Hummelstown UCC Podcast

Acts 9:36-43; John 10:22-30

May Day Morning (First Anniversary of Mother's Death) As I sit on my porchI feel my Mother's presence.The sunrise feels like my mother's arms around me.The scent of lilacs reminds me of her perfume.In the bird's singing I hear her voice.Watching the rabbit search for food,I remember the meals she made for me.I see the doe guarding her fawn and I feel certainThat Mom still watches over me.
-Thomas Kinser

Acts 9:1-20; Psalm 30: Thanksgiving for Recovery from Grave Illness; John 21:1-19

“On the Pulse of Morning” excerptHere, on the pulse of this fine dayYou may have the courageTo look up and out and upon me, theRock, the River, the Tree, your country.No less to Midas than the mendicant.No less to you now than the mastodon then.Here, on the pulse of this new dayYou may have the grace to look up and outAnd into your sister’s eyes, and intoYour brother’s face, your countryAnd say simplyVery simplyWith hope—Good morning.
-Maya Angelou

Psalm 150: Praise for God’s Surpassing Greatness; John 20:19-31

"You, O God, are our light – Grant us courage to walk into places once cloaked infear. Grant us fortitude to reveal our pain, to bind our wounds. You, O God, are oureverlasting strength, we will not turn away, we will persevere. We lift our voices indefiant praise. Give thanks to the God who never turns away – whose love breaksevery chain and endures forever."
-Rev. Dr. Gwendolyn Kehaunani Hill

Luke 22:39-46; Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29

 Tell me again.Tell me again to cultivate new life—a life where I believe in myself,a life where, dare I say, I love myself.Tell me again to cultivate new life—a life of dancing in the kitchenand slow cups of coffee;a life where Sabbath is viewed as a giftas opposed to a luxury;a life where I trust my own voiceand speak words dripping in hope,heavy in love.Tell me again.Tell me again because I will forget.Tell me again because change has never come easy.Tell me again, because on Monday I’ll wave palmsAnd by Friday I’ll be at the foot of a cross.So if you can, tell me againOf the love that changed the world,And my invitation to do the same.
-SEEKING PRESENCE Cultivate Holy Week

John 12:1-8; Isaiah 43:16-21

People throw around the phrase, “Let it go” like a child throws out laughter—Easy and light.I wish that’s how I knew it.I wish it felt that simple.Instead I have to talk myself into a better frame of mind.I have to drag one foot in front of the other until I’m closer to love.I have to sing my mother’s words in my head until I can’t hear anything else.And I pray for letting go that feels like taking off shoes—a sort of coming home.I pray for letting go that won’t always involve a battle between heart and mind.I pray for letting go that moves like muscle memory, but it never does.Letting go has never been as easy as holding tight.Why is that?So now and again I stand in the rain and let the clouds teach me a thing or twoabout release.And when that doesn’t work,I think about the way my mother’s body broke so that she could let me go—Yet another body broken for me.And when that doesn’t work,I find myself on my knees—a sort of coming home,And I pray,Teach me a thing or two about grace.Teach me a thing or two about letting go.And I inhale.And I exhale.Air drawn in.Air let go.And I recognize God in my lungs, and I can’t help but laugh,Easy and light
-LETTING GO

2 Corinthians 5:16-21; Luke 15:11b-32

I have come to believeThat it’s harder to cry under an open sky.So when life falls apart, throw open the windows.Invite the sun into your shadows.Lie in the grass and let the sun mistake you for flowers.Maybe this is step one in cultivating—For flowers do not grow by mistake.They need the sun, just like we need love,And time,And the grace to try again.So put your body where the light is.You’ll find God there.She is warmth.You will know it.And you will feel strong.So put your body where the light is.Maybe this is step one.
-SEEKING PRESENCE CULTIVATE

Isaiah 55:1-9; Luke 13:1-9

If the trees can do it, then so can I,At least that’s what I tell myself.For if year after year the trees can let goOf their brightest leaves and that warm autumn glow,Then maybe in time, like trees with their leaves,I can releaseThat which keeps me from you.Maybe in time, I can let goOf my need for certaintyAnd my need to look good,My need for busyness,And my need to numb pain;The trivial ways I measure my self-worth,Or the hurtful ways I measure yours.For if year after year the trees let go,Then maybe, in time, I can too.Maybe,In time,My heart will know spring.
-SEEKING PRESENCE LETTING GO

Psalm 27: Triumphant Song of Confidence; Luke 13:31-35: The Lament over Jerusalem

I wish I could cultivate my daysLike my mother’s favorite recipe,Blending together the sweetest things—Hope and love, you and me,Justice and peace,Music and dreams—Like spices pulled from the shelf on thewall.I’d add one cup of family,And one cup of grace.A dash of starry nights,A pinch of snow.One tablespoon of hope, and like oats,they would grow.A tablespoon of music and the hymnsthat I know.A cup for friends that feel more likefamily,A teaspoon of vanilla, for life’s sheerbeauty.Three teaspoons of summer, and onetablespoon of dreams.Plus half a cup for the church that raisedme,And half a cup for the moon thatserenades me.The instructions would read:Melt your love and whisk with justice untilit expands beyond the pan.Gently stir in all that you hope for. Cover,and let rise.Drizzle with a sweet glaze of mercy.Please be sure to leave heartache andgrief tucked on the shelfBeside comparison, doubt, fear, anddepression.Busyness will make this dish sour,As will grudges and gossip, which is not tomentionTrauma and loss, or my fragile bones.So use only the best ingredientsWhen you cultivate your life.For like your mother’s favorite recipe,These days are sacred.
-SEEKING PRESENCE CULTIVATE

Deuteronomy 26:1-11; Luke 4:1-13

Dear loved one—I hope you let go.I hope you let go of holding yourself to impossible standards.Lower the bar. Give yourself grace.God delights in who you are.And while you’re at it, I hope you let go of ignoring your beauty.The mirror is tired of your harsh words, for you are made of star stuff and music.You are the only you there is, and you. are. simply. stunning.And I hope you’ll consider letting go of certainty.For the sun will always rise and set, and you will always be loved.What more do we really need to know than that?So let go of your fear.Let go of perfection.Let go of busyness as a sign of your self worth,And the notion that creativity is a luxury.Be wild and free.Plant roots like a redwood,And a spine like a sunflower;For the days are short, and you are beautiful.I love nothing more than to see you happy.So don’t be afraid to let go.The only thing you cannot lose is God’s evergreen love.

-LETTING GO: A letter to someone I love

Exodus 34:29-35; Luke 9:28-36

“God places us in the world as fellow workers-agents of transfiguration. We workwith God so that injustice is transfigured into justice, so there will be morecompassion and caring, that there will be more laughter and joy, that there will bemore togetherness in God’s world.”
-Desmond Tutu