The Sixth Sunday
after Trinity.
Psalm 119.81-96
xi. Defecit anima mea.
MY
soul hath longed for thy salvation, * and I have a good hope because of thy
word.
82
Mine eyes-long sore for thy word; * saying, O when wilt thou comfort me?
83
For I am become like a bottle in the smoke; * yet do I not forget thy statutes.
84
How many are the days of thy servant? * when wilt thou be avenged of them that
persecute me?
85
The proud have digged pits for me, * which are not after thy law.
86
All thy commandments are true: * they persecute me falsely; O be thou my help.
87
They had almost made an end of me upon earth; * but I forsook not thy
commandments.
88
O quicken me after thy loving-kindness; * and so shall I keep the testimonies
of thy mouth.
xii. In æternum, Domine.
O
LORD, thy word * endureth for ever in heaven.
90
Thy truth also remaineth from one generation to another; * thou hast laid the
foundation of the earth, and it abideth.
91
They continue this day according to thine ordinance; * for all things serve
thee.
92
If my delight had not been in thy law, * I should have perished in my trouble.
93
I will never forget thy commandments; * for with them thou hast quickened me.
94
I am thine: O save me, * for I have sought thy commandments.
95
The ungodly laid wait for me, to destroy me; * but I will consider thy
testimonies.
96
I see that all things come to an end; * but thy commandment is exceeding broad.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son * and to the
Holy Ghost;
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall
be * world without end. Amen.
The Collect.
O GOD, who hast prepared for them that love thee such good things as pass
man’s understanding; Pour into our hearts such love toward thee, that we,
loving thee above all things, may obtain thy promises, which exceed all that we
can desire; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Old
Testament Reading: Isaiah 57:13b-19
Psalter:
Psalm 28, 29 | 30, 31
Epistle
Reading: Romans 6:3-11
Gospel
Reading: St. Matthew 5:20-26
Homily
I share with you my recent letter to my
congregation. First, a little back story. I just spent about 4 days in the
hospital from Thursday until Sunday. I had to enjoy the 4th of July,
recovering from a huge loss of blood at the infirmary and was released on Sunday.
That should explain why I didn’t send out the Collect and material for the Fifth
Sunday after Trinity. Now, my letter:
Last night our next-door neighbor – probably
mid-30s – asked me a question about my experiences last week, and all that
happened. “Hey. Did you learn anything from it?” Wow. Now that is a question. I
mentioned a few things to him, but his question has kept me thinking. What did
I learn? Let me list a few thoughts below. Some of them I already knew but
became fresh to me. Others I knew but took for granted.
• My
wife is my First Responder, my special operator, my priceless jewel: “An excellent wife who can find? She is
far more precious than jewels” (Proverbs 31:10). It is too easy to let the routine, the
day-in-day-out stuff blur that. But right now it’s clear as day to me.
• Simple
biology. You need blood to breath and function. “For the life of every creature is its blood: its blood is its life” (Leviticus 17:14). Sounds gory, but that was an
eye opener in new ways. ‘Nuff said.
• Being
worried over by my daughters, watching my sons be men, embracing my precious
daughters-in-law, holding my newest grandbaby. Oh dear God! Life is good! They
are a gift. Who am I to be so gifted and loved? “Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, the fruit of the
womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s
youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put
to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate” (Psalm 127:3-5).
• I
cherish you, brothers and sisters! I missed you. I missed our worship,
discussions, camaraderie, jesting, communing, singing, and hugging. I missed
those precious high-5s and smiles of the kids. And right now I’m missing VBS as
I continue to recover. “For
as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same
function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members
one of another” (Romans
12:4-5).
• I’m
as stubborn as a rock.
• Life
is short. Up and running 3.2 miles, going and blowing all day on Wednesday, and
then flat on my back in the wee hours Thursday morning wondering if I would
survive. Truly, James is correct to remind us we should see each day, each
breath, each moment as a gift of God: “You do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For
you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you
ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that” (James 4:14-15).
• You
have no idea how much you have meant to others or impacted them. There’s a lot
behind this lesson that’s personal to me, so I’m going to keep the details
personal and close to my chest. But it was a lesson that blessed the socks off
both my feet, warmed my heart, lifted my head, and brought me to say to God,
“Wow! I had no idea!”
• I’m
stubborn as a rock. I did already say that, right?
• The
Lord is my shepherd, and his sheep dogs – goodness and mercy – are hounding me
all my days (Psalm 23). Thank God!
• My
only comfort in life and in death is that with body and soul, both in life and
death, I am not my own, but belong unto my faithful Saviour Jesus Christ; who,
with his precious blood, has fully satisfied for all my sins, and delivered me
from all the power of the devil; and so preserves me that without the will of
my heavenly Father, not a hair can fall from my head; yea, that all things must
be subservient to my salvation, and therefore, by his Holy Spirit, he also
assures me of eternal life, and makes me sincerely willing and ready,
henceforth, to live unto him.
Brothers and sisters, lift up your eyes and rejoice
in the gifts you’ve been given.
With love,
Pastor Mike
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