Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” [The disciples] said to him, “We will go with you.” They
went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
Just after daybreak, Jesus stood on the beach; but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to
them, “Children, you have no fish, have you?” They answered him, “No.”
He said to them, “Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now
they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish . . .
[Jesus] said to [Peter] the third time, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter felt hurt because he said to
him the third time, “Do you love me?” And he said to Jesus, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.”
Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.” John 21:3-6; 17
We have journeyed through the 40 days of Lent, the mountaintops and valleys of Holy Week, and Easter morning
and the empty tomb. Now what? What comes after Easter in our understanding of the faith journey that we
have chosen to take?
In John 20, we read of the fear and lack of hope that consumed the thinking of the disciples after the crucifixion and the experience at the empty tomb. Then Jesus came. He came and stood among them saying, “I’m here just like I said I
would be. Put aside your fear. Replace it with my peace.” And then Jesus breathed his divine breath upon them and
said, “Receive the Holy Spirit and get ready to be sent out into the world, just as I have been sent, I send you.”
However, in the next chapter in the Gospel of John, we find the disciples going back to work, doing what they knew
how to do best, and doing what they did before meeting Jesus. They went fishing. They went back to the familiar
routine of everyday living as if the previous three years with Jesus were just a fading memory.
Sometimes we are advised, after experiencing a traumatic event as the disciples had, “to get busy, go back to work,
you’ll get over it.” Maybe the disciples began to think, “This Jesus movement was a good thing while it lasted, but all
good things must come to an end. So, let us just go back to work and forget all this Kingdom talk and especially this
resurrection idea. The story is ended.”
Then early one morning the risen Christ finds these disciples-turned-back to-fishermen and says to them, “It’s not over.
It is just getting started. Do you love me? Then get out of those boats and feed my sheep. Go find my people and
teach them the things I have taught you. Go and be my church.”
It’s not easy to start over. Maybe we would never start over without the pushing, pulling, and prodding of the risen
Christ. Peter and the others were quite content to go back to the routine and familiar; to a life that was safer than
following Jesus.
However, for the disciples, and for us, the story is not finished, so Jesus comes to us and says once again, “Feed my
sheep.” Hopefully, we will not be like the disciples who decided the story was over and went sorrowfully back to their
fishing, to the way they were before Jesus.
It is a temptation to let down spiritually after Easter when the events and the excitement are over. We are drawn back
into the routine and commonplace repetition of our jobs and responsibilities. Sometimes, even unintentionally, we
tend to put Easter carefully back on the shelf as a holiday until next year.
So what is next for those who believer in Easter? I believe that Easter is present tense. It is about following Jesus now.
It is about living as if God is victorious, unstoppable, triumphant, now. As “Easter people”, we must believe that God
will get God’s way in the end, no matter what. If Jesus’ death on the cross has been defeated by the empty tomb at
Easter, what other victories is God working on?
How is God working in your life? Where does God show up in your daily walk?
If we allow it, Easter can move us quickly from the affirmation, “He is risen,” to an assignment, “Go into your family,
community, and the world and do something about it.” By carrying out that assignment, Easter continues within the
lives of each one of us for the rest of our life and beyond.
God is not finished with the story or us. The story is alive. So what is next? The rest of the story.
In her insightful and encouraging new book Anne Lamott explains that it is mercy which gives us the chance to “soften ever so slightly” to understand one another more deeply.
Let’s talk about it!!!!
This year the “official” Pentecost Sunday slides
into June. Pentecost is always the “end” of
the
PRAYER IN PREPARATION- Great and Loving God, we who come to worship are also persons who sometimes feel that you have abandoned us or left us to fend for ourselves. Although we rely upon your ever-presence, we suspect your absence. Encourage us, O God, when we doubt your promise to be with us always. In our worship, grant us the gifts of discernment and hope. Enable us to recognize your workings in the commonplace and the everyday. Open us to faith and help us to perceive not only what is, but also what, by your grace, might be. We offer this prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen
A
fter many months of searching and prayerfully listening for the call of God’s Spirit, the Pastor 
BRO collects new and gently used toys, Legos (sets
are not necessary), stuffed animals, dolls, books, games, puzzles, art kit items, infant & toddler toys to
distribute to around 5,500 St. Louis children at
Christmas. Especially needed are toys for children 6 to
10 and small “stocking stuffer” items. Items may be
placed in the BRO gray collection container.
PRAYER IN PREPARATION: Loving and Beloved God, in the resurrection of Christ you have overcome the powers of this world and shown your saving love for all people. As Christ has loved us, may we remain in his love, growing in love for one another; through Christ your Incarnate Love, to whom with you and the Spirit, one holy God, be honor and praise, now and forever. Amen
THANK YOU!!MONTREAT YOUTH CONFERENCE June 3-10 the youth are headed to Montreat Youth Conference. This year’s theme is ‘A Missing Peace.’ I am eager to see what we learn and how the youth not only absorb it, but are transformed by it! The youth will be presenting their trip later this summer. There is much more to be shared, you will not want to miss it!!
PRAYER IN PREPARATION: Living God, we come this day with praise and thanksgiving. May this time of worship empower us to embody your good news. May we always abide in you, and you in us. May we respond to the power of your word, and the promises of your love. May we be so filled with your Spirit that we can't help but proclaim your goodness. Amen.
The 2016-1017 Choir Season is coming to a close as
summer approaches. I am very thankful to
Hello Friends:
Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” [The disciples] said to him, “We will go with you.” They
went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
Just after daybreak, Jesus stood on the beach; but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to
them, “Children, you have no fish, have you?” They answered him, “No.”
He said to them, “Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now
they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish . . .
[Jesus] said to [Peter] the third time, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter felt hurt because he said to
him the third time, “Do you love me?” And he said to Jesus, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.”
Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.” John 21:3-6; 17
"Oh my - is it time for the ABC sale already?"