acclaimed Episcopal preacher, writes of the fig tree parable: "(Jesus wants them to turn or repent) which is why he tweaks their fear. Don’t worry about Pilate and all the other things that can come crashing down on your heads, he tells them. Terrible things happen, and you are not always to blame. But don’t let that stop you from doing what you are doing. That torn place your fear has opened up inside of you is a holy place. Look around while you are there. Pay attention to what you feel. It may hurt you to stay there and it may hurt you to see, but it is not the kind of hurt that leads to death. It is the kind that leads to life."

Living involves choices and the choices we make effect our lives and the lives that surround us and one of the realities of life is that sometimes life is not fair. It wasn’t fair for the those that the Tower of Siloam fell on and it’s not fair when a tornado touches down in a trailer park. The Ukraine is a grave injustice and it it is not fair that all those innocent people are suffering to placate the ego of a despot God does not hate trailer parks. It doesn’t seem fair but that is life.   

Because of this, in life bad things happen to good people, bad things happen to bad people but it is life and not divine punishment. Our God is a loving God not a vengeful God. 

Our God is a God of Mercy.

How often have we seen that mercy that love and perhaps failed to see what it is.  Sometimes God’s mercy comes in the form of forgiveness, as when Jesus looked down from the cross and prayed “Father, forgive them.” Sometimes God’s mercy comes in the form of blessed release from the suffering of a long and painful illness. Sometimes God’s mercy comes as a child born to a couple, or we are given some great opportunity.

Yet sometimes, God’s greatest mercy is time, time to learn from our past, to profit by our mistakes, time to start over. Christians have a word for that sort of mercy “repentance”. The Greek word is metanoia, which is the root from which we get our word metamorphosis to change form. 

Repentance is when sinners and none of us here can claim a clean slate, changes form, turns, returns to God, starts over, bares fruit.

Repent means turn around. To move in a new direction.  To find yourself on the right road in the right direction.

God does not give up on us, but, like the gardener cares for us nurtures and feeds us. There are times that there is some pruning but that is to be expected.  In turn we to become the gardener, in living our faith and allowing it to grow.  God sees the potential we are called to see the potential

God has set for us a task and it is our calling to follow we must not quit. 

Remember those people that we really thought to be failures. 

The University of Bern turned down Albert Einstein doctoral dissertation as being irrelevant and fanciful.  Dr. Seuss was rejected 27 times, Rudyard Kipling was told he didn’t know how to use the English Language and Robert Frost was told that his work was no good, not to mention that Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess was stated as being sure fire Rubbish.

 When Thomas Edison was interviewed by a young reporter who boldly asked Mr. Edison if he felt like a failure in regards to the light bulb  and  should just give up by now.  Perplexed, Edison replied, "Young man, why would I feel like a failure? And why would I ever give up? I now know definitively over 9,000 ways that an electric light bulb will not work. Success is almost in my grasp." And shortly after that, and over 10,000 attempts, Edison invented the light bulb

We must not become discouraged and yield to the temptation to quit. Jesus did not quit. We must  take heart in walking with Jesus, not to turn away from where we are called and lead to. We now stand at the trail head of our calling to be a community of faith. We are to grow in our faith. To live our faith. To look for that one more opportunity to grasp it reach with confidence setting our direction moving forward in our faith with all awareness of God with us for we are not alone. 

Prayers of the people

We hear your voice, O God, in the quiet moments, saying “don’t be discouraged believe in me, I am with you always.”  Despite this we at times feel very alone. We feel very lost and discouraged. We watch the news and what is happening in the world and it is heart breaking. Yet then comes the breath of spring. And there is hope. You remind us that there is always hope.  In that hope we pray for all those who are apart of our lives that need to know your presence which brings hope,  the presence of your healing touch. The comforting of your spirit in our grief.  In that hope we pray for the People of Ukraine, for all those people who are displaced by war and know such great violence and fear.  For all those that live under oppressive regimes. For all those that know illness and hunger. 

In that hope we pray for ourselves and our community of faith. We are thankful for how we are blessed and know that you walk with us as we seek out your calling for us.  And it is in that hope that we bring our own personal prayers to you trusting in your love and saying the one prayer that binds us as your people saying Our Father…. 

Offering

We give thee but thy own.   The work of the Church continues and there are three ways you can continue to support that work.   Consider using PAR, use the donate button on our Web Site or drop your gift at the Manse.   Let us make our offering and give thanks.     



 One Wandering in the wilderness we are sustained by our living faith. sign and symbol of that faith we present our offering to God for the work of Christ’ Church

Song

Praise God from whom all blessings flow; praise Him all creatures here below; praise Him above ye heavenly host; praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Amen.

 Prayer    Loving God we thank you for the opportunity to develop generous hearts through the giving of these gifts and the gifts that many we have to offer. Nurture in us your life - giving word. Use our lives in your service . We pray in Jesu’ name amen