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A Church in Pink Flamingos
- Date: Fri, Feb 5, 2010
- Author: Linda Roddis
Webster defines church as “a building of public Christian worship.” Many folks would agree with Webster; others might add to the definition that a church is a gathering of people on Sunday morning. Our church can be seen in pink flamingos on a lawn of a group home.
All week long and in many different settings we act as “church”:
We are the “church” when we offer meals to homeless folks 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
We are the “church” when we provide support to homeless women day and night, seven days a week.
We are called the “church” by nurses in hospitals who see the cards we send, pinned on bulletin boards in sick patients’ rooms.
We are the “church” to countless parents who drop their children off at our doors for child care during the day.
We are the “church” to youth who are planning for a Habitat for Humanity trip to Yakima, paid for by dessert auctions and a migrating flock of pink flamingos.
We are the “church” to people seeking a place to have a memorial service or a wedding.
We are the “church” to readers of the Seattle Times newspaper who saw us offering support to the homeless.
We are the “church” to hundreds of AA attendees who enter our doors looking for support.
We are the “church” to thousands of renters who use our building for their functions.
We have joined a revolution taking place in our country. This revolution is redefining church. No longer can churches like ours see themselves as simply what takes place on Sunday. We must begin to see ourselves as a multifaceted faith organization.
This change in the function of churches calls for a change in infrastructure. For example, the physical building of churches supported the church work of the past, where large sanctuaries were built to house large groups on Sunday morning; different structures are needed for today’s church. Churches of the past centered around worship on Sunday; today churches must think carefully of what takes place from Monday-Friday as well.
Church members have brought about this change. As we have responded to the call of God, the church has become much more than a place of worship; we have become the very hands and feet of Christ.
These are the scripture readings in the Revised Common Lectionary for the forthcoming Sunday:
Isaiah 6:1-8
Isaiah's Vision of the Lord
6:1 In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. 3 And one called to another and said:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory!”
4 And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. 5 And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”
6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7 And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.”
Isaiah's Commission from the Lord
8 And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.”
Isaiah 6:9-12
9 And he said, “Go, and say to this people:
“‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand;
keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’
10 Make the heart of this people dull,
and their ears heavy,
and blind their eyes;
lest they see with their eyes,
and hear with their ears,
and understand with their hearts,
and turn and be healed.”
11 Then I said, “How long, O Lord?”
And he said:
“Until cities lie waste
without inhabitant,
and houses without people,
and the land is a desolate waste,
12 and the Lord removes people far away,
and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land.
Psalm 138
Give Thanks to the Lord
Of David.
138:1 I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart;
before the gods I sing your praise;
2 I bow down toward your holy temple
and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness,
for you have exalted above all things
your name and your word.
3 On the day I called, you answered me;
my strength of soul you increased.
4 All the kings of the earth shall give you thanks, O Lord,
for they have heard the words of your mouth,
5 and they shall sing of the ways of the Lord,
for great is the glory of the Lord.
6 For though the Lord is high, he regards the lowly,
but the haughty he knows from afar.
7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
you preserve my life;
you stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies,
and your right hand delivers me.
8 The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me;
your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever.
Do not forsake the work of your hands.
1 Corinthians 15:1-11
The Resurrection of Christ
15:1 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, 2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.
3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. 9 For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. 11 Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.
Luke 5:1-11
Jesus Calls the First Disciples
5:1 On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, 2 and he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. 3 Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon's, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat. 4 And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” 5 And Simon answered, “Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.” 6 And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. 7 They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. 8 But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” 9 For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken, 10 and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” 11 And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.
Footnotes
[1] 6:1 Or hem
[2] 6:3 Or may his glory fill the whole earth
[3] 6:9 Or Hear indeed
[4] 6:9 Or see indeed
[5] 6:10 Hebrew fat
[6] 138:2 Or you have exalted your word above all your name
[7] 138:3 Hebrew you made me bold in my soul with strength
[8] 15:1 Or brothers and sisters; also verses 6, 31, 50, 58
