We Are Children Of God:We Are Family

“We are Children of God: We are Family” 
REFLECTION for FAITH/Membership Sunday April 14 24
For Churchill and Gilford Community of Faith 
Krista Moore 

Introduction to the Scriptures:  
Today we are reminded that we are children of God.  
As disciples of Jesus, as a community of faith, we walk with him.  Jesus teaches us to lean on each other in times of trouble.  And to grow our faith in community.  
We are children of God.  

STORY – THE TREES 
The other day, I was looking out at the trees behind the manse, I  noticed them swaying and blowing in the wind. They were tall  evergreens about eight in all, standing side by side, very close, and with  each gust of wind, they leaned on each other.  
I saw how each one was buffered by each other’s branches, almost  appearing as one giant tree.  

Whoever planted them was smart. 

They planted them close together, in a row, not only so we would  enjoy privacy, and to protect the land from too much wind, but so they  would have each other, and become stronger as one. 

SCRIPTURE – JESUS APPEARS AND EATS WITH THEM
Our gospel message is like that.  
After Jesus rises from the dead Easter morning, he appears to the  disciples who are all huddled in a room together. 
He invites them to touch his hands and feet, proving he is alive – not a ghost.  

Then, he does something incredible: 
He asks for something to eat! (Broiled fish to be exact).

 Jesus appears to them as fully human.  
He rises from the dead – 
And he returns to his community, sits down and eats with them.
In good times and in bad, God is there for us, and God gives us  to each other, so we will be strong. 

Jesus created a community of disciples to not only teach, but to  lean on. He returns to them at Easter and eats with them.  

Calming their fears that they had been abandoned;  
showing them all would be well, that he was with them,
He helped them reaffirm their faith in him,  
So they could go forward and preach the gospel 
And become the amazing Apostles we hear of today.  

In the letter of John, it goes one step further.  
We are called Children of God.  
Jesus makes us brothers and sisters in Christ.  
Through our baptism, confirmation, and church community,  we belong to Him,  
we belong to God and  
we belong to each other.  
We are one family. 

STORY: LAST FEW WEEKS 
In the last few weeks we have experienced A LOT as a community:  

The miracle of Easter 
     Baptism, confirmation, new memberships 
          and some funerals.  

We have also experienced strange weather and other phenomena:
 like snow on Easter morning.  
A full solar eclipse on Monday.  
An electric storm Tuesday.  
And gusts of wind strong enough to blow some shingles off the  manse roof. (We are still awaiting the final repair work). But none of this overcame us.  

Because we are planted in a strong community  
We live in a big Christian community in Innisfil and South Simcoe.  
Our own four United Churches with  
• Innispirit (Gilford, Churchill, St. James and Lefroy United),  
• along with Bond Head United and Trinity Beeton United in  our South Simcoe Cluster:
          We ALL HELP EACH OTHER 
• plus other Christian churches and agencies work together in  the community, including:  
          o Schools like Nantyr Shores,  
          o Lakeside retirement home which I will see today,  
          o RVH, Southlake, and Stevenson Memorial hospitals,
          o Innisfil’s Community 4 Kids 

We don’t do anything alone.  
I KNOW I DIDN’T DO ANY OF THIS ALONE.  
As I finish my SME this week, I feel rooted in this community.  
I feel like a part of the family. 

STORY – FAITH MEMBERSHIP SUNDAY  
Today is Faith or Membership Sunday.  
We haven’t welcomed new members into the family for a long,  long time.  
It is a beautiful thing.  
And we welcome all of you, whether you are just visiting, or  whether you have been here for a long time and have a family pew.

We welcome you into this community.  
For those who have been (baptized or confirmed today), or made a  profession of faith, you have received a special gift.  

Because you not only belong to us, you belong to the one who  makes us strong: Jesus Christ.  

FAITH is a beautiful gift.  
It is like a superpower.  
FAITH makes us stronger.  
FAMILY makes us stronger.  
COMMUNITY makes us stronger.  

And when you put all this together in a Christian community, and realize  you belong to the FAMILY OF GOD, that you are brothers and sisters in  Christ, then we are unstoppable!  

So no matter what happens, what life throws at you,  
STORMS, WIND, SNOW AND RAIN, SUN and flowers…
You can be ROOTED in the FAITH of your ancestors  
You can find CONNECTION and support in your family, school,  church, community…

When you do this within a CHURCH community, you have a  SUPERPOWER OF FAMILY SUPPORT holding and uplifting you.  We stand rooted together and extend our branches, lifting each  other up as one. We are family! And now you are a part of the family! 

ENDING – THE TREES – DEATH AND LIFE  
When I watched the trees swaying together, I noticed one that had  fallen on the outside.

Sometimes life’s storms blow down a few of our branches.  And sometimes, when it is near their time, a tree comes down.  Sometimes we have to say goodbye to loved ones. And it is hard. But when we come together as a community of FAITH, even death  cannot overtake us.  

Our FAITH makes us stronger. 

So even if one falls, we still have God, we have Christ, we have  each other. We are rooted in community. We ARE FAMILY. It is good to have a strong family you were born with or married  into. It is a great blessing to lean on the ones we love. 

But it is also good to have a community of FAITH you can lean on  when times are tough, or when you feel alone.  

For those who have been baptized or confirmed, or become full  members today, reach out – you do not stand alone.  

You stand within a powerful and long-standing community in Christ.  You can lean on us. If one fails, another will rush in to help you.  

JESUS DID NOT WALK ALONE 

Jesus did not walk alone. And he didn’t want us to walk alone.  Yes, he had a family – a mother Mary who followed him, and other  relations.  

But he spent most of last three years on earth building a  community of faith, of strong believers, starting with his disciples. After his death and resurrection, he returned and ate with them.  Even Jesus leaned on his disciples for nourishment.  

Even Jesus needed his spiritual companions to take care of him.  He treated them as brothers and sisters. As family.  
And that is how he wants us to be: His family.

CLOSING – WE ARE FAMILY  
Finally, As John said to his community,  
“Beloved, we are God’s children now.  
What we will be has not yet been revealed.”  
Jesus came to give us the gift of new life,  
To become children of God, one family.  
For those who have embraced this faith today,  
May you blossom and grow and become all God created you to be.  May you know the gift of love that comes from a strong community  And although no family is perfect  
And we all struggle at times  
Know that you are a part of the family at Churchill and Gilford.  WE ARE FAMILY 
God’s family.  
And we stand together as one.  
Amen.