The 5th Epiphany Sunday: Isaiah 6:1-8; Luke 5:1-11
Key verse: “Here I am; send me!” Isaiah: 6:8
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Hello, This is Jade.
Welcome to Yi.kigai
A space for all to explore the intersection between faith and daily life
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Happy Epiphany. It is the 5th Sunday of Epiphany. Time flies by, doesn’t it? So far, we have visited 5 stories of Jesus that reminded us of God’s manifestation in our lives. God reveals God-Self at our baptism and all the time like a daily sunset. God also reveals God’s self through a gifted body of Christ that uses and excels its talents and gifts to serve God’s people. Sometimes, God’s manifestation might make us uncomfortable when we don’t have enough courage to commit ourselves to be God’s transformational agents to break biases that can easily turn into discrimination, then violence, then genocide.
Some are quick to embrace the concept of being God’s transformational agent; some are slower; some are unwilling; some don’t believe it works; some are simply not told during their lifetime that they are one, created by God with a particular purpose to be a blessing not only to oneself and one’s family but beyond. It could be beyond the boundaries of a church building, a group of close friends, or a community or organization you’re a part of.
The third church that my husband served as a pastor was a bilingual congregation in Aurora, IL. One day as usual, around noon, I packed lunch for me and my husband and went to the church. As I was passing through the front lawn by the main entrance, Alice, a church member, was sitting on the ground pulling weeds. So I squatted next to her and began to chat about how stubborn and strong these weeds were, and how long and how often she had been doing that for the church’s front yard. All of sudden, we heard police sirens. They got louder and louder and then faded away. After less than a minute, we heard them again. The sound got louder and louder and then faded away.
The church is located near the center of the town. The east side of that town is much quieter. Since we lived on the west side, it was not surprising to hear police sirens a couple times a week. Then I made a naive comment, “Why are there still many crimes while the church has so much to offer? Why can’t everyone get along?” Alice said, “That’s why we have your husband and you.” “Me?” I said. “Yes! You!” She said again. She smiled and looked like she was shocked at my response. I said, “No, I can’t do anything about it.” Then she replied, “Yes, of course, you can.” After that conversation, I kept thinking about the stubborn weeds and how much hurt the crimes had caused in our communities. And the word ‘You’ Alice said to me was also said by different people for more than a year. Finally I responded to God and let God lead me to serve beyond the boundaries that I had known by attending seminary.
Do you still remember who made you start thinking about the purpose of your life that God had in mind for you? How is God calling you to be a transformational agent to break biases? There are many ways to be transformational agents, but don’t forget to let God’s love and grace guide you.
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May your coming week be blessed by God’s grace
As together we explore the intersection between faith and daily life
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