Better Together
Galatians 5:13-14, 22-26
For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another. For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, competing against one another, envying one another.
Jesus sets us free. We can use that freedom to serve ourselves, or we can use that freedom to serve our neighbors. Here at Easter Lutheran Church, we believe that God is calling us to be a powerful presence of God’s grace in the world. We actively strive to blur the lines between church and community and bless the world with God’s love. We seek to build a community of hope where lives are changed, and love is real.
Our vibrant outreach ministries are one way we live into this calling. From programs focused on education and youth like Homework Help and TreeHouse at Easter by the Lake; to partnerships that make healthy food options accessible for more people in our community like The Open Door pantry, Fare for All, and free community meals provided by Loaves and Fishes; to collaborations like C.A.T.C.H. for Dakota County families transitioning out of homelessness and Lutheran Social Service Circle of Welcome offering companionship to refugees settling in the south metro; to walking alongside our partner congregations in Guatemala and Tanzania through prayer, presence, and projects; and educating ourselves, building relationships, and promoting equity through our Racial Equity Leadership Team, we are guided by the Spirit to generously use our freedom and passions to love and serve our neighbors with faithfulness and kindness.
During Lent we are asking all Easter people to examine the values and actions that have served Easter and our community since 1974 and have led us to where we are today. While reflecting on our roots, we also intentionally look forward. Who are we now? What is God up to in this time and place? What can we create together? If the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, how do we reflect that in our life together and our relationship with God’s world?
Although we are united in Christ and guided by the Spirit, deep conversations can be difficult. The pandemic has made getting together and getting along even more challenging. Yet, we know that we are Better Together. So how do we all come to the table to have vibrant, honest, and vulnerable conversations that honor our differences and build our community?
Frustrated with an increasingly polarized social landscape, award-winning photographer John Noltner set out on a 40,000-mile road trip across the United States to rediscover the common humanity that connects us. He did so by asking one simple question: “What does peace mean to you?” Through difficult conversations, gentle humor, and keen eye for beauty, Noltner captures a rich collage of who we are as a nation. John believes that art and storytelling have the power to transform our hearts as well as our communities and that we each have the power to create positive change in the world.
John will spend a week with Easter Lutheran in early April. Beginning the afternoon of April 2, his American Stories art exhibit will be on display at both church locations. He’ll join us for worship on Sunday morning and offer an in-person studio day on Wednesday, April 6. You will be invited to have your portrait taken by John and help us imagine our Easter faith community in new, inspired ways by reflecting on our collective question: “What can we create together?”
We want you to be a part of this important conversation because you have a voice and a story. You have skills and talents. You have wisdom and insight to share. You matter to God, and you matter to Easter Lutheran Church.
Pray
From “A Benediction”, by Sarah Bessey
God of our honest prayers and
More honest silences,
Open our eyes to see and
Our ears to hear and
Our hearts to understand
How you are already here with us.
Would you make a path in the wilderness
For us to find you in new ways, new words,
New practices, new permissions?
Help us to sink down into your Love
To push our roots down into that marvelous Love.
And be planted within your power and grace
As we practice loving this world as you have
Loved this world.
Surprise us and startle us.
We’re open to all the weird ways you want to
Speak – in us and to us and through us.
May we be the ones who come close to you
Because of our vulnerability and not
Because of our false certainties;
Teach us to lay down our masks and pretenses.
Give us opportunities to practice mercy and courage.
Call us to humility, confession, and repentance even when
Pride feels more comfortable and superior.
Teach us how to rest, how to abide, and how
To light candles and be satisfied.
Don’t let us get away with divorcing our prayers
From our politics and policies and practices.
May we love our neighbors.
May we learn to sit with you,
In silence,
And know it is enough to know you
And be known by you
And know ourselves.
Teach us to pray, God, as you have always
Welcomed us to pray:
Fully human, fully yours, fully held,
And fully loved.
We will tell you the truth of our lives
And of this world.
And we will listen to the truth you speak back to us
The truth of our belovedness,
Of your justice,
Of your faithfulness,
Of love.
And say
Let it be so,
Let it be in me.
Amen.