In this final
week of field education at the Carlsbad-By-The Sea (CBTS) retirement home I prayed
and thought about the sermon for the coming Sunday based on the Gospel reading
of Matthew 11:16-19 and 25-30.
In our Gospel
reading today there are two parts that identify both the rejection of Jesus, and
how He can ease our burdens.
The people who
are rejecting Jesus are like children who cannot decide which game to play and
form teams or take sides.
Jesus compares this
to how the message of both He and John the Baptist were rejected. John, focused
on judgment and repentance which provoked strong reactions, while Jesus, like
John, announces the coming of the kingdom of heaven but was not as harsh and
abrasive.
The people He
was addressing find reason to take offense at their messages and do not act
like Christians. Like today, we too can reject the message and division can
also show up in our day to day lives.
On the radio I
heard a report that said we still have a divided society but whilst a few
decades ago the divisions were about race or economics, todays divisions are
mainly about which political party a person supports. They said that polls have
identified people in one party are actually afraid of people in the other
party. Political discussion, even between friends and family is causing
argument.
Last week in
the over 55’s resort where we are staying one political association had a list
of all their members and had planted American flags in their front yards.
Initially we thought this was just the Home Owners Association (HOA) being
patriotic but then we noticed the flags were not on every yard.
In talking to
someone we knew who had been in the resort many years, it appeared that the
“flagless” were very upset because being without flags made them seem
unpatriotic.
They also did
not want to play the others game or be mistakenly seen as part of that group by
planting their own flags.
Just little
gestures like this without thinking of the impact on others causes divisions
between friends and neighbors which may require some healing.
It is easy for
us to forget that the game to which Jesus call us is not about division, but is
about doing the work of God in the world.
In the second
part of our gospel, Jesus mocks the religious leaders and the elites who oppose
Jesus. They claim intelligence and wisdom which only blinds them to what God is
really doing. These leaders place these heavy burdens on the shoulders of
others but they are unwilling to help people cope.
Today, the
world has become exceedingly sophisticated in laying heavy burdens upon us and
constant marketing tries to make us believe we are deficient in some way. The
largest companies in the world deploy psychology to encourage us to buy into a
lifestyle or feel inadequate if we cannot or do not buy their products. And
then there are the burdens and stress we impose on ourselves through “to do”
lists and daily plans.
As in our world
the people Jesus addressed were also weighed down by temptation to sin, oppressive
rules and regulations so He invites them (and us) "Take my yoke upon you and learn from me;
for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For
my yoke is easy and my burden is light"
It’s easy for
us to interpret this passage as an offer from Jesus to take care of all our
problems without us having to work. Jesus
is not saying that if we come to him and follow him we will be able to take off
our yoke and walk through the rest of our lives completely unburdened.
When Jesus
invites us to be “yoked” to him, to walk with Him, to learn from Him, to do
God’s will with Him, Jesus is not asking us to take on more and more tasks. He
is asking us to carry out our own tasks in a different way, with compassion,
with empathy, humbly and with sisterly and brotherly love for the people we
work alongside.
Here
at CBTS we are so blessed to have a community made up of many Christian
denominations, living, worshiping and praying side-by-side as a common body. We
also have non-Christian residents who also need spiritual guidance and pastoral
care.
At the start of
this field assignment in pastoral care I saw the tasks as burdensome and
difficult. I did not know how I would cope with providing pastoral care to a
community I did not know or how I would react being placed in situations I was
unprepared for.
On reflection I
now know I had to learn to take on Jesus’s yoke and reflect His teachings as I
carried out my daily tasks. At the start
and end of each day I had to pause, think, learn and most importantly pray.
Looking
back over the past 12 weeks of this field assignment it was more “formation” than
“education”. The education part was through the mentoring I received from
various people on topics such as how to develop and deliver sermons, conducting
services (of the word), providing pastoral care, and how to participate as part
of the team within the CBTS environment.
In
reflection some key topics I prayed about and discussed with residents in this
community were:
·
Jesus draws near to us sometimes and we are unaware. He meets us
in our visits, prayers and worship, and He talks to us in many different ways
so we need to actively listen. He stays with us always, so we just need to
invite Him in and be comforted,
·
People,
like sheep, cannot be treated as tasks on a project plan. God is not on our
timeline and schedule so although there are some things that happen as planned
many do not,
·
With
each exposure to God’s Word and presence in our lives, the Holy Spirit is
actively changing us,
·
Looking back on all our life experiences allows us to recognize
how we see and feel God’s glory in our words and deeds,
·
We
are all within a sheepfold and are being guided to do God’s will,
·
Whilst
in this world there are some mysteries we will never fully understand, but
having some understanding of the Holy Trinity deepens our worship and helps us
to be specific in directing our prayers,
·
We
all have varied talents and skills but as we bring people to God we should also focus on making differences, even small ones, to one person at
a time,
·
We
need to welcome all strangers, support all our community members in what they
are trying to do and carry out even the smallest of tasks in love,
·
There
will be times we are fearful but we should remember the depth of God’s love, remember
Jesus’s words “Do not be afraid!”, and pray until we focus on God and His will
rather than ourselves,
·
Be
aware of how the things we say and do can cause division within our friends and
family and we may need to act or communicate in a different way,
·
Let
Jesus lift that heavy burden from our shoulders by asking for forgiveness of
our sins and for help resisting temptation to sin again,
·
We
need to learn to take on Jesus yoke
·
Trust
Jesus, share His yoke which is far easier than the ones we make for ourselves, and
reflect His teachings as we carry out our daily tasks,
·
Preaching
the Word should not be rushed and it is one of the most important things we can
do each week.
If
we do all the above I feel that we will start to love all our neighbors in
thought, word and deed
I
am very pleased that this field assignment has provided formation and has affirmed
and strengthened my calling. It has now presented me with the opportunity to
continue in service in the role of Chaplain at CBTS and as Pastoral Care
assistant at St Michaels-By-The -on a permanent rather than volunteer basis.
Thanks
be to God!!!
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