The Complexity of Seeking Peace: A Sermon from Psalm 34
I know this rose will open
I know my fears will burn away,
I know my soul will unfurl its wings,
I know this rose will open
I know this rose will open
(pause)
Seek peace,
And
Pursuit it.
(pause)
During the sharing
Of the peace,
A time when we as a community
Take intentional strides
To welcome one another
Into this sacred space,
One of our elders here,
Ed Krentz
Reminded me
That sometimes,
We should remember
To lift up
Those prayers
Of joy,
Hope
And
Peace.
(pause)
Think about this,
What defines peace,
To
You?
(pause)
Peace,
For me
Is singing that song,
I know this rose will open
While walking
In the fullness
Of night
Immersed
In the wilds
Of
Creation,
Nestled
In the form
Of natural prairie
That surrounds
My camp
Of
LOMC
Because sometimes being in those unfamiliar spaces
Out of our element
Where we can do nothing else
But LISTEN,
Listen,
To the lullaby
Of Creation,
And how absolutely beautiful
And how much we shouldn’t fear,
Keep watch dear Lord,
With those who work
Or watch
Or weep this night
And give your angels charge over those
Who sleep.
Martin Luther encouraged the faithful
To pray these prayers
Of peace,
and I pray that You would forgive
me all my sins where I have done wrong,
and graciously keep me this
night.
For into Your hands,
I commend myself,
my body and soul,
and all things.
things.
(pause)
Have you ever
Prayed these evening prayers
Vulnerably out in the open,
Under the stars,
Because it’s the only place
we can find,
peace?
(pause)
Peace was the familiarity
Of being in my grandmother’s bedroom
And just sitting there in her presence,
Even as the conversation ceased
And join her watching whatever was on her TV
Because these moments,
Were sacred
And the ones,
That I treasure.
I am sure,
We all have stories
Of being
Engulfed
In all that
Wisdom.
That remains
Clinging
To our own spirit.
(pause)
Experiencing affirming peace,
Occurred to me three years ago,
Kneeling as hands laid upon my head
The day
Bishop Miller
Through the Holy Spirit
Because of the path
That the Creator carved out for me,
Declared
And
Proclaimed
To the whole body of Christ,
That YES
God had called me
Into service,
The day
I was ordained.
(pause)
I am sure,
We all have moments
Of Holy jubilation
When we hear the Creator’s Voice
Shouting,
Calling
US
To be that physical expression
Of the Gospel
For others,
So that they could also know the peace
Regardless of who they were
That they would always
Be
Counted
And
Loved.
(pause)
Embodying Peace,
Through singing of songs
In which the entire body of Christ
Professes love,
Celebrates grace
And exudes peace,
With one voice.
(pause)
“I lift my hands
In total praise
To
You.”
Women,
Who I counted as Elders,
Who I affectionately called Aunties
These fellow Women Clergy
We sang that song,
As we gathered
Because we all knew,
That the Creator would always
Order our steps
Accompany us on the path,
Empower us
To SPEAK,
LIVE
BREATHE
BE
That example
Of the Good News
So that people
In our midst,
Regardless of how they connected
Or were disconnected
To faith,
Would never have to
Lose
Hope.
(pause)
Peace,
Yes,
Peace is even experienced
When a family
A community
Places their trust,
In the Creator God
So that even while
They are lodged in between life,
And grieving
That when the medicines can’t help,
When the doctors have no more answers
When the drugs simply give no relief
That we,
As beloved children of the Creator
Can take a deep breath,
Push off,
And dive into the waters of healing,
And into the presence
Of the One,
Who has the power
To give all of us
Everlasting
Peace.
(pause)
Well,
Pastor Kwame
This all sounds so pretty,
But the reality is
Peace is an abstract thought
You are preaching out of context
Because right now
There is no PEACE in this world.
A young man who fought for Peace,
In his community
Was gunned down
Up the street here on 56th and Woodlawn
363 bodies,
Lives
Stories
Have been wiped out
Because of violence
There’s no peace in our streets!
(pause)
There is no peace,
When immigrants are still hunted,
Because they are trying to find peace
Where Muslims are still persecuted,
Even as their faith tradition exudes peace
Where children are being separated
From the peace of being cradled
By the only parents they’ve ever known?
(pause)
What is this peace you speak of?
It’s an alien concept!
People,
Driven by power
Instead of peace
People
Who claimed to be guided
By the example of the One
Who called for PEACE
Though His commandment
Of LOVING ONE ANOTHER
REGARDLESS,
Seek a selfish kind of peace,
Through occupation
Annihilation
And through conquering
In
War.
(pause)
Peace?
What peace?
I don’t have any peace, Pastor!
Anxiety
Depression
Loneliness
The bills
The responsibility and the stress
The work load and the demands
The family strife
Tell us how peace
Is going to help us
SURVIVE
How will we make IT?
Sometimes,
All we want to do,
Is lay down
And never wake up
Because that is the only way
We can find
Peace.
(pause)
Seek peace,
And pursue it.
(pause)
Peace seems so
Elusive
Sometimes,
The only way
To get
Peace,
At least
Temporarily
Is dragging our weary bodies
To the Table
And finding comfort
In
Food.
(pause)
Jesus Christ
Reminds us,
That this food
We seek,
In different places
Can only quell our hunger,
For just a moment.
This,
Bread
That came down from heaven,
Your ancestors ate
And still perished.
But,
When we drag our weary bodies
Into this space
To this Table,
This bread,
Jesus’s body
Fills us
With
Peace.
Somehow,
We know
We will get through,
That we will be healed
And because of that PEACE
We find
Here,
We can continue on,
To pursue a way of life
Of Peace,
By living out
What Jesus Christ
Calls us to
Loving our neighbor,
Caring for one another
Being that Advocate
So that we all
Have
Peace.
(pause)
Thanks be to God
