Sermon Title: "A Vital and Witnessing Congregation"
Date: November 14, 2010
Minister:  The Rev. Charles Ensley

Lesson:  Luke 24:44-53

Every Sunday you receive a worship bulletin.  It is a guide to what will happen in worship.  The basic outline—what you can always expect—is this:  an opening hymn and prayer, a choir anthem, a scripture lesson, usually a Children’s Time, a middle hymn, a sermon, more prayers, the offering, closing hymn and benediction.  That’s what the worship staff euphemistically calls a “normal Sunday at Bay Shore.”

And then there’s this Sunday.  I can’t really convey to you the mechanics of designing today’s worship, for it has lots of “add-ins.”  First was the handbells.  They were scheduled months ago.  So they needed a slot.  Then I had an Inquirers Meeting and seven people said they wanted to join the church as members.  We usually do that in November on the same Sunday as our Harvest Home Meeting.  Another add-in.  Then we have our first combined anthem of the Children’s Choir with the Chancel Choir.  Not really an add-in, as it takes no more time than a regular anthem.  But there is the choreography of getting the children up there in place and leaving for Sunday School afterwards.  We decided to cut out Children’s Time today.  Then a couple who was married here called and left a message on the voicemail that of all the available dates I gave them for the baptism of their daughter, November 14 was best.  They hoped it was okay, as they had already sent out the invitations!  And then we had four flower arrangements this Sunday to place somewhere where they would be appropriate and visible.  And we get to wrap-up the morning with our Harvest Home Meeting to vote on a 2011 budget.  How much fun is that?!?!

So there you have all the “add-ins” for today I had to organize into the service and the worship bulletin.  The worship team walked through my draft Wednesday afternoon step-by-step to see it if would work and all come together.  We had to figure when the handbell ringers would come up, how much room is there for the baptismal font (not much!), and where would the new members stand.  At this Wednesday’s staff meeting, we’ll roll our eyes and say it was just another “normal Sunday at Bay Shore!”

Then there was my Monday homework I do at home, when I select a scripture lesson and theme for the service.  None of today’s suggested lectionary readings spoke to me at all.  It was the first Tuesday I came into church with no idea for a scripture lesson or what I was preaching on today.  Tuesday is a crucial deadline in this church, for the weekly newsletter is published and sent out online with that information.  How in the world was I ever going to put this all together?

Then I had a revelation, an epiphany, a realization of how wrong I was.  Instead of fretting over too much in the service, why not celebrate all that is going on?  How many churches have two dozen children standing up here with the adult choir singing a combined anthem, or practicing weekly for their Christmas musical?  How many churches on the same Sunday have their handbell ringers playing all five octaves of their handbells and all five octaves of their handchimes?  There was no handbell or handchime left behind in the rehearsal room!  How many churches have couples married here—including the mother who attended Sunday School here—bring their infant daughter to be baptized six months after her birth?  How many churches have seven new members—every one who attended the last Inquirers Meeting—enthusiastic and ready to join the church?  How many churches have so many people wanting to donate flowers on a particular Sunday that we had to create other places to display them?

The revelation, the epiphany, the realization I came to last Tuesday when I was pressed to organize all this into some kind of order that would make sense in our worship bulletin was that this is a vital congregation!  We are celebrating the entrance into the Christian faith both of a baby and seven adults who are furthering their Christian faith journey by joining here today.  We are celebrating with beautiful music, both sung and rung, by scores of people who volunteer their time not only to present it in worship as a gift to God and to their congregation, but also as a result of hours and weeks and months of practice.

It reminds me of that exciting time as the Risen Christ concluded his earthly ministry.  It was forty days after his resurrection.  He instructed his disciples that everything the prophets of old had done, as well as his own teachings, he was sending upon them what his Father promised.  He promised them power from on high, which would occur ten days later on Pentecost.  Then leading them out to Bethany, he reached out his hands, blessed them, and ascended into heaven.  Luke reports that the disciples “worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy; and they were continually in the temple praising God.”  (24:52-53)

Doesn’t it sound like an excited group, filled with joy and vitality?  They were to instruct others, and witness to Christ.  And what is our congregation about?  Don’t we have many things this day to celebrate, to be joyful about, to be thankful that we are and can be a vital and witnessing congregation, just as those first followers of Jesus were?

We witness, even if we don’t see those to whom we witness.  Every bit of canned food collected on Thanksgiving Sunday and distributed to Woman to Woman and Centro Shalom, every towel sent to the Multi-Service Center for the Homeless, every bit of clothing donated and distributed to Christian Outreach in Action and Woman to Woman, every piece of furniture, clothing, appliance, gift, grocery scrip given to our dozen Christmas families next month—all these are witnessing to others our Christian faith and care and compassion.

I am certain on the day of Jesus’ ascension nearly 2,000 years ago, neither he nor his disciples could envision the way we would be worshipping, witnessing and serving today.  But in a paraphrase of the closing verses of Luke’s gospel:  ‘We are witnesses of these things. … We worship him, and returning to Bay Shore with great joy, we are continually in the church blessing God.’

So may it always be.