Claimed, gathered and sent

Here are some thoughts on the epistle reading for this Sunday, Good Shepherd Sunday that were shared with the people of St. Timothy Lutheran Church.  Second Reading: Revelation 7:9-17 9 After this I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white, with palm branches in their hands. 10 They cried out in a loud voice, saying,  “Salvation belongs to our God who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!” 11 And all the angels stood around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 singing,  “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom  and thanksgiving and honor  and power and might  be to our God forever and ever! Amen.”   13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, robed in white, and where have they come from?” 14 I said to him, “S...

This Sunday was Good Shepherd Sunday. The gospel was John 10:11-18 . Below is the sermon that I preached at St. Timothy's and St. Mark's. In the 1980s, my family and I lived in the Holy Land, in Bethlehem. We had the opportunity to observe many shepherds herding their sheep. Some gently and carefully led their sheep. Others drove the sheep, angrily hitting them with a rod. The good shepherds stood out. Throughout scripture, the image of a shepherd is a positive one. God, kings, Moses and other leaders are described as shepherds in their care of the people. A few minutes ago, we heard this imagery in the 23rd Psalm. In today’s gospel, we see the tender relationship of Jesus and his sheep. The shepherd initiates contact with the sheep. They don’t have to go off in search of a shepherd. He comes to them. Often, the sheep of more than one shepherd would be enclosed in the same pen. But in the morning, when it is time for the sheep to be s...

I find myself becoming more sentimental about those no longer with us on this earth. I've been thinking about my brother Fred, who passed away in 1995. Since this past December, I've enjoyed a renewed relationship with my nieces and nephews, some I haven't seen since they were toddlers. This certainly brings my brother to mind more frequently. His children so strongly resemble him. My brother loved movies. As a little girl, I remember he had the movie sound track (yes vinyl lp) to Gigi. One of the stars was Maurice Chevalier , a suave, debonaire Frenchman. He was famous for songs such as Thank Heaven for Little Girls and I Remember it Well. I hadn't given the movie or songs much thought until tonight. We had an easy listening, elevator type music station on during supper. As I was cleaning things up they started playing "Gigi." It was an instrumental version and I started singing along. Before long I had tears in my eyes--tears of sadness for those time...