Benediction

Dr. James Mayfield
Tarrytown United Methodist Church

June 4, 2006

Text: II Corinthians 13:11-13

These 18 years I have been your senior pastor, we have been through a lot together. We have laughed together, sometimes cried, worked together, and at times have disagreed. We have celebrated the baptism of more than 500 babies; we have confirmed the faith of more than 400 youth; we have celebrated the profession of faith of many adults. We have shared grace filled experiences of the Emmaus Walk, and the excitement of learning in depth about the Bible and our Christian heritage. We have shared the fulfillment of expanding our outreach ministries. And we made it through the ordeal of expanding our facilities. All too often we have shared grief at a graveside. We have cried with one another as we dealt with the deep heart aches of personal crises. We have embraced one another in the joy of personal triumphs. We have been through a lot together these last 18 years.

So, what is left to say? And what is left to do?

What I have to say is what I have said before. It is my benediction, my blessing, that I have shared with you almost every Sunday: “The love of God, the grace made known in and through Jesus Christ, the communion, fellowship and empowerment of the Holy Spirit be with you and abide with you now and forever.”

This has been and continues to be my prayer for you because life is not easy -- in good times or bad. It is obviously difficult when we are overwhelmed by the heartache in our lives and by the pain we see in those we love. At times all that is wrong in the world and in our lives seems to be more than we can bear. And to add to our burden, there are times when we are painfully aware that much of what is wrong is the result of choices we have made -- choices that failed to reflect our faith in Christ. Sometimes our fear has been stronger than our faith. Sometimes our hate has been stronger than our love. Sometimes our despair has been stronger than our hope. Life is not easy.

When life is not easy, my prayer is that we will remember God does love us. We know about God's love, God's grace, because of all that we discover in Jesus Christ and through all that Jesus set loose in the world. And God who loves us is present in all of life through God's Holy Spirit, whether we are aware of it or not, whether we believe it or not. God is with us. We are not alone – not even when we feel alone. The love of God, the grace made known in Jesus Christ, and the communion, fellowship, and empowerment of the Holy Spirit are with us and abide with us now and forever.

And as this is true in the hard times, it is also true in the good times, the happy times, the fun times. Of course, good times bring another set of problems. When life is pleasant and all is going the way we want, it is easy to be insensitive to God and God's grace. When things are going the way we want, it is easy for us to live in the illusion that we are self-sufficient, and have no real need for God. In the good times, it is easy for us to drift away from God -- not in any conscious rebellion or rejection of God but rather just drift away because we lose focus. We focus only on ourselves and what we call “ours,” and forget the One who has given us our life, our abilities, our opportunities -- all the good gifts we enjoy. In good times it is easy to live on the surface and ignore the deeper realities of life.

In such times we need reminding that the love of God, the grace made known in Jesus Christ, and the communion, fellowship, and empowerment of the Holy Spirit are with us and abide with us now and forever. We are not self-sufficient, not even when we are convinced we are. What is at the heart of reality, whether we believe it or not, is the truth about life proclaimed in the ancient words of benediction I have recited week after week. When the cups of our daily living overflow with the various kinds of joy, it is well to remember the One from whom all blessings flow. Aware of it or not, believe it or not, the love of God, the grace made known in Jesus Christ, the communion, fellowship, and empowerment of the Holy Spirit are with us and abide with us now and forever.

Notice the phrase “abide with us.” God does not come and go; the reality of grace is not present in our lives only now and then, here and there. The love of God, the grace made known in Jesus Christ, the communion, fellowship and empowerment of the Holy Spirit are with us and abide with us whether we are aware of it or not, whether or not we draw on the resources God makes available. This is true in the bad times and it also true in the good times. It is true when we are heartbroken and it is true when happiness fills our days. God has provided a banquet of grace. Whether we choose to come to the table and receive this holy nourishment is to a great extent our choice.

The profound truth of the Gospel is the amazing and almost unbelievable good news that the love of God, the grace made known in and through Jesus Christ, the communion, the fellowship and empowerment of the Holy Spirit are with us and will abide with us now and forever.

After 18 years as your senior pastor, what more can I say? And what more can we do together than share one more time the gift of this most Holy Communion, this special gift of grace that offers us more than words can ever say. Will you join me in the prayer of The Great Thanksgiving?

Pastoral prayer:
God, on this Pentecost Sunday, send your Holy Spirit among us. Empower us as you did the first disciples gathered in Jerusalem . Transform us from mere church members into the Body of Christ so that all our deeds and words reflect your grace and serve your will. All too often we live not only as if you are not present, but as if you never could be. May your Spirit be so at work in us that we not only sense your presence, but we also become aware of what you want us to do. And God, empower us to do what you want done. Motivate us to take the steps you see we need to take. Turn our living in the direction you would have us go. As we come to receive this sacrament, enable us to take into our being the very nature of Christ so that in our living we become the Body of Christ at work in the world. That this kind of transformation will happen to us is our prayer. Amen.