We all need someone who believes in us. Someone who supports our dreams. When you give to Mission & Service, you are that someone. Here’s one story of how your belief and support make all the difference.

Three years ago, Arwa was a Palestinian refugee who had just arrived in Montreal. She had made a harrowing journey, travelling from Saudi Arabia through New York City with three children in tow.

“It wasn’t easy for me. I was a single mom in a new country with new people. I was struggling for housing and looking for a job. It wasn’t easy at all,” she says.

Arwa sought help at Montreal City Mission, an outreach ministry your Mission & Service gifts support. There, her whole family found belonging. Arwa’s children made friends, and she benefitted from training programs and events.

It wasn’t long before Arwa gathered a group of women together to form a catering cooperative called Women Weaving Their Dreams, which specializes in homemade Middle Eastern meals. The group was going strong and the women were becoming more financially secure when COVID-19 struck.

Arwa’s story has a happy ending and we rejoice for her and her family just like the Jardo family that Texada Island supported as refugees when they came to Canada - they have found a place to call home. 
I don’t know if Jesus was looking for a home? I suppose not, because his mission always called for him to leave, to go and preach and heal and spread the Good News. The same Good News we listen to today;  that we are home when we are with God, when we gather in community, when we are welcomed, accepted, loved and given opportunity to find our place. Our prayer is that our church is such a place and if Jesus walked in, he would feel at home. 

Let Us Build a House   #1 More Voices   
(link can be found on Texada Island United Church Facebook page to sing along)  


Verse 1
Let us build a house where love can dwell
and all can safely live.
A place where saints and children
tell how hearts learn to forgive.
Built of hopes and dreams and visions,
rock of faith and vault of grace.
Here the love of Christ shall end divisions:
Refrain
All are welcome, all are welcome,
all are welcome in this place.

Verse 2
Let us build a house where prophets speak,
and words are strong and true.
Where all God’s children dare to seek
to dream God’s reign anew.
Here the cross shall stand as witness
and as symbol of God’s grace.
Here as one we claim the faith of Jesus:
Refrain
All are welcome, all are welcome,
all are welcome in this place.

Verse 3
Let us build a house where love is found,
in water, wine and wheat.
A banquet hall on holy ground,
where peace and justice meet.
Here the love of God, through Jesus,
is revealed in time and space,
as we share in Christ the feast that frees us;
Refrain
All are welcome, all are welcome,
all are welcome in this place.

Verse 4
Let us build a house where hands will reach
beyond the wood and stone.
To heal and strengthen, serve and teach,
and live the Word they’ve known. 
Here the outcast and the stranger bear
the image of God’s face.
Let us bring an end to fear and danger;
Refrain
All are welcome, all are welcome,
all are welcome in this place.

Verse 5
Let us build a house where all are named,
their songs and visions heard.
And loved and treasured, taught and
claimed as words within the Word.
Built of tears and cries and laughter,
prayers of faith and songs of grace.
Let this house proclaim from floor to rafter;
Refrain
All are welcome, all are welcome,
all are welcome in this place

1 Corinthians 13:1-8a  (NIV)
 
 If I speak in the tongues of mortals or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 
2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 
3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.
4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 
5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 
6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 
7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
8 Love never fails. 
​
Reflection
 
Valentine’s Day, I couldn’t just let it go by without talking about it. It’s the day when we take special care to say I love you to those we cherish. Parents, children, whole families (both those we are born into and those we create around us) and especially our partners are all included in those important words: “ I love you”. Words we say and words we long to hear. Love gives depth, meaning and breadth to our lives and our world.
 
Love makes our hearts beat faster, love breaks our hearts, us and if we let it love makes us better people; more humane, more compassionate; more caring people
 
The Message translation of the Bible ends the passage
(I Corinthians 13:13) this way :
 
          But for right now, until that completeness,
          we have three things to do
          to lead us toward that consummation:
          Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly.
         And the best of the three is love.
 
We, in the Christian church often use this passage in the marriage ceremony but Paul is using love the way Jesus showed love in all his encounters with people. Jesus had the ability to meet people where they were and to embrace who they were with no conditions.
 
The woman at the well
The lepers on the road
Mary and Martha
The rich young man
The disciples
The woman who anoints him
 
He just meets them where they are – not because of who they are but because of who he is.
 
He doesn’t look at the woman at the well and say to himself  “Oh there is a woman all alone, not with her women friends, she must be an outcast, oh she is a Samaritian- not a real Jew, oh, she is a woman:  therefore I know I shouldn’t talk to her according to our laws but she is marginalized so I will show her compassion and speak to her – besides I’m thirsty” He talks to her,
and reveals a different life for her future, if she wants to embrace the opportunity he is offering. She leaves him excited and hopeful not only for her future but the future of her village.
 
He doesn’t look at the people with leprosy and say I should be compassionate and heal these poor souls. He just recognizes them as whole human beings and heals them.
 
He doesn’t think “Oh poor Martha, Mary should go and help her like a good sister.” Mary’s thirst for spiritual nourishment was recognized by Jesus and honoured.
 
He doesn’t look at the rich young man and say “Oh, OK, I know it’s hard to sell all you have – just sell half and follow me and you’ll be fine”. Jesus’ love for the person standing in front of him demands that the truth be told, what the rich young man couldn’t do was let go of the false god riches had become for him.
 
He doesn’t ever go to the disciples and say “I know it’s not quite working out the way you thought it would but I’m glad you followed me anyway.”
He accepts them for who they are, he calls them to follow him because of who they are, not because they are perfect as we see over and over again, but because they willing to drop what they are doing to journey with him and make his road their road.
 
And he accepts the gift offered to him by he woman who anoints him. He doesn’t send her away, dismissing what she does for him. He accepted her gift and in his accepting recognizes and respects her.
 
Jesus loved them, he saw these people and he saw through them and encouraged them to be better people, better human beings, better selves.
 
It isn’t that Jesus is blind to people’s faults and failures. Jesus knew about failure, he knew about temptation, he knew about pain and he knew about wholeness and he knew about the power of love.
 
Think about his relationship with Simon whom he renames Peter (petros which is  Greek for rock) and claims that  “on this rock I will build my church (community)”. (Matthew 16:18)  The same Peter who he later shouts at: “Get behind me Satan”  (Matthew 16:23) when Peter implores him not to go to Jerusalem. The same Peter whom Jesus predicts will deny even knowing Jesus not once but three times. This Peter is the rock, the foundation upon which the church is built.
 
What did Jesus see in Peter, what did Jesus encourage in Peter, what did Jesus call out and allow to grow in Peter, so that Peter in Acts, is a leader in the early Jerusalem community along with James, the brother of Jesus.  He later goes out to other communities and finally goes to the early church community in Rome where he is martyred around 64 CE.
 
Jesus and the disciples knew about love, the love that comes with heartbreak and sacrifice and forgiveness and all those other things we don’t usually talk about on Valentine’s Day. 
 
God, who Jesus and the disciples and Paul preached about, was a God of love. They offered a vision of faith that was grounded, in not only loving God but in loving yourself and loving others. They envisioned a faithful community where everyone was welcomed, everyone was accepted, and everyone mattered. We are all children of God.
 
We are called to love everyone with a love that stretches our hearts, feeds our souls and shapes us into the community, in to the people that we were created to be.
                                                          Amen
  
 
 Prayer
 
Holy and loving God
You call us into community
You call us into family
You call us into relationship
And all the time you are really just calling us to love.
 
We are living in difficult times
We are separated from each other in our community
We are separated from family
We can’t hug
We can’t go about our daily lives like we used to
We miss relationship
 
Teach us, O God, to reach beyond the way we used to…
Help us to find new ways of connecting
And caring for ourselves, for others, for each other
 
We are truly thankful for your presence in our lives
And for the life of Jesus and the disciples
and all who have walked a path of love,
they are our teachers
as we walk our path following Your Way.
 
                                                   Amen
 
 

Matthew 5:1-10  (New Revised Standard)
 
Sermon on the Mount
 
     When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples          came to him. 
​     2 Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:
     3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
     4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.”
     5 “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth”.
     6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.”
     7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy”.
     8  “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God”.
     9 “ Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God”.
   10 “ Blessed are those who are persecuted because of
       righteousness for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
 
 
Reflection
 
Blessed are you … all those who live a life that knows doubt and fear and loss and in that knowing are able to show goodness and kindness and forgiveness to others.
 
I might be off track but it seems to me that this is what Jesus is saying. There are some biblical translations that change blessed to happy  (Good news Bible) but it seems to me that misses the point of the passage. Even in a world that makes pursuing the illusive goal of happiness a priority for being successful in this adventure called life – happiness in this context seems out of place. Jesus as a prophet proclaiming happiness doesn’t sit right.
 
Happiness in the place of blessed makes what he is saying seem like it is something to be pursued, but who among us would actively pursue to be poor in spirit, bereft, or even humble (meek)?
 
We live in a world where the Spirit is becoming increasing silent (or at least less politically correct, where loss is something to get over and humbleness is mistaken for weakness and confidence is mistaken for competence. So we have to ask is there a place for the Beatitudes today?
 
Okay, yes I am going to say not only is there room but I understand that these Be-Attitudes to be truly blessings that allow us to grow and deepen our humanity, our humanness, and our love.
 
Without these attitudes we are diminished in our capacity to do what Jesus invites us to do: follow him.
 

1. “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”                         Without the knowledge of our own poverty and lack concerning God and the Spirit we can easily begin to close ourselves off from new ideas, experiences and people who challenge our faith and our ideas surrounding God.
2.  “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.”                                         Without the knowledge of loss and wound and scars how could we understand the fragile nature or even the strength of the human spirit and allow ourselves to be vulnerable or strong in ourselves and with and for others.
3. “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth”.                                                     Without the knowledge that we are fallible, that we can be wrong, that we can make mistakes, that we can misinterpret another’s words, gestures and motives how can we treat other people fairly and justly as they deserve.
4. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.”  Without the passion and will to pursue what is right, what is good, what is just we are lost. At the very least we should be asking the questions: What is right? What is good? What is just? And in seeking answers we have to be willing to be wrong, to fail, and to try again. I like the way scripture says we should have a hunger and thirst for righteousness. It sounds like we can be satisfied but then we get hungry and thirsty again because we notice that there are more injustices to work on, we have to strive to be more just, extend justice, move closer and closer to what is right and just and good for all God's people, everyone. 
5. “Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy”.                                               Without forgiveness – received and given – received and given again – we become a shamed and hardened people. It is grace that allows us to accept forgiveness for ourselves and grace that helps us to extend forgiveness to others, It is a softness of heart and vulnerability of Spirit that gives us the strength and courage to both accept and give forgiveness.

 
 
Blessed are the pure in heart.
Blessed are the peacemakers.
Blessed are those who follow me
 
So we can see in these Beatitudes (Be-Attitudes) that they are a challenge for us but the challenge is to become a better us – not a perfect us but a better us. The challenge is not to shut down our hearts but to open them. To open our eyes and look at ourselves, then to look at others and see ourselves in them, to see ourselves through their eyes.
 
We are blessed to be us, to be living at this time, in this family, in this church, in this community. We make a difference. We are blessed.
 
We are blessed to be a blessing.
                                                              Amen

 
The following is The Sermon on the Mount translated by Eugene Peterson in the Message Bible using contemporary English. It gives us another idea of what the Sermon on the Mount would sound like today.
 
Matthew 5:1-12
You’re Blessed
​
5 1-2 When Jesus saw his ministry drawing huge crowds, he climbed a hillside. Those who were apprenticed to him, the committed, climbed with him. Arriving at a quiet place, he sat down and taught his climbing companions. This is what he said:
3 “You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule.
4 “You’re blessed when you feel you’ve lost what is most dear to you. Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you.
5 “You’re blessed when you’re content with just who you are—no more, no less. That’s the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can’t be bought.
6 “You’re blessed when you’ve worked up a good appetite for God. He’s food and drink in the best meal you’ll ever eat.
7 “You’re blessed when you care. At the moment of being ‘care-full,’ you find yourselves cared for.
8 “You’re blessed when you get your inside world—your mind and heart—put right. Then you can see God in the outside world.
9 “You’re blessed when you can show people how to cooperate instead of compete or fight. That’s when you discover who you really are, and your place in God’s family.
10 “You’re blessed when your commitment to God provokes persecution. The persecution drives you even deeper into God’s kingdom.
11-12 “Not only that—count yourselves blessed every time people put you down or throw you out or speak lies about you to discredit me. What it means is that the truth is too close for comfort and they are uncomfortable. You can be glad when that happens—give a cheer, even!—for though they don’t like it, I do! And all heaven applauds. And know that you are in good company. My prophets and witnesses have always gotten into this kind of trouble.