Sunday 24th May 09

The problem with this Sunday's readings are that they are dealing with the rather strange time between Ascension and Pentecost - they have a sense of waiting for something bigger and better - and quite right too.
However, I have a baptism at one of my churches on Sunday, and trying to explain about Ascension AND Pentecost AND the fact that we're in-between the two seems a bit tough on all of us, so I've gone for celebrating Ascension, and linking this in to the Baptism, whilst also trying to prepare from next week's Pentecost service.

So the readings are
Acts of the Apostles (1.4-11)
Luke 24.44-end

And for the sermon I'm taking the Radio 2 campaign for this week 'Love where you live' from three different angles:
Love where you live can be about celebrating where you are - the Radio 2 campaign is about community involvement and talking to your neighbours. But as well as celebrating the specific place where you are, we can celebrate the world into which we have been born - celebrating life itself.
Love where you live can also be about recognising the love which you find around you. When Jesus' risen body was finally taken back into heaven, the disciples found that it wasn't that jesus had gone, but that Jesus had been released from the confines of that body to be with them wherever and whenever they lived. So jesus is where you are - Jesus is with us - and Jesus loves us - so there is love where you live.
And if you punctuate the phrase differently you get to another great cause of celebration: love - where you live! God's love shown us in Jesus enables us to live full lives where we grow and learn to love God and others.

Now I just have to work those thoughts up into a short sermon for the baptism service and an all-age service at the other church...

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