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A Mighty Wind

 I was in the office on Thursday and saw a retired couple walking into our church. I went out to greet them and they said that last year they met Kileen and I down at Java Moose and we recommended they go to Ottawa and they just went there and had a wonderful time. We exchanged some small talk and they made the comment that they were Catholic but really liked our church because it was very welcoming. 

I went to the HUB last month for the pancake feed, and a woman, when she found out I pastored this church, thanked us for the having the raised garden beds. 

I made popcorn for the Explorer's Club a few times and one of the dad's said to me as he was picking up his kid, "Oh, you are the popcorn guy, my kid has been talking about nothing else the last two weeks." I have received lots of gratitude from the community that we have opened our church building to have a daycare. 

When I share about our Workers on Wheels program, people light up, or having Ben Nichols with his piano lessons and now summer group sessions, or the AA and Al-Anon, or the Food Shelf, or our commitment and presence for the Pride March, they know it is a part of our mission and ministry and they are grateful. 

In the Gospel story today, we have two small stories about compassion. In between we have the story of the feeding of the 5,000 and the story of Jesus stilling the wind and the waves while they are out on a boat.  However, on each side of the lake, on each side of the story, are stories about compassion. Jesus having compassion on the crowd so he began to teach them about God's kingdom. Jesus having compassion on those who are sick and healing them. 

The church building, this church is our boat. It does not transport us across Lake Superior or even down to the Harbor or up the Trail. However, when we are gathering here on Sunday morning, it does transport our hearts, minds, and souls to the kindom. It does take us back in time to walk the shores with Jesus and into the future to a time when justice for the poor, the foreigner, and the stranger has prevailed and all are healthy and whole. This building, this ship does provide safety for the young ones, food for the hungry, and a place of healing for those who struggle with addictions. 

This church, this ship of faith, this building is powered and empowered by the Spirit, the breath of life and of God. For all the worship, funerals, baptisms, meetings, feedings, teachings, learnings, joys, and heartbreak that it has seen over the past 50 years, it is still a welcoming place, a healing place, and a place where people can grow as humans and as Christians. Our body of faith has been present in this community for almost 120 years, the Spirit, the mighty wind of love and compassion, has empowered us to share the gospel of joy, of healing, and of love. May we continue to be transported to a better world for all in and through this church as the wind/spirit/breath of the Almighty pushes us forward. Amen.

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